When does Yahweh first enter the religion of ancient Israel?

[Emily Lake]

It is also hard to draw the line between magic and religion, a further complication.

Why draw a line in the first place? They're both fantasy.

Yes, but there are different kinds of fantasy.

As an obvious case of difficulty in drawing that line, prayer is a form of magic called  Theurgy - making a deity / spirit / demon do one's will, whether by force or by persuasion.

The other main kind is  Thaumaturgy - miracle-working.

Oh come now, you're leaving a whole lot of other types of fantasy out of the mix. You know, like dragons and giants and space wizards and fairy godmothers...

 

[blastula]

This guy has a lot of good information about this. Especially interesting is the relation to Baal.



link