Re: Scripture of the Day

**Admin** Wed Oct 21, 2020 2:31 pm

COMBINATION OF[1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON REVELATION 22:12-13:. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [262B]

Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. Ecclesiastes 7:9, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Almighty God’S (YHWH’S) as found in the Bible makes it clear that all mankind lacks perfection an sins. This is made abundantly clear st Ecclesiastes 7:20 - 22, [AV] “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.21 Also take no heed unto all words that are spoken; lest thou hear thy servant curse thee:22 For oftentimes also thine own heart knoweth that thou thyself likewise hast cursed others.” Yes, we need His forgiveness to be counted worthy to live in His Kingdom that Jesus (Yeshua) taught all to pray for at Matthew 6:9 – 10, [AV] “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

[2] DISCOURSE ON REVELATION 22:12-13:

INTRODUCTION:

Let’s first look at the two scriptures in several different Bible versions/translations:

“12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.” (Revelation 22:12-13 AV – Authorized King James Version)

“12 Behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to render to each man according as his work is.
13 I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end.” .” (Revelation 22:12-13 ASV – American Standard Version of 1901)

“12 Lo! I come speedily, and my reward is with me, to render unto each one as, his, work is.
13 I, am the A and the Z, the First and the Last, the Beginning and the End.” (Revelation 22:12-13 Rothrham)

BIBLE ENCYCLOPEDIA ON REVELATION 22:12-13:

The International Standard Encyclopedia of the Bible says:

ALPHA AND OMEGA

al'-fa, o'-me-ga, o-me'-ga (Alpha and Omega = A and O):

The first and last letters of the Greek alphabet, hence, symbolically, "beginning and end"; in Revelation "The Eternal One" in Revelation 1:8 of the Father, in Revelation 21:6 and Revelation 22:13 of the Son. Compare Theodoret, Eusebius, Historia Ecclesiastica, iv. 8:

"We used alpha down to omega, i.e. all." A similar expression is found in Latin (Martial, v.26). Compare Aretas (Cramer's Catenae Graecae in New Testament) on Revelation 1:8 and Tertullian (Monog, 5): "So also two Greek letters, the first and last, did the Lord put on Himself, symbols of the beginning and the end meeting in Him, in order that just as alpha rolls on to omega and omega returns again to alpha, so He might show that both the evolution of the beginning to the end is in Him and again the return of the end to the beginning." Cyprian, Testim, ii.1; vi.22, iii.100, Paulinus of Nola Carm. xix.645; xxx.89; Prudentius, Cathem., ix.10-12. In Patristic and later literature the phrase is regularly applied to the Son. God blesses Israel from 'aleph to taw (Leviticus 26:3-13), but curses from waw to mem (Leviticus 26:14-43). So Abraham observed the whole law from 'aleph to taw. Consequently, "Alpha and Omega" may be a Greek rendering of the Hebrew phrase, which expressed among the later Jews the whole extent of a thing.

CONCLUSION:

In these two scriptures we are dealing with the symbolic meaning to the use of the first letter of the Koine Greek alphabet, Alpha, and the last letter, omega. As the International Bible Dictionary of the Bible states, it means the '‘beginning and end’ and shows how in Revelation 1:8 this phase is applied to the Father (YHWH) “6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father; to him be glory and dominion for ever and ever. Amen. 7 Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen. 8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” (Revelation 1:6-8 AV). Here we note it says, “6 And hath made us kings and priests unto God and his Father” clearly here referring to two individuals, God the Father (YHWH), and his God the Son (Yeshua or YHWH saves) . The term Alpha and Omega in “8 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.” Which is made clearer in the Rothrham Bible as “8 I, am, the A, and, the Z, saith the Lord,—the, God who Is, and who Was, and who is Coming, The Almighty.”
Clearly showing he has no beginning in keeping with “2 Before the mountains were brought forth, Or ever thou hadst formed the earth and the world, Even from everlasting to everlasting, thou art God.” (Revelation 1:8 ASV), which is quite different from how this same phrase is later used at Revelation 21:6 and 22:13 to apply to the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) who had a beginning as shown by “ And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;” (Revelation 3:14 AV); he was the first created thing with regard to all that was created.

To get a clear understanding of Revelation 22:13, we need to look at it in contest as follows:

“9 Then saith he unto me, See thou do it not: for I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren the prophets, and of them which keep the sayings of this book: worship God.
10 And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.
11 He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
12 And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.
13 I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last.
14 Blessed are they that do his commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city.
15 For without are dogs, and sorcerers, and sleepermongers, and murderers, and idolaters, and whosoever loveth and maketh a lie.
16 I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.” (Revelation 22:9-16 AV)

We note that Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) or one of his angels is quoted by the Apostle John as saying, “I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star.” [these being the Angels he was given authority over to carry out his assignment at 1 Corinthians 15:27-28.]. Since Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) had a beginning as shown “ And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;” (Revelation 3:14 AV) and “15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;” (1 Colossians 1:15-19 AV). Clearly Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) is separate individual from his Father (YHWH) as the scripture states, “. 19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;” which makes plain that his Father (YHWH) was pleased that “all fulness dwell” in his faithful Son. Also, the scripture brings out in what manner Alpha and Omega properly applies to the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) when it states, “15 Who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of every creature: 16 For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Where it shows that after his creation by his Father (YHWH), he, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) worked along with his Father in creating all of the remainder of creation in the entire universe. His, the Son’s Alpha and Omega symbolic application is further made clear in “17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist.” Thus he is the Alpha in the sense he helped create all else except himself and the Omega as his Father (YHWH) has given him immortality for being faithful, and this is made certain by “. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence.”

So here we see a faithful Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) had been given authority over all by his Father (YHWH) with the “, it is manifest that he is excepted” exception of himself. This subjection to his Father (YHWH) is clearly shown by the faithful Son’s statements, “ Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise.” (John 5:19 AV) and “ Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I.” (John 14:28 AV).

Those denying that Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) is not the faithful only begotten Son of Almighty God (YHWH) and not God (YHWH) are thus clearly committing blasphemy.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Fri Oct 23, 2020 10:12 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] ESTER (HADASSAH) WAS A BRAVE WOMEN:. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [263B]

The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; Psalms 19:14, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

This calling on the name of Almighty God (YHWH) is shown at Psalms 23:1 – 2, [AV] “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.. And the Psalmist goes on at Psalms 23:4, [AV] to state, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Clearly showing that he was trusting in the Lord to protect him.

[2] ESTER (HADASSAH) WAS A BRAVE WOMEN:

First, a little background on who Ester and Biblical events that transpired was before how she saved Almighty God’s (YHWH’s) people from being slaughtered in the Persian Empire 4 th. Century B.C. An encyclopedia states, “Esther is the eponymous heroine of the Book of Esther.
According to the Hebrew Bible, Esther was a Jewish queen of the Persian kingAhasuerus. Ahasuerus is traditionally identified with Xerxes I during the time of the Achaemenid empire. Her story is the basis for the celebration of Purim in Jewish tradition.
King Ahasuerus (Xerxes I Darius I ) held a 180-day feast in Susa(Shoushan). While in "high spirits" from the wine, he ordered his queen, Vashti, to appear before him and his guests to display her beauty. But when the attendants delivered the king's command to Queen Vashti, she refused to come. Furious at her refusal to obey, the king asked his wise men what should be done. One of them said that all the women in the empire would hear that "The King Ahasuerus commanded Vashti the queen to be brought in before him, but she came not." Then these women would despise their husbands, which would cause many problems in the kingdom. Therefore it would be prudent to depose Vashti.
Many beautiful maidens were then brought before the king in order that he might choose a successor to the unruly Vashti. The King chose Esther, an orphan daughter of a Benjamite named Abihail. Esther was originally named Hadassah, meaning myrtle. She had spent her life among the Jewish exiles in Persia, where she lived under the protection of her cousin Mordecai.[ When Cyrus gave permission for the exiles to return unto Jerusalem, she stayed with Mordecai.
Mordecai was the son of Jair, a Benjamite, who had been carried into captivity together with Jeconiah by Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon. Mordecai became chief minister of Ahasuerus and lived in the Persian capital of Susa. One day, while sitting at the gate of the king's palace, Mordecai overheard a plot of two eunuchs, Bigthan and Teresh, to kill the king. Having informed the king through Esther of the conspiracy, Mordecai brought about the execution of the two conspirators, and the event was recorded in the royal chronicles.
The grand vizier, Haman the Agagite, commanded Mordecai to do obeisance to him. Upon Mordecai's refusal to prostrate himself, Haman informed the king that the Jews were a useless and turbulent people and inclined to disloyalty, and he promised to pay 10,000 silver talents into the royal treasury for the permission to pillage and exterminate this alien race. The king then issued a proclamation ordering the confiscation of Jewish property and a general extermination of all the Jews within the empire.
Mordecai tore his robes and put ash on his head (signs of mourning or grieving) on hearing this news. Sheltered in the harem, Esther was unaware of the decree until Mordecai advised her of it through Hathach, one of the king's chamberlains. He informed her that she should not think that she would escape simply because she was in the palace. At the request of Esther, Mordecai instituted at Susa a general fast for three days.
Esther could not approach the king without being summoned, on pain of death, and the king had not summoned her in thirty days, implying that she may have fallen out of favor. Nevertheless, at the end of the three days, Esther dressed in her royal apparel and went before the king. When the king asked her what her request was, she invited the king and Haman to come to a banquet she had prepared. At the banquet they accepted her invitation to dine with her again on the following day. Haman, carried away by the joy that this honour gave him, issued orders for the erection of a gallows on which he purposed to hang the hated Mordecai.
But that night the king, being sleepless, ordered the chronicles of the nation to be read to him. Recalling that Mordecai had never been rewarded for his service in revealing the plot of the eunuchs, he asked Haman, the next day, to suggest a suitable reward for one "whom the king desired to honour". Thinking it was himself that the king had in mind, Haman suggested the use of the king's apparel and insignia. These the king ordered to be bestowed on Mordecai.
Only at the second dinner party, when the king was sufficiently beguiled by her charms, did Esther reveal for the first time her identity as a Jew, and accused Haman of the plot to destroy her and her people. The king ordered that Haman should be hanged on the gallows prepared for Mordecai, and, confiscating his property, bestowed it upon the intended victim. The king then appointed Mordecai as his prime minister, and issued a decree authorizing the Jews to defend themselves. [sourc - retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Esther on 5/25/2016]
Now some background on Haman the Agagite, Haman (Also known as Haman the Agagite, or Haman the evil ) is the main antagonist in the Book of Esther, who, according to the Hebrew Bible, was avizier in the Persian empire under King Ahasuerus, traditionally identified as Xerxes I. As his name indicates, Haman was a descendant of Agag, the king of the Amalekites, a people who were wiped out in certain areas by King Saul and David. [sourc - retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agagite on 5/25/2016]

The Bible at Samuel 15:8, [AV] “And he took Agag the king of the Amalekites alive, and utterly destroyed all the people with the edge of the sword.” But King Saul failed to carry out Almighty God’S (YHWH’S ) command to completely destroy the Amalekites and all their belongings as shown at 1 Samuel 15:9, [AV] “But Saul and the people spared Agag, and the best of the sheep, and of the oxen, and of the fatlings, and the lambs, and all that was good, and would not utterly destroy them: but every thing that was vile and refuse, that they destroyed utterly.” This failure would come back to haunt God’s people in the Persian Empire many years later as the descendent of King Agag, Haman the Agagite, would later plot genocide against Almighty God (YHWH) then chosen people.
1Samuel 15:20, [AV] “ And Saul said unto Samuel, Yea, I have obeyed the voice of the LORD, and have gone the way which the LORD sent me, and have brought Agag the king of Amalek, and have utterly destroyed the Amalekites.” Except, however, King Agag, whose descendent almost committed genocide against the Jews.

Now who was Mordecai. Mordecai resided in Susa (Shushan or Shoushan),[1] the metropolis of Persia (now Iran). He adopted his cousin (Esther 2:7), Hadassah (Esther), an orphan child, whom he brought up as if she were his own daughter. When "young virgins" were sought, she was taken into the presence of King Ahasuerus and was made queen in the place of the exiled queen Vashti. Mordecai was referred to subsequently as one of those who "sat in the king's gate" to indicate his position of closeness to the king. While holding this office, he discovered a plot of the king's chamberlains Bigthan and Teresh to assassinate the king. Because of Mordecai's vigilance, the plot was foiled. His services to the king in this matter were duly recorded in the king's royal diary.
Haman the Agagite had been raised to the highest position at court. In spite of the king's decree that all should prostrate themselves before Haman, Mordecai refused to do so. Though the Hebrew Scriptures attest to Israelites or Jews bowing out of respect and submission (e.g. Gen. 33: 3; 2 Sam. 24:8), Haman was a descendant of the Amalekites, their ancient enemies (Esther 3:1; 1 Sam. 15:8).[2] Haman, stung by Mordecai's refusal, resolved to accomplish his death in a wholesale murder of the Jewish exiles throughout the Persian empire. Learning of Haman's scheme, Mordecai communicated with Queen Esther regarding it, and by her bold intervention the scheme was frustrated by distributing arms to the Jews of Susa and other Persian cities where they lived and clashed with Haman's militia, until the king rescinded the edict to murder the empire's Jews. Mordecai was raised to a high rank, donned in the royal gray cloak, and Haman was executed on gallows he had by anticipation erected for Mordecai. In memory of the deliverance thus wrought for them, the Jews to this day celebrate the feast of Purim or "Lots" because of the lots that were drawn by Haman to decide whom he would first murder among the Jewish elders in Persia.
The Biblical account ends: "And all the acts of his [king Ahasuerus'] power and of his might, and the declaration of the greatness of Mordecai, whereunto the king advanced him, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Media and Persia? For Mordecai the Jew was next unto king Ahasuerus, and great among the Jews, and accepted of the multitude of his brethren, seeking the wealth of his people, and speaking peace to all his seed." (Esther 10:2–3, KJV)

Thus as can be seen, Almighty God (YHWH) maneuvered events to enable the Jews to be saved by the courageous actions of Ester. He caused as shown at Ester 6:1 – 11, [AV] “On that night could not the king sleep, and he commanded to bring the book of records of the chronicles; and they were read before the king. 2 And it was found written, that Mordecai had told of Bigthana and Teresh, two of the king’s chamberlains, the keepers of the door, who sought to lay hand on the king Ahasuerus. 3 And the king said, What honour and dignity hath been done to Mordecai for this? Then said the king’s servants that ministered unto him, There is nothing done for him. 4 And the king said, Who is in the court? Now Haman was come into the outward court of the king’s house, to speak unto the king to hang Mordecai on the gallows that he had prepared for him. 5 And the king’s servants said unto him, Behold, Haman standeth in the court. And the king said, Let him come in. 6 So Haman came in. And the king said unto him, What shall be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to honour? Now Haman thought in his heart, To whom would the king delight to do honour more than to myself? 7 And Haman answered the king, For the man whom the king delighteth to honour, 8 Let the royal apparel be brought which the king useth to wear, and the horse that the king rideth upon, and the crown royal which is set upon his head: 9 And let this apparel and horse be delivered to the hand of one of the king’s most noble princes, that they may array the man withal whom the king delighteth to honour, and bring him on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaim before him, Thus shall it be done to the man whom the king delighteth to honour. 10 Then the king said to Haman, Make haste, and take the apparel and the horse, as thou hast said, and do even so to Mordecai the Jew, that sitteth at the king’s gate: let nothing fail of all that thou hast spoken. 11 Then took Haman the apparel and the horse, and arrayed Mordecai, and brought him on horseback through the street of the city, and proclaimed before him, Thus shall it be done unto the man whom the king delighteth to honour.”

Shortly thereafter Ester started to discretely put into operation her plan to save her people. It was illegal for someone to approach the Persian King without being bidden and could cost one his life if the King did not hold out the golden scepter. However, in Ester’s case, he held out the golden scepter as recorded at Ester 5:1 – 6, [AV] “Now it came to pass on the third day, that Esther put on her royal apparel, and stood in the inner court of the king’s house, over against the king’s house: and the king sat upon his royal throne in the royal house, over against the gate of the house. 2 And it was so, when the king saw Esther the queen standing in the court, that she obtained favour in his sight: and the king held out to Esther the golden sceptre that was in his hand. So Esther drew near, and touched the top of the sceptre. 3 Then said the king unto her, What wilt thou, queen Esther? and what is thy request? it shall be even given thee to the half of the kingdom. 4 And Esther answered, If it seem good unto the king, let the king and Haman come this day unto the banquet that I have prepared for him. 5 Then the king said, Cause Haman to make haste, that he may do as Esther hath said. So the king and Haman came to the banquet that Esther had prepared. 6 And the king said unto Esther at the banquet of wine, What is thy petition? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? even to the half of the kingdom it shall be performed. “

Ester could have immediately told her request, but she sought to maintain her husband’s dignity in keeping with per Proverbs 10:19, [AV] “In the multitude of words there wanteth not sin: but he that refraineth his lips is wise.” and to not give Haman an opportunity to mount a defense. To this end she prepared a second banquet per Ester 5:7 – 8, [AV] “Then answered Esther, and said, My petition and my request is; 8 If I have found favour in the sight of the king, and if it please the king to grant my petition, and to perform my request, let the king and Haman come to the banquet that I shall prepare for them, and I will do to morrow as the king hath said.” Here she let her petition to be known. Yes, patience is a rare quality, but Ester exercised it. And Ester 7:1 - 6, [AV] “So the king and Haman came to banquet with Esther the queen. 2 And the king said again unto Esther on the second day at the banquet of wine, What is thy petition, queen Esther? and it shall be granted thee: and what is thy request? and it shall be performed, even to the half of the kingdom. 3 Then Esther the queen answered and said, If I have found favour in thy sight, O king, and if it please the king, let my life be given me at my petition, and my people at my request: 4 For we are sold, I and my people, to be destroyed, to be slain, and to perish. But if we had been sold for bondmen and bondwomen, I had held my tongue, although the enemy could not countervail the king’s damage. 5 Then the king Ahasuerus answered and said unto Esther the queen, Who is he, and where is he, that durst presume in his heart to do so? 6 And Esther said, The adversary and enemy is this wicked Haman. Then Haman was afraid before the king and the queen.” And Haman’s next actions in an attempt to save himself only infuriated the king more per Ester 7:8 - , [AV] “And the king arising from the banquet of wine in his wrath went into the palace garden: and Haman stood up to make request for his life to Esther the queen; for he saw that there was evil determined against him by the king. 8 Then the king returned out of the palace garden into the place of the banquet of wine; and Haman was fallen upon the bed whereon Esther was. Then said the king, Will he force the queen also before me in the house? As the word went out of the king’s mouth, they covered Haman’s face. 9 And Harbonah, one of the chamberlains, said before the king, Behold also, the gallows fifty cubits high, which Haman had made for Mordecai, who had spoken good for the king, standeth in the house of Haman. Then the king said, Hang him thereon. 10 So they hanged Haman on the gallows that he had prepared for Mordecai. Then was the king’s wrath pacified.”

However, that was NOT the end of the matter as a royal decree could not be annulled, but Mordecai came up with a solution per Ester 8:3 - 14, [AV] “And Esther spake yet again before the king, and fell down at his feet, and besought him with tears to put away the mischief of Haman the Agagite, and his device that he had devised against the Jews. 4 Then the king held out the golden sceptre toward Esther. So Esther arose, and stood before the king, 5 And said, If it please the king, and if I have found favour in his sight, and the thing seem right before the king, and I be pleasing in his eyes, let it be written to reverse the letters devised by Haman the son of Hammedatha the Agagite, which he wrote to destroy the Jews which are in all the king’s provinces: 6 For how can I endure to see the evil that shall come unto my people? or how can I endure to see the destruction of my kindred? 7 Then the king Ahasuerus said unto Esther the queen and to Mordecai the Jew, Behold, I have given Esther the house of Haman, and him they have hanged upon the gallows, because he laid his hand upon the Jews. 8 Write ye also for the Jews, as it liketh you, in the king’s name, and seal it with the king’s ring: for the writing which is written in the king’s name, and sealed with the king’s ring, may no man reverse. 9 Then were the king’s scribes called at that time in the third month, that is, the month Sivan, on the three and twentieth day thereof; and it was written according to all that Mordecai commanded unto the Jews, and to the lieutenants, and the deputies and rulers of the provinces which are from India unto Ethiopia, an hundred twenty and seven provinces, unto every province according to the writing thereof, and unto every people after their language, and to the Jews according to their writing, and according to their language. 10 And he wrote in the king Ahasuerus’ name, and sealed it with the king’s ring, and sent letters by posts on horseback, and riders on mules, camels, and young dromedaries: 11 Wherein the king granted the Jews which were in every city to gather themselves together, and to stand for their life, to destroy, to slay, and to cause to perish, all the power of the people and province that would assault them, both little ones and women, and to take the spoil of them for a prey, 12 Upon one day in all the provinces of king Ahasuerus, namely, upon the thirteenth day of the twelfth month, which is the month Adar. 13 The copy of the writing for a commandment to be given in every province was published unto all people, and that the Jews should be ready against that day to avenge themselves on their enemies. 14 So the posts that rode upon mules and camels went out, being hastened and pressed on by the king’s commandment. And the decree was given at Shushan the palace.”

CONCLUSION:

ITEM ONE, This historical event is celebrated even today by the Jews and is known as Purim. Purim (/?p??r?m/; Hebrew: ???????? (help·info) Pûrîm "lots", from the word ???pur, related to Akkadian: p?ru) is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the saving of the Jewish people from Haman, who was planning to kill all the Jews. This took place in the ancient Persian Empire. The story is recorded in theBiblical Book of Esther (Megillat Ester in Hebrew). [sourc - retrieved from https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purim on 5/ 25/2016]

ITEM TWO, Some critics say the book is not authentic as Almighty God (YHWH) nowhere appear in it, but this was because Mordecai wanted it to survive. It was obviously a part of the royal records of this empire, and its author showed intimate knowledge of Persian royalty, architecture, and customs of the time.

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**Admin** Mon Oct 26, 2020 8:25 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] BY A JEWISH SCHOLAR ON REVELATION 1:8. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [264B]

My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me? why art thou so far from helping me, and from the words of my roaring? Psalms 22:1, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

This prophecy was with respect the future coming of Jesus (Yeshua) and what would transpire to him and this is made even more sure by Psalms 22:18 – 19, [AV] “They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture. 19 But be not thou far from me, O LORD: O my strength, haste thee to help me.” This prophecy was written about 460 B.C. long before Christ arrival, and the fulfillment was clearly shown at Matthew 27:35, [AV] “And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots.” And Mark 15:34, [AV] “And at the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eloi, Eloi, lama sabachthani? which is, being interpreted, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?” shows the fulfillment of Psalms 22:1.

[2] BY A JEWISH SCHOLAR ON REVELATION 1:8:

I am the Alpha and the Omega, says the Lord God, who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.

I decided to clarify this passage since so many forget what Yehoshua said in John 14:8-10. But first let’s look at another passage.

Revelation 1:1 The revelation of Yehoshua Moshiach, which God gave him to show to his servants what must soon take place; and he made it known by sending his angel to his servant John,

In the beginning of the Book of Revelation we read that God gave Yehoshua Ha’Moshiach a Revelation which Yehoshua gave to John. So we understand that Yehoshua is giving and telling John what God told Yehoshua, to get a better understanding of this read John 12:49.

So why did Yehoshua say “I am the Alpha and Omega”? Well let me ask you how do you know it was Yehoshua who said it and not The Father who said it through Yehoshua?

John 14:8-10 Philip said to him, Lord, show us the Father, and we shall be satisfied. Yehoshua said to him, Have I been with you so long, and yet you do not know me, Philip? He who has seen me has seen the Father; how can you say, `Show us the Father'? Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority; but the Father who dwells in me does his works.

I mad it in red where the Father speaks “through” the Son, and yet the Apostles would have thoughts Yehoshua said it if he wouldn’t tell them that The Father spoke “through” him, for the Father is in Yehoshua.

But look it says in Revelation 1:8 that “Lord God” said it. Oh yea? Well look in John where I made it in blue, it says “Yehoshua said” also, but yet the Father spoke “through” him. And how do you know Yehoshua was not repeating what The Father (The Only True God according to Yehoshua; John 17:3) told him to say?

What was said in Revelation 1:8 goes for everywhere else in the book of Revelation, the Father speaks through the Son, and the Son speaks for himself, it’s hard to understand what is going on in the book of Revelation since we were not there to see it for ourselves, and remember it was a vision.

Now since we are on this topic, let’s look at some other scriptures in the book of Revelation.

Revelation 3:2 Awake, and strengthen what remains and is on the point of death, for I have not found your works perfect in the sight of the God of me.

Some of you may be puzzled why it does not say what it says above in your English Bible, that is because the translators are scared of what it says in the Greek, look for yourself by clicking here.

Notice that Yehoshua says “the God of me” in Revelation 3:2, The True God does not have a True God, people wake up.

Revelation 3:12 He who conquers, I will make him a pillar in the temple of my God; never shall he go out of it, and I will write on him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, the new Yerusalem which comes down from my God out of heaven, and my own new name.

Here we see Yehoshua speak of his God four times while in heaven in his glorified body.

You think this is the first time Yehoshua talks about his God? If you do then let’s look at another scripture.

John 20:17 Yehoshua said to her, Do not hold me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to my brethren and say to them, I am ascending to my Father and your Father, to my God and your God.

Here we see Yehoshua tell us that his God is our God and his Father is our Father, also read Hebrews 2:11-13. I have seen many Idolaters (those who claim Ha’Moshiach is God in flesh) say that Yehoshua said it because he was in the flesh. HELLO? What difference does it make if he said it in the flesh or in the spirit of if his flesh spoke by itself by some magical power or if his spirit spoke through the flesh? He said it, so OBEY IT!

Let’s look at what else Yehoshua said, and the reason I am going to give the two following scriptures is because Idolaters don’t have God and they will see death according to what Yehoshua and Apostle John said.

John 8:51 Truly, truly, I say to you, if any one keeps my word, he will never see death.

How many Idolaters (those who claim Ha’Moshiach is God in flesh) keep what Yehoshua said in John 17:3 and in John 20:17?

2nd John 9-11 Any one who goes ahead and does not abide in the doctrine of Moshiach does not have God; he who abides in the doctrine has both the Father and the Son. If any one comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into the house or give him any greeting; for he who greets him shares his wicked work.

How many Idolaters (those who claim Ha’Moshaich is God in flesh) keep what Yehoshua said in John 17:3 and in John 20:17?

I hope we now understand how dangerous it is to twist scriptures and to claim what the scriptures do not teach.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Thu Oct 29, 2020 7:18 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] THE WORKING OF IRON AND BRASS WAS KNOWN TO THE PRE-FLOOD ANCIENTS AND USED IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF NOAH’S ARC. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [265B]

As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Psalms 103:12, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

However as shown at Isaiah 1:16 - 20, [AV] Almighty God (YHWH) will wipe away the sins of those loving him, “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; 17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. 18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. 19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” Thus it is imperative to strive to bring our lives in harmony with his will as detailed in His book of guidance, the Bible.

[2] THE WORKING OF IRON AND BRASS WAS KNOWN TO THE PRE-FLOOD ANCIENTS AND USED IN THE CONSTRUCTION OF NOAH’S ARC.

THE Bible says at Genesis 4:22, [authorized King James Bible; AV] says, “ And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.” This is very interesting, since after the flood of Noah’s day, it was many centuries before humans were working with brass and iron, materials that Tubalcain worked with before the flood that were used in the construction of Noah’s arc as shown by its recent probable re-finding. Let’s review a recent claim on that subject.

Noah’s Ark Has Been Found. Why Are They Keeping Us In The Dark?

May 20, 2016 Tiffany Landis

I’m often amazed at our lack of knowledge about history. Ordinary people are hungry for this information, yet the organizations responsible to disseminate these facts seem to have an agenda to keep us in the dark. This is especially true when it comes to our ancient human history.
I won’t hold you in suspense with this article: The Ark of Noah has been found. It’s real. I’ll describe the evidence in some detail and end with the historical and religious implications.

How It Was Discovered
In 1959, Turkish army captain Llhan Durupinar discovered an unusual shape while examining aerial photographs of his country. The smooth shape, larger than a football field, stood out from the rough and rocky terrain at an altitude of 6,300 feet near the Turkish border with Iran.

Capt. Durupinar was familiar with the biblical accounts of the Ark and its association with Mount Ararat in Turkey, but he was reluctant to jump to any conclusions. The region was very remote, yet it was inhabited with small villages. No previous reports of an object this odd had been made before. So he forwarded the photographic negative to a famous aerial photography expert named Dr. Brandenburger, at Ohio State University.
Brandenburger was responsible for discovering the Cuban missile bases during the Kennedy era from reconnaissance photos, and after carefully studying the photo, he concluded: “I have no doubt at all, that this object is a ship. In my entire career, I have never seen an object like this on a stereo photo.”

In 1960 the picture [above] was published in LIFE magazine under the heading of Noahs Ark? That same year a group of Americans accompanied Capt. Durupinar to the site for a day and a half. They were expecting to find artifacts on the surface or something that would be unquestionably related to a ship of some kind. They did some digging in the area but found nothing conclusive and announced to the anxiously waiting world that it appeared to be a natural formation.
Most of the global media turned away from the find and it became a non-story.

In 1977 Ron Wyatt visited the site. Obtaining official permission, Ron and others conducted more thorough research over a period of several years. They used metal detection surveys, subsurface radar scans, and chemical analysis — real science — and their findings were startling. The evidence was undeniable. This was the Ark of Noah.

The first part of the survey was to examine the object and take its measurements. The shape looked like hull of a ship. One end was pointed as you would expect from bow [below: D] and the opposite end was blunt like a stern. The distance from bow to stern was 515 feet, or exactly 300 Egyptian cubits. The average width was 50 cubits. These were the exact measurements mentioned in the Bible.

On the starboard side (right) near the stern there were four vertical bulges protruding from the mud [B], at regular intervals, that were determined to be the “ribs” of the hull [see below]. Opposite to these, on the port side, a single rib [A] protrudes from the mud. You can see its curved shape very clearly. Surrounding it are more ribs, still largely buried in the mud, but visible upon close examination.

Remember that this object, if it is the Ark, is extremely old. The wood has been petrified. Organic matter has been replaced by minerals from the earth. Only the shapes and traces of the original wood remain. Perhaps this is why the expedition in 1960 was disappointed. They anticipated finding and retrieving chucks of wood, long since eroded.

From the position of the object in the middle of an obvious mud flow, it is obvious that the object slid down more than a mile from its original location. Geologists believe it was originally over 1000 feet higher in the mountain and encased in a shell of hardened mud. They think that an earthquake in 1948 cracked the mud shell and revealed the structure. This is confirmed by stories from the surrounding villagers who tell of its “sudden appearance” around that time.

Biblical accounts of the Ark describe it as having as many as six levels. The assumed shape of the Ark seems consistent with the bulge [C] in the middle of the object. In fact, as we will soon learn, radar scans of the structure suggest that this bulge is the collapsed debris of these levels.
Although most people think of the Ark as being rectangular, that only applies to the top decks. The sleek shape of the hull is necessary to enable the huge ship to remain stable in the water and survive tremendous waves.

The human eye needs to see reflected light to recognize an object. To visualize what remains below the earth, scientists use microwaves which can penetrate the ground and bounce back when they hit something solid. This technique is commonly used to locate oil and other minerals. Called Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), the apparatus us made from an antenna that transmits, then listens to receive the “echo” and prints the result on a piece of paper. The delay and strength of this echo tell the geologists how solid and at what depth the objects are under the earth. The team of geologists didn’t scan the entire object. Instead, they marked out lines that crossed the object with yellow tape. Then they dragged the antenna (about the size of a lawnmower) over the lines and watched the output on the paper recorder. When they got a strong “hit” — meaning there was something solid underneath — they would record the position on the tape [above]. Later, when they made a map of the object, the tape and the location of the “hits” they realized that there was indeed a structure underneath the mud.

The radar cans revealed this structure under the mud. The symmetry and logical placement of these objects shows that this is unmistakably a man made structure, most likely the Ark of Noah. Using the GPR, Ron Wyatt discovered an open cavity on the starboard side. He used an improvised drill to make core sample inside this cavity and retrieved several very interesting objects. Found, by what turned out to be petrified animal dung, then a petrified antler and lastly a piece of cat hair.

Perhaps the most significant find from the Ark itself is a piece of petrified wood. When this was first found it appeared to be a large beam. But upon closer examination it is actually three pieces of plank that have been laminated together with some kind of organic glue! This is the same technology used in modern plywood. Lamination makes the total strength of the wood much greater than the combined strength of the pieces. This suggests a knowledge of construction far beyond anything we knew existed in the ancient world.

Tests by Galbraith Labs in Knoxville, Tennessee, showed the sample to contain over 0.7% organic carbon, consistent with fossilized wood. The specimen was once living matter. Examination reveals the glue oozed from the layers. The outside of the wood appears to have been coated with bitumen. Even more surprising were laboratory analyses which not only revealed that the petrified wood contained carbon (proving it was once wood) but there were iron nails embedded in the wood!

We like to imagine that humanity evolved in a neat sequence of eras, each named after the technology that was discovered. We have the Stone Age (where man developed arrows and stone tools), the Bronze Age (where metals were combined and heated to make tools and household items) and lastly the Iron Age (where iron and steel objects were made by heating iron ore and adding other material — like charcoal — to strengthen it). The Iron Age is usually placed at 1200-1000 BC, yet we have iron nails being used in this extremely old construction.

The most surprising find was discovered with sensitive metal detectors. The team located several strong “hits” that, when dug up, revealed large disc shaped rivets. From simple observation of the metal it was possible to see where the rivet had been hammered after being inserted through a hole. If rivets being used in ancient construction doesn’t impress you, this surely will.

An analysis of the metal used to make the rivets revealed that they were a combination of iron (8.38%), aluminum (8.35%) and titanium (1.59%). Remember these trace metals have survived petrification and so do not indicate the exact content in the original material.

We know the aluminum was incorporated in the metallic mixture because it does not exist in metallic form in nature. This implies an extremely advanced knowledge of metallurgy and engineering. Characteristics of an iron-aluminum alloy have been investigated in The Russian Chemical Bulletin (2005) and reveal that this alloy forms a thin film of aluminum oxide which protects the material from rust and corrosion. The addition of titanium would provide added strength. This seems to have worked. The rivets have survived from antiquity!

Several miles from the location of the Ark, huge stones were discovered, some standing upright while others lying on the ground. These stones, weighing many tons, have holes carved in them. Scientists have determined that they were anchors and the holes would have been their attachment to a ship with hemp rope.

Often these stones will have crosses carved in them, from centuries ago when pilgrims made the journey to visit the Ark. Yes, the Ark was well known in the Middle Ages and even before. And its location was recorded in many historical documents.

The Gilgamesh Epic (650 BC) gives Mt. Nisir as the landing place of the Ark. The local name for the town where the Ark was found is Nasar. The annals of Ashurnasurpal II of Assyria (833-859 BC) places it south of the Zab river (correct). Theophilus of Antioch (115-185 AD) said the Ark could be seen in his day in the Arabian mountains. Later Church Fathers also mention the Ark as late as the mid 7th century. In the 13th century, Willam, a traveler, stated for the first time that Mt. Masis was the Ark location (present-day Mt. Ararat). Ptolemy’s Geographia (1548) mentions the mountains of Armenia as the place of landing. So does the traveler Nicolas de Nicolay (1558).

Pilgrims to the site would gather bits and pieces of the petrified wood which would be used as charms to ward off evil. When they encountered the anchors, they had no doubt about their association with the Ark. They often carved one big cross to represent Noah and smaller crosses representing his family. The huge anchors would have been suspended from the keel of the ship. This was a common practice among ancient mariners to stabilize a heavy ship and ensure that the bow is always facing the on-coming waves. A “top heavy” ship, such as the Ark, could easily be capsized by a wave approaching from the side. This is yet further proof that Noah’s Ark was a reality and that it has indeed been found in Turkey. [sourc - retrieved from http://thefactedz.com/noahs-ark-has-been-found-why-are-they-keeping-us-in-the-dark/11/ on 5/28/2016]

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Sat Oct 31, 2020 1:44 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] THE REALITY ON ISAIAH 41:4. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [266B]

For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. Romans 8:22, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yes, things on earth are NOT getting better, but only going down in a continuous downward spiral. Of course, this eventuality was foretold long ago by the Apostle Matthew when he wrote at Matthew 24:8 – 12, [AV] “All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. 10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” For example the use of illegal drugs is increasing and more youths are committing crimes of ever more grave types, and the political scene is getting worse in many diverse countries, and there is no peace in the world as it is in great turmoil with entities that claim a religious reason such as ISIS and Al Queda.

[2] THE REALITY ON ISAIAH 41:4:

Isaiah 41:4 Who has performed and accomplished it, Calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am the first, and with the last, I am He." [New American Standard Bible-Reference Edition by Moody Press, Chicago, a div. Of Moody Bible Institute; NASB-MP].

Some think this applies to Jesus (Yeshua), but it does not, it applies to his Father (YHWH) as clearly shown at Isaiah 44:6-8, 'Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. 7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them. 8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.." (AV); and at Isaiah 46:9-10, "Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: "; and Isaiah 43:10-11, "Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour." (AV); and many others.

But Isaiah 48:17-18, "Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go. 18 O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:" (AV) clearly shows the Title, "Lord," being applied to Almighty God (YHWH). This is reaffirmed at Revelation 11:17, "Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.",(AV), yet there are those who attempt to twist the scriptures to serve the god of this system or world, and use scriptures such as Revelation 1:11, "Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea." (AV) , but fail to notice the critical difference "the first and the last" which rather than implying that Jesus (Yeshua) is Almighty God (YHWH) clearly show his as the first of Creation as does Revelation 3:14, "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans F1 write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;" (AV); Clearly they do not recognize the difference between "beginning and the ending" and "the first and the last."

Actually a lot of this confusion results from poor translation as clearly shown by the rendering of Revelation 1:11 in the New American Standard Bible-reference Edition by Moody Press, Chicago, a div. Of Moody Bible Institute; NASB-MP, "Saying, 'Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches; To Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyater and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodices." (NASB-MP); similar renderings are found in the American Standard Bible (ASB); the New World Translation (NWT); The Emphatic Dialogue; New Revised Standard Version (NRSV); the Westcott-Hort (1948 Reprint), and many more. Of particular interest is the rendering in the Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible, the following, "Saying: What thou seest, write in a book and send to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamus and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.".

However, be not mislead by the trickery of men, but know this Psalms 83:18 says, "That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth." (AV). And the difference is drawn out at Acts 5:24-26, "Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow. 25 Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people. 26 Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned." (AV), where it clearly says, Acts 4:26, "The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the Lord, and against His Christ." (NASB-MP). Clearly showing here "Lord" applied to Almighty God (YHWH) and distinguishing him from his son the Christ, Jesus (Yeshua) as it showed them against both as distinct beings and not as one and the same.

So we can clearly see those being mislead by the god of this system, see 2 Corinthians 4:4, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." (AV), are liars like their leader as shown at John 8:44. They twist scripture and/or use poor translations to try and support their idolatry, instead of trying to understand the plain Truth of the Bible.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] THE REALITY ON ISAIAH 41:4. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [266B]

For we know that the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together until now. Romans 8:22, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yes, things on earth are NOT getting better, but only going down in a continuous downward spiral. Of course, this eventuality was foretold long ago by the Apostle Matthew when he wrote at Matthew 24:8 – 12, [AV] “All these are the beginning of sorrows. 9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name’s sake. 10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another. 11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many. 12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.” For example the use of illegal drugs is increasing and more youths are committing crimes of ever more grave types, and the political scene is getting worse in many diverse countries, and there is no peace in the world as it is in great turmoil with entities that claim a religious reason such as ISIS and Al Queda.

[2] THE REALITY ON ISAIAH 41:4:

Isaiah 41:4 Who has performed and accomplished it, Calling forth the generations from the beginning? I, the Lord, am the first, and with the last, I am He." [New American Standard Bible-Reference Edition by Moody Press, Chicago, a div. Of Moody Bible Institute; NASB-MP].

Some think this applies to Jesus (Yeshua), but it does not, it applies to his Father (YHWH) as clearly shown at Isaiah 44:6-8, 'Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God. 7 And who, as I, shall call, and shall declare it, and set it in order for me, since I appointed the ancient people? and the things that are coming, and shall come, let them shew unto them. 8 Fear ye not, neither be afraid: have not I told thee from that time, and have declared it? ye are even my witnesses. Is there a God beside me? yea, there is no God; I know not any.." (AV); and at Isaiah 46:9-10, "Remember the former things of old: for I am God, and there is none else; I am God, and there is none like me, 10 Declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times the things that are not yet done, saying, My counsel shall stand, and I will do all my pleasure: "; and Isaiah 43:10-11, "Ye are my witnesses, saith the LORD, and my servant whom I have chosen: that ye may know and believe me, and understand that I am he: before me there was no God formed, neither shall there be after me. 11 I, even I, am the LORD; and beside me there is no saviour." (AV); and many others.

But Isaiah 48:17-18, "Thus saith the LORD, thy Redeemer, the Holy One of Israel; I am the LORD thy God which teacheth thee to profit, which leadeth thee by the way that thou shouldest go. 18 O that thou hadst hearkened to my commandments! then had thy peace been as a river, and thy righteousness as the waves of the sea:" (AV) clearly shows the Title, "Lord," being applied to Almighty God (YHWH). This is reaffirmed at Revelation 11:17, "Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.",(AV), yet there are those who attempt to twist the scriptures to serve the god of this system or world, and use scriptures such as Revelation 1:11, "Saying, I am Alpha and Omega, the first and the last: and, What thou seest, write in a book, and send it unto the seven churches which are in Asia; unto Ephesus, and unto Smyrna, and unto Pergamos, and unto Thyatira, and unto Sardis, and unto Philadelphia, and unto Laodicea." (AV) , but fail to notice the critical difference "the first and the last" which rather than implying that Jesus (Yeshua) is Almighty God (YHWH) clearly show his as the first of Creation as does Revelation 3:14, "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans F1 write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;" (AV); Clearly they do not recognize the difference between "beginning and the ending" and "the first and the last."

Actually a lot of this confusion results from poor translation as clearly shown by the rendering of Revelation 1:11 in the New American Standard Bible-reference Edition by Moody Press, Chicago, a div. Of Moody Bible Institute; NASB-MP, "Saying, 'Write in a book what you see, and send it to the seven churches; To Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamum and to Thyater and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodices." (NASB-MP); similar renderings are found in the American Standard Bible (ASB); the New World Translation (NWT); The Emphatic Dialogue; New Revised Standard Version (NRSV); the Westcott-Hort (1948 Reprint), and many more. Of particular interest is the rendering in the Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible, the following, "Saying: What thou seest, write in a book and send to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus and to Smyrna and to Pergamus and to Thyatira and to Sardis and to Philadelphia and to Laodicea.".

However, be not mislead by the trickery of men, but know this Psalms 83:18 says, "That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH, art the most high over all the earth." (AV). And the difference is drawn out at Acts 5:24-26, "Now when the high priest and the captain of the temple and the chief priests heard these things, they doubted of them whereunto this would grow. 25 Then came one and told them, saying, Behold, the men whom ye put in prison are standing in the temple, and teaching the people. 26 Then went the captain with the officers, and brought them without violence: for they feared the people, lest they should have been stoned." (AV), where it clearly says, Acts 4:26, "The kings of the earth took their stand, And the rulers were gathered together Against the Lord, and against His Christ." (NASB-MP). Clearly showing here "Lord" applied to Almighty God (YHWH) and distinguishing him from his son the Christ, Jesus (Yeshua) as it showed them against both as distinct beings and not as one and the same.

So we can clearly see those being mislead by the god of this system, see 2 Corinthians 4:4, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them." (AV), are liars like their leader as shown at John 8:44. They twist scripture and/or use poor translations to try and support their idolatry, instead of trying to understand the plain Truth of the Bible.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Mon Nov 02, 2020 2:28 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] THE 'TEXTUAL MECHANICS' OF EARLY JEWISH LXX/OG PAPYRI AND FRAGMENTS BY ROBERT A. KRAFT (UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA)- PART 1. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [267B]

And GOD saw that the wickedness of man was great in the earth, and that every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. Genesis 6:5, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

The Creator, Almighty God (YHWH), saw what was happening and for a moment even regretted that he had made humans as recorded at Genesis 6:6 -8, [AV] “And it repented the LORD that he had made man on the earth, and it grieved him at his heart. 7 And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them.” However one pre-flood man, Noah, found favor with the Lord per Genesis 6:8, [AV] “But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD.” Yes, he was an upright man, Genesis 6:9, [AV] “These are the generations of Noah: Noah was a just man and perfect in his generations, and Noah walked with God.”

[2] The 'Textual Mechanics' of Early Jewish LXX/OG Papyri and Fragments
By Robert A. Kraft (University of Pennsylvania)

[Most recently modified 11 July 2001]
[This is a greatly expanded and revised form of a paper first delivered in May 1998 (Hampton Court, Herefordshire England) to the conference on "The Bible as Book: The Transmission of the Greek Text" sponsored by the Van Kampen Foundation and The Scriptorium: Center for Christian Antiquities. A shorter form of the revised essay is scheduled to appear in the volume being prepared from that conference.]

[The images of MSS provided here are secondary and provisional in nature, mostly drawn from the referenced publications, and intended to help illustrate various aspects of the subject under examination. For a quick list of the fragments reviewed here (and others),
see Early Papyri and MSS for LXX/OG Study.

The following images are linked below [listed here for convenience; other links to be added]:

01. Qumran cave 4 LXXDeut 11 (2nd bce, parchment roll)
02. PRyl458 of Deut (2nd bce, papyrus roll),
03. Qumran cave7 Exod 28 (2nd/1st bce, papyrus roll),
04. Qumran cave4 Lev\a (2nd/1st bce, parchment roll),
05. Qumran cave7 EpJer (2nd/1st bce, papyrus roll),
05+. Qumran cave 7 frg 5 (unidentified controversial "Mark" frg, papyrus roll),
05+. Qumran cave7 frg 8 (unidentified),
06. PFouad266a [942] Gen (1st bce, papyrus roll),
07. Qumran cave4 Lev\b (1st bce, papyrus roll; tetragrammaton = IAW),
08. PFouad266b [848] Deut (1st bce, papyrus roll; Hebrew/Aramaic tetragrammaton),
09. PFouad266c [847] Deut (late 1st bce, papyrus roll),
10. Qumran cave4 paraphrase of Exod(?) (late 1st bce, papyrus roll),
11. Qumran cave4 unidentified Greek (late 1st bce, parchment roll),
12. Qumran cave4 Num 3-4 (turn of the era, parchment roll),
13. Nahal Hever Minor Prophets (hand A), with example of paleo-Hebrew tetragrammaton and hand B (turn of the era, parchment roll),
14. POxy3522 of Job 42 (1st ce, papyrus roll; paleo-Hebrew tetragrammaton), see also the black and white image,
15. POxy4443 of Esther (1st/2nd ce, papyrus roll), see also the black and white image,
16. PFouad 203 prayer/amulet? [no image yet]
17. PYale1 of Gen 14, recto, and verso (2nd ce, papyrus codex; number 318 abbreviated),
18. PBodl5 of Pss 48-49 (2nd ce, parchment codex),
19. POxy656 of Gen (2nd/3rd ce, papyrus codex, problematic tetragrammaton),
20. POxy1007 of Gen (3rd ce, parchment codex),
21. POxy1166 of Gen 16 (3rd ce, papyrus roll),
22. PBerlin 17213 of Gen (3rd ce) [no image yet]
23. POxy1075 of Exod (3rd ce, papyrus roll; end of book),
24. Cairo ostrakon 215 of Judith (late 3rd ce) [no image yet]
25. PLitLond 202 of Gen (3rd/4th ce, papyrus codex) [no image yet]
26. PWien Rainer 18 of Pss (3rd/4th ce, parchment roll; Symmachus?) [no image yet]
27. PAlex 203 of Isa 48 (3rd/4th ce, papyrus roll?),
28. PHarris 31 of Ps 43 (3rd/4th ce, papyrus roll/amulet?),
29. POxy1225 of Lev 16 (early 4th ce, papyrus roll),
30. PLitLond 211 of Dan 1 Theodotion (early 4th ce, vellum roll) [no image yet]

[[under construction (additions from July 2001)]]
add 31. Goettingen # 967 Ezekiel-Daniel-Esther (about 200 ce, papyrus codex); ending of Daniel/Susanna, with subscriptio (PKoeln Theol 37v, p.196)
add 32. POxy4442 Exodus [first side] (early 3rd ce, papyrus codex); [other side]
add 33. PVindobGr 29828+29456 Jannes and Jambres (early 3rd ce, papyrus roll [reused], nomina sacra uncontracted) [vh1068]
add 34. PMich 4925 Jannes and Jambres (early 3rd ce, papyrus roll [reused]) [BASP 16 (1979) 114]
add 35. PChBeat 16 Jannes and Jambres (4th ce, papyrus codex, odd nomina sacra) [Pietersma]
add 36. POxy1173+1356+1207+2158+ Philo (3rd ce, papyrus codex) [vh696]
add 37. PAntin 8 Prov-Wisd-Eccl (3rd ce, papyrus codex) [#928 = vh254]
add 38. PAntin 9 Prov (3rd ce, papyrus codex) [#987 = vh252]
add 39. Freer Minor Prophets (late 3rd ce, papyrus codex) [vh284];
add 40. Berlin Genesis (late 3rd ce, papyrus codex) [#911 = vh004];
add 41. PLond Christ 5 (3-5th ce, liturgical codex) [vh921],
add 42. POxy2745 Hebrew onomasticon (3/4th ce, papyrus roll) [vh1158]
add 43. POxy2068 (4th ce, papyrus liturgical roll) [vh966]
add 44. PAntin 10 Ezek (4th ce, papyrus codex) [#988 = vh316]
add 45. PSorbonne 2250 Jer 17f & 46 (late 4th ce, papyrus codex; aberrent text) [#817 = vh308];
add 46. PRanier 4.5 Psalm 9 (5th ce, papyrus amulet?) [#2086 = vh105].
add 47. PBerlin 17035 Gen 36 Symmachus? (5/6th ce, parchment codex) [vh022];
add 48. PGiessen 13+19+22+26 Deut 24-29 (5/6th ce; parchment codex; possibly non-Christian provenance) [no image yet]

for additional images of scriptural and other (mostly Christian) fragments, see Wieland Willkur's links
Context and Overview

This study is very much "in process," and to view the larger picture (including images of manuscripts) as well as to see periodic supplements and updates the reader is referred to the author's World Wide Web Internet LXX/OG (CATSS) homepage.

The main sources cited below are abbreviated as follows:
Aland = Kurt Aland (ed), Repertorium der griechischen christlichen Papyri I: Biblische Papyri ... (Berlin/New York: de Gruyter, 1976).
DJD = Discoveries in the Judean Desert, the official publication series for the Dead Sea Scroll materials (Oxford Press).

Roberts (MSB) = Colin H. Roberts Manuscript, Society and Belief in Early Christian Egypt, The Schweich Lectures of the British Academy, 1977 (Oxford: Oxford University Press 1979)
Tov = his article in this volume; otherwise also "Scribal Practices and Physical Aspects of the Dead Sea Scrolls" in The Bible as Book: the Manuscript Tradition ed by John Sharpe III and Kimberly Van Kampen (British Library 1998) 9-33; The Text- Critical Use of the Septuagint in Biblical Research (Jerusalem: Simor 1997\2); and numerous other pertinent publications on scribal practices.

Treu = Kurt Treu, "The Significance of Greek for Jews in the Roman Empire," with an excursus on Jewish scriptural manuscripts/fragments, originally published as "Die Bedeutung des Griechischen f&u%;r die Juden im r&o%;mischen Reich," Kairos NF 15, Hft. 1/2 (1973), 123-144; translated by William Adler with Robert Kraft (1991) for Internet access.

Turner = E.G.Turner, Greek Manuscripts of the Ancient World, (Princeton University Press 1971); second edition revised and enlarged edited by P. J. Parsons (Bulletin Supplement 46, London: Institute of Classical Studies 1987).
Turner (Codex) = E.G.Turner, The Typology of the Early Codex (Philadelphia: University of Pennsylvania Press, 1977).
vh### = Joseph van Haelst, Catalogue des Papyrus Litte/raires Juifs et Chre/tiens (Paris: Sorbonne 1976).

The standard papyrological designations will be used, as listed also in vh, Aland, and elsewhere.

A major goal of this research is to explore more closely the preserved evidence from early Jewish biblical and related materials in Greek reflecting scribal habits and techniques in order to address questions about Greek Jewish developments, on the one hand, and the relationship between Greek Jewish "scribal culture" and early Christian literary practices on the other. My intuitions are that the continuities between "Jewish" and "Christian" will outweigh the discontinuities in such matters, but the thrust of earlier scholarship (with some exceptions) has not tended in that direction. Thus I have attempted to select and examine closely some 30 biblical and related Greek fragmentary manuscripts, all of which are either clearly Jewish in origin or have a reasonable claim to be so, with a view to building up a more carefully controlled set of criteria for addressing ambiguities in other, even more ambiguous (with regard to origin) materials. It will be clear from this evidence that there was a variegated "scribal culture" in pre-Christian Jewish circles (not unlike the situation in the non-Jewish Greek world!); how much of it may have carried over into "Christian" practices, and under what conditions, remain less clear, but hopefully will receive further light from this study.
My work on this topic in many ways parallels and supplements the research of my colleague, Emanuel Tov, who focuses even more than I have attempted on the significance of various "physical" characteristics (spacing, punctuation, etc.) for the ancient preparers and users of the texts. I also view my efforts as continuations of the suggestive but relatively little known study by the late Kurt Treu, in his essay mentioned below (which is readily available in English through the aforementioned Internet home page). That I am often critical of the conclusions of the late Colin Roberts on these subjects does not detract from my appreciation of and respect for his pioneering efforts as one of the papyrological giants of the 20th century, on whose shoulders we all must stand.
Setting the Scene

Among the 120 or so papyri and other early fragments of Greek Jewish scriptures ("LXX/OG") and related materials dated paleographically from the 4th century and earlier, we find more than a dozen that are clearly of Jewish origin, and another dozen or so for which this identification has also been strongly suggested.\1/ The vast majority of the remainder has been assumed to have been produced by Christian copyists, although the evidence is seldom unambiguously clear. This study attempts to reexamine the situation with a focus especially on details of format and presentation ("textual mechanics"), without any special attention to textcritical content.\2/
---
\1/I have not included several manuscripts listed by Treu as ambiguous but worth consideration when his reasons appear to be less "mechanical" than seem appropriate for this study. For example, he points out (142f) that since we have evidence for Jewish presence at such sites as Oxyrhynchos and Antinoopolis, it is not unreasonable to suppose that some of the Jewish Greek scriptural materials from those sites might be of Jewish origin, and he offers some textcritical observations in support (e.g. closer affinities to the surviving Hebrew text, "eccentric text"). From this textual basis, he expands his horizons further; see his notes on PAntin 8, 9, 10 [vh254, 252, 316]; PGiss 13... [vh58]; PSorbonne 2250 [vh308]; PBerlin 17035 [vh022]; Freer Minor Prophets [vh284]; Berlin Genesis [#911 = vh004]; Chester Beatty (etc.) Ezekiel-Daniel-Esther [#967 = vh315]; PRanier 4.5 [#2086 = vh105]. Probably POx 2745, a Hebrew onomasticon roll [vh1158] mentioned by Treu (144) should be added to my list; see also n.11 below on liturgical materials (e.g. POx 2068). A fresh look at the evidence from the early papyri (3rd ce) of Philo's works will also be in order at some point.

\2/The textcritical situation seems analogous to what the NT papyri have shown -- that the textual relationships prior to the imagined watershed of recensional activity in the 3rd and early 4th centuries ce are in many ways just as confused and confusing as afterwards. Of course, the materials from this early period, on rolls and early mini-codices, must be examined book by book (and sometimes even in smaller units within "books") rather than in generalized "text types," but even then clear patterns seldom emerge. Did we really expect clear patterns, given what we have learned from the Judean Desert discoveries as well as from other avenues of information about those textually tumultuous early times? For details, consult Emanuel Tov's Text-Critical Use of the Septuagint.
===
The basis for scholarly discussion of these materials in the past quarter century was established primarily by the publications of Treu's article and Roberts' Schweich Lectures (MSB). Treu attempted to view the early fragments in the larger framework of how Judaism adapted to, or perhaps reacted to the Greco-Roman world in which it existed and often flourished. While Treu did not ignore textual matters (see n.1 above), he was much more focused on the sorts of "physical" and immediately visible criteria that could reasonably be employed in attempting to identify "Jewish" scriptural materials. The appendix to his 1973 article presents a challenge to previous analyses, and sets the stage for subsequent discussion.

Roberts, in his attempt to extract information from the early papyri for reconstructing the development of Christianity in Egypt, shows sympathy for some of Treu's observations while at the same time defending aspects of the "older" approach, with its tendency to focus on early Christianity.\3/ Perhaps unwittingly, in his quest to identify characteristic "Christian" traits in the early manuscripts and fragments, Roberts actually opens some new lines of investigation applicable to the Jewish materials as well: especially suggestive are his comments about the "documentary" tendencies exhibited in some aspects of the presentation of early Christian materials (use of spacing, punctuation, enlarged letters, etc.), and his attempt to distinguish the resultant paleographical "style(s)" of his "Christian" witnesses from a more "elegant" literary approach in (some of) the clearly Jewish fragments.
---
\3/This was not a new interest for Roberts, as his pioneering early article on "The Christian Book and the Greek Papyri" (JTS 50 [1949] 155-68) amply attests. It rewards rereading even now.
===
The Main Issues
The older "criteria" to which Treu, especially, reacts, and the new issues introduced into the discussion by Roberts (with further elaboration recently by Lawrence W. Hurtado\4/), may be summarized as follows -- we will want to be especially alert to such matters when we survey the data:
---
\4/"The Origin of the Nomina Sacra: A Proposal," JBL 117 (1998) 655-673. Hurtado's primary contribution to the ongoing discussion relates to the graphic marker (overline stroke) used to indicate the significance of IH as both a suspension of the nomen sacrum IHSOUS (the name Jesus) and as the shorthand way of writing the number 18, which number in Hebrew gematria equivalences also is the word for "life" (XY. Perhaps not to be lost in this discussion is the fact that the Hebrew letter-number for 18 is YX, which in most early orthographies would resemble closely the anticipated (if the numbering system were consistent) Hebrew number 15 YH, but in the development of Jewish tradition this numerical representation is not used, but we find instead +W (nine plus six = 15; also +Z or nine plus seven = 16), presumably as protection against careless reprentation that might be associated with the tetragrammaton and/or its abbreviated forms, but perhaps also to avoid ambiguity. It would be useful to know when, and under what conditions, such a supposed modification in the Hebrew numbering conventions arose.
===
1. Scroll or codex format -- as a rule of thumb, and especially when other evidence is lacking, the equation of scroll with Jewish and codex with Christian has tended to prevail. Admittedly, Christians continued to use the roll format well after codices became popular, and clearly codices came to be used among Jews at some point, but there is little clarity or agreement on the history of such developments. In the survey of 30 Jewish and possibly Jewish texts that follows, all but items 17, 18, 19, 20, 22, 24 (ostrakon) and 25 are scrolls.

2. Papyrus or parchment material -- it is clear now that early Jewish scriptural copies could be inscribed on either material (see the Dead Sea Scrolls, for example), but in 1973 Treu felt the need to argue against the idea that authentic Jewish copies could only be written on animal skins. Of the unambiguously (by date) Jewish manuscripts listed below, all but items 1, 4, 11, 12, and 13 (see also 20, 24 [ostrakon], 26, 30) are on papyri.

3. Use of "nomina sacra" -- Roberts especially (developed further now by Hurtado) has championed the view that a widely accepted "system" of abbreviation by contraction of certain key words with "sacral" connotations (especially "Jesus," "Christ," "Lord," and "God"; but also several others) developed early in Christian scribal circles, although the modern inventor of the term "nomina sacra" (Ludwig Traube -- at a time when virtually no early Jewish evidence was available) thought that the practice must have had Jewish roots.\5/ No unambiguously Jewish manuscripts with abbreviated nomina sacra in Greek (as opposed to tetragrammaton representations, on which see below) have yet been agreed upon by the debating scholars, but items 19, 21, 23, 27, (and 29?) below (see also n.11 on POx 2068) would seem to offer a strong challenge to Roberts' position.
---
\5/Traube, Nomina Sacra: Versuch einer Geschichte der christlichen Ku%rzung (Munich: Beck 1907), 26. See also A.H.R.E.Paap, Nomina Sacra in the Greek Papyri of the First Five Centuries (Leiden: Brill 1959), 119ff, for a similar view of origins (but different details of development).
===
4. Treatment of the "tetragrammaton" -- the presence in many of the clearly Jewish fragments of a special way of representing the four lettered divine name YHWH, in contrast to the use of the Greek substitute term "LORD" (KURIOS) in most LXX/OG manuscripts, has led to discussions of the origins and history of such practices, including the relationship between this phenomenon and the development of "nomina sacra."\6/ None of the unambiguously (based on date) Jewish manuscripts described below preserves representations of the tetragrammaton with KURIOS, but the evidence from the first hand as well as the corrector/enhancer of item 19 deserves to be noted, along with the contracted forms found in items 21, 23, 27, and 29 (see above; note also the blank in item 22).
---
\6/Hurtado's article provides an excellent discussion of these related issues, as well as an extensive (if not exhaustive) bibliography.
===
5. Treatment of numbers -- Roberts also argued that Christian copyists tended to use number symbols rather than spelling out the numbers in good Greek literary style. He saw this as another "documentary" influence. (This feature, if accurate, could strengthen Hurtado's theory that the abbreviated use of IH = "Jesus" associated with it's numerical value as "18" reflects an early Christian development; see note 4 above.) The only manuscript to preserve abbreviated numbers discussed below is item 17, of ambiguous origin.

6. Use of "scriptio continua" (continuous writing, without word or sense division) or of spacing and other visual aids for the reader -- Roberts attempted to claim that influences from "documentary" scribal practices may have led early Christian scribes and copyists to abandon the strict literary convention of writing an unbroken string of letters and introduce various sorts of sense divisions and similar indicators (using blank spaces, punctuation, enlarged letters, marginal marks, etc.); similar features also seem to be present in many of the early Jewish texts (as Roberts also noted, rather in passing\7/). Of the unambiguously Jewish manuscripts listed below, only items 3 and 5 show completely unbroken strings of writing in their very limited fragmentary remains. Thus it makes no sense to employ this feature as a sign of "Christian" origin.
---
\7/Roberts MSB 18 and n.3: "Documentary practice may not have been the only influence on Christian scribes. In the manuscript of the Minor Prophets found in a cave near Engedi in Judaea [subsequently identified as Nahal Hever] and dated between 50 B.C. and A.D. 50, an enlarged letter, preceded by a small blank space, marks the beginning of a new phrase, while verses are marked off by larger spaces. This may well have been standard Hebrew usage in texts such as this, clearly intended for liturgical reading." The footnote refers to articles by E.J.Revell in BJRL 54 (1971) 214ff and StudPap 15 (1976) 131ff, comparing this situation with Hebrew Masoretic tradition. Roberts then concludes "this might indicate that the method of paragraphing by the initial letter was of Jewish origin." Study of such phenomena in early Jewish and Christian biblical texts is now underway by Emanuel Tov and will make it quite clear that this was no uniquely "Christian" development (in addition to the publications listed above, I have been privileged to see a draft form of his forthcoming "Scribal Features of Early Witnesses to Greek Scripture" [tentative title]).
===
7. Assessment of literary style -- Roberts saw in most of the early Jewish materials an "elegance" of writing style distinct from most of the early Christian examples. He noted especially the use of "serifs" (decorative strokes) on certain letters. I have also tried to pay attention to "shading," that is, the relative thickness of horizontal, vertical, and oblique strokes (shading occurs when one type of stroke tends to be thinner than another). The general comments of Eric Turner on these matters in the Greco-Roman world at large deserve attention, since in what follows attempts will be made briefly to describe the various Jewish hands:
Several 'styles' of writing were simultaneously in use [in the Ptolemaic as in the Roman period]. Contemporary with each other, they cross-fertilize and hybridize easily. Study of these reciprocal influences is rewarding, provided only that the investigator is not trying to prove a derivation of one 'style' from another.

Then Turner lists some of the "objective considerations" on which his classifications are based, including degree of formality or informality in writing, speed and skill in execution, size, shape, and tilt of the letters, and consistency of spacing between letters and lines (ed 1, p.24 = ed 2, p.20f).

Turner's resulting general categories of classification for literary hands of the first four centuries are: (1) Informal round hands; (2) Formal round hands (with three subdivisions: Round/Square, Biblical Majuscule, Coptic Uncial); (3) Formal mixed hands (20-21). Most of the materials described below will fit into Turner's second category, of formal round/square decorated hands. Indeed, it may help to nuance his "round/square" style by noting the extent of formal decoration present -- "highly decorated" indicates that most non-rounded strokes terminate with full serifs (short perpendicular strokes to both sides) or half serifs (to only one side); "moderately decorated" would include the use of hooks or blobs as well as some serifs; "sporadically/minimally decorated" and "undecorated" complete the scale.\8/
---
\8/With such paleographical backgrounding in view, here is my summary checklist of the phenomena that ideally would deserve attention in a complete examination and description of the materials listed below (but for present purposes, a summary treatment will suffice). Note that Aland also tries to follow such a checklist in his descriptions (p.6):
manuscript identification
? contents (author, work, etc.) and relevant modern editions
? current location, identification number(s), ownership history, etc.
? place and circumstances of discovery
? place of origin, probable date
overall form and format description
? type and characteristics (color, texture, etc.) of material for writing surface (papyrus, leather, etc.)
? type and characteristics of ink(s)
? mega-format (roll, codex, amulet, etc.)
? specifics of what is preserved (size, letters, etc.)
? mega-dimensions (writing surface, written blocks)
marginal markings (outside the writing blocks)
? column/page numbers
? corona
? paragraph marks
? indicators of special (e.g. quoted) material
? correction marks and marginal corrections
? other
overall style of writing (within the writing blocks)
? relative bilinearity (consistent letter heights)
? letter widths and proportions (square, rectangular, oval)
? letter slant (e.g. upright, slanting right/left at top)
? letter formation (strokes per letter, speed, ligatures, etc.)
? letter shading (thick/thin strokes)
? decoration
* serifs (i.e. horizontal strokes, esp. along the bilinear planes)
* finials, hooks and/or loops (other, less angular flourishes)
* shading (very subtle end strokes), blobs
use of internal spacing (absence of ink)
? blank lines or unusual vertical spacing
? indentations
? end of line space
? more than one letter width in line
? one letter width in line (or less)
? other (e.g. writing in shapes, like a triangle)
explicit in-line markings (presence of ink)
? enlarged letters
? reduced size letters
? unusual letters (e.g. tetragrammaton)
? punctuation
? trema/dieresis [diaeresis] ("organic" and "inorganic")
? apostrophes (e.g. to separate identical consonants)
? breathings
? accents
? contractions and/or suspensions (e.g. "nomena sacra")
? marking number symbols (e.g. between dots, overlined)
? other special symbols (e.g. "year," monetary denominations)
? correction marks and correction locations
? other (e.g. marked tetragrammaton space)
===
Now let us turn to the detailed evidence.
The Manuscript Fragments
Here are brief descriptions of the Jewish and possibly Jewish fragments (including a few unidentified, perhaps "parabiblical" early pieces) arranged in roughly chronological order (according to paleographical approximations).\9/
---
\9/Items are presented with the Goettingen Septuagint Institute (or "Rahlfs") number in brackets, where available, followed by the van Haelst number (vh###) and Aland's [AT##]. Other attempts to identify and discuss aspects of the early Jewish biblical papyri are noted by Hurtado (his n.6), and by Tov in his forthcoming study (above, n.7).
===
Attention will be given especially to the aforementioned "presentational" issues, as described by the respective editors and reevaluated, when possible, by the present author from available photographs -- and with the problematic issues described above also in mind.
1. 4Q122=LXXDeut, Deuteronomy 11 [#819; unknown to vh];
parchment roll, 2nd bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran, cave 4; ed. E.Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 195 (plate 43), with paleographical comments by P.Parsons, 11-12.

Very few consecutive letters are preserved on these tiny, misshapen fragments, making precise judgments especially problematic. The manuscript seems to have contained 26-29 letters per line, but the length of each column cannot be determined.

The hand is literary, but not elegant, tending to a thick informal upright bilinear round style (R and perhaps U descend below the plane; there is a tendency to vertical oval shape with QO, and S has a flattened top), perhaps with some tendencies to ligatured (note the long middle stroke of E) and to cursive forms (e.g. some representations of A), which might suggest "documentary" influence. It is moderately decorated, with small flourishes on the top and base of most verticals (and the left upper diagonal of U) in the form of short hooks or blobs (mostly to the left, except on the top right vertical of N). No shading of ink strokes is evident.

There is some evidence of spacing between at least three of the possible 7 word breaks, but no preserved left margins and not enough words to determine the extent and nature of the use of spacing or associated devices.

No nomina sacra or other special markings are preserved.

[[link appended excerpts]]
2. PRyl 458, Deuteronomy 23-28 [#957 = vh057 = AT28];
papyrus roll, 2nd bce; John Rylands Library, Manchester ENG.
Location of the find is unknown (purchased with other papyri in 1917 by Rendel Harris; cartonnage, possibly from the Fayum); ed. C.H.Roberts, Two Biblical Papyri ... (Manchester Univ Press 1936) (with one photo) and PRyl 3 (1938) (no photos); additional photos are found in E.Wu%rthwein, The Text of the Old Testament (1957, Eerdmans 1995\2).

The papyrus itself is light colored and of good quality. Originally it was about 28 cm tall with at least 30 lines per column, and columns about 10 cm wide with 27-29 letters per line (average). These fragments are written in a relatively bilinear (FY extend above and below the imagined lines, and IRTU below) square/round upright (but the rounded letters, especially S tend to "lean" back to the left at the top), highly decorated "elegant" formal book hand, with no clear evidence of shading.

The use of spacing is noteworthy, with both smaller and larger spaces employed between various word groups, but no word division as such. Roberts comments: "our text ... shows no sign of documentary influence and we cannot ascribe to this cause the systematic use of [spacing] found here" (26), and wonders about possible influence from Hebrew or Aramaic. See now the investigations by Emanuel Tov mentioned above.

No nomina sacra occur, or other special markings.
[[link appended excerpts]]
3. 7Q1 LXXEx, Exodus 28 [#805 = vh038 = AT18];
papyrus roll, ca 100 bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 7; ed. M.Baillet (with J.T.Milik & R.de Vaux), DJD 3 (1962) 142-43 & plate 30. Brief paleographical comments by P.Parsons in DJD 8 (1990) 25.
Probably 19-20 letters per line average; column height cannot be determined on the basis of the two small preserved fragments. The hand is a highly decorated formal upright with strict bilinearity in the few preserved letters -- none protrude above or below the projected lines (there are no occurrences of FY); no shading is obvious.

No unusual formatting appears in the small extant fragments and there are no occurrences of nomina sacra or other special markings.

[[link appended excerpts]]
4. 4Q119=LXXLev\a, Leviticus 26 [#801 = vh049];
parchment roll, ca 100 bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 4; ed. E. Ulrich DJD 9 (1992) 161 & plate 38; paleographical analysis by P.Parsons, 7.
Full scroll height about 20 cm, with at least 1.3 cm top margin and 1.5 bottom; about 28 lines per column, with an average of 47- 48 letters per line (about 10 cm wide, with at least .8 cm between columns). There are faint traces of horizontal guidelines, with the letters dropped from the line. This produces greater linearity at the top of the roughly bilinear (with FY extending both above and below, and BRU and occasionally I below) upright informal round (tending to oval in places) rather cramped writing. Sporadic ornamentation, with left hooks at the feet of some RF letters, and a downward hook sometimes on the left horizontal of T. No shading. See Turner's "informal round" style?
A textual break marked by an inline blank of about 3-4 letter widths and a horizontal paragraphos mark below that line on the left margin indicates the start of Lev 26.21. Otherwise there are a few possibly intentional short spaces between some words or clauses at other points in the fragment, but no observable pattern.

No nomina sacra are preserved in the fragment, or other special markings. Iota adscript is used. An interlinear correction occurs (apparently by the original copyist), and perhaps a couple of "strike-over" corrections as well.

[[link appended excerpts]]
5. 7Q2 LXX EpJer, Epistle of Jeremiah (Baruch 6) [#804 = vh312 = AT144];
papyrus roll, ca 100 bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 7; ed. M.Baillet (with J.T.Milik & R.de Vaux), DJD 3 (1962) 143 & plate 30.

Parts of 5 lines (21 total letters) are preserved, with probably originally 23-24 letters per line; there is no way to know the size of the column(s). The hand appears to be bilinear, formal upright round/square, relatively thick but perhaps shaded on some horizontals and obliques, with subtle ornamentation (small but full serifs, curved flourishes) on most non-rounded letters. There are no preserved examples of the letters KMRFY, among others, and both a larger and a smaller form of S appears.

No spacing appears in the preserved material, although it is tempting to reconstruct it for one of the lacunae. There are no abbreviations, nomina sacra, or other special marks.\10/
[[link appended excerpts]]
---
\10/Qumran cave 7 has produced several other small Greek fragments that have not yet been identified convincingly. In general, many of them seem to be bilinear and decorated with serifs and/or hooks. Spacing may be present on 7Q5 and 7Q15, and 7Q16 may have a paragraph mark (see also 7Q7?). Since they are probably of Jewish provenance, they are also of possible relevance as attesting Jewish literary activity and scribal practices. In his forthcoming article (above, n.7) Tov notes the following suggested identifications with LXX/OG locations, any of which if verifiable would qualify the respective fragment(s) for inclusion in the present list:
7Q4 Numbers 14.23-24
7Q5 Exodus 36.10-11; Numbers 22.38
7Q6.1 Psalm 34.28; Proverbs 7.12-13
7Q6.2 Isaiah 18.2
7Q8 Zechariah 8.8; Isaiah 1.29-30; Psalm 18.14-15; Daniel 2.43; Qohelet 6.3
===
6. PFouad 266a, Genesis 3-38 [#942 = vh056 = AT3];
papyrus roll, 1st bce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.
Unknown provenance (acquired by P.Jouget in 1943); ed. Zaki Aly and Ludwig Koenen, Three Rolls of the Early Septuagint: Genesis and Deuteronomy ... (Bonn: Habelt 1980) (includes plates); the descriptions and notes are by Koenen.
The height of the roll is unknown, while the preserved columns are about 15 cm wide (about 38 letters per line, average), and the width of vertical margins is unknown. It is good quality papyrus, written by the same hand or in the same scribal tradition as #848 (item 8 below) in a highly decorated rigorous bilinear formal upright (only F extends above and below the projected lines, and Y above); horizontal strokes tend to be thicker than verticals (obliques are mostly thick); there are full lower serifs on TUFY, and sometimes on I and on the left verticals of GHKNPR; half-serifs or hooks occur on most other vertical strokes, and on some obliques (especially also with thickened ends, or delicate "blobs"); the right vertical of P is rounded, and there is a tendency to rounding on the right vertical of H. The horizontal stroke in Q is short, and does not touch the circle on either side; the horizontal midstroke on E is relatively longer, and does connect on the left.

Spacing of about half the width of a letter is occasionally found, especially before and after some proper names.

No examples of the tetragrammaton have survived on these eight small fragments, nor any unusual markings, but QEOS is found (Gen 4.6) uncontracted and unaccompanied by the tetragrammaton, contrary to the majority of witnesses in this passage (compare #905, item 19 below). Iota adscript is frequent.

[[link appended excerpts]]
7. 4Q120=LXXLev\b, Leviticus 2-5 [#802 = vh046 = AT22];
papyrus roll, 1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 4; ed. E.Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 168 (plates 39- 41), with paleographical analysis by P.Parsons, 10.
A tall scroll, about 31 cm high (about 38 lines per column), with columns of about 10-11 cm in width (23-29 letters).
This fragment is written in a highly decorated bilinear script, with no significant shading (compare #848 and #943b, items 8 and 13 below).
Spacing is used before and after the divine name (represented by IAW) and occasionally between sense-divisions or sentences. Paragraph signs also occur at the left margin. The manuscript also uses iota adscript (usually); and contains some corrections.

[[link appended excerpts]]
8. PFouad 266b, Deuteronomy 17-33 [#848 = vh56 = AT27];
papyrus roll, 1st bce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.
Unknown provenance (acquired by P.Jouget in 1943); ed. Zaki Aly and Ludwig Koenen, Three Rolls of the Early Septuagint: Genesis and Deuteronomy ... (Bonn: Habelt 1980) (includes plates); the descriptions and notes are by Koenen.

The height of the roll was about 24 cm, with 21-23 lines per column, while the preserved columns vary from about 15.5 to 16.5 cm wide (about 37 letters per line, average, but line endings are irregular and the final letters sometimes cramped), and the width of vertical margins varies from about 1.5 cm down to 0.2 cm(!), with a tendency for the lower lines gradually to "move" their beginnings more to the left ("Mass' Law"). Similarly, there is a tendency for the top lines in a column to have more space between them than those at the bottom.
The text is written on good quality papyrus, by the same hand or in the same scribal tradition as #942 (item 6 above) in a highly decorated rigorous bilinear formal round/square upright (only F extends above and below the projected lines, and Y above); horizontal strokes tend to be thicker than verticals (obliques are mostly thick); there are full lower serifs on TUFY, and sometimes on I and on the left verticals of GHKNPR; half-serifs or hooks occur on most other vertical strokes, and on some obliques (especially also with thickened ends, or delicate "blobs"); the right vertical of P is rounded, and there is a tendency to rounding on the right vertical of H. The horizontal stroke in Q is short, and does not touch the circle on either side; the horizontal midstroke on E is relatively longer, and does connect on the left.

Paragraph markers are frequent at the left margin between the lines, and spacing of varying widths is found throughout to indicate various units (or sometimes with no apparent function). Spacing around proper names does not seem to be a feature of #848, unlike its sister MS #942 (item 6 above). At Deut 21.1, along with a paragraph sign, there is a large diagonal slash in the left margin. Its function (if any) is not clear. There are a few corrections, and a marginal gloss at the bottom of one column. Iota adscript is normal.

The tetragrammaton appears frequently, in small square Aramaic/Hebrew letters (resembling PIPI) that are oriented to the base line (not hung from the top), preceded but not followed by a high dot with the entire ensemble occupying the space of about 5-6 letter widths of which perhaps half (distributed on each side of the tetragrammaton) is blank. The first copyist left the dot marker and blank space, which was filled in later, presumably by another hand.

[[link appended excerpts]]
9. PFouad 266c, Deuteronomy 10-33 [#847 = vh56 = Aland01];
papyrus roll, late 1st bce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.
Unknown provenance (acquired by P.Jouget in 1943); ed. Zaki Aly and Ludwig Koenen, Three Rolls of the Early Septuagint: Genesis and Deuteronomy ... (Bonn: Habelt 1980) (includes plates); the descriptions and notes are by Koenen.

The height of the roll may have been about 24 cm (as with #848, item 8 above), with about 21 lines per column, but the width of the columns was much smaller, around 17 cm (about 24 letters per line, average, but with a great deal of variation), and the width of vertical margins may have been around 1 cm.

The text is written on good quality papyrus, and although in some ways the hand is similar to ##942 and 848 (items 6 and 8 above), it is less formal in execution, while still generally bilinear (the top flourish on A usually breaks the upper plane; and the foot of U sometimes drops below the lower line; there do not seem to be any examples preserved of FY) and round/square (with some oval tendencies in the rounded letters); no obvious shading but highly decorated -- usually there are full lower serifs on TU, and sometimes on I (also on top); half-serifs or hooks occur on most other vertical strokes; the right vertical of P is rounded, but not the right vertical of H. The horizontal stroke in Q connects the two sides and sometimes extends beyond the right arc.
One paragraph stroke is preserved, and small spacing is used similarly to #848 (item 8 above) but also in connection with the start of proper names (as in #942, item 6 above), but not after such names.

There are no instances of the tetragrammaton, but QEOS is uncontracted, as expected. Interlinear corrections appear. The dieresis/trema is found once on an initial vowel, but no other diacritics or explicit punctuation marks occur.

[[link appended excerpts]]
10. 4Q127 Exodus Paraphrase (?) [no Goettingen #; unknown to vh];
papyrus roll, late 1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 4; ed. E.Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 223f (plate 47), with paleographical analysis by P.Parsons, 12f.
Dimensions undetermined (no complete line or vertical fragment extending through an entire column's height has been preserved). The writing is similar to #802 (see above, item 7); an informal round/square highly decorated (but no shading) literary script ("ineptly written," so Parsons). Some spacing (e.g. with proper names) and paragraph markings, plus a marginal "coronis" (as in #848, item 8 above) and a few corrections by the original hand. No occurrences of nomina sacra or tetragrammaton are preserved.

[[link appended excerpts]]
11. 4Q126 unidentified Greek [no Goettingen #; unknown to vh];
parchment roll, late 1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 4; ed. E.Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 219 (plate 46), with paleographical analysis by P.Parsons, 12.
The dimensions represented in these 8 fragments are undetermined. The hand is similar to #802 (item 7 above) and #803 (item 12 below) -- a highly decorated bilinear, but with no shading.
Some use of spacing occurs for larger as well as smaller units. Fragment 2 seems to have KURIO[], preceded by a short space.

[[link appended excerpts]]
12. 4Q121=LXXNum, Numbers 3-4 [#803 = vh051];
parchment roll, turn of the era; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From Qumran cave 4; ed. E.Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 188 (plates 42- 43), with paleographical analysis by P.Parsons, 11.
Large format, more than 25 cm tall (34 lines per column), with columns about 10.5-11 cm wide (27-34 letters per line) and perhaps a 1.5 cm margin between. Some use of spacing. Iota adscript. Highly decorated pronouncedly bilinear round/square hand (some oval letters, which tend to lean backwards) with no shading, similar to #802 (item 7 above). No occurrence of the tetragrammaton. A few corrections.

[[link appended excerpts]]
13. 8HevXIIgr = Nahal Hever Minor Prophets [#943 = vh285];
parchment roll(s), turn of the era; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
From the Cave of Horror, Nahal Hever (Wadi Habra), Israel; ed. E.Tov, DJD 8 (1990), with paleographical analysis by P.Parsons, 19-26.
Dimensions can vary somewhat from column to column (especially widths), but in general the material was about 35 cm tall (42 lines per column for hand A, 33 for hand B) with column widths averaging around 9 cm (7.5-11.5 range), and about 1.7 average margins between. It is possible that the original scroll was around 10 meters long, if it was a single scroll containing all the Minor Prophets. It is also possible that two separate scrolls (hand A and hand B, thus #943a-b) are represented by the fragments. The leather inscribed by hand B is also coarser than that by hand A.

Scribe A uses spacing for sections and sub-sections (with some enlarged initial letters), but not for words as such; scribe B spaces between most words as well. Both hands are bilinear round/square in conception (but not necessarily in execution; hand A is especially inconsistent) and heavily ornamented (but not with full serifs). Hand A shows no consistent shading, while hand B does. Parsons concludes that hand B was "a much more fluent and consistent copyist than hand A" (22). Paragraph marks also occur in hand A, and some marginal marks.

Each of the respective sections (A and B) has a different rendering of the archaic Hebrew tetragrammaton, and probably hand A actually wrote the material in continuity with the Greek (not after the Greek was completed), from left to right. It is not clear whether hand B followed the same procedure (see Tov, DJD 8, p. 14).

It is possible that we have remnants of two scrolls here; in any event, two different hands worked on the materials that have survived, and the second hand presents virtual word division in those sections.

[[link appended excerpts]]
14. POx 3522 Job 42 [Goettingen #??; unknown to vh];
see also the black and white image; papyrus roll, 1st ce; Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.

From Oxyrhynchos; ed. P.Parsons, POx 50 (1983) 1 (with plate).
Dimensions may be as small as 14 cm tall (15 lines per column), or as large as 29 cm (39 lines) or even 32 cm (46 lines), depending on the identification of the poorly represented (3 legible letters!) 2nd column, with 19-22 letters per line. Informal (even careless) upright bilinear (some ovals, tending to lean left) with moderate ornamentation (mostly by hooks on some vertical strokes); no shading; some ligatures and cursive tendencies; dieresis/trema on the initial letter of I+WB.

Use of spacing followed by an exaggerated letter for sense divisions. Tetragrammaton in paleo-Hebrew, written consectutively by the original scribe from left to right.

[[link appended excerpts]]
15. POx 4443 Esther E + 8-9 [Goettingen #??; unknown to vh];
papyrus roll, 1st/2nd ce; Ashmolean Museum, Oxford.
From Oxyrhynchos; ed. K.Luchner, POx 65 (1998) 4ff (with plate).
About 30 cm tall, with writing block 20 cm (31 lines) by 7 cm (25 letters average) and about 2 cm between columns. Has paragraph markers with enlarged initial letters of next line projecting into the left margin, and initial letters of most other lines also enlarged. Otherwise relatively bilinear with minimal ornamentation (some hooks and flourishes), and various "documentary" tendencies (ligatures, cursive forms, etc.).
Some spacing for word/phrase separation and at line ends before paragraph markers; dieresis/trema occurs several times, and iota adscript (not always where expected!). Otherwise no punctuation or special markings.
No occurence of tetragrammaton; "nomina sacra" are uncontracted -- e.g. QEOU, SWTHRIAN, ANQRWPOIS in E.16 (reconstructed) and 18, 23, 24.

[[link appended excerpts]]
16. PFouad 203 prayer/amulet? [no Goettingen #; vh911];
papyrus roll, ca 100 ce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.
Unidentified provenance; Ed P.Benoit, RevBiblique 59 (1951) 549-65.
From the top of the middle column (of three), 19 lines (about 17- 18 letters per line) are preserved, but it is not possible to determine how much has been lost below. I have not seen a photo of this material but the editor provides an extensive paleographical description and classes the hand as clearly "literary," carefully written without any cursive forms.
Roberts MSB 78: "There can be little doubt of the Jewish origin [of this manuscript], a prayer against evil spirits, written on a roll of papyrus and attributed to the late first or early second century."\11/
---
\11/Roberts continues, MSB 78: "Both PLond Christ 5 (=vh921), a leaf from a liturgical book of the third century [vh reports 4- 5th ce!], and POx 17.2068 (=vh966), some fragments of a papyrus roll of the fourth century, have been thought to be Jewish [e.g. by G.D.Kilpatrick]; but in the latter the contraction of QEOS, the eccentric nomen sacrum BS = BASILEUS, and the apparent echoes of Revelation 15.3 and 1 Timothy 1.17 in l. 7 render the suggestion doubtful. To these should be added the Vienna text of The Penitence of Iannes and Iambres: it was written on the recto of a roll and nomina sacra are left uncontracted [p.61f n.5 calls this PVindobGr 29456 (=vh1068); p.63 n.3 refers to the forthcoming ed of Jannes/Jambres material by A. Pietersma and also to the republication of the Vienna fragment by P.Maraval in ZPE 25 (1977) pp. 199ff.]."
===
17. PYale1 recto and verso of Genesis 14 [#814 = vh012 = AT6];
papyrus codex, 2nd ce; Beinicke Library, Yale University, New Haven, Connecticut, USA.

Largely bilinear upright round/square lettering but with descenders on RUYF and sometimes I, and enlarged B. Also FY and sometimes KI extend above the projected top line. There is no evidence of perpendicular or baseline serifs, but some decorative hooks, especially at the top of some diagonals, notably KU (see also ADL). The writing almost fits Turner's "Formal Round: Biblical Majuscule/Uncial" style (ed1, 25f = ed2, 21f) but is less disciplined, with horizontal strokes (especially on tau and epsilon) frequently touching the adjacent letter; no consistent shading is visible from the photographs.
The text includes mid-points after most proper or gentilic names, some breaks between verse-units, possibly some smaller breaks as well, and mid-points to offset number shorthand TIH (318).

SEE PART 2 IN VOL 268B

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COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] THE 'TEXTUAL MECHANICS' OF EARLY JEWISH LXX/OG PAPYRI AND FRAGMENTS BY ROBERT A. KRAFT (UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA)- PART 2. With the Scripture of the Day first.

SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [268B]

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. 2 Peter 2:1, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Today we see many religions, over 33,000, all teaching different things, many of which are in opposition to each other; but Almighty God (YHWH) IS A God of unity along with His son, Jesus (Yeshua). They are one in purpose and their genuine true followers must likewise be one in purpose and in unity. Yes, there are many false religions in existence today spawned by the Creators arc-enemy, Satan the Devil, and their evil results are highlighted at 2 Peter 2:2 – 8, [AV] “And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. 3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. 4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; 5 And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an overthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;”

[2] PART 2 OF THE 'TEXTUAL MECHANICS' OF EARLY JEWISH LXX/OG PAPYRI AND FRAGMENTS BY ROBERT A. KRAFT (UNIVERSITY OF PENNSYLVANIA)-

The editor, Bradford Welles, dated PYale 1 to around the year 90 and especially because of the codex form considered it unquestionably Christian. Treu would date it at least a century later , and wonders if it might be of Jewish origin. Turner also dates it to late 2nd or early 3rd c [Codex "OT 7" pp. 90, 164].

Roberts also dates this text later than 100 [see van Haelst], but considers it definitely of Christian origin not only because of its codex form but because "the numeral 318 is written not in words but in symbols, contrary to the usual practice of Graeco- Jewish manuscripts; moreover, in this passage the symbols had for the author of the epistle of Barnabas [9.7-9; see further Hurtado] a mystical significance which the words could not have conveyed and it is reasonable to think that they had the same meaning for the writer of PYale 1" [MSB 78].
18. PBodl 5, Psalms 48-49 [#2082 = vh151 = AT68];
papyrus codex, 2nd ce; Bodleian Library, Oxford.
Ed J.W.B.Barns and G.D.Kilpatrick, Proc Br Acad 43 (1964), 229-32 (plate).
Originally 35-40 lines per page.
The photographs are difficult to read, but the hand appears to be a "delicate" round/square minimally decorated bilinear similar to #905 (item 19 below).

Stichometric format (with some long lines continued at the end of the next line and marked with guidelines accordingly). Uncontracted forms of QEOS and ANQRWPOS are restored ("conclusively," so Treu, but not so confidently Roberts MSB 78) in the gaps. Roberts thinks it "definitely" Christian (as did the original editors, because of the codex format), Treu is less sure.
19. POx 656 Genesis 14-27 [#905(U4) = vh013 = AT8];
papyrus codex, 2nd/3rd ce; Bodleian Library, Oxford.
Oxyrhynchos; ed. Grenfell & Hunt, POx 4 (1904) 28f (plate).
Page dimensions at least 11 by 24 cm, 41-42 lines per page (Turner, Codex OT 9).

Carefully written in a round/square large upright hand with minimal decoration (similar to #2082, item 18 above). Some use of spacing as well as explicit high and middle stops. No abbreviations except the stroke representing N at the end of some lines -- QEOS and KURIOS are uncontracted in the first hand. Some corrections have been made by a second hand, which also seems to have added the numeration at the top of each page.

Treatment of tetragrammaton passages warrants further comment. At Gen 15.8 (where the absence of KURIE is a variant in the MSS) there was a blank, four letters in width, filled in with KURIE by another hand. Presumably the manuscript being copied represented the tetragrammaton here in non-Greek letters, and space was left to be filled in by someone expert in the desired script. In Gen 24.40, no attempt is made to represent the tetragrammaton, in accord with a minority textual variant.

The remaining two passages are especially interesting since they both occur at the end of lines at Gen 24.31 (line 122) and 24.42 (line 166; see the photo), and in neither case is the full form of the word KURIOS preserved! In the first of these passages, only the first letter K can be seen before the fragment breaks off (where space for 1-3 letters would have remained, based on the format of the surrounding lines), and in the second passage only KU appears, although there is some room for additional letters after that on the preserved blank surface (the editors complete the word by supplying RIE in the margin of the lacuna preceding the next line, which would be highly unusual!). It seems to me more likely that only the abbreviated KU (without any mark of abbreviation) was supplied in the second instance, and possibly in the first as well!

[[link appended excerpts]]
20. POx 1007 = PLitLond 199, Genesis 2-3 [#907 = vh005];
parchment codex, 3rd ce; British Museum, London.
Oxyrhynchos; ed. A.S.Hunt, POx 7 (1910) 1-3 (plate).
Relatively square page format, about 16 cm high, with two columns of about 33 lines each and 20-25 letters per line.

Basically upright "formal mixed" bilinear lettering (FY break the upper and lower planes, and R the lower), with oval tendencies and minimal decoration -- some loops/hooks on some vertical strokes, but no serifs as such. A blank space of about one letter width appears between chapters 2 and 3; otherwise no clear evidence of punctuation or word division.

The tetragrammaton is rep resented by paleo-Hebrew double yod (two yods with a line through them both; a form found already on coins from the 2nd century bce [[locate a photo?]]), and QEOS is contracted, but no other nomina sacra contractions occur (e.g. ANQRWPOS is fully written several times). Treu, following Kahle (Cairo Geniza), considers the text to be of Jewish origin.

Roberts is more cautious:
"Either we have an instance of a Jewish scribe being influenced by Christian practice or we must assume that a Christian copying a Jewish manuscript preserved the Hebrew form of the Name, as a few later manuscripts, e.g. the Marchalianus [MS Q], do" (MSB ...). Apparently Roberts does not consider the possibility that the tradition of abbreviating QEOS may itself be of Jewish origin, along with abbreviating the tetragrammaton.

21. POx 1166 = PLitLond 201, Genesis 16 [#944 = vh014 = AT9];
papyrus roll, 3rd ce; British Museum, London.
Oxyrhynchos; ed. A.S.Hunt, POx 9 (1912) (plate).
At least 28 lines per column, about 14-15 letters per line.
The calligraphic style in this scroll fragment differs significantly from all that we have seen above; this is in an attractive large undecorated bilinear round/square "Biblical Uncial/Majuscule" with thick strokes except for the horizontals (thus "shaded"). KURIOS and QEOS (as reconstructed) are contracted, but not ANQRWPOS. A medial point occurs two (or three?) times (e.g. before 16.10 and 16.11), once clearly followed by a short blank space; no other spacing appears. A rough breathing mark also occurs in 16.10, O( AGGELOS KU.

This is an especially important text for the discussion of Jewish or Christian scribal practice. Roberts sees the evidence as ambiguous, finally concluding that "It is perhaps more likely to be Christian than Jewish" (MSB 77; but see his earlier comments in JTS 50 [1949] 157). Treu is less sure.\12/ If this text is Jewish in origin, it suggests that the "biblical majuscule" style may have come into Christianity from Judaism, and that the use of nomina sacra was no less Jewish than Christian in this early period!
---

\12/The fragment contains a variant that might also be relevant to this discussion: in Gen 16.11 which parallels the familiar wording of Matt 1.21 "she shall bear a son," #944 has paidion in agreement with some MSS of Philo, while all other known witnesses to the Genesis and the Matthew passages have uion. Was this an old Jewish reading that survived in our fragment (and in Philo) despite the temptation that Christian scribes might have had to harmonize the text with Matthew? Or is it evidence for Christian revisionary activity to make the Genesis text (on the birth of Ishmael) more different from the Matthew wording (Ishmael is a "servant/son," while Jesus is simply "son")?
===
22. PBerlin 17213, Genesis 19 [#995 = vh015 = AT10];
papyrus codex, early 3rd; Staatlichen Museen, Berlin.
Provenance unknown; ed. K.Treu, Archiv fuer Papyrusforschung 20 (1970) 46f (plate).

Fragments of 8 and 9 lines from a page that originally contained 27-28 lines of about 26-27 letters each. The script is in a relatively bilinear round/square hand that tilts slightly to the left at the top, with little obvious decoration (some feathering) or shading, and regular ligaturing of some letters (e.g. alpha, epsilon, and tau with what follows them).
There is a mid-stop with a space at the end of 19.17, and a space of about 3 letter widths at the end of 19.18, where most texts have a form of KURIOS. Treu comments: "...as though the scribe omitted the word unintentionally.... Or perhaps this resulted from a vorlage that had the Hebrew divine name here?" Roberts suggests that this is "a secular sense" of the designation "lord" (MSB 77 n.2), but it is at best ambiguous, referring to one or two divine messengers, and the textual variants in the context show that a tetragrammaton type of understanding was not impossible.

23. POx 1075 = PLitLond 203, Exodus 40 [#909 = vh044 = AT21];
papyrus roll, 3rd ce; British Museum, London.
Oxyrhynchos. Ed A.S.Hunt POx 8 (1911) (plate).
The remains of 23 lines plus a simple subscription at the end of the book of "Exodus," with about 19-23 letters per line. On the reverse side and in a different and slightly later hand from the 3rd/4th ce are 17 lines from near the beginning of the Apocalypse (POx 1079 = vh559 = NT18).
The Exodus scroll is clearly written in a "sloping uncial hand of medium size," bilinear in concept but erratically executed without literary formalism; there is sporadic ornamentation (no serifs as such) and appears to be some consciousness of word or phrase division (a few very small spaces, and some slightly enlarged letters) in addition to the one high-stop and space after 40.28. Dieresis/trema occurs on the first letter of "Israel." At the end of the text are found three pointed space fillers (> > >) after the last word (underlined, to separate it from the subscription?) and then centered (or indented) on a separated line the title ECODOS[...] with short lines above and below to set it off as well.

KURIOU is contracted as KU with an overstroke (in slightly enlarged letters followed by a small space -- it is possible that this was originally a blank space filled in later, probably by the same hand) but not "sons of Israel."

The reuse of this roll within a generation or so to inscribe a Christian apocalypse inclines one to believe that the Exodus text was also Christian in origin, but as Treu is quick to point out, "Jewish manuscripts in the possession of Christians are attested" (as well as the opposite -- see the reused Cairo Geniza copies of the Hexapla and of some church fathers). Roberts does not discuss this fragment in MSB.

24. Cairo Ostrakon 215, Judith 15 [#999 = vh080];
ostrakon, latter 3rd ce; Egyptian Papyrological Society(?), Cairo.
Fayum; ed. J. Schwartz, RevBiblique 53 (1946) 534-37 (plate).
This unusual fragmentary piece containing at least 19 lines (often with 50 letters or more) from Judith 15.1-7 is written in a sloping but neat semi-cursive hand with minimal ornamentation and no evidence of spacing or added marks of any sort. "Israel," "sons of Israel," and "Jerusalem" are spelled out in full.

The editor discusses some pros and cons of whether to classify the fragment as Jewish or Christian, and leaves the question open. Treu (143f and n.81) and Roberts (MSB 78) seem to agree.

25. PLitLond 202 = BM P 2557, Genesis 46-47 [#953 = vh030 = AT14];
papyrus codex, ca 300 ce; British Museum, London.
Provenance unknown; ed. H.J.M.Milne, Catalogue... (1927) 165f (no plate).
The page was originally about 14 by 17 cm, with 16-17 lines per page, written in a "medium-sized upright laterally compressed cursive hand of a type familiar in documents of the period of Diocletian. Punctuation by a middle point and a small space in the line. The I has the diaeresis once [on the first letter of the name Joseph, but not normally]" (Milne). An apostrophe separating double consonants "gg" and "ng" also seems to be present (judging from the transcript). "Father" and "Israel" occur without contraction.

26. PVindob 39777 = StudPal 11.114 = PWien Rainer 18, Ps 68/69, 80/81 (Symmachus) [Goettingen #?? = vh167];
parchment roll, 3/4 ce; Vienna.
Fayum or Heracleopolites Nome; ed. C.Wessely in Melanges ... Chatelain (1910) 224-29 [identified as Aquila], with handwritten replica in Studien zur Palaeographie und Papyruskunde ... Theologischen Inhalts 2 (1911) [corrected identification to Symmachus].
Roberts MSB 77: "The Tetragrammaton is in the archaic Hebrew characters; the writing is noticeably elegant." In the handwritten facsimile, it appears to be moderately decorated with cursive tendencies and frequent ligatures and no pattern of spacing. QEOU is uncontracted.
27. PAlex 203, Isaiah 48 [Goettingen #?? = vh300];
papyrus roll, 3/4th ce; Alexandria Museum, EGYPT.
Provenance unknown; ed. A.Carlini, Ann. Sc. Norm. Sup. Pisa, series 3, vol 2.2 (1972) 489-94 (plate).

The two best preserved columns (of three) differ significantly in width, with the first averaging about 11 letters, and the second about 15; the columns seem to have contained 24-25 lines (not 27 as the editor estimates).

The writing style fits Turner's "formal mixed" classification, with a combination of petit rounded letters (except omega) some medium sized forms (e.g. alpha, iota, rho) and otherwise bold strokes. The result is a relatively attractive upright hand with minimal decoration and a hint of shading (the photo is somewhat blurred, making subtle judgments difficult). One dieresis/trema is visible, on the first letter of the name Jacob. There is a wider space than normal between the last line of 48.11 and the first line of 48.12, and possibly a space was present in the line on which 48.16 begins. Otherwise, no spacing between letters is obvious.

The editor claims that KURIOS is contracted at one point (48.17), although the photo is not clear, and my reconstruction suggests that it was also contracted in the two other occurrences in this material. Possibly the one reconstructed occurrence of QEOS was similarly shortened. Other nomina sacra -- Israel and heaven -- do not seem to have been contracted (although the evidence for "Israel" seems ambiguous in both instances).

28. PHarris 31, Psalm 43 [#2108 = vh148 = AT67];
papyrus roll(?), 3/4th ce; Central Library of the Selly Oak Colleges, Birmingham ENG.
Unknown provenance; ed. J.E.Powell, Rendel Harris Papyri 1 (1936) (plate); identified by G.D.Kilpatrick, JTS 50 (1949) 176-177.
Beginning of six fragmentary lines, stichometric (longest line has 44 letters, shortest 23 -- thus perhaps a page rather than a roll?). "The writing is of the elegant character referred to above [in connection with Jewish biblical manuscripts]" (Roberts MSB 77) -- shaded and modestly ornamented (mostly by feathering), with slightly enlarged initial letters. QEOS is uncontracted.

29. POx 1225, Leviticus 16.33f [#947 = vh048 = AT23];
papyrus roll, early 4th ce; Princeton Theological Seminary, NJ.
Oxyrhynchos; ed. A.S.Hunt, POx 10 (1914) (plate).

Parts of only 12 lines are preserved, with about 15-20 letters per reconstructed line. The style is a heavy, slightly sloping "formal mixed" tending towards "biblical majuscle" (but with relatively smaller O E S forms). There is a hint of ornamentation by means of some subtle thickening and/or feathering at the end of some strokes, and also a hint of shading. The ink is brownish in color rather than the more usual black.

In this short amount of text, three instances of dieresis/trema occur, and three middle stops, without any accompanying spacing (which suggests that they may have been added by a later hand). No nomina sacra are visible, although the editor has supplied -- perhaps unnecessarily -- the contracted form of "Israel" in one reconstruction, preceded by the full form of YI+W[N] (with dieresis/trema on the iota).

30. PLitLond 211, Daniel 1.17f (Theodotion) [#925 = vh319];
vellum roll, early 4th ce; British Museum, London.
Upper Egypt, from the cover of a Sahidic codex; ed. H.I.Bell in Budge, Coptic Biblical Texts (1912) xiv (no plate).

Parts of 8 lines are preserved. Since I have not seen a reproduction of this piece, here are Roberts' comments: "A fragment of a parchment roll of Daniel in the version of Theodotion, written in the first half of the fourth century; QEOS is uncontracted. This too exemplifies the light and elegant script found in other Jewish texts" (MSB 77).

Listing of other early fragments
Summary and Conclusions
There are various ways in which this complex body of literary "presentational evidence" can be analyzed, depending to a large extent on what sort of conclusions are being tested or what hypotheses developed. There are few "control" criteria, such as date, to assist the process. Intuitions are important, but also need careful testing. My own approach tends to assume that developments of this nature came into early Christian circles by means of the Greek Jewish world unless the evidence clearly indicates otherwise; my impression is that Roberts (and Hurtado) would assume the Christian origin of such practices unless there were contrary evidence. So how is the evidence to be evaluated?

It would be useful to have an appropriate and unambiguous term to denote the sorts of features under analysis, some of which have come back into the spotlight partly as a result of scholarly reconsideration of the "oral" side of ancient textual culture. Hurtado seems to prefer "material culture" (659 n.14), but that seems to me unnecessarily imprecise. Something like "textual presentation" or even "textual mechanics" gets closer to the point -- the conventions involved in laying out the text,
from choice of material (e.g. papyrus, leather, pottery, etc.)
to its mode of packaging (roll, codex, ostrakon, etc.)
to the details of how the writing is organized relative to the writing surfaces (dimensions of writing material, size of columns and letters, column/page layout)

as well as relative to itself (paragraphing and marginal markers, use of spacing in relation to lines and letters, punctuating, abbreviating, form of numbers, form of corrections and notations, use of diacritics, etc.), perhaps sometimes with a view to facilitating (public) reading.
"Style": A central point in the overall discussion is the assessment of relevant Greek transcriptional styles. Colin Roberts has moved farther than most in this area, in which he was very experienced -- although sometimes his desire to illuminate early Christian "orthodox" development seems to me to problematize aspects of his presentation.

Roberts sees most of the clearly "Jewish" LXX/OG texts as more professionally written -- more "literary" and "elegant" in appearance than most of the earliest "Christian" texts -- although exactly what features indicate the degree of "literaryness" for him would be useful to know with more precision (e.g. "bilinearity" or consistent height of letters, use of "serifs" and other embelleshments on non-rounded basic strokes, thickness of strokes, shading, etc.). For him this observation goes hand in hand with his explanation of certain "documentary" (in contrast to "literary") tendencies in the early Christian materials (e.g. the use of spacing/punctuation, diacritics, abbreviated numbers and special contractions, less formal script, cursive tendencies, ligatures).\13/

\13/Roberts, MSB 76: "There seems to have been a distinctive style of writing used for Jewish copies of the scriptures in Greek from the second century B.C. onwards and still used, with modifications of course, down to the third century A.D. [\fn/ The style of these Jewish manuscripts needs closer examination and definition than they have as yet been given, especially in the use of serifs (for these see GMAW, p.25).]; a parallel would be the development of the so-called Biblical Uncial or Biblical Majuscule.... But not all Greek manuscripts known to be Jewish are written in this style, witness the roll of the Minor Prophets from Engedi [actually, Nahal Hever], and parallels to it can be found among the secular literary papyri." See also P.Parsons, DJD 8 (1990) 23f, on the Minor Prophets scroll (item 13 above): "...the use of enlarged initials at line-beginning (hands A and B) and phrase-beginning (hand A) and (set out in the margin) to mark a new section (hand A) gives this manuscript a documentary look. ... The fact is itself remarkable. Early Christian books show the same characteristic; copies of the Greek classics do not. It has therefore been tempting to argue that the texts of the Early Church stood closer to the world of business than to that of literature, and to draw conclusions about the social milieu in which the texts circulated or the esteem in which they were held. Now we see the same thing in a Jewish manuscript of pre-Christian date. This may suggest that the Christians inherited the practice, rather than inventing it; the problem remains, why Greek-speaking Jews should have adopted it in the first place" (23f). Parsons adds, in his comparisons of the various Dead Sea Scroll Greek scripts: "This makes it clear that serifed hands are common enough (but not universal) in Judaean material assignable to the period i B.C.-i A.D." (25).
===
The range of hands and styles even within the Judean Desert fragments, which were produced within a fairly limited period of time, is noteworthy, and is also reflected in the Egyptian materials contemporary with the Judean. A detailed comparative analysis of the relevant features remains to be made, but I doubt that it will result in identifying "schools" or traditions of scribal culture except in very broad terms. Of course, comparison with what was happening at the same time in the larger Greco- Roman world will also be very relevant.\14/ If, in general, the Roman period (moving into the "common era") witnessed a tendency for literature to be copied less elegantly than it had been before, the presence of such a "decline" in Jewish texts, and its reflection in Christian materials would seem less significant than otherwise.
---
\14/Note, for example, Turner's strictures on giving too much weight to the use and forms of "serifs" in classifying styles of Greek hands (ed1, 25 = ed2, 21)!
===
Nevertheless, progress has been made in this survey simply by recognizing the extent of the problem and sampling some of the possibilities. A next step in assessing these phenomena more carefully would require availability of excellent reproductions of the extant fragments in a framework that facilitates close comparison and contrast (e.g. by computerized paleographic analysis). Hopefully, the Internet can be used to provide such a resources in the near future, if permissions from the current "owners" of the materials can be obtained to display high quality digitized images.

Scroll/Codex: Of course, the main vehicle for Greek literary production at the start of the period we are examining was the roll, and a major point of discussion is the introduction of the codex format and its very rapid acceptance in emerging (Egyptian) Christianity -- where the roll also survives, but not in such relative abundance.\15/ How soon and under what conditions Jewish authors and copyists accepted the codex format is not clear. But as Treu pointed out forcefully, the mere fact that a fragment of LXX/OG is in codex format does not necessarily mean that it must be of Christian origin. Whether there will ever be sufficient evidence to support my suspicion that the codex form came into early Christianity from Judaism remains to be seen. Probably not in my lifetime. But it is almost certain that at least one Jewish codex can be identified in the raw data of this report (as even Roberts gradually came to admit) -- POx 656, from the late 2nd or early 3rd century ce (item 19; see also 20 and 22).
---
\15/The previous state of this question has been defined by the study produced jointly by Roberts and T.C.Skeat, The Birth of the Codex (1983; also released with a 1987 date). ===
Spacing: Whether roll or codex, comprehending the texts required some mental gymnastics on the part of the reader, especially when little or no visual assistance was available to identify larger or smaller sense units or ideally, words. In general, traditional literary Greek texts are in scriptio continua -- an uninterrupted flow of letters -- with occasional breaks or indicators for larger units. As Roberts correctly points out, in many -- perhaps most -- of the early Christian texts with which he deals (not only LXX/OG texts), there are various helps for indicating sense units, whether spaces or lines in the left margin (paragraphoi) or punctuation marks, or exaggerated initial letters or letters that protrude into the left margin. Roberts explains this as part of what he calls the "documentary" influence on early Christian scribal practice.
What Roberts notes (e.g. in editing item 2) but fails to pursue with the same vigor or consistency is that despite their relatively more "literary" flavor the clearly Jewish fragments almost all show evidence of the same sort of "aids to the reader" phenomenon. Indeed, the second hand (or, if I am right, second scroll) of the Nahal Hever Greek Minor Prophets materials [#943b, item 13b above] uniquely engages in actual word division of an obvious sort. To me, this kind of evidence deserves much closer exploration than it has received thus far, and Emanuel Tov is making a major contribution to this discussion by his careful analysis of such phenomena in the Judean Desert materials and in other biblical texts (see n.7 above). Spacing occurs in the Jewish materials whether "elegant" or not, early or late. It also occurs quite early in materials of clearly Christian origin. To view this as coincidental seems highly unlikely, given the fact that early Christianity developed out of Judaism! This not so unambiguously "documentary" practice -- which has not yet received the attention it deserves in the study of Greco-Roman literature in general\16/ -- almost certainly has been inherited by Christian scribes, if not from their Jewish examples (which seems to me most likely), then from the scribal culture of the Greco-Roman world at large.

---
\16/A small (yet large!) step in this direction is taken by William A. Johnson in his Yale dissertation on The Literary Papyrus Roll: Formats and Conventions -- An Analysis of the Evidence from Oxyrhynchus (1992); witness his long list of corrections to the editions of these literary papyri (22-70), where he regularly notes the omission in the editions of signs of paragraphing, punctuation, and occasionally spacing. See also his brief note on "The Function of the Paragraphus in Greek Literary Prose Texts" in ZPE 100 (1994) 65-68.
===
Special Words: Some of the spacing issues in these early Jewish and Christian texts are associated with the appearance of personal or ethnic names and certain special words that, for present purposes, fall into three categories: (1) the tetragrammaton, (2) "nomina sacra," and (3) number symbolism.
Jewish scribes were selfconscious about the representation of the tetragrammaton -- the special revered 4 letter name of the Jewish God -- and had available a variety of devices, from paleo-Hebrew, to square Hebrew (thus Greek PIPI), to abbreviated Hebrew (ZZ), to the semi-transliteration (also an abbreviation?) IAW and the use of substitutes such as ADONAI and KURIOS ("Lord"), or even to using dots and blank spacing. If convincing evidence has not yet emerged that they also used a Greek abbreviated formation such as KS (see items 19, 21, 23, 27 above), that surprises me less than the claim that such abbreviation must have been a Christian invention.

Roberts certainly wants to see it otherwise, and traces the practice that became so prevalent, if not pervasive, in Christian MSS of abbreviating a select group of "nomina sacra" terms to the initial and original Christian sacralizing of "the Name" Jesus, which then led to similar treatment for "Lord," and for "God," and for the other "nomina sacra." Hurtado introduces some considerations (see n.4 above) to strengthen this argument. Nevertheless, I remain skeptical. Though it admittedly remains ambiguous, some of the evidence presented above suggests that Jewish scribes sometimes may have used contractions of QEOS, and perhaps a few other frequently used words, in the development of their scribal traditions (see items 20, 21[?], 27, and n.11 above).

One other "special words" detail that comes up in the discussion is treatment of numbers. Roberts argues that good literary Greek texts invariably (or perhaps, normally) spell out numbers rather than using symbols, while Christian texts -- again following "documentary" influences -- usually employ the symbols. In our early texts, examples are few, and I have not systematically explored all of the early fragments of Greek Jewish scriptures for this feature. If PYale 1 (item 17), a codex fragment of Genesis that should probably be dated no earlier than the 2nd century ce, is of Jewish origin, Roberts' hypothesis would be in trouble since number symbols are found in that material. But the combination of codex and symbolized number in PYale 1 unites to make it difficult for Roberts even to consider the possibility that the text is of Jewish origin. Treu is not so troubled, and leaves open the possibility. Obviously I agree that this should be an open question.

Concluding Remarks
This just scrapes the surface of the variety of information and of issues that can emerge from close study of these early LXX/OG materials. Roberts recreates a developmental historical hypothesis about early Christianity in Egypt from the details as he interprets them, and in general, the hypothesis makes a great deal of sense. But he does not consistently engage the question of what we can learn about Greek speaking/writing/reading Judaism in Palestine and Egypt from the same materials, and in that regard, often fails to be convincing about details.
The evidence is clear that prior to the emergence of Christianity, Greek speaking/writing Jews had access to a range of scriptural (and other) works copied in a highly "professional" manner. That these manuscripts were produced by specifically Jewish copyists cannot be assumed, although in some instances, the treatment of the tetragrammaton and the apparently selfconscious attention to indicating significant sense units by means of spacing suggests that the task must have been entrusted to persons who were familiar with those sorts of special literary traditions. The differences in overall "style" between some of the early Jewish manuscripts suggests that our preserved witnesses represent varieties of technique that had developed in Jewish literary circles. Whether on the basis of this evidence one can mount economic arguments (these Jews were rich enough to afford such quality), or liturgical ones (the spacing techniques were developed to assist in oral reading in the synagogues), or even issues of cultural-educational status (these Jews knew what was appropriate to their social station) I will leave to others. The data suggests variety, and that is what we should have expected. And as new situations developed in the transition to Roman rule and influence, we should expect changes to evidence themselves, not only in our Jewish to Christian trajectories, but in the surrounding world as well.

Early Christianity was formed in large measure in close relationship (positive and negative) to the types of Judaism present in the Greco-Roman world in the first century of the common era. The "scriptural" preoccupations of many early Christian representatives surely were influenced by the established Jewish frameworks of the time. Thus in the end -- if one can responsibly speak of such an end -- I would expect to find that the debt of early Christianity to its Jewish heritage is even greater in these areas of "textual mechanics" and transmitted scribal craft than our scholarly traditions and approaches have permitted us to recognize.

//08 July 1999 draft #6//
Appended Excerpts [[to be linked]]
1. 4Q122=LXXDeut Deuteronomy 11 [#819; not known to vh] parchment roll, 2nd bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
[excerpts]
Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 195 (plate 43): "The manuscript is inscribed in a literary hand not particularly elegant, though not careless; its uncial letters seem to be somewhat influenced by cursive forms. ... Space for word division appears between some words but not between others, and an unexpected space appears within the word ERUQRAS after the upsilon. Few, if any, clearly complete words survive, and ERUQRAS fragiley bears the sole possibility for the identification of the manuscript." These scraps would have been unknown to Roberts and Treu.
Parsons, DJD 9 (1992) 11-12: The letters ... are of irregular heights and widths. ... The letters are written with a thick pen, but without organised contrasts. ... There are small decorative hooks or blobs on the feet of some uprights, as well as on the tops of K and U. ... The scroll is written in an informal hand with some ligatures. The overall impression is of a script rather earlier than the others of this find. It is comparable with [some texts] ... of the early second century BCE, or ... of the mid-second century BCE. ... But it should be emphasised that, with so small a sample, the dating must be more than usually uncertain."

Parsons, DJD 8 (1990) 25: "The hand of this scrap shows no similarities with [#943a-b]; it is an informal script of Ptolemaic look with some cursive tendencies and no decoration except some terminal hooks and blobs."
2. PRyl 458 Deuteronomy 23-28 [#957 = vh057] papyrus roll, 2nd bce; John Rylands Library, Manchester ENG.

[excerpts]
Roberts, Two Biblical Papyri ... (Manchester Univ Press 1936) (with a facsimile): "The hand is a book hand, stylised and careful and of considerable elegance, if rather formal; its most striking feature is the use of decorative serifs, particularly noticeable on N, U and T. At first sight it has a somewhat archaic appearance, but this may well be deceptive and the formal character of the hand as a whole must be taken into consideration. [Then refers to similar hands, esp in PTeb]" 22f.

"What is paleographically of most interest about the text is the scribe's system of punctuation, or rather of interspacing. ...The writer regularly leaves a space not only at the end of a verse or sentence, but at the end of a KWLON or group of words. At the end of a verse, as in [Dt 24.1], a wider space is left and a high point added; otherwise the writer's principle seems to be to leave a fairly large space at the end of a sentence or clause ... and a smaller one at the end of a group of words. The interspacing does not seem to follow the sense of the passage [in some instances]. But there is no attempt at word division. ... Our text ... shows no sign of documentary influence and we cannot ascribe to this cause the systematic use of [spacing] found here. ... Possibly it may be due to Aramaic influence, as word division is found in the Aramaic papyri of the fifth century B.C. The Nash papyrus, however -- a Hebrew text, probably liturgical, which contains the Decalogue and the Shema and was written not later than the second century A.D. -- has spacing between words but no verse division. ... This system [otherwise] is not to be found in Biblical manuscripts; its origin may perhaps be due to Aramaic influence or if, as is possible, this roll was the property of some Jewish synagogue, to the exigencies of public reading" (25- 28).
3. 7QLXXEx Exodus 28 [#805 = vh038]; papyrus roll, 2nd/1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.

[excerpt]
Parsons DJD 8 (1990) 25: "This small serifed bilinear hand has some similarities with hands A and B [of #943 Minor Prophets] (note the pointed alpha, and wide tau hooked down at the left)."
4. 4Q119=LXXLev\a Leviticus 26 [#801 = vh049]; parchment roll, 2nd/1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
[excerpts]
Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 161 (plate 38): "The scribe used the customary scriptio continua but with occasional spaces for word-division, as after SPORON (line 6), UMWN (line 12), etc. Of the 12 lines whose beginnings are preserved, only two (lines 19, 23) show the division of a word between lines. A new section at 26.14 (line 21) is marked by an interval of about three letters' width within the line and by a horizontal paragraph-mark in the left margin."

Parsons, DJD 9, 7: "The script ... is approximately bilinear .... The letter forms tend toward the oval/rectangular, but not consistently. ... There is no consistent use of shading as part of the style. ... There is no consistent use of ornament, but there are sporadic terminal hooks, notably on the foot of R and the left extremity of T. ...The scribe displays a pinched, plain hand of no great pretensions .... The general impression is of a script ... unlikely to be later than the first century BCE, ... or much earlier. C.H.Roberts (apud Kahle, 616) thought of first century BCE, with the end of the second 'not out of the question'."

Parsons, DJD 8 (1990) 25: "This is a pinched, undecorated hand ... with a pronounced Ptolemaic look; not similar to [#943a-b], and probably earlier"
5. 7QLXX EpJer Epistle of Jeremiah (Baruch 6) [#804 = vh312]; papyrus roll, 2nd/1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.

[excerpts]
Parsons, DJD 8 (1990) 25: "This tiny scrap shows a broad bilinear script without ornament (except for a half-serif on the foot of tau)."
6. PFouad 266a Genesis 3-38 [#942 = vh056] papyrus roll, 1st bce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.

[excerpts]
Zaki Aly & Ludwig Koenen, Three Rolls of the Early Septuagint: Genesis and Deuteronomy ... (Bonn: Habelt 1980) (includes plates). Descriptions are by Koenen. For #942 (Koenen 3): "The papyrus is of good quality. ... The use of the tetragrammaton is not attested for this roll, but may be inferred from the fact that 942 has probably been written by the same hand as 848 [see below] or, at least, by a scribe belonging to the same school and scribal tradition. Little blanks indicate new cola [footnote: "The practice was obviously the same as in 848 and 847" [see below]]. There is also a tendency to mark Hebrew names by little blanks before and after the names."

Turner, Greek Manuscripts\2 #56 (describing #848, below, which is virtually identical to the 9 small fragments of #942): "Medium to large, formal, upright, rounded capitals, written slowly. ... Markedly bilinear, the lower line outlined by horizontal strokes on the feet of letters [full feet on TU, half feet or hooks on most other verticals and on some obliques], the upper indicated by high horizontals; even R and U fall inside the parallels, only F protrudes [below and above, and Y slightly above, but not below]."

7. 4Q120=LXXLev\b Leviticus 2-5 [#802 = vh046]; papyrus roll, 1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.
[excerpts]
Ed. E.Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 168 (plates 39-41): "The scribe used the customary scriptio continua, but with spaces before and after the divine name and occasionally with spaces between sense-divisions or sentences. Signs to mark a new paragraph occur at the left margin of frg. 27 between lines 6 and 7 (= Lev 6.1 [5.24]) and of frg. 32." It also uses iota adscript (usually); and contains some corrections. The tetragrammaton occurs as IAW twice, and KURIOS is not found in these fragments.
Parsons, DJD 9 (1992) 10: "The scribe used a bilinear script ..., with square/circular letter forms. The upper line is broken by the risers of F and Y; the lower line, emphasised by the serifs, is hardly broken at all. ... There is hardly any noticeable shading. ... Ornament ... is frequent. ... This is a full round hand, carefully executed, comparable with the Fouad Deuteronomy [#848 below] ... and the second script of the Greek Minor Prophets Scroll [below #943]. ... Such scripts may belong to the first century BCE, ... but they may extend well into the first century CE. ... This example has a slightly old-fashioned look ..., and could reasonably be assigned to the first century BCE."
8. PFouad 266b Deuteronomy 17-33 [#848 = vh56]; papyrus roll, 1st bce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.

[excerpts]
Koenen, Three Rolls 4-5: "The quality of the papyrus is the same as in the case of 942, and both rolls have probably been written by the same scribe. The columns of 848 are smaller (... [about] 37 letters per line); the height of the writing area varies between 15.5-16.5 cm. (21-23 lines). The upper margin was originally at least 3.5 cm., the lower margin 4 cm. This indicates close to 24 cm. for the height of the entire roll. Kolleseis [joins between sheets of papyri] are occasionally visible, but since too much of the roll is missing, the length of the kollemata [sheets] cannot be determined. The intercolumnation varies around an average of 1.5 cm., but occasionally it narrows down to 0.2 cm. Towards the bottoms the lines have the tendency to begin progressively more to the left, thus producing slightly longer lines (Mass's Law). Paragraphoi marking the beginning of verses are used throughout, though not regularly. An additional long oblique stroke marks the beginning of chapter 21 [footnote: "... This is the only instance; a reason for this special treatment is not apparent. ...]. Frequently small blanks indicate new verses, sentences, or cola [footnote: "... The size varies according to the function of the blank. In addition, there occur blanks for which I see no reason...."], while Hebrew names are not surrounded by blanks, as is the case in 942. The ends of lines are occasionally left blank in order to start the next verse on a new line. Corrections are rare. A gloss appears on the lower margin on pl. 6. col.4."

The tetragrammaton is represented by small square Hebrew letters (slightly more than half the height of the Greek, written along the bottom part of the line) inserted into a space equivalent to about "5-6 Greek letters (i.e. about the size of KU/RIOS written in full) and marked ... by a high dot at its beginning [preceded by a space]. A second scribe filled in the Hebrew letters. They cover only the middle of the blank, usually the space of 2 1/2 - 3 letters" (Koenen 5-6).

Turner, Greek Manuscripts\2 #56: "The ends of lines are not even. Letters may be reduced in size at the line-end. Medium to large, formal, upright, rounded capitals, written slowly. Contrast between thick horizontals and downward obliques, and fine verticals [RAK Note: this is not obvious from the photos]. Markedly bilinear, the lower line outlined by horizontal strokes on the feet of letters [full feet on TU, half feet or hooks on most other verticals and on some obliques], the upper indicated by high horizontals; even R and U fall inside the parallels, only F protrudes [below and above, and Y slightly above, but not below]." "...Few orthographical errors. Iota adscript is written."

9. PFouad 266c Deuteronomy 10-33 [#847 = vh56] papyrus roll, late 1st bce; Egyptian Papyrological Society, Cairo.

[excerpts]
Koenen, Three Rolls 7: "The papyrus is of a quality similar to 942 and 848. Only 49 very small fragments of a few letters each are extant. ... The columns seem to have had [about] 21 lines. ... One might assume that the overall height of the roll 847 was the same (24 cm.) [as 848]. The width of the lines averages 24 letters ... but the number of letters per lines varies considerably. Kollesis may occur [once]. ... Paragraphos is extant on pl. 51 col. V. Small blanks separate verses, sentences, or cola [footnote: "... small blanks also occur elsewhere. ..."] and mark Hebrew names [footnote: "... all in front of the name. No example survives for a blank after those names. ..."]. A large blank precedes Moses' blessing of Dan, presumedly at the end of line (4?) of col VIII (pl.53) [[conjectural reconstruction]] in order that the blessing may begin at a new line.... No KURIOS or tetragrammaton is extant. QEOS is written in full; thus we may assume that the scribe did not use the Christian abbreviations of holy names, which came into use after 70 A.D. 'Inorganic' trema [or dieresis, a single or double dot above a vowel] indicating the beginning of a word) occurs once [51.IV.11; but not clear in photo]... [footnote: "'Inorganic' is the use of the trema which marks the initial or emphasizes the final vowel of a word, while its use for separating vowels in a cluster is called 'organic.' The 'organic' use is attested as early as the 2nd cent. B.C., though it does not become common before the 2nd cent. A.D. For 'inorganic' use I am not aware of any example before the end of the 1st cent. B.C. ...."]. ...Corrections are frequent."

"In many details, this hand is similar to 848 [above], but larger, thinner, more rounded and irregular, and less bilinear, though the extensions of letters above the 'upper line' and below the 'lower line' are only small (see particularly A). The letters are occasionally decorated by quite heavy strokes [Schubart's decorative style...]. Also the middle horizontal strokes are stressed" (6 n.28). In dating, Koenen has vacillated between 1st bce and 1st ce, preferring in his edition "the end of the 1st cent. B.C." (6 n.28 and see examples cited there). The use of serifs and hooks is similar to 848 and 942, but less obvious or obtrusive. It seems to be a more refined formal hand.
10. 4Q127 Exodus Paraphrase (?) [unknown to vh]; papyrus roll, late 1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.

[excerpts]
Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 223f (very similar to 4QLXXLev\b = #802): "Where a margin is listed as questionable, there is insufficient evidence to determine whether the blank portion of the papyrus actually represents a margin, or rather a blank line above or below the extant text, or a space between words; it should be remembered, however, that in the Greek manuscripts from Cave 4 blank lines to signal a new paragraph are unusual." ... "Paragraphing is indicated in at least two places. Above KAI in line 3 of frg. 17 is a short horizontal line of 0.3 cm. There is also a coronis, or elaborate marginal marking, preserved on frg. 8 (cf. also frg. 18?)." ... "The manuscript dates from about the first century BCE or the earlier first century CE.... It is written in scriptio continua, with full or narrow spaces occasionally left before sentences (cf KAI in frg. 1 line 5) and before or after proper names (cf. each of lines 6-11 in frg. 1)." There are some corrections by the original scribe. There is no evidence of tetragrammaton passages.

Parsons, DJD 9, 12f: "The scroll is written in a bilinear hand ..., with the letter forms round and square [F (and probably Y) extend slightly below and also above the projected lines]. ... There is no noticeable shading. ... The tops of some uprights are hooked to the left; the feet of uprights and obliques are generally decorated with full or half serifs, sometimes in the form of angled hooks. ... The manuscript is rather ineptly written in a bilinear, decorated literary script. This ineptness is not necessarily personal, since many literary scripts of the early Roman period show the same characteristics .... It is likely that the manuscript was written in the first century BCE or the earlier first century CE. A date early in the period is certainly possible."
11. 4Q126 unidentified Greek [not known to vh]; parchment roll, late 1st bce; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.

[excerpts]
Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 219 (plate 46): "The scribe used the customary scriptio continua, though leaving some full- letter spaces probably between sentences ... and half- or quarter-spaces occasionally between words." Eight frgs (double plates of some). Frg. 2 seems to have KURIO[], preceded by a short space.

Parsons, DJD 9, 12: "The script ... is bilinear. ... There is no shading. ... There are some half-serifs or hooks on the feet of uprights, and full serifs on the base of T and U. ... To judge from this very small sample, the scroll is written by a hand of the same kind as those of 4Q120[Lev\b = #802] and 4Q121[Num = #803] (but more shakily executed), and it can be assigned to the same date (i.e. the first century BCE or possibly the early first century CE)."

Parsons, DJD 8 (1990) 25: "A decorated hand of the same type as [#803], but not so elegant."
12. 4Q121=LXXNum Numbers 3-4 [#803 = vh051]; parchment roll, turn of the era; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.

[excerpts]
Ulrich, DJD 9 (1992) 188 (plates 42-43): "The scribe does not usually leave a space for word-division. He does leave a single space for some sense-divisions, occasionally at the end of a 'verse,' but not always, and occasionally at other points within a 'verse.' Thus in counting letters per line, for this manuscript one should not count spaces between words, except possibly before some sense-divisions." Uses iota adscript; two or three corrections; no occurrences of tetragrammaton, but "in reconstruction, spacing would seem to allow either KURIOS or YHWH, whereas IAW ... and the (Christian) abbreviation KS would be too short. Palaeo-Hebrew or PIPI forms in a Greek manuscript this early are improbable" [why?!].

Parsons, DJD 9, 11: The scribe used a bilinear script ..., with the letter-forms square/circular [FY and sometimes A extend above the projected top line (but not below?)]. ... Shading [is not] ... notable. ... Ornament ... is frequent: the tops of uprights and obliques are occasionally decorated with hooks, and the feet of uprights and obliques are regularly decorated with heavy full and half-serifs (these are sometimes oblique, sometimes formed as a hook in a single movement with the main stroke). The serifs are notably long, and may run into the serif preceding or following; this marks the lower line all the more emphatically. ... The script is similar to that of 4Q120[Lev\b = #802], but with heavier ornament. This too could be of late Ptolemaic date; but the early Roman period cannot be excluded."

Parsons, DJD 8 (1990) 25: "This bilinear script (the descenders of rho and phi are curtailed), heavily ornamented with half- and full serifs, has some similarities with [#943a], but it is much more elegant and finely written; a distinctive feature is that the oval letters tend to lean backwards."

13. 8HevXIIgr = Nahal Hever Minor Prophets [#943 = vh285]; parchment roll(s), turn of the era; Rockefeller Museum, Jerusalem.

[excerpts]
Tov, DJD 8 (1990) 9ff: "The text of the scroll has been subdivided into paragraphs with both minor and major breaks .... What has not been observed by these scholars is that the scroll contains also a division into 'verses' and that in all three divisions the scroll agrees to a great extent with the Masoretic tradition, not only regarding the system of subdividing the text, but also regarding the location of the divisions themselves. ..." "In addition to the open and closed sections the scroll indicates with one or two spaces the beginning of what in MT is a new verse. This practice is known from a few Hebrew sources (1QpaleoLev [limited evidence] and 4QDan\a,d/ [reported by S. J. Pfann]; the situation with regard to 1QIs\a/ is not clear) as well as from two early Greek biblical sources: PFouad 266 [see #848] and PRyl Greek 458 [= #957]. [[para]] It is relatively easy to recognize these spaces in the scroll since in the section written by scribe A there are otherwise no spaces between words. ... The second scribe left spaces between most words, and for the beginnings of new verses he left more than one space. Likewise, the scribe of PRyl Greek 458 [= #957] often left spaces within the verse, and between verses he left more than one space. ..."

It is possible that we have remnants of two scrolls here; in any event, two different hands worked on the materials that have survived, and the second hand presents virtual word division in those sections.
Peter Parsons describes the hands (19ff): With scribe A (the bulk of the preserved material) "the script is in intention bilinear (only F reaches well above the line; the descenders of R F and Y are normally curtailed), although uncertainty in execution, and the enlargement of initial letters, gives an irregular impression. ...[[para]]... The script is profusely ornamented. The feet of verticals and descending obliques carry blobs or hooks or half-serifs (horizontal or angular or arched) or -- rarely -- full serifs; hooks and half-serifs normally point to the right; they may be very large." For scribe B, "the script is bilinear (allowing for the enlargement of some line-initials), except for R and F (this scribe makes no attempt to curtail them). ... The general [horizontal] effect is round and square. ...[[paragraph]]... The feet of uprights, the tops of uprights in I, K, N, F, and the left- hand tips of U and X, take decoration in the form of blobs, hooks and half-serifs (horizontal or oblique), rarely full serifs; hooks and half-serifs more often (but not consistently) point to the left." In general, A "aspires to be a book-hand ..., but the performance is inconsistent." Hand B "is a much more fluent and consistent copyist than hand A." Comparison with other, especially dated materials (23) concludes: "Most of this material is documentary; but the comparison is rather appropriate, since the use of enlarged initials at line-beginning (hands A and B) and phrase-beginning (hand A) and (set out in the margin) to mark a new section (hand A) gives this manuscript a documentary look. ... The fact is itself remarkable. Early Christian books show the same characteristic; copies of the Greek classics do not. It has therefore been tempting to argue that the texts of the Early Church stood closer to the world of business than to that of literature, and to draw condlusions about the social milieu in which the texts circulated or the esteem in which they were held. Now we see the same thing in a Jewish manuscript of pre-Christian date. This may suggest that the Christians inherited the practice, rather than inventing it; the problem remains, why Greek-speaking Jews should have adopted it in the first place" (23f).
14. POx 3522 Job 42 [#??]; papyrus roll, 1st ce; [location?]
[excerpts]
---
POx 50 (1983) 1 (with plate): "The lines are of 19-22 letters; the columns perhaps of 15 lines [but see the discussion in the notes], which would give a roll-height of c. 14 cm.... There are no lectional signs; punctuation by blank space (i.4, 5, 7). The informal upright bilinear script, in which the verticals are often ornamented with back-hooks, has similarities with [[two dated MSS]]; a date in the early first century would suit. ... [[paragraph]] A copy in roll-form, and of this date, will have been Jewish, not Christian."
With regard to the "archaic Hebrew" tetragrammaton, "the scribe of 3522 himself wrote the Hebrew continuously and fluently ...; but apparently without understanding, since the medial and final he have different shapes." The writing appears to be relatively undisciplined (quickly executed, some ligatures and run-on strokes in letter formation), with no serifs of note beyond the "hooks" (mostly on T, H) mentioned above. The initial letter of the name JOB has a dieresis/trema (see above, on #847) over it, and the name may be followed by a short blank.
Tov, DJD 8 (1990) 12: "The scribe of POxy 3522 (Job) very clearly wrote the tetragrammaton from left to right, creating a ligature between the yod and the next Greek letter."
15. POx 4443 Esther E + 8-9 [#???] papyrus roll, 1st/2nd ce; [location?]
[excerpts]
Ed K. Luchner, POx 65 (1998): "...This was a luxurious copy. The columns have 31 lines (height 20 cm) with an average 25 letters (width 7 cm, plus 0.5 cm for projecting letters at paragraphs). The intercolumnium is approximately 2 cm. The back is blank." [[paragraph]] "This is the first known [Greek] copy of a passage from Esther in roll-form, a rare format for biblical texts, probably indicating Jewish provenance (C.H.Roberts and T.C.Skeat, Birthe of the Codex 38-40). It is also the first papyrus to preserve this passage [and it supplies many variants in the "E" "additions" section]. ..." [[paragraph]] "There are no diacritical signs or punctuation, apart from some paragraphi (with short lines preceding them, and projecting enlarged letters at the beginning of the following line), and diaeresis above I (ii.24, 31; iii.6, 24) and U (i.6, ii.16). Words are occasionally separated. There are occasional space fillers at the line ends, and the centre bar of E is frequently extended for the same purpose. Iota adscript is generally used (ii.10 the only exception); four examples are irrational (ii.25, 27, 28, 29). Itacism occurs in i.2, 18, 19." [[paragraph]] "The script is fluent and broadly bilinear, but with its frequent ligatures, cursive forms, enlarged initial letters [also enlarged B elsewhere] and tall risers [e.g. H, F] / deep descenders (R, F, sometimes I) it perhaps owes more to official documentary styles than to bookhands. For the general appearance cf. the earlier Roberts GLH 9a (between 7-4 BC)." Also, "nomina sacra" are uncontracted -- e.g. QEOU, SWTHRIAN, ANQRWPOIS in E.16 (reconstructed) and 18, 23, 24.
16. PFouad 203 [vh911] (1st/2nd ce, papyrus roll, prayer/amulet?)
Roberts MSB 78 (no plate?): "There can be little doubt of the Jewish origin ..., a prayer against evil spirits, written on a roll of papyrus and attributed to the late first or early second century. Both PLond Christ 5 (=vh921), a leaf from a liturgical book of the third century, and POx 17.2068 (=vh966), some fragments of a papyrus roll of the fourth century, have been thought to be Jewish; but in the latter the contraction of QEOS, the eccentric nomen sacrum BS = BASILEUS, and the apparent echoes of Revelation 15.3 and 1 Timothy 1.17 in l. 7 render the suggestion doubtful. To these should be added the Vienna text of The Penitence of Iannes and Iambres: it was written on the recto of a roll and nomina sacra are left uncontracted [p.61f n.5 calls this PVindobGr 29456 (=vh1068); p.63 n.3 refers to the forthcoming ed of Jannes/Jambres material by A. Pietersma and also to the republication of the Vienna fragment by P.Maraval in ZPE 25 (1977) pp. 199ff.]."

19. POx 656 [#905(U4) = vh013 = T009] (2nd/3rd ce, papyrus codex, Gen 14-27)
Grenfell & Hunt, POx 4 (1904) 28f: "The MS was carefully written in round upright uncials of good size and decidedly early appearance, having in some respects more affinity with types of the second century than of the third. To the latter, however, the hand is in all probability to be assigned, though we should be inclined to place it in the earlier rather than the later part of the century. ... Another mark of age is perhaps to be recognized in the absence of the usual contractions for QEOS, KURIOS, &c., but this may of course be no more than an individual peculiarity. The only abbreviation that occurs is the horizontal stroke instead of N, employed to save space at the end of a long line. Both high and middle ... stops are found, but are sparingly used: more often a pause is marked by a slight blank space. A few alterations and additions have been made by a second hand, which seems also to be responsible for the numeration in the centre of the upper margin of each page."
Roberts MSB 76f: [does not comment on literary style] "... The implication is that the Hebrew Tetragrammaton stood in the exemplar and the first scribe, like the scribe of PFouad 266 [#848], either did not know how to write it or was not entrusted with the writing. In the event the second scribe, perhaps not accustomed to writing biblical manuscripts but aware that KURIOS was the Greek equivalent of Adonai inserted it here. The text has a number of unique readings which may point to a revision of the LXX."
//end//

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**Admin** Fri Nov 06, 2020 1:03 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] PROPHECY ABOUT JESUS (YESHUA): With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [270B]

But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction. 2 Peter 2:1, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Today we see many religions, over 33,000, all teaching different things, many of which are in opposition to each other; but Almighty God (YHWH) IS A God of unity along with His son, Jesus (Yeshua). They are one in purpose and their genuine true followers must likewise be one in purpose and in unity. Yes, there are many false religions in existence today spawned by the Creators arc-enemy, Satan the Devil, and their evil results are highlighted at 2 Peter 2:2 – 8, [AV] “And many shall follow their pernicious ways; by reason of whom the way of truth shall be evil spoken of. 3 And through covetousness shall they with feigned words make merchandise of you: whose judgment now of a long time lingereth not, and their damnation slumbereth not. 4 For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment; 5 And spared not the old world, but saved Noah the eighth person, a preacher of righteousness, bringing in the flood upon the world of the ungodly; 6 And turning the cities of Sodom and Gomorrha into ashes condemned them with an verthrow, making them an ensample unto those that after should live ungodly;”

[2] PROPHECY ABOUT JESUS (YESHUA):

The prophecy that was written in the Old Testament was written hundreds of years before Jesus (Jeshua or YHWH saves) was even born and not after he was born. This has been proved by the findings of the Dead Sea Scrolls and many other ancient parchments, etc. Some of these prophecies and their fulfillment. See, " He keepeth all his bones: not one of them is broken." (Psalms 34:20 AV)[compare, 33 But when they came to Jesus, and saw that he was dead already, they brake not his legs: 34 But one of the soldiers with a spear pierced his side, and forthwith came there out blood and water. And he that saw it bare record, and his record is true: and he knoweth that he saith true, that ye might believe. 36 For these things were done, that the scripture should be fulfilled, A bone of him shall not be broken.] which was quite interesting as in the Roman method of execution of none Romans by crucifixion the bones of those were usually broken to hasten death, but Jesus's bones were not as he was already dead when the Roman guard checked him. As we know he was betrayed by Judas for 30 pieces of silver and this was foretold at " And I said unto them, If ye think good, give me my price; and if not, forbear. So they weighed for my price thirty pieces of silver." (Zechariah 11:12 AV). [compare, " And said unto them, What will ye give me, and I will deliver him unto you? And they covenanted with him for thirty pieces of silver." (Matthew 26:15 AV)] Likewise it was foretold that they would divide up his garments " They part my garments among them, and cast lots upon my vesture." (Psalms 22:18 AV). [compare to " And they crucified him, and parted his garments, casting lots: that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the prophet, They parted my garments among them, and upon my vesture did they cast lots." (Matthew 27:35 AV)]. " Yea, mine own familiar friend, in whom I trusted, which did eat of my bread, hath lifted up his heel against me." (Psalms 41:9 AV) [compare, " I speak not of you all: I know whom I have chosen: but that the scripture may be fulfilled, He that eateth bread with me hath lifted up his heel against me." (John 13:18 AV)]. " They gave me also gall for my meat; and in my thirst they gave me vinegar to drink." (Psalms 69:21 AV)[compare, " They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink." (Matthew 27:34 AV)]. "1 Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing? 2 The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD, and against his anointed, saying," (Psalms 2:1-2 AV)[compare, " And the same day Pilate and Herod were made friends together: for before they were at enmity between themselves." (Luke 23:12 AV)].

Also, " For thou wilt not leave my soul in hell; neither wilt thou suffer thine Holy One to see corruption." (Psalms 16:10 AV)[compare, " He is not here, but is risen: remember how he spake unto you when he was yet in Galilee," (Luke 24:6 AV)]. " I gave my back to the smiters, and my cheeks to them that plucked off the hair: I hid not my face from shame and spitting." (Isaiah 50:6 AV)[compare, " And some began to spit on him, and to cover his face, and to buffet him, and to say unto him, Prophesy: and the servants did strike him with the palms of their hands." (Mark 14:65 AV)]

Some ask what makes the Bible different from other books, but I will answer here with respect the Bible what makes it different from other so called "holy Books."
1) It was written under divine inspiration by over 40 men chosen by Almighty God (YHWH) as an instruction guide for all of mankind that he had created.
2) It accurately foretold future events with exact detail 100 of years in advance. For example, Isaiah was written app. 732 B.C.E., but it accurately foretold events that would occur during Jesus' life, see the above plus check out:

Anointed with the Spirit. Ps 45:7. Is 11:2; 61:1.
Fulfilled: Mt 3:16. Jn 3:34. Ac 10:38.

Born of a virgin. Is 7:14.
Fulfilled: Mt 1:18. Lk 2:7.

Buried with the rich. Is 53:9.
Fulfilled: Mt 27 :57-60.

Called Immanuel. Is 7:14.
Fulfilled: Mt 1:22-23.

Chief cornerstone of the church. Is 28:16.
Fulfilled: 1 P 2:6-7.

Conversion of the Gentiles to him. Is 11:10; 42:1.
Fulfilled: Mtl:17,21. Jn 10:16. Ac 10:45,47.

Death. Is 53:12.
Fulfilled: Mt 27:50.

Entering on his public ministry. Is 61:1-2.
Fulfilled: Lk4:16-21,43.

Flesh not seeing corruption. Ps 16:10.
Fulfilled: Ac 2:31.

Hated by the Jews. Ps 69:4. Is 49:7.
Fulfilled: Jn 15:24-25.

Intercession for his murderers. Is 53:12.
Fulfilled: Lk 23:34.

Meekness and want of ostentation. Is 42:2.
Fulfilled: Mt 12:15-16, 19.

Ministry commencing in Galilee. Is 9:1-2.
Fulfilled: Mt 4:12-16, 23.

Numbered with the transgressors. Is 53:12.
Fulfilled: Mk 15:28.

Patience and silence under sufferings. Is 53:7.
Fulfilled: Mt 26:63; 27:12-14.

Poverty. Is 53:2.
Fulfilled: Mk 6:3. Lk9:58.

Rejected by his brethren. Ps 69:8. Is 63:3.
Fulfilled: Jn 1:11;7:3.

Resurrection. Ps 16:10. Is 26:19.
Fulfilled: Lk 24:6,31,34.

A stone of stumbling to the Jews. Is 8:4.
Fulfilled: Ro 9:32.1 P 2:8.

Suffering for others. Is 53:4-6, 12. Dn 9:26.
Fulfilled: Mt 20:28.

Tenderness and compassion. Is 40:11; 42:3.
Fulfilled: Mt 12:15,20. He 4:15.

Visage marred. Is 52:14; 53:3.
Fulfilled: Jn 19:5.

Without guile. Is 53:9.
Fulfilled: 1 P 2:22.

Working miracles. Is 35:5-6.
Fulfilled: Mt 11:4-6. Jn 11:47.

Zeal. Ps 69:9.
Fulfilled: Jn 2:17

And this is just from one book of the Bible OT, Isaiah. Others are similar, let's just consider one example from the first book of the Bible, Genesis, written in 1513 B.C.E.

Seed of Isaac. " And God said unto Abraham, Let it not be grievous in thy sight because of the lad, and because of thy bondwoman; in all that Sarah hath said unto thee, hearken unto her voice; for in Isaac shall thy seed be called." (Genesis 21:12 AV)[compare, "17 By faith Abraham, when he was tried, offered up Isaac: and he that had received the promises offered up his only begotten son, 18 Of whom it was said, That in Isaac shall thy seed be called: 19 Accounting that God was able to raise him up, even from the dead; from whence also he received him in a figure." (Hebrews 11:17-19 AV).

See also,

Coming at a set time. Gn 49:10. Dn 9:24-25.
Fulfilled: Lk 2:1.

Seed of Abraham. Gn 17:7; 22:18.
Fulfilled: Gl 3:16.

Seed of the woman. Gn 3:15.
Fulfilled: Gl 4:4.

As can readily be seen from the short list of fulfilled prophecy above, the Bible is the only "Holy Book" that is really the word of God (YHWH) and all the other ones are only frauds and counterfeits.

Second with respect the virgin birth of Jesus many prophecies were fulfilled, a few of them follow:

He would be born in Bethlehem of Judaea: Prophecy = " But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting." (Micah 5:2 AV)

Fulfillment = "1 ¶ Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, 2 Saying, Where is he that is born King of the Jews? for we have seen his star in the east, and are come to worship him. 3 When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. 4 And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. 5 And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet, 6 And thou Bethlehem, in the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people Israel." (Matthew 2:1-6 AV)

A virgin would give birth, Prophecy = " Therefore the Lord himself shall give you a sign; Behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel." (Isaiah 7:14 AV),

Fulfillment = " Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which being interpreted is, God with us." (Matthew 1:23 AV)

A barren women in her old age would have a son, Prophecy = " And the angel of the LORD appeared unto the woman, and said unto her, Behold now, thou art barren, and bearest not: but thou shalt conceive, and bear a son." (Judges 13:3 AV)

Fulfillment = "30 And the angel said unto her, Fear not, Mary: for thou hast found favour with God. 31 And, behold, thou shalt conceive in thy womb, and bring forth a son, and shalt call his name JESUS. 32 He shall be great, and shall be called the Son of the Highest: and the Lord God shall give unto him the throne of his father David: 33 And he shall reign over the house of Jacob for ever; and of his kingdom there shall be no end. 34 Then said Mary unto the angel, How shall this be, seeing I know not a man? 35 And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God. 36 And, behold, thy cousin Elisabeth, she hath also conceived a son in her old age: and this is the sixth month with her, who was called barren." (Luke 1:30-36 AV). Note, this group of scriptures goes from where Mary, a virgin, was told she would have a child who would be called the Son of the Highest and that her barren cousin would have a child.

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**Admin** Sat Nov 07, 2020 7:38 pm

COMBINATION OF THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND THE RARE FRUIT TREES AND VEGETABLES – marang With the Scripture of the Day first.

SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [269B]

Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he. Genesis 6:22, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

His greatest effort in accordance with the commands of Almighty God (YHWH) was to spend many years along with his sons building a gigantic wooden ship, the largest wooden ship ever built, and Genesis 7:1 – 9, [AV] “And the LORD said unto Noah, Come thou and all thy house into the ark; for thee have I seen righteous before me in this generation. 2 Of every clean beast thou shalt take to thee by sevens, the male and his female: and of beasts that are not clean by two, the male and his female. 3 Of fowls also of the air by sevens, the male and the female; to keep seed alive upon the face of all the earth. 4 For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. 5 And Noah did according unto all that the LORD commanded him.” Interestingly, in the construction of this ship, iron nails were used even though the use of iron after the flood did not come into use for more than a millennium after the flood. Yes, there were workers in iron before the flood and one is specifically mentioned at Genesis 4:22, [AV] “And Zillah, she also bare Tubalcain, an instructer of every artificer in brass and iron: and the sister of Tubalcain was Naamah.”

MORE DETAILS ON THE ARC OF NOAH CAN BE FOUND AT: https://religioustruthsbyi.createaforum.com/general-discussion/noah's-arc-and-the-working-of-iron-and-copper-pre-flood/

THE RARE FRUIT TREES AND VEGETABLES - marang

Here is a Commentary on Bountiful Trees and Vegetables God (YHWH) has provided for mankind, specifically the marang (Artocarpus odoratissimus), also called johey oak, green pedalai, madang, tarap, terap, timadang, or breadfruit cousin, is a tree native to Borneo, Palawan, and Mindanao Island . It is closely related to the jackfruit, cempedak, and breadfruit trees.

It is an evergreen tree growing to 25 m tall. The leaves are 16–50 cm long and 11–28 cm broad, similar to the Breadfruit's, but are a little less lobed. Many trees lose the leaf lobing once mature.
As indicated by the scientific name, the fruit has a strong scent, and is considered superior in flavour to both Jackfruit and Cempedak. The scent reminds some of the durian but is not so intense, and is in the thick skin and not the fruit pulp. The taste has hints of a mild creamy,almost juicy banana, and is best when not allowed to ripen thoroughly on the tree. Those ripened on the tree turn a more brownish color and will eventually fall to the ground and easily split open.

The appearance of the fruit can be regarded as an intermediate shape between the jackfruit and the breadfruit. It is round to oblong, 15–20 cm long and 13 cm broad, and weighing about 1 kg. The thick rind is covered with soft, broad spines. They become hard and brittle as the fruit matures. When fully mature the expanding arils stretch the outer rind which often appears lumpy, especially if not all seeds were pollinated. The fruit does not fall to the ground until over-ripe. It may be harvested when full size but still firm, and left to ripen until soft. Marangs change colour to greenish yellow when ripe. The ripe fruit is opened by cutting the rind around, twisting and gently pulling. If overripe they are simply pulled apart. The interior of the fruit is somewhat similar to the jackfruit's, but the color is white and the flesh is usually softer. The core is relatively large, but there are far fewer "rags" and less non-edible parts. Arils are white and the size of a grape, each containing a 15 × 8 mm seed. Once opened, the marang should be consumed quickly (in a few hours), as it loses flavour rapidly and fruit oxidizes. The seeds are also edible after boiling or roasting.

The tree is not cold tolerant (as is the breadfruit). It can grow between latitude 15° north and south, and in coastal regions where temperatures never stay under 7 °C. It is cultivated for its fruit in Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, and southern Thailand. The species is largely grown for local consumption; the short shelf-life of the fruit limits its wider use.

Taxonomy
The taxonomy of Artocarpus can be confusing. The species Artocarpus sericicarpus and Artocarpus sarawakensis, known as the Pedalai, or buah tarap or Pingan or Mountain tarap is very similar to, and often confused with the Marang. Both these species are native to the same areas. However, they are still distinguishable based on their appearances when ripe. The Pedalai has hairs, like a large rambutan, and ripens red. The Pingan is even trickier, because it is the shape of a Marang, and it is an orange. It has smaller kernel sections. The Marang remains greenish when ripe and has very dense, straight green protrusions. [source - retrieved from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marang on 5/24/2013]

In Genesis 1:11-13, "And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, a third day. (American Standard Version, ASV)[for more details, go to www.jw.org].
View this fruit at, https://www.google.com/search?q=marang,+artocarpus+odoratissimus&client=firefox-a&hs=Jpv&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=8I2fUZytCJC69gSMy4GwBw&ved=0CDsQsAQ&biw=1280&bih=776

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

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COMBINATION OF[1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON ISAIAH 44:6. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [271B]

The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; Psalms 19:14, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

This calling on the name of Almighty God (YHWH) is shown at Psalms 23:1 – 2, [AV] “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.. And the Psalmist goes on at Psalms 23:4, [AV] to state, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Clearly showing that he was trusting in the Lord to protect him

[2] DISCOURSE ON ISAIAH 44:6:

INTRODUCTION:

Isaiah 44:6 has been one of the scriptures that the preachers of false doctrines such as the Trinity, Mol dualism, and Oneness have twisted the most to try and show support for their none Biblical doctrines, but in reality it supports the Truth of the Bible and not the false reasonings and doctrines of men. But before seeing why this is so, let's look at the scripture in several different Bibles to get a better perspective of it before discussing it - Isaiah 44:6:

"And who, as I, can proclaim--let him declare it, and set it in order for Me--since I appointed the ancient people? And the things that are coming, and that shall come to pass, let them declare". [Jewish Publication Society 1917 OT]

"kh-`mr yhvh mlk-ysr`l vg`lv yhvh &b`vt `ny r`svn v`ny `xrvn vmbljdy `yn `lhym". [Hebrew Transliteration Bible][[so as to give all some feel for how it looks in Hebrew, but with English Characters]]

"Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God." [American Standard Version, ASV]

"Thus saith the Lord the king of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God. " [Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible; DRCB]

"Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." [Authorized King James Bible; AV]

"Thus says the LORD, the King of Yisra'el, and his Redeemer, the LORD of Hosts: I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God" [Hebrew Names Version of World English Bible]

"Thus said Jehovah, king of Israel, And his Redeemer, Jehovah of Hosts: `I [am] the first, and I the last, And besides Me there is no God." [Youngs Literal Translation]

"Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts: I [am] the first, and I [am] the last, and beside me there is no God." [The Darby Translation]

"Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I [am] the first, and I [am] the last; and besides me [there is] no God." [The Noah Webster Bible; NWB]

TRANSLATION COMPARISON:

Now that we have the opportunity to look at the translation constructs in various Bibles with respect Isaiah 44:6, let's start considering its significance and meaning. As can readily be seen from the Youngs Literal Translation, The Darby Translation, American Standard Version, and Jewish Publication Society 1917 OT [note, the Jews are strict monotheist and well know the 1 Commandment at Exodus 20:3 that would rule out any three-in-one god] clearly show that this scripture applies solely to God Almighty (YHWH). The Youngs Literal Translation clearly says, "And his Redeemer, Jehovah of Hosts," leaving no doubt that it is referring to God (YHWH) and not to his Son, Jesus (Yeshua). However, some supporters of the Trinity claim the son is just a different manifestation of God (YHWH), but many scriptures show them as two distinct beings, such as, John 14:6, "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me." (ASV); and John 14:28, "Ye have heard that I said to you, I go away, and come [again] to you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go to the Father: for my Father is greater than I." (NWB). In fact their false contention is actually is just a different manifestation of God (YHWH) is part of three false doctrines with the first being Modulism which many religious dictionaries state is, "The belief that God is a single entity who has appeared in different modes at different times. This is the same as "SABELLIANISM THEOLOGY-- God is three only in relation to the world, in so many "manifestations" or "modes." The unity and identity of God are such that the Son of God, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) did not exist before the incarnation; because the Father (YHWH) and the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) are thus one, the Father (YHWH) suffered with the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) in his passion and death.

AN ALL ANSWERING ARTICLE ON ISAIAH 44:6 - USED WITH PERMISSION:

In fact the Restoration Light Bible Study Services, P.O. Box 2360, Philadelphia, PA , has already dealt with this question in an answer to one of these believers in false doctrine. Their answer is as follows, "We have shown that Jesus is a created being (See Did Jesus Have a Beginning?), thus the question has arisen concerning the various uses of the scripture regarding alpha and omega, as this title, as well as some others, seem to be applied to both.

In Isaiah 41:4; 44:6; 48:12 we find the expression "first and last" used of Yahweh. From Isaiah 44:6,7 this expression, "first and last" appears to mean that which is begun is carried through to completion, something which the false gods of the heathen cannot do. However, most of our trinitarian and oneness neighbors appear to read into this expression 'from eternity past to the eternal future,' although there is nothing in the scritpures to warrant this meaning.

In the last book of the Bible, we again find this expression "first and last". At least twice it is applied to Jesus in Revelation 1:17 and Revelation 2:8.Thus our trinitarian and oneness neighbors would have us accept this as proof that Jesus is Yahweh, since the phrase is applied to both Yahweh and Jesus. The phrase appears also in Revelation 22:13, where Yahweh applies it to himself.

Another similar phrase found in Revelation 21:6 and 22:13 is "beginning and the end". These scriptures apply to Yahweh; thus this phrase is not applied to Jesus . Still another phrase used in the book of Revelation is "alpha and omega." We find this phrase in Revelation 1:8; 21:6; 22:13 -- all three of which refer to Yahweh. This phrase is therefore not used of Jesus.

Let us go into more detail to support the above applications of these terms. Looking at Revelation 1:1, we note that the Revelation is from God who gave it to Jesus. (This should be enough to prove that Jesus is not God.) The message is delivered through an angel to John. In Revelation 1:4 John says the message is from the Father, Yahweh, who is and who was and who is to come. Then in verse 5, John says: "and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn from the dead, and Him who loved us and washed us from our sins in His own blood." Thus John identifies two individuals which the messages are from, the Father, Yahweh, and Jesus, God's Son. Then in verse 8 we find the quote: "'I am the Alpha and the Omega, the Beginning and the End', says the Lord God, 'the being who was and who is to come -- the Almighty.'"
"The Lord" in this verse is Yahweh, not Jesus, as shown from Revelation 1:4. The phrase "Lord God" is based on the later Septuagint usage of substituting Kurios for Yahweh. The Hebrew phrase is Yahweh Elohim. The later Septuagint has substituted Yahweh with Kurios [Lord] and Elohim with Theos [God]. This can be seen by comparing Acts 3:22; 7:37 with the Hebrew of Deuteronomy 18:15. In all instances where the phrase occurs in the NT, it is in reference to Yahweh, the Father of our Lord Jesus. -- Luke 1:32; 1 Peter 3:10-15; Revelation 11:17,19; 15:3; 16:7; 18:8; 21:11; 22:6. See Divine Name .

Likewise, with the phrases "the Lord our God" and "the Lord your God". These phrases are always used in reference to Yahweh, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus. -- Matthew 4:7 (Deuteronomy 6:16); Matthew 4:10 (Deuteronomy 6:13; 10:20); Matthew 22:37 (Deuteronomy 6:5); Mark 12:29 (Deuteronomy 6:4); etc.
However, many of the Christian translators in the past must have thought that this was Yahweh speaking, for in their translations into Hebrew, they inserted the tetragrammaton into this verse. The following are some Hebrew translations that contain the tetragrammaton in Revelation 1:8: NT, by W. Robertson, 1661; NT, by J. C. Reichardt, 1846; NT, by J. C. Reichardt & J. H. R. Biesenthal, 1866; NT, by F. Delitzsch, 1981 edition; NT, by I. Salkinson & C. D. Ginsburg, 1891.

The fact that the NT copies we have give a substitute for God's name does not take away the fact that it is Yahweh, not his Son Jesus, who is speaking in Revelation 1:8. In verses 9 and 10 John refers to himself when he heard a loud voice, as of a trumpet, (verse 11) saying, "Write what you see... This quote is from Jesus, not Yahweh, as described in the following verses. In verse 18 Jesus says: "I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore." Jesus was actually dead and not alive anywhere, if this is to make any sense at all, for he contrasts his being dead with being alive forevermore. Now we know that God cannot die, so Jesus is thus by this verse proved to not be God Almighty.

Many translations have the words added in verse 11, before the word "Write": "I am the Alpha and Omega, the First and the Last." However, this sentence does not appear in the oldest Greek manuscripts and therefore does not appear in many Bible translations, and thus we do not include them as part of our discussion.
Revelation 22:12-16: "See, I am coming soon; my reward is with me, to repay according to everyone's work. I am the Alpha and the Omega, the first and the last, the beginning and the end." Blessed are those who wash their robes, so that they will have the right to the tree of life and may enter the city by the gates. Outside are the dogs and sorcerers and fornicators and murderers and idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood. "It is I, Jesus, who sent my angel to you with this testimony for the churches. I am the root and the descendant of David, the bright morning star."

The angel delivering the message recorded Revelation 22:13 is quoting Yahweh, the Father of Jesus, who comes to judge the world, not only with and by means of Jesus, but also the saints. -- Malachi 3:1-6; Psalm 96:13; 98:9; Daniel 7:18,22; Isaiah 40:10,11; Micah 1:3; Zechariah 14:5; Acts 17:31; 2 Peter 3:7,8; 1 Corinthians 6:2; Psalm 90:4; Revelaton 1:1; 20:4,11-13; 22:6.

Earlier, John says that the angel spoke these words, which he states are from Yahweh. (verse 6) In verse 7 the angel is evidently quoting Jesus. In verse 8 John is the one speaking, and the angel rebukes him in verse 9. In verse 10 John begins to quote the angel again, but in verse 12, the angel is delivering the words of Yahweh (see verse 6) -- it is evident that the angel is not referring to himself. Verses 14 and 15 could be either Jesus or the angel speaking. In verse 16, it is evident that the angel is quoting Jesus, and then in verse 17 the angel is prophetically quoting the spirit and the bride. In verses 18-19, the angel is again speaking (although he could be quoting Jesus), but in verse 20 he quotes Jesus, while the last part of verse 20 and all of verse 21 is John himself speaking.

But let us assume that Jesus is the one speaking in Revelation 22:12,13, as many have claimed. All this would mean is that these titles or phrases applied to Yahweh are also applied to Jesus. Does this mean that Jesus is Yahweh, the God who is identified also as the Father and God of Jesus? Absolutely not!
First we note that none of the passages say that the Father is the Son, or even that the Son equals the Father. Nor do any of these passages directly say anything about the non-creation of either the Father or the Son.
One must admit that just because the same title is applied to individuals, this does not make these two individuals one individual. Else every ruler who has ever used the title "king" would have to be the same individual as every other ruler who has used the title "king." Each ruler who uses this title, however, uses it with respect to his peculiar realm of domain and time. Thus just because the same titles are given to both the Father and the Son does not mean they are the same being.
That Jesus has not always existed throughout eternity can be seen from our earlier discussion, "Did Jesus Have a Beginning?". Thus these titles applied to him must not mean that he existed throughout eternity.
Nor can they refer especially to the Father's being from eternity (which, as a matter of fact, he is), since that would be incompatible with their being used of the Son, who is not from eternity.

Likewise, we have shown elsewhere that the word "beginning" does not mean eternity, but rather a point when something begins, or a person or thing at the start of something. Additionally the word "first" does not mean eternity but a person or thing at the start of something. Similarly can be said concerning the words "last" and "end": neither of these denote eternity, but rather, just as it says, the last or end of something. The Alpha and Omega symbolism only emphasizes the same thing, since Alpha is the first or start of the Greek alphabet, and Omega is the last or end of the Greek alphabet.

How, then, do these terms apply to both the Father and the Son within the domain of each? We have already pointed out that these expressions seem to carry the thought of that which is begun is carried through to completion: Isaiah 44:6,7. This would apply both to Yahweh as originator of his divine plan and the one who designed it from beginning to the completed end, and to the Son as the one who carries out the divine plan by means of his death, resurrection and the coming day of judgment. Some have noted that Jesus is the first human to be raised to life without end by Yahweh his Father, thus he is called the "firstborn of the dead". (Colossians 1:18) He is also the last to be so resurrected since all others who eventually receive such a resurrection will be through Jesus, not by Yahweh directly. (John 5:21,22; 6:39,44; 11:25) Thus there appears to be a connection between his statements that he became dead was now alive forever and ever. His holding the keys of death and Hades (Revelation 1:18) shows the authority given to him by his God of releasing all who are in death and hades. -- John 5:27-29 (New American Standard); Revelation 20:11-13
However, there is also another application that could be meant. Each -- both Jesus and Yahweh -- is the first and the last of his peculiar kind: Yahweh is the first and the last of his peculiar kind, in that he is the first and the last one to be increate, that is, never to have been created. No one was before Yahweh in this sense and no one will be after him in this sense. The Son is the first and the last of his peculiar kind, in that he is the first and the last to have been directly created by God, all other creatures having been indirectly created by God, that is, through the agency of the Logos. Thus the Father and the Son are both unique -- which is the meaning of these three expressions -- but each of them is unique in a different sense: The Father is unique in that he is the only -- the first and the last -- being never created; the Son is unique in that he is the only -- the first and the last -- being ever directly created by Yahweh without the assistance of an agent, which creative assistance by the Logos occurred in the case of all the rest of creation -- the Logos himself being excepted. (John 1:3; 1 Corinthians 15:27; See Question: John 1:1) Thus Yahweh is the first and the last, the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end of increation -- the only being who never was created. The Logos is the first and the last, the alpha and omega, the beginning and the end of God's direct creation. These terms used with reference to the Son are equivalent to his being called: "the only begotten of the Father." (John 1:14,18; 3:16,18; 1 John 4:9) Their use with reference to the Father implies that he is from eternity, though not directly teaching it, the direct teaching being his uniqueness in that he never was created or begotten, as was the Son.

Answers to Objections
Some have replied that there can only be one first and last, although their reasons for saying this are vague, to say the least. It seems they wish demand a restricted application of the term so that it could only apply to God Almighty. It is true that there can only be on who is first and last as God Almighty. But we have no reason to restrict the term in application to God Almighty, except to satisfy the whims of those who wish to use it thus to prove that Jesus is Yahweh, which, in effect, would make the whole argument circular, that is, 'we believe that Jesus is Yahweh, thus we believe that the expression first and last must be used in application to God Almighty only, and thus this proves that Jesus is Yahweh.'

We have already shown above that there can be more than one first and last, depending on what is being spoken of and its application. We can also provide the following illustrations: Suppose Brother A goes to a Bible study in SW Philadelphia, and Brother B goes to a Bible study in South Philadelphia. Brother A is the first arrive at the Bible study and SW Philadelphia, and Brother B is the first to arrive at the study in South Philadelphia. Likewise Brother A is the last one to leave the study in SW. Philadelphia, and Brother B. is the last to leave the study in South Philadelphia. You have two who are first and two who are last. Additionally the first and the last line of one book is not the same as the first and last line of another book. Likewise, both Yahweh and Jesus are first and last in their respective applications of that term. Regardless, our trinitarian neighbors will have to agree that there are two persons who are referred to as 'first and last', both God the Father and His Son." [This document is presented by Restoration Light Bible Study Services, P.O. Box 2360, Philadelphia, PA 19142. Permission is given to duplicate this document in its entirety, including this statement, for not-for-profit usage in Bible studies and general distribution.]

It is not our object in this list of scriptures to refute all the arguments used by many who try to prove that Jesus is Yahweh. We simply present some of the scriptures that most definitely show that the Father is Yahweh and that Jesus is not Yahweh [his Father]:

Jesus was sent by Yahweh, speaks for Yahweh, represents Yahweh. Jesus is not Yahweh [who is the Father] whom he represents and speaks for.
Deuteronomy 18:15-19; Matthew 23:39; Mark 11:9,10; Luke 13:35; John 3:2,17; 5:19,43; 6:57; 7:16,28; 8:26,28,38; 10:25; 12:49,50; 14:10; 15:15; 17:8,26; Hebrews 1:1,2; Revelation 1:1
Jesus receives his inheritance and dominion (power) from Yahweh. Jesus is not Yahweh [the Father] who gives him this dominion.

Psalm 2:7,8; 110:1,2; Isaiah 9:6,7; Luke 1:32; Jeremiah 23:5; Daniel 7:13,14; Hebrews 1:2,6.
Jesus is son of the Most High Yahweh. He is not the Most High Yahweh.
Genesis 14:22; Psalm 7:17; 83:18; 92:1; Luke 1:32; John 13:16.
Jesus is anointed [made christ, the anointed one] by Yahweh. He is not Yahweh who thus anoints him.
Psalm 2:2; 45:7; Isaiah 61:1; Acts 2:36.
Yahweh speaks to Jesus. Jesus is not Yahweh who speaks to him.
Psalm 2:7,8; 110:1; Matthew 22:41-45.
Jesus is the servant of Yahweh; he is not Yahweh whom he serves.
Isaiah 42:1; 53:11; Matthew 12:18; John 13:16; Acts 4:27,30
Jesus is given the power of life in himself from Yahweh. Jesus is not Yahweh who gives him this power.
1 Samuel 2:6; Psalm 36:9; John 5:21,25-29.
Yahweh [the Father] is the only Most High. Jesus is not the Most High Yahweh who is his Father.
Deuteronomy 4:35,39; Psalm 2:7; 83:18; Luke 1:32; John 10:29; 17:1,3; Hebrews 1:5; Revelation 5:7
Yahweh appoints and gives Jesus authority as judge and to judge in his [Yahweh's] stead. Jesus is not Yahweh who gives this authority to him.
Isaiah 11:1-4; 42:1; John 5:22,23,27-30; Acts 17:31.
Jesus is never described as the father of Jesus, and Yahweh is never described as the son of Yahweh. The term "everlasting father" refers to Jesus' role toward mankind that he purchased, and of whom he has become father as the second or "last Adam." (Romans 5:15-19; 1 Corinthians 15:21,22,45,47; Psalm 45:16). Jesus came in the name of Yahweh his Father. (Deuteronomy 18:15,18; Matthew 23:39; Mark 11:9,10; Luke 13:35; John 3:2,17; 5:19,43; 6:57; 7:16,28; 8:26,28,38; 10:25; 12:49,50; 14:10; 15:15; 17:8,26; Hebrews 1:1,2; Revelation 1:1) Yahweh never came in the name of any other than himself, thus since there is none higher, he swore by himself. -- Hebrews 6:13
Jesus' role as Mighty EL refers to the power and authority given to him by the Mighty EL that is mightier than he, the only true Supreme Being, Yahweh. -- Psalm 2:2,7,8; 110:1,2; Isaiah 9:6,7; 61:1; Luke 1:32; Jeremiah 23:5; Daniel 7:13,14; John 17:1,3; Acts 2:36; Hebrews 1:2,6.
No scripture says that Jesus was God Almighty in the flesh, although possessing the mighty power of Yahweh as did Moses, he could be referred to as God (ELOHIM, THEOS) in a manner similar to Moses. (Exodus 7:1; Deuteronomy 18:15,18; Acts 3:18-22) Neither in the case of Moses nor Jesus does this make either of them into God Almighty who gives them their power and authority.
[This document is presented by Restoration Light Bible Study Services, P.O. Box 2360, Philadelphia, PA 19142. Permission is given to duplicate this document in its entirety, including this statement, for not-for-profit usage in Bible studies and general distribution.][[Special note, Much of Restoration Light Bible Study Service for this article came from, Paul S. L. Johnson's book, Creation, pages 51-53. Now a brief Background of Paul S. L. Johnson: Paul S. L. Johnson graduated from from Capital University in Columbus, OH on May 25, 1898. He won the valedictory and also the highest honors ever given in the history of that university. He also graduated from the Theological Seminary of the Ohio Synod of the Lutheran Church. He was thoroughly educated in both Hebrew and Greek; this gave him the skills necessary to understand the Bible from the original languages. He had been taught in the seminary the doctrine of eternal torture of those not saved; through his studies of the Bible itself he came to understand that a God of perfect, wisdom, justice, power and love, would not, could not, punish his enemies with such a punishment as eternal roasting. He also came to see the Hebraic viewpoint of God, as opposed to the trinitarian or oneness views.]][[[Restoration's article was used as no reason to go to Johnson's works and re-invent the wheel]]]

COMMENTARIES ON ISAIAH 44:6 BY RENOWN SCHOLARS:

By Theodore Beza:

44:6 Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; f I [am] the first, and I [am] the last; and besides me [there is] no God.

(f) I am always like myself, that is, merciful toward my Church, and most able to maintain it, as in (Isaiah 41:4,48:12; Revelation 1:17,22:13). [Beza, Theodore. "Commentary on Isaiah 44". "The 1599 Geneva Study Bible", 1600-1645.]

By A.R. Faussett, A.M.:.

6. Here follows an argument for Jehovah, as the only God, and against the idols, as vanity [Fausset, A. R., A.M. "Commentary on Isaiah 44". "Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible", 1871]
By Matthew Henry:

Chapter 44
God, by the prophet, goes on in this chapter, as before, I. To encourage his people with the assurance of great blessings he had in store for them at their return out of captivity, and those typical of much greater which the gospel church, his spiritual Israel, should partake of in the days of the Messiah; and hereby he proves himself to be God alone against all pretenders (v. 1-8). II. To expose the sottishness and amazing folly of idol-makers and idol-worshippers (v. 9-20). III. To ratify and confirm the assurances he had given to his people of those great blessings, and to raise their joyful and believing expectations of them (v. 21-28).

Verses 1-8 Two great truths are abundantly made out in these verses:- I. That the people of God are a happy people, especially upon account of the covenant that is between them and God. The people of Israel were so as a figure of the gospel Israel. Three things complete their happiness:- 1. The covenant-relations wherein they stand to God, v. 1, 2. Israel is here called Jeshurun-the upright one; for those only, like Nathanael, are Israelites indeed, in whom is no guile, and those only shall have the everlasting benefit of these promises. Jacob and Israel had been represented, in the close of the foregoing chapter, as very provoking and obnoxious to God's wrath, and already given to the curse and to reproaches; but, as if God's bowels yearned towards him and his repentings were kindled together, mercy steps in with a non-obstante-notwithstanding, to all these quarrels: "Yet now, hear, O Jacob my servant! thou and I will be friends again for all this.'' God had said (ch. 43:25), I am he that blotteth out thy transgression, which is the only thing that creates this distance; and when that is taken away the streams of mercy run again in their former channel. The pardon of sin is the inlet of all the other blessings of the covenant. So and so I will do for them, says God (Heb. 8:12), for I will be merciful to their unrighteousness. Therefore hear, O Jacob! hear these comfortable words; therefore fear not, O Jacob! fear not thy troubles, for by the pardon of sin the property of them too is altered. Now the relations wherein they stand to him are very encouraging. (1.) They are his servants; and those that serve him he will own and stand by and see that they be not wronged. (2.) They are his chosen, and he will abide by his choice; he knows those that are his, and those whom he has chosen he takes under special protection. (3.) They are his creatures. He made them, and brought them into being; he formed them, and cast them into shape; he began betimes with them, for he formed them from the womb; and therefore he will help them over their difficulties and help them in their services. 2. The covenant-blessings which he has secured to them and theirs, v. 3, 4. (1.) Those that are sensible of their spiritual wants, and the insufficiency of the creature to supply them, shall have abundant satisfaction in God: I will pour water upon him that is thirsty, that thirsts after righteousness; he shall be filled. Water shall be poured out to those who truly desire spiritual blessings above all the delights of sense. (2.) Those that are barren as the dry ground shall be watered with the grace of God, with floods of that grace, and God will himself give the increase. If the ground be ever so dry, God has floods of grace to water it with. (3.) The water God will pour out is his Spirit (Jn. 7:39), which God will pour out without measure upon the seed, that is, Christ (Gal. 3:16), and by measure upon all the seed of the faithful, upon all the praying wrestling seed of Jacob, Lu. 11:13. This is the great New-Testament promise, that God, having sent his servant Christ, and upheld him, will send his Spirit to uphold us. (4.) This gift of the Holy Ghost is the great blessing God had reserved the plentiful effusion of for the latter days: I will pour my Spirit, that is, my blessing; for where God gives his Spirit he will give all other blessings. (5.) This is reserved for the seed and offspring of the church; for so the covenant of grace runs: I will be a God to thee and to thy seed. To all who are thus made to partake of the privileges of adoption God will give the spirit of adoption. (6.) Hereby there shall be a great increase of the church. Thus it shall be spread to distant places. Thus it shall be propagated and perpetuated to after-times: They shall spring up and grow as fast as willows by the watercourses, and in every thing that is virtuous and praiseworthy shall be eminent and excel all about them, as the willows overtop the grass among which they grow, v. 4. Note, It is a great happiness to the church, and a great pleasure to good men, to see the rising generation hopeful and promising. And it will be so if God pour his Spirit upon them, that blessing, that blessing of blessings. 3. The consent they cheerfully give to their part of the covenant, v. 5. When the Jews returned out of captivity they renewed their covenant with God (Jer. 50:5), particularly that they would have no more to do with idols, Hos. 14:2, 3, 8. Backsliders must thus repent and do their first works. Many of those that were without did at that time join themselves to them, invited by that glorious appearance of God for them, Zec. 8:23; Esth. 8:17. And they say, We are the Lord's and call themselves by the name of Jacob; for there was one law, one covenant, for the stranger and for those that were born in the land. And doubtless it looks further yet, to the conversion of the Gentiles, and the multitudes of them who, upon the effusion of the Spirit, after Christ's ascension, should be joined to the Lord and added to the church. These converts are one and another, very many, of different ranks and nations, and all welcome to God, Col. 3:11. When one does it another shall by his example be invited to do it, and then another; thus the zeal of one may provoke many. (1.) They shall resign themselves to God: not one in the name of the rest, but every one for himself shall say, "I am the Lord's; he has an incontestable right to rule me, and I submit to him, to all his commands, to all his disposal. I am, and will be, his only, his wholly, his for ever, will be for his interests, will be for his praise; living and dying I will be his.'' (2.) They shall incorporate themselves with the people of God, call themselves by the name of Jacob, forgetting their own people and their fathers' house, and desirous to wear the character and livery of God's family. They shall love all God's people, shall associate with them, give them the right hand of fellowship, espouse their cause, seek the good of the church in general and of all the particular members of it, and be willing to take their lot with them in all conditions. (3.) They shall do this very solemnly. Some of them shall subscribe with their hand unto the Lord, as, for the confirming of a bargain, a man sets his hand to it, and delivers it as his act and deed. The more express we are in our covenanting with God the better, Ex. 24:7; Jos. 24:26, 27; Neh. 9:38. Fast bind, fast find. II. That, as the Israel of God are a happy people, so the God of Israel is a great God, and he is God alone. This also, as the former, speaks abundant satisfaction to all that trust in him, v. 6-8. Observe here, to God's glory and our comfort, 1. That the God we trust in is a God of incontestable sovereignty and irresistible power. He is the Lord, Jehovah, self-existent and self-sufficient; and he is the Lord of hosts, of all the hosts of heaven and earth, of angels and men. 2. That he stands in relation to, and has a particular concern for, his church. He is the King of Israel and his Redeemer; therefore his Redeemer because his King; and those that take God for their King shall have him for their Redeemer. When God would assert himself God alone he proclaims himself Israel's God, that his people may be encouraged both to adhere to him and to triumph in him. 3. That he is eternal- the first and the last. He is God from everlasting, before the worlds were, and will be so to everlasting, when the world shall be no more. If there were not a God to create, nothing would ever have been; and, if there were not a God to uphold, all would soon come to nothing again. He is all in all, is the first cause, from whom are all things, and the last end, to and for whom are all things (Rom. 11:36), the Alpha and the Omega, Rev. 1:11. 4. That he is God alone (v. 6): Besides me there is no God. Is there a God besides me? v. 8. We will appeal to the greatest scholars. Did they ever in all their reading meet with any other? To those that have had the largest acquaintance with the world. Did they ever meet with any other? There are gods many (1 Co. 8:5, 6), called gods, and counterfeit gods: but is there any besides our God that is infinite and eternal, any besides him that is the creator of the world and the protector and benefactor of the whole creation, any besides him that can do that for their worshippers which he can and will do for his? "You are my witnesses. I have been a nonsuch to you. You have tried other gods; have you found any of them all-sufficient to you, or any of them like me? Yea, there is no god,'' no rock (so the word is), none besides Jehovah that can be a rock for a foundation to build on, a rock for shelter to flee to. God is the rock, and their rock is not as ours, Deu. 32:4, 31. I know not any; as if he had said, "I never met with any that offered to stand in competition with me, or that durst bring their pretensions to a fair trial; if I did know of any that could befriend you better than I can, I would recommend you to them; but I know not any.'' There is no God besides Jehovah. He is infinite, and therefore there can be no other; he is all-sufficient, and therefore there needs no other. This is designed for the confirming of the hopes of God's people in the promise of their deliverance out of Babylon, and, in order to that, for the curing of them of their idolatry; when the affliction had done its work it should be removed. They are reminded of the first and great article of their creed, that the Lord their God is one Lord, Deu. 6:4. And therefore, (1.) They needed not to hope in any other god. Those on whom the sun shines need neither moon nor stars, nor the light of their own fire. (2.) They needed not to fear any other god. Their own God was more able to do them good than all the false and counterfeit gods of their enemies were to do them
hurt. 5. That none besides could foretel these things to come, which God now by his prophet gave notice of to the world, above 200 years before they came to pass (v. 7): "Who, as I, shall call, shall call Cyrus to Babylon? Is there any but God that can call effectually, and has every creature, every heart, at his beck? Who shall declare it, how it shall be, and by whom, as I do?'' Nay, God goes further; he not only sees it in order, as having the foreknowledge of it, but sets it in order, as having the sole management and direction of it. Can any other pretend to this? He has always set things in order according to the counsel of his own will, ever since he appointed the ancient people, the people of Israel, who could give a truer and fuller account of the antiquities of their own nation than any other kingdom in the world could give of theirs. Ever since he appointed that people to be his peculiar people his providence was particularly conversant about them, and he told them beforehand the events that should occur respecting them-their bondage in Egypt, their deliverance from it, and their settlement in Canaan. All was set in order in the divine predictions as well as in the divine purposes. Could any other have done so? Would any other have been so far concerned for them? He challenges the pretenders to show the things that shall come hereafter: "Let them, if they can, tell us the name of the man that shall destroy Babylon ad deliver Israel? Nay, if they cannot pretend to tell us the things that shall come hereafter, let them tell us the things that are coming, that are nigh at hand and at the door. Let them tell us what shall come to pass to-morrow; but they cannot do that; fear them not therefore, nor be afraid of them. What harm can they do you? What hindrance can they give to your deliverance, when I have told thee it shall be accomplished in its season, and I have solemnly declared it?'' Note, Those who have the word of God's promise to depend upon need not be afraid of any adverse powers or policies whatsoever. [Henry, Matthew. "Commentary on Isaiah 44". "Matthew Henry Complete Commentary on the Whole," 1706]

By Reverand R.A. Torrey:

Torrey's Topical Textbook under God

None beside him Deuteronomy 4:35; Isaiah 44:6. [Torrey, R.A., Reverand. "Entry for 'God'". "The New Topical Text Book", 1897]

Easton's Bible Dictionary by M.G. Easton, M.A., D.D."

God [N] [T] [B] [S]
(A.S. and Dutch God; Dan. Gud; Ger. Gott), the name of the Divine Being. It is the rendering (1) of the Hebrew 'El , from a word meaning to be strong; (2) of 'Eloah_, plural _'Elohim . The singular form, Eloah , is used only in poetry. The plural form is more commonly used in all parts of the Bible, The Hebrew word Jehovah (q.v.), the only other word generally employed to denote the Supreme Being, is uniformly rendered in the Authorized Version by "LORD," printed in small capitals. The existence of God is taken for granted in the Bible. There is nowhere any argument to prove it. He who disbelieves this truth is spoken of as one devoid of understanding (Psalms 14:1).

The arguments generally adduced by theologians in proof of the being of God are:
? The a priori argument, which is the testimony afforded by reason.
? The a posteriori argument, by which we proceed logically from the facts of experience to causes. These arguments are,
(a) The cosmological, by which it is proved that there must be a First Cause of all things, for every effect must have a cause.
(b) The teleological, or the argument from design. We see everywhere the operations of an intelligent Cause in nature.
(c) The moral argument, called also the anthropological argument, based on the moral consciousness and the history of mankind, which exhibits a moral order and purpose which can only be explained on the supposition of the existence of God. Conscience and human history testify that "verily there is a God that judgeth in the earth."
The attributes of God are set forth in order by Moses in Exodus 34:6,7. (see also Deuteronomy 6:4; 10:17; Numbers 16:22; Exodus 15:11; 33:19; Isaiah 44:6; Habakkuk 3:6; Psalms 102:26; Job 34:12.) They are also systematically classified in Revelation 5:12 and 7:12. [M.G. Easton M.A., D.D., Illustrated Bible Dictionary, Third Edition, 1897.]

CONCLUSION:

As can readily be seen from the foregoing, Isaiah 44:6 applies to God (YHWH) alone and not to his Son, Jesus (Yeshua) who acts as his agent and has after his assertion been given authority over all except his Father (YHWH) as clearly testified to at 1 Corinthians 15:22-28, "For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But each in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; then they that are Christ's, at his coming. 24 Then [cometh] the end, when he shall deliver up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have abolished all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign, till he hath put all his enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy that shall be abolished is death. 27 For, He put all things in subjection under his feet. But when he saith, All things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is excepted who did subject all things unto him. 28 And when all things have been subjected unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subjected to him that did subject all things unto him, that God may be all in all." (ASV). Especially note verse 27, "For, He put all things in subjection under his feet. But when he saith, All things are put in subjection, it is evident that he is excepted who did subject all things unto him. " which clearly shows the Father (YHWH) and the Son, Jesus (Yeshua) as two distinct beings, with one being subject to the other; hence no co-equality. Therefore, no Trinity, Duality, or Modulism; ther are thus proved to be false doctrines of men

in keeping with 2 Corinthians 4:4, "in whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of the unbelieving, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not dawn [upon them]." (ASV)

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Wed Nov 11, 2020 7:56 pm

COMBINATION OF[1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON ISAIAH 44:6. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [271B]

The LORD hear thee in the day of trouble; the name of the God of Jacob defend thee; Psalms 19:14, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

This calling on the name of Almighty God (YHWH) is shown at Psalms 23:1 – 2, [AV] “The LORD is my shepherd; I shall not want. 2 He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.. And the Psalmist goes on at Psalms 23:4, [AV] to state, “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.” Clearly showing that he was trusting in the Lord to protect him

[2] DISCOURSE ON ISAIAH 44:6:

INTRODUCTION:

Isaiah 44:6 has been one of the scriptures that the preachers of false doctrines such as the Trinity, Mol dualism, and Oneness have twisted the most to try and show support for their none Biblical doctrines, but in reality it supports the Truth of the Bible and not the false reasonings and doctrines of men. But before seeing why this is so, let's look at the scripture in several different Bibles to get a better perspective of it before discussing it - Isaiah 44:6:

"And who, as I, can proclaim--let him declare it, and set it in order for Me--since I appointed the ancient people? And the things that are coming, and that shall come to pass, let them declare". [Jewish Publication Society 1917 OT]

"kh-`mr yhvh mlk-ysr`l vg`lv yhvh &b`vt `ny r`svn v`ny `xrvn vmbljdy `yn `lhym". [Hebrew Transliteration Bible][[so as to give all some feel for how it looks in Hebrew, but with English Characters]]

"Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God." [American Standard Version, ASV]

"Thus saith the Lord the king of Israel, and his redeemer the Lord of hosts: I am the first, and I am the last, and besides me there is no God. " [Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible; DRCB]

"Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I am the first, and I am the last; and beside me there is no God." [Authorized King James Bible; AV]

"Thus says the LORD, the King of Yisra'el, and his Redeemer, the LORD of Hosts: I am the first, and I am the last; and besides me there is no God" [Hebrew Names Version of World English Bible]

"Thus said Jehovah, king of Israel, And his Redeemer, Jehovah of Hosts: `I [am] the first, and I the last, And besides Me there is no God." [Youngs Literal Translation]

"Thus saith Jehovah, the King of Israel, and his Redeemer, Jehovah of hosts: I [am] the first, and I [am] the last, and beside me there is no God." [The Darby Translation]

"Thus saith the LORD the King of Israel, and his redeemer the LORD of hosts; I [am] the first, and I [am] the last; and besides me [there is] no God." [The Noah Webster Bible; NWB]

TRANSLATION COMPARISON:

Now that we have the opportunity to look at the translation constructs in various Bibles with respect Isaiah 44:6, let's start considering its significance and meaning. As can readily be seen from the Youngs Literal Translation, The Darby Translation, American Standard Version, and Jewish Publication Society 1917 OT [note, the Jews are strict monotheist and well know the 1 Commandment at Exodus 20:3 that would rule out any three-in-one god] clearly show that this scripture applies solely to God Almighty (YHWH). The Youngs Literal Translation clearly says, "And his Redeemer, Jehovah of Hosts," leaving no doubt that it is referring to God (YHWH) and not to his Son, Jesus (Yeshua). However, some supporters of the Trinity claim the son is just a different manifestation of God (YHWH), but many scriptures show them as two distinct beings, such as, John 14:6, "Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, and the truth, and the life: no one cometh unto the Father, but by me." (ASV); and John 14:28, "Ye have heard that I said to you, I go away, and come [again] to you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go to the Father: for my Father is greater than I." (NWB). In fact their false contention is actually is just a different manifestation of God (YHWH) is part of three false doctrines with the first being Modulism which many religious dictionaries state is, "The belief that God is a single entity who has appeared in different modes at different times. This is the same as "SABELLIANISM THEOLOGY-- God is three only in relation to the world, in so many "manifestations" or "modes." The unity and identity of God are such that the Son of God, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) did not exist before the incarnation; because the Father (YHWH) and the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) are thus one, the Father (YHWH) suffered with the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) in his passion and death.

AN ALL ANSWERING ARTICLE ON ISAIAH 44:6 - USED WITH PERMISSION:

In fact the Restoration Light Bible Study Services, P.O. Box 2360, Philadelphia, PA , has already dealt with this question in an answer to one of these believers in false doctrine. Their answer is as follows, "We have shown that Jesus is a created being (See Did Jesus Have a Beginning?), thus the question has arisen concerning the various uses of the scripture regarding alpha and omega, as this title, as well as some others, seem to be applied to both.

In Isaiah 41:4; 44:6; 48:12 we find the expression "first and last" used of Yahweh. From Isaiah 44:6,7 this expression, "first and last" appears to mean that which is begun is carried through to completion, something which the false gods of the heathen cannot do. However, most of our trinitarian and oneness neighbors appear to read into this expression 'from eternity past to the eternal future,' although there is nothing in the scritpures to warrant this meaning.

In the last book of the Bible, we again find this expression "first and last". At least twice it is applied to Jesus in Revelation 1:17 and Revelation 2:8.Thus our trinitarian and oneness neighbors would have us accept this as proof that Jesus is Yahweh, since the phrase is applied to both Yahweh and Jesus. The phrase appears also in Revelation 22:13, where Yahweh applies it to himself.

Another similar phrase found in Revelation 21:6 and 22:13 is "beginning and the end". These scriptures apply to Yahweh; thus this phrase is not applied to Jesus . Still another phrase used in the book of Revelation is "alpha and omega." We find this phrase in Revelation 1:8; 21:6; 22:13 -- all three of which refer to Yahweh. This phrase is therefore not used of Jesus.

Let us go into more detail to support the above applications of these terms. Looking at Revelation 1:1, we note that the Revelation is from God who gave it to Jesus. (This should be enough to prove that Jesus is not God.) The message is delivered through an angel to John. In Revelation 1:4 John says the message is from the Father, Yahweh, who is an

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COMBINATION OF THE [1[ SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY, [2] VIDEO ON FAMILY LIFE, AND [3] THE RARE FRUIT TREES AND VEGETABLES - Allium species With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [272B]

Let nothing be done through strife or vainglory; but in lowliness of mind let each esteem other better than themselves. Philippians 2:3, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

And this thought is amplified at Psalms 103:14 - 18, [AV] “For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. 15 As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. 16 For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. 17 But the mercy of the LORD is from everlasting to everlasting upon them that fear him, and his righteousness unto children’s children; 18 To such as keep his covenant, and to those that remember his commandments to do them.” Clearly showing that all man does is in vain glory, but that Almighty God (YHWH) knows us well and will show merch to those doing his will.

[2] VIDEO ON FAMILY LIFE, GO TO: https://www.jw.org/en/library/videos/#en/mediaitems/FeaturedLibraryVideos/pub-imv_2_VIDEO

[3] THE RARE FRUIT TREES AND VEGETABLES - Allium species

Here is a Commentary on Bountiful Trees and Vegetables God (YHWH) has provided for mankind, specifically the Allium species, Onion - Wild

Abundance: plentiful
What: bulbs and young stems/leaves
How: raw or cooked as seasoning
Where: open, sunny areas
When: all year, more common in cool weather.
Nutritional Values: Vitamin C plus small amounts of other vitamins, minerals, some carbohydrates.
Other Uses: juice acts as a weak insect repellent
WARNING - DANGERS: TOXIC "CROWS POISON" PLANTS LOOK JUST LIKE WILD ONION BUT ONLY WILD ONION SMELLS LIKE ONION. IF IT SMELLS LIKE ONION IT IS SAFE TO EAT, IF IT JUST SMELLS LIKE GRASS IT IS TOXIC CROW'S POISON (NOTHOSCORDUM BIVALVE).

Wild onions form large beds of plants which drive out other plants. They are most common in cooler weather. The whole plant can be used same as chives, from the bulb to the tips of the green stems.

Larger wild onion stems can become too tough to eat unless they are boiled or stewed for a long time, but they tough ones can be easily determined when harvesting. If they are tough to cut/break then they'll be tough during eating unless cooked a long time.

The white flowers that they produce can also be eaten and give an interesting appearance to foods when the flowers are left raw. The flowers eventually turn into fairly hard, nut-like seeds that can also be eaten raw or cooked into dishes.

Wild onions can be dried for later use but be warned, if you dry them in a dehydrator your whole house will smell like onions for days.

WARNING - There is a minimally toxic mimic of wild onion, which is called Crow's Poison (Nothoscordum bivalve). This plant look almost identical to a small wild onion but it lacks the onion/garlic smell when. Crushed Crow's Poison smell like grass whereas the wild onion smells like onion when crushed. The toxins in Crow's Poison are very weak and in a very low amount. You would have to eat a pound of the plant just to get a bad stomach. [sourc - retrieved from http://www.foragingtexas.com/2008/08/onion-wild.html on 6/2/2016]

In Genesis 1:11-13, "And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, a third day. (American Standard Version, ASV)[for more details, go to www.jw.org].

To view this plant, go to, http://www.foragingtexas.com/2008/08/onion-wild.html

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE

**Admin** Sat Nov 14, 2020 12:43 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] RELIGION OF PEACE THAT LOVES WAR, [3[ IMPORTANT PUBLIC SERVICE ON CORONA VIRUS-19 THAT ALL SHOULD READ:

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [273B]

Yet they say, The LORD shall not see, neither shall the God of Jacob regard it. 8 Understand, ye brutish among the people: and ye fools, when will ye be wise? 9 He that planted the ear, shall he not hear? he that formed the eye, shall he not see? 10 He that chastiseth the heathen, shall not he correct? he that teacheth man knowledge, shall not he know? 11 The LORD knoweth the thoughts of man, that they are vanity. Psalms 94:7 – 11, [AV]

Many of the wicked feel Almighty God who created all there is can not see or hear and by their actions completely give no regard to his existence and Psalms 73:11, [AV] says, “And they say, How doth God know? and is there knowledge in the most High?” Yes, they even question his knowledge, but their end as testified to at Proverbs 1:22 - 27, [AV] “How long, ye simple ones, will ye love simplicity? and the scorners delight in their scorning, and fools hate knowledge? 23 Turn you at my reproof: behold, I will pour out my spirit unto you, I will make known my words unto you. 24 Because I have called, and ye refused; I have stretched out my hand, and no man regarded; 25 But ye have set at nought all my counsel, and would none of my reproof: 26 I also will laugh at your calamity; I will mock when your fear cometh; 27 When your fear cometh as desolation, and your destruction cometh as a whirlwind; when distress and anguish cometh upon you.” Yes, worldly wisdom of the wicked is foolishness to Almighty God (YHWH) as shown at 1 Corinthians 1:19 - 20, [AV] “For it is written, I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and will bring to nothing the understanding of the prudent. 20 Where is the wise? where is the scribe? where is the disputer of this world? hath not God made foolish the wisdom of this world?”

[2] RELIGION OF PEACE THAT LOVES WAR:

INTRODUCTION:

Many religions claim to be exactly what they are NOT. Take for example Islam and apostate (counterfeit) Christians, they do NOT like each other, but in many ways they are so much alike.

Throughout history Islam which claims to be a religion of peace has attacked apostate (counterfeit) Christians and has attempted to steal land and people from them, and then cried fowl when they struck back. How ridicules and hypocritical that is for any group; to wit, to initiate blood guilt and then yell when the other group defends itself and strikes back.

For example, Islam yells about the wrongs of the apostate (counterfeit) Christian Crusades that started in 1095 with the First Crusade under the directions of Pope Urban II, and ended with the Ninth Crusade in 1289. Of course, the apostate (counterfeit) Christians committed many atrocities such as their wrong doing against the Jews in Jerusalem by the Franks, one of the groups making up the Crusader forces. However, in reality, Islam was responsible for all that occurred as they lit-the-fuse that caused the crusades to take place with their blood guilty war like ways as we shall see in this article with facts that can be checked by all.

Now let's look at the first example of Islam's war loving land stealing ways.

ISLAM ATTACKS AT PEACE SPAIN:

In 711 the Visigothic were ruling in Spain and in no way attacking Islam, yet Islam attacked them without any real provocation. Yes, of course they claimed they had provocation, i.e., they claimed that last Visigoth king, Roderick had seduced the young Florinda, daughter of Julian, Visigothic governor of Ceuta in north Africa an apostate (counterfeit) Christian and they were out to avenge this; but clearly two things stand out, First, it was none of their business, Second, there is no evidence that this ever occurred.

Now Let's look at proof that Islam is NOT a religion of peace from history,
<<" In 711 CE Tariq ibn Ziyad, the governor of Tangiers, landed in Gibraltar with around 10,000 men, mostly Berbers (indigenous North Africans). He had some of Roderick's Visigoth rivals as allies. In the same or following year in the Cadiz province, Roderick's army was decimated and he is thought to have drowned as he fled. The Visigothic survivors fled to the north of Spain, and within a few years, the Muslims had taken over the rest of the Iberian Peninsula bar a few areas in the Asturian Mountains bordering France.
[source - http://www.sunnahonline.com/ilm/seerah/0075_popup9.htm]

As can easily be seen, Islam was out for stealing land NOT belonging to them and used Tariq ibn Ziyad, a Muslim general, to accomplish this terrible wrong. This of course is not being peaceful in any way.

ISLAM'S FURTHER STEALING AND BLOODLETTING AND TAKEOVER OF SPANISH LAND:

Here is what history tells about the warlike ways of a religion that hypocritically claims to be peaceful in brief.
<<" Moorish invasion of Iberia
* 6th century - Visigothic noblemen had grown into territorial lords.
* 612 - Royal decree issued enjoining all Jews to be baptized under penalty of banishment and confiscation of property.
* 710 - Tarif ibn Malluk with 400 men and 100 horses landed on the tiny peninsula of the European continent now called isle of Tarifa after his name.
* 711 - Musa ibn Nusair, Governor of North Africa, dispatched his Berber freedman Tariq ibn Ziyad into the Iberian peninsula encouraged by the success of Tarif and the dynastic trouble in the Visigoth Kingdom of Hispania.
* July 19, 711 - Tariq ibn Ziyad, with 7000 men, and Julian, count of Ceuta, with 12000 men, confronted King Roderick, with 25000 men, by the Barbate River (now called Salado River) on the shore of a lagoon. Roderick's army was utterly routed.
* June 712 - Syrians rushed to Iberia and attacked towns and strongholds avoided by Tariq ibn Ziyad.
* February 715 - Musa ibn Nusair, Governor of North Africa, entered Damascus with the Visigoth kings and princes and for the first time hundreds of western royalty and thousands of European captives were seen offering homage to the commander of the believers in Damascus. Musa the Conqueror of North Africa and Iberia ended up as a beggar in a remote village in Al-Hijaz. His son Abd Al-Aziz was announced first Amir of Andalus and married the widow of King Roderick, Egilona Balthes. Seville became the Capital.
* 717-718 - Lured by the rich treasures of convents and churches of France and encouraged by the internal dissension between the chief officers of the Merovingian court and the dukes of Aquitaine, Al-Hurr ibn Abd Al-Rahman Al-Thaqafi invaded France.
* 719 - Al-Samh ibn Malik al-Khawlani, 4th Amir, transferred the seat of Governor from Seville to Córdoba.
* Spring 732 - Emir Abd Al-Rahman ibn Abdullah Al-Ghafiqi advanced through the western Pyrenees, crossed it, and vanquished Duke Odo of Aquitaine on the banks of the Garonne. Tours was a sort of religious capital for Gaul, the resting-place of the body of St. Martin, the apostle of Gaul.">> [source - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

Islam's greed and war lust was NOT to end with their wrongful takeover of Spain, but unbelievably they sought to steal Paris and other cities and lands of France as shall see.

ISLAMS GREED THAT KNEW NO BOUNDS UNTIL DEFEAT:

Let's look at the historical facts of their greed and war lust,
<<"* October 732 - Pavement of Martyrs (Balat Al Shuhada`) Battle. Abd Al-Rahman Al-Ghafiqi, the Arab leader, met Charles Martel, Mayor at the Merovingian court. After seven days of waiting anxiously to join the battle, Abd Al-Rahman Al-Ghafiqi took the initiative in the attack. Charles' army hewed the attackers with their swords. Among the victims was Abd Al-Rahman Al-Ghafiqi. Under cover of night the Muslims had quietly vanished, and Charles came off victorious.">>
.">> [source - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

Therefore, as can be seen, Islam driven by its greed had reached into Europe far beyond Spain, and the previously mentioned attack in France in 732 AD where the war loving greedy forces of Islam sought to take Paris, only to be stopped by the Frankish army under Charles Martel, the grandfather of Charlemagne, where they suffered defeat of their greedy forces near Tours, France.

ISLAM GREEDY SACKERS OF WHAT BELONGED TO OTHERS:

As previously mentioned, greedy Islam had reached into Europe far beyond Spain and in 846 AD had sacked Rome the headquarters of the largest apostate (counterfeit) Christian group. All this occurred long before the First Crusade of 1095.

As said previously, << Throughout history Islam which claims to be a religion of peace has attacked apostate (counterfeit) Christians and has attempted to steal land and people from them, and then cried fowl when they struck back. How ridicules and hypocritical that is for any group; to wit, to initiate blood guilt and then yell when the other group defends itself and strikes back.">>, and this article will show that the Crusades which Islam so protest were actually brought on by their actions which caused a counter reaction to their greedy war loving ways. This clearly shows they are NOT now or have ever been a peaceful religion as they falsely claim.

Now let's look at the First Crusade and its causes.

FIRST CRUSADE THE RESULT OF ISLAM'S LUST FOR WAR:

Now let's look at the facts of the First Crusade from history and see how the greed and war like ways of Islam brought it on.
<<"In 1009 the Fatimid caliph al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah had sacked the pilgrimage hospice in Jerusalem and destroyed the Church of the Holy Sepulchre. It was later rebuilt by the Byzantine emperor, but this event may have been remembered in Europe and may have helped spark the crusade. In 1063, Pope Alexander II had given papal blessing to Iberian Christians in their wars against the Muslims, granting both a papal standard (the vexillum sancti Petri) and an indulgence to those who were killed in battle. Pleas from the Byzantine Emperors, now threatened under by the Seljuks, first in 1074 from Emperor Michael VII to Pope Gregory VII and in 1095 from Emperor Alexius I Comnenus to Pope Urban II, thus fell on ready ears...

This background in the Christian West must be matched with that in the Muslim East. Muslim presence in the Holy Land goes back to the initial Arab conquest of Palestine in the 7th century. This did not interfere much with pilgrimage to Christian holy sites or the security of monasteries and Christian communities in the Holy Land of Christendom, and western Europeans were not much concerned with the loss of far-away Jerusalem when, in the ensuing decades and centuries, they were themselves faced with invasions by Muslims and other hostile non-Christians such as the Vikings and Magyars. However, the Muslim armies' successes were putting strong pressure on the Eastern Orthodox Byzantine Empire.

A turning point in western attitudes towards the east came in the year 1009, when the Fatimid caliph of Cairo, al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah, had the Church of the Holy Sepulchre in Jerusalem destroyed. His successor permitted the Byzantine Empire to rebuild it under stringent circumstances, and pilgrimage was again permitted, but many stories began to be circulated in the West about the cruelty of Muslims toward Christian pilgrims; these stories then played an important role in the development of the crusades later in the century.

The immediate cause of the First Crusade was Alexius I's appeal to Pope Urban II for mercenaries to help him resist Muslim advances into territory of the Byzantine Empire. In 1071, at the Battle of Manzikert, the Byzantine Empire had been defeated, and this defeat led to the loss of all but the coastlands of Asia Minor (modern Turkey). Although the East-West Schism was brewing between the Catholic Western church and the Greek Orthodox Eastern church, Alexius I expected some help from a fellow Christian. However, the response was much larger, and less helpful, than Alexius I desired, as the Pope called for a large invasion force to not merely defend the Byzantine Empire but also retake Jerusalem.

When the First Crusade was preached in 1095, the Christian princes of northern Iberia had been fighting their way out of the mountains of Galicia and Asturias, the Basque Country and Navarre, with increasing success, for about a hundred years. The fall of Moorish Toledo to the Kingdom of León in 1085 was a major victory, but the turning points of the Reconquista still lay in the future. The disunity of the Muslim emirs was an essential factor, and the Christians, whose wives remained safely behind, were hard to beat: they knew nothing except fighting, they had no gardens or libraries to defend, and they worked their way forward through alien territory populated by infidels, where the Christian fighters felt they could afford to wreak havoc. All these factors were soon to be replayed in the fighting grounds of the East. Spanish historians have traditionally seen the Reconquista as the molding force in the Castilian character, with its sense that the highest good was to die fighting for the Christian cause of one's country.

While the Reconquista was the most prominent example of Christian war against Muslim conquests, it is not the only such example. The Norman adventurer Robert Guiscard had conquered the "toe of Italy," Calabria, in 1057 and was holding what had traditionally been Byzantine territory against the Muslims of Sicily. The maritime states of Pisa, Genoa and Catalonia were all actively fighting Islamic strongholds in Majorca and Sardinia, freeing the coasts of Italy and Catalonia from Muslim raids. Much earlier, of course, the Christian homelands of Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Egypt, and so on had been conquered by Muslim armies. This long history of losing territories to a religious enemy, as well as a powerful pincer movement on all of Western Europe, created a powerful motive to respond to Byzantine emperor Alexius I's call for holy war to defend Christendom, and to recapture the lost lands, starting at the most important one of all, Jerusalem itself.">> [source - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

So as can be seen the apostate (counterfeit) Christians were pushed into the First Crusade by the greed and war lust of Islam which falsely bills itself as the peaceful religion which it is NOT.

THE OTHER CRUSADES:

Now here are the historical facts on the other Crusades:

<<" Second Crusade
Full article: Second Crusade
After a period of relative peace, in which Christians and Muslims co-existed in the Holy Land, Bernard of Clairvaux preached a new crusade when the town of Edessa was conquered by the Turks. French and German armies under Louis VII of France and Conrad III of Germany, marched to Asia Minor in 1147, but failed to accomplish any major successes, and indeed endangered the survival of the Crusader states with a foolish attack on Damascus. By 1149, both leaders had returned to their countries without any result...

Third Crusade
Full article: Third Crusade
In 1187, Saladin, Sultan of Egypt, recaptured Jerusalem. Pope Gregory VIII called for a crusade, which was led by several of Europe's most important leaders: Philip II of France, Richard I of England and Frederick I, Holy Roman Emperor. Frederick drowned in Cilicia in 1190, leaving an unstable alliance between the English and the French. Philip left in 1191 after the Crusaders had recaptured Acre from the Muslims. The Crusader army headed down the coast of the Mediterranean Sea. They defeated the Muslims near Arsuf and were in sight of Jerusalem. However, the inability of the Crusaders to thrive in the locale due to inadequate food and water resulted in an empty victory. Richard left the following year after establishing a truce with Saladin. On Richard's way home, his ship was wrecked and he ended up in Austria. In Austria his enemy Duke Leopold captured him, delivered him to Frederick's son Henry VI and Richard was held for, literally, a king's ransom. By 1197, Henry felt himself ready for a Crusade, but he died in the same year of malaria....

Fourth Crusade
Full article: Fourth Crusade
Jerusalem having fallen back into Muslim hands a decade earlier, the Fourth Crusade was initiated in 1202 by Pope Innocent III, with the intention of invading the Holy Land through Egypt. The Venetians, under Doge Enrico Dandolo, gained control of this crusade and diverted it to, first the Christian city of Zara, then to Constantinople where they attempted to place a Byzantine exile on the throne. After a series of misunderstandings and outbreaks of violence, the city was sacked in 1204...

Albigensian Crusade
Full article: Albigensian Crusade
The Albigensian Crusade was launched in 1209 to eliminate the heretical Cathars of southern France. It was a decades-long struggle that had as much to do with the concerns of northern France to extend its control southwards as it did with heresy. In the end, both the Cathars and the independence of southern France were exterminated...

Children's Crusade
Full article: Children's Crusade
The Children's Crusade is a possibly fictitious or misinterpreted crusade of 1212. The story is that an outburst of the old popular enthusiasm led a gathering of children in France and Germany, which Pope Innocent III interpreted as a reproof from heaven to their unworthy elders. None of the children actually reached the Holy Land; they were all sold as slaves, settled along the route to Jerusalem, or died of hunger during the journey...

Fifth Crusade
Full article: Fifth Crusade
By processions, prayers, and preaching, the Church attempted to set another crusade on foot, and the Fourth Council of the Lateran (1215) formulated a plan for the recovery of the Holy Land. A crusading force from Hungary, Austria, and Bavaria achieved a remarkable feat in the capture of Damietta in Egypt in 1219, but under the urgent insistence of the papal legate, Pelagius, they proceeded to a foolhardy attack on Cairo, and an inundation of the Nile compelled them to choose between surrender and destruction...

Sixth Crusade
Full article: Sixth Crusade
In 1228, Emperor Frederick II set sail from Brindisi for Syria, though laden with the papal excommunication. Through diplomacy he achieved unexpected success, Jerusalem, Nazareth, and Bethlehem being delivered to the Crusaders for a period of ten years. This was the first major crusade not initiated by the Papacy, a trend that was to continue for the rest of the century...

Seventh Crusade
Full article: Seventh Crusade
The papal interests represented by the Templars brought on a conflict with Egypt in 1243, and in the following year a Khwarezmian force summoned by the latter stormed Jerusalem. Although this provoked no widespread outrage in Europe as the fall of Jerusalem in 1187 had done, Louis IX of France organized a crusade against Egypt from 1248 to 1254, leaving from the newly constructed port of Aigues-Mortes in southern France. It was a failure and Louis spent much of the crusade living at the court of the Crusader kingdom in Acre. In the midst of this crusade was the first Shepherds' Crusade in 1251...

Eighth Crusade
Full article: Eighth Crusade
The eighth Crusade was organized by Louis IX in 1270, again sailing from Aigues-Mortes, initially to come to the aid of the remnants of the Crusader states in Syria. However, the crusade was diverted to Tunis, where Louis spent only two months before dying...

Ninth Crusade
Full article: Ninth Crusade
The future Edward I of England undertook another expedition in 1271, after having accompanied Louis on the Eighth Crusade. He accomplished very little in Syria and retired the following year after a truce. With the fall of Antioch (1268), Tripoli (1289), and Acre (1291) the last traces of the Christian rule in Syria disappeared. Most of Louis was buried in Syria, the pieces of his body thought able to last the journey were shipped back to France and interred there.">>[source - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia]

ISLAM'S GREED AND LUST FOR WAR AND VIOLENCE IN MODERN TIMES:

A great example in modern times is Islam's unprovoked attack on the World Trade Center in New York and their land grab of land to which the Jews hold rightful title given to them by the true God (YHWH) of Abraham in Palestine.

On 09/11/2001 Islam under Osama bin Ladin launched an attack on the World Trade Center in New York just to fill his Islamic lust to murder and kill others. Yet many members of Islam, true to form, as previously mentioned, <<" Throughout history Islam which claims to be a religion of peace has attacked apostate (counterfeit) Christians and has attempted to steal land and people from them, and then cried fowl when they struck back. How ridicules and hypocritical that is for any group; to wit, to initiate blood guilt and then yell when the other group defends itself and strikes back.">>. They cried crocodile tears and protested when those who were attacked and had family murdered on 09/11/2001 struck back in defense against Afghanistan who was harboring and supporting the ones behind this terrible atrocity and against Iraq where bad intelligence indicated the leader was making weapons of mass destruction, in fact he had earlier used such against his own Kurdish population.

They shed crocodile tears over what allegedly may have occurred in a prison in Cuba, but ignore what crimes against humanity are committed daily in Iraq by members of Islam. People and soldiers are daily being murdered by members of Islam. They kill their own and apostate (counterfeit) Christians on a daily basis, but pay no attention to this wrong.

Likewise, they shed crocodile tears because these individuals in this prison have NOT been given a trial, but in the entire history of Islam, individuals captured on a battlefield were never given any real trial to establish their guilt or innocence; what hypocrisy! Also, they forget that NO German prisoner in WW2 was given a trial, either in apostate (counterfeit) Christian controlled nations nor in Muslim nations. Whereas, some have actually been released from this prison either due to finding them innocent or giving them to other governments to deal with, a first in warfare.

Also, Islamic squatters on lands to which the true God (YHWH) of Abraham gave clear title. Here is what one Bible dictionary had to say on the subject.
<<"Promised Land held in trust. Even the people Israel, to whom God had given the land for them to enjoy as landowners, were told by Jehovah that they were not actually owners of it but only held it in trust. He said concerning the sale of a family land estate: "So the land should not be sold in perpetuity, because the land is mine. For you are alien residents and settlers from my standpoint." (Le 25:23) God had ousted the Canaanites from the land for their disgusting practices. He warned he would also take away all title from Israel and drive them out of the land if they followed such practices, and when they later did, they were sent into exile. (Le 18:24-30; 25:18, 19; 26:27-33; Jer 52:27) After 70 years of desolation of their land, from 607 to 537 B.C.E., God mercifully reestablished them, but this time under Gentile domination. Eventually, in 70 C.E., the Romans completely destroyed Jerusalem and scattered its people.

Within the nation, tribes were assigned sections of the land or cities inside the boundaries of other tribes. Priests and Levites had cities with pasture grounds. (Jos 15-21) In turn, within the tribes families were allotted inheritances. These divisions became smaller as families subdivided their own allotments because of increase in numbers. This resulted in thorough cultivation and use of the land. Inheritances were not allowed to circulate from one tribe to another. To prevent this, women who inherited land (because there were no living brothers) had to marry within the tribe to hold their inheritance.-Nu 36:1-12.">>[source - Insight on the Scriptures, Vol. 2]

So as can be seen, the Jews have clear title to all of Palestine and NOT the apostate (counterfeit) Christians Crusaders nor members of Islam. But what do the members of Islam squatters do, they seek to kill Jews dwelling on land to which they have rightful title because they want it for themselves as is usual for Islam. They send suicide bombers in to murder Jews, and send in military rockets to do the same evil thing - now how can anyone in his right mind call Islam a religion of peace. Witness the recent attack on 06/26/2006 on a Jewish military camp where members of Islam murdered two Jewish soldiers who were doing them no wrong and kidnapped a third whose whereabouts is unknown on 06/27/2006; this despite the fact that the Jews are willing to let the Islamic squatters dwell on a large area of their land, and only want peace, i.e., to be left alone and not attacked and murdered.

Does all of this indicate a religion of peace? Definitely not.

[3] IMPORTANT PUBLIC SERVICE ON CORONA VIRUS-19 THAT ALL SHOULD READ:

From John's Hopkins Hospital regarding the Covid-19 virus…
* This virus is not a living organism. It is a protein molecule (RNA or DNA) covered by a protective layer of lipid (fat), which, when absorbed by the cells of the ocular (eyes), nasal (nose), or buccal mucosa (mouth), changes their genetic code (mutates) and converts into aggressor and multiplier cells.
* Since the virus is not a living organism, but is a protein molecule,
it cannot be killed. It has to decay on its own. The disintegration time depends on the temperature, humidity and type of material where it lies.
* The virus is very fragile; the only thing that protects it is a thin outer layer of fat, and that is the reason why soap or detergent is the best weapon. The foam CUTS THE FAT (that is why you have to scrub for 20 seconds or more, to create lots of foam). By dissolving the fat layer, the protein molecule disperses and breaks down.
* HEAT melts fat; this is why it is necessary to use water above 77 degrees for hand washing, laundry, and cleaning surfaces. In addition, hot water makes more foam, making it more effective.
* Alcohol or any mixture with alcohol over 65% DISSOLVES ALL FAT, especially the external lipid layer of the virus.
* Any solution with 1 part bleach and 5 parts water directly dissolves the protein, breaking it down from the inside.
* Oxygenated water increases the effectiveness of soap, alcohol and chlorine, because peroxide dissolves the virus protein. However, because you have to use it in its pure form, it can damage your skin.
* NO BACTERICIDE OR ANTIBIOTIC WILL WORK, because the virus is not a living organism like bacteria; antibiotics cannot kill what is not alive.
* The virus molecules remain very stable at colder temperatures, including air conditioning in houses and cars. They also need moisture and darkness to stay stable. Therefore, dehumidified, dry, warm, and bright environments will degrade the virus faster.
* UV LIGHT on any object that may contain the virus breaks down the protein.
Be careful, it also breaks down collagen (which is protein) in the skin.
* The virus CANNOT go through healthy skin.
* Vinegar is NOT useful because it does not break down the protective layer of fat.
* NO SPIRITS, such as VODKA, will work. The strongest vodka is only 40% alcohol, and you need a minimum of 65%.
* LISTERINE is 65% alcohol.
* The more confined the space, the higher the concentration of the virus there can be. The more open, or naturally ventilated, the less the concentration of virus.
* You need to wash your hands before and after touching any commonly used surfaces such as: door locks, knobs, faucets, switches, handles, remotes, cell phones, tablets, plastic cards, keys, watches, keyboards, mice, desk surfaces, etc…also when handling food. And when you use the bathroom.
* You need to MOISTURIZE YOUR HANDS due to frequent washing.
Dry hands have cracks and the molecules can hide in the micro cracks The thicker the moisturizer, the better.
* Also keep your NAILS SHORT so that the virus cannot lurk there.
PLEASE SHARE WITH YOUR FRIENDS- and let us all stay healthy

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Mon Nov 16, 2020 5:36 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] TRINITY DISPROVED BY REFUTING SPECIFIC QUESTIONS/ACCUSATIONS BY TRINIDADIANS. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [273-12B]

As far as the east is from the west, so far hath he removed our transgressions from us. Psalms 103:12, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

However as shown at Isaiah 1:16 - 20, [AV] Almighty God (YHWH) will wipe away the sins of those loving him, “Wash you, make you clean; put away the evil of your doings from before mine eyes; cease to do evil; 17 Learn to do well; seek judgment, relieve the oppressed, judge the fatherless, plead for the widow. 18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool. 19 If ye be willing and obedient, ye shall eat the good of the land: 20 But if ye refuse and rebel, ye shall be devoured with the sword: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” Thus it is imperative to strive to bring our lives in harmony with his will as detailed in His book of guidance, the Bible.

[2] TRINITY DISPROVED BY REFUTING SPECIFIC QUESTIONS/ACCUSATIONS BY TRINIDADIANS:

FIRST, Question/Accusation by a Trinidadian:

There are places in the NT that definitely show Jesus to be God and yet some would deny this. To deny the Son is to deny the Father, meaning that those who say that Jesus is no more than Son and not God deny God the Father.

Answer:

Obviously overlooking the fact that Jesus (Yeshua) also is one of God's (Yeshua's) children, the first or only begotten, and that everything he has was given to him. Now, let's look at the facts concerning Jesus's (Yeshua's) incarnation and his status before his incarnation in brief.

HIS INCARNATION:

Now the Bible says at Matthew 1:18-25, "Now the birth of Jesus Christ was on this wise: When his mother Mary had been betrothed to Joseph, before they came together she was found with child of the Holy Spirit. 19 And Joseph her husband, being a righteous man, and not willing to make her a public example, was minded to put her away privily. 20 But when he thought on these things, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared unto him in a dream, saying, Joseph, thou son of David, fear not to take unto thee Mary thy wife: for that which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. 21 And she shall bring forth a son; and thou shalt call his name JESUS; for it is he that shall save his people from their sins. 22 Now all this is come to pass, that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, 23 Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bring forth a son, And they shall call his name Immanuel; which is, being interpreted, God with us. 24 And Joseph arose from his sleep, and did as the angel of the Lord commanded him, and took unto him his wife; 25 and knew her not till she had brought forth a son: and he called his name JESUS." (ASV) clearly showing his conception to be through God's (YHWH's) power or Spirit, a miracle. Now some may ask, what is God's (YHWH's) spirit, let's examine this subject and view the evidence. Now what is this Spirit or Holy Spirit that John the Baptist mentioned at John 1:32, ""And John bare record, saying, I saw the Spirit descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode upon him. 33 And I knew him not: but he that sent me to baptize with water, the same said unto me, Upon whom thou shalt see the Spirit descending, and remaining on him, the same is he which baptizeth with the holy Ghost." (AV)? The Holy Spirit is only God's (YHWH's) active force and not even a spirit being or person. This is clearly shown at Pentecost where the Holy Spirit was poured out onto all there, Acts 2:1-4, "And when the day of Pentecost was fully come, they were all with one accord in one place. 2 And suddenly there came a sound from heaven as of a rushing mighty wind, and it filled all the house where they were sitting. 3 And there appeared unto them cloven tongues like as of fire, and it sat upon each of them. 4 And they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit gave them utterance." (AV). This entire scripture bespeaks of a force and not a being as you do not get filled with a being! And this fact is reaffirmed at Acts 4:31, ""And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spoke the word of God with boldness." (AV); And 2 Corinthians 1:21-22, "Now he which established us with you in Christ, and hath anointed us, is God; 22 Who hath also sealed us, and given the earnest of the Spirit in our hearts." (AV), surely a being would not be in our hearts as that is ludicrous, thus this scripture talks of God's (YHWH's) active force; This is clearly shown at Luke 11:13, "If ye then, being evil, know how to give good gifts unto your children: how much more give the Holy Spirit to them that ask him?" (AV). Once more, why? Why? Do many say they are coequal and coeternal when clearly they are not and the Holy Ghost is just God's (YHWH's) active force? Only to try to give some resemblance of reality to a myth as we shall later see. An interesting note on the Spirit is that the neuter Greek word for spirit (pneu'ma) is used, the neuter pronoun "it" is properly employed. This fact is conveniently over looked or hidden by most Trinitarian translators as admitted in the "New American Bible Catholic Bible," regarding John 14:17: "The Greek word for 'Spirit' is neuter, and while we use personal pronouns in English ('he,' 'his,' 'him'), most Greek MSS [manuscripts] employ 'it.'" So when the Bible uses masculine personal pronouns in connection with pa·ra'kle·tos at John 16:7, 8, it is conforming to rules of grammar, not expressing a doctrine. And in Ancient Hebrew the word here rendered Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit, or Spirit which is translated from 'ru'ach' meaning "breath; wind; spirit."

WHO HIS REAL FATHER IS:

The Bible says his Father is Almighty God (YHWH) who we have seen from the foregoing used his power to implant his life force into a virgin Jewish girl named Mary. Also, that he was supposedly the son of Joseph which is clearly shown at Luke 3:23, "And when He began His Ministry, Jesus Himself was about thirty years of age, [b]being supposedly the son of Joseph, the son of Eli." (New American Standard Bible; NASB). He was in effect de-facto adopted by Joseph the husband of Mary who DID NOT have relations with Mary until after Jesus' (yeshua's) birth as testified to at Matthew 1:25, " And he knew her not till she brought forth her first born son: and he called his name Jesus." (Douay-Rheims Catholic Bible; DRCB); thus there can not be any doubt that his real Father is none other than Almighty God (YHWH) as clearly shown in the account of his pre-human existence given at Proverbs 8:22-31, "Jehovah possessed me in the beginning of his way, Before his works of old. 23 I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, Before the earth was. 24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills was I brought forth; 26 While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, Nor the beginning of the dust of the world. 27 When he established the heavens, I was there: When he set a circle upon the face of the deep, 28 When he made firm the skies above, When the fountains of the deep became strong, 29 When he gave to the sea its bound, That the waters should not transgress his commandment, When he marked out the foundations of the earth; 30 Then I was by him, [as] a master workman; And I was daily [his] delight, Rejoicing always before him, 31 Rejoicing in his habitable earth; And my delight was with the sons of men." (ASV). Which clearly shows that he was the first or beginning of God's (YHWH's) creation and absolutely proves in gross error anyone imputing anything but legitimacy to his birth since in fact he existed long before the earth or his incarnation on earth.

START OF HIS MINISTRY:

Let's also take a brief look at the start of his ministry. At the age of 30 Jesus (Yeshua) came from Galilee to Jordan to be baptized by John. This is detailed in the Bible at Matthew 3:13-17, "Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to the Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14 But John would have hindered him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15 But Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer [it] now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffereth him. 16 And Jesus when he was baptized, went up straightway from the water: and lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending as a dove, and coming upon him; 17 and lo, a voice out of the heavens, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (ASV). . Jesus (Yeshua) was therefore, now, ready and prepared to take up his ministry, but had not yet received the Holy Spirit with which he would be able to prove that he was the Son of God (YHWH). Now, at his baptism, his Sonship was confirmed by the Spirit of God (YHWH) descending upon him like a dove, and by the voice from heaven which said "This is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased". There is beautiful symbolism in the use of a dove to g visibly represent the Spirit of God (YHWH). Jesus (Yeshua) was to be the mediator through whom peace would be re-established between God and man. Many people find it difficult to associate human nature with its weakness and propensities with Jesus (Yeshua), the Son of God (YHWH). This association, however, is extremely important since it is only because Jesus (Yeshua) was 'made like his brethren in every respect' as testified to at Hebrews 2:16-18, " For surely it is not with angels that he is concerned but with the descendants of Abraham. 17 Therefore he had to be made like his brethren in every respect, so that he might become a merciful and faithful high priest in the service of God, to make expiation for the sins of the people. 18 For because he himself has suffered and been tempted, he is able to help those who are tempted." (Revised Standard Version; ASV). This was so to permit him to represent them perfectly in his sacrifice as shown at Hebrews 4:15-16, "For we have not a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. 16 Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need." (RSV) tells us that he was tempted in all ways like we are but without sinning', and because of this he is 'able to help those who are tempted'. We must acknowledge we are all desperately in need of his help.

SECOND, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:

1 - 1 John 5:2,3 is saying that if we love GOD we will keep HIS commandments.

2 - John 14:15 shows that if we love JESUS we will keep HIS commandments!

The key is on keeping the commandments. Whose are they? Answer the question this time.

Answer:

Read Jesus' (Yeshua's) words at John 14:23-24, "Jesus answered and said unto him, If a man love me, he will keep my word: and my Father will love him, and we will come unto him, and make our abode with him. 24 He that loveth me not keepeth not my words: and the word which ye hear is not mine, but the Father's who sent me." (American Standard Version; ASV) for your answer. Jesus (Yeshua) clearly answers your question for you and at the same time shows where he receives all from.

Now, to understand 1 John 5:2-3, one need no more than look at it in contest and it actually proves the Trinity impossible, 1 John 5:1-9, "Whosoever believeth that Jesus is the Christ is begotten of God: and whosoever loveth him that begat loveth him also that is begotten of him[Note; Clearly shows that Jesus (Yeshua) is the begotten of God (YHWH) and NOT God (YHWH)]. 2 Hereby we know that we love the children of God, when we love God and do his commandments. 3 For this is the love of God, that we keep his commandments: and his commandments are not grievous. 4 For whatsoever is begotten of God overcometh the world: and this is the victory that hath overcome the world, [even] our faith. 5 And who is he that overcometh the world, but he that believeth that Jesus is the Son of God? [Note, Clearly identifies Jesus (Yeshua) as the Son of God and NOT God (YHWH) or God the Son as would be required for the Trinity to even be plausible] 6 This is he that came by water and blood, [even] Jesus Christ; not with the water only, but with the water and with the blood. 7 And it is the Spirit that beareth witness, because the Spirit is the truth. 8 For there are three who bear witness, the Spirit, and the water, and the blood: and the three agree in one. 9 If we receive the witness of men, the witness of God is greater: for the witness of God is this, that he hath borne witness concerning his Son." (ASV) [Note: Some older translations had an error at 1 John 5:7 that had been deliberately inserted by someone way back, but the finding of older manuscripts has clearly shown this to be a violation of Revelations 22:18 called the Comma Johannenium as this error is so well known it has even been given a name].

THIRD, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:

Once again, Almighty God is El Shaddai (not YHWH ) AND Being the SON does not exempt Him from being YHWH, as you assume that is the name of the Father ONLY, which it is not. It is the name of GOD, not the name of the Father ONLY.

Answer:

YHWH is the name of God and in no way used to describe the devil. Now let's consider what the leading expert has to say on the subject, Gérard GERTOUX is a Hebrew scholar, specialist of the Tetragram; He has been president of the Association Biblique de Recherche d'Anciens Manuscrits since 1991. His training as an engineer and teacher has enabled him to compile an amount of information coming from a great diversity of specialized departments. He has written a book, "The Name of God Y.eH.oW.aH Which Is Pronounced As It Is Written I_Eh_Ou_Ah", and it clearly shows what God's (YHWH's) name is, its history, and that it can in no way properly be applied to the Devil.

A short abstract of it appeared in The Wall Street Journal and other publications as follows:

Usually, God's name is presented as fundamental in the monotheistic religions, but its pronunciation is controversial. However, the key to unlock this mystery was provided by the famous Maimonides 800 years ago, when he wrote that the Name 'is read as it is written'. The paradox starts and ends here with these intriguing words...

God's name is fundamental to all monotheistic religions. "May your name be held holy" is the first request for Christians in the Lord's Prayer taught by Jesus (Mt 6:9). "They exult in you, those who love your name" is sung by Jews when they sing the Psalms of David (Ps 5:11). "The hearts of humble ones quiver when the name of God is mentioned" is what Muslims say when they recite certain surahs of the Quran (22:35).

Paradoxically, religions prefer to translate God's name as Yahweh 'He is', Adonay 'my Lord', Allah 'The God', etc., rather than a transcription of the name, which is more usual. This study, initially published in the form of thesis, was greatly appreciated by many renowned specialists, because the subject had never been approached from the historical angle. This work created renewed interest in this fascinating topic -the disappearance of the Name followed by its slow re-emergence- which is relatively unknown.

Eight centuries ago, the famous Talmudist, Moses Maimonides, arrived at the right conclusion: There is no mystical mystery, because God's name is simply pronounced as it is written, that is to say: Y-H-W-H = I-eH-U-A in the same way: Y-H-W-D-H = I-eH-U-D-A.

And other expert critics said this of the book:

From United Bible Societies (Sarah Lind: Editor of the Newsletter)
Gérard Gertoux. 2002. The Name of God Y.EH.OW.AH Which is Pronounced as It is Written I_Eh_oU_Ah: Its Story. University Press of America. Translated from the French Un historique du nom divin. Un Nom Encens (L¹Harmattan, 1999). G. follows Maimonides' teaching that that YHWH "is read as it is written," i.e., yehua, in the same way that yhwdh is vocalized yehuda -applying the (coincidentally correct) Masoretic vowels. G. first considers biblical treatment of "the name": the power of the name; to know God's name; Jesus, Satan, the controversy over the name; and "the name read distinctly" (reconstruction of the reading). Part 2 examines the historical record from Adam to the American Standard Version, and the name of Jesus and its connections to the name. There is a seven part appendix that includes "interpretation of the Hebrew names" and "lack of nomina sacra in the earliest Christian papyrus." G. maintains a website with excerpts at divinename.net. Published in the Translation Information Clearinghouse Talk N°57, 2004.
www.ubs-translations.org/.../tt57.html

From Religious Studies Review (Won W. Lee professor at the Calvin College):
"In contrast to the long-held Jewish tradition, the author claims that the name of God in the HB should be pronounced. His claim is based on Exod 9:16, "... to make my name resound through all the earth" and Maimonides' work stressing the impossibility of a deep, personal relationship with a nameless God. With a survey of the historical record from "Adam" to the American Standard Version, Gertoux argues that the letters Y, W, H are read as the vowels I (or E), U (or O), and A. For the H, a mute e could be added in order to be better heard. The tetragrammaton, YHWH, is therefore read I-eH-U-A (Iehoua), the equivalent of YeHoWaH in Masoretic punctuation. This means that the name is to be pronounced as it is written, or according to its letters. The result is that the tetragrammaton is the only Hebrew name constituted, not of four consonants, but of four vowels, as noted by Josephus. This detailed treatment of the Name is useful for those who are interested in the history of its translation over the centuries." published in the Religious Studies Review Volume 29 Number 3 July 2003 page 285.
www.cssr.org/article.asp?idx=26142

From Seek God Association (Michael John Rood: Messianic Karaite Rabbi)
Emanuel Tov's credentials are numerous and lengthy, but one of the most interesting aspects of Mr. Tov's work is his study on the Masoretic Text and the translation of YHVH. According to postings on various forums, it has been stated that both Emanuel and Nehemiah Gordon believe that the Name of God is closer to Yehowah, which is similar to Jehovah in English, and not even close to Yahweh (...) The Masoretic Text manuscripts tend to vary later on, per Nehemiah Gordon (who also defends Yehovah after extensive study of the Masoretic Text manuscripts). Nehemiah's view, developed quite separately from Gertoux,... based on studying the actual manuscripts under Emanuel Tov, is that Yahweh cannot be defended, and the earlier Masoretic manuscripts all have a Yehowah (or Yehovah) pronounciation, while later on there is a lot of variation.
www.seekgod.ca/roodkaraite.htm

From Golden Age Books (Anthony Byatt: Specialist in English Bibles and Bible Study Material)
The Name of God Y.eH.oW.aH (...): Its Story reflects on God's name as fundamental to all monotheistic religions. Maimonides, 800 years ago, wrote that the Name "is read as it is written." Gerard Gertoux has written a deep treatise with a great deal of factual evidence for Jehovah's name. Contents include The Power of The Name; Jesus and Satan - Their Controversy Over the Name; The Pronunciation of Jesus' Name; Methods to Restore a Pronunciation; and a long section on the historical record from Adam through Bible times and down to the American Standard Version. Many appendices, notes and charts.
www.goldenagebooks.co.uk/...oductID=71

From New Testament Abstracts (Weston Jesuit School of Theology):
Gertoux contends that YHWH, the Tetragram, which is the proper name of God, is pronounced without difficulty because "it is read as it is written" according to the words of Maimonides. He first considers "the name": the power of the name; to know God's name; Jesus, Satan, their controversy over the name; and the name read distinctly. Then he examines the historical record: from Adam to Moses, from Moses to David, from David to Zedekiah, from Zedekiah to Simon the Just, from Simon the Just to Jesus, from Jesus to Justin, from Justin to Jerome, from Jerome to the Masoretes, from the Masoretes to Maimonides, from Maimonides to Tyndale, from Tyndale to the American Standard Version, and the name of Jesus and its connections to the name. Eight appendices are included. Published in the New Testament Abstracts Volume 47 Number 3 (2003) page 553. www.wjst.edu/news/nta/index.htm

From Booknews (Reference and Research Book News)
As indicated in the title, Gertoux concludes that the tetragram YHWH is the proper name of God, and is easy to pronounce because it sounds just like it is written according to the great Maimonides. In order to reach that destination, however, he has examined errors that have accumulated for at least 20 centuries, and wandered through linguistic questions. He posts warnings so non-specialist readers can avoid the very technical bogs. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com) www.paratext.com/booknews_intro.htm
Reference and Research Book News 2002 Volume 17 N°1-4. 5739 NE Summer Street, Portland Or 97218 ISSN 0-887-3763

From Old Presbyterian Meeting House (Professor Bruce M. Metzger)
The use of any proper name for the one and only God, as though there were other gods from whom the true God had to be distinguished, began to be discontinued in Judaism before the Christian era (....) for further scholarly information on the origins of sacred names, please visit the pages of Gérard GERTOUX. www.opmh.org/newbibles.htm

FOURTH, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:

Only SCRIPTURE can either prove or disprove the deity of Christ!

Answer:

Is correct, but used often by Trinitarians who get caught in a corner and need to obfuscate the issue. But common reasoning can go along way to backing up the Bible with regard to the fact that Jesus (Yeshua) is indeed divine and a diety. You should well know the fact that 'like begets like' and know by this law of nature that Jesus (Yeshua) would have to be a diety and not question it; but that in NO way makes him the same spirit being as his Father (YHWH) than it makes any other son the same being as his father. This fact should be obvious to all.

FIFTH, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:

That is not the translation you are referring to. That is the Greek words used in John 1:1 if used OUT OF CONTEXT and SEPARATELY. That is not the meaning of those words. Therefore, it is not an interpretation of John 1:1. [Referring to, "The Word for Word English Translation from Koine Greek to English from The Vatican Manuscript #1209" done by the great German Bible scholar and translator Dr. J. J. Griesbach]

Answer:

WRONG, The Word for Word English Translation from Koine Greek to English from The Vatican Manuscript #1209 which makes the Emphatic Diaglott so valuable in seeing exactly what the Koine Greek is and its word for word equivalency in English, see below:

John 1:1-5 & 14, "1 In a beginning was the word, and the word was with the God, and a god was the Word 2 This was in a beginning with the God. 3 All through it was done; and without it was done not even one, that has been done. 4 In it life was, and the life was the light of the men, 5 and the light in the darkness shines, and the darkness it not apprehended." And "14And the Word flesh became, and tabernacied among us, (and we beheld the glory of him, a glory as of an only-begotten from a father,) full of favor and truth," ( The Word for Word English Translation from Koine Greek to English from The Vatican Manuscript #1209" done by the great German Bible scholar and translator Dr. J. J. Griesbach)

Now let's look at how several unbiased translators translated these verses as opposed to the common biased translation:

The Complete Bible: An American Translation. Contributors: Edgar J. Goodspeed - transltr, J. M. Powis Smith - transltr. Publisher: University of Chicago Press. Place of Publication: Chicago. Publication Year: 1939.:
John 1:1-5 & 14, "1 IN THE beginning the Word exist- ed. The Word was with God, and the Word was divine. 2 It was he that was with God in 3 the beginning. Everything came into ex- istence through him, and apart from him 4 nothing came to be. It was by him that life came into existence, and that life 5 was the light of mankind. The light is still shining in the darkness, for the darkness has never put it out." And "14 So the Word became flesh and blood and lived for a while among us, abounding in blessing and truth, and we saw the honor God had given him, such honor as an only son receives from his father."

A New Translation of The Bible by James Moffatt, D.D., D.Litt.:
John 1:1-5 & 14, "The Logos existed in the very beginning, the Logos was with God, the Logos was divine. 2 He was with God in the very beginning: 3 through him all existence came into being, no existence came into being apart from him. 4 In him life lay, and this life was the Light for men; 5 amid the darkness the Light shone, and the darkness did not master it." And "14 So the Logos became flesh and tarried among us; we have seen his glory-glory such as an only sone enjoys from his father-seen it to be full of grace and reality."

The New English Bible (NEB)
John 1:1-5 & 14, "1 When all things began, the Word already was. The Word dwelt with God, and what God was, the Word was 2 The Word, then, was with God at the beginning, 3 and through him all things came to be; no single thing was created without him. 4 All that came to be was alive with his life, 5 and that life was the light of men. The light shines on in the dark, and the darkness has never quenched it." And "14 So the Word became flesh; he came to dwell among us, and we saw his glory, such glory as befits the Father's only Son, full of grace and truth"

[History of this great translation, "A presbytery in the Church of Scotland in 1946 recommended to the General Assembly that a translation of the Bible be made in the language of the present day because the language in the Authorized Version was archaic and less generally understood. The General Assembly approached other churches. There was a desire that a completely new translation rather than a revision and for a contemporary idiom rather than a traditional Biblical English be used.

It was planned and directed by representatives of the Baptist Union of Great Britain and Ireland, the Church of England, the Church of Scotland, the Congregational Church in England and Wales, the Council of Churches for Wales, the Irish Council of Churches, the London Yearly Meeting of the Society of Friends, the Methodist Church of Great Britain, the Presbyterian Church of England, the British and Foreign Bible Society, and the National Bible Society of Scotland. The Roman Catholic Church in England and Scotland sent representatives as observers.]

Other data that shows the truth with respect John 1:1 in brief.

"Jn 1:1 should rigorously be translated 'the word was with the God [=the Father], and the word was a divine being.'" [source - The Dictionary of the Bible by John McKenzie, Collier Books, p. 317]
"Recent commentaries on John admit that despite the long-standing tradition to the contrary, the term "word" in the famous prologue of John need not refer to the Son of God before he was born. Our translations imply belief in the traditional doctrine of incarnation by capitalizing "Word." But what was it that became flesh in John 1:14? Was it a pre-existing person? Or was it the self-expressive activity of God, the Father, His eternal plan? A plan may take flesh, for example, when the design in the architect's mind finally takes shape as a house. What pre-existed the visible bricks and mortar was the intention in the mind of the architect. Thus, it is quite in order to read John 1:1-3a: "In the beginning was the creative purpose of God. It was with God and was fully expressive of God [just as wisdom was with God before creation]. All things came into being through it." This rendering suits the Old Testament use of "word" admirably: "So shall My word be that goes forth out of My mouth; it shall not return to Me empty, without accomplishing what I desire and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it."2
We are now in a better position to see why Jesus is known as "the word (logos) in the flesh." Jesus was the ultimate expression of God. God's plan, wisdom and purpose was the logos, and when we speak of the Bible, it is called "the Word" because it also is God's expression of Himself. When we speak of a prophecy, we say, it is "the word of the Lord," both because it is in the form of words and because it is God's expression of Himself. Jesus was the logos in the most complete sense. He was the ultimate expression of God and the essence of His plan and purpose. Thus, it is quite correct to say that Jesus was the logos, but he was not all of the logos. "Jesus" does not equal "the logos," he was part of and the ultimate expression of the logos. If we see Jesus, we see the Father, but it is also true that if we study the Bible, God's Word, God's expression of Himself in writing, we will see the Father. More dimly, to be sure, because the written Word is not the clear and ultimate expression of God that the Living Word is, but it is the logos just the same. ... The logos or message of God, as it has been revealed in Jesus, includes the following account of the meaning and purpose of creation: Jesus' coming was prophesied throughout the Hebrew Scriptures; he was finally born a man, and by his free will lived a sinless life; Jesus died on the Cross to mark the beginning of the end of the present age of sin and death, revealing that it is only a matter of time until this age and fallen humanity as it now exists come to an end; Jesus was raised from the dead to reveal that death (the experience that all humans since Adam have held in common) is contrary to God's will and will ultimately be abolished by resurrection; Jesus was exalted as Lord to the right hand of God where he presently exercises this authority; after he comes to gather together the Church, Jesus will come again at the end of this age in judgment, bringing destruction on the unbelieving world and salvation to the community of faith; he will rule for one thousand years on this earth; finally he will destroy Satan and all evil, end the heavens and earth of the present age and begin the new heavens and earth of the age to come, a "new creation.".... The meaning of "beginning" that immediately comes to mind when John 1:1 is read refers to the time before history when God first conceived of man, and foresaw the possibility that he would fall and need a Savior. This is because of the familiar phrase, "In the beginning God" in Genesis 1:1. John tells us that "in the beginning" God had wisdom and a plan, and was prepared to start acting that plan out so that the people He created and invested His love in could be rescued from death and live with Him eternally. The crowning piece of the plan of God was the creation of Jesus Christ, who was in a very real sense, "the last word." ... The "word" was with God in the same sense that "wisdom" was with God. Proverbs 8:29b and 30a says, "When He [God] marked out the foundations of the earth, then I [wisdom] was the craftsman at His side." No one we know of believes that there was a being called "Wisdom" who helped God make the heavens and the earth. Everyone knows that wisdom is personified to make the record interesting and easy to understand. So too, in John 1:1 when Scripture says that the logos was "with God," it is a personification. God had His plan and power, and "when the time had fully come" (Gal. 4:4), Jesus was conceived in the womb of Mary. This means that the person called "Jesus" did not yet exist, as is the case with all human persons, until he was conceived in his mother's womb. Prior to his conception, his existence was not personal, but prophetic, as foretold in the Old Testament Scriptures (the "Word"). Before Jesus' conception in the womb of Mary, the logos was to Jesus what promise is to fulfillment. When "the logos became flesh," the promise was fulfilled in the form of a person. While this understanding will be objectionable, perhaps anathema, to Trinitarian believers, it must be admitted that it is not a denial of Jesus' divine Sonship or Messiahship but, rather, a compelling alternative interpretation of relevant scriptural texts.... Because logos has the article [ho] preceding it, it is marked out as the subject. The fact that theos is the first word after the conjunction kai ("and") shows that the main emphasis of the clause lies on it. Had the article preceded theos as well as logos, the meaning would have been that the Word was completely identical with God, which is impossible if the Word was also "with God." What is meant is that the Word shared the nature and being of God, or, to use a piece of modern jargon, was an extension of the personality of God. The NEB paraphrase, "what God was, the Word was," brings out the meaning of the clause as successfully as a paraphrase can. John intends that the whole of his gospel shall be read in the light of this verse. The deeds and words of Jesus are the deeds and words of God [i.e., "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father"]; if this be not true, the book [i.e., the Gospel of John] is blasphemous.25
What it does say is defined as succinctly and accurately as it can be in the opening verse of St. John's Gospel. But we have to be equally careful about the translation. The Greek runs: kai theos en ho logos. The so-called Authorized Version has: "And the Word was God." This would indeed suggest the view that "Jesus" and "God" were identical and interchangeable. But in Greek this would most naturally be represented by "God" with the article, not theos but ho theos. But, equally, St. John is not saying that Jesus is a "divine" man, in the sense with which the ancient world was familiar [the product of God and man] or in the sense in which the Liberals spoke of him [as a great man, teacher, prophet, etc.]. That would be theios. The Greek expression steers carefully between the two. It is impossible to represent it in a single English word, but the New English Bible, I believe, gets the sense pretty exactly with its rendering, "And what God was, the Word was." [source - Biblical Unitarians]

Now let's consider a comment on two scriptures by Uriyah the Messiahite,

"John 5:26 For just as the Father has life in himself, so he has granted the Son also to have life in himself

John 6:57 Just as the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so whoever eats me will live because of me.

By the words of Jesus, Jesus was not eternal; he was given to have life in himself and lives because of the Father. A eternal being cannot be given to have life in themselves, and they do not depend on others to live." [source - Uriyah the Messiahite]
SIXTH, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:
Yes and I am the byproduct of MY father and I have HIS name IN me and we share the same attributes. In the same way, Jesus has the name of YHWH IN Him, making Him deity, as YHWH is deity. Jesus is not 'a god' unless you are a polytheist. The Word cannot be WITH God and BE a god at the same time. Scripture will not allow it.
Answer,
But obviously one is NOT his father, and the same goes for Jesus (Yeshua); a very simple truth. With respect polytheist accusation this clearly shows one has obviously NOT read Exodus 20:3 with understanding as it says, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." (Authorized King James Bible; AV), so Jesus (Yeshua) is NOT polytheistic thinking as he is NOT a deity before his Father (YHWH) as clearly shown at John 14:28, "Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I." (AV) in Jesus' (Yeshua's) own words. So again what I am seeing is a lack of comprehension on the part of some; they should let me assist them in this most important matter instead of resisting.

SEVENTH, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:
[claim by Trinitarians] I am not influenced by any councils. The word of GOD has priority and IT says that Jesus is GOD"

Answer:

Here is the facts the reality, remember John 8:32, "you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free." (The Goodnews Bible), now let's look at the facts:
"By the third and fourth centuries, Christians were weary of Pagan persecution. The temptation was to compromise. Besides, the Pagan emperor Constantine needed Christians to salvage his shaky empire. Constantine embraced; howbeit only on his deathbed. However, he saw Christianity as a tool he could use to firm up his shaky empire. To this opportunity for political intrigue, and happy blend of politics and people was the chief triumvirate of Roman gods Jupiter, Juno and Minerva. Jupiter was the principal deity of Roman mythology and Juno was the next highest divinity. Minerva, the "offspring of the brain of Jupiter" was regarded as the "personification of divine thought, the plan of the material universe of which Jupiter was the creator and Juno the representative" (26). Many Pagan ideas, in fact, were incorporated into Christianity. "Christianity did not destroy paganism; it adopted it" (*26).

Roman Emperor Constantine needed to make his subjects feel secure if he were to maintain control of the empire; he wanted to rule a unified empire, be it pagan and/or Christian. But first he would have to find a way to end the dispute over the divinity of Jesus-was he a man or God? So he ordered his Christian bishops to meet at Nicaea in 325 A.D. to settle the matter once and for all. To do this, "he made himself the head of the church, and thus the problems of the church became his responsibilities. As a whole the Western Empire with its Roman influence, with some exceptions, had accepted Tertullian and his new theory of the Trinity in the early part of the previous century, but in the East the church adhered more closely to the older formula of baptism in the name of Jesus, or Jesus the Christ. Especially was this true with the Armenians, who specified that baptism "into the death of Christ" was that which alone was essential (*28) .

Now let's see how Constantine got the Trinity. As previously shown, The Roman Empire at this time was being torn apart by religious differences between pagans, mostly Sun God worshippers, and Christianity. Constantine the Emporer was a worshipper of the Unconquered Sun, but he was a very pragmatic individual and saw the need to bring religious unity to his empire. The central doctrine of the pagans was the dogma of a Trinity that they had received from earlier pagans in Babylon (Chaldea). In this, the pagan Emperor, Constantine, saw a possibility for unifying his empire if he could only lead the majority of the Christians to accept a Trinity or a Duality. He knew however that he had to make them think it was their own idea. To this end, he, the Roman emperor Constantine summoned all bishops to Nicaea, about 300, but even though it was the emperor's direction, only a fraction actually attended.

This council went on for a very long time and the emperor worked behind the scene to get support for a Trinity or a Duality. This effort was not completely successful, but finally he got a majority and declared under imperial degree
that this hence forth would be the central doctrinal pillar of the Christian church, which by this time was apostate. Even with this declaration by the emperor himself not all bishops signed the creed. (*29).

*26 - McClintock & Strong's Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological, and Ecclesiastical Literature, Vol. 6
*27 - Lamson, Newton & Durant, Will, "Caesar and Christ," cited from Charles Redeker Caesar and Christ, W. Duran (page 595).
*28 - ENCYLOPEDIA BRITANNICA, 11th Edition, Vol. 3, (page 366).
*29 - Payne, Robert, "The Holy Fire: The Story of the Early Centuries of the Christian Churches in the Near East" (1957); BETHUNE-BAKER, J,F. "An Introduction to the Early History of Christian Doctrine". Methuen; 5th Ed., 1933 and ENCYLOPEDIA BRITANNICA, 11th Edition, Vol. 3, (page 366); David, Francis and Blandrata, Georgio, "De falsa et vera unius Dei Patris, Filii, et Spiritus Sancti cognitone" [Latin](The False and True Knowledge of the Unity of God the Father, Son, and Holy spirit), 1566 A.D.; Eklof, Todd F., "David's Francis Tower, Strength through Peace," (06-16-02); The New Encyclopedia Britannica: " Micropædia, Vol. X, p. 126. (1976); Parkes, James, "The Foundation of Judaism and Christianity," 1960; Durant, Will. "Caesar and Christ." New York: Simon.[source - "Discourse on Mainstream Religion," by Iris the Preacher- 2001]
EIGHTH, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:

Jesus Christ's Father is God. Therefore, Jesus Christ is God because they share an Attibute with each other that cannot be changed. They share the Attribute of God. Jesus Christ is still the Son of God and God as well.

Answer:

All sons share Attributes with their father, but that in NO way makes them their father also. This is just common knowledge that no play on words, logomachy, can change. Now let's look at Jesus' (Yeshua's) name as differentiating him from his father, "Yehoshua, Yeshua or Yeshu;
Which one is the name of Jesus in Hebrew?
By Dr. James D. Price
Forward by Guy Cramer
The Jewish community has claimed the name of Jesus in Hebrew is Yeshu the traditional Jewish spelling of Jesus. Why do others spell Jesus as Yeshua with four letters and sometimes spell it as Yehoshua with five letters ?
Before we look at the answer lets look at the origin of the name. The sixth book of the Old Testament is called Joshua.
The title of the book is appropriately named after its central figure, Joshua. His original name is Hoshea, "Salvation" (Num.13:8); but Moses evidently changes it to Yehoshua, "Yahweh (Jehovah) is Salvation" (Num.13:16). He is also called Yeshua, a shortened form of Yehoshua. This is the Hebrew equivalent of the Greek name Iesous (Jesus). (NKJV, Thomas Nelson Inc.,1980, p.190)
Why is it important to find out which spelling to use? Advanced mathematical research into the equidistant letter sequences (ELS) discovered in the Hebrew Bible (see The Mysterious Hebrew Codes) needs the proper spelling of words and names. The wrong spelling of a name can invalidate all (ELS) research on that name. There is a great deal that depends on this simple question.
(Guy Cramer)
The Names Yeshua and Yehoshua
by Dr. James Price, professor of Hebrew
Yehoshua in the Septuagint
Two things indicate that Yehoshua is the proper Hebrew name for Jesus:
(1) In the Greek Translation of the OT known as the Septuagint (LXX), the name Joshua is rendered *Iasous* = Jesus.
(2) In the NT, Joshua is mentioned twice (Acts 7:45; Heb 4:8), and in both places the Greek NT spells the name *Iasous* = Jesus.
Thus the Greek *Iasous* is the equivalent of Hebrew *Yehoshua*
Yehoshua in the Hebrew Bible
As far as the Hebrew Bible is concerned, it is important to note that in the early books, the name Joshua is spelled as ( yod-hey-waw-shin-ayin) or on rare occasions as ( yod-hey-waw-shin-waw-ayin). However, in the books of Ezra and Nehemiah, the high priest is named Jeshua the son of Jozadak ( yod-shin-waw-ayin); whereas in the contemporary books of Haggai and Zechariah, the same high priest is named Joshua the son of Jehozadak ( yod-hey-waw-shin-ayin beth-nun). Thus, it can be concluded that in post-exilic times of the Biblical era, the namesYeshua and Yehoshua were regarded as equivalent.
Yehoshua in the Talmud
(From A.D. 200 to 500 ancient rabbis compiled their commentaries on the Bible, Jewish social customs and historical events in the Talmud. Because it was compiled by rabbis who were leaders in rabbinical academies, the Talmud is considered to be very authoritative by Jews, even to this day. [Missler, Chuck, "The Creator Beyond Time and Space", 1996 The Word For Today, p.165] )
As far as the Talmud is concerned, it is evident that the old uncensored editions of the Talmud associated Jesus of Nazareth with the name Joshua. This is demonstrated by the following passage:
Sotah 47a
Our Rabbis have taught: Always let the left hand thrust away and the right hand draw near. Not like Elisha who thrust Gehazi away with both his hands (and not like ' Joshua b. Perahiah who thrust one of his disciples away with both his hands).11
Here, the editor's footnote reads:
[(11) MSS. and old editions read Jesus the Nazarene. R. T. Herford sees in Gehazi a hidden reference to Paul. Cf. his Christianity in Talmud and Midrash, pp. 97ff.]
Another interesting passage indicates that the Talmud regarded the changing of the spelling of a name to be a sign of divine disapproval. The following passage discusses the change of a name from Yehoshua to Yoshua. Arachim 32b
And the other?13 - He [Ezra] had prayed for mercy because of the passion for idolatry and he removed it, and his merit then shielded them even as the booth. That is why Scripture reproved Joshua, for in all other passages it is spelt: Jehoshua, but here, Joshua.14
The editor's footnote reads:
[(14) For his failure to implore the Lord to remove the passion for idolatry from the heart of the people. Just as with Abram the enlargement of his name into 'Abraham' was an expression of divine approval, so did this diminution of Jehoshua into Joshua express divine disapproval. The reason for Joshua's failure to implore the Lord to remove the passion for idolatry was his assumption that he possessed the land in its pristine holiness, so that it would in itself help Israel to overcome its idolatrous tendencies.]
Perhaps that is the reason why the Talmud altered the spelling of the name Jesus of Nazareth from Yeshua ha-Notzri to Yesu ha-Notzri. However, it is clear that the editor of the Talmud regarded this as the equivalent of Yeshua ha-Notzri. Associated with the following passage in the Talmud is an interesting footnote by the editor:

Sanhedrin 67a
For it has been taught: And for all others for whom the Torah decrees death, witnesses are not hidden, excepting for this one. How is it done? - A light is lit in an inner chamber, the witnesses are hidden in an outer one [which is in darkness], so that they can see and hear him,11 but he cannot see them. Then the person he wished to seduce says to him, 'Tell me privately what thou hast proposed to me'; and he does so. Then he remonstrates; 'But how shall we forsake our God in Heaven, and serve idols'? If he retracts, it is well. But if he answers: 'It is our duty and seemly for us', the witnesses who were listening outside bring him to the Beth din, and have him stoned.12

The editor's footnote reads:
[(12) In the uncensored editions of the Talmud there follows this important passage (supplied from D.S. on the authority of the Munich and Oxford Mss. and the older editions) 'And this they did to Ben Stada in Lydda ( . . .), and they hung him on the eve of Passover. Ben Stada was Ben Padira. '. Hisda said: 'The husband was Stada, the paramour Pandira. But was nor the husband Pappos b. Judah? - His mother's name was Stada. But his mother was Miriam, a dresser of woman's hair? (. . . megaddela neshayia): - As they say in Pumbaditha, This woman has turned away (. . .) from her husband, (i.e., committed adultery).' T. Herford, in 'Christianity in the Talmud', pp. 37 seqq, 344 seqq, identifies this Ben Stada with Jesus of Nazareth. As to the meaning of the name, he connects it with ** 'seditious', and suggests (p. 345 n.1) that it originally denoted 'that Egyptian' (Acts XXI 38, Josephus, Ant. XX, 8, 6) who claimed to be a prophet and led his followers to the Mount of Olives, where he was routed by the Procurator Felix, and that in later times he might have been confused with Jeshua ha-Notzri. This hypothesis, however, involves the disregard of the Talmudic data, for Pappos b. Judah lived a century after Jesus (Cit. 90a), though the mother's name, Miriam (Mary), would raise no difficulty, as . . . megaddla neshayia may be the result of a confusion with Mary Magdalene (v. also Box, The Virgin Birth of Jesus, pp. 201f, for other possible meanings of Ben Stada and Ben Pandira) Derenbourg (Essai note 9, pp. 465-471) rightly denies the identity of Ben Stada with Jesus, and regards him simply as a false prophet executed during the second century at Lydda.]
Note that the editor spells the name of Jesus as Jeshua ha-Notzri when he transliterated it.
From this evidence it can be concluded that in post-exilic Bible times the names Yehoshua and Yeshua were regarded as equivalent names of the same person. Also the Talmudic evidence indicates that historically the Jews regarded the name of Jesus as Yeshua, perhaps omitting the *hey* as their sign of divine disapproval, and then subsequently omitting the *ayin* as further disapproval. [source - Dr. Price, Professor of Hebrew and Old Testament at Temple Baptist Seminary][Note, this gentlemen is a Trinitarian but even differentiates Jesus' (Yeshua's) name from that of his father.

NINTH, Question/Accusation by a Trinitarian:

Revelation 1:7. Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.

Isn't Revelation 1:7 referring to The Mighty God in Isaiah 9:6?

Revelation 1:8. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty.

Doesn't Revelation 1:8 support Jesus Christ's claim in John 10:30? John 10:30 states...

John 10:30 I and my Father are one.

Answer,

Now we have a similar result in the New Testament with titles often times being substituted for proper names such as Jesus' (Yeshua) proper name being substituted with titles such as 'Lord,' 'Logos,' etc. This causes great confusion as the same title, 'Lord,' is often used for Almighty God (YHWH) in the New Testament, such as at Revelation 1:8, "I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. " (AV); and at, Revelation 22:6, "And he said unto me, These sayings are faithful and true: and the Lord God of the holy prophets sent his angel to shew unto his servants the things which must shortly be done." (AV).; whereas, isused as a title for his Son, Jesus (Yeshua) at Revelation 22:20, "He which testifieth these things saith, Surely I come quickly. Amen. Even so come, Lord Jesus." (AV).[[source - "The Confusion Factor," by Iris the Preacher 1987]

As can be seen from the above many wrestle with the scriptures trying to make them fit their tradition instead of trying to get an understanding of same. This is clearly shown by the poster's question if you can call it that of, "Doesn't Revelation 1:8 support Jesus Christ's claim in John 10:30?" which clearly shows one trying to support his pet tradition. Why, well John 10:30 says, "My Father and I are one" (the New English Bible; NEB), but if this poster really wanted understanding rather than to support his misguided tradition he would continue to read on in the Book of John since at John 17:11 this oneness is explained as unity of purpose as, "And I am no more in the world, and these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep them in thy name which thou hast given me, that they may be one, even as we [are]." (ASV).

Next, this same poster asks about Revelation 1:7, "Every eye shall see him, and among them those who pierced him; and all the peoples of the world shall lament in remose. So it shall be. Amen." (NEB). Obviously, unlike Revelation 1:8 which refers to the Father (YHWH), this one refers to Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH is Salvation). Now it is high time that all start reading the Bible for understanding instead of constantly trying to trick me with silly questions in the same perverted manner as the Jews at Matthew 22: , "But the Pharisees, when they heard that he had put the Sadducees to silence, gathered themselves together. 35 And one of them, a lawyer, asked him a question, trying him: 36 Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law? 37 And he said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the great and first commandment. 39 And a second like [unto it] is this, Thou shalt love thy neighbor as thyself. 40 On these two commandments the whole law hangeth, and the prophets. 41 Now while the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them a question, 42 saying, What think ye of the Christ? whose son is he? They say unto him, [The son] of David. 43 He saith unto them, How then doth David in the Spirit call him Lord, saying, 44 The Lord said unto my Lord, Sit thou on my right hand, Till I put thine enemies underneath thy feet? 45 If David then calleth him Lord, how is he his son? 46 And no one was able to answer him a word, neither durst any man from that day forth ask him any more questions." (ASV).

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**Admin** Wed Nov 18, 2020 8:19 am

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] WHY DO SOME DOUBT THE DEITY OF CHRIST, [3] SPECIAL CONTRA VIRUS-19 SYMPTOMS AND ISSUES ALL SHOULD COGNIZANT ABOUT.
With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [274B]

Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. Ecclesiastes 7:9, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Almighty God’S (YHWH’S) as found in the Bible makes it clear that all mankind lacks perfection an sins. This is made abundantly clear st Ecclesiastes 7:20 - 22, [AV] “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.21 Also take no heed unto all words that are spoken; lest thou hear thy servant curse thee: 22 For oftentimes also thine own heart knoweth that thou thyself likewise hast cursed others.” Yes, we need His forgiveness to be counted worthy to live in His Kingdom that Jesus (Yeshua) taught all to pray for at Matthew 6:9 – 10, [AV] “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

[2] WHY DO SOME DOUBT THE DEITY OF CHRIST?

Some doubt the deity of Christ, but one of the greatest Bible scholars of all times, the great German Bible scholar and translator, Dr. J. J. Griesbach; Nor the Bible scholar and translator James Moffat, translator of "The New Testament: A New Translation," who stated in his translation at John 1:1, "... the Logos was divine"; Nor the Bible scholar and translator E. J. Goodspeed translator of ": An American Translation," who stated in his translation at John 1:1, "... and the Word was divine".

The point of Christ's divinity was made very pointedly by the great scholars and translators of the British Empire in their translation, "The New English Bible, (NEB)" at John 1:1 that reads, "When all things began, the Word already was, The Word dwelt with God, and what God was, the Word was.".

Now let's reason together, we all know that a son is a lot like the father from our own experience. So if Jesus (Yeshua) is the Son of God as testified to in over 40 scriptures in the Bible, we would expect that he would be a lot like his Father (YHWH). What would this mean, simply that he would be a deity like his Father (YHWH) and that he would be divine like his Father (YHWH). Why do some take this statement of what should be obvious to all with an explanation of surprise? Because they wrongly believe he and his father are one and the same; an impossibility as should be obvious to all.

Now let's look at what the meaning of divinity is in several dictionaries:

(from Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary)
divine (GOD-LIKE) adjective
connected with a god, or like a god:
The Ayatollah described the earthquake in Iran as a divine test.
Some fans seem to regard footballers as divine beings.
England have fallen so far behind in the championship that their only hope of victory is divine intervention (= help from God).
Just because you've been promoted that doesn't give you a divine right (= one like that of a god) to tell us all what to do.

Oxford Dictionary
divine = /d"van/ adjective (-r, -st) 1 of, from, or like God or a god; sacred. 2 colloquial excellent. verb (-ning) 1 discover by intuition or guessing. 2 foresee. 3 practise divination. noun theologian. divining-rod dowser's forked twig. divinely adverb.

Wordsmyth Dictionary
a religious scholar or clergyman. Similar Words exegete , minister , cleric , clergyman , bishop , theologian , prelate , priest , religious
Definition 2. (cap.) God (usu. prec. by the). Synonyms Godhead {godhead (2)} , Divinity {divinity (2)} , Omnipotent {omnipotent} , Omniscient {omniscient} , God {god (2)} , Deity {deity (4)} Similar Words celestial
Definition 3. (sometimes cap.) the spiritual or godlike, as opposed to the earthly or worldly. Similar Words divinity

It is like Jesus (Yeshua) said at Matthew 23:24, but let's look at the context, Matthew 23:13-33, " But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater d**nation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. 16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor! 17 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gold, or the temple that sanctifieth the gold? 18 And, Whosoever shall swear by the altar, it is nothing; but whosoever sweareth by the gift that is upon it, he is guilty. 19 Ye fools and blind: for whether is greater, the gift, or the altar that sanctifieth the gift? 20 Whoso therefore shall swear by the altar, sweareth by it, and by all things thereon. 21 And whoso shall swear by the temple, sweareth by it, and by him that dwelleth therein. 22 And he that shall swear by heaven, sweareth by the throne of God, and by him that sitteth thereon. 23 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye pay tithe of mint and anise and cummin, and have omitted the weightier matters of the law, judgment, mercy, and faith: these ought ye to have done, and not to leave the other undone. 24 Ye blind guides, which strain at a gnat, and swallow a camel. 25 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye make clean the outside of the cup and of the platter, but within they are full of extortion and excess. 26 Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also. 27 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. 28 Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity. 29 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! because ye build the tombs of the prophets, and garnish the sepulchres of the righteous, 30 And say, If we had been in the days of our fathers, we would not have been partakers with them in the blood of the prophets. 31 Wherefore ye be witnesses unto yourselves, that ye are the children of them which killed the prophets. 32 Fill ye up then the measure of your fathers. 33 Ye serpents, ye generation of vipers, how can ye escape the d**nation of hell?" ((Authorized King James Bible; AV)

Let's be inline with Titus 2:1, "But speak thou the things that become sound doctrine:" (Douay Rheims Catholic Bible; DRCB), and not in line with 2 Corinthians 4:4, "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of unbelievers, that the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God, should not shine unto them."(DRCB) who do NOT recognize Jesus (Yeshua) as a separate divine being from his Father (YHWH) who is his Father's (YHWH's) master worker and is an obedient Son and follows his Father's (YHWH's) directions.

[3] SPECIAL CONTRA VIRUS-19 SYMPTOMS AND ISSUES ALL SHOULD BE COGNIZANT ABOUT.

COVID-19 has caused some unusual symptoms, including COVID toes and a loss of taste and smell. But now there’s another concerning symptom of the virus that doctors are spotting.
It’s being referred to as “happy hypoxia” or “silent hypoxia,” and it refers to a phenomenon where people who have low levels of oxygen in their tissues don’t seem to be impacted by what is a dangerous condition. The internet is flooded with reports of happy hypoxics who are checking their phones and chatting with nurses at blood oxygen levels that should cause them to be incredibly sick.
“People have had levels of oxygen saturation that’s so low it has astounded doctors that they have not had symptoms,” Dr. William Schaffner, an infectious disease specialist and professor at the Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, tells Yahoo Life.
But why is this happening and how can you tell if you’re a happy hypoxic? Here’s what you need to know.
What is happy hypoxia, exactly?
Hypoxia is a condition where there are abnormally low levels of oxygen in the body, according to the World Health Organization (WHO). “That’s dangerous,” Schaffner says. “Oxygen is the life force that keeps us all going. We need that oxygen in order to breathe appropriately and to keep all our bodily organs functioning. It’s very critical.”
When the oxygen concentration in the body gets too low, people need to be put on ventilators, Schaffner points out.
There’s no one definition at this point of what, exactly, it means to qualify as a happy hypoxic, Dr. David Cennimo, assistant professor of medicine-pediatrics infectious disease at Rutgers New Jersey Medical School, tells Yahoo Life. “The general consensus is that it’s a state of low oxygen saturation of the blood — hypoxia — without the feeling of shortness of breath,” he says. “Usually, if your oxygen level is low, you would feel some discomfort, shortness of breath and a feeling of not catching your breath. In these cases, people are presenting without complaints.”
“With silent hypoxia, you have a gradual reduction in your ability to exchange gas and take in oxygen,” Dr. Osita Onugha, director of the Surgical Innovation Lab at John Wayne Cancer Institute at Providence Saint John’s Health Center in Santa Monica, Calif., tells Yahoo Life. “Your body is trying to compensate for that reduction in oxygen, but the reduction is so gradual that you don’t notice it. Most people will be short of breath but might not realize it.”
According to the WHO, people are considered hypoxic when they have an oxygen saturation level of 90 percent or below. And according to some reports, some happy hypoxics have had oxygen saturation levels as low as 50 percent.
Why is this happening with COVID-19?
It’s unclear at this point. “One theory is that the hypoxia is due to clots in the small blood vessels in the lungs, which impedes oxygen exchange,” Dr. Richard Watkins, an infectious disease physician in Akron, Ohio, and a professor of internal medicine at Northeast Ohio Medical University, tells Yahoo Life. “There are reports that the hypoxia improves with anticoagulants — medication that dissolves it.”
Your brain is trained to notice when levels of carbon dioxide in your body are too high, but not when your oxygen levels are low, Watkins says. That, he says, could help explain why some people can have hypoxia and not realize it.
Is there any way to know if you have happy hypoxia?
Up to 25 percent of people with COVID-19 may not know they have the virus, Dr. Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), told NPR in late March. And, of those, some may have happy hypoxia.
That raises a huge question: How can you know if you’re one of them? It’s likely that people who have happy hypoxia have some symptoms of the condition — they just don’t realize it, Cennimo says. “If you really watch them for a few minutes, you will also notice that many are breathing fast,” he says. “This increase in respiratory rate is trying to compensate.”
At rest, most people breathe 10 to 12 times a minute, Cennimo says, although it’s considered normal to breathe up to 20 times a minute — it just might feel odd. “Many of these happy hypoxic COVID patients are breathing 20 to 30 times a minute. The strange thing is they do not feel winded, like they just ran a race.” To try to see if you might have happy hypoxia, he recommends counting your breathing over the course of a minute to see how often you’re breathing in.
Another easy test, per Schaffner: Try to exert yourself with something you’d normally do, like walking quickly up stairs or going for a jog. If you have happy hypoxia, you’d feel winded quickly, he says.
You can also use a device known as a pulse oximeter, which measures the oxygen saturation in your blood, Schaffner says. However, he recommends doing the exertion test first. “It’s easier and cheaper and probably about as effective,” he says. “If you exert yourself in any way and you’re short of breath, get that attended to.”
If you’re concerned that you might have happy hypoxia, or if you just aren’t feeling right, Schaffner says, it’s a good idea to call your doctor. They should be able to guide you on next steps.

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**Admin** Thu Nov 19, 2020 10:01 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] HERE IS A "PURE' SOLA SCRIPTURA" DISCOURSE ON FAITH BY TRANSLATION. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [275B]

Be not hasty in thy spirit to be angry: for anger resteth in the bosom of fools. Ecclesiastes 7:9, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Almighty God’S (YHWH’S) as found in the Bible makes it clear that all mankind lacks perfection an sins. This is made abundantly clear st Ecclesiastes 7:20 - 22, [AV] “For there is not a just man upon earth, that doeth good, and sinneth not.21 Also take no heed unto all words that are spoken; lest thou hear thy servant curse thee:22 For oftentimes also thine own heart knoweth that thou thyself likewise hast cursed others.” Yes, we need His forgiveness to be counted worthy to live in His Kingdom that Jesus (Yeshua) taught all to pray for at Matthew 6:9 – 10, [AV] “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven.”

[2] HERE IS A "PURE' SOLA SCRIPTURA" DISCOURSE ON FAITH BY TRANSLATION:

Hebrews 11:1-11," Now faith is assurance of [things] hoped for, a conviction of things not seen. 2 For therein the elders had witness borne to them. 3 By faith we understand that the worlds have been framed by the word of God, so that what is seen hath not been made out of things which appear. 4 By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain, through which he had witness borne to him that he was righteous, God bearing witness in respect of his gifts: and through it he being dead yet speaketh. 5 By faith Enoch was translated that he should not see death; and he was not found, because God translated him: for he hath had witness borne to him that before his translation he had been well-pleasing unto God: 6 And without faith it is impossible to be well-pleasing [unto him]; for he that cometh to God must believe that he is, and [that] he is a rewarder of them that seek after him. 7 By faith Noah, being warned [of God] concerning things not seen as yet, moved with godly fear, prepared an ark to the saving of his house; through which he condemned the world, and became heir of the righteousness which is according to faith. 8 By faith Abraham, when he was called, obeyed to go out unto a place which he was to receive for an inheritance; and he went out, not knowing whither he went. 9 By faith he became a sojourner in the land of promise, as in a [land] not his own, dwelling in tents, with Isaac and Jacob, the heirs with him of the same promise: 10 for he looked for the city which hath the foundations, whose builder and maker is God. 11 By faith even Sarah herself received power to conceive seed when she was past age, since she counted him faithful who had promised" (American Standard Version; ASV) which shows that faith is the assured expectation of things hoped for but not yet received and goes on to show examples. We will next take a look at how Hebrews 11:1 is translated in a few Bibles [i.e., translational constructs used].

An American Translation by Dr. James Moffatt:

"1 Now faith means that we are confident of what we hope for, convinced of what we do not see."

Douay Rheims Catholic Bible:

"1 Now, faith is the substance of things to be hoped for, the evidence of things that appear not."

God's Word Translation:

"1 Faith assures us of things we expect and convinces us of the existence of things we cannot see."

Hebrew Name Version of the World English Bible:

"1 Now faith is assurance of things hoped for, proof of things not seen"

King James Bible (AV):

"1 Now faith is the substance of things hoped for, the evidence of things not seen.".

New Living Bible:

"1 What is faith? It is the confident assurance that what we hope for is going to happen. It is the evidence of things we cannot yet see."

New Revised Standard Bible:

"1 Now faith is the assurance of things hoped for, the conviction of things not seen."

New Century Version:

"1 Faith means being sure of the things we hope for and knowing that something is real even if we do not see it."

The Darby Version:

"1 Now faith is [the] substantiating of things hoped for, [the] conviction of things not seen."

The Emphatic Diaglott containing the Original Greek Test & NT according to the Recession of Dr. J. J. Griesbach:

[color=Blue"1 But Faith is a Basis of things hoped for, a Conviction of things unseen."

The New English Bible (NEB):

"1 And what is faith? Faith gives substance to our hopes, and makes us certain of realities we do not see"

The New Testament by Dr. Charles B. Williams - Moody Press:

"1 Now faith is the assurance of the things we hope for, the proof of the reality of the things we cannot see."

The Latin Vulgate by Jerome the greatest Bible translator the RCC ever had:

" 1 est autem fides sperandorum substantia rerum argumentum non parentum."

Young's Literal Translation:

"1 And faith is of things hoped for a confidence, of matters not seen a conviction,"

As can be seen from an examination of the various different translational constructs used for Hebrews 11:1, they although the wording in English and Latin varies a little all are in effect testifying to the same fact, as expressed so well by " "1 But Faith is a Basis of things hoped for, a Conviction of things unseen.". Also, the above was done in a writing form I have coined as "Pure' Sola Scriptura" in Latin or literally meaning in English, pure only scripture, and the reason for this name for this writing style used above should be readily clear to all readers as it consist of mostly pure scripture; whereas, regular 'Sola Scriptura' writing to be called that by most definitions only has to be about 50 percent pure scripture.

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**Admin** Sat Nov 21, 2020 8:21 pm

COMBINATION OF[1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON WHAT IS PROPHECY. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [276B]

And he turned himself about from them, and wept; and returned to them again, and communed with them, and took from them Simeon, and bound him before their eyes. 25 Then Joseph commanded to fill their sacks with corn, and to restore every man’s money into his sack, and to give them provision for the way: and thus did he unto them. Genesis 42:24 – 25, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

We should NOT harbor resentment as shown by Joseph here where he treated his brothers with compassion and not hate even though many years earlier they had sold him into slavery and because of this he had to endure much. Now that he was in a high position as shown in Genesis 42:24 – 25, above he showed love towards his brothers and did not harbor resentment. Likewise, we should not harbor resentment. Instead we should be forgiving as shown at Acts 26:18, [AV] “To open their eyes, and to turn them from darkness to light, and from the power of Satan unto God, that they may receive forgiveness of sins, and inheritance among them which are sanctified by faith that is in me.”

[2] DISCOURSE ON WHAT IS PROPHECY:

Many have stated this or that was prophesied by this or that person or group without understanding the difference between prophecy, and its difference from a group or individual who acts to guide a Christian group under the influence of the Holy Spirit, God's (YHWH's) active force or spirit. Sometimes these groups or individuals taking the lead are spoken of as "prophets" in a symbolic sense, but NOT in the real sense of being a true prophet and/or claiming to be such. Now let's examine what true prophecy is.

True prophecy is an inspired message; a revelation of the divine will and purpose, for example the revelation given to the Apostle John that he wrote-up as the Book of Revelations or Apocalypse. Prophecy may be a prediction of something to come, inspired moral teaching, or an expression of a divine command or judgment. To be real prophecy and not just a prediction or indication, it must come from a deity through DIRECT revelation to an individual as was always the case in the Bible, the word of God (YHWH).

The International Encyclopedia of the Bible describes true prophecy as, " The Seer and Speaker of God:
According to the uniform teaching of the Bible the prophet is a speaker of or for God. His words are not the production of his own spirit, but come from a higher source. For he is at the same time, also, a seer, who sees things that do not lie in the domain of natural sight, or who hears things which human ears do not ordinarily receive; compare 1 Samuel 9:9, where nabhi', "speaker," and ro'eh, "seer," are used as synonymous terms. Jeremiah 23:16 and Ezekiel 13:2 f are particularly instructive in this regard. In these passages a sharp distinction is made between those persons who only claim to be prophets but who prophesy "out of their own heart," and the true prophets who declare the word which the Lord has spoken to them. In the latter case the contents of the prophecy have not originated in their own reflection or calculation; and just as little is this prophecy the product of their own feelings, fears or hopes, but, as something extraneous to man and independent of him, it has with a divine certainty entered the soul of the prophet. The prophet has seen that which he prophesies, although he need not have seen it in the form of a real vision. He can also "see" words with his inner eyes (Isaiah 2:1, and often). It is only another expression for this when it is frequently said that God has spoken to the prophet. In this case too it is not necessary that there must have been a voice which he could hear phonetically through his natural ear. The main thing is that he must have been able sharply to distinguish the contents of this voice from his own heart, i.e. from his personal consciousness. Only in this way is he capable of speaking to the people in the name of God and able to publish his word as that of Yahweh. In this case he is the speaker of Yahweh (nabhi'), or the mouth of the Lord (compare Ezekiel 7:1 with 4:16). Under these conditions he then regards it as absolute compulsion to speak, just as a person must be filled with fear when he hears a lion roar nearby (Amos 3:8). The words burn in his soul until he utters them (Jeremiah 20:7,9)." [source = International Encyclopedia of the Bible]

The dictionary defines prophecy in the Biblical sense as, " An inspired utterance of a prophet, viewed as a revelation of divine will. b. A prediction of the future, made under divine inspiration. c. Such an inspired message or prediction transmitted orally or in writing." [ETYMOLOGY: Middle English prophecie, from Old French, from Latin prophta, from Greek prophteia,] [source = The American Heritage(r) Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition. Copyright (c) 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by the Houghton Mifflin Company.]. As noted, real prophecy is by a direct revelation from a deity either by direct communication or revelation under divine inspiration; is NOT to be confused with what is sometimes spoken of as 'prophecy' in the symbolic or figurative sense such as a small group of footstep followers of Jesus Christ who receive general direction in their activity from the Holy Spirit, but do NOT claim divine revelation or direct communication with a deity.

Today some groups claim to have a prophet, oracle, and/or a leader who receives divine revelations under certain circumstances directly from a deity or by revelation; and these are prophets in the literal sense and/or claim to be. Good examples of those who claim to be prophets in the literal sense are/were Joseph Smith who claimed direct revelations from a deity as you will find recorded in the back of most versions of the Book of Mormon, and the Catholic Church who claims their pope receives revelations, ex Cathedra, or from the chair of Peter.

There are other things such as mere predictions that some mistakenly take as prophecy, but fail to look at the caveats given with the predictions, for example, the head of the state lottery saying you can be a winner if you hold the winning ticket. These mistaken individuals just hear/read you can be a winner, but fail to pay heed to the caveat, if you hold the winning ticket. There are for example groups whose prophet(S) have declared emphatically the culmination of the end times on a very specific date without caveats; they are true prophets, how-be-it all of this type including the group several years ago that hid out in caves proved to be false prophets. On the other hand, many groups have made predictions, not prophecy, that it is possible that the culmination of the end times could possibly happen in a certain period of time providing certain caveats were meant. For example, the Watchtower Society has said such an event could possibly happen during certain time periods and that we are living in the time of the end, which is true, but ONLY IF VERY SPECIFIC CAVEATS WERE MENT. This is NOT prophecy, but indications or predictions that DEPEND on certain necessary caveats or criteria having been meant.

To sum it all up, believe NOT any one who claims to be a true prophet of any flavor, i.e., prophet, pope, or oracle, if they give you a specific end date for the culmination of the end times instead of a possible indicated or predicted time period with caveats of necessary things that must occur first. These who give a specific date are always false prophets since even God's (YHWH's) own Son, Jesus (Yeshua) Christ did not know the date as he himself testified to at Matthew 24:36, " But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only."(Authorized King James Bible; AV).

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**Admin** Mon Nov 23, 2020 8:35 am

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] YOUR CHILD IS IN DANGER!

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [277B]

The LORD is nigh unto them that are of a broken heart; and saveth such as be of a contrite spirit. 19 Many are the afflictions of the righteous: but the LORD delivereth him out of them all. Psalms 34:18 – 19, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

And as Psalms 147:3, says, [AV] “He healeth the broken in heart, and bindeth up their wounds.” The Prophet Isaiah wrote at Isaiah 61:1, [AV] “The Spirit of the Lord GOD is upon me; because the LORD hath anointed me to preach good tidings unto the meek; he hath sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim liberty to the captives, and the opening of the prison to them that are bound;” Yes, the Lord understands the plight of the obedient one in an unjust world as shown at Isaiah 57:15, [AV] “For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy; I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite ones. “ The Apostle Luke highlighted this point at Luke 4:18, [AV] “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor; he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted, to preach deliverance to the captives, and recovering of sight to the blind, to set at liberty them that are bruised,”

[2] YOUR CHILD IS IN DANGER! [A SHORT SERIES]

How Can We Protect Our Children?

Prevention in the Home
Common Misconceptions
If Your Child Is Abused
Related topics:

Let Us Abhor What Is Wicked
Comfort for Those With a "Stricken Spirit"

Child Molesting—You Can Protect Your Child

Misconception: Child abusers are usually strangers, deranged misfits who abduct children and use physical force to abuse them. In the vast majority of cases—from 85 to 90 percent by some estimates—the abuser is a person the child knows and trusts. Rather than using force, abusers often manipulate the child into sexual acts gradually, taking advantage of the child's limited experience and reasoning ability. (Compare 1 Corinthians 13:11,[AV] “When I was a child, I spake as a child, I understood as a child, I thought as a child: but when I became a man, I put away childish things.” and Proverbs 22:15, [AV] “Foolishness is bound in the heart of a child; but the rod of correction shall drive it far from him.”) These abusers are not the drooling loners of the stereotype. Many are quite religious, respected, and well liked in the community. According to the U.S. Federal Bureau of Investigation, "to assume that someone is not a pedophile simply because he is nice, goes to church, works hard, is kind to animals, and so on, is absurd." Recent research suggests that it is also wrong to assume that all abusers are male or that all victims are female.

Misconception: Children fantasize or lie about sexual abuse.

Under normal circumstances children lack the experience or sophistication in sexual matters to invent explicit claims of abuse, although some small children may become confused about details. Even the most skeptical of researchers agree that most claims of abuse are valid. Consider the book Sex Abuse Hysteria—Salem Witch Trials Revisited, which focuses on false claims of abuse.* This book admits: "Genuine sex abuse of children is widespread and the vast majority of sex abuse allegations of children . . . are likely to be justified (perhaps 95% or more)." Children find it enormously difficult to report abuse. When they do lie about abuse, it is most often to deny that it happened even though it actually did.
Misconception: Children are seductive and frequently bring the abuse on themselves by their conduct.

This notion is particularly warped, since, in effect, it blames the victim for the abuse. Children have no real concept of sexuality. They have no idea of what such activity implies or of how it will change them. They are therefore incapable of consenting to it in any meaningful way. It is the abuser, and the abuser alone, who bears the blame for the abuse.—Compare Luke 11:11, 12. [If a son shall ask bread of any of you that is a father, will he give him a stone? or if he ask a fish, will he for a fish give him a serpent? 12 Or if he shall ask an egg, will he offer him a scorpion? [AV]]

Misconception: When children disclose abuse, parents should teach them to refrain from talking about it and to 'put it behind them.' Who is best served if the child keeps silent about the abuse? Is it NOT the abuser? In fact, studies have shown that denial with emotional suppression may be the least effective way to deal with the trauma of abuse. Of the nine coping methods used by one group of adult survivors studied in England, the ones who denied, avoided, or suppressed the issue suffered the greater emotional maladjustment and distress in adult life. If you experienced a terrifying assault, would you want to be told not to talk about it? Why tell a child such a thing? Allowing the child the normal reaction to such a terrible event, such as grief, anger, mourning, will give him the opportunity eventually to put the abuse in the past.

* In some divorce cases, contending adults have been known to use an accusation of child abuse as a weapon.

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**Admin** Wed Nov 25, 2020 8:12 am

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] UNJUST PUNISHMENT FOR BEING A VICTIM OF A HEINOUS ATTACK: . With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [279B]

Through thy precepts I get understanding: therefore I hate every false way. 105 Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. 106 I have sworn, and I will perform it, that I will keep thy righteous judgments. Psalms 119.105, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Here the Psalmist likens Almighty God (YHWH) word to a guiding light that will lead a believer in the way of righteousness. And yes it truly is as shown by the model prayer found at Matthew 6:9 – 13, [AV] “After this manner therefore pray ye: Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. 10 Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done in earth, as it is in heaven. 11 Give us this day our daily bread. 12 And forgive us our debts, as we forgive our debtors. 13 And lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil: For thine is the kingdom, and the power, and the glory, for ever. Amen.”

[2] UNJUST PUNISHMENT FOR BEING A VICTIM OF A HEINOUS ATTACK:

Almighty God (YHWH) IS A God of perfect justice as testified to at Job 37:23, [authorized King James Bible; AV] “ Touching the Almighty, we cannot find him out: he is excellent in power, and in judgment, and in plenty of justice: he will not afflict.” This is clearly shown also in other places in the Bible, and His justice is baised on His chief attribute, love, per 1 John 4:8 – 11, [AV] “He that loveth not knoweth not God; for God is love. 9 In this was manifested the love of God toward us, because that God sent his only begotten Son into the world, that we might live through him. 10 Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another.”
However other gods, the imaginary ones who are just puppets of Satan the Devil are not for righteous justice and guide their followers in the way of injustice. They direct their followers to afflict the afflicted and to pervert justice for victims of heinous crimes. Instead of helping these afflicted ones, they seek to punish them for being victims. This is an evil wrong.
Let’s look at an example appearing in the world news.
“Qatar convicts Dutch tourist who says she was raped
David Harding,AFP

Doha (AFP) - Qatar is to deport a Dutch woman who was convicted of adultery on Monday and given a one-year suspended sentence after she reported being raped while on holiday in Doha.

The 22-year-old, known only as Laura and who was not in court, was also fined 3,000 Qatari riyals ($800/710 euros) and will be deported once she pays the fine, court officials said.

She had denied the charge against her.

The male defendant, said by a court official to be Syrian and named as Omar Abdullah al-Hasan, was sentenced to 100 lashes for having illicit sex and 40 lashes for drinking alcohol.

Hasan, who was also not present in court, will undergo a medical examination to see if he is fit enough to withstand his punishment.
He will not serve any time in jail but will also be deported from the Gulf state once he has been punished.

Dutch ambassador to Qatar Yvette Burghgraef-van Eechoud, who was present in the packed courtroom, told reporters that the embassy would help Laura to leave Qatar.

"We will do everything to get her out of the country as soon as possible to where she wants to go," Eechoud said.

The envoy added that she expected Laura to leave Qatar, which will host the football World Cup in 2022, within the next few days.
The ambassador added that she had spoken to Laura on Sunday and said that "under the circumstances she was doing fine".
In the Netherlands, Laura's mother said she had not yet spoken to her daughter but was "so happy" at the news of her release.
- 'So happy' -
"I do not know yet when she gets home, but this is not most important," she told the Dutch television NOS website.

"The most important is that she gets home... I am so happy," she said.
Laura was arrested on March 14 and has since been held in custody.
Her lawyer previously said that the incident happened after she had visited a Doha hotel.

"She went dancing but when she returned to the table after the first sip of her drink, she realised that" she had been drugged, Brian Lokollo has said.

"She really didn't feel very well," he added.
The young woman remembers nothing more until the following morning when she woke up in a totally unfamiliar apartment "and realised to her great horror, that she had been raped," Lokollo said.
The male defendant had insisted that their night together had been consensual and that the woman had even asked for money.
Adultery, or illicit sex, is treated as a serious crime in the conservative emirate.

But the case provoked an international outcry with many people appalled by the treatment of an alleged rape victim and an online campaign using the #freelaura hashtag to try to draw attention to the Dutch woman's imprisonment.

Nicholas McGeehan, Gulf researcher at Human Rights Watch, said the case demonstrated that "proper procedures and investigation are needed to avoid such cases in the future". [SOURC - RETRIEVED FROM https://www.yahoo.com/news/qatar-hands-suspended-sentence-dutch-rape-complaint-woman-081252631.html ON 6/13/2016]

As can be seen, this Dutch tourist was treated as a criminal just for reporting a heinous crime that had been committed against her. This is a perversion of justice due to the authorities being under the control of a false puppet god of Satan the Devil and NOT Almighty God (YHWH) .

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**Admin** Thu Nov 26, 2020 12:16 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] YOUR CHILD IS IN DANGER! [A SHORT SERIES – SECTION 2]

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [278B]

For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved. John 3:16 – 17, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

It is necessary to believe on him as emphasized by John 3:18, [AV] “He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” Indeed Almighty God (YHWH) loves us as clearly shown by 1 John 4:10 – 13, [AV] “Herein is love, not that we loved God, but that he loved us, and sent his Son to be the propitiation for our sins. 11 Beloved, if God so loved us, we ought also to love one another. 12 No man hath seen God at any time. If we love one another, God dwelleth in us, and his love is perfected in us. 13 Hereby know we that we dwell in him, and he in us, because he hath given us of his Spirit.” And as Jesus (Yeshua) said at John 12:44, [AV] “Jesus cried and said, He that believeth on me, believeth not on me, but on him that sent me.” Which harkens back to Matthew 4:10, [AV] “Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve.”

[2] YOUR CHILD IS IN DANGER! [A SHORT SERIES – SECTION 2]

How Can We Protect Our Children?

Prevention in the Home Common Misconceptions

If Your Child Is Abused

Related topics:
Let Us Abhor What Is Wicked
Comfort for Those With a "Stricken Spirit"
Child Molesting—You Can Protect Your Child The molestation of children is an ugly reality in this sick world. Lear's magazine said: "It affects more of us than cancer, more of us than heart disease, more of us than AIDS." Awake! thus feels an obligation to try to alert its readers to this danger and what can be done about it.—Compare Ezekiel 3:17-21 [Son of man, I have made thee a watchman unto the house of Israel: therefore hear the word at my mouth, and give them warning from me. 18 When I say unto the wicked, Thou shalt surely die; and thou givest him not warning, nor speakest to warn the wicked from his wicked way, to save his life; the same wicked man shall die in his iniquity; but his blood will I require at thine hand. 19 Yet if thou warn the wicked, and he turn not from his wickedness, nor from his wicked way, he shall die in his iniquity; but thou hast delivered thy soul. 20 Again, When a righteous man doth turn from his righteousness, and commit iniquity, and I lay a stumblingblock before him, he shall die: because thou hast not given him warning, he shall die in his sin, and his righteousness which he hath done shall not be remembered; but his blood will I require at thine hand. 21 Nevertheless if thou warn the righteous man, that the righteous sin not, and he doth not sin, he shall surely live, because he is warned; also thou hast delivered thy soul, [AUTHORIZED KING JAMES BIBLE; AV]].; Romans 13:11-13, [AV] “And that, knowing the time, that now it is high time to awake out of sleep: for now is our salvation nearer than when we believed. 12 The night is far spent, the day is at hand: let us therefore cast off the works of darkness, and let us put on the armour of light. 13 Let us walk honestly, as in the day; not in rioting and drunkenness, not in chambering and wantonness, not in strife and envying.”]

IN RECENT years a global outcry has arisen over the molestation of children. But the media attention, replete with celebrities who have publicly disclosed their own experiences of childhood abuse, has led to some popular misconceptions. Some believe that all this talk about attacks on children is simply the latest fad. In truth, though, there is little new about such sexual assault. It is nearly as old as human history itself.

An Ancient Problem
Some 4,000 years ago, the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah were famous for depravity. Pedophilia was apparently among the region's many vices. Genesis 19:4, [“But before they lay down, the men of the city, even the men of Sodom, compassed the house round, both old and young, all the people from every quarter,’ [AV]] describes a sex-crazed mob of Sodomites ranging "from boy to old man" seeking to rape Lot's two male guests. Consider: Why would mere boys be inflamed with the idea of raping males? Clearly they had already been introduced to homosexual perversions.
Centuries later, the nation of Israel moved into the region of Canaan. So steeped was this land in incest, sodomy, bestiality, prostitution, and even the ritualized sacrifice of little children to demon gods that all these vile acts had to be expressly forbidden in the Mosaic Law. (Leviticus 18:6, [None of you shall approach to any that is near of kin to him, to uncover their nakedness: I am the LORD.“ [AV]], 21-23, [And thou shalt not let any of thy seed pass through the fire to Molech, neither shalt thou profane the name of thy God: I am the LORD. 22 Thou shalt not lie with mankind, as with womankind: it is abomination. 23 Neither shalt thou lie with any beast to defile thyself therewith: neither shall any woman stand before a beast to lie down thereto: it is confusion.“ [AV]]; 19:29, [“Do not prostitute thy daughter, to cause her to be a whore; lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness’ [AV]]; Jeremiah 32:35, {“And they built the high places of Baal, which are in the valley of the son of Hinnom, to cause their sons and their daughters to pass through the fire unto Molech; which I commanded them not, neither came it into my mind, that they should do this abomination, to cause Judah to sin.” [AV]]. Despite divine warnings, rebellious Israelites, including some of their rulers, adopted these despicable practices.—Psalm 106:35-38, [“But were mingled among the heathen, and learned their works. 36 And they served their idols: which were a snare unto them. 37 Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils, 38 And shed innocent blood, even the blood of their sons and of their daughters, whom they sacrificed unto the idols of Canaan: and the land was polluted with blood.” [AV]].

Ancient Greece and Rome, however, were far worse than Israel in this regard. Infanticide was common to both, and in Greece it was a widely accepted practice for older men to have relations with young boys. Boy brothels flourished in every ancient Greek city. In the Roman Empire, child prostitution was so prevalent that special taxes and holidays were set up specifically for that trade. In the arenas, girls were raped and forced into acts of bestiality. Similar atrocities were prevalent in many other ancient nations.

What about modern times? Is mankind too civilized for such horrible sex acts to flourish today? Students of the Bible cannot accept this notion. They well know that the apostle Paul characterized our era as "critical times hard to deal with." He detailed the rampant self-love, the love of pleasure, and the disintegration of natural family love that overrun modern society and added; per 2 Timothy 3:1-5, 13, [AV] “This know also, that in the last days perilous times shall come. 2 For men shall be lovers of their own selves, covetous, boasters, proud, blasphemers, disobedient to parents, unthankful, unholy, 3 Without natural affection, trucebreakers, false accusers, incontinent, fierce, despisers of those that are good, 4 Traitors, heady, highminded, lovers of pleasures more than lovers of God; 5 Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away,” and (13), “But evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived.”]; Revelation 12:7-12, [AV] “And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 9 And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. 10 And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. 12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.”]. Has child molestation, so often perpetrated by "wicked men and impostors," got worse? Yes, and some evil false religions even promote it, and consider the marriage of pedophiles to young female children as young as six.

An Urgent Problem,” Assaults on children are often cloaked in secrecy, so much so that they have been called perhaps the most unreported of crimes. Even so, such crimes have evidently spiraled upward in recent decades. In the United States, a survey on the subject was conducted by the Los Angeles Times. It found that 27 percent of the women and 16 percent of the men had been sexually abused as children. Shocking as these statistics are, other careful estimates for the United States have run considerably higher.

In Malaysia, reports of child molestation have quadrupled over the past decade. In Thailand, some 75 percent of the men in one survey admitted to using child prostitutes. In Germany, officials estimate that as many as 300,000 children are sexually abused each year. According to South Africa's Cape Times, the number of reports of such assaults soared by 175 percent in a recent three-year period. In the Netherlands and Canada, researchers found that about one third of all women had been sexually abused as children. In Finland, 18 percent of the ninth-grade girls (15 or 16 years old) and 7 percent of the boys reported having had sexual contact with someone at least five years their senior.

In various countries disturbing reports have surfaced about religious cults that abuse children with sadistic sexual practices and torture. Often, those who report that they were victims of such crimes are treated with incredulity, not compassion.

So child molestation is neither new nor rare; it is a long-standing problem that is epidemic today. Its impact can be devastating. Many survivors suffer profound feelings of worthlessness and low self-esteem. Experts in the field have listed some common aftereffects of incest on girls, such as running away, drug and alcohol abuse, depression, attempted suicide, delinquency, promiscuity, sleep disturbances, and learning problems. Long-range effects may include poor parenting skills, frigidity, distrust of men, marriage to a pedophile, lesbianism, prostitution, and child molestation itself.

These aftereffects are not inevitable for a victim; nor could anyone rightly excuse wrong conduct solely on the grounds of having been assaulted in the past. Abuse does not predestine its victims to be immoral or delinquent; nor does it dissolve all their personal responsibility for the choices they make later in life. But these common outcomes for victims are real dangers. They add urgency to the question, How can we protect children from molestation?

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**Admin** Sat Nov 28, 2020 4:51 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON BAPTISM. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [280B]

And the LORD God said unto the serpent, Because thou hast done this, thou art cursed above all cattle, and above every beast of the field; upon thy belly shalt thou go, and dust shalt thou eat all the days of thy life: 15 And I will put enmity between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed; it shall bruise thy head, and thou shalt bruise his heel Genesis 3:15 – 16, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Here Almighty God (YHWH) passes sentence; and it begins where the sin began, with the serpent. Under the cover of the serpent, the devil is sentenced to be degraded and accursed of God; detested and abhorred of all mankind: also to be destroyed and ruined at last by the great savior. Yes, Satan would bruise him in the heel by having him executed on a stake, as a human; however, he would bruise Satan in the head, signifying the end of Satan and his followers. And Revelation 20:1 – 3, [AV] “And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. 2 And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, 3 And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.” Highlights how Jesus (Yeshua) would imprison him for a 1,000 years, and then per Revelation 20:7 – 10, [AV] “And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8 And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9 And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. 10 And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever.” Shows he will be permanently destroyed.”

[2] DISCOURSE ON BAPTISM:

PART 1 - Necessary Step of Obedience for All Followers of Jesus

It is necessary for all followers of Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) to be baptized as clearly shown by the scriptures:

This was shown by the example of Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) getting baptized by John the Baptist in the Jordan river, "13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. 16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:13-17 AV). We are told, " For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:" (1 Peter 2:21 AV).

He told his followers to, "19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." (Matthew 28:19-20 AV). And the Apostle Peter stated, "44 While Peter yet spake these words, the Holy Ghost fell on all them which heard the word. 45 And they of the circumcision which believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because that on the Gentiles also was poured out the gift of the Holy Ghost. 46 For they heard them speak with tongues, and magnify God. Then answered Peter, 47 Can any man forbid water, that these should not be baptized, which have received the Holy Ghost as well as we? 48 And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days." (Acts 10:44-48 AV). And "" But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." (Acts 8:12 AV)

PART 2 - Complete Immersion Required

On baptism, the Bible clearly shows that it should be by complete immersion and not by sprinkling. This is clearly shown as follows, "8 I indeed have baptized you with water: but he shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost. 9 ¶ And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan. 10 And straightway coming up out of the water, he saw the heavens opened, and the Spirit like a dove descending upon him: 11 And there came a voice from heaven, saying, Thou art my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased. 12 And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness." (Mark 1:8-12 AV). This was further highlighted "22 ¶ After these things came Jesus and his disciples into the land of Judaea; and there he tarried with them, and baptized. 23 And John also was baptizing in Aenon near to Salim, because there was much water there: and they came, and were baptized." (John 3:23 AV). As can be seen, baptizing was always carried out near a significant body of water "36 And as they went on their way, they came unto a certain water: and the eunuch said, See, here is water; what doth hinder me to be baptized? 37 And Philip said, If thou believest with all thine heart, thou mayest. And he answered and said, I believe that Jesus Christ is the Son of God. 38 And he commanded the chariot to stand still: and they went down both into the water, both Philip and the eunuch; and he baptized him. 39 And when they were come up out of the water, the Spirit of the Lord caught away Philip, that the eunuch saw him no more: and he went on his way rejoicing." (Acts 8:36-39 AV).

Now with Jesus being baptized as a necessary step of obedience to this Father (YHWH) and to open the way for his followers to do the will of him who sent him "13 ¶ Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him. 14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me? 15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him. 16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: 17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." Therefore we should clearly follow his example and be baptized by full immersion in water if we are to accept the calling of Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) " For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:" (1 Peter 2:21 AV), "19 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: 20 Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen." (Matthew 28:19-20 AV), " And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then prayed they him to tarry certain days." (Acts 10:48 AV), " But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." (Acts 8:12 AV).

Now, you will note, they were to be baptized in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and the Holy Ghost; therefore, it is important to know their names.

PART 3 - For A Valid Baptism One's Life Must Harmonize With Bible Standards

Before one gets baptized, he should first repent of his/her past wrong doings, " Then Peter said unto them, Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost." (Acts 2:38 AV). You must put away, "22 That ye put off concerning the former conversation the old man, which is corrupt according to the deceitful lusts; 23 And be renewed in the spirit of your mind; 24 And that ye put on the new man, which after God is created in righteousness and true holiness." (Ephesians 4:22-24 AV).

Last, we must turn away from deviant sexual appetite and sexual lust and cease being children of disobedience, "5 Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth; fornication, uncleanness, inordinate affection, evil concupiscence, and covetousness, which is idolatry: 6 For which things' sake the wrath of God cometh on the children of disobedience: 7 In the which ye also walked some time, when ye lived in them. 8 But now ye also put off all these; anger, wrath, malice, blasphemy, filthy communication out of your mouth. 9 Lie not one to another, seeing that ye have put off the old man with his deeds; 10 And have put on the new man, which is renewed in knowledge after the image of him that created him:" (Colossians 3:5-10 AV).

PART 4 - The Purpose of Baptism

Many individuals have the wrong impression about the purpose of Baptism. They feel its purpose is to wash away one's sins, but that is incorrect. To fully understand the need for baptism, we must remember that, " And almost all things are by the law purged with blood; and without shedding of blood is no remission." (Hebrews 9:22 AV); that Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves), " Who did no sin, neither was guile found in his mouth:" (1 Peter 2:22 AV); " And it came to pass in those days, that Jesus came from Nazareth of Galilee, and was baptized of John in Jordan." (Mark 1:9 AV). These three scriptures highlight that Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) deemed it proper to get baptized, and clearly he was without sin; therefore, baptism can not be for the remission of sins, it must have another purpose.

Then, what is it for? Its purpose is to symbolize one's dying to his/her former course of life and of his/her dedication to hence forth do the will of God. " Who his own self bare our sins in his own body on the tree, that we, being dead to sins, should live unto righteousness: by whose stripes ye were healed." (1 Peter 2:24 AV) clearly shows that after baptism we are to live unto righteousness.

Therefore, the common practice of infant baptism is just as unscriptural as is baptism by sprinkling since complete immersion is a requirement as previously shown. It is necessary to embrace his words and an infant is not capable of doing so, " Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls." (Acts 2:41 AV), this is further emphasized by, " But when they believed Philip preaching the things concerning the kingdom of God, and the name of Jesus Christ, they were baptized, both men and women." (Acts 8:12 AV), and by "21 ¶ Now when all the people were baptized, it came to pass, that Jesus also being baptized, and praying, the heaven was opened, 22 And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him, and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased. 23 And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli," (Luke 21-23 AV).

PART 5 - Baptizing In The Name Of The Father, The Son, and The Holy Spirit

This section dealing with the command, " Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:" (Matthew 28:19 AV). Most individuals are familiar with this scripture, but few understand the reason for baptizing this way.

Subpart - In the Name of the Father

This is necessary as it is recognizing the office or authority of Almighty God (YHWH) who created everything and who has always existed per Psalms 90:2. This is made clear, " That men may know that thou, whose name alone is JEHOVAH [(YHWH)], art the most high over all the earth." (Psalms 83:18 AV), which clearly shows that he is "the most high over all the earth." And he is the source of live as stated, " For with thee is the fountain of life: in thy light shall we see light." (Psalms 36:9 AV)

He, Almighty God (YHWH), is the creator of all things, " And Hezekiah prayed before the LORD, and said, O LORD God of Israel, which dwellest between the cherubims, thou art the God, even thou alone, of all the kingdoms of the earth; thou hast made heaven and earth." (2 Kings 19:15 AV), and " For the LORD is our judge, the LORD is our lawgiver, the LORD is our king; he will save us." (Isaiah 33:22 AV).

Subpart - In The Name of the Son

This is necessary as it is recognizing the office or authority of the Son, Jesus (Yeshua or YHWH saves) who is the only begotten son and the first of creation by his Father (YHWH). His Father (YHWH) exalted him to a position only second only to himself, "9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (Philippians 2:9-11 AV). And, he was given, " And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS." (Revelation 19:16 AV)

He proved faithful to his Father (YHWH), " And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood," (Revelation 1:5 AV); therefore, he became, "9 And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him; 10 Called of God an high priest after the order of Melchisedec." (Hebrews 5:9-10 AV).

And, last but not least, he became, "" For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;" (1 Timothy 2:5 AV), and " And to Jesus the mediator of the new covenant, and to the blood of sprinkling, that speaketh better things than that of Abel." (Hebrews 12:24 AV)

Subpart - In The Name of the Holy Spirit

This is necessary to recognize the function or activity of the Holy Spirit (Holy Ghost). This is God's (YHWH's) active force that goes forth or emanates from Almighty God (YHWH). One of its functions is to act as a Comforter to mankind, " But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." (John 14:26 AV), "16 And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever; 17 Even the Spirit of truth; whom the world cannot receive, because it seeth him not, neither knoweth him: but ye know him; for he dwelleth with you, and shall be in you." (John 14:16-17 AV).

It is the Creator's (YHWH's) force for getting things accomplished, " And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God:" (Ephesians 6:17 AV), " But God hath revealed them unto us by his Spirit: for the Spirit searcheth all things, yea, the deep things of God." (1 Corinthians 2:10 AV).

God (YHWH) pours out his active force onto his followers, "28 And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions:
29 And also upon the servants and upon the handmaids in those days will I pour out my spirit." (Joel 2:28-29 AV), and also caused inspired individuals to " For the prophecy came not in old time by the will of man: but holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost." (2 Peter 1:21 AV).

Subpart - Warning

Baptism in the name of an organization or church is not in accord with the Word of God.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Sun Nov 29, 2020 6:45 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] DISCOURSE ON THE TRINITY MYSTERY WITH THREE QUESTIONS. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [281B]

Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; Ephesians 4:13 – 14, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yes, we must work to win Almighty God’s (YHWH’s) approval and this is emphasized at Colossians 2:26 – 29, [AV] “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: 28 Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 29 Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.”

[2] DISCOURSE ON THE TRINITY MYSTERY WITH THREE QUESTIONS:

Many groups and denominations often claim hat trinity myth is a big mystery.

With their claim of it being a mystery, it is, the Trinity is a mystery just like all frauds worked against mankind. It is nothing but the deceitful product of the human mind and absolutely finds not support in reality. It was adopted because of the driving force of two Roman Empire Emperors over two great church councils of an apostate church, the Council of Nicea in 325 A.D. under the absolute control of Emperor Constantine, a pagan Emperor who worshipped a sun God, and the Council of Constantinople of 381 A.D., under the control of Emperor Theodosius. In other words this fraud was the political product of two Roman Empire Emperors who knew little about Christianity and cared less. Their objective was not to keep the faith pure, but to do what ever was necessary to obtain religious unity within the empire to strengthen it. "A Short History of Christian Doctrine," states, "Constantine had basically no understanding whatsoever of the questions that were being asked in Greek theology." However, both emperors, Constantine and Theodosius, understood very well that the religious division of the empire at that time was a very real threat to the empire (Roman) and they wanted to solidify their domain.

Of this so called mystery the International Standard Bible Encyclopedia, volume 4 [From page 3012-3014], states,

"The term 'Trinity' is not a Biblical term and we are not using Biblical language when we define what is expressed by it as the doctrine that there is one only and true God, but in the unity of the Godhead there are three coeternal and coequal Persons, the same in substance but distinct in subsistence. A doctrine so defined can be spoken of as a Biblical doctrine only on the principle that the sense of Scripture is Scripture. And the definition of a Biblical doctrine in such un-Biblical language can be justified only on the principle that it is better to preserve the truth of Scripture than the words of Scripture.

"...the doctrine of the Trinity is given to us in Scripture, not in formulated doctrine, but in fragmentary allusions.

"The doctrine of the Trinity is purely a revealed doctrine. That is to say, it embodies a truth which has never been discovered, and is indiscoverable, by natural reason.

"Triads of divinities, no doubt, occur in nearly all polytheistic religions, formed under very various influences. Sometimes, as in the Egyptian triad of Osiris, Isis and Horus, it is the analogy of the human family with its father, mother and son which lies at their basis. Sometimes they are the effect of mere syncretism, three deities worshipped in different localities being brought together in the common worship of all.

"Sometimes they are the result apparently of nothing more than odd human tendency to think in threes, which has given the number three wide-spread standing as a sacred number.

"It should be needless to say that none of these triads has the slightest resemblance to the Christian doctrine of the Trinity.

"As the doctrine of the Trinity is indiscoverable by reason, so it is incapable of proof from reason. There are no analogies to it in Nature, not even in the spiritual nature of man, who is made in the image of God. In His Trinitarian mode of being, God is unique; and, as there is nothing in the universe like Him in this respect, so there is nothing which can help us to comprehend Him. Many attempts have, nevertheless, been made to construct a rational proof of the Trinity of the Godhead.

"Certainly we cannot speak broadly of the revelation of the doctrine of the Trinity in the Old Testament. It is a plain matter of fact that none who have depended on the revelation embodied in the Old Testament alone have ever attained to the doctrine of the Trinity.

"It would seem clear that we must recognize in the Old Testament doctrine of the relation of God to His revelation by the creative Word and the Spirit, at least the germ of the distinctions in the Godhead afterward fully made known in the Christian revelation."

NOW QUESTION TIME FOR THOSE NOT UNDERSTANDING THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN MYTHS AND REALITY:

(1-question) Now a question for you, Matthew says of the temptation of Jesus (Jeshua or YHWH saves), "Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. 2 And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred.

3 And when the tempter came to him, he said, If thou be the Son of God, command that these stones be made bread.

4 But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God. 5 Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, 6 And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. 7 Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God. 8 Again, the devil taketh him up into an exceeding high mountain, and sheweth him all the kingdoms of the world, and the glory of them; 9 And saith unto him, All these things will I give thee, if thou wilt fall down and worship me. 10 Then saith Jesus unto him, Get thee hence, Satan: for it is written, Thou shalt worship the Lord thy God, and him only shalt thou serve. 11 Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him." (Matthew 4:1-11, Authorized King James Bible, AV).

This was clearly a test of loyalty, would Jesus (Jeshua or YHWH) keep his loyalty to Almighty God (YHWH) or not. However, if he were God as per the Trinity doctrine, how could God rebel against himself and be disloyal to himself? [Please explain]

2-question) Let's assume for a moment that Jesus were part of a Godhead, i.e., a Trinity, the ransom price would have been infinitely higher than what God's (YHWH's) own Law required per "And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, 24 Eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, 25 Burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe." (Exodus 21:23-25 AV) and "And if a man cause a blemish in his neighbour; as he hath done, so shall it be done to him; 20 Breach for breach, eye for eye, tooth for tooth: as he hath caused a blemish in a man, so shall it be done to him again. 21 And he that killeth a beast, he shall restore it: and he that killeth a man, he shall be put to death." (Leviticus 24:19-21, AV).

Remember it was only a perfect human, Adam, who sinned in Eden, not God. Thus the ransom, to be equivalent or in line with God's (YHWH's) justice, had to be strictly an equivalent, i.e., a perfect human, "the last Adam." Therefore, when God sent Jesus to earth as the ransom, he made Jesus to be what would equate or satisfy justice, not an incarnation, nor a god-man, but a perfect man, " But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels for the suffering of death, crowned with glory and honour; that he by the grace of God should taste death for every man." (Hebrews 2:9 AV). How could any part of an almighty Godhead (Trinity) of Father (YHWH) , Son (Jesus), or holy spirit ever be lower than angels? [Please explain]

3-question) Supporters of the Trinity claim that in the case of Jesus, "only-begotten" is different from the dictionary definition of "begetting," that is "to procreate as the father," [Webster's Ninth New Collegiate Dictionary]. They claim that in Jesus case it means "a sort of only son relationship without the begetting; however, "Vine's Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testament Words." Now does that sound logical to you? Can a man father a son without begetting him? [Please explain]

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Thu Dec 03, 2020 11:31 am

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE Day, [2]LEARN ABOUT WHAT ALMIGHTY GOD’S (YHWH) KINGDOM WILL ACCOMPLISH.AND [3] THE RARE FRUIT TREES AND VEGETABLES - Cyperaceae spp With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [282B]

Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God, 2 Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment. Hebrews 6:1 -2, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yes, we should be advancing in the understanding of Almighty God’a (YHWH’a) word and not regressing in understanding. This fact is emphized at Hebrews 5:11 – 14, [AV] “Of whom we have many things to say, and hard to be uttered, seeing ye are dull of hearing. 12 For when for the time ye ought to be teachers, ye have need that one teach you again which be the first principles of the oracles of God; and are become such as have need of milk, and not of strong meat. 13 For every one that useth milk is unskilful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe. 14 But strong meat belongeth to them that are of full age, even those who by reason of use have their senses exercised to discern both good and evil.”

[2] LEARN ABOUT WHAT ALMIGHTY GOD’S (YHWH) KINGDOM WILL ACCOMPLISH.

Learn what Almighty God’s kingdom will accomplish, go to: https://www.jw.org/en/library/magazines/watchtower-no2-2020-may-jun/what-will-gods-kingdom-accomplish/

[3] THE RARE FRUIT TREES AND VEGETABLES - Cyperaceae spp

Here is a Commentary on Bountiful Trees and Vegetables God (YHWH) has provided for mankind, specifically the Cyperaceae spp., Nutsedge

Abundance: plentiful, What: tubers, seeds
How: tubers and seeds can be eaten raw or cooked
Where: fields, lawns, marshes, woods, water
When: summer
Nutritional Value: seeds contain protein and carbohydrates, tubers contain starch
WARNING - DANGERS: BEWARE OF TOXIC MIMIC VERBANE. THE STEM OF EDIBLE NUTSEDGES ARE TRIANGULAR IN SHAPE WHILE THE TOXIC VERBANE HAS A ROUND STEM. THOROUGHLY WASH ANY PLANTS COLLECTED FROM WATER TO REMOVE HARMFUL BACTERIA.

"Sedges Have Edges" meaning all nutsedges have triangular stalks.

Sticking up like small palm trees, thick clusters of nutsedges spot the landscape...usually infuriating the landowner. They can range in size from just a few inches tall and as thin as a pencil lead to multiple feet high with stalks thicker than a pencil. All varieties have several things in common: sedges have edges meaning the stalks are always triangular with some being rounded and others have very sharp corners, the stalks are bare of leaves until the very top which makes me thing the look like palm trees, and they are almost impossible to eradicate from an area. Their habitats range from cracks in parking lots to yards and fields to into shallow water. Once they mature seed clusters will form on short stalks among the leaves at the top of the sedge in a bunch of different shapes.

Nutsedges were originals cultivated in ancient times as both a food source. Along with seeds there are deposits of starch in pea-sized tubers along the roots. These must be carefully dug out of the ground as the roots are fragile and will tear away if the nutsedge is pulled from the soil. Loose, sandy soil will have a large crop of these root nuts while heavy clay soils will have very few. They can be eaten raw or toasted.

The best "nuts" come from the Chufa Nutsedge (Cyperus esculentus var. sativus) which came originally from Africa but quickly spread through North America. Part of this spread is due to deer and turkeys loving these underground nuts and so one can buy bags of Chufa at larger hunting supply stores. Do not eat the purchased nuts as they may have been treated with a surface fungicide. These nuts are meant to be planted in late fall or early spring to grow a crop for the animals to eat starting in late summer.

Chufa nuts are also used to make the drink "Horchata de Chufa" by soaking the ground nuts in water. This is similar to almond milk. [sourc - retrieved from http://www.foragingtexas.com/2008/08/nutsedge.html on 6/2/2016]

In Genesis 1:11-13, "And God said, Let the earth put forth grass, herbs yielding seed, and fruit-trees bearing fruit after their kind, wherein is the seed thereof, upon the earth: and it was so. 12 And the earth brought forth grass, herbs yielding seed after their kind, and trees bearing fruit, wherein is the seed thereof, after their kind: and God saw that it was good. 13 And there was evening and there was morning, a third day. (American Standard Version, ASV)[for more details, go to www.jw.org].

To view this plant, go to, http://www.foragingtexas.com/2008/08/nutsedge.html

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Fri Dec 04, 2020 6:35 pm

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] SPECIAL EXCEPTIONS TO BAPTISM AS A REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION: With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [283B]

Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fulness of Christ: 14 That we henceforth be no more children, tossed to and fro, and carried about with every wind of doctrine, by the sleight of men, and cunning craftiness, whereby they lie in wait to deceive; Ephesians 4:13 – 14, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yes, we must work to win Almighty God’s (YHWH’s) approval and this is emphasized at Colossians 2:26 – 29, [AV] “Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints: 27 To whom God would make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory: 28 Whom we preach, warning every man, and teaching every man in all wisdom; that we may present every man perfect in Christ Jesus: 29 Whereunto I also labour, striving according to his working, which worketh in me mightily.”

[2] SPECIAL EXCEPTIONS TO BAPTISM AS A REQUIREMENT FOR SALVATION:

Normally baptism is a necessary step of obedience for all followers of Jesus (Yeshua), but of course, this does not exclude extenuating circumstances where something else can be substituted such as the thief on the cross per Luke 23:38-43, "And there was also a superscription over him, THIS IS THE KING OF THE JEWS. 39 And one of the malefactors that were hanged railed on him, saying, Art not thou the Christ? save thyself and us. 40 But the other answered, and rebuking him said, Dost thou not even fear God, seeing thou art in the same condemnation? 41 And we indeed justly; for we receive the due reward of our deeds: but this man hath done nothing amiss. 42 And he said, Jesus, remember me when thou comest in thy kingdom. 43 And he said unto him, Verily I say unto thee, To-day shalt thou be with me in Paradise." (American Standard Version; ASV). I, in what I wrote, was of course referring to the general case that we fall under today of which there may also be some special cases where baptism may not be necessary even today due to extenuating circumstances such as one that was intending to get baptized in accordance with the scriptures, but gets killed before being able to do so by unforeseen circumstances. In feel this person would be counted worthy, even though he/she did not get baptized, and that their mental attitude would be counted as meeting the requirement. This especially so since Jesus (Yeshua) will be the judge per John 5:22, "For neither doth the Father judge any man, but he hath given all judgment unto the Son;" (ASV), and we have seen an example of his heartfelt understanding at John 8:3-11, "And the scribes and the Pharisees bring a woman taken in adultery; and having set her in the midst, 4 they say unto him, Teacher, this woman hath been taken in adultery, in the very act. 5 Now in the law Moses commanded us to stone such: what then sayest thou of her? 6 And this they said, trying him, that they might have [whereof] to accuse him. But Jesus stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground. 7 But when they continued asking him, he lifted up himself, and said unto them, He that is without sin among you, let him first cast a stone at her. 8 And again he stooped down, and with his finger wrote on the ground. 9 And they, when they heard it, went out one by one, beginning from the eldest, [even] unto the last: and Jesus was left alone, and the woman, where she was, in the midst. 10 And Jesus lifted up himself, and said unto her, Woman, where are they? did no man condemn thee? 11 And she said, No man, Lord. And Jesus said, Neither do I condemn thee: go thy way; from henceforth sin no more.]" (ASV). So I feel certain in extenuating circumstances exceptions would be made based on heartfelt feeling of the individual even today.

LEARN MORE ABOUT THE BIBLE AND RELIGION - BOTH TRUE AND FALSE - AT WWW.JW.ORG

**Admin** Mon Dec 07, 2020 8:44 am

COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] ACTUAL DISCUSSION WITH A DELUDED TRINITARIAN #1. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1} SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [284B]

All thy works shall praise thee, O LORD; and thy saints shall bless thee. Psalms 145:10, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

Yes, all his works are perfect and this is testified to at Psalms 103:21 – 22, [AV] “Bless ye the LORD, all ye his hosts; ye ministers of his, that do his pleasure. 22 Bless the LORD, all his works in all places of his dominion: bless the LORD, O y soul.” And at Psalms 104:1 – 6, [AV] “Bless the LORD, O my soul. O LORD my God, hou art very great; thou art clothed with honour and majesty. 2 Who coverest hyself with light as with a garment: who stretchest out the heavens like a urtain: 3 Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the louds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind: 4 Who maketh his ngels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire: 5 Who laid the foundations of the arth, that it should not be removed for ever. 6 Thou coveredst it with the deep s with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains.”

[2] ACTUAL DISCUSSION WITH A DELUDED TRINITARIAN #1:

FIRST, Your Comment.
<<<Paul clearly tells us that Jesus was equal with God, and "in very nature God". "Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness." (Philippians 2:5-7)>>>
This applies to him being a spirit being in heaven and not a human just as was the covering Cherub that rebelled and became what we now know as Satan the Devil.
Let's examine Philippians 2:6 and get a better understanding.
Philippians 2:6 who, although He existed in the from of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped. (New American Standard Bible [Reference Edition by Moody Press, Chicago]; NASB-MP)

Philippians 2:6 who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, (New American Standard Bible [The Lockman Foundation, version]: NASB-TLF)

Philippians 2:6 Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God:
(Authorized King James; AV)

Philippians 2:6 who, although he existed in God's form, gave no consideration to a seizure, namely, that he should be equal to God. (New World Translation; NWT)

Philippians 2:6 who, though he was in the form of God, did not regard equality with God as something to be exploited, (Revised Standard Version; RSV)

Philippians 2:6 who, existing in the form of God, did not consider equality with God as something to be used for His own advantage. (The Holoman Christian Standard Bible)

Philippians 2:6 who, existing in the form of God, counted not the being on an equality with God a thing to be grasped, (American Standard Bible; ASB)

Interesting scripture in that it is translated many ways, but to understand it, we need to look at it in context. Let's look at what follows in the Authorized King James Bible, Philippians 2:7-11, "But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: 8 And being found in fashion F7 as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross. 9 Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: 10 That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; 11 And that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father." (AV). Here we see that he was an obedient Son to his Father (YHWH). He also, "and being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death," and for being obedient, His Father (YHWH) has, "highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name." But the real key is "and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father."

Clearly Philippians 2:11 shows that God (YHWH) was very proud of his Son, Jesus (Yeshua), and counted praise given to his Son, Jesus (Yeshua), as glory being given to him. Rightly so, since he, Jesus (Yeshua) was his only begotten, as shown at Colossians 1:15, "For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;" He, God (YHWH) created him in his image in that he gave him some of his power and his attributes. This was also testified to at Revelations 3:14, "And unto the angel of the church of the Laodiceans write; These things saith the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God;" which shows him as the first of God's (YHWH's) creation. In fact, when Jesus (Yeshua) was ascending to be with his Father in heaven, he prayed, as recorded in John 17:5, "And now, O Father, glorify thou me with thine own self with the glory which I had with thee before the world was." (AV). Showing he was returning to where he had been before with his Father (YHWH), see John 6:62, "What then if you should behold the Son of Man ascending where He was before?" (NASB-MP). Once returned to heaven, God's (YHWH's) Son, Jesus (Yeshua) is, 1 Peter 3:22, "Who is gone into heaven, and is on the right hand of God; angels and authorities and powers being made subject unto him" (AV)..

As we note in this scripture, his Father (YHWH) has given him authority and power over everything including the angels; but, Colossians 1:16-19, "For by him were all things created, that are in heaven, and that are in earth, visible and invisible, whether they be thrones, or dominions, or principalities, or powers: all things were created by him, and for him: 17 And he is before all things, and by him all things consist. 18 And he is the head of the body, the church: who is the beginning, the firstborn from the dead; that in all things he might have the preeminence. 19 For it pleased the Father that in him should all fulness dwell;" (AV), and the Bible reaffirms the Father (YHWH) was pleased to let "in him should all fullness dwell." In 1 Corinthians 15:22-28, "For as in Adam all die, even so in Christ shall all be made alive. 23 But every man in his own order: Christ the firstfruits; afterward they that are Christ's at his coming. 24 Then cometh the end, when he shall have delivered up the kingdom to God, even the Father; when he shall have put down all rule and all authority and power. 25 For he must reign, till he hath put all enemies under his feet. 26 The last enemy that shall be destroyed is death. 27 For he hath put all things under his feet. But when he saith all things are put under him, it is manifest that he is excepted, which did put all things under him. 28 And when all things shall be subdued unto him, then shall the Son also himself be subject unto him that put all things under him, that God may be all in all." (AV), testifies that God (YHWH) had given his Son, Jesus (Yeshua) over all except himself when the scripture says "it is manifest that he is excepted." Thus these scriptures clearly show that Jesus (Yeshua) and his Father (YHWH) are two separate beings; one having always existed and having created the other as his only begotten Son.

Of this scripture, Philippians 2:6, "The Wycliffe Bible Commentary," says, 'Being in the form of God (AV). Better, through in his pre-incarnate state he possessed the essential qualities of God, he did not consider his status of divine equality a prize to be selfishly hoarded (taking harpagnos passively). 'Morphe', form, in verse 6 and 7 denotes a permanent expression of essential attributes; while 'schema', fashion, refers to outward appearance that is subject to change." ["The Wycliffe Bible Commentary," edited by Charles F. Pfeiffer (OT) and Everett F. Harrison (NT), published by Moody Press, a div. Of Moody Bible Institute of Chicago].

Thus we can see Jesus (Yeshua) was a separate individual from his Father (YHWH), but was completely loyal and obedient to him. He, Jesus (Yeshua) stated at John 14:28, "Ye have heard how I said unto you, I go away, and come again unto you. If ye loved me, ye would rejoice, because I said, I go unto the Father: for my Father is greater than I." (AV); Clearly if Jesus (Yeshua) said " for my Father is greater than I" we should believe him. He further reaffirmed this at John 5:19, "Then answered Jesus and said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, The Son can do nothing of himself, but what he seeth the Father do: for what things soever he doeth, these also doeth the Son likewise." (AV). And the scripture continues on, John 5:20, "For the Father loveth the Son, and sheweth him all things that himself doeth: and he will shew him greater works than these, that ye may marvel." (AV), so much so as to show him, Jesus (Yeshua) greater works.

SECOND, Your Statement
<<<Jesus possessed the "fullness" of God, because He is God.

"For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross." (Colossians 1:19,20)>>>

Now let's look at it in context to see the error with regard your understanding, Colossians 1: , "giving thanks to the Father, who has qualified us to share in the inheritance of the saints in light. 13 He has delivered us from the dominion of darkness and transferred us to the kingdom of his beloved Son, 14 in whom we have redemption, the forgiveness of sins. 15 He is the image of the invisible God, the first-born of all creation; 16 for in him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or authorities--all things were created through him and for him. 17 He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. 18 He is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning, the first-born from the dead, that in everything he might be pre-eminent. 19 For in him all the fulness of God was pleased to dwell, 20 and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross." (Revised Standard Version; RSV). Just a quick look at verse 15 clearly shows that he is the first of creation; therefore, the only begotten or first born/created of all of creation. The Bible clearly shows that his Father, Almighty God (YHWH) has put him in charge of all except himself for a period at 1 Corinthians 15:27-28 once more showing his subjection to his Father (YHWH) and only having the authority given to him by his Father (YHWH), ""For God has put all things in subjection under his feet." But when it says, "All things are put in subjection under him," it is plain that he is excepted who put all things under him. 28 When all things are subjected to him, then the Son himself will also be subjected to him who put all things under him, that God may be everything to every one." (RSV), with this distinction or hierarchy of authority clearly shown in verse 28.

<<<He also tell us "For in Christ all the fullness of the Deity lives in bodily form, and you have been given fullness in Christ, who is the head over every power and authority." (Colossians 2:9,10)>>>

Now, let's look at this in context, Colossians 2:4-12, "say this in order that no one may delude you with beguiling speech. 5 For though I am absent in body, yet I am with you in spirit, rejoicing to see your good order and the firmness of your faith in Christ. 6 As therefore you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so live in him, 7 rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving. 8 See to it that no one makes a prey of you by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the universe, and not according to Christ. 9 For in him the whole fulness of deity dwells bodily, 10 and you have come to fulness of life in him, who is the head of all rule and authority. 11 In him also you were circumcised with a circumcision made without hands, by putting off the body of flesh in the circumcision of Christ; 12 and you were buried with him in baptism, in which you were also raised with him through faith in the working of God, who raised him from the dead." (RSV), now verses 11 and 12 are the key to understanding here, since his Father (YHWH) is testified to having 'raised him from the dead.'

THIRD, Your comment,
<<<If Jesus is the head over "every power and authority", does that place Him over God? No, because He is God.>>>

Shows a great lack of understanding as just shown in SECOND above, plus forgetfulness that his Father (YHWH) is greater as clearly shown by God (YHWH) appointing his Son, Jesus (Yeshua) as the only mediator between God (YHWH) and man per 1 Timothy 2:5, "For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus," (RSV).

FOURTH, Your Comment,
<<<"He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him." (Colossians 1:15-17)

Jesus cannot be a created thing if He created ALL THINGS. He existed before all created things and created all created things.>>>

First, You appear to not to realize that God (YHWH) after creating him, used him, Jesus (Yeshua) as his master worker in the creation of all else. Let's look at the facts:

<<< Master workman in Keeping With Jewish Law of Agencies:

The Jewish Law of Agencies which is basically as follows, "Jesus (Yeshua) was God's (YHWH's) appointed agent in accordance with the 'Biblical law of agency' described as, "Scripture mentions something being done by Person A, whilst another mentions it being done by Person B. This is best understood when we grasp the Schaliach Principle, or the Jewish Law of Agency, which is expressed in the dictum, "A person's agent is regarded as the person himself." Therefore any act committed by a duly appointed agent is regarded as having been committed by the principle." (The Encyclopedia of the Jewish Religion, R.J.Z. Werblowski and Geoffrey Wigoder). Now that we know what the Jewish Law of Agencies is, let's see how it applies to Jesus (Yeshua).

First it is necessary to understand that Jesus (Yeshua) is often referred to as the 'Word' as shown at John 1:14, "And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us (and we beheld his glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father), full of grace and truth." (ASV); And at 1 John 1:1, "That which was from the beginning, that which we have heard, that which we have seen with our eyes, that which we beheld, and our hands handled, concerning the Word of life " (ASV); And at Revelation 19:13, "And he [is] arrayed in a garment sprinkled with blood: and his name is called The Word of God." (ASV). That which is said about the Word in the New Testament fits remarkably the description of 'wisdom' in the Old Testament given at Proverbs 8:22-31, "Jehovah possessed me in the beginning of his way, Before his works of old. 23 I was set up from everlasting, from the beginning, Before the earth was. 24 When there were no depths, I was brought forth, When there were no fountains abounding with water. 25 Before the mountains were settled, Before the hills was I brought forth; 26 While as yet he had not made the earth, nor the fields, Nor the beginning of the dust of the world. 27 When he established the heavens, I was there: When he set a circle upon the face of the deep, 28 When he made firm the skies above, When the fountains of the deep became strong, 29 When he gave to the sea its bound, That the waters should not transgress his commandment, When he marked out the foundations of the earth; 30 Then I was by him, [as] a master workman; And I was daily [his] delight, Rejoicing always before him, 31 Rejoicing in his habitable earth; And my delight was with the sons of men." (ASV). There wisdon is personified, and represented as able to speak and act per Proverbs 8:1, "Doth not wisdom cry, And understanding put forth her voice?" (ASV). In fact it was understood by many Christian writers of the early centuries of the C.E. that this section referred symbolically to God's (YHWH) Son, Jesus (Yeshua) in his pre-human state. Thus, in view of the scriptures already considered, there is no denying that the Son, Jesus (Yeshua) was 'produced' by God (YHWH) 'as the "beginning of his way, Before his works of old" or the earliest of his achievements very long ago and was beside God (YHWH) as his agent or master worker during the creation of the earth as described in Proverbs just quoted. Hebrew, like modern day Spanish, assigns gender to its nouns, and the word for 'wisdom' is always in the feminine gender. Thus, this would remain the case even when is personified and therefore would not rule out wisdom's being used in a figurative way to represent God's firstborn Son, Jesus (Yeshua). It is to be remembered that the title "gohe'leth"or "Kohelet" or congregator in English that Solomon applied to himself at Ecclesiastes 1:1, "The words of Kohelet, the son of David, king in Yerushalayim" (Hebrew Names Version of World English Bible ), and this word also is in the feminine gender.

God's (YHWH's) own wisdom was shown in creation at Proverbs 3:19-20, "Jehovah by wisdom founded the earth; By understanding he established the heavens. 20 By his knowledge the depths were broken up, And the skies drop down the dew." (ASV), but only through his Son, Jesus (Yeshua); this is also shown at 1 Corinthians 8:6, "yet to us there is one God, the Father, of whom are all things, and we unto him; and one Lord, Jesus Christ, through whom are all things, and we through him." (ASV). Likewise God's (YHWH's) purpose toward mankind is made manifest through his Son; therefore the Apostle John could say that Jesus (Yeshua) represents per 1 Corinthians 1:24 & 30, "but unto them that are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God, and the wisdom of God." (ASV); And at "30 But of him are ye in Christ Jesus, who was made unto us wisdom from God, and righteousness and sanctification, and redemption:" (ASV); And at 1 Corinthians 2:7-8, "but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, [even] the [wisdom] that hath been hidden, which God foreordained before the worlds unto our glory: 8 which none of the rulers of this world hath known: for had they known it, they would not have crucified the Lord of glory:" (ASV); And at Proverbs 18-21, "Riches and honor are with me; [Yea], durable wealth and righteousness. 19 My fruit is better than gold, yea, than fine gold; And my revenue than choice silver. 20 I walk in the way of righteousness, In the midst of the paths of justice; 21 That I may cause those that love me to inherit substance, And that I may fill their treasuries. " (ASV). Thus as we can see that Jesus (Yeshua) Christ has become to us wisdom from God, and also righteousness and sanctification and a release by ransom.

Not a Co-Creator:

Jesus (Yeshua) took part with respect the creative works, but this did NOT make him a co-Creator along with his Father (YHWH). Why not? Because all the power for creation came from God through his Holy Spirit, or active force as shown by Genesis 1:1-2, "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. 2 And the earth was waste and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep: and the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters." (ASV); And at Psalms 33:6, "By the word of Jehovah were the heavens made, And all the host of them by the breath of his mouth." (ASV). Of course some may object and have different views with regard to what the Holy Spirit is, but let's look at the facts. The "New American Bible Catholic Bible," says in a footnote regarding John 14:17: "The Greek word for 'Spirit' is neuter, and while we use personal pronouns in English ('he,' 'his,' 'him'), most Greek MSS [manuscripts] employ 'it.'" So when the Bible uses masculine personal pronouns in connection with pa·ra'kle·tos at John 16:7, 8, it is conforming to rules of grammar, not expressing a doctrine. And in Ancient Hebrew the word here rendered Holy Ghost, Holy Spirit, or Spirit which is translated from 'ru'ach' meaning "breath; wind; spirit." In Latin, it is spiritus, and in Sanskrit, 'prana' which means both "breath" and "spirit." Thus God (YHWH) is the source of all life, all animate creation, both visible and invisible, as shown at Psalms 36:9, "For with thee is the fountain of life: In thy light shall we see light." (ASV). Thus all of creation including his only begotten Son owes their lives to him. Thus, rather than being a co-Creator with his Father (YHWH), Jesus (Yeshua) was the agent or instrumentality through whom God (YHWH), the Creator, worked using him as his 'master worker.' Jesus (Yeshua) himself gave credit to his Father (YHWH) for all of creation, see Matthew 19:4-6, "And he answered and said, Have ye not read, that he who made [them] from the beginning made them male and female, 5 and said, For this cause shall a man leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh? 6 So that they are no more two, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder." (ASV).[source - Documentary on Our Savior Jesus (Yeshua) by Iris the Preacher- 2003]>>>

FIFTH, Your comment,

<<<"In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God." (John 1:1) >>>

It is quite obvious you do not recognize the defectiveness of these translational constructs, but I will first give you the simple demonstration of this and then the technical one.

First, it is impossible for someone, either human or spirit in nature, to be WITH someone and also BE that someone. You should already know this.

Second, the technical explanation in brief:
Constructs of John 1:1, Read and Learn:

Let's look at the 10 possible constructs of John 1:1 that do NOT violate any rule of Koine Greek grammar with the exception of the fact is that THEOS (=God) is a count noun, not a mass noun or an adjective. As a count noun it MUST BE countable, i.e. either definite or indefinite (i.e. either "a god" or "the God") for two of the constructs:

<1> "and a god was the Logos." [example of Bible using, Das Evangelium nach Johannes, by Jurgen Becker Harwood, 1979]

<2> "the nature of the Word was the same as the nature of God" [example of Bible using, Schonfield, 1976]

<3> "The Word dwelt with God, and what God was, the word was." [example of Bible using, The New English Bible, NEB, 1961-present standard Bible agreed to by most denominations in the United Kingdom]

<4> "And the word was a god" [example of Bible using, The New Testament in An Improved Version, Upon the Basis of Achbishop Newcome's New Translation: With a Corrected Text.]

<5> "and the Word was divine" [example of Bible using, The Bible: An American Translation, by J.M.P. Smith and E.J. Goodspeed. }

<6> "and the Word was God" [example of Bible using, American Standard Version, ASV] [note, this construct violates the count noun rule of Koine Greek]

<7> "He was the same as God" example of Bible using, Today's English Version.]

<8> "the Logos was divine" [example of Bible using, The New Testament: A New Translation, by James Moffat]

<9> "r war bei Gott und in allem Gott gleich"[He was with God and in all like God] [example of Bible using, Haenchen (tr. By R. Funk), 1982]

<10> "Gott (von Art) war der Logos" [God (of Kind/kind) was the Logos/logos] [example of Bible using, Die Bibel in heutigem Deutsch, 198

As we can see, here are ten different constructs possible without violating any rule of Koine Greek grammar except the count Noun rule. So, now, let's look at what follows in context in general format at John 1:2:

"The Word, then, was with God at the beginning," (The New English Bible, NEB)

"The same was in the beginning with God." (American Standard Version, ASB)

"The same was in the beginning with God." (Authorized King James Bible; AV)

"He was in the beginning with God." (Revised Standard Version; RSV)

"He was in the beginning with God." (The Confraternity Edition of the New Testament - Catholic)

As is easily seen, John 1:2 is substantially the same in all translations. However, in context it does not harmonize with some of the constructs used which do not violate any rule of Koine Greek grammar with the exception of the count Noun rule to be explained later.

However clearly some of the ten (10) or more basic constructs agree in context with John 1:2 and some do NOT. Let's look at the point where some do not agree or harmonize with the context of John 1:2:

John 1:2 plainly says that the Word, or Logos, who is Jesus (Yeshua) was with God in the beginning which would be impossible if Jesus (Yeshua) was Almighty God (YHWH) himself. This rules out constructs 6, 7, and 10, represented below, as impossible as they do NOT harmonize with context.

<6> "and the Word was God" [example of Bible using, American Standard Version, ASV] [note, this construct violates the count noun rule of Koine Greek]

<7> "He was the same as God" example of Bible using, Today's English Version.]

<10> "Gott (von Art) war der Logos" [God (of Kind/kind) was the Logos/logos] [example of Bible using, Die Bibel in heutigem Deutsch, 198

And two of these constructs do violate the count Noun rule of Koine Greek; to wit, constructs 6 and 7.

Now exactly what is the count Noun rule of Koine Greek? It is as follows:

The fact is that THEOS (=God) is a count noun, not a mass noun or an adjective. As a count noun it MUST BE countable, i.e. either definite or indefinite (i.e. either "a god" or "the God"). The trinitarian argument hinges on stripping THEOS of its count-ability, so that it is purely qualitative. However, if a noun is PURELY qualitative, it is not a count noun. An adjective or a mass noun may fit their requirement for emphasizing qualitativness only, but a count noun MUST BE countable, for that is what count means when describing a count noun. If he accepts this rather elementary rule of English grammar, you can demonstrate that, as a count noun, THEOS may be translated either "the Word was God" (="the Word was The God", which is Sabellianism), or "the Word was a god". Since orthodox trinitarians reject "the Word was The God" (=Sabellianism), they are left with "the Word was a god" -- that is, if they remain true to English syntax (and English syntax is what ENGLISH translations are supposed to follow!). If one argues the point, let them provide an example of a non-countable count noun that is not used in a contrary-to-fact situation, such as a metaphor. I have yet to find anyone, trinitarian or otherwise, who is able to meet this challenge. Rolf Furuli, one of the two best living Koine Greek scholars, discusses this in his book, THE ROLE OF THEOLOGY AND BIAS IN BIBLE TRANSLATION, as does Greg Stafford, in his, JEHOVAH'S WITNESSES DEFENDED: AN ANSWER TO SCHOLARS AND CRITICS. There are also some very good posts by Wes Williams on greektheology that discuss this issue. I suppose if you search the greektheology archives using the word "count" or the name "Wes" you will find much helpful information. [source Kats]

"To preserve in English the different nuance of theos [god] with and without the article, some (Moffat) would translate 'The Word was divine.'"

Notice a literal translation of John 1:1,2:

"In the beginning was the world and the word was toward the god and god was the word. This (one) was in beginning toward the god."

In these two verses we see six nouns, three referring to the Greek word logos (word, which most recognize to be Jesus) and three referring to the Greek word theos (god). We notic each reference to logos (word) is preceded by the definite article "the", while two of the three times the word theos (god) occurs, it too is preceded by the definite article "the". For some reason, John does not provide the definite article with theos when it is associated with "The Word". We thus see two definite individuals mentioned in this verse. "The Word", Jesus Christ, and "The God", who is Almighty God Jehovah. John does not say "The Word" is "The God". (In fact, most Trinitarian scholars would argue that if John had said the word was "ho theos" (The God), it would amount to sabellianism (the belief that Jesus is both the Father and the Son). As such, it is commonly agreed upon that John was not identifying Jesus as God but rather, was describing him as deity.) But if John did not say "The Word" is "The God", then what did he mean by saying, "the word was god"?

In Greek, it is possible for a noun to act as an adjective when it is not accompanied by the definite article. Consider a Biblical example of this in John 6:70. "Jesus replied, "Have I not chosen you, the Twelve? Yet one of you is a devil!" (NIV)

Here the noun (devil) is not proceeded by the efinite article (the). To reflect this most Bibles place the indefinite article (a) in front of it. Thus, Jesus was not identifying Judas as "THE Devil", he was saying Judas had the qualities of the devil. He was acting like the devil so he was A devil though not THE devil. This example helps us to see how the lack of the definite article can cause a noun to act as a predication rather than an identification.

Regarding this point, noted Bible scholar William Barclay writes:

"When in Greek two nouns are joined by the verb to be and when both have the definite article, then the one is fully identified with the other; but when one of them is without the article, it become more an adjective than a noun, and describes rather the class of the sphere to which the other belongs...

"John has no definte article before theos, God. The Logos, therefore, is not identified as God or with God; the word theos has become adjectival and describes the sphere to which the logos belongs...

"This passage then [John 1:1] does not identify the Logos and God; it does not say that Jesus was God, nor doesit call him God; but it does say that in his nature and being he belongs to the same class as God."

Mr. Barclay's observations are duly noted in the example we considered with Judas Iscariot being "a devil".

Now let's consider what the Greek Scholar Jason BeDuhn from the Northern Arizona University has to say: "The Greek phrase is theos en ho logos, which translated word for word is "a god was the word." Greek has only a definite article, like our the, it does not have an indefeinite article, like our a or an. If a noun is definite, it has the definite article ho. If a noun is indefinite, no article is used. In the phrase from John 1:1, ho logos is "the word." If it was written simply logos, without the definite article ho, we would have to translate it as "a word". So we are not really "inserting" an indefinite article when we translate Greek nouns without the definite article into English, we are simply obeying rules of English grammar that tell us that we cannot say "Snoopy is dog," but must say "Snoopy is a dog."

Now in English we simply say "God"; we do not say "The God." But in Greek, when you mean to refer to the one supreme God, instead of one of the many other beings that were called "gods," you would have to say "The God": ho theos. Even a monotheistic Christian, who beleives there is only one God and no others, would be forced to say in Greek "The God," as John and Paul and the other writers of the New Testament normally do. If you leave off the article in a phrase like John 1:1, then you are saying "a god." (There are some exceptions to this rule: Greek has what are called noun cases, which means the nouns change form depending on how they are used in a sentence. So, if you want to say "of God," which is theou, you don't need the article. But in the nominative case, which is the one in John 1:1, you have to have the article.) So what does John mean by saying "the word was a god"? He is classifying Jesus in a specific category of beings. There are plants and animals and humans and gods, and so on. By calling the Word "a god," John wants to tell his readers that the Word(which becomes Jesus when it takes flesh) belongs to the divine class of things. Notice the word order: "a god was the word." We can't say it like this in English, but you can in Greek. The subject can be after the verb and the object before the verb, the opposite of how we do it in English (subject-verb-object). Research has shown that when ancient Greek writers put a object-noun first in a sentence like John 1:1 (a be-verb sentence: x is y), without the definite article, they are telling us that the subject belongs to the class represented by the object-noun: :"The car is a Volkswagen." In English we would accomplish the same thing by using what we call predicate adjectives. "John is a smart person" = "John is smart." So we would tend to say "The word was divine," rather than "The word was a god." That is how I would translate this phrase. "The word was a god" is more literal, and an improvement over "The word was God," but it raises more problems, since to a modern reader it implies polytheism. No one in John's day would have understood the phrase to mean "The word was God" - the language does not convey that sense, and conceptually it is difficult to grasp such an idea, especially since that author has just said that the word was with God. Someone is not with himself, he is with some other. John clearly differentiates between God from the Word. The latter becomes flesh and is seen; the former cannot be seen. What is the Word? John says it was the agent through whom God made the world. He starts his gospel "In the beginning..." to remind us of Genesis 1. How does God create in Genesis? He speaks words that make things come into existence. So the Word is God's creative power and plan and activity. It is not God himself, but it is not really totally separate from God either. It occupies a kind of ambiguous status. That is why a monotheist like John can get away with calling it "a god" or "divine" without becoming a polytheist. This divine thing does not act on its own, however, does take on a kind of distinct identity, and in becoming flesh brings God's will and plan right down face to face with humans.

APPENDIX:

(1) How some Bible translators who did not have bias translated, i.e., were striving for translation fidelity and NOT to support this or that perception:

1928: "and the Word was a divine being." La Bible du Centenaire, L'Evangile selon Jean, by Maurice Goguel.
1935: "and the Word was divine." The Bible-An American Translation, by J. M. P. Smith and E. J. Goodspeed.
1946: "and of a divine kind was the Word." Das Neue Testament, by Ludwig Thimme. 1958: "and the Word was a God." The New Testament, by James L. Tomanek.
1975: "and a god (or, of a divine kind) was the Word." Das Evangelium nach Johannes, by Siegfried Schulz.
1978: "and godlike kind was the Logos." Das Evangelium nach Johannes, by Johannes Schneider.
1979: "and a god was the Logos." Das Evangelium nach Johannes, by Jurgen Becker Harwood,
1768, "and was himself a divine person" Thompson,
1829, "the Logos was a god Torrey,
1961, "what God was,the Word was" Moffatt,
1972, "the Logos was divine Translator's NT,
1973, "The Word was with God and shared his nature Barclay,
1976, "the nature of the Word was the same as the nature of God" Schonfield,
1985, "the Word was divine Revised English,
1989, "what God was, the Word was Scholar's Version,
1993, "The Divine word and wisdom was there with God, and it was what God was" Madsen,
1994, "the Word was <EM>a divine Being" Becker,
1979, "ein Gott war das Logos" [a God/god was the Logos/logos] Stage,
1907, "Das Wort war selbst gttlichen Wesens" [The Word/word was itself a divine Being/being]. Bhmer,
1910, "Es war fest mit Gott verbunden, ja selbst gttlichen Wesens" [It was strongly linked to God, yes itself divine Being/being] Thimme,
1919, "Gott von Art war das Wort" [God of Kind/kind was the Word/word] Baumgarten et al,
1920, "Gott (von Art) war der Logos" [God (of Kind/kind) was the Logos/logos] Holzmann,
1926, "ein Gott war der Gedanke" [a God/god was the Thought/thought] Rittenlmeyer, 1938, "selbst ein Gott war das Wort" [itself a God/god was the Word/word] Lyder Brun (Norw. professor of NT theology),
1945, "Ordet var av guddomsart" [the Word was of divine kind] Pffflin,
1949, "war von gttlicher Wucht [was of divine Kind/kind] Albrecht,
1957, "gttlichen Wesen hatte das Wort" [godlike Being/being had the Word/word] Smit, 1960, "verdensordet var et guddommelig vesen" [the word of the world was a divine being] Menge,
1961, "Gott (= gttlichen Wesens) war das Wort"[God(=godlike Being/being) was the Word/word) Haenchen,
1980, "Gott (von Art) war der Logos" [God (of Kind/kind) was the Logos/logos] Die Bibel in heutigem Deutsch,
1982, "r war bei Gott und in allem Gott gleich"[He was with God and in all like God] Haenchen (tr. By R. Funk),
1984, "divine (of the category divinity)was the Logos" Schultz,
1987, "ein Gott (oder: Gott von Art) war das Wort" [a God/god (or: God/god of Kind/kind) was the Word/word]

(2) Amplification on How Some Bible Translators Translated John 1:1 And Why:

"And the word was a god" - The New Testament in An Improved Version, Upon the Basis of Achbishop Newcome's New Translation: With a Corrected Text.

"and a god was the Word" - The Emphatic Diaglott, by Benjamin Wilson.

"and the Word was divine" - The Bible: An American Translation, by J.M.P. Smith and E.J. Goodspeed.

"the Logos was divine" - The New Testament: A New Translation, by James Moffat.

"what God was, the Word was" - The New English Bible.

"He was the same as God" - Today's English Version.

"And the Word was a god" - New World Translation

Please, please look at context before asking questions as most of your questions will then self answer.

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COMBINATION OF [1] THE SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY AND [2] EXAMPLE OF MISLEADING WRITINGS THAT DO NOT RECOGNIZE THE CRITICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN APOSTATE (COUNTERFEIT) CHRISTIANS AND GENUINE (TRUE) CHRISTIANS:. With the Scripture of the Day first.

[1] SCRIPTURE OF THE DAY [VOL. 285B]

Ye that love the LORD, hate evil: he preserveth the souls of his saints; he delivereth them out of the hand of the wicked. Psalms 97:10, [authorized King James Bible; AV]

King David acknowledged this truth at 2 Samuel 22:1 - , [AV] “And David spake unto the LORD the words of this song in the day that the LORD had delivered him out of the hand of all his enemies, and out of the hand of Saul: 2 And he said, The LORD is my rock, and my fortress, and my deliverer; 3 The God of my rock; in him will I trust: he is my shield, and the horn of my salvation, my high tower, and my refuge, my saviour; thou savest me from violence. 4 I will call on the LORD, who is worthy to be praised: so shall I be saved from mine enemies. 5 When the waves of death compassed me, the floods of ungodly men made me afraid; 6 The sorrows of hell compassed me about; the snares of death prevented me; 7 In my distress I called upon the LORD, and cried to my God: and he did hear my voice out of his temple, and my cry did enter into his ears.” And Psalms 4:3 – 6, [AV] “But know that the LORD hath set apart him that is godly for himself: the LORD will hear when I call unto him. 4 Stand in awe, and sin not: commune with your own heart upon your bed, and be still. Selah. 5 Offer the sacrifices of righteousness, and put your trust in the LORD.”

[2] EXAMPLE OF MISLEADING WRITINGS THAT DO NOT RECOGNIZE THE CRITICAL DIFFERENCES BETWEEN APOSTATE (COUNTERFEIT) CHRISTIANS AND GENUINE (TRUE) CHRISTIANS:

INTRODUCTION:

A long article was sent to me and it has a lot of truth with respect the apostate (counterfeit) Christians, but in no way addressed either the truth and/or reality with respect to the two paths that Christianity took. The first path which was very bad was going apostate by the so called Christians, the apostate counterfeit group, which encompasses most of Christendom, and committing many atrocities and expressing intolerance, and the second, the genuine (true) Christians, the footstep followers of Jesus (Yeshua) Christ which preaches only Truth per the commandment of Jesus (Yeshua) at Matthew 24:14, "And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come." (Authorized King James Bible; AV), and 'cons' no one. But treat all per Jesus' (Yeshua's) guidance given at Matthew 22:37-40, "Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. 38 This is the first and great commandment. 39 And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. 40 On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets." (AV).

Most religions of the world take a two part single path as they have some good and some bad. However, so called Christianity did NOT follow in the mold of other religions such as the Hindus, Islam, Buddhists, Zoroastrians, etc. Instead, so called Christianity took two different paths. These two paths are as follows:

[1] In 325 AD the greater part of the so called Christian faith went apostate to when the good favor of a pagan emperor, a worshipper of the Unconquered Sun. And this branch of apostate Christians went on to commit many atrocities such as the rape of Goa, the Crusades, the Inquisitions, the burning of individuals at the stake for disagreeing with them including one Bruno for simply saying that the earth revolved around the sun; whereas, they said the sun revolved around the earth.

[2] A second and much smaller group of Christians that remained genuine Christians and did NOT go apostate, but followed in the footsteps of Christ their leader and savior. These did NOT commit any atrocities.

THE MISLEADING ARTICLE WITH CORRECTION COMMENTS [[ COMMENT ]]:

Title: Unethical craft of conversion
Author: Francois Gautier
Publication: Daily Pioneer
Date: Apr 26, 2002
URL: www.dailypioneer.com/arch...am=apr2602

I was born and brought-up a Christian. I believe that Jesus Christ is an Avatar of Love, and that now more than ever, specially after the 11th September terrorist attacks on America, we need his message of compassion, charity and kindness for one another.

Many Christians have taught the world that the first precept of Christ is to look after the deprived and the needy: Missionaries, such as Father Ceyrac, a French Jesuit who has lived for more than 60 years in Chennai, have understood this principle, tending to the poorest sections of this society, while respecting their culture (Father Ceyrac, who speaks fluently Tamil and Sanskrit, often quotes from the Upanishads).

Unfortunately, there has crept in the purity of the early Christianity an exclusiveness, a feeling of sole proprietary right over God. This exclusiveness, this feeling amongst Christians, that "we are the only true religion, and all other gods are false gods", has had the most catastrophic and bloody consequences: Millions have been killed in the name of Christ, entire civilisations, such as the Atzecs and Incas, have been wiped-out, "to bring them the word of Jesus". Even Christians have savagely murdered each other, whether in France or England. One would have hoped that this intolerance, this fanatical and militant drive to convert, forcibly or otherwise, pagans to the "True" God, had ceased in this new millennium of "enlightenment". Unfortunately, it is not so. For nearly three centuries, India has been the target of a massive conversion drive. It is even more so today, as Christianity is dwindling in the West: There are less and less people going to churches and very few youth willing to become priests and nuns, without speaking of the paedophilia scandals racking the American Church. The Vatican is thus looking for new converts in the Third World, particularly in India, where people have such an innate aspiration to spirituality. Indeed, the Pope has earmarked this new millennium as "The Evangelisation of Asia". And it is in the North-East that this evangelisation is meeting with the most success. [[Note: The writer fails to define the so called Christians he is talking about as the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians. Genuine (true) Christians have at no time practiced atrocities against others, but have often had atrocities committed against them by false apostate (counterfeit) Christians with some having been burnt at the stake by these apostate (counterfeit) Christians.]]

But conversions in India of low caste Hindus and tribals by Christian missionaries are sometimes nothing short of fraudulent and shameful. American, Australian, or Norwegian missionaries are investing huge amounts of money in India, which come from donation drives in their countries, where gullible Christians think their dollars or Euros are going towards uplifting "poor and uneducated Indians". It is common in Kerala, for instance, particularly in the poor coastal districts, to have "miracle boxes" put in local churches. The innocent villager writes out a paper mentioning his wish: A fishing boat, a loan for a house, fee for child's schooling... And lo, a few weeks later, the miracle happens! And, of course, the whole family converts, making others in the village follow suit! Missionaries also make extensive use of "miracle" prayer meeting trick, where a glib preacher persuades naive tribals that a miracle is happening in their midst, while encouraging them to convert. [[Note: Genuine (true) Christians practice no such deceit. This is practiced exclusively by the apostate (counterfeit) Christians]].

One such fake "miracle" prayer meeting, called the "Gangtok Prayer Festival 2002", is being organised in Gangtok (at Guards Ground), from April 26 to 28. It will be conducted by Dr Paul Dinakaran (he runs Jesus Calls from Chennai), who is famous for leading these "miracle" meetings all over India. Who is behind the drive? There are three US-based Christian fundamentalist organisations. The first is Bible for the world; second, Common Global Ministries Board; and third, United Church Board for World Ministries.[[Note: all of these three mentioned groups are apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians.]] These foreign missionaries could be quietly pulling the strings from behind the scenes. Where does the money for organising these costly meetings come from? Only the Government of India can answer these questions. Sikkim is a sensitive border area, which is claimed by China. Does, for instance, the reader know that China encourages foreign missionaries to convert Tibetans in Tibet [[Note: Only encourages missionaries of the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians.]] and that the Dalai-lama is very concerned about this fact? Although it is learnt from reliable sources that Governor Kedarnath Sahani of Sikkim, as well as Chief Minister Pawan Chamling, are very concerned, the State Government seems unable to do much, as many of its Christian ministers are involved in this meeting. Conversions have been taking place in Sikkim since long. Earlier, the North District of Sikkim was targeted in places like Janghu where the Lepcha community lives. But it is happening now in all the districts of Sikkim (West-Sombaria/ Soreng, South-Namchi, East-Gangtok). [[Note: Once more all the items mentioned as taking place are by missionaries of the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians.]]

It is especially the tribals and Hindus living below the poverty line who are being targeted. It's not just that conversion is an unethical custom; it also threatens a whole way of life, erasing centuries of tradition, customs, wisdom. It teaches people to despise their own religion and look westwards to a culture which is alien to them, with disastrous results. Look how the biggest drug problems in India are found in the North-East, or how Third World countries, which have been totally Christianised, have lost all their moorings and bearing, and are drifting away without nationalism and self-pride. It is time that Indians awoke to the threat of Christian conversions here. [[Note: Once more the writer fails to define the so called Christians he is talking about as the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians.]]

The argument that Christians are only 3 per cent in India, and therefore cannot be a threat, is totally fallacious: The influence that Christians exercise in this country through their schools, hospitals and the enormous amount of money being poured in by Western countries for the purpose of converting Hindus, is totally disproportionate to their numbers. [[Note: Once more the writer fails to define the so called Christians he is talking about as the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians. What is needed is a heart felt conversion to genuine (true) Christianity and not the false, apostate (counterfeit) Christianity that is taking place per what the writer says.]]

Western missionaries (and their governments) would like us to believe that democracy includes the freedom to convert by any means. But France, for example, a traditionally Christian country, has a Minister who is in charge of hunting down "sects". And by sects, what is meant is any group that does not fall within the recognised family of Christianity, specially anything that is a Hindu flavour: There is not a single Hindu temple in France and all recent applications for the construction of one have been rejected. [[Note: People everywhere should have complete freedom of religion as long as they do NOT interfere and harm others, be they right and/or wrong. There is of course no excuse for the action of either France and/or Saudi Arabia with regard to restricting religious freedom, their actions are unacceptable intolerance.]]

It is sad that Indians, once converted, especially the priests and nuns, tend to turn against their own country and help in the conversion drive. There are very few "White" missionaries left in India and most of the conversions are done by Indian priests. Last year, during the Bishops' conference in Bangalore, it was restated by priests from all over India that conversion is the first priority of the Church. But are the priests and bishops aware that they would never find in any Western country the same freedom to convert, that they take for granted in India? [[Note: FIRST, Once more the writer fails to define the so called Christians he is talking about as the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians. What is needed is a heart felt conversion to genuine (true) Christianity and not the false, apostate (counterfeit) Christianity that is taking place per what the writer says. SECOND, What the writer says, "that they would never find in any Western country the same freedom to convert," is prima facia untrue as one look at Dearborn, Michigan, USA would prove where Muslims have found complete freedom of religion to be the case.]]

Do they know that in China they would be expelled, if not put behind bars? Do they realise that they have been honoured guests in this country for nearly 2,000 years (the first Christian community in the world is that of Syrian Christians, who have prospered in peace in India since 1st century AD) and that they are betraying those who gave them peace and freedom? [[Note: Factual problem, the people here spoken of are NOT "guest" but also Indians, but Indians with a different religion, so the writer is intentionally misleading once more.]]

The message of Christ is one of Love, of respecting other's cultures and creed - not of utilising devious and unethical means for converting people. It is false to say that Jesus is the only "true" God. The Divine has manifested Himself throughout the ages under different names and identities, whether it is Christ, Buddha, Krishna or Mohammed. Let this be the motto of the 21st century. Only then will true spirituality emerge, beyond all religions and intolerances. [[Note, as said before: FIRST, Once more the writer fails to define the so called Christians he is talking about as the apostate (counterfeit) Christian groups, and NOT genuine (true) footstep followers of Christ, i.e., genuine (true) Christians. What is needed is a heart felt conversion to genuine (true) Christianity and not the false, apostate (counterfeit) Christianity that is taking place per what the writer says. SECOND, What the writer says, "that they would never find in any Western country the same freedom to convert," is prima facia untrue as one look at Dearborn, Michigan, USA would prove where Muslims have found complete freedom of religion to be the case.]]

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