A Chimera is essentially a single organism that is made up of cells from two or more "individuals" -that is, it contains two sets of DNA, with the code to make two separate organisms.
In Medicine, Chimera is a person composed of two genetically distinct types of cells. Human chimeras were first discovered with the advent of blood typing when it was found that some people had more than one blood type. Most of them proved to be "blood chimeras" -non identical twins who shared a blood supply in the uterus. Those who were not twins are thought to have blood cells from a twin that died early during gestation. Twin embryos often share a blood supply in the placenta, allowing blood stem cells to pass from one and settle in the bone marrow of the other. About 8% of non-identical twins pairs are chimeras.
More commonly, people may exhibit so-called micro-chimerism, when a small fraction of their cells are from someone else, This can happen when a woman becomes pregnant and a small number of cells from the fetus migrate into her blood and travel to different organs. A 2015 study suggested that this happen in almost all pregnant women, at least temporarily. The researchers tested tissue samples from the kidneys, livers, spleens, lungs, hearts and brains of 26 women who died while pregnant or within one month of giving birth. The study found that the women had fetal cells in all of these tissues. The fatal cells were from the fetus, and not from the mother, because the cells contained a Y chromosome (found only in males) and all of the women had been carrying sons.
A person can also be a chimera if he or she undergoes a bone marrow transplant. His or her own bone marrow is destroyed and replaced with bone marrow from another person. Bone marrow contain stem cells that develop into red blood cells. This means that, for the rest of his or her life, a person with a bone marrow transplant will have blood cells that are genetically identical to those of the donor, and are not genetically the same as the other cells in the recipient's own body. In vitro fertilization is also contributing to the number of human chimeras. To improve success rates, two or more embryos are placed in the uterus so women who have in vitro fertilization have more twin pregnancies than usual. More twins mean more chimeras.
In Greek Mythology, the Chimera was a three headed fire-breathing creature with the body and head of a lion, a goat's head rising from its back, the udders of a goat, and a serpent for a tail. The word itself comes from the Greek "Xiuaipa,"which translates as "she-goat."
The Book of Revelation describes a modification of this chimera beast with a horse's body with human face, lion's teeth, dragon wings, and scorpion tail. The particular creature is instructed not to kill humans but to torment them for 5 months.
In the natural world, a manipulation of different species of the animal kingdom is needed to form a "chimera." In the days of Noah, this type of manipulation was done right before the Deluge. Satan, by himself, does not have the power to create, but he can use parts of the creation and mix them together forming a chimera of wickedness. This abomination is what drove God to destroy the planet before our time.
Genetic engineering, in our days, is the process of breaking the natural boundaries that exist between species to produce new life forms that will show a variety of desired traits, altering their natural genetic code. For example, genes from salmon is spliced into tomatoes to make them more resistant to cold weather, thereby yielding a larger crop when the weather is less than favorable or the harvest is out of season. Another example is the sheep-goat chimera created by English researchers in 1984, by combining the embryos of a goat and a sheep; the resulting animal showed cells of both sheep and goat origin. Their successful chimeras were a mosaic of goat and sheep tissue. The parts that grew from the sheep embryo were woolly and those who grew from the goat embryo were hairy. It should not be confused with a sheep-goat hybrid that is the natural result when a goat mates with a sheep. The sheep-goat chimera has 4 parents in contrast with the hybrid that has only 2 parents. The most convenient way of identified the chimera from the hybrid is to simply look at the animal's tail. The chimera's tail extends horizontally from the base of the spine combining the characteristic of a sheep's and goat's tail.
More research needs to be done on the effect of these genetically altered techniques on animals and food, on the environment and on the people eating them in the long term.
Companies are putting profits over safety and are provoking health, environmental and socioeconomic consequences by tampering with the alteration of the natural way of things.
The act of genetically alter the nature of things just predicts an inevitable catastrophe. The lack of diverse farming practices undermine the freedom of farmers making them dependent on the firms that specialize in GMO products.
Andean agriculture is one of the best examples of the adaptation and knowledge of the sacred connection of farmers to their environment for more than 7,000 years, with their terraces, natural irrigation systems, a variety of natural crops and livestock spread at different altitudes. The Andean people shows a strong social organization and cultural rituals as tribute to the Mother Earth. This Andean methods saved the world once from mass extinction during the Black Plague, because they used diversity as a tool of survival, not as a way of become rich.
Saturday, 30 June 2018
THE TEACHING OF THE ANCIENT OSTRICH.
Some 50 million years ago, a flightless tropical bird, related to the ostrich, roamed the forests of North America. The continent was a very different place, it was a tropical forest. This subspecies became extinct as the tropical forests began to disappear. Today, their relatives can be found in continents like Africa and Australia, some of them living in the wild, and a few of them living among humans.
A well-preserved fossil of one of the ancient species of ostriches was discovered in a former lake bed in Wyoming (now blanketed in desert sands) known for its well-preserved fish fossils. Due to the delicate nature of bird bones, intact ancient bird fossils are rare. But he skeleton of the ancient ostrich was found still with some of its feathers and soft tissues preserved.
The ancient Egyptians were familiar with ancient ostriches that lived in large parts of Northern Africa (now blanketed in desert sands). They were aware of the remarkable early morning behavior of these flightless birds when they run around flapping their wings. Ahmose I was described in a stela as being "like Atem in the East of the sky when the ostriches dance in the Valleys." The ostrich feather was the symbol of the goddess Maat who wore it on her head. It was the weight of the feather against which the heart of the deceased was weighed in the Judgment of the Dead. According to Hor'Apollo: "The man rendering justice to all, was represented by the ostrich feather; because that bird, unlike others, has all its feathers equal.
The Arabian ostrich or Syrian ostrich is another extinct subspecies of the ostrich that lived on the Arabian Peninsula and in Near East until the mid-20th century. An adult ostrich with 11 offspring is featured on the famous prehistoric "Graffiti Rock I" near Riyadh (capital and most populous city of Saudi Arabia). In Mesopotamia, the ostrich was used as a sacrificial animal (ritual killing) and featured in artwork, painted on cups and othet objects made from ostrich eggs, traded as far as Etruria (Central Italy, part of what are now Tuscany, Lazio, and Umbria) during the time of the Assyrian Empire.
In China, during the Tang dynasty (618-907), an imperial dynasty preceded by the Sui and followed by the 5 Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms period and generally regarded as a high point in Chinese civilization, an Arabian ostrich was a very welcome exotic gift for an emperor. A Tang source states that the "camel bird" inhabiting Arabia is 'four chi (unit of measurement) and more in height, its feet resembling those of a camel; its neck is very strong, and men are able to ride on its back ..." . Ostriches figure in the decoration of the Qian'ling Mausoleum tomb site located in Qian County, Sha'Anxi province, formerly the Tang capital. It was built by 684, with additional construction until 706, and houses the remains of various members of the House of Li, the imperial line of the Tangs.
In Roman times, there was a demand for ostriches to use in a type of entertainment (venatio games)in amphitheaters involving the hunting and killing of wild animals, and/or cooking. The ostriches usually came from from the North African subspecies rather than from the Arabian one. The plumes of the Arabian ostrich were considered superior material for hat-making or head-wear compared to those of the North African subspecies.
After the rise of Islam, the Arabian ostrich came to represent wealth and elegance; ostrich hunting became a popular pastime for the rich and noble (if slaughtered properly, the meat is 'Halaal' to Muslims) and eggs, feathers and leather were extensively used in handicraft. Arabian ostrich products, as well as live birds, were exported to China.
The widespread introduction of firearms, later, motor vehicles marked the start of the decline towards extinction of this subspecies. Earlier hunting methods with bow, arrows and dogs had allowed most animals of a group to escape, but rifles enabled poaching and excessive game hunting to diminish the species into extinction.
In the Book of Job, chapter 39, we find these verses saying, "The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, though they cannot compare with the wings and feathers of the stork. She lays her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand, unmindful that a foot may crush them, or that some wild animal may trample them. She treats her young harshly (Lamentation 4:3, Even jackals offer their breast to nurse their young, but My People have become heartless like ostriches in the desert), as if they were not hers; she cares not that her labor was in vain, for God did not endow her with wisdom or give her a share of good sense. Yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at the horse and its rider."
God reminds Job of the arrangements of growth and maturity He had engineered for the natural order that we as humans are not able to understand. Though Job did not know these principles of natural order, seeing it, he had to admit that they all seemed to work in harmony. All of this brought to him another truth: "Job meditate about it and thought, 'I see that this world made by God operates with remarkable order and wisdom; can I deny His Wisdom and Government Of All Things just because there are things in my own life I can't understand? Or, should I simply trust this God Who does all these other things so marvelous well."
A well-preserved fossil of one of the ancient species of ostriches was discovered in a former lake bed in Wyoming (now blanketed in desert sands) known for its well-preserved fish fossils. Due to the delicate nature of bird bones, intact ancient bird fossils are rare. But he skeleton of the ancient ostrich was found still with some of its feathers and soft tissues preserved.
The ancient Egyptians were familiar with ancient ostriches that lived in large parts of Northern Africa (now blanketed in desert sands). They were aware of the remarkable early morning behavior of these flightless birds when they run around flapping their wings. Ahmose I was described in a stela as being "like Atem in the East of the sky when the ostriches dance in the Valleys." The ostrich feather was the symbol of the goddess Maat who wore it on her head. It was the weight of the feather against which the heart of the deceased was weighed in the Judgment of the Dead. According to Hor'Apollo: "The man rendering justice to all, was represented by the ostrich feather; because that bird, unlike others, has all its feathers equal.
The Arabian ostrich or Syrian ostrich is another extinct subspecies of the ostrich that lived on the Arabian Peninsula and in Near East until the mid-20th century. An adult ostrich with 11 offspring is featured on the famous prehistoric "Graffiti Rock I" near Riyadh (capital and most populous city of Saudi Arabia). In Mesopotamia, the ostrich was used as a sacrificial animal (ritual killing) and featured in artwork, painted on cups and othet objects made from ostrich eggs, traded as far as Etruria (Central Italy, part of what are now Tuscany, Lazio, and Umbria) during the time of the Assyrian Empire.
In China, during the Tang dynasty (618-907), an imperial dynasty preceded by the Sui and followed by the 5 Dynasties and 10 Kingdoms period and generally regarded as a high point in Chinese civilization, an Arabian ostrich was a very welcome exotic gift for an emperor. A Tang source states that the "camel bird" inhabiting Arabia is 'four chi (unit of measurement) and more in height, its feet resembling those of a camel; its neck is very strong, and men are able to ride on its back ..." . Ostriches figure in the decoration of the Qian'ling Mausoleum tomb site located in Qian County, Sha'Anxi province, formerly the Tang capital. It was built by 684, with additional construction until 706, and houses the remains of various members of the House of Li, the imperial line of the Tangs.
In Roman times, there was a demand for ostriches to use in a type of entertainment (venatio games)in amphitheaters involving the hunting and killing of wild animals, and/or cooking. The ostriches usually came from from the North African subspecies rather than from the Arabian one. The plumes of the Arabian ostrich were considered superior material for hat-making or head-wear compared to those of the North African subspecies.
After the rise of Islam, the Arabian ostrich came to represent wealth and elegance; ostrich hunting became a popular pastime for the rich and noble (if slaughtered properly, the meat is 'Halaal' to Muslims) and eggs, feathers and leather were extensively used in handicraft. Arabian ostrich products, as well as live birds, were exported to China.
The widespread introduction of firearms, later, motor vehicles marked the start of the decline towards extinction of this subspecies. Earlier hunting methods with bow, arrows and dogs had allowed most animals of a group to escape, but rifles enabled poaching and excessive game hunting to diminish the species into extinction.
In the Book of Job, chapter 39, we find these verses saying, "The wings of the ostrich flap joyfully, though they cannot compare with the wings and feathers of the stork. She lays her eggs on the ground and lets them warm in the sand, unmindful that a foot may crush them, or that some wild animal may trample them. She treats her young harshly (Lamentation 4:3, Even jackals offer their breast to nurse their young, but My People have become heartless like ostriches in the desert), as if they were not hers; she cares not that her labor was in vain, for God did not endow her with wisdom or give her a share of good sense. Yet when she spreads her feathers to run, she laughs at the horse and its rider."
God reminds Job of the arrangements of growth and maturity He had engineered for the natural order that we as humans are not able to understand. Though Job did not know these principles of natural order, seeing it, he had to admit that they all seemed to work in harmony. All of this brought to him another truth: "Job meditate about it and thought, 'I see that this world made by God operates with remarkable order and wisdom; can I deny His Wisdom and Government Of All Things just because there are things in my own life I can't understand? Or, should I simply trust this God Who does all these other things so marvelous well."
Wednesday, 27 June 2018
SCRIPTURAL VERSES ABOUT SUPERNATURAL POWERS.
Deuteronomy17: Guidelines for a King .- "You will soon arrive in the Land the Lord Your God is giving you, and you will Conquer It and Settle There. Then you may begin to think, 'We ought to have a king like the other nations around us.' If this happens, be sure that you select as king the Man the Lord Your God Chooses. You must appoint a fellow Israelite, not a foreigner. The king must Not Build Up a large stable of Horses for Himself, and he must never send his people to Egypt to buy horses there, for the Lord Has Told you, 'You Must Never Return to Egypt.' The king must not take many wives for himself, because they will lead him away from the Lord. And he must not accumulate vast amounts of wealth in silver and gold for himself. When he sits on the throne as king, he must copy these Laws on a scroll for himself in the presence of the levitical priests. He must always keep this copy of the (spiritual) Law with him and read it daily as long as he lives. That way he will learn to Fear the Lord His god by obeying All the Terms Of This Law. This regular reading will prevent him from becoming proud and and acting as if he is above his fellow citizens. It will also prevent him from turning away from These Commands in the smallest way. This will ensure that he and his descendants will reign for many generations in Israel." (14-20)
Deuteronomy 18: A Call to Spiritual Power .- When you arrive in the Land the Lord Your God is giving you, Be Very Careful Not To Imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering. And do not let your people practice fortune-telling or sorcery, or allow them to interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is an object of horror and disgust to the Lord. It is because the other nations have done these things that the Lord your God will drive them out ahead of you. You Must Be Blameless Before the Lord Your God. The people you are about to displace consult with sorcerers and fortune-tellers, but the Lord Your God Forbids you to do such things." (9-14) .... "For this is what you yourselves requested of the Lord Your God when you were assembled at Mount Sinai. You begged that you might never again have to listen to the Voice of the Lord Your God or see this Blazing Fire for fear you would die. Then the Lord said to me (Moises), 'Fine, I will do as they have requested. I will raise up a Prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will tell that Prophet what to say, and he will tell the people everything I Command him. I Will Personally Deal With Anyone Who Will Not Listen to the Messages the prophet proclaims On My Behalf. But any prophet who claims to give a message from another god or who falsely claims to speak for Me must die.' You may wonder, 'How will we know whether the Prophecy is from the Lord or not?' If the Prophecy predicts something In the Lord's Name and it does not happen, the Lord did not give the message. The prophet has spoken on his own and need not be feared."(15-22)
Hebrew 4: The Promised Rest For God's People.- God's Promise of entering His Place of Rest still stands, so we ought to tremble with fear that some of you might fail to get there. For this Good News
-that God has prepared a Place of Rest- has been announced to us just as it was to them. But it did them no good because they did not believe what God told them. ... This new Place of Rest was not the land of Canaan, where Joshua led them. If it had been, God would not have spoken later about Another Day of Rest. So there is a Special Rest still waiting for the People of God. ... Let us do our best to enter that Place of Rest. For anyone who disobey God, as the people of Israel did, will fall. For the Word of God is Full Of Living Power. It is Sharper Than The Sharpest Knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are. Nothing in all creation can hide from Him. Everything is naked and exposed before His Eyes. This is the God to Whom we must explain all that we have done." (1-13)
Hebrew 2:1 So we must listen very carefully to the Truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it.
Hebrew 1:14 Angels are only servants.They are spirits sent from God to care for those who will receive salvation.
Matthew 28:18 "Jesus came and told His Disciples, 'I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. ... Teach these new disciples to obey all the Commands I Have Given you.
Job 26: Job's Ninth Speech: A response to Bildad.- Then Job spoke again: "How you have helped the powerless! How you have saved a person who have no strength! How you have enlightened my stupidity! What wise things you have said! Where have you gotten all these wise sayings! Whose spirit speaks through you?" (1-4) "The dead tremble in their place beneath the waters. The underworld is naked in God's presence. There is no cover for the place of destruction." (5-6)
Ephesians 6: The Whole Armor of God.- "Be strong with the Lord's Mighty Power. Put on all of God's Armor so that you will be able to Stand Firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil. For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of Darkness who rule this world and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. use every piece of God's Armor to resist the enemy in the Time Of Evil, so that after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the Sturdy Belt Of Truth and the Body Armor of God's Righteousness. For Shoes, put on the Peace that Comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared. In every battle you will need Faith as Your Shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. Put on Salvation as your Helmet and take the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Pray at all times and on every occasion In The Power Of The Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere." (10-18)
Deuteronomy 18: A Call to Spiritual Power .- When you arrive in the Land the Lord Your God is giving you, Be Very Careful Not To Imitate the detestable customs of the nations living there. For example, never sacrifice your son or daughter as a burnt offering. And do not let your people practice fortune-telling or sorcery, or allow them to interpret omens, or engage in witchcraft, or cast spells, or function as mediums or psychics, or call forth the spirits of the dead. Anyone who does these things is an object of horror and disgust to the Lord. It is because the other nations have done these things that the Lord your God will drive them out ahead of you. You Must Be Blameless Before the Lord Your God. The people you are about to displace consult with sorcerers and fortune-tellers, but the Lord Your God Forbids you to do such things." (9-14) .... "For this is what you yourselves requested of the Lord Your God when you were assembled at Mount Sinai. You begged that you might never again have to listen to the Voice of the Lord Your God or see this Blazing Fire for fear you would die. Then the Lord said to me (Moises), 'Fine, I will do as they have requested. I will raise up a Prophet like you from among their fellow Israelites. I will tell that Prophet what to say, and he will tell the people everything I Command him. I Will Personally Deal With Anyone Who Will Not Listen to the Messages the prophet proclaims On My Behalf. But any prophet who claims to give a message from another god or who falsely claims to speak for Me must die.' You may wonder, 'How will we know whether the Prophecy is from the Lord or not?' If the Prophecy predicts something In the Lord's Name and it does not happen, the Lord did not give the message. The prophet has spoken on his own and need not be feared."(15-22)
Hebrew 4: The Promised Rest For God's People.- God's Promise of entering His Place of Rest still stands, so we ought to tremble with fear that some of you might fail to get there. For this Good News
-that God has prepared a Place of Rest- has been announced to us just as it was to them. But it did them no good because they did not believe what God told them. ... This new Place of Rest was not the land of Canaan, where Joshua led them. If it had been, God would not have spoken later about Another Day of Rest. So there is a Special Rest still waiting for the People of God. ... Let us do our best to enter that Place of Rest. For anyone who disobey God, as the people of Israel did, will fall. For the Word of God is Full Of Living Power. It is Sharper Than The Sharpest Knife, cutting deep into our innermost thoughts and desires. It exposes us for what we really are. Nothing in all creation can hide from Him. Everything is naked and exposed before His Eyes. This is the God to Whom we must explain all that we have done." (1-13)
Hebrew 2:1 So we must listen very carefully to the Truth we have heard, or we may drift away from it.
Hebrew 1:14 Angels are only servants.They are spirits sent from God to care for those who will receive salvation.
Matthew 28:18 "Jesus came and told His Disciples, 'I have been given complete authority in heaven and on earth. ... Teach these new disciples to obey all the Commands I Have Given you.
Job 26: Job's Ninth Speech: A response to Bildad.- Then Job spoke again: "How you have helped the powerless! How you have saved a person who have no strength! How you have enlightened my stupidity! What wise things you have said! Where have you gotten all these wise sayings! Whose spirit speaks through you?" (1-4) "The dead tremble in their place beneath the waters. The underworld is naked in God's presence. There is no cover for the place of destruction." (5-6)
Ephesians 6: The Whole Armor of God.- "Be strong with the Lord's Mighty Power. Put on all of God's Armor so that you will be able to Stand Firm against all strategies and tricks of the Devil. For we are not fighting against people made of flesh and blood, but against the evil rulers and authorities of the unseen world, against those mighty powers of Darkness who rule this world and against wicked spirits in the heavenly realms. use every piece of God's Armor to resist the enemy in the Time Of Evil, so that after the battle you will still be standing firm. Stand your ground, putting on the Sturdy Belt Of Truth and the Body Armor of God's Righteousness. For Shoes, put on the Peace that Comes from the Good News, so that you will be fully prepared. In every battle you will need Faith as Your Shield to stop the fiery arrows aimed at you by Satan. Put on Salvation as your Helmet and take the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Pray at all times and on every occasion In The Power Of The Holy Spirit. Stay alert and be persistent in your prayers for all believers everywhere." (10-18)
SCRIPTURAL VERSES ABOUT SUPERNATURAL POWERS.
Luke 10: Jesus Sends Out His Disciples.- The Lord now chose 72 other disciples and sent them on ahead in pairs to all the Towns and Villages He planned to visit. These were His Instructions to them: "The harvest is so great, but the workers are so few. Pray to the Lord Who Is In Charge of the harvest and ask Him to send out more workers for His Fields. Go now, and remember that I Am sending you out as Lambs Among Wolves. Do not take along any (spiritual) money, or a traveler's bag, or even an extra pair of (spiritual) sandals. And do not stop to greet anyone On The Road. Whenever you enter a home, Give It Your Blessing. If those who live there are worthy, The Blessing Will Stand; if they are not, The Blessing Will Return To You. When you enter a town, do not move around from home to home. Stay In One Place, eating and drinking what they provide you. Do not hesitate to Accept Hospitality, because those who work deserve their pay. If a town welcomes you, eat whatever is set before you and Heal the Sick. As you heal them say: 'The Kingdom of God Is Near You Now.' But if a town refuses to welcome you, go out into its streets and say: 'We Wipe the Dust of Your Town from Our Feet as a public announcement of your doom. And do not forget the Kingdom of God Is Near!' The Truth is, even wicked Sodom will be better off than such a Town on the Judgment Day.' "(1-12)
"What horrors await you, Kora'Zin and Beth'Saida! For if the Miracles I Did In You had been done In Wicked Tyre and Sid'On, their people would have Sat In Deep Repentance long ago, clothed in sackcloth and throwing ashes on their heads to Show their Remorse. Yes, Tyre and Sid'On will be better off on the Judgment Day than you. And you people of (spiritual) Caper'Naum, will you Be Exalted To Heaven? No, you will be brought down to the Place Of The Dead." (13-15)
Then He said to the disciples, "Anyone who Accepts your (spiritual) Message Is Also Accepting Me. And anyone who Rejects you is Rejecting Me. And anyone who rejects Me is Rejecting God Who Sent Me." When the 72 disciples returned, they joyfully reported to Him, "Lord, even demons obey us when we use Your Name!" "Yes," He told them, "I saw Satan falling from heaven as a flash of lightning! And I Have Given You Authority over all the power of the enemy, and You Can Walk Among Snakes and Scorpions and crush them. Nothing Will Injure You. But do not rejoice because Evil Spirits Obey You; Rejoice because Your Names Are Registered As Citizens Of Heaven." (16-20)
Isaiah 48: God's Stubborn People.- "Listen to Me, O family of Jacob (living in the flesh) and born into the family of Judah. Listen, you who take oaths in the Name of the Lord and call on the God of Israel. You do not follow through on any of your promises, even though you call yourself the Holy City and talk about depending on the God of Israel, whose Name Is Lord Almighty. Tima and again I warned you about what was going to happen in the future. Then suddenly I Took Action, and All My Predictions Came True. I know how stubborn and obstinate you are. Your necks are as unbending as iron. You are as hardheaded as bronze. That is why I told you ahead of time what I was going to do. That way, You could never say, 'My idols did it. My wooden image and metal god commanded it to happen.' You have heard My Predictions and seen them fulfilled, but you refuse to admit it. Now I will tell you New Things I have not mentioned before, not things from the past. So you cannot say, 'We knew that all the time!' Yes, I will tell you of things that are entirely knew, for I Know so well what Traitors You Are. You have been rebels from your earliest childhood, Rotten Through and Through. Yet for My Own Sake and for the Honor of My Name, I will hold back My Anger and Not Wipe You Out. I have refined you but not in the way silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the Furnace of Suffering. I will rescue you for My Sake -Yes, for My Own Sake! That way, the wicked nations will not be able to claim that their gods have conquered Me. I will not let them have My Glory.
Isiah 46: False Gods.- "The idols of Babyl'On, Bel and Nebo, are being hauled away on ox carts. But look! The beasts are staggering under the weight! Both the idols and the ones carrying them are bowed down. The gods cannot protect the people, and the people cannot protect the gods. They go off into (spiritual) captivity together. Listen to me, all you who are left in Israel. I created you and have cared for you since before you were born. I Will Be Your God throughout your lifetime -until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you, I will carry you along and save you. " (1-4)
"To whom will you compare Me? Who is My Equal? Some people pour out their silver and gold and hire a craftsman to make a god from it. Then they bow down and worship it! They carry it around on their shoulders, and when they set it down, it stays there. It cannot even move! And when someone prays to it, there is no answer. It has no power to get anyone out of trouble." (5-7)
"Do not forget this, you guilty ones. And Do Not Forget the Things I Have Done throughout history. For I Am God -I Alone! I Am God, and there is No One Else Like Me. Only I Can Tell you What Is Going To Happen even before it happens. Everything I Plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish. I will call a Swift Bird Of Prey from the East -a leader from a distant land who will come and do My bidding. I have said I would do it, and I will. Listen to Me, you stubborn, Evil people! For I Am ready to Set Things Right, not in the distance future, but right now! I Am ready to save Jerusalem and give My Glory to Israel.
Isaiah 47: Babyl'On Fall .- "Come Babyl'On, unconquered one, sit in the dust. For your Days of glory, pomp, and honor have ended. O daughter of Babyl'Onia, never again will you be the lovely princess, tender and delicate. Take heavy millstones and grind the corn. Remove your veil and strip off your robe. Expose yourself to public view. You will be naked and burdened with shame. I will take vengeance against you and will not negotiate." (1-3)
"Our Redeemer, Whose Name Is The Lord Almighty, Is The Holy One Of Israel. O daughter of Babyl'On, sit now in Darkness and silence. Never again will you be known as the Queen of Kingdoms.
For I was Angry With My Chosen People and began their punishment by letting them fall into your hands. But you, Babyl'On, showed them no mercy. You have forced even the elderly to carry heavy burdens. You thought, 'I will reign forever as Queen of the World!' You did not care at all about My People or think about the consequences of your actions. You are a Pleasure-Crazy kingdom, living at ease and feeling secure, bragging as if you were the greatest in the world! You say, 'I am self-sufficient and not accountable to anyone!I will never be a widow or lose my children!' Well, those two things will come upon you in a moment: widowhood and the loss of your children. Yes, these calamities will come upon you, despite all Your Witchcraft and Magic." (4-9)
"You feel secure in All Your Wickedness. 'No one sees me,' you said. Your so called 'Wisdom' and 'Knowledge' have caused you to turn away from Me and claim, 'I am self-sufficient and not accountable to anyone!' So disaster will overtake you suddenly, and you won't be able to charm it away. Calamity will fall upon you, and you won't be able to buy your way out. A catastrophe will arise so fast that you won't know what hit you." (10-11)
"Call out the Demon Hordes you have worshiped all these years. Ask them to help you strike Terror into the Hearts of people once again. You have more than enough advisers, astrologers, and stargazers.
Let them stand up and save you from what the future holds. But they are as useless as dried grass burning in a fire. They cannot even save themselves! You will get no help from them at all. Their hearth is not a place to sit for warmth. And all your friends, those with whom you have done business since childhood, will slip away and disappear, unable to help." (12-15)
"What horrors await you, Kora'Zin and Beth'Saida! For if the Miracles I Did In You had been done In Wicked Tyre and Sid'On, their people would have Sat In Deep Repentance long ago, clothed in sackcloth and throwing ashes on their heads to Show their Remorse. Yes, Tyre and Sid'On will be better off on the Judgment Day than you. And you people of (spiritual) Caper'Naum, will you Be Exalted To Heaven? No, you will be brought down to the Place Of The Dead." (13-15)
Then He said to the disciples, "Anyone who Accepts your (spiritual) Message Is Also Accepting Me. And anyone who Rejects you is Rejecting Me. And anyone who rejects Me is Rejecting God Who Sent Me." When the 72 disciples returned, they joyfully reported to Him, "Lord, even demons obey us when we use Your Name!" "Yes," He told them, "I saw Satan falling from heaven as a flash of lightning! And I Have Given You Authority over all the power of the enemy, and You Can Walk Among Snakes and Scorpions and crush them. Nothing Will Injure You. But do not rejoice because Evil Spirits Obey You; Rejoice because Your Names Are Registered As Citizens Of Heaven." (16-20)
Isaiah 48: God's Stubborn People.- "Listen to Me, O family of Jacob (living in the flesh) and born into the family of Judah. Listen, you who take oaths in the Name of the Lord and call on the God of Israel. You do not follow through on any of your promises, even though you call yourself the Holy City and talk about depending on the God of Israel, whose Name Is Lord Almighty. Tima and again I warned you about what was going to happen in the future. Then suddenly I Took Action, and All My Predictions Came True. I know how stubborn and obstinate you are. Your necks are as unbending as iron. You are as hardheaded as bronze. That is why I told you ahead of time what I was going to do. That way, You could never say, 'My idols did it. My wooden image and metal god commanded it to happen.' You have heard My Predictions and seen them fulfilled, but you refuse to admit it. Now I will tell you New Things I have not mentioned before, not things from the past. So you cannot say, 'We knew that all the time!' Yes, I will tell you of things that are entirely knew, for I Know so well what Traitors You Are. You have been rebels from your earliest childhood, Rotten Through and Through. Yet for My Own Sake and for the Honor of My Name, I will hold back My Anger and Not Wipe You Out. I have refined you but not in the way silver is refined. Rather, I have refined you in the Furnace of Suffering. I will rescue you for My Sake -Yes, for My Own Sake! That way, the wicked nations will not be able to claim that their gods have conquered Me. I will not let them have My Glory.
Isiah 46: False Gods.- "The idols of Babyl'On, Bel and Nebo, are being hauled away on ox carts. But look! The beasts are staggering under the weight! Both the idols and the ones carrying them are bowed down. The gods cannot protect the people, and the people cannot protect the gods. They go off into (spiritual) captivity together. Listen to me, all you who are left in Israel. I created you and have cared for you since before you were born. I Will Be Your God throughout your lifetime -until your hair is white with age. I made you, and I will care for you, I will carry you along and save you. " (1-4)
"To whom will you compare Me? Who is My Equal? Some people pour out their silver and gold and hire a craftsman to make a god from it. Then they bow down and worship it! They carry it around on their shoulders, and when they set it down, it stays there. It cannot even move! And when someone prays to it, there is no answer. It has no power to get anyone out of trouble." (5-7)
"Do not forget this, you guilty ones. And Do Not Forget the Things I Have Done throughout history. For I Am God -I Alone! I Am God, and there is No One Else Like Me. Only I Can Tell you What Is Going To Happen even before it happens. Everything I Plan will come to pass, for I do whatever I wish. I will call a Swift Bird Of Prey from the East -a leader from a distant land who will come and do My bidding. I have said I would do it, and I will. Listen to Me, you stubborn, Evil people! For I Am ready to Set Things Right, not in the distance future, but right now! I Am ready to save Jerusalem and give My Glory to Israel.
Isaiah 47: Babyl'On Fall .- "Come Babyl'On, unconquered one, sit in the dust. For your Days of glory, pomp, and honor have ended. O daughter of Babyl'Onia, never again will you be the lovely princess, tender and delicate. Take heavy millstones and grind the corn. Remove your veil and strip off your robe. Expose yourself to public view. You will be naked and burdened with shame. I will take vengeance against you and will not negotiate." (1-3)
"Our Redeemer, Whose Name Is The Lord Almighty, Is The Holy One Of Israel. O daughter of Babyl'On, sit now in Darkness and silence. Never again will you be known as the Queen of Kingdoms.
For I was Angry With My Chosen People and began their punishment by letting them fall into your hands. But you, Babyl'On, showed them no mercy. You have forced even the elderly to carry heavy burdens. You thought, 'I will reign forever as Queen of the World!' You did not care at all about My People or think about the consequences of your actions. You are a Pleasure-Crazy kingdom, living at ease and feeling secure, bragging as if you were the greatest in the world! You say, 'I am self-sufficient and not accountable to anyone!I will never be a widow or lose my children!' Well, those two things will come upon you in a moment: widowhood and the loss of your children. Yes, these calamities will come upon you, despite all Your Witchcraft and Magic." (4-9)
"You feel secure in All Your Wickedness. 'No one sees me,' you said. Your so called 'Wisdom' and 'Knowledge' have caused you to turn away from Me and claim, 'I am self-sufficient and not accountable to anyone!' So disaster will overtake you suddenly, and you won't be able to charm it away. Calamity will fall upon you, and you won't be able to buy your way out. A catastrophe will arise so fast that you won't know what hit you." (10-11)
"Call out the Demon Hordes you have worshiped all these years. Ask them to help you strike Terror into the Hearts of people once again. You have more than enough advisers, astrologers, and stargazers.
Let them stand up and save you from what the future holds. But they are as useless as dried grass burning in a fire. They cannot even save themselves! You will get no help from them at all. Their hearth is not a place to sit for warmth. And all your friends, those with whom you have done business since childhood, will slip away and disappear, unable to help." (12-15)
Tuesday, 26 June 2018
MORE SCRIPTURAL VERSES ABOUT THE UNDERWORLD.
1 Kings 2: David's Final Instructions to Solomon.- "As the time of the King David's death approached, he gave this charge to his son Solomon: 'I am going where everyone on earth must someday go. Take courage and be a man. Observe the requirements of the Lord your God and follow all His Ways. Keep each of the Laws, Commands, Regulations, and Stipulations written in the Law of Moses so that you will be successful in all you do and wherever you go. If you do this, then the Lord will keep the promise He made to me: If your descendants live as they should and follow me faithfully with all their heart and soul, one of them will always sit on the throne of Israel.' 'An there is something else: You know that Joab son of Zeru'Iah murdered my 2 army commanders, Ab'Ner son of Ner and Am'Asa son of Jet'Her. He pretended that it was an act of war, but it was done in a time of peace, staining his belt and sandals with the blood of war. Do with him what you think best, but do not let him die in peace.' "
"Be kind to the sons of Bar'Zill'Ai of Gilead. Make them permanent guests of the king, for they took care of me when I fled from your brother Ab'Salom. And remember Shim'Ei son of Gera, the man from Bah'Urim in Benjamin. He cursed me with a terrible curse as I was fleeing to Mah'Anaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I swore by the Lord that I would not kill him. But that oath does not make him innocent. You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him." Then David die and was buried in the City of David. He had reigned over Israel for 40 years, seven of them in Hebr'On and thirty-three in Jerusalem. Solomon succeeded him as king, replacing his father, David, and he was firmly established on the throne. (1-12)
2 Kings 21: Manasseh Rules in Judah.- "Manasseh was 12 years old when he became king and he reigned in Jerusalem 55 years. His mother was Heph'Zi'Bah. He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, imitating the detestable practices of the nations whom the Lord had driven from the Land ahead of the Israelites. He rebuilt the shrines his father, Hezek'Iah, had destroyed. He constructed altars for Ba'Al and set up an Ash'Erah pole, just as King Ah'Ab of Israel had done. He also bowed before all the forces of heaven and worshiped them. He even built altars in the Temple of the Lord, the place where the Lord had said His Name should be honored. He built these altars for all the forces of heaven in both courtyards of the Lord's Temple. Manasseh even sacrificed his own son in the fire. He practiced sorcery and divination, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord's sight, arousing His Anger. Manasseh even took an Ash'Erah pole he had made and set it up in the Temple, the very place where the Lord had told David and his son Solomon: 'My Name will be honored here forever in this Temple and in Jerusalem -the city I have chosen from among all the other tribes of Israel. If the Israelites will obet My Commands -the whole Law that was given through my servant Moses -I will not send them into exile from this Land that I gave their ancestors.' But the people refused to listen, and Manasseh led them to do even more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed when the Israelites entered the Land." (1-9)
2 Chronicles 33: Manasseh Rules in Judah.- ... "Manasseh also bowed before all the stars of heaven and worshiped them ... He built altars and put these altars in both courtyards of the Lord's temple. Manasseh even sacrificed his own sons in the fire in the Valley of the son of Hin'Nom (Ben-Hin'Nom) and practiced divination, omen reading, and sorcery. He set up a ritual pit to conjure up evil spirits and appointed magicians to supervise it. (3-6)
1 Chronicles 10: The Death of King Saul. "Now the Philistines attacked Israel, forcing them to flee. Many were slaughtered on the slopes of Mount Gilboa. The Philistines closed in on Saul and his sons, and they killed 3 of his sons -Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malkishua. The fighting grew very fierce around Saul, and the Philistines archers caught up with him and wounded him severely. Saul groaned to his armor bearer, 'Take your sword and run me through before these Philistines come and humiliate me.' But his armor bearer was afraid and would not do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it. When his armor bearer realized that Saul was dead, he fell on his own sword and died. So Saul and his 3 sons died there together, bringing his dynasty to an end. When the Israelites in the Jez'Reel Valley saw that their army had been routed and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their towns and fled. So the Philistines moved in and occupied their towns. The next day when the Philistines went out to strip the dead, they found the bodies of Saul and his sons on Mount Gilboa. So they stripped off Saul's armor and cut off his head. Then they proclaimed the news of Saul's death before their idols and to the people throughout the Land of Philistia. They placed his armor in the temple of their gods, and they fastened his head to the wall in the temple of Dagon. But when the people of Jabesh-Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, their warriors went out and brought the bodies of Saul and his 3 sons back to Jabesh. Then they buried their remains beneath the Oak tree at Jabesh, and they fasted for 7 days. So Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord. He failed to obey the Lord's Command, and he even consulted a medium instead of asking the Lord for guidance. So the Lord killed him and turned his kingdom over to David son of Jesse. (1-14)
Psalm 10: 15-17.- "Nations have fallen into the pit they dug for others. They have been caught in their own trap. The Lord is known for His Justice. The wicked have trapped themselves in their own snares.
The wicked will go down to the grave. This is the fate of all nations who ignore God."
Psalm 31: 9-17.- "Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am in distress. My sight is blurred because of my tears
My body and soul are withering away. I am dying from grief; my years are shortened by sadness. Misery has drained my strength; I am wasting away from within.. I have been ignored as if I were dead, as if I were a broken pot... My enemies conspire against me, plotting to take my life. But I am trusting You, O Lord, saying, 'You are My God!' My future is in Your Hands. Rescue me from those who hunt me down relentlessly. let Your favor shine on Your servant. In Your unfailing Love, save me. Don't let me be disgraced , O Lord, for I call out to You for help. Let the wicked be disgraced; let them lie silent in the grave.
"Be kind to the sons of Bar'Zill'Ai of Gilead. Make them permanent guests of the king, for they took care of me when I fled from your brother Ab'Salom. And remember Shim'Ei son of Gera, the man from Bah'Urim in Benjamin. He cursed me with a terrible curse as I was fleeing to Mah'Anaim. When he came down to meet me at the Jordan River, I swore by the Lord that I would not kill him. But that oath does not make him innocent. You are a wise man, and you will know how to arrange a bloody death for him." Then David die and was buried in the City of David. He had reigned over Israel for 40 years, seven of them in Hebr'On and thirty-three in Jerusalem. Solomon succeeded him as king, replacing his father, David, and he was firmly established on the throne. (1-12)
2 Kings 21: Manasseh Rules in Judah.- "Manasseh was 12 years old when he became king and he reigned in Jerusalem 55 years. His mother was Heph'Zi'Bah. He did what was evil in the Lord's sight, imitating the detestable practices of the nations whom the Lord had driven from the Land ahead of the Israelites. He rebuilt the shrines his father, Hezek'Iah, had destroyed. He constructed altars for Ba'Al and set up an Ash'Erah pole, just as King Ah'Ab of Israel had done. He also bowed before all the forces of heaven and worshiped them. He even built altars in the Temple of the Lord, the place where the Lord had said His Name should be honored. He built these altars for all the forces of heaven in both courtyards of the Lord's Temple. Manasseh even sacrificed his own son in the fire. He practiced sorcery and divination, and he consulted with mediums and psychics. He did much that was evil in the Lord's sight, arousing His Anger. Manasseh even took an Ash'Erah pole he had made and set it up in the Temple, the very place where the Lord had told David and his son Solomon: 'My Name will be honored here forever in this Temple and in Jerusalem -the city I have chosen from among all the other tribes of Israel. If the Israelites will obet My Commands -the whole Law that was given through my servant Moses -I will not send them into exile from this Land that I gave their ancestors.' But the people refused to listen, and Manasseh led them to do even more evil than the nations whom the Lord had destroyed when the Israelites entered the Land." (1-9)
2 Chronicles 33: Manasseh Rules in Judah.- ... "Manasseh also bowed before all the stars of heaven and worshiped them ... He built altars and put these altars in both courtyards of the Lord's temple. Manasseh even sacrificed his own sons in the fire in the Valley of the son of Hin'Nom (Ben-Hin'Nom) and practiced divination, omen reading, and sorcery. He set up a ritual pit to conjure up evil spirits and appointed magicians to supervise it. (3-6)
1 Chronicles 10: The Death of King Saul. "Now the Philistines attacked Israel, forcing them to flee. Many were slaughtered on the slopes of Mount Gilboa. The Philistines closed in on Saul and his sons, and they killed 3 of his sons -Jonathan, Abinadab, and Malkishua. The fighting grew very fierce around Saul, and the Philistines archers caught up with him and wounded him severely. Saul groaned to his armor bearer, 'Take your sword and run me through before these Philistines come and humiliate me.' But his armor bearer was afraid and would not do it. So Saul took his own sword and fell on it. When his armor bearer realized that Saul was dead, he fell on his own sword and died. So Saul and his 3 sons died there together, bringing his dynasty to an end. When the Israelites in the Jez'Reel Valley saw that their army had been routed and that Saul and his sons were dead, they abandoned their towns and fled. So the Philistines moved in and occupied their towns. The next day when the Philistines went out to strip the dead, they found the bodies of Saul and his sons on Mount Gilboa. So they stripped off Saul's armor and cut off his head. Then they proclaimed the news of Saul's death before their idols and to the people throughout the Land of Philistia. They placed his armor in the temple of their gods, and they fastened his head to the wall in the temple of Dagon. But when the people of Jabesh-Gilead heard what the Philistines had done to Saul, their warriors went out and brought the bodies of Saul and his 3 sons back to Jabesh. Then they buried their remains beneath the Oak tree at Jabesh, and they fasted for 7 days. So Saul died because he was unfaithful to the Lord. He failed to obey the Lord's Command, and he even consulted a medium instead of asking the Lord for guidance. So the Lord killed him and turned his kingdom over to David son of Jesse. (1-14)
Psalm 10: 15-17.- "Nations have fallen into the pit they dug for others. They have been caught in their own trap. The Lord is known for His Justice. The wicked have trapped themselves in their own snares.
The wicked will go down to the grave. This is the fate of all nations who ignore God."
Psalm 31: 9-17.- "Have mercy on me, Lord, for I am in distress. My sight is blurred because of my tears
My body and soul are withering away. I am dying from grief; my years are shortened by sadness. Misery has drained my strength; I am wasting away from within.. I have been ignored as if I were dead, as if I were a broken pot... My enemies conspire against me, plotting to take my life. But I am trusting You, O Lord, saying, 'You are My God!' My future is in Your Hands. Rescue me from those who hunt me down relentlessly. let Your favor shine on Your servant. In Your unfailing Love, save me. Don't let me be disgraced , O Lord, for I call out to You for help. Let the wicked be disgraced; let them lie silent in the grave.
Sunday, 24 June 2018
SCRIPTURAL VERSES ABOUT HE UNDERWORLD.
Genesis 37: Joseph's Dreams (1-11); Joseph sold by his brothers (11-36). "Judah said to his brothers, 'What we gain if we kill Joseph, our brother and cover up his blood?' Come, let's sell Joseph to the Ishmaelites and not lay our hands on him; after all he is our brother, our own flesh and blood.' His brothers agreed. So when the Midianite merchants came by, his brothers pulled Joseph up out of the cistern and sold him for 20 shekels of silver to the Ishmaelites, who took him to Egypt. When Reuben returned to the cistern and saw that Joseph was not there, he tore his clothes. He went back to his brothers and said, 'the boy is not there!Where can I turn now?' Then they got Joseph's robe, slaughtered a goat and dipped the robe in the blood. They took the ornamented robe back to their father and said, 'We found this. Examine it to see whether it is your son's robe.' Jacob recognized it and said, 'It is my son's robe! Some ferocious animal has devoured him. Joseph has surely been torn to pieces.' then Jacob tore his clothes, put on sackcloth and mourned for his son many days. All his sons and daughters came to comfort him, but he refused to be comforted. 'No,' Jacob said, 'in mourning will I go down to the grave to my son.' So Jacob his father wept for him." (26-36)
Genesis 42: Joseph's brothers go to Egypt (1-38). "Now Joseph was the governor of the land of Egypt, the one who sold grain to all its people. So when Joseph's brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. As soon as Joseph saw his brothers he recognized them but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them... Joseph said to them, 'It is just as I told you: You are spies! And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here...' Then Reuben said to his father, 'You may put both of my sons to death if I do not bring my younger brother back.' But Jacob said, 'My son will not go down there with you; his brother is dead and he is the only one left. If harm comes to him on the journey you are taking, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in sorrow.' "
Genesis 44: A silver cup in a sack (1-34). "Each one of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. Then the steward proceeded to search, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. At this, they tore their clothes. Then they all loaded their donkeys and returned to the city. Joseph was still in the house when Judah and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him. Joseph said to them, 'What is this you have done? Don't you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?' "What can we say to my lord?' Judah replied. 'What can we say? How can we prove our innocence? God has uncovered your servants guilt. We are now my lord's slaves -we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup.' But Joseph said, 'Far be it from me to do such thing! Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave. The rest of you, go back to your father in peace.' ... 'Your servant my father said to us, 'You know that my wife bore me two sons. One of them went away from me, and I said, He has surely been torn to pieces. And I have not seen him since. If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.' 'So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy's life, sees that the boy is not there, he will die.' "
Number 16: Korah, Dathan, and Abiram (1- 50). "But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, 'Oh God, God of the spirits of all mankind, will You be angry with the entire assembly when only one man sins?' Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Say to the assembly, Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.' ... Then Moses said, 'This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: If these men die a natural death and experience only what usually happens to men, then the Lord has not sent me. But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the grave, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.'
As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, with their households and all Korah's men and all their possessions. They went down alive into the grave, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community. At their cries, all the Israelites around them fled, shouting, 'the earth is going to swallow us too.' And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense."
Deuteronomy 32: The Song of Moses (1-47) "And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel: 'Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. I will proclaim the Name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, His words are perfect and all His ways are just. A Faithful God who does no wrong. upright and just is He.' 'They have acted corruptly toward Him; to their shame they are no longer His children, but a warped and crooked generation ... When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided all mankind, He set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel. For the Lord's portion is His people, Jacob His alloted inheritance. In a desert land He found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; He guarded him as the apple of His eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on its pinions. The Lord alone led him; no foreign god was with him. He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him with the fruit of the fields. He nourished him with honey from the rock and with oil from the flinty crag, with curds and milk from herd and flock and with fattened lambs and goats, with choice rams of Bashan and the finest kernels of wheat. You drank the foaming blood of the grape. Jeshurum grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior. They made Him jealous with their foreign gods and angered Him with their detestable idols. They sacrificed to demons, which are not God -gods they had not known, gods that recently appeared, gods your fathers did not fear. You deserted the Rock, who fathered you; you forgot the God who gave you birth. The Lord saw this and rejected them because he was angered by his sons and daughters. 'I will hide My Face from them,' He said, and see what their end will be; for they are a perverse generation, children who are unfaithful. They made Me jealous by what is not god and angered Me with their worthless idols. I will make them envious by those who are not a people; I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding. For a fire has been kindle by My wrath, one that burns to the realm of death below. It will devour the earth and its harvests and set afire the foundations of the mountains.' "
1 Samuel 2: Hannah's prayer (1-10). "My heart rejoices in the Lord, in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the Lord is a God who knows, and by Him deeds are weighed.
.... The Lord brings death and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and raises up."
Genesis 42: Joseph's brothers go to Egypt (1-38). "Now Joseph was the governor of the land of Egypt, the one who sold grain to all its people. So when Joseph's brothers arrived, they bowed down to him with their faces to the ground. As soon as Joseph saw his brothers he recognized them but he pretended to be a stranger and spoke harshly to them... Joseph said to them, 'It is just as I told you: You are spies! And this is how you will be tested: As surely as Pharaoh lives, you will not leave this place unless your youngest brother comes here...' Then Reuben said to his father, 'You may put both of my sons to death if I do not bring my younger brother back.' But Jacob said, 'My son will not go down there with you; his brother is dead and he is the only one left. If harm comes to him on the journey you are taking, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in sorrow.' "
Genesis 44: A silver cup in a sack (1-34). "Each one of them quickly lowered his sack to the ground and opened it. Then the steward proceeded to search, beginning with the oldest and ending with the youngest. And the cup was found in Benjamin's sack. At this, they tore their clothes. Then they all loaded their donkeys and returned to the city. Joseph was still in the house when Judah and his brothers came in, and they threw themselves to the ground before him. Joseph said to them, 'What is this you have done? Don't you know that a man like me can find things out by divination?' "What can we say to my lord?' Judah replied. 'What can we say? How can we prove our innocence? God has uncovered your servants guilt. We are now my lord's slaves -we ourselves and the one who was found to have the cup.' But Joseph said, 'Far be it from me to do such thing! Only the man who was found to have the cup will become my slave. The rest of you, go back to your father in peace.' ... 'Your servant my father said to us, 'You know that my wife bore me two sons. One of them went away from me, and I said, He has surely been torn to pieces. And I have not seen him since. If you take this one from me too and harm comes to him, you will bring my gray head down to the grave in misery.' 'So now, if the boy is not with us when I go back to your servant my father and if my father, whose life is closely bound up with the boy's life, sees that the boy is not there, he will die.' "
Number 16: Korah, Dathan, and Abiram (1- 50). "But Moses and Aaron fell facedown and cried out, 'Oh God, God of the spirits of all mankind, will You be angry with the entire assembly when only one man sins?' Then the Lord said to Moses, 'Say to the assembly, Move away from the tents of Korah, Dathan, and Abiram.' ... Then Moses said, 'This is how you will know that the Lord has sent me to do all these things and that it was not my idea: If these men die a natural death and experience only what usually happens to men, then the Lord has not sent me. But if the Lord brings about something totally new, and the earth opens its mouth and swallows them, with everything that belongs to them, and they go down alive into the grave, then you will know that these men have treated the Lord with contempt.'
As soon as he finished saying all this, the ground under them split apart and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed them, with their households and all Korah's men and all their possessions. They went down alive into the grave, with everything they owned; the earth closed over them, and they perished and were gone from the community. At their cries, all the Israelites around them fled, shouting, 'the earth is going to swallow us too.' And fire came out from the Lord and consumed the 250 men who were offering the incense."
Deuteronomy 32: The Song of Moses (1-47) "And Moses recited the words of this song from beginning to end in the hearing of the whole assembly of Israel: 'Listen, O heavens, and I will speak; hear, O earth, the words of my mouth. Let my teaching fall like rain and my words descend like dew, like showers on new grass, like abundant rain on tender plants. I will proclaim the Name of the Lord. Oh, praise the greatness of our God! He is the Rock, His words are perfect and all His ways are just. A Faithful God who does no wrong. upright and just is He.' 'They have acted corruptly toward Him; to their shame they are no longer His children, but a warped and crooked generation ... When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance, when He divided all mankind, He set up boundaries for the peoples according to the number of the sons of Israel. For the Lord's portion is His people, Jacob His alloted inheritance. In a desert land He found him, in a barren and howling waste. He shielded him and cared for him; He guarded him as the apple of His eye, like an eagle that stirs up its nest and hovers over its young, that spreads its wings to catch them and carries them on its pinions. The Lord alone led him; no foreign god was with him. He made him ride on the heights of the land and fed him with the fruit of the fields. He nourished him with honey from the rock and with oil from the flinty crag, with curds and milk from herd and flock and with fattened lambs and goats, with choice rams of Bashan and the finest kernels of wheat. You drank the foaming blood of the grape. Jeshurum grew fat and kicked; filled with food, he became heavy and sleek. He abandoned the God who made him and rejected the Rock his Savior. They made Him jealous with their foreign gods and angered Him with their detestable idols. They sacrificed to demons, which are not God -gods they had not known, gods that recently appeared, gods your fathers did not fear. You deserted the Rock, who fathered you; you forgot the God who gave you birth. The Lord saw this and rejected them because he was angered by his sons and daughters. 'I will hide My Face from them,' He said, and see what their end will be; for they are a perverse generation, children who are unfaithful. They made Me jealous by what is not god and angered Me with their worthless idols. I will make them envious by those who are not a people; I will make them angry by a nation that has no understanding. For a fire has been kindle by My wrath, one that burns to the realm of death below. It will devour the earth and its harvests and set afire the foundations of the mountains.' "
1 Samuel 2: Hannah's prayer (1-10). "My heart rejoices in the Lord, in the Lord my horn is lifted high. My mouth boasts over my enemies, for I delight in your deliverance. There is no one holy like the Lord; there is no one besides you; there is no Rock like our God. Do not keep talking so proudly or let your mouth speak such arrogance, for the Lord is a God who knows, and by Him deeds are weighed.
.... The Lord brings death and makes alive; He brings down to the grave and raises up."
THE VIKING UNDERWORLD.
The names of Hel and Hell come from the same root in the Proto-Germanic language, which is an ancestor of both Old Norse and of Old English. Modern English speakers call the Christian concept of a land of damnation "Hell" because the concept was called 'hel' or 'helle' in Old English.
Apart from the fact that Hel and Hell are both realms of the dead located beneath the ground, the two concepts have nothing in common. The death in Hel spend their time doing the same kind of things that Viking Age men and women did: eating, drinking, fighting, sleeping, and so forth. It was not a place of eternal bliss or torment.
The Vikings' religion never contained any formal doctrines concerning what happens to someone when he/she dies. Nevertheless, the picture presented by archaeology and the Old Norse literary sources is not a chaos. There are discernible patterns in the way the Norse conceived death and afterlife.
The most famous of these dwelling-places of the dead is Val'Halla (the hall of the fallen), the hall of the god Odin. Those chosen by Odin and his valkyries live there as celebrated heroes until they are called upon to fight by Odin's side in the doomed battle at Ragnarok, the downfall of the gods and the rest of the universe. Their engagement in continuous battle never cease to end. The name Val'Halla seems to be related to the name Val'Holl (the rock of the fallen), a title given to certain rocks and hills where the dead were thought to dwell in Southern Sweden, one of the greatest historical centers of the worship of Odin. Val'Halla also is elsewhere described as being part of As'Gard, the celestial realm of the gods.
The goddess Freya is said to welcome some of the dead into her hall, Folk'Vang (the field of people or the the field of warriors).
Those who die at sea are sometimes, but not always, said to be taken to the underwater abode of the giantess Ran.
Hel, a world beneath the ground to which the dead are most commonly portrayed as going to. People from particular families and localities are sometimes depicted as remaining together in a particular place close to where they lived while they were alive -for example, underneath a specific mountain. Some sources speak of the dead as being reborn in one of their descendants, belonging to the same family as a form of reincarnation, and is named after him or her. They eat, drink, carouse, fight, sleep, practice magic, and in general they do all of the things that living Viking Age men and women did.
The line between these various abodes of the dead are quite blurry and there is no consistent picture of who decides where a particular person goes after death or how the decision is made. A often repeated line is that those who die in battle goes to Val'Halla, whereas those who die of other causes go to Hel.
The Norse concept of soul held it was composed of separate parts: -Hamr (appearance, conceived of having an spiritual element that could be manipulated magically).
-Hugr (mind, emotions, will) conceived of as leaving the body on death, potentially after the body was fully destroyed decay or immolation.
-Fylgia (attendant spirit) can travel away from the body during life. Through magical practices (spa or seidr), some aspect of the mind could leave the body during moment of unconsciousness, ecstacy, trance, or sleep. -Hamingja (potentiality of fate) could leave the person during life, and be inherited by another member of the lineage after death.
In funerals the grave goods had to be subjected to the same treatment as the body, if they were to accompany the death person to the afterlife. If a person were immolated, then the grave goods had to be burnt as well, and if the deceased was to be interred, the objects were interred together with him.
The usual grave for a slave was not much more than a hole in the ground to ensure both that he did not return to haunt his master and that he could be of use to his masters after they died. Slaves were sometimes sacrificed to be useful in the next life.
It was common to burn the corpse and the grave offering in a pyre constructed in a way that the pillar of smoke would be a massive as possible in order to elevate the decease to the afterlife. On the 7th day after the person had died, people celebrated the funeral ale (sjaund) since it involved a ritual drinking. It was only after the funeral that the heirs could rightfully claim their inheritance.
In Norse world view the notion of self is a complicated entity. There is no oneness in their perspective. The self is made of numerous different parts that are semi-autonomous and can detach themselves from one another under certain circumstances. In other words, the self was defined by its social position and deeds rather than by a detached essence. Even the spiritual parts of the self were social and active entities. As much as the Norse stressed competitive individual success, that success (or failure) occurred within a particular social framework and was defined in social terms, an earning fame. None of these parts quite correspond to the concept of a self in the traditional way -an absolute unique and nontransferable essence of a person.
Apart from the fact that Hel and Hell are both realms of the dead located beneath the ground, the two concepts have nothing in common. The death in Hel spend their time doing the same kind of things that Viking Age men and women did: eating, drinking, fighting, sleeping, and so forth. It was not a place of eternal bliss or torment.
The Vikings' religion never contained any formal doctrines concerning what happens to someone when he/she dies. Nevertheless, the picture presented by archaeology and the Old Norse literary sources is not a chaos. There are discernible patterns in the way the Norse conceived death and afterlife.
The most famous of these dwelling-places of the dead is Val'Halla (the hall of the fallen), the hall of the god Odin. Those chosen by Odin and his valkyries live there as celebrated heroes until they are called upon to fight by Odin's side in the doomed battle at Ragnarok, the downfall of the gods and the rest of the universe. Their engagement in continuous battle never cease to end. The name Val'Halla seems to be related to the name Val'Holl (the rock of the fallen), a title given to certain rocks and hills where the dead were thought to dwell in Southern Sweden, one of the greatest historical centers of the worship of Odin. Val'Halla also is elsewhere described as being part of As'Gard, the celestial realm of the gods.
The goddess Freya is said to welcome some of the dead into her hall, Folk'Vang (the field of people or the the field of warriors).
Those who die at sea are sometimes, but not always, said to be taken to the underwater abode of the giantess Ran.
Hel, a world beneath the ground to which the dead are most commonly portrayed as going to. People from particular families and localities are sometimes depicted as remaining together in a particular place close to where they lived while they were alive -for example, underneath a specific mountain. Some sources speak of the dead as being reborn in one of their descendants, belonging to the same family as a form of reincarnation, and is named after him or her. They eat, drink, carouse, fight, sleep, practice magic, and in general they do all of the things that living Viking Age men and women did.
The line between these various abodes of the dead are quite blurry and there is no consistent picture of who decides where a particular person goes after death or how the decision is made. A often repeated line is that those who die in battle goes to Val'Halla, whereas those who die of other causes go to Hel.
The Norse concept of soul held it was composed of separate parts: -Hamr (appearance, conceived of having an spiritual element that could be manipulated magically).
-Hugr (mind, emotions, will) conceived of as leaving the body on death, potentially after the body was fully destroyed decay or immolation.
-Fylgia (attendant spirit) can travel away from the body during life. Through magical practices (spa or seidr), some aspect of the mind could leave the body during moment of unconsciousness, ecstacy, trance, or sleep. -Hamingja (potentiality of fate) could leave the person during life, and be inherited by another member of the lineage after death.
In funerals the grave goods had to be subjected to the same treatment as the body, if they were to accompany the death person to the afterlife. If a person were immolated, then the grave goods had to be burnt as well, and if the deceased was to be interred, the objects were interred together with him.
The usual grave for a slave was not much more than a hole in the ground to ensure both that he did not return to haunt his master and that he could be of use to his masters after they died. Slaves were sometimes sacrificed to be useful in the next life.
It was common to burn the corpse and the grave offering in a pyre constructed in a way that the pillar of smoke would be a massive as possible in order to elevate the decease to the afterlife. On the 7th day after the person had died, people celebrated the funeral ale (sjaund) since it involved a ritual drinking. It was only after the funeral that the heirs could rightfully claim their inheritance.
In Norse world view the notion of self is a complicated entity. There is no oneness in their perspective. The self is made of numerous different parts that are semi-autonomous and can detach themselves from one another under certain circumstances. In other words, the self was defined by its social position and deeds rather than by a detached essence. Even the spiritual parts of the self were social and active entities. As much as the Norse stressed competitive individual success, that success (or failure) occurred within a particular social framework and was defined in social terms, an earning fame. None of these parts quite correspond to the concept of a self in the traditional way -an absolute unique and nontransferable essence of a person.
THE CHINESE UNDERWORLD.
The Chinese Underworld (Di'Yu) in traditional Chinese beliefs is based on a combination of the Buddhist concept (Na'Ra'Ka) and a variety of popular interpretations. It is depicted as a subterranean maze with various levels and chambers, to which souls are taken after death. The exact number of levels differs and the souls are not judged there. Instead it is a place of torments in which the length of a being's stay is not eternal, though it is usually long, from hundreds of millions to quintillions of years. Abeing is born into this place as a direct result of his/her accumulated actions (karma) until that karma has achieved its full result. After his/her karma is used up, he/she will be reborn in one of the higher worlds as the result of karma that had not yet ripened.
Physically, the underworld is thought as a series of cavernous layers which extend below the ordinary human world into the earth. Each deals with a different aspect of atonement and different punishments.
The East Hell.-
Chamber of Tongue Ripping is the first layer in which those who stir up troubles by gossiping will find their tongues being ripped.
Chamber of Scissors is the second layer in which those who break the marriage of others will have their fingers cut off.
Chamber of Iron Cycads in the third level in which those who cause discords among family members of others will hung on Iron Trees.
Chamber of Mirror is the fourth level in which those who managed to escape the punishment for their crimes during earthly life will be shown their true shape.
Chamber of Steamer is the fifth level in which hypocrites and troublemakers will find their punishment in a steamer.
Forest of Copper Column is the sixth level in which arsonists for retaliation will be bound to columns of glowing cooper.
Mountain of Knives is the seventh level in which those who kill sentient beings with knife without a reason or for pleasure will find themselves climbing a hill of knives. Sinners are made to shed blood by climbing a mountain with sharp blades sticking out.
Hill of Ice is the eighth level in which schemers, deceivers of elders (including parents) and adulterers will be left naked in freezing cold.
Cauldron of Boiling Oil is the ninth level in which rapists, abusers, false accusers will be boiled in fried oil.
The West Hell.-
Chamber of Ox is the first level in which those who abuse animals will find themselves being bullied by animals.
Chamber of Rock is the second level in which those who abandon or kill babies will hold a heavy rock and eventually crushed and will be surrounded by putrid water.
Chamber of Pounding is the third layer in which those who voluntarily waste food will be forced to be fed by demons with hell-fire.
Pool of Blood is the third level in which those who do not respect others will find themselves soaked in blood.
Town of Suicide is the fourth level in which people who commit suicide will find themselves wandering in the city. The wind of sorrow and the rain of pain lash day and night this desolate place. They are those who have voluntarily altered the karmic course of incarnation.
Chamber of Dismemberment is the fifth level in which tomb raiders will find their body torn into pieces.
Mountain of Flames is the sixth level in which thieves, robbers and corrupt will be thrown into the flames in a hellish volcano.
Yard of Stone Mill is the seventh level in which those who subdue the weak, abuse their power and oppress the people will be crashed and pulverized in a stone mill.
Chamber of Saw is the eighth level in which those who exploit the loopholes in the law and engage in unfair practices in business will be sawn into half by demons.
Some Chinese folk religion say that new underworlds with new punishments are created as the world changes and that there is a City of Innocent Deaths designed to house those who died with grievances that have yet to be redressed.
Physically, the underworld is thought as a series of cavernous layers which extend below the ordinary human world into the earth. Each deals with a different aspect of atonement and different punishments.
The East Hell.-
Chamber of Tongue Ripping is the first layer in which those who stir up troubles by gossiping will find their tongues being ripped.
Chamber of Scissors is the second layer in which those who break the marriage of others will have their fingers cut off.
Chamber of Iron Cycads in the third level in which those who cause discords among family members of others will hung on Iron Trees.
Chamber of Mirror is the fourth level in which those who managed to escape the punishment for their crimes during earthly life will be shown their true shape.
Chamber of Steamer is the fifth level in which hypocrites and troublemakers will find their punishment in a steamer.
Forest of Copper Column is the sixth level in which arsonists for retaliation will be bound to columns of glowing cooper.
Mountain of Knives is the seventh level in which those who kill sentient beings with knife without a reason or for pleasure will find themselves climbing a hill of knives. Sinners are made to shed blood by climbing a mountain with sharp blades sticking out.
Hill of Ice is the eighth level in which schemers, deceivers of elders (including parents) and adulterers will be left naked in freezing cold.
Cauldron of Boiling Oil is the ninth level in which rapists, abusers, false accusers will be boiled in fried oil.
The West Hell.-
Chamber of Ox is the first level in which those who abuse animals will find themselves being bullied by animals.
Chamber of Rock is the second level in which those who abandon or kill babies will hold a heavy rock and eventually crushed and will be surrounded by putrid water.
Chamber of Pounding is the third layer in which those who voluntarily waste food will be forced to be fed by demons with hell-fire.
Pool of Blood is the third level in which those who do not respect others will find themselves soaked in blood.
Town of Suicide is the fourth level in which people who commit suicide will find themselves wandering in the city. The wind of sorrow and the rain of pain lash day and night this desolate place. They are those who have voluntarily altered the karmic course of incarnation.
Chamber of Dismemberment is the fifth level in which tomb raiders will find their body torn into pieces.
Mountain of Flames is the sixth level in which thieves, robbers and corrupt will be thrown into the flames in a hellish volcano.
Yard of Stone Mill is the seventh level in which those who subdue the weak, abuse their power and oppress the people will be crashed and pulverized in a stone mill.
Chamber of Saw is the eighth level in which those who exploit the loopholes in the law and engage in unfair practices in business will be sawn into half by demons.
Some Chinese folk religion say that new underworlds with new punishments are created as the world changes and that there is a City of Innocent Deaths designed to house those who died with grievances that have yet to be redressed.
SPIRITUAL WORLD OF MAYANS.
Mayans had a very keen understanding of their surrounding energies and their universe. Their religious concept was formed on the notion that everything in the world, animated and in-animated, contained divine life force of existence and for that reason it was considered sacred. They had a greater awareness of life itself without being influenced by the concept of time in a linear fashion.
Mayans perceived the concept of the structure of the universe as being the product of specific time cycles done at different stages that influenced the growth of consciousness within the same universe. Their concept of life, death, and afterlife was understood as one single and unbreakable ring.
Mayans had a configuration of the universe as an entity divided into 3 layers:
-Heaven was at the top and was divided into 13 levels and ruled by 13 gods (Ox'La'Hun'Ticu). It was arranged as a pyramid with earth as the second layer.
-Earth was the base of this pyramid concept and consisted in only one level and where humans lived and nowhere else.
-Underworld (Xi'Bal'Ba) layer was a subterranean world and was divided in 9 levels to which souls were taken after death and was ruled by the Bol'On'Tiku.
The pyramid of life was thought of as spiritual mountains with everything happening and changing and growing in-between the heavens above, the source of creation and the underworld as the place where everything done in earth had an accountability for the next cycle of life.
At the very top of the celestial pyramid was the supreme god, Itz'Amna, balancing the energies between the levels of the universe. It was depicted as a squinty-eyed, long-nosed old man.
Hura"Can, another significant god, was often referred to as the Heart of Heaven, Heart of Sky, or Heart of Earth.
The tree identified as Yaax-Che (Ceiba) was considered sacred and served as a connection between the 3 worlds, because of the hollow spaces some trees have in their trunks and its long roots and branches. It was believed that many of the mythological characters that went down to the Underworld did it through the log of a tree.
Each of the 9 levels of the Underworld are represented horizontally in Mayan pyramids. Just as the levels are seen becoming progressively smaller as they tier towards the top, so it is the amount of time in each level that becomes shorter in duration as they are hierarchical in nature.
The number 13 comes into play at each level to determine their length of time. The number is a direct reference to 7 days or 7 lords of creation and 6 nights of divine action which constitute the 13 heavens. The number 13 played a significant role throughout Mayan calendar mathematics and how they calculated very large blocks of time. The longest time-cycle was called "Habla'Tun" and each one totaled 460''800'000,000 days equalling 1.26 billion years.
Thirteen Habla'Tuns made up the first underworld (the initial creation cycle) with a total duration of 13 times of 1.26 billion years equalling 16.4 billion years. Subsequent Underworlds became shorter in duration increasing the frequency of change, yet each level of consciousness attained was raised dramatically within shorter periods of time.
The Mayans set the beginning date of the Long Count Calendar to correspond with the solar zenith in Izapa in Southern Mexico, so the end will be when it reaches the Zero Point according to the spiritual concept of growth in consciousness that interacts in the 3 levels of existence. This emphasizes the significance the Mayans placed on days lived in the world of the living and how each one had its importance because it represented specific energies acting in the whole universe determining the future of its own demise. This is the reason why Mayans conveyed the expression that in the end of creation time will cease to exist as we know it.
Mayan gods were fluid and had diverse personalities that made difficult for them to distinguish one god from another. Some deities even had conflicting personality traits. The multiplicity of their personalities were furthered by their appearance as an amalgamation of human and particular animal traits. They were also associated with different cardinal directions and their importance varied depending on the context in which it appeared. Each one of these gods carried creative progression theme to a next higher level of consciousness.
Nothing in this entire process was abrupt in terms of the growth of consciousness, but expect the upcoming period to be somewhat unstable at times but also energetically quite complex in nature. This is enough reason to maintain a high degree of awareness of this closing cycle and move through it possessing a non-judgmental, neutral, non fear-based perspective in our spirit. Only the Creator of all things know the exact time of the End.
Mayans perceived the concept of the structure of the universe as being the product of specific time cycles done at different stages that influenced the growth of consciousness within the same universe. Their concept of life, death, and afterlife was understood as one single and unbreakable ring.
Mayans had a configuration of the universe as an entity divided into 3 layers:
-Heaven was at the top and was divided into 13 levels and ruled by 13 gods (Ox'La'Hun'Ticu). It was arranged as a pyramid with earth as the second layer.
-Earth was the base of this pyramid concept and consisted in only one level and where humans lived and nowhere else.
-Underworld (Xi'Bal'Ba) layer was a subterranean world and was divided in 9 levels to which souls were taken after death and was ruled by the Bol'On'Tiku.
The pyramid of life was thought of as spiritual mountains with everything happening and changing and growing in-between the heavens above, the source of creation and the underworld as the place where everything done in earth had an accountability for the next cycle of life.
At the very top of the celestial pyramid was the supreme god, Itz'Amna, balancing the energies between the levels of the universe. It was depicted as a squinty-eyed, long-nosed old man.
Hura"Can, another significant god, was often referred to as the Heart of Heaven, Heart of Sky, or Heart of Earth.
The tree identified as Yaax-Che (Ceiba) was considered sacred and served as a connection between the 3 worlds, because of the hollow spaces some trees have in their trunks and its long roots and branches. It was believed that many of the mythological characters that went down to the Underworld did it through the log of a tree.
Each of the 9 levels of the Underworld are represented horizontally in Mayan pyramids. Just as the levels are seen becoming progressively smaller as they tier towards the top, so it is the amount of time in each level that becomes shorter in duration as they are hierarchical in nature.
The number 13 comes into play at each level to determine their length of time. The number is a direct reference to 7 days or 7 lords of creation and 6 nights of divine action which constitute the 13 heavens. The number 13 played a significant role throughout Mayan calendar mathematics and how they calculated very large blocks of time. The longest time-cycle was called "Habla'Tun" and each one totaled 460''800'000,000 days equalling 1.26 billion years.
Thirteen Habla'Tuns made up the first underworld (the initial creation cycle) with a total duration of 13 times of 1.26 billion years equalling 16.4 billion years. Subsequent Underworlds became shorter in duration increasing the frequency of change, yet each level of consciousness attained was raised dramatically within shorter periods of time.
The Mayans set the beginning date of the Long Count Calendar to correspond with the solar zenith in Izapa in Southern Mexico, so the end will be when it reaches the Zero Point according to the spiritual concept of growth in consciousness that interacts in the 3 levels of existence. This emphasizes the significance the Mayans placed on days lived in the world of the living and how each one had its importance because it represented specific energies acting in the whole universe determining the future of its own demise. This is the reason why Mayans conveyed the expression that in the end of creation time will cease to exist as we know it.
Mayan gods were fluid and had diverse personalities that made difficult for them to distinguish one god from another. Some deities even had conflicting personality traits. The multiplicity of their personalities were furthered by their appearance as an amalgamation of human and particular animal traits. They were also associated with different cardinal directions and their importance varied depending on the context in which it appeared. Each one of these gods carried creative progression theme to a next higher level of consciousness.
Nothing in this entire process was abrupt in terms of the growth of consciousness, but expect the upcoming period to be somewhat unstable at times but also energetically quite complex in nature. This is enough reason to maintain a high degree of awareness of this closing cycle and move through it possessing a non-judgmental, neutral, non fear-based perspective in our spirit. Only the Creator of all things know the exact time of the End.
Saturday, 23 June 2018
THE MIGHTY MEN OF DAVID.
There are few men in the Bible that attract our attention as much as David. He is mentioned more than any other man in the Scripture except Jesus.
David is the only man in the Word of God who is called: "A man after God's own heart." From the time that Goliath's defeated body fell to the ground, until he was anointed King and his time of rejection as king and then when he became King, David showed himself as a man of God.
After David became king he trained 37 men who became famous warriors. The Scripture calls them "Mighty Men of David," also known as the Gib'Bor'Im. Their names are listed in 2 Samuel 23. A similar list is given in 1 Chronicles 11 but with several variations, and 16 more names.
The mighty warriors were a group of chosen men exceptionally loyal, strong and brave, with considerable military skill, who served an important role in protecting the king and fighting for the freedom on their nation, the Land of Israel. It seems the same anointing that was on David came upon these group of men.
Within this list are "The Three" (Adino, Eleazar, and Shammah) who served as a special elite group with legendary victories. The exact roles are not made clear, but they were certainly seen as stand-outs among David' mighty men. In the exact way Jesus had three specially anointed disciples (Peter, James and John) who walked in exceptional power.
Whenever God raises up a man to do a work, He always raises up men mighty in valor and faith, not afraid to risk and to sacrifice, and anointed with His power, to help do that work. Each of these mighty men and their exploits have a spiritual lesson to teach us.
In 2 Samuel 23 we have some details of these mighty warriors. It is the end of David's life and reign as a King and it is as if he is reflecting back over his life. David also reflects back over the great men that God had sent his way.
ADINO, a man who was outnumbered in battle 800 to one. At one time he defeated all of them with his spear. Honor came in those days in doing exploits for the King. He didn't give up when he was outnumbered. As a man possessed by the spirit of courage, he did not turn and run. His courage and strength came form God.
ELEAZAR, a man with a powerful sword. And the sword is the symbol of the Word of God. He was one with God. The Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intends of the heart. Eph 6:17 says: "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God."
SHAMMAH, a man who stood his ground and fought when everyone fled. He wasn't affected by what everybody else did. He didn't get his eyes on others and get discouraged. Shammah didn't care if he was the only one who cared. He was going to do what was right. He fought for the patch of beans that belonged to the King. The enemy of his King was coming to rob and to plunder and the King's people needed the food. He was strong in the Lord and the power of His might. Eph 6: 11 says: "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
These three mighty men of David loved him so much that they were willing to risk their own lives for the sake of the God of David. The king only needed to think and they were moved by that thought. They knew David's God and sought His ways.
ABISHAI, a man who came to the aid of his king.
BENIAH, a soldier like no other.
David is the only man in the Word of God who is called: "A man after God's own heart." From the time that Goliath's defeated body fell to the ground, until he was anointed King and his time of rejection as king and then when he became King, David showed himself as a man of God.
After David became king he trained 37 men who became famous warriors. The Scripture calls them "Mighty Men of David," also known as the Gib'Bor'Im. Their names are listed in 2 Samuel 23. A similar list is given in 1 Chronicles 11 but with several variations, and 16 more names.
The mighty warriors were a group of chosen men exceptionally loyal, strong and brave, with considerable military skill, who served an important role in protecting the king and fighting for the freedom on their nation, the Land of Israel. It seems the same anointing that was on David came upon these group of men.
Within this list are "The Three" (Adino, Eleazar, and Shammah) who served as a special elite group with legendary victories. The exact roles are not made clear, but they were certainly seen as stand-outs among David' mighty men. In the exact way Jesus had three specially anointed disciples (Peter, James and John) who walked in exceptional power.
Whenever God raises up a man to do a work, He always raises up men mighty in valor and faith, not afraid to risk and to sacrifice, and anointed with His power, to help do that work. Each of these mighty men and their exploits have a spiritual lesson to teach us.
In 2 Samuel 23 we have some details of these mighty warriors. It is the end of David's life and reign as a King and it is as if he is reflecting back over his life. David also reflects back over the great men that God had sent his way.
ADINO, a man who was outnumbered in battle 800 to one. At one time he defeated all of them with his spear. Honor came in those days in doing exploits for the King. He didn't give up when he was outnumbered. As a man possessed by the spirit of courage, he did not turn and run. His courage and strength came form God.
ELEAZAR, a man with a powerful sword. And the sword is the symbol of the Word of God. He was one with God. The Word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intends of the heart. Eph 6:17 says: "Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God."
SHAMMAH, a man who stood his ground and fought when everyone fled. He wasn't affected by what everybody else did. He didn't get his eyes on others and get discouraged. Shammah didn't care if he was the only one who cared. He was going to do what was right. He fought for the patch of beans that belonged to the King. The enemy of his King was coming to rob and to plunder and the King's people needed the food. He was strong in the Lord and the power of His might. Eph 6: 11 says: "Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.
These three mighty men of David loved him so much that they were willing to risk their own lives for the sake of the God of David. The king only needed to think and they were moved by that thought. They knew David's God and sought His ways.
ABISHAI, a man who came to the aid of his king.
BENIAH, a soldier like no other.
Wednesday, 20 June 2018
THE BATTLE AT GIBEAH.
Gibeah is a name appearing in several Books of the Hebrew Scripture. It is generally identified with a hill along the Central Benjamin Plateau, 4.8 km / 3 mi North of Jerusalem along the Watershed Ridge at 839 m / 2,754 ft above sea level.
Gibeah is a variation of the Hebrew word meaning "hill," other names include Gibeah of God, Gibeah of Benjamin, for it is in the territory of the Tribe of Benjamin and Gibeah of Saul where King Saul lived.
From after the conquest of the Promised Land by Joshua until the formation of the 1st Kingdom of Israel, the Tribe of Benjamin was a part of a loose confederation of tribes. No central government existed and in times of crisis the people were led by leaders known as Judges.
The Book of Judges, the 7th Book of the Hebrew Scripture recounts the rape of an unnamed woman, the concubine of a member of the tribe of Levi, by a gang from the Tribe of Benjamin. She was from Beth'Lehem but was living with a Levite in the hill country of Ephraim, North of Jerusalem. The Levite is referred to as the husband of the woman (Judge 19:3;20:4) and the son-in-law of the woman's father, who in turn is referred to as the Levite's father-in-law (Judges 19:4,5,7,9). The uncertain nature of the differences between a wife and a concubine reveals the complexities involved in understanding notions of kinship and marriage presupposed by biblical narratives.
The Hebrew text states that the woman "prostitute herself against "the Levite (19:2). It is possible that the woman's prostitution does not refer to literal sexual infidelity but is a sort of metaphor for the fact that she leaves her husband. The harsh language to describe it could result from the fact that it was viewed in a very negative light.
Four months after he woman returns to Beth'Lehem, the Levite goes after her. The text states that he wishes to "speak to her heart,"and no discussion between the Levite and the woman is recounted. The woman's father acts as if he is glad to see the Levite, but for several days he delays the return of the Levite and the woman to Ephraim. Because of this delay the travelers finally set out at a late hour and, due to the unwillingness of the Levite to spend the night in a city of foreigners (19:12), arrive at the Benjamin city of Gibeah after the sun has gone down.
The travelers initially have a difficult time finding a place to spend the night. They are finally offered hospitality by an old man who, like the Levite, is from Ephraim. While the travelers join themselves and started to eat, the house became surrounded by men of the city who, wished "to know" the Levite (19: 22). The Ephraimite attempted to dissuade them from raping his male guest, offering to them his own daughter and the Levite's concubine in place of the Levite.
When the men of Gibeah refused to accept the two women, one of the men inside the house threw the concubine outside. The woman is then raped by the men of Gibeah throughout the night. They did not kill her. Early in the morning the woman tried to return to the house from which she was thrown but collapsed at the door. The Levite found her when he arose to leave the place and ordered her to get up.
When she did not respond, he placed her on the back of his donkey and returned to Ephraim.
The Levite, upon his arrival in Ephraim, cut the woman's body into 12 pieces and sent these pieces throughout the land. As a result of this action, 400,000 armed men altogether gathered at Mizpah, to review the situation, and decided not to rest until the crime had been punished. Mizpah was located on the Northern border of what later became the kingdom of Judah. It was West of Jericho, and somewhat North West of Jerusalem. Bethel is a few miles to the North of it, and Gibeah is a few miles to the South.
The Benjaminites raised an army of of 26,000 in addition to 700 left-handed sling specialists who could sling a stone at a hair and not miss. Those men were serious warriors. David was one of them, who could hurl stones up to a pound in weight with uncanny accuracy at upwards of 90 mph. They were a serious thread in battle.
A cycle of violence resulted in the slaughter of many men, women, and children and the Benjaminite as a tribe was nearly wiped out. The other tribes began to mourn, because they did not want to have Israel as a nation reduced by a tribe. But there was a problem to be solved, because as the tribes had prepared for war with Benjamin, they had sworn never to give any of their daughters in marriage to Benjamin. A partial solution presented itself when the assembly began to deal with one group in Israel that had not answered the call to arms against Benjamin. All the tribes had sworn an oath, on penalty of death for non-compliance, to support the war. Now that the war was over, it was discovered that no one had come from the city of Jabesh-Gilead. The city was located across the Jordan about 20 miles North of the Jabbok River. The transgression of not sending troops had to be punished, so 12,000 men were sent to Jabesh-Gilead to kill the inhabitants of the city, which they did. Everyone was killed except 400 young virgins at Shiloh.
Those virgins became part of the solution to the problem of the 600 Benjaminites that survived the war by hiding in a cave for 4 months. The rest of Israel made peace with them and gave them the 400 virgins from Jabesh-Gilead as wives so that they could repopulate their tribe. But since the Benjaminites needed more wives, Israel resorted that they still would not give them any of their daughters but they would look the other way if the Benjaminites came and stole some of their daughters.
The Book ends with an appropriate refrain: "In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did what was right in their own eyes."
Gibeah is a variation of the Hebrew word meaning "hill," other names include Gibeah of God, Gibeah of Benjamin, for it is in the territory of the Tribe of Benjamin and Gibeah of Saul where King Saul lived.
From after the conquest of the Promised Land by Joshua until the formation of the 1st Kingdom of Israel, the Tribe of Benjamin was a part of a loose confederation of tribes. No central government existed and in times of crisis the people were led by leaders known as Judges.
The Book of Judges, the 7th Book of the Hebrew Scripture recounts the rape of an unnamed woman, the concubine of a member of the tribe of Levi, by a gang from the Tribe of Benjamin. She was from Beth'Lehem but was living with a Levite in the hill country of Ephraim, North of Jerusalem. The Levite is referred to as the husband of the woman (Judge 19:3;20:4) and the son-in-law of the woman's father, who in turn is referred to as the Levite's father-in-law (Judges 19:4,5,7,9). The uncertain nature of the differences between a wife and a concubine reveals the complexities involved in understanding notions of kinship and marriage presupposed by biblical narratives.
The Hebrew text states that the woman "prostitute herself against "the Levite (19:2). It is possible that the woman's prostitution does not refer to literal sexual infidelity but is a sort of metaphor for the fact that she leaves her husband. The harsh language to describe it could result from the fact that it was viewed in a very negative light.
Four months after he woman returns to Beth'Lehem, the Levite goes after her. The text states that he wishes to "speak to her heart,"and no discussion between the Levite and the woman is recounted. The woman's father acts as if he is glad to see the Levite, but for several days he delays the return of the Levite and the woman to Ephraim. Because of this delay the travelers finally set out at a late hour and, due to the unwillingness of the Levite to spend the night in a city of foreigners (19:12), arrive at the Benjamin city of Gibeah after the sun has gone down.
The travelers initially have a difficult time finding a place to spend the night. They are finally offered hospitality by an old man who, like the Levite, is from Ephraim. While the travelers join themselves and started to eat, the house became surrounded by men of the city who, wished "to know" the Levite (19: 22). The Ephraimite attempted to dissuade them from raping his male guest, offering to them his own daughter and the Levite's concubine in place of the Levite.
When the men of Gibeah refused to accept the two women, one of the men inside the house threw the concubine outside. The woman is then raped by the men of Gibeah throughout the night. They did not kill her. Early in the morning the woman tried to return to the house from which she was thrown but collapsed at the door. The Levite found her when he arose to leave the place and ordered her to get up.
When she did not respond, he placed her on the back of his donkey and returned to Ephraim.
The Levite, upon his arrival in Ephraim, cut the woman's body into 12 pieces and sent these pieces throughout the land. As a result of this action, 400,000 armed men altogether gathered at Mizpah, to review the situation, and decided not to rest until the crime had been punished. Mizpah was located on the Northern border of what later became the kingdom of Judah. It was West of Jericho, and somewhat North West of Jerusalem. Bethel is a few miles to the North of it, and Gibeah is a few miles to the South.
The Benjaminites raised an army of of 26,000 in addition to 700 left-handed sling specialists who could sling a stone at a hair and not miss. Those men were serious warriors. David was one of them, who could hurl stones up to a pound in weight with uncanny accuracy at upwards of 90 mph. They were a serious thread in battle.
A cycle of violence resulted in the slaughter of many men, women, and children and the Benjaminite as a tribe was nearly wiped out. The other tribes began to mourn, because they did not want to have Israel as a nation reduced by a tribe. But there was a problem to be solved, because as the tribes had prepared for war with Benjamin, they had sworn never to give any of their daughters in marriage to Benjamin. A partial solution presented itself when the assembly began to deal with one group in Israel that had not answered the call to arms against Benjamin. All the tribes had sworn an oath, on penalty of death for non-compliance, to support the war. Now that the war was over, it was discovered that no one had come from the city of Jabesh-Gilead. The city was located across the Jordan about 20 miles North of the Jabbok River. The transgression of not sending troops had to be punished, so 12,000 men were sent to Jabesh-Gilead to kill the inhabitants of the city, which they did. Everyone was killed except 400 young virgins at Shiloh.
Those virgins became part of the solution to the problem of the 600 Benjaminites that survived the war by hiding in a cave for 4 months. The rest of Israel made peace with them and gave them the 400 virgins from Jabesh-Gilead as wives so that they could repopulate their tribe. But since the Benjaminites needed more wives, Israel resorted that they still would not give them any of their daughters but they would look the other way if the Benjaminites came and stole some of their daughters.
The Book ends with an appropriate refrain: "In those days there was no king in Israel; all the people did what was right in their own eyes."
THE MEANING OF CUSH BY THE RIVER.
Genesis 2:13: "And the name of the 2nd river is Gih'On, the same name is it that encompasses the whole land of Ethiopia."
Ethiopia is a well known kingdom, and a country in which one of the sources of the Nile River lies. The Blue Nile rises in the Ethiopian mountains.
All Scriptural dictionaries agree that the name "Ethiopia" is "Cush" in the Hebrew language. The name, also spelled as Kush, is derived from Cush the eldest son of Ham, who was a son of Noah. He was the brother of Canaan (land of Canaan), Mizraim (Egypt) and Phut (Libya), and the father of Nimrod, the first one called king. He reigned in Babylonia. (Genesis 10; 1 Chronicles 1))
To the Hebrew mind the name is next after the individual who originally bore it, for the descendants. The names in Hebrew language are essentially race-names and attached to the people rather than the place, and applicable whosoever the ethnic group may move, settle, migrate again and re-settle.
If an ethnic group split, and became two groups in different places, each could still bare the original name. The descendants of Cush may have split, one part remaining in Asia, the other migrating to Africa to become the Ethiopia we still know to this day.
The name Cush have cropped up in many places. There is today a "Hindu Cush" in Afganistan and on the border of Pakistan by the Russia. With a name which appears to have moved about so much, it is better to locate "Cush," at the time when Genesis was written, by the river, rather than try to locate the river by the wandering name "Cush."
Cush is traditionally considered the ancestor of the people of the "land of Cush,"an ancient territory that is believed to have been located on either side or both sides of the Red Sea. As such, it is alternately identified in Scripture with the Kingdom of Cush, ancient Sudan, and/or the Arabian Peninsula.
The Book of Numbers 12:1 calls the wife of Moses "an Ethiopian woman," whereas Moses' wife named Zip'Porah is usually described as hailing from Midian. Ezekiel the Poet, a Jewish dramatist who wrote in Alexandria around the 3rd BC, has Zip'Porah describing herself as a stranger in Midian, and proceeds to describe the inhabitants of her ancestral lands in North Africa: "Stranger, this land is called Libya. It is inhabited by tribes of various peoples, Ethiopians, dark men. One man is the ruler of the land; he is both king and general. He rules the state, judges the people, and is priest. This man is my father and theirs."
Another person named Cush in the Hebrew Scripture is a Benjamite who is mentioned only in Psalm 7 and is believed to be a follower of Saul. The tribe of Benjamin is significant in biblical narratives as a source of various leaders including the first Israelite king, Saul, as well as earlier tribal leaders in the period of Judges. According to Genesis, Benjamin was the result of a painful birth in which Rachel his mother died, naming him Ben-Oni, "the son of my pain,"immediately before her death. Instead, Jacob, his father, preferred to call him Benjamin meaning "son of my right hand."
Ethiopia is a well known kingdom, and a country in which one of the sources of the Nile River lies. The Blue Nile rises in the Ethiopian mountains.
All Scriptural dictionaries agree that the name "Ethiopia" is "Cush" in the Hebrew language. The name, also spelled as Kush, is derived from Cush the eldest son of Ham, who was a son of Noah. He was the brother of Canaan (land of Canaan), Mizraim (Egypt) and Phut (Libya), and the father of Nimrod, the first one called king. He reigned in Babylonia. (Genesis 10; 1 Chronicles 1))
To the Hebrew mind the name is next after the individual who originally bore it, for the descendants. The names in Hebrew language are essentially race-names and attached to the people rather than the place, and applicable whosoever the ethnic group may move, settle, migrate again and re-settle.
If an ethnic group split, and became two groups in different places, each could still bare the original name. The descendants of Cush may have split, one part remaining in Asia, the other migrating to Africa to become the Ethiopia we still know to this day.
The name Cush have cropped up in many places. There is today a "Hindu Cush" in Afganistan and on the border of Pakistan by the Russia. With a name which appears to have moved about so much, it is better to locate "Cush," at the time when Genesis was written, by the river, rather than try to locate the river by the wandering name "Cush."
Cush is traditionally considered the ancestor of the people of the "land of Cush,"an ancient territory that is believed to have been located on either side or both sides of the Red Sea. As such, it is alternately identified in Scripture with the Kingdom of Cush, ancient Sudan, and/or the Arabian Peninsula.
The Book of Numbers 12:1 calls the wife of Moses "an Ethiopian woman," whereas Moses' wife named Zip'Porah is usually described as hailing from Midian. Ezekiel the Poet, a Jewish dramatist who wrote in Alexandria around the 3rd BC, has Zip'Porah describing herself as a stranger in Midian, and proceeds to describe the inhabitants of her ancestral lands in North Africa: "Stranger, this land is called Libya. It is inhabited by tribes of various peoples, Ethiopians, dark men. One man is the ruler of the land; he is both king and general. He rules the state, judges the people, and is priest. This man is my father and theirs."
Another person named Cush in the Hebrew Scripture is a Benjamite who is mentioned only in Psalm 7 and is believed to be a follower of Saul. The tribe of Benjamin is significant in biblical narratives as a source of various leaders including the first Israelite king, Saul, as well as earlier tribal leaders in the period of Judges. According to Genesis, Benjamin was the result of a painful birth in which Rachel his mother died, naming him Ben-Oni, "the son of my pain,"immediately before her death. Instead, Jacob, his father, preferred to call him Benjamin meaning "son of my right hand."
THE SACRED VOWS OF A MARRIAGE.
Marriage is an institution that accords with the dictates of nature and the laws of divine inspiration. It is an integral ingredient in the happiness of the couple and act as an integral part of any society.
Jesus threw a distinctive holiness and grandeur around this particular relationship of a man and a woman. It is manifested as a blessed state, and so Jesus clothed it with honor and sublimity. Jesus ratified the contract; he guarded the obligations; he expounded the laws; and he graced the celebration of it with his presence.
The first sign that Jesus' hands performed was at a bridal festival where he turned the water into wine for the joyous celebration of marriage to be continued. Jesus' apostles presented it as a type of the substantial, invisible and everlasting union existing between Christ and his bride, the church. It involves the most tender, close, and lasting ties that can unite human beings together, and it influences the destiny of many others. The triumph of Truth depends on the preservation of God's institution of marriage.
From the very beginning people have attempted to change God's institution of marriage to suit their own fleshy desires. The human race of today have embraced every form of profane activity within the marriage that the divine laws of God governing it are broken at every turn. Because of this treacherous behavior, the spiritual life and worship to the true God has fallen to the point of breaking His Covenant without even realizing how or when it happened.
We find no better description of this violation and its pain in the Scripture than in Malachi 2.
Each passage comes from a particular set of circumstances or a particular question. Malachi was dealing with a situation where a good number of men got rid of their Hebrew wives and married pagan woman. The prophet describes it as a treachery to God and His Covenant as well as to the wives. The prophet wants everyone to realize that the failure was sin, and that to go ahead in life with God they first had to acknowledged that, and if reconciliation was possible, it was to be pursued. If reconciliation was not possible, then the people had to accept the responsibility for their acts, find a way of forgiveness in order to heal and embrace the healing that God provided for them and get on with their lives.
What we find in the Scripture is a number of God's messages that are part of His divine revelation and timeless in their relevance, to an antagonistic audience, much like today in these matters. In the earlier days when people heard the Word of God they trembled and listened; but in Malachi's day when they heard the Word they challenged it; and in our day people changes the Word as they please.
Malachi alone focuses on the pain all this causes and on the fact that God hates it. He presents the wrong actions as a defilement of the holiness of God and His Laws.
Anyone who annul the distinction between God's chosen people and the heathen, by this very action he annihilates the distinction between the God of Israel and the idols of the heathen.
The sin is introduced as a treachery, which was paralleled with the word "abomination," before the sin is defined. The word "treachery" means a willful betrayal of confidence, trust or truth. One who is treacherous is a traitor, unreliable, and disloyal person. The term in Hebrew is "bah-gad," related to "garment."
The sin as an act, has greater implications over the spiritual background of the person committing the sin. It starts by becoming unfaithful to God, a traitor to His Covenant, and then followed by acts of violence, faithlessly reactions, and rebellion towards divine authority. The identity of guiltiness is mentioned in this order: Israel, Judah, and Jerusalem. Israel is the name of the covenant people; Judah and Jerusalem are the center of the kingdom, and Jerusalem itself is the core or religious center of the nation. It wasn't a marginal problem arising among people who had no Scriptural training; instead it was located in the very center of the religious and political community. They brought idolatry into the family of Israel.
The very reason that God loathed the sin was that it "defiled the holiness" of God. The words "defile" and "profane" and "holiness" are cleverly put together -they are antonyms. "Holiness" means "distinct, set apart, separate" to God. "Defile" means "common, profane, separated from sanctuary" or from God.
The treacherous people made common that which was to be distinct.
God loves Zion and prohibits idolatry from the sanctuary. He called Israel "a holy nation" and "His sanctuary. God made them one nation and He loves His nation Israel. God established the marriage laws for the people He loves in order that they might be distinct to Him and to the rest of the world.
Jesus threw a distinctive holiness and grandeur around this particular relationship of a man and a woman. It is manifested as a blessed state, and so Jesus clothed it with honor and sublimity. Jesus ratified the contract; he guarded the obligations; he expounded the laws; and he graced the celebration of it with his presence.
The first sign that Jesus' hands performed was at a bridal festival where he turned the water into wine for the joyous celebration of marriage to be continued. Jesus' apostles presented it as a type of the substantial, invisible and everlasting union existing between Christ and his bride, the church. It involves the most tender, close, and lasting ties that can unite human beings together, and it influences the destiny of many others. The triumph of Truth depends on the preservation of God's institution of marriage.
From the very beginning people have attempted to change God's institution of marriage to suit their own fleshy desires. The human race of today have embraced every form of profane activity within the marriage that the divine laws of God governing it are broken at every turn. Because of this treacherous behavior, the spiritual life and worship to the true God has fallen to the point of breaking His Covenant without even realizing how or when it happened.
We find no better description of this violation and its pain in the Scripture than in Malachi 2.
Each passage comes from a particular set of circumstances or a particular question. Malachi was dealing with a situation where a good number of men got rid of their Hebrew wives and married pagan woman. The prophet describes it as a treachery to God and His Covenant as well as to the wives. The prophet wants everyone to realize that the failure was sin, and that to go ahead in life with God they first had to acknowledged that, and if reconciliation was possible, it was to be pursued. If reconciliation was not possible, then the people had to accept the responsibility for their acts, find a way of forgiveness in order to heal and embrace the healing that God provided for them and get on with their lives.
What we find in the Scripture is a number of God's messages that are part of His divine revelation and timeless in their relevance, to an antagonistic audience, much like today in these matters. In the earlier days when people heard the Word of God they trembled and listened; but in Malachi's day when they heard the Word they challenged it; and in our day people changes the Word as they please.
Malachi alone focuses on the pain all this causes and on the fact that God hates it. He presents the wrong actions as a defilement of the holiness of God and His Laws.
Anyone who annul the distinction between God's chosen people and the heathen, by this very action he annihilates the distinction between the God of Israel and the idols of the heathen.
The sin is introduced as a treachery, which was paralleled with the word "abomination," before the sin is defined. The word "treachery" means a willful betrayal of confidence, trust or truth. One who is treacherous is a traitor, unreliable, and disloyal person. The term in Hebrew is "bah-gad," related to "garment."
The sin as an act, has greater implications over the spiritual background of the person committing the sin. It starts by becoming unfaithful to God, a traitor to His Covenant, and then followed by acts of violence, faithlessly reactions, and rebellion towards divine authority. The identity of guiltiness is mentioned in this order: Israel, Judah, and Jerusalem. Israel is the name of the covenant people; Judah and Jerusalem are the center of the kingdom, and Jerusalem itself is the core or religious center of the nation. It wasn't a marginal problem arising among people who had no Scriptural training; instead it was located in the very center of the religious and political community. They brought idolatry into the family of Israel.
The very reason that God loathed the sin was that it "defiled the holiness" of God. The words "defile" and "profane" and "holiness" are cleverly put together -they are antonyms. "Holiness" means "distinct, set apart, separate" to God. "Defile" means "common, profane, separated from sanctuary" or from God.
The treacherous people made common that which was to be distinct.
God loves Zion and prohibits idolatry from the sanctuary. He called Israel "a holy nation" and "His sanctuary. God made them one nation and He loves His nation Israel. God established the marriage laws for the people He loves in order that they might be distinct to Him and to the rest of the world.
Saturday, 16 June 2018
ORIGEN OF AFRICAN RACE.
T Sahara runs from East to West across the widest part of Africa, a vast desert dividing the continent into 2 main regions. North Africa consists of the Mediterranean coast from Morocco to Egypt and includes the Valley of Nile River as far as South as Ethiopia. South of the Sahara is the region inhabited by black Africans. They, in the past, had relatively little contact with the rest of the world.
Myths and legends developed in Africa, South of the Sahara, over thousands of years. About 7,000 years ago, the ancestors of Hot'Tent'Ot and the Bush'Men (hunter-gatherers), began moving from the Sahara toward Southern Africa. These people were part of the Khoi'San group (San, Khwe, Sho, Bush'Men, Bas'Ar'Wa) and are related to the traditionally pastoral Khoi'Khoi.
A broad study of African genetic diversity completed in 2009 found the San people were among the 5 populations with the highest measured level of genetic diversity among 121 distinct African populations sampled. The San are one of 14 known extant "ancestral population clusters" from which all known modern humans evolved. Their blood contains some of the oldest genetic markers, in a relatively pure form, found on Earth. All humankind can be traced back to the African continent. More recent analysis suggests that the San may have been isolated from other original ancestral groups for as much as 100,000 years and then rejoined at a later date, re-integrating the human gene pool.
The Bush'Men's Y-chromosomal DNA haplo-group (type A) is one of the oldest, splitting off around 70,000 years ago from those found in the rest of humanity (type BT)
The most important thing in the lives of the San people is water. Droughts can last for many months and water-holes may dry up. When this happens, they use sip wells. To get water this way, a San will scrape a deep hole where the sand is damp. Into this hole will be put a long hollow grass stem. An empty ostrich egg is used to collect the water. Water is sucked into the straw from the sand, into the mouth, and then travels down another straw into the ostrich egg. Villagers move constantly in search of budding greens to formalize rings, and in dry season they congregate around permanent water-holes.
Historically evidence shows that certain Bush'Men communities have always lived in the desert regions of the Kalah'Ari. Parallels between hunter-gatherers in Southern Africa and the Americas shows that healers, or ritual specialists, deliberately force themselves into a trance in which they travel to the spirit world. The visions they experienced on these journeys are very complex and the activity itself was taken and still is for the good of the community. They reason they go to the spirit world is to entreat with their guardian entities for the lives of the sick, to make rain, and control the movements of the game animals.
All humans have the capacity to see geometric shapes, because they are hardwired in the brain. As the trance deepens, and the subject tries to make sense of the shapes, they change into things which are governed by the particular culture in which that healer works. Coupled with this are experiences such as changing into animals. Going into deep ancient caves is likened to going into a deep trance. Some contain images of figures which are half human and half animal. The images likely derived from visions they had experienced at special ceremonies.
The people of Africa did not use written language until modern times. Instead, they possessed rich and complex oral traditions, passing myths, legends, and history from generation to generation in spoken form. Written accounts of African mythology began to appear in the early 1800s, and present-day scholars labor to record the continent's myths and legends before they are lost to time and cultural change.
Myths and legends developed in Africa, South of the Sahara, over thousands of years. About 7,000 years ago, the ancestors of Hot'Tent'Ot and the Bush'Men (hunter-gatherers), began moving from the Sahara toward Southern Africa. These people were part of the Khoi'San group (San, Khwe, Sho, Bush'Men, Bas'Ar'Wa) and are related to the traditionally pastoral Khoi'Khoi.
A broad study of African genetic diversity completed in 2009 found the San people were among the 5 populations with the highest measured level of genetic diversity among 121 distinct African populations sampled. The San are one of 14 known extant "ancestral population clusters" from which all known modern humans evolved. Their blood contains some of the oldest genetic markers, in a relatively pure form, found on Earth. All humankind can be traced back to the African continent. More recent analysis suggests that the San may have been isolated from other original ancestral groups for as much as 100,000 years and then rejoined at a later date, re-integrating the human gene pool.
The Bush'Men's Y-chromosomal DNA haplo-group (type A) is one of the oldest, splitting off around 70,000 years ago from those found in the rest of humanity (type BT)
The most important thing in the lives of the San people is water. Droughts can last for many months and water-holes may dry up. When this happens, they use sip wells. To get water this way, a San will scrape a deep hole where the sand is damp. Into this hole will be put a long hollow grass stem. An empty ostrich egg is used to collect the water. Water is sucked into the straw from the sand, into the mouth, and then travels down another straw into the ostrich egg. Villagers move constantly in search of budding greens to formalize rings, and in dry season they congregate around permanent water-holes.
Historically evidence shows that certain Bush'Men communities have always lived in the desert regions of the Kalah'Ari. Parallels between hunter-gatherers in Southern Africa and the Americas shows that healers, or ritual specialists, deliberately force themselves into a trance in which they travel to the spirit world. The visions they experienced on these journeys are very complex and the activity itself was taken and still is for the good of the community. They reason they go to the spirit world is to entreat with their guardian entities for the lives of the sick, to make rain, and control the movements of the game animals.
All humans have the capacity to see geometric shapes, because they are hardwired in the brain. As the trance deepens, and the subject tries to make sense of the shapes, they change into things which are governed by the particular culture in which that healer works. Coupled with this are experiences such as changing into animals. Going into deep ancient caves is likened to going into a deep trance. Some contain images of figures which are half human and half animal. The images likely derived from visions they had experienced at special ceremonies.
The people of Africa did not use written language until modern times. Instead, they possessed rich and complex oral traditions, passing myths, legends, and history from generation to generation in spoken form. Written accounts of African mythology began to appear in the early 1800s, and present-day scholars labor to record the continent's myths and legends before they are lost to time and cultural change.
Wednesday, 13 June 2018
THE ANCIENT JERICHO.
Jericho is the lowest city in the world, at 258m/846ft below sea level (the lowest place on Earth is the Dead Sea, the surface of which is over 400m/1300ft below sea level). Jericho also is the oldest and continuously inhabited city in the world.
Archaeologists have unearthed the remains of more than 20 successive settlements in Jericho, the first of which dates back 11,000 years (9,000BC). The town, which was about 6 acres (2.5 hectares) in size, preceded the wall by about 500 years. It is situated on the Ein As-Sultan spring (later called Elisha's Spring) supplying it with water. By about 9,400 BC the settlement grew to include more than 70 homes. These round mud-brick houses measured 5m/16ft in diameter, yet no street planning.
Archaeological evidence reveals that by 8,000 BC, the site grew to 40,000 square meters / 430,000 square feet and was surrounded by a stone wall 3.6m/11,8ft high and 1,8m/5.9ft wide at the base. Inside the wall was a stone tower 8.5m/28ft high and 9m/30ft wide at the base. The tower had an internal staircase with 22 steps.
After a few centuries, the first settlement was abandoned. Around 7,000BC, a second settlement was established by an invading people that absorbed the original inhabitants into their culture. Buildings were rectilinear structures made also of mud-bricks. Each building consisted on several rooms situated around a central courtyard. The greatest distinction of this culture was that they kept the heads of deceased relatives by plastering the skulls and painting the features of the person on it. These skulls were kept in the home and the rest of the body was buried. This settlement lasted until about 6,000BC. There is then little evidence of occupation at Jericho for at least 1,000 years.
At the end of the 4th millennium BC evidence shows that the walls have been rebuilt many times. The largest of these settlements was constructed in 2,600 BC by the Amorites. It was taken over by the Canaanites in 1,900 BC and reached it greatest prominence between 1700 BC and 1,550BC. The rise of the aristocracy caused a greater urbanization in the surrounding area, including Jericho. By this time, there were two walls around the city in a double enclosure made of mud-brick. The outside wall rested on top of a stone base. Though they were impressive in size, they were not stable. It fell in the 16th century around 1573 BC by an earthquake. Then it remained unoccupied until the late 10th century when it was rebuilt.
According to the Scriptural story, at around 1,400 BC, Jericho was the first city attacked by the Israelites after they crossed the Jordan River and entered Canaan. Joshua 6: "Now Jericho was shut up from within and from without because of the people of Israel; none went out, and none came in. And the Lord said to Joshua, 'See, I have given into your hand Jericho, with its king and mighty men of valor. You shall march around the city, all the men of war going around the city once. Thus shall you do for 6 days. And 7 priests shall bear 7 trumpets of rams' horns before the Ark; and on the 7th day you shall march around the city 7 times, the priests blowing the trumpets. And when they make a long blast with the ram's horn, as soon as you hear the sound of the trumpet, then all the people shall shout with great shout; and the wall of the city will fall down flat, and the people shall go up every man straight before him.' "
When the city was destroyed, a curse was pronounced upon its rebuilding, to the effect that the man who should do so would lay Foundation in his oldest son and set up the Gates in his youngest son (Joshua 6). 1 Kings 16 reveals that Joshua's curse did come true during the time of King Ahab: "Hiel of Bethel built Jericho. He laid its foundation at the cost of Abi'Ram his firstborn, and set up its gates at the cost of his youngest son Segub, according to then Word of the Lord, which He spoke by Joshua son of Nun."
Modern-day Jericho is an important historical, cultural, and political center located North West of the Dead Sea. Located in the disputed West Bank region of Israel, it has been ceded to Palestinian control as part of recent treaty agreements.
Sunday, 10 June 2018
THE SONS OF AMMON.
According to the Scripture, Mo'Ab and Amm'On were born to Lot, Abraham's nephew, and Lot's elder and younger daughter, respectively. Lot settled in the city of Sodom. When God destroyed Sodom and Gomorr'Ah because of their wickedness, Lot and his daughters fled to the hill country on the Southern end of the Dead Sea. The daughters, thinking they were the only people left on earth, got their father drunk and had incestuous relations with him to produce children. The older daughter had a son named Mo'Ab (from father) and the younger gave birth to Ben-Ammi (son of my people). The Ammonites, descendants of Ben-Ammi, were a nomadic people who occupied the Northern Central Trans-Jordania Plateau from the latter part of the 2nd millennium BC to at least the 2nd century CE. The name of the modern capital city, Amm'An, reflects the name of those ancient inhabitants.
In the time of Moses, the fertile plains of the Jordan River valley were occupied by the Amor'Ites, Ammon'Ites and Moab'Ites. When Israel left Egypt, the Ammon'Ites refused to assist them in any way, and god punished them for their lack of support (Deuteronomy 23). Later, however, as the Israelites entered the Promised Land, God instructed them, "When you approach the territory of the people of Amm'On, do not harass them or contend with them, for I will not give you any of the land of the people of Amm'On as a possession, because I have given it to the sons of Lot for a possession"(Deut. 2). The Israelites tribes of Gad, Reuben, and half of Manas'Seh claimed the Amor'Ite territory bordering that of the Ammon'Ites.
Moloch, god of the Ammonites, a deity of perverted cruelty, was a fire-god with the face of a calf. He was also known by the names Molech, Milcom, Malcham, and for the Moab'Ites he was the god named Chemosh. Moloch was worshiped in Tophet, a city nearby Jerusalem. Moloch was honored with human sacrifices. His images had arms outstretched to receive the babies who were sacrificed to him. People would burn their children in fire as a form of sacrifice while others would let their infants pass through the fire as a form of dedication. Like their god, the sons of the Ammonites were cruel. When Nah'Ash the Ammon'Ite was asked for terms of a treaty (1Sam11) he proposed gouging out the right eye of each Israelite man. Amos 1 says that the Amon'Ites would rip open pregnant women in the territories they conquered.
God commanded the Israelites not to marry these people, because intermarriage would lead His people to worship false gods. Solomon disobeyed and married Naam'Ah (1Kings 14)and, as God had warned, he was drawn to idolatry (1Kings 11).
1 Kings 11: 5 "King Solomon followed other gods like Ash'Toreth of Sid'On and Moloch of Amm'On.
1 King 11:33 "King Solomon's kingdom torn down for worshiping other gods like Ash'Toreth of Sidon and Chemosh of Moab and Moloch of Amm'On and for disobedience with the Laws and Decrees that David, his father, had kept."
Amos 5:26 and Acts 7:43 says, "People were reminded to repent of worshiping the tabernacle of Moloch and Chiun as their persona of God, which they made to themselves."
Leviticus 20:2 "Members of the community are to stone to death any Israelites or residents of Israel who surrenders their children to Moloch."
Under King Saul's leadership, Israel defeated the Ammon'Ites and made them vassals. David continued that sovereignty over Ammon and later besieged the capital city to solidify his control. After the split of Israel and Judah, the Ammon'Ites began to ally themselves with the enemies of Israel. Ammon regained some sovereignty in the 7th BC, until Nebuchadnezz'Ar conquered them about 100 years later. By the new Testament times, Jews had settled in the area, and it was known as Perea. Sometime during Roman period, the Ammon'Ites seem to have been absorbed into Arab society.
THE INTELLIGENCE OF THE OLD TRADE CITIES.
One of the earliest known planned cities, as a purposely built city, Mari is believed to have been founded as a trade club, and copper and bronze smelting centre, between Babylonia in Southern Mesopotamia and the resource-rich Taurus Mountains of modern Turkey.
Mari is an example of complex urban planning and is believed to have entirely planned out prior to its actual construction by another unknown but very complex society. This is evident in Mari's overall design as it was built as two concentric rings, the outer ring intended to protect the city from occasional and violent floods of the Euphrates, and the inner ring designed to defend against attackers. After digging a canal to connect two bends of the river, they used the earth from this to raise the perfectly circular area that would form the heart of this city and through which this canal passed. Fortifications were constructed and the grand capital was enclosed within the two concentric circles, a design the city would retain for its entire 1,200-year history. The city's power was related to its position in the middle of the Euphrates trade routes; this position made it as intermediary between Summer in the South and the Levant in the North.
Mari served as the major centre of Northern Mesopotamia for 1,200 years until it was destroyed by Hammu'Rabi of Babylon between 1,760 BC and 1,757 BC and gradually eroded away from memory and quite literally -today only 1/3 of the city survives with the rest washed away by the Euphrates. The ancient river was around 4-6 km from the city but has since moved further East.
Hammu'Rabi (also known as Ammu'Rapi) reigned from 1792 to 1750 BC) was the 6th king of the Ammo'Rite First Dynasty of Babylon, assumed the throne from his father, Sin-Mub'Allit, and expanded the kingdom to conquer all of ancient Mesopotamia. The kingdom of Babylon comprised only the cities of Babyl'On, Kish, Sipp'Ar, and Bor'Sipp'Ar when he came to the throne but, through a succession of military campaigns, careful alliances made and broken when necessary, and political maneuvers, he held the entire region under Babyl'Onian control by 1750 BC. He sought to improve the lives of those who lived under his rule, and came to be a model for other cultures and is thought to have influenced the laws set down by Hebrews scribes, including those from the Scriptural Book of Exodus.
Hammurabi was an able administrator and canny imperialist, patient in the achievement of his goals. Upon taking the throne, he issued a proclamation forgiving people's debts and during the first 5 years of his reign further enhanced his popularity by piously renovating the sanctuaries of the gods, especially Marduk, Babyl'On patron. With his power at home secure and his military forces primed, he began a 5 year-series of campaigns against rival states to the South and East, expanding his territory.
With the Southern part under control, Hammu'Rabi turned North and West. The Ammorite kingdom of Mari in Syria had long been an ally of Ammorite Babyl'On, and Hammu'Rabi strategically continued friendly relations with the king Zim'Ri-Lim (1761-1755 BC). Zim'Ri-Lim had led successful military campaigns through the North and, owing to the wealth generated from these victories, Mari had grown to be the envy of other cities with one of the largest and most opulent palaces in the region. Mari was an important, luxurious, and prosperous trade center on the Euphrates River and possessed great riches and water rights. Hammu'Rabi wanted to hold the city directly, instead of having to negotiate for resources. He struck swiftly at Mari in 1761BC and destroyed it instead of simply conquering it. Others cities were absorbed into the kingdom and repaired and improved upon. Hammu'Rabi wanted Babylon to be the head and the greatest of the Mesopotamian cities and Mari was a definite rival for this honor. From Mari, Hammu'Rabi marched on Ash'Ur and took the region of Assyria and finally Esh'Nun'Na (also conquered by damming up of the waters). A popular title applied to him in his lifetime "Bani Matim,"
"Builder of the Land," because of the many building projects and canals he ordered constructed throughout the region. The prologue to his famous law code begins:
"When the lofty Anu (sky god who was later viewed as the father of the gods and ruler of the heavens), King of the Annun'Aki and Bel, Lord of Heaven and Earth, he who determines the destiny of the land, committed the rule of all mankind to Marduk, when they pronounced the lofty name of Babyl'On, when they made it famous among the quarters of the world and in its midst established an everlasting kingdom whose foundations were firm as heaven and earth -at that time Anu and Bel called me, Hammu'Rabi, the exalted prince, the worshiper of gods, .... Hammu'Rabi, the governor named by Bel, am I, who brought about plenty and abundance."
The Ammon'Ite city of Mari is believed to have been constructed along with a 10 km long man-made "linking canal" that once cut through it and provided water, essential for the city's existence as the city itself was too far from the Euphrates for daily water retrieval on foot and the ground water seemed too salty for wells. The canal also gave easy access for trading ships traveling on the river. Two other substantial canals were constructed by the city's builders. One was an irrigation canal, 16 km long and 100 m wide, and the other was a 126 km long navigational canal which ran past Mari on the opposite side of the river and allowed boats to bypass the winding Euphrates in favor of a straight passage -Mari controlled the entry points and profited from tolls.
The earliest examples of certain Syro-Mesopotamian technologies were excavated by archaeologists at the ruins of the city, those include the wheel and plumbing. Mari was built so that the whole city sloped down gradually downwards, and the streets had complex drainage systems. This meant rainwater from the occasional torrential rains could be safely drained out of the city without risking the damage to the buildings which were all made from mud-brick.
Mari was unearthed in 1933CE by a local Bedouin who found a statue and informed the French government -this was a period when Syria was controlled by France. Since then, Mari has been a French-excavated site, with most of the literature on the site published in French. Excavators uncovered over 1,500 tablets, many of these concentrated in the Great Royal Palace, but many also came from private homes. These tablets helps to recreate the ancient Syrian trading world in great detail.
Since 2012CE Mari has faced extensive looting, the impact of which is not yet known.
Saturday, 9 June 2018
THE JUDGE NAMED SAMSON.
The Book of Judges covers the time between the conquest of the land described in the Book of Joshua and the establishment of a kingdom in the Books of Samuel, during which judges served as temporary leaders. The stories in the book follow a consistent pattern: the people become unfaithful to God and therefore because of losing His spiritual protection He has to deliver them into the hands of their enemies; the people repent and entreat God for mercy, which He sends in the form of a leader or champion (judge); the judge delivers the Israelites from oppression and then they prosper again, but soon they fall again into unfaithfulness and the cycle is repeated.
According to the Scripture, Man'Oah was of the tribe of Dan (Judge). They were allocated a coastal portion of the land. Dan was a son of Jacob and Bilhah, Rachel's maidservant. Man'Oah lived in the city of Zorah (place of wasps) in the lower hill country of Judah. Zorah, situated on the crest of a hill overlooking the Valley of Sor'Ek, was the birthplace of Samson and also his burial place. Soreq is one of the largest, most important drainage basins in the Judean Hills. It is mentioned in Judges 16 as the border between the ancient Philistines and the Tribe of Dan. Man'Oah married a woman (no name) who was barren. An angel of the Lord appeared to her and told her she would give birth a son. The child was to be dedicated from the womb as a Nazirite, which entailed restrictions on his diet, which the angel spelled out in detail. The wife believed; her husband was not there. Man'Oah prayed and the angel returned to instruct both of them. After the Angel of the Lord returned, Man'Oah asked him his name, but he said, "Why do you ask my name? it is beyond understanding."
Samson, a Nazirite, was born, and he was raised according to the provisions. When he was a young adult, he left the hills of his people to see the cities of Philistia. He fell in love with a Philistine woman from Timn"Ah, whom decided to marry, ignoring the objections of his parents. Samson was repeatedly seized by the "Spirit of the Lord," who blessed him with immense strength to aid himself against his enemies and allow him to perform superhuman feats. When he was on his way to ask for the Philistine's woman's hand in marriage, he was attacked by a lion. Samson simply grabbed it and ripped it apart, as the Spirit of God divinely empowered him. However, Samson kept it a secret, not even mentioning the miracle to his parents. He arrived at the Philistine's house and became bethroded to her. He returned home, then came back to Timn'Ah some time later for the wedding. On his way, Samson saw that bees had nested in the carcass of the lion and made honey. He ate a handful of the honey and gave some to his parents as they travelled with him to Timn'Ah (Philistine city in Canaan) for the wedding ceremony. The city of Timn'Ah is mentioned in Judges 14 and in connection with Judah and Tamar in Genesis 38. It is strategically located in the Sorek Valley, an access point from the Coastal Plain through the Shephel'Ah and into the Central Judean Mountains. In Joshua 15, the city is mentioned as a point on the border of the Tribe of Judah. The Book of Judges refers to Timn'ah's vineyards.
At the wedding feast, Samson told a riddle to his 30 groomsmen (all Philistines). If they could solve it, he would give them 30 pieces of fine linen and garments, but if they could not solve it, they would give him 30 pieces of fine linen and garments. The riddle was a veiled account of 2 encounters with the lion, at which only he was present.
"Out of the eater came something to eat. Out of the strong came something sweet."Infuriated by the riddle the 30 groomsmen told Samson's wife that they would burn her and her father's household if she did not discover the answer and tell it to them. Samson told her the solution at her urgent and tearful imploring. She told it to the 30 groomsmen.
Before the sunset of the 7th day they said to him, "What is sweeter than honey? and what is stronger than a lion?" Samson said to them, "If you had not plowed with my heifer, you would not have solved my riddle." Samson then traveled to Ash'Kelon where he slew 30 Philistines for their garments; he then returned and gave them to his 30 groomsmen. In a rage, Samson returned to his father's house. The family of his would-have-been bride instead gave her to one of the groomsmen as wife. Some time later Samson returned to Timn'Ah to visit his wife, unaware that she was now married to one of his former groomsmen. Her father refused to allow Samson to see her, offering to give Samson a younger sister instead. Samson went out, gathered 300 foxes and tied them together in pairs by their tales. He then attached a burning torch to each pair of foxes' tails and turned they loose in the grain fields and olive groves of the Philistines. They learned why Samson burned their crops and burned Samson's wife and father-in-law to death in retribution.
In revenge, Samson slaughtered many more Philistines, saying, 'I am done to them what they did to me' taking refuge in a cave in the rock of Etam. An army of Philistines came to the Tribe of Judah and demanded that 3,000 men of Judah deliver Samson to them. With Samson's consent, they tied him with 2 new ropes and were about to hand him over to the them when he broke free of the ropes. Using the jawbone of a donkey, Samson slew 1,000 Philistines.
Later, Samson travels to Gaza, the Philistines made it a part of their penta-polis after the Ancient Egytians had ruled it for nearly 350 years. He stays at a harlot's house. His enemies wait at the Gate of the city to ambush him, but he tears the Gate from its very hinges and frame and carries it to "the hill that is in front of Hebron (South of Jerusalem)."
Samson then falls in love with Delil'Ah in the Valley of Sorek. The Philistines approach Delil'ah and induce her with 1,100 silver coins to find the secret of Samson's strength so that they can capture their enemy, but Samson refuses to reveal the secret and teases her, telling her that he will lose his strength if he is bound with fresh bow strings. She does so while he sleeps, but when he wakes up he snaps the strings. She persists, and he tells her that he can be bound with new ropes. She ties him up with new ropes while he sleeps, and he snaps them, too. She asks again, and he says that he can be bound if his locks are woven into a weaver's loom. She weaves them into a loom, but he simply destroys the entire loom and carries it off when he wakes. Delil'Ah, however, persists and Samson finally wears down and tells Delil'Ah that God supplies His power because of his consecration to Him as a Nazirite, symbolized by the fact that a razor has never touched his head, and that if his hair is cut off he will lose his strength.
Delil'Ah then woos him to sleep "in her lap" and calls for a servant to shave his hair. Samson loses his strength and he is captured by the Philistines who blind him by gouging out his eyes. They then take him to Gaza, imprison him, and put him to work turning a large millstone and grinding corn.
One day the Philistine leaders assemble in a temple for a religious sacrifice to Dagon, one of their most important deities, for having delivered Samson into their hands. They summon Samson so that people can watch him perform for them. The temple is so crowded that people are even climbing onto the roof to watch -and all rulers of the entire government of Philistia have gathered there too, some 3,000 people in all. Samson is led to into the temple, and he asks his captors to let him lean against the supporting pillars to rest. He prays for strength and God gives him strength to break the pillars, causing the temple to collapse, killing Samson and the people inside.
After his death, Samson's family recovered his body from the rubble and bury him near the tomb of his father Man'Oah. At the conclusion of Judges 16, it is said that Samson had "judged" Israel for 20 years. The Scripture does not mention the fate of Delil'Ah.
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