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04Feb

Propaganda, Power, And Perversion Of Biblical Truths: Coins Illustrating The Book Of Revelation

The Seven Churches of Asia Minor – Rev. 1-3 Comments Off on Propaganda, Power, And Perversion Of Biblical Truths: Coins Illustrating The Book Of Revelation

By Gordon Franz

Introduction

Coins offer a “numismatic window” into the world of the New Testament (Oster 1982: 218). At the end of the First Century AD, the power-hungry Roman emperor minted coins as political propaganda in order to influence his culture. This article peers through that window and examines the imperial coins from the reign of Emperor Domitian. The article also examines how Domitian’s regime attacked some unchanging truths of the Word of God, how the Book of Revelation constructs a subtle polemic against Emperor Domitian, and how the Roman provincial coins can illustrate the messages to the seven churches.

The classic example of the Flavian Dynasty using coins for propaganda purposes is the “Judea Capta” coins. These coins were minted by Emperors Vespasian, Titus and Domitian and depict a Roman soldier standing guard next to a palm tree with a weeping Judea seated under the tree. On the edge is the words “Judea Capta” translated “Judea is captured.” This coin commemorates the end of the First Jewish Revolt and the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70. There were Jewish people throughout the Roman world and the propaganda message of these coins was clear: “Don’t you, or anybody else, think about revolting again. We will defeat you just as we defeated the Judeans!” For a good discussion of these coins, see Hendin 2001: 303-343.

The Book of Revelation only mentions one coin by name: the denarius in the third seal judgment (Rev. 6: 5, 6; Franz 2000:9-11). However, monetary exchange is also mentioned in Revelation 13:17, 18: “and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666.” How these transactions will be carried out, either by cash, credit card, microchip or some other technology, I will leave that for the prophetic sensationalists and speculators to figure out! For a First Century AD understanding, see Kraybill 1996.

Two coins illustrate the abuse of numismatics in contemporary sensationalist prophetic studies. The first is a coin issued by the Vatican in 1995 with Pope John Paul II on the obverse and the depiction of the woman and child of Revelation 11 on the reverse. Some of the sensationalist prophecy teachers were not so much interested in the reverse side of the coin as they were the bottoms of the obverse side. Underneath the portrait of the pope were three six-pointed stars. These prophecy teachers were quick to make the association with the number 6-6-6!

The second coin is the 2-euro coin from Greece. On the reverse of this coin is a “woman riding a beast!” Greek mythology says that this woman is Europa, a Phoenician princess, being carried away to the island of Crete by Zeus / Jupiter disguised as a bull (Jones 1990: 110). These coin types are known from ancient times and are also on the coins from modern Cyprus too. They have nothing to do with the woman riding the beast in Rev. 17:3, 7.

Coins are a neglected area of study for New Testament scholars, yet they are important for Biblical studies. One person points out that “numismatic evidence can … help shed light on important historical events which had a bearing on the lives of the New Testament writers and their audience” (Kreitzer 1996: 28).

A good coin to illustrate the importance of numismatics for Biblical studies is a coin minted by Antiochus IV with the inscription “theos epiphanies” (“god manifest”) on the reverse. Some have called this the Hanukkah coin because when Antiochus desecrated the Temple in Jerusalem he also claimed deity. Several years later, the Antiochus IV and his Seleucid army were defeated and the temple in Jerusalem rededicated. The festival of Hanukkah commemorates this event. The Lord Jesus goes to the Temple for Hanukkah in John 10, He makes the statement, “I and my Father are one” (10:30), an outright declaration of His deity. This declaration should be seen in the context of Antiochus’ blasphemous claim to being “god manifest” (Franz 1998).

There is a helpful book that illustrates the coins that were encountered by the Apostle Paul and his companions on their travels through the Roman world. It is entitled, The Pocket Guide to Saint Paul by Peter Lewis and Ron Bolden (2002). The book contains some interesting theological views that some would disagree with, but the numismatic material is very good.

The Date of the Book of Revelation

The date for the Book of Revelation is a much debated topic. The two prevailing views are the early date during the reign of Emperor Nero, ca. AD 65. Some advocates of the early date tend to see the Book of Revelation as being fulfilled with the destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70. I do not share these views and see a number of historical inconsistencies with this understanding (Franz 2003).

The second view is the late date for the Book of Revelation set during the reign of Emperor Domition, ca. A.D. 95. A good case can be made for this date (Hitchcock 2003; 2005).

The Coins of Emperor Domitian

Self-deified emperor

Emperor Domitian had a definite ego problem! In Imperial Rome the senate would deify an emperor upon death (Kreitzer 1990:210-217). However, Domitian, like Gaius Caligula, could not wait until death, so he deified himself while he was alive. This is well attested by the ancient writers (Franz 1999).

Suetonius (AD 75 – ca. 140), in his book Lives of the Caesars, wrote, “With no less arrogance he began as follows in issuing a circular letter in the name of his procurators, ‘Our Master and our God bids that this be done.'” [“Dominus et deus noster hoe fieri iubet.”] ( Domitian 13:2; LCL 2:367). He also delighted in the adulation of the people in the amphitheater when they shouted, “Good Fortune attends our Lord and Mistress” [Domino et dominae feliciter!”] ( Domitian 13:1; LCL 2:367) a reference to himself and his wife.

Pliny the Younger (born AD 61 or 62 – died before 113), wrote in his Panegyricus, a tribute to Emperor Trajan, “He (Domitian) was a madman, blind to the true meaning of his position, who used the arena for collecting charges of high treason, who felt himself slighted and scorned if we failed to pay homage to his gladiators, taking any criticism of them to himself and seeing insults to his own godhead and divinity; who deemed himself the equal of the gods yet raised his gladiators to his equal” (33:4; LCL 2: 395).

Dio Cassius, in his Roman History, wrote, “For he even insisted upon being regarded as a god [ theos] and took vast pride in being called ‘master’ [ despotus] and “god” [ theos]. These titles were used not merely in speech but also in written documents” ( Epitome of Book 67:5:7; LCL 8:329). Elsewhere he wrote, “One Juventius Celsus, … [conspired] … against Domitian … When he was on the point of being condemned, he begged that he might speak to the emperor in private, and thereupon did obeisance before him and after repeatedly calling him ‘master’ [ despoton] and ‘god’ [ theon] (terms that were already being applied to him by others)” ( Epitome of Book 67:3:4; LCL 8:349). Later writers repeat the same claim and then go on to embellish it. However, Statius claims Domitian rejected these titles ( Silvae 1:6:83-84; LCL 1: 69, 71).

There seems to be other contemporary evidence that backs up Domitian’s claim to deity. Unfortunately, no monumental inscriptions have been discovered with these titles on them. Dio Cassius again adds an important detail, when he wrote, “After Domitian, the Romans appointed Nerva Cocceius emperor. Because of the hatred felt for Domitian, his images, many of which were of silver and many of gold, were melted down; and from this source large amounts of money were obtained. The arches, too, of which a very great number were being erected to this one man, were torn down” ( Epitome of Book 68:1:1; LCL 8:361). Upon his death, the Roman Senate was, “… overjoyed … [assailed] the dead emperor with the most insulting and stinging kind of outcries. … Finally they passed a decree that his inscriptions should everywhere be erased, and all record of him obliterated” (Suetonius, Domitian 23:1; LCL 2:385). This decree, the damnatio memoriae, destroyed all the statues and epigraphical inscriptions of Domitian. Evidence of this can be seen in the arch at Hierapolis, built by Domitian, as well as the dedicatory inscriptions for the Temple of the Sabastoi in Ephesus (Friesen 1993:34).

The only evidence not destroyed was the set of coins minted by Domitian as it was impossible to recall all of them. Numismatics is able to provide some evidence of Domitian’s boast of deity.

The Numismatic Evidence

Dr. Ernest Janzen, of the University of Toronto, in an article entitled, “The Jesus of the Apocalypse Wears the Emperor’s Clothes” (1994, see also 1993) provides for two lines of evidence from numismatics for Domitian’s claim to deity. The first are coins minted in AD 83 called the DIVI CAESAR (“divine Caesar”) coins (Vagi 2:329, coins 1160, 1161, 1162). These coins, minted in gold and silver, had the bust of Domitia, the wife of Domitian, on the obverse with the inscription, “DIVI CAESAR MATRI” and “DIVI CAESARIS MATER”, the mother of the divine Caesar! (Vagi 2:327, coins 1149, 1150, 1151; RIC 2:179, coin 209A; 2:180, coin 213). On the reverse was their infant son who was born in the second consulship of Domitian in AD 73 and died in the second year after he became emperor in AD 82 (Suetonius, Domitian 3:1; LCL 2:345). He is depicted as naked and seated on a zoned globe with his arms stretched out surrounded by seven stars! ( RIC 2:209; coins 440, 441) The inscription surrounding it said “DIVUS CAESAR IMP DOMITIANI F”; translated it means, “the divine Caesar, son of the emperor Domitian.” The infant is depicted as baby Jupiter (Jupiter being the head of the Roman pantheon). “The globe represents world dominion and power, while stars typically bespoke the divine nature of those accompanied. … the infant depicted on the globe was the son of (a) god and that the infant was conqueror of the world” (Janzen 1994:645-647). It goes without saying that if he is the son of a god, then his father, Domitian, must be god! I can not help but use my sanctified imagination and wonder if John did not have this coin in front of him when he penned, “and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to His feet … He had in His right hand seven stars” (Rev. 1:13,16). He refers back to this vision in the letter to the church at Thyatira when the Lord Jesus identifies Himself as the “Son of God” (Rev. 2:18).

The second bit of numismatic evidence comes from the coins with the fulmen (“thunderbolt”) on them. The fulmen is the divine attribute of Jupiter. Janzen says, “In 84 Domitian struck reverse type Jupiter holding thunderbolt and spear. The first issue of 85 continued this type but the second issue witnessed the fulmen in Domitian’s hand. He and Jupiter would ‘share’ the fulmen for the years 85-6 after which Jupiter remained as a regular type, only without fulmen. From 87-96 Domitian alone held the fulmen, persuasive evidence of a developing megalomania which place the fulmen in Domitian’s hand and are clearly patterned after the Jupiter with fulmen type” (Janzen 1994:648, footnote 55; RIC 2:185, coins 247,248; 186, coin 253; 189, coin 279; 192, coin 300; 194, coins 313,314; 196, coin 334; 197, coin 342; 203, coin 288). One numismatic expert says that this type “clearly suggests a parallel between himself and ‘Jupiter tonaus’ (the thunderer) or the father of the gods” (Mattingly, cited in Janzen 1994:648, footnote 55).

Martial, the first century satirist of Rome, confirms this idea in his writings. One of his epigrams, written in AD 94, describing the Gens Flavia says, “This piece of ground, that lies open and is being covered with marble and gold, knew our Lord ( domini) in infancy. … Here stood the venerable house that gave the world what Rhodes and pious Crete gave the starry sky [Helios, the sun god, was born on Rhodes according to some traditions, and Zeus, the chief god, was born on Crete- GF]. … But you the Father of the High One did protect, and for you, Caesar, thunderbolt ( fulmen) and aegis took the place of spear and buckler” ( Epigrams 9:20; LCL 2: 249). Sometimes Martial even calls Domitian the “Thunderer” (7:99:1; LCL 2: 157), a title that usually belongs to Jupiter (Zeus) ( Epigrams 9:91; LCL 2: 311)! Domitian is putting himself on the same level as Jupiter.

Elsewhere in Martial’s writings he calls Domitian “lord” ( Epigrams 7:2; 8:82; 9:20, 28, 66; LCL 2: 75, 231, 249, 257, 291) and “lord and god” ( Epigrams 5:8; LCL 1: 361; 7:34; 8:2; LCL 2: 105, 161). Interestingly, after the death of Domitian, Martial repudiates these titles attributed to Domitian ( Epigrams 10:72; LCL 2: 391). However, I think he was reflecting the sentiments of the day while Domitian was alive. Though he may not have believed it, that is what Domitian wanted, that is what he got.

Another interesting sidelight is that on some of Domitian’s coins, the initials “PM” appears on the inscriptions. Some of the coins have Domition praying or offering sacrifices ( RIC 2:201, coins 377,378; 202, coins 381,383,385). These initials stand for “pontifex maximus,” the high priest as head of the Roman religion. Biblically, this title belongs only to the Lord Jesus (Heb. 4:14). Yet in Revelation, the “things which you [John] have seen” (Rev. 1:19) is the vision of the glorified Son of Man who is also the High Priest (Thomas 1965: 241-247).

It appears that something triggered Domitian to openly claim deity in AD 85/86. The triggering event is not known, but the response in Asia Minor was a temple dedicated to the Sabastoi (emperors). This temple appears on several coins minted in Ephesus (Ramsay 1994: 168).

In the year AD 91/2 coins were minted in Alexandria, Egypt which had on the obverse a portrait of Domitian encircled by an inscription that identified Domitian as the “son of God” ( RPC 2:323,328,333-337). One coin in particular had on its reverse, four pygmies surrounding Hercules. In his left hand he is holding a fifth and in his right is his club. The inscription calls Domitian the “son of God” (Mowat 1901: 72-74; RPC 2:337, coin 2709).

Coins from the Seven Churches

Let us turn our attention to the Roman provincial coins of Asia Minor. The Book of Revelation was addressed to the churches at Ephesus, Smyrna, Pergamon, Thyatira, Sardis, Philadelphia and Laodicea (Rev. 1:11; 2-3). Each city minted coins during the reign of Emperor Domitian. The study of the local coins is important because of the light they shed on the city at the time. Colin Hemer points out, “Coinage is often in fact the most illustrating key to local religion and so to the formative ideas of the society” (2001:25). A British numismatic expert has observed, “The real value of the types of coins from the Greek East is the insights into the local city life which they reveal. Topography, architecture, literature and mythology, religious beliefs and practices, entertainments and celebrations were all considered suitable subjects for illustrations because the coinage provided citizens with a vehicle on which to express their civic pride” (I. Carradice, cited in Kreitzer 1996: 28).

Ephesus

The first letter from the Lord Jesus went to the church at Ephesus (Rev. 2:1-7). This city was famous because it housed one of the seven wonders of the ancient world, the Temple of Artemis / Diana. In this open-air temple there was a garden with deer roaming in front of a sacred tree and the cult statue of Artemis. This garden was called the “paradise of Artemis” (Hemer 2001:50-52).

Many coins from Ephesus have a bee on one side, symbolizing the priestesses that ministered in the temple as well as a palm tree and stag on the reverse (Rakicic 1994:6-12). The palm tree was a “sacred tree” and was considered the “tree of life” (Hemer 2001: 41-47).

John writes that the “overcomers” (those who have trusted the Lord Jesus Christ as Savior and are living a victorious Christian life) will “eat from the tree of life, which is in the midst of the Paradise of God” (Rev. 2:7).

What John is saying is this: the temple of Artemis is a false imitation of the real thing, i.e. the Biblical Tree of Life and the Paradise of God. Believers in the Lord Jesus have something infinitely superior than the Artemisian to look forward to. If they are faithful to the Lord, His Word, and to each other they will be “overcomers.” Those who overcome will receive the privilege of eating from the Tree of Life (Rev. 22:12-14) and abiding in the Paradise of God.

Smyrna

The second letter is addressed to the church of Smyrna (Rev. 2: 8-11). The city was established on Old Smyrna (Bayraki) and destroyed about 700 BC. It was reestablished as a polis in 290 BC. This is an example of a city that “died” but came “back to life.”

The story is told that Alexander the Great was hunting on Mt. Pagos when he fell asleep under a plane tree in front of the Temple of the two Nemeses. The two goddesses appeared to him in a dream and told him to rebuild the city of Smyrna on Mt. Pagos. The Smyraeans sent envoys to the Temple of Apollo at Klaros to inquire if they should rebuild. The response from the priest was, “Thrice, yes, four times blest will those men be who shall dwell in Pagus beyond the sacred Meles” (Pausanias, Description of Greece 5:1-3; LCL 3:193).

A Roman coin minted during the reign of Philippus Arab (AD 244-249) depicts Alexander the Great sleeping under a plane tree with the two Nemeses on Mt. Pagos (Akurgal 1993: pl. 46a). The two Nemeses appear on one coin minted during the reign of Domitian ( RPC 2:158, coin 1012).

Pergamum

The third letter is addressed to the believers living in Pergamum (Rev. 2:12-17). Twice in the letter Jesus acknowledges that Pergamum is where “Satan’s throne is” and where “Satan dwells” (Rev. 2:13). Commentators have had a field day trying to figure out these statements.

The numismatic evidence can support three of these ideas. The first is that Satan’s throne was located at Pergamun because there was a large temple to Asklepius, the god of healing. One of the characteristics of coins on Asklepius is that there is a snake coiled around a stick in his hands. Satan is called “that old serpent the Devil and Satan” (Rev. 12:9; RPC 2:144,145; coins 921,924).

The second possibility is the Temple of Zeus, the chief deity of the Greek pantheon that overlooked the lower city of Pergamun. This temple is now in the Berlin Museum. There are a number of coins minted with the bust of Zeus on it.

The third possibility is the Temple of Augustus and the emperor worship associated with the place. One coin was minted during the reign of Domitian depicting a temple with four columns and a statue of Augustus ( RPC 2:144, coin 918). This temple is also depicted in the reigns of Tiberius ( RPC 1:403, coin 2369), Claudius ( RPC 1:403, coin 2370) and Nero ( RPC 1:403, coin 2372).

Thyatira

The fourth letter is addressed to the church meeting in the city of Thyatira (Rev. 2:18-29). Colin Hemer states: “The longest and most difficult of the seven letters is addressed to the least known, least important and least remarkable of the cities. The letter was not, I think, obscure to the church in Thyatira, the problem lies in our remoteness from the contemporary facts” (2001: 106).

Coins might help to shed some light on the letter. In this letter Jesus is described as “the Son of God, who has eyes like a flame of fire, and His feet like fine brass” (Rev. 2:18). This is the only time in the Book of Revelation that Jesus is referred to as the “Son of God”. It is implied in Rev. 1:6; 2:27; 3:5, 21; 14:1.

The coins of Thyatira point to Apollo Tyrimnaeus as the patron deity of the city. Apollo was the “son of Zeus.” Jesus is described as having “eyes as flames of fire and feet of gleaning bronze.” The reader would immediately go back to the vision of the glorified Son of Man in Rev. 1:13-16. Colin Hemer points out that the fine bronze is “an alloy of copper with metallic zinc [that] was made in Thyatira, the zinc was obtained by distillation. This was a finer and purer brass than the rough and variable coinage-alloy” (2001:116). He goes on to suggest that there might have been a statue in town of the patron deity, Apollo Tyrimnaeus. Coins have been discovered of him grasping the hands of the Roman emperor (Ramsay 1994:235). While this coin is much later than the time of Domitian, there were coins with implements associated with Apollo (tripod, lyre) and his reign ( RPC 2:147).

The phrase “son of God” would also call to mind the coins of Domitian’s deified infant son seated on the globe reaching for the seven stars.

Sardis

The fifth letter is addressed to the church meeting in the city of Sardis (Rev. 3:1-6). There seems to be no coins that illustrate the letter to the church at Sardis.

Philadelphia

The sixth letter was written to the church in Philadelphia (Rev. 3:7-13). This was a small church to which Jesus has nothing negative to say. In fact, He commends them for keeping His Word and not denying His Name in spite of the fact that they had little strength (3:8).

There have been very few excavations in Philadelphia. In the Manisa Museum in Turkey there are statues of various deities that have been discovered by the locals while putting in foundations for their houses or plowing fields. Some of the deities represented are Dionysis, the god of wine and merrymaking; Demeter, the goddess of agriculture; Helios, the sun god. The coins add a few more deities. Philadelphia was a city that had a pluralistic society, but also had an exclusive element in the population that thought they had a corner on the market of truth, i.e. the synagogue. Yet the believers in the Lord Jesus were faithful to Him in spite of the societal pressures.

The promise to the overcomers was that he would be made a “pillar in the temple of My God, and he shall go out no more. And I will write on him the name of my God and the name of the city of my God, the New Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God. And I will write on Him my new name” (3:12).

After the devastating earthquake of AD 17, the Roman government financially assisted the cities of Asia Minor that were affected by this quake. The city showed its gratitude to the emperor by changing the name of the city to “Neocaesarea”, the New Caesarea! There were coins minted in Philadelphia with this name on them ( RPC 1:492,493, coin 3017; 494, coins 3032-3040).

Laodicia

The final letter was written to the church in Laodicea, located in the Lycos Valley (Rev. 3:14-22). In this letter, Jesus had nothing good to say about this church. In fact, He describes their arrogance by saying, “You say, ‘I am rich, have become wealthy, and have need of nothing’ – and do not know that you are wretched, miserable, poor, blind, and naked” (3:17).

The church was imitating the society around it. It was a very affluent society and quite self-sufficient. After the earthquake of A.D. 17, the Roman imperial government provided aid to the cities of Asia Minor, including Laodicia. Yet when Laodicia was hit with another earthquake in A.D. 60 (or 64) they declined the offer of imperial aid. Tacitus said, “Laodicea, one of the famous Asiatic cities, was laid in ruins by an earthquake, but recovered by its own resources, without assistance from ourselves” ( Annals 14:27; LCL 5: 151).

In A.D. 22-23, Emperor Tiberius (A.D. 14-37) issued a coin commemorating his generosity to the cities of Asia Minor. On the reverse was Tiberius seated on a throne with his feet resting on a footstool. The inscription surrounding him states that he personally financed the restoration of the cities (Vagi 2:243, coin 442).

Word pictures from Revelation

Altars and Thunderbolt

In the first two years of his reign, Domitian minted coins with thunderbolts on a throne ( RIC 2:154, coin 1; 155, coins 13, 16; 156, coin 24). These two objects are associated together in the Throne Room of Heaven recorded in Revelation 4. The description given is that the Lord Jesus is sitting on the throne with the 24 elders surrounding Him. John writes, “And from the throne preceded lightnings, thunders and voices” (4:5).

Statue of Domitian Riding a Horse

Emperor Domitian erected a large bronze statue of himself riding a horse in the Forum of Rome in A.D. 91, the famous Equus Maximus Domitiani (Platner 1929: 201-202). This statue commemorated his campaigns against the Germans and his attempt to bring peace to the Roman Empire. Statius, one of the Roman poets, describes this statue in detail in the first poem in his book, Silvae (LCL 1: 7-15). Domitian minted a coin with a detailed representation of this statue on it (Carradice 1982: 376,377; 1993: Plate 30:36).

In contrast, the Book of Revelation, chapter 19, records the return of the Lord Jesus to earth on a white horse with His saints following Him. Domitian took the title “Lord and God”. When the Lord Jesus returns, He will have on His robe and thighs a name written, “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (19:16). Domitian thought he could bring peace to the Roman Empire, but only the Lord Jesus, the Prince of Peace (Isa, 9:6, 7) will bring world peace when He rules and reigns from Jerusalem.

Apollo and Ravens Predicting Prophecy

Emperor Domitian, the self-proclaimed “Lord and God” and ruthless dictator, reigned from AD 81 to 96. During the last few years of his life, Domitian became very superstitious. In fact, on the day before he was murdered, he consulted an astrologer ( Domitian 14:3; LCL 2:373). Domitian himself proclaimed his own death based on an astrological reading by declaring, “that on the following day the moon would be stained with blood in Aquarius” ( Domitian 16:1; LCL 2:375). It has been demonstrated that this was based on Domitian’s astrological readings (Molnar 1995:6-12).

During this time Domitian also consulted Apollo, the god of music and poetry, and who was also the god of light, truth and prophecy! To commemorate his superstition, the emperor minted coins depicting Apollo on one side and a raven, a bird associated with prophecy, on the reverse side (Jones 1990:266; RIC 2:188, coin 275; 204, coins 398, 399; 205, coin 410; 206, coin 414; 207, coin 424B). It was believed one could tell the future by watching this bird’s flight (Kanitz 1973-74:47), so Domitian looked to it to foretell his immediate future. Ironically, Suetonius, a Roman historian and senator, records, “A few months before he [Domitian] was killed, a raven perched on the Capitalium and cried, ‘All will be well,’ an omen which some interpreted as follows: ‘… a raven … could not say, “It is well,” only declared “It will be well.”‘” ( Domitian 23:2; LCL 2:385). Emperor Domitian died soon after and all was well! J

The Apostle John, exiled on the island of Patmos about AD 95, received a more sure word of prophecy. Not from a raven, nor Apollo, but from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Book of Revelation begins, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants – things which must shortly take place” (Rev. 1:1). He goes on to say, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Rev. 1:3). Might we read the book, be blessed and also be encouraged.

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1993b Epigrams. Vol. 2. Translated by D. R. Shackleton Bailey. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library.

Mattingly, Harold and Sydenham, Edward

The Roman Imperial Coinage. Vol. II. Vespasian to Hadrian. London: Spink and Sons. Reprint of the 1926 edition. Cited as RIC 2.

Molnar, Michael

1995 “Blood on the Moon in Aquarius”: The Assassination of Domitian. The Celator 9/5: 6-12.

Mowat, Robert

Hercules and the Pygmies. American Journal of Numismatics 35: 72-74.

Oster, R.

Numismatic Windows into the Social World of Early Christianity: A Methodological Inquiry. Journal of Biblical Literature 101: 195-223.

Pausanias

Description of Greece. Vol. 3. Translated by W. H. S. Jones. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library.

Platner, Samuel

A Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome. London: Oxford University.

Pliny

Letters, Book 8-10, Panegyricus. Vol. 2. Translated by B. Radice. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library. Reprinted 1992.

Rakicic, M.

1994 The Bees of Ephesos. The Celator 8/12: 6-12.

Ramsay, William M.

The Letters to the Seven Churches. Updated Edition. Edited by M. W. Wilson. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

Suetonius

1992 Suetonius. The Lives of the Caesars. Vol. 2. Translated by J. C. Rolfe. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library. Reprint of 1914 edition.

Statius

Silvae, Thebaid 1-4. Vol. 1. Translated by J. H. Mozley. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library.

Sutherland, C. H. V.

1984 The Roman Imperial Coinage. Vol. I. From 31 BC to AD 69. London: Spink and Sons. Revised edition. Cited as RIC 1.

Tacitus

1994 Annals 13-16. Vol. 5. Translated by J. Jackson. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University. Loeb Classical Library.

Thomas. Robert

The Glorified Christ on Patmos. Bibliotheca Sacra 122: 241-247.

Vagi, David

1999 Coinage and History of the Roman Empire. Vol. 2: The Coinage. Sidney, OH: Coin World.

This paper was first read at the Eastern Regional Evangelical Theological Society meeting at Baptist Bible Seminary in Clark Summit, PA on March 26, 2004. It was published, with photographs of the coins, in Bible and Spade, Vol. 19, no. 3 (Summer 2006), pages 73-87.
04Feb

The King And I:The Third Seal (Rev. 6:5, 6)–Part 3

The Seven Churches of Asia Minor – Rev. 1-3 Comments Off on The King And I:The Third Seal (Rev. 6:5, 6)–Part 3
By Gordon Franz

The Apostle John describes the opening of the third seal in this way: “When He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, ‘Come and see.’ And I looked, and behold, a black horse, and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hands. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, ‘A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine’.” (6:5, 6 NKJV).

Several prophecy teachers have come up with some interesting interpretations of this passage. For example, in his book, Days of Hunger, Days of Chaos, Texe Marrs (1999) suggests that the third seal judgment will be a worldwide famine caused by government and corporate manipulation of the seed supply. He calls this the “Global Seeds Conspiracy.” Interestingly, he never deals with the phrase “do not harm the oil and wine.”

In a conspiratorial magazine Paranoia, it was suggested that the phrase “do not harm the oil and the wine” was fulfilled in November 1992 when President George H. W. Bush “announced that he would NOT triple the tariff on rapeseed oil and Chardonnay wine” (Wallace 1995:21). Wallace believes that this is the only time in history that oil and wine, and only oil and wine, received the attention of the international market.

Another prophecy teacher has observed, “At the opening of the ‘third seal,’ in Revelation 6:6, basic food staples will be meted out in small amounts and sold at rates that make possible only a bare subsistence. This is the fate of the common man. Note that the wealthy will still have access to their ‘oil and … wine.’ As always, during hard times, the division between rich and poor grows wider. Not only the Bible, but the population figures themselves point to a future global famine” (Church 1997: 327).

How credible are these three observations in light of what Revelation 6 states? First, is the third seal judgment talking about a global conspiracy to control the supply of seeds? Second, was the third seal fulfilled in 1992 with President Bush’s announcement? Third, is bread only the food of the poor and the oil and wine only the food of the rich?
This author experienced such a phenomenon in June of 1992. For two days, Israel was hit with heavy rains and the wheat harvest was devastated by mildew. Ironically, it was right before the national elections when people were crying out “Itzhaq, melek Yisrael! Itzhaq, melek Yisrael” (Itzhaq, king of Israel) at their election rallies!!!

The third seal judgment of Revelation 6 has nothing to do with a global seed conspiracy, nor was it fulfilled in 1992 by President Bush’s decision not to put a tariff on rapeseed oil and Chardonnay wine. However, the third seal judgment is validation of Adam Smith’s law of supply and demand. Apparently, during the Tribulation, there will be an untimely rainstorm during the wheat harvest that destroyed a great portion of the crop in Israel and the rest of the Mediterranean world. The demand for wheat, plus the shortage in supply, will lead to higher prices for all. The olive trees and grapevines, the “oil and wine”, will not be affected by this rainstorm because they will have already been pollinated. In fact, the water might even help them, thus giving oil and wine for all, rich and poor alike. This is the “obvious” interpretation.

Conclusions

It has been the purpose of this series of articles to put Revelation 1:9 in its proper historical and geographical context (setting). John was exiled to Patmos because he took a stand for the Word of God and the God of the Word. Even with the temple to the self-proclaimed deified emperor in his back yard, John refused to bow down to him. Yet when he saw the glorified Son of Man in a vision on Patmos, he fell down as dead. Because of his proclaiming “Jesus is Lord” and not Domitian, the proconsul removed John to Patmos. Once on Patmos, John was free to move about the island. I can not help but imagine John standing on the piers in the harbor of Patmos passing out gospel tracts to the sailors coming and going from the island. On at least one occasion he took advantage of a boat heading to Ephesus and sent along the Book of Revelation, which he received while on the island. It probably went back with the seven messengers who came to visit him from seven churches in Asia Minor.
Bibliography

Boronski, O.
1987 Agriculture in Iron Age Israel. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns.

Hareuveni, N.
1980 Nature in Our Biblical Heritage. Translated by Helen Frenkley. Kiryat Ono, Israel: Neot Kedumim.

______1987 The Emblem of the State of Israel. Translated by Helen Frenkley. Kiryat Ono, Israel: Neot Kedumim.

Church, J. R.
1997 Riders of Revelation 6, Mount Up! Pp. 315-338 in Foreshocks of Antichrist. Edited by William T. James. Eugene, OR: Harvest House.

Marrs, T.
1999 Days of Hunger, Days of Chaos. Austin, TX: RiverCrest.

Moffatt, J.
1908 “Hurt Not the Oil and the Wine.” Expositor 7^th series. 6: 359-369.

Wallace, W.
1995 The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Paranoia 2/5: 21-27.
04Feb

The King and I: Exiled to Patmos – Part 2

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By Gordon Franz

A Misconception

One misconception regarding John’s exile to Patmos which has appeared in the commentaries and popular prophetic writings it is that Patmos was a sort of Alcatraz (Swindoll 1986:3); or for the French, St. Helene where Napoleon was exiled (Saffrey 1975:392). Part of this is due to the 19^th century travelers who described the island in terms such as “barren, rocky, desolate-looking place” (Newton 1865:223) or as “a wild and barren island” (Geil 1896:70). Unfortunately these nineteenth century realities were imposed on the first century text and island. Nothing could be further from the truth.

In the first century Roman world, Patmos was a very strategic island on the sea-lanes from Ephesus to Rome. The first stop on this line of communication and commerce for the boat sailing from Ephesus to Rome would have been Patmos, because of its natural and protective harbor. The last stop for a boat traveling from Rome would have been Patmos. This island had a large administrative center, outlying villages, a hippodrome (for horse racing) and at least three pagan temples. It was hardly an isolated and desolate place!

Let us examine the archaeological remains and the literary evidence in order to paint a more accurate picture of first century Patmos.

This crescent-shaped island, 12.5 kilometers long, covers an area of some 34 square kilometers and has a jagged coastline of some 65 kilometers. Pliny the Elder (AD 23-79), in his Natural History, says Patmos is 30 miles in circumference (4.12.69; 1989:169). In the center, nearest the narrowest point is the Kastelli, the ancient acropolis. This administrative center is located behind the harbor, called Skela today. Remains of the wall and three towers can still be seen today. The walls, up to 1.30 meters thick at points, and three towers, still exist (Tozar 1889:194,5; Simpson and Lazenby 1970:47-52). This center has a commanding view of the harbor and the sea-lanes to and from Patmos. I also might add, spectacular sunsets!

The literary sources mention outlying villages, which probably engaged in fishing and agricultural activities. Three temples are known from the sources. There was an inscription found mentioning a temple to Artemis (Diana), the goddess of the hunt. Her main temple was in Ephesus and it was one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. Patmos was called Artemis’ “most sacred island.” The temple was probably located underneath the present day Monastery of St. John near the village of Chora. The threshold stones of the iconostasis in the chapel of the Virgin are thought to be remains from this temple. There is literary evidence of a temple to Apollo, the brother of Artemis. This temple, most likely, was located near the harbor of Skela. One nineteenth century traveler mentioned, “at the wharf I observed four or five beautiful white marble columns, cut and carved in true Greek fashion, and once very likely standing in the portico of some splendid temple to a heathen god, now used as mooring posts” (Geil 1897:73). Most likely this temple was the one dedicated to Apollo. There is also literary evidence of a temple to Aphrodite, the goddess of love and beauty. This temple was probably built on the Kalikatsou rock.

Another inscription mentions a hippodrome on the island. This has not been discovered archaeologically, but probably was located near modern day Skela. Again, using my sanctified imagination, I wonder if the Apostle John preached to the inhabitants of Patmos in this circus (hippodrome)?

Unfortunately, most tourists visiting Patmos today, disembark at the port of Skela, hop on a bus, zip up to the Cave of the Apocalypse, zing on up to the Monastery of St. John in Chora, and then zag down to the harbor of Skela for shopping and eating before embarking on their cruise ship to sail off to another destination, all in four hours. Their thought? “Been there, done that!” There are more Biblically significant things to see and experience on this island than the typical four-hour tour wonder. Please do not misunderstand. These are important places to visit, but a serious student should spend a couple of days on the island.

Closely related to the first misconception is another that describes Patmos as a penal colony. Some commentators quote Pliny, Natural History 4.12.69 as proof, but all the passage gives is the circumference of the island! It says nothing about weather it was a penal colony or not (Sanders 1962-63:76; Hemer 1986:221, footnote 1). My impression is that John was exiled to Patmos because of its Artemis/Ephesus connections. The proconsul of Asia Minor wanted to get John away from the city of Ephesus so he sent him to Patmos, which was within his jurisdiction. Hemer suggests the island might be connected with Miletus some 70 kilometers to the Eastnortheast of Patmos (1986:28,222, footnote 8).

The length of John’s exile on Patmos differs from tradition to tradition. Most likely he was only exiled for about 18 months. Upon Domitian’s death, John was free to return to Ephesus. Dio Cassius wrote, “[Emperor] Nerva also released all who were on trial for maiestas (high treason) and restored the exile” ( Roman History 68:2; 1995:361). Eusebius adds, “The sentences of Domitian were annulled, and the Roman Senate decreed the return of those who had been unjustly banished and the restoration of their property. … the Apostle John, after his banishment to the island, took up his abode at Ephesus” ( Eccl. Hist. 3.20.8,9; 1980:241).

“The Travels of St. John in Patmos”

According to church tradition, this book entitled “The Travels of St. John in Patmos” was written by Prochorus, the secretary to the Apostle John. This is the Prochorus mentioned in Acts 6:5. Critical scholarship, however, suggests it was written in the 5^th century AD. If this book is historically reliable, then John was just banished to the island, but not imprisoned, so much for the Alcatraz view.

The “Travels of St. John in Patmos” makes interesting reading. On the way over to Patmos, a violent storm arose and a passenger is swept into the sea. John prays and a wave deposited the young man back on the boat. This miracle gave John the opportunity to preach the gospel. Once on Patmos, the Roman governor, Laurentius, set John free. “Laurentius’s father-in-law, Myron, offers the Apostle lodging in his house, and soon Myron’s house became the first church on the island. Apollonides, Myron’s son, who was possessed with the devil, was healed by St. John, and this miracle led to the conversion of both Chrysippe, Myron’s daughter, and her husband, the Roman governor” (Meinardus 1979:7). John has a spiritual confrontation with Kynops, a famous magician on the island, in which John is finally victorious. Kynops is drowned in the harbor and today a church is dedicated to that event (1979:9). The result of this victorious confrontation is the salvation of the rest of the island. Before John left Patmos, the believers asked John to write an account of the life of the Lord Jesus. According to one tradition, the gospel of John was written on Patmos.

Whether these accounts are believable is a matter of debate. However, there are subtle hints in the book of Revelation that John had freedom of movement while on the island.

What did John see?

While exiled on Patmos, John experienced things that reflect life on the island. The weather phenomena recorded in Revelation are common to the island. White clouds (14:14); thunder and lightening (11:19; 14:2); great hail (8:7; 11:19; 16:21) and rainbows (4:3; 10:1). From the peak of what is called Mt. Elias today, sitting 883 feet above sea level, a person has a spectacular view of the islands of the Aegean Sea and the mountains of Asia Minor (western Turkey today) to the east. There are at least 22 references to the “sea” in the book of Revelation (4:6; 5:13; 7:1,2,3; 8:8,9; 10:2,5,8; 12:12; 13:1; 14:2,7; 15:2; 16:3; 18:17,19,21; 19:6; 20:13; 21:1). J. C. Fitzpatrick visited the island in the 1880’s and observed: “The islands to the west stand out darkly against the brightness of the horizon; and the others are lighted up with the glory of the setting sun, whilst the track of its last rays is a ‘sea of glass, mingled with fire'” (Rev. 15:2; 1887:16). In Revelation 6:14 and 16:20 John describes the islands of the Aegean and mountains Western Turkey disappearing. The last time I was on the island, I can personally attest that they are still there awaiting future fulfillment.

Only one spring exists on the island at a place called Sykamia on the road leading from Chora to Groikos. Tradition has it John baptized some of his converts in the baptistery nearby. What a contrast this small spring was to the “pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding from the throne of God and of the Lamb” (22:1) in the New Heaven and New Earth (21:1). Yet John recognized he was to worship the One who made heaven and earth and the sea and springs of water (Rev. 14:7).

In Revelation 13:1, John wrote that he “stood on the sand of the sea. And I saw a beast rising up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his horns ten crowns, and on his heads a blasphemous name” (NKJV). Awhile back, a friend asked me who I thought the beast was in this verse. I responded, “I haven’t the foggiest idea, but I can tell you exactly what beach John stood on when he saw that vision. It was the Psili Ammos beach.” In Greek, the word means “fine sand”, and indeed this light, fine golden sand is the only beach on the island which has no stones or pebbles (Stone 1981:83,84). In contrast, the colored pebbles on the Lambi beach impress the visitor to the island. The other beaches have rocks and pebbles on them.

John had the opportunity to walk to this isolated beach some 45 minutes to an hour walk from the harbor of Skela. He probably went to the Psili Ammos beach to get away from the noise and the crowds at the harbor, or to meditate on the Word of God and spend time in prayer. The impression I am left with is that John had freedom of movement on the island.

The Volcano at Thera (Santorini)

From this beach one could see an eruption of the volcanic island of Thera, also known as Santorini. In 1888, an interesting but highly imaginative article appeared the journal The Nineteenth Century entitled “What St. John Saw on Patmos” by J. Theodore Bent. In it he proposed that the Apostle John saw a volcanic eruption of Thera (Santorini) in AD 60. This eruption of Thera, as the Greek name implies, was the “beast” of Rev. 13:1. He suggested that “St. John made use of [this] phenomena which he saw with his own eyes, to prophetically depict a destruction of another kind” (1888:813). What that was, he does not say.

At the outset, there are several major problems with this thesis. First, Bent rejects the AD 95 date for the writing of Revelation and follows the “consensus of modern opinion” (for 1888) that it was written between AD 60 and 69. Second, he assumes there was an eruption of Thera in the year AD 60. This, however, is based on a secondhand, and probably unreliable, source. The authority, George of Syngelos, probably confused it with the AD 46-47 eruption.

There was a very catastrophic eruption between 1520 – 1460 BC, which some geologists have suggested was the largest eruption in historical times. This destroyed the Minoan civilization and might be the basis for the “Atlantis” legend. Strabo described an eruption in 197 BC ( Geography I.3.16: 1989:213,215). Pliny mentions one in AD 19 and several Roman historians record the AD 46-47 eruption (Vougioukalakis 1995:13-15).

The student of Bible prophecy should be careful not to “throw the baby out with the bath water” on some of Bent’s observations. In the article he compares “passages in Revelation with extracts from medieval and modern accounts given by eye-witnesses of the eruptions of Thera” and notes they make “many remarkable parallels” (1888:813). Let us examine three examples.

First, the sixth seal (Rev. 6:12-17). “There was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. And the stars of heaven fell to earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind. … and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.” All these phenomenon; an earthquake, a dark sun and moon like blood, “stars” falling from heaven and movement of land masses are associated with volcanic eruption. The volcanic cloud in the atmosphere would darken the sun and make the moon appear blood red. The mention of late figs may give us a chronological indicator as to when this eruption takes place, August or September (Boronski 1987:37,38,115).

Second, the first trumpet (Rev. 8:7) describes hail and fire mingled with blood that was thrown to earth. This destroyed one third of the trees and burned up all the grass. Bent recounts M. Delenda’s account of the eruption of 1707 where “flames … issued out of the sea, and of the damage done to the vines and trees by the noxious vapours and by the terrible crashing of the volcanic bombs” (1888:817).

Third, the second trumpet (Rev. 8:8, 9). “And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood; and a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.” Father Richard, observing the eruption of Thera (Santorini) in 1573 writes, “even when the volcano is quiescent, the sea in the immediate vicinity of the cone is a brilliant orange colour, from the action of oxide iron” (Bent 1888:817). M. Delenda observed after an eruption of Thera in 1707 the sulphurous vapours mixed with the sea, turned it white and the fish of the harbor died (Bent 1888:817). The destruction of one third of the ships would be caused by a tsunami. Interestingly, geologists calculated the tsunami (tidal wave) after the eruption of Thera between 1520-1460 BC, was initially 42 meters high (Pararas-Carayannis 1992:122). That would surely wreck havoc on any navies in the area!

Stothers and Rampino (1983:6357-6371) did a detailed study of volcanic eruptions in the Mediterranean Sea before AD 630 from the written and archaeological sources.

Earthquakes

Earthquakes are always associated with volcanoes. The book of Revelation records at least five earthquakes during the seven years of the Tribulation. The first one during the sixth seal is called a “great earthquake” (6:12). The second, during the seventh seal (8:5). The third is after the resurrection of the two witnesses and it is called a “great earthquake” and seven thousand men were killed (11:13). The fourth earthquake is during the seventh trumpet (11:19). The fifth and final one is during the seventh bowl judgment. It is described as “a great earthquake, such as a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth” (16:18). This last statement would strike the minds of the reader in Asia Minor of the recollection of the stories that they heard from family and friends of the great earthquake of AD 17. Pliny the Elder, who ironically died studying the eruption of Mt. Vesuvius in AD 79, penned these words concerning this earthquake. “The greatest earthquake in human memory occurred when Tiberius Caesar was emperor, twelve Asiatic cities being overthrown in one night” (2:86:200; 1979: 331). John, writing less than twenty years after Pliny, reminds his readers that there is still a greater earthquake to come. Tacitus, a Roman historian and a contemporary of John, described the horrors of the AD 17 earthquake in very vivid and graphic language ( Annals 2:47; 1992: 459). A careful reading of the text of Revelation seems to indicate that these are major earthquakes in which God directly intervenes in the judgment on humanity.

As any good geologist knows, there has actually been a decrease in the number of earthquakes. A bulletin, put out by the National Earthquake Information Center and arm of the US Geological Survey, asks the question “Are earthquakes really on the increase?” They answer the question this way. “Although it may seem that we are having more earthquakes, earthquakes of magnitude 7.0 or greater have remained fairly constant throughout this century and, according to our records, have actually seemed to decease in recent years.” They go on to point out, “A partial explanation may lie in the fact that in the last twenty years, we have definitely had an increase in the number of earthquakes we have been able to locate each year. This is because of the tremendous increase in the number of seismograph stations in the world and the many improvements in global communications”

(wwwneic.cr.usgs.gov/neis/general/handouts/increase_in_earthquakes.html).

This should not surprise the student of Bible prophecy because no verse in the Bible says there will be an increase in the number of earthquakes before the Lord Jesus Christ returns! (Austin and Strauss 1999).

More study needs to be done on the seal, trumpet and bowl judgments in Revelation. These are all natural phenomenon on a supernatural scale. The Lord is directly intervening in the affairs of human history during the Tribulation. These are not humanly contrived events, be they MX missiles, black helicopters, etc. Nations can explain, warn and defend against missile attacks. On the other hand, these natural phenomenons: volcanoes, earthquakes and weather patterns can not be predicted, nor prevented by scientists. As a result of not having control over them, they will cry out blasphemies toward God (Rev. 16:21).

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Austin, S., and Strauss, M.

1999 Are Earthquakes Signs of the End Times? A Geological and Biblical Response to an Urban Legend. Christian Research Journal 21/4: 30-39.

Bent, J.

1888 What St. John Saw on Patmos. The Nineteenth Century 24: 813-821.

Boronski, O.

1987 Agriculture in Iron Age Israel. Winona Lake, IN: Eisenbrauns.

Burnis, T.

1962 The Unhewn Grotto of the Apocalypse. Athens: Heraklis.

Clark, F.

1914 The Holy Land of Asia Minor. New York: Charles Scribner’s Son.

Cary, E. (trans.)

1995 Dio Cassius Roman History, Epitome of Book LXI-LXX. Cambridge,

MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Fitzpatrick, J.

1887 A Visit to Patmos. Christ’s College Magazine 15-20.

Geil, W.

1896 The Isle That is Called Patmos. Philadelphia: A. J. Rowland.

Heath, M.

Nd Patmos, The Sacred Island Where St. John Wrote the Apocalypse.

Athens: D. G. Davaris.

Hemer, C.

1986 The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in Their Local Setting. Sheffield: JSOT.

Jones, H. (trans.)

1988 The Geography of Strabo. Vol. 1. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Kourtara, V., Xeroutsikou, L., and Provatakis, T.

1996 Patmos the Holy Island of the Aegean. Athens: Toubis.

Lake, K. (trans.)

1980 Eusebius The Ecclesiastical History. Vol. 1. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Meinardus, O.

1979 St. John of Patmos and the Seven Churches of the Apocalypse. Athens: Lycabettus.

Moore, C., and Jackson, J. (trans.)

1992 The Annals of Tacitus. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Newton, C. T.

1865 Travels and Discoveries in the Levant. London: Day.

Pararas-Carayannis, G.

1992 The Tsunami Generated from the Eruption of the Volcano of Santorini in the Bronze Age. Natural Hazards 5: 115-123.

Rackham, H. (trans.)

1979 Pliny’s Natural History. Vol. 1. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

1989 Pliny’s Natural History. Vol. 2. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.

Radice, B. (trans.)

1969 Pliny’s Letters, Book VIII-X, Panegyricus. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Saffrey, H.

1975 Relire L’Apocalypse A Patmos. Revue Biblique 82: 385-417.

Simpson, R., and Lazenby, J.

1970 Notes from the Dodecanese II. Annual of the British School at Athens. 65: 47-77.

Stanley, A. P.

1863 Sermons Preached Before His Royal Highness the Prince of Wales, During His Tour in the East In the Spring of 1862, With Notices of Some of the Localities Visited. London: John Murry.

Stone, T.

1980 Patmos. Athens: Lycabettus.

Stothers, R., and Rampino, M.

1983 Volcanic Eruptions in the Mediterranean Before A.D. 630 From Written and Archaeological Sources. Journal of Geophysical Research 88: 6357-6371.

Swindoll, C.

1986 Letters to Churches … Then and Now. Fullerton, CA” Insights for Living.

Tozer, H.

1889 The Islands of the Aegean. Oxford: Clarendon.

Vougioukalakis, G.

1995 Santorini “The Volcano”. Santorini: Institute for the Study and

Monitoring of the Santorini Volcano.

Wilson, J.

1847 The Land of the Bible Visited and Described. Edinburgh: William Whyte.
04Feb

The King and I: John in Ephesus –Part 1

The Seven Churches of Asia Minor – Rev. 1-3 Comments Off on The King and I: John in Ephesus –Part 1

By Gordon Franz

Emperor Domitian, the self-proclaimed “Lord and God” and ruthless dictator, reigned from AD 81 to 96. He was the son of Emperor Vespasian and the brother of Titus, the conquerors of Jerusalem and the Judean people. During the last few years of his life, Domitian became very superstitious. In fact, on the day before he was murdered, he consulted an astrologer. During this time he also consulted Apollo, the god of music and poetry, as well as the god of light, truth and prophecy! To commemorate his superstition, the emperor-minted coins depicting Apollo on one side and a raven, a bird associated with prophecy, on the reverse side (Jones 1990:266). It was believed one could tell the future by watching this bird’s flight (Kanitz 1973-74:47), so Domitian looked to it to foretell his immediate future. Ironically, Suetonius, a Roman historian and senator, records, “A few months before he (Domitian) was killed, a raven perched on the Capitalium and cried, ‘All will be well,’ an omen which some interpreted as follows: ‘… a raven … could not say, “It is well,” only declared “It will be well.”‘” ( Domitian 23:2; 1992:385). Emperor Domitian died soon after and all was well!

The Apostle John, exiled on the island of Patmos about AD 95, received a more sure word of prophecy. Not from a raven, nor Apollo, but from the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. The Book of Revelation begins, “The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave Him to show His servants – things which must shortly take place” (Rev. 1:1). He goes on to say, “Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Rev. 1:3).

The Book of Revelation is a polemic (a controversial argument, against some opinion, or doctrine) against Emperor Domitian and the Roman world. While Domitian looked to Apollo and the raven to foretell the immediate future, the Lord Jesus Christ, omniscient and infinitely greater than Domitian, revealed the future of the world in this book. He instructed John to “write the things which you have seen [the vision of the glorified Son of Man (Rev. 1)], and the things which are [the situation of the seven churches in Asia Minor at the end of the first century AD (Rev. 2 and 3)], and the things which will take place after this [all the future events recorded in Rev. 4-22]” (1:9). This paper will examine several aspects of Domitian’s reign and John’s exile to Patmos.

In the nineteenth century, Bible scholars, linguists, pilgrims, travelers and military intelligence officers from America, England and the Continent began to visit the Holy Land and explore the Land of the Bible. In their books they described sites, recorded manners and customs, drew maps and sketched landscapes. This research began to open up the world of the Bible, a Book which was no longer a theological treatise, but a Book about real people, real events and real places. These explorers added a third dimension to Bible study for students back home. In addition they provided intelligence information for the countries of Europe awaiting the collapse of the Ottoman Empire.

In the late 19^th and early 20th century Sir William Ramsay explored, excavated and wrote about Asia Minor. One of his monumental studies is his book, The Letters to the Seven Churches. A more recent study on the setting of Revelation 2 and 3 is Colin Hemer’s Ph.D. dissertation under F. F. Bruce at the University of Manchester in 1969 entitled, The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in their Local Setting.

I have tried to “follow in the footsteps” of these great explorers. First, by reading the accounts of their travels. Second, by travelling to the places they visited and making my own observations and taking pictures.

These observations will help us consider the historical setting of Revelation 1:9 and understand the apostle John’s exile to the island of Patmos. I will begin with the assumption that Revelation was written in AD 95 during the reign of Emperor Domitian, and not in the reign of Nero (Thomas 1994:185-202). Let us begin with Emperor Domitian.

Emperor Domitian

Self-deified emperor

Emperor Domitian had a definite ego problem! In Imperial Rome the senate would deify an emperor upon death (Kreitzer 1990:210-217). However, Domitian, like Gaius Caligula, could not wait until death, so he deified himself. This is well attested to by the ancient writers.

Suetonius (AD 75 – ca. 140), in his book Lives of the Caesars, wrote, “With no less arrogance he began as follows in issuing a circular letter in the name of his procurators, ‘Our Master and our God bids that this be done.'” [“Dominus et deus noster hoe fieri iubet.”] ( Domitian 13:2; 1992:367). He also delighted in the adulation of the people in the amphitheater when they shouted, “Good Fortune attends our Lord and Mistress.” [Domino et dominae feliciter!”] ( Domitian 13:1; 1992:367). A reference to himself and his wife.

Pliny the Younger (born AD 61 or 62 – died before 113), wrote in his Panegyricus, a tribute to Emperor Trajan, “He (Domitian) was a madman, blind to the true meaning of his position, who used the arena for collecting charges of high treason, who felt himself slighted and scorned if we failed to pay homage to his gladiators, taking any criticism of them to himself and seeing insults to his own godhead and divinity; who deemed himself the equal of the gods yet raised his gladiators to his equal.” (33:4; 1992: 395).

Dio Cassius, in his Roman History, wrote, “For he even insisted upon being regarded as a god [ theos] and took vast pride in being called ‘master’ [ despotus] and “god” [ theos]. These titles were used not merely in speech but also in written documents” ( Epitome of Book 67:5:7; 1995:329). Elsewhere he wrote, “One Juventius Celsus, … [conspired] … against Domitian … When he was on the point of being condemned, he begged that he might speak to the emperor in private, and thereupon did obeisance before him and after repeatedly calling him ‘master’ [ despoton] and ‘god’ [ theon] (terms that were already being applied to him by others)” ( Epitome of Book 67:3:4; 1995:349). Later writers repeat the same claim and then go on to embellish it (Jones 1992:108). However, Statius claims Domitian rejected these titles ( Silvae 1:6:83-84; 1982: 69, 71).

There seems to be other contemporary evidence that backs up Domitian’s claim to deity. Unfortunately, no inscriptions have been discovered with these titles on them. Dio Cassius again adds an important detail, when he wrote, “After Domitian, the Romans appointed Nerva Cocceius emperor. Because of the hatred felt for Domitian, his images, many of which were of silver and many of gold, were melted down; and from this source large amounts of money were obtained. The arches, too, of which a very great number were being erected to this one man, were torn down” ( Epitome of Book 68:1:1; 1995:361). Upon his death, the Roman Senate was, “… overjoyed … [assailed] the dead emperor with the most insulting and stinging kind of outcries. … Finally they passed a decree that his inscriptions should everywhere be erased, and all record of him obliterated” (Suetonius, Domitian 23:1; 1992:385). This decree, the damnatio memoriae, destroyed all the statues and epigraphical inscriptions of Domitian. Evidence of this can be seen in the arch at Hierapolis, built by Domitian, [Fig. 2] as well as the dedicatory inscriptions for the Temple of the Sabastoi in Ephesus (Friesen 1993a:34). There are a few exceptions. One is a marble portrait of Domitian with an oakleaf crown, the so-called corona civica, in the National Roman Museum (Sapelli 1998:24). This bust, found in Latina, was probably buried before the emperor died.

The only evidence not destroyed was the coins minted by Domitian because it was impossible to recall all of them. Numismatics is able to provide some evidence of Domitian’s boast of deity.

The Numismatic Evidence

Dr. Ernest Janzen, of the University of Toronto, in an article entitled, “The Jesus of the Apocalypse Wears the Emperor’s Clothes,” provides for two lines of evidence from numismatics for Domitian’s claim to deity. The first are coins minted in AD 83 called the DIVI CAESAR (“divine Caesar”) coins. These coins, minted in gold and silver, had the bust of Domitia, the wife of Domitian, on the obverse with the inscription, “DIVI CAESAR MATRI” and “DIVI CAESARIS MATER”, the mother of the divine Caesar! On the reverse was their infant son who was born in the second consulship of Domitian in AD 73 and died in the second year after he became emperor (AD 82) (Suetonius, Domitian 3:1; 1992:345). He is depicted as naked and seated on a zoned globe with his arms stretched out surrounded by seven stars! The inscription surrounding it said “DIVUS CAESAR IMP DOMITIANI F”. Translated it means, “the divine Caesar, son of the emperor Domitian.” The infant is depicted as baby Jupiter (Jupiter being the head of the Roman pantheon). “The globe represents world dominion and power, while stars typically bespoke the divine nature of those accompanied. … the infant depicted on the globe was the son of (a) god and that the infant was conqueror of the world” (1994:645-647). It does not take a rocket scientist to figure out that if he is the son of a god, then who is god? Of course, his father, Domitian! I can not help but use my sanctified imagination and wonder if John did not have this coin in front of him when he penned, “and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to His feet … He had in His right hand seven stars” (Rev. 1:13,16). He refers back to this vision in the letter to the church at Thyatira when the Lord Jesus identifies Himself as the “Son of God” (Rev. 2:18).

The second bit of numismatic evidence comes from the coins with the fulmen (“thunderbolt”) on them. The fulmen is the divine attribute of Jupiter. Janzen points out; “In 84 Domitian struck reverse type Jupiter holding thunderbolt and spear. The first issue of 85 continued this type but the second issue witnessed the fulmen in Domitian’s hand. He and Jupiter would ‘share’ the fulmen for the years 85-6 after which Jupiter remained as a regular type, only without fulmen. From 87-96 Domitian alone held the fulmen, persuasive evidence of a developing megalomania which place the fulmen in Domitian’s hand and are clearly patterned after the Jupiter with fulmen type” (1994:648, footnote 55). One numismatic expert says this type “clearly suggests a parallel between himself and ‘Jupiter tonaus’ (the thunderer) or the father of the gods” (Mattingly, cited in Janzen 1994:648, footnote 55).

Martial, the first century Howard Stern of Rome confirms this idea in his writings. One of his epigrams, written in AD 94, describing the Gens Flavia (Jones 1992:1,199, footnote 1) says, “This piece of ground, that lies open and is being covered with marble and gold, knew our Lord ( domini) in infancy. … Here stood the venerable house that gave the world what Rhodes and pious Crete gave the starry sky [Helios, the sun god, was born on Rhodes according to some traditions, and Zeus, the chief god, was born on Crete]. … But you the Father of the High One did protect, and for you, Caesar, thunderbolt ( fulmen) and aegis took the place of spear and buckler” ( Epigrams 9:20; 1993b: 249). Sometimes Martial even calls Domitian the “Thunderer” (7:99:1; 1993b: 157), a title that usually belongs to Jupiter (Zeus) ( Epigrams 9:91; 1993b: 311)! Domitian is putting himself on the same level as Jupiter.

Elsewhere in Martial’s writings he calls Domitian “lord” ( Epigrams 7:2; 8:82; 9:20, 28, 66; 1993b: 75, 231, 249, 257, 291) and “lord and god” ( Epigrams 5:8; 1993a: 361; 7:34; 8:2; 1993b: 105, 161). Interestingly, after the death of Domitian, Martial repudiates these titles attributed to Domitian ( Epigrams 10:72; 1993b: 391). However, I think he was reflecting the sentiments of the day while Domitian was alive. He may not have believed it, but that’s what Domitian wanted, so that’s what he got.

Another interesting sidelight, on some of Domitian’s coins the initials “PM” appears on the inscriptions. These initials stand for “pontifex maximus,” the high priest as head of the Roman religion. This title, Biblically, belongs only to the Lord Jesus (Heb. 4:14).

It appears that in AD 85/86 something triggered Domitian to openly claim deity. What it was, I do not know, but the response in Asia Minor was a temple dedicated to the Sabastoi (emperors).

The Sabastoi Temple in Ephesus

In 1930, the Austrian archaeologist Josef Keil, began to excavate an artificial terrace near the southwest corner of the Upper Agora in Ephesus. As the excavations progressed, it became clear that this terrace, measuring 85.6 x 64.5 meters, supported the foundation of a temple, but which one (Friesen 1993b:66). In one of the vaults the “head and left forearm of a colossal, akrolithic male statue” was discovered which lead the excavator to identify it as the Temple of the sabastoi (“emperors”) (1993b:60). The structure was an octastyle temple of the Ionic order which measured 34 x 24 meters at its base (1993b:63). “The cella had an interior measurement of about 7.5 x 13 meters” (1993b:64). East of the temple stood and altar (1993b:67). The north side of the terrace had a three-story façade. The top level had engaged figures of various deities supporting the terrace above. Originally the façade probably had 35-40 engaged figures of eastern and western gods and goddesses. Today, only two figures, Attis and Isis, both eastern deities, have been restored (1993b:70,72).

In the last 125 years of research and excavations at Ephesus, 13 inscriptions dedicated to the provincial temple in Ephesus have been discovered. These rectangular marble blocks were set up by various cities of Asia Minor in recognition of Ephesus being the “neokoros” (guardian, or caretaker) of this temple (1993b:29, 35). These inscriptions have the name of Domitian chiseled out and in some cases have “Theos Vespansian” put in its place (1993b:37). The destruction of Domitian’s name was the result of the Roman Senate’s edict to erase any mention of Domitian.

Several questions should be asked regarding this temple. First, to whom was the Temple of the Sabastoi dedicated? Domitian would have a statue and possibly his wife Domitia (1993b:35). Most likely it also included the rest of the Flavians: Vespasian, who was Domitian’s father, and Titus, his older brother.

Second, when was the temple fully functional? Friesen, doing careful detective work with the inscriptions, suggests the date of September AD 90 when the temple was fully functional (1993b:44, 48). Most likely the people began to build it after Domitian began to express his opinion that he was a god in AD 85/86.

Third, whose head did the colossal statue represent? When this statue was first discovered in 1930, the excavator identified it as Domitian. Georg Daltrop and Max Wegner later questioned this identification. Based on facial features from portraits, they suggested it depicted his older brother Titus. However, other art historians still think it belongs to Domitian (1993b:62). This akrolithic statue, made of a wooden body, now disintegrated, and stone extremities, stood 8 meters tall (ca. 25 feet) (Friesen 1993b:63; 1993a:32). The left hand had a groove in it in which a spear was placed. This description accords historically with Ephesian coins depicting the Temple of the Sabastoi with a statue in front holding a spear (1993b:63).

Fourth, where was the statue placed in the temple complex? Some have suggested that it was outside in the courtyard. However, the problem with that suggestion is that the torso was made of wood and would deteriorate in the inclement weather. Most likely it was inside the temple. Friesen notes that the back of the head was not finished, thus “the statue could only have been displayed in front of a wall where visitors were not expected to go behind it” (1993a:32). The most logical place would be inside the temple. Also inside, most likely, were similar statues of the other Flavians (1993b:62).

Fifth, what was the symbolism of the temple complex? A visitor approaching the Temple of the Sabastoi from the Agora would notice the northern façade with the engaged deities supporting the temenos and wonder what was the intended symbolism. Friesen remarks, “The message was clear: the gods and goddesses of the peoples supported the emperors; and, conversely, the cult of the emperors united the cultic system, and the peoples, of the empire. The emperors were not a threat to the worship of the diverse deities of the empire; rather, the emperors joined the ranks of the divine and played their own particular role in that realm” (1993b:75). Ephesus, with its harbor, was the major commercial center of Asia Minor. The pilgrims and traders would mix their commercial ventures with their cultic worship of the emperors while in Ephesus. I would like to suggest that first century Ephesus is a prototype of the future religious and commercial center predicted in Rev. 17 and 18 called “Mystery Babylon” controlled by the Antichrist. Interestingly, F. Farrar, in his monumental work, The Life and Work of St. Paul says of Ephesus, “It’s markets, glittering with the produce of world’s art, were the Vanity Fair of Asia. They furnished to the exile [of] Patmos the local colouring of those pages of the Apocalypse in which he speaks of ‘the merchandise of gold, silver,…’ (Rev. 18:12,13)” (1888:355). The first century church could relate to this.

In the midst of all this commercial and cultic activities, the believers in the Lord Jesus Christ took a stand for Him (Rev. 2:2, 3). One of their elders, the apostle John, refused to participate in the emperor worship and preached against it. While on Patmos, he received the revelation from the Lord Jesus that was a polemic against emperor worship and Domitian in particular. Revelation 1:9 says that John was on the island of Patmos “for the word of God and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.” The serious Bible student knows there are at least three different interpretations for that verse. First, the Lord sent John to the island specifically to receive the revelation. Second, John voluntarily went to the island to preach the gospel. Third, he was banished by the Roman government because of preaching the gospel (Thomas 1992:88, 89). Most likely the third is the primary interpretation but the other two are correct as well. John was exiled to Patmos because of preaching the gospel and against emperor worship, but the Lord in His sovereignty used this opportunity for him to receive the book of Revelation and while he was there, he had the opportunities to proclaim the gospel.

Conclusions Regarding Domitian

I wonder if the Apostle John had ever seen the statue of Domitian in the Temple of the Sabastoi? If he had, I’m sure he refused to bow down and worship it, or even burn incense on the altar before it. What a contrast between this lifeless stone statue of a mere mortal man and the vision which John saw of the resurrected and living Savior, the Son of Man, in Revelation 1. On the isle of Patmos he saw, “One like the Son of Man, clothed in a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and His hair were white like wool, as white as the snow (Domitian was bald!), and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars (as opposed to a spear in Domitian’s left hand), out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and his continence was like the sun shining in its strength” (Rev. 1:13-16). When John saw this One, he fell down as dead (1:17a). He worshipped Someone infinitely greater than the mortal and dead emperors. He worshipped the One who was the “First and the Last,” and the One who lives, and was dead, and is alive forever more (1:17b, 18).

Is it any wonder that John also recorded the statement of the four living creatures, “Holy, holy, holy, Lord God (“Kurios ho theos”) Almighty. Who was and is and is to come” (4:8)? The contrast of the “Lord God’s” was obvious for any believer living in the first century. Domitian tried to legislate public and private morality, yet he himself was immoral: an adulterer, involved in incest, responsible for the murder of his niece. Julia died as a result of a botched abortion after he impregnated her. There were other people murdered by Domitian’s command because he felt they were a threat to his rule. He was blasphemous as well as an animal abuser. He would sit in his room, catch flies, and stab them with a “keenly-sharpened stylus”. On the other hand, the Lord Jesus Christ is “holy, holy, holy.” The One who could not sin, would not sin, and did not sin (James 1:13; II Cor. 5:21; Heb. 4:15). He was the spotless Lamb of God (I Pet. 1:19). Domitian called himself Dominus Dues Domitianus (D. D. D.). Yet the Lord Jesus is the “Lord God Almighty”, the One who is El Shaddai! Domitian was born on Oct. 24, AD 51 and murdered on Sept. 18, AD 96. He was cremated and his ashes mingled with his niece Julia and buried in the temple of Gens Flavia, built over the house where he was born. This house was located on the Quirinal Hill in the sixth Region (Jones 1992:1; Richardson 1992:181). Yet the Eternal Son of God is the One “who was and is and is to come!” Domitian reigned only 15 years (Sept. 13, AD 81 – Sept. 18, AD 96), yet King Jesus will reign for a thousand years as “King of kings and Lord of lords” (Rev. 20:4-6; 19:16). Believers in the Lord Jesus during the first century would be encouraged (and blessed) by reading the book of Revelation.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Carradice, I.

1983 Coinage and Finances in the Reign of Domitian. A.D. 81-96. Oxford: BAR International series 178.

Cary, E. (trans.)

1995 Dio Cassius Roman History, Epitome of Book LXI-LXX. Cambridge,

MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Friessen, S.

1993a Ephesus. Key to a Vision in Revelation. Biblical Archaeology Review 19/3: 24-37.

1993b Twice Neokoros. Ephesus, Asia and the Cult of the Flavian Imperial Family. Leiden: E. J. Brill.

Hemer, C.

1986 The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in Their Local Setting. Sheffield: JSOT.

Janzen, E.

1993 A Numismatic Compass for the Troubled Waters of the New Testament Apocalypse. The Picus ??: 99-138.

1993 The Jesus of the Apocalypse Wears the Emperor’s Clothes. SBL 1994 Seminar Papers. Atlanta, GA: Scholars.

Jones, B.

1992 The Emperor Domitian. London: Routledge.

Jones, J.

1990 A Dictionary of Ancient Roman Coins. London: Seaby.

Kanitz, L.

1973-74 Domitian The Man Revealed by His Coins. SAN 5: 45-47.

Kreitzer, L.

1987 Apotheosis of the Roman Emperor. Biblical Archaeologist 53/4: 210-217.

Moore, C., and Jackson, J. (trans.)

1988 The Annals of Tacitus. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.

Mozley, J. H. (trans.)

1982 Statius’ Silvae. Vol. 1. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Rackham, H. (trans.)

1989 Pliny’s Natural History. 10 vols. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.

Radice, B. (trans.)

1990 Pliny’s Letters, Book VIII-X, Panegyricus. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (Loeb).

Ramsay, W.

1992 The Letters to the Seven Churches. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

Richardson, L.

1991 A New Topographical Dictionary of Ancient Rome. Baltimore: John Hopkins University.

Rolfe, J. (trans.)

1992 Suetonius, The Lives of the Caesars, Domitian. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University.

Sapelli, M.

1998 Palazzo Massimo Alle Terme. Milan: Electa.

Shackleton Bailey, D. R. (trans.)

1993a Martial’s Epigrams. Vol. 1. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge,

MA: Harvard University.

1993b Martial’s Epigrams. Vol. 2. Loeb Classical Library. Cambridge,

MA:Harvard University.

Thomas, R.

1992 Revelation 1-7. An Exegetical Commentary. Chicago: Moody.

1993 Theonomy and the Dating of Revelation. The Master’s Seminary Journal 5/2: 185-202.
04Feb

“Meat Offered To Idols” In Pergamon And Thyatira

The Seven Churches of Asia Minor – Rev. 1-3 Comments Off on “Meat Offered To Idols” In Pergamon And Thyatira

By Gordon Franz

Colin Hemer, in his book The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in Their Local Setting (1986), has done an outstanding job of placing the letters to the Seven Churches of Asia Minor (Revelation 1-3) in their historical-geographical setting at the end of the First Century AD. Hemer’s book is a reworking of his doctoral thesis at the University of Manchester that was accepted in 1969. He did his research under the supervision of the late Professor F. F. Bruce.

When Hemer deals with the phrase “meat offered to idols” he comments that there are “two aspects of the problem … at Corinth, the consumption of idol-consecrated meat from the public market, and participation in the idolatrous guild-feast (see 1 Cor. 8:1-13 and 10:20-30). The latter was the particular issue at Thyatira” (1986:91, 92). A year later, Dr. Charles A. Kennedy, who is now professor emeritus at Virginia Tech, in an article in Love and Death in the Ancient Near East, challenged the standard interpretation and set forth another view of the phrase “meat offered to idols” (1987:227-236). Kennedy contends, “Paul is addressing himself to one of the most pervasive problems faced by Christians anywhere at any time, the proper rites to be accorded their dead. Eidolothuton should be translated as ‘memorial meals for the dead’.” (1987: 229).

The phrase “meat offered to idols” appears ten times in the New Testament. The first mention is in Acts 15 where the Jerusalem Council issued the decree to the Gentile believers in the Lord Jesus that they were to “abstain from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality. If you keep yourself from these, you do well” (15:29 NKJV). The second time it is used in the Book of Acts is when Paul appears before James in Jerusalem. “But concerning the Gentiles who believe, we have written and decided that they should observe no such thing, except that they should keep themselves from things offered to idols, from blood, from things strangled, and from sexual immorality” (21:25 NKJV). Paul addresses this issue in his first epistle to the church at Corinth in chapters 8-11. Paul begins this section, “Now concerning things offered to idols” (8:1). The phrase appears six times in the context (8:1, 4, 7, 10; 10:19, 28). The last two references are found in two of the letters address to the seven churches of Asia Minor (Rev. 2:14, 20).

This paper will examine C. A. Kennedy’s view of the phrase “meat offered to idols” as it relates to the church at Pergamos (2:14) and Thyatira (2:20).

C. A. Kennedy’s View

Dr. Kennedy views the phrase “meat offered to idols” as a memorial meal for the dead. In his article, he begins by looking at the etymology of the word eidolothuton, the phrase translated “meat offered to idols” and then the archaeological evidence to support his thesis.

Kennedy points out the presupposition of the usual interpretation “that the word eidolothuton is, as it were, self-explanatory. The two elements of the word, ‘idol’ and ‘sacrifice’ combine to form the compound ‘meat/food/things offered to idols.’ The ‘idols’ are taken to mean the statues of the Greek gods; therefore the sacrifices must be the victims slaughtered at their temples. Such meat, so the argument goes, is not to be eaten by Christians (1 Cor. 10:14; cf. Acts 15:29)” (1987: 228, 229).

However, the word eidolon is rarely used in secular Greek in the usual sense of “idol” (i.e. a statue of a god). Kennedy states, “the common meaning of the term is ‘image,’ ‘likeness,’ or a range of meanings we today would associate with a photograph. It is the representation of a real person” (1987: 229). He then gives several examples. One example lead him to the second association, that of “the shade or shadow of a person in the sense of the Latin umbra, the unsubstantial form and shape of one who had died” (1987: 229).

The second element of the word thuton is usually translated “sacrifice” yet this word has a wide range of meanings. Kennedy concludes his study of the etymology of the word by saying, “The combination of eidolo– and thuton should then be understood to mean ‘meal for the image of the deceased’ or more simply ‘a funerary meal / offering,’ ‘a memorial meal for the dead’.” (1987: 230).

“Funerals in the Graeco-Roman world were conducted according to custom or tradition. Rituals and procedures were carefully detailed to insure the proper burial for the deceased and the purification of the family from the contamination of death. Funeral banquets were prescribed on certain days immediately following the death and on anniversaries of the burial in subsequent annual rites, honored the dead as one of the divi parentum or di parentes” (Kennedy 1987: 230, 231).

“An important element in the funeral rites was the image of the deceased. Wax masks were made and incorporated into effigies that might be displayed in public” (Kennedy 1987: 231). Painted portraits could be displayed and for the wealthy, a sculptured portrait bust. An example of a Roman patrician carrying the death masks of his deceased relatives can be seen in the Barberini Museum in Rome.

The best archaeological illustration of the memorial meals for the dead can be found in Pompeii, Italy. The city was covered with dust and ash during the eruption of Mount Vesuvius in AD 79 that left most of the necropolis intact. A tomb of Gnaeus Vibrius Saturninus exists outside the Herculaneum Gate on the Street of the Tombs. One entered the tomb complex via a small entrance from the street. A triclinium was in the center of the courtyard so the family members could recline while they ate the memorial meal in honor of the deceased relative. Elsewhere in the Pompeii necropolis one can see statues of the deceased person as well as memorial chapels with the image of the dead. Clement of Alexandria probably had similar tombs in Egypt in mind when he said: “Tombs are objects of reverence in just the same way as temples are: in fact, pyramids, mausoleums and labyrinths are as it were temples (naoi) of dead men, just as the temples are tombs of the gods” (Exhortation to the Greeks 4; LCL 111-113).

Kennedy points out the irony of this statement by saying, “In this very nice turn of phrases, Clement manages to criticize the cult of the dead and the pagan gods at the same time. If men set up shrines (i.e. tombs) to dead men, they tacitly admit that the gods venerated in shrines (i.e. temples) are just as dead” (1987: 233).

Whenever “meat offered to idols” is mentioned in the Scriptures, it is always associated with sexual immorality. Apparently, at times, the funerary meals would degenerate into orgies because the drinking got out of hand. This connection is evident in the two letters to the churches of Asia Minor.

Funerary Meals in Pergamos (Rev. 2:14)

The Lord Jesus instructs the Apostle John to write to the angel (or church representative) of the church in Pergamos (Rev. 2:12-17). John describes the Risen Lord Jesus as the One with the “sharp two-edged sword” (2:12). This metaphor is used elsewhere in the New Testament for the Word of God (Eph. 6:17; Heb. 4:12; cf. Rev. 1:16). He commends them for holding fast to the Name of the Lord Jesus and not denying Him in spite of the persecution in the city “where Satan dwells” (2:13). However, the Lord had a few things against the church at Pergamos. First, there were some in the church that held to the “doctrine of Balaam” which is described as the “stumbling block before the Children of Israel, to eat things sacrificed to idols, and to commit sexual immorality” (2:14). Second, there were also some in the church that held to the doctrine of the Nicolaitans (2:15). This error was in the Church at Ephesus, but the leaders of that church took a stand against this heresy (2:6).

Dr. Robert Thomas, in his commentary on the book of Revelation, points out that these are two separate groups within the church. The word houtos (“thus”) in verse 15 “reflects that they were like, but not identical with, those who held the Balaamite doctrine. The introduction of the Nicolaitans with kai (‘also’) and homoios (‘thus’ or ‘in like manner’) also argues for two separate groups. The most consistent deduction is that there were two different but similar groups in this church, both of which had disobeyed the decision of the Jerusalem council in regard to idolatrous practices and fornication (cf. Acts 15:20, 29)” (1992: 193).

The earliest witness to the Nicolaitans is the Church Father, Irenaeus, Bishop of Lyons (ca. 115 – ca. 202). He was a disciple of Polycarp, the bishop of Smyrna in Asia Minor. Polycarp was a disciple of the Apostle John. In his work Against Heresies, chapter 26, Irenaeus wrote: “The Nicolaitanes are the follower of that Nicolas who was one of the seven first ordained to the diaconate by the apostles (Acts 6:5). They lead lives of unrestrained indulgence. The character of these men is very plainly pointed out in the Apocalypse of John, [when they are represented] as teaching that it is a matter of indifference to practice adultery, and to eat things sacrificed to idols. Wherefore the Word has also spoken of them thus: ‘But this thou hast, that thou hatest the deeds of the Nicolaitanes, which I also hate’ (Rev. 2:6)” (1994:352). Tertullian, a North African Christian apologist writing around AD 200, in his On Prescription Against Heretics, chapter 33, associates a form of the Nicolaitan error with “meat offered to idols” and fornication (1994: 259).

Dr. Thomas takes the kai (“also”) in verse 15 as a comparison between two groups within the church, and that both held similar false doctrines. He renders verse 15 as “You have also [in addition to those who hold the teaching of Balaam] those who hold in like manner [to the way the Balaamites hold their teaching] the teaching of the Nicolaitans” (1992: 194). The two groups “arrived at the same goal, that of eating meat sacrificed to idols and fornication, but they followed different paths to get there” (1992: 194).

In order to understand the “doctrine of Balaam” one must go back to the account found in Numbers 22-25, 31. Balaam, a prophet of the LORD (Num. 22:18), was invited by Balak, king of Moab, to curse the nation of Israel. At first, Balaam refused to go to Moab, but later went to Balak. He went, however, with strict instructions from the Lord to say only what the Lord told him to say. Each time Balak asked Balaam to curse the Israelites, he turned around and blessed Israel (23:7-10, 18-24; 24:3-9, 15-19; cf. Gen. 12:1-3).

But what is the “doctrine of Balaam”? The doctrine of Balaam is the same as the counsel of Balaam (Num. 31:16). Apparently what happened was Balaam told Balak he could only bless the nation of Israel but not curse it. As he departed, he counseled Balak on how to get the God of Israel angry with His people. The plan was quite simple: get the Moabite women to commit harlotry with the men of Israel (Num. 25:1-3).

How does this incident relate to the “meat offered to idols” and sexual immorality as well as the Nicolaitans in the church at Pergamos? The books of Numbers and the Psalms give us the answer. In Numbers 25:2; the Moabites invited the people of Israel to “the sacrifice of their gods”. The psalmist reflects on the incident in Numbers 25 by saying, “They joined themselves also to Baal of Peor, and ate sacrifices made to the dead. Thus they provoked Him to anger with their deeds, and the plague broke out among them” (Ps. 106:28, 29). Kennedy observes that M. Dahood translates this as “banquet of the dead,” and the “sacrifices of their gods” in Numbers 25:2 is “the idolatrous meals introduced to the Israelites by the Moabite women. These meals were apparently funeral banquets in honor of their ancestors. The dead are described as gods in 1 Sam. 28:13 and Isa. 8:19, two situations where men wish to know about the future and seek out the dead for answers. In a text from Ugarit, Anat addresses her deceased brother Baal with these words: ‘Your comrades are the gods, the dead your comrades.’ Since Baal was already a god in life, the change of status brought about by his death put him in a new company of gods, the dead” (1987: 230).

The Lord Jesus commands the church to repent of their tolerance for those in the church that followed the doctrine of Balaam as well as the Nicolaitans. If they did not, He said He would come quickly and fight against them with the sword of His mouth (2:16). This sword may have a dual reference. First, to the Word of God, and second, to the sword of judgment. In the Balaam account, the Angel of the LORD appears before Balaam with a drawn sword (Num. 22:23, 31). In the Hebrew Scriptures, the Angel of the LORD is a theophany, or a pre-incarnate appearance, of the Lord Jesus Christ (Walvoord 1969: 51-54). After the sin at Baal Peor, Moses commanded the judges of Israel to kill all those involved in the sin (Num. 25:5). Eventually, Balaam was killed with the sword (Num. 31:8).

The message to the church at Pergamos was clear, if you do not take care of the sins caused by those that followed the “doctrine of Balaam” and the Nicolaitans, the Lord would judge the church very severely, even to the point of death. The book of Hebrews quotes Prov. 3:11, 12: “My son, do not despise the chastening of the Lord, Nor be discouraged when you are rebuked by Him; For whom the LORD loves He chastens, and scourges every son whom He receives” (Heb. 12:5,6). The New Testament demonstrates that God’s chastening of His children can be very severe, even to the point of death. The Apostle John, in his first epistle, says, “there is a sin leading to death” (5:16).

The Apostle Paul wrote that many believers “sleep” in Corinth because they abused the Lord’s Supper (1 Cor. 11:30). Earlier in the same context concerning “meat offered to idols”, Paul uses the event at Baal Peor as an example of God’s chastening and an admonition to the Church (1 Cor. 10:8-11). For the individual believer, Paul admonishes, “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall. No temptation has over taken you except such as is common to man; but God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will also make the way of escape, that you may be able to bear it” (1 Cor. 10:12,13).

There were some people in the church at Pergamos that did not engage in the memorial meals to the dead. For them, the Overcomers, the Lord promised He would “give some of the hidden manna to eat” (2:17). The contrast is quite obvious. Those in the church who were not walking according to the Word of God were eating at the banquets for the dead, thus enjoying the “pleasures of sin for a season” (Heb. 11:25). The Overcomers “disciplined” their bodies and “brought it into subjection” so that they could “win the prize” (1 Cor. 9:24-27). In the context of the letter, the prize would be the “manna” and the “white stone” on which would be written a new name that no one knows except the one who receives it (Rev. 2:17). Those that followed the “doctrine of Balaam” and the Nicolaitans would be “disqualified” from the race (1 Cor. 9:27).

The “hidden manna” is most likely the manna that is in the Ark of the Covenant in Heaven (Rev. 11:19, cf. Ex. 16:32-34) and refers to a Banquet in the Kingdom. This manna will be the reward for the Overcomers, in contrast to the unhallowed food at the memorial meal for the dead. An interesting observation is that whenever the Bible records the Children of Israel eating something other than the manna during the forty years, death by plague resulted (quail – Num. 11:31-34; Ps. 106:14,15; cf. 1 Cor. 10:6; sacrifice to the dead at Shittim – Num. 25:1-3; cf. 1 Cor. 10:8). The manna did not stop until they entered the Land (Ex. 16:35; Josh. 5:12; Neh. 9:20, 21).

The other promise to the Overcomer was a “white stone” with their new name written on it. This is probably an allusion to the victor’s name placed on a monument of white marble, in contrast to the Pergamos granite, placed around the gymnasiums of Pergamos (Sauer 1956:63-65; Hemer 1986: 102). The athletic victors were afforded a special banquet (Thomas 1992: 201; cf. Rev. 19:9).

Funerary Meals in Thyatira (Rev. 2:20)

The church at Thyatira had the same problem as the church at Pergamos. Hemer notes that this is the “longest and most difficult of the seven letters [and] is addressed to the least known, least important and least remarkable of the cities.” He goes on to say that “the letter was not obscure to the church at Thyatira; the problem lies in our remoteness from the contemporary facts” (1986: 106).

Most commentaries, when discussing the “meat offered to idols” and sexual immorality in the church at Thyatira, attribute the practices to the membership rites of the local trade guilds (trade unions). Each guild had a patron deity and banquets with food offered to that deity as well as immoral activity. In order to have a position in the guild the Christian would have to participate in such activities. In the case of the church at Thyatira, one prophetess was saying it was all right to be involved in these events. I do not believe the phrase “meat offered to idols” has anything to do with the guilds.

John begins this letter with the threefold characteristics of the Lord Jesus Christ. He is the Son of God, the One who has eyes like a flame of fire and feet like fine brass (2:18). The Lord commends them for two works, their faith and their love. As Thomas points out: “love is demonstrated in service to others and faith is shown through endurance of hardship imposed through persecution” (1992: 211). Gene Getz in his book, Sharpening the Focus of the Church points out three marks of a mature church: faith, hope and love (1 Cor. 13:13; 1974: 53-61). The church at Thyatire was missing one of the three marks, i.e. hope, or a joyful anticipation, in the return of Christ. When one examines the problem in the church – immorality, it becomes obvious why hope is missing. The last Person the church wanted to see was the Lord Jesus Christ. The Apostle John describes the hope of the return of Christ as a “purifying hope” because some day believers in the Lord Jesus shall see Him as He is (I John 3:1-3). On the other hand, some believers will be “ashamed” at His coming (I John 2:28). The church at Thyatire lacked hope because they tolerate the immorality that was going on in the church.

Like previous churches, the Lord had a few things against this church. The problem was that the elders of the church “allowed that women Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and beguile My servants to commit sexual immorality and to eat things sacrificed to idols” (2:20). Apparently there was a strong woman in the church who considered herself a prophetess, was nicknamed Jezebel, and took an active teaching role in the church. She taught an “alternative lifestyle” to the Lord’s servants by advocating that they attend memorial meals for the dead and engage in sexual immorality. Several things should be noted here. First, there were godly prophetesses in the early church and women that exercised the gift of prophecy (Anna – Luke 2:36; the daughters of Philip – Acts 21:9; 1 Cor.11: 5). Second, Jezebel’s teaching was clearly contrary to the clear injunction by the Apostle Paul for women not to teach and have authority over men (1 Tim. 2:12). Third, whether this woman was a believer or not is debatable. If she was a believer, she was about to come under the severe hand of God’s chastening (1 Cor. 11:30; Heb. 12:5, 6).

The parallels between this unknown woman and her namesake Jezebel are striking. This woman had an unusually strong influence in the church at Thyatira just as Jezebel had a strong influence over her husband Ahab as well as over Israel’s public policy (1 Kings 16:31-33; 21:25,26). Both women lead their people into idolatry (1 Kings 18:4, 19), and both women lead their people into sexual immorality (2 Kings 9:22,30; cf. Jer. 4:30; Nah. 3:4).

The Lord had given this woman time to repent of her immoral sexual behavior, but she refused. She enjoyed the pleasures of sin … for a season. The Lord lowered His heavy hand of chastening upon her and threatened her with death. “Indeed, I will cast her into a sickbed” (2:22). Some have taken the word “sickbed” to mean “funeral bier or bed laid on a bier” (Hort 1908:30). If the reference in indeed to the funeral bier the Lord, in essence, is saying: “Jezebel, since you like going to memorial meals for the dead so much and engaging in sexual immorality, fine. Now all the pagans in Thyatira and the surrounding villages will attend your memorial meal for the dead! Prepare to die!” A number of Roman sarcophagi depict the funeral bier on them. Two examples are one that was excavated in Antioch-on-the-Orontes and another that is in the Vatican Museum.

The Lord will use this severe chastening as an example to the other churches in the area (and us today). The One who had the “eyes like a flame of fire” (2:18) is the “one who searches the mind and heart” (2:23). He encourages the rest of the church to “hold fast what you have till I come” (2:24). The hope of the Lord’s return should be a purifying hope (I John 3:1-3). He then holds out the promise to the Overcomers that they will reign with Christ and have authority over the nations (2:26-29; cf. Ps. 2:8, 9; 2 Tim. 2:11-13).

Conclusion

This article dealt with understanding the phrase “meat offered to idols” in two of the letters that the Lord Jesus addresses to seven churches in Asia Minor at the end of the First century. Dr. Charles A. Kennedy has set forth, in my opinion, the best explanation for the phrase “meat offered to idols”. The phrase should be understood as a memorial meal for the dead that sometimes degenerates into an immoral affair. If this understanding is correct, the interpretation will help clarify the message of the letters to the churches at Pergamos and Thyatira.

Bibliography

Clement of Alexandria
1982 Exhortation to the Greeks. Trans. G. W. Butterworth. Cambridge, MA: Harvard University (LCL).

Cooley, R., and Pratico, G.
1994 Gathered to His People: An Archaeological Illustration from Tell Dothan’s Western Cemetery. Pp. 70-92 in Scripture and Other Artifacts. M. Coogan, et. al., eds. Louisville, KY: Westminster John Knox.

Getz, G.
1974 Sharpening the Focus of the Church. Chicago: Moody.

Hemer, C.
1986 The Letters to the Seven Churches of Asia in Their Local Setting. Sheffield: JSOT.

Hort, F. J. A.
1908 The Apocalypse of St. John, I-III. London: Macmillan.

Irenaeus
1994 Against Heresies. Pp. 315-567 in Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 1. A. Roberts and J. Donaldson, eds. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

Kennedy, C. A.
1986 The Cult of the Dead at Corinth. Pp. 227-236 in Love and Death in the Ancient Near East. Guilford, CT: Four Quarters.

Sauer, E.
1956In the Arena of Faith. Grand Rapids: Eerdmans.

Tertullian
1994 On Prescription Against Heretics. Pp. 243-267 in Ante-Nicene Fathers, vol. 3. A. Roberts and J. Donaldson, eds. Peabody, MA: Hendrickson.

Thomas, R.
1992 Revelation 1-7. An Exegetical Commentary. Chicago: Moody.

Walvoord, J.
1969 Jesus Christ Our Lord. Chicago: Moody.
04Feb

Who Is Immanuel?

Messianic Passages Comments Off on Who Is Immanuel?

By Gordon Franz

What is one of the greatest proofs of the inspiration and inerrancy of the Scriptures?

I believe that fulfillment of Bible prophecy is one of the greatest proofs that the Bible is true. Over and over again the Old Testament prophets predicted certain events in the Life of the Lord Jesus hundreds of years before they happened. For example, Daniel foretold the time of his death (9:26), Micah predicted he would be born in Bethlehem (5:2), Psalm 22 described His crucifixion, Psalm 16 his resurrection and Isaiah 53 gave the reason for His death, to pay for all our sins.

Does the Bible predict His virgin birth?

Yes, Matthew records the fulfillment of that in his first chapter where he quotes Isaiah 7:14, “‘Behold, a virgin shall be with child, and bear a Son, and they shall call His name Immanuel,” which is translated, ‘God with us'” (vs. 23).

Some have charged Matthew with “proof-texting” because he has taken that verse out of its historical context. Is that the case?

No, quite the contrary. If one understands the historical context of the entire chapter it only enhances the identity of Immanuel as the Lord Jesus Christ.

King Ahaz, whom Isaiah is addressing, reigned in Judah during the second half of the 8^th century BC. What would be the historical context be and how would this relate to the Lord Jesus?

The events of the life of King Ahaz are recorded in II Kings 16 and 2 Chron. 28 as well as Isaiah 7:1 to 14:28. Around 734/733 BC, Ahaz was having problems with his neighbors to the north. Israel, with its capital in Samaria and ruled by Pekah, and Syria, with its capital in Damascus and ruled by Rezin, wanted Ahaz to join a coalition of nations to fight the “super power” of that day, Assyria, ruled by Tiglath-pileser III. Ahaz was not a godly or spiritual man, but he was politically smart. He knew that this coalition could not stand up against the mighty Assyrian army, so he declined the invitation.

In order to get Judah to join the coalition, Pekah and Rezin hatched a plot to overthrow Ahaz and put a “puppet king”, one of the sons of Tabeel, on the throne. In order to carry out this coup d’etat, Syria deployed troops in Samaria. Ahaz got wind of this plot and began to “shake in his boots.” He started to make secret overtures to the Assyrian king to get Pekah and Rezin off his back. His trust was in Tiglath-pileser III and not the Lord.

The Lord sent Isaiah and his son to meet Ahaz and to encourage him to rely only upon the Lord in this time of distress. The Lord instructed Isaiah to say that Pekah and Rezin are “two stubs of smoking firebrands”, in other words, they are nothing but “hot air”! I’m sure that this instruction did not sit well with Ahaz, so the Lord, through Isaiah, predicted that in 65 years, Samaria would be broken (cf. Ezra 4:2). At the end, he warns Ahaz that if he does not trust the Lord, “surely you shall not be established.” This summary depicts the historical context of Isaiah 7:1-9.

That was helpful, but what does that last phrase “surely you shall not be established” mean?

The answer to that question lies in the Davidic Covenant. The phrase “shall not be established” refers back to this covenant recorded in 2 Samuel 7 and 1 Chron. 17. God promised David, in an unconditional covenant, that one of his descendants would sit upon the throne of David forever in Jerusalem. At the end of the covenant, God says “And your house and your kingdom shall be established forever before you, Your throne shall be established forever” (2 Sam. 7:16).

The prophecy of Isaiah 7 was based on the Davidic covenant. If Pekah and Rezin successfully overthrew Ahaz and the House of David and placed one of the sons of Tabeel on the throne, the Dividic line would be wiped out and God could not fulfill His promise to David, i.e. the Lord Jesus would never have been born. But God is faithful to His promises. The angel Gabriel had this covenant in mind when he announced the conception of the Lord Jesus to a virgin named Mary. He said, “And behold, you shall conceive in your womb and bring forth a Son, and shall call His name JESUS. He will be great, and will be called the Son of the Highest; and the Lord God will give Him the throne of His father David. And He will reign over the house of Jacob forever, and of His Kingdom there will be no end” (Luke 1:31-33).

The Lord seems to imply that Ahaz is a believer in verse 11 when He challenges him to “Ask a sign for yourself from the LORD your God”, a sign that could strengthen his faith in the Lord. But Ahaz responds piously, using the language of Scripture that he would not (vs. 12). He reasoned thus, if he saw the sign, he would have to respond in a positive way to the Word of God. He would have to trust the LORD and not Tiglath-pileser III, something he did not want to do. Ahaz had a very high opinion of himself. He thought he was indispensable to the plan of God.

Was he?

No, Isaiah said he was not. In verse 13 and 14, Isaiah turns to the House of David and says, “Hear now, O house of David! Is it a small thing for you to weary men, but will you weary my God also? Therefore the Lord Himself will give you a sign.” The word “you” in verse 14 is second person plural. In other words, he is no longer talking to Ahaz, but the whole House of David. As I understand the chronology of this period, the teen-age, Prince Hezekiah, is alive and well in the courts of the House of David. The sign of the virgin born son, Immanuel, was directed primarily toward him in order to encourage him to trust the Lord. A few years later, when he came to the throne, he had a great revival in that first year. His trust was only in the Lord.

What is the Hebrew meaning of the word “virgin” in Isaiah 7:14?

The Hebrew word for virgin is “bethulah”; however, Isaiah uses the word “almah” in this passage. The word “almah” is never used in the Hebrew Scriptures of married women, but is used of a young woman of marriageable age. Within the Israelite culture, one who is a virgin at the time of marriage is understood.

Interestingly, in the third century BC, seventy Jewish scholars got together in Alexandria, Egypt, and translated the Hebrew Bible into the Greek language. This translation, called the Septuagint, was for those Jewish people living in the Diaspora, or outside the Land of Israel, who spoke only Greek. When they came to the word “almah”, they translated it “parthenos” which is at the root of the word “parthenogenesis” that means “development of an egg without fertilization”. They understood the word to mean a virgin.

In the New Testament, Dr. Luke, describes the miraculous conception of the Lord Jesus in the virgin Mary by the Holy Spirit in Luke 1:27,34-38. Matthew also records the conception by the Holy Spirit in Matthew 1:18-25. He follows the Septuagint when he quotes Isaiah 7:14 and uses the Greek word “parthenos”.

Does Isaiah say anything more about Immanuel in this passage?

Yes, he goes on to say, “Curds and honey He shall eat, that He may know to refuse the evil and choose the good” (7:15). In this passage he is pointing out the sinless nature of the Lord Jesus. Unlike us, who by nature are sinful human beings that choose evil and refuse the good. The Lord Jesus, by His sinless nature, refused evil.

He continues, “For before the Child shall know to refuse the evil and choose the good” [that is, before He was born], “the land that you dread (Samaria) will be forsaken by both her kings” (7:16). To put it another way, after the defeat of Pekah and Rezin, Immanuel would be born. How much time after that time, Isaiah did not know. He did not have a prophecy chart in front of him with an arrow pointing to May 14, 6 BC to mark the birth of Immanuel. Yet he believed Immanuel would be born.

Why is the virgin birth of Immanuel and His sinless nature important for us at this time of Christmas?

The Incarnation is at the heart of the Christmas message. The Apostle Paul wrote to Timothy, “And without controversy great is the mystery of godliness: God was manifest in the flesh…” (1 Cim. 3:16). The only way the Second Person of the triune God could take on human flesh without being tainted by Adam’s sin was to be conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of a virgin. He possessed two natures, perfect humanity and absolute Deity. As God manifest in human flesh, He could not sin; He would not sin, and did not sin.

As the perfect, spotless, sinless Lamb of God, He could die in our place and pay for all of our sins. As a result of that sacrifice, He could offer any and all who would trust Him, the free gift of eternal life, the forgiveness of sins and a home in heaven. The Bible says that salvation is by faith alone in Christ alone.

Christmas is a time of gift-giving. We should not forget the greatest gift that God gave to the world and the gift that He gives to all that trust Him. The Lord Jesus said to Nicodemus, “For God so love the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life” (John 3:16). Have you accepted the free gift of eternal life as found only in the Lord Jesus Christ?
04Feb

What Is Man?–Psalm 8

Messianic Passages Comments Off on What Is Man?–Psalm 8

By Gordon Franz

Introduction

There are a few historical events that leave an indelible mark on the minds of people. All of us remember where we were and what we were doing on September 11, 2001 when we heard the horrifying news of the terrorist attacks on New York City. For those of us who are approaching, or are above the half century mark, we remember where we were and what we were doing on Sunday, July 20, 1969 when the lunar module “Eagle” landed on the moon. We recall astronaut Neil Armstrong’s comment as he set foot on the lunar surface and said, “That’s one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

How people perceived the moon landing and the events surrounding it were very interesting. Prior to the launch, Esquire magazine (July 1969) asked 50 people what should be the first words spoken from the moon. The most Biblical response came from, of all people, the longhaired singer with the ukulele, Tiny Tim. He suggested the astronauts say, “Praise the Lord through Christ that we landed well and safely.” (Not bad for somebody who likes to tiptoe through the tulips!). He then went on to suggest they leave a Bible. The reason given, however, was “so we can give our new acquaintances some idea of what life is like down here.” Apparently he was smoking too many tulips and believed in little green men running around the moon!

On the other hand, Dr. Owen Chamberlain, a Nobel Prize winner in physics said the Apollo 11 spaceflight “shows that mankind can be in charge of his own destiny.” However, Edwin Aldren, the second man to set foot on the lunar surface, on the return flight from the moon, put everything in a Biblical perspective. He quoted Psalm 8:3,4, “When I consider Your heavens, the works of Your fingers, the moon and stars, which You have ordained, What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visited him?” “Buzz” Aldrin understood Who controlled the universe and what our place was in that universe.

The Title of the Psalm

Psalm 8 begins with the superscription, “To the chief musician. On the instrument of Gath. A psalm of David.” One student of the Bible has suggested that the first two parts of this superscription belongs to the end of Psalm 7 and “A psalm of David” actually begins this psalm. I would agree with his observation. He went on to suggest that the beginning of the superscription of Psalm 9 actually belongs to the ends of Psalm 8. It says, “To the chief musician. To the tune of ‘Death of the Son’.” The Hebrew text actually says, “Al muth ha-ben.” Some translations have supplied the word “tune”, however, it was probably the title of the psalm, “Death of the Son.”

Peter, during his first sermon after the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, was preaching to the Jerusalemites and pilgrims that had come up to Jerusalem for Shavuot (Pentecost) and after quoting part of Psalm 16, called David a prophet (Acts 2:30). Under the inspiration of the Spirit of God, the prophet David understood the Person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ in this Psalm 16. As we will see later, he understood the same in Psalm 8 and thus the title, “Death of the Son.”

The Historical Setting of the Psalm

Permit me to use my sanctified imagination for a minute. Let’s go back 3,000 years in history to Jerusalem. Perhaps David composed Psalm 8 while he was on the roof of his palace above the old city of Jebus, which was called Jerusalem in his day, or the City of David. It was a Friday night and all was quiet below because of Shabbat. As he looked down toward the City of David, he could see in the moon-lite night, the hohel (tent) that housed the Ark of the Covenant that he had moved up from Kirath Jearim with great fanfare (2 Sam. 6:12-23; 1 Chron. 15:1-16:3). In the cool, crisp, dry air he lifted his eyes toward the heavens and could see myriads of stars twinkling above him. His mind went back to Genesis 1-3 as he contemplated the Creation of the moon and stars and the first human, Adam. Then he meditated on the Fall of our first parents and the implications that had for all humanity. As he became overwhelmed with the significance of these thoughts, he took out his harp and started to pluck some notes. As he did, the Spirit of God impressed upon his heart some words. As he formulated these thoughts, he sang:

O LORD, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name in all the earth,
Who have set Your glory above the heavens!

Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants
You have ordained strength,
Because of Your enemies,
That You may silence the enemy and the avenger.
When I consider Your heavens,
The works of Your fingers,
The moon and the stars,
Which You have ordained,
What is man that You are mindful of him,
And the son of man that You visit him?
For You have made him a little lower than the angels,
And You have crowned him with glory and honor.

You have made him to have
Dominion over the works of Your hands;
You have put all things under his feet,
All sheep and oxen –
Even the beasts of the field,
The birds of the air,
And the fish of the sea
That pass through the paths of the seas.

O LORD, our Lord,
How excellent is Your name on all the earth!

(NKJV)

It is a pity he did not remember this psalm years later when he looked over the same parapet surrounding the roof of his palace to observe Bathsheba bathing herself down below (2 Sam. 11). It might have prevented him from sinning against the Lord by his adultery with her and the murder of her husband, Uriah the Hittite (Ps 119:11, cf. Ps. 51).

The Theme Verse

David composed this psalm when he was king of Israel and leading God’s covenant people in corporate worship. He began the psalm, “O LORD, our Lord, how excellent is Your name in all the earth.” Note the word “our”. He is leading the people in worship. This is a position he had, I believe, only when he was king.

David opens and closes the psalm with the theme statement. He sings, “How excellent is Your name in all the earth.” The theme of the psalm is: the Lord’s name is excellent in all the earth. Between these two statements he demonstrates why the Lord’s name is excellent or majestic.

First, in considering the concept of the Lord’s name, we should ask the question, what is the Lord’s name? In most Bibles, the most common of the Lord’s names is capitalized LORD. This is God’s personal name, Jehovah or Yahweh. The second thing we need to consider is the meaning of His name. You will recall the account in Exodus 3 when God revealed His name for the first time. Moses had spent 40 years in Midian avoiding the Egyptian pharaoh who was trying to kill him. When he heard that Pharaoh had died, he decided to take some of his father-in-law’s sheep and head back toward Egypt. Outside the land of Egypt, he got as close as he dared using the sheep as cover. He waited for a caravan or an individual who had left Egypt in order to find out what was going on with the Hebrew people.

While hanging out at Mt. Horeb, the Angel of the LORD appeared to Moses in a burning bush. The bush was on fire but was not being consumed. Notice the words in the text. Verse 2 says, “The Angel of the LORD appeared to him in a flame of fire from the midst of a bush.” In verse 4 it says, “God (Elohim) called to him from the midst of the bush.” The implication of these verses is that the Angel of the LORD is God Himself. I believe that the Angel of the LORD is a pre-incarnate manifestation of the Son of God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

God proceeded to have a conversation with Moses in which He told Moses he had heard the pleas of the Hebrew people. He went on to say he would deliver them from Egypt because He is the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. He had made a covenant with these three patriarchs to bring His covenant people into the Land that He had promised them, to make them a great nation and to bless all people with the Seed (the Messiah) who would come from the Tribe of Judah (Gal. 3:6-9).

God instructed Moses to go to Pharaoh and tell him to let the Hebrews go. Moses started making excuses not to go, “Who am I to go to Pharaoh?” God then told Moses to go to the Children of Israel and tell them that God had sent Moses to them. Moses baulked and said that the people would ask him what the Lord’s name was. The Lord replied, “I AM WHO I AM” (3:14).

God’s name is derived from the simple verb “to be”, “Being, I Am who I Am.” There are three aspects to His name. First, God is self-existent. As Genesis 1:1 says, “In the beginning God.” Second, God is immutable or unchanging. The book of Hebrews states: Jesus is the same, yesterday, today and forever. And finally, God is eternal. God had no beginning and will have no end. The God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob is nothing like the gods of the Egyptians or any other god made in the image of sinful humanity.

Interestingly, Jesus picks up this name for Himself on several occasions during His public ministry. At His trial before the Sanhedrin, the high priest asked Him if he was the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? Jesus responded, “I AM. And you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming with the clouds of heaven” (Mark 14:61,62; note also John 18:5-9).

It is this God that David sang, “How excellent, or majestic, is your name in all the earth.” Notice two things in this verse. First, His name is excellent or majestic. The word has the idea of impressive power. The power of God was manifested in His creation of the universe. His power was also manifested at the Red Sea soon after He revealed His name to Moses. In the song of Moses, the Israelites sang, “Your right hand, O LORD, has become glorious in power; Your right hand, O LORD, has dashed the enemy in pieces. And in the greatness of Your excellence You have overthrown those who rose against You; You sent forth Your wrath; It consumed them like stubble” (Ex. 15:6,7). The second thing to notice is the extent of His name, to “all the earth.” YHWH was not some local tribal god who only went up to the border of the nation and no further. He was the God of all the earth.

Not only was He God of all the earth, David goes on to say that He set his glory above the heavens. David recalls the very first words in the book of Genesis, “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (1:1). The word “heavens” is plural. In the Bible there are three heavens. The first is the atmosphere above us where the birds fly (Gen. 1:8). The second heaven is where the sun, moon and stars are (Gen. 1:3). The third heaven is the abode of God (2 Cor. 12:2). The glory of God was above the second heaven: the sun, moon and stars. It was the third heaven that the Lord Jesus left from in order to humble Himself and become obedient unto the death of the cross (2 Cor. 8:9; Phil. 2:5-8).

God’s name is excellent because He has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things that are mighty – 8:2

As we go through this psalm, we will see three reasons why God’s name is excellent in all the earth. The first reason is found in verse 2. God’s name is excellent because He has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things that are mighty (cf. 1 Cor. 1:27).

Let’s go back to the Exodus from Egypt. The Israelites were permitted to take anything from Egypt, except the weapons (Josephus, Antiquities of the Jews 2: 321, 349; LCL 4: 305, 317, 319). They took gold, silver, clothing, livestock, food, and other such things. After they left Egypt, Pharaoh changed his mind and sent his chariot forces after the former Hebrew slaves. When the Israelites saw the chariots coming, they were greatly afraid. They had no weapons to defend themselves with and fight back. What does Moses do? He said to the people, “Do not be afraid. Stand still, and see the salvation of the LORD, which He will accomplish for you today. … The LORD will fight for you, and you will hold your peace” (Ex. 14:1-14). God showed His strength in their weakness.

The apostle Paul received an abundance of revelations from the Lord. In order to keep him humble, the Lord afflicted him with a “thorn in the flesh.” What is was, we do not know. Paul pleaded with the Lord three times to remove it, but the Lord said, “My grace is sufficient for you, for My strength is made perfect in weakness.” Paul acknowledged this and realized when he was weak, then he was strong (2 Cor. 12:7-10).

During the last week of His public ministry, the Lord Jesus rode into Jerusalem on a donkey. He went into the Temple and threw out the moneychangers for a second time. He healed the blind and the lame. The children cried out, “Hosanna to the Son of David.” The priests were indignant and asked Jesus to do something about it. Jesus responded by quoting from Psalm 8:2. Here He quotes from the LXX, “Out of the mouth of babes and nursing infants You have perfected praise.”

David was ever mindful of a principle set forth in the Mosaic Law. “Vengeance is Mine, I will repays says the Lord” (Rom. 12:19, cf. Deut. 32:35). The apostle Paul expands on this when he says, “Repay no one evil for evil. … Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom. 12:17,21).

God’s name is excellent because He has created the heavens for a purpose – 8:3

The second reason God’s name is excellent in all the earth is found in verse 3. God’s name is excellent because He has created the heavens for a purpose. As David looked skyward, he marveled as he pondered the vastness of the heavens. He imagines God as an artist – One who would make the sun, moon and stars with His fingers and throw them out into space without even breaking a sweat.

Yet this artwork had a purpose. David could have recalled the many times watching the moonrise over the Mount of Olives and observing each phase of the moon. When there was a new moon, it was a new month. When he saw certain constellations in the sky, it meant a new season of the year. David’s mind went back to the first chapter of Genesis. He recalled on the fourth day of creation God made the sun, moon and stars for “signs and seasons, and for days and years” (Gen. 1:14, cf. Ps. 104:9; 136:4-9).

David also could have marveled at the enduring nature of the universe. Every night when there were no clouds in the sky, David would observe the phases of the moon. He could look off into the northern sky and see the North Star at a fixed point in the sky. He would observe the constellations in the sky. The Patriarch Job mentioned several of them by name, the Bear, Orion and Pleiades (Job 9:9; 38:31). They still existed in David’s day. Yet David asked himself, “Where was Job?” He had died and returned to dust; yet the universe endures. These thoughts lead David to the third reason God’s name was excellent.

God’s name is excellent because He has shown grace to finite human beings – 8:4-8

The third reason God’s name is excellent in all the earth is found in verses 4-8. God’s name is excellent because He has shown grace to finite human beings.

David asks God a question, “What is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him?” (8:4). In this question, he uses two different words for man. The first is the Hebrew word enosh which carries the idea of frail, weak, mortal human beings. The second term, son of man, is adam. The word is derived from adamah, or from the earth. David recalls that the first human being was made from the dust of the earth.

David has set up an astounding contrast. In verse 3 he has marveled at the creative power and artwork of the Lord. Yet in verse 4, the Creator of this vast universe has shown grace to frail human beings by being mindful of them and visiting them.

The two Hebrew words are very instructive. The first word, “mindful” has its root zkr, to remember. God did not just make the universe and walk away from it. He is directly involved in the affairs of human history. He knows everything that we, frail, weak human beings are going through. The second word, “visit” has as its root pkd. The word is used in a variety of contexts. Sometimes it is used of deliverance and blessing.

Let us return to that conversation God had with Moses at the burning bush. After telling Moses what His name was, He instructed Moses to tell the people of Israel, “I have surely visited you and seen what is done to you in Egypt” (Ex. 3:16). In the book of Ruth, there was a famine in the Land of Judah for ten years. While Naomi was in Moab, she heard that the LORD had “visited His people by giving them bread” (1:6). Sometimes the word is used of God visiting His wayward people in order to chasten them and bring them back to Himself. Sometimes the word refers to Him coming to His people with blessings.

David goes on to point out in verses 5 and 6, four things God did when he made the first human being. First, “You have made him a little lower than the angels.” Second, “You crowned him with glory and honor.” Third, “You have made him to have dominion over the works of Your hands.” And finally, “You have put all thing under his feet.” All this was true of Adam as soon as he was created. David, however, in his meditation remembered Genesis 3, the disobedience of Adam to the revealed Word of God and his fall into sin. Adam was still a little lower than the angels, but he lost his crown, dominion and not everything was under his feet.

David, being a prophet, realized there would be a Second Adam (Man). The apostle Paul gives the divine commentary on these thought. He contrasts the First Adam with the Second Man, the Lord Jesus Christ (1 Cor. 15:45-49) and sees the consummation of all things when death is finally defeated (1 Cor. 15:26,27).

The Spirit of God, in the book of Hebrews, gives us another divine commentary on Psalm 8:4-6. After the passage is quoted, it says, “For in that He (Jesus) put all in subjection under him, He left nothing that is not put under him. But now we do not yet see all things put under him” (Heb. 2:8). What is being said is this: nothing has changed since Adam. However, the passage goes on to tell how Jesus has become the Second Adam and the fulfillment of Psalm 8. “But we see Jesus, who was made a little lower than the angels, for the suffering of death crowned with glory and honor, that He, by the grace of God, might taste death for everyone” (2:9). Please notice five words that are not in Psalm 8, “for the suffering of death.”

David, being a prophet, understood what the death of Christ would accomplish. One day the Lord Jesus, the Second Adam, would establish His throne in Jerusalem and would be crowned with honor and glory, have dominion over the earth, and all things, including death, would be put under His feet. That is why David could entitle this psalm, “The death of the Son.” The death of the Lord Jesus is the key to understanding this psalm.

There is a day coming when the Lord Jesus will be crowned King of kings and Lord of lords (Rev. 19: 16) and He will sit on David’s throne in Jerusalem (Isa. 2; Zech. 14). At this time He will have dominion as the Son of God and the Son of Man (Dan. 7:13,14) and restore the earth to its Adamic condition (Isa. 11:6-9). The earth will be a Paradise.

One side note before we move on. The place of human beings in God’s creation is “a little lower than the angels.” Here we have a clash of worldviews. According to the evolutionary / humanistic worldview, human beings have evolved just a little higher than the primates. However, there is no firm scientific evidence for such a claim. There are no intermediary or transitional fossils between primates and human beings. Man is unique, created in the image of God.

In verses 7 and 8, David lists the creatures that will be put under the feet of the Lord Jesus. He starts with the domestic animals, sheep and oxen. Then he moves to the wild creatures, beasts of the fields. The next classification is the birds of the air and finally the fish of the sea. Regarding the fish of the sea, he notes, they pass through the paths of the sea. This is a reference to the sea currents in the Mediterranean Sea. It was something King David knew about from talking with the Phoenician sea captains in the navy of his friend Hiram, king of Tyre. Today we know the water of the Mediterranean Sea enters from the Atlantic Ocean at the Straits of Gibraltar. In antiquities it was known as the Pillars of Hercules. It flows in a counter clockwise motion and takes about 100 years before it exits to the Atlantic Ocean again.

It was only within the last two hundred years that this verse was taken seriously as a scientific statement. In 1841 a devote Christian, Commander Matthew Maury (1806-1873) of the US Navy, read this passage in his Bible and thought, there must be “paths” in the sea. He spent the next twenty years of his life investigating and charting the sea currents and winds in the Atlantic Ocean. He was able to document the Gulf Stream and the Labrador currents. He became known as the “Pathfinder of the Sea.” He was one of the pioneers of hydrography and oceanography. His tombstone at the US Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland bears the phrase, “… whatsoever passeth through the paths of the seas.”

The Theme Repeated

As David concluded this psalm on his harp, perhaps he went one octave higher. He sang, “O LORD, our Lord, How excellent is Your name in all the earth.” He reiterated the theme he began with in the first verse as if to drive home the point. The Lord’s name is excellent in all the earth, and here is the proof. First, He has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things that are mighty. Second, He has created the heavens for a purpose. Finally, He has shown grace to finite human beings.

Applications

So what does this all mean to me? There are at least five questions we need to ask ourselves as we examine our hearts and lives.

First, can we join in corporate worship because we are God’s covenant people? God is dealing with the Church today, made up of all believers in the Lord Jesus Christ. Have you trusted Him as your Savior, as the One who died for all your sins and rose again from the dead? If you have, you have been born into God’s family (John 1:12).

Second, do we realize that our weaknesses are God’s opportunities for Him to show His strength through us? Someone once said, “God is not looking for great men and women, but rather, men and women who will prove the greatness of God.” We show God’s greatness when we move out of the way in humility and allow Him to work on our behalf.

Third, do we realize the God who created the universe is the same God who dwells inside of us? The same God who created the universe also raised His Son, the Lord Jesus, from the dead. The apostle Paul expressed his passion to the believers at the church in Philippi in these words, “that I might know Him and the power of His resurrection” (Phil. 3:10). Is that our passion and prayer?

Fourth, do we realize the grace of God in our lives? We are frail human beings that God remembers and watches out for. When we realize that we were dead in our trespasses and sin, and that God has saved us by His matchless grace, made us alive in Christ, and raised us up to sit in heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that realization should change the way we live today (Eph. 2:1-9). Paul encouraged the believers in Ephesus by saying they were God’s workmanship and they should be doing good works, not to be saved, but because they already are saved (Eph. 2:10).

Finally, do we understand God’s plan and program for our lives and how we fit into the “big picture”? The Lord Jesus was out Forerunner. He was made a little lower than the angels to taste death for us. He is now crowned with glory and honor and will have dominion when all things are put under His feet. Are we living a life that will be rewarded at the Judgment Seat of Christ so that we too can reign with Him?
04Feb

Psalm 42/43: “Captive For The Lord’s Sake”

Psalms of the Sons of Korah Comments Off on Psalm 42/43: “Captive For The Lord’s Sake”

By Gordon Franz

Introduction

Have you ever been deeply in love with someone when all of a sudden an external force shattered the relationship? Perhaps it was the death of the spouse or a divorce. Or perhaps your boyfriend or girlfriend unexpectedly and unceremoniously “dumped” you for someone else. Remember the pain you felt? The questions that went through your mind, “How did this happen? Lord why?” Do you remember the struggles that you had with your attitudes toward the Lord and other people? The love you still had for the other person? These are human emotions and attitudes we experience throughout life.

The psalmist, a Levite and one of the sons of Korah, went through a similar experience. At one point in his life he led pilgrims up to Jerusalem for the three feasts of the Lord (Lev. 23; Deut. 16:16) and he served as a doorkeeper in the house of his God (Ps. 84:10). He loved going to the House of the Lord in order to worship Him. Yet in 701 BC, tragedy struck. The psalmist, rather than leading pilgrims to Jerusalem, was being led into captivity by the Assyrians and marched off to a foreign land. This trilogy of psalms expresses the inner most feelings and attitudes of the psalmist as he went through this traumatic experience.

Historical Background

The year 701 BC was a mixture of tragedy and blessing for the Kingdom of Judah. It was a year that saw the mighty Assyrian army, led by King Sennacherib, march against Judah and destroy most of King Hezekiah’s kingdom. In his annals he boasts that he destroyed 46 strong walled cities of Judah as well as the small cities that surrounded them (Luckenbill 1989:II:120). On the other hand, there was a miraculous deliverance of Jerusalem from the part of the Assyrian army that had encircled the city. The Angel of the Lord intervened and destroyed 185,000 Assyrians soldiers at night (2 Kings 18:17-19:36; 2 Chron. 32:9-21; Isa. 36:2-37:36).

The historical books, Kings and Chronicles, in the Bible are silent as to what happened after the destruction of the cities of Judah. The prophet Micah, a contemporary of King Hezekiah, hinted that some were taken captive and resettled in Babylon according to Assyrian resettlement policy (4:10). Sennacherib himself boasts that he took an exaggerated number of 200,150 Judeans captive, “great and small, male and female”, the daughters of King Hezekiah, his harem and male and female musicians (Luckenbill 1989:II: 120, 121). A wall relief was found in Sennacherib’s palace at Nineveh depicting the siege and fall of Lachish (2 Kings 19:8; 2 Chron. 32:9; Isa. 37:8). This relief showed Judeans being taken captive from that city along with their personal possessions (Ussishkin 1982: 108-113). Another wall relief from his palace showed some Judeans building his palace in Nineveh. Another wall relief, its provenience unknown, but most likely came from Sennacherib’s palace, depicts three Judean musicians playing their harps being marched off by an Assyrian soldier. They appear to be in a mountainous region, possibly in the region of Lebanon. It is clear, there was a Judean captivity in the year 701 BC.

The inspired Scriptures preserve a trilogy of psalms (Ps. 42/3. 44. 45) that relate to this event by one who went through it.

Overview of the Psalms of the Sons of Korah

The theme of these three psalms is the lessons to be learned from suffering while in captivity. The next three psalms (45-48) describe the joy of salvation by those who were in Jerusalem when the Lord delivered the city from the Assyrians. Psalm 49 stands alone in this section, but reflects an incident that happened earlier in the reign of King Hezekiah. In the “fourteenth year” (713/12 BC) he bribed Crown Prince Sennacherib to leave Judah (2 Kings 20:12-19; 2 Chron. 32:24-31; Isa. 39). The principle lesson from this psalm is not to trust in material possessions for salvation.

There are at least three more companion psalms written by the sons of Korah. Psalm 82 compliments Psalm 42/3 and describes the return of the psalmist from captivity to the House of the Lord that he loved. Psalm 85 is the companion psalm for Psalm 44. It expresses the praise and worship of that answered prayer for salvation. Psalm 87 is the companion psalm for Psalms 46-48. This psalm ascribes praise to Zion (Jerusalem).

Literary Structure and Theme of Psalm 42/3

In the English Bible this psalm is divided into two separate psalms. Originally it was one psalm. The evidence for that is twofold: First, some ancient manuscripts have it as one psalm. Second, internal evidence points in this direction. The psalm is divided into three stanzas, each ending with a common refrain (42:5, 11; 43:5). Each stanza has a progressive time sequence: past, present and future. The absence of a title in Ps. 43 seems to suggest it was once part of Ps. 42.

The theme of this psalm is the desire of the psalmist for the House of the Lord; in spite of external circumstances that hinder him from going there, he relies solely upon the Lord to return him to the place that he loved.

Exposition of Psalm 42/43

The Past Experience of Worship. 42:1-5.

The psalmist was taken from his home, probably Beth Shemesh (Josh. 21:15), at the beginning of the Assyrian campaign against Judah during the late spring of 701 BC. As he is being carried away captive, he realized he might never see the House of the Lord in Jerusalem again. He is going into captivity and the Assyrian army was threatening the capital, Jerusalem. He did not what the future would hold. The Lord and His House had been the desire of his heart all his life (2 Kings 8:22-30). Thus he used the analogy of a deer panting after scare water in the dry wilderness of Judah to express his deep yearning and desire for the Lord and His House. As the deer pants for the water brooks, so pants my soul for You, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God. When shall I come and appear before God? (42:1,2).

This was an emotional experience for him because he had many unanswered questions. He wept because the place he loved was inaccessible to him. Apparently he declared to his captors his faith in the Lord God of Israel as the only true God, and not the Assyrian deity, Ashur. The Assyrians, not wanting to be mocked, taunted him, “Where is you God?” In Assyrian theology, the side that won the battle had the stronger God. They thought Ashur was stronger than Yahweh because they had conquered a number of Judean cities. The psalmist let his theology slip for a few minutes and raised the question in his mind: How could his God be real if he was in captivity and the kingdom was on the verge of defeat? My tears have been my food day and night, while they continually say to me, “Where is your God?” (43:3).

To combat his fears and doubts, he recalled the pleasant times he had leading the pilgrims up to Jerusalem. If his home were in Beth Shemesh, he would lead the throngs, as he played his harp, up into the Hill Country of Judah. There were two possible roads up to Jerusalem from his hometown. One road went up via Nahal Kesalon and Kiriath-Jearim (Dorsey 1991:186-188, Route J5). This is the road the Ark of the Covenant was taken up into the Hill Country after it was returned by the Philistines (I Sam. 6:20-7:2). The second road went up via some ridges going through the upper reaches of the Sorek Valley to Bethlehem. At Husan, they would turn and go through the Valley of Rephaim into Jerusalem (Dorsey 1991:189, Route J8). Along the way, they would admire the lovely vineyards situated on the hillsides (Isa. 5:1,2). If they approached the city from the south, the fertile Valley of Rephaim, with its rich agriculture of wheat, barley grapes and olives would come into view (Isa. 17:4-6). Guarding the southern approach to Jerusalem was the administrative center of “MMST” (today Ramat Rachel) where King Hezekiah had recently completed a beautiful palace complex. Then they went on to Jerusalem to visit the historic sites there as well as the House of the Lord. Ah, such pleasant memories of the sweet time of fellowship with the Lord’s people as they went on pilgrimage. As he remembered these things, the psalmist poured out his heart to the Lord. When I remember these things, I pour out my soul within me. For I used to go with the multitude; I went with them to the house of God, with the voice of praise, with a multitude that kept a pilgrim feast (42:4).

All Judean males, 20 years old and older, were required to go up to Jerusalem three times a year to worship the Lord (Ex. 23:14-19; 34:23; Deut. 16:16). The first feast was Passach (Passover), the second was Shavuot (Pentecost), and the last was Succoth (Tabernacles).

This stanza ends with the refrain, Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God, for I shall yet praise Him for the help of His countenance (42:5). Throughout his ordeal there was a “still small voice” encouraging him not to be in despair; for somehow, someway, the Lord would answer his prayer and bring him back to Jerusalem. He had to be patient and wait on (i.e. hope in) the Lord.

The Present Exclusion from Worship. 42:6-11.

As the psalmist was marched toward Assyria, he realized each stop took him further and further away from the place he longed for and loved. When he reached the northern part of Israel, near the city of Dan, he was in turmoil. His soul was depressed, yet he struggled to keep his mind on the Lord. O my God, my soul is cast down within me; therefore I will remember You from the land of the Jordan, and from the heights of Hermon, from Hill Mizar (42:6). As he was forced to leave the Land of Israel he saw the springs and streams of the Jordan River (“the land of the Jordan”), the three peaks of Mt. Hermon, and another mountain, Mt. Mizar. George Adam Smith, a Bible geographer has observed, “Hermon (not Hermonites) must refer to the triple peaks of Hermon. … The standpoint of the Psalmist is fixed in the corner between Hermon and Jordan, where Banias stands. To the two localities the Hill Mis’ar, is placed in apposition. It may mean, as it stands, Hill of Littleness. But it may also be a proper name; and it is remarkable that in the neighborhood there should be two or three names with the same kindred radicals: (1) Za’ura; (2) Wady Za’arah, above Banias; (3) Khurbet Mezara. I suggest these may be reminiscent of a hill in this district, called Mis’ar” (1931:476, footnote 1).

His life was in turmoil. Calamity filled his soul like the waters tumbling down the waterfalls of the Jordan River. Deep calls unto deep at the noise of Your waterfalls; all Your waves and billows have gone over me (42:7). His soul was tossed between depression and contemplation of the Lord, between questioning God and trusting Him. Is it wrong to question God? No, but it is wrong to doubt His goodness and love.

Yet the Lord reassured him of His loving kindness in the daytime. The LORD will command His lovingkindness in the daytime, and in the night His song shall be with me – a prayer to the God of my life (42:8). The Hebrew word for loving kindness is hesed and can be translated a number of ways. Usually it is translated mercy, loving kindness, goodness or lovingly loyal. One way the Lord could remind the psalmist was by a flock of storks flying overhead as they migrated south for the winter through the Jordan Rift Valley. The Hebrew word of stork is chasidah. The Hebrews noted a quality characteristic in the stork of “devoted maternal and filial affection” toward its young (Tristram 1873:244). The LORD was the same way. He was lovingly loyal to His people based on His covenant that He made with Abraham.

In the night, he would sing the songs that he learned in the House of the Lord. Many of the psalms, especially the Davidic ones, have as their theme the loving kindness or mercy of the Lord (Ps. 63:3; 101:1; 106:1; 107:1; 115:1; 117:1; 118: 1.2.3.4.29; 136). These songs, Scripture put to music, reminded him of the promises of God, so that he could pray in faith that God would comfort and deliver him.

The Assyrians intensified their taunting, and the psalmist was emotionally crushed. This led him to question the Lord, “Have you forgotten me?” I will say to God my Rock, “Why have you forgotten me? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy?” As with the breaking of my bones, my enemies reproach me, while they say to me all the day long, “Where is your God?” (42:9,10). Verse 10 might hint as physical torture by the Assyrians, they were masters at it. Yet through it all, that “still small voice” came back to remind him not to despair, but to wait upon God because one day he would praise the Lord. Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God (42:11).

Over 700 years later, the Lord Jesus Christ was in the same area, i.e. Caesarea Philippi (Matt. 16:13). It was at this point in His ministry that He began to plainly tell His disciples that He must go to Jerusalem to suffer at the hands of sinful men, be killed and be raised again the third day (Matt. 16:21 // Mark 8:31 // Luke 9:22). This psalm must have gone through His mind as He contemplated the striking contrast between Himself and the psalmist. The psalmist was taken into captivity because of the nations sinfulness, yet the loving kindness of the Lord sustained him during the time he was hindered from going to Jerusalem for the feasts of the Lord. On the other hand, because of humankind’s sinfulness, the loving kindness of the Lord compelled the Lord Jesus to go to Jerusalem to be the Passover Lamb (Luke 9:44,45,51; I Cor. 5:7).

The Lord Jesus takes one phrase from the refrain of this psalm (42:5,11; 43:5) and applies it to Himself. While He is in Gethsemane He said, “My soul is exceedingly sorrowful” (Matt. 26:38 // Mark 14:34; Archer and Chirichigno 1983: 69,71).

The Future Expectation to Worship. 43:1-5.

The Assyrians had continually taunted the psalmist as to where his God was. The psalmist, in desperation, turns to the Lord and pleads with Him to vindicate, and plead his cause against the Assyrians, and to deliver him from the clutches of Sennacherib. Vindicate me, O God, and plead my cause against an ungodly nation; Oh deliver me from the deceitful and unjust man! (43:1).

The psalmist acknowledges that God is his strength but wants some tough questions answered; such as, “Why did you do this to me Lord?” and “Why am I going through this? What is the purpose?” For you are the god of my strength; Why do you cast me off? Why do I go mourning because of the oppression of the enemy? (43:2).

The psalm ends with the psalmist praying to the Lord to send His light and truth to lead him back to the Temple in Jerusalem and the place that he loved. Oh, send out Your light and Your truth! Let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to your tabernacle (43:3). The light and truth could refer to one of two things. The first possibility is the Word of God. The Scriptures have been called light (Ps. 119:105) and truth (Ps. 119: 43,142,160). The second possibility is the Son of God. As we will see in Psalm 45, the King of Israel is a preincarnate appearance, called a Christophany, of the Lord Jesus Christ. In the Gospels, the Lord Jesus says He is the Light of the World (John 8:12) and the Truth (John 14:6).

The psalmist makes a vow and promises the Lord that when he returns to Jerusalem he will offer a sacrifice and praise the Lord is song, thanking Him for the salvation that He accomplished and the answer to his prayer. Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and on the harp I will praise You, O God, my God (43:4).

The refrain repeats itself again. This reinforces and encourages the psalmist through this crisis situation. Why are you cast down, O my soul? And why are you disquieted within me? Hope in God; for I shall yet praise Him, the help of my countenance and my God (43:5).

Personal Applications

Facts often seem to contradict faith. The psalmist questioned the Lord, “God, if you are real, why are you allowing this to happen to me?” The Lord’s loving kindness and the Word of God encouraged him to “walk by faith and not by sight” (II Cor. 5:7). He fully believed that God had a purpose for this ordeal and that one day He would answer his prayer for deliverance. As we will see later, the answer is seen in Psalm 84. Yet until that happens he must keep in mind that “God’s grace does not lead where His grace does not sustain.”

As the psalmist went through this ordeal, his love for the Lord and His House deepened. Someone once said, “Distance makes the heart grow fonder.” Sometimes we do not realize how much we love something or someone until it is taken away from us. We should not take the things of the Lord for granted.

Finally, realizing that God was in control of his life, the psalmist began the psalm by “panting” (desiring the Lord and His House); but ends by “praising” when God heard and answered his prayer for deliverance.

Bibliography

Archer, G., and Chirichigno, G.
1983 Old Testament Quotations in the New Testament: A Complete Survey. Chicago: Moody.

Dorsey, D.
1991 The roads and Highways of Ancient Israel. Baltimore: John Hopkins University.

Luckenbill, D.
1989 Ancient Records of Assyria and Babylon. London: Histories and Mysteries of Man.

Tristram, H.

1873 The Natural history of the Bible. London: Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge.

Smith, G.
1931 The Historical Geography of the Holy Land. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

Ussishkin, D.
1982 The Conquest of Lachish by Sennacherib. Tel Aviv: Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University.
04Feb

Archaeology, Assyrian Reliefs and the Psalms of the Sons of Korah

Psalms of the Sons of Korah Comments Off on Archaeology, Assyrian Reliefs and the Psalms of the Sons of Korah

By Gordon Franz

Introduction

The Psalms of the Sons of Korah, like the other psalms, express the inner most feelings of the psalmists as they experience real life events. Psalms 42-49 and 84-89 reflect the end of the eighth century BC when the Assyrians afflicted the Kingdom of Judah. This article will briefly look at these psalms from a literary perspective and then place them in their historical context at the end of the eighth century BC. Some archaeological material that has been excavated in the Land of Judah, as well as Assyrian reliefs, will be employed to illustrate portions of these psalms.

The year 701 BC was a traumatic, bittersweet one for Judah. A large portion of the Judean population was deported to Assyria, yet the Lord delivered Jerusalem from the hands of the Assyrian army that encircled the city.

The Psalms of the Sons of Korah as a Literary Unit

Michael Goulder, in his book entitled The Psalms of the Sons of Korah (1982), suggests that these psalms were in sequential order and were employed as liturgical psalms for the fall festival or pilgrimage that was conducted to the Israelite cultic shrine, or high place, at Dan (1 Kings 12:26-33). He points out that these psalms are a literary unit and should be looked at from that perspective. The main body of liturgy was Psalm 42-48 with Psalms 84, 85 and 87 as supplementary psalms to the main corpus. He suggests that Psalm 42/43 and 84 were psalms of longing for Yahweh’s “tabernacles”; Psalm 44 and 85 are national laments. Psalms 46, 47, 48 and 87 are “songs of Zion”. He goes on to say, “Psalms 45 and 47 have no counterpart in the 80’s, but the parallel ordering of the remaining psalms can hardly be accidental” (1982:12).

I disagree with Goulder’s hypothesis that these are liturgical psalms for the fall cultic festival at Dan, but would go further than he does in seeing a unity of these psalms. Nevertheless, his ideas are stimulating, original, and creative. His scholarly efforts were appreciated. However, I think the primary interpretation of the psalms is to Zion / Jerusalem and another historical situation more aptly fits the context of the psalms. However, Goulder has broken new ground in suggesting the order and literary units.

I would like to expand on some of his thoughts and propose my own understanding of the order. Psalms 42-45 form a trilogy regarding suffering and exile composed by the psalmist as he goes into the Assyrian captivity in 701 BC. Psalms 46-48 form a trilogy of psalms exalting and praising the Lord for His deliverance of Jerusalem from the Assyrians in that year. Psalm 49, a wisdom psalm, points out the shortcomings of the wealthy who do not trust the Lord. Psalms 84-89 are the answer to the prayers of the psalmists expressed in Psalms 42-49.

Psalm 84 describes the psalmist returning to the Temple after having been away for a long time. This return is the answer to the petition and vow made in Psalm 42/43, “Oh send out you light and your truth! Let them lead me; let them bring me to Your holy hill and to Your tabernacle. Then I will go to the altar of God, to God my exceeding joy; and on the harp I will praise You, O God, my God” (43:3, 4). Psalms 44 and 85 are lament psalms, both individual and national, regarding the captivity and the return. The subject of Psalms 45 and 86 is the King, the Lord Himself. Psalms 46-48 and 87 are “Songs of Zion.”

The Historical Background to the Psalms of the Sons of Korah

Psalms 46-48 record a miraculous deliverance of Jerusalem at the hands of a powerful enemy. The only time this miraculous deliverance occurred was in 701 BC. The Angel of the Lord destroyed the Assyrian army that was besieging Jerusalem.

In order to put these psalms in their proper context, a brief overview of the life of King Hezekiah is in order. King Hezekiah was enthroned in the year 727 BC. He began his reign on the “right foot” by reinstituting the Passover, which led to a great revival (2 Chron. 29-31). In the “fourteenth year” (713/12 BC) of his reign, events began to sour. He had a near death experience, which he recovered from, and the Lord promised him fifteen extra years to live (2 Kings 20:1-11; Isa. 38:10-20).

Merodach-Baladan, king of Babylon, sent emissaries to congratulate him on his recovery and also to see if he would join the Babylonian coalition against the Assyrians. Hezekiah was apparently part of this revolt, which the Assyrians put down (Isa. 20:1), probably under the leadership of Sennacherib, then the crown prince and tartan. Hezekiah, along with the Philistines, Moabites and Edomites, paid tribute to Sargon II (2 Kings 18:14-16). This disaster for Hezekiah and Judah was apparently because of the influence of the royal steward (prime minister), Shebna, who most likely was a foreigner in the courts of Judah (Isa. 22; 2 Kings 18:14-16).

In 701 BC, Hezekiah revolted again. This time, Sennacherib, now king of Assyria, was bent on the destruction of Judah and Jerusalem. He began his “third” campaign down the coast of Phoenicia and took part of Philistia before he turned his attention on Judah.

The first phase of his Judean campaign was to secure the Shephelah. After Lachish, the capital of the Shephelah, fell, he felt confident enough to split his army. One part of his army, under the leadership of the Rabshakeh, laid siege to Jerusalem, and the other part continued with Sennacherib in the Shephelah and attacked Libnah. Most likely Libnah is located at Tel Goded.

The Angel of the Lord destroyed the part of the army encircling Jerusalem. When Sennacherib got word of this defeat in Jerusalem, he returned shame-faced to Nineveh. In his annals, Sennacherib describes this campaign in these words: “As for Hezekiah, the Judean, who had not submitted to my yoke, 46 of his strong, walled cities and the cities of their environs, which were numberless, I besieged, I captured, I plundered, as booty I counted them. Him, like a cage bird, in Jerusalem, his royal city, I shut up” (Luckenbill 1927:II: 143). “Caged up like a bird” is diplomatic code word for “We lost.” Sennacherib then lists the “tribute” that Hezekiah sent to him, which included 30 talents of gold and 800 talents of silver, along with male and female singers. I suspect that since Sennacherib could not admit defeat, this “tribute” was actually booty that he plundered from the earlier part of his campaign.

This campaign was bittersweet for the Judeans. Jerusalem was delivered, but many Judeans deported, including the psalmist who composed Psalms 42-45. These psalms were his “musical diary” while going into captivity. The Biblical records only hint of this captivity in 701 BC and it was probably downplayed for theological reasons. According to Sennacherib’s annals, he deported “200,150 people, young and old, male and female … as booty” (ANET 288). Whether this number is exaggerated or not is beyond the scope of this article. The point is, there was a deportation of Judeans in 701 BC. For a discussion of the Judean exile in 701 BC, consult Stohlmann (1983). For a discussion of the chronology of the reign of King Hezekiah, see Franz 1987.

An ancient “photograph” depicting some Lachishites going into captivity is found on a wall relief from Nineveh (Ussishkin 1982).

The historical texts of the Bible seem to downplay the Assyrian captivity of 701 BC, however, the prophet’s hint at it. Isa. 24:1 says, “Behold, the LORD makes the land [of Judah] empty and makes it waste, distorts its surface and scatters abroad its inhabitants.” The end of the so-called “Isaiah Apocalypse” has the captives returning from Assyria and Egypt (Isa. 27:12, 13). Hosea promises that some Judeans will return from Assyria and Egypt (11:11). Micah, a contemporary of Isaiah, seems to describe the 701 BC campaign of Sennacherib in chapter 1. He ends the chapter with the words, “…because of your precious children … for they shall go from you into captivity” (1:16). They apparently were taken to Babylon as part of the Assyrian “resettlement” policy. However, Micah promises them that the Lord would rescue and redeem them (4:10).

One intriguing relief is a fragment in the British Museum. This relief is a depiction of three musicians, apparently Judeans, playing their harps, as they are being taken captive (Barnett, Bleibtreu and Turner 1998: 116; Plate 398, 399). Behind them is an Assyrian officer. [Assyrian with three musicians] My “sanctified imagination” would like to suggest we have an “ancient photograph” of a Biblical personage. Among other things, the Korahite family was musicians. At one time they lead the people of Judah in praise to the Lord during the conflict with the “Eastern Confederacy” during the reign of Jehoshaphat (2 Chron. 20:14-19). One of the sons of Korah had vowed to praise the Lord in the Temple with his harp if he was delivered from captivity (Ps. 43:4). Could one of these musicians be one of the sons of Korah who composed Psalms 42-45 and 84?

The “Sons of Korah” also appear in another late 8^th century BC context. Yohanan Aharoni excavated part of a bowl at Tel Arad that had an inscription on the bottom that listed several families, among which were “the sons of Korah.” This bowl, inscription #49, was found in Stratum VIII of the building next to the sanctuary. Aharoni conjectures that this was “a list of contributions to the sanctuary. The letter het adds weight to this hypothesis, whether interpreted as wheat or as a sin-offering” (1981:82). According to Aharoni, Stratum VIII was destroyed at the end of the 8^th century BC (1981:149). Orna Zimhoni, of the Lachish Excavations, has re-evaluated the Arad material and has suggested that all the pottery of Arad Stratum X-VIII is paralleled to Lachish III pottery, which was destroyed by Sennacherib. Thus, she would also agree that the inscription should be dated to the end of the eighth century BC (Zimhoni 1985:84-88). Two questions should be raised at this point: first, what is a Levitical family doing in a non-Levitical city? Second, what was the nature of this sanctuary? Was it kosher or not? Was it a bamah (high place) or a pure Yahwistic shrine?

There is one other piece of archaeological evidence that relates to the sons of Korah. A figurine of a musician playing a harp was discovered in a burial cave at Beth Shemesh. I understand it dates to the end of the 8^th century BC as well. The Korahites were allotted cities in the Land of Ephraim and Manasseh. Apparently they moved south after Jeroboam I set up the cultic shrines at Dan and Bethel and made a priesthood of anybody who was not a Levite (1 Kings 12:31; 13:33). Some Korahites settled in Arad. Perhaps some settled in Beth Shemesh as well.

An Archaeological Exposition of These Psalms

Psalm 42/43, originally one psalm, begins the set of psalms recounting the Assyrian captivity in 701 BC. In Psalm 42:6-8, the psalmist uses geographical terms to pinpoint where he is as he reflects on his departure from the Land of Israel. George Adam Smith points out “The Land of Jordan usually means in O.T. land across Jordan [The Jordan River – gf]. Hermons (not Hermonites) must refer to the triple peaks of Hermon. If these two identifications hold, the standpoint of the Psalmist is fixed in the corner between Hermon and Jordan, where Banias stands. To the two localities the Hill Mis’ar, is placed in apposition. It may mean, as it stands, Hill of Littleness. But it may also be a proper name; and it is remarkable that in the neighborhood there should be two or three names with the same or kindred radicals: (1) Za’ura; (2) Wady Za’arah, above Banias; (3) Khubet Mezara. I suggest these may be reminiscent of a hill in this district, called Mis’ar” (1931: 476, footnote 1). As he describes the waters rolling over the waterfalls, he may be referring to the Banias waterfalls in that region. As he leaves the Land of Israel he prays for deliverance and vows he will play his harp in Jerusalem again. As previously pointed out, the alabaster relief from Sennacherib’s palace depicts three barefooted musicians going through a mountainous region, possibly the Lebanon mountain range.

A good example of a lyre is displayed on a beautiful seal of the seventh century BC with the inscription “Belonging to Ma’adanah the king’s daughter” (Avigad 1978: 146-151).

The psalmist declared his trust in the Lord for deliverance from his Assyrian captors. In the 44^th Psalm, during his captivity, he received word that the Lord miraculously delivered Jerusalem from the hands of the Assyrians (44:7, cf. Isa. 37:36). The psalmist, however, struggles within himself, “Lord, you answered their prayers, but what about mine?” (44:9-21). After this internal struggle, he came to the point where he realized this test was “for the Lord’s sake” (44:22). He finally renewed his confidence in the Lord (44:25, 26).

Two statements in this psalm are of interest to our study. The first is his statement in verse 11, “You have given us up like sheep intended for food, and have scattered us among the nations.” In Sennacherib’s annals, he states, “From the booty of those lands which I plundered, [Phoenicia, Philistia and Judah – gf] … and added them to my royal equipment. The rest, the heavy spoil of enemy (captives). I divided like sheep among my whole camp (army) as well as my governors and the inhabitants of my large cities” (Luckenbill 1927:II: 137). There was also a relief in Sennacherib’s palace showing Assyrian soldiers slaughtering sheep (Barnett, Bleibtreu and Turner 1998: 113; Plate 381; Parpola and Watanabe 1988:9).

The second statement of interest is the psalmist’s declaration of innocence regarding idolatry. “If we had forgotten the name of our God, or stretched out our hands to a foreign god, would not God search this out?” (44:20). He may have been innocent, but the truth of the matter is, Judah was not. They were involved in idolatry. The Lachish relief depicts Assyrian soldiers carrying off at least two metallic incense burners. Micah describes Lachish in these terms, “O inhabitants of Lachish … (She was the beginning of sin to the daughter of Zion), for the transgressions of Israel were found in you” (1:13). The transgressions of Israel could hint at the alternative place of worship set up at Dan and Bethel by Jeroboam. Micah goes on to say that Judah was involved in sorcery, soothsaying, and idolatry (5:12-14).

After a struggle within himself, the psalmist finally acknowledges the captivity he was going through was “for your sake we are killed all day long” (44:22), a verse that the apostle Paul will quote in Romans 8:36.

The 45^th psalm expresses the theme of worship in spite of the circumstances that the worshipper is in. After submitting himself to the sovereignty of God, the psalmist’s heart is over flowing with a good theme concerning the King (45:1). He describes himself as a “ready writer”. One is reminded of the Assyrian reliefs depicting scribes writing down lists of booty that had been captured. Usually there were two scribes, one scribe writing on papyrus and the other on a cuneiform tablet.

In the context of the Korah psalms, the king is not an earthly king, but rather, the Lord Himself (44:4; 47:2,6,7; 48:2,3; 84:3; Isa. 33:17,22; 44:6,8; 6:5, cf. John 12:37-41). The book of Hebrew identifies the King as the Lord Jesus (1:8, cf. 45:6, 7). The composer of this psalm describes the King as a warrior who fights for His people and the city of Jerusalem, with sword, chariots and arrows. It was the Angel of the Lord that destroyed the Assyrian army that was encircling Jerusalem that night (Isa. 37:36; 2 Kings 19:35). Ironically, this psalm may be an answer to the Lachish relief with Sennacherib sitting on his ivory throne, holding arrows in his right hand, his war chariots on display and his feet on his footstool with his enemies bowing down to him. It will ultimately be, however, the Lord Jesus who will win the final victory (Ps. 110:1; Heb. 1:8-14).

Psalm 45:8 mentions the ivory palaces. Ivory was used to adorn palaces of the eighth century BC. Some ivory has been found in the excavations at Ramat Rachel, probably the administrative palace built by Hezekiah called “MMST” (Barnett 1982:47,88, footnote 44, unpublished; Barkay 2006: 34-44). Sennacherib also paneled his palace with ivories (Smith 1878:147).

Psalms 46-48 were composed as songs of praise and thanksgiving after the Lord delivered Jerusalem from the hands of the Assyrians. Jerusalem took on a special connotation because the God who acted in the affairs of human history was residing in the city. Psalm 48 was composed in Jerusalem, and more specifically in the city of David, so he used the geography of the city in the opening of the song. “Great is the Lord and greatly to be praised, in the city of our God, in His holy mountain [the Temple Mount]. Beautiful in elevation [the 600 meters walk from the Pool of Siloam to the Temple Mount with a 95 meter elevation change], the joy of the whole earth, is Mount Zion on the sides of the north [from the City of David, the Temple mount is north], the city of the great King” (48:1,2). The term “great king” is also a title that the Assyrians kings used for themselves.

Psalm 49 ends this section with a wisdom psalm regarding rich fools who think their wealth came bring them salvation. Verses 10 and 11 say, “For he [the rich fool] sees that the wise men dies; likewise the fool and the senseless persons perish, and leave their wealth to others. Their inner thought is that their houses will continue forever, and their dwelling place to all generations.” Most commentators suggest the “house” in verse 11 refers to the dynasties of the wealthy individuals. I would like to suggest that the phrase should be taken more literally. In the second half of the verse, “houses” are paralleled with “dwelling places”, a literal structure. The materialistic fool knows his earthly house, made of stones and mud brick, will eventually collapse. He hewn’s out of bedrock a burial cave [an “eternal house” – Eccl. 12:5] patterned after his earthly house so he will feel “at home in death” (pardon the pun).

It is interesting to note the parallels between the Iron Age burial caves and the typical Israelite “four-room house”. The pattern is quite similar. The burial cave has an entrance, a central depression, and two benches on either side and one in the back. The “four-room house” has an entrance leading to a central courtyard with two long rooms on both sides of the courtyard, and a broad room in the back. Sunken panels have been observed in some of the large tombs of Jerusalem. Some of the royal structures had panels of cedar on their walls (1 Kings 6:9; Jer. 22:13-15; Hag. 1:4). Parapets on the benches are reminders of parapets on the roof to prevent people from falling off the house (Deut. 22:8). For a further exposition of this passage, see Franz 2002: 85-91.

Psalm 84 begins the second set of Korah psalms (Psalms 84-89). These psalms complement the first set. In this psalm, the procession to the House of the Lord is described as going up through the Valley of Baca. Josephus, the first century AD Jewish historian, seems to situate this valley close to the Valley of Rephaim (Antiquities 7:71-77; LCL 5: 397-399; Feliks 1981: 49-51). Quite possibly the psalmist has returned from his captivity in Nineveh and is making his first pilgrimage to the Temple for the Feast of Succoth. The date for this feast is hinted at with the mentioning of the “early rains” (84:6). The psalmist also seems to hint at where he has been in Nineveh. He says, “I would rather be a doorkeeper in the House of my God, than dwell in the tents of wickedness” (84:10). Judean captives worked as slave laborers on Sennacherib’s “palace without rival” (Ussishkin 1982: 127-130). Was the psalmist one of them? If so, he saw the wickedness that was inherent in the palace and pledged he would rather be a humble doorkeeper in the Temple than to hang around Sennacherib’s palace.

The historical circumstances surrounding the return of at least some of the Judeans from the Assyrian captivity is uncertain. After Hezekiah died, his son Manasseh reigned. He was a vassal of the Assyrian kings, Sennacherib, Esarhaddon and Ashurbanipal. Any one of these kings could have released Judean captives because of Manasseh’s subjection.

The Conclusion of the Matter

This article has tried to demonstrate that the psalms of the sons of Korah should be taken as a literary unit and the order in which they are grouped is significant. It has also placed these psalms in the year 701 BC, a traumatic year for the people of Judah. The first group of psalms (42-48) express the inner most thoughts and feelings of one going into captivity as well as the rejoicing of those who stood still to see the salvation of their God in Jerusalem. Psalm 49, a wisdom psalm, stands alone and is set in the 14^th year, 713/12 BC. The second set of psalms (84-89) compliment the first set and showed God faithfulness to His people and the answered prayer of the psalmist. The Assyrian reliefs and archaeology are used to illustrate the words of the psalmist.

It is my impression that more of the psalms belong to the end of the 8^th century BC. More attention should be placed on this period. The commentary writers or expositor of the Scriptures should utilize more of the Assyrian reliefs and archaeological data to illustrate the Word of God. For an interesting attempt at this, see Keel (1985).

Bibliography

Aharoni, Yohanan
1981 Arad Inscriptions. Jerusalem: Israel Exploration society.

Avigad, Nahman
1978 The King’s Daughter and the Lyre. Israel Exploration Journal 28/3: 146-151.

Barkay, Gabriel
2006 Royal Palace, Royal Portrait? The Tantalizing Possibilities of Ramat Rachel. Biblical Archaeology Review 32/5: 34-44.

Barnett, Richard
1981 Ancient Ivories in the Middle East. Qedem 14. Jerusalem: Hebrew University.

Barnett, Richard; Bleibtreu, Erika; and Turner, Geoffrey
1998 Sculptures from the Southwest Palace of Sennacherib at Nineveh. 2 vols. London: British Museum.

Feliks, Yehuda
1981 Nature and Man in the Bible. Chapters in Biblical Ecology. London: Soncino.

Franz, Gordon
1987 The Hezekiah / Sennacherib Chronology Problem Reconsidered. Unpublished MA thesis. Columbia Biblical Seminary and Graduate School of Missions.

______2002 “At Home in Death”: An Archaeological Exposition of Psalm 49:11. Bible and Spade 15/3: 85-91.

Goulder, Michael
1981 The Psalms of the Sons of Korah. Sheffield: University of Sheffield.

Keel, Othmar
1985 The Symbols of the Biblical World. Ancient Near Eastern Iconography and the Book of Psalms. New York: Crossroad.

Luckenbill, Daniel
1927 Ancient Records of Assyria and Babylonia. Vol. 2. Chicago: University of Chicago.

Parpola, Simo, and Watanabe, Kazuko
1987 Neo-Assyrian Treaties and Loyalty Oaths. State Archives of Assyria II. Helsinki: Helsinki University.

Smith, George
1878 The History of Sennacherib. London: Williams and Norgate.

Smith, George A.
1931 The Historical Geography of the Holy Land. London: Hodder and Stoughton.

Stohlmann, Stephen
1981 The Judean Exile After 701 B.C.E. Pp. 147-175 in Scripture in Context II. Winona Lake: Eisenbrauns.

Ussishkin, David
1982 The Conquest of Lachish by Sennacherib. Tel Aviv: Institute of Archaeology, Tel Aviv University.

Zimhoni, Orna
1985 The Iron Age Pottery of Tel ‘Eton and its Relation to the Lachish, Tell Beit Mirsim and Arad Assemblages. Tel Aviv 12/1: 63-90.
04Feb

“At Home In Death”: –An Archaeological Exposition of Psalm 49:11

Psalms of the Sons of Korah Comments Off on “At Home In Death”: –An Archaeological Exposition of Psalm 49:11

By Gordon Franz

Death is a subject that intrigues and frightens. Death is discussed, debated, covered-up and ignored. I remember visiting the Egyptian wing of the Brooklyn Museum several years ago. In one of the far back rooms a mummy was on display. While I was looking at other objects in the room, a group of senior citizens entered. The elderly guide never talked about, nor did the people in the group look at, the mummy. They were deathly afraid of that object (no pun intended). After they left, a group of elementary school children came in on a class outing. What was the first, and only, thing they wanted to look at? You guessed it, the mummy. The mummy intrigued them.

The psalmist, one of the sons of Korah, writing at the end of the 8^th century BC, describes the thoughts of wealthy fools who put their trust in material possession for their redemption. He wrote, “Their inner thought is that their house will continue forever, and their dwelling place to all generations; they call their land after their own name” (49:11).

This article will examine the background to this statement by the psalmist. The common interpretation will be discussed, but then archaeological material will be brought to bear to shed light on this passage. It is my contention that the architectural patterns of the burial caves of the Iron Age (Judean Monarchy) reflect the architectural patterns of the typical Iron Age “Four-Room House”. Iron Age burial caves from Jerusalem, mainly St. Etienne and Ketef Hinnom will be examined to demonstrate this proposition.

The Common Interpretation

In the psalmist’s statement, “Their inner thought is that their houses will continue forever”, what is the “house” referring to? Most commentators assume that “house” is the “dynasty” of the wealthy person. One commentator puts it this way: “If they do face the fact that they must die, they console themselves with the thought that the dynasties they have built will last forever” (Phillips 1986:74). This is done on the basis of the double meaning for the word “house” given in the Davidic covenant, II Samuel 7:16 (Goulder 1982:189). “And your house (dynasty) and your kingdom shall be established forever before you. Your throne shall be established forever.” Based on the word use, the dynastic interpretation is possible. However, the context suggests a more literal meaning. In the Hebrew parallelism of the poetic structure, “house” would be synonymous to “dwelling places” in the second half of the verse. Also, King Solomon, writing during the Iron Age, calls burial caves “eternal homes.” “For man goes to his eternal home, and the mourners go about the streets” (Eccl. 12:5).

Another Proposal

During the summer of 1979, I worked as an area supervisor on the Ketef Hinnom excavation, just below the St. Andrews Scottish Presbyterian Church in Jerusalem. One of my responsibilities was the supervision of the excavation of Cave 25. It contained the first intact repository of the Iron Age ever found in the archaeology of Jerusalem (Barkay 1986). The most important discoveries in this repository were two silver amulets with the oldest Biblical texts discovered to date (Barkay 1992; Coogan 1995:45).

After the excavation I had time to reflect on the burial practices of the Judean monarchy and its implication for understanding the Biblical text. Several years later, with the kind permission of the excavator, Dr. Gabriel Barkay, I published a summary of the excavation (Franz 1986). In that article, I suggested one of the implications of the excavations of the Iron Age burial caves at Ketef Hinnom was that it reflects the theology of the afterlife. I observed that the pattern of the burial caves was similar to the “four room house” of the Iron Age. “The psalmist indicated that the desire of materialistic people was their, ‘… inner thought is that their houses will continue forever, and their dwelling places to all generation’ (Ps. 49:11). However, they knew that their houses, made of stone and mudbricks, would eventually collapse. Their desire would be achieved by hewning a burial cave out of solid rock patterned after the floor plan of their earthly house” (Franz 1986:16). I would like to expand on these thoughts in this article.

Parallels Between the Iron Age Burials and the “Four Room House”

The first obvious parallel is the pattern of the burial caves and the Iron Age “four room house.” The typical Iron Age burial cave consists of an entrance with a central depression in front of it and three benches forming a “U” (horseshoe) shape around the central depression. In describing the Israelite four-room house, Y. Shiloh states, “The principle feature of the four-room house and its subtypes is a back room the width of the building, with three long rooms stemming forward from it. The time span of this plan is from the end of the eleventh century BC down to the destruction of Judah” (1970:180, see also Shiloh 1987). Some have discerned this pattern in Egypt during the time of the Israelite sojourn in Goshen (Wood 1997:55,56). The benches in the burial cave would correspond to the two long rooms on the side and the broad room in the back of the house. The central depression would correspond to the open-air courtyard in the middle of the house.

Another parallel is the sunken panel. This can be clearly seen in the Cave Complex 1 of the St. Etienne Burial Caves. The surveyors of this cave, Gabriel Barkay and Amos Kloner, describe their findings. “A careful examination of the walls of the entrance chamber reveals that they are decorated with shallow sunken panels, rectangular in shape, that were hewn into the rock faces of the walls. These rectangular panels are probably stone copies of wooden panels that typically covered the walls of Judean palaces during the Israelite period. Until this discovery, archaeologists had not seen any Israelite or Judean palaces (or other building) of this period with a preserved superstructure of walls. At best, they had found only wall stubs. The walls of the St. Etienne burial cave can therefore teach us a great deal about how palace walls were decorated in Iron Age II. Such decoration was probably used on the walls of Solomon’s Temple. In I Kings 6:9, we read that after Solomon finished building the Temple, he covered the walls with ‘beams and planks of cedar’. … The Hebrew word translated as ‘beam’ is gebim; for ‘planks’ the word is sderot. Gebim probably refers to the sunken panels, and sderot to the raised strips between the panels.” Their description goes on to say that the “wall decoration continued to be used to the end of the Divided Monarchy (586 BC). Jeremiah prophesies against Jehoikim, King of Judah: ‘Ha! He who builds his house with unfairness and his upper chambers with injustice, who makes his fellowman work without pay and does not give him his wages, who thinks: I will build me a vast palace with spacious upper chambers, provided with windows, paneled in cedar, painted with vermilion! Do you think you are more a king because you compete in cedars?’ (Jer. 22:13-15)” (Barkay and Kloner 1986:27). Haggai, a post-exilic prophet, also rebukes the people of Jerusalem for misdirecting their priorities. They were dwelling in paneled houses and the House of the LORD was still not rebuilt (1:4).

The cornice is a third architectural feature that is common to some of the burial caves in Jerusalem. They decorated the top of the walls where the ceiling meets the walls. Hewn out of rock, this probably reflects the support beams in the house.

A fourth parallel is the parapets that surround the edge of each bench in some of the Iron Age tombs. “Each burial bench has a low parapet about two inches high around its outer edge, carved from rock, presumably to prevent the body and burial gifts from rolling off the bench” (Barkay and Kloner 1986:29). The parapet served a practical function in the burial caves just as they did on a house. Deut. 22:8 states, “When you build a new house, then you shall make a parapet for your roof, that you may not bring bloodguiltiness on your house if anyone falls from it.” The parapets on the bench serve as a reminder of their function in the house.

A fifth architectural feature common to both the house and the burial cave is the threshold as illustrated by Cave Complex 1 at St. Etienne. Barkay and Kloner describe this threshold, “In this rock-hewn step there are carved two three-quarter-circle sockets; these sockets originally held the hinges of a double door that controlled access to the burial cave. Steps like this one, with similar sockets, are known from various Iron Age II (eighth to seventh century BC) structures. They are usually found at palace throne room entrance – for example, at Arsalan-Tash, at Zincirli (ancient Samal) and Tel Halaf in northern Syria; at Nimrud (Biblical Calah) (Gen. 10:11,12), and Ninevah in Assyria, and at Megiddo and Gezer in Israel” (1986:27). The door served a functional use in the burial cave, just as doors do in a house.

The final architectural feature is the headrest. As Barkay has observed, “[The] Iron Age burial benches with their headrests in the Jerusalemite and Judean burial caves were rock-cut copies of beds commonly used in ancient Israelite houses” (1988:50). The living would sleep on beds with pillows. Similarly, when the dead “sleep in death”, they were laid out on the stone bench with their head in the headrest. However, I’m sure the dead were not overly concerned with the hardness of the “pillow”!

An Intriguing Possibility

During the excavation of Cave 25 at Ketef Hinnom, the director, Goby Barkay said, “Gordon, I want you to find me an inscription in this cave!” I laughed at his request because he had taught me in his Archaeology of Jerusalem class that inscriptions, in situ, are very rare in the archaeology of Iron Age Jerusalem. I half jokingly said I would find him one on the last day of the dig. Ironically, toward the end of the dig, we discovered a private seal with a family name on it in the repository. Goby, with “play-doe” from his son, made an impression of the seal. On it was the family name “Palta” (peh-lamed-tet-he). Apparently the Palta family was buried in this cave (Barkay 1986: 29,34).

The following year at the City of David excavation a lintel from the “Ahiel” house was discovered in Area G. This lintel had the name “Palta” on it as well (Shiloh 1984:18). Did the family have a house in the City of David and a burial cave on the escarpment overlooking the Hinnom Valley? We will never know for sure, but it is an intriguing possibility.

Perhaps this is also what the psalmist had in mind when he said, “And their beauty shall be consumed in the grave, far from their dwelling” (49:14). The family burials were outside and away from the city.

The Conclusion of the Matter

The wealthy materialistic person at the end of the 8^th century BC knew that their earthly dwelling place would one-day collapse because it was made of stone, mudbrick, wooden beams and a dried mud roof with grass on top. This person desired to “live eternally” in his earthly body (Ps. 49:9), yet reality told him otherwise. Desiring a more permanent dwelling, knowing that one-day death would be the end results, a burial cave was hewn out of the rocky escarpment outside the city and was patterned after his earthly house. He wanted to feel “at home in death!”

By contrast, the psalmist puts materialism in it’s proper perspective when he concludes the psalm by saying, “But God will redeem my soul from the power of the grave (Sheol), for He shall receive me. Selah. Do not be afraid when one becomes rich, when the glory of his house is increased; for when he dies he shall carry nothing away; his glory shall not descend after him. Though while he lives he blesses himself (for men will praise you when you do well for yourself), he shall go to the generation of his fathers; they shall never see light. Man who is in honor, yet does not understand, is like the beasts that perish” (Psalm 49:15-20).

Bibliography

Barkay, G.
1986 Ketef Hinnom, A Treasure Facing Jerusalem’s Walls. Jerusalem: The Israel Museum.

______1988 Burial Headrests As a Return to the Womb – A Reevaluation. Biblical Archaeology Review 14/2: 48-50.

______1992 The Priestly Benediction on Silver Plaques from Ketef Hinnom in Jerusalem. Tel Aviv 19/2: 139-192.

Barkay, G. and Kloner, A.
1986 Jerusalem Tombs from the Days of the First Temple. Biblical Archaeology Review 12/2: 22-39.

Coogan, M.
1995 10 Great Finds. Biblical Archaeology Review 21/3: 36-47.

Franz, G.
1986 The Excavations at St. Andrews Church in Jerusalem. Near East Archaeology Society Bulletin 27: 5-24.

Goulder, M.
1982 The Psalms of the Sons of Korah. Sheffield: JSOT, Supplement Series 20.

Phillips, J.
1986 Exploring the Psalms. Psalm 42-72. Vol. 2. Neptune, NJ: Loizeaux Brothers.

Shiloh, Y.
1970 The Four-Room House – Its Situation and Function in the Israelite City. Israel Exploration Society 20/3-4: 180-190.

______1982 Excavations at the City of David I: 1978-1982. Qedem 19. Jerusalem: Hebrew University.

______1986 The Casemate Wall, the Four Room House, and Early Planning in the Israelite City. Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research 268:3-15.

Wood, B.
1997 Bible Personage in Archaeology. The Sons of Jacob. Bible and Spade 10/2-3:53-65.

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Category:

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Meta:

The Date of the Book of Revelation

The Coins of Emperor Domitian

Self-deified emperor

The Numismatic Evidence

Coins from the Seven Churches

Ephesus

Smyrna

Pergamum

Thyatira

Sardis

Philadelphia

Laodicia

Word pictures from Revelation

Altars and Thunderbolt

Statue of Domitian Riding a Horse

Apollo and Ravens Predicting Prophecy

Bibliography

Bibliography

A Misconception

“The Travels of St. John in Patmos”

The Numismatic Evidence

Conclusions Regarding Domitian

C. A. Kennedy’s View

Funerary Meals in Pergamos (Rev. 2:14)

Funerary Meals in Thyatira (Rev. 2:20)

Conclusion

Bibliography

The Title of the Psalm

The Historical Setting of the Psalm

The Theme Verse

God’s name is excellent because He has chosen the weak things of the world to put to shame the things that are mighty – 8:2

God’s name is excellent because He has created the heavens for a purpose – 8:3

God’s name is excellent because He has shown grace to finite human beings – 8:4-8

The Theme Repeated

Applications

Historical Background

Overview of the Psalms of the Sons of Korah

Literary Structure and Theme of Psalm 42/3

Exposition of Psalm 42/43

The Past Experience of Worship. 42:1-5.

The Present Exclusion from Worship. 42:6-11.

The Future Expectation to Worship. 43:1-5.

Personal Applications

Bibliography

The Psalms of the Sons of Korah as a Literary Unit

The Historical Background to the Psalms of the Sons of Korah

An Archaeological Exposition of These Psalms

The Conclusion of the Matter

Bibliography

The Common Interpretation

Another Proposal

Parallels Between the Iron Age Burials and the “Four Room House”

An Intriguing Possibility

The Conclusion of the Matter

Bibliography

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