https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7CTvS4UOp7E&list=PLD9o3pQYhVMF2TXItDBjF2-WOro3i93Af&index=21
Finding Christ in the Old Testament
Handouts and Notes for Rebecca Holt Stay's LDS Adult Religion Classes
Thursday, November 30, 2023
NT Week 9 : Revelation 6-16 : Seals. Beasts, Dragons, Marks
NT Week 8 : Revelation 5 : Throne, Veil, Time
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=erHSSzMnCRs&list=PLD9o3pQYhVMF2TXItDBjF2-WOro3i93Af&index=20
Three papers I recommend this week:
Margaret Barker: Beyond the Veil of the Temple: The High Priestly Origin of the Apocalypses
https://www.marquette.edu/maqom/veil.html
Margaret Barker : The Temple Roots of the Liturgy
https://www.marquette.edu/maqom/Roots.pdf
and Elliot Wolfson : Seven Mysteries of Knowledge: Qumran E/sotericism Reconsidered
https://www.academia.edu/3335498/Seven_Mysteries_of_Knowledge_Qumran_E_sotericism_Reconsidered
NT Week 7: Revelation 4-5 Worship and Song
There are NO good pictures/Google images of worship in heaven. Good luck.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z1H_Oa4bnKg&list=PLD9o3pQYhVMF2TXItDBjF2-WOro3i93Af&index=19&t=1142s
Saturday, November 4, 2023
Reading Assignment for Salem Institute class Nov 8
We will be studying Rev 4-5 and it would be very helpful to read Ezekiel chapters 1, 9, and 10 before class.
Wednesday, November 1, 2023
Fall Salem Institute Week Six : Letters to the Seven Cities
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D3De-76vXmM&list=PLD9o3pQYhVMF2TXItDBjF2-WOro3i93Af&index=18
The
discovery of the Book of Balaam inscriptions:
1. "In an unprecedented discovery, an ancient text found at Deir
Alla, Jordan, in 1967 tells about the activities of a prophet named Balaam.
Could this be the Balaam of the Old Testament? The text makes it clear that it
is. Three times in the first four lines he is referred to as “Balaam son
of Beor,” exactly as in the Bible. This represents the first Old
Testament prophet to be dug up in Bible lands — not his tomb or his skeleton,
but a text about him. The text also represents the first prophecy of any scope
from the ancient West Semitic world to be found outside the Old Testament, and
the first extra-Biblical example of a prophet proclaiming doom to his own
people. … The remarkable text found at Deir Alla consists of 119 fragments of
plaster inscribed with black and red ink. It was among the rubble of a building
destroyed in an earthquake. It seems to have been one long column with at least
50 lines, displayed on a plastered wall. According to the excavators’ dating,
the disaster was most likely the severe earthquake which occurred in the time
of King Uzziah (Azariah) and the prophet Amos in about 760 BC (Am 1:1; Zec
14:5). The lower part of the text shows signs of wear, indicating that it had
been on the wall for some time prior to the earthquake." (Balaam Son of
Beor, Bible and Spade, Bryant G. Wood, p114, 1995 AD)
2. "Deir
Alla in the eighth-century B.C. was a large city, perhaps even a center of
religious instruction. On the walls of a room in one building that may have
stood near a temple, a professional scribe copied the text of an important
religious manuscript. First he drew four red frames. Then he filled the frames
with text, adding a drawing here and there for adornment. See artist’s
reconstruction of how this inscribed wall may have looked. Sometime in the
eighth century B.C. Deir Alla was leveled by an earthquake, perhaps the very earthquake
mentioned in the Book of Amos, and also spoken of by Zechariah as “the
earthquake that stopped up the valley in the days of King Uzziah of Judah.” In
the Deir Alla disaster, the inscribed wall fell, crumbling into a myriad of
fragments that scattered over an area of more than 20 square feet. The author
observes that most of one section of the wall seems to have fallen in a pit,
while another section fell at the corner of the original wall (see plan)."
(Fragments from the Book of Balaam Found at Deir Alla, André Lemaire,
BAR-11:05, Sep/Oct 1985)
3. "Found at Tell Deir ʿAllā, near the River Zerqa (biblical
Jabbok) in the eastern Jordan Valley, these texts were apparently once
displayed in a room of a building that is commonly believed to have been a
sanctuary. Written in black and red ink on white plaster, fragments of the
texts were found on the floor of that room when the building was destroyed by a
violent earthquake—one of the many that plagued the region. As a result of that
disaster, part of the plaster was burnt and the entire inscription fell to the
ground, shattered in pieces, much of which was irretrievably lost. The
fragments that remain were found in several groupings." (Deir Alla Plaster
Texts, Prophets and prophecy in the ancient Near East, Vol 12, 138, 2003 AD)
4. "Combination
I clearly concerns the vision of Balaam son of Beor, “a seer of the gods,” who
is also known in the biblical tradition recorded in Num 22–24. Like the
prophets of ancient Israel, Balaam in this account is privy to the deliberations
of the divine council. The assembled deities—known in the account alternatively
as “gods” and “Shaddayin” (a term related to the biblical divine epithet
“Shaddai”)—have ordained a catastrophe, and they charge a certain celestial
being to execute the destruction on their behalf. Unfortunately, only the first
letter of her name has been preserved (line 6), so her identity can only be a
matter of conjecture. Like the deceiving spirit sent forth from the divine
council witnessed by the prophet Micaiah the son on Imlah (1 Kgs 22:5–18) and
like the adversary in the divine council who was permitted by God to set forth
to harm Job (Job 1:6–12; 2:1–8), she plays a destructive role. The impending
doom that she is to bring about is in many ways reminiscent of end-of-the-world
scenarios that are often found in the Bible, notably in the preaching of the
prophets. Creation will apparently be undone as the cosmic floods will be
released upon the earth (“the bolts of heaven” will be broken), the dark rain
clouds will cover the skies, and there will be pitch darkness and terror on
earth." (Deir Alla Plaster Texts, Prophets and prophecy in the ancient
Near East, Vol 12, 138, 2003 AD)
Pergamon Museum, Berlin Germany : Altar
White stone
But in ancient times, particularly in the middle east and Mediterranean, the white stone represented important details about one’s social status. In some cultures, the trial judges on a panel would each deposit a black stone or a white stone in a bowl or urn, or reveal one from the palm of their hands, to cast their votes on the verdict of the accused. A black stone indicated the judge favoured a guilty verdict and a white stone meant the accused was considered innocent of the charge. If the accused received more white stones than black from the panel, he was acquitted. So, the white stone became a symbol of being judged innocent.
(See Metamorphoses, by Ovid. (A.D. 8) Lib XV, verse 41. Translated by John Dryden, et al [1717]. “A custom was of old, and still remains, Which life or death by suffrages ordains: White stones and black within an urn are cast, The first absolve, but fate is in the last.”)
In Classical
Athens, when the decision at
hand was to banish or exile a certain member of society, citizen peers would
cast their vote by writing the name of the person on the shard of pottery; the
vote was counted and, if unfavorable, the person was exiled for a period of ten years from the city,
thus giving rise to the term ostracism.
Similarly, in ancient Rome, before a gladiator match, the gladiators pulled stones from a bag and the ones who drew black stones were to fight while those who pulled white were given a reprieve.
In other situations, a person who carried a white stone with a name of a patron on it, enjoyed the privileges of a modern day credit card, with expenses charged to the patron. Often it was a white tesserae (mosaic stone) that was used to permit charging expenses to another’s account. (See Pliny Natural History, 7.40.131).
Fall Salem Institute Week Five : The Revelation of Jesus Christ
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y-h59SDWDC8&list=PLD9o3pQYhVMF2TXItDBjF2-WOro3i93Af&index=17
Fall Salem Institute Week Four : Hebrews
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IhOlFw56ew8&list=PLD9o3pQYhVMF2TXItDBjF2-WOro3i93Af&index=16
Lots of handouts to accompany the Epistle to the Hebrews:
John Widtsoe in 1931.
"One may quite as easily find himself in mistaken notions
if he attempts the interpretation of the scriptures without getting a full
perspective of the subject and adequate knowledge of human events that led to
the giving of the scriptures, including origins and translations."
In the allegory "The Cave", Plato describes a group of
people who have lived chained to the wall of a cave all their lives, facing a
blank wall. The people watch shadows projected on the wall from objects passing
in front of a fire behind them and give names to these shadows. The shadows are
the prisoners' reality, but are not accurate representations of the real world.
The shadows represent the fragment of reality that we can normally perceive
through our senses, while the objects under the sun represent the true forms of
objects that we can only perceive through reason. Three higher levels exist: the natural sciences; mathematics, geometry, and deductive logic; and the theory of forms.
Socrates explains how the philosopher is like a prisoner who is
freed from the cave and comes to understand that the shadows on the wall are
actually not the direct source of the images seen. A philosopher aims to
understand and perceive the higher levels of reality. However, the other
inmates of the cave do not even desire to leave their prison, for they know no
better life.
Jesus, in John 3, tells Nicodemus “Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.”
I believe in Christianity as I believe that the sun has
risen: not only because I see it, but because by it I see everything else.- C.
S. Lewis
“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image,
after our likeness…'” (Genesis 1:26)
The Hebrew word for “in our image” is “betzalmenu בצלמנו .” The word “tzelem צלם”
is from an unused word, which means “to shade” according to the
Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon. Here is the detailed definition: “images
(of tumours, mice, heathen gods); image or likeness (of resemblance).”
“Tzelem” is related to the word “Tzel צל”,
which is the modern-day Hebrew word for “shadow”. This gives us a deeper
understanding of “btzalmenu”, which means “in our shadow.” We were created in
the shadow of God! When we think of this, how does a shadow form? It is when
sunlight or any light hits an object, and the exact form of that object casts a
shadow. The shadow is an exact representation of the person.
There is one more person we should look at in the Bible who
reflects the idea of being a shadow of our God. It is Betzalel בצלאל, who appears for the first time in the Torah in Exodus 31:
The LORD spoke to Moses,
saying, ‘See, I have called by a name Bezalel, son of Uri, son of Hur, of the
tribe of Judah. I have filled him with a Godly spirit רוח
אלהים, with wisdom, בחכמה ,
understanding תבין, and knowledge דעת , and with every craft.’ – Exodus 31:1-2
One of the meanings of Betzalel is “In the shadow of El (God).”
The other remarkable thing about him is that he is the “son of Uri.” “Uri אורי” means “my light”. We have a perfect picture of the shadow which
is cast by sunlight! But there’s more. The words that describe the Godly spirit
of Betzalel in the Torah are the same words used to describe someone else:
And the spirit of the
LORD רוח יהוה
shall rest upon him – a spirit of wisdom חכמה and understanding בינה, a spirit of counsel and strength, a
spirit of knowledge דעת and the fear of the LORD. – Isaiah 11:2
Gen 5:3 And Adam lived an
hundred and thirty years, and begat a son in his own likeness, after his image;
and called his name Seth:
צָלַל shadow, shade through
the idea of hovering over); to shade, as twilight or an opaque object:—begin to
be dark, shadowing.
BELOW http://tcemission.org/wp-content/uploads/2018/02/Types_Shadows_Patterns.pdf
TYPES A type is a divinely purposed illustration
of some truth. It may be: (1) a person (Rom 5:14); (2) an event (1 Cor 10:11);
(3) a thing (Heb 10:19-20); (4) an institution (Heb 9:11-12); or, (5) a
ceremonial (1 Cor 5:7). Types occur most frequently in the Pentateuch, but are
found, more sparingly, elsewhere. The antitype, is found generally in the NT
Rom
5:14 Nevertheless death reigned from
Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude of
Adam's transgression, who is the figure
τύπος of him that was to come.
For the law, having a shadow of the good things to come, and not
the very image of the things...Heb 10:1
Who serve unto the example and shadow of heavenly things, as Moses
was· admonished of God when he was about to make
the tabernacle: for, See, saith he, that thou make all things according to the
pattern shewed to thee in the mount. Heb 8:5
Howbeit for this cause I
obtained mercy, that in me first Jesus Christ might· shew forth all longsuffering, for a pattern to them which should
hereafter believe on him to life everlasting. 1Ti 1:16
Let no man therefore judge you in meat, or in drink, or in respect
of an· holyday, or of the new moon, or of the sabbath
days: Which are a shadow of things to
come; but the body is of Christ. Col 2:16-17·
Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are· written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are
come.1Co 10:11
a person (Rom 5:14); (2) an event (1 Cor 10:11 Exodus); (3) a thing
(Heb 10:19-20 veil); (4) an institution (Heb 9:11-12 copy of heavenly temple);
or, (5) a ceremonial (1 Cor 5:7 passover).
1Co 10:1Moreover, brethren, I would not that ye should be ignorant,
how that all our fathers were under the cloud, and all passed through the
sea; 2 And were all baptized unto Moses
in the cloud and in the sea; 3 And did all eat the same spiritual meat; 4 And did all drink the same spiritual drink:
for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was
Christ. 5 But with many of them God was not well pleased: for they were overthrown
in the wilderness. 6 Now these things
were our examples,
Liken ὁμοίωμα homoiōma
that which has been made after the likeness of something; a figure, image, likeness,
representation; likeness i.e.
resemblance, such as amounts almost to equality or identity
Rom 1:23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image
made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and
creeping things.
Rom 5:14 Nevertheless death
reigned from Adam to Moses, even over them that had not sinned after the similitude
of Adam's transgression, who is the figure of him that was to come.
Rom 6:5 For if we have been
planted together in the likeness
of his death, we shall be also in the likeness of his resurrection:
Rom 8:3 For what the law
could not do, in that it was weak through the flesh, God sending his own Son in
the likeness of sinful flesh, and for sin, condemned sin in the flesh:
Phil 2:7 But made himself of
no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness
of men:
Rev 9:7 And the shapes
of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads
were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men
Matt 6:8 Be not ye therefore
like unto them: for your Father knoweth what things ye have need of, before
ye ask him.
Matt 7:24 Therefore
whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken
him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock: 26 And every one that heareth these sayings of
mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which
built his house upon the sand:
Matt 11:16But whereunto shall I liken this generation? It is like unto children
sitting in the markets, and calling unto their fellows,
Matt 13:24 Another parable put he forth unto them, saying, The
kingdom of heaven is likened unto a man which sowed good seed in his
field:
Matt 18:23 Therefore is the kingdom of heaven likened unto a
certain king, which would take account of his servants.
Matt 22:2 The kingdom of heaven
is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son,
Matt 25:1 Then shall the
kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps,
and went forth to meet the bridegroom.
Luk 7:31 And the Lord said, Whereunto then shall I liken the men of
this generation? and to what are they like?
Luk 13:18 Then said he, Unto what is the kingdom of God like? and whereunto
shall I resemble it?
Act 14:11 And when the
people saw what Paul had done, they lifted up their voices, saying in the
speech of Lycaonia, The gods are come down to us in the likeness of men.
Rom 9:29 And as Esaias said
before, Except the Lord of Sabaoth had left us a seed, we had been as Sodoma,
and been made like (HB דָּמָה damah דָּמָה
dâmâh, to compare; by implication, to resemble, liken, consider, devise, (be)
like(-n), mean, think, use similitudes. ) unto Gomorrha.
Heb 2:17 Wherefore in all
things it behoved him to be made like unto his brethren, that he might
be a merciful and faithful high priest in things pertaining to God, to make
reconciliation for the sins of the people.