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ClarenceLarkin: Dispensational Truth XXII The Seven Churches
Dispensational Truth
XXII
The Seven Churches
The Book of Revelation was written in A. D. 96. The writer was the Apostle John. He was told to write the things which he "saw" and "heard." The Book therefore is a divinely given book, and is the "Revelation of Jesus Christ" (Rev. 1:1) and not of John. It is the most important and valuable prophetic book in the Bible. All through the Old Testament there are scattered references to things which are to come to pass in the "Last Days." The Book of Revelation reveals The Divine Program, or order, in which these events are to happen. It is the Book of Consummation and its proper place in the sacred canon is where it is placed, at the end of the Bible. The Book is full of "action." Earth and heaven are brought near together. The clouds roll away, thrones, elders, and angelic forms are seen; harps, trumpets, cries from disembodied souls, and choruses of song are heard. Earth touches heaven, and alas it touches hell also. There are strong moral contracts. Good and evil meet. There is no blending, but sharp contrasts, and a long protracted conflict that ends in victory for the good.
The Book is addressed to the "seven churches which are in Asia." By Asia is not meant the great Continent of Asia, or even the whole of Asia Minor, but only its western end. Neither were the seven churches named the only churches in that district, for there were at least three other churches: Colosse,Col. 1:2; Hierapolis, Col. 4:13; and Troas, Acts 20:6, Acts 20:7. These Seven Churches then must be representative or "typical" churches, chosen for -certain characteristics typical of the character of the Church of Christ from the end of the First Century down to the time of Christ's return for His Church, and descriptive of
Seven Church Periods clearly defined in Church History.
John when he received his message was a prisoner on the Isle of Patmos. He heard behind him a "great voice, " as of a trumpet, and when he turned he saw "Seven Golden Candlesticks, " and standing in their midst one like unto the "Son of Man, " who held in His right hand "Seven Stars." He was told that the "Seven Stars" were the "Angels" (Ministers or Messengers) of the Seven Churches, and the "Seven Candlesticks" represented the Seven Churches. "Lampstand" is a better translation for the word "Candlestick, " and is so given in the margin of our Bibles. A "Candlestick" requires a light which is self-consuming, while a "Lampstand" is simply the "Holder" of a lamp whose light is fed from a reservoir of oil, thus typifying the oil of the Holy Spirit. Thus Christ looks upon the churches as not the Light, but simply the "Light Holder." 'the use of the figures "Lampstands" and "Stars, " which are only for service in the night, indicates that we are living in the "Night" of this Age.
The "Key" to the interpretation of the Book of Revelation is its "Threefold Division." Rev. 1:19.
I. Things Past.
"The Things Which Thou Hast SEEN."
The Vision of Christ in the midst of the "Lampstands." Chapter one.
II. Things Present.
"The Things Which ARE."
Obviously the Seven Churches. Chapters two and three. John was not far from 100 years old, and the only remaining Apostle. The Temple and city of Jerusalem had been destroyed, and the Jews dispersed 26 years before, and John's attention was called to the condition of the "Seven" representative churches of Asia.
III.Things Future.
"The Things Which SHALL BE HEREAFTER."
Beginning with the fourth chapter unto the end of the Book. Rev. 4:1.
It is worthy of note that the "Messages to the Seven Churches" are inserted between Two Visions, the"Vision of Christ" in the midst of the "Seven Lampstands" in chapter one, and the "Vision of the Four and Twenty Elders" round about the Throne, in chapter four.
As chapter four is a vision of the "Glorified Church" with the Lord, after it has been caught out (1Thes. 4:13-15), then the Second Division of the Book-
"The Things Which Are, "
and which includes chapters two and three, must be a description or prophetic outline of the "Spiritual History" of the Church from the time when John wrote the Book in A. D. 96, down to the taking out of the Church, or else we have no "prophetic view" of the Church during that period, for she disappears from the earth at the close of chapter three, and is not seen again until she reappears with her Lord in chapter nineteen. This we shall find to be the case.
This interpretation of the "Messages to the Seven Churches" was hidden to the early Church, because time was required for Church History to develop and be written, so a comparison could be made to reveal the correspondence. If it had been clearly revealed that the Seven Churches stood for "Seven Church Periods" that would have to elapse before Christ could come back, the incentive to watch would have been absent.
While the character of these Seven Churches is descriptive of the Church during seven periods of her history, we must not forget that the condition of those churches, as described, were their exact condition in John's day. So we see that at the close of the First Century the leaven of "False Doctrine" was at work in the Churches. The churches are given in the order named, because the peculiar characteristic of that Church applied to the period of Church History to which it is assigned. It also must not be forgotten, that, that which is a distinctive characteristic of each Church Period, does not disappear with that Period, but continues on down through the next Period, and so on until the end, thus increasing the imperfections of the visible Church, until it ends in an open Apostasy, as shown on the chart "The Messages to the Seven Churches Compared with Church History."
The Seven Churches
The Messages to the Seven Churches
(Small Version)
We will now consider each message separately.
1. The Message to the Church at EPHESUS. Rev. 2:1-3.
The complaint that Christ makes against this Church is that it "had left its First Love." Its character is seen in its very name, for Ephesus means to "let go...... to relax." It had become a Backslidden Church.Paul, who founded it, warned it of what should happen, in his parting message.
"I know this, that after my departing shall grievous 'wolves' enter in among you, not sparing the flock. Also of your own selves shall men arise, 'speaking perverse things, ' to draw away disciples after them." Acts 20:29, Acts 20:30.
The significance of this warning is seen in the commendation of the Message, vs. 6-"But this thou hast, that thou 'hatest' the deeds of the Nicolaitanes which I also hate." Here Paul's "wolves" are called Nicolaitanes. They were not a sect, but a party in the Church who were trying to establish a "Priestly Order." Probably trying to model the Church after the Old Testament order of Priests, Levites, and common people. This is seen in the meaning of the word, which is from "Niko" to conquer, to overthrow, and "Laos" the people or laity. The object was to establish a "Holy Order of Men, " and place them over the laity, which was foreign to the New Testament plan, and call them not pastors, but-Clergy, Bishops, Archbishops, Cardinals, Popes. Here we have the origin of the dogma of "Apostolic Succession, " and the separation of the Clergy from the Laity, a thing that God "hates." The Church at Ephesus was not deceived, but recognized them as false apostles and liars.
The character of the Church at Ephesus is a fair outline of the Church Period from A. D. 70 to A. D. 170.
II. The Message to the Church at Smyrna. Rev. 2:8-10.
The Church in its "Ephesian Period" having lost its "First Love, " the Lord is now about to "chastise" it, so as to cause it to return to Him. Smyrna has for its root meaning "bitterness, " and means "Myrrh, " an ointment associated with death, and we see in the meaning of the word a prophecy of the persecution and death which was to befall the members of the Smyrna Church. They were told not to "fear" the things that they should be called on to suffer, but to be faithful "unto" death, not "until" death. That is, not until the end of their "natural" life, they were not to "recant" when called upon to face a Martyr's death, but remain faithful until death relieved them of their suffering. The reward would be a "Crown of Life." This is the Martyr's crown.
They were told that the "author" of their suffering would be the Devil, and its duration would be "ten days, " which was doubtless a prophetic reference to the "Ten Great Persecutions" under the Roman Emperors, beginning with Nero, A. D. 64, and ending with Diocletian in A. D. 310. Seven of these "Great Persecutions" occurred during this "Smyrna Period" of Church History. Or it may refer to the 10 years of the last and fiercest persecution under Diocletian. This Period extended from A. D. 170 to Constantine A. D. 312.
III. The Message to the Church at Pergamos. Rev. 2:12-14.
In this Message Pergamos is spoken of as "Satan's Seat." When Attalus III, the Priest-King of the Chaldean Hierarchy, fled before the conquering Persians to Pergamos, and settled there, Satan shifted his capital from Babylon to Pergamos. At first he persecuted the followers of Christ, and Antipas was one of the martyrs. But soon he changed his tactics and began to exalt the Church, and through Constantine united the Church and State, and offered all kinds of inducements for worldly people to come into the Church. Constantine's motive was more political than religious. He wished to weld his Christian and Pagan subjects into one people, and so consolidate his Empire. The result of this union was that two false and. pernicious doctrines crept into the Church. The first was the "Doctrine of Balaam, " and the second the "Doctrine of the Nicolaitanes." The latter we have already considered under the Message to the Church at Ephesus. And the foothold it had secured in the Church was seen in the First Great Council of the Church held at Nicaea, in A. D. 325. The Council was composed of about 1500 delegates, the laymen outnumbering the Bishops 5 to 1. It was a stormy council , full of intrigue and political methods, and from the supremacy of the "Clergy" over the "Laity" it was evident that the "Doctrine of the Nicolaitanes" had secured a strong and permanent foothold.
The "Doctrine of Balaam" is disclosed in the story of Balaam found in the Book of Numbers, chapters 22 to 25 inclusive. When the Children of Israel on their way to Canaan had reached the land of Moab, Balak the king of Moab sent for Balaam the Son of Beor, who lived at Pethor on the river Euphrates, to come and curse them. When the Lord would not permit Balaam to curse Israel, he suggested to Balak that he invite them to the licentious feasts of "Baal-Peor, " and thus cause Israel to fall into a snare that would so anger the Lord, that he would Himself destroy them. This Balak did, and the result was that when the men of Israel went to those sensual feasts and saw the "daughters of Moab" they committed whoredoms with them, which so kindled God's anger that He sent a plague that destroyed 42, 000 of them. Now the word "Pergamos" means "Marriage, " and when the Church entered into a union with the State it was guilty of "Spiritual Fornication" or "Balaamism." The "Balaam Method" that Constantine employed was to give to the Bishops of the Church a number of imposing buildings called Basilicas for conversion into churches, for whose decoration he was lavish in the gift of money. He also supplied superb vestments for the clergy, and soon the Bishop found himself clad in costly vestments, seated on a lofty throne in the apse of the Basilica, with a marble altar, adorned with gold and gems, on a lower level in front of him. A sensuous form of worship was introduced, the character of the preaching was changed, and the great "Pagan Festivals" were adopted, with but little alteration, to please the Pagan members of the church, and attract Pagans to the church. For illustration, as the Winter Solstice falls on the 21st day of December, which is the shortest day in the year, and it is not until the 25th that the day begins to lengthen, which day was regarded throughout the Heathen world as the "birthday" of the "Sun-God, " and was a high festival, which was celebrated at Rome by the "Great Games" of the Circus, it was found advisable to change the Birthday of the Son of God, from April, at which time He was probably born, to December 25th, because as He was the "Sun of Righteousness, " what more appropriate birthday could He have than the birthday of the Pagan "Sun-God"?
It was at this time that
"Post-Millennial Views"
had their origin. As the Church had become rich and powerful, it was suggested that by the union of Church and State a condition of affairs would develop that would usher in the Millennium without the return of Christ, and since some scriptural support was needed for such a doctrine, it was claimed that the Jews had been cast off "forever, " and that all the prophecies of Israel's future glory were intended for the Church. This "Period" extends from the accession of Constantine, A. D. 312 to A. D. 606, when Boniface III was crowned "Universal Bishop."
IV. The Message to the Church at Thyatira. Rev. 2:18-20.
In His commendation of this Church, Christ lays the emphasis on their "works, " as if they depended on them, and claimed they deserved merit for "works" of "Supererogation." But He had a complaint to make against them that was terrible in its awfulness. He charges them not merely with permitting a bad woman, Jezebel, who called herself a "Prophetess, " to remain in the Church, but with permitting her to "teach" her pernicious doctrines, and to "seduce" the servants to "commit fornication, " and to "eat things sacrificed to idols."
Who this woman was is a question. She was a "pretender, and called herself a "prophetess." Probably she was of noble lineage. She certainly was a woman of commanding influence. Whether her real name was Jezebel or not, she was so like her prototype in the Old Testament, Jezebel the wife of Ahab, that Christ called her by that name. Jezebel, the wife of Ahab, was not by birth a daughter of Abraham, but a princess of idolatrous Tyre, at a time, too, when its royal family was famed for cruel savagery and intense devotion to Baal and Astarte. Her father, Eth-baal, a priest of the latter deity, murdered the reigning monarch Phales, and succeeded him. Ahab, king of Israel, to strengthen his kingdom, married Jezebel, and she, aided and abetted by Ahab, introduced the licentious worship of Baal into Israel, and killed all the prophets of the Lord she could lay her hands on. And this influence she exercised, not only while her husband was alive but also during the reign of her two sons, Ahaziah and Jehoram. More daughter Athaliah to Jehoram, son of Jehoshoaphat introduced idolatrous worship into Judah, and it was not long before a house of Baal built in Jerusalem, and so Jezebel caused all Israel to sin after the sin of Jeroboam the e son of Nebat. 1Kings 16:29-31.
There is no question that whether Jezebel was a real person or not, she typified a System" and that "System" was the "Papal Church." When the "Papal Church" introduced images and pictures into its churches for the people to bow down to it became idolatrous. And when it set up its claim that the teaching of the Church is superior to the Word of God, it assumed the role of "Prophetess." A careful study of the "Papal System" from A. D. 606 to the Reformation A. D. 1520, with its institution of the "Sacrifice of the Mass" and other Pagan rites, reveals in it the sway of "Jezebelism." It was also a period of "Jezebelistic Persecution, " as seen in the wars of the Crusades, and the rise of the Inquisition. A careful comparison of this "Message" with the Parable of "The Leaven, " (see the chapter on "The Kingdom"), will reveal the wonderful correspondence between the two, the "Jezebel" of the Church of Thyatira, being the "Woman" of the Parable, who inserted the "Leaven" of "False Doctrine" into the Meal of the Gospel. This Period extended from A. D. 606 to the Reformation A. D. 1520.
V. The Message to the Church at Sardis. Rev. 3:1-3.
The Church at Sardis was called a "Dead Church" though it had a name to live. That is, it was a "Formalistic Church, " a church given over to "formal" or "ritualistic" worship. It had the "Form of Godliness without the power." The meaning of the word "Sardis" is the "escaping one, " or those who "come out" and so it is an excellent type of the Church of the
Reformation Period.
By the Reformation we mean that period in the history of the Christian Church when Martin Luther and a number of other reformers protested against the false teaching, tyranny and claims of the Papal Church.
This Period began about A. D. 1500. The condition of affairs in the realm dominated by the Papal Church became intolerable, and came to a crisis when Martin Luther on October 31, 1517 A. D., nailed his 95 Theses on the church door at Wittenberg, Germany. From that date the Reformation set in. But it was more a struggle for political liberty, than a purely Christian or religious movement.
It had the advantage of encouraging and aiding the circulation of the Holy Scriptures, that had hitherto been a sealed book, the revival of the Doctrine of "Justification by Faith, " and a reversion to more simple modes of worship, - but the multiplication of sects only led to bitter controversial contentions, that, while they threw much light on the Word of God, interfered greatly with the spiritual state of the Church, until it could truthfully be said, "That she had a name to live and was dead."
While the reformers swept away much ritualistic and doctrinal rubbish they failed to recover the promise of the Second Advent. They turned to God from idols, but not to "wait for His Son from the Heavens." The "Sardis Period" extended from A. D. 1520 to about A. D. 1750.
VI. The Message to the Church at Philadelphia. Rev. 3:7-9.
There is no question about the meaning of the word Philadelphia. It means "Brotherly Love, " and well describes the charity and brotherly fellowship that dissipated the bitter personal animosities that characterized the theological disputants of the "Sardis Period, " and made possible the evangelistic and missionary labors of the past 150 years.
Three things are said of this Church.
1. It had a "little strength." It was like a person coming back to life who was still very weak. It was the "dead" Sardis Church "revived, " and Revivals have been characteristic of the Philadelphia Period. These Revivals began with George Whitefield in A. D. 1739, followed by John Wesley, Charles G. Finney and D. L. Moody.
2. It had set before it an "open door, " that no "man" could shut. Note that this promise was made by Him, who "hath the 'Key of David, ' He that 'openeth' and no mail shutteth; and 'shutteth' and no man openeth." In 1793 William Carey sailed for India, where he found an "open door, " and since then the Lord has opened the door into China, Japan, Korea, India, Africa and the isles of the sea, until there is not a country in the world where the missionary cannot go.
3. It was to be kept from the "hour of temptation" (Tribulation), that shall come upon all the world. As the Church at Philadelphia is still in existence, and the only one of the seven that has survived, and while it suffered more or less under the "Ten Persecutions" of the "Smyrna Period, " it has never yet suffered in a persecution that was world-wide. This "hour of temptation" then must be still future and refers doubtless to the "Great Tribulation " that is to come upon the "whole world, " ' just before the return of the Lord to set up His Millennial Kingdom, and as the promise is that the "Philadelphia Church" shall not pass through the Tribulation, is not this additional proof that the Church shall be "caught out" before the Tribulation?
The "Philadelphia Period" covers the time between A. D. 1750 and A. D. 1900. We must not forget that the characteristics of all these Periods continue on in the Church down to the end. This is true of the Evangelistic and Missionary movements of the "Philadelphia Period, " but they are now more mechanical and based on business methods, and there is less spiritual power, and this will continue until Christ returns.
VII. The Message to the Church at Laodicea. Rev. 3:14-16.
Christ has no "commendation" for this Church, but much to complain of. He says-
"I know thy works, that thou art neither cold or hot; I would thou wert cold or hot. So then, because thou art lukewarm, and neither cold or hot, I will spue thee out of my mouth."
There is nothing more disgusting or nauseating than "tepid" water. So there is nothing more repugnant to Christ than a "tepid" church. He would rather have a church "frozen" or "boiling." It was the "chilly spiritual atmosphere" of the Church of England that drove John Wesley to start those outside meetings which became so noted for their "religious fervor, " and it was the same "chilly atmosphere" of the Methodist Church that drove William Booth in turn to become a "Red-hot" Salvationist.
Our churches today are largely in this "lukewarm" condition. There is very little of warm-hearted spirituality. There is much going on in them, but it is largely mechanical and of a social character. Committees, societies, and clubs are multiplied, but there is an absence of "spiritual heat." Revival meetings are held, but instead of waiting on the Lord for power, evangelists and paid singers are hired and soul winning is made a business
The cause of this "lukewarmness" is the same as that of the Church of Laodicea-Self-Deception.
"Because thou sayest I am rich, and increased with goods, and have need of nothing; and knowest not that thou art wretched, and miserable, and poor, and blind and naked."
They thought they were rich, and outwardly they were, but Christ saw the poverty of their heart. There are many such churches in the world today. More so than in any other period in the history of the church. Many of these churches have Cathedral-like buildings, stained glass windows, eloquent preachers, paid singers, large congregations. Some of them have large landed interests and are well endowed, and yet they are poor. Many of the members, if not the majority, are worldly, card playing, dancing, and theatre going Christians. The poor and the saintly are not wanted in such churches because their presence is a rebuke. These churches do not see that they are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked.
If we were to visit such churches they would take pride in showing us the building, they would praise the preaching and singing, they would boast of the character of their congregations, the exclusiveness of their membership, and the attractiveness of all their services, but if we suggested a series of meetings for the "deepening of the Spiritual Life, " or the "conversion of the unsaved, " they would say-"Oh, no, we do not want such meetings, we have need of nothing." The Church at Laodicea was not burdened withdebt, but it was burdened with WEALTH.
The trouble with the church today is that it thinks that nothing can be done without money, and that if we only had the money the world would be converted in this generation. The world is not to be converted by money, but by the Spirit of God.
The trouble with the Church of Laodicea was that its "Gold', was not of the right kind, and so it was counseled to buy of the Lord "gold tried in the fire." What kind of gold is that? It-is gold that has notaint upon it. Gold that is not cankered, or secured by fraud, or the withholding of a just wage. What a description we have of these Laodicean days in James 5:1-3.
But the Church of Laodicea was not only poor, though rich, it was blind. Or to put it more accurately-"Near-Sighted." They could see their worldly prosperity, but were "Short-Sighted" as to heavenly things, so the Lord counseled them to anoint their eyes with "EyeSalve." Their merchants dealt in ointments and herbs of a high degree of healing virtue, but they possessed no salve that would restoreimpaired Spiritual Vision, only the Unction of the Holy One could do that.
But the Church was not only poor, and blind, it was naked. Their outward garments were doubtless of the finest material and the latest fashionable cut, but not such as should adorn the person of a Child of God. So they were counseled to purchase of Christ "White Raiment, " in exchange for the "raven black woolen" garments for which the garment makers of Laodicea were famous.
Then a most startling revelation was made to the Church of Laodicea, Christ said-
"Behold, I Stand at the Door and Knock."
These words are generally quoted as an appeal to sinners, but they are not, they are addressed to aChurch, and to a Church in whose midst Christ had once stood, but now found Himself excluded and standing outside knocking for admittance.
This is the most startling thing recorded in the New Testament, that it is possible for a church to be outwardly prosperous and yet have no Christ in its midst, and be unconscious of the fact. This is a description of a Christless Church. Oh, the
EXCLUDED CHRIST.
Excluded from His own nation, for they Rejected Him; excluded from the world, for it Crucified Him; excluded from His Church, for He stands outside its door Knocking for Entrance.
How did Christ come to be outside the Church? He had been within it once or there never would have beena Church. How did He come to leave? It is clear that they had not thrust Him out, for they do not seem to have missed His presence. They continued to worship Him, to sing His praises, and engage in all manner of Christian service, yet He had withdrawn. Why? The reason is summed up in one word-Worldliness.
But how is Christ to get back into His Church? Does it require the unanimous vote or invitation of the membership? No. "If any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to Him, and will sup with him, and he with Me." That is, the way to revive a lukewarm church is for the individual members to open their hearts and let Christ re-enter, and thus open the door for His reappearance.
The character of the Church today is Laodicean, and as the Laodicean Period is to continue until the Church of the "New-Born" is taken out, we cannot hope for any great change until the Lord comes back.
"If Christ should come today,
I'll not be here tomorrow;
He'll take His ransomed ones away
From death and sin and sorrow.
In the 'Midair He'll come
To call His loved ones home,
To take them to the 'place prepared, '
As He, before He left, declared."
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ClarenceLarkin: Dispensational Truth XXI The Four Gospels
Dispensational Truth
XXI
The Four Gospels
The word "Gospel" means "Good News, " and is so familiar that its application is supposed to be uniform. When, therefore, we read of
The Gospel of the KINGDOM,
The Gospel of the GRACE OF GOD,
The GLORIOUS GOSPEL, and
The EVERLASTING GOSPEL,
it is taken for granted that they all refer to one and the same thing. But this is not true.
1. THE GOSPEL OF "THE KINGDOM."
This is the "Good News" that God purposes to set up a Kingdom on this earth over which David's Son,JESUS, shall reign, as prophesied in Luke 1:32-33. Two preachings of this Gospel are mentioned, one past, beginning with the ministry of John the Baptist, and preached by Jesus and His Disciples, but it ended with the rejection of Jesus as King. This Gospel is to be preached again after the Church is taken out. It will be the fulfillment of Matt. 24:14, where it says: "This Gospel of 'THE KINGDOM' shall be preached in all the world for a WITNESS unto all nations; and then shall the end come." This has no reference to the Gospel that is now being preached to the nations. It is the Gospel of SALVATION, but the "Gospel of the Kingdom" is not for "Salvation" but for a WITNESS, that is, it is the announcement that the time has come to SET UP THE KINGDOM. It will be preached first by Elijah the forerunner (Mal. 4:5-6), and by others who shall be commissioned to bear the news to all nations as a proclamation of the coming of Christ as King to occupy the "Throne of David, " and for the purpose of regathering Israel to the Promised Land.
2. THE GOSPEL OF "THE GRACE OF GOD."
This is the "Good News" that Jesus Christ, the rejected King, died on the Cross for our SALVATION. This form of the Gospel is described in many ways. It is called the "GOSPEL OF GOD" (Rom. 1:1), because it has its source in the LOVE OF GOD. John 3:16. Its Character is GRACE. Acts 20:24. Its Subject isCHRIST (Rom. 1:16; 2Cor. 10:14), and it is the POWER OF GOD UNTO SALVATION. And it is the"GOSPEL OF PEACE, " because it makes peace between the sinner and God, and brings peace to the soul. Eph. 6; 15,
3. THE "GLORIOUS" GOSPEL.
2Cor. 4:4. 1Tim. 1:1 1Tim. 1:1.
The "GLORIOUS GOSPEL" is that phase of the Gospel of "The Grace of God" that speaks of Him who is in the GLORY, and has been GLORIFIED, and who is bringing many sons TO GLORY. Heb. 2:10. It has special reference to His Second Coming, and is especially comforting to those who are looking for HisGLORIOUS APPEARING (Titus 2:13), and it is to this Gospel that Satan, the "God of this Age, " is particularly anxious to "blind the minds" of those who believe not in the Pre-Millennial coming of the Lord. 2Cor. 4:3-4.
4. THE EVERLASTING GOSPEL.
This Gospel will be proclaimed just before the "Vial judgments, " and by an angel. It is the only Gospel committed to an angel. It is neither the Gospel of the "Kingdom, " nor of "Grace." Its burden is notSALVATION but JUDGMENT-"Fear God, and give glory to Him; for the HOUR OF HIS JUDGMENT IS COME."
It is "Good News" to Israel, and all who are passing through the "fires of judgment, " because it declares that their troubles will soon end in the judgment and Destruction of Antichrist and his followers.
It calls on men to worship God as "CREATOR, " and not as "Saviour" and so it is called in the Revised version-"THE ETERNAL GOSPEL, " the Gospel that has been proclaimed from Eden down by Patriarchs and Prophets, and not an "Everlasting Gospel" in the sense that it saves men for all eternity. Its burden is not "Repent, " or "do this" or "do that, " but--"FEAR GOD, and giveGLORY TO HIM; for the HOUR OF HIS JUDGMENT IS COME; and WORSHIP HIM THAT MADE HEAVEN, AND EARTH, AND THE SEA, AND THE FOUNTAINS OF WATERS."From this we see how important it is to distinguish between the various Gospels, not only as to their message, but the period to which they apply, otherwise there will be confusion and false teaching.
The Four Gospels
When The New Testament Books Were Written
There is also "ANOTHER GOSPEL" (Gal. 1:6-8, 2Cor. 11:4), which is not another, and which Paul repudiated. It is a perversion of the true Gospel and has many seductive forms ', and in the main teaches that "FAITH" is NOT SUFFICIENT to Salvation, nor able to keep and perfect, and so emphasizes "GOOD WORKS." Col. 2:18-20, Heb. 6:1, Heb. 9:14. The Apostle Paul pronounces a fearful "Anathema" upon its preachers and teachers. Gal. 1:8-9.
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TWOBABYLONS: Chapter II Section II Sub-Section III The Child in Greece
Alexander Hislop
Chapter II
Section II
Sub-Section III
The Child in Greece
Thus much for Egypt. Coming into Greece, not only do we find evidence there to the same effect, but increase of that evidence. The god worshipped as a child in the arms of the great Mother in Greece, under the names of Dionysus, or Bacchus, or Iacchus, is, by ancient inquirers, expressly identified with the Egyptian Osiris. This is the case with Herodotus, who had prosecuted his inquiries in Egypt itself, who ever speaks of Osiris as Bacchus. To the same purpose is the testimony of Diodorus Siculus. "Orpheus," says he, "introduced from Egypt the greatest part of the mystical ceremonies, the orgies that celebrate the wanderings of Ceres, and the whole fable of the shades below. The rites of Osiris and Bacchus are the same; those of Isis and Ceres exactly resemble each other, except in name." Now, as if to identify Bacchus with Nimrod, "the Leopard-tamer," leopards were employed to draw his car; he himself was represented as clothed with a leopard's skin; his priests were attired in the same manner, or when a leopard's skin was dispensed with, the spotted skin of a fawn was used as a priestly robe in its stead. This very custom of wearing the spotted fawn-skin seems to have been imported into Greece originally from Assyria, where a spotted fawn was a sacred emblem, as we learn from the Nineveh sculptures; for there we find a divinity bearing a spotted fawn or spotted fallow-deer, in his arm, as a symbol of some mysterious import. The origin of the importance attached to the spotted fawn and its skin had evidently come thus: When Nimrod, as "the Leopard-tamer," began to be clothed in the leopard-skin, as the trophy of his skill, his spotted dress and appearance must have impressed the imaginations of those who saw him; and he came to be called not only the "Subduer of the Spotted one" (for such is the precise meaning of Nimr--the name of the leopard), but to be called "The spotted one" himself. We have distinct evidence to this effect borne by Damascius, who tells us that the Babylonians called "the only son" of the great goddess-mother "Momis, or Moumis." Now, Momis, or Moumis, in Chaldee, like Nimr, signified "The spotted one." Thus, then, it became easy to represent Nimrod by the symbol of the "spotted fawn," and especially in Greece, and wherever a pronunciation akin to that of Greece prevailed. The name of Nimrod, as known to the Greeks, was Nebrod. * The name of the fawn, as "the spotted one," in Greece was Nebros; ** and thus nothing could be more natural than that Nebros, the "spotted fawn," should become a synonym for Nebrod himself. When, therefore, the Bacchus of Greece was symbolised by the Nebros, or "spotted fawn," as we shall find he was symbolised, what could be the design but just covertly to identify him with Nimrod?
* In the Greek Septuagint, translated in Egypt, the name of Nimrod is "Nebrod."** Nebros, the name of the fawn, signifies "the spotted one." Nmr, in Egypt, would also become Nbr; for Bunsen shows that m and b in that land were often convertible.
We have evidence that this god, whose emblem was the Nebros, was known as having the very lineage of Nimrod. From Anacreon, we find that a title of Bacchus was Aithiopais--i.e., "the son of Aethiops." But who was Aethiops? As the Aethiopians were Cushites, so Aethiops was Cush. "Chus," says Eusebius, "was he from whom came the Aethiopians." The testimony of Josephus is to the same effect. As the father of the Aethiopians, Cush was Aethiops, by way of eminence. Therefore Epiphanius, referring to the extraction of Nimrod, thus speaks: "Nimrod, the son of Cush, the Aethiop." Now, as Bacchus was the son of Aethiops, or Cush, so to the eye he was represented in that character. As Nin "the Son," he was portrayed as a youth or child; and that youth or child was generally depicted with a cup in his hand. That cup, to the multitude, exhibited him as the god of drunken revelry; and of such revelry in his orgies, no doubt there was abundance; but yet, after all, the cup was mainly a hieroglyphic, and that of the name of the god. The name of a cup, in the sacred language, was khus, and thus the cup in the hand of the youthful Bacchus, the son of Aethiops, showed that he was the young Chus, or the son of Chus. In a woodcut, the cup in the right hand of Bacchus is held up in so significant a way, as naturally to suggest that it must be a symbol; and as to the branch in the other hand, we have express testimony that it is a symbol. But it is worthy of notice that the branch has no leaves to determine what precise kind of a branch it is. It must, therefore, be a generic emblem for a branch, or a symbol of a branch in general; and, consequently, it needs the cup as its complement, to determine specifically what sort of a branch it is. The two symbols, then, must be read together, and read thus, they are just equivalent to--the "Branch of Chus"--i.e., "the scion or son of Cush." *
* Everyone knows that Homer's odzos Areos, or "Branch of Mars," is the same as a "Son of Mars." The hieroglyphic above was evidently formed on the same principle. That the cup alone in the hand of the youthful Bacchus was intended to designate him "as the young Chus," or "the boy Chus," we may fairly conclude from a statement of Pausanias, in which he represents "the boy Kuathos" as acting the part of a cup-bearer, and presenting a cup to Hercules (PAUSANIAS Corinthiaca) Kuathos is the Greek for a "cup," and is evidently derived from the Hebrew Khus, "a cup," which, in one of its Chaldee forms, becomes Khuth or Khuath. Now, it is well known that the name of Cush is often found in the form of Cuth, and that name, in certain dialects, would be Cuath. The "boy Kuathos," then, is just the Greek form of the "boy Cush," or "the young Cush."
There is another hieroglyphic connected with Bacchus that goes not a little to confirm this--that is, the Ivy branch. No emblem was more distinctive of the worship of Bacchus than this. Wherever the rites of Bacchus were performed, wherever his orgies were celebrated, the Ivy branch was sure to appear. Ivy, in some form or other, was essential to these celebrations. The votaries carried it in their hands, bound it around their heads, or had the Ivy leaf even indelibly stamped upon their persons. What could be the use, what could be the meaning of this? A few words will suffice to show it. In the first place, then, we have evidence that Kissos, the Greek name for Ivy, was one of the names of Bacchus; and further, that though the name of Cush, in its proper form, was known to the priests in the Mysteries, yet that the established way in which the name of his descendants, the Cushites, was ordinarily pronounced in Greece, was not after the Oriental fashion, but as "Kissaioi," or "Kissioi." Thus, Strabo, speaking of the inhabitants of Susa, who were the people of Chusistan, or the ancient land of Cush, says: "The Susians are called Kissioi," * --that is beyond all question, Cushites.
* STRABO. In Hesychius, the name is Kissaioi. The epithet applied to the land of Cush in Aeschylus is Kissinos. The above accounts for one of the unexplained titles of Apollo. "Kisseus Apollon" is plainly "The Cushite Apollo."
Now, if Kissioi be Cushites, then Kissos is Cush. Then, further, the branch of Ivy that occupied so conspicuous a place in all Bacchanalian celebrations was an express symbol of Bacchus himself; for Hesychius assures us that Bacchus, as represented by his priest, was known in the Mysteries as "The branch." From this, then, it appears how Kissos, the Greek name of Ivy, became the name of Bacchus. As the son of Cush, and as identified with him, he was sometimes called by his father's name--Kissos. His actual relation, however, to his father was specifically brought out by the Ivy branch, for "the branch of Kissos," which to the profane vulgar was only "the branch of Ivy," was to the initiated "The branch of Cush." *
* The chaplet, or head-band of Ivy, had evidently a similar hieroglyphical meaning to the above, for the Greek "Zeira Kissou" is either a "band or circlet of Ivy," or "The seed of Cush." The formation of the Greek "Zeira," a zone or enclosing band, from the Chaldee Zer, to encompass, shows that Zero "the seed," which was also pronounced Zeraa, would, in like manner, in some Greek dialects, become Zeira. Kissos, "Ivy," in Greek, retains the radical idea of the Chaldee Khesha or Khesa, "to cover or hide," from which there is reason to believe the name of Cush is derived, for Ivy is characteristically "The coverer or hider." In connection with this, it may be stated that the second person of the Phoenician trinity was Chursorus (WILKINSON), which evidently is Chus-zoro, "The seed of Cush." We have already seen that the Phoenicians derived their mythology from Assyria.
Now, this god, who was recognised as "the scion of Cush," was worshipped under a name, which, while appropriate to him in his vulgar character as the god of the vintage, did also describe him as the great Fortifier. That name was Bassareus, which, in its two-fold meaning, signified at once "The houser of grapes, or the vintage gatherer," and "The Encompasser with a wall," * in this latter sense identifying the Grecian god with the Egyptian Osiris, "the strong chief of the buildings," and with the Assyrian "Belus, who encompassed Babylon with a wall."
* Bassareus is evidently from the Chaldee Batzar, to which both Gesenius and Parkhurst give the two-fold meaning of "gathering in grapes," and "fortifying." Batzar is softened into Bazzar in the very same way as Nebuchadnetzar is pronounced Nebuchadnezzar. In the sense of "rendering a defence inaccessible," Gesenius adduces Jeremiah 51:53, "Though Babylon should mount up to heaven, and though she should fortify (tabatzar) the height of her strength, yet from me shall spoilers come unto her, saith the Lord." Here is evident reference to the two great elements in Babylon's strength, first her tower; secondly, her massive fortifications, or encompassing walls. In making the meaning of Batzar to be, "to render inaccessible," Gesenius seems to have missed the proper generic meaning of the term. Batzar is a compound verb, from Ba, "in," and Tzar, "to compass," exactly equivalent to our English word "en-compass."
Thus from Assyria, Egypt, and Greece, we have cumulative and overwhelming evidence, all conspiring to demonstrate that the child worshipped in the arms of the goddess-mother in all these countries in the very character of Ninus or Nin, "The Son," was Nimrod, the son of Cush. A feature here, or an incident there, may have been borrowed from some succeeding hero; but it seems impossible to doubt, that of that child Nimrod was the prototype, the grand original.
The amazing extent of the worship of this man indicates something very extraordinary in his character; and there is ample reason to believe, that in his own day he was an object of high popularity. Though by setting up as king, Nimrod invaded the patriarchal system, and abridged the liberties of mankind, yet he was held by many to have conferred benefits upon them, that amply indemnified them for the loss of their liberties, and covered him with glory and renown. By the time that he appeared, the wild beasts of the forest multiplying more rapidly than the human race, must have committed great depredations on the scattered and straggling populations of the earth, and must have inspired great terror into the minds of men. The danger arising to the lives of men from such a source as this, when population is scanty, is implied in the reason given by God Himself for not driving out the doomed Canaanites before Israel at once, though the measure of their iniquity was full (Exo 23:29,30): "I will not drive them out from before thee in one year, lest the land become desolate, and the beast of the field multiply against thee. By little and little I will drive them out from before thee, until thou be increased." The exploits of Nimrod, therefore, in hunting down the wild beasts of the field, and ridding the world of monsters, must have gained for him the character of a pre-eminent benefactor of his race. By this means, not less than by the bands he trained, was his power acquired, when he first began to be mighty upon the earth; and in the same way, no doubt, was that power consolidated. Then, over and above, as the first great city-builder after the flood, by gathering men together in masses, and surrounding them with walls, he did still more to enable them to pass their days in security, free from the alarms to which they had been exposed in their scattered life, when no one could tell but that at any moment he might be called to engage in deadly conflict with prowling wild beasts, in defence of his own life and of those who were dear to him. Within the battlements of a fortified city no such danger from savage animals was to be dreaded; and for the security afforded in this way, men no doubt looked upon themselves as greatly indebted to Nimrod. No wonder, therefore, that the name of the "mighty hunter," who was at the same time the prototype of "the god of fortifications," should have become a name of renown. Had Nimrod gained renown only thus, it had been well. But not content with delivering men from the fear of wild beasts, he set to work also to emancipate them from that fear of the Lord which is the beginning of wisdom, and in which alone true happiness can be found. For this very thing, he seems to have gained, as one of the titles by which men delighted to honour him, the title of the "Emancipator," or "Deliverer." The reader may remember a name that has already come under his notice. That name is the name of Phoroneus. The era of Phoroneus is exactly the era of Nimrod. He lived about the time when men had used one speech, when the confusion of tongues began, and when mankind was scattered abroad. He is said to have been the first that gathered mankind into communities, the first of mortals that reigned, and the first that offered idolatrous sacrifices. This character can agree with none but that of Nimrod. Now the name given to him in connection with his "gathering men together," and offering idolatrous sacrifice, is very significant. Phoroneus, in one of its meanings, and that one of the most natural, signifies the "Apostate." * That name had very likely been given him by the uninfected portion of the sons of Noah. But that name had also another meaning, that is, "to set free"; and therefore his own adherents adopted it, and glorified the great "Apostate" from the primeval faith, though he was the first that abridged the liberties of mankind, as the grand "Emancipator!" ** And hence, in one form or other, this title was handed down to this deified successors as a title of honour. ***
* From Pharo, also pronounced Pharang, or Pharong, "to cast off, to make naked, to apostatise, to set free." These meanings are not commonly given in this order, but as the sense of "casting off" explains all the other meanings, that warrants the conclusion that "to cast off" is the generic sense of the word. Now "apostacy" is very near akin to this sense, and therefore is one of the most natural.** The Sabine goddess Feronia had evidently a relation to Phoroneus, as the "Emancipator." She was believed to be the "goddess of liberty," because at Terracina (or Anuxur) slaves were emancipated in her temple (Servius, in Aeneid), and because the freedmen of Rome are recorded on one occasion to have collected a sum of money for the purpose of offering it in her temple. (SMITH'S Classical Dictionary, "Feronia")
*** Thus we read of "Zeus Aphesio" (PAUSANIAS, Attica), that is "Jupiter Liberator" and of "Dionysus Eleuthereus" (PAUSANIAS), or "Bacchus the Deliverer." The name of Theseus seems to have had the same origin, from nthes "to loosen," and so to set free (the n being omissible). "The temple of Theseus" [at Athens] says POTTER "...was allowed the privilege of being a Sanctuary for slaves, and all those of mean condition that fled from the persecution of men in power, in memory that Theseus, while he lived, was an assister and protector of the distressed."
All tradition from the earliest times bears testimony to the apostacy of Nimrod, and to his success in leading men away from the patriarchal faith, and delivering their minds from that awe of God and fear of the judgments of heaven that must have rested on them while yet the memory of the flood was recent. And according to all the principles of depraved human nature, this too, no doubt, was one grand element in his fame; for men will readily rally around any one who can give the least appearance of plausibility to any doctrine which will teach that they can be assured of happiness and heaven at last, though their hearts and natures are unchanged, and though they live without God in the world.
How great was the boon conferred by Nimrod on the human race, in the estimation of ungodly men, by emancipating them from the impressions of true religion, and putting the authority of heaven to a distance from them, we find most vividly described in a Polynesian tradition, that carries its own evidence with it. John Williams, the well known missionary, tells us that, according to one of the ancient traditions of the islanders of the South Seas, "the heavens were originally so close to the earth that men could not walk, but were compelled to crawl" under them. "This was found a very serious evil; but at length an individual conceived the sublime idea of elevating the heavens to a more convenient height. For this purpose he put forth his utmost energy, and by the first effort raised them to the top of a tender plant called teve, about four feet high. There he deposited them until he was refreshed, when, by a second effort, he lifted them to the height of a tree called Kauariki, which is as large as the sycamore. By the third attempt he carried them to the summits of the mountains; and after a long interval of repose, and by a most prodigious effort, he elevated them to their present situation." For this, as a mighty benefactor of mankind, "this individual was deified; and up to the moment that Christianity was embraced, the deluded inhabitants worshipped him as the 'Elevator of the heavens.'" Now, what could more graphically describe the position of mankind soon after the flood, and the proceedings of Nimrod as Phoroneus, "The Emancipator," * than this Polynesian fable?
* The bearing of this name, Phoroneus, "The Emancipator," will be seen in Chapter III, Section I, "Christmas," where it is shown that slaves had a temporary emancipation at his birthday.
While the awful catastrophe by which God had showed His avenging justice on the sinners of the old world was yet fresh in the minds of men, and so long as Noah, and the upright among his descendants, sought with all earnestness to impress upon all under their control the lessons which that solemn event was so well fitted to teach, "heaven," that is, God, must have seemed very near to earth. To maintain the union between heaven and earth, and to keep it as close as possible, must have been the grand aim of all who loved God and the best interests of the human race. But this implied the restraining and discountenancing of all vice and all those "pleasures of sin," after which the natural mind, unrenewed and unsanctified, continually pants. This must have been secretly felt by every unholy mind as a state of insufferable bondage. "The carnal mind is enmity against God," is "not subject to His law," neither indeed is "able to be" so. It says to the Almighty, "Depart from us, for we desire not the knowledge of Thy ways." So long as the influence of the great father of the new world was in the ascendant, while his maxims were regarded, and a holy atmosphere surrounded the world, no wonder that those who were alienated from God and godliness, felt heaven and its influence and authority to be intolerably near, and that in such circumstances they "could not walk," but only "crawl,"--that is, that they had no freedom to "walk after the sight of their own eyes and the imaginations of their own hearts." From this bondage Nimrod emancipated them. By the apostacy he introduced, by the free life he developed among those who rallied around him, and by separating them from the holy influences that had previously less or more controlled them, he helped them to put God and the strict spirituality of His law at a distance, and thus he became the "Elevator of the heavens," making men feel and act as if heaven were afar off from earth, and as if either the God of heaven "could not see through the dark cloud," or did not regard with displeasure the breakers of His laws. Then all such would feel that they could breathe freely, and that now they could walk at liberty. For this, such men could not but regard Nimrod as a high benefactor.
Now, who could have imagined that a tradition from Tahiti would have illuminated the story of Atlas? But yet, when Atlas, bearing the heavens on his shoulders, is brought into juxtaposition with the deified hero of the South Seas, who blessed the world by heaving up the superincumbent heavens that pressed so heavily upon it, who does not see that the one story bears a relation to the other? *
* In the Polynesian story the heavens and earth are said to have been "bound together with cords," and the "severing" of these cords is said to have been effected by myriads of "dragon-flies," which, with their "wings," bore an important share in the great work. (WILLIAMS) Is there not here a reference to Nimrod's `63 "mighties" or "winged ones"? The deified "mighty ones" were often represented as winged serpents. See WILKINSON, vol. iv. p. 232, where the god Agathodaemon is represented as a "winged asp." Among a rude people the memory of such a representation might very naturally be kept up in connection with the "dragon-fly"; and as all the mighty or winged ones of Nimrod's age, the real golden age of paganism, when "dead, became daemons" (HESIOD, Works and Days), they would of course all alike be symbolised in the same way. If any be stumbled at the thought of such a connection between the mythology of Tahiti and of Babel, let it not be overlooked that the name of the Tahitian god of war was Oro (WILLIAMS), while "Horus (or Orus)," as Wilkinson calls the son of Osiris, in Egypt, which unquestionably borrowed its system from Babylon, appeared in that very character. (WILKINSON) Then what could the severing of the "cords" that bound heaven and earth together be, but just the breaking of the bands of the covenant by which God bound the earth to Himself, when on smelling a sweet savour in Noah's sacrifice, He renewed His covenant with him as head of the human race. This covenant did not merely respect the promise to the earth securing it against another universal deluge, but contained in its bosom a promise of all spiritual blessings to those who adhere to it. The smelling of the sweet savour in Noah's sacrifice had respect to his faith in Christ. When, therefore, in consequence of smelling that sweet savour, "God blessed Noah and his sons" (Gen 9:1), that had reference not merely to temporal but to spiritual and eternal blessings. Every one, therefore, of the sons of Noah, who had Noah's faith, and who walked as Noah walked, was divinely assured of an interest in "the everlasting covenant, ordered in all things and sure." Blessed were those bands by which God bound the believing children of men to Himself--by which heaven and earth were so closely joined together. Those, on the other hand, who joined in the apostacy of Nimrod broke the covenant, and in casting off the authority of God, did in effect say, "Let us break His bands asunder, and cast His cords from us." To this very act of severing the covenant connection between earth and heaven there is very distinct allusion, though veiled, in the Babylonian history of Berosus. There Belus, that is Nimrod, after having dispelled the primeval darkness, is said to have separated heaven and earth from one another, and to have orderly arranged the world. (BEROSUS, in BUNSEN) These words were intended to represent Belus as the "Former of the world." But then it is a new world that he forms; for there are creatures in existence before his Demiurgic power is exerted. The new world that Belus or Nimrod formed, was just the new order of things which he introduced when, setting at nought all Divine appointments, he rebelled against Heaven. The rebellion of the Giants is represented as peculiarly a rebellion against Heaven. To this ancient quarrel between the Babylonian potentates and Heaven, there is plainly an allusion in the words of Daniel to Nebuchadnezzar, when announcing that sovereign's humiliation and subsequent restoration, he says (Dan 4:26), "Thy kingdom shall be sure unto thee, when thou hast known that the HEAVENS do rule."
Thus, then, it appears that Atlas, with the heavens resting on his broad shoulders, refers to no mere distinction in astronomical knowledge, however great, as some have supposed, but to a quite different thing, even to that great apostacy in which the Giants rebelled against Heaven, and in which apostacy Nimrod, "the mighty one," * as the acknowledged ringleader, occupied a pre-eminent place. **
* In the Greek Septuagint, translated in Egypt, the term "mighty" as applied in Genesis 10:8, to Nimrod, is rendered the ordinary name for a "Giant."** IVAN and KALLERY, in their account of Japan, show that a similar story to that of Atlas was known there, for they say that once a day the Emperor "sits on his throne upholding the world and the empire." Now something like this came to be added to the story of Atlas, for PAUSANIAS shows that Atlas also was represented as upholding both earth and heaven.
According to the system which Nimrod was the grand instrument in introducing, men were led to believe that a real spiritual change of heart was unnecessary, and that so far as change was needful, they could be regenerated by mere external means. Looking at the subject in the light of the Bacchanalian orgies, which, as the reader has seen, commemorated the history of Nimrod, it is evident that he led mankind to seek their chief good in sensual enjoyment, and showed them how they might enjoy the pleasures of sin, without any fear of the wrath of a holy God. In his various expeditions he was always accompanied by troops of women; and by music and song, and games and revelries, and everything that could please the natural heart, he commended himself to the good graces of mankind.
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TWOBABYLONS: Chapter II Section II Sub-Section II "The Child In Egypt"
Alexander Hislop
Chapter II
Section II
Sub-Section II
The Child In Egypt
When we turn to Egypt we find remarkable evidence of the same thing there also. Justin, as we have already seen, says that "Ninus subdued all nations, as far as Lybia," and consequently Egypt. The statement of Diodorus Siculus is to the same effect, Egypt being one of the countries that, according to him, Ninus brought into subjection to himself. In exact accordance with these historical statements, we find that the name of the third person in the primeval triad of Egypt was Khons. But Khons, in Egyptian, comes from a word that signifies "to chase." Therefore, the name of Khons, the son of Maut, the goddess-mother, who was adorned in such a way as to identify her with Rhea, the great goddess-mother of Chaldea, * properly signifies "The Huntsman," or god of the chase.
* The distinguishing decoration of Maut was the vulture head-dress. Now the name of Rhea, in one of its meanings, signifies a vulture.
As Khons stands in the very same relation to the Egyptian Maut as Ninus does to Rhea, how does this title of "The Huntsman" identify the Egyptian god with Nimrod? Now this very name Khons, brought into contact with the Roman mythology, not only explains the meaning of a name in the Pantheon there, that hitherto has stood greatly in need of explanation, but causes that name, when explained, to reflect light back again on this Egyptian divinity, and to strengthen the conclusion already arrived at. The name to which I refer is the name of the Latin god Consus, who was in one aspect identified with Neptune, but who was also regarded as "the god of hidden counsels," or "the concealer of secrets," who was looked up to as the patron of horsemanship, and was said to have produced the horse. Who could be the "god of hidden counsels," or the "concealer of secrets," but Saturn, the god of the "mysteries," and whose name as used at Rome, signified "The hidden one"? The father of Khons, or Ohonso (as he was also called), that is, Amoun, was, as we are told by Plutarch, known as "The hidden God"; and as father and son in the same triad have ordinarily a correspondence of character, this shows that Khons also must have been known in the very same character of Saturn, "The hidden one." If the Latin Consus, then, thus exactly agreed with the Egyptian Khons, as the god of "mysteries," or "hidden counsels," can there be a doubt that Khons, the Huntsman, also agreed with the same Roman divinity as the supposed producer of the horse? Who so likely to get the credit of producing the horse as the great huntsman of Babel, who no doubt enlisted it in the toils of the chase, and by this means must have been signally aided in his conflicts with the wild beasts of the forest? In this connection, let the reader call to mind that fabulous creature, the Centaur, half-man, half-horse, that figures so much in the mythology of Greece. That imaginary creation, as is generally admitted, was intended to commemorate the man who first taught the art of horsemanship. *
* In illustration of the principle that led to the making of the image of the Centaur, the following passage may be given from PRESCOTT'S Mexico, as showing the feelings of the Mexicans on first seeing a man on horseback: "He [Cortes] ordered his men [who were cavalry] to direct their lances at the faces of their opponents, who, terrified at the monstrous apparition--for they supposed the rider and the horse, which they had never before seen, to be one and the same--were seized with a panic."
But that creation was not the offspring of Greek fancy. Here, as in many other things, the Greeks have only borrowed from an earlier source. The Centaur is found on coins struck in Babylonia, showing that the idea must have originally come from that quarter. The Centaur is found in the Zodiac, the antiquity of which goes up to a high period, and which had its origin in Babylon. The Centaur was represented, as we are expressly assured by Berosus, the Babylonian historian, in the temple of Babylon, and his language would seem to show that so also it had been in primeval times. The Greeks did themselves admit this antiquity and derivation of the Centaur; for though Ixion was commonly represented as the father of the Centaurs, yet they also acknowledge that the primitive Centaurus was the same as Kronos, or Saturn, the father of the gods. *
* Scholiast in Lycophron, BRYANT. The Scholiast says that Chiron was the son of "Centaurus, that is, Kronos." If any one objects that, as Chiron is said to have lived in the time of the Trojan war, this shows that his father Kronos could not be the father of gods and men, Xenophon answers by saying "that Kronos was the brother of Jupiter." De Venatione
But we have seen that Kronos was the first King of Babylon, or Nimrod; consequently, the first Centaur was the same. Now, the way in which the Centaur was represented on the Babylonian coins, and in the Zodiac, viewed in this light, is very striking. The Centaur was the same as the sign Sagittarius, or "The Archer." If the founder of Babylon's glory was "The mighty Hunter," whose name, even in the days of Moses, was a proverb--(Gen 10:9, "Wherefore, it is said, Even as Nimrod, the mighty hunter before the Lord")--when we find the "Archer" with his bow and arrow, in the symbol of the supreme Babylonian divinity, and the "Archer," among the signs of the Zodiac that originated in Babylon, I think we may safely conclude that this Man-horse or Horse-man Archer primarily referred to him, and was intended to perpetuate the memory at once of his fame as a huntsman and his skill as a horse-breaker. (see note below)
Now, when we thus compare the Egyptian Khons, the "Huntsman," with the Latin Consus, the god of horse-races, who "produced the horse," and the Centaur of Babylon, to whom was attributed the honour of being the author of horsemanship, while we see how all the lines converge in Babylon, it will be very clear, I think, whence the primitive Egyptian god Khons has been derived.
Khons, the son of the great goddess-mother, seems to have been generally represented as a full-grown god. The Babylonian divinity was also represented very frequently in Egypt in the very same way as in the land of his nativity--i.e., as a child in his mother's arms. *
* One of the symbols with which Khons was represented, shows that even he was identified with the child-god; "for," says Wilkinson, "at the side of his head fell the plaited lock of Harpocrates, or childhood."
This was the way in which Osiris, "the son, the husband of his mother," was often exhibited, and what we learn of this god, equally as in the case of Khons, shows that in his original he was none other than Nimrod. It is admitted that the secret system of Free Masonry was originally founded on the Mysteries of the Egyptian Isis, the goddess-mother, or wife of Osiris. But what could have led to the union of a Masonic body with these Mysteries, had they not had particular reference to architecture, and had the god who was worshipped in them not been celebrated for his success in perfecting the arts of fortification and building? Now, if such were the case, considering the relation in which, as we have already seen, Egypt stood to Babylon, who would naturally be looked up to there as the great patron of the Masonic art? The strong presumption is, that Nimrod must have been the man. He was the first that gained fame in this way. As the child of the Babylonian goddess-mother, he was worshipped, as we have seen, in the character of Ala mahozim, "The god of fortifications." Osiris, in like manner, the child of the Egyptian Madonna, was equally celebrated as "the strong chief of the buildings." This strong chief of the buildings was originally worshipped in Egypt with every physical characteristic of Nimrod. I have already noticed the fact that Nimrod, as the son of Cush, was a Negro. Now, there was a tradition in Egypt, recorded by Plutarch, that "Osiris was black," which, in a land where the general complexion was dusky, must have implied something more than ordinary in its darkness. Plutarch also states that Horus, the son of Osiris, "was of a fair complexion," and it was in this way, for the most part, that Osiris was represented. But we have unequivocal evidence that Osiris, the son and husband of the great goddess-queen of Egypt, was also represented as a veritable Negro. In Wilkinson may be found a representation of him with the unmistakable features of the genuine Cushite or Negro. Bunsen would have it that this is a mere random importation from some of the barbaric tribes; but the dress in which this Negro god is arrayed tells a different tale. That dress directly connects him with Nimrod. This Negro-featured Osiris is clothed from head to foot in a spotted dress, the upper part being a leopard's skin, the under part also being spotted to correspond with it. Now the name Nimrod * signifies "the subduer of the leopard."
* "Nimr-rod"; from Nimr, a "leopard," and rada or rad "to subdue." According to invariable custom in Hebrew, when two consonants come together as the two rs in Nimr-rod, one of them is sunk. Thus Nin-neveh, "The habitation of Ninus," becomes Nineveh. The name Nimrod is commonly derived from Mered, "to rebel"; but a difficulty has always been found in regard to this derivation, as that would make the name Nimrod properly passive not "the rebel," but "he who was rebelled against." There is no doubt that Nimrod was a rebel, and that his rebellion was celebrated in ancient myths; but his name in that character was not Nimrod, but Merodach, or, as among the Romans, Mars, "the rebel"; or among the Oscans of Italy, Mamers (SMITH), "The causer of rebellion." That the Roman Mars was really, in his original, the Babylonian god, is evident from the name given to the goddess, who was recognised sometimes as his "sister," and sometimes as his "wife"--i.e., Bellona, which, in Chaldee, signifies, "The Lamenter of Bel" (from Bel and onah, to lament). The Egyptian Isis, the sister and wife of Osiris, is in like manner represented, as we have seen, as "lamenting her brother Osiris." (BUNSEN)
This name seems to imply, that as Nimrod had gained fame by subduing the horse, and so making use of it in the chase, so his fame as a huntsman rested mainly on this, that he found out the art of making the leopard aid him in hunting the other wild beasts. A particular kind of tame leopard is used in India at this day for hunting; and of Bagajet I, the Mogul Emperor of India, it is recorded that in his hunting establishment he had not only hounds of various breeds, but leopards also, whose "collars were set with jewels." Upon the words of the prophet Habakkuk 1:8, "swifter than leopards," Kitto has the following remarks:--"The swiftness of the leopard is proverbial in all countries where it is found. This, conjoined with its other qualities, suggested the idea in the East of partially training it, that it might be employed in hunting...Leopards are now rarely kept for hunting in Western Asia, unless by kings and governors; but they are more common in the eastern parts of Asia. Orosius relates that one was sent by the king of Portugal to the Pope, which excited great astonishment by the way in which it overtook, and the facility with which it killed, deer and wild boars. Le Bruyn mentions a leopard kept by the Pasha who governed Gaza, and the other territories of the ancient Philistines, and which he frequently employed in hunting jackals. But it is in India that the cheetah, or hunting leopard, is most frequently employed, and is seen in the perfection of his power." This custom of taming the leopard, and pressing it into the service of man in this way, is traced up to the earliest times of primitive antiquity. In the works of Sir William Jones, we find it stated from the Persian legends, that Hoshang, the father of Tahmurs, who built Babylon, was the "first who bred dogs and leopards for hunting." As Tahmurs, who built Babylon, could be none other than Nimrod, this legend only attributes to his father what, as his name imports, he got the fame of doing himself. Now, as the classic god bearing the lion's skin is recognised by that sign as Hercules, the slayer of the Nemean lion, so in like manner, the god clothed in the leopard's skin would naturally be marked out as Nimrod, the "leopard-subduer." That this leopard skin, as appertaining to the Egyptian god, was no occasional thing, we have clearest evidence. Wilkinson tells us, that on all high occasions when the Egyptian high priest was called to officiate, it was indispensable that he should do so wearing, as his robe of office, the leopard's skin. As it is a universal principle in all idolatries that the high priest wears the insignia of the god he serves, this indicates the importance which the spotted skin must have had attached to it as a symbol of the god himself. The ordinary way in which the favourite Egyptian divinity Osiris was mystically represented was under the form of a young bull or calf--the calf Apis--from which the golden calf of the Israelites was borrowed. There was a reason why that calf should not commonly appear in the appropriate symbols of the god he represented, for that calf represented the divinity in the character of Saturn, "The HIDDEN one," "Apis" being only another name for Saturn. *
* The name of Apis in Egyptian is Hepi or Hapi, which is evidently from the Chaldee "Hap," "to cover." In Egyptian Hap signifies "to conceal." (BUNSEN)
The cow of Athor, however, the female divinity corresponding to Apis, is well known as a "spotted cow," (WILKINSON) and it is singular that the Druids of Britain also worshipped "a spotted cow" (DAVIES'S Druids). Rare though it be, however, to find an instance of the deified calf or young bull represented with the spots, there is evidence still in existence, that even it was sometimes so represented. When we find that Osiris, the grand god of Egypt, under different forms, was thus arrayed in a leopard's skin or spotted dress, and that the leopard-skin dress was so indispensable a part of the sacred robes of his high priest, we may be sure that there was a deep meaning in such a costume. And what could that meaning be, but just to identify Osiris with the Babylonian god, who was celebrated as the "Leopard-tamer," and who was worshipped even as he was, as Ninus, the CHILD in his mother's arms?
Note
Meaning of the Name CentaurusThe ordinary classical derivation of this name gives little satisfaction; for, even though it could be derived from words that signify "Bull-killers" (and the derivation itself is but lame), such a meaning casts no light at all on the history of the Centaurs. Take it as a Chaldee word, and it will be seen at once that the whole history of the primitive Kentaurus entirely agrees with the history of Nimrod, with whom we have already identified him. Kentaurus is evidently derived from Kehn, "a priest," and Tor, "to go round." "Kehn-Tor," therefore, is "Priest of the revolver," that is, of the sun, which, to appearance, makes a daily revolution round the earth. The name for a priest, as written, is just Khn, and the vowel is supplied according to the different dialects of those who pronounce it, so as to make it either Kohn, Kahn, or Kehn. Tor, "the revolver," as applied to the sun, is evidently just another name for the Greek Zen or Zan applied to Jupiter, as identified with the sun, which signifies the "Encircler" or "Encompasser,"--the very word from which comes our own word "Sun," which, in Anglo-Saxon, was Sunna (MALLET, Glossary), and of which we find distinct traces in Egypt in the term snnu (BUNSEN'S Vocab.), as applied to the sun's orbit. The Hebrew Zon or Zawon, to "encircle," from which these words come, in Chaldee becomes Don or Dawon, and thus we penetrate the meaning of the name given by the Boeotians to the "Mighty hunter," Orion. That name was Kandaon, as appears from the following words of the Scholiast on Lycophron, quoted in BRYANT: "Orion, whom the Boeotians call also Kandaon." Kahn-daon, then, and Kehn-tor, were just different names for the same office--the one meaning "Priest of the Encircler," the other, "Priest of the revolver"--titles evidently equivalent to that of Bol-kahn, or "Priest of Baal, or the Sun," which, there can be no doubt, was the distinguishing title of Nimrod. As the title of Centaurus thus exactly agrees with the known position of Nimrod, so the history of the father of the Centaurs does the same. We have seen already that, though Ixion was, by the Greeks, made the father of that mythical race, even they themselves admitted that the Centaurs had a much higher origin, and consequently that Ixion, which seems to be a Grecian name, had taken the place of an earlier name, according to that propensity particularly noticed by Salverte, which has often led mankind "to apply to personages known in one time and one country, myths which they have borrowed from another country and an earlier epoch" (Des Sciences). Let this only be admitted to be the case here--let only the name of Ixion be removed, and it will be seen that all that is said of the father of the Centaurs, or Horsemen-archers, applies exactly to Nimrod, as represented by the different myths that refer to the first progenitor of these Centaurs. First, then, Centaurus is represented as having been taken up to heaven (DYMOCK "Ixion"), that is, as having been highly exalted through special favour of heaven; then, in that state of exaltation, he is said to have fallen in love with Nephele, who passed under the name of Juno, the "Queen of Heaven." The story here is intentionally confused, to mystify the vulgar, and the order of events seems changed, which can easily be accounted for. As Nephele in Greek signifies "a cloud," so the offspring of Centaurus are said to have been produced by a "cloud." But Nephele, in the language of the country where the fable was originally framed, signified "A fallen woman," and it is from that "fallen woman," therefore, that the Centaurs are really said to have sprung. Now, the story of Nimrod, as Ninus, is, that he fell in love with Semiramis when she was another man's wife, and took her for his own wife, whereby she became doubly fallen--fallen as a woman *-- and fallen from the primitive faith in which she must have been brought up; and it is well known that this "fallen woman" was, under the name of Juno, or the Dove, after her death, worshipped among the Babylonians.
* Nephele was used, even in Greece, as the name of a woman, the degraded wife of Athamas being so called. (SMITH'S Class. Dict., "Athamas")
Centaurus, for his presumption and pride, was smitten with lightning by the supreme God, and cast down to hell (DYMOCK, "Ixion"). This, then, is just another version of the story of Phaethon, Aesculapius, and Orpheus, who were all smitten in like manner and for a similar cause. In the infernal world, the father of the Centaurs is represented as tied by serpents to a wheel which perpetually revolves, and thus makes his punishment eternal (DYMOCK). In the serpents there is evidently reference to one of the two emblems of the fire-worship of Nimrod. If he introduced the worship of the serpent, as I have endeavoured to show, there was poetical justice in making the serpent an instrument of his punishment. Then the revolving wheel very clearly points to the name Centaurus itself, as denoting the "Priest of the revolving sun." To the worship of the sun in the character of the "Revolver," there was a very distinct allusion not only in the circle which, among the Pagans, was the emblem of the sun-god, and the blazing wheel with which he was so frequently represented (WILSON'S Parsi Religion), but in the circular dances of the Bacchanalians. Hence the phrase, "Bassaridum rotator Evan"--"The wheeling Evan of the Bacchantes" (STATIUS, Sylv.). Hence, also, the circular dances of the Druids as referred to in the following quotation from a Druidic song: "Ruddy was the sea beach whilst the circular revolution was performed by the attendants and the white bands in graceful extravagance" (DAVIES'S Druids). That this circular dance among the Pagan idolaters really had reference to the circuit of the sun, we find from the distinct statement of Lucian in his treatise On Dancing, where, speaking of the circular dance of the ancient Eastern nations, he says, with express reference to the sun-god, "it consisted in a dance imitating this god." We see then, here, a very specific reason for the circular dance of the Bacchae, and for the ever-revolving wheel of the great Centaurus in the infernal regions.
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