Posts Tagged Satan
More on Infant Death and the Afterlife
Posted by Peter in Bible, Children, Christianity, Genesis, God, Jesus, Law, New Testament, Old Testament, Theology on November 13, 2009
Earlier this week in What About Infants?, I directed my readers to TC’s post When Infants Die: Hell? Heaven? or Limbo?. As predicted, it generated a healthy discussion. I can’t definitively say who’s right or wrong, but I wonder if we shouldn’t be more worried about adults than the children.
Jesus said,
Truly I say to you, unless you are converted and become like children, you will not enter the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:3 (NASB)
I have a strong suspicion that the children will be fine. We, on the other hand, seem to have a harder time getting it.
I think we get all worked up over sin and original sin, when our accountability begins, right and wrong, and the like. And that is the very problem.
God’s a pretty smart Dude, and when He forbade us from eating of the tree of knowledge of good and evil, it was for our own good. He knew we would spend the rest of our lives worrying about whether we did good or evil. If not because of our own shortcomings, then because the enemy would beat us over the head with it.
And as if that wasn’t enough, now we’ve got to worry about whether our kids will be held accountable. It’s too much to worry about. And God knew it.
That’s where we go wrong, in our need (or desire) to know. We were better off before the knowledge of good and evil, innocent like a child.
Lest You Doubt My Advice About Satan
It almost feels like cheating, luring satan searchers here to my Bible blog, but it’s a phenomenon I can neither explain nor ignore. Want evidence? Here are the top 30 search terms that have led people here as of this morning (since I moved to WordPress):
Because it feels like cheating, this is probably my last post specifically on satan for a while, but here are all the others:
Want to drive traffic to your blog?
As I mentioned yesterday, I had a peculiarly large number of hits from surfers searching for satan over the last few days. I mentioned that I had 33 over the previous two days. Well, there were 34 yesterday alone, and today is well on its way to eclipsing even that. So, want to boost your traffic? Write about satan.
Why Do You Believe the Bible? Part 1
Posted by Peter in Ancient Hebrew, Bible, Genesis, Hebrew, Jesus, Old Testament on September 28, 2009
As I mentioned a couple of weeks ago, I have been teaching a discipleship class at our church (different from the Hebrews Bible Study that some of you are following). It is a four-part series on Genesis 1:1, among other things. The class is a study of the supernatural nature of the Hebrew language and the ancient Hebrew pictographs making up Genesis 1:1 and other Biblical names and passages.
I have tried to upload the Power Point files, but none of the services that I am aware of allow for the Hebrew fonts I have used, so I have taken screen captures of the slides and included them as images. I hope it makes sense. Also, there are many slides, so I will publish the teachings in multiple parts.
The first class was entitled “Why do you believe the Bible?” We looked at at three key places in scripture where the same event is graphically depicted in the ancient Hebrew pictographs. I will publish the first teaching in three parts.
Why do you believe the Bible?
Genesis 1:1
We began, appropriately enough, “In the beginning,” by looking at the pictographs that make up the Hebrew word “Barasheet,” most frequently translated, “In the beginning.”
In the original Hebrew alphabet, each pictograph represented a letter of the alphabet, a number, and had a symbolic meaning. By looking at those pictographs, a richer, deeper understanding of the text is gained.
Barasheet is spelled in Hebrew BET (the equivalent of our letter B, depicted in the ancient Hebrew pictographs as a house or tent, symbolically meaning “house” as in a lineage; RESH (R), depicted as a man’s head, meaning the first or highest person; ALEPH (A), depicted as an ox head, meaning strength or God, as in, “the Lord is my strength;” SHIN (S or Sh), depicted as two teeth, meaning to consume or destroy; YOD (Y), depicted as an arm from the elbow to the fist, meaning “my” or efforts or works; and TAV (T), depicted as two crossed sticks, meaning mark or covenant.
The first two letters of Barasheet BET and RESH together form the Hebrew/Aramaic word “bar” or “son.” So, when we look at the ancient Hebrew pictographs, we see that “In the beginning” is actually a graphic depiction of the SON of GOD being CONSUMED/DESTROYED with his HANDS on a CROSS. The slides show the modern Hebrew letter, the name of the letter, the symbolic meaning, what is pictured in the pictograph (in parentheses), and the pictograph itself.
In the beginning
That’s quite a remarkable beginning. For a slightly different look at this, you can read my earlier post In the beginning.
During the class, I taught that the traditional belief that the first prophecy in scripture is in Genesis 3 is actually incorrect, and that it is, “In the beginning.” I believe the most powerful and creative force in the universe is the spoken word of God. If so, by its very nature, it must be prophetic especially in view of God’s creativity. God not only created the universe, but in speaking, He created language, an alphabet, math and science, and everything else.
This week, however, I was humbled by the Lord who showed me something else quite remarkable. In Genesis 3, the “first prophecy” is God cursing the serpent saying,
And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; he will crush your head, and you will strike his heel.
“In the beginning,” the very nature of the Son’s destruction on the cross is accomplished by the pictograph depicting two teeth, the very manner in which a serpent would “strike.” So, the first prophecy in scripture is both “In the beginning” and in Genesis 3.
There was obviously a lot more, it was an hour-long class. I will try to put as much as I can in parts 2 and 3 which will follow soon. Enjoy.
Related Posts:
Searching for Satan?
As I’ve mentioned before, “satan” is always at or near the top of the list of search terms which causes searchers to land here. Just as of yesterday and this morning (about 10:00 am CST), there have been no less than 33 searchers for “satan” who have found there way to my blog.
I don’t know whether to rejoice or worry (just kidding).
I have written about satan occasionally, but rarely. In any event, to help those searchers out, here are all of my posts taggged “satan” (not including this one):
Hebrews Bible Study-Week 1
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, Genesis, Greek, Israel, Jesus, Law, New Testament, Old Testament on August 27, 2009
Last night was the first real night of our Hebrews study. Our study group actually met last Wednesday, but it was more of a meet-and-greet.
One of the themes that kept emerging throughout the discussion of Hebrews 1 was the author’s set up of his (or her) theme or thesis or argument. It is similar to how a lawyer would present a case. I don’t know why this didn’t occur to me during the days and weeks leading up the study, and only right in the midst (I might have developed the idea a little more being a lawyer and all), but it will end up being a good starting point, I think.
The opening four verses (a single sentence in the Greek) are powerful. Already, the author has grabbed the audience’s attention contending that (1) God has spoken to the fathers through the prophets and (2) God has spoken in His Son, who (3) upholds all things through the word of His power and (4) has a much better name than the angels. The importance of these conclusions to a Hebrew audience cannot be overstated.
The author then, in proving the superiority to the angels, immediately invokes Messianic Psalms. Again, the significance is clear. This Son is the one to whom the scriptures have been pointing. Everything that has come before has been to try and illustrate this.
In Chapter 2, the author cuts right to it, “if the word spoken through the angels proved unalterable,” then how much more is this true since He said it and God confirmed it through sings, wonders and miracles.
The audience is presented with the inescapable conclusion before the identity of the Son is revealed. Quite a stroke of persuasive genius, especially considering the intended audience.
And then the really good news, the devil is rendered powerless (Genesis 3:15), the slaves are set free, and He is there to help us because He gets it. He became one of us, and He gets it.
This is obviously a very shorthand version of an hour-and-a-half Bible study. I don’t know if my study/discussion notes will be of any help, but I have included them as separate posts, and you are certainly free to use and abuse them as you feel the need:
At the end of the semester I will probably make a master post with links to everything, but for now it’s one week at a time.
Question: What if Adam had Repented?
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, Genesis, God, Old Testament on May 29, 2009
Okay, so this is not just a simple question, but rather two questions (each potentially raising many, many other questions):
- What if Adam had just confessed and repented when the Lord came a callin’ in Genesis 3?
- Or, what if, immediately after Eve partook of the fruit, Adam had said, “No thanks, we’re not supposed to. Serpent, get away, and while we’re at it, Eve, why don’t you confess and repent”?
Would the course of human history be different? If so, how?
More Curious Statistics
I think I have officially spent too much time analyzing this blog’s statistics, but I can’t help but comment on one more search term. Regardless of whether I click on week, month, quarter, year or all time, the search term that has landed the most searchers on this blog is “satan.”
I noticed a while back that nearly every day “satan” was at or near the top of the search terms for that day. What’s more interesting is that I only have two posts ever tagged “satan” (When Evil is Beautiful and For the Kingdom of Heaven is Like), now three. I certainly don’t write on the subject much, and I didn’t remember ever writing about it until I searched my own tags to refresh my memory.
As I mentioned in a similar discussion here, I’m thrilled to have anyone (and everyone) searching for “satan” end up here.
It just struck me as a little odd. But, “satan” does bring a little traffic here every day, thank God. 
For the Kingdom of Heaven is Like…
Posted by Peter in Bible, Christianity, God, Jesus on November 20, 2008
Our pastor has been preaching a sermon series on what the kingdom of heaven is like, using as his text, inter alia, the parables in the book of Matthew. At the end of one of his sermons, he asked us to write our own parable using our occupations, capacities as parents, or grandparents, etc. as the basis for our own parable.
For example, a teacher’s might begin, “For the kingdom of heaven is like a classroom…” Naturally, I thought, “Church assignment…blog post.” And thus, a snippet of the gospel according to Peter (red-letter edition):
Satan Smiting Job, William Blake
…and Jesus said, “For the kingdom of heaven is like a court of law, where the accuser very thoroughly and convincingly builds a case against the accused. He presents the evidence to the jury bit by bit, witness after witness.
Pointing to the one on trial, the prosecutor boastfully argues to the jury:
‘Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, this poor excuse for a human being has committed heinous violations of the most holy law.
He has placed other gods before the one true God, the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.
He has made idols of innumerable persons and things.
He has taken the Lord’s Name in vain countless times.
He has never kept the Sabbath holy, defiling it at every opportunity.
He has dishonored his father and mother all of his life.
According to the very words of God’s own Son, he has committed murder and adultery. Repeatedly!
This man is a thief, a liar, and a coveter. A worse human being has never been created. This man is guilty! Guilty! Guilty!
And justice requires that he be punished!’
There is no defense to present. The jury, horrified by the actions of the accused, quickly returns a verdict of ‘guilty,’ fully expecting the Judge to impose the stiffest sentence possible: an eternity in the lake of fire.
The Judge turns to the accused and says, ‘Is there anything you have to say for yourself before sentence is imposed?’
The accused, still bound and shackled, bows his head in shame knowing there is nothing he can say in defense of these accusations.
But, quietly and confidently, the advocate for the accused stands, and, placing his hand on the accused’s shoulder, says:
‘Your Honor, I stepped out of heaven and became flesh. I was born to a human mother. I was raised by a human father. I spent my life teaching humanity about You.
I was hated. Mocked. Spat upon. I was imprisoned, scourged, and tried before a sham court. I was convicted, sentenced to death, and crucified, all so that this man and others like him would not have to endure the same.
Three days later I rose again, having paid in full the price for all human sin. It is true, this man is guilty of all of those things. And more.
But, what you have required of this man is this: that he believe in Me and what I did for him and others like him, that it would not have been done in vain.
Your Honor, the only thing I can say in defense of this man is that he believes.
I have paid his debt. I have endured his punishment. His sentence has been imposed, his time has been served.
Ought not this man, being a son of Abraham, whom this accuser has bound, be acquitted and loosed from this bondage? Ought not this man be set free?’
The Judge, robed in pristine white, leans forward, looks at the accused, smiles, and says, ‘You are free.’”
When Evil is Beautiful
Posted by Peter in Ancient Hebrew, Bible, Genesis, Hebrew, Old Testament on September 16, 2008
Adam, Eve and the Serpent
I chose the title “Beauty of the Bible” for this blog because I believe there is beauty in God’s Word beyond the mere words on the page (as beautiful as those are). I realize that even non-believers recognize the Bible’s poetry, prose, symbolism and literary value as being among the most beautiful in all of literature. I would suggest that we have barely scratched the surface.
I have written before that I believe every word, letter, or jot in scripture is divinely inspired and divinely placed. To evidence this, I have shown examples of individual Hebrew words and names that, when broken down into the individual ancient Hebrew pictographs, themselves are related scriptural references (see Isaac & Ishmael, Noah, Moses, and God/Elohim). If this phenomenon occured only occasionally, it would be remarkable, but for this to occur as frequently as it does in the Bible’s first book is nothing short of divine.
I’m convinced this complexity and elegance extends throughout the Torah and probably the entire Old Testament. In other words, I think the examples of storylines being retold and/or elaborated upon in the tales told by the Hebrew pictographs are endless. It took me several months to work through Genesis 1:1, so my ambition to work through the book of Genesis was perhaps a bit naive.
Nevertheless, while I realize that systematically working through every verse of Genesis would take me several lifetimes, I love doing this enough that I can’t imagine it ever getting tiresome. That said, any plans to continue with Genesis 1:2 are on hold because I want to apply this same method to other topics that interest me or that others might request.
I have answered requests before from friends and family, but I have only published one of those even though it was one of my own personal favorites (see God’s Blessing). I think the challenge of researching and answering these and the excitement generated by the results is too much to pass up. This is not to say that I will be doing this exclusively, by any means, but I will write about them more.
Several months ago I was asked to look at Genesis 3:15, the results were pretty cool. I actually arrived at this backward. Because of how individual words frequently open up and reveal the broader context in which they are contained, I chose to begin reviewing Genesis 3:15 by studying the context. So, I began by studying the word “serpent” (plus I thought it would be pretty interesting). Well, I was either really lucky, or God was very gracious in not having me spend several months in Genesis 3:15. Either way, “serpent” was the scriptural reference for Genesis 3:15.
Okay, here goes. In Hebrew, “serpent” is the Hebrew word nachash, and is spelled with the Hebrew letters NUN (the equivalent of our letter N) which is pictured as the “seed of life” or a fish and means seed of life or life. CHET (J or Ch) which is pictured as a wall or fence and which means to cut off or to exclude, separating those inside from those outside. And SHIN (Sh) which is pictured as two teeth, meaning to destroy or consume.
Genesis 3:15: I will put enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel. (NASB/HCSB combo).
The letter NUN is the seed, CHET is the wall or fence separating the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent (the enmity between), and SHIN (two teeth) is the serpent biting at the heel with his two fangs. It is really a pretty cool picture of “you will strike his heel,” but the result is the ultimate destruction of the serpent. Here’s the visual:
Serpent in the Ancient Hebrew
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