Most of the Christian world seems to believe that God the Father and His Son, Jesus Christ are one and the same God. A careful study of the New Testament, however, will clearly show to the enlightened mind that they are two distinct beings, united as one in their purposes. The gospel of John, chapter one, verse one makes it clear that there are two Gods, God the Father and the Word, who is Jesus the Christ. There are many other verses that demonstrate that this is the true relationship between them, but false traditions which men teach can easily cloud the mind to such obvious truths.
The second verse of John 1 also teaches an important principle, the full significance of which few people pause to consider. It tells us that Jesus and His Father were together from the beginning. This implies that the Father and the Son were together throughout the times of the Old Testament as well. Yet few have taken notice of who the Christ really was when He appeared in the Old Testament verses. This perhaps might also be attributed to the false traditions taught by men. Yet even as the New Testament clearly teaches the truth about the Father and the Son, so does the Old Testament teach the honest seeker of truth who they are.
The words 'God' and 'LORD' are often used interchangably in the Old Testament to refer to the same being, but sometimes they are used to refer to the Father and the Son separately. In Hebrew those words are 'El' or 'Elohiym' and 'YHWH' or 'Jehovah'. El is the title in Hebrew given to the most High God or God the Father. YHWH is the name of the God of Israel. I will show you that the Bible teaches that these are two separate and distinct beings, even God the Father and the Word, Jesus Christ of the New Testament. Remember they were together from the beginning.
First consider the revelation given in Deuteronomy 32:8-9. There we are shown that the Most High God divided the nations according to their inheritance. In verse nine we are told that Jacob,or Israel is the portion or the people that corresponds to Jehovah for His inheritance. Thus we learn that the Most High God gave to Jehovah the people of Israel for His inheritance. That is the reason that the people of Israel were always taught that they should worship one God, Jehovah, that there was no other God for them, because they are His inheritance. We know that there were two Gods from the beginning, and here we see them, El and Jehovah, working together.
But this is not the only place that they are shown to be two distinct beings. Consider Job 1:6 and Job 2:1. In both of these verses we are told that the sons of Elohiym took their places before Jehovah. Thus the two Gods are mentioned as if they were two distinct beings. I will proceed to show you that the first truly is God the Father and the second is actually Jesus the Christ.
The people of Israel often referred to their God, Jehovah, as their 'Rock'. This can be found in the following Old Testament verses: Deuteronomy 32:3-4, 15, 18, 30, 31; 2 Samuel 22:3, 47; 23:3; Psalms 18:2, 31, 46; 19:14; 28:1; 62:2, 6, 7; 73:26; 89:26; 92:15; 94:22; 95:1; 144:1; Isaiah 8:14;17:10; 26:4. Clearly Jehovah was the Rock that accompanied Israel. Now in the New Testament, in Paul's first epistle to the Corinthians, chapter 10:1-4, he explains that that spiritual Rock from which they ate and from which they drank and which followed them was Jesus Christ. Thus Jehovah, the Rock of Israel is the same Jesus the Christ.
There is another scripture that brings us to the same conclusion. Back to the gospel of John, chapter 1, this time consider verse 17. There we are told very clearly that no man had ever seen God the Father at any time. Yet we know from the scriptures that in Old Testament times many men had seen Jehovah. For example we are told in Genesis 17:1 and 18:1-3 that Abraham saw Him; again in chapter 26:1-3 we are told that Jehovah appeared to Isaac; then in chapter 32:30 Jacob says he saw Jehovah face-to-face, and Jacob again tells Joseph in chaptetr 48:3 that God appeared to him. In Exodus 24:9-10 we learn that Moses, Aaron, Nadab, Abihu and seventy of the elders of Israel all saw the God of Israel. Finally, in Isaiah 6:1 that great prophet Isaiah testifies to us that he saw Jehovah, sitting on a throne in the temple!
After the numerous testimonies from those great men who saw Jehovah, we can only conclude that, while in the words of John, no man has seen God the Father, yet many men have seen Jehovah, the God of Israel. Therefore, in harmony with the other scriptures previously cited, Jehovah is not God the Father, but He is that other God, the God of Israel, even the Son, Jesus the Christ.
Monday, December 5, 2011
Monday, January 24, 2011
The Bible teaches Plurality of Gods, not Monotheism
The ministers and pastors of most Christian traditions teach that the Father and the Son are one and the same God. This is probably due to the fact that Jesus told the people on several occasions that He and the Father are one, and perhaps also to a misunderstanding of such New Testament verses as John 1:1, which says:
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
This phrase, the Word was God (the term ‘Word’ referring to Jesus Christ) certainly could be misinterpreted to lead someone to believe that they were the same God. But then if you look at verse 2, it emphasizes the fact that the Word was with God, which could mean that they were two distinct entities:
2The same was in the beginning with God.
The fact is, that is what it does mean, which you will see in some verses that will follow. In fact some translations of the Bible have corrected that verse, the Word was God to read ‘the Word was a God’.
Since we can be mislead us into believing that the Father and the Son are the same God by the fact that several times in the Gospels Jesus says that He and the Father are one, let us look in other places where He reveals exactly what He means. For example, take a look at His words found in John17:11, 21-22
11And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
21That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
Clearly these verses show that the ‘oneness’ that exists between the Father and the Son is no ‘mystery’ as many Christians are taught. It does not mean that they are the same person, being partly in Heaven and partly on earth at the same time. If so, that would imply that He expects all of His disciples to become the same individual, as He prays, ‘that they may be one, even as we are one’, On the contrary, He is merely praying that they might become united in their minds and spirits, that they might arrive at the same understanding and purposes, etc.
Just a little bit of study of the Scriptures reveals that God the Father and God the Son are two distinct individuals, but they are united in understanding and purpose.
But now take a look at what else we were told in verses 1 and 2 of John, quoted above. John said that Jesus Christ was with God from the beginning! That must mean that the Saviour was working with the Father even during the Old Testament times! So where do we find Him mentioned in the Old Testament?
As I explained in a previous post, in the Old Testament the Hebrew word for the Most High God was El, and it specifically referred to God the Father. The Hebrew words Elahh, Eloahh and Chochmah are words that were used when speaking of the Goddess-consort of the Most High God, and specifically referring to our Heavenly Mother. Also we have the Hebrew word Elohiym, which is an unusual Hebrew grammatical construct combining the word for our Heavenly Mother, Eloah with the masculine plural suffix, ‘iym’ to form the combined plural term Elohiym, meaning ‘Heavenly Parents’ (Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother together).
But if the Son was also there in the beginning, and participated in the creation, as John said, where does the Son appear in the Old Testament? Many Bible scholars believe that the Hebrew words ‘Elohiym’ (translated into English ‘God’) and ‘YHWH’ (translated into English ‘LORD’ or Jehovah) both refer to the same God, but there are several occasions where it is shown that this is not the case.
For example, in Deuteronomy 32:8-9 we read:
8: When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.
9:But the LORD’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.
Here in verse 8 is mentioned the Most High God dividing the nations according to their inheritances, and setting their bounds based upon population. Then in verse 9 is mentioned Jehovah (LORD), and saying that He has received Jacob (the people of Israel) for an inheritance from the Most High God. These verses clearly demonstrate that El – the Most High God, and Jehovah – the LORD are two distinct personages. Thus we see here that YHWH became the God of Israel, having inherited the tribes of Jacob’s descendants.
Another scripture which demonstrates the distinction between the God - El and the LORD - YHWH if found in chapters 1:6 and 2:1 of the Book of Job.
1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God (Elohiym)came to present themselves before the LORD (YHWH), and Satan came also among them.
2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God (Elohiym)came to present themselves before the LORD (YHWH), and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
HERE in both verses we see that there are described two meetings that take place in the heavens in which the sons of God have come to present themselves before the LORD.
Again we can see that God and the LORD are two distinct personages with two different titles.
Now remember that the words of Jesus Himself, in the New Testament, make it obvious that He and His Father are two distinct individuals. But there is also other evidence given there that Jesus is Jehovah of the Old Testament, and not God the Father.
For example, first look back in Deuteronomy 32 again, at verses 4, 15, 18, 30, 31 and in many other places throughout the Old Testament Jehovah is referred to as the Rock of Israel:
4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just.
15 …They abandoned the God who made them and rejected the Rock their Savior.
18 You deserted the Rock, who fathered you;
30 How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?
31 For their rock is not like our Rock…
Yet in the New Testament Paul tells the Corinthians that Rock of the Old Testament is Jesus Christ. You can read it in 1 Cor. Chapter 10:2-4 :
2And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
3And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
4And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
But now, look at what Paul told the Hebrews about Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 5:8-9 he tells them:
8Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
9And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
This says that sometime before He became that God YHWH of the Old Testament, He had to go through the process of learning obedience and suffering from His mistakes until He became perfect. But the surprising thing is that He told us that we need to go through that same process! He said in Matthew 5:48, as follows:
48Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Does this mean that we are, or can become gods, as Jesus Christ did? Again quoting the apostle Paul as he spoke to the men of Athens, he said we are the offspring of God in Acts 17:28-29:
28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
29Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
And John tells us what will happen to us when we learn to follow the path that Jesus Christ has shown us, saying in 1John 3:2 as follows:
2Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
So now to recapitulate, the Bible tells us we have a Father in Heaven and a Mother in Heaven that created us, an older Brother in Heaven who has saved us, and that we also have the destiny to become Gods like they are!
But the Bible also tells us how God the Father also came to be who He is.
Consider the following words of Jesus in John 5:19-20:
19Then 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.
20For 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.
Here He tells us some very revealing things…for example:
He tells us that He has never done anything until he saw the Father do it first, and then He will do the things that he saw the Father do! And then He says that the Father showed Him all the things that He (the Father) had previously done. Lets analyze exactly what that implies.
First it means that God the Father at some previous time had gone through all the same processes of learning obedience and suffering by His mistakes as Jesus Christ had done (Hebrews 5:8-9), until He became perfect.
Next it means that God the Father had at some previous time been born into mortality on some planet, and lived the life of a mortal man, even as Jesus was doing in His footsteps.
And thirdly it means that God the Father must have answered to, prayed to and obeyed a Heavenly Father of His own.
Fourth it implies that each Heavenly Father had a Father/God that preceded Him, to whom he answered, to whom he prayed, and in whose steps he followed.
When you stop to consider the vast endless size of the universe, with countless galaxies and solar systems and planets, it seems logical that there might be countless Gods creating them as a place for their own offspring, so that they might have a place where their children could grow and learn and progress and become gods themselves, to continue the process on into endless space. Of course for now those offspring only need to know and learn to obey the specific Gods that created them.
When Genesis says, “In the beginning…” I assume they are referring to the beginning of the creation of our own sphere of existence. Perhaps this creation of our own Heavenly Parents is limited to what we call the Milky Way Galaxy, or perhaps they have created several galaxies and populated them, as have the Gods that came before them. What portion of these creative spheres belongs to them and to Jesus Christ, we can only speculate, but they have promised many times that they will share all that they have with us when we learn to live as they have taught us.
1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.
This phrase, the Word was God (the term ‘Word’ referring to Jesus Christ) certainly could be misinterpreted to lead someone to believe that they were the same God. But then if you look at verse 2, it emphasizes the fact that the Word was with God, which could mean that they were two distinct entities:
2The same was in the beginning with God.
The fact is, that is what it does mean, which you will see in some verses that will follow. In fact some translations of the Bible have corrected that verse, the Word was God to read ‘the Word was a God’.
Since we can be mislead us into believing that the Father and the Son are the same God by the fact that several times in the Gospels Jesus says that He and the Father are one, let us look in other places where He reveals exactly what He means. For example, take a look at His words found in John17:11, 21-22
11And now I am no more in the world, but these are in the world, and I come to thee. Holy Father, keep through thine own name those whom thou hast given me, that they may be one, as we are.
21That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
Clearly these verses show that the ‘oneness’ that exists between the Father and the Son is no ‘mystery’ as many Christians are taught. It does not mean that they are the same person, being partly in Heaven and partly on earth at the same time. If so, that would imply that He expects all of His disciples to become the same individual, as He prays, ‘that they may be one, even as we are one’, On the contrary, He is merely praying that they might become united in their minds and spirits, that they might arrive at the same understanding and purposes, etc.
Just a little bit of study of the Scriptures reveals that God the Father and God the Son are two distinct individuals, but they are united in understanding and purpose.
But now take a look at what else we were told in verses 1 and 2 of John, quoted above. John said that Jesus Christ was with God from the beginning! That must mean that the Saviour was working with the Father even during the Old Testament times! So where do we find Him mentioned in the Old Testament?
As I explained in a previous post, in the Old Testament the Hebrew word for the Most High God was El, and it specifically referred to God the Father. The Hebrew words Elahh, Eloahh and Chochmah are words that were used when speaking of the Goddess-consort of the Most High God, and specifically referring to our Heavenly Mother. Also we have the Hebrew word Elohiym, which is an unusual Hebrew grammatical construct combining the word for our Heavenly Mother, Eloah with the masculine plural suffix, ‘iym’ to form the combined plural term Elohiym, meaning ‘Heavenly Parents’ (Heavenly Father and Heavenly Mother together).
But if the Son was also there in the beginning, and participated in the creation, as John said, where does the Son appear in the Old Testament? Many Bible scholars believe that the Hebrew words ‘Elohiym’ (translated into English ‘God’) and ‘YHWH’ (translated into English ‘LORD’ or Jehovah) both refer to the same God, but there are several occasions where it is shown that this is not the case.
For example, in Deuteronomy 32:8-9 we read:
8: When the Most High gave to the nations their inheritance, when he divided mankind, he fixed the borders of the peoples according to the number of the sons of God.
9:But the LORD’s portion is his people, Jacob his allotted heritage.
Here in verse 8 is mentioned the Most High God dividing the nations according to their inheritances, and setting their bounds based upon population. Then in verse 9 is mentioned Jehovah (LORD), and saying that He has received Jacob (the people of Israel) for an inheritance from the Most High God. These verses clearly demonstrate that El – the Most High God, and Jehovah – the LORD are two distinct personages. Thus we see here that YHWH became the God of Israel, having inherited the tribes of Jacob’s descendants.
Another scripture which demonstrates the distinction between the God - El and the LORD - YHWH if found in chapters 1:6 and 2:1 of the Book of Job.
1:6 Now there was a day when the sons of God (Elohiym)came to present themselves before the LORD (YHWH), and Satan came also among them.
2:1 Again there was a day when the sons of God (Elohiym)came to present themselves before the LORD (YHWH), and Satan came also among them to present himself before the LORD.
HERE in both verses we see that there are described two meetings that take place in the heavens in which the sons of God have come to present themselves before the LORD.
Again we can see that God and the LORD are two distinct personages with two different titles.
Now remember that the words of Jesus Himself, in the New Testament, make it obvious that He and His Father are two distinct individuals. But there is also other evidence given there that Jesus is Jehovah of the Old Testament, and not God the Father.
For example, first look back in Deuteronomy 32 again, at verses 4, 15, 18, 30, 31 and in many other places throughout the Old Testament Jehovah is referred to as the Rock of Israel:
4 He is the Rock, his works are perfect, and all his ways are just.
15 …They abandoned the God who made them and rejected the Rock their Savior.
18 You deserted the Rock, who fathered you;
30 How could one man chase a thousand, or two put ten thousand to flight, unless their Rock had sold them, unless the LORD had given them up?
31 For their rock is not like our Rock…
Yet in the New Testament Paul tells the Corinthians that Rock of the Old Testament is Jesus Christ. You can read it in 1 Cor. Chapter 10:2-4 :
2And were all baptized unto Moses in the cloud and in the sea;
3And did all eat the same spiritual meat;
4And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ.
But now, look at what Paul told the Hebrews about Jesus Christ. In Hebrews 5:8-9 he tells them:
8Though he were a Son, yet learned he obedience by the things which he suffered;
9And being made perfect, he became the author of eternal salvation unto all them that obey him;
This says that sometime before He became that God YHWH of the Old Testament, He had to go through the process of learning obedience and suffering from His mistakes until He became perfect. But the surprising thing is that He told us that we need to go through that same process! He said in Matthew 5:48, as follows:
48Be ye therefore perfect, even as your Father which is in heaven is perfect.
Does this mean that we are, or can become gods, as Jesus Christ did? Again quoting the apostle Paul as he spoke to the men of Athens, he said we are the offspring of God in Acts 17:28-29:
28For in him we live, and move, and have our being; as certain also of your own poets have said, For we are also his offspring.
29Forasmuch then as we are the offspring of God, we ought not to think that the Godhead is like unto gold, or silver, or stone, graven by art and man's device.
And John tells us what will happen to us when we learn to follow the path that Jesus Christ has shown us, saying in 1John 3:2 as follows:
2Beloved, now are we the sons of God, and it doth not yet appear what we shall be: but we know that, when he shall appear, we shall be like him; for we shall see him as he is.
So now to recapitulate, the Bible tells us we have a Father in Heaven and a Mother in Heaven that created us, an older Brother in Heaven who has saved us, and that we also have the destiny to become Gods like they are!
But the Bible also tells us how God the Father also came to be who He is.
Consider the following words of Jesus in John 5:19-20:
19Then 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.
20For 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.
Here He tells us some very revealing things…for example:
He tells us that He has never done anything until he saw the Father do it first, and then He will do the things that he saw the Father do! And then He says that the Father showed Him all the things that He (the Father) had previously done. Lets analyze exactly what that implies.
First it means that God the Father at some previous time had gone through all the same processes of learning obedience and suffering by His mistakes as Jesus Christ had done (Hebrews 5:8-9), until He became perfect.
Next it means that God the Father had at some previous time been born into mortality on some planet, and lived the life of a mortal man, even as Jesus was doing in His footsteps.
And thirdly it means that God the Father must have answered to, prayed to and obeyed a Heavenly Father of His own.
Fourth it implies that each Heavenly Father had a Father/God that preceded Him, to whom he answered, to whom he prayed, and in whose steps he followed.
When you stop to consider the vast endless size of the universe, with countless galaxies and solar systems and planets, it seems logical that there might be countless Gods creating them as a place for their own offspring, so that they might have a place where their children could grow and learn and progress and become gods themselves, to continue the process on into endless space. Of course for now those offspring only need to know and learn to obey the specific Gods that created them.
When Genesis says, “In the beginning…” I assume they are referring to the beginning of the creation of our own sphere of existence. Perhaps this creation of our own Heavenly Parents is limited to what we call the Milky Way Galaxy, or perhaps they have created several galaxies and populated them, as have the Gods that came before them. What portion of these creative spheres belongs to them and to Jesus Christ, we can only speculate, but they have promised many times that they will share all that they have with us when we learn to live as they have taught us.
Friday, January 7, 2011
The Cult of the Christmas Trees
The Cult of the Christmas Trees
There is an important warning given together with a commandment, that few people seem to take seriously or even to regard as applying to their own behavior. It is found in Doctrine and Covenants 93:39-40 - “And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men, and because of the traditions of their fathers. But I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth.”
This makes it clear that Satan gains power to take away light and truth from our children as we continue to observe false traditions, which includes anything that is out of harmony with truth or with the word of God. And for this important reason He commands us to raise our children in light and truth.
Decorated Trees - There are many scriptures that tell us that God objects to decorated trees because they have always been used as representations and symbols of pagan gods, converted into objects of worship by those that were/are disobedient to God, and thus the LORD has forbidden their use and has condemned those that use them throughout the Old Testament. The Hebrew word for these ‘holy trees’ is “ashera”, but the English translation has been rendered “grove”, which totally obfuscates the fact that the word actually means a tree decorated in representation of a pagan god. A little bit of research into the Scriptures, however, reveals what they really are.
The Spanish translations of the Bible are much more truthful and enlightening as to revealing the fact that a “grove” really means a tree that has been converted into an object of worship by special placement and decoration. I have included in parenthesis the actual Spanish translation of the Hebrew “ashera” as it appears in the several scriptures in Spanish, from both the Catholic and the Protestant Bibles, and have given in italics the English meaning of those words, but the Catholic
Bible’s interpretation seems to be the more descriptive of the two.
First consider the warning from the prophet Jeremiah, in which the practice is most clearly described:
Jeremiah 10:2-4 “Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.”
The above quotation is from the King James Version of the Bible. If your translation says something substantially different, you should consider the possibility that your modern and ‘improved’ translation may have been slanted to conceal the actual meaning of these verses.
The correct meaning of "asherah" can also be inferred by a careful examination of the context of the places in which it is used. Asherah [Decorated trees set up as objects of worship] (representaciones de Astarte’; imagenes de Asera [images of the pagan goddess]; troncos sagrados [sacred cut trees]; troncos a los que rinden culto [trees cut for the purpose of occult practices ]; arbol sagrado [holy trees]; leno del bosque [forest wood]; tronco en el bosque [trees of the forest]
[Note that the word "grove" as used in Genesis 21:33 is not relevant to this discussion, because this “grove” is translated from a different Hebrew word ASL (eshel), meaning a tamarisk tree.]
Hated by God - The Hebrew word ASRE (asherah) is translated in the KJV version as "grove" 40 times, but the Spanish translations of this same Hebrew words have a very different meaning. We will examine these occurrences of the word. Many of these clearly indicate that the "asherah" (grove) means ‘decorated trees’ and is hated by God. For example:
Exodus 34:13 - But ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves: (troncos sagrados; imagenes de Asera)
Deuteronomy 7:5 - But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire. (troncos a los que rinden culto; imagenes de Asera)
Deuteronomy 12:3 - And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place. (troncos a los que rinden culto; imagenes de Asera)
Judges 3:7 - And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves. (representaciones de Astarte’; imagenes de Asera)
1 Kings 14:15 - For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger. (representaciones de Astarte’; imagenes de Asera)
1 Kings 16:33 - And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him. (imagen de Asera)
Use of “asherah” together with the use of ‘tree’. The “ashera” were planted or cut trees, which were then decorated, and the LORD had them torn down and burned as objects of pagan worship:
Deuteronomy 16:21 - Thou shalt not plant thee a grove of any trees near unto the altar of the LORD thy God, which thou shalt make thee. (arbol para honrar a un idolo [tree for givng honor to a false god]; arbol para Asera) Here the "asherah" evidently was a "tree" that was turned into an object of worship, as opposed to the Hebrew word “ets” which is a normal "tree", also mentioned in this same verse.
Judges 6:25-26 - And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: (arbol sagrado; imagen de Asera)
26 And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.
Erected in Prominent Places The "asherah" was often erected on the top of a hill, [even as christmas trees are often placed in front of a window and in city centers, to be seen by the world]:
1 Kings 14:22-23 - And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. (troncos sagrados; imagenes de Asera) [as gifts and décor are placed under christmas trees]
2 Kings 17:10 - And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree: (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
The Hebrew word THT (tachath), is perhaps translated here as "under" in reference to the placement of offerings but it also means "in the place of", "in the room of", "instead of", etc. [See Genesis 4:25, 22:13, Exodus 29:30, Leviticus 14:42, 2 Samuel 19:13, 1 Chronicles 4:41]. When a normal "green tree" was changed into an "asherah" by decorating it, as in the above verses, in defiance of the LORD, the “asherah” was set up “in the place of” a normal green tree by adding such decorations and by placing offerings under them. This must have been great fun for the people, celebrating a joyous occasion, but God obviously hated it and commanded that it be destroyed wherever it was found.
When the People of today also erect their Christmas Tree in prominent places, in the picture window of their house, in public buildings, in every town square and on the White House lawn, spending great time, effort and money to place elaborate decorations and lighting upon them, they are committing the sin of idolatry just as surely as the Old Testament peoples, even though they say they are just doing it for fun.
Brought Indoors - The "asherah" was also set up indoors, and even brought into the Temple. As Jeremiah described, they were fastened with nails so they cannot move:
2 Kings 21:7 - And he set a graven image of the grove that he had made in the house, of which the LORD said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever: (imagen de Asera)
2 Kings 23:4,6-7 - And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Beth-el. ...
6 And he brought out the grove from the house of the LORD, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people. (imagen deAsera)
7 And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove. (Asera)
This last verse is especially revealing, because it again shows that the "asherah" was also decorated with hand-made ornaments, as women and children often do today. Of course these ornaments or "hangings" were idolatrous.
2 Kings 23:14 - And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men. (troncos sagrados; imagenes de Asera)
Today people hang little Santa Clauses and other images, and lights and shiny objects and so forth, to decorate their Christmas Trees. This is the same kind of idolatry as was practiced by the Israelites with their various images, and also described by Jeremiah as deccorating with “silver and gold”.
Destroyed by the Righteous - At times, those who were righteous destroyed the "asherah", as God commanded, and the LORD had all these images broken in pieces and destroyed:
Judges 6:27-30 - Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built. (arbol sagrado; imagen de Asera)
29 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing.
30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it. (arbol sagrado; imagen de Asera)
2 Chronicles 14:2-4 - And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God:
3 For he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves: (representaciones de Asera; simbolos de Asera)
4 And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment.
2 Chronicles 17:6 - And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the LORD: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah. (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
2 Chronicles 19:3 - Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God. (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
2 Chronicles 31:1 - Now when all this was finished, all Israel that were present went out to the cities of Judah, and brake the images in pieces, and cut down the groves, and threw down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin, in Ephraim also and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned, every man to his possession, into their own cities. (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
The Wrath of God - Finally, there is found prophecy about the coming wrath of God with respect to the "asherah" and the little "images" which are used to decorate them:
Micah 5:13-15 - Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.
14 And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities. (arboles sagrados; imagenes de Asera)
15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard.
Merry Christmas? - This last scripture seems to be a hint that many cities will be destroyed during one of the Christmas seasons.
It is commonly claimed that "Christmas" is a day of joy, merriment, gladness, and good tidings in observance of Jesus' birth. But the honest in heart will eventually admit that this is merely ‘lip service’ to our Lord, and that in reality christmas is a time of excess, mainly used for partying and materialism, dedicated to the decorating of trees, the buying of gifts for friends and family, and in preparation for the coming of the mythical ‘Santa Clause’, for the purpose of commercial exploitation.
As I have on countless occasions observed families decorating these trees, and have later watched them gathered around their ‘ashera’, distributing and opening presents to each other in the fashion of pagans, I have realized that any thoughts of the Saviour are the farthest thing from their minds, as is the commandment to ‘raise up your children in light and truth’. But I have also learned, as did Joseph Smith, that these ‘Gentiles’ will go to any length to justify their false traditions.
As Jesus observed, saying “Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own traditions.” [Mark 7:9]
An example of the destruction that will be brought upon the heads of those who celebrate such false traditions can be found in scripture on the occasion of the death of two of God's own prophets:
Revelation 11:10 - And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.
In like manner, those who ‘celebrate Jesus' birth’ according to heathen traditions will sometimes be found to be expressing their joy on a day which commemorates Saturnalia which is, according to the true calendar, one of Satan's works. But Jesus Christ is not central in that joy, but rather the heathen traditions such as decorating trees and gift-giving, then they through such tradition symbolically will have become the enemies of God.
Ask yourself if you would want to be found (1) rejoicing, (2) making merry, and (3) giving gifts on the anniversary date of a future event in which these things are done to honor the "beast" who kills God's prophets.
Perhaps you are not completely convinced that the Hebrew word ASRE (asherah) refers to a "decorated tree" because an exact description of the "asherah" is not given in English. However there is enough information given in the several examples above to know that this practice was hated by God, and that it consisted of a tree, erect, often brought indoors, and hung with ornaments. And the servants of God were commanded to cut them down and burn them.
But there is also another clue. Based on the known meaning of "asherah" (decorated tree) is derived from a related Hebrew word ASRI (ashere), meaning"enjoy" or "merriment". The associated Hebrew word ASRI (ashere) is also translated in the KJV as follows: blessed - 27 times; happy - 18 times
In consideration of the original scripture quoted above, ask yourself how Satan uses the false Catholic tradition called ‘christmas’ to take away ‘light and truth’ from the children of men. An honest evaluation will disclose that it has always been used as a time of justifying excesses… excesses of materialism, excess of partying, excess of eating, excess of drinking, excess of spending into indebtedness, excess of exploiting of the Santa myth, converting him in the minds of children into a god which they eventually learn was a deception and finally, excess of loneliness often leading to suicide!
Summary: We can all rationalize that we are not celebrating or using Christmas for these idolic purposes, but the warning of the prophets is clear, LEARN NOT THE WAY OF THE HEATHEN! We need to liken these scriptures to our own lives, as they are still true today, and those in ancient Israel who adopted heathen practices finding happiness and enjoyment in decorating their trees, even converting the practice into ‘blessed events’ were condemned to destruction in ancient times, as those that continue to do so, as we have been warned, finally will be in the end.
There is an important warning given together with a commandment, that few people seem to take seriously or even to regard as applying to their own behavior. It is found in Doctrine and Covenants 93:39-40 - “And that wicked one cometh and taketh away light and truth, through disobedience, from the children of men, and because of the traditions of their fathers. But I have commanded you to bring up your children in light and truth.”
This makes it clear that Satan gains power to take away light and truth from our children as we continue to observe false traditions, which includes anything that is out of harmony with truth or with the word of God. And for this important reason He commands us to raise our children in light and truth.
Decorated Trees - There are many scriptures that tell us that God objects to decorated trees because they have always been used as representations and symbols of pagan gods, converted into objects of worship by those that were/are disobedient to God, and thus the LORD has forbidden their use and has condemned those that use them throughout the Old Testament. The Hebrew word for these ‘holy trees’ is “ashera”, but the English translation has been rendered “grove”, which totally obfuscates the fact that the word actually means a tree decorated in representation of a pagan god. A little bit of research into the Scriptures, however, reveals what they really are.
The Spanish translations of the Bible are much more truthful and enlightening as to revealing the fact that a “grove” really means a tree that has been converted into an object of worship by special placement and decoration. I have included in parenthesis the actual Spanish translation of the Hebrew “ashera” as it appears in the several scriptures in Spanish, from both the Catholic and the Protestant Bibles, and have given in italics the English meaning of those words, but the Catholic
Bible’s interpretation seems to be the more descriptive of the two.
First consider the warning from the prophet Jeremiah, in which the practice is most clearly described:
Jeremiah 10:2-4 “Thus saith the LORD, Learn not the way of the heathen, and be not dismayed at the signs of heaven; for the heathen are dismayed at them. For the customs of the people are vain: for one cutteth a tree out of the forest, the work of the hands of the workman, with the axe. They deck it with silver and with gold; they fasten it with nails and with hammers, that it move not.”
The above quotation is from the King James Version of the Bible. If your translation says something substantially different, you should consider the possibility that your modern and ‘improved’ translation may have been slanted to conceal the actual meaning of these verses.
The correct meaning of "asherah" can also be inferred by a careful examination of the context of the places in which it is used. Asherah [Decorated trees set up as objects of worship] (representaciones de Astarte’; imagenes de Asera [images of the pagan goddess]; troncos sagrados [sacred cut trees]; troncos a los que rinden culto [trees cut for the purpose of occult practices ]; arbol sagrado [holy trees]; leno del bosque [forest wood]; tronco en el bosque [trees of the forest]
[Note that the word "grove" as used in Genesis 21:33 is not relevant to this discussion, because this “grove” is translated from a different Hebrew word ASL (eshel), meaning a tamarisk tree.]
Hated by God - The Hebrew word ASRE (asherah) is translated in the KJV version as "grove" 40 times, but the Spanish translations of this same Hebrew words have a very different meaning. We will examine these occurrences of the word. Many of these clearly indicate that the "asherah" (grove) means ‘decorated trees’ and is hated by God. For example:
Exodus 34:13 - But ye shall destroy their altars, break their images, and cut down their groves: (troncos sagrados; imagenes de Asera)
Deuteronomy 7:5 - But thus shall ye deal with them; ye shall destroy their altars, and break down their images, and cut down their groves, and burn their graven images with fire. (troncos a los que rinden culto; imagenes de Asera)
Deuteronomy 12:3 - And ye shall overthrow their altars, and break their pillars, and burn their groves with fire; and ye shall hew down the graven images of their gods, and destroy the names of them out of that place. (troncos a los que rinden culto; imagenes de Asera)
Judges 3:7 - And the children of Israel did evil in the sight of the LORD, and forgat the LORD their God, and served Baalim and the groves. (representaciones de Astarte’; imagenes de Asera)
1 Kings 14:15 - For the LORD shall smite Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water, and he shall root up Israel out of this good land, which he gave to their fathers, and shall scatter them beyond the river, because they have made their groves, provoking the LORD to anger. (representaciones de Astarte’; imagenes de Asera)
1 Kings 16:33 - And Ahab made a grove; and Ahab did more to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger than all the kings of Israel that were before him. (imagen de Asera)
Use of “asherah” together with the use of ‘tree’. The “ashera” were planted or cut trees, which were then decorated, and the LORD had them torn down and burned as objects of pagan worship:
Deuteronomy 16:21 - Thou shalt not plant thee a grove of any trees near unto the altar of the LORD thy God, which thou shalt make thee. (arbol para honrar a un idolo [tree for givng honor to a false god]; arbol para Asera) Here the "asherah" evidently was a "tree" that was turned into an object of worship, as opposed to the Hebrew word “ets” which is a normal "tree", also mentioned in this same verse.
Judges 6:25-26 - And it came to pass the same night, that the LORD said unto him, Take thy father's young bullock, even the second bullock of seven years old, and throw down the altar of Baal that thy father hath, and cut down the grove that is by it: (arbol sagrado; imagen de Asera)
26 And build an altar unto the LORD thy God upon the top of this rock, in the ordered place, and take the second bullock, and offer a burnt sacrifice with the wood of the grove which thou shalt cut down.
Erected in Prominent Places The "asherah" was often erected on the top of a hill, [even as christmas trees are often placed in front of a window and in city centers, to be seen by the world]:
1 Kings 14:22-23 - And Judah did evil in the sight of the LORD, and they provoked him to jealousy with their sins which they had committed, above all that their fathers had done.
23 For they also built them high places, and images, and groves, on every high hill, and under every green tree. (troncos sagrados; imagenes de Asera) [as gifts and décor are placed under christmas trees]
2 Kings 17:10 - And they set them up images and groves in every high hill, and under every green tree: (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
The Hebrew word THT (tachath), is perhaps translated here as "under" in reference to the placement of offerings but it also means "in the place of", "in the room of", "instead of", etc. [See Genesis 4:25, 22:13, Exodus 29:30, Leviticus 14:42, 2 Samuel 19:13, 1 Chronicles 4:41]. When a normal "green tree" was changed into an "asherah" by decorating it, as in the above verses, in defiance of the LORD, the “asherah” was set up “in the place of” a normal green tree by adding such decorations and by placing offerings under them. This must have been great fun for the people, celebrating a joyous occasion, but God obviously hated it and commanded that it be destroyed wherever it was found.
When the People of today also erect their Christmas Tree in prominent places, in the picture window of their house, in public buildings, in every town square and on the White House lawn, spending great time, effort and money to place elaborate decorations and lighting upon them, they are committing the sin of idolatry just as surely as the Old Testament peoples, even though they say they are just doing it for fun.
Brought Indoors - The "asherah" was also set up indoors, and even brought into the Temple. As Jeremiah described, they were fastened with nails so they cannot move:
2 Kings 21:7 - And he set a graven image of the grove that he had made in the house, of which the LORD said to David, and to Solomon his son, In this house, and in Jerusalem, which I have chosen out of all tribes of Israel, will I put my name for ever: (imagen de Asera)
2 Kings 23:4,6-7 - And the king commanded Hilkiah the high priest, and the priests of the second order, and the keepers of the door, to bring forth out of the temple of the LORD all the vessels that were made for Baal, and for the grove, and for all the host of heaven: and he burned them without Jerusalem in the fields of Kidron, and carried the ashes of them unto Beth-el. ...
6 And he brought out the grove from the house of the LORD, without Jerusalem, unto the brook Kidron, and burned it at the brook Kidron, and stamped it small to powder, and cast the powder thereof upon the graves of the children of the people. (imagen deAsera)
7 And he brake down the houses of the sodomites, that were by the house of the LORD, where the women wove hangings for the grove. (Asera)
This last verse is especially revealing, because it again shows that the "asherah" was also decorated with hand-made ornaments, as women and children often do today. Of course these ornaments or "hangings" were idolatrous.
2 Kings 23:14 - And he brake in pieces the images, and cut down the groves, and filled their places with the bones of men. (troncos sagrados; imagenes de Asera)
Today people hang little Santa Clauses and other images, and lights and shiny objects and so forth, to decorate their Christmas Trees. This is the same kind of idolatry as was practiced by the Israelites with their various images, and also described by Jeremiah as deccorating with “silver and gold”.
Destroyed by the Righteous - At times, those who were righteous destroyed the "asherah", as God commanded, and the LORD had all these images broken in pieces and destroyed:
Judges 6:27-30 - Then Gideon took ten men of his servants, and did as the LORD had said unto him: and so it was, because he feared his father's household, and the men of the city, that he could not do it by day, that he did it by night.
28 And when the men of the city arose early in the morning, behold, the altar of Baal was cast down, and the grove was cut down that was by it, and the second bullock was offered upon the altar that was built. (arbol sagrado; imagen de Asera)
29 And they said one to another, Who hath done this thing? And when they enquired and asked, they said, Gideon the son of Joash hath done this thing.
30 Then the men of the city said unto Joash, Bring out thy son, that he may die: because he hath cast down the altar of Baal, and because he hath cut down the grove that was by it. (arbol sagrado; imagen de Asera)
2 Chronicles 14:2-4 - And Asa did that which was good and right in the eyes of the LORD his God:
3 For he took away the altars of the strange gods, and the high places, and brake down the images, and cut down the groves: (representaciones de Asera; simbolos de Asera)
4 And commanded Judah to seek the LORD God of their fathers, and to do the law and the commandment.
2 Chronicles 17:6 - And his heart was lifted up in the ways of the LORD: moreover he took away the high places and groves out of Judah. (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
2 Chronicles 19:3 - Nevertheless there are good things found in thee, in that thou hast taken away the groves out of the land, and hast prepared thine heart to seek God. (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
2 Chronicles 31:1 - Now when all this was finished, all Israel that were present went out to the cities of Judah, and brake the images in pieces, and cut down the groves, and threw down the high places and the altars out of all Judah and Benjamin, in Ephraim also and Manasseh, until they had utterly destroyed them all. Then all the children of Israel returned, every man to his possession, into their own cities. (representaciones de Asera; imagenes de Asera)
The Wrath of God - Finally, there is found prophecy about the coming wrath of God with respect to the "asherah" and the little "images" which are used to decorate them:
Micah 5:13-15 - Thy graven images also will I cut off, and thy standing images out of the midst of thee; and thou shalt no more worship the work of thine hands.
14 And I will pluck up thy groves out of the midst of thee: so will I destroy thy cities. (arboles sagrados; imagenes de Asera)
15 And I will execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard.
Merry Christmas? - This last scripture seems to be a hint that many cities will be destroyed during one of the Christmas seasons.
It is commonly claimed that "Christmas" is a day of joy, merriment, gladness, and good tidings in observance of Jesus' birth. But the honest in heart will eventually admit that this is merely ‘lip service’ to our Lord, and that in reality christmas is a time of excess, mainly used for partying and materialism, dedicated to the decorating of trees, the buying of gifts for friends and family, and in preparation for the coming of the mythical ‘Santa Clause’, for the purpose of commercial exploitation.
As I have on countless occasions observed families decorating these trees, and have later watched them gathered around their ‘ashera’, distributing and opening presents to each other in the fashion of pagans, I have realized that any thoughts of the Saviour are the farthest thing from their minds, as is the commandment to ‘raise up your children in light and truth’. But I have also learned, as did Joseph Smith, that these ‘Gentiles’ will go to any length to justify their false traditions.
As Jesus observed, saying “Full well ye reject the commandment of God, that ye may keep your own traditions.” [Mark 7:9]
An example of the destruction that will be brought upon the heads of those who celebrate such false traditions can be found in scripture on the occasion of the death of two of God's own prophets:
Revelation 11:10 - And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.
In like manner, those who ‘celebrate Jesus' birth’ according to heathen traditions will sometimes be found to be expressing their joy on a day which commemorates Saturnalia which is, according to the true calendar, one of Satan's works. But Jesus Christ is not central in that joy, but rather the heathen traditions such as decorating trees and gift-giving, then they through such tradition symbolically will have become the enemies of God.
Ask yourself if you would want to be found (1) rejoicing, (2) making merry, and (3) giving gifts on the anniversary date of a future event in which these things are done to honor the "beast" who kills God's prophets.
Perhaps you are not completely convinced that the Hebrew word ASRE (asherah) refers to a "decorated tree" because an exact description of the "asherah" is not given in English. However there is enough information given in the several examples above to know that this practice was hated by God, and that it consisted of a tree, erect, often brought indoors, and hung with ornaments. And the servants of God were commanded to cut them down and burn them.
But there is also another clue. Based on the known meaning of "asherah" (decorated tree) is derived from a related Hebrew word ASRI (ashere), meaning"enjoy" or "merriment". The associated Hebrew word ASRI (ashere) is also translated in the KJV as follows: blessed - 27 times; happy - 18 times
In consideration of the original scripture quoted above, ask yourself how Satan uses the false Catholic tradition called ‘christmas’ to take away ‘light and truth’ from the children of men. An honest evaluation will disclose that it has always been used as a time of justifying excesses… excesses of materialism, excess of partying, excess of eating, excess of drinking, excess of spending into indebtedness, excess of exploiting of the Santa myth, converting him in the minds of children into a god which they eventually learn was a deception and finally, excess of loneliness often leading to suicide!
Summary: We can all rationalize that we are not celebrating or using Christmas for these idolic purposes, but the warning of the prophets is clear, LEARN NOT THE WAY OF THE HEATHEN! We need to liken these scriptures to our own lives, as they are still true today, and those in ancient Israel who adopted heathen practices finding happiness and enjoyment in decorating their trees, even converting the practice into ‘blessed events’ were condemned to destruction in ancient times, as those that continue to do so, as we have been warned, finally will be in the end.
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