(Excerpt from The Unfaithful Bride... See AMAZON for a copy, paperback or Kindle, and Nordskog Publishing for hardback or eBook versions of From Mason to Minister)
The first salvos of the battle between the Kingdom of God
and that of darkness were fired in Paradise. It continued when Cain despised
God’s worship. His line led to the apostasy of the line of Abel, triggering
God’s judgment of the Flood. Noah was a faithful remnant. The onslaught against
God’s people continued and later found its manifestation in Balak, who like Piano
Man, enticed the Israelites into syncretism.
As soon as God confirmed His promise to the house of David,
the old serpent reared its head again in the person of Jeroboam who set the
trajectory of rebellious apostacy through the ages. Continuous battles followed
but the victory over these powers was sealed at Golgotha. The serpent then
turned against the church (Rev. 12:13).
Even before God’s people crossed the Jordan, God indicated
to Moses and the Israelites that He would appoint a specific place for worship,
But you shall seek the place where the Lord
your God chooses, out of all your tribes, to put His name for His dwelling
place; and there you shall go. There you shall take your burnt offerings, your
sacrifices, your tithes, the heave offerings of your hand, your vowed
offerings, your freewill offerings, and the firstborn of your herds and flocks.
And there you shall eat before the Lord your God,
and you shall rejoice in all to which you have put your hand, you and your
households, in which the Lord your God
has blessed you (Deut. 12:5–7).
The “high places” too had to be
destroyed.
You shall
utterly destroy all the places where the nations which you shall dispossess
served their gods, on the high mountains and on the hills and under every green
tree. And you shall destroy their altars, break their sacred pillars, and burn
their wooden images with fire; you shall cut down the carved images of their
gods and destroy their names from that place. You shall not worship the Lord your God with such things” (Deut. 12:2–4).
Explains John Swann,
Generally, the Bible condemns the use of high places as
idolatrous—the use of them is usually a rejection of Yahweh. The increasing use
of high places—rather than the temple—is presented as a direct cause of the
exile by the prophets. While the high places certainly were used for the
worship of Canaanite deities, the more common use—at least during the times of
Israelite dominance—was to use high places for the worship of Yahweh while
continuing Canaanite practices.[1]
God provided the reasons why His
people had to vandalise the high places and other places of worship.
·
Firstly, the people would be tempted to worship God in the same way as the
nations (12:4)
·
Secondly, if the places of worship and the subjects of worship were not
utterly destroyed[2]
the temptation would be to simply refurbish the place for worship. The subjects
of worship might serve as further inducement to blend true worship with false
worship
·
Thirdly, worship can easily become a
matter of choice. Therefore, “You shall
not at all do as we are doing here today—every man doing whatever is right in
his own eyes” (Deut. 12:8)
·
Fourthly, and probably the most
important, because God “dwelled” between the cherubim on the ark of the
covenant, “And there you shall eat before [in the presence] the Lord your God, and you shall rejoice in
all to which you have put your hand, you and your households, in which the Lord your God has blessed you”
(12:7). The injunction to be careful not to burn sacrifice in any place you see
(12:13) must be understood in this context
The way God demanded to be worshiped is unique and
completely dissimilar to all other religions. The offerings, sacrifices,
priestly office, the design of the Tent of Meeting (and later the Temple in
Jerusalem) was of uttermost importance because it was according to God’s unambiguous
design and purpose. More so, because these offices and rituals all pointed to
Jesus Christ who fulfilled them all. The priests, offerings, the blood of the
sacrificial animals were types or shadows of His perfect sacrifice and life to
satisfy the righteousness which God demanded.
If we remember that God “dwelled” between the cherubim on
the ark of the covenant in the Most Holy, in the temple in Jerusalem in the
territory of Judah, we will understand Gods’ command to appoint a specific
place and manner where He would live in the midst of His people. Any other
place would be void of all stipulations under the old covenant which served as
shadows till the promised Messiah arrived as the mediator of the new covenant.
Remember when the pillar of cloud and fire settled, and the church
in the wilderness would stay put until the pillar of glory lifted and led them
elsewhere? Well, the temple in Jerusalem was God’s designated locality for His
worship. “Behold, I send My messenger,
and he will prepare the way before Me. And the Lord, whom you seek, will suddenly come to His temple, even the
Messenger of the covenant, in whom you delight. Behold, He is coming,” Says the
Lord of hosts” (Mal. 3:1). The Lord still had His people to redeem, and
Jerusalem was where that redemption was going to take place!
In rebellion to God’s command, Jeroboam built high places (1Kgs. 12:31-32) and staffed them
with priests who were not Levites. “Whoever wished, he consecrated him, and he became one of the priests of
the high places” (1
Kgs. 13:33). He attempted to re-establish God’s place of worship
elsewhere, i.e., in a place that was not His dwelling place. Jeroboam’s temple,
priests, and sacrifices were not replicas
of Jerusalem worship. It may have appeared that way, but it was a substitution of true worship. What his
priests did on their altars reflected no shadow of Christ. It was counterfeit
religion. It was not done “in the presence of the Lord”. What happened under
Jeroboam was what had begun with the Danites in Samaria (Josh. 18:29-31). The
driving force behind Jeroboam’s anti-religion was to corrupt true religion for political
gain.
He was not along the bloodline of David, and as such he was
the antithesis of David’s line. Jeroboam
is remembered as the father of a succession of anti-Godly worship which, like a slow-burning fuse, led to the destruction
of the northern kingdom. “For the Lord will strike Israel, as a reed is shaken in the water. He will uproot
Israel from this good land which He gave to their fathers, and will scatter
them beyond the River, because they have made their wooden images, provoking
the Lord to anger. And He will give Israel up because
of the sins of Jeroboam, who sinned and who made Israel sin” (1 Kgs. 14:15–16, cf. 11:33).
Almost all kings after Jeroboam are remembered because “they
walked in the ways of Jeroboam, the son of Nebat.” (See, 1 Kgs. 15:34,
16:13, 19, 25, 30, 2 Kgs. 9:9, 13:2, 6, 10-11, 14:24, 15:8, 17, 24, 17:22. Of
course, there are also corresponding verses in the Chronicles.) This is tragic.
It describes the downfall of Judah who later fell into the same trap (23:15-17).
For they also
built for themselves high places, sacred pillars, and wooden images on every
high hill and under every green tree. And there were also perverted persons[3]
in the land. They did according to all the abominations of the nations which
the Lord had cast
out before the children of Israel (1 Kgs. 14:23–24, Jer. 7:30-31).
The kings Asa, Jehosaphat, Hezekiah and Josiah (see 2 Kgs.
23) who reformed God’s worship, destroyed the high places. However, the kings
who succeeded them reinstated these places of worship. The Bible describes the
reign of other kings, good or bad, with this phrase, “But the high places were not taken away; the
people still sacrificed and burned incense on the high place” (2 Kgs. 12:3, 14:4, 15:4, 35, 16:4,
17:9, 11, 29).
Second Kings 17:24-40 provides interesting, but wretched,
information. Afterwards the northern kingdom
was overrun by the Assyrians under king Shalmaneser V (2 Kgs. 17:5-6). The
Assyrian king resettled some of the Israelites back to Samaria after they had
been taken into captivity. This exile had a reason,
“He [God] tore Israel from the house of David, and they made
Jeroboam the son of Nebat the king. Then Jeroboam drove Israel from following
the Lord, and made them commit a great
sin. For the children of Israel walked in all the sins of Jeroboam which he
did; they did not depart from them” (2 Kgs. 17:21–22).
Some years later, king Sargon II, “brought people from Babylon, Cuthah, Ava,
Hamath, and from Sepharvaim, and placed them in the cities of Samaria instead
of the children of Israel; and they took possession of Samaria and dwelt in its
cities” (17:24).
This group of mixed nationalities and religions were not worshipping the Lord –
as a matter of fact, even before their exile, the northern tribes did not
worship God only! “However
every nation continued to make gods of its own, and put them in the shrines on
the high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities where
they dwelt” (17:29).
So, the Lord punished them. He sent lions among them that killed some of the
people (17:25).
The governor was at his wits end. He asked for counsel from
his king, Sargon II. The king’s advice was to dispatch a Jewish priest from
amongst the exiles to teach the folk “how to worship the Lord” (17:28). They got some
teaching, but alas! “every
nation continued to make gods of its own, and put them in the shrines on the
high places which the Samaritans had made, every nation in the cities where
they dwelt” (17:29).
They even went as far as burning their own children as sacrifices to
Adrammelech and Anammelech.
The people indulged in syncretism.
They worshipped the Lord and
appointed priests from every class of the high places, who sacrificed for
them in the shrines of the high places. (2 Kgs. 17:32-33). Those Israelites
cottoned on to this abominable worship and added elements of it onto the
worship of the Lord. They “served their own gods—according to
the rituals of the nations from among whom they were carried away” (17:33).
Expressions of syncretism in a nation are Pluralism in the State and Ecumenism in the Church. There are many subbranches of syncretism. One that is well-known is the Baha’i Faith, which seeks to teach what it perceives to be the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Yes, I naïvely did not see that this worldview was so much darkness dressed up in light, until I began reading the Bible – the Bible I had been awarded by the Freemason’s lodge I once belonged to. I have long since parted ways with Masonry. Indeed, I had a book published about my journey from Masonry to Christianity. Here’s a quote from it regarding the issue we are addressing,
Masons hold to the optimistic teaching of a someday
worldwide brotherhood of man under the Fatherhood of God, resting on the three
Masonic pillars of Brotherly-love, Relief, and Truth… I loved Freemasonry for
this! For, as corny as the hackneyed term is, I believed that Freemasonry
properly promoted – could bring about world peace! …
Masonry works best when God is left in the sphere of the
general, and spoken of in general terms. An imbalance and disharmony is
introduced to Masonry when the particulars of God are considered. In other
words, the harmony of the lodge at work would be disturbed if the “triune-ness”
of God were brought to the fore and specifically addressed. For then those who
deny the Trinitarian Father, Son, and Holy Ghost (such as today’s Jews, the
Muslims, and the Sikhs etc.) would be ostracized…
It is not hard to see that contemporary Western
multiculturalism is un-Christian… And since by definition culture is the externalization
of religion, it was really only a matter of time before Christians (in those
nations that have adopted non-Christian multiculturalism) would be
discriminated against…
It is my opinion that most of contemporary
multiculturalism is a syncretistic system of religion…
Multiculturalism fails when it denies the equal ultimacy of the one and many, and places the many above the one, or vice versa. Therefore, all multicultural societies that do not have the Triune God (and His Law summarized by the Ten Commandments – which Law is also revelation of Himself) as their basis, will, as history attests, fail and eventually disintegrate. Non-Trinity-honouring and Godless contemporary Multiculturism is a serpent destined to swallow its own tail and disappear![4]
Much has been done and said in the name of ecumenism (which
is a concerted effort to promote unity between Christian churches or
denominations). In itself, one cannot be against unity within the body of
Christ. However, the danger with this
movement, and more so the actions driven by the World Council of Churches and
its branches across the world, is that pure Biblical teaching is not always the
conspicuous common denominator. In fact, the opposite is true. Much of the
heart of the Gospel is sacrificed on the altar of ecumenism.
In our day, there is also a concerted effort to achieve
interfaith dialogue and action. Into this mix is added everything
religious, which is the true nature of syncretism. In this interfaith dialogue,
it is not uncommon to find elements of New Age ‘religion’, animism (the belief
that objects, places, and creatures all possess a distinct spiritual essence) and
Environmentalism (which presents itself as care for the world). Keywords in
these approaches are toleration, love, peace, equity, harmony, and
sustainability – all of these terms are void of Biblical content.
In Australia, as in other parts of the world, a form of “mestizo” is
openly practiced. In Spanish countries “mestizo” comes from the Spanish word
for mixed and refers to the mixing of racial groups that has occurred
throughout the region’s history.
Mestizo culture is often characterized by a shared language (Spanish),
religion (Roman Catholicism), and indigenous heritage. Their clothing, for
example, has a distinctive indigenous aesthetic while using textiles that were
introduced by the Spaniards.[5]
In the past, official meetings in Australia were opened with
prayer in the Name of Christ. This practice is now replaced by Welcome to
Country. This ceremony includes singing, a speech, cultural
dancing and smoke ceremonies in the name of the elders present and past with a
prayer to remove ‘negative energy’. Current practice at sporting events demands
that athletes bend the knee in ceremonies to remember the wrongs of the past.
These ceremonies are blending elements of wokism, animism, environmentalism,
Gaia, spiritism, eastern mysticism and many other into one, with the intent to
replace (or mix into) Christianity. Those who don’t concur, are judged for
their extreme and divisive views and attitudes.
The Syncretism Society posts contend:
Syncretism is the science of integrating and understanding all
fields of human knowledge, whether it be theological, philosophical,
alchemical, astrological or spiritual. All fields of human knowledge can be
syncretized and unified rather than divided, dividing and separating is the
modus operandi of the control system in operation today and how schools and
universities run. You syncretize things in your mind, just as you synchronize
things in time. The secret to this is very simple, it has always been there in
religious symbols, it has always been there reminding us the simple secrets of
nature and understanding that ALL things in the universe operate electromagnetically.
Within Syncretism we learn this as the fundamental basis for understanding all
theologies and all fields of science, ‘All is Atum’ meaning atomic and all is
electromagnetic.[6]
Second Kings 17 ends with a summary of the covenant God had
made with Israel. “And the
covenant that I have made with you, you shall not forget, nor shall you fear
other gods. But the Lord your God you shall fear; and He will deliver you from the hand of all
your enemies” (2 Kgs.
17:38–39). Then the grave words of the bride who became an obstinate
prostitute. After she played the harlot with the Egyptians, Assyrians, and
Babylonia (Ezek. 16:26-29) the Lord declared,
You are an adulterous wife, who takes
strangers instead of her husband. Men make payment to all harlots, but you made
your payments to all your lovers, and hired them to come to you from all around
for your harlotry. You are the opposite of other women in your harlotry,
because no one solicited you to be a harlot. In that you gave payment but no
payment was given you, therefore you are the opposite (Ezek. 16:32–34).
Israel’s identity as God’s bride was lost. She ripped up her
marriage contract. The postscript on the syncretistic, self-willed, and
stiff-necked bride of God reads, “However they did not obey, but they followed their former rituals. So
these nations feared the Lord, yet served their carved images;
also their children and their children’s children have continued doing as their
fathers did, even to this day.” (2 Kgs. 17:40–41).
Can you discern the discord and dissonance in the tune of
Piano Man? If not, he will lure you up a dark alleyway with the smell of rotten
garbage, even the stench of something dead. “He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not stand in the
truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks from
his own resources, for he is a liar and the father of it” (John 8:44).
In my humble opinion, the “beast of the sea” is
commandeering the “beast of the earth” to exercise “all the authority of the
first beast in its presence, and makes the earth and its inhabitants worship
the first beast, whose mortal wound was healed. It performs great signs, even
making fire come down from heaven to earth in front of people, and by the signs
that it is allowed to work in the presence of the beast it deceives those who
dwell on earth, telling them to make an image for the beast that was wounded by
the sword and yet lived” (Rev. 13:12–14).
Jeroboam, with his anti-religion, can be seen as an early
manifestation of anti-Christ. We first meet him as “a mighty man of valor;
and Solomon, seeing that the young man was industrious, made him the officer
over all the labor force of the house of Joseph” (1 Kgs. 11:28). Solomon had become
jealous of Jeroboam. Jeroboam fled to Egypt where he stayed until the death of
Solomon. When God determined that Jeroboam would be king of the northern
tribes, he was also bound by the terms of God’s covenant (11:38). However, he
showed no regard for God. He rebelled against the lawful successor of the
throne of David and somehow convinced the northern tribes to rebel. “So, Israel has been in rebellion against the house of David to this day”
(1 Kgs. 12:19).
Revelation 13 speaks of anti-Christ as a counterfeit king,
someone with the power of deception who made people worship him (v. 4). In some
sense his flight to Egypt meant that Jeroboam’s dream to be king received a
fatal blow. When he returned, he made it his mission to deceive God’s people in
idolatry. He blasphemed God and slandered “His name, His tabernacle, and those
who dwell in heaven” (13:6). His false prophets obeyed him by making and image in his
honour (13:14).
Rehoboam was surely not the
anti-Christ, but a manifestation of the anti-Christ.
Things went from bad to worse for Jeroboam.
He sent his wife to see Ahijah the prophet regarding what to
do with their son, Abijah, who was sick. She was to disguise herself so that he
wouldn’t know that it was her. Between that, and the fact that old Ahijah was
now blind, she would’ve been shocked at what transpired:
But when Ahijah heard the sound of her feet, as she came in at
the door, he said, “Come in, wife of Jeroboam. Why do you pretend to be
another? For I am charged with unbearable news for you. Go, tell Jeroboam,
‘Thus says the Lord, the God of Israel:
“Because I exalted you from among the people and made you leader over My people
Israel and tore the kingdom away from the house of David and gave it to you,
and yet you have not been like My servant David, who kept My commandments and
followed Me with all his heart, doing only that which was right in My eyes, but
you have done evil above all who were before you and have gone and made for
yourself other gods and metal images, provoking Me to anger, and have cast Me
behind your back, therefore behold, I will bring harm upon the house of
Jeroboam and will cut off from Jeroboam every male, both bond and free in
Israel, and will burn up the house of Jeroboam, as a man burns up dung until it
is all gone. Anyone belonging to Jeroboam who dies in the city the dogs shall
eat, and anyone who dies in the open country the birds of the heavens shall
eat, for the Lord has spoken it.”’ Arise
therefore, go to your house. When your feet enter the city, the child shall
die. And all Israel shall mourn for him and bury him, for he only of Jeroboam
shall come to the grave, because in him there is found something pleasing to
the Lord, the God of Israel, in the house
of Jeroboam. Moreover, the Lord will
raise up for Himself a king over Israel who shall cut off the house of Jeroboam
today. And henceforth, the Lord will
strike Israel as a reed is shaken in the water, and root up Israel out of this
good land that He gave to their fathers and scatter them beyond the Euphrates,
because they have made their Asherim, provoking the Lord
to anger. And He will give Israel up because of the sins of Jeroboam, which he
sinned and made Israel to sin (1 Kgs. 14:6-16).
Thus, we can blame the Lost Ten Tribes on King Jeroboam’s
unfaithfulness to the covenant.
Much speculation has been made about the issue of the Ten
Lost Tribes. Part of my introduction to Christianity in the late 1980s pertained
to reading about the Ten Lost Tribes.
Next to the newspaper stands in Winnipeg often were another stand that, unlike
the newspaper vendors that accepted nickels, dimes, and quarters for their
wares, this one gave away their magazines for free. The Plain Truth was a Worldwide
Church of God publication. As a still-to-be converted non-Christian with a
growing interest in Christianity, I would read their material and even sent
away for one of their books which was to do with British Israelism (a.k.a. Anglo
Israelism), yes, the Ten Lost Tribes apparently had made their way to Britain
and subsequently North America!
Let’s not get too side-tracked, but, as we’ve already seen
over and over, Piano Man loves to lead the unfaithful bride astray, (not to
mention leading potential believers into anti-Trinity cults such as the Worldwide
Church of God!). Therefore, it is worth a mention that some believe that the
British throne and the British Empire is connected to the ever-expanding throne
of David due to the geographical movements of the so-called Ten Lost Tribes.
There are books galore out there enticing people to read
about the influence these tribes had throughout Europe. Some try to confirm
this through national heraldry which they allege refers in various ways to
these tribes, while others use questionable etymology, such as Saxons alluding
to Isaac’s sons and the Danes of Denmark being of the Tribe of Dan, a play on
the word for covenant in Hebrew בְּרִית (berith), becomes berith-ish, i.e., British, that
sort of thing. It’s all very interesting but has less than little to do with Christ’s
gospel.
The good news is that after the 1986 death of Herbert W. Armstrong, the Worldwide Church of
God came under new leadership, and subsequently rejected much of its previous
false teaching, so much so, that it has morphed into a somewhat more Christian
orthodoxy, accepting the triune nature of the covenant God along with His
gospel of salvation. Yes, it’s good to know that the piano’s lid sometimes falls and
bruises Piano Man’s fingers! May it ever continue be so!
William Blake’s 1804 well-known hymn And Did Those Feet
was made even more popular by featuring in a film about the Christian
Sabbath-honouring Scot, Eric Liddell, winning a gold medal in the 1924
Olympics. Liddell, who was scheduled to run on a Sunday but refused, said the
following memorable Scriptural line in the 1981 movie called Chariots of Fire, (which is what the unfaithful
bride needs to learn), “Honour God and He
will honour you.” Put to a rousing (and, if you’re English, patriotic!)
tune, Blake poses the question that brings us back to those supposed lost
tribes, the British peoples, and Davidic and/or British thrones:
And did those feet in
ancient time
Walk upon England’s mountain green?
And was the holy Lamb of God
On England's pleasant pastures seen?
And did the countenance divine
Shine forth upon our clouded hills?
And was Jerusalem builded here
Among those dark satanic mills?
Bring me my bow of burning
gold!
Bring
me my arrows of desire!
Bring
me my spear! O clouds, unfold!
Bring
me my chariot of fire!
I will
not cease from mental fight,
Nor
shall my sword sleep in my hand,
Till
we have built Jerusalem
In
England's green and pleasant land.
Jeroboam wanted as it were to “build Jerusalem” in the
northern kingdom. However, as we know from recorded history, i.e., the Bible, the
Lord would not be ready to dwell elsewhere until He was done with the old
Jerusalem, the “Jerusalem below” which would become the “Jerusalem above” only when
the Word would become flesh and die for His people’s sins (Mat. 1:21 with Gal.
4:25-26). Thus, the timing was off for Jeroboam, but more to the point, so was
his covenant keeping as king! Like him, the northern kingdom was doomed to
failure and with its tribes, in the providence of God, would disappear.
Now that the Messenger of the Covenant has come, now that He has lived, died, resurrected, and ascended, now that He and the Father have poured out the Holy Spirit, now can we build as it were Jerusalem as Blake had in mind “In England’s green and pleasant land”? Well, not if we listen to Piano Man! But more on what we mean here later.
[1] John T. Swann, “High Place,” in: The Lexham Bible
Dictionary, ed. John D. Barry et al. (Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2016).
[2]
The Hebrew word isʾābad (אָבַד) and not ḥāram (חָרַם). The former, as we
have observed earlier, is to fully devote (for destruction). The latter “…generally
refers to all manner of destruction and annihilation, not just the death of
people or animals.” (Benjamin M. Austin, “Death,” in: Lexham Theological
Wordbook, ed. Douglas Mangum et al., Lexham Bible Reference Series
(Bellingham, WA: Lexham Press, 2014).
[3]
The Hebrew for “perverted persons” is קָדַשׁ
(qādēš ). Explains Mccomiskey, “The adjective qādēš, like the name
Kadesh, means “holy,” but holy to what? The female functionaries in the pagan
shrines were called qĕdēšâ, temple prostitutes, because that is what they were.
The name is a sad commentary on the licentiousness of Canaanite worship. The
masculine form is used similarly for the male counterpart (Deut 23:17 [H 18]).
In Gen 38:21–22 the usage may be extended to refer to prostitution in general.”
(Thomas E. Mccomiskey, “1990 קָדַשׁ,”
in: Theological Wordbook of the Old Testament, ed. R. Laird Harris,
Gleason L. Archer Jr., and Bruce K. Waltke (Chicago: Moody Press, 1999), 788.
[4]
Neil Cullan McKinlay, From Mason to Minister – Through the Lattice,
Nordskog Publishing, Ventura, California, 2011, 47-51.
[5]
https://helpfulprofessor.com/syncretism-examples/
[6]
https://www.syncretismsociety.com
