Ezekiel 38:12 in Light of the Omphalos Myth. Understanding Ezekiel 38:12 as referring to the naval of the earth can result in two interpretations.

1. It can be read as teaching that Jerusalem is the navel of the earth. In Terrien’s view, when the Israelites conquered the city of Jebus and renamed it Jerusalem (see Josh 15:8, 63; Judg 1:21), they adopted Canaanite beliefs of Jebus being the navel of the earth (Terrien, “Omphalos,” 316–17).

2. It can be read as using mythical language to highlight the importance of Jerusalem. As support for this view, Zimmerli points to similar language in Ezek 5:5, arguing that the earlier verse presents the same idea in nonmythical language, speaking of Jerusalem being “in the midst of the nations” (Zimmerli, Ezekiel, 2.311).