We have previously taken a look at some of the problems that Israel
was having and the fact that they were not keeping the Passover, all while the
Glory remained in the temple alongside their many irrational practices. But in
taking this overview of the culture we find that the worship of “other gods”
was very common and widespread. It may be that in a puritanical shift of
society, we have created a fairytale about the Old Testament era and have been
fearful to teach the truth, as if teaching about the worship of other gods
would resurrect that practice today. Yet, by creating a fairytale of history we
suffer with our understanding of history and the process of events leading us
into our modern times. While these types of worship practices are still in
existence around the world, we dismiss what we don’t understand, such as the
sexual dominance of Middle Eastern men over young boys and girls. In the West
we consider this behavior to be abuse against children, but that is a cultural
practice they have had for thousands of years. I will note previous studies as
we go.
The prophecy of Genesis 3:15 announces that the Messiah
comes from the women’s seed. This foretold that a savior would come from a
women, leading to the ritual practice of sex in the temple. These people, males
and females, were known as cult prostitutes.
Gen 3:15 And I will put enmity between you and the woman,
and between your offspring and her Offspring; He will bruise and tread your
head underfoot, and you will lie in wait and bruise His heel. [Gal 4:4.] AMP
Judah assumed that Tamar was a cult prostitute from the
temple. Maybe our impressions of Jacob’s sons have been wrong.
Gen 38:21 He asked the men of that place, Where is the
harlot or cult prostitute who was openly by the roadside? They said, There was
no harlot or temple prostitute here. AMP
Isn’t it interesting that Judah was inclined to visit a
temple prostitute? We have attempted to elevate Jacob’s sons to sainthood in
our historical fairytale scenarios, but apparently there are parts of the
stories we are leaving out. The timing of this event is after Joseph is sold by
his brothers.
If we remember, there was a school of worship in Canaan run
by Shem and Eber where Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob had lived. Jacob spent about
37 years in service there. This is why Yahweh favored Israel, because of Jacob,
not because of Jacob’s sons. The territory later came under control of the
Jebusites and today it is known as Jerusalem. Timnah, the place Judah went, was
a Philistine city. So the sons of Jacob visited other cities and obviously knew
of their practices. Yahweh honors his servants and keeps the promises he makes
to them, even if the children of those servants behave badly.
At the time of the first century, Roman temples had sexual
practices for Cybele, a nature goddess. When Paul was speaking to the new
churches, these rites were common all over the world. This is what Paul is
alluding to in Romans 1. And while we might think temple prostitution ended
with Solomon’s temple we know it continued into Herod’s Temple, as well as
throughout the rest of the world. We previously studied John 8 about the woman
thrown at Jesus’ feet by the Pharisees who somehow caught her in the act of
adultery. She was probably a temple prostitute and the Pharisees had all been
with her, but the Pharisees were interested in entrapping Jesus with their
questions rather than cleaning up temple prostitution.
We see Jesus addressing the same thing in his letter to
Thyatira. Now this seems strange to us as we have Churches today, but no booths
for prostitutes, yet it is important to note that when a church group or
minister go “off track”, sexual sins are probably somewhere in the mix.
Rev 2:20-22 But I have this against you: that you tolerate
the woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess [claiming to be inspired],
and who is teaching and leading astray my servants and beguiling them into
practicing sexual vice and eating food sacrificed to idols. [1 Kings 16:31; 2
Kings 9:22,30.] 21 I gave her time to repent, but she has no desire to repent
of her immorality [symbolic of idolatry] and refuses to do so. 22 Take note: I
will throw her on a bed [of anguish], and those who commit adultery with her
[her paramours] I will bring down to pressing distress and severe affliction,
unless they turn away their minds from conduct [such as] hers and repent of
their doings. AMP
Today, sex cults still exist, and in some parts of the
world it is an open and well known practice. The temple at Jerusalem had its
temple prostitutes as well. In fact, the Israelites hardly ever kept the
Passover because they were so unclean.
2 Kings 23:7 And he broke down the houses of the male cult
prostitutes, which were by the house of the Lord, where the women wove [tent]
hangings for the Asherah [shrines]. AMP
2Kings 23:7G2532And G2507he
demolished G3588the G3624house G3588of the
G2504.2male
prostitutes G3588of
the ones G1722in G3588the G3624house G2962of the lord
G1722in G3739which G3588the G1135women G5306.1wove G1563apparel
there G4749 G3588for
the G251.1sacred
grove.
Josiah cleaned up the temple and held a proper Passover in
the first month, but these unclean practices started up again after his death.
Moses wrote in Deuteronomy that the Israelites should not become cult
prostitutes.
Deut 23:17 There shall be no cult prostitute among the
daughters of Israel, neither shall there be a cult prostitute (a sodomite)
among the sons of Israel. AMP
Deut 23:17G3756There
shall not G1510.8.3be G4204a
harlot G575from G2364the daughters
G*of
Israel, G2532and G3756there
shall not G1510.8.3be G4203one
whoring G575from G5207the sons
G*of
Israel.
18G3756You
shall not G4374bring G3410the hire
G4204of a
harlot, G3761nor G235.1the price
G2965of a
dog, G1519into G3588the G3624house G2962of the lord
G3588 G2316your
God G1473 G4314for G3956any G2171vow. G3754For G946[4an
abomination G29625 to
the lord G3588 G23166your
God G1473 G1510.2.33are G25321even G2972both]
Why would Moses have to mention this if there was never a
possibility of it ever happening? In other words Yahweh was giving them a
warning, but the people didn’t end up heeding it. Somehow both boys and girls,
men and women, ended up as prostitutes in the temple. Understand that these
prostitutes were not in the outer courts but in the inner courts. The common
people didn’t see it because the common people were not allowed into those
areas of the temple. And even though Ezeikel had some type of religious status,
he did not see all the abominations noted in chapter 8 of Ezekiel until Yahweh
showed him.
1 Kings 14:24 There were also sodomites (male cult
prostitutes) in the land. They did all the abominations of the nations whom the
Lord cast out before the Israelites. AMP
Solomon had already set up some idols before his death,
therefore the kingdom was split in two. When the kingdom split, Jeroboam took
rulership over the ten northern tribes, and Rehoboam took rulership over the
two southern tribes. Both kingdoms worshipped various gods. Once in a while
someone would try to clean up the temple, like Asa.
1 Kings 15:12 He put away the sodomites (male cult
prostitutes) out of the land and removed all the idols that his fathers
[Solomon, Rehoboam, and Abijam] had made or promoted. [1 Kings 11:5-11; 14:22.]
AMP
But apparently Asa didn’t clean up all the prostitution in
the temple.
1 Kings 22:46 And the remnant of the sodomites (the male
cult prostitutes) who remained in the days of his father Asa, [Jehoshaphat]
expelled from the country. AMP
The Message gives us a bit of insight as to the priesthood.
These were the requirements of those who served in the temple.
Lev 21:7-8 "Because a priest is holy to his God he
must not marry a woman who has been a harlot or a cult prostitute or a divorced
woman. 8 Make sure he is holy because he serves the food of your God. Treat him
as holy because I, God, who make you holy, am holy. (from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary
Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)
Lev 21:13-15 "He is to marry a young virgin, 14 not a
widow, not a divorcee, not a cult prostitute — he is only to marry a virgin
from his own people. 15 He must not defile his descendants among his people
because I am God who makes him holy."
(from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary Language © 2002 by Eugene
H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)
While we may think the words Moses wrote to the people were
taken seriously, as we have seen they were not heeded and seldom recognized. At
one point in time Jehoiada the Levite gathered all the Levites from Judah and
took back control over the temple. But after he died, Joash brought all the
idolatrous practices back.
2 Chron 24:17-19 But after the death of Jehoiada things
fell apart. The leaders of Judah made a formal presentation to the king and he
went along with them. 18 Things went from bad to worse; they deserted The
Temple of God and took up with the cult of sex goddesses. An angry cloud
hovered over Judah and Jerusalem because of this sin. 19 God sent prophets to
straighten them out, warning of judgment. But nobody paid attention. (from THE MESSAGE: The Bible in Contemporary
Language © 2002 by Eugene H. Peterson. All rights reserved.)
They served Ashtoreth after the priest Jehoiada’s death,
and Jehoiada’s son Zechariah was murdered in the temple courts for prophesying
against the idolatry. This history is quite colorful. While this goes against
our fairytale impressions, we see a constant struggle against occult sex
rituals in Israel. Solomon set up sacred groves in Israel, but there were many
other times prior to the era of the Kings that these sacred groves were
established. Ashtoreth is the same as Asherah, and these are groves of forested
areas that are used for worship. We see the same practices in modern times in
many parts of the world.
Some speculate that Abraham planted a sacred grove, but the
Septuagint does not support that idea.
Gen 21:33 Abraham planted a tamarisk tree in Beersheba and
called there on the name of the Lord, the Eternal God. 34 And Abraham sojourned
in Philistia many days. AMP
Genesis 21:33 And Abraam planted a field at the well
of the oath, and called there on the name of the Lord, the everlasting
God. 34 And Abraam sojourned in the land of the Phylistines many
days. http://ecmarsh.com/lxx/Genesis/index.htm
The reason this Masoretic alteration doesn’t make sense is
that tamarisk trees would have drank up all the water from the well Abraham
just negotiated back from Abimelech. The tamarisk is a water hog with very deep
roots. The tamarisk is also like a weed and it multiplies quickly thereby making
the well useless for water. Considering that Abraham stayed there a while, he
would have used the well for his entire household’s needs and would not have
sabotaged its usefulness. However, it is possible for someone to try and
promote justification over Israel’s sacred groves by altering the text to
suggest that Abraham did the same thing as the heathen nations. But just
because Abraham prayed to Yahweh by this well and field does not mean he
planted trees to worship. Instead he probably planted a food source and prayed
over it. Therefore we should not make Abraham planting a field the same as
planting a sacred grove for idol worship. Even so, we see Moses giving
instructions to Israel.
Ex 34:12-16 Take heed to yourself, lest you make a covenant
or mutual agreement with the inhabitants of the land to which you go, lest it
become a snare in the midst of you. 13
But you shall destroy their altars, dash in pieces their pillars (obelisks,
images), and cut down their Asherim [symbols of the goddess Asherah]; 14 For you shall worship no other god; for
the Lord, Whose name is Jealous, is a jealous (impassioned) God, 15 Lest you make a covenant with the
inhabitants of the land, and when they play the harlot after their gods and
sacrifice to their gods and one invites you, you eat of his food sacrificed to
idols, 16 And you take of their
daughters for your sons, and their daughters play the harlot after their gods
and make your sons play the harlot after their gods. AMP
Moses said “don’t do it”, but it seems that after Joshua
died the people did not hold to his instructions.
Judg 2:13 And they forsook the Lord and served Baal [the
god worshiped by the Canaanites] and the Ashtaroth [female deities such as
Ashtoreth and Asherah]. AMP
Judg 3:5-7 And the Israelites dwelt among the Canaanites,
Hittites, Amorites, Perizzites, Hivites, and Jebusites; 6 And they married
their daughters and gave their own daughters to their sons, and served their
gods. [Ex 34:12-16.] 7 And the Israelites did evil in the sight of the Lord and
forgot the Lord their God and served the Baals and the Ashtaroth. [Judg 2:13.]
AMP
What we have seen so far in this study are these strange
religious practices that have taken place throughout Israel’s history. We know
that many of these practices also occurred before the exodus. This is what
Babylon is accused of doing to the world and will eventually be held
responsible for. The mystery religion is not one practice but many religious
rites practiced for many gods. The mystery religion is not acknowledging Yahweh
as creator.
We see another type of idol worship which is a teraphim. A teraphim is an idol that was
supposed to attend to humans for healing. People had several teraphim (plural
in the Hebrew). The Masoretic text suggests that Rachel had stolen and hidden
teraphim, but it is a different word in the Septuagint. Also 1 Samuel 19:13
& 16 are also rendered terephim in the Masoretic text but “statues” in the
Septuagint. Josiah however removed teraphim along with other idols in the
temple.
2 Kings 23:24G2532And G1065indeed
G3588the G2308.1soothsayers,
G2532and G3588the G1109diviners,
G2532and G3588the G2324.1teraphim,
G2532and G3588the G1497idols,
G2532and G3956all G3588the G4360.1loathsome
things G3588 G1096taking
place G1722in G3588the G1093land G*of
Judah G2532and G1722in G3588 G*Jerusalem,
G1808[3removed
G3588 G9351king G*2Josiah],
G2443that G2476[5should
be established G35881the G30562words G35883of the
G35514law], G3588the G1125ones
being written G1909upon G3588the G975scroll
G3739which G2147[4found
G*1Hilkiah
G35882the G24093priest]
G1722in G3624the house
G2962of the lord
It appears that teraphim started out as a personal
household idol for healing, but eventually made their way into the temple.
Let’s look at this story from Judges.
Judg 17:1-6 THERE WAS a man of the hill country of Ephraim
whose name was Micah. 2 And he said to his mother, The 1,100 shekels of silver
that were taken from you, about which you cursed and also spoke about in my
hearing, behold, I have the silver with me; I took it. And his mother said,
Blessed be you by the Lord, my son! 3 He restored the 1,100 shekels of silver
to his mother, and she said, I had truly dedicated the silver to the Lord from
my hand for my son to make a graven image and a molten image; now therefore, I
will restore it to you. 4 So when he restored the money to his mother, she took
200 pieces of silver and gave them to the silversmith, who made of it a graven
image and a molten image; and they were in the house of Micah. 5 And the man
Micah had a house of gods, and he made an ephod and teraphim and dedicated one
of his sons, who became his priest. 6 In those days there was no king in
Israel; every man did what was right in his own eyes. AMP
Micah’s mother commissioned someone to make a graven image
and a molten image. This is obviously a money making business. A graven image
was a carved image from either wood or stone. A molten image was some type of
metal cast from a mold. We have to recognize that people didn’t do these things
for fun, they did it for money. Micah himself made an ephod, a decorated breast
plate which we will explore shortly, and a teraphim. What we may not have understood
is that religious rites and cultic practices are a money making business. As we
saw with Tamar, it seems customary for temple prostitutes to earn money or
payment for their services. Religion is a profitable trade. Remember what
happened at Ephesus, Acts 19:24-ff. The craftsmen of Diana were concerned about
losing their wealth, and Paul’s new religion threatened the entire money making
enterprise of Diana of the Ephesians.
Micah had a house of gods. It seems interesting that
Abraham’s father Terah also had a house of gods. This is something we fail to
understand because in our time, we typically don’t make our own temples for our
own private use. Churches and temples eventually became capitalist systems,
accumulating money either into their own institutions or for the government
they operated under. But in historical times people had their own houses for
their gods. I would guess that this is the richer class of people as we see
that Micah also bought a Levite.
Judg 17:7-10 And there was a young man in Bethlehem of
Judah, of the family of Judah, who was a Levite; and he sojourned there. 8 And
the man departed from the town of Bethlehem in Judah to sojourn where he could
find a place, and as he journeyed he came to the hill country of Ephraim to the
house of Micah. 9 And Micah said to him, From where do you come? And he said to
him, I am a Levite of Bethlehem in Judah, and I go to sojourn where I may find
a place. 10 And Micah said to him, Dwell with me and be to me a father and a
priest, and I will give you ten pieces of silver each year, a suit of clothes,
and your living. So the Levite went in. AMP
Even after Moses established the tabernacle and Joshua
portioned out the places for the tribes, we see that this Levite was going to
wander until he found a place to live. The Levite’s name is Jonathan, who was
Moses’ grandson as we will see shortly. Obviously it did not bother Jonathan
the Levite to get a job working in a house of foreign gods. I suppose the
practice of the tithe was out of favor, as the requirement was that the Levites
were not to own property or possessions, but were to receive the offerings the
people brought once or twice per year. If the tabernacle could not support all
the Levites, some would have had to leave and find work as the Levites did not
receive a portion of land. This points to a breakdown in support of the
tabernacle after the time of Joshua. It also tells us that the older Levites did
not support the younger Levites and the younger Levites had to leave temple
service to survive.
Judg 17:11-13 And the Levite was content to dwell with the
man, and the young man was to Micah as one of his sons. 12 And Micah
consecrated the Levite, and the young man became his priest and was in the
house of Micah. 13 Then said Micah, Now I know that the Lord will favor me,
since I have a Levite to be my priest. AMP
Owning a Levite was a prize in Micah’s mind. However it did
not inspire Micah to get rid of the graven images, the molten images, the
ephod, or the teraphim. It seems as Micah thought of the Levite as a good luck charm.
We know from history that at the time of the exodus some of
the tribe of Dan who had been sailors and merchants went to the Grecian
islands, then onto Spain, and eventually the British Iles. The tribe of Dan that
was left was so small they could not drive out the inhabitants of their portion
of land, and eventually more people of Dan went out into ships, leaving the
region. Of the Danites that remained, they banded together and took over a
different place to live. Five Danite spies stayed with Micah.
Judg 18:1-4 IN THOSE days there was no king in Israel. And
in those days the tribe of the Danites sought for itself an inheritance to
dwell in, for until then no [sufficient] inheritance had been acquired by them
among the tribes of Israel. 2 So the Danites sent from the whole number of
their tribe five brave men from Zorah and Eshtaol to spy out the land and to
explore it, and they said to them, Go, explore the land. They came to the hill
country of Ephraim, to the house of Micah, and lodged there. 3 When they went
by the house of Micah, they recognized the voice of the young Levite, and they
turned aside there and said to him, Who brought you here? And what do you do in
this place? And what have you here? 4 And he said to them, Thus and thus Micah
deals with me and has hired me, and I am his priest. AMP
The Danites heard the voice of the priest, which probably
means they heard the priest making offerings and prayers and they recognized he
must be a Levite. When the tribe of Dan came back to take some land they
stopped by Micah’s house again.
Judg 18:16-20 Now the 600 Danites with their weapons of war
stood at Micah's gate. 17 And the five men who had gone to spy out the land
went up and entered the house and took the graven image, the ephod, the
teraphim, and the molten image, while the priest stood by the entrance of the gate
with the 600 men armed with weapons of war. 18 And when these went into Micah's
house and took the carved image, the ephod, the teraphim, and the molten image,
the priest said to them, What are you doing? 19 And they said to him, Be still,
put your hand over your mouth, and come with us, and be to us a father and a
priest. Is it better for you to be a priest to the house of one man, or that
you be a priest to a tribe and family in Israel? 20 And the priest's heart was
glad, and he took the ephod, the teraphim, and the graven image, and went in
the midst of the people. AMP
The Danites took the graven image, the molten image, the
ephod and the teraphim along with the Levite. Jonathan the Levite got a job
promotion working for the entire tribe of Dan. Micah and his neighbors went
after the Danites as it seems they were stealing from Micah.
Judg 18:22-31 When they were a good way from the house of
Micah, the men who were Micah's near neighbors were called out and overtook the
Danites. 23 They shouted to the Danites, who turned and said to Micah, What
ails you, that you come with such a company? 24 And he said, You take away my
gods which I made and the priest, and go away; and what have I left? How can
you say to me, What ails you? 25 And the men of Dan said to him, Let not your
voice be heard among us, lest angry fellows fall upon you and you lose your
life with the lives of your household. 26 And the Danites went their way; and
when Micah saw that they were too strong for him, he turned and went back to his
house. 27 And they took the things which Micah had made, and his priest, and
came to Laish, to a people quiet and feeling secure, and they smote them with
the sword and burned the city. 28 And there was no deliverer because it was far
from Sidon, and they had no business with anyone. It was in the valley which
belongs to Beth-rehob. And they rebuilt the city and dwelt in it. 29 They named
the city Dan, after Dan their forefather who was born to Israel; however, the
name of the city was Laish at first. 30 And the Danites set up the graven image
for themselves; and Jonathan son of Gershom, the son of Moses, and his sons
were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land. 31
So they set them up Micah's graven image which he made, as long as the house of
God was at Shiloh. AMP
There were too many Danites for Micah and his neighbors to
take back the idols and the Levite so they gave up and let the Danites have
them. Notice here though that the Danites took the idols and the Levite Jonathan,
grandson of Moses, and the sons of Jonathan ministered until the captivity. We
don’t hear very much about the separate tribes having their own Levite, let
alone Moses’s grandson ministering to the Danites alongside graven and molten
images, an ephod and a teraphim. That is a head turner! We looked at immoral
children a few weeks back, and again we should make the point, simply because
one person is a follower of Yahweh, does not mean that that persons heirs will
follow Yahweh.
Oddly, Gideon made an ephod from the gold they took from
the Midianites. Even Gideon wasn’t as saintly as he should have been.
Judg 8:27 And Gideon made an ephod [a sacred, high priest's
garment] of it, and put it in his city of Ophrah, and all Israel paid homage to
it there, and it became a snare to Gideon and to his family. AMP
Judges 8:27G2532And G4160[2made
G14733to
himself G*1Gideon]
G1519for G*an
ephod, G2532and G2476set G1473it G1722in G4172his
city, G1473 G1722in G*Ophrah.
G2532And G1608[3fornicated
G39561all G*2Israel]
G3694after G1473it G1563there.
G2532And G1096it
became G3588[3to
G*4Gideon
G25325and G3588 G36246his
house G1473 G15191an G46252obstacle]
The ephod became a snare or obstacle which is not quite
communicated well, but the word means “sin or offence”. Israel didn’t just pay
homage to this ephod, it was closer to fornication. Gideon should never have
made anything for the people to look at or see. This ended up being a black
mark upon Gideon’s whole family.
Let’s take a look at this from 30,000 feet. What do we see?
We see people struggling to connect the spiritual side of life with physical
implements. From above we see that since the time of Babylon and Nimrod through
to today, humans have been making up religious rites and practices for profit.
What we also see is that the children of Jacob, after Joshua died, mixed with
the other nations, marrying between each other and taking on the practices of
the nations they mixed with. Our fairytale that Israelites were a genetically
pure nation, one that always worshipped Yahweh and obeyed the strict rules
Moses laid out, is simply not true. Even the Jews of today mix superstitions
and mystic practices with Judaism.
From 30,000 feet, we see that the only change to affect
humans throughout nearly 6,000 years of history was Jesus’ death, burial, and
resurrection. Jesus is the one we can have a personal relationship with, rather
than prostitutes, idols, or ephods. Our overview shows that there were barely
any times in Israel’s history that they actually “got it right”. And whatever
time they had where they did do things correctly was very short lived. If we
think that through for a moment, we recognize that we have been given the wrong
impressions from our teachers and leaders in the churches and synagogues.
This shows us that no one could actually live by the law,
therefore Paul’s teachings regarding not being under the law any longer should
become more relevant and precious to our understanding. That being said, why
then do we have groups that insist on putting us back under the law? It is one
thing to believe a sweet simple version of something that is not meant to rule
and direct our lives. But in the effort to decipher life and spiritual
significance, believing a fairytale leads us in the wrong direction because we
believe a lie. We then base our life decisions on a lie. The reason we find
ourselves in this situation goes back to the profit of religion. Don’t trust
the simplistic fairytale version of Biblical history, instead it is alright to
grow up and see it for what is was and to read the truth as it is written in
the Bible.
