Genesis 3:15 is about the Virgin Mary

 

The Fertile Crescent was home to the widely dispersed early Hebrew ruler-priests.

Dr Alice C. Linsley

In Genesis 3:15, the first Messianic prophesy of the Bible, the Seed/Son of God is the son of the "Woman", and this is not Eve. Eve is not named until 5 verses later. The identity of the Woman becomes clear when we understand what the early Hebrew believed. They are ones who first believed in the coming of Messiah. Their belief concerning the Son of God is expressed in Genesis 3:15.

"I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel".

Genesis 3:15 is called the protoevangelium, or the Proto-Gospel. The early Hebrew believed in God Father and God Son and anticipated the incarnation of the Son by divine overshadowing of a virgin of their priest caste. This expectation is expressed in the promise of deliverance given to Abraham's Hebrew ancestors. Their hope was to be delivered from death by a Righteous Ruler who would overcome death and lead his people to immortality. They pinned that hope on the appearing of the Son of God.

According to the early Nilotic Hebrew, the first act of the Creator at the beginning was šw (Shu), meaning light. This is not the light of day. It is the eternal, uncreated light associated with the High God's son Y-shu (Yeshua), as proclaimed in John's Prologue.

Jesus or Yeshua is the name that was given to the son the Virgin Mary conceived by divine overshadowing. Luke 1:35 makes this clear. The Angel Gabriel explained to Mary: "The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God."

The early Hebrew (4200-2000 BC) lived before the emergence of Judaism. The language they used was not Hebrew because Hebrew did not yet exist. The Hebrew ruler-priests who lived in the Ancient Nile Valley (ANV) used pictographic symbols to communicate in writing. One of their shrine cities was Nekhen, the oldest known site of Horite Hebrew worship. Nekhen was a principal city of the Fertile Crescent. Systematic excavations at Nekhen began in 1897-1898, led by British archaeologists James Quibell and Frederick W. Green. In the early 2020s, work continued under the direction of Renée Friedman. Various areas were excavated, including elite cemeteries (HK6), industrial zones (breweries), and monumental architecture.

The written communication of the Mesopotamian Hebrew employed Akkadian cuneiform. Ancient Akkadian is the oldest known Semitic language. The oldest biblical texts contain some words of Akkadian origin. The word "Hebrew"is derived from the ancient Akkadian word abru, meaning priest. The name for Cain/Kain/Kan is a play on the Akkadian word kan, referring to blood and a field. (According to Genesis 4:8, Cain killed his brother Abel in a field and Abel's blood cried out to God from the ground). The name Lamech (Gen. 4 and Gen. 5) is an Akkadian title: lumakku, referring to a junior priest.

The early Hebrew believed that a Woman of their royal priest caste would conceive the Son of the High God by divine overshadowing, just as the Angel declared to the Virgin Mary. This expectation was depicted in images of the Son's mother overshadowed by the Sun.

The early Hebrew regarded the Sun as the symbol of the High God. This image shows Hathor overshadowed. She is the archetypal mother of the archetypal Son of God, HR/Horus.

The Son of God was to crush the serpent under his feet. This belief was expressed by the early Hebrew priests on the walls of royal tombs. One such text says, "Horus has shattered (tbb, crushed) the mouth of the serpent with the sole of his foot (tbw)". (Ancient Pyramid Texts, Utterance 388, p. 128.) Another states, "The sandal of Horus/HR is what tramples the snake underfoot" (Utterance 378).

Horus is the Greek for the Proto-Egyptian word HR, meaning "Most High One". The Nilotic Hebrew spoke of the Son's father as Re, meaning "father" in Proto-Egyptian.

It must be evident that the "Woman" of Genesis 3:15 cannot be Eve.

Related reading: Why the Name Jesus?; They Believed in a Messiah 6000 Years Ago; Horite and Sethite Mounds; The Hebrew were a Caste; Funerary Rites and the Hope of Resurrection; Early Resurrection Texts; Righteous Rulers and the Resurrection

The Religious Symbolism of Green Malachite

 

Malachite amulet of Horus falcon, 1550-1069 BC (New Kingdom)

The Walters Art Museum, Baltimore

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

Green malachite was associated with the Son of God. He was called HR in Ancient Egyptian (Horus in Greek). HR was regarded as the patron of royal priests and kings. Green malachite pigment was used in the cosmetics that high ranking Egyptians would paint around their eyes to mimic the falcon-headed Horus.

Green malachite was associated with the falcon, the animal totem of Horus. The Book of the Dead speaks of how the deceased will become a falcon "whose wings are of green stone" (chapter 77). The protective Eye of Horus amulet was made of green stone. The Ancient Pyramid Texts speak of Horus as the "Lord of the green stone" (Utterance 301).

Malachite is a copper-based mineral, and copper was associated with the sun, the symbol of the High God and his son HR. The Nilotic Hebrew were known for their work with gold and copper. Copper and gold artifacts appeared in the region between the First and Second Cataracts in graves of the Middle A Group. These are dated 3600–3300 BC (Killick 2014).

Around 3,200 BC copper balances and weights were used at Nile shrines to determine cargo taxes and for trade.

Green malachite was placed in some graves at Nekhen on the Nile, the oldest known site of Horite Hebrew worship (4200 BC). A leather pouch containing chunks of malachite was found among the grave goods at Tomb 39 in Nekhen, a city dedicated to Horus.

Timna is the site of some of the world's oldest copper mines. The oldest mines are at least 6,000 years old and there are newer ones as well, totaling about 10,000 shafts. The miners at Timna venerated Hathor, the mother of Horus. A temple dedicated to Hathor was discovered at the southwestern edge of Mt. Timna by Professor Beno Rothenberg of Hebrew University.

This green malachite stone, a gift from the Egyptian king with whom the Hittites signed a treaty in 1258 BC, was at the center of a shrine in the Hittite capital of Hattusa (in Çorum Province in Turkey). Among the ancient Nilotic Hebrew, green malachite represented new life and the hope of resurrection. The land of the blessed dead was described as the "field of malachite."

Many of the priests of the ancient world, including some Hittite priests, were devotees of God's son Horus. Some shrine centers among the Hittites reflect this: Horoztepe (Horus Hill) and Išuwa (Yeshua/Yesu). According to the early Hebrew (4000-2000 BC), the first act of the Creator at the beginning was šw (Shu), meaning light. This is not the light of day. It is the eternal, uncreated light associated with the High God's son Y-shu (Yeshua), as proclaimed in John's Prologue.

The name Jesus is related to the Hebrew word Yeshua, meaning Salvation. However, the name is older than the Hebrew language. It is found as early as 2600 BC among the Hebrew priests of the Nile Valley as Yesu or Yeshu.

A prince named Yesu is mentioned as the son of Ameny, the son of Shenwy, the son of Nakht on a memorial stela from Abydos. It speaks of Shenwy and his wife, Hedjret. One of Hedjret's grandsons is called išw, which could be an early form of the name Jesus/Yeshu (Bill Manley, Egyptian Hieroglyphics, p. 77.)

The name Yesu is attached to the roles of priest and king in ancient hieroglyphics. Reading from left to right: The feather represents judgment. The horn represents power. The staff represents royal authority, and the chick represents new life. All of these symbols speak of Jesus Christ.

Related reading: The Religious Symbolism of Gold; Malachite and The Ancient Egyptians; BIBLICAL ANTHROPOLOGY: Copper and Iron; Just Genesis: Why the Name Jesus?

The Religious Symbolism of Gold

 

This crescent-shaped gold collar (lunula) was found in Cornwall, England. The Penwith Lunula is dated to the Early Bronze Age (2500-1550 BC). It was worn by a ruler in England around the same time Abraham became established as a ruler in ancient Edom.

From ancient times, gold has been a highly prized commodity. Gold is mentioned over 400 times in the Bible. The word for gold is similar in these Afro-Asiatic languages: Ancient Egyptian - nub (nwb); Akkadian - dahh-ubu; Arabic - dha-hab; and Hebrew - za-hab.

There is evidence that the finest gold was named for Horus, "the Golden One." The HR root is found in the Assyrian word for gold hur-asu and in the Hebrew words for refined or purified gold - haruz. 

Gold was highly valued among the Nilotic Hebrew for whom it represented the sun, the symbol of the High God and his son HR (Horus in Greek). In the ancient world, kings and judges were believed to be appointed by the High God, and Horus was their patron.

The Egyptian word HR means "the One on high." The Turin Canon, which provides important information on Egypt's early history, describes the predynastic rulers as "Followers of Horus" and many had Horus names. The Horus name (HR, Hor, Hur, Har) is the oldest known among the Nilotic rulers, even before Egypt emerged as a political entity. 

Many early Hebrew rulers had Horus names. Hur is an example. According to Midrash, Hur was Moses’ brother-in-law, the husband of Miriam. Hur’s grandson was one of the builders of the Tabernacle. 1 Chronicles 4:4 lists Hur as the "father of Bethlehem," an early Horite Hebrew settlement.

A chief of the tribe of Asher holds the Horus name Harnepher (1 Chron. 7:36).

Another Horus name is Na-Hor, the name of Abraham's older brother. Nahor ruled over his father's territory in Paddan Aram when Terah died. In ancient Akkadian, Na is a modal prefix indicating service to, affirmation, or affiliation. Na-Hor indicates that this man was a devotee of HR, which in ancient Egyptian refers to the Most High God.

A prayer addressed to Horus says, "For you are he who oversees the gods, there is no god who oversees you!" (Ancient Pyramid Texts, Utterance 573)

One of the most famous images related to Horus was found at Nekhen. This is a gold artifact of Horus under the sign of his totem, the falcon. This great gold plumed falcon represents the son of the Father (Re in Ancient Egyptian). Nekhen was named for Horus of the Falcon: Nekheny.

Horus of Nekhen, the oldest known site of Horite Hebrew worship (c.4000 BC).

The Hebrew Lived in Regions Rich in Gold

Abraham was a very wealthy Hebrew. This is attested by Genesis 13:2 which states that Abraham was very rich in livestock, in silver and in gold. Genesis 24:22 says that Abraham's servant delivered a gold ring and two gold bracelets to Rebekah as a gift from her future husband, Isaac.

Some of Abraham's ancestors lived in regions where gold was found both on the surface and in tunnels. Genesis 2:11 designates Ha'vilah as a gold rich area. It was where the waters of the Upper Nile form a V, suggesting the branching of the White and Blue Nile. The land was later known as Nubia, which means "land of gold." Genesis 2 also mentions that the region has Bdellium, a semi-transparent oleo-gum resin extracted from Commiphora wightii and from Commiphora africana. These trees grow in Ethiopia, Eritrea and other parts of East Africa.

In 2007, archaeologists from the Oriental Institute discovered a 4000-year gold-processing center along Nile. The site is called Hosh el-Guruf and is located about 225 miles north of Khartoum. More than 55 grinding stones made of granite-like gneiss were found at the site. The ore was ground to recover the gold, and water was used to separate the flakes from the particle residue. Similar grinding stones have been found at Timnah in southern Israel.

A temple dedicated to Hathor, the mother of Horus, was discovered at the southwestern edge of Mt. Timnah by Professor Beno Rothenberg of Hebrew University. In his book Timna, Rothenberg concluded that the peoples living in the area were "partners not only in the work but in the worship of Hathor." (Timna, p. 183)

Another area described in the Bible as being rich in gold is Ophir. Ophir was in southwest Arabia. This is the territory of Sheba and Ramah (see map below). Every three years Solomon received tribute of gold, silver, sandalwood, precious stones, ivory, apes and peacocks from Ophir. Solomon's navy traveled to Ophir, taking "four hundred and twenty talents of gold from there" (1 Kgs. 9:26-28; 22:48; 2 Chron. 8:17-18; 9:10).

This gold of Ophir was mined heavily and became scarce. This is attested in Isaiah13:12, which says, "I will make mortal man scarcer than pure gold and mankind than the gold of Ophir."

The Religious Symbolism of Gold

In ancient times high kings, rulers, and judges were noted by some association with the sun. Many rulers among Abraham's ancestors were believed to be appointed by God as the Creator's representatives of earth. The sun symbol appears as the initial Y (a solar cradle) in the names of these Hebrew chiefs and priests: Yaqtan (Joktan); Yishmael (Ishmael); Yishbak; Yitzak (Isaac); Yacob (Jacob); Yosef (Joseph); Yetro (Jethro); Yeshai (Jesse) and Yeshua (Joshua/Jesus).

The letter Y in Ancient Egyptian is represented by two upright feathers. That symbol also designated one with authority to judge.

The Y-solar cradle also appears as bull horns. The mother of Horus is the only woman in ancient history to be shown wearing the horns to indicate her appointment by divine overshadowing.


Hathor the Overshadowed

Hathor was appointed to bear the "son"of God, Horus. In this image she is shown overshadowed by the sun, the emblem or symbol of the Creator. Hathor foreshadows the Virgin Mary, the mother of Jesus Messiah. When Mary asked the angel how she would conceive a child, seeing that she "knew" no man, Gabriel explained, “The Holy Spirit will come on you, and the power of the Most High will overshadow you. So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God." (Lk. 1:25)

Hathor's is often associated with cattle, so it is not surprising that her offspring, Horus, was sometimes portrayed as the golden calf.

Exodus 32:2 says that Aaron fashioned the golden calf from the gold rings worn by the Israelites. We note that Aaron is never criticized or chastened by God for fabricating this Messianic image.


Related reading: The Gold of Ophir; Minoan Golden Bee; Kushite Gold; Nubia in Biblical History; The Golden Calf in Anthropological Context

Competition Between the Horites and the Sethites

Egyptian artifact dating to c. 1970-1878 BC. 

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

This Egyptian hippopotamus statuette can be seen in Gallery 111 at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. Museum workers regard "William the Hippo" as a mascot. The artifact was found in a shaft associated with the funerary chapel of Senbi the Steward. This 8 in (20 cm) figurine in faience, a clay-less material, illustrates the high level of Egyptian faience work during the Middle Kingdom.

According to the Museum, this hippo figure is a "particularly fine example of a type found, in common with various other animal forms, among the funerary furnishings of tombs of the Middle Kingdom."

William seems a benign creature, almost whimsical. However, hippos can be aggressive and are known to attack. In Job 40:15-24, the hippo is called the "behemoth" and is described as one of God's most dangerous creatures. On ancient Nilotic murals and royal vessels, the early kings are often shown spearing fearsome hippos. Such scenes depict the kings as courageous and able to impose order on chaos. The hippo was the animal totem of Seth and sometimes represented the chaos that could arise when Seth, a deified ruler, asserted equality with Horus, the son of the High God.

The competition between Seth and Horus is found in many Egyptian tales. These tales reflect the competitive relationship between the Sethite and the Horite Hebrew who maintained separate settlements (mounds) along the Nile River before the time of Abraham (2000 BC). 

It is clear in the Ancient Pyramid Texts (2400-2000 BC) that the Horites and the Sethites maintained separate settlements. Utterance 308 addresses them as separate entities: "Hail to you, Horus in the Horite Mounds! Hail to you, Horus in the Sethite Mounds!" 

Though separate groups or moieties, the Horite and Sethite Hebrew shared common religious practices and beliefs, and they worshiped the same God and served the same king. However, the Horite temples and shrines were the more prestigious. Utterance 470 contrasts the Horite and Sethite mounds and designates the Horite mounds as "the High Mounds."

Golden Horus falcon found at Nekhen.

The animal totem of Horus was the falcon, symbolizing flight through the heavenly regions. The falcon was also the totem of the Horite Hebrew who were devotees of Horus (HR). HR in ancient Egyptian means the Most High One. 

The hippopotamus, on the other hand, is a creature of the mud, dust, and clay, suggesting that the mounds of the Sethites were the lower mounds. The elevation of the mounds appears to relate to a hierarchy of authority.

Figures relating to both Seth and Horus have been found at Nekhen on the Nile, the oldest known site of Horite Hebrew worship (4000 BC). This figurine of Seth as a red man with the head of a hippo was found at Nekhen. 

Votive offerings at the Nekhen temple were ten times larger than the normal mace heads and bowls found elsewhere, suggesting that this was a very prestigious shrine.

Related reading: Seth, Son of Adam; Horite and Sethite Mounds; Why Nekhen is Anthropologically Significant; Horus, King of the Universe

Jesus Knew He is the Son of God

Jesus' name in ancient Egyptian hieroglyphics.

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

The early Hebrew believed in God Father and God Son and expected the Son of God to appear in the flesh. This is evident in the early texts of the Horite and Sethite Hebrew, some of which date to over 4000 years ago. 

Christianity emerged out of a belief that God made a promise in Eden concerning the Woman who would bring forth the Son of God (Gen. 3:15) and that He has fulfilled that promise in Jesus Christ. The Edenic Promise of Genesis 3:15 foretells how the Woman would bring forth a son who would crush the serpent's head and restore paradise. This early Hebrew expectation was expressed about 1000 years before Psalm 91 in the Pyramid Texts. "Horus has shattered (crushed) the mouth of the serpent with the sole of his foot" (Utterance 388).

 

A Horite Hebrew song found at the royal complex at Ugarit, speaks of HR (Horus) who descends to the place of the dead "to announce good tidings." The text reads: Hr ešeni timerri duri - "below in the dark netherworld" and has the Hittite phrase Šanizzin ḫalukan ḫalzi - "to announce good tidings". (See Note 2 on page 2012.)

The core beliefs of Christianity concerning the Incarnation by divine overshadowing (Luke 1:35), the Christ's proclamation of good tidings to the dead; the third-day resurrection, and the ascension to the Father can be traced to the beliefs of Abraham and his Hebrew ancestors. This faith predates all the world religions. Christianity's authority is rooted in the great antiquity of its central dogmas which have been preserved by divine oversight and which are found in the canonical Scriptures.

It has been said that Jesus never claimed to be the Son of God. That claim is false. Jesus never prevaricated about his identity. He claimed his divine Sonship by referring to the Hebrew Scriptures.

Matthew 22:41-46 

While the Pharisees were gathered together, Jesus asked them, “What do you think about the Messiah? Whose son is he?” “The son of David,” they replied. He said to them, “How is it then that David, speaking by the Spirit, calls him ‘Lord’? For he says, “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I put your enemies under your feet.”’ If then David calls him ‘Lord,’ how can he be his son?” No one could say a word in reply, and from that day on no one dared to ask him any more questions.

This passage illustrates what the First Century Jews believed about the Messiah. When Jesus asked the Pharisees what they thought, they replied that Messiah is the son of David. They did not say Messiah (the Christ) is the Son of God because they did not believe that. Jesus, on the other hand, made that claim for himself when he referred to Daniel's vision and to various Psalms.

Daniel chapter 7 describes Daniel's vision of “one like a son of man,” that is, one who is human, yet “coming with the clouds of heaven” as only a Divine One could do. The "son of man" approached the Ancient of Days (Atik Yomin) and was led into his presence (7:13).

Clearly, Jesus identified himself as the fully human and fully divine one whose kingdom has no end. The Pharisees knew the book of Daniel. They recognized what Jesus was saying when he spoke of himself as the "Son of Man".

They also recognized that the citation is from Psalm 110:1 which reads: David says, “The LORD says to my Lord: 'Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies your footstool'” and they recognized this as a Messianic reference.

Some may have known that this was taken from a text dating to nearly 1000 years before Psalm 110. In the Coffin Texts, we read:

"I am Horus [HR], the great Falcon upon the ramparts of the house of him of the hidden name. My flight has reached the horizon. I have passed by the gods of Nut. I have gone further than the gods of old. Even the most ancient bird could not equal my very first flight. I have removed my place beyond the powers of Set, the foe of my father Osiris. No other god could do what I have done. I have brought the ways of eternity to the twilight of the morning. I am unique in my flight. My wrath will be turned against the enemy of my father Osiris and I will put him beneath my feet in my name of 'Red Cloak'." (Passage 148)

Horus is the Greek for the early Horite Hebrew name HR which means "Most High One" in ancient Egyptian. HR was also called the son of the High God. The Father-Son relationship is expressed in the son's recognition of his Father in others. Horus was said to recognize his father in the deceased king. In a text dating to 2200 B.C. we read, "Horus is a soul and he recognizes his Father in you..." (The Pyramid Texts, Utterance 423)

In John 14, Jesus explains to Phillip, "He who has seen Me has seen the Father."

Luke 20:41–21:4 

Then Jesus said to them, “How is it that they say the Messiah is the Son of David? David himself declares in the Book of Psalms: “‘The Lord said to my Lord: “Sit at my right hand until I make your enemies a footstool for your feet.”’ David calls him ‘Lord.’ How then can he be his son?” While all the people were listening, Jesus said to his disciples, “Beware of the teachers of the law. They like to walk around in flowing robes and love to be greeted in the marketplaces and have the most important seats in the synagogues and the places of honor at banquets. They devour widows’ houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men will be punished most severely.”

The Jewish elite were the most highly informed religious leaders of their people. It is difficult to believe that they did not understand what Jesus was claiming about himself. They knew that their Hebrew ancestors believed in God Father and God Son and that they expected the Son of God to appear in the flesh, yet they instructed the people to expect something different. They insisted that Messiah is a descendant of King David, and he would restore Israel's greatness. Their Messiah was too small and a projection of their own pride.

Jesus subdues the Father's enemies so that God's children might live and prosper. This is expressed in Psalm 2:12: "Kiss the Son, lest he be angry and you be destroyed in your way, for his wrath can flare up in a moment. Blessed are all who take refuge in him."

John the Forerunner called the Jews to repentance so that they might receive their Messiah. The priest Simeon recognized Jesus as the Messiah and knew that his appearing meant the fall and rising of many in Israel (Luke 2:34). The prophetess Anna also recognized the child Jesus as the Messiah, and she gave thanks to God and spoke about the child to all who were looking forward to the redemption of Jerusalem (Luke 2:38). These are the three witnesses whose testimony is valid by Jewish law. 1 John 5:8 says: "And there are three that bear witness in earth, the spirit, and the water, and the blood: and these three agree in one."

Anna represents the Spirit, John the Forerunner represents the water, and Simeon the priest represents the blood.

Related reading: Signs Given That We Might Believe; Where Judaism and Christianity Part Ways; Abraham's Faith Lives in Christianity; Horite and Sethite Mounds; Righteous Rulers and the Resurrection; Jesus Messiah in the Hebrew Scriptures; Jesus' Ruler-Priest Ancestors

The Story Behind Osiris

Dr. Alice C. Linsley

The early Hebrew temple priests were dispersed among many different populations in the ancient world and their caste is older than the first dynasties of Egypt. The oldest known site of Hebrew worship is Nekhen on the Nile (4000 B.C.) The city was dedicated to Horus, the Son of the High God. It is sometimes called the "Falcon City" because the totem of Horus was the falcon.

Golden Horus of Nekhen (c. 2400 B.C.)

At the most fundamental level, early Egyptian religion was Proto-Saharan. The Saharan origin of the rulers of Egypt has been well documented by the Canadian archeologist Mary McDonald.

The belief of the early Hebrew in a High God and his Son morphed over the many centuries into various narratives. The many elaborations involve conflicts between deities, rivalries between cults, and the introduction of ideas quite foreign to the early Nilotic context of the Hebrew people. The syncretism of late Egyptian beliefs is largely due to the necessity of holding together a vast empire that extended from Nubia (Ethiopia) to Turkey.

When I write about the Ra-Horus-Hathor narrative, I typically receive objections such as this:

Horus was Not called the “son of God” but the son of the “Moon [later SUN] God (i.e., “HOsieRUS”, “Osirus”). His so-called “virgin” mother (i.e.,”Isis”), the sister of Osirus, employed a reed in order to replace the only part of Osirus’ 15 body parts not to have been recaptured, to help her bare Osirus’ son-Horus! Not exactly a “virgin” birth! One of the primary distinctions that you failed to mention here is that Isis and Osirus were full sister and brother, a relationship completely prohibited by most ancient cultures, especially the semitic cultures! (From Derek Leman)

Here are the facts related to this jumble of misinformation.

Osirus was a pre-Dynastic ruler and a devotee of Hathor (the Overshadowed One) and her son HR (the Most High One). Osirus was an early Nilotic ruler, not a god. However, over time he was elevated to a deity. This is evident in many of The Ancient Pyramid Texts, some of which date to as early as 6200 years ago. The deification of especially powerful rulers was a common practice in the Ancient Near East, Asia, and India. In the Hebrew Scriptures the term "gods" often refers to high-ranking rulers or what Genesis 6 terms "the mighty men of old". 

Consider Psalm 58:1 in these different versions:

The New Oxford Annotated Bible: "Do you indeed decree what is right, you gods?" Here "gods" refers to rulers.

The New Jerusalem Bible: "Divine as you are, do you truly give upright verdicts?" Again, the reference is to one who renders judgement, not to a deity.

The Jewish Study Bible: "O mighty ones, do you really decree what is just?"

Derived and Attributed Authority

The deification of rulers results from two streams of authority: derived and attributed. Because the ruler was seen to be the High God's representative on earth and the one whose duty was to enforce divine law, his authority was derived from God.

If the ruler proved over time to be just or righteous in his actions and decrees, the priests would attribute deification. This was noted by the SR designation in the ruler's epithet and or royal name. Osiris is O-SiR. Among the Sumerians and Akkadians SR designated a king (šarrum) and a queen (šarratum).

Conflicting narratives

The cult of Osiris as a deity developed concurrently with Egyptian expansionism (c.1900-1100 BC). Narratives from this period present Osiris as the father of Horus, but earlier Nilotic iconography depicts Horus as the one who gives life or immortality to the deceased kings, including Osiris. 

Horus is the Greek rendering of the ancient Egyptian HR which means "Most High One" or "Hidden One". 

HR is the son of Ra/Re. Re in ancient Egyptian means "Father of". Long before Judaism, the Horite Hebrew and the Sethite Hebrew were devotees of God Father and God Son. In Utterance 699 of the Pyramid Texts, Horus ascends aloft and is exalted at his Father's side. The prayer reads: "Be young, be young beside your Father." 

In a text from around 2200 B.C. Horus says about the deceased king, "I recognize my Father in you." 

A Horite song found at the royal complex at Ugarit speaks of Horus who descends to the place of the dead "to announce good tidings." 

Horus is also described as rising on the third day (Pyramid Texts, Utterance 667).

The emblem of Re and HR was the Sun, never the Moon since the Moon was regarded as the lesser light (Gen. 2). 

The mother of Horus was called Hathor. Much later in history, Hathor is transformed into a fertility goddess called Isis. The same happened with Osirus. He too was transformed into a fertility god.

The many changes to the original Ra-Horus-Hathor narrative came with Egypt's imperial expansion. It became necessary to include elements of other religions to keep the peace. The elaboration on simpler beliefs and the tendency to syncretism have been observed by other anthropologists such as Andrew Lang. The earliest known religions were not polytheistic as developed with later Egyptian religion.

The miracle surrounding Hathor is not the "virgin birth" as much as the miraculous conception of the son of God by divine overshadowing. That is why Hathor is always shown with the Sun over her head, and why Gabriel explained to Mary that she would conceive the Most High by overshadowing (Luke1).

The person quoted above (Derek Leman) is unfamiliar with the marriage pattern of the early Hebrew. They married only within their Hebrew ruler-priest caste, and it was common for the high-ranking rulers to marry their patrilineal cousins and half-sisters. Sarah was Abraham's half-sister. The Hebrew clans practiced bride exchange to strengthen the caste bonds.

It was a common practice for the royals of ancient Egypt to marry sisters, half-sisters, and cousins, and sister marriage is mentioned in the Song of Solomon (4:10-12).

Related reading: Christianity is the One True Messianic Faith; Judaism is NOT the Faith of Abraham; The Substance of Abraham's Faith; Abraham's Faith Lives in Christianity; Where Judaism and Christianity Part Ways; Royal Sons and Their Maternal Uncles

Inquiry Into the Development of Western Civilization

Alice C. Linsley, M. Div, D. Litt (honoris causa)

Recently, I was asked to suggest an avenue of inquiry that would best explain the development of western civilization. Most people point to the Romans and classical Latin culture for an answer to that question. However, there are always antecedents, and pursuing antecedents is very much the work of Biblical Anthropology.

The Roman Empire was influenced by Greek culture and philosophy. 

The Greeks were enamored of and influenced by ancient Egyptian culture and religion. (Plato studied for 13 years under a Nilotic priest.) 

5150-year ceremonial Narmer Palette

 

The Upper Nile Valley and the Lower Nile Valley were united for the first time by Narmer at the beginning of the First Dynastic Period (c. 3150 - 2613 BC). Narmer's Palette was discovered among a cache of sacred implements buried within a Horite temple at Hierakonpolis, also called Nekhen on the Nile. The temple was a large structure, fronted by huge cedar pillars, and it became the prototype for temple architecture for many millennia.

Nekhen is called the Falcon City and the falcon was the totem of Horus, the son of Ra. Nekhen was a very prestigious shrine city with votive offerings ten times larger than the normal mace heads and bowls found elsewhere. Other Horite shrines or "mounds" are mentioned in the Pyramid Texts (2400-200 BC). The Horite and the Sethite priests served the same God and the same king but maintained separate mounds. Their relationship is that of a moiety. The term "moiety" refers to one people organized into two ritual groups.

We know from the study of Horite and Sethite writings on the walls of royal tombs that they expected a righteous king to rise from the dead and lead his people to immortality. They also believed in God Father and God Son. Among the Nilotic Horites, God Father was called Ra (from the ancient Egyptian word Re, meaning "father") and the son was called Horus (from the ancient Egyptian HR, meaning Most High One). Among the Mesopotamian Horites/Hurrians, God Father was called Ani and the son was called Enki. 

The earliest law codes were of a religious nature and implemented by rulers who were served by royal priests, some of whom were certainly Hebrew. (In Akkadian the Hebrew ruler-priest caste was called Abrutu, from the Akkadian word for priest - abru). The Code of Ani is a negatively worded moral code, like the Ten Commandments. It dates to c. 2500 BC and is contemporaneous with The Reforms of Urukagina, Sumeria (2500-2350 BC). However, the Law of Tehut dates to about 500 years earlier. That code is associated with King Menes (2930-2900 BC) who administered justice and issued edicts which were designed to improve food production and distribution, guard the rights of ruling families, improve education and enhance knowledge of the natural world through geometry and astronomy.

In my view, we reasonably can point to the early Hebrew as a significant source of the Faith that later became established as the Christian foundations of Western civilization.

Related reading: The Shrine City of Nekhen; Pre-dynastic Tomb Discovered at Nekhen; Early Resurrection Texts; The Ra-Horus-Hathor Narrative; Plato's Debt to Ancient Egypt; Biblical Anthropology and Antecedents

The Sign of Mt. Moriah

Sir Leonard Woolley dubbed this statuette the ram caught in a thicket, alluding to the story of Abraham sacrificing a ram on Mount Moriah.

Alice C. Linsley

Notice that this ram has wings. It represents a deity. The only ram-headed deity of the ancient world was Horus whose name HR in ancient Egyptian means "Most High One." He was called the son of God the Father.

The appearance and sacrifice of the Ram on Mount Moriah foreshadows the sacrifice of Jesus Messiah. Abraham is said to be justified because he obeyed God in going to Mt. Moriah and he believed the sign God gave him. 

"Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect? And the scripture was fulfilled which saith, Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God." (James 2:21-24) 

"For the promise to Abraham and his offspring that He would be heir of the world did not come through the law but through the righteousness of faith." (Rom. 4:13)

Ram-headed Horus faces West

As Abraham and Isaac ascended Mount Moriah, Isaac asked his father, "Where is the lamb for the sacrifice? Abraham replied that God would provide the lamb. Instead, God provided a ram. 

To understand what this meant to Abraham, we must be investigate the Horite Hebrew beliefs concerning the expected Righteous Ruler who would die and overcome death on the third day.

For Abraham the Horite Hebrew, the lamb was associated with the east and the rising of the sun. The sun was the emblem of God Father (Ra/Ani) and God Son (Horus/Enki). As the day advanced, the lamb matured into a ram. The ram was associated with the west, the setting sun, and the future. The period of the morning hours was called Mandjet, and the period of the evening hours was called Mesektet. While Horus was on the Mesektet, he was in his ram-headed form. So Abraham is given a sign concerning a future event involving the son of God as a sacrifice.

Related reading: Jesus: From Lamb to Ram; What Abraham Discovered on Mt. Moriah; Ram Symbolism in the Ancient World; The Ra-Horus-Hathor Narrative; The Substance of Abraham's Faith; The Horite High Places

Horus, the Patron of Kings

Alice C. Linsley

Before the emergence of Buddhism, temples in Cambodia were Hindu shrines dedicated to different deities. Most of the temples had an east orientation, but one at Angkor Wat had a west orientation, suggesting a connection to Horus on the Horizon. The term "Wat" means village, town, settlement, or shrine. Very likely "Anghor" is a variant of "ankh-Hor" which means "Long live Horus!"

Hinduism has many layers that developed over time. As a religion, Hinduism reached its zenith in the Axial Age (900-200 BC). The earliest civilization of the Indus Valley is that of Harappa (2500–1700 BC). In Dravidian, Harappa means "Horus is father." Among many ancient populations, Horus was the patron of kings.

The stone relief (shown above) is at Agkhor Wat. It shows Horus in the form of his falcon totem perched on the mast of Ra's solar boat. 

Parts of the Vedic Samhitas constitute the oldest layer of Hindu tradition and include material that resembles Horite Hebrew concepts. The oldest site of Horite Hebrew worship is at Nekhen on the Nile and dates to around 3800 BC.

Evidently, the Horites spread their religious from ancient Kush to Mesopotamia and beyond. The old fire altars in Hinduism were falcon shaped. The falcon was the totem of Horus. This is why the Shulba Sutras state that "he who desires heaven is to construct a fire-altar in the form of a falcon."

Statue found outside the walls of Angkor Thom in Cambodia. 

(Photo taken around 1958.)

Describing his 1912 visit to Bayon Temple, the French novelist Pierre Loti wrote:

“I looked up at all those towers, rising above me, overgrown in the greenery and suddenly shivered with fear as I saw a giant frozen smile looming down at me … and then another smile, over there in another tower … and then three, and then five, and then ten.”

Khmer Empire was an absolute monarchy that thrived from the 9th to the 15th century. Chou Ta-Kwan was a Chinese envoy to Angkor in the thirteenth century AD. He wrote about the daily life of the Khmer.

"When the king comes out, the troops are at the head of the procession. Their bodies and feet are bare. They hold a lance in their right hands and shields in the left. Then come the standards, the flags and the music. The king and the ministers are all mounted on elephants. In front of them many red parasols can be seen even from far off. Next come the wives and concubines of the king riding in palanquins, carts or on horses and elephants. They carry more than one hundred parasols heavily decorated with gold..." (Horizon: A Magazine of the Arts, January 1959, p. 71)

The Khmer civilization produced the famous Temples of Angkor Wat, Angkor Thom, and the Bayon Temple. The Bayon Temple served as the temple of Jayavarman’s new capital, Angkor Thom, and it was originally a Mahayana shrine. Jayavarman VII (shown right) ruled the Khmer from 1181–1218.

Ta Prohm is the modern name of the temple at Angkor, Siem Reap Province, Cambodia. Construction on Ta Prohm began in 1186 AD. A rare inscription at Ta Prohm provides statistics on the temple's workers. The inscription reports around 80,000 workers, including 2700 officials and 615 dancers. It speaks of 66,000 farmers who provided 3,000 tons of rice annually to support the temple workers, priests, and dancers. Imagine this also happening at Anghor Thom and the Bayon Temple. The burden would have been enormous and this explains why the more egalitarian approach of Buddhism took hold, ultimately supplanting Hinduism in that region.

The deification of the Asian rulers finds precedent among the ancient Nilotes, especially the Egyptians. The ruler-priests of the Khmer look like the priests of the Nile. Compare this image of an Egyptian "Harwa" to the image of Jayavarman VII. In Eleanor Mannika's work, "Angkor Wat: Time, Space and Kingship" she argues that the dimensions, alignment, and bas-reliefs of Angkor Wat speak of Suryavarman II as the divinely appointed king.


Related reading: Elements of the Messianic Faith in Early Hinduism; African Religion Predates Hinduism

Who Were the Wise Men?

Joseph Christian Leyendecker (1900) 

Alice C. Linsley

A friend recently asked me if the Wise Men might have been astrologers; perhaps Zoroastrians from Persia. This notion has been circulating for some time, but it does not fit the evidence.

The Wise Men were astronomers. Astrology, as we think of it, didn't exist in the first century AD. It developed later. They knew Sidereal astronomy. It is real science, based on observation of the arrangement and movement of the fixed stars and planets. This science originated among Abraham's Nilo-Saharan ancestors who had recorded information about the fixed stars and clock-like motion of the planets and constellations for thousands of years. By 4245 BC, the priests of the Upper Nile had established a calendar based on the appearance of the star Sirius that becomes visible to the naked eye once every 1,461 years. Apparently, they had been tracking this star and connecting it to seasonal changes and agriculture for thousands of years. The priest Manetho reported in his history (241 BC) that Nilotic Africans had been “star-gazing” as early as 40,000 years ago. They shared this knowledge with the kings of Egypt.

The ancient Egyptians shared the knowledge with the ancient Greeks. Plato claimed that the Africans had been tracking the heavens for 10,000 years. Plato studied with an Egyptian priest for 13 years and knew about Earth's Great Year, also called the "Platonic Year." This is the time of between 25,000 and 28,000 years that it takes for Earth to complete the cycle of axial precession. This precession was known to Plato who defined the "perfect year" as the return of the celestial bodies (planets) and the diurnal rotation of the fixed stars to their original positions. They understood much more than we moderns give them credit for!

The Wise Men also were descendants of people from Judah who has chosen to remain in Babylon after Cyrus' decree. In other words, they were Babylonian Jews of the Tribe of Judah and therefore were watching for fulfillment of the prophecies concerning the King of the Jews who they expected to come from Judah. That is why they recognized the sign they saw. Using Starry Night, a software program that can track celestial events at any time in history, we now know that the star of Bethlehem was the result of an astronomical singularity: the conjunction of the king star Regulus and the king planet Jupiter. Regulus is in the constellation of Leo, the totem of the tribe of Judah, and one of the brightest stars in the night sky. Jupiter was associated with Horus, the son of the Creator Ra. Read more about the Bethlehem Star here.

For the ancient Egyptians the stars in the constellation of Leo were especially important because the Nile rose when the Sun passes through the constellation of Leo. Therefore, the Lion and the rising strength of the water were associated. In the Church, the Wise Men and the Blessing of Waters are the main themes of Epiphany which is celebrated on January 6th.

Related reading:  Ancient Wisdom, Science and Technology; Which Bethlehem is Jesus' Birthplace?; Ancient Seats of Wisdom; David's Bloodline; The Ark Rested in Bethlehem; David's Royal City; The Eyes of Horus Speak of Jesus; Totems and Tracing the Horites in History; The Celestial Dance Observed by the Magi; Ancient African Astronomers; Astronomical Monuments in Africa