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OVERCOME THE LAST ENEMY -- DEATH The Christian who wants to overcome the last enemy which is death (1 Corinthians 15:26) desires to know God as JESUS knew Him.
1 Corinthians 15:26, The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (KJV)
JESUS overcame death for us and the last generation of Christians shall also overcome death.
JESUS AND MELCHISEDEC JESUS and Melchisedec (Spelled Melchizedek in O.T.) served the name/nature of God as EL ELYON, the Most High God. (Genesis 14:18) JESUS and Melchisedec entered the EL ELYON priesthood through the power of an endless life. (Hebrews 7:16-17) They both overcame the last enemy, death.
Those Christians who are alive in the last generation, who do overcome the last enemy, death, will do it the same way, through the power of an endless life (they will not die). They will have a balanced knowledge of, and experience with, all of the names/natures of God. They will become priests of EL ELYON, the Most High God.
They will conduct their lives like JESUS and Melchisedec.
READ THE SCRIPTURES Here is a review of the scripture references for that last powerful statement.
Genesis 14:18-20, And Melchizedek king of Salem brought forth bread and wine: and he was the priest of EL ELYON (the Most High God). 19 And he blessed him, and said, Blessed be Abram of EL ELYON (the Most High God), possessor of heaven and earth: (KJV) 20 And blessed be the EL ELYON (the Most High God)., which hath delivered thine enemies into thy hand. And he gave him tithes of all. (KJV)
The New Testament tells us that Melchisedec (N.T. spelling) never died; he was a priest forever; he had an endless life. And JESUS entered the Melchisedec, EL ELYON priesthood the same way, by overcoming death.
PRIEST FOREVER Hebrews 5:5-6, So also Christ glorified not himself to be made an high priest; but he that said unto him, Thou art my Son, to day have I begotten thee. 6 As he saith also in another place, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. (KJV)
ETERNAL SALVATION Hebrews 5:9-10, And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 10 Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec. (KJV)
FOR EVER Hebrews 6:20, Whither the forerunner is for us entered, even JESUS, made an high priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. (KJV)
ENDLESS LIFE -- FOREVER Hebrews 7:15-17, And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, 16 Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life. 17 For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. (KJV)
LAST ENEMY IS DEATH 1 Corinthians 15:26, The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. (KJV)
The last generation of believers in JESUS CHRIST will overcome the last enemy -- death. Perhaps you will do it. It is possible that you may enter the Melchisedec priesthood for ever after the power of an endless life.
PRIEST FOR EVER Hebrews 7:21, For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The LORD sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec: (KJV)
MELCHISEDEC PRIESTS DO NOT DIE The Melchisedec priesthood lasts for ever because Melchisedec priests do not die. This is in direct contrast to the Levitical (Aaronic) priests who do die. The book of Hebrews calls special attention to this contrast. I hope that you can take the time to read chapters 5, 6 and 7 of Hebrews.
Also see Chapter 26 of this book for much more on Melchisedec.
Hebrews 7:1-28, For this Melchisedec, king of Salem, priest of EL ELYON (the Most High God), who met Abraham returning from the slaughter of the kings, and blessed him; 2 To whom also Abraham gave a tenth part of all; first being by interpretation King of righteousness, and after that also King of Salem, which is, King of peace; 3 Without father, without mother, without descent, having neither beginning of days, nor end of life; but made like unto the Son of God; abideth a priest continually. 4 Now consider how great this man was, unto whom even the patriarch Abraham gave the tenth of the spoils. 5 And verily they that are of the sons of Levi, who receive the office of the priesthood, have a commandment to take tithes of the people according to the law, that is, of their brethren, though they come out of the loins of Abraham: 6 But he whose descent is not counted from them received tithes of Abraham, and blessed him that had the promises. 7 And without all contradiction the less is blessed of the better. 8 And here men that die receive tithes; but there he receiveth them, of whom it is witnessed that he liveth. 9 And as I may so say, Levi also, who receiveth tithes, payed tithes in Abraham. 10 For he was yet in the loins of his father, when Melchisedec met him. 11 If therefore perfection were by the Levitical priesthood, (for under it the people received the law,) what further need was there that another priest should rise after the order of Melchisedec, and not be called after the order of Aaron? 12 For the priesthood being changed, there is made of necessity a change also of the law. 13 For he of whom these things are spoken pertaineth to another tribe, of which no man gave attendance at the altar. 14 For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda; of which tribe Moses spake nothing concerning priesthood. 15 And it is yet far more evident: for that after the similitude of Melchisedec there ariseth another priest, 16 Who is made, not after the law of a carnal commandment, but after the power of an endless life.
17 For he testifieth, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec. 18 For there is verily a disannulling of the commandment going before for the weakness and unprofitableness thereof. 19 For the law made nothing perfect, but the bringing in of a better hope did; by the which we draw nigh unto God. 20 And inasmuch as not without an oath he was made priest: 21 (For those priests were made without an oath; but this with an oath by him that said unto him, The Lord sware and will not repent, Thou art a priest for ever after the order of Melchisedec:) 22 By so much was Jesus made a surety of a better testament. 23 And they truly were many priests, because they were not suffered to continue by reason of death: 24 But this man, because he continueth ever, hath an unchangeable priesthood. 25 Wherefore he is able also to save them to the uttermost that come unto God by him, seeing he ever liveth to make intercession for them. 26 For such an high priest became us, who is holy, harmless, undefiled, separate from sinners, and made higher than the heavens; 27 Who needeth not daily, as those high priests, to offer up sacrifice, first for his own sins, and then for the people's: for this he did once, when he offered up himself.
28 For the law maketh men high priests which have infirmity; but the word of the oath, which was since the law, maketh the Son, who is consecrated for evermore. (KJV) WHAT IS GOD? What is God? It is the Teutonic word for a personal object of reverence or fear. It is like the Greek word "THEOS" and the Latin word "DEUS." It is applied to all superhuman beings of mythology who exercise power over nature and man. When the Teutonic races converted to Christianity, the word "God" was adopted as the name of the Supreme Being, the Creator of the universe, and the three Persons of the Trinity. The result is a very unfortunate mixture of ideas that produced a real literary mess.
One purpose of this study is to try to help identify the parts of this mess and try to find out what they really mean.
GENDER OF GOD Different words for God also have different genders in many languages. As our study develops, we are going to see that different Hebrew words for God also have different genders. In Hebrew, the last characters (letters) of the word tell the gender. We will see that Hebrew words often tell a new and extended story in the Bible when the gender is noticed. We will also see that we lose a lot when we are limited to our English genderless words.
MALE AND FEMALE For instance, YAHWEH is masculine. EL SHADDAI is feminine in context usage. When the masculine YAHWEH and the feminine EL SHADDAI come together to operate in concert, they become the creator, ELOHIM. The word "ELOHIM" is androgynous (meaning both masculine and feminine) in gender in the Hebrew language. The androgynous word "ELOHIM" (creator) was unfortunately translated into the genderless word "God" in our English Bible. In our English language we lose the gender idea because our word "God" brings no idea of gender to us.
In the creation story we loose the idea that there must be a masculine YAHWEH operating in concert with a feminine EL SHADDAI in order for them to become the androgynous creator ELOHIM.
There is a fairly complete analysis of the creative aspects of the Godhead featuring the masculine YAHWEH, the feminine EL SHADDAI, and the androgynous ELOHIM in Chapter 14 titled YAHWEH FAMILY. Check it out.
ADAM WAS BOTH MALE AND FEMALE You probably remember that, at first, Adam was created as an androgynous person because Eve was still within that body. In other words, Adam was both male and female, at first. That is exactly the same as ELOHIM -- male and female. That explains why ELOHIM said, “I'll make man as I am -- in my androgynous image.”
Most students say that understanding the different genders of the various name/natures of God really does add a lot of meaning to the Bible. They don't get as much meaning from the simple English.
THINK ABOUT THAT What you think about the gender of God shapes, to a great degree, what you think God will do, and consequently, what you should do. For instance, since the God of Israel is masculine YAHWEH, most Jews (and most Christians) of today have mentally developed a personal profile and a national profile that reflects their understanding of how their masculine YAHWEH would want them to handle a problem. They usually apply the law instead of mercy, like a father usually does.
In the U.S.A. we use a giant army, with a big stick, to force our will upon other smaller nations. Our President, Theodore Roosevelt, is reported to have said, “Speak softly, and carry a big stick.”
This narrow minded view is unfortunate because God is far more than just masculine. Many times it is better to offer mercy, like a mother usually does, rather than the law of the father.
The NEW ENGLISH DICTIONARY points out that the old Teutonic word "God" is neuter. In Christian applications the word God became masculine. In Gothic and Old Norwegian the construction is masculine even where the earlier neuter form is still kept.
Popular etymology has connected God with good, exemplified by the corruption of "God be with you" into "good by." We plan to use the word "etymology" several times in this study. So now it won't hurt to remind ourselves what etymology means.
ETYMOLOGY Etymology means to study the history of a linguistic form such as a word. It is studied by tracing its phonetic, graphic, and semantic development since its earliest recorded occurrence. It is studied by tracing the course of its transmission from one language to another by distinguishing it from its component parts. The subject word is studied by identifying its cognates in other languages. The word and its cognates are traced back to a common ancestral form in a recorded or assumed ancestral language.
Etymology is a branch of linguistics. It helps us to find out what the ancient author meant.
THAT'S TOUGH For instance, when I was in the Navy during the Korean war, the word "tough" meant hard to break or hard to tear. About 20 years later, when my daughters were in high school, I found, to my surprise, that it then meant a good looking guy. That’s quite a bit of difference.
Now, if we read the word "tough" we need to know a lot about it -- or we will get the wrong idea. We must know the etymology of the word "tough." We must know when the author used the word “tough” so we can know if it means “hard to tear” or if it means “a good looking guy.”
Often the context will give you the answer, but not always. The same is true for Hebrew and Greek Bible words.
GAY FUN There is another problem. Even within the same generation a word can mean something very, very different. When I was in the Navy 40 years ago, "gay" meant to have good clean fun. Nowadays, to some people, it describes a person who wants to have sex with another person of the same sex.
So you see, when someone uses a word, we really don't know for sure what they mean. Sometimes I think that's why we have lawyers and preachers. If we all understood the intent of the words we use we might eliminate the jobs of 99% of those people. DIFFERENT RELIGIOUS BELIEFS The Father of our LORD JESUS CHRIST was identified as EL ELYON, the Most High GOD (Luke 1:32 & 35). While it is true that YAHWEH was the Father of the Jewish religion, YAHWEH is never referred to as the Father of JESUS.
That's why JESUS didn't act the way the Jews expected Him to act. For instance, the Jews wanted to stone the adulterous woman, but JESUS brought no condemnation. No condemnation does not mean approval.
YAHWEH and EL ELYON have some completely different name/natures -- and yet they are the same God. I think the differences in the name/natures of God produce a major reason for the existence of different major religions such as Jewish or Christian. The different name/natures are also the reason for different denominations such as Catholic, Baptist, Methodist, or Pentecostal. Each group shapes their own religious belief system (ethos) based on their own singular concept of a single name/nature of God. I think that is the major reason that we don't get along very well, and I hope that will soon change, for the better.
ATHEISTS I can not find any Bible arguments made to demonstrate the reality of God. The existence of God is presupposed throughout. The controversies of the Prophets never examine the fundamental question of God’s existence or nonexistence. My own personal experience with a personal God has settled the question for me. The existence of God seems so basic to me, that the arguments of an atheist seem absurd and are hardly worth any of my time at all.
FOR EVERYBODY This message is for everybody. No one is left out. Every type person, every language, every race, and every nationality has an inheritance in EL ELYON. This is the way the Bible says it. Revelation 5:9, And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation; (KJV)
WHICH NAME? Even though some of my friends will not publicly use the word "God" anymore, substituting words like “YAHWEH,” “ELOHIM,” and “EL ELYON,” I have elected (for myself) to not abandon the word "God." I do not condemn or find fault with anyone who now uses the original Hebrew names publicly. I don't feel comfortable in telling students to use this word or that word, even though I use the original Hebrew names in my private prayers and contemplation.
For the time being I'm publicly using the word "God." Here's why.
GOD IS GOD The word "God" is almost universally accepted as to its general meaning. I teach Bible lessons in a lot of churches where the use of YAHWEH or EL ELYON, etc. would be unintelligible. I recognize that the word "God" has a strange and a foreign meaning from its original use. But, if I removed the word "God" from my vocabulary, then it logically follows that I should correct the meaning of all of my other words from their present use to their original use. In that case, I would have to change a major portion of my vocabulary. I would no longer be understood -- and I just don't have the time to develop a new language (or revive and old one).
Bible study is different. In that special case, we must endeavor to find the meaning that was in the mind of the writer, in terms that we presently use. That's why we must study the word "God" with all of its various Hebrew and Greek words and many English translations.
HOW DO YOU SAY "GOD?" In some languages God is: Gothic, GUTH; Danish and Swedish, GUD; German, GOTT; and Dutch is the same as English, God.
Different words for God also have different genders. It is no wonder that no one agrees with anyone else, as to what God is like! I really believe that God will respond to the proper prayer of any believer/receiver, no matter which name is used. I also have discovered that the Bible stories make more sense when a person knows what is the nature of the name that is being used.
SLANG WORDS FOR GOD I think that the best word for my heavenly Father is
"DAD," which is a pretty good translation of "ABBA." But, you better not use "DAD” in very many public places.
Mark 14:36, And he said, Abba, (DAD) Father, all things are possible unto thee; take away this cup from me: nevertheless not what I will, but what thou wilt. (KJV)
JEALOUS You may not believe this, but one name for YAHWEH is “JEALOUS.” The LORD’S name is “JEALOUS.” All the other major translations say the same thing. The LORD (YAHWEH’S) name is JEALOUS. Very few people believe that God’s name is “JEALOUS,” but that’s what the Bible says. That means we have a lot more Bible study ahead of us to see why YAHWEH’S name is “JEALOUS.”. Exodus 34:14, For thou shalt worship no other god: for YAHWEH (the LORD), whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God: (KJV)
DIFFERENT TRANSLATIONS FOR THE WORD “GOD” It is hard to imagine that the Hebrew word "EL" (God) was translated into all of the following different English words in our Bible.
“God, strength, mighty, Almighty, these, those, to, about, according to, after, against, among, as for, at, because, both, and by, concerning, for, from, hath, in, into, near, out of, over, through, to, toward, under, unto, upon, whether, with, within.”
That is an incredible list of words, all with different meanings, which have been translated from one word, God "EL."
Look up "EL" in Strong's Concordance if you want to confirm this list.
SURPRISE! SURPRISE! If you are as surprised as I was to find that "God" was translated into so many other different words, then what do you think of this?
Another Hebrew word, "ELOHIM" was translated:
“God, gods, magistrates, angels, exceeding, goddess, godly, very great, judges, mighty.”
So, the Hebrew words for God have a whole lot of other meanings, too. When we look up the other Hebrew words for God, we find that they were also translated into many other words in addition to God.
I think the list is too long for a detailed study here, but if you want to, look up the following words in the STRONG’S CONCORDANCE.
1. GOD 3069 YAHWEH 2. ALMIGHTY 7706 SHADDAI 3. LORD 3068 YAHWEH, 4. LORD 136 ADONAY, 5. HIGH (Most) 5945 ELYON 6. GOD 433 ELOAH.
WHAT IS GOD LIKE? Next notice the large number of Hebrew words for God, and then notice that the translators from Hebrew to English did not render them consistently. They confounded the meaning by often exchanging the same English word for several different Hebrew words. When we also remember that there are a large number of variations (72), it becomes easier to see why there is a lot of disagreement as to what God is like.
SUCH A TIME AS THIS Who knows? Maybe you are born at this time so you can fix the world with your new found knowledge of the different name/natures of our one God.
Esther 4:14, ---who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this? (KJV)
Some Christians are starting to use the different Names of God in their own private prayer life. That's good, I think. But, using the different Names of God isn't the whole answer to increasing a person's spiritual sensitivity, or the whole answer to always receiving an answer to a self serving prayer. I don't think that the key is knowing the name or pronouncing it right. I think the key is in living the nature of the name. Some authors have written books indicating that there is some magic in knowing the correct name of God. One book even said that the magic is in the right pronunciation. Well? Wouldn’t it be nice if it was that easy?
NAME OF A DEMON Some books contain the idea that there is a strange esoteric power in learning and using a Spiritual name. I think that I first ran across this idea in a book on exorcism (casting out demons). Much was made of the fact that JESUS demanded to know the names of the demons. The idea projected was that the demon was obliged to follow whatever command was given to it, as long as the exorcist called the demon by its name (Mark 5:9-15).
WHAT IS YOUR NAME? Mark 5:9-15, And he asked him, What is thy name? And he answered, saying, My name is Legion: for we are many. 10 And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country. 11 Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding. 12 And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them. 13 And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea. 14 And they that fed the swine fled, and told it in the city, and in the country. And they went out to see what it was that was done. 15 And they come to Jesus, and see him that was possessed with the devil, and had the legion, sitting, and clothed, and in his right mind: and they were afraid. (KJV)
JACOB’S SECRET ANGEL The second story is about angels and their secret names; it’s about Jacob wrestling with an angel.
The story ends this way: Genesis 32:29, And Jacob asked him, and said, Tell me, I pray thee, thy name. And he said, Wherefore is it that thou dost ask after my name? And he blessed him there. (KJV)
The knowledge of the name of the angel must have been worth wrestling for all night. I can easily see how the idea of "special power in a name" got started, and there seems to be some merit in it.
SAMSON’S SECRET ANGEL Here is another story about angels and secret names, concerning Samson’s mother and father.
Judges 13:18, And the angel of the LORD said unto him, Why askest thou thus after my name, seeing it is secret? (KJV)
Why would the angel not be willing to give out his name? Why would his name be a secret?
There is an area in which I do have personal experience regarding the special power of using the name of a person.
WAITRESS! WAITRESS! When I go to a restaurant, one of the first things I try to do is to learn the name of my waitress. Have you ever had to call, "Waitress, waitress!" It just doesn't work! She can walk right by your table and not hear you. But if you say her name, she hears you from across the room. There must be something to learn concerning the fact that there is special power in a name. However, I'm also inclined to think that the real power comes when the approach is made in the nature of the name.
In other words, it is easier to approach someone who is a lover if you yourself are a lover. So, when you approach in the name and in the nature of the name, you will have a lot of things going for you.
This chapter on the Names of God presents an overall view of: 1. The Names, 2. The Natures, 3. The Actions, and 4. The Interactions between the, 5. Names of God by using a picture of clouds.
The basic outline for, and content of, this chapter are taken from an edited transcript of a Bible lecture on the Names of God. It was given at Hershey, Pennsylvania, by this author.
TYPES & SHADOWS Some people are quite sensitive about using a picture (or any graphic or graven image) to represent God, and justifiably so.
Exodus 20:4, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: (KJV)
Here is why we have chosen to use types and shadows to represent our God. The Bible speaks about types and shadows (Col. 2:17, Heb. 8:5) which foretell the facts about the real thing. JESUS spoke in parables that are usually fictional stories about events that really have a deeper spiritual meaning. The lives of Ishmael and Isaac were called an allegory because Ishmael represented the Old Testament and Isaac the New. (Gal. 4:24)
Colossians 2:17, --- Which are a shadow of things to come; (KJV)
Hebrews 8:5, Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things. (KJV)
Galatians 4:24, Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar. (KJV)
PARABLES AND ALLEGORIES Following the same idea of using types and shadows and/or parables and/or allegories, I have drawn a picture of one large cloud that is made up of five smaller ones. Each of the smaller individual clouds represents one of the five primary Names of God, and is so labeled.
Concerning the large (whole) cloud we remind ourselves that the scripture says: Deuteronomy 6:4, Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: (KJV)
Please see the cloud picture.
AN ALLEGORY Whereas there is only one big cloud that covers the whole sky, called God, the one big cloud is really made up of five smaller individual primary clouds. Each of those smaller individual clouds has a name of its own. According to our usage and understanding, our word "God" applies to the whole giant cloud. Also, our word "God" applies equally to any of the individual smaller clouds that make up the whole big one.
I have chosen lightning to represent the interaction between the various Names of God. The release of lightening energy is one of the most instantaneous and powerful acts known to man. Almost everyone has watched the clouds in a rainstorm. We have seen lightning flash from one cloud to another, and then perhaps strike the earth somewhere. Also lightning is a good allegory because lightening and clouds go together. Please set aside your thoughts about the destructive action of the lightning for this illustration.
What we are looking for here, is the thought/picture of the interaction between the several Names of God.
NATURE OF THE NAMES The drawing is not a picture of God. Of course not. It is an allegory of the way five individual clouds are really a part of the one whole big cloud. In a loosely similar way, the five Names of God, operate individually and separately, while at the same time they are a part of the whole concept of one God.
Concerning one of the ten commandments: Exodus 20:4, Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth: (KJV)
I do not believe that the cloud or clouds are a graven image of God. No. The picture is a type and shadow, a parable, and/or an allegory. The cloud picture is not an image of God.
Across each individual cloud I have attempted to display a short outline of the meanings and the natures and some of the actions of each of the 5 Names of God.
We will refer back to this drawing and these notes quite often. So, you may save yourself quite a lot of time later if you take a few minutes now to look over the cloud drawing. Of course it's not complete. All the books in the world couldn't do that.
FIVE NAMES OF ONE GOD I researched each and every time that the word "God" appears in the Bible. Naturally that took a long time (over a year). That was before I had this wonderful computer. That phase of study would take much less time, now.
PRONUNCIATION You may pronounce these 5 Hebrew Names of God any way that you want. That's right. Every audience I have ever spoken to has always had a few people who learned to pronounce these words with some variation. Who is to say? Even the Jews do not agree among themselves concerning the correct Hebrew pronunciation of the Names of God.
EL ELYON EL ELYON is God (GEN. 14:18-20), the Most High God, the God of the nations. Androgynous (masculine and feminine), possessor of heaven and earth, Father of the LORD JESUS CHRIST (Luke 1:32, 35, 24:49), our Father too (Psalm 82:6). Translated "Most High" and "Most High God." Provides love, mercy, forgiveness.
EL ELYON is God of the nations but YAHWEH is God of Israel.
EL ELYON is God of the Melchisedec Order, but YAHWEH is God of Aaronic-Levitic Order (Heb. 7:21).
EL ELYON is the God of those who overcome death. Etymology of EL ELYON is STRONG’S 5945, 5947 and it is 5945, 5920, 5921, 5942, 5946, 5956, 5957, 5958, 5959, meaning to provide from the top head.
YAHWEH YAHWEH is God, (Ex. 6:2), masculine (call me ISHI, husband, Hosea 2:16), God of Israel (not the nations), law giver, judge, condemner, punisher, death bringer, guard, shepherd, light, salvation, protector, healer, deliverer, causer of victory, the I AM. Was introduced to Moses in 1491 B.C. YAHWEH gave 613 laws to Moses, established the Aaronic-Levitic priesthood (not Melchisedec priesthood). The unspeakable unpronounceable name YHWH (tetragrammation) is YAHWEH. Usually translated "LORD," was corrupted into "Adoni" by Masorite copyists, and was also corrupted into "Jehovah" by English translators.
YAHWEH operates in concert with the feminine EL SHADDAI and becomes ELOHIM who creates all things.
Etymology of YAHWEH is Strong's 3068, 3050, 3051 meaning to produce with the hand.
ELOHIM ELOHIM is God, androgynous (masculine and feminine), plural, creator of all things (Genesis 1), spirit, translated "God," the object of reverence.
Etymology of ELOHIM is STRONG'S 430, 410, 352, 193, 17a, and it is 430, 424, 413, 410, 451, meaning to come forth with (by) a strong oak tree, and rump.
EL SHADDAI EL SHADDAI is God, feminine (Ex. 6:3), from the word "shad" meaning "breast" (the large breasted one, her breast is mine for me to use), translated "Almighty," in the O.T., but not “Almighty” in the N.T., the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob and Joseph (not Moses in his later life), the Mother, nourisher, provider, life sustainer, open eyed.
The word “Almighty” in the New Testament (G3841, pantokrator, 2 Cor. 6:18; Revelation 1:8 more) is not the same as EL SHADDAI in the Old Testament. The word “Almighty” in the New Testament should be translated “All Powerful” to distinguish it from the word “Almighty” as used in the Old Testament.
EL SHADDAI appears often in Job, has knowledge of all truth, provides balance and fairness, provides because of need, and withholds when best, responds in love.
EL SHADDAI operates in concert with masculine YAHWEH and they become the ELOHIM who creates all things.
Etymology of EL SHADDAI is, Strong's 7706, 1237, 7703 and 7706, 7699, meaning to provide with the breast.
ELOAH ELOAH is God, Lord, Messiah (OT), CHRIST (NT Acts 2:34-36), life giving creative force (Hebrews 10:12-13), the anointing, Ghost, Spirit. Gender is feminine in the Hebrew O.T. The spirit is neuter in the Greek N.T., but always travels with a masculine article, making the usage masculine in the New Testament.
ELOAH appears often in Job.
ELOAH connects spirit with flesh.
Etymology of ELOAH is Strong's 433, 410, 352, 193, 17a, and it is 433, 410, 451, meaning to provide with the rump. BODY PARTS Did you notice that all five name/natures of God are etymologically connected to anthropomorphic body parts by the Hebrew words?
EL ELYON -- head
YAHWEH -- hand
ELOHIM -- rump
EL SHADDAI -- breast
ELOAH -- rump
GENDERS OF GOD Did you notice the various genders in the Hebrew for the Names of God?
EL ELYON -- androgynous
YAHWEH -- masculine
ELOHIM -- androgynous
EL SHADDAI -- feminine
ELOAH -- feminine in Old testament, ELOAH changes to masculine in New Testament.
The ELOAH gender change is probably because the Holy Spirit was quiet and retiring (feminine characteristics) in the Old Testament -- but dramatically changed to forceful and active (masculine characteristics) in the New Testament.
GOD OF ISRAEL OR GOD OF NATIONS? Did you notice that YAHWEH is the God of Israel contradistinctive to EL ELYON who is the God of the nations? When Israel was taken captive from Jerusalem to Babylon, they changed the name/nature of God from YAHWEH (LORD) to EL ELYON (Most High God) because YAHWEH laws could not be practiced in Babylon.
For instance, in Babylon the king called the three Hebrew children servants of EL ELYON (the Most High God) ‑‑ not servants of YAHWEH (the LORD) (Daniel 3:26). Daniel 3:26, Then Nebuchadnezzar came near to the mouth of the burning fiery furnace, and spake, and said, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, ye servants of EL ELYON (the Most High God), come forth, and come hither. Then Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, came forth of the midst of the fire. (KJV)
WHICH PRIESTHOOD? Did you notice that the Aaronic/Levitic priesthood is under YAHWEH but that the Melchisedec priesthood is under EL ELYON? JESUS was a priest after the order of Melchisedec. He was not a priest after the Aaronic-Levitic order. (Heb. 5:6, etc.) The Bible tells us to expect to eventually enter into the Melchisedec priesthood, too (Heb. 5:9-10, 6:20, 7:19-28).
OVERCOME DEATH Further Bible study will show you that those Bible characters who overcame death did serve the name/nature EL ELYON.
ONE GOD Deuteronomy 6:4, Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD: (KJV)
FAMILY OF GOD Ephesians 3:14-15, For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, (KJV)
Did that say there is a family of God in heaven? It did. Yes. It did.
PRESENT RELIGION YAHWEH is the name/nature of the God of the present religions, especially Judaism, Roman Catholicism, and Protestantism.
NEW RELIGION The name of the God of the new religion is EL ELYON. The new religion (EL ELYON) will go through the same problems, understandings and misunderstandings, acceptance and rejection, as did Christianity, as it emerged from Judaism some 2000 years ago. The new religion (EL ELYON) will lead humanity to peace, following JESUS, the High Priest after the order of Melchisedec. It will require a separation from old religious orders, like the disciples left John in order to follow JESUS (John 1:37). John 1:37, And the two disciples (of John) heard him (John) speak, and they followed Jesus. (KJV)
Rejection of the present religions, especially Judaism, Roman Catholicism, and Protestantism on the part of much of contemporary society has been mostly because of the failure of the established present religions to bring significant social reforms, especially peace to men.
Some contemporary people recognize that most of the world's bloodshed has been because of the present established religions.
God is presently establishing a new religion based on the name/nature of EL ELYON which will right the wrongs of the past and present practices of religion.
An understanding of the different names and natures of God will help us to see what the future holds. Even though YAHWEH and EL ELYON are the same single God, there is as much difference between the two name/natures of God named YAHWEH and EL ELYON, as there has been between Judaism and Christianity.
WHY US? This is all very important to us because those people who do overcome the last enemy, death, (I Cor. 15:26) will become priests after the order of Melchisedec who was priest of EL ELYON, the Most High God. Jesus did it, and we stand as candidates to do it, too.
The NEW RELIGION will have a consciousness of the name/nature of God as EL ELYON. They will be led by the spirit of EL ELYON (not by the law of YAHWEH) and they will lead this world into peace.
Many people in the present religious systems have an inner leading to apply EL ELYON principles to every situation, even now. On occasion, they have discovered that they can't, because of old religious rules that presently govern their own organization.
A serious study of YAHWEH, GOD OF ISRAEL Chapter 10, must also include a study of: · YAHWEH, CONFOUNDING Chapter 11, and · YAHWEH, UNCONFOUNDED Chapter 12, and · YAHWEH MADE THE LAW Chapter 13, and · YAHWEH FAMILY Chapter 14, and · YAHWEH AND/OR EL ELYON Chapter 15, because there is a lot to learn about YAHWEH.
Some subjects in those chapters have been reviewed and/or abbreviated for this chapter. Some have not. Some subjects in this chapter are new and unique. The index should be a big help.
YAHWEH, A NAME OF GOD Let’s look at some of the names/natures, actions, and interactions of YAHWEH. YAHWEH is God. YAHWEH is the distinctive personal name of the God of Israel. Contradistinctively, EL ELYON (not YAHWEH) is the personal name of the God of the nations.
· YAHWEH is a masculine word in gender and use.
· YAHWEH means, I AM.
· YAHWEH is the Lawgiver.
· YAHWEH is the Judge.
· YAHWEH is the Condemner.
· YAHWEH is the Punisher.
· YAHWEH releases the Death Bringer.
· YAHWEH is the God of ISRAEL, from the time of Moses to the present time.
· YAHWEH is “HA SHEM.” Translated, “THE NAME.”
· YAHWEH was not the name of the God of Abraham.
· YAHWEH gave 613 laws to Moses.
· YAHWEH established the Levitical Priesthood.
· YAHWEH established the order of Aaron.
· YAHWEH is the unpronounceable, unspeakable Name of God, according to Jewish tradition.
· YAHWEH was corrupted to the name "ADONI" by the Masorite Scribes.
· YAHWEH was corrupted to the name "JEHOVAH" by the English translators.
· YAHWEH is usually translated "LORD" in the K.J.V.
· YAHWEH operates in concert with EL SHADDAI to create all things.
· YAHWEH etymology is 3068, 3050, 3051 meaning to provide with the hands. · YAHWEH appears in the O.T. 6823 times.
· YAHWEH does not occur in Ecclesiastes.
· In Daniel YAHWEH is found only in chapter 9.
· Chronicles uses ELOHIM much more than YAHWEH. Psalms chapters 43 through 83 follow the same patterns as Chronicles using ELOHIM much more than YAHWEH.
· YAHWEH is the third person singular imperfect of the verb “TO BE.” Some people say that therefore the meaning is, "He is" or "He will be" or perhaps "He lives" from the root meaning of the word "BEING."
· YAHWEH is erroneously called ADONI, LORD, and JEHOVAH.
It is not hard to see how the word YAHWEH was contracted to JAH, YAH, JEHO, YEHO, JO, YO and YAHU. The graffiti message, "YAHUDI WAS HERE," painted on German locations by American Jewish GIs, in WW II, is probably a reference to YAHWEH, the God of Israel.
TETRAGAMMATION YAHWEH is from the tetragammatron "YHWH." The word "YHWH" is older than "YAHWEH." Ancient Hebrew did not contain vowels, only consonants. Later "vowel points" were added to the scripture texts. That’s the way YHWH became YAHWEH. PRONOUNCE YAHWEH? The original pronunciation must have been YAHWEH. You should also know that Jews pronounce "W" as "V." (After all, a W is just two Vs anyway). So we may pronounce it YAHVEH.
Jews are not allowed to pronounce, say, or articulate the Name of God, YAHWEH.
The avoidance of pronouncing the name of YAHWEH is generally ascribed to a sense of reverence. More precisely, it was caused by a misunderstanding of the Third Commandment (Exodus 20:7, Deut. 5:11) as meaning "Thou shalt not take the name of YAHWEH thy God in vain." Whereas it really means, "You shall not swear falsely by the name of YAHWEH your God."
Exodus 20:7, Thou shalt not take the name of YAHWEH (the LORD) thy ELOHIM (God) in vain; for YAHWEH (the LORD) will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. (KJV)
Deuteronomy 5:11, Thou shalt not take the name of YAHWEH (the LORD) thy ELOHIM (God) in vain: for YAHWEH (the LORD) will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain. (KJV)
FEAR OF SAYING YAHWEH In the third century B.C., the Jews regarded YAHWEH as a "NOMEN INEFFABLE" because of an extreme interpretation of Exodus 20:7 and Lev. 24:11. "NOMEN INEFFABLE" means “a name incapable of being expressed in words, unutterable, indescribable, unspeakable, not to be uttered, taboo.”
BLASPHEMED AND CURSED Leviticus 24:11-16, And the Israelitish woman's son blasphemed the name of YAHWEH (the LORD, and cursed. And they brought him unto Moses: (and his mother's name was Shelomith, the daughter of Dibri, of the tribe of Dan:) 12 And they put him in ward, that the mind of YAHWEH (the LORD) might be shewed them. 13 And YAHWEH (the LORD) spake unto Moses, saying, 14 Bring forth him that hath cursed without the camp; and let all that heard him lay their hands upon his head, and let all the congregation stone him. 15 And thou shalt speak unto the children of Israel, saying, Whosoever curseth his ELOHIM (God) shall bear his sin. 16 And he that blasphemeth the name of YAHWEH (the LORD), he shall surely be put to death, and all the congregation shall certainly stone him: as well the stranger, as he that is born in the land, when he blasphemeth the name of YAHWEH (the LORD), shall be put to death. (KJV)
The fear of breaking the third commandment, and the fear of using YAHWEH improperly made religious Jews avoid the use of the Name of God, YAHWEH, at all.
PRIESTS PRONOUNCED YAHWEH According to Jewish tradition the pronunciation of YAHWEH was used only by the priests inside the Temple when blessing the people (Num. 6:22-27). Outside the Temple they used the title ADONAI.
THE PRIESTLY BLESSING Numbers 6:22-27, 22 And YAHWEH (the LORD) spake unto Moses, saying, 23 Speak unto Aaron and unto his sons, saying, On this wise ye shall bless the children of Israel, saying unto them, 24 YAHWEH (the LORD) bless thee, and keep thee: 25 YAHWEH (the LORD) make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: 26 YAHWEH (the LORD) lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. 27 And they shall put my name upon the children of Israel; and I will bless them. (KJV)
The high priest mentioned YAHWEH on Yom Kippur ten times. Once in every Sabbatical year (seventh year) the sages delivered the Key to pronunciation and understanding of YAHWEH to their disciples.
WHAT DOES YAHWEH MEAN? Several explanations of the meaning of the name YAHWEH have been proposed:
1.) Derived from "to fall" and originally designated some sacred object such as a stone which was believed to have fallen from heaven.
2.) Derived from "to blow," a name for the God of wind and storm. Some say that YAH should be pronounced while inhaling and that WEH should be pronounced while exhaling. Try it. Some writers say that every breath cycle of every living human in the world is a call upon YAHWEH. In this sense, YAHWEH provides life to everyone.
3.) Derived from "to be," meaning "He who causes to be" or "the creator."
4.) Derived from "to fall" meaning "He who causes to fall the rain, thunderbolt -- the Storm God."
You can take your pick.
THE FIRST MENTION OF YAHWEH Our first recognition of YAHWEH occurs in Exodus 6:2-3 which says: Exodus 6:2-3, And ELOHIM (God) spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am YAHWEH (the LORD): 3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of EL SHADDAI (God Almighty), but by my name YAHWEH (JEHOVAH) was I not known to them.
Our God changed his name/nature from EL SHADDAI to YAHWEH.
Yes. YAHWEH does appear in the KJV (and others) before Exodus 6:24. The question arises, “If YAHWEH was introduced in Exodus 6:2-3, then how can He appear before that verse. How can YAHWEH appear anywhere in Genesis?” The answer to this dilemma is in the fact that the scribes and copyists were ordered to insert YAHWEH into the text they were copying wherever and whenever they could. Some men have spent their entire adult lives in study about that question. They conclude that YAHWEH has been erroneously and purposefully inserted before Exodus 6:2-4.
HISTORY OF THE CHANGE FROM EL SHADDAI TO YAHWEH Around 2000 B.C. Abraham knew the name/nature of God, EL SHADDAI.
About 500 years later, 1500 B.C., Moses met a new name/nature of God, YAHWEH. At the same time Israel became an organized nation and YAHWEH gave 613 TSAVA laws to Israel through His prophet Moses. From the time of Abraham (2000 B.C.) to the time of Moses (1500 B.C.) there were no laws of God (just commands) of EL SHADDAI.
The fact that the King James Version of the Bible does erroneously use the word YAHWEH on many occasions before the time of Moses is covered in succinct detail in the chapter of this book called YAHWEH, CONFOUNDING, Chapter 11.
Some authors say the word YAHWEH is the only Name of God. Others say there are many Names of God. We agree there is only one name for the God of Israel. The consistent pattern is always YAHWEH for the God of Israel. When our God operates among the other nations (and with certain special people of Israel) then He often uses other names. Psalm 9:2 says: Psalm 9:2, I will be glad and rejoice in thee: I will sing praise to thy name, O thou ELYON (Most High). (KJV)
YAHWEH is the name of the God of Israel and EL ELYON is the name of the Most High God. YAHWEH is the God of Israel. YAHWEH gave all the laws to Israel, no argument, no question. The gender of the word YAHWEH is masculine. YAHWEH is the God of war, hosts, victory, etc. So then, you would expect Israel to follow YAHWEHISTIC tendencies. The YAHWEHISTIC concept of God is leading the nation of Israel to be a warring, pushy, forceful, aggressive, overshadowing people. They are the only nation in the world to expand their natural borders since WW II. In addition to describing the acts of the nation of Israel, I am also describing most denominations.
The denominational concept of God is YAHWEHISTIC because the religion is descended from Judo-Christianity. Denominations are directly descended from that concept. Jewish, Catholic, and Protestant concepts of God are for the most part based on YAHWEH. Hence, they are a failure in the present society. It is just that simple. Our present society does not want to know God as a pushy, forceful, masculine personality. That was all right for Israel and the O.T. but JESUS taught us a different concept of our God. EL ELYON is the God of love, light, mercy, forgiveness and life. Whereas the God nature of JUSTICE is in YAHWEH; the God nature of MERCY is in EL ELYON.
A serious study of YAHWEH, CONFOUNDING, Chapter 11, must also include a study of: · YAHWEH, GOD OF ISRAEL Chapter 10, and · YAHWEH, UNCONFOUNDED Chapter 12, and · YAHWEH MADE THE LAW Chapter 13, and · YAHWEH FAMILY Chapter 14, and · YAHWEH AND/OR EL ELYON Chapter 15, because there is a lot to learn about YAHWEH.
Some subjects in those chapters have been reviewed and/or abbreviated for this chapter. Some have not. Some subjects in this chapter are new and unique. The index should be a big help.
SERIOUS TRANSLATION PROBLEMS As reported earlier in this book, The Jewish scribes who hand copied the Bible were instructed to insert whatever Name of God their denominational leaders demanded. Several layers of corruption were placed upon each other.
YAHWEH CORRUPTION Unfortunately, YAHWEH is represented in the KJV and some other modern translations by the name of JEHOVAH, which is a philological (relating to the study of words and languages) impossibility. That's a nice way of saying that the word JEHOVAH, is a made-up error.
It causes lots of confusion and I wish that we had never heard of it. Here's what happened. Believe it if you can. It’s true. This truth is stranger than fiction.
MASORITE SPOILERS The Jews were afraid to say (pronounce) the word YHWH (YAHWEH) because they thought the act might take the name of the LORD in vain, and thus break the commandment. In the early Middle Ages, from about 700 to 900 A.D., when the consonantal text of the Hebrew Bible was supplied with vowel points to facilitate its correct traditional pronunciation (correct according to the Masorite Ashkanazan, not the Sephardic Jews), the vowel points for ADONAI were used for YHWH, thus producing the form Ye Ho WaH. (There was one slight variation from the ADONAI vowel points; a sheva with the first YOD of YHWH, instead of the Hataf-patah under the ALEPH of ADONAI was used).
JEWS PRONOUNCE YHWH AS ADONAI?? The Jews were instructed to read (pronounce) the word YHWH (with ADONAI vowel points) as ADONAI. Here is an instance where a Name of God was pronounced differently than all the consonants would indicate, by all laws of language. Written YHWH (with ADONAI vowel points), it was pronounced (spoken) ADONAI.
When early Christian scholars of Europe first began to study Hebrew, they did not understand what all of this confounding really meant to the Jews. Consequently, the Christian translators pronounced YHWH (with ADONAI vowel points) as normally indicated, introducing the hybrid and erroneous name, "JEHOVAH" into the English Bible and language. Sad.
MORE CONFOUNDED CORRUPTION Here is yet another problem. In the original Hebrew text sometimes the words ADONAI YAHWEH appear together. It should read "LORD God" in English. But when the Masorites decided to change the name YAHWEH (YHWH) into ADONAI it presented them with a different problem. This second problem only appeared a very few times in relation to the first reason for their changes (they were afraid to pronounce YAHWEH). But it was a real problem.
It sounded kind of funny to say "ADONAI ADONAI." (LORD LORD) in the same place it used to read "ADONAI YAHWEH." (LORD God). So the Masorites concocted up a different formula for that special case. Then the different Masorite formula kept the word "YHWH" (the Tetragrammaton) in the text but they added the vowels from the word "ELOHIM," which is another Name of God (contradistinctive from the vowels of ADONAI which comprised their solution for the first case).
In the first case the Masorite Jews combined the consonants YHWH (a Name of God) with the vowels from ADONAI (another Name of God); in the second case they used the vowels from ELOHIM (still another Name of God) with the consonants of YHWH. Sad.
JEWS PRONOUNCE YHWH AS ELOHIM?? In the second case, the Jews were instructed to read (pronounce) the word ELOHIM instead of YHWH. Here is another instance where a Name of God was pronounced entirely differently than all the consonants would indicate, by all the laws of language. Written YHWH, it was pronounced (spoken) ELOHIM. Sad.
It is still more complex. The word YHWH was also written a third way. It contained the vowel points as they should be written, producing the familiar YAHWEH.
Even more complications. The Sephardic Jews do not agree with the Ashkanazan Masorites, so they have their own different rules. Sephardic Jews even have separate Synagogues. Little is written about their rules, presumably because they represent such a small minority opinion. Sad.
BELIEVE IT OR NOT I find these facts difficult to believe. It seems to me that students would have questioned the practice. It just goes to show that a person with my present personality would not fit in that ancient society. We probably wouldn’t get along too well.
Now you and I have to deal with a mistaken English corruption on top of a purposeful Jewish corruption when we say JEHOVAH. Sad.
A LITTLE RELIEF But we (English speaking people) don’t have to deal with the second problem because it only involves Hebrew pronunciation. The English translators rendered YHWH (pronounced ELOHIM by the Jews in this special case) into our word “LORD,” just like it would have been without the erroneous vowel points. Glad for that, but sad that they changed from Hebrew to English.
UNDERSTAND? If you understood all this -- or if you didn't -- you probably agree: It is no wonder we don't know much about the Names of God!!
No wonder that informed Jews politely smile and look away when they hear us Christians say "JEHOVAH."
Some Jews may be offended at the thought of saying that their transmitted text of the Bible is erroneous. Technically they may be right. After all, it was their text, not ours. We borrowed it from them. They have the right to make up any new rules they want to make. It is their text and their rules. On the other hand, they could have helped our early English translators a lot more, if they really wanted to help. The pernicious act, as far as I am concerned, was to change the rules, and then keep the changes secret. That makes all the changes erroneous and pernicious as far as this English speaking Bible student is concerned.
JEWISH DENOMINATIONS A long time ago the Jewish religion was divided into various groups that today we would call different denominations. One group was called ELOHIST. Another, PRIESTLY. Still another Jewish group (denomination) was called YAHWIST.
The formal study about those Jewish groups (denominations), and what they did to pervert the transmitted Hebrew text of the Bible, is sometimes called the Documentary Hypothesis in seminaries and the academic stream.
According to the Documentary Hypothesis, the literary sources in the Pentateuch known as the ELOHIST and the Priestly Document never used the name YAHWEH for God until it was revealed to Moses (Ex. 3:13, 6:2-3). Thus, their transmitted Hebrew text of the Bible was correct because it never used the Name of God, YAHWEH (YHWH) in any portion of the book of Genesis. However, the YAHWIST source erroneously uses it from Genesis 2:4 and following.
This, we believe, demonstrates the redacting (degrading) of the text by the YAHWIST source in order to further the use of the name YAHWEH.
Those YAHWEH corrupters tripped themselves up when they failed to change Exodus 6:2-3. That left us with a clue to their wrongful deeds. The exact meaning of the text in Exodus 6:2-3 prevents the use of YAHWEH until the time of the revelation of the name YAHWEH to Moses.
Exodus 6:2-3, And ELOHIM (God) spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am YAHWEH (the LORD): 3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of EL SHADDAI (God Almighty), but by my name YAHWEH (JEHOVAH) was I not known to them. (KJV)
This confounded contamination should not be confused with the errors introduced by the Masorites. If you do get these stories confounded, try reading this portion again and again. It is very hard to keep the facts straight, but do try. WARNING ABOUT CHANGING THE BIBLE It is appropriate at this point to call attention to the warning about changing the Bible.
Deuteronomy 4:2, Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it, that ye may keep the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you. (KJV)
Deuteronomy 12:32, What thing soever I command you, observe to do it: thou shalt not add thereto, nor diminish from it. (KJV)
Revelation 22:18-19, For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: 19 And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book. (KJV)
The people who made those changes to the Bible were skating on pretty thin ice. We can’t help but wonder about whatever happened to those people who did damaging dastardly deeds, like changing what the Bible said.
Translations from Hebrew into our English language had to suffer because the translators had to work from ancient manuscripts that were admittedly changed (for the worse) and corrupted (from their pure state) and confounded (in regard to their original meaning) by some of the Jewish scribes.
STRONG'S CONCORDANCE has done much to right this pernicious wrong, but STRONG cannot repair all the damage.
In reference to the original text no one can say, with absolute authority, just exactly which Name of God was used in any certain chapter and verse. However, modern scholarship is helping by using chronology, etymology, context, and the new marvel -- the computer. It is now easier for the scholar to point to the Name of God that he thinks was originally used in any certain verse, but not with real positive and firm authority, yet.
Serious students should go to their library for a copy of the JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA, Vol. 9, pages 590 and 591, which sheds much light on the subject of which Name of God was probably originally used in any selected passage, and which Name of God was probably inserted and/or exchanged. If we tried to cover that subject, this book would be about twice as big as it is now.
OTHER THINGS WRONG? The King James Translators are not without blame. Look what they did to JESUS’ teaching about being angry.
Matthew 5:22, But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca, shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire. (KJV)
The expression, “without a cause” is not in any transmitted texts. It was added by the King James translators. Some analysts report that King James was angry with his brother, so the translators made the change to save their necks. Shame. Shame.
Here is the way all modern translations attack the problem.
Matthew 5:22, But I tell you that anyone who is angry with his brother will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to his brother, `Raca,' is answerable to the Sanhedrin. But anyone who says, `You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell. (NIV)
All new translations leave out “without a cause.” Why? Because it is not in any ancient manuscript. And because it changes the meaning of the teaching of JESUS. It gave King James a reason to be angry, and it should not.
POLITICS Humanistic scholars indicate they think Jewish religious movements were coupled with political reasons, and that explains why the Names of God were corrupted.
Spiritually inclined scholars point to the devil, and his demons as the force behind the destructive confounding. Still others believe that our God gave permission for the confounded corruption to happen so that the truth could be first hidden and then revealed at the right time, citing Proverbs 25:2.
Proverbs 25:2, It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honour of kings is to search out a matter. (KJV)
Take your pick.
These explanations do not address the question of why does the confounding only involve the Names of God? I don’t know, but I’ll try to write another book when I find the answer.
Students should also be warned that some Fundamental, Evangelical, and Pentecostal writers do attack those scholarly works, due to fear of the unknown and fear of being misquoted as saying something is wrong with the Bible. It is very easy to misquote an author or lecturer on the subject of the Names of God. A misquote can do as much harm as an intentional slander. Consequently, only a very few scholars have entered the battle arena called Names of God.
I have met some Christians whose scholastic acumen and/or emotional stability is/are not strong enough to listen to, or study about, these uncontested facts.
We are not saying that there is anything wrong with the original Bible. We are standing up for the original Bible. I am a Bible teacher and I love the word of God. I am convinced it is perfect in its original state. Now we are having to go through some very deep studies to find out exactly what our God really said.
We are standing against the corrupted and confounded translations and transmitted texts. Some people have not been able to see the difference. Their conduct indicates that they believe their own religious ideas can’t be wrong. Sad.
Misunderstanding bred by ignorance becomes dangerous to a Bible student, especially when that student attempts to share what he/she has learned. But truth will prevail. Glad.
Scribes added words and removed words. Most Bible students have heard of the Masoretic texts and nearly all scholastically cultured Bible students fully admit that the texts were corrupted by the Masorites. Now you have discovered five more levels of corruption, some of which are a corruption of a corruption.
The transmitted text has been spoiled and debased -- and as a result, the translations do not tell us what God wanted us to know. The original Bible was right! What we have now was purposefully contaminated by many Jewish religious societies and it was confounded in error (honest mistake) by other religious groups.
Many people have spent their whole lives in study, trying to find out what the Bible really said, at first. Strong and Young are examples. There must be multiplied hundreds more, such as, Rotherham, Fenton, Green, Wilson, Kittle, Wescott, Hort, etc. Hats off -- and a round of applause for those great stout-hearted scholars. After their studies were published, groups and committees also got together for the same purpose, producing such Bibles as Amplified, St. Joseph, New American, Holy Name, Sacred Name, R.S.V., and numerous Diaglots and Interlinears.
These all prove the point that the transmitted Hebrew text, with which we have to work, is corrupted and confounded, and the translations are faulty. All Bible students believe that we can get back to the original truth through study, illumination, and revelation.
It is vital that we all know what our God really said. I think that the results of Bible study about the Names of God have been worth the time and the price, so far.
Here is a suggestion as to how I think the present translation could be written to eliminate or reduce some problems.
Genesis 14:22, And Abram said to the king of Sodom, I have lift up mine hand unto <YAHWEH (LORD)>, EL ELYON (the Most High God), the possessor of heaven and earth, (KJV)
I believe that the word <YAHWEH (LORD)> was purposefully added to the Hebrew scrolls, thus corrupting the text. Other scholars agree.
I have placed the words in carrots rather than parenthesis in this text because I believe it should be expunged (thrown out).
Here is why: 1. The plain meaning of Exodus 6:2-3 makes it impossible for Abram to have used the name YAHWEH. a. Exodus 6:2-3 2 And ELOHIM (God) spake unto Moses, and said unto him, I am YAHWEH (the LORD): 3 And I appeared unto Abraham, unto Isaac, and unto Jacob, by the name of EL SHADDAI (God Almighty), but by my name YAHWEH (JEHOVAH) was I not known to them. (KJV)
2. Within Judaism there are/were several divisions, similar to the denominational divisions in Protestantism. Those divisions inserted their ideas into (or removed offending ideas from) the scrolls as they were copied in scriptoriums and handed down from generation to generation. a. English translators of the Bible had to work from those corrupted and confounded scrolls. b. This instance of adding YAHWEH to the text is one of several hundred corruptions, I believe.
3. Great Bible scholars have devoted the better part of their own lives to try to identify the corrupted and confounded texts. Computer etymology is helping a lot, recently. a. The scholarly works of Wellhausen and Kuenen, and also Dillman show that the word "YAHWEH" was both added to and deleted from different parts of the sacred text. b. The scholars Kuenen, Carpenter, and Battersby confirmed the above in their work, "THE HEXATEUCH." c. The earlier Documentary Hypothesis of Astruc also confirms the above. 4. The article titled "PENTATEUCH" in THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA confirms and explains in enough detail for any Bible student.
RIGHT OR WRONG? I have never said, nor have I ever thought that the Bible is wrong. I believe that the Holy Bible is the word of God. What I said and what I believe is that the transmitted texts and also the translations were purposefully corrupted, causing our own Bible to be confounded.
The student who wants to spend the time to follow up on a study of the corruptions is well advised to study the word "PENTATEUCH" in the JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA, KTAV PUBLISHING HOUSE, NEW YORK 2, NEW YORK. In articles about the Bible, editors of the above state that the documents were "redacted.” Redact means “to lower in condition or quality, reduce.”
I think that it is a shame for anyone to purposefully "redact" the Holy Scriptures when their purpose is to conceal truth. Shame! Shame!
Our students are smart enough, educated enough, and experienced enough to deal with the subject of corrupted and confounded texts of the Holy Scriptures.
A serious study of YAHWEH, UNCONFOUNDED, Chapter 12, must also include a study of: · YAHWEH, GOD OF ISRAEL Chapter 10, and · YAHWEH, CONFOUNDING Chapter 11, and · YAHWEH MADE THE LAW Chapter 13, and · YAHWEH FAMILY Chapter 14, and · YAHWEH AND/OR EL ELYON Chapter 15, because there is a lot to learn about YAHWEH.
Some subjects in those chapters have been reviewed and/or abbreviated for this chapter. Some have not. Some subjects in this chapter are new and unique. The index should be a big help.
RECENT HISTORY OF THE NAMES OF GOD The first recorded written notice of the difference between YAHWEH and ELOHIM occurred in 1753 A.D., around the time the first rumblings of the American Revolution started to be heard. One hundred years later in 1853 A.D., an agreed upon systematic approach to the difference was used by scholars. Around the time of the start of the United States of America, God EL ELYON started planting seeds of a NEW RELIGION.
200 YEARS AGO Following is a quote from the JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA, ELOHIST, Volume 5, p.p. 142.
“JEAN ASTRUG (Conjectures Sur Les Memoires Originaux - Brussels 1753) was the first to call attention to the occurrence in Genesis and in Exodus 1 & 2, of the two names for the Deity, ‘ELOHIM’ and ‘YHWH’ (YAHWEH), and to base upon this fact a theory concerning the composite character of the first Mosaic book.”
100 YEARS AGO Quote continued. “Theory was adapted by Hupfield (Die Quellen der Genesis, 1853) whose acceptance of ‘ELOHIST’ as a recognized term was followed by almost all subsequent writers on the Hexateuch from the critical point of view, though cannotation of the term was not definitely fixed at first.” End quote.
It is nearly impossible to accept the fact that for nearly 5000 years of written Jewish history, no one ‑‑ no one ‑‑ noticed that there was a difference between “ELOHIM” and “YAHWEH.” Scholars have only had a little over 200 years to develop the facts.
NEW LIGHT In a mysterious move of the Holy Spirit, TIME MAGAZINE published a short article on December 7, 1981 about the corruptions of the Old Testament. While the TIME article is critical of some points of scholarship that appeared within the last 100 years, it does not attack the acknowledged corruption of the Names of God, rather, it supports the knowledge.
Also, CHARISMA magazine featured an article on the same subject the next month.
A lecture on the Names of God, including the corruptions of the Names, was presented by this author to the Bible Students of Baltimore Md., the second week of November 1981 (nearly the same time as the magazine articles).
So we see that new light began to appear around November 1981 to January 1982.
TIME, DECEMBER 7, 1981, BY ONE HAND? COMPUTERS REREAD GENESIS Quote and quotes within quotes, "Jewish tradition holds that Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible. Conservative Christians agree. But 19th century Protestant critics emphasized the Pentateuch's diversity rather than its unity. They deemed it a scissors-and-paste job on materials from different centuries by four anonymous authors: the Jahwist ("J"), ELOHIST ("E"), Priestly writer ("P") and Deuteronomist ("D"). {We call Jahwist (“J”) by the name of, YAHWEHIST at our school. D.P.E.}.
Though traditionalists rejected it, this J.E.P.D. theory hardened into liberal orthodoxy.
Now the four-author thesis has come under a powerful new attack. The ancient view, it seems, is supported by the most modern deity of omniscience, the computer. Bible Scholar Yehuda Radday of Haifa's Israel Institute of Technology reports that a five year computer study of Genesis shows that it is the work of a single writer and that the J.E.P.D. theory must be "rejected or at least thoroughly revised."
Radday and three aides studied "the only unquestionable data," the words of the Hebrew text, and concentrated on 56 criteria of "language behavior," (such as use of conjunctions and word length) that are outside the conscious control of an author. The key finding: a remarkably high 82% probability that the same person wrote the supposed J and E passages. The P passages were as distinct as the critics have long maintained, but Radday contends that the difference can be explained totally by the formalistic content. Says he: "My love letters to my wife are completely different from my scholarly articles."
None of this proves that the single writer was Moses, but Radday is already hard at work on Exodus and will then search Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. Radday's challenge will be fiercely resisted by scholars who favor the entrenched J.E.P.D. theory, partly because he deals exclusively with linguistic criteria and ignores stylistic variations. Radday is no right-wing ideologue, however. Earlier he earned wide acclaim when his whirling computers supported the conventional theory that multiple authors produced the books of Judges, Zechariah, and Isaiah. Says Radday: "These scholars can't have it both ways, approving a method when it suits them, and repudiating it when it does not." End quote.
At our school we believe that Radday's error is in not recognizing that the Names of God were purposefully corrupted, by the YAHWEHIST (“J”). We believe his study of the phrases and sentences actually supports our contention.
CHARISMA, JANUARY 1982 DEBATE OVER GENESIS ISRAELIS DISPUTE 3-AUTHOR THEORY Quote, and quotes within quotes, “The authors or author of the Book of Genesis has been a long-standing question over the years among theologians. Now a Technion research team in Israel, according to the JERUSALEM POST, claims that Genesis ‘almost certainly was written by one author’ and not by three as claimed by modern Bible criticism.”
The article points out that the question of the unity of Genesis was first raised at the start of the 19th century by the German Protestant theologian Johann Wellhausen who noted its numerous contradictions, duplications, and style differences.
These include the conflicting accounts of creation (chapters 1 and 2) and the linguistic difference between the narrative and genealogical parts of the book.
Bible critics have since attributed Genesis to three authors, defined as "Jahwist" (J) and "Elohist" (E), who used two different names for the deity, and a priestly writer (P), who is credited with the genealogical and treatises in the book.
This division of Genesis into J. E. and P. elements is widely accepted in Biblical scholarship and taught in many universities in the "documentary hypothesis" theory which holds that not Moses but an editor from David's time or later composed Genesis from oral tradition or documentary works.” [End quote from the JERUSALEM POST.] [Continue quotation from CHARISMA.]
DEBATE OVER GENESIS The Technion team fed the over 20,000 words of Genesis into a computer which conducted a painstaking analysis of its linguistic make-up.
The conclusion of the team, as reported in the JERUSALEM POST: "We found the J and E narratives to be linguistically indistinguishable. But the P sections differ widely from them. This is only to be expected since dramatic tales of legal documents must necessarily display different ‘behavior.’ If you compared love letters and telephone directory written by the same person, linguistic analysis would point to different authors." [End quote from the JERUSALEM POST.] [Continue quotation from CHARISMA.]
The scholars would not comment on the question of whether Genesis was written by Moses. They would only state that it was certainly written by a single author- 82 percent statistically." End all quotes.
Hats off and a round of applause for modern day Jews who are fixing the mess that was made by their forefathers. We are very grateful to them, and happy that God used them and their computers to help us find the truth.
YES AND NO! Here at the David Ebaugh Bible School we have decided to not take sides in the theological and technical arguments about who wrote what, or when. It is still too early, and not enough information is known.
We believe that the plain meaning of the words of the text in Exodus 6:2-3 indicates that the "documentary hypothesis" has merit in matters of corruption of the text.
The recent work of computer scholar Radday has merit in matters of who did what, when. We are sorry when we see the magazines mix up the subjects.
The magazines have merit in the matter of bringing the questions to the attention of the general public.
We do not agree that the ELOHIST (“E”) used two different names for God.
Of course, we agree with Radday, (“J”) and (“E”) are linguistically indistinguishable in a computer program. We certainly agree with that finding. The reason they can’t be distinguished is that the change was to add and/or substitute YAHWEH, and that change is too small to be recognized by comparing computer ratios.
The best news is that people are still working on it and talking about it, and it is newsworthy for TIME and for CHARISMA magazines.
Praise God for modern scholarship and new tools like the computer that are being combined with fearless authors, in order to present us with the old original truth about the Names of God.
“Hang in there, men.” Don’t give up the ship just because you are being fired upon by torpedoes made of error and misunderstanding. The truth will win. “Damn the torpedoes -- full speed ahead.” We’re going to win this war. If we believe that God is the Boss, then we have to conclude that the confusion must have been part of His will for a time. We must observe that it must be time for a change, now! I hope and wish that every one of our Bible students can and will read the Introduction to the EMPHASIZED BIBLE, ROTHERHAM, KREGEL PUB., Chapter 4, THE INCOMMUNICABLE NAME. It contains many documented facts concerning the purposeful suppression. Out of courtesy to Jews and the Masorah, Rotherham used the word suppression. Because of the consequence of the act, I have chosen the word corruption. Also, I suggest a reading of the whole introduction, especially on the original texts.
SCHOLASTIC HUMOR! Rotherham's statement on page 20, "How should these Various Readings be treated by an ordinary intelligent reader? They may very well lead to a suspense of judgment." is cautiously hilarious to a tired Bible student with a pile of reference books on his desk!! I don’t know if Rotherham meant to crack a joke in the middle of an otherwise serious academic piece, but he did. A serious study of YAHWEH MADE THE LAW, Chapter 13, must also include a study of: · YAHWEH, GOD OF ISRAEL Chapter 10, and · YAHWEH, CONFOUNDING Chapter 11, and · YAHWEH, UNCONFOUNDED Chapter 12, and · YAHWEH FAMILY Chapter 14, and · YAHWEH AND/OR EL ELYON Chapter 15, because there is a lot to learn about YAHWEH.
Some subjects in those chapters have been reviewed and/or abbreviated for this chapter. Some have not. Some subjects in this chapter are new and unique. The index should be a big help.
YAHWEH LAW The main action for which YAHWEH is best known is the giving of the law to Israel through Moses.
There are 613 TSAVA (means laws in Hebrew). Jews tie little knots, to represent the 613 laws, in the fringe of their prayer shawls. That interesting custom is a reminder of the Roman Catholic Rosary. They both are physical objects that are used to remind us about prayer subjects. I like the idea, even though I’m a Protestant.
TEN COMMANDMENTS How about the 10 commandments? Are they in addition to the 613 TSAVA? No. The 10 commandments are included in the 613 TSAVA. But, the 10 commandments have a different word to describe them. They are the 10 DABAR. The Hebrew word DABAR is translated into the word “word” in our English. The 10 commandments are 10 words. Some writers go even farther, saying that the 2 tablets of stone Moses brought back contained only 10 words. We have amplifications of those 10 words.
MIXED CLOTH Here is an example of one of the TSAVA laws. Deuteronomy 22:11, Thou shalt not wear a garment of divers sorts, as of woollen and linen together. (KJV)
An orthodox Jew will not wear clothing of mixed fibers. Think about that the next time you put on your linen lined woolen suit coat.
This law has the same force as, “Thou shall not kill.”
COZY FAMILY How about this law? Deuteronomy 25:5, If brethren dwell together, and one of them die, and have no child, the wife of the dead shall not marry without unto a stranger: her husband's brother shall go in unto her, and take her to him to wife, and perform the duty of an husband's brother unto her. (KJV)
Think about that law the next time you think about your brother-in-law, or sister-in-law. Does that sound like a good idea or do you think, “Gag me with a spoon?”
OUR GOD’S FIRST CHOICE WAS TO TALK TO US INDIVIDUALLY. THE LAW WAS OUR GOD’S SECOND CHOICE. Exodus 19:5, Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be a peculiar treasure unto me above all people: for all the earth is mine: (KJV)
God’s plan was for all of the people of Israel to hear His voice and obey. Our God wants to speak individually to every person, not a religious hierarchy. But, they didn’t like God’s idea. After God’s command to listen to Him, observe what the Israelites did.
Exodus 20:18-19, And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. 19 And they said unto Moses, Speak thou with us, and we will hear: but let not God speak with us, lest we die. (KJV)
Our God said He wanted to talk to His people (Ex 19:15). Then He gave the 10 commandments. The people removed (ran away) and said “Don’t let God talk to us any more. He scares us. Moses, you go up the mountain any time God has anything to say. Then you come back and tell us what He wants. We appoint you Moses to be the boss of our religion. We know that our God wants to talk to us individually, but we can’t take it. We would rather have a structured religion with Priests, Bishops, Cardinals, and a Pope. Moses, you be our Father.”
RETURN TO THE LAW?? Many groups in this country have erroneously concluded that our nation should return to YAHWEH and to His law. They conclude that a return to YAHWEH will bring about a return to the law of YAHWEH and that will restore righteousness to our nation. They blame all the ills of our nation on the fact that we do not keep the laws of YAHWEH. And they quote plenty of Old Testament scriptures that support their point.
The New Testament teaches that JESUS is our righteousness and that an offense in just one point of the O.T. law that YAHWEH gave to Moses makes one guilty of the whole law.
James 2:10, For whosoever shall keep the whole law, and yet offend in one point, he is guilty of all. (KJV)
No one in the whole nation of Israel was ever able to keep the law of YAHWEH given to Moses. And we believe no one in this nation can keep the whole law of YAHWEH either.
Some erroneously teach that after a person becomes saved by receiving JESUS CHRIST in their heart, that person should be able to keep the law of YAHWEH. The experience of every Christian shows that is not so. The following description of Paul's pitiful try at keeping the law of YAHWEH is classic.
Romans 7:9-25, For I was alive without the law once: but when the commandment came, sin revived, and I died. 10 And the commandment, which was ordained to life, I found to be unto death. 11 For sin, taking occasion by the commandment, deceived me, and by it slew me. 12 Wherefore the law is holy, and the commandment holy, and just, and good. 13 Was then that which is good made death unto me? God forbid. But sin, that it might appear sin, working death in me by that which is good; that sin by the commandment might become exceeding sinful. 14 For we know that the law is spiritual: but I am carnal, sold under sin. 15 For that which I do I allow not: for what I would, that do I not; but what I hate, that do I. 16 If then I do that which I would not, I consent unto the law that it is good. 17 Now then it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 18 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh,) dwelleth no good thing: for to will is present with me; but how to perform that which is good I find not. 19 For the good that I would I do not: but the evil which I would not, that I do. 20 Now if I do that I would not, it is no more I that do it, but sin that dwelleth in me. 21 I find then a law, that, when I would do good, evil is present with me. 22 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: 23 But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. 24 O wretched man that I am! who shall deliver me from the body of this death? 25 I thank God through JESUS CHRIST our LORD. So then with the mind I myself serve the law of God; but with the flesh the law of sin. (KJV) The answer to our problem is not to go back to the law of YAHWEH given through Moses.
John 1:17, For the law was given by Moses, but grace and truth came by JESUS Christ. (KJV)
We will see later, as we study EL ELYON, that a new law was given by the Father of our LORD JESUS CHRIST whose name/nature is EL ELYON.
People who approach God through the name/nature of YAHWEH have always died, do always die, and will always die. Conversely, those who approach God through the name/nature of EL ELYON, have never died, do not die, and will not ever die (as we will see in our later study of EL ELYON and Melchisedec).
SCHOOLMASTER Galatians 3:24-25, Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto CHRIST, that we might be justified by faith. 25 But after that faith is come, we are no longer under a schoolmaster. (KJV)
Not very many people believe that.
After we have faith we will not have to carry our schoolmaster around on our backs.
I believe that in this day and age it is a tragedy to have to go to a church where the elders place a person back under the law of YAHWEH.
Yes, most churches do believe that their conduct and reaction to problems at church and in the home should be patterned after YAHWEH. They bring law to the situation.
They produce the following pattern:
LAW, JUDGMENT, CONDEMNATION, PUNISHMENT, AND DEATH
This process describes nearly all denominations and religious movements. Do you have enough insight and courage to ask yourself if your own group belongs in this list?
Governments are also YAHWEHISTIC. Our Pentagon, especially, tells us the YAHWEHISTIC idea that, "Might makes right." They tell us that military preparedness is the way to a lasting peace, but world history shows that that has never been the truth.
Our churches and our governments only bring us a half truth by their YAHWEHISTIC teachings and actions. We believe that a new religion having a new Name of God is developing.
Church denominations and governments that ignore the developing changes that favor EL ELYON are signing their own death warrants. Churches and governments that apply balance to every situation will enter into the millennium (a thousand years of peace).
YAHWEH is the God of Israel. So when a Jew wanted to please God he patterned his own actions after the way he thought that YAHWEH would handle a problem. But JESUS acted the way that EL ELYON directed Him, and there was a big difference.
The following chart demonstrates two different paths to follow.
YAHWEH gives one path.
EL ELYON gives the other.
5 STEPS
YAHWEH EL ELYON
LAW LOVE
JUDGMENT LIGHT
CONDEMNATION FORGIVENESS
PUNISHMENT MERCY
DEATH LIFE
For example, in the case of the adulterous woman, the Jews followed the pattern taught by YAHWEH. On the other hand, JESUS followed the pattern given to Him by his Father EL ELYON. There was great conflict because both the Jews and JESUS were really serving God. When you see that each name/nature of God always leads to a different conclusion, then you can see why there was such great conflict.
JESUS did not always choose the pattern of EL ELYON, though He usually did. In the case of the Temple money changers, JESUS chose the YAHWEH pattern.
If your desire is to force everyone to practice the law of YAHWEH, you are wrong.
If your desire is to be led by the Holy Spirit, you are right.
Remember that you needed a mother (EL SHADDAI) when you were an infant. After you became a teenager you needed the laws of your father (YAHWEH). That's not your end. You are going to become a manifest Son of God. No one we know as yet has become a manifest Son of God. Remember, Romans 8:14 says: Romans 8:14, For as many as are led by the Spirit of God, they are the sons of God. (KJV)
Those people who are not mature enough to be led by the Spirit of God, still need to be led by something. That something is the law of YAHWEH. John told us that, for the moment: 1 John 3:, Beloved, now are we the sons (teenagers -- Greek - Teknons) of God, (KJV)
Since we are still teenagers and are not yet manifest sons, we must still be led by the law. What is your reaction to the fact that, for the most part, teenagers (more than other groups) are having most of their trouble with the law?
In other words, God, EL ELYON, has a plan for us to be: · First, led by the commands of our Mother, EL SHADDAI, · Second, led by the laws of our Father, YAHWEH, · Third, led by the Holy Spirit, ELOAH.
If your desire is to quickly pass through or skip any of these steps -- you are wrong.
If your desire is to thoroughly learn every step and progress orderly from one to another -- you are right.
YAHWEH WILL KILL AND MAKE ALIVE, YAHWEH WILL WOUND AND HEAL Deuteronomy 32:39 (YAHWEH said [v36]), See now that I, even I, am he, and there is no god with me: I kill, and I make alive; I wound, and I heal: neither is there any that can deliver out of my hand. (KJV)
There is a good answer to this paradox but I think we need a few more shockers, to establish the question. Please take note of the Name of God that created evil.
YAHWEH DID IT Amos 3:6, Shall a trumpet be blown in the city, and the people not be afraid? shall there be evil in a city, and YAHWEH (the LORD) hath not done it? (KJV)
ELOHIM SENT AN EVIL SPIRIT. Judges 9:23, Then ELOHIM (God) sent an evil spirit between Abimelech and the men of Shechem; and the men of Shechem dealt treacherously with Abimelech: (KJV)
AN EVIL SPIRIT FROM YAHWEH 1 Samuel 16:14, But the Spirit of YAHWEH (the LORD) departed from Saul, and an evil spirit from YAHWEH (the LORD) troubled him. (KJV)
AN EVIL SPIRIT FROM ELOHIM 1 Samuel 18:10, And it came to pass on the morrow, that the evil spirit from ELOHIM (God) came upon Saul, and he prophesied in the midst of the house: and David played with his hand, as at other times: and there was a javelin in Saul's hand. (KJV)
A LYING SPIRIT FROM YAHWEH 1 Kings 22:22 And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto him, Wherewith? And he said, I will go forth, and I will be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And he said, Thou shalt persuade him, and prevail also: go forth, and do so. (KJV)
2 Chronicles 18:20-22, Then there came out a spirit, and stood before YAHWEH (the LORD) , and said, I will entice him. And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto him, Wherewith? 21 And he said, I will go out, and be a lying spirit in the mouth of all his prophets. And YAHWEH (the LORD) said, Thou shalt entice him, and thou shalt also prevail: go out, and do even so.
22 Now therefore, behold, YAHWEH (the LORD) hath put a lying spirit in the mouth of these thy prophets, and YAHWEH (the LORD) hath spoken evil against thee. (KJV)
YAHWEH MINGLED A PERVERSE SPIRIT Isaiah 19:14, YAHWEH (the LORD) hath mingled a perverse spirit in the midst thereof: and they have caused Egypt to err in every work thereof, as a drunken man staggereth in his vomit. (KJV)
YAHWEH DECEIVES PROPHETS Ezekiel 14:9, And if the prophet be deceived when he hath spoken a thing, I YAHWEH (the LORD) have deceived that prophet, and I will stretch out my hand upon him, and will destroy him from the midst of my people Israel. (KJV)
Did you notice that the scriptures say that both YAHWEH and ELOHIM created evil? How can that be? When the masculine YAHWEH is creating, He becomes half of the androgynous ELOHIM.
Those are enough scriptures to settle the question, “Who created evil?” God did. We will shortly try to explain why God created the devil.
WHO IS THE GOD OF HELL? Is God the God of hell as well as the God of heaven? King David answered our question;
Psalm 139:8, If I ascend up into heaven, thou art there: if I make my bed in hell, behold, thou art there. (KJV)
Our God is the God of everything, heaven, earth and hell. All things were created by Him and for Him, even hell.
OUR GOD CREATED ALL THINGS We must all see that God ELOHIM is the creator of everything. God is love. And lovers create.
John 1:3, All things were made by him; and without him was not any thing made that was made. (KJV)
Ephesians 3:9, And to make all men see what is the fellowship of the mystery, which from the beginning of the world hath been hid in ELOHIM (God), who created all things by JESUS Christ: (KJV)
Colossians 1:16, For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: (KJV)
Notice that all things are created by Him and for Him.
Revelation 4:11, Thou art worthy, O LORD, to receive glory and honour and power: for thou hast created all things, and for thy pleasure they are and were created. (KJV)
GOD CREATED THE DESTROYER Our God ELOHIM is such a great lover that God ELOHIM can never destroy anything. Lovers create; they don't destroy. But here's the catch. Sometimes there are things in the way of God’s creative plans. The work can not proceed while the obstructing thing is in the way. So God ELOHIM created a destroyer to use in order to remove or destroy things that have outlived their usefulness or are in the way of progress. Yes. Our God did create the devil; and Satan works for God.
Isaiah 54:16, Behold, I have created the smith that bloweth the coals in the fire, and that bringeth forth an instrument for his work; and I have created the waster to destroy. (KJV)
In other words, God has created a waster, a destroyer, a devil to work for Him.
Satan could not do anything to Job unless God gave the command to Satan. See Job 1:6-12 and Job 2:1-6.
There are a few more notes about the creation of demons in Chapter 24, EL ELYON, MOST HIGH GOD IN THE NEW TESTAMENT. Check it out.
YAHWEH TOLD SATAN TO DESTROY ALL THAT JOB HAD Job 1:6-12, Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before YAHWEH (the LORD), and Satan came also among them. 7 And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto Satan, Whence comest thou? Then Satan answered YAHWEH (the LORD), and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. 8 And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth ELOHIM (God), and escheweth evil? 9 Then Satan answered YAHWEH (the LORD), and said, Doth Job fear ELOHIM (God) for nought? 10 Hast not thou made an hedge about him, and about his house, and about all that he hath on every side? thou hast blessed the work of his hands, and his substance is increased in the land. 11 But put forth thine hand now, and touch all that he hath, and he will curse thee to thy face. 12 And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto Satan, Behold, all that he hath is in thy power; only upon himself put not forth thine hand. So Satan went forth from the presence of YAHWEH (the LORD). (KJV)
NEXT, YAHWEH TOLD SATAN TO DESTROY JOB’S BODY BUT NOT HIS LIFE Job 2:1-6, Again there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before YAHWEH (the LORD), and Satan came also among them to present himself before YAHWEH (the LORD). 2 And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto Satan, From whence comest thou? And Satan answered YAHWEH (the LORD), and said, From going to and fro in the earth, and from walking up and down in it. 3 And YAHWEH (the LORD), said unto Satan, Hast thou considered my servant Job, that there is none like him in the earth, a perfect and an upright man, one that feareth ELOHIM (God), and escheweth evil? and still he holdeth fast his integrity, although thou movedst me against him, to destroy him without cause. 4 And Satan answered YAHWEH (the LORD), and said, Skin for skin, yea, all that a man hath will he give for his life. 5 But put forth thine hand now, and touch his bone and his flesh, and he will curse thee to thy face. 6 And YAHWEH (the LORD) said unto Satan, Behold, he is in thine hand; but save his life. (KJV)
Here is an allegory to explain if God did destroy or if He did not destroy.
THE HOUSE THAT JACK BUILT Jack said that he was building a house. But when I went to look, I found that he never cut a board or drove a nail. Other men were doing all the work for him. Now, was Jack building the house or wasn't he? The fact that Jack gave all the orders to have the house built really did qualify him to say that he was building a house even though other men did all the work. But, Jack didn’t build it with his hands.
Hebrews 3:4, For every house is builded by some man; but he that built all things is ELOHIM (God). (KJV)
So, in the sense that God did tell Satan to destroy, God did it. But, God didn’t destroy anything.
It is nice to know that God is such a lover that He does not destroy anything. So, in a sense, God hired the devil (created the devil) to do His dirty work for Him.
The scriptures tell us that YAHWEH and/or ELOHIM created everything. YAHWEH is involved when the creation of evil is involved. You know the secret that the masculine YAHWEH is the masculine half of the androgynous ELOHIM
A serious study of YAHWEH FAMILY, Chapter 14, must also include a study of: · YAHWEH, GOD OF ISRAEL Chapter 10, and · YAHWEH, CONFOUNDING Chapter 11, and · YAHWEH, UNCONFOUNDED Chapter 12, and · YAHWEH MADE THE LAW Chapter 13, and · YAHWEH AND/OR EL ELYON Chapter 15, because there is a lot to learn about YAHWEH.
Some subjects in those chapters have been reviewed and/or abbreviated for this chapter. Some have not. Some subjects in this chapter are new and unique. The index should be a big help.
FAMILY IN HEAVEN Does this say that there is a family of God in heaven? Yes! All the various translations confirm that there is a family of God in heaven.
Ephesians 3:14-15, 14 For this cause I bow my knees unto the Father of our LORD Jesus Christ, 15 Of whom the whole family in heaven and earth is named, (KJV)
Normally, we expect the term family to include a father, a mother and an offspring. When family is the subject of a study, then procreation is also a subject, and the study of sex is also necessary. Our Bible is full of information on them all.
YAHWEH IS MASCULINE We note that the word YAHWEH is masculine in gender in the Hebrew. We also notice that YAHWEH operates by giving laws. YAHWEH is aggressive, forceful, overpowering, the God of hosts (armies), the God of victory. In summary, YAHWEH acts in a very masculine way.
EL SHADDAI IS FEMININE We also note that EL SHADDAI is the large breasted provider, nourisher, Mother in the Old Testament.
ADAM AND EVE Let’s temporarily shift our interest from the Godhead to our first parents, Adam and Eve. Yes. Adam was the first father and Eve was the first mother in the realm of the natural body of mankind. In fact, my own lineage traces back to them. Yes. Yours does too. That makes us brothers and sisters through Adam and Eve. If our skin is red, or yellow, or black, or white, we all trace back to Adam and Eve. That makes all mankind a great brotherhood of humans. Yes. Things did not start out that way. Before there was an Eve, there was an Adam. Eve was hidden in Adam’s side. We don’t know how many years Adam tended ground and the herds of cattle, lonely, the only human on the earth. I have read books that speculated that Adam could have been alone for a short time, a few years, or a few centuries, or even a few thousand years. The Bible doesn’t say, and I have decided to leave that an open question with no firm answer, for now.
At any rate, we know that Adam was lonely and he told ELOHIM (God) so. Adam said he had been watching how all the animals had a fit companion and he wanted to have a fit companion, too. God said, “O.K. Adam, you’re on.”
Where do you think our God found a suitable helpmate for Adam? Right. The woman was in the side of Adam all the time. You remember, God put Adam to sleep, operated on the side of the torso of Adam, and out came Eve. When Adam woke up he discovered Eve was gorgeous, beautiful, smart, vivacious, sensitive, willing to help, and Eve was everything Adam wanted. But stop. Think. Before there was an Eve, where was she? The woman was in the man. Yes. Adam contained Eve. So, at the very first, the man wasn’t just a man. The man Adam was a man and a woman in the same body.
Doctors have a word to describe the case when one single body contains both male and female organs in the same single body. The word used to describe the condition when a single body is both male and female is “Androgynous.”
You remember that they taught you in High School that if you put a fishing worm in a jar with everything it needs to stay healthy, eventually you will have two fishing worms. That is because the worm is androgynous; it contains both male and female forces and parts in one body. The worm creates another worm from itself, because it is androgynous. You remember studying that. That’s the way Adam was at first. The woman Eve was inside the man Adam, and that made Adam androgynous.
Adam was not the only force, power, and energy in the world that was androgynous. The Names of God, EL ELYON and ELOHIM are also androgynous Hebrew words. Hebrew is a fascinating language that attaches gender (male and female) to many of its words.
That’s one way we know EL ELYON and ELOHIM are androgynous. Another is to study their actions to see if they follow masculine or feminine patterns. EL ELYON and ELOHIM have both masculine and feminine actions in the stories of their manifestations. YAHWEH is definitely masculine in action. EL SHADDAI is definitely feminine in action. And ELOAH is more complex; having feminine actions in the O.T., and when ELOAH manifests as the Holy Spirit in the N.T., He becomes definitely masculine. Technically, the Greek word for Holy Spirit is neuter gender, but it always travels with a masculine article, making the Holy Spirit masculine. Remember some of that?
IN OUR IMAGE We also remember that the book of Genesis contains a heretofore perplexing scripture.
Genesis 1:26-27, And ELOHIM (God) said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness: and let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over the cattle, and over all the earth, and over every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth. 27 So ELOHIM (God) created man in his own image, in the image of ELOHIM (God) created he him; male and female created he them. (KJV)
There is a short section on the subject of the creative aspects of the Godhead in Chapter 6 titled GOD DEFINITION.
The word "God" in Genesis is the word "ELOHIM" in the Hebrew. That word "ELOHIM" is plural, and androgynous (having both male and female characteristics), and it means "the creator God". So we see that the "creator God" ELOHIM seems to speak to Himself, "Let us make man in our image, after our likeness.” Most people have logically asked themselves the question, "To whom is the ‘us’ and the ‘our’ referring? Is God talking to Himself or to someone else?"
TOGETHER IN CONCERT When the masculine YAHWEH and the feminine EL SHADDAI come together in concert, they become the "creator God" ELOHIM. When there is no concert between YAHWEH and EL SHADDAI, then there is no creation, no "creator God," no ELOHIM. So, it is right to say that YAHWEH and EL SHADDAI said to each other, "Let Us make man in Our image, after Our likeness." Now it starts to make sense.
ADAM WAS ANDROGYNOUS Adam was both male and female at first. We do remember that at first, Adam was created as an androgynous creature. Adam’s body contained both sexes. That makes sense, now, when we remember that the word "ELOHIM" is androgynous (contains both male and female forces).
Genesis 1:27, So ELOHIM (God) created man in his own image, in the image of ELOHIM (God) created he him; male and female created he them. (KJV)
So Adam truly was created in the image of ELOHIM because both ELOHIM and Adam were androgynous. The first human person contained the masculine forces of Adam and the feminine forces of Eve within the same physical body. And in like fashion, the "creator God" ELOHIM contained the masculine forces of YAHWEH and the feminine forces of EL SHADDAI. That is why the verse ends this way, "In the image of ELOHIM (God) created he him, male and female created he them."
TWO OUT OF ONE You remember, after the passage of some time, the two forces were separated from each other, and two physical bodies were created out of one.
Genesis 2:21-24, And the LORD (erroneous Masoritic insert YAHWEH) ELOHIM (God) caused a deep sleep to fall upon Adam (man), and he slept: and he took one of his ribs (in Hebrew rib means curved portion, God took Adams curves), and closed up the flesh instead thereof; 22 And the rib (the curves), which the LORD (erroneous Masoritic insert YAHWEH) ELOHIM (God) had taken from man (Adam), made he a woman (womb man), and brought her unto the man (Adam). 23 And Adam said, This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh: she shall be called Woman (Isha), because she was taken out of Man (Ish). 24 Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be (again) one flesh. (KJV)
The fall of mankind from the grace of God did not occur until after the separation of Eve from Adam. God gave one curse to Adam and another curse to Eve, proving that the separation had already occurredd.
ONE FLESH We should note that many of the problems of this present society are due to the fact that the male is now not a complete unit and that a female is now not a complete unit. A complete unit is "one flesh.” So presently we are incomplete or half of a complete unit. This scripture explains the sex drive of most of humanity, the drive to enter into relationships that bring completeness, oneness.
The Bible describes the meaning of the expression, "one flesh.” It means sexual union, nothing else.
Genesis 2:24, Therefore shall a man leave his father and his mother, and shall cleave unto his wife: and they shall be one flesh. (KJV)
Matthew 19:5-6, And said, For this cause shall a man leave father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife: and they twain shall be one flesh? 6 Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder. (KJV) The partners should become married in our society before becoming one flesh because becoming one flesh usually produces children and marriage fixes responsibility for the maintenance and the future of the children. Only the most selfish irresponsible male will procreate children without providing for them. And lately we have to add, that also goes for females, too.
1 Corinthians 6:16, What? know ye not that he which is joined to an harlot is one body? for two, saith he, shall be one flesh. (KJV)
The only union that a man has with a harlot is sexual union, nothing else. "One flesh" means sexual union, nothing else. The Bible stories demonstrate that one flesh sex can be in the marriage bond or one flesh sex can be outside the marriage, but one flesh is sexual union, nothing else.
While we are looking at the creation scripture there is one more thought that we cannot pass over.
CREATED OR IS CREATING? We receive the erroneous thought that our God completed the job when He created man, from reading, Genesis 1:27, So God created man in his own image, in the image of God created he him; male and female created he them. (KJV)
But that idea is not right. The job is not finished.
The error is in the translation of the verb "created." There is no verb tense in the Hebrew language. The verb tense has been supplied by the English translators. The tense of the verb should be present progressive, not past tense. It should read, Genesis 1:27, So ELOHIM (God) (is creating) man in his own image, in the image of ELOHIM (God) (He is creating) him; male and female (He is creating) them. (KJV)
Now there is harmony between the creation scripture and the one Paul wrote in: Galatians 4:1-2, Now I say, That the heir, as long as he is a child, differeth nothing from a servant, though he be lord of all; 2 But is under tutors and governors until the time appointed of the father. (KJV)
In other words, our God is not finished with us yet. I'm reminded of a bumper sticker which reads "CAUTION, HOLY SPIRIT AT WORK," and the lapel button which reads "Please be patient, God is not finished with me, yet."
ANDROGYNOUS GOD The word "EL ELYON" (the Most High God) is androgynous like the word "ELOHIM" (Creator) is androgynous. This adds a little light to: Psalm 91:1, He that dwelleth in the secret place of ELYON (the Most High) shall abide under the shadow of SHADDAI (the Almighty). (KJV)
The "secret place" of EL ELYON is the "secret shadow" of EL SHADDAI (her womb). Remember, EL ELYON must have both masculine and also feminine parts in order to be androgynous.
Psalm 91 does not refer to the physical womb, it refers to the spiritual womb. Psalm 91 describes the protection of the womb of EL SHADDAI this way: “My refuge, my fortress, my God, my trust, my deliverer, my covering, my truth, my shield, my buckler, my deliverer from fear, my deliverer from arrows, my refuge, my habitation, my keeper, my savior.”
EL ELYON -- EL SHADDAI This probably is not the most famous verse in the Bible, but it is in the running for one of the most familiar scriptures. Most people know it. But I don't believe most people know it like we just read it. That's the way Strong’s Concordance says it should be translated as far as the Hebrew Names of God are concerned.
Psalm 91:1, He that dwelleth in the secret place of ELYON (the Most High) shall abide under the shadow of SHADDAI (the Almighty). (KJV)
REPRODUCTIVE ORGANS When we remember that secret places have to do with our reproductive organs, then that translation may begin to make some sense. The secret place of the androgynous ELYON is the shadowy place of the feminine SHADDAI.
THE MOST HIGH GOD Since "EL ELYON" is the name/nature of the Most High God, it also follows that all of the attributes of the whole GODHEAD are in EL ELYON. He is the Most High God. That's so important, I think I should say it another way. Whereas all of the attributes of the whole GODHEAD are in EL ELYON, the Most High God may exhibit them any way He pleases. EL ELYON can operate as YAHWEH, ELOHIM, EL SHADDAI, or ELOAH because He is everything.
SPIRIT, SOUL, BODY Students who have studied the difference between spirit, soul, and body know that a person is a spirit, they have a soul, and they live in a body. They also know that all spirits are masculine, i.e., all men and women on the earth are masculine spirits. They also know that all men and women on the earth possess feminine souls. The Greek word for soul is “PSYCHE” which is feminine in gender.
SONS OF GOD Psalm 82:6, I have said, Ye are ELOHIM (creators) (gods); and all of you are children of ELYON (the Most High). (KJV)
Hebrews 12:9, Furthermore we have had fathers of our flesh which corrected us, and we gave them reverence: shall we not much rather be in subjection unto the Father of spirits, and live? (KJV)
We see a distinction between two types of fathers: 1. a father of flesh, and also 2. the Father of spirits. You had better pay attention to your two fathers.
GOD GAVE THE SPIRIT OF MAN The Bible says that the spirit came from God, not our natural father. Ecclesiastes 12:7, Then shall the dust return to the earth as it was: and the spirit shall return unto ELOHIM (God) who gave it. (KJV)
Zechariah 12:1, The burden of the word of YAHWEH (the LORD) for Israel, saith YAHWEH (the LORD), which stretcheth forth the heavens, and layeth the foundation of the earth, and formeth the spirit of man within him. (KJV)
TWICE BORN Referring to two separate births, JESUS said: John 3:5, Jesus answered, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born of water (the natural birth) and of the Spirit (the spiritual birth), he cannot enter into the kingdom of God. (KJV)
Some confusion may still exist as to who fathered what. Our flesh (not spirit) was fathered by our own natural physical father who produced us while he was in concert with our natural mother.
The Dunamis of the Holy Spirit was brought to the soul of the blessed virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit, in preparation for the next step. The flesh of JESUS was fathered by EL ELYON as He spoke the word. The word then became flesh through His dunamis (miracle) power.
In the special case when a person was fathered by a bad man, it is far more important to reflect on the goodness of the heavenly Father than to dwell on the sins of the natural father. BEFORE THE WORLD BEGAN You were fathered in spirit before the world began.
2 Timothy 1:9, Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, (KJV)
Ephesians 1:4, According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: (KJV)
Your soul and body weren’t around before the world began but you were there in spirit. You can’t remember it because the memory part of your soul/mind was not there. Remember, you must be fathered twice. You must be born again. Once in the body, and once in the spirit.
THE CONCEPTION OF JESUS The following article has been edited, and was adapted from the MONARCH, Dec. 1988,
MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO JESUS CHRIST. This season is a great time to give your own personal testimony as a believer. That's because most people in our society follow the whole world in opening up to the birth of JESUS at Christmas. Is there anyone in our world who doesn't know JESUS was born at Christmas? (More on the exact date of His birth later.) A proper greeting is "Merry Christmas to you -- and Happy Birthday to JESUS." THE CONCEPTION OF JESUS Most writers concentrate on the birth of JESUS. No problem. Today we will study the conception, contradistinctive to the birth. A student doesn't have to be very mature to know both events are very important. "You can't have the one with out the other."
IS EL ELYON THE FATHER OF JESUS? The Bible says the name/nature of the Father of JESUS is EL ELYON (the Most High God).
Luke 1:32, He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of ELYON (the Highest): (KJV)
Luke 1:35, And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power (Dunamis) of ELYON (the Highest) shall overshadow thee:
SPIRIT, SOUL, OR BODY? EL ELYON, acting in the capacity of YAHWEH, in concert with EL SHADDAI, first procreated the spirit (not body) of JESUS before the world began (John 1:1-3, 2 Tim. 1:9, Eph. 1:4). Much later, about 2000 years ago, EL ELYON procreated the body (not spirit) of JESUS in the womb of the blessed virgin Mary (Luke 1:32, 35). The flesh of JESUS was fathered by EL ELYON as He spoke the word. The word then became flesh through His dunamis (miracle) power. YOUR SPIRIT The Spirits (not bodies) of the rest of us were first procreated by EL ELYON before the world began (2 Tim. 1:9, Eph. 1:4). Much later, your own body was procreated by your own natural father and mother.
The spirits of every one of our Bible students were also procreated by EL ELYON, the same name/nature of the Godhead who procreated JESUS. The Bible settles the question of the name of our own heavenly Father when it says: Psalm 82:6, I have said, Ye are gods; and all of you are children of ELYON (the Most High). (KJV)
In other words, the Bible says EL ELYON is the Father of the spirit of everyone of our friends, readers and students. EL ELYON is also the Father of JESUS' spirit, too.
WHEN WERE YOU BORN? The Bible settles the question, "When were our spirits born?" 2 Timothy 1:9, Who hath saved us, and called us with an holy calling, not according to our works, but according to his own purpose and grace, which was given us in Christ Jesus before the world began, (KJV)
Ephesians 1:4, According as he hath chosen us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and without blame before him in love: (KJV)
YOU ARE VERY OLD! Those scriptures show that you are very old. Upon hearing those scriptures a middle aged lady in our Bible class said, "So that's why I'm feeling so tired!" That was a joke because she knew her spirit was ancient but her tired body wasn't, even though it sometimes felt like it was. And that applies to you, too! We are like JESUS one way, in the realm of the spirit. We, like JESUS, were all fathered by EL ELYON before the foundation of the world (Psa. 82:6, 2 Tim. 1:9, Eph. 1:4).
THE DIFFERENCE Jesus differs from us, in that He is the only human who was begotten by God in the realm of the body.
John 1:14, And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. (KJV)
John 1:18, No man hath seen God at any time; the only begotten Son, which is in the bosom of the Father, he hath declared him. (KJV)
John 3:16, For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. (KJV)
John 3:18, He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God. (KJV) Jesus is the only begotten Son of God in the realm of the body. But in the realm of the spirit, our God has many Sons. For instance: John 1:12, But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name: (KJV)
THE BLESSED VIRGIN MARY Was Mary a virgin? My Bible study convinces me Mary was a virgin before the conception and birth of JESUS.
Luke 1:27, To a virgin espoused to a man whose name was Joseph, of the house of David; and the virgin's name was Mary. (KJV)
Some critical students point to the translation of the Greek word PARTHENOS (Strong's 3933) for virgin, as not being consistent. They claim PARTHENOS should be translated maiden or unmarried daughter. I agree with the scholarship, but not with the conclusion. The Bible context clearly indicates to me Mary was a virgin even though the word PARTHENOS does not absolutely prove it. Other passages prove Mary was a virgin. I think it is dumb to apply that questionable translation to the question of Mary’s virginity.
Matthew 1:18, Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. (KJV)
How much more plain does the Bible have to be? I believe it is absurd to think that Mary "came together" with some other man. Our LORD and Saviour JESUS CHRIST is not a bastard. He is a miracle of EL ELYON and the Holy Ghost with Mary.
WHO'S YOUR FATHER? Since the time of the cross of JESUS, all bastards can have as much of the blessings of EL ELYON as legitimately born people. But under the law of YAHWEH, the God of ISRAEL, bastards have no rights or blessings. Sadly, some of our own students do not know the name of their own natural father. But, I am very glad to tell every person on this earth, "The name of the Father of your spirit is EL ELYON, who is also the Father of JESUS CHRIST." That makes JESUS your brother. Right? Yes! Right! Every person in the world is a legitimate son of God EL ELYON. You are not the product of a mistake (even if your mother said you were). You were procreated at least 6000 years before your parents got around to it. Our God wants you. Shape up and realize that you have a marvelous part to play in the Volume of the Book, the mysterious script of life, because our God made you. Don’t ever forget it.
IS YAHWEH THE FATHER OF JESUS? At this point, please note that my Bible study can not find any reference to the erroneous idea that the name/nature YAHWEH, (the God of Israel) was the Father of JESUS. No. The scriptures point to the name/nature EL ELYON (the Most High God) as the Father of JESUS. YAHWEH is the Father of the Jewish religion. A long story can be told about the fact that the Jews saw the practice of religion very differently from JESUS. The reason is that the name/nature of the God of the Jews was YAHWEH, but the name/nature of the Father of JESUS is EL ELYON.
Compare these two thoughts: YAHWEH brought (in the O.T.) 1. Law, 2. Judgment, 3, Condemnation, 4. Punishment, and 5. Death.
EL ELYON conversely brings (in the O.T. and the N.T.) 1. Love, 2. Mercy, 3. Forgiveness, 4. Freedom, and 5. Life.
That's the reason for the trouble between the Jews and JESUS. The Jews applied the name/nature of YAHWEH to everyday problems. The conflicts came when JESUS applied the name/nature EL ELYON to the same problems. Even today we still have the same problems in the practice of religion. Most denominations, religious groups, and societies still look to YAHWEH for solutions to today’s life problems. Sad. Presently, only the very advanced look to EL ELYON, the Father of JESUS, for solutions to life’s problems. Hopefully, this book will help hasten the change.
DID MARY HAVE OTHER CHILDREN? It is a sad thing to reflect on the fact that Christianity is also divided on another question regarding the blessed virgin Mary.
Was Mary also a virgin all of her life after the birth of JESUS? The Pope at Rome said he received a vision that Mary was a virgin all her life. But I have never read anything in the scriptures to indicate that was true. I am a Protestant, so my authority in the matter is the Bible, not the Pope’s vision.
Matthew 1:25, And knew her not till she had brought forth her firstborn son: and he called his name JESUS. (KJV)
I believe that the word "till" indicates that Joseph knew Mary in a procreative way, after the birth of JESUS. We should note, when Bible language says a man knew a woman, it means they engaged in sexual intercourse.
Genesis 4:1, And Adam knew Eve his wife; and she conceived, and bare Cain, and said, I have gotten a man from the LORD. (KJV)
Another scripture that speaks to the question of Mary's continued motherhood is: Mark 6:3, Is not this the carpenter, the son of Mary, the brother of James, and Joses, and of Juda, and Simon? and are not his sisters here with us? And they were offended at him. (KJV)
These scriptures indicate to me that the virgin Mary became the natural mother of several other children in addition to JESUS, the normal natural way, after the miraculous conception of JESUS.
Personally, I find it distasteful to consider the idea of depriving the blessed Mary of the natural pleasures, pains, and lessons of natural womanhood and motherhood. But I also admit I have met a few people who find the idea that JESUS had brothers and sisters to be distasteful to their own concept of the blessed virgin Mary.
I have decided to not teach on the subjects of the Immaculate Conception of the blessed virgin Mary or the Immaculate Conception of Mary’s mother, Ann, except to indicate that those ideas came from revelations of the Pope at Rome and not from the Bible.
TWO GENEALOGIES Most Bible students have noticed there are two separate and very different genealogies given for JESUS. One is in Matt. 1:1-17. The other is Luke 3:23-38.
Luke traces the genealogy of JESUS back up through Mary (not Joseph -- explained later) to David and adds the progression through Adam to God.
MARY OR JOSEPH? A casual reading of Luke 3:23 would cause a Christian to think the path was through Joseph. And that causes a lot of confusion because Matthew also traces the lineage through Joseph using different names.
Luke 3:23-24, And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli, 24 Which was the son of Matthat, which was the son of Levi, which was the son of Melchi, which was the son of Janna, which was the son of Joseph, (KJV)
Etc. all the way back, through David to Adam, and finally God. Some scholars report that Luke 3:23 should read, "Joseph...was the son in law of Heli" (instead of son of Heli as the KJV has it). In other words, Mary's father was Heli -- not Joseph's. In that case, the Luke lineage really traces Mary’s forefathers. That would explain the difference in the two different paths. The genealogy reported by Luke really traces through Mary, but male chauvinism of the day confused the issue by refusing to use her name. Why?
MALE CHAUVINIST SOCIETY? We should note that females had almost no rights in that old society. For instance, remember that the Bible gives the names of the brothers of JESUS but it only mentions His sisters without naming them. (Mark 6:3) Some writers have suggested that when referring to a woman it was customary to use the name of her husband. That makes a little sense because even today that is the way some legal documents are written, i.e., Mrs. David Ebaugh instead of Betty. I can't find enough information to prove or disprove the claim that it was a male chauvinist society that switched Mary's name to Joseph's. But it is an interesting and believable point to ponder. And it answers the question, “Why are there two different genealogies for Joseph?” There aren’t.
WHEN IS JESUS' BIRTHDAY? The exact date of the birth of Jesus has been argued by expert theologians, and no one that I know of, still adamantly holds to Dec. 25. That is what I call the traditional date. But, that issue still splits some Christians. Christians should not "bad mouth" believers for selecting one date over another, for the celebration of the event of the birth of JESUS. At our house we celebrate Christmas at the same time as does every one else on our block.
It may surprise you to know that each Christmas season I receive several letters of condemnation because I celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25. I do not turn my head away from these critical letters. I do read them carefully. I have decided they are right in determining Dec. 25 is not the right date for the birth of Jesus. But, we celebrate Christmas on Dec. 25 anyway, because we honor an event, not a date. Most modern Biblical analysts report the birth of JESUS to be at the time of the Feast of Tabernacles in the fall around harvest time. Roman Catholics report Dec. 25. Greek Catholics report Jan 6. What date do you pick?
MARY KNEW THE DIFFERENCE Mary, the mother of Jesus, was the most blessed and highly favored woman in all history. I greatly honor her and I continually study every recorded word of Mary. Her famous division of soul from spirit is naturally one of my favorites.
Luke 1:46-47, And Mary said, My soul doth magnify the Lord, 47 And my spirit hath rejoiced in God my Saviour. (KJV)
I do think the blessed virgin Mary would agree with every word in my book, SPIRIT, SOUL, and BODY, THE 3RD SALVATION. Her testimony shows that she understood the long hidden and misunderstood difference between soul and spirit. I long for the day the same thing can be said about all preachers. I don't believe it is possible to effectively explain or understand the Bible without referring to the basic difference between soul and spirit.
EL ELYON OR THE HOLY GHOST? There is another big problem in relation to the blessed virgin Mary. I stumbled over it for a lot of years. Most all Christians erroneously teach that JESUS was conceived by the Holy Ghost. I used to be among those who taught that way. When I came upon the SPIRIT, SOUL, and BODY study, I noted the pattern of the Holy Ghost (Spirit) was to always make entry into the soul of mankind -- not the body. And I knew enough about procreation to know that if the Holy Ghost did conceive JESUS, then that would be in the body realm. That is a departure from the patterns set by all the other scriptures. Furthermore, I was even more confused because I was sure the Bible said someplace, "Conceived by the Holy Ghost.” But I couldn't find it whenever I took the time to look it up.
APOSTLE'S CREED Now I have discovered that "Conceived by the Holy Ghost" is part of the Apostles Creed (usually in the hymnal responsive reading section) and it is not in the Bible. Well, it helps to know where that idea came from!
I carefully analyzed Matt. 1:18.
Matthew 1:18, Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. (KJV)
That is a good (but erroneous) reason to think that JESUS was conceived by the Holy Ghost. But, that is in direct opposition to the scriptures that say: Luke 1:32, He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of EL ELYON (the Highest) (KJV)
Luke 1:35, and the power (Dunamis) of EL ELYON (the Highest) shall overshadow thee. (KJV)
Those two scriptures indicate EL ELYON (the Most High God) is the Father of JESUS.
OVERSHADOWED BY TWO That's not the whole story either. All scripture can be brought into harmony by reading it like this, “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee (to your soul) and the power (Dunamis) of EL ELYON (the Highest) shall overshadow thee (your body).” Now, that is beginning to make sense. The Holy Ghost brought thoughts/ideas to the soul of Mary and that got her mind ready for what was soon to happen to her body.
Next the word of EL ELYON came forth with the Dunamis (power) of EL ELYON. They overshadowed the body of the blessed virgin Mary and produced the conception of the BODY of JESUS. Can you conceive of that? So, it was the Holy Ghost who prepared her mind. It was the word and the Dunamis (power) of EL ELYON that performed the physical miracle in the body. That makes all the patterns in all the other scriptures fit. But it doesn't support the Apostles Creed ‑‑ so you'll have to deal with that. When there is conflict, which has priority? The Apostles Creed or the Holy Bible? I picked the Bible; what did you pick?
WITH CHILD OF THE HOLY GHOST Now, we should re-examine: Matthew 1:18, Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When as his mother Mary was espoused to Joseph, before they came together, she was found with child of the Holy Ghost. (KJV)
That does not agree with our conclusion and also it does not agree with the original Greek. As you might have guessed, we are headed for the study of a translation error. The Williams translation renders it this way, "She was found to be an expectant mother through the influence of the Holy Spirit." That translation is more in harmony with all of the Bible patterns, as we know them now. Mary was influenced in her soul (mind) by the Holy Spirit; she was not impregnated by the Holy Spirit. Mary's body was overshadowed by the Dunamis (power) of EL ELYON (the Highest).
These translations and these ideas now cause all of the Bible to agree with every other part of the Bible. I don't stumble over the question of who is the Father of JESUS anymore.
The Father of JESUS is EL ELYON, the Most High God.
Is there a family of God in heaven? Yes. There is a family of God in heaven.
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