The Holiday of Purim is here again, and costumes, parties and fun are sprouting everywhere. Fun is the name of the game. Is there anything wrong with that? I admit that I love to see people smile and all the children and adults dressed up and clowning around! I am not keen on kids eating a lot of candy, partly because I know the health problems that go along with too much sugar, but then that is a personal issue.
I want to examine, and I don’t claim to be right or wrong, a few things I am uncomfortable with:
I know that God’s Eternal Name, YHVH, is important in all of Tenakh, but why is he not mentioned in any form in the entire book? People tell me that it is because He had to stay hidden. That does not make sense. When is it right to hide the God whom we worship from stories that we write about our lives? If anything in a story was done by the Eternal, then why is the emphasis placed on the clever Mordecai and his beautiful niece, Esther, who found herself lined up to become queen of Persia? Why not mention that the Hand of God was involved? Why take credit for the Jews being so clever and smart and leave God completely out of it? Was this because they knew they were in the wrong place at the wrong time? Were they indeed under persecution at this time?
If they were not suffering persecution, then what else may have been the reason for hiding one’s ethnicity?
Is it possible that the story about justifying life for the Chosen People among the nations? No need for a a temple? No need for a Covenant with the Land and the God of the Land?
Why were the majority of the Jews still in Persia many years after they were commissioned to return to the Land sixty years after the decree of Cyrus the Great?
Why did Hadassah become Esther naming herself after the pagan goddess Ishtar? And why did Mordecai take that name since it is also a variation of Marduk, a pagan deity worshiped in Babylon and ancient Mesopotamia? According to Torah it is wrong to pronounce the name of a pagan god, but these went so far as to rename themselves after these idols..
Perhaps choosing these names was a political move to be able to work and live among the Persians. But the question looms large, why do they want to stay in the Galut? Is it because they are now permeated with the culture? Do they love the customs of the Gentiles more than their own?
And what else might be the motive to hide at this time before Haman had the decree to kill all the Jews signed by the king? Would Haman have declared the Jews as public enemy number one, if he had known that the queen was Jewish? The story does not say that they were being persecuted. If so, then why not move back to the land?
The entire plot of the story of Esther seems to justify working subversively to overthrow the powers that be. When is it right to clearly hide one’s identity to be able to climb the political ladder with the intent of having someone at the top? Were Jews ever commanded to do such things? There is plenty of evidence of this happening throughout history. We see Joseph shaving to appear acceptable to Pharaoh when he was brought before him, but he apparently didn’t hide his parentage, because later in the Joseph story, the Egyptians would not eat with the Hebrews. He apparently was known as a Hebrew even since Potiphar put him in jail.
Maybe there are other reasons, but to me, it seems that the Jews who stayed in Persia enjoyed the Persian lifestyle and culture and did what they did to justify living in the Galut 60 or 70 years after Cyrus opened the way for them to leave. (Note that the decree of Cyrus took place in 539 and the events in the book of Esther were between 483 and 473. (See here and here). These dates are estimates.
I don’t have answers, on this, and I have to admit that I have gone along with things many times so that I don’t make waves. What should we do about this? Is there anybody else out there who is concerned?
So “Happy Purim” and please think deeply when you drink so much you can’t discern Haman from Mordecai!
The world has been spinning out of control in mad chaos that no one really understands. Trump was inaugurated. He accomplished some encouraging things during his first hours in office. Everything sounds good. But is it really? Some of us are burned out from worrying about what comes next. Is Trump telling us the truth? Or is this propaganda?… again? Another big show to gain power and money? Is Donald Trump actually bringing about globalist control? The world was weakened under the past regime. So now, with our confidence destroyed, We embrace a leader that goes beyond the duties of a President of the United States?
No, you can’t really blame us for pondering that what we see is really not what we get! And how did we come to be this way? Those of us who ask these questions obviously took the red pill, which makes us suspicious of everything. But does God factor in somewhere? Can we believe that the Eternal, all powerful Master of the Universe is still in control? Does He really raise up kings and put down kings? (Daniel 2:21), or are the promises we have relied on in the past null and void of fulfillment?
Does Israel really have an end-time purpose in this world? Are the glorious promises in the Bible really meant for us today, or did we somehow miss the boat along the way? It’s easy to doubt, and I know it’s not right to think this way. But it’s extremely sad to see so many of our innocents killed, raped, burned, beheaded, and terrified. Even now, though some have been released, what is the chance that any of them who endured the last 16 months will be mentally ill,–that is, if they survive at all? Naturally, we are insecure, and even doubt the reasons for our faith. Sometimes wonder if we will see another tomorrow.
We try to put it out of our minds. Distraction is a game we play and it may be the only way to survive this horrendous war in any semblance of sanity. It’s difficult not to dwell on hostages half buried in dark holes beneath the grime–violated and hated. There is no certainty that any of them are still alive. As humans, we can never be satisfied with not knowing about something so precious as human life. And so we try to avoid thinking of the unthinkable! The long saga of dwelling on the evil fate of these beloved victims–living or perhaps even preferably dead in the tunnels of frozen fright, is pure hell for both them and all of us who have a soul.
So we stop thinking because we must. But let us ask ourselves: where has hope gone? Where is God at a time like this? Are there a few faithful souls who still see good beyond the tragedy of our times?
The world is being weighed in the balances, with Israel being the centerpiece. It is as if God has drawn a line in the sand. A line separating between those who love His people and those who do not.
To call evil good and good evil seems to be the theme of a world gone mad. I have to believe that Almighty God sees us now. He saw Israel when they labored in the the slime pits of Egypt. Then he called Moses to set His people free.
“And God saw the children of Israel, and God knew…” Exodus 2:25
Can we bank on that now?
Please share your thoughts. I really would like to hear from you!
People for the most part want to be comfortable. Don’t stir the water. Leave me alone to my beliefs and let me live in my comfort zone!
But sometimes the hunger for something real, suppresses the boredom of expected melancholy of a mundane life. And those who break out of their comfort zone will probably live to regret it, if they do not find something better. The problem with those who defy boundaries and disappoint people’s expectations, is that people don’t like it. Especially when it comes to religion that may have been in the family for generations!
When I left Christianity, my family was disappointed. My father, may he rest in peace, asked: “How can you reject our Savior?” I was very defensive. Clearly, I wanted to do what was right. I had lived in that world for over 50 years and for several years before I separated from the church, I began to “see” the traps that were there to keep the members “safely in the fold.” The hierarchical set-up of the church was clear. The ones at the top were not questioned and the sheep, (the ones who sat in the pews from week to week) were their bread and butter, providing their financial and leadership platform of control.
My husband and I have just finished a book by Shulem Dean, an ex Hassid, Ultra Orthodox young man who defied gravity, so to speak and found his way out of the world of Orthodoxy, but in doing so, he lost his marriage, his 5 children, his community, and nearly ended up taking his life. The book, Those who Go, do not Return, is available online for purchase and a partial copy is available here. And he has many YouTube’s, one I have watched is here.
I lived and worked in several places where I could see what was going on in the leadership of that church. I may have been naive as a child and young adult, but when I began to see things, the wheels in my head started turning. During this time, I met a man in leadership who had worked in the higher echelons of that church, someone who was chastised for telling the truth. Furthermore, he had been ordered to write a recantation to a book he had written and pull it off the market–not because it was a lie, but because he had facts that might shake up the trust of the members and the organization could begin to totter from the top down! I also met another minister who was disfellowshipped for revealing some of what had gone on to change the church into something that the Vatican could accept. (For those who do not know, Vatican II was about aligning all the protestant churches and calling them back to the fold under certain specifications of fundamental belief.) These changes, which the retired and excommunicated pastor spoke about, happened during my lifetime. I knew things were not right. It was about then that I removed my membership from the church and stood alone in the wilderness, so to speak. A few friends and some of my family actually stepped a little ways out from the organization because of my discoveries. But that is as far as they went.
Brainwashing from birth happens in most families who are religious, and I believe it has to do with false concepts of the Most High God of the Universe. Fear of hellfire or separation from God based on lies trumped-up by most, if not all, ecclesiastic movements. Free thinking is not allowed, and people who cherish the comfortable above the real refuse to challenge the system. It is too dangerous! It is not easy to go against the crowd, for a lot of reasons.
After 15 years studying alone, I joined a liberal sect of Judaism. I knew that there were problems when I heard long sermons on the merits of women having the choice for abortions, even late-term abortions.I asked myself, what this had to do with the Dvar Torah on that particular Shabbat! I saw a lot of things that didn’t line up with the Bible and thought that maybe the more conservative and orthodox sects were more acceptable. I moved to Modern Orthodox. Now 15 years later, I see errors that make me tremble. The Bible is often not even known by many devout Jews. I often quote verses of Scripture and receive blank stares when I come up against things like reincarnation and the worship of the dead. (That is what I call it, even though they will deny it.) Let me explain. There is a common practice of visiting the tombs of the Sages and Prophets here in Israel. Many rabbis and even Cohanim take their prayer books and pray at these tombs. When asked why, they say they are asking the dead to mediate with God for them. I say that is praying to the dead! Is it not? Let me assert also that because of a loophole in what they have created for the Cohanim, they have special paths built for them so that they can worship in these cemeteries.
So I am back again, studying on my own. Wishing for the appearance of the Messiah and even a small group that thinks for themselves. After all, isn’t that what it’s all about? Wasn’t that what brought Abram into favor with the Eternal. Who led Abram? Yitsac? Yacov? I don’t see anything about them raising up synagogues or churches.
The history of all organized religions seems to take the same path. We see the first congregation, that of Israel at Sinai. How long did they stay on track? When they desired for formal worship they built a golden calf, and later the cults of the Midianites and Moabites who lived in the land. Apparently, the command to go up to the Holy Temple in Jerusalem three times a year was not enough for them. Then Babylon conquered the Jewish people and for 70 years they lived there. We do not know a lot about what happened there, but when they returned to build the second Temple, nothing was the same. There was a new leadership that began to rewrite Holy Writ. Talmud, Mishna Torah, Zohar. The literal Torah was not enough, and the Word of God, although sometimes spoke through prophets, soon left the people in the hands of the leadership which has carried on until this day. There were power struggles between the Hasmoneans, Pharisees, Sadducees, etc.
Then there was the appearance of Jesus, who apparently rebuked a lot of the customs and control that was taking place during his lifetime. Not much is really known of him, since most of the New Testament was introduced by Rome. The history we do have of the Essenes and others who purportedly followed him after his death, shows that none of them believed he was a god of any type. Many believed him to be the Messiah, and many believed in his resurrection and prayed for his soon return. But this movement turned into another deception. Many lost their lives at the hands of Rome. And Rome took over the religion and used it to destroy the Jews. And the Catholic Church became one of the most controlling and outstanding pyramid schemes in the history of the world.
Among the Jews during the Second Temple period, there was always vying for supremacy, even looking to Rome, who helped to establish the Pharisaic order. There is little known about the Sadducees who objected to the writings of the Rabbinic Sages and stood for the written Torah which was given by Moses. Yet we know that the Pharisees won over the vying factions of the day and then bartered off the Temple and Jerusalem to Rome. (Link). Research the history of how we got to where we are today. It may take some time and deep digging!
All organized religion assumes control of individual thinking and research. Churches provide research books. The Jews have many many books that define their authorized beliefs. Is it possible to find a group of people who embrace the Bible while at the same time giving freedom to others to think individually as they find and follow their own path? Is it dangerous to entertain such people as friends?
An interesting phenomenon seems to be true in Israel today. There are many Jews in Israel that are unaffiliated. Many are called secular by the more religious, yet many of these same “secular” Jews, have a deep understanding of eternal things and the Bible. How did this happen? When the Jews struggled to create a nation not even a century ago, it was through blood, sweat and tears. In this struggle, they found what it meant to work alone against an unbelieving world. They believed that Israel was given to the Jews and many laid down their lives to win back this land. The children and grandchildren of these people are some of the strongest, kindest and noblest of souls that I have met anywhere. Are they Anti-God just because they refuse to cow down to religion? I don’t see it that way!
Is it possible that this is the people that the Eternal is seeking? Those who have no one above them guiding their thinking? Is it possible that these non-religious people will hear a sound of a rustling wind in the willows that announce the entrance of the Messiah. There is still a small voice that speaks of the wonders of individual faith! Can it be that the Messiah will come from among these who listen to the ancient voice that once spoke to our Father Abraham?
“Forsake the foolish, and live; and go in the way of understanding.” (Pro 9:6)
“Flee out of the midst of Babylon, and deliver every man his soul: be not cut off in her iniquity; for this is the time of the LORD’S vengeance; he will render unto her a recompense.” (Jer 51:6)
Is the Tanakh inspired, or is it not? The Bible has been around for many years, and it continues to be revered and upheld as a light to follow, yet there are some who would tear it apart and say that it is not inspired. How can we know? How can we know if even a modern prophet speaks truth? And what is our bottom line?
Most Jews will agree that the written Torah is the basis for all the other books of Tanakh. What is the purpose of those other books? There are books of prophecy, books of praise, books of wisdom, poetry, accounts of conquest and the history books of Joshua and Judges, Samuel, and others. In fact, history is scattered all through the Tanakh. Is it to be discarded or ignored because it is not Torah? There are rules for measuring prophets given in the Torah.
What does the Torah say about Prophets?
“I will raise them up a prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee; and I will put my words in his mouth, and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, that whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require it of him. But the prophet, that shall speak a word presumptuously in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die. And if thou say in thy heart, How shall we know the word which YHVH hath not spoken? when a prophet speaketh in the name of YHVH, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which YHVH hath not spoken: the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously, thou shalt not be afraid of him.” (Deu 18:18-22).
So for those who are saying there is nothing important about the teachings of the prophets, read this again! This is a prophecy of a prophet to come after the time of Moses and the admonition is to hearken unto him, but also before anyone obeys a prophet, he is to be tested. How? Read this part again…
“… But the prophet, that shall speak a word presumptuously in my name, which I have not commanded him to speak, or that shall speak in the name of other gods, that same prophet shall die. And if thou say in thy heart, How shall we know the word which YHVH hath not spoken? when a prophet speaketh in the name of YHVH, if the thing follow not, nor come to pass, that is the thing which YHVH hath not spoken: the prophet hath spoken it presumptuously, thou shalt not be afraid of him.”
So the prophet must speak in the name of YHVH, what he prophesies must come to pass, and he must not speak in the name of other gods. We also must be certain that the prophet is in agreement with the entire Torah or he or she is a false prophet. The Torah stands as an eternal covenant.
“Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be mine own possession from among all peoples: for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation. These are the words which thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel. And Moses came and called for the elders of the people, and set before them all these words which YHVH commanded him.” (Exo 19:5-7)
“And Moses wrote all the words of YHVH, and rose up early in the morning, and builded an altar under the mount, and twelve pillars, according to the twelve tribes of Israel. … And he took the book of the covenant, and read in the audience of the people: and they said, All that YHVH hath spoken will we do, and be obedient. And Moses took the blood, and sprinkled it on the people, and said, Behold the blood of the covenant, which YHVH hath made with you concerning all these words.” (Exo 24:4, 7-8)
Deuteronomy: for whom was this covenant?
“These are the words of the covenant which YHVH commanded Moses to make with the children of Israel in the land of Moab, besides the covenant which he made with them in Horeb. … Ye stand this day all of you before YHVH your God; your heads, your tribes, your elders, and your officers, even all the men of Israel, your little ones, your wives, and thy sojourner that is in the midst of thy camps, from the hewer of thy wood unto the drawer of thy water; that thou mayest enter into the covenant of YHVH thy God, and into his oath, which YHVH thy God maketh with thee this day; that he may establish thee this day unto himself for a people, and that he may be unto thee a God, as he spake unto thee, and as he sware unto thy fathers, to Abraham, to Isaac, and to Jacob. Neither with you only do I make this covenant and this oath, but with him that standeth here with us this day before YHVH our God, and also with him that is not here with us this day” (Deu 29:1, 10-15)
If we study closely the words in these passages, we will see that the covenant was made during the life of Moses, especially given on Sinai and written down by Moses. This was the basis of law for all time.
Adding and subtracting?
If we return to the test of a true prophet as seen in the verses above, then there is another purpose for prophets. They are not ever allowed to change the Torah, not to add to nor subtract anything from what was given to Moses.
“And now, O Israel, hearken unto the statutes and unto the ordinances, which I teach you, to do them; that ye may live, and go in and possess the land which YHVH, the God of your fathers, giveth you. Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish from it, that ye may keep the commandments of YHVH your God which I command you.” (Deu 4:1-2)
“What thing soever I command you, that shall ye observe to do: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it.” (Deu 12:32)
So now, for those who would throw the baby out with the bath water…
There is a definite purpose in the presence of prophecy, as a guide to current situations. Yet we must understand the bottom line–the principles of the Torah, or we will fall into error. And as far as the prophets in the Tanakh, check them out! Are they in line with Torah? Obviously a prophet is not allowed to make new laws for the people to follow, but they may give rebukes and warnings when God’s people are in error. And this should always be based on Torah law-(the 5 books of Moses, nothing more!)
When we read in Psalms that the angels are the servants and ministers of the Eternal, should we doubt it? Does this contradict the Torah and the events written there about the work that angels did for the forefathers?
“Bless YHVH, ye his angels, That are mighty in strength, that fulfil his word, hearkening unto the voice of his word. Bless YHVH, all ye his hosts, Ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure. ” (Psa 103:20-21).
If we read the Tanakh and find any contradiction to the written Torah, then we have a reason to discard that contradiction, but if not, then the wisdom given in these books is for us to enjoy and to make us wise and profitable in our endeavors.
Somewhere around 4000 years ago, just before the flood, if we take the timeline of the Bible to be accurate, YHVH declared that the earth was unredeemable and began the quest to find any righteous who might be living. If he had not found Noah, we who inhabit the earth today may have never seen the light of modern day. For some of us, it isn’t so hard to imagine the extent of wickedness to which the world had fallen at that time for we see our world today in a similar condition, excusing every type of sin imaginable; rape of little children, murder, thievery, almost every sexual aberration imaginable and other things not even mentionable. And what is worse, the authorities are hesitant to punish this evil. Children are taken from parents who refuse them a sex change.
Image from Freepic.com
But Noah found favor with the Creator being the only righteous person He could find upon the earth. But what of that world that we know so little about other than the giant craters and jutting mountains that stand as a witness to the Bible’s story? Is it all just a myth as many like to claim, basing their beliefs on “scientific” discoveries that predate the creation of our world to millions of years ago? And rather a massive celestial explosion, “a big bang” if you will, as its Designer rather than a loving God who carefully planned each and every creature with the idea of a harmonious universe?
As we look at the pre-flood story, a lot of questions come to mind. Chapters 4 and 5 of Genesis (Bereshit) are especially intriguing. After Cain slew Abel it seems that Adam did not recognize him as his son for it was only upon the birth of Seth 130 years later that he claimed a son in his likeness (image).
“And Adam lived an hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image; and called his name Seth:” (Gen 5:3 KJV)
What happened to create such anger in Cain that he slew Abel? Why so close to the time of Gan Eden, did we find this overpowering urge to sin? I know about what the Catholics teach about Original Sin. But there is a verse in this story that shows clearly that people are not forced to obey a so-called “fallen nature:”
“But on Cain and his offering he (Elohim) did not look with favor. So Cain was very angry, and his face was downcast. Then YHVH said to Cain, “Why are you angry? Why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be accepted? But if you do not do what is right, sin is crouching at your door; it desires to have you, but you must rule over it.”” (Gen 4:5-7 NIV)
Very early on we see that sin can create an urge to act out, but as the Creator pointed out to Cain, “you must rule over it.” Humans are not subject to sin, it presents itself, but it must be resisted. Cain followed his inclination and that began a process of evil that continued right up until the time of the flood. His lineage was not noted for good morals. This is why Adam was relieved when he begat Seth who was in his image. After taking of the fruit in the Garden, Adam himself was not recorded as having sinned in any other way. Chapters 4 and 5 are about the two lineages from Adam. The one through Cain which was markedly evil and the one through Seth that showed very little evil. It is almost as if the power of good was manifest through this royal lineage–the lineage of Seth that continued up until Noah. At the time of the flood Noah was the only one of this lineage still alive. His father Lamech had died and Methuselah, his grandfather died the year of the flood. An outstanding example from this lineage is Enoch, who walked with Elohim after the birth of his son, Methuselah.
“When Enoch had lived 65 years, he became the father of Methuselah. After he became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked faithfully with God 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Altogether, Enoch lived a total of 365 years. Enoch walked faithfully with God; then he was no more, because God took him away.” (Gen 5:21-24 NIV)
We do not see men who walked with God among Cain’s descendants. Why? It is often taught by religious groups that people from all levels of sin can repent and change. We can take what is said about sin extending to the 3rd and 4th generation (see following verse) and assume that this lineage never ever corrected their ways, repeatedly sinning and thus extending and amplifying the urge to sin on down the line.
“Thou shalt not bow down thyself unto them, nor serve them, for I YHVH thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children, upon the third and upon the fourth generation of them that hate me,” (Exo 20:5 ASV)
But why the striking contrast in the two lineages? It seems that the righteous lineage from Seth actually carried some kind of extra inherent blessing as two of this line were mentioned as walking with Elohim. (Enoch and Noah).
But what happened in chapter 6?
The sons of Elohim took the daughters of man and procreated with them because they were fair to look upon.
Who were the sons of Elohim? Many say the angels were seduced by these women and thus the mighty giants were formed and thus God had to put an end to the world as it was then. But, I have a lot of problems with that assumption. I thought Angels only serve the Eternal, that they are without free will. How would they be tempted? They were not subject to the knowledge of good and evil as the descendants of Adam were after the choice our first parents made at the tree. Also, an angel does not have human flesh so how could he/she create children. These are eternal beings that serve before the Throne of the Most High continually. They are not of the same DNA. How does one mate with an angel if they are not made of flesh and blood?
We must remember that there is nothing in Tanakh that says that Angels ever sinned.
“The Hebrew Bible reports that angels appeared to each of the Patriarchs, to Moses, Joshua, and numerous other figures. They appear to Hagar in Genesis 16:9, to Lot in Genesis 19:1, and to Abraham in Genesis 22:11, they ascend and descend Jacob’s Ladder in Genesis 28:12 and appear to Jacob again in Genesis 31:11–13. God promises to send one to Moses in Exodus 33:2, and sends one to stand in the way of Balaam in Numbers 22:31. Isaiah speaks of מַלְאַךְ פָּנָיו “the Angel of the Presence” (“In all their affliction He was afflicted, and the angel of His presence saved them: in His love and in His pity He redeemed them; and He bore them, and carried them all the days of old”) (Isaiah 63:9). The Book of Psalms says “For He Will give His Angels Charge over you, to keep you in all your ways” (Psalms 91:11).” Wikipedia, see link here.
Not only that, if angels were susceptible to temptation with humans and could be distracted from their appointed missions, how could humans trust that God was dealing rightly with them? What if they changed the words of the message that they were sent to bear? Wouldn’t they be wiped out by the great YHVH?
So who were the “sons of God” mentioned in chapter 6 if not the men of the royal righteous lineage of Seth? And could a human ever be exalted to be called a “son of God”? Are there instances in the Bible where men are called Sons of God?
Sons of YHVH:
“And thou shalt say unto Pharaoh, Thus saith YHVH, Israel is my son, my first-born:” (Exo 4:22 ASV).
“When thy days are fulfilled, and thou shalt sleep with thy fathers, I will set up thy seed after thee, that shall proceed out of thy bowels, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for my name, and I will establish the throne of his kingdom for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son: if he commit iniquity, I will chasten him with the rod of men, and with the stripes of the children of men;” (2Sa 7:12-14 ASV)
“Yet I have set my king Upon my holy hill of Zion. I will tell of the decree: YHVH said unto me, Thou art my son; This day have I begotten thee. ” (Psa 2:6-7 ASV)
“Is Ephraim my dear son? is he a darling child? for as often as I speak against him, I do earnestly remember him still: therefore my heart yearns for him; I will surely have mercy upon him, saith YHVH.” (Jer 31:20 ASV)
“Yet the number of the children of Israel shall be as the sand of the sea, which cannot be measured nor numbered; and it shall come to pass, that in the place where it was said unto them, Ye are not my people, there it shall be said unto them, Ye are the sons of the living God.” (Hos 1:10 KJV)
It is very clear from these verses that humans can be called “sons of God.”
So who were the Sons of God in the book of Job?
“Now it came to pass on the day when the sons of God came to present themselves before YHVH, that Satan also came among them. And YHVH said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered YHVH, and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. And YHVH said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job? for there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth God, and turneth away from evil.” (Job 1:6-8 ASV)
So we have Satan which is an angel created for a special work-that of being an adversary to mankind. The word Satan is used several times in the Tanakh and it always means adversary. It does not always refer to an angel and a fallen angel it is not. It is true that the Satan is rebuked for attacking the High Priest, Joshua in Zechariah. Why?
“Then he showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of YHVH, and Satan standing at his right side to accuse him. YHVH said to Satan, “YHVH rebuke you, Satan! The LORD, who has chosen Jerusalem, rebuke you! Is not this man a burning stick snatched from the fire?”” (Zec 3:1-2 NIV)
What can be said about a Satan that is assigned the work of finding the evil among mankind and reporting it. He seems to be set up as a prosecuting attorney, framing mankind in the courtroom of the Universe.
Back to Job
The others gathered at the assembly were called “Sons of God.” Satan notably comes “also among them”. He is not one of them. He comes as an imposter. We already discussed men who walked with God. We also know of Elijah who was taken up in a fiery chariot. Can these be the sons of God mentioned in the first chapter of Job? Or could those gathered there be representatives of unfallen worlds? Could it be that Satan comes to the meeting as the representative of this fallen world? (Since Adam no longer is living). He clearly is not welcome there among them, but God allows him to accuse Job and sends him back to earth to test him. The story is heartbreaking. But in this, Satan shows his work. If he had not been limited, he would have destroyed Job along all the other things he lost.
Based on my earlier suggestion, the Sons of Elohim took wives from among the descendants of Cain who were very beautiful women. Their offspring became renowned in the works of evil. They were called Nephalim (the fallen ones).
This is not the whole story, however. There were strange creatures that roamed about the earth. In ancient mythology of different pagan cultures, there are stories of odd creatures, Centaurs, half men and half beast, giants, perhaps including the well documented dinosaurs which never made it on the ark. Where did these come from? Where did Og come from? Og appeared after the flood and was finally killed during the time of conquest before Moses died.
In my speculation, one of the women on the ark may have had DNA from a Nephalim relative. Or perhaps Ham himself was the son of one of these women. No verse says that Noah had all three children from one woman. The strangeness in having 3 children would force them to be triplets or from a different woman or women if they were born in the same year. The other possibility is that the Bible merely summarized the birth of the sons of Noah as happening in his 500th year? It seems out of character considering all the other timelines and begats that are written before and after this time. Was Noah tempted with one of these women and then took their son on the ark?
The sin of Ham.
After the flood, Noah planted a vineyard and upon drinking the wine, became very drunk. Perhaps the change in the earth made fermentation possible at this time. Obviously, either he planned to get drunk or he drank and didn’t know about alcohol. Perhaps he was depressed, but he was seen by Ham uncovered in his bed. Now accidentally seeing his father naked, was not the sin, but scoffing about it and doing something which provoked a curse on his son Canaan, certainly was.
“When Noah awoke from his wine and found out what his youngest son had done to him, he said, “Cursed be Canaan! The lowest of slaves will he be to his brothers.” He also said, “Praise be to the LORD, the God of Shem! May Canaan be the slave of Shem. May God extend Japheth’s territory; may Japheth live in the tents of Shem, and may Canaan be the slave of Japheth.”” (Gen 9:24-27 NIV)
What Ham had done it does not say, but it could have involved some kind of sexual act and it could have produced Canaan. Did he have relations with Noah’s wife? Is it possible that just joking about it to his 2 brothers was what happened? Yet why was Canaan cursed if he was not involved? It leaves a lot to be imagined, and perhaps we should not explore further, yet how is it that Og, who was a Rephaite, a giant and was a descendant of Canaan, came to possess that strange DNA if Ham or Canaan had not some type of warped DNA from the time before the flood? This points strangely to one of the women on the ark or even the wife of Noah, or a former wife who might have been the mother of Ham.
But we don’t know anything for certain and therefore the elephant in the room still looms large but without definite identification. I hope you found it enjoyable to search for hints in Scripture and find things that might be bigger than our current understanding. For now, we must leave Ham and Canaan alone, but the questions certainly indicate something went wrong. That something we may have to wait a while to discover.
We still don’t know much about the Nephalim except that they came about by the Sons of Elohim cohabiting with the daughters of man of which I am certain that these women were of the lineage of Cain. One thing I believe we can be sure didn’t happen is the assumption that angels or aliens mated with women bringing about the mythical characters portrayed in paganism. These creatures may have existed, but it was not by mating with angels or aliens. Perhaps they experimented in crossing animals with humans. Some sources claim this has been a practice even in recent years.
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