WHEN THE CONSPIRACY ACTUALLY BEGAN
By now, there should be no doubt in your mind that there is an orchestrated
effort by a small group of men to establish a one-world government. Even
though we have gone back to look at the roots, and evolution of this
movement, the actual motive goes back much farther than that. Just think,
what motivation could there be to fuel that kind of desire. The answer is
that you have to look at things with a spiritual eye, in order to comprehend
the complexities that the New World Order actually represents. And when you
do that, then you can understand how it has been able to progress through
all these years, and why it will continue.
This Part will deal with the application of the First Part to Biblical
research and end-time prophecy. Although space constraints will only allow a
general treatise of the major elements, I will be dealing with these matters
in a much more detailed fashion on my website (www.viewfromthewall.com) in
the near future.
When you read Genesis 1:1-2, it says: "In the beginning God created the
heaven and the earth. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness
was upon the face of the deep. And the spirit of God moved upon the face of
the waters." The Rotherham translation of the Bible, which was taken from
the original Hebrew, says: "Now the earth had become waste and empty." You
have to understand that there was an undetermined amount of time which
passed between these two verses. However, we do have some clues about
certain events which occurred before Adam, and the refurbishing of this
world for his habitation.
Just as God told Noah and his sons in Genesis 9:1 to "replenish" the earth
after the flood, God had told Adam and Eve the same thing in Genesis 1:28.
This seems to indicate that there were men on the earth before Adam. Proof
of this can be found in Jeremiah 4:23-26. Now you can understand the time
frame, and the circumstances regarding Lucifer (the 'lightbringer'). He was
a "cherub" (the highest classification of angels), and is described in the
Bible as being wise and perfect. It was his job to bring light. Eventually
he became proud of himself, and sought to take the place of God (Isaiah
14:12-17, Ezekiel 28:2, I Timothy 3:6). He led a third of the angels
(Revelation 12:4) in a revolt against Michael, the archangel, and the
remaining angels (Jude 1:6, II Peter 2:4-5) for the control of Heaven. This
battle for the control of Heaven nearly destroyed the earth. After his
defeat, Lucifer was cast down to earth, where he became known as "Satan"
(which means 'adversary'), the leader of the fallen angels (or demons), and
the "god of this world." (2 Corinthians 4:4)
When God renewed the earth, and created man in His image, He gave Adam
dominion over the earth, which infuriated Satan, who had the impression that
he was to rule over the earth. Again, Satan plotted against God, and caused
Adam and Eve to sin by eating the fruit of the tree which was forbidden by
God. For their sin, they were banished from the Garden of Eden. Ever since
then, Satan has been carrying out his plan to corrupt and control the earth.
For six thousand years, a small group of satanically empowered men have been
feverishly working to eliminate God and to enslave mankind. The New World
Order is nothing more than the culmination of these efforts; the final step
of a plan that will enable Satan to again challenge God, and the angelic
forces of Heaven.
Helping Things Along
In the story about Cain and Abel, when Cain killed his brother, he was
cursed by God (Gen. 4:11) and exiled. Genesis 4:12 says: "When thou tillest
the ground, it shall not henceforth yield unto thee her strength..." Yet, we
find that Cain established the city of Enoch; and his descendants Jubal, was
the father of those who became proficient in the harp and organ, and
Tubalcain, was a teacher of brass and iron works. We also find, that it wasn
't until Enos, the son of Seth, that men began "to call upon the name of the
Lord." (Gen. 4:26) Though it doesn't say, the implication is that the line
of Cain was ungodly.
The apocryphal Second Book of Adam and Eve, bluntly gives details about
this. In chapter 20:2-4, it says: "But as to this Genun (a son of Lamech),
Satan came into him in his childhood; and he made sundry trumpets and horns,
and string instruments, cymbals and psalteries, and lyres and harps, and
flutes; and he played on them at all times and at every hour. And when he
played on them, Satan came into them, so that from among them were heard
beautiful and sweet sounds, that ravished the heart. Then he gathered
companies upon companies to play on them; and when they played, it pleased
well the children of Cain, who inflamed themselves with sin among
themselves, and burnt as with fire; while Satan inflamed their hearts, one
with another, and increased lust among them."
Although the origin and truth of this apocryphal book can never be
ascertained, and it never became part of the holy canon, it is believed that
the writings were part of an older, more ancient document that accurately
reflected upon the events of this historical period. For a family line that
has been perceived as being ungodly, they developed musical instruments, and
the expertise and ability of producing weapons of war from metal mined out
of the earth. Was the knowledge of these things God-given? I have concluded
that they were not, and even though the evidence is circumstantial, I
believe that Satan, through demons, divulged this information.
Ezekiel 28:13 relates that there were musical instruments created within the
body of Lucifer, and it has been said that every time he moved, he played
music. He led the angelic praise and worship of God. So when he fell, he
knew the importance of music, and how to use it to his advantage. It seems
likely that he would have bestowed the knowledge of music. Primitive
cultures, American Indian ceremonies, and occult rituals are well known to
have used the hypnotic and influential properties of music to enhance their
activities.
And through weapons, and the means to wage war, people are controlled.
So, yes, I believe that there was some Satanic influence on the technology
of the people at the time, because he was laying the groundwork for his
plans to regain control of the world that he once ruled.
According to Tom Van Asperen there is a language of Twice Speak in the
Bible, which is a separate code language, much like Equidistant Letter
Sequencing, and Mathematical Signature. Basically, it is a revealing of the
"secret" talked about in Amos 3:7 that has unlocked the typical and
anti-typical method of recording Biblical history, and at the same time,
end-time prophetic events. Asperen believes there is so much of this type of
prophecy in the Old Testament, that, in a sense, it becomes another New
Testament.
I have found some of the Twice Speak revelations to be fascinating in as far
as it acts as an underlying witness to the Scriptures. However, when the
interpretations provide new information that can not be found in the
Biblical text then I have to question it. But, although this concept may be
new to you, and may seem kind of off the wall, let's just assume for
argument's sake that it is a divine Biblical code that proves the word of
God, gives us a better understanding of it, and further reveals end-time
prophetic events; and let's assume that the events concerning the line of
Cain is also a prophecy concerning the last days.
In 1997, Simon and Schuster published a book called The Day After Roswell,
by Col. Philip J. Corso (Ret.). The cover proclaimed: "The truth exposed
after fifty years- A former Pentagon official reveals the U.S. Government's
shocking UFO cover-up." The subject of the book was the alleged crash of a
flying saucer in Roswell, New Mexico, where alien bodies and pieces of the
aircraft were recovered back in 1947. The government has long denied this
happened, and indeed continues to deny the existence of flying saucers and
extraterrestrial life. You might not believe in flying saucers. But bear
with me, I don't want you to question my credibility now.
Let's look at the time period this occurred. It was 1947, which was around
the time that flying saucers were first sighted. Now what else happened
about that time? The United Nations was established in 1945, and Israel
became an independent nation in 1948. These two events occurring around the
same time was not a coincidence, because it set the stage for Armageddon,
and the fulfillment of all things. The United Nations, or the foundation for
a world government, was the prophetic trigger, and with the time-sensitive
prophecies contained in the Bible, Satan knew that he was running out of
time.
It was initially reported that a flying saucer crashed at Roswell, and also
at that time, there were enough sightings and pictures in other parts of the
country to give the report credibility. Since then, there has been so much
evidence for the existence of flying saucers and aliens, that it's become
pretty much an accepted fact, even though the government continues to deny
their existence. In fact, there is so much information and evidence, that
now, the Christian church has said that, yes, there is something to it all..
The Christian perspective, and growing consensus, is that aliens are
actually demonic manifestations. There have been four or five Christian
books on the subject. So, again, let's assume that there was a flying
saucer that crashed at Roswell.
Philip Corso, is his book The Day After Roswell, relates, that as a member
of President Eisenhower's National Security Council, his Research and
Development team at the Pentagon analyzed and integrated the alien artifacts
found at Roswell into the private business sector. According to him, major
companies such as IBM, Hughes Aircraft, Bell Labs, and Dow Corning, were
unknowingly given the alien technology, which became the integrated circuit
chips, fiber optics, lasers, and the super-tenacity fibers of today.
What I want to hone in on, is the information in Chapter 12, which discusses
the "Integrated Circuit Chip: From the Roswell Crash Site to Silicon
Valley." Among the wreckage, Corso said that charred quarter-size,
cracker-shaped, silicon wafers were found, which had grid lines etched on
them, which was actually microscopic circuitry. An analysis of the craft's
remains failed to turn up any wiring, so it was determined that these chips
actually represented the nerve center of the vehicle, carrying signals
through the ship, just like impulses are carried throughout the nervous
system of our body. Corso wrote (page 167): "Although IBM and Bell Labs were
investing huge sums of development money into designing a computer that had
a lower operational and maintenance overhead, it seemed, given the
technology of the digital computer circa 1947, that there was no place it
could go. It was simply an expensive-to-build, expensive-to-run, lumbering
elephant at the end of the line. And then an alien spacecraft fell out of
the skies over Roswell, scattered across the desert floor, and in one
evening everything changed."
In 1948, it was revealed that the first junction silicon transistor had been
developed by Bell Telephone Laboratories, and the technological capabilities
of the computer industry took a huge leap in a short period of time. Even
Corso wondered about where it would all lead (page 172): "..what if an enemy
wanted to implant the perfect spying or sabotage mechanism into a culture?
Then the implantation of the microchip-based circuit into our technology by
the EBEs (aliens) would be the perfect method. Was it planted as sabotage or
as something akin to the gift of fire? Maybe the Roswell crash in 1947 was
an event waiting to happen, like poisoned fruit dropping from the tree into
a playground."
Now, instead of aliens, think demons, and I believe we have an anti-typical
fulfillment of the prophetic event that took place when the line of Cain was
given hidden knowledge. I believe that our computer technology, which
developed into the Internet, is part of Satan's plan for the last days, and
will be used to carry out his devious end-time plot. Only God is omnipotent
and omnipresent, however, through a world-wide computer network, Satan will
be able to falsely misrepresent his power. For years, it was believed that
the huge computer in Brussels, Belgium would be the one that would be used
to record the files of everyone on Earth. Now it has come to light that our
National Security Agency has a huge classified underground database at Fort
Meade, Maryland, that covers an area of ten acres.
THE BEGINNING OF THE END:
The Prophetic Trigger of God's Timeline
For hundreds of years, it has been common knowledge within the Church, that
mankind's life span upon this earth would be 6,000 years. This was gleaned
from Exodus 20:9-10, which says: "Six days shalt thou labor ... But the
seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God." Like many things in the
Scriptures, it had a deeper meaning beyond what was being conveyed about
their calendar, which was later revealed in 2 Peter 3:8 - "But, beloved, be
not ignorant of this one thing, that one day is with the Lord as a thousand
years, and a thousand years as one day."
In 1650, using these Scriptures, Archbishop Jacob Ussher of Armagh in
Ireland, attempted to calculate when the Creation took place by using
chronological information from the Bible and counting backward from the date
of the birth of Christ. At that time, it was believed that Christ was born
in 4 BC (some calculations had indicated that it may have been as late as 1
BC or as early as 6 BC; however, recent evidence have determined it to be 3
BC), so Ussher theorized that the Creation took place in 4004 BC, and the
passing of four "days" (two thousand years before the law, and two thousand
years after the law) took us to Christ's birth in 4 BC, so two more 'days'
would end the six 'days' at 1996. The Sabbath, or the seventh 'day,' is the
Millennium, or the thousand-year reign of Jesus Christ upon the Earth, which
is referred to in the 20th chapter of Revelation.
An apocryphal book known as the Epistle of Barnabas, which early church
leaders such as Origen and Jerome believed had been written by the first
recruit of the Apostle Paul, Barnabas, said:
"And God made in six days the works of His hands; and He finished them on
the seventh day, and rested on the seventh day and sanctified it. Consider,
my children, what that signifies, He finished them in six days. The meaning
of it is this: that in six thousand years the Lord God will bring all things
to an end. For with him, one day is a thousand years; as Himself testifieth,
saying, behold this day shall be as a thousand years. Therefore children, in
six days, that is, in six thousand years, shall all things be accomplished.
And what is it that He saith, and He rested the seventh day; He meaneth
this; that when his Son shall come, and abolish the season of the wicked
one, and judge the ungodly; and shall change the sun and the moon, and the
stars, then He shall gloriously rest in that seventh day."
Irenaeus, an early church leader, while writing in 150 AD about the book of
Genesis in his book Against Heresies said: "This is an account of the things
formerly created, as also it is a prophecy of what is to come. For the day
of the Lord is as a thousand years; and in six days created things were
completed; it is evident, therefore, that they will come to an end at the
sixth thousand years." Around 300 AD, in the writings of Christian scholar
Lactantius, he said: "Because all the works of God were finished in six
days, it is necessary that the world should remain in this state six ages,
that is six thousand years. Because having finished the works He rested on
the seventh day and blessed it; it is necessary that at the end of the sixth
thousandth year all the wickedness should be abolished out of the earth and
justice should reign a thousand years." Other writers during the early
Christian era also reflected this premise.
Some researchers have sought to adjust the calculations of this theory. The
Jewish calendar conformed to the solar year, which contained 360 days, or 12
months of 30 days. In 1583, the Gregorian calendar was adopted, which added
an extra 5.25 days to that year. If you add 2,160,000 days (6,000 years X
360 days) to 2,173.50 days (414 years of 5.25 days), you get 2,162,173.50
days, which divided by the Jewish year of 360 days, would make the end of
the sixth day, the year 2002. When you deduct from that figure, the seven
year period which is commonly referred to as the Tribulation period, that
leaves us with the year of 1995 as the culmination of the efforts to
establish a New World Order.
There is another theory, which has to do with the amount of time that the
Jewish race would be dispersed across the Earth. The Jews were in bondage in
Egypt for 430 years and later for 70 years in Babylon. These dates were
foretold. The purpose of the prophecy which is given in Ezekiel 4:1-8 was to
show how long the Jews would be scattered as a people. Other Scriptures deal
with the extent of the dispersal: Deut. 28:25, Deut. 28:64, Jer. 24:9, and
Amos 9:9. Adding the 390 and 40 years, gives you 430 years. Leviticus 26:18
says: "And if ye will not yet for all this hearken unto me, then I will
punish you seven times more for your sins." From 430, subtract the 70 years
they were punished in Babylon, and what God was telling Moses, was that the
Jewish people would be dispersed for 2,520 years (360 years X 7).
Now here is where it gets a little tricky. Nebuchadnezaar's first return of
his Jewish captives was in 536 BC, and the final return was in 516 BC.
Again, using the adjustment for the two calendars, and using the earliest
date of 536 BC, we get these calculations: 907,200 days (2520 years X 360
days) plus 2,110.50 days (402 years X 5.25 days) is 909,310.50 days divided
by 360 days of the Jewish calendar is 2525.86 years, or the year 1990. But
then, the latter date of 516 BC, would give us the year 2010.
The Bible also says that the events of the end times would not take place
until all of the Jews returned to their homeland, and this return is
referred to in: Isa. 5:26, Isa. 11:11-12, Isa. 43:5-6, Jer. 16:15, Jer.
30:3, Eze. 34:11-13, Eze. 36:24, and Zech. 10:8. This return of God's chosen
people, only refers to pure, full-blooded Jews (Gen. 6:1-4, Ezra 10:2-18,
Neh. 13:27, Jude 1:7). In 1800, Palestine had a population of 150 Jews;
1827- 1,500 Jews; 1850- 8,000; 1910- 41,000; 1914- 100,000; 1930- 170,000;
1935- 300,000; 1939- 450,000; 1948- 650,000; 1953- 1,300,000; 1962-
2,000,000; and 1970- 2,500,000. Now there are nearly five million Jews in
Israel which have been gathered up from over 102 different nations.
A gentleman by the name of Joe Marler had proposed a theory based on Daniel
9:25-26 which says: "Know therefore and understand, that from the going
forth of the commandment to restore and build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the
Prince shall be seven weeks, and three score and two weeks: the street shall
be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. And after threescore
and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off..." The Hebrew word for "week" is
'shabula' which means 'seven,' indicating that a 'week' is actually 7 'weeks
' of years, or 49 years, which is known as the Jubilee cycle (Lev. 25:8).
The 62 weeks began when the city of Jerusalem, and its Temple, which was
destroyed in 586 BC, was rebuilt. Three such decrees were given. The first
came during the first year of the reign of Cyrus (King of Persia, 536-527
BC), who ruled for nine years; after which his son Cambyses (527-520 BC)
took over, and all the work on the Temple was stopped for seven years. The
second decree was made by Darius I, in the second year of his 35-year reign
(520-485 BC). Construction resumed on the Temple in 520 under Zerubbabel,
the Persian governor, and was completed between 516-514 BC. Then Xerxes
reigned 21 years (485-464 BC). Artaxerxes ruled 40 years (464-424 BC), and
during his seventh year, in 457 BC, he decreed that Jerusalem be restored.
Nehemiah, the cupbearer to Artaxerxes, was sent to Jerusalem in 444 BC to
complete the work on the walls of the city to fortify it. Thus the period of
62 weeks represents 434 years, which added to 444 BC, indicates the date of
10 BC, which is close to the time of the birth of Christ.
Marler's research somehow led him to the period of 440-438 BC, and adding
434 years to 438 BC led to 4 BC, which is closer to the actual date of the
birth of Jesus. Marler believes that the other seven 'weeks' or 49 years
apply to the second coming of Jesus. Rather than using the date of May 14,
1948, when Israel officially became an independent country, he used the date
of November 29, 1947, when the United Nations voted 33-13 to approve a
Jewish homeland. Adding 49 years indicated a date of November 29, 1996, as
the end of man's rule on this Earth. By counting back 3-1/2 years, he
theorized that the period known as the Tribulation would begin May 29, 1993.
The irony here is a story that was reported on the news on May 19, 1993. Big
Ben, the renowned tower clock famous for its accuracy, which was installed
in 1859 at the eastern end of the Houses of Parliament in London, had
mysteriously stopped running. Was the most recognized time piece in the
world stopped through divine means to signal the beginning of the end? No.
And another 'date' has come and gone.
There are also those researchers who have chosen to totally base all of
their calculations on the premise of 360 days indicating a Biblical year.
For instance, in Hosea 6:1-2 it says: "Come, and let us return unto the
Lord: for he hath torn, and he will heal us; he hath smitten, and he will
bind us up. After two days will he revive us: in the third day he will raise
us up, and we shall live in his sight." From the initiation of Christ's
ministry, in the fall of 28 AD, and adding two "days" (2 years X 360 days)
would give us 720,000 days, which adjusted to our calendar by dividing into
that 365.25 results in 1971.25 years, which added to 28.75, takes us to the
year 2000.
Another one has to do with the cleansing of the Temple. In 168 BC, the
Syrian King Antiochus IV Epiphanes attacked Israel, and sacrificed a pig to
Zeus on the Temple altar, an event that is referred to as the Abomination of
Desolation. The period till cleansing, according to Daniel 8:14, was 2,300
days, which some scholars feel refers to 2,300 morning and evening rituals,
or 1,150 days (3 years, 2 months and 10 days), which seemingly points to the
ritual cleansing performed by Judas Maccabaeus three years later, after the
success of the Hasmonean revolt. However, according to the apocryphal book
of the Maccabees, the Temple was cleansed in 1,080 days.
To make matters worse, while the King James version states 2,300 days for
this period, the Greek Septuagint, which was used during the time of Christ,
says 2,400 days. In his 1754 book Dissertations on the Prophecies, Bishop
Thomas Newton wrote about the existence of a third manuscript of the book of
Daniel, which was mentioned in a Commentary of Jerome, the early church
leader. This manuscript gives the figure of 2,200 days. Since this figure
can not be applied literally to the events of that time, it is believed that
the figure should be considered as years. This assumption is based upon
Ezekiel 4:6, which says: "I have appointed thee each day for a year"; and
Numbers 14:31, which talks of "each day for a year." If the figure of 2,200
'days' is used, the following calculation is then applied: 2,200 years X 360
days = 792,000 days, which adjusted for our calendar year of 365.25, results
in 2,168 years. When this figure is added to 168 BC, it leads us to the year
2000.
Another theory deals with the Times of the Gentiles. This phrase stems from
a statement by Jesus in Luke 21:24: "...and Jerusalem shall be trodden down
of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled." This refers
to a period which began in 606 BC when the Babylonians conquered Jerusalem.
In Daniel 4:23, according to Nebuchadnezzar's vision (who is represented by
a tree, as men sometimes were: Psalms 1:3, Psalms 37:35, Ez. 31:3), "seven
times" were to pass over him. Revelation 11:2-3 ("42 months" X 30= 1,260
days), Rev. 12:6 ("a thousand two hundred and threescore days" or 1,260
days), Rev. 12:14 ("a time, and times, and half a time" or 360 + 720 + 180=
1,260 days) indicates that a "time" is 360 days, which means that seven
"times" would be 2,520 'days' or years (on top of referring to the seven
years God struck him down with a period of insanity to show his power).
The calculation would go like this: 2,520 years X 360 days = 907,200 days,
which adjusted to our calendar year of 365.25 days, results in 2,483.78
years. When this figure is added to 606 BC, it leads us to the year 1878,
which is believed to be the end of "the times of the Gentiles." Now comes an
interesting proposal. When Jesus spoke of the way things were in the "days
of Noah," when God gave mankind an additional 120 years (Gen. 6:3) to
repent, before he sent the flood; this period has been added to the year
1878 (of course in the adjusted form of 118.28 of our calendar years), which
indicates the year of 1997 as the end of "the times of the Gentiles" and the
beginning of the judgment period known as the Tribulation, which when you
add this 3-1/2 years, and leads us to the year 2000.
Let me throw one more at you, which came to me from an e-mail, and the
website of Torstein Langesaeter from Norway, who made a very detailed
mathematical calculation to determine the number of years between Adam, and
Jesus; and believes that the period of 6,000 years will conclude in 2028.
All of these calculations can be somewhat correlated to the six 'day'
theory, in that it indicates a time frame for events within this 6,000 year
period. Jesus was very specific when He spoke about the signs of His return,
and He exhorted His disciples to watch, and pray. Because of the symbolism,
type and anti-types, and dual prophecies used in the Bible, was there
something that would signal the end of time as we got closer to the end of
the six 'days' or 6,000 years? In Luke 21:25, Jesus talked about the "signs
.... upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity..."
There was a period in our history when a sequence of events occurred which
seemed to set the stage for the fulfillment of Bible prophecy. Let's look at
the events which happened during the three year period of 1945 - 1948:
1) On June 26, 1945, at a San Francisco conference, 50 nations met to adopt
the United Nations charter. The UN General Assembly held their first meeting
in London on January 10, 1946.
2) A UFO was reported to have crashed in Roswell, New Mexico on July 4,
1947.
3) On November 29, 1947, the UN voted to approve a Jewish homeland, and on
May 14, 1948, Israel became a nation.
4) It has been long accepted that the Dead Sea Scrolls were discovered in
1947, but according to Randall Price in his book Secrets of the Dead Sea
Scrolls he found out that they may have actually been discovered as early as
1936. However, 1947 was time when their existence was revealed.
5) The World Council of Churches was established on August 23, 1948.
Just as we are able to interpret prophecy, and determine the signs of the
times- so has Satan. He knew the time that Israel would prophetically be
resurrected as a nation, and he had to make sure his plans would be in
place, so, when the time came, he would be able to deceive the world into
accepting the Antichrist as the messiah.
Let's look at the events surrounding Israel becoming a nation. The
establishment of the United Nations would herald the move toward one-world
government. As discussed earlier, recent exposé has shown that there was a
UFO crash at Roswell, and among the technology gleaned from it was
integrated circuit chips, fiber optics, and lasers. The treasure of ancient
documents found at Qumran has yielded copies of nearly every Old Testament
book, however, it has also turned up documents from a Jewish sect known as
the Essenes. As these Dead Sea Scrolls were translated in secret, the schola
rs behind them began to use them to undermine the divinity Jesus, by saying
that the Essenes were the true originators of what became known as
Christianity. And the World Council of Churches would begin the move toward
ecumenicalism that is seeking to bring all the world's religions together
into one unified body.
Now let's put these events in perspective with Bible prophecy.
Jesus said in Matthew 24:34 - "Verily I say unto you, This generation shall
not pass, till all these things be fulfilled." Jesus was speaking to his
disciples concerning the last days, and had just told them about the parable
of the fig tree. Some Bible scholars have interpreted Ezekiel 36:8 to mean
that the fig tree represented the nation of Israel. So it is believed that
Jesus was referring to the generation that would be alive when Israel became
a nation on May 14, 1948. Job 42:16 refers to a generation as being 35
years, while Webster's Dictionary indicates that it is forty years. The
figure of 40 years is echoed in Hebrews 3:9-10 which says: "When your
fathers tempted me, proved me, and saw my works forty years. Wherefore I was
grieved with that generation..." Adding 40 years to 1948 would give us the
year 1988.
But let me add another wrinkle to this theory. It is no secret that Bible
prophecy, and the understanding of it, revolves around Israel. Israel is the
only nation that is referred to in the masculine gender. According to Jewish
custom, a male is labeled under the following age categories: child (1-12),
young man (13-19), warrior (20-29), and mature man (30-50, who is able to
officiate in the Temple). The age of 50 is the age of retirement (and
Jubilee). So if you interpret this as being symbolic and add 50 years to
1948, you get the year 1998, which is more closely aligned with the other
calculations.
I think you'll agree that this sequence of events was unprecedented, and
that it was no coincidence that these major events happened in such a short
period of time. This is why I believe, that collectively, they represent the
prophetic trigger that has set into motion the time which has come to be
known as the "last days." These events began the toppling of the prophetic
dominoes that will eventually lead to the fulfillment of all things, and the
culmination of the events foretold in the books of Daniel, Ezekiel, and
Revelation.
Though Jesus said in Matthew 24:36 "... of that day and hour knoweth no
man," the prophetic outline He gave indicated the warning signs we are to
look for. When it is cloudy, it is a sign that it is going to rain. Much the
same, Jesus told his disciples what to look for, and in Matt. 24:33
explained that "when ye shall see all these things, know that it is near..."
I for one will not try to calculate a date. I believe that it's okay to come
up with a time frame, but in the context that we also consider the signs
that Jesus told us to look for. We have been seeing the signs. Without a
doubt the end is near. Make sure that your heart is right with God. Watch,
and pray.
THE RAPTURE
When this manuscript was initially printed in 1984, I had included a brief
section on the Rapture, just to basically cover all the different Rapture
theories. Since I grew up being taught in church that there was going to be
a Pre-Tribulation Rapture, I sort of leaned that way. But because of all my
research, and actually getting into the Scriptures myself, I began to
rethink Pre-Trib. When the book was published in 1994, I did not include
anything about the Rapture, either way, for fear that it would alienate
people and detract from the message I was presenting.
However, things are quite different now. With the juggernaut of the "Left
Behind" series consuming this country with best-selling books, audio books,
movies, videos and DVD's with their Pre-Tribulation Rapture theory, I felt
it was necessary to weigh in with the results of my research. Believe it or
not, it's pretty straight forward, and the Scripture doesn't require a
theological scholar to interpret its meaning.
The word 'rapture' is not in the Bible. It actually comes from the Latin
word 'rapturo,' which means 'to seize or be carried away in one's spirit,'
or the transporting from one place to another, and comes from the 1
Thessalonians 4:17 term "caught up." The original Greek word was 'harpazo,'
and refers to the same thing. The notion of the Rapture, with its
Pre-Tribulation, Mid-Tribulation, Partial Tribulation, and Post-Tribulation
theories have been one of the most divisive issues in the Church, with the
Pre-Trib view being the prevailing one. If this is your view, please do not
be offended that I would kick this sacred cow until you have read the
evidence.
The Rapture is a supernatural event that the Church has said will occur in
the end-times to remove them from this world when 'trouble' starts.
"But there shall not an hair of your head perish." (Luke 21:28)
"Behold, I shew you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be
changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the
trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we
shall be changed." (1 Corinthians 15:51-52)
The following Scriptures are key-
"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice
of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall
rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together
with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever
be with the Lord." (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17)
"So man lieth down, and riseth not: till the heavens be no more, they shall
not awake, nor be raised out of their sleep." (Job 14:12)
There is no reason that we can't take these verses literally. We can see
that when Jesus returns, there will be a resurrection of the dead, and then
a 'catching away' of the living. This will occur when the "heavens be no
more." In John 6:44, Jesus says: "No man can come to me, except the Father
which hath sent me draw him: and I will raise him up at the last day." If He
would return before the Tribulation, that wouldn't be the "last day."
So, when is He going to return?
"And the gospel must first be published among all nations." (Mark 13:10)
"But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved. And this
gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto
all nations; and then shall the end come. When ye therefore shall see the
abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the
holy place . For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the
beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be . Then if any
man shall say unto you, Lo, here is Christ, or there; believe it not. For
there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall shew great
signs and wonders; insomuch that, if it were possible, they shall deceive
the very elect . Wherefore if they shall say unto you, Behold, he is in the
desert; go not forth: behold, he is in the secret chambers; believe it not.
For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west;
so shall also the coming of the Son of man be. For as the lightning cometh
out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of
the Son of man be. Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the
sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall
fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then
shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the
tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the
clouds of heaven with power and great glory." (Matthew 24:13-30)
"And they shall say to you, See here; or, see there: go not after them, nor
follow them. For as the lightning, that lighteneth out of the one part
under heaven, shineth unto the other part under heaven; so shall also the
Son of man be in his day." (Luke 17:23-24)
"Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and
by our gathering together unto him . Let no man deceive you by any means:
for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and
that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth
himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as
God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God . And now
ye know what withholdeth that he might be revealed in his time." (2
Thessalonians 2:1-6)
These four Scriptures give you an absolute time frame for the coming of
Jesus. There's only one resurrection- not two; He's only coming one time-
not twice. There is nowhere in the Scripture that indicates the He is coming
twice. It really irritates me when I hear well-meaning ministers on the
radio or television who say that 'Jesus could come back tonight- are you
ready?' No, Jesus is not coming back tonight! How do I know that? Because
God's Word says so. Christ will not return to this earth until-
The Gospel is preached and distributed to the entire world.
A "falling away" will occur.
The "abomination of desolation" and the revealing of the "man of sin" takes
place.
The three things that have to happen before Christ's return is that the
Gospel has to be presented to the entire world (which quite possibly has
been fulfilled), there must be a "falling away," (which has not occurred
yet), and the "abomination of desolation," which is when the Antichrist will
reveal himself as the Messiah in the Temple. Then the Tribulation will come.
"Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in
the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom
of God." (Acts 14:22)
Jesus tells his disciple that He will return "immediately after the
tribulation." Of the period after the Tribulation, Jesus says:
"Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to
escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son
of man." (Luke 21:36)
Though Christians can't even consider being on the earth during the
Tribulation, there are examples, and Scripture to support the case for this.
Jesus Himself (Luke 17:26-30, see also Isaiah 43:2) in His discussion about
the end-times, used the days of Noah and Lot as examples. Noah, and his
family endured the Flood in an ark of protection. Lot and his family escaped
the destruction of Sodom only by being obedient and turning their backs on
the city. If you remember, Lot's wife didn't listen. Jesus even pointed that
out in Luke 17:32 when He said: "Remember Lot's wife." In addition, the
Hebrews were protected from the plagues that were brought against Pharaoh
and Egypt. We can also take note of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego surviving
the fiery furnace, as well as Daniel going through the ordeal in the Lion's
Den. These examples also lead us into another aspect of end-time theology
which further explains the flow of events.
It is important to delineate between the Tribulation period, and the time of
Armageddon. The Tribulation, or the time when the Antichrist influences the
world, is man's wrath on man. The time of the end, when Jesus returns, will
be God's wrath on man. The examples of Noah, Lot, and the Hebrews were
examples of God's wrath, and a separation from it. The examples of Shadrach
and the boys, and Daniel, were examples of going through tribulation, man's
wrath, and being protected. And you'll notice that these incidents are in
the book of Daniel, the prophetic book that gives information about the time
of the Antichrist.
The time when Jesus is to return has been referred to as the 'day of the
Lord.' So let's look at what that is.
"Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger,
to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of
it." (Isaiah 13:9)
"For the indignation of the LORD is upon all nations, and his fury upon all
their armies: he hath utterly destroyed them, he hath delivered them to the
slaughter . For it is the day of the LORD's vengeance, and the year of
recompences for the controversy of Zion." (Isaiah 34:2, :8)
"Alas for the day! for the day of the LORD is at hand, and as a destruction
from the Almighty shall it come." (Joel 1:15)
"Woe unto you that desire the day of the LORD! to what end is it for you?
the day of the LORD is darkness, and not light." (Amos 5:18)
"The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the
great and notable day of the Lord come:" (Acts 2:20)
"But the day of the Lord will come as a thief in the night; in the which the
heavens shall pass away with a great noise, and the elements shall melt with
fervent heat, the earth also and the works that are therein shall be burned
up." (2 Peter 3:10)
"And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of
the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God."
(Revelation 14:9)
The 'day of the Lord' is associated with His vengeance and wrath, and is
most detailed in the book of Revelation. This is the "last day" that Jesus
talked about. God's wrath is not meant for His people- His Church. You can
see this in 1 Thessalonians 5:9: "For God hath not appointed us to wrath,
but to obtain salvation by our Lord Jesus Christ." Rev. 3:10 says: "Because
thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour
of temptation, which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell
upon the earth." This is the time that Jesus will return, before God's wrath
is brought upon the earth.
Even though we are given the seasons in time when the Rapture will occur,
Jesus said in Matthew 24:36: "But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no,
not the angels of heaven, but my Father only." However, the following
portions of Scripture definitively illustrates the time frame that the
Rapture will take place, and to me, it can't be any plainer.
"And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the
dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false
prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go
forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to
the battle of that great day of God Almighty. Behold, I come as a thief.
Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked,
and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in
the Hebrew tongue Armageddon." (Revelation 16:13-16)
"For yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so cometh as a thief
in the night. For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden But ye,
brethren, are not in darkness, that that day should overtake you as a thief.
destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they
shall not escape . Therefore let us not sleep, as do others; but let us
watch and be sober." (1 Thessalonians 5:2-6)
These passages indicate that the Antichrist and False Prophet are preparing
for Armageddon, which will be the "great day of God Almighty." Jesus will
come as a "thief," a term used to indicate the Rapture, and the admonition
of 'watching' and 'keeping your garments,' is a warning to keep your heart
right, and not be a part of the "falling away."
There has been some much-criticized research by Dave MacPherson to indicate
that the Pre-Tribulation Rapture may be a fairly recent creation. Great men
of God like John Wesley, Charles Wesley, Charles Spurgeon, Matthew Henry,
John Knox, John Calvin, Isaac Newton, George Whitfield, John Newton,
Jonathan Edwards and John Wycliffe never talked about a Pre-Trib Rapture,
because the concept literally did not exist. In 1993, after years of
investigation, in a well-researched, well-articulated manner, MacPherson was
able to put the whole story together about the actual origin of the
Pre-Tribulation Rapture teaching.
A gentleman by the name of John Nelson Darby (1800-82), a founding father of
the Plymouth Brethren Church in England, is the guy who has received the
most attention for teaching the Pre-Trib theory. Some researchers maintain
that he was expressing this view as early as 1827, yet it was an article he
wrote in 1850 which squarely places him in the Pre-Trib corner:
"It is this passage (2 Thessalonians 2:1-2) which, twenty years ago, made me
understand the rapture of the saints before- perhaps a considerable time
before- the day of the Lord (that is, before the judgment of the living.)"
By his own admission, he claims 1830 as the year he gained this revelation.
It is therefore believed that Darby heard it from Edward Irving (1792-1834),
of the Apostolic Catholic Church; and Irving actually found out about it
from Margaret Macdonald (c. 1815-40), a 15-year old, chronically sick girl
from Port Glasgow, Scotland, a member of his church (along with her sister
and brothers) who apparently manifested the charismatic gifts of prophecy,
speaking in tongues, and visions. After being sick for a year and a half,
and a Christian for only a year, in the spring of 1830 she had a vision,
which she gave copies of to various clerical leaders, including Irving.
The most unique part of her long, scripture-laden message, was the earliest
known documentation of the Pre-Tribulation theory: "Only those who have the
light of God within them will see the sign of his appearance. No need to
follow them who say, see here, or see there, for his day shall be as the
lightning to those in whom the living Christ is. 'Tis Christ in us that will
lift us up- he is the light- 'tis only those that are alive in him that will
be caught up to meet him in the air."
Macdonald's vision was first published in 1840 by Dr. Robert Norton (who
heard and recorded the words in person), a long-time friend of the family,
in the book Memoirs of James & George Macdonald, of Port-Glasgow, a
biography of her older brothers. Norton quoted a May 18, 1830 letter
written by Margaret's older sister Mary that indicated that "the house has
been filled with people every day from all parts of England, Scotland, and
Ireland," listening to her expound on the Rapture and end-time events. He
did not attribute the vision to Margaret until his 1861 book The Restoration
of Apostles and Prophets; In the Catholic Apostolic Church.
He said that during her long convalescence she had access to her family's
"extensive library" which could have included Bibles like the Self
Interpreting Bible (1778), and the Columbian Family Bible (1822) which
contained cross references and marginal notes similar to that in study
Bibles; as well as a host of other sources which MacPherson believes could
have been used as a basis to develop her idea.
In the March, 1830 edition of The Morning Watch, a quarterly prophecy
magazine that Irving edited, he wrote an article that stated that the
"translation of the saints taketh place . before the judgments which fall
upon the earth at the coming of the Son of Man . just before the great
consummation of wrath." However, in a letter dated June 2, 1830, Irving
wrote that the "substance of . Mcdonald's visions . carry to me a spiritual
conviction and a spiritual reproof which I cannot express."
In Part 1 of an article called "Commentary on the Epistles to the Seven
Churches in the Apocalypse," in the June issue of The Morning Watch, by an
author who identified himself only as "Fidus," wrote from a Post-Trib view.
Yet, when Part 2 appeared three months later in the September, 1830
edition, he clearly elaborated a Pre-trib view when he wrote that the
Philadelphia church "which receives the answer of its faith in being caught
up to meet him; which is thus kept from the hour of temptation." while the
Laodicea Church is described as "the last and dying stage of the Gentile
church, before the gathering of the Jews."
Subsequently, Dr. Cyrus I. Scofield discovered the new teaching on a trip to
England, and he took it back with him to his church in Dallas, Texas; where
it became part of the Scofield Study Bible as theological concept, and then
became the official position of the Dallas Theological Seminary, as well as
the Moody Bible Institute.
I believe that the Word of God clearly bares me out that there will not be a
Pre-Tribulation Rapture, and I shudder to think what will happen when those
expecting one don't get it. Will this be the source of the "falling away,"
as those whose faith is not strong enough to endure acquiesce to the
strong-arm tactics of a political leadership bent on establishing world
government. Without a doubt, this period of time will be a tremendously
trying period, and I can only say that God's word is true, and there is a
place of protection.
Psalm 91
He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the
shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my
fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely he shall deliver thee from the
snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee
with his feathers, and under his wings shalt thou trust: his truth shall be
thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night;
nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in
darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall
fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come
nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the
wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most
High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any
plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over
thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands,
lest thou dash thy foot against a stone. Thou shalt tread upon the lion and
adder: the young lion and the dragon shalt thou trample under feet. Because
he hath set his love upon me, therefore will I deliver him: I will set him
on high, because he hath known my name. He shall call upon me, and I will
answer him: I will be with him in trouble; I will deliver him, and honour
him. With long life will I satisfy him, and shew him my salvation.
THE DEAD SEA SCROLLS
The ruins of the settlement of Khirbet Qumran stand on a cliff, a mile away
from the northwest shore of the Dead Sea, in the Jordan Valley. It is there,
just south of Jericho, and twenty miles east of Jerusalem, that one of the
most important archaeological discoveries in religious history was made.
Early in 1947, three Bedouin shepherds from the Ta'amireh tribe had their
flock in the area, and while Jum'a Muhammad was looking for a stray goat, he
discovered a cave in the cliffs. He threw a rock into the hole, and heard
the sound of breaking pottery. Two days later, his cousin, Muhammed Ahmed
el-Hamed, returned and crawled into the small cave, which measured 6 feet by
20 feet. The cave contained many earthenware jars, about 2 feet high and 10
inches wide. Though many were broken, 9 were believed to be intact. Inside
one of the jars, he discovered three leather rolls wrapped in linen. In a
subsequent visit, four more leather rolls were discovered. These rolls
turned out to be ancient scrolls, which have been referred to as the 'Dead
Sea Scrolls.'
A Christian shopkeeper, Khalil Iskander Shahin (known as "Kando"), and
George Ishaya (Isaiah) Shamoun, members of the Syrian Jacobite Church in
Jerusalem, heard about the discovery and went to Qumran to verify the
Bedouin's claims, finding some scroll fragments. They later met with the
three shepherds to examine their findings.
One of the Bedouins sold 3 of the scrolls to the Muslim sheik of Bethlehem,
and Kando purchased the other 4, which consisted of a 22-foot long scroll
containing the entire text of the Book of Isaiah, the Genesis Apocryphon,
the Habakkuk Commentary, and the Manual of Discipline (also known as the
Community Rule), which had split into two. These 4 were in turn sold to the
Syrian Metropolitan (Archbishop) Athanasius Yeshua Samuel, head of the
Syrian Jacobite Church. Samuel later sent George Isaiah back to Qumran to
carry out secret extensive excavations. It is believed that other scrolls
were discovered, the contents of which have not been revealed.
In September, 1947, Samuel took the four scrolls to Homs (north of
Damascus), Syria, where he met with the Patriarch of the Church. During his
return trip, he again sent a team to Qumran.
Samuel got in touch with Professor Eleazar Sukenik of the Hebrew University'
s Department of Archaeology in order to have the age of the scrolls
determined. Meanwhile, in November, 1947, Sukenik was contacted by someone
identifying himself only as an Armenian antique dealer, and he was able to
purchase the other three scrolls, which turned out to be The War of the Sons
of Light With the Sons of Darkness (also called The War Scroll), the Book of
Hymns (also known as the Psalm of Thanksgiving Scroll), and another copy of
Isaiah.
In January, 1948, Sukenik received one of Samuel's scrolls, a copy of the
Isaiah scroll, which he was able to inspect. Although he was interested in
purchasing the four scrolls, he couldn't raise the money necessary to make
the transaction.
Samuel then contacted the William F. Albright Institute of Archaeological
Research in Jerusalem, where the scrolls were inspected by John C. Trever
and William H. Brownlee, who felt they were as old, if not older, than the
2nd century Nash Papyrus fragment, which up to then, was the oldest known
example of Biblical Hebrew. A set of prints were forwarded to Professor
William Foxwell Albright at Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland,
who was the leading Hebrew epigraphist in the world. He dated the material
back to 100 BC. Upon examination of all these Hebrew and Aramaic scrolls and
fragments which have been discovered at Qumran, it is generally accepted
that they were written between 250 BC and 68 AD, when the Romans destroyed
the Qumran settlement.
The scrolls were taken to a bank in Beirut, and then in January, 1949, to a
New York City bank vault. Up to 1954, only three of the scrolls had been
published. Samuel, labeled a 'smuggler,' was anxious to sell the scrolls,
and would not allow the fourth to be published until all of them had been
purchased.
In February, 1949, Gerald Lankester Harding, director of the Department of
Antiquities for Transjordan and Arab Palestine; and Father Roland de Vaux,
director of the Dominican-controlled Ecole Biblique in the Jordanian sector
of East Jerusalem, went to the cave at Qumran, where they found the remains
of 30 identifiable texts, and a number of unidentifiable fragments. Harding
made it known that he was interested in all subsequent finds made by the Ta'
amireh tribe. They would sell the results of their excavation to Kando, who
would then sell the items to Harding. Meanwhile, de Vaux, Harding, and a
group of fifteen workers continued to excavate around Qumran until 1956,
where they uncovered the buildings of what they felt were an Essene
community.
For nearly two weeks in mid-March, 1952, de Vaux, three members of the Ecole
Biblique, William Reed (director of the Albright Institute), and 24 Bedouins
under the supervision of three Jordanian and Palestinian archaeologists,
embarked on an effort to conduct a survey of all the caves in the area. This
survey indicated the existence of 40 caves, and the umbrella term of the
Dead Sea Scrolls refers to the scrolls and fragments that were found in
eleven of the caves.
In September, 1952, in Cave 4, located about 50 feet away from some of the
Qumran ruins, the largest number of scroll fragments were discovered- the
remains of over 500 different scrolls.
By 1959, all the scroll fragments were kept in a room known as the
'Scrollery' in the Rockefeller Museum (formerly known as the Palestine
Archaeological Museum), which had been built with funds provided by John D.
Rockefeller. The Museum was run by an international Board of Trustees, and
later fell under the control of the Jordanian government. After the Six Day
War in June, 1967, when Israel took over control of the entire city of
Jerusalem, the contents of the Museum were considered spoils of war, so the
Israeli government became the guardian of the fragments.
The Museum contained laboratories, photographic facilities, and the
Department of Antiquities, however, the headquarters of the entire operation
was actually located at the Ecole Biblique which contained a research
library totally dedicated to Qumran research, which was not open to the
public. They also published two journals, the Revue Biblique, printed since
1892, and the Revue de Qumran, started in 1958 to publish information on the
scrolls.
This may be one of the keys to understanding what may be going on here
behind the scenes. In 1882, on the site where, according to tradition, St.
Stephen, the first Christian martyr was stoned to death, a French Dominican
monk established a Dominican church and monastery in Jerusalem. At the
urging of Pope Leo XIII, a Biblical school was begun there in 1890 by Father
Albert Lagrange to train scholars with the knowledge necessary to protect
the Church against the potential of damaging archaeological discoveries.
Originally known as the Ecole Practique d´Etudes Bibliques, it was later
renamed the Ecole Biblique et Archeologique Francaise de Jerusalem.
Lagrange became a member of the Pontifical Biblical Commission, which had
been started by Pope Leo to 'monitor' the work of Catholic scriptural
scholarship. In 1956, de Vaux became a consultant to this Commission until
his death in 1971, as did his successors Father Pierre Benoit, and Jean-Luc
Vesco in 1987. The head of the Pontifical Biblical Commission is Cardinal
Joseph Ratzinger who is also the executive head of the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith, which prior to 1965 had been known as the Holy
Office; and prior to 1542, as the Holy Inquisition. After 1971, with many
common members, the two groups were virtually combined, sharing the same
offices at the Palace of the Congregation at the Holy Office Square in Rome.
Because of this connection, the implication had been made that the Vatican
was exerting influence over the Scrolls, in order to control what
information is released.
The team that de Vaux chose in 1953, to assemble and translate the Scrolls
were primarily Catholic:
1) Frank Cross: Harvard Professor, of the McCormick Theological Seminary in
Chicago and the Albright Institute in Jerusalem. The only Protestant on the
team.
2) Monsignor Patrick Skehan: From the United States, who was director of the
Albright Institute. He was quoted as saying that the Biblical scholar should
adhere to Church doctrine and "be subject always to the sovereign right of
the Holy Mother Church to witness definitively what is in fact concordant
with the teaching she has received from Christ." When he died in 1980, he
was replaced by Professor Eugene Ulrich of Notre Dame University.
3) Father Jean Starcky: From France, who, after his death, was replaced by
Father Emile Puech of the Ecole Biblique.
4) Dr. Claus-Hunno Hunzinger: From Germany, who was later replaced by a
French priest, Father Maurice Baillet.
5) Father Josef Milik: A priest from Poland.
6) John M. Allegro: An ex-Methodist turned agnostic from Oxford, who
revealed that certain material was being kept secret because of the
controversial nature, and de Vaux did not want the Church to be embarrassed.
He was replaced by Oxford Professor John Strugnell, who in 1960 became
Assistant Professor of Old Testament Studies at Duke University; and in 1968
became the Professor of Christian Origins at the Harvard Divinity School.
After de Vaux's death in 1971, his handpicked successor was another
Dominican, Father Pierre Benoit, who became the head of the Ecole Biblique
and the overseer of the international team, until his death in 1987.
Strugnell, who converted to Catholicism, then became the leader of the team.
As you can see, this small group of Catholic scholars had complete control
of all of the Dead Sea Scroll fragments that were found.
In 1954, Yigael Yadin, the former Chief of Staff for the Israeli Defense
Forces, who taught Archaeology at Hebrew University, purchased Samuel's four
scrolls for $250,000. Ironically, he was the son of Professor Sukenik. These
four scrolls, and the three purchased by his father were then housed in a
building known as the Shrine of the Book. While the Israelis worked on these
scrolls, across town at the Rockefeller Museum, de Vaux and his group of
international scholars were working on the fragments they discovered.
In 1967, Yadin interrogated Kando, who subsequently relinquished possession
of a scroll he had for six years, which had been found in Cave 11. Known as
the Temple Scroll, at 27 feet, it is the longest scroll, and has been dated
between 150-125 BC. It has references to the building of the Temple in
Jerusalem, and the rituals to be performed there, however, because of the
laws found in it in regard to general matters, and quotes from the
Pentateuch (the first 5 books of the Bible, known as the Torah of Moses), it
has been referred to as the Sixth Book of the Law, and may contain the
information referred to in 1 Chronicles 28:11-19 and 1 Samuel 8:11.
The Pentateuch was compiled by Ezra (Ezra 7:14) about 458 BC, and it is
believed that what was edited out, became part of the Temple Scroll. Five
separate sources were compiled to form the Temple Scroll, and it is now
considered a supplement to the Torah. In addition to the content, another
reason that it is considered a Biblical text, is that in all established
Biblical books, the name of God, YHWH (Yahweh), is written in the square
Aramaic script like the rest of the text; while in non-Biblical writings,
the name is written in Paleo-Hebrew, while the rest of the text is in
Aramaic.
The goal of de Vaux's international team was for the Oxford University Press
to publish all Qumran scrolls by 1962 in a series called the Discoveries in
the Judaean Desert of Jordan. That didn't happen. The first, in 1955,
contained the fragments found in the original cave, known as Cave 1. In
1961, the second volume appeared, however, it contained material discovered
in the four caves of Wadi Murabba'at, eleven miles south of Qumran, and was
dated from 70-135 AD. This find included the Hebrew versions of all the
minor prophets, including Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum,
Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi. In 1963, the third
volume was published, containing fragments from Cave 2, Cave 3, and Caves
5 - 10; including the Copper Scroll found in Cave 3, and fragments from two
copies of The Book of Jubilees, a copy of which was later found at Masada.
Some researchers believe that the Copper scroll should be put in a different
category, and separated from the other texts that have been found, because
it is the only document that was recorded on metal, it was written in a
different variation of Hebrew, and was discovered in an isolated section of
the cave; which could indicate a different origin. The fourth volume, in
1965, was a collection of Psalms found in Cave 11. The fifth volume, in
1968, under the direction of Allegro, contained some material from Cave 4,
however, most of the scrolls from this cave continued to be withheld from
the public, even though Allegro had said in 1964 that the compilation and
translation had been nearly completed by 1961. The sixth installment of the
series appeared in 1977, the seventh in 1982, and the eighth, which didn't
even deal with the texts of Qumran, was released in 1990.
These eight volumes are said to represent only 25% of the information
contained in the Scrolls, even though Father Benoit had said in December,
1985, that everything would be published by 1993. Strugnell would later set
a deadline of 1996. Then it was announced that it would be done by 2000.
Edmund Wilson, author of The Scrolls of the Dead Sea, said in 1955 that de
Vaux's team wanted to isolate the sectarian non-Biblical scrolls from being
connected with Christianity and Judaism, and concentrated only on the
Biblical literature. In 1956, tired of de Vaux's attempts to prevent the
Scrolls from being linked to Christianity, John Allegro was a guest on a
series of three radio shows in northern England. The third interview
resulted in a New York Times article which said: "The origins of some
Christian ritual and doctrines can be seen in the documents of an extremist
Jewish sect that existed for more than 100 years before the birth of Jesus
Christ. This is the interpretation placed on the 'fabulous' collection of
Dead Sea Scrolls by one of an international team of seven scholars ... John
Allegro ... (who) said last night in a broadcast that the historical basis
of the Lord's Supper and part at least of the Lord's prayer and the New
Testament teaching of Jesus were attributable to the Qumranians."
In 1987, he quit, calling the team's delays "inexcusable," saying that for
years they had been "sitting on material which is not only of outstanding
importance, but also quite the most religiously sensitive." He died in 1988.
Robert Eisenman, a former Research Fellow at the Albright Institute, who was
a Professor of Middle East Religions and Chairman of Religious Studies at
California State University at Long Beach, was denied access to photographs
of the Scroll fragments by Strugnell. In 1989, he said publicly, that during
the last 40 years, all of the research on the Dead Sea Scrolls was
controlled by a handful of scholars who had revealed only a small portion.
He called for access to the Scrolls by qualified scholars, and for AMS
(Accelerator Mass Spectroscopy) Carbon-14 dating to be performed on the
documents to verify the dating, which up to that point had been relying on
the original, obsolete form of dating, which had been done shortly after
their discovery.
In April, 1989, the Israeli Archaeological Council created a Scroll
Oversight Committee to oversee the publication of all Qumran texts, and to
make sure the international team completed their assignments, and in July,
1989, Amir Drori, Director of the Israeli Department of Antiquities, a
member of that Committee, told the Los Angeles Times, that "if someone does
not complete his work on time we have the right to deliver the scrolls to
someone else."
After the Israeli government took full possession of Jerusalem in June of
1967, many were surprised that de Vaux was allowed to continue in his
capacity as the leader of the team of scholars, even though it was a known
fact that he was anti-Semitic, which was why he would not allow any Jewish
scholars into the project. In the mid-1980's, Strugnell brought in Israeli
scholar Elisha Qimron; Talmud scholar Jacob Sussman; Devorah Dimant of Haifa
University; and Emmanuel Tov, Shemaryahu Talmon, Joseph Baumgarten, and
Jonas Greenfield, of Baltimore's Hebrew University, to work on some
unpublished text.
In November, 1990, without informing Strugnell, the Israeli government
assigned Emmanuel Tov to become the 'joint editor-in-chief' of the project
to finish the translation and publication of the Scrolls. Then, in December,
1990, the New York Times quoted from an October 28, 1990 interview Strugnell
had with the Israeli paper Ha-Aretz, where he said that Judaism was a
"horrible religion," a "racist" religion, and that Israel was "founded on a
lie." Magen Broshi, curator of Jerusalem's Shrine of the Book, said: "We've
known for twenty years that he was an anti-Semite." On another occasion, he
referred to Strugnell's "rabid anti-Semitism." These anti-Semitic comments
resulted in him being dismissed from the project as editor-in-chief, even
though he still controlled his portion of the texts. Tov became chief
editor, along with Professor Eugene Ulrich and Emile Puech.
In September, 1991, Professor Ben-Zion Wacholder, and one of his doctoral
students, Martin G. Abegg, from Hebrew Union College in Cincinnati, Ohio,
released their compilation of the Qumran texts, which was published by the
Biblical Archaeological Society. In 1988, Strugnell had printed 30 copies of
a 52,000 word concordance of words found in the scroll, which had been
created by de Vaux's team in the 1950's, so it could be used by the team.
Wacholder and Abegg used a computer to reconstruct these words, and it was
purported to be 80% accurate. Later that month, the Huntington Library in
San Marine, California revealed that it had a complete set of negatives,
from photographs, of photographs of the original scrolls, which had been
given to them in 1987 by Elizabeth Hay Bechtel of the Bechtel Corporation,
who had founded the Ancient Biblical Manuscript Center in Claremont,
California (who also had a copy). They made microfilm copies available to
any scholar who requested it. The Hebrew Union College also have a partial
set; and the Oxford Centre for Postgraduate Hebrew Studies in England has a
full set, which had been given to them in May, 1991, by the Israeli
Oversight Committee.
The Qumran texts, written in Hebrew and Aramaic, are believed to have been
written between 250 BC and 68 AD. They have been divided into two groups -
Biblical and non-Biblical. About 20% are Biblical. Copies of every book in
the Hebrew Bible have been found, except for Esther (which, coincidentally,
was the only book that didn't mention the name of God). In Cave 4, one of
the most complete manuscripts which they have been able to reconstruct, is
the First Book of Samuel, which was found to contain passages not contained
in our Bible, and is being used to fill in some of the narrative gaps. The
non-Biblical fragments consist of hymns and psalms, biblical commentaries,
legal documents, a letter, apocryphal writings, and an inventory of the
Temple treasure. Of the non-Biblical, there are texts referred to as
sectarian writings, which were produced by a unique sect of Jews who have
been identified as the Essenes.
The seven intact scrolls that were found in Cave 1, were quickly published
by Israeli and American scholars, but the fragments collected by de Vaux
were a different story. Just in Cave 4, there was believed to be well over
15,000 fragments (and perhaps as many as 100,000) from 500 different
manuscripts. In all, the find was said to represent about 800 manuscripts.
Of the Biblical writings, 25 copies of Deuteronomy were found, 18 copies of
Isaiah, and 27 copies of the Psalter. Among the non-Biblical, 11 copies of
the Community Rule, 9 Songs of the Sabbath Sacrifice, 8 of the Thanksgiving
Hymn, and 7 of the Sons of Light Against the Sons of Darkness.
Prior to the discovery of the Scrolls, the oldest known Old Testament texts
were copies which dated back to 1100 AD, yet they were nearly identical.
Originally, only the linen surrounding the scrolls were tested with the
Carbon-14 dating process, which indicated a date around the 2nd century BC
and the beginning of the 1st century AD. In 1991, new tests by a Swiss
laboratory confirmed these results. A palaeographical analysis was done on
the script used in writing the texts which revealed a similarity to styles
that were used from 250 - 150 BC, 150 - 30 BC, and 30 BC - 70 AD.
Archaeological dating was also done with the help of several hundred coins
which were found in the Qumran complex. The earliest structures were built
between 130 - 110 BC, then rebuilt and enlarged from 110- 40 BC. They
discovered evidence of an earthquake which had been recorded as occurring in
31 BC, after which they rebuilt the settlement and occupied it until 68 AD
when it was destroyed by Vespasian's Roman legions.
During the Maccabean period, in the 2nd century BC, there were three main
Jewish groups, the Pharisees, the Sadduccees, and the Essenes. The Essenes
were known to be the 'strict' Order. Early historians, such as Pliny the
Elder (the 1st century Roman writer), Josephus, and Philo, indicated that
the Essenes lived in the area between Jericho and Ein Gedi, on the shores of
the Dead Sea, which is where the Qumran ruins are located.
The Sadducees, whose religious principles differed from the Pharisees,
separated from them after the Maccabean revolt (168-164 BC). A document
identified as Miqsat Ma'aseh he-Torah, or Some Rulings Pertaining to the
Torah (also known as the Halakhic Letter), which was found in Cave 4,
contains about 22 religious laws, and appears to be the basis of the Qumran
philosophy. Discovered in 1952, its contents weren't revealed until 1984,
and it has led some researchers to believe that the Qumran group seceded
from the established religious center in Jerusalem, and became the group
known as the Essenes. Yet the Essene name is never used.
How this break occurred is not really known. According to one theory, when
Judea, under Judas Maccabeus, revolted in 165 BC against the Syrian tyrant
King Antiochus IV, thus beginning the Hasmonean line of Kings with Judas
(165-160 BC), his brother Jonathan (160-143 BC), then his brother Simon
(143-134 BC), maintained a friendly relationship with Rome; and in 152 BC
when Jonathan made himself the High Priest, this upset the hardline Jews who
chose to follow a man they referred to as the "Teacher of Righteousness,"
who was of the Zadokite (who were descendants of the priestly line of Aaron)
line. They went to the desert where they could observe the laws of God.
A document found at Qumran was an earlier version of the Damascus Document,
which was discovered (2 copies) in a Cairo synagogue in 1896. Dated between
80 - 75 BC, a copy was found in Cave 6, and 7 copies in Cave 4. The
fragments recovered at Qumran have proven the Cairo text to be incomplete.
The text refers to a contingent of Jews that remained faithful to the Law. A
'Teacher of Righteousness' came to them, and led them into Damascus so they
could renew their 'Covenant' with God. This Covenant is referred to in the
Community Rule. It is believed that there was an Essene community in
Damascus. In the book of the Acts of the Apostles, Saul was going to
Damascus to persecute these early Christians.
Another theory says that after the destruction of the First Temple in 586
BC, when the Jews were exiled to Babylon, the Essenes were formed as a
strict Order because they believed they were being punished by God for their
disobedience. When the Jews returned to Jerusalem after the Maccabean
victories, they became disenchanted and went to Qumran.
It was believed that the Essenes were a pacifist, monastic Order who wanted
to separate themselves from the revolutionary-minded Zealots, yet some of
the evidence seems to indicate otherwise. Originally thought to have been
celibate, the graves of two women and a child were discovered; plus the
Community Rule contained marriage laws. The Essenes did not engage in animal
sacrifice, yet the Temple Scroll contains instructions for such rituals, and
animal bones have been found. Thought to have been peaceful, their scrolls
seem to indicate the knowledge of military strategy; and the ruins of a
military defense tower and a forge have been excavated. Several manuscripts
from Qumran, were also found at the Zealot stronghold on Masada, and there
has been some researchers who believe that there was a connection between
the two groups.
While de Vaux and his team were trying to distance the Scrolls from Judaism
and Christianity, saying there were no connections, the texts which were
already published seem to indicate otherwise. Either the early Christians
were just living at the Qumran community, or the early Christians and the
Qumran community were one and the same. Though Essene in nature, the group
in Qumran has been compared to the early Church which was based in
Jerusalem. The Habakkuk Commentary said that Qumran's governing body, the
Council of the Community, was in Jerusalem. In fact, it is believed that the
scrolls were taken to Qumran from Jerusalem for protection. Professor Norman
Golb of the University of Chicago has theorized that the Scrolls were from
the library of the Jewish Temple, and taken to Qumran, a military
installation, during the first Jewish revolt to keep them safe. The vital
link for this belief comes from the Copper scroll, which lists 64 locations
of hidden Temple treasure. This seems to indicate that perhaps the Qumran
settlement was a retreat for the early Christians. But wait, 'Christians'
before Christ? This is one of the controversial developments that have
emerged from the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls.
The New Testament was written in Greek, and Jesus spoke in Aramaic. The
Qumran texts are written in Hebrew and sometimes Aramaic, and has been shown
to contain information that is echoed in the New Testament. Prior to the
discovery of the Scrolls, the teachings of Jesus had been considered as
original, though influenced by Old Testament teaching. However, the Qumran
documents now indicate the existence of a basis for His message. The
Community Rule, which was discovered in Cave 1, has proven to be one of the
most important discoveries in Qumran. It is a record of the rules and
regulations of the Qumran community, where all must make a "Covenant before
God to obey all his commandments." One of the basic tenets of Christianity,
the baptism of purification, is discussed. It says that the convert "shall
be cleansed from all his sins by the spirit of holiness uniting him to its
truth ... And when his flesh is sprinkled with purifying water and
sanctified by cleansing water, it shall be made clean by the humble
submission of his soul to all the precepts of God." This has led to the
theory that John the Baptist had lived at Qumran until he was called by God
to be the forerunner of Jesus. Author Charles Francis Potter, in his book
The Lost Years of Jesus, attempted to explain the "eighteen silent years" of
Jesus, between the ages of 12 and 30, as being spent at Qumran.
In the Acts of the Apostles (Acts 2:44-46), it says: "And all that believed
were together, and had all things in common; And sold their possessions and
goods, and parted them to all men, as every man had need. And they,
continuing daily with one accord in the temple..." This shows that common
ownership was part of the early Christian philosophy. The Community Rule
stated: "All ... shall bring all their knowledge, powers and possessions
into the Community..."; "They shall eat in common and pray in common..." and
"...his property shall be merged and he shall offer his counsel and judgment
to the Community."
Also in Acts, the Church leadership is shown to be made up of twelve
Apostles, which according to Galatians, were led by James (the brother of
Jesus), John and Peter. In the Community Rule, the Qumran group were
governed by a 'Council' of twelve people, with three priests that were in
leadership roles, though it is not known if they were part of the twelve.
It also talks about a 'Meal of the Congregation' which is a ritual very much
like the 'Last Supper' and the subsequent communion ceremony; while other
documents contain parallels with the Sermon on the Mount, and the concept of
the battle between the darkness and the light.
The Qumran texts contain references to what's been identified as a messianic
figure known as the "Teacher of Righteousness," which some have tried to
identify as being Jesus, however, there are no references as to the divinity
of this person, so it couldn't be Jesus. In addition, because of the age of
the document, this person would have been living well before the time of
Christ. However, recently released fragments do allude to Jesus. An
unpublished Aramaic scroll fragment out of Cave 4, mention the "Son of God"
and the "Son of the Most High," in a similar manner as Luke 1:32, 35. It is
the first time these references have appeared in any outside text. Newly
released fragments out of Cave 4 even prophecy the coming the coming of
Jesus, as the Messiah. Fragment 4Q285 said that a "staff shall rise from the
root of Jesse ... the Branch of David ... and they will put to death the
Leader of the Community." Fragment 4Q521 said: "The Heavens and the earth
will obey his Messiah ... He will not turn aside from the Commandments of
the Holy Ones ... For the Lord will visit the Pious Ones and the Righteous
will call by name ... He shall release the captives, make the blind to see,
raise up the downtrodden ... He will heal the sick, resurrect the dead, and
to the Meek announce glad tidings."
Much has been made about this small group of men, who for forty years had
been silent about the contents of the Dead Sea Scrolls which were in their
possession. With some being considered as emissaries of the Catholic Church,
was it because the Scrolls are contrary to the Bible in respect to the
origin of Christianity, or was it, as some maintain, because of the power it
gave them; or, as Randall Price maintains (in his book Secrets of the Dead
Sea Scrolls), is all of this talk just an effort to prevent serious
consideration of the Scrolls as verification and corroboration of the Bible.
Price quotes Professor Tov who said: "I would completely brush aside any
accusations of suppressed material. There is no evidence whatsoever for this
having been done by any Catholic source." He also quotes Joseph A. Fitzmyer,
a Catholic scholar, and member of the Scroll team who said: "The whole idea
of a Vatican conspiracy to suppress the Scrolls that it (the book The Dead
Sea Scrolls Deception by Baigent and Leigh) portrays is ludicrous nonsense."
Randall Price then proceeds to completely unravel the whole conspiratorial
argument behind the delays as being because of the "condition of the texts .
accessibility of the materials . the political situation . the nature of the
text assignments . scholastic responsibilities . financial problems . (and)
human problems." His argument is just as convincing.
My concern is that, where there is smoke, there may also be fire. Any kind
of association with the Rockefeller name brings with it the influence of the
ecumenical movement; and any kind of connection to Catholicism brings with
it the baggage of their pagan origins (see my on-line book Controlled by the
Calendar). Many eminent scholars have tried to make a connection between the
Scrolls and the Essenes, even when the evidence for this is circumstantial
at best. As I will discuss in the next chapter, those who have tried to
prove that Jesus faked his crucifixion have also tried to link him with the
Essenes. Even though the Scrolls themselves indicate that the inhabitants of
Qumran engaged in the study of astrology and mysticism, this group has been
identified as the starting point for the philosophy which became
Christianity. So, if we are to believe some of the interpretations of the
Scrolls, that the teachings of Jesus were based on the philosophy of the
Essenes; this seriously damages His image as being the father of a Religion
that bears His name. Not only that, but it further diminishes His divinity,
which has increasingly come under attack.
When the last remnants of the Scrolls are published, those discovered so
far, and those yet to be discovered, some scholars have expressed a wish for
new versions of the Bible to reflect the 'new' information gleaned from the
Scrolls. If this happens, will the new material be used to buttress the
scriptures as being Holy Spirit inspired- or will they take on the spin of a
pre-Christ Christianity, and further contribute to the taking of Christ out
of the Christianity of main-line churches, so that the role of Jesus is
reduced to that of just a teacher or a political visionary.
Since I believe that Jesus taught only what was given unto Him through the
inspiration of the Holy Spirit, what legitimacy should be given to the Dead
Sea Scrolls, if any.
Beyond a shadow of a doubt, they are legitimate documents, and not the
result of an incredible forgery, as far as being done shortly before their
discovery. Therefore, we have to look in another direction. Now that other
scholars have access to them, I would think that any incorrect translations
would be revised; which brings us to the reconstruction of the actual
fragments themselves. We have been forced to rely on the accuracy of de Vaux
's team, and their ability to fit the quagmire of pieces together into some
sort of coherency. It would seem that gaps in the assembled fragments of
text (especially in the case of the Essene documents) would make it
difficult to actually grasp its full meaning, especially since missing words
may have a bearing on how other words are translated. The complex techniques
utilized in this process have brought very little criticism in regard to its
accuracy.
Another point of contention is the procedure used to date the Scrolls.
Carbon-14 dating has long been criticized as being inaccurate. Originally
only the wrapping around them were tested, because they didn't want to
destroy any text in order to date them. However, new techniques need less
material to achieve the same results. But remember, what is being dated is
the material that was written on. If a fragment was dated back to 200 BC,
there is no way of knowing whether it was actually written on at that time,
or maybe 300 years later. This knowledge makes it difficult to assume the
accuracy of any dating.
We must also take into account, whether or not a document is describing
actual events, or if it is just plain fiction. For example, it is commonly
accepted that some apocryphal books such as Tobit, and Bel and the Dragon
were works of fiction, and for that reason were not included in the Bible.
Many apocryphal writings were found at Qumran. When it comes to analyzing
the contents of a text, how do you decide that it is a historically accurate
document, if you don't know the intention of the writer, or even who the
writer was. Just as the writers of the Gospels have been accused of
embellishment, do some of the Qumran texts contain embellishments.
Because of the initial secrecy surrounding the Scrolls, how will we really
know that all of the fragments found, will be released. It was said that
some fragments had been taken to the Ecole Biblique. Were they ever returned
to the Rockefeller Museum? I guess, what I am thinking here, is that if they
had discovered something that would have shaken the very foundation of the
Christian Church, would the Scroll team have allowed it to remain, or would
it have found its way into the dark recesses of the Vatican, never again to
see the light of day, or perhaps only locked away for a short time, to be
released when the time is right.
As Price maintains, there may very well be nothing to the negative slant
that has been applied to the Scrolls; and yet, it is very hard not to think
conspiratorially because of all the circumstances surrounding them. I
believe that the Scrolls are part of the 'last days' trigger, and as such, I
believe that they are going to be used in some way to perpetuate an end-time
deception.
In addition, how about the existence of other scrolls which haven't made
their way into official hands so they can scrutinized by scholars. Strugnell
revealed the existence of four other scrolls from Cave 11. Of the two he
saw, one was a complete copy of the Book of Enoch. On his deathbed,
Lankester Harding, the director of Jordan's Department of Antiquities,
claimed to have seen two more scrolls that Strugnell had not seen. All four
are located in Jordan. Stories have also circulated about Bedouin
discoveries which were not given to de Vaux, and have yet to surface. Plus
there have been other optimistic forays into the area which could eventually
turn up more scrolls or fragments. In one case, archaeologists Dr. Gary
Collett and Dr. Aubry L. Richardson, using sophisticated equipment developed
by NASA (which can sense non-visible elements of the electromagnetic
spectrum and interpret the type of molecules found in its makeup), claimed
that there were still unexplored caves, including one which may contain up
to 40 intact jars, of the kind used to store manuscripts, and evidence of
another copper scroll. A dig was initiated, sanctioned by the Israeli
government, to reach this cave, which had not turned up anything.
My feeling is that there hasn't been enough substantiation from the Scrolls
to make the kind of claims that have been made. For example, various books
in the Bible contain the same information, and are used to cross reference
each other; and that wasn't possible with the Scrolls, so, because of that,
should their scholarship be accepted, especially when some of the rituals
that are similar to the early Christian Church may be nothing more than
natural progression- or theological evolution.
Because of further archaeological excavation, we may continue to get a
steady flow of information from Qumran for years to come, and how it will
affect the perception of Christianity is yet to be seen. All we can do is to
evaluate what is available now, and how some of the questionable texts may
be use to manipulate religion in this country.
It would be nice to know how much influence the Rockefeller family has on
the Rockefeller Museum, where all the fragments were housed. Believe the
fact that they have not lent their name, or given money to anything they
haven't been able to influence. Their name also figures prominently in the
talk concerning the rebuilding of the Jewish Temple. Knowing that they have
a huge role in establishing the New World Order, their involvement in the
various affairs of Israel has ominous overtones.
SATANISM
The underlying power to all occult practices, is Satanism- the worship of
Satan (or Lucifer) in opposition to the worship of God. It is the worship of
Satan which has been the driving force behind the handful of men who have
perpetuated the Illuminati conspiracy. It has been reported that the spread
of the occult has been the job of an inner circle of the Illuminati, which
is known as the Council of 13, or the Grand Druid Council.
Through its various incarnations, the spread of the occult has enabled the
Illuminati to create a social climate that has welcomed the advent of the
New World Order, one-world government, and the one-world church that will
accompany it.
The Druids
The occult movement basically began with the Druids, who were found among
the ancient Celts (the people of Gaul in France, Switzerland, Belgium,
Bohemia, Galicia in Spain, as well as Galatia in what is now known as
Turkey), and the forerunners of those living today in the British Isles,
Scotland, and Ireland. Their culture flourished for hundreds of years before
the Christian era, peaking around 1200 BC, when they became caught up
between the encroachment of the Roman Empire and the invasions from barbaric
Germanic tribes.
The Druids were members of a priesthood who came from the upper class of
Celtic society, and were exempt from taxes and manual labor. Their name
comes from the Celtic word 'daur' which means 'oak tree,' which was sacred
to them; and in the Gaelic, it means "knowing the oak tree." They performed
their rituals and ceremonies in sacred oak groves, as well as river sources
and lakes, because they also considered water to be sacred.
Around 98-180 AD, the Druid religion was outlawed, and they were forced to
go underground, where it has been secretly active, in various forms, ever
since.
The earliest mention of these "men of the oak," was in the 3rd century BC,
from Julius Caesar, and what little information that is available, comes
from 30 references in Greek and Roman writings from the second century BC to
the fourth century AD, and ancient records found in Ireland. For the most
part, their legacy has been passed down orally from generation to
generation, because they considered it "profane" to write down their
teachings.
In the writings of an ancient Greek, he compared the Druids to the Magi of
Persia, who were the group from which the Wise Men came. They could also be
compared to the Medicine Man of the American Indians. In fact, I kind of
thought they might have been a Satanic perversion of the Levite tribe of
Israel, from which came the priests.
An aura of mystery surrounded the Druids, and they were considered evil. It
was alleged that they possessed strange powers, such as being able to
produce mists, storms, floods, and cast spells. As it turned out, there was
reason to fear these men, because some of their rituals included both animal
and human sacrifice.
The Druids worshipped the Sun God, Hu; the moon, and the stars. Many of
their rites centered around such astronomical occurrences as equinoxes and
solstices. It is believed that Stonehenge, built in 2750 BC on the Salisbury
Plain in southwest England, and transformed into a solar observatory by 1900
BC, was later used by the Druids as a temple for sacrifices. A similar
structure in Avebury, 20 miles north, was also used.
Their biggest night of the year, was the ceremony known as the 'Vigil of
Samhein,' on October 31st, in honor of Samhein, the Horned Hunter of the
Night (Satan, as seen in the Pentagram), the Oak God of the Underworld, and
the God of the Dead. It is this ritual that evolved into the annual
tradition of Halloween.
Witchcraft
The lineal successor to the religion of the Druids was British witchcraft,
which became strong in the 1200's, and considers itself to be the world's
oldest religion. The word Witchcraft is derived from the Anglo-Saxon word
'wiccecraeft' ('wicca-craft') or "craft of the wise."
Witches say that their religion is not anti-Christian, because they worship
deities that were in existence before the advent of the Christian era. They
worship nature and earth, and as polytheists, they believe this power to be
manifested in the form of various gods and goddesses. In this pluralistic
system, there is a Mother (Moon) goddess, who controls fertility rites, and
the process of birth and life; and also a horned god, who represents the
masculine side of nature. Known as Cernunnos, the god of hunting, fertility,
and wild animals, he is the god of the underworld who controls the gates of
life and death.
Even though witches say that they don't believe in Satan, unknown to them,
this 'horned hunter of the night' is a descendant of Nimrod, who became the
sun god, and was the symbolic representation of Satan. You must remember,
that Nimrod, and his wife, Semiramis, were the prototypes for all gods and
goddesses that permeated all subsequent cultures and societies.
According to former witches and Satanists, the deities that witches worship
are actually demons.
One thing that a lot of people try to do, is to pigeonhole witchcraft into
one single category, and you can't do it. Within the realm of Christianity,
you have many religions, such as Catholics, Lutherans, Methodists, Baptists,
Presbyterians, etc. And within each of these, you have a further breakdown,
which divides the various churches according to their own variations in
philosophies. Well, since Witchcraft is a religion, the same divisions also
exist. There are different denominations, so-to-speak. The terms most used
are White and Black Witchcraft, Traditional (who believe power must be
inherited through family lineage), Modernist, Gardnerian (revival of the
'old religion' established by anthropologist Gerald Gardner), and
Alexandrian (offshoot of the Gardnerian tradition by Alexander Sanders). But
there are many others.
White Sorcery is practiced out of the La Clavicule de Solomon (The Key of
Solomon), which was said to be written by King Solomon, but was actually
written in the 14th or 15th century. The Lemegeton (Lesser Key) is known as
the Book of Shadows. Black Magic comes from the 6th and 7th Book of Moses,
mistakenly alleged to have been written by Moses.
There has been a connotation of evil given to witchcraft as a whole, but it
can't be as easily defined as that, because there are some gray areas that
require an understanding. I am not condoning any aspect of witchcraft, but I
do have to be fair.
The most well-known of the witchcraft sects are the Wiccans, who represent
what could be considered White Witchcraft. I have talked to some Wiccans,
and they do not fit the stereotype that one expects to find when they meet a
witch. They do not dress in all black, and in fact, do not dress any
differently than anyone else. You have probably talked to a witch, and never
even knew it.
As serious as you may be about your religion, and faith; they are just as
serious about their religion. Besides their holy days, some covens even have
weekly meetings, just like a traditional church.
Wiccans have become more open in their religion in the past few years, as
they try to dispel the myth, fear, and discrimination that surround them.
In August, 1995, our local paper had a front page article about a couple
local witches, and how their religious activities were just like anyone else
's. They have distanced themselves from Satanism, by emphasizing that they
don't believe in Satan or demons. They have tried to separate themselves
from the dark side of the occult, by saying that it is against their
religion to harm anyone, that they're not out there trying to get people, by
putting curses on them. In fact, their primary directive (known as the Witch
's Rede) is: "An it harm none- do what thou wilt." This gives them the
freedom to do what they want, just as long as it doesn't affect the rights
of others, or cause physical harm.
And indeed, Wiccans have gone out of their way to help people. Out of their
yearning to help, many enter helping professions, such as social workers,
nurses, and counselors. They also do tarot card readings, and are the
driving force behind the onslaught of the psychic phone hot lines.
Thousands have been drawn to the spiritualistic aspects of witchcraft, and
it is estimated that there could be as many as 800,000 Wiccans in this
country, and since 1987, they have "grown tremendously." They are out there
spreading their word through books in secular bookstores, occult bookstores,
classes, and pagan festivals. They are filling what they see as a void, and
are presenting a religion that is more accepting of women in leadership
positions, gays, interracial couples and unmarried couples. It is marked by
solemn ritualistic ceremonies that makes one feel like they're part of a
family; and a religion that offers real power.
We live in a time where the constitutional right of religious freedom has
forced us to tolerate and accept any religion, no matter how foreign it is
to our belief system, and how contrary it is to the Bible. But on the other
hand, in a growing anti-Christian climate in this country, we are also being
allowed to exercise our faith because of those same rights. So, we have a
responsibility to treat someone else's beliefs with respect, because they
have the same rights we do. However, I don't have to agree with them, or
like it, and I don't have to allow this false doctrine to permeate our
society unanswered.
No matter how honorable Wiccans intentions are, as a Christian, I must abide
by the tenets of the Holy Scriptures in my assessment of their religion and
practices. Do I hate them. No. In fact, the witches that I talked to were
very pleasant, very nice, and very respectful of my religious beliefs. Which
is more than I can say about some Jehovah Witnesses and Mormons that have
come knocking on my door. It is very easy to forget a very fundamental
Biblical teaching, that we must hate the sin, but love the sinner. God loves
everyone, even a witch. So as a Christian, we need to let witches know, if
ever given the opportunity, that they are living a lie. That the gods and
goddesses they are worshipping do not exist, and that they have been
deceived by a very real Satan, who is the father of lies.
As I said earlier, witches have a golden rule that prohibits them from
hurting anyone. But, not all witches are 'good' witches. And not all witches
share that philosophy. Irene Park, a former witch, and author of the book
The Witch Who Switched, said the worst thing she had ever done to someone
was to "demolish them. To see them removed off the face of the earth." She
further elaborated: "You can kill them, or else they will commit suicide ...
you drive them to do that ... you can do it by thought ... or something like
making a potion ... and chanting and doing an incantation, and it works, the
spirits work."
Chapter Six of the book Mastering Witchcraft: A Practical Guide for Witches,
Warlocks and Covens is called "Vengeance and Attack." On page 196 it says:
"With all the power of your imagination, and all the faith and intent you
can muster, you must actually try to see your spell working its mischief,
visualizing your victim suffering all the pangs you wish on him. This type
of spell is perhaps best employed for encouraging general misfortune rather
than any specific disaster..." It goes on to provide actual instructions and
incantations for various curses.
Now, this book was written by a well-known witch named Paul Huson, a
Traditionalist from San Francisco, who studied under Dr. Raymond Buckland,
who, as I said, is probably the leading Wiccan authority in this country.
Compare that with this, from The Satanic Bible: "Be certain you do not care
if the intended victim lives or dies, before you throw your curse, and
having caused their destruction, revel, rather than feel remorse." So you
can see, with their own writings, regardless of any moral code they claim to
have, the seduction of power and the ability of being able to use it, may be
a more overriding determinant in regard to the actions of a witch.
Observing the sacred Celtic calendar of the Druids, witches have eight
special holy days through the year, which are known as 'Sabbats.' The April
25, 1989 edition of USA Today reported that Patricia Hutchins, a
self-proclaimed Wiccan serving in the U.S. Air Force, was granted religious
leave by the military to observe the eight Sabbats of her 'religion.'
Some researchers have purported that the Sabbat is the witches sabbath, a
corruption of the Jewish day of rest, Others have said that the word
'sabbath' is taken from Shabbathai, or Saturn, the planet which governs the
seventh day; while 'sabbat' comes from Sabadius (or Sabazius), which was the
title of Dionysus, the god of ecstasy, who was worshipped with partying and
orgies. However, just like the Jewish calendar, the Sabbat mirrors the
Celtic day, which began at sunset, and ended the next sunset.
There are two great fire festivals, known as Grand Sabbats, which divide the
Celtic year in half. October 31st, Halloween (also known as the October
Festival), which celebrates the beginning of winter, and is also the
beginning of the witches New Year; and April 30th, Beltane (also known as
Bealtaine), which celebrates the beginning of summer. Known as the day of
Bel's fire because of the bonfires that accompanied their fertility rituals,
the Druids held this feast in honor of Bel, a derivative of Baal (mentioned
in the Old Testament) and can be associated with Apollo. This day has become
connected to Walpurgis Night, a festival to honor Walburga (Walpurga), the
daughter of King Richard the Lion-Hearted, a nun who moved to Germany and
became abbess of the monastery of Eichstatt. After she died in 779, she was
canonized by the Church, and is recognized as the protector against magic.
However, witches are actually honoring Waldborg, a fertility goddess. The
spirits of the dead are said to be very active on this day.
According to Anton LaVey, the self-proclaimed high priest of the Church of
Satan in San Francisco, the two major Satanic observances are also Halloween
and Walpurgisnacht.
There are two other minor feasts, which divide the half-year into quarters.
February 2nd, Imbolg, the Winter festival (also known as Imbolc or Oimelc),
which was a pagan celebration marked with a torchlight procession to honor
the various deities associated with agriculture, which was to purify and
fertilize the fields prior to the planting season. As the Catholic Church
Christianized pagan celebrations, it became known as the Feast of
Purification of the Blessed Virgin Mary which is celebrated by the Roman,
Creek, and Anglican churches, It is supposedly held to observe the event
described in the 2nd chapter of Luke, when Mary went to the Temple for
purification, which according to tradition iy happened forty days after the
birth of Jesus.
It was originally observed on February 14th, when Jesus was thought to have
been born on the day of Epiphany. But when the date of his birth was changed
to December 25th, the day was moved. It became known as Candlemas, because
church candles are blessed that day, due to Simeon's reference to the "light
to lighten the Gentiles." It was believed that these blessed candles, when
put in a home, would protect it from evil. Pope Innocent XII (1691-1700)
said: "Why do we in this feast carry candles? Because the Gentiles dedicated
the month of February to the infernal gods, and at the beginning of it Pluto
stole Proserpine, and her mother Ceres sought her in the night with lighted
candles, so they, at the beginning of the month, walked about the city with
lighted candles. Because the holy fathers could not extirpate the custom,
they ordained that Christians should carry about candles in honor of the
Blessed Virgin; and thus what was done before in honor of Ceres is now done
in honor of the Blessed Virgin."
The other day is August 1st (July 31st according to A Witches' Bible) the
Summer festival, when the first corn was harvested. This was the Druid
festival of Lughnasadh, which was dedicated to Lugh, the Celtic sun god. It
has become known as Lammas ('loaf-mass'). Witches celebrate this day to
honor the sacred union of the goddess and the horned god.
Also celebrated, to a lesser extent, are the four solar fire festivals: The
vernal equinox of March 21st (Alban Eilir, or the spring festival), and the
autumnal equinox of September 23rd (September 21st according to A Witches'
Bible, Alban Elfrad, or the autumn festival); and the two solstices (a Latin
word which means "the sun stops").
June 22nd (Alban Hefin, or the mid-summer night festival) has become
associated with the eve of St. John's Day (June 24), which is when the Feast
of Saint John the Baptist is held. This is the oldest Church observance, and
is celebrated on the day of his birth. The exact day is unknown, but the
Bible indicates that he was born six months before Jesus. It became part of
the mid-summer celebrations because of the summer solstice, which is the
beginning of summer (June 20), and the longest day of the year.
December 22nd, known as Yule (Alban Arthan or the mid-winter festival), has
become associated with the eve of St. Thomas Day (December 21), which is
when the Feast of Saint Thomas is held. The observance was initiated in the
12th century to honor the apostle Jesus appeared to and showed his wounds
after the Resurrection, because of his doubts. He is known as the patron
saint of masons and architects. It became part of the winter celebrations
because of the winter solstice, which is the beginning of winter (December
21), and the longest night of the year.
Whether you know it or not, the Church of Wicca, the largest church in the
country devoted to the practice of Witchcraft, is a federally recognized,
tax exempt, non-profit, religious organization in the United States. The
Church of Satan, which was founded in San Francisco in 1966, is also
considered a tax exempt religious organization.
Some other well-known churches are the Wicca Church of America, Church of
All Worlds, Universal Church of Wicca, Aquarian Tabernacle Church, The
Church of the Iron Oak, and the Church of Universal Brotherhood. Witches are
so organized that they hold seminars and conventions that are publicized by
the media. In 1970, the New York City Parks Department issued a permit for
the Witches International Craft Associates (WICA) to have a "Witch-In" in
Sheep Meadow on Halloween. Over 1,000 people attended.
In 1980, Joyce Clemow, a director of the New York Center for the Strange (a
non-profit research group that investigates "the myriad aspects of
prognostication, prophecy, and divination") said that among America's
practicing witches, were three Congressmen, a syndicated financial
columnist, the President of one of the nation's banks, a well-known
television newscaster, and a man who held a top foreign affairs position in
the Nixon Administration. Margot Adler, a reporter for National Public
Radio, was a well-known witch, and author of a book on neo-Paganism called
Drawing Down the Moon.
The Bible is very clear concerning the occult. Exodus 22:18 says: "Thou
shalt not suffer a witch to live." Witchcraft practitioners claim that this
verse doesn't refer to witchcraft, because the word "witch" is translated
from the Hebrew word "chasaph" which actually means "a poisoner."
However, Strong's Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible identifies the
original word out of the Massoretic text to be "kashaph" (#3784), a root
word which means to "whisper a spell, i.e. to inchant (sic) or practise
(sic) magic." The word "kesheph" (#3785) is magic or witchcraft, as used in
2 Kings 9:22, Micah 5:12, and Nahum 3:4; and "kashshaph" (#3786) is a
magician or sorcerer. The Hebrew word "chemah" (#2534) means "poison."
Another verse that corresponds to this sentiment can be found in Leviticus
20:27, which says: "A man also or woman that hath a familiar spirit, or that
is a wizard, shall surely be put to death: they shall stone them with
stones: their blood shall be upon them."
Jeremiah 10:2 says: "...Learn not the way of the heathen..." Deuteronomy
18:10-12 says: "There shall not be found among you anyone that maketh his
son or his daughter to pass through the fire, or that useth divination, or
an observer of times, or an enchanter, or a witch, or a charmer, or a
consulter with familiar spirits, or a wizard, or a neocromancer. For all
that do these things are an abomination unto the Lord..." 1 Peter 5:8
charges us to "be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring
lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour." Ephesians 5:11 says that
we are to "have no fellowship wit |
