It's quite incredible how much the ancient near east (ANE) has shaped our part of the world, much to the unawareness of most. In the ANE, it was common to name a son or daughter after the god the parents worshipped. Take Nebuchadnezzar for example, a Babylonian ruler reigning from 605-562BC. His name literally means "O Nabu, defend my kudurru (an Akkadian name for a deed of property)". Nabu was one of many gods the Babylonians worshipped; in this case the god of wisdom and writing. Thus, Nebuchadnezzar.
The Jews had many names for God - primarily stemming from the name El (El Adonai, Elohim, etc), or Yahweh. The Jews did the same as the Babylonians in the above example, so that each of their names was basically a Hebrew phrase dedicated to God. Take for example the name Daniel (also a book of the Bible). Dan is Hebrew for "judge". Dan+i = "My judge". Now add "El" - Dan+i+El = "My judge is God". Respectively, the Jews did the same with the name Yahweh, however they used the shortened version - Yah; also spelt Iah. You see this in names like Jeremiah (meaning "The Lord will raise"), Zachariah (meaning "The Lord has remembered"), Isaiah (meaning "Salvation of The Lord").
See if you can get this one. One of the prophets of the Bible was Micah (also spelled Micaiah), which means "Who is like Yahweh?". Try transposing the iah in this name with the other extension (El) and see what you get.
In general, when you see "el" or "iah" in a person's name nowadays - even here in America - it's a name that goes back to the ancient near east and the name itself is a reference to God. Some examples are Michael, Elizabeth, Joel, Daniel, Samuel, and on. Each of these is a Hebrew dedication to God. Many times people, even the bearer of the name itself, just aren't aware.
Thursday, December 6, 2007
Wednesday, May 30, 2007
Origins - The Alphabet
It's debated as to where the alphabet originated, and which culture was responsible for creating and using the first one. Egypt is typically credited with creating the first alphabetic writing system. However some contend the first alphabetic system was Hebrew.
Let's look at the first 2 letters of the Hebrew alphabet: א-aleph, and ב-bet. It's believed that these first two letters of the Hebrew alphabet were later converted to Alpha and Beta (respectively) in the Greek alphabet. Put these two letters together and you get "Alphabeta". Look familiar? I personally never really questioned where the word "Alphabet" came from, but this makes sense.
Furthermore, it's interesting to note that the presumably oldest alphabetic cave writing is found in Egypt, however the writing is Hebrew. The next oldest alphabetic cave writing is found in the Sanai region, again in Hebrew. And the next oldest alphabetic cave writing is found in the (then) Canaanite region, again in Hebrew. Does this route sound familiar? Can you say... Exodus?!
Let's look at the first 2 letters of the Hebrew alphabet: א-aleph, and ב-bet. It's believed that these first two letters of the Hebrew alphabet were later converted to Alpha and Beta (respectively) in the Greek alphabet. Put these two letters together and you get "Alphabeta". Look familiar? I personally never really questioned where the word "Alphabet" came from, but this makes sense.
Furthermore, it's interesting to note that the presumably oldest alphabetic cave writing is found in Egypt, however the writing is Hebrew. The next oldest alphabetic cave writing is found in the Sanai region, again in Hebrew. And the next oldest alphabetic cave writing is found in the (then) Canaanite region, again in Hebrew. Does this route sound familiar? Can you say... Exodus?!
Tuesday, May 1, 2007
Origins - Aramaic
I've come across many interesting origins in studying, and jot them down here for future review. One worth mentioning is that of the Aramaic language. This was a dominant language spoken during Jesus' time. The dialogue of the movie "The Passion" was in Aramaic with english subtitles.
Aram was a region located in what is now Syria. What is interesting, however, is that Aram was actually a person mentioned in the Bible. Noah had three sons - Shem (the origin of the word Semite), Ham, and Japheth. One of Shem's sons was Aram. So the current country of Syria actually traces all the way back to a grandson of Noah.
It is interesting to note how some current countries of the world actually descended from one person, and that lineage can often times be traced all the way back.
Aram was a region located in what is now Syria. What is interesting, however, is that Aram was actually a person mentioned in the Bible. Noah had three sons - Shem (the origin of the word Semite), Ham, and Japheth. One of Shem's sons was Aram. So the current country of Syria actually traces all the way back to a grandson of Noah.
It is interesting to note how some current countries of the world actually descended from one person, and that lineage can often times be traced all the way back.
Monday, March 12, 2007
Messianic Prophecies
As Old Testament prophecies about the Messiah ("Messianic" prophecies) ultimately shape world religions, this subject can be a bit touchy. I'll preface this by saying I'm not looking to convince anyone of a certain religion, I'm just noting some observations I've made about Messianic prophecies.
My grandparents on my mother's side were Jewish (both of lineage as well as practicing Jews). My mother is of Jewish lineage, and was brought up practicing Judaism. She converted to Christianity, and though I am of Jewish lineage (ultimately my ancestry leads back to Jacob, or, Israel) I was brought up under the Christian religion.
The Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament have really shaped the 3 major "Abrahamic" religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. A major difference in each lies within interpretations of the Messianic prophecies. Why is this?
Basically, Christians believe the events recorded of Jesus fulfilled many of the Messianic prophecies, however many of the Messianic prophecies still have yet to be fulfilled. Christianity teaches that Jesus will return to fulfill the rest of the prophecies. Jews argue that the Old Testament prophets made no claims to separate comings. I personally see valid points to both views.
Let's view an example of a Messianic prophecy that appears to have been fulfilled: "I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles" - Isaiah 42:6. This passage refers to the "Servant of the Lord" bringing knowledge of God to Gentiles (non-Jews). One must admit, the rise of Christianity after Constantine declared it the official religion of Rome certainly brought the God of the Hebrews out of obscurity and more available to the rest of the world than ever before.
Let's now look at an example of a Messianic prophecy has not yet been fulfilled: "In the last days ... Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train anymore." - Isaiah 2:2-5. This passage refers to the "Messianic Age", when there will be peace, and no more war. One must admit, though Christians believe Jesus was the prophesied Messiah, war still exists today.
So this brings us to one of two roads: either Jesus was not the Messiah, or prophets were referring to separate and distinct times when these events would play out. The former being the stance of Judaism, the latter the stance of Christianity.
I believe where a lot of the confusion comes from is that Old Testament prophets prefix many of their prophecies with the phrase "In that day, ..." or "The day of the Lord". This would most certainly appear to be a reference to 1 specific point in time. Moreover, nowhere do the prophets specifically say that any of the events "In that day" will occur at different times. Of course, nor do they necessarily state that they won't either.
This being the case, I had always felt quite compelled by the case that Judaism makes - that Jesus could not have been the Messiah as not all of the prophecies were fulfilled in His time. Until I read one specific chapter of Isaiah that completely changed my mind. "See, the LORD is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants ... The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered." - Isaiah 24:1-3. "In that day the LORD will punish the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below... The moon will be abashed, the sun ashamed" - Isaiah 24:21-23. Isaiah is prophesying here the annihilation of the Earth as we know it. In fact, neither the sun or moon will shine "In that day".
Now let me refer to another prophesy of Isaiah - one I wrote about a couple weeks ago - the destruction of Babylon. "See, the day of the LORD is coming —a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger— to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light... Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms,the glory of the Babylonians’ pride, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations" - Isaiah 13:9-20. Again, as in the passage before, the sun and moon will no longer shine during the Day of the Lord. Adjacent to this passage is the prophecy of the destruction of Babylon.
Clearly, we can take as emperical fact that one prophecy has been fulfilled with striking accuracy (the complete destruction of Babylon), while the other has not (the destruction of Earth). Yet, while Isaiah does not specifically refer to the two prophecies as occuring in separate times, they in fact do. Thus in my opinion, Messianic prophecies need not necessarily be fulfilled all at once.
So what does this mean? I find this answer to be even more interesting. If you are a Christian, then you believe Jesus fulfilled some of these prophecies. Meaning, the "Day of the Lord" has begun. Moreover, as a Christian you would believe we are currently living "In that day", and these Messianic prophecies are referring to us, now.
My grandparents on my mother's side were Jewish (both of lineage as well as practicing Jews). My mother is of Jewish lineage, and was brought up practicing Judaism. She converted to Christianity, and though I am of Jewish lineage (ultimately my ancestry leads back to Jacob, or, Israel) I was brought up under the Christian religion.
The Messianic prophecies of the Old Testament have really shaped the 3 major "Abrahamic" religions - Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. A major difference in each lies within interpretations of the Messianic prophecies. Why is this?
Basically, Christians believe the events recorded of Jesus fulfilled many of the Messianic prophecies, however many of the Messianic prophecies still have yet to be fulfilled. Christianity teaches that Jesus will return to fulfill the rest of the prophecies. Jews argue that the Old Testament prophets made no claims to separate comings. I personally see valid points to both views.
Let's view an example of a Messianic prophecy that appears to have been fulfilled: "I, the LORD, have called you in righteousness; I will take hold of your hand. I will keep you and will make you to be a covenant for the people and a light for the Gentiles" - Isaiah 42:6. This passage refers to the "Servant of the Lord" bringing knowledge of God to Gentiles (non-Jews). One must admit, the rise of Christianity after Constantine declared it the official religion of Rome certainly brought the God of the Hebrews out of obscurity and more available to the rest of the world than ever before.
Let's now look at an example of a Messianic prophecy has not yet been fulfilled: "In the last days ... Nation will not take up sword against nation, nor will they train anymore." - Isaiah 2:2-5. This passage refers to the "Messianic Age", when there will be peace, and no more war. One must admit, though Christians believe Jesus was the prophesied Messiah, war still exists today.
So this brings us to one of two roads: either Jesus was not the Messiah, or prophets were referring to separate and distinct times when these events would play out. The former being the stance of Judaism, the latter the stance of Christianity.
I believe where a lot of the confusion comes from is that Old Testament prophets prefix many of their prophecies with the phrase "In that day, ..." or "The day of the Lord". This would most certainly appear to be a reference to 1 specific point in time. Moreover, nowhere do the prophets specifically say that any of the events "In that day" will occur at different times. Of course, nor do they necessarily state that they won't either.
This being the case, I had always felt quite compelled by the case that Judaism makes - that Jesus could not have been the Messiah as not all of the prophecies were fulfilled in His time. Until I read one specific chapter of Isaiah that completely changed my mind. "See, the LORD is going to lay waste the earth and devastate it; he will ruin its face and scatter its inhabitants ... The earth will be completely laid waste and totally plundered." - Isaiah 24:1-3. "In that day the LORD will punish the powers in the heavens above and the kings on the earth below... The moon will be abashed, the sun ashamed" - Isaiah 24:21-23. Isaiah is prophesying here the annihilation of the Earth as we know it. In fact, neither the sun or moon will shine "In that day".
Now let me refer to another prophesy of Isaiah - one I wrote about a couple weeks ago - the destruction of Babylon. "See, the day of the LORD is coming —a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger— to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it. The stars of heaven and their constellations will not show their light. The rising sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light... Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms,the glory of the Babylonians’ pride, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations" - Isaiah 13:9-20. Again, as in the passage before, the sun and moon will no longer shine during the Day of the Lord. Adjacent to this passage is the prophecy of the destruction of Babylon.
Clearly, we can take as emperical fact that one prophecy has been fulfilled with striking accuracy (the complete destruction of Babylon), while the other has not (the destruction of Earth). Yet, while Isaiah does not specifically refer to the two prophecies as occuring in separate times, they in fact do. Thus in my opinion, Messianic prophecies need not necessarily be fulfilled all at once.
So what does this mean? I find this answer to be even more interesting. If you are a Christian, then you believe Jesus fulfilled some of these prophecies. Meaning, the "Day of the Lord" has begun. Moreover, as a Christian you would believe we are currently living "In that day", and these Messianic prophecies are referring to us, now.
Monday, February 26, 2007
Present-Day Prophecies - Isaiah and Babylon
In discussing religion with folks, sometimes the topic comes up of whether or not any Biblical prophecies are being fulfilled today, as we speak. I believe the answer is Yes. In fact, one Old Testament prophecy comes to mind that is simply irrefutable - the prophecy of the downfall of Babylon in Isaiah.
Isaiah began his ministry around 740 BC, and he lived until sometime around 681 BC. It is disputed as to whether he composed the entirety of the book that bears his name, as certain events place the 2nd half of the book at somewhere around 560 BC, however this is irrelevant concerning the prophecy of Babylon.
The earliest mention of Babylon dates back to the 24th century BC, in an Akkadian tablet. In Isaiah's time, Babylon was one of the largest (if not the largest) cities in the world - and was possibly the first city in the world to reach a population of 200,000. To put it in our perspective, we could equate Babylon to Tokyo or Los Angeles in terms of population.
In chapter 13, Isaiah announces the following prophecy: "Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, the glory of the Babylonians’ pride, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations". To me, this is a horribly bold statement. Not only will one of the largest cities in the world be destroyed, but never again in the history of the world will anyone live in it. This, put in today's perspective, would almost be equivalent to a statement that Tokyo or Los Angeles would soon not only be destroyed, but moreover never again to be inhabited.
In Isaiah's time, the most important event regarding this prophecy was Cyrus' invasion of Babylon in 539 BC. The Israelites were currently in exile and in quite despair. Cyrus freed the Israelites from bondage and allowed them to return to their home country. While he conquered Babylon, it remained an inhabitable city nonetheless. However in 330 AD, Alexander the Great completely destroyed the city, laying it to ruins. It has been uninhabited since.
In 1985, Saddam Hussein attempted to begin rebuilding the city ontop of the old ruins, inscribing the following on many of the bricks: "This was built by Saddam Hussein, son of Nebuchadnezzar, to glorify Iraq"a. His project was halted with the US invasion in 2003.
Isaiah's prophecy of the fall of one of the largest cities in the world was in fact exactly fulfilled, and is one that we can actually witness today. Whether you are religiously oriented or not, this is simply fact.
aNebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem in 587 BC and began the Babylonian deportation.
Isaiah began his ministry around 740 BC, and he lived until sometime around 681 BC. It is disputed as to whether he composed the entirety of the book that bears his name, as certain events place the 2nd half of the book at somewhere around 560 BC, however this is irrelevant concerning the prophecy of Babylon.
The earliest mention of Babylon dates back to the 24th century BC, in an Akkadian tablet. In Isaiah's time, Babylon was one of the largest (if not the largest) cities in the world - and was possibly the first city in the world to reach a population of 200,000. To put it in our perspective, we could equate Babylon to Tokyo or Los Angeles in terms of population.
In chapter 13, Isaiah announces the following prophecy: "Babylon, the jewel of kingdoms, the glory of the Babylonians’ pride, will be overthrown by God like Sodom and Gomorrah. She will never be inhabited or lived in through all generations". To me, this is a horribly bold statement. Not only will one of the largest cities in the world be destroyed, but never again in the history of the world will anyone live in it. This, put in today's perspective, would almost be equivalent to a statement that Tokyo or Los Angeles would soon not only be destroyed, but moreover never again to be inhabited.
In Isaiah's time, the most important event regarding this prophecy was Cyrus' invasion of Babylon in 539 BC. The Israelites were currently in exile and in quite despair. Cyrus freed the Israelites from bondage and allowed them to return to their home country. While he conquered Babylon, it remained an inhabitable city nonetheless. However in 330 AD, Alexander the Great completely destroyed the city, laying it to ruins. It has been uninhabited since.
In 1985, Saddam Hussein attempted to begin rebuilding the city ontop of the old ruins, inscribing the following on many of the bricks: "This was built by Saddam Hussein, son of Nebuchadnezzar, to glorify Iraq"a. His project was halted with the US invasion in 2003.
Isaiah's prophecy of the fall of one of the largest cities in the world was in fact exactly fulfilled, and is one that we can actually witness today. Whether you are religiously oriented or not, this is simply fact.
aNebuchadnezzar captured Jerusalem in 587 BC and began the Babylonian deportation.
Friday, February 16, 2007
The Bible and Mythology
In 2006 I decided to do something I'd always wanted to do in life - read the Bible from start to finish. I'd studied branches of science, astronomy, and physics for over a decade in efforts to answer certain philosophical questions, but felt like I came to the end of the road. I then decided to start a new journey in theology, as this was something I had done very little of up to that point and was curious what was on the other side of my search.
In my early readings through the Bible, I slowly became pestered by a nagging little voice in the back of my head that kept wondering why mythological references were made in the Bible. Psalms, Job, and Isaiaha all make reference to Leviathan (a mythical underwater creature that developed in other ancient near eastern cultures). The book of Jobb makes mention to Behemothc, possibly a mythical animal of powerful and large proportion. What did this mean? I finally fessed up to the nagging little voice and had to wonder - was Judaism simply an evolution of ancient near eastern mythology? The more I thought about this, the more similarities I saw in beliefs and practices between the two. Take the Ugaritic (a culture in the Canaanite region) religion for example. They believed in multiple gods - the "Chief" god El as the "Father of mankind", and Hadad as the god of heaven. Do some of these concepts sound familiar? The following question plagued me for the next few weeks of my life: Had I simply been reading man-made fables that evolved from some ancient near eastern towns?
In my early readings through the Bible, I slowly became pestered by a nagging little voice in the back of my head that kept wondering why mythological references were made in the Bible. Psalms, Job, and Isaiaha all make reference to Leviathan (a mythical underwater creature that developed in other ancient near eastern cultures). The book of Jobb makes mention to Behemothc, possibly a mythical animal of powerful and large proportion. What did this mean? I finally fessed up to the nagging little voice and had to wonder - was Judaism simply an evolution of ancient near eastern mythology? The more I thought about this, the more similarities I saw in beliefs and practices between the two. Take the Ugaritic (a culture in the Canaanite region) religion for example. They believed in multiple gods - the "Chief" god El as the "Father of mankind", and Hadad as the god of heaven. Do some of these concepts sound familiar? The following question plagued me for the next few weeks of my life: Had I simply been reading man-made fables that evolved from some ancient near eastern towns?
Read on.
In 2006 I visited the Mayan ruins in the Yucatan peninsula of Mexico. I learned about the ancient culture's customs, beliefs, practices, and religion. I viewed the altars where they offered sacrifices to their gods, burned blood, and burned incense. I viewed the public areas where their anointed priests taught to the congregation. I explored what I could of their half-excavated temples. As I viewed these areas and reviewed their practices, I noted a striking similarity to the practices of ancient Judaism. Temples for prayer, sacrificial ceremonies, anointed priests, burning blood on an altar, burning incense on an altar; the similarities go on and on. At an objective level, one must admit these practices are quite unique.
The Mayan civilization dates back to about 1800 BC. Judaism dates back to around 2000 BC. This is what really hit me on that cloudy day in the middle of a jungle in Mexico - two completely separate cultures, on completely opposite corners of the world, employing nearly identical practices at nearly the same time in history - with no way of communicating with each other. What's going on here?
It turns out very little was done regarding religious beliefs or practices in the Stone Age. Burials were observed, but that was about it. Folks didn't seem to worry too much about who or what to worship, what happened after death, etc. Usher in the Bronze Age - the abandoning of nomadic living, and the organization of villages and localization of shelter, food, and drink.
Here's where it gets interesting.
Imagine for a moment that I skidaddled over to my local WalMart, bought a globe of the earth and installed thousands of tiny light bulbs across each of the continents. Now suppose each tiny light bulb represents a society that holds religious beliefs and practices nearly identical to those I described of the Mayans, Ugarits, Hebrews, etc. Worshipping supernatural power(s) that created the universe, sacrificing to the supernatural power(s), burning blood and incense on altars of stone, praying in temples, etc. Basically when the Bronze Age begins, the little light bulbs on my WalMart globe illuminate nearly simultaneously. Societies all across the world seemed to act in a horribly similar manner in relation to religion, at basically the same time. And of course these societies are separated by thousands of miles - and by water - with no real way to communicate with each other.
So what does this mean? Perhaps it was merely a coincidence that thousands of societies all across the world began employing nearly identical religious beliefs and practices at nearly the same time in history - for the first time in history. However I'd like to see the Vegas odds on that one. I find the most logical and probable answer to be that all these beliefs and practices originated from one central source. The variations from culture to culture on an objective level are too slight to suggest otherwise.
Just what was that one central source? I'll let you be the judge. But I find this phenomenon deliciously curious, and hope that, if nothing else, it flicks a little lightbulb on in your own mind.
a Psalm 74:13-14, Job 41, Isaiah 27:1
b Job 40
c Some equate Behemoth with the hippopotamus
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