A LONG TIME MISREPRESENTED GOD (Part 2)

Read part 1 here.

(Exodus 6:3, Acts 17:21-31)

Now I turn to your question of how God/Satan participated in the unfortunate events like:

• Floods
• Sodom and Gomorrah
• Old Testament Wars
• Passover
• Crossing of the Red Sea
• Ananias and Sapphira

Well, these and more are fortunate and unfortunate events that happened (some not in the way they are expressed) in the history of Israel.

The issue to address on these events is not so much on their scientific reality (did they happen the way they are stated to have happened) but rather the issue is on how God was perceived and how his involvement was stated.

The battle of the gods

Able (anointed and educated) Bible, Geology and Archeology students will tell you three important things:

1-When the Christian God first attempted to reveal himself to man, he found man religious (that it is to say, man had gods (material and immaterial already).

So not every time you read God in the Old Testament the writer or speaker implies your Christian God. You can tell this by the gods saints in the Old Testament are named after. There are categorically three god-oriented namings in the especially in the Old Testament.

A- Elohistic names: these are people named after the league (polytheistic-worship of more than one God). Examples are Ezekiel, Samuel, Daniel, and all names that end with EL.

B-Baal names: these are individuals named after the famous Canaanite (Phoenician male-god) god known as Baal (lord or possessor).

“In times of lapse Hebrews compounded the names of their children with Baal—for example, Jerubbaal (Judges 7:1): Ishbaal (1Chronicles 8:33; 9:39), Meribbaal (1Chronicles 8:34; 9:40) which in times of revival and return to Yahwism were altered, the Baal element being replaced by “bosheth,” meaning “shame.” Thus pious Israelites express their horror of Baal worship; examples are Jerubbosheth (for Jerubbaal) (2Samuel 11:21). Ishbosheth (for Ishbaal= ‘man of Baal) (2Samuel 2:8), Mephibosheth (for Merribaal= Baal is my advocate’) (2Samuel 4:4; 9:6. 10).”

(Unger’s Bible Dictionary, Merrill F. Unger, Moody Press, Chicago, IL, under the word Baal on page 413).

C- Yahwistic names: these are the Yah-names. People in the Bible named after the god original with the Israelites. Examples are Jeremiah, Nehemiah, Obadiah, Zephaniah, Isaiah, etc. these were names introduced in the era of monotheism in Israel (book of Deuteronomy). Yahweh was mountainous and a desert war god (YHWH Sabaoth).

He was a god to the nomadic Habirus (Hebrews) and the Midianites. He was the god who appeared to the herdsman known as Abraham= Genesis 12 and is the same God that appeared to Moses in Midian and made a claim that all along the patriarchs knew him not (Exodus 6:3).

The same misunderstanding continued through the monarchical age of Israel and when Israel and Judah were exiled, this Yahweh evolved from a local god to a universal God.

It is in the exile that the themes such as creation and redemption take a new shape and perspective. Even then, the cultic perceptions are not dropped once but rather the new revelation about this God is incorporated in the tribal rituals and traditions.

Beyond Judaism and Yahwism

2- Yahweh was initially known as a nomadic god and throughout the Exodus, Numbers and Deuteronomy this god evolves into a monotheistic God.

However, he has to tread cautiously lest he is dropped. So Yahweh exercises tolerance but as he works on a monotheism to replace the existing polytheism (Exodus 23:32-33, Deuteronomy 12:29-32, 30:17-20, 8:19-20, 31:16-18, Judges 2:13).

Yahweh is a name that Jews called God the creator and redeemer. However, when he revealed himself to Moses, he said his name was ‘I AM’ (Exodus 3:14). In this process of Yahweh revealing himself to these ancient people, their preconceived ideas of him as a cultural desert, mountainous and war god take centre stage.

He is throughout the Biblical text referenced and attached to Acts outside his will and nature-based on who we know he is today (Exodus 6:3, Acts 17:21-31).

Throughout the Canon, the ultimate revelation of this God beyond Judaism and Yahwism is in his initiative of the incarnation-God becoming the man- Jesus Christ (John 1:1-3, 14, Hebrews 1:1-3).

From Monism to Dualism

3- Now about the eventualities recorded in the Bible in which this God is implicated, you have to understand that; the Jews in both testaments of the Bible do not have different causes (of evil and good).

It is until the exile when they were exposed to a Persian Philosopher known as Zoroaster founder Zoroastrianism that they learn that Monism (a single cause of good and evil) is wanting and they adopt Dualism (different cause of good and evil).

So under Monism, the gods (Yahweh inclusive) are the cause of good (when they-people obey or when gods are happy for any reason known or unknown) and the same cause of Evil (when they-People disobey or the gods are angry for any known or unknown reason)=Deuteronomy 27-28.

So all political (monarchical wars) were battles of gods and the name of Yahweh is going to be instrumental in these wars and that is how the Israelites are going to establish their national unique god as the Greater, stronger god of all other nations’ gods.

Next, I will finally comment on the events recorded in the Bible and the atrocities attributed to God.

God bless you, I invoke Truth, Wisdom and Faith
Priest M.I.T White
iTiS Well of Worship Fellowship (John 4:24)
Questioning to Believe, Believing to Live