Attractive Deception - Part 6

Satanic Inroads to Judaism and Christianity

Would you be alarmed if your church, congregation, or fellowship of believers put up posters of the image pictured above, or included it as artwork in the weekly bulletin? Would you be offended if a favorite ministry or Christian organization mixed these symbols of Satan with the Scripture reference from Psalm 95:6 as is shown here? Most Christians recognize the inverted pentagram inside the circle as a symbol of Satan worship, and the number 666 as the number of the Beast of the book of Revelation. It is no trivial thing for Christians to embrace this mark.

Revelation 14:9-10
If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.

No doubt, most Christians would respond with righteous indignation if they found such a poster publicly displayed in their church. If they were looking for a church to visit and found such a profane image proudly displayed on the website of a local fellowship, they would immediately cross it off the list. I can hear some saint of God citing the words of the apostle Paul:

II Corinthians 6:14-16
What partnership have righteousness and lawlessness, or what fellowship has light with darkness? Or what harmony has Christ with Belial, or what has a believer in common with an unbeliever? Or what agreement has the temple of God with idols?

To merge together the holy and the profane is a serious matter in the eyes of Yahweh. It was the duty of the Levitical priesthood to instruct the people of God to separate the holy from the vile.

Ezekiel 44:23
“Moreover, they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and the profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean.”

It was rare, however, when the Levites actually fulfilled this duty in a faithful manner. For much of the history of God’s people, idolatry and profane practices were merged with the worship of Yahweh. Ezekiel records for us one of the many times in which the people of Yahweh brought great uncleanness into the Temple and sanctuary (holy place) of God.

Ezekiel 8:3-16
And the Spirit lifted me up between earth and heaven, and brought me in visions of God to Jerusalem, to the door of the north gate of the inner court, where the seat of the image of jealousy was, which provokes to jealousy... Then He said to me, “Son of man, lift your eyes now toward the north.” So I lifted my eyes toward the north, and there, north of the altar gate, was this image (idol) of jealousy in the entrance. Furthermore He said to me, “Son of man, do you see what they are doing, the great abominations that the house of Israel commits here, to make Me go far away from My sanctuary? Now turn again, you will see greater abominations.” So He brought me to the door of the court; and when I looked, there was a hole in the wall. Then He said to me, “Son of man, dig into the wall”; and when I dug into the wall, there was a door. And He said to me, “Go in, and see the wicked abominations which they are doing there.” So I went in and saw, and there - every sort of creeping thing, abominable beasts, and all the idols of the house of Israel, portrayed all around on the walls... Then He said to me, “Son of man, have you seen what the elders of the house of Israel do in the dark, every man in the room of his idols? For they say, ‘Yahweh does not see us, Yahweh has forsaken the land.’” And He said to me, “Turn again, and you will see greater abominations that they are doing.” So He brought me to the door of the north gate of Yahweh's house; and to my dismay, women were sitting there weeping for Tammuz. Then He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? Turn again, you will see greater abominations than these.” So He brought me into the inner court of Yahweh's house; and there, at the door of the temple of Yahweh, between the porch and the altar, were about twenty-five men with their backs toward the temple of Yahweh and their faces toward the east, and they were worshiping the sun toward the east.

Ezekiel Digging Into the Temple

The Spirit of God took the prophet on a tour of the Temple. He showed Ezekiel the numerous profane images, both idols and depictions of various creatures which the elders of Israel were worshiping. Ezekiel was shown the women of Israel weeping for Tammuz, a false deity of Babylon. He was shown 25 men prostrating themselves as they worshiped the Sun. Satan was markedly successful in bringing the profane into the house of God. Satan defiled that which was pure. He corrupted the minds and hearts of those who were covenanted to have no other gods beside Yahweh.

Satan’s work of introducing that which is profane into the pure worship of Yahweh and His Son Yahshua has never ceased. As soon as the church was birthed, Satan began to seek ways to pollute, corrupt, and subvert it. He has been highly successful. What would the prophet see today if he looked at the churches devoted to the worship of Jesus Christ/Yahshua the Messiah? He would see very much the same things He was shown at the Temple just before Yahweh destroyed it by the hands of Nebuchadnezzar, King of Babylon.

Ezekiel would see that the worshipers of Christ had adopted the high holy days of the pagan idolaters. He would see that the church had no knowledge of the Feast Days of Yahweh: Passover, Pentecost, and Tabernacles. He would see that they had been replaced with Christmas and Easter, the former being the ancient worship of Saturn and the latter the worship of the goddess of fertility. He would see the Hebrew Roots Christians doing the same thing with their observance of Hanukkah.

The prophet would observe the similar construction of the church buildings, the majority of which feature an obelisk marking the location of the sanctuary (holy place).

These Protestant obelisks mirror those belonging to the harlot of Rome, which she stole from Heliopolis, the City of the Sun, in Egypt.

Obelisk at St. Peter’s Square, Vatican City

There is a clear trail from Roman Catholicism back to the Sun worship of Egypt. The solar deity of Egypt was called Baal or Bel by the Babylonians, hence the origin of the word Obelisk (shaft of Bel). It says a lot about the success of Satan in introducing apostasy to the church when their most holy day bears the name of Easter, the goddess of fertility who is the Babylonian Ishtar, the Ashtoreth of the Sidonians, and the Greek Astarte.

I Kings 11:4-5
For it came about when Solomon was old, his wives turned his heart away after other gods; and his heart was not wholly devoted to Yahweh his God, as the heart of David his father had been. For Solomon went after Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians...

How serious a matter was this to Yahweh? It was very serious.

I Kings 11:31-33
Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, “Behold, I will tear the kingdom out of the hand of Solomon and give you ten tribes (but he will have one tribe, for the sake of My servant David and for the sake of Jerusalem, the city which I have chosen from all the tribes of Israel), because they have forsaken Me, and have worshiped Ashtoreth the goddess of the Sidonians, Chemosh the god of Moab, and Milcom the god of the sons of Ammon...”

Yahweh said “You shall have no other gods before Me.” One understanding of the first of the Ten Commandments is “You shall have no other gods in My presence.” Nevertheless, the Hebrews of the Old Covenant, and the Christians of the New Covenant, have consistently merged the profane worship of the Baals and Ashtoreth with that of Yahweh and His Christ.

Judges 2:11-13
Then the sons of Israel did evil in the sight of Yahweh, and served the Baals, and they forsook Yahweh, the God of their fathers, who had brought them out of the land of Egypt, and followed other gods from among the gods of the peoples who were around them, and bowed themselves down to them; thus they provoked Yahweh to anger. So they forsook Yahweh and served Baal and the Ashtoreth (Ishtar/Astarte/Easter).

They served Baal and Ashtoreth. Today the churches have an obelisk atop the building, denoting Baal worship, and their most holy day of the year is Easter, which is a Germanic form of the name Ashtoreth. Nothing has changed. Satan remains as successful as ever in bringing the profane into the house of God.

But what of those Christians who are turning away from mainline denominational Christianity to Hebrew Roots? Are they more successful in separating themselves from apostasy and from embracing Satanic names, rites, and symbols? As we have observed in our look at the Jewish Festival of Lights, also known as Hanukkah, those adopting this “Hebrew” festival have not avoided the deception and corruptions of the adversary. They have been plied with false explanations for these symbols and rites, explanations that Satan reserves for those who are deemed to be unworthy of the truth, “a teaching proportioned to their imperfect reason.”

The following questions beg to be answered, “If a Christian is offended by the poster which appears at the head of this chapter, a poster that combines images related to Satanic worship with Scriptures that speak of the worship of Yahweh, then why are they not incensed every time they drive down the street and see a church building with a steeple? Why are they not incensed every year when Christians replace the crucifixion of Christ that occurred at the Biblical Passover with the name of the pagan goddess of fertility, Easter? Why are they not provoked to jealousy when the Lamb of God is commemorated by eating Easter ham, a tradition that hearkens back to the death of Tammuz, the son of Baal and Ishtar, who was slain by a wild boar?”

Tammuz (Greek Adonis) Dying From His Wounds
(Note the gash on his thigh from the boar’s tusk.)

The forty days of mourning leading up to Easter, a period which the Roman Catholic Church calls Lent, is the ancient rite of mourning for Tammuz that Ezekiel was shown as he observed the women in the Temple. This forty days of mourning begins with Ash Wednesday. On this day the priests of Rome place ash on the forehead of the worshipers, this being an ancient symbol of mourning.

Yes, Ezekiel would see the very things done today which provoked Yahweh to jealousy in 600 B.C.. Because so much idolatry has been introduced to the churches of this hour, the Spirit of Christ is calling out to the people of God the following words recorded by the apostle John.

Revelation 18:4-5
Come out of her [Babylon, the Great Harlot], my people, that you may not participate in her sins and that you may not receive of her plagues; for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities.

It is encouraging to find that a remnant are heeding the call to come out of Babylon (confusion). There is a remnant who are separating themselves from the profane practices, symbols, rites, and holy days wherewith Satan has defiled the body of Christ. Yet, among those who are troubled by the apostasy of the Christian religious system, a significant number are being further deceived by the adversary as they embrace the Hebrew Roots Movement which is leavened with the apostasies of Talmudic and Kabbalistic Judaism. Thinking they are returning to a purer and more authentic Christian practice, they are in fact exchanging the profane elements of apostate Christianity for those of apostate Judaism.

If the poster at the head of this chapter is offensive, then the banner directly above advertising the Beit HaTorah should be offensive as well. It combines a Satanic symbol with an invitation to devote oneself to the “apostles’ teaching.” The six pointed star is NOT a Christian symbol. It was NOT embraced by the apostles, by Christ, or the early church. It is a symbol the Jews adopted as representative of the ancient study of Alchemy, and more recently of Kabbalah. The “Star of David” does not have anything to do with King David. The name given to this symbol is merely one more deceit of the adversary, a false explanation intended to mislead those who are considered unworthy to know the “Luciferian truth.”

Israeli Flag

The flag of the Zionist State of Israel is one of the most recognized flags in the world today. The six pointed star is called “the Magen David,” literally “the Shield of David,” but commonly called “the Star of David.” Where did this symbol come from? It was on the flag of the First Zionist Congress which convened in 1897 in Basel, Switzerland.

Flag of the First Zionist Congress, 1897

Twenty years later, in 1917, the Balfour Declaration was issued. This Declaration was a letter from the United Kingdom's Foreign Secretary Arthur James Balfour to Baron Rothschild (Walter Rothschild, 2nd Baron Rothschild). Baron Rothschild was a leader of the Jewish community in England, a man deeply involved with the Zionist movement. He, along with the rest of the Rothschild banking cabal, was also a Luciferian. The Balfour Declaration expressed the British government’s favorable view of the establishment of a Jewish state in Palestine. The Balfour Declaration was published in 1917 in the British press on the 9th day of November (written as  9-11 in England).

It is possible to trace the path by which the six pointed star, became associated with Zionism, by observing that this symbol is found on the shield and the coat of arms of the Rothschild family.

Rothschild Coat of Arms

The Lion/Griffin, the Unicorn, and the Phoenix also appear on the Rothschild coat of arms, all of which are symbols of Satan. The Rothschilds are a family who have turned to the worship of Satan in order to receive power and wealth from “the god of this world.” The Hexagram on their coat of arms is therefore understood to be another Luciferian symbol.

There are multiple profane meanings bound up in this symbol. The first I will mention is that the six-pointed star is a symbolic representation of the number 666. The star has six points, six outer triangles, and six sides to the inner hexagon.

This is an obvious reference to Satan and his earthly kingdom. A second meaning for this symbol is traceable back through Kabbalah to the more ancient study of Alchemy. Many associate Alchemy with a misguided attempt of ancient men to transmute base metals into gold. This, however, is merely one aspect of Alchemy. Alchemy also had a mystical, or spiritual side. The transmutation of base metals into gold served as a parable for transforming mortal and corruptible men into transcendent spiritual beings, or gods. Alchemy promised to men two things that were necessary for this higher state to be reached: gnosis (knowledge), and immortality.

The following image is taken from a book on Alchemy which was published in the early 1600s. On it you can clearly see the symbol which has come to be known as “the Star of David.”

Image from The Hermetic Garden of Daniel Stolcius (1620)

The Latin phrase circling the image translates as “Only he who knows how to make the Philosopher’s Stone, understands what is said concerning the Stone.” Many people have become familiar with the term “Philosopher’s Stone” through the wildly popular Harry Potter series of books and movies. The Philosopher’s Stone is a concept found in Alchemy. In Alchemy, all things that exist come from the black stone, the prima materia. The black stone is the stone of transformation. This is the Philosopher’s Stone. This is the object that can change, or transmute mankind according to alchemical lore.

The image above reveals the promise held forth by the Philosopher’s Stone. The man has two faces, one being that of a child, and the other an adult. In this duality is portrayed youthfulness (or immortality) and wisdom. Echoing this theme, the man is holding a serpent in his right hand and the Phoenix in his left. The serpent from ancient times has represented wisdom, whereas the Phoenix symbolizes immortality as it is reborn after being consumed in flames.

It is not coincidental that gnosis and immortality were two things Satan promised to mankind in his first temptation in the Garden of Eden. He held out to Eve the forbidden fruit which grew on the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil. He also promised Eve that if she partook of this fruit, she would not die. Thirdly, Satan told Eve the fruit would make her godlike. These are the same promises held forth by Alchemy through the instrumentality of the Philosopher’s Stone.

In the Middle Ages, Alchemy and brewing were closely related, not unlike the relationship between the trade of Masonry and Kabbalah which led to Freemasonry, or Speculative Masonry. The following excerpt is taken from the website of a Brewing Museum. It is often astonishing to find that those outside of Christianity frequently have more knowledge of the symbols Christians embrace than those who profess to be disciples of Yahshua.

The 6 pointed Brewer’s star’s, identical to the Jewish Star of David, actually has its roots in alchemy.

Enclosed below is a diagram by Hans Kestler, former Huber Brewery brewmaster, illustrating the component parts of the brewers star, as related to brewing and alchemy. These elements include Fire, the masculine element of action and determination, portrayed by a triangle facing the heavens. The masculine element of air which deals with communication and intelligence is also a triangle, facing upward, but with a horizontal line symbolizing the clouds at the top of the mountain.

These two elements are ascending and are governed by the principal of levity. The feminine element of water is represented by a triangle facing the earth - like the rivers that flow to the lowest grounds. Earth is the other feminine element that is represented by a triangle pointing down with a horizontal line representing the surface of the earth. These two elements are ruled by the principal of gravity. Combined these four elements represent the Great Work in alchemy, which means harmony, balance, and peace. These noble concepts are represented by David's Star. Just like the yin-yang symbol of Eastern Alchemy represent the balance between feminine and masculine, so does the Shield of David symbolize the peace between any two opposing forces...

In alchemy, the two triangles represent the reconciliation of the opposites of fire and water. Non-Jewish Kabbalah (also called Christian or Hermetic Kabbalah) interprets the hexagram to mean the divine union of male and female energy, where the male is represented by the upper triangle (referred to as the "blade") and the female by the lower one (referred to as the "chalice")...

The Six Point Star, can be drawn two different ways, as an upside-down triangle overlapping an upright triangle or as one continuous line that angles to create six points (credited to Aleister Crowley). In the first example, when used in alchemy, the upright triangle represents fire, the upside-down triangle is the symbol for water, and together they symbolize the unity of opposites.

Although the pentagram is widely recognized as the symbol of witchcraft, the hexagram is actually very ancient and one of the most powerful symbols used in occultism and the casting of zodiacal horoscopes by astrologers. In fact, magicians and alchemists believed that the hexagram was actually the footprint of a demon called a “trud,” which they used in ceremonies to both attract and repel demons. The word “hex” or “curse” comes from the hexagon.

The hexagram, in addition to appearing in the Great Seal of Solomon, is also a common symbol in Judaism, as there supposedly was a 6-pointed star on the shield that David carried to battle Goliath. However, despite the popularity of the Star of David, there is no Biblical or historical evidence that connects the hexagram with King David of Israel, although it can be traced to King Solomon when he turned to pagan gods in his later years.
[source: http://www.brewingmuseum.org/articles/six-point-brewers-star]

Amazing, isn’t it? You can find the truth about this symbol on the website of a beer museum, but you cannot find the truth in the churches which proudly display this symbol. Even the brewing historians recognize that the symbol has no Biblical, or historical connection to King David, yet Christians are adopting the symbol and calling it “the Star of David.”

Returning to the Philosopher’s Stone, or the Prima Materia, we find that it is actually a mystical representation of Satan. He is the one who promises transformation to men through the impartation of gnosis. Once a man reaches a place of enlightenment, he is able to transcend this mortal plane and pass into a godlike state. In Freemasonry, this is referred to as apotheosis. On the ceiling of the U.S. Capitol Rotunda in Washington, D.C., there is a famous painting of George Washington ascending to take his place among the gods. The painting is called The Apotheosis of Washington.

The Apotheosis of Washington

Following is a close-up image of George Washington, who was a Freemason familiar with the mysteries of Lucifer.

It is in coming in contact with Lucifer, who is the Philosopher’s Stone, that mankind obtains gnosis which is able to transmute the base metal of humanity’s earthly state to a golden state of divinity. This joining of man to Satan is represented by the two triangles. The upper pointing triangle signifies Lucifer descending from the heavens to man, while the downward pointing triangle represents humanity ascending. Joined together they signify mankind raised to a heavenly state even as a star is a heavenly symbol.

Consider then, how profane and offensive is the banner created for the Beit HaTorah. It combines a Scripture verse which speaks of Christians devoting themselves to the apostles’ teaching, while depicting the symbol for occult study of Alchemy which promises to transform men through the impartation of Luciferian knowledge. Could there be a more inappropriate merging of symbols and Scriptures? The image I placed at the beginning of this chapter is no more offensive. Ignorance of the symbols of Satan does not justify their adoption. It is also gross error to believe that Christians can take the things of Satan and “redeem” them to be used as symbols of Yahweh and His Son.

Moving on to other significations of the six pointed star, I would mention its description as “the Star of Saturn,” an association acknowledged in many occult writings. Perceiving the six pointed star to be a symbol of Saturn, we can discover one more reason the Rothschilds have adopted this symbol. In ancient Rome, the Temple of Saturn was the location of the Roman Treasury. The gold and silver of Rome were stored in Saturn’s temple. Saturn was considered the god of prosperity. He is associated with the mythical “Golden Age” of mankind, a period when all men lived peaceful lives of abundance and where no labor was required. Because of this association between Saturn, security, and prosperity, his temple was chosen as the place for the Roman Republic’s money to be stored.

The Rothschilds are bankers. They are the storekeepers for the money of the world. Their banks serve as the modern temples of Saturn, the repositories for the riches of nations. As worshipers of Saturn/Satan, the Rothschilds have adopted the star of Saturn as a symbol of their allegiance.

Renowned occultist Madame Helena Blavatsky understood the link between the six pointed star and Satan/Lucifer. Blavatsky was openly luciferian in her beliefs. Helena Blavatsky was instrumental in forming the Theosophical Society which chose as the central emblem of their seal the six pointed star.

Theosophical Society Seal

In the late 1800s, the Theosophical Society had a publishing house which they named Lucifer Trust. They put out a magazine named Lucifer.

Madame Blavatsky and the Magazine Lucifer

In the 1920s Horace and Alice Bailey, both admirers of Blavatsky and of the teachings of Theosophy, began their own publishing house named Lucifer Publishing Company. After a few years the name was changed to Lucis Publishing Company. The following explanation for the name is provided at the official website of the Lucis Trust, the parent company.

Both “Lucifer” and “Lucis” come from the same word root, lucis being the Latin generative case meaning of light. The Baileys' reasons for choosing the original name are not known to us, but we can only surmise that they, like the great teacher H.P. Blavatsky, for whom they had enormous respect, sought to elicit a deeper understanding of the sacrifice made by Lucifer. Alice and Foster Bailey were serious students and teachers of Theosophy, a spiritual tradition which views Lucifer as one of the solar Angels, those advanced Beings Who Theosophy says descended (thus “the fall”) from Venus to our planet eons ago to bring the principle of mind to what was then animal-man. In the theosophical perspective, the descent of these solar Angels was not a fall into sin or disgrace but rather an act of great sacrifice, as is suggested in the name “Lucifer” which means light-bearer.
[Source: http://www.lucistrust.org/en/arcane_school/talks_and_articles/the_esoteric_meaning_of_lucifer]

Alchemy, Kabbalah, Freemasonry, Theosophy and numerous other esoteric streams of thought all share in common their worship of Lucifer. This fallen angel is viewed as having made a great sacrifice for mankind, bringing to man the knowledge necessary for his advancement. Madame Blavatsky speaks of the work of Satan to raise man from an animal-like condition to a sublime state in her book The Secret Doctrine.

And now it stands proven that Satan, or the Red Fiery Dragon, “The Lord of Phosphorous” (brimstone was a theological improvement), and Lucifer, or “Light Bearer,” is in us: it is our Mind (our tempter and Redeemer), our intelligent liberator and Savior from pure animalism. Without this principle - the emanation of the very essence of the pure divine principle Mahat (Intelligence), which radiates direct from the Divine mind - we would be surely no better than animals.

The “pure divine principle” to which Blavatsky refers is the prima materia of the Alchemists. The movie producer Stanley Kubrick, a profound esotericist, created the movie 2001, A Space Odyssey, to present to mankind the very teaching which Madame Blavatsky was expressing. Throughout the movie mankind encounters a black stone obelisk. This obelisk is the Philosopher’s Stone, the prima materia of Alchemy. It is also Lucifer. The first encounter shows man as being ape-like, “no better than animals.”

2001 - Man’s First Encounter with the Prima Materia

As a result of this encounter, these human forebears suddenly learn how to use tools. Four million years later mankind has his second encounter with the black monolith as they discover one hidden beneath the surface of the moon.

Man’s Second Encounter with the Philosopher’s Stone

Upon this encounter, the monolith begins emitting an intense signal, directing mankind to a location near the planet Jupiter. To use the words of Blavatsky, the signal is “the emanation of the very essence of the pure divine principle Mahat (Intelligence), which radiates direct from the Divine mind.” People involved with the movie state that Stanley Kubrick initially planned to have the destination to be near the planet Saturn, but he was thwarted by the technicians inability to construct a realistic image of Saturn and its rings, opting for the easier image of the planet Jupiter. If this account is true, it would fit very well with the ancient association of Saturn with Satan/Lucifer. After the moon encounter, a scene appears showing a manned spaceship heading to Jupiter. We are informed that it is now 18 months later, 18 being 6+6+6. Upon arrival at the planet Jupiter man has his third encounter with the black obelisk. This time, it is a massive black slab floating in space.

When the main character of the movie, Dr. David Bowman, encounters the monolith he has a spiritual experience that overwhelms his mind. In the final scenes we see Dr. David Bowman in various advancing ages of his life, until while on his death bed he encounters the monolith one final time.

Final Encounter with Philosopher’s Stone

At this point, Dr. Bowman is transformed. In place of his aged, dying body appears the image of an embryonic starchild surrounded with light. In the final scene we see this starchild approaching the earth. This completes the transmutation of man from an ape to a god, all accomplished through human encounters with Satan. Dr. Bowman has received gnosis from the black monolith, and like the mystical Phoenix, he is reborn on his death bed as a new creature.

2001, A Space Odyssey - Starchild and Earth

When we understand that the black monolith is the prima materia of Alchemy, aka the Philosopher’s Stone, which is a symbolic image of Lucifer as the one who brings the light of knowledge to mankind, the deceit of Satan becomes evident. The Lucis Trust website describes Lucifer “as one of the solar Angels, those advanced Beings Who Theosophy says descended... to our planet eons ago to bring the principle of mind to what was then animal-man.” It is to animal-man that the monolith first appears in 2001, A Space Odyssey. The Theosophical magazine Lucifer bears the tagline, “Designed ‘to bring to light the hidden things of darkness.’” It is indeed darkness that is being brought out into the open by this magazine, and by all of these Luciferian organizations.

What do Alchemy, Kabbalah, Freemasonry, Theosophy, and the worship of Saturn, Satan, and Lucifer all have in common? They use the six pointed star as a symbol of their identity, the esoteric representation of the number 666.

Zionist Brigade Recruitment Poster

What do you see in the image above? Do you see a Jewish woman in a positive role as a daughter of Zion? Or do you see a wicked woman whose forehead is stamped with the sign of the Satanic mind? Your interpretation of this imagery will depend upon whether you see the true origin and meaning of this Luciferian symbolism, or whether you have adopted the false explanations Satan has devised for those whose reason is deemed imperfect. Satan is an angel of darkness masquerading as an angel of light. He has set before men and women spiritual darkness and has called it light.

Isaiah 5:20
Woe to those who call evil good, and good evil; Who substitute darkness for light and light for darkness; Who substitute bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter!

Those who embrace the so called Star of David; those who observe Hanukkah with the lighting of the candles, are acting out the message of Lucifer appearing as a bringer of gnosis, of light, which will lift mankind out of the darkness of his animal-like state to a position of heavenly attainment. Satan is the great deceiver who deceives the entire world. Will you go to your church with the monument to Bel raised high to the sky? Will you substitute the fertility rites of Easter for the Biblical Passover, failing to divide between the holy and the profane? Will you be like those whom the prophet Ezekiel was shown, who bring defilement into the Temple of Yahweh? Or will you be among the remnant of Yahweh who separate themselves from the symbols of Satan?

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Attractive Deception - Chapter 5

The Hidden Worship of Satan

Image of Saturn from the Roman City of Pompeii

In the book Saturnalia, Macrobius has the character Praetextatus speak the following words:

It is permissible for me to reveal the great origin of the Saturnalia - not the origin that touches on the secret nature of the divinity, but the one that is spoken of with an admixture of legendary elements or is revealed to all sundry by the physical scientists. Telling the secret account that flows from the pure source of truth is forbidden even in the very midst of the rites, and if someone learns them, he is commanded to keep them hidden within his heart. Accordingly, our friend Horus will be allowed to review with me the things that may be known.
[Ibid, page 73]

With these words, Macrobius reveals to us that the worship of Saturn was then, as it is now, cloaked in a garb of secrecy. Like Freemasonry, those who are newly initiated are plied with legends which serve as a substitute for the truth. Only as one advances to the level of an adept, proving their loyalty, is the “pure source of truth” unveiled before their eyes. We observe this process in Freemasonry as only those who attain to the highest degrees are informed that the true god of the lodge is Lucifer. Albert Pike, a man skilled in the arcane knowledge of Masonry, and who held the position of Supreme Commander of Scottish Rite Freemasonry in North America, wrote the following.

The Blue Degrees are but the outer court or portico of the Temple. Part of the symbols are displayed there to the Initiate, but he is intentionally misled by false interpretations. It is not intended that he shall understand them; but it is intended that he shall imagine that he understands them. Their true explication is reserved for the Adepts, the Princes of Masonry...

Masonry, like all the Religions, all the Mysteries, Hermeticism and Alchemy, conceals its secrets from all except the Adepts and Sages, or the Elect, and uses false explanations and misinterpretations of its symbols to mislead those who deserve only to be misled; to conceal the Truth, which it calls Light, from them, and to draw them away from it. Truth is not for those who are unworthy or unable to receive it, or would pervert it....

The truth must be kept secret, and the masses need a teaching proportioned to their imperfect reason…
[Source: Albert Pike, Morals and Dogma, Published 1871]

Albert Pike confessed to the “Princes of Masonry” that their true god is Lucifer, and their doctrines are Luciferian.

That which we must say to the crowd is - We worship a God, but it is the God that one adores without superstition.

To you, Sovereign Grand Inspectors General [of the 33rd degree], we say this, that you may repeat it to the Brethren of the 32nd, 31st, and 30th degrees - The Masonic religion should be, by all of us initiates of the high degrees, maintained in the purity of the Luciferian doctrine.

If Lucifer were not God, would Adonay, the God of the Christians, whose deeds prove his cruelty, perfidy, and hatred of man, barbarism and repulsion for science, would Adonay and his priests, calumniate him?

Yes, Lucifer is God, and unfortunately Adonay is also God. For the eternal law is that there is no light without shade, no beauty without ugliness, no white without black, for the absolute can only exist as two Gods: darkness being necessary to light to serve as its foil as the pedestal is necessary to the statue, and the brake to the locomotive...

Thus, the doctrine of Satanism is a heresy; and the true and pure philosophic religion is the belief in Lucifer, the equal of Adonay; but Lucifer, God of Light and God of Good, is struggling for humanity against Adonay, the God of Darkness and Evil.
[A.C. De La Rive, La Femme et L’enfant dans La Franc-Maconnerie Universelle (Women and Children in Universal Freemasonry), Page 588 ]

Albert Pike Statue in Washington, D.C.

Albert Pike’s words regarding the “mysteries” of Freemasonry echo the words written by Macrobius 1,500 years earlier. Satan/Lucifer continues to be worshiped by men such as Albert Pike in secret, while immensely greater numbers of men are led to embrace the forms of Satan worship unwittingly as they are lied to about the origins and meanings of the rites and symbols they are embracing. An hour is at hand when Satan, the great dragon and serpent of old, will be worshiped openly by the citizens of this world.

Revelation 13:3-4
And the whole earth was amazed and followed after the beast; and they worshiped the dragon, because he gave his authority to the beast...

In preparation of that coming hour, men, women, and children are being plied with an increasing flood of Satanic symbols.

Satanic Symbols By Musicians and Actors
(666 Hand Sign, All Seeing Eye, Pyramid)

Luciferian Symbols in Corporate Logos and Advertising

An endless list of examples could be provided from television, movies, video games, magazines, billboards, books, etc., demonstrating the pervasiveness of the symbols and rites of Satanic worship which are conditioning humanity to accept the overt worship of “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2) and “the god of this world” (II Corinthians 4:4). It would be difficult to find a Christian home today that does not have a multitude of these symbols present. Indeed, it is difficult to separate oneself from these images of Satan worship even if one has a mind to do so.

Logo for Apple Computer

What family does not own at least one iPhone, iPod, iPad, iMac, or some other product sold by Apple Computer. The logo of an apple with a bite out of it points directly to Satan’s great triumph over mankind in the Garden of Eden. Steve Jobs and Steve Wozniak priced their first computer, the Apple 1 for $666.66. The rainbow coloring of the original logo also resembles the rainbow symbol adopted by the homosexual movement. Apple’s current CEO Tim Cook is an admitted homosexual. Apple was ranked as the most valuable company in the world in 2014. Satan rewards those people and companies who will bow down and worship him.

Matthew 4:8-10
Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things will I give You, if You fall down and worship me.”

The entire world is being guided swiftly to the place where they will worship Satan openly. To condition humanity to embrace Satan worship, they are being subjected to Luciferian rites and symbols until they are accepted as normal. We can tell that the plans of the god of this world are maturing as we observe ever more overt manifestations of Satan worship. The veil is being removed. Super Bowl XLVI featured Madonna and Cee Lo Green performing a Black Mass during the half-time show which lasted for thirteen minutes.

http://parablesblog.blogspot.com/2012/02/super-bowl-xlvi-strange-flesh-and.html

Indeed, every world class championship sporting event, including the World Cup of Soccer and the Olympics, have become showcases of Satanic rites and symbols. Similarly, the awards shows for actors and musicians are being used to unveil to the world the worship of Lucifer. At the 2014 Grammy Awards, Katy Perry sang her song Dark Horse as she mimicked performing black magic. The song Dark Horse has been viewed more than a billion times on YouTube. One posting alone has more than 823 million views. Recent years have also seen entertainers such as Nicki Minaj performing overtly Satanic acts as in the example of the 2012 Grammy’s where she sang Roman Holiday.

Roman Holiday

Yet Satan has paid especial attention to corrupting the people of Yahweh. He has expended great effort in introducing to both Jews and Christians the symbols and rites of his own worship. He has done so in a veiled manner, for as Albert Pike declared, Satan “uses false explanations and misinterpretations of its symbols to mislead those who deserve only to be misled; to conceal the Truth, which it calls Light, from them, and to draw them away from it. Truth is not for those who are unworthy or unable to receive it, or would pervert it....” Christians and Jews alike are deemed unworthy of knowing the true meaning of the rites and symbols foisted upon them. Those who are worshipers of Yahweh and His Son Yahshua are deemed to be deficient in both reason and understanding. Therefore, Satan gives to them “a teaching proportioned to their imperfect reason.”

A growing number of Christians are become educated regarding the unclean spiritual elements of Christmas and Easter. I trust that this present writing is helping some to perceive the Satanic origins of the festival known as Hanukkah. Both Hanukkah and Christmas are adaptations of the Roman Saturnalia. The subtlety and cunning of the devil is evident in that he has led multitudes of Christians to embrace as their highest holy days two celebrations that are idolatrous. Christmas is nothing more than the worship of Saturn/Satan promoted to Christians as a celebration of the birth of God’s Son. Easter still bears the name of the pagan goddess of fertility whom it honors. Easter is a Germanic form of the Babylonian Ishtar. In the Old Testament we read of the Israelites worshiping this pagan goddess under the names Astarte and Ashtoreth.

Unlike the other gods worshiped by the Romans, the statue of Saturn that resided in his temple at the base of the Capitoline hill was draped in a veil. The image introducing this chapter shows Saturn veiled while holding his accompanying sickle. The image was found painted on a wall of that wicked Roman city, Pompeii. The city of Pompeii, along with the city of Herculaneum, fell under Yahweh’s judgment in similar fashion as the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah two millennia earlier. When Mount Vesuvius erupted in 79 A.D., both of these Roman cities were buried in fiery ash and pumice, and smothered with suffocating heat and gases, killing the inhabitants almost instantly. The cities were buried, frozen in time. They have been a treasure trove for historians, showing what life was like in the Roman empire of the first century A.D..

Both Pompeii and Herculaneum were grossly debauched cities. Found among the ruins of the cities were many vile statues, ornaments, decorations and murals depicting sexual orgies, sex with animals, homosexuality, and all manner of sexual immorality. These objects and paintings were located in very public places revealing the open and unabashed pursuit of hedonistic pleasure in these cities. That Saturn should be worshiped in these cities as the chief deity of the Romans reveals much about the character of the being represented by this idol. It was not long after the destruction of these cities that Paul wrote his epistle to the Romans. In his letter he made reference to the sexual deviancy that was common among Roman society.

Romans 1:18-32
For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who suppress the truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them. For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God, or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures. Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, that their bodies might be dishonored among them. For they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen. For this reason God gave them over to degrading passions; for their women exchanged the natural function for that which is unnatural, and in the same way also the men abandoned the natural function of the woman and burned in their desire toward one another, men with men committing indecent acts and receiving in their own persons the due penalty of their error. And just as they did not see fit to acknowledge God any longer, God gave them over to a depraved mind, to do those things which are not proper, being filled with all unrighteousness, wickedness, greed, evil; full of envy, murder, strife, deceit, malice; they are gossips, slanderers, haters of God, insolent, arrogant, boastful, inventors of evil, disobedient to parents, without understanding, untrustworthy, unloving, unmerciful; and, although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them.

These words of Paul describe a Saturnian society. So closely associated was Rome with the worship of Saturn that the ancient writers Ovid, Pliny, and Aurelius Victor tell us the original name of Rome was Saturnia, “the City of Saturn.” Italy itself has long been renowned as “the Saturnian Land.” This veiled Saturn, the god whose worshipers are not permitted to disclose the truth of his being and his character openly, nor to give the true explanation of his rites and symbols, is none other than Satan. Are not the wicked fruits described by Paul in his letter to the Romans what one would expect to be associated with a people who have given themselves over to the worship of Satan, the adversary of Yahweh and of all that is holy and good?

Alexander Hislop, in his valuable writing titled The Two Babylons, traces the worship of Saturn from Rome back to the Chaldeans in the land of Babylon. The “mystery” religion of Babylon was carried to Italy and Rome where it flourished once more.

On the Capitoline hill, so famed in after-days as the great high place of Roman worship, Saturnia, or the city of Saturn, the great Chaldean god had in the days of dim and distant antiquity been erected. Some revolution had then taken place - the graven images of Babylon had been abolished - the erecting of any idol had been sternly prohibited,* and when the twin founders of the now world-renowned city reared its humble walls, the city and the palace of their Babylonian predecessor had long lain in ruins.
* PLUTARCH (in Hist. Numoe) states, that Numa forbade the making of images, and that for 170 years after the founding of Rome, no images were allowed in the Roman temples...

The deadly wound, however, thus given to the Chaldean system, was destined to be healed. A colony of Etruscans, earnestly attached to the Chaldean idolatry, had migrated, some say from Asia Minor, others from Greece, and settled in the immediate neighborhood of Rome. They were ultimately incorporated in the Roman state, but long before this political union took place they exercised the most powerful influence on the religion of the Romans. From the very first their skill in augury, soothsaying, and all science, real or pretended, that the augurs or soothsayers monopolized, made the Romans look up to them with respect. It is admitted on all hands that the Romans derived their knowledge of augury, which occupied so prominent a place in every public transaction in which they engaged, chiefly from the Tuscans, that is, the people of Etruria, and at first none but natives of that country were permitted to exercise the office of a Haruspex, which had respect to all the rites essentially involved in sacrifice.

Wars and disputes arose between Rome and the Etruscans; but still the highest of the noble youths of Rome were sent to Etruria to be instructed in the sacred science which flourished there. The consequence was, that under the influence of men whose minds were molded by those who clung to the ancient idol-worship, the Romans were brought back again to much of that idolatry which they had formerly repudiated and cast off. Though Numa, therefore, in setting up his religious system, so far deferred to the prevailing feeling of his day and forbade image-worship, yet in consequence of the alliance subsisting between Rome and Etruria in sacred things, matters were put in train for the ultimate subversion of that prohibition. The college of Pontiffs, of which he laid the foundation, in process of time came to be substantially an Etruscan college, and the Sovereign Pontiff that presided over that college, and that controlled all the public and private religious rites of the Roman people in all essential respects, became in spirit and in practice an Etruscan Pontiff.

Still the Sovereign Pontiff of Rome, even after the Etruscan idolatry was absorbed into the Roman system, was only an offshoot from the grand original Babylonian system. He was a devoted worshiper of the Babylonian god; but he was not the legitimate representative of that God. The true legitimate Babylonian Pontiff had his seat beyond the bounds of the Roman empire. That seat, after the death of Belshazzar, and the expulsion of the Chaldean priesthood from Babylon by the Medo-Persian kings, was at Pergamos, where afterwards was one of the seven churches of Asia.  There, in consequence, for many centuries was "Satan's seat" (Rev 2:13). There, under favor of the deified  kings of Pergamos, was his favorite abode, there was the worship of Aesculapius, under the form of the serpent, celebrated with frantic orgies and excesses, that elsewhere were kept under some measure of restraint...

Saturn and Mystery are both Chaldean words, and they are correlative terms. As Mystery signifies the Hidden system, so Saturn signifies the Hidden god...

To those who were initiated the god was revealed; to all else he was hidden. Now, the name Saturn in Chaldee is pronounced Satur; but, as every Chaldee scholar knows, consists only of four letters, thus - Stur. This name contains exactly the Apocalyptic number 666:--
S = 060 
T = 400 
U = 006 
R = 200

But what bearing, it may be said, has this upon the name “Lateinos,” which is commonly believed to be the "name of the beast"?... On etymological grounds, then, even on the testimony of the Romans, Lateinos is equivalent to the "Hidden One"; that is, to Saturn, the "god of Mystery."
[Alexander Hislop, The Two Babylons]

The Veiled Throne of Saturn

The relief pictured above is found in the Louvre in Paris. It is dated to the first century A.D. in Rome. Two of the cherubim can be seen carrying the sickle of Saturn. That the throne is veiled, once more points to the veiled and secret nature of the worship of this deity. It was not disclosed openly that it was Satan who was being worshiped. Legends promoting an alternate identity and character of the chief god of the Romans under the name of Saturn served to obscure the truth of the Satanic worship to all but the advanced devotees of this fallen angel. Let us recap what Alexander Hislop has disclosed regarding the “Hidden One,” while adding further information.

Etruria and Rome

The present city of Rome was founded in the year 753 B.C.. This was approximately the time in which the northern ten tribes of Israel were conquered and carried into captivity to Assyria and about 150 years prior to the time Judah was carried captive into Babylon. It is not to be supposed that the territory of Rome was uninhabited prior to 753 B.C.. For many centuries prior to Rome’s founding the land now recognized as Italy had been occupied by various peoples.

The historic center of the city of Rome was constructed around Capitoline Hill. It is here that numerous temples and political and civic buildings were constructed. This area was known as the Forum Magnum, commonly referred to today as the Roman Forum. It was the center of public life.

Roman Forum and Capitoline Hill

The second building from the lower left in the image above is the temple of Saturn. It held a prominent position in this hub of Roman public life. Hislop informs us that in the centuries before Rome was founded, before the Forum was constructed, this same location served as a place for the worship of Babylonian deities. At some point the Babylonian worship was overthrown, and the ancient city and palace had fallen into ruins. It was upon these ruins that Rome arose. The Phoenix rising from the ashes of its own immolation is an apt analogy for the resurrection of the old Chaldean worship in the newly founded city of Rome/Saturnia.

The Etruscan people carried forward the ancient Babylonian worship. They migrated to northern Italy and held much influence over the territory surrounding Rome. Although the Romans held political power, the Etruscans wielded the religious power. Ultimately, Rome adopted the old Babylonian mystery religion that was kept alive by the Etruscans. Numa, the second king of Rome, laid the foundations for the College of Pontiffs. This religious body was the equivalent of the priesthood of Israel. The Sovereign Pontiff, or Pontifex Maximus, was similar to the Jewish High Priest. The word “Pontiff” is believed to mean “bridge builder.” The English word “pontoon” and its association with bridging bodies of water, is derived from the same root word. The word Pontiff may be related to the idea of the priest serving as a bridge between mankind and the deity.

For 500 years, half of a millennia, the College of Pontiffs were the priests of the pagan mystery religion of Rome. Only after the birth of the church in the first century A.D. was the term “Pontiff” applied to a Christian religious leader. As Christianity spread to the region of Rome the influence of pagan religion began to influence and subvert the purity of the apostolic faith. One of the earliest known references to a Christian church leader being called “Pontifex Maximus” was in the early church father Tertullian’s writing in which he reproves Calistus who is the “bishop of bishops” of the Christian church in Rome. The Roman Catholics consider Calistus to be the 16th Pope in a line of succession that began with the apostle Peter.

In opposition to this [modesty], could I not have acted the dissembler? I hear that there has even been an edict sent forth, and a peremptory one too. The ‘Pontifex Maximus,’ that is the ‘bishop of bishops,’ issues an edict: ‘I remit, to such as have discharged [the requirements of] repentance, the sins both of adultery and of fornication.’ O edict, on which cannot be inscribed, ‘Good deed!’ ...Far, far from Christ's betrothed be such a proclamation!
[On Modesty 1, Ante-Nicene Fathers IV:74]

Calistus - Pope 217-222 A.D.

Tertullian may have been writing facetiously when he referred to Calistus as the “Pontifex Maximus,” for this title was given to the Emperor of Rome who was the de facto head of the College of Pontiffs. It would not be until Constantine the Great, ruler of Rome from 306-337 A.D. that an Emperor would declare himself to be a Christian, and the official religion of Rome to be Christianity. Consequently, the title of Pontifex Maximus was not officially applied to a “Christian” ruler until Constantine’s reign. The early church fathers of Tertullian’s day recognized the Pontifex Maximus as the evil high priest of a profane and idolatrous religion. They referred to the Pontifex Maximus as “the king of heathendom.” This title which from antiquity was assigned to the top religious leader of the Roman mystery religion is now borne by the Pope of the Roman Catholic Church. All of the costumes, rites, symbols, holidays, and doctrines of the Roman Catholic Church which are such a departure from the pure apostolic faith of the early church, are elements carried over from the ancient mystery religion, the worship of Satan, which began in Babylon.

Hislop relates that although Rome became a renowned center of Satan worship under the guise of worshiping Saturn, the true seat of Satan was in Pergamon. This fact is attested to in the Bible as Christ is addressing the church residing in that city.

Revelation 2:13
“I know where you dwell, where Satan's throne is; and you hold fast My name, and did not deny My faith, even in the days of Antipas, My witness, My faithful one, who was killed among you, where Satan dwells.”

Pergamon is a city in Turkey, the land where many historians believe the Etruscans lived before they migrated to Northern Italy. In Pergamon was a famous altar built atop a hill overlooking the surrounding land. It was built in the 2nd century B.C.. The altar fell into ruins until the German engineer Carl Humann began excavating the site in 1878. The excavation continued until 1886. The Germans were particularly interested in recovering the images adorning the frieze at the base of the altar. It was agreed that the recovered panels would become the property of the Germans and they were transported to Berlin where the west front of the altar was reconstructed and the frieze restored.

Pergamon Altar in Berlin

This being the main altar and religious shrine from the ancient city of Pergamon, many people equate it with “Satan’s Throne,” spoken of in the book of Revelation. It was considered an ill omen when the stage for the Democratic Convention held in Denver, Colorado in 2008 was designed as a temple bearing a striking resemblance to the Pergamon Altar. It was here, in this “high place” that Barack Obama received the Democratic nomination for President.

2008 Democratic Convention

What we are observing in society is an increasing externalization of Satan worship. The introduction of Satanic elements into Christianity and Judaism is hardly less subtle, though it goes unnoticed by the masses of professing believers. As mentioned in the previous chapter, Hanukkah has adopted wholesale much of the Roman Saturnalia. The Saturnalia was held on the date of the dedication of the Temple of Saturn in Rome in 497 B.C.. If Hanukkah actually refers to the re-dedication of the Temple of Jerusalem after the Greeks had defiled it, why is it not called “The Feast of Re-Dedication.” Why does it bear the name “The Feast of Dedication,” a title which hearkens back to the founding of the Temple of Saturn? Why is Hanukkah also called The Festival of Lights, a name by which Saturnalia was also known, as Macrobius informs us? Why is Hanukkah observed with the lighting of candles, the exchange of dreidels, and the eating of oily foods, all of which are traceable back to the idolatrous celebration of Saturn?

Those who are determined to continue to observe this eight day “Jewish” festival will inevitably cite the common legends associated with Hanukkah. They are unwilling to acknowledge that they are merely repeating the “false explanations and misinterpretations” that Satan and his disciples use “to mislead those who deserve only to be misled.” They are engaging in the “hidden” worship of Satan. They are partaking of the “mysteries” which originated in Babylon while not understanding the truth of the symbols and rites they have adopted.

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Attractive Deception - Chapter 4

Hanukkah - The Jewish Saturnalia

Idolatry has always been a snare to Yahweh’s chosen people. Abram, the first of the Hebrews, was called out of Ur of the Chaldees by Yahweh. Ur lay in the land of Babylonia, the most ancient source of idolatry. Undoubtedly, when Yahweh appeared to Abram calling him to “Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father's house, to the land which I will show you” (Genesis 12:1), the instruction was to leave the idolatrous practices of his family, and of the land of the Chaldeans behind. It is not speculation to suggest that Abram came from a family of idolaters. The Scriptures inform us of the fact.

Joshua 24:2-3
And Joshua said to all the people, “Thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, ‘From ancient times your fathers lived beyond the River, namely, Terah, the father of Abraham and the father of Nahor, and they served other gods. Then I took your father Abraham from beyond the River, and led him through all the land of Canaan, and multiplied his descendants...’”

The Chaldean name Ur translates as “flame,” or “light.” The Chaldeans were renowned for their astrology, a mixture of astronomy and deity worship. Ur’s designation as “the Light of the Chaldeans” was almost certainly a reference to the heavenly lights that were the focus of their worship. Indeed, the prominence of astral worship was so great among the inhabitants of Chaldea that the name Chaldean has become synonymous with “astrologer.” Abraham’s descendants demonstrated a penchant for returning to the worship of the celestial lights. This proclivity toward worship of the Sun, moon, and starry hosts (including the planets) was so strong that Yahweh was induced to warn the Hebrews against the practice.

Deuteronomy 4:19
And beware, lest you lift up your eyes to heaven and see the sun and the moon and the stars, all the host of heaven, and be drawn away and worship them and serve them...

These words were spoken four centuries after the death of Abraham, at a time when Moses was leading the Israelites out from captivity in Egypt. When the Israelites came up from Egypt, they were not the pure and devoted worshipers of Yahweh that some imagine them to be. The prophet Amos provides the following testimony.

Amos 5:25-27
Did you bring to Me sacrifices and cereal offerings during those forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? No but instead of bringing Me the appointed sacrifices you carried about the tent of your king Sakkuth and Kaiwan [names for the gods of the planet Saturn], your images of your star-god which you made for yourselves and you will do so again. Therefore I will cause you to go into exile beyond Damascus, says the Lord, whose name is the God of hosts.
[Amplified Bible]

It is pertinent to our present study to note that at least one of the gods named by Amos is identified with the Roman deity known as Saturn. This was the understanding of the Jewish translators of the Septuagint, an early translation of the Hebrew Scriptures into Greek dated around the 3rd century B.C.. In the Septuagint, the Hebrew word Chiun (Kaiwan) was rendered as “Remphan” which was the Egyptian name for the planet Saturn. Evidence points to the Jews having embraced the worship of Saturn while in Babylon. It is this idolatrous worship that serves as the true origin of the Festival of Lights, which is also called Hanukkah.

I was astonished recently when I came across a serious Bible teacher proclaiming that the Jews finally learned the lesson that Yahweh wanted to teach them while they were in captivity in Babylon. The writer asserted that the Jews put away their idolatrous tendencies from the time of the Babylonian captivity forward and became zealous adherents to, and proponents of, Yahweh and the sacred Scriptures which He had entrusted to them. How can a Christian minister defend such a claim? The people of whom he speaks murdered the Son of God when He visited them.

Was there ever a time when the Hebrew people became associated with another nation whether through intermarrying, through conquest, or through alliances, when they did not transgress by adopting their idolatrous practices? Why would it be assumed that the Jews period of habitation in Babylon, a land that was “mad over their idols” (Jeremiah 50:38), would have a different result than any other period of Jewish history? Do we not read that when Jacob went to Haran to marry Rachel and Leah, upon his return the members of his household brought back idols with them (Genesis 31:34, 35:2)? Not many years later Jacob’s sons went down to Egypt. When they came up four centuries later, they brought the idols of the land with them.

During the period between the Egyptian captivity and that of the kings of Israel and Judah, a period recorded in the book of Judges, Abraham’s descendants were continually falling into idolatry. The idolatry continued during the time of the kings. Solomon married many foreign women and they turned his heart toward their gods. He built high places for them all around Jerusalem, leading the people of God into idolatry.

I Kings 11:7-8
Then Solomon built a high place for Chemosh the detestable idol of Moab, on the mountain which is east of Jerusalem, and for Molech the detestable idol of the sons of Ammon. Thus also he did for all his foreign wives, who burned incense and sacrificed to their gods.

This idolatry continued unabated in the northern kingdom of Israel, and knew only brief reprieves in the southern kingdom of Judah. Therefore, Yahweh judged the people and sold them into captivity to Assyria and Babylon.

Acts 7:39-44
“And our fathers were unwilling to be obedient to him, but repudiated him and in their hearts turned back to Egypt, saying to Aaron, ‘Make for us gods who will go before us; for this Moses who led us out of the land of Egypt - we do not know what happened to him.’ And at that time they made a calf and brought a sacrifice to the idol, and were rejoicing in the works of their hands. But God turned away and delivered them up to serve the host of heaven; as it is written in the book of the prophets, ‘It was not to Me that you offered victims and sacrifices forty years in the wilderness, was it, O house of Israel? You also took along the tabernacle of Moloch and the star of the god Rompha (Saturn), the images which you made to worship them. I also will remove you beyond Babylon.’”

Stephen, the first Christian martyr, testified of the Jewish people’s ceaseless spiritual adultery as they adopted the gods of other nations. As he was concluding the last words he would utter, Stephen declared, “You men who are stiff-necked and uncircumcised in heart and ears are always resisting the Holy Spirit; you are doing just as your fathers did” (Acts 7:51). Nothing had changed between the time of the Jewish captivity in Babylon circa 600 B.C. and the time of Christ. The Hebrew people remained wayward in their hearts. Pretending to be zealous for Yahweh and His word, they were in fact children of the devil as Yahshua testified.

John 8:42-44
Yahshua said to them, “If God were your Father, you would love Me; for I proceeded forth and have come from God, for I have not even come on My own initiative, but He sent Me. Why do you not understand what I am saying? It is because you cannot hear My word. You are of your father the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father.”

Rather than being the devoted students of God’s word that some perceive the Jews of Christ’s day to have been, they had gone so far astray in their hearts that they did Satan’s bidding by putting to death the Lord of glory. Is it too much to believe then, that these same men, and their descendants over the next centuries, would embrace a Babylonian festival to Saturn/Satan while covering it over with a thin veneer of Judaism in the same manner the Christians did with Christmas and the Roman Saturnalia? The Hanukiah is the “Flame of the Chaldeans” embraced once more by the descendants of Abraham. Satan had brought the Hebrew people full circle. The called out descendants of Abraham had returned to the idolatrous worship of their forefathers.

Flame/Light of the Chaldeans

The Chaldeans/Babylonians worshiped the heavenly host; the sun, moon, planets, and stars. I can imagine Satan engaging in deceit as he persuaded the Jews that they were in some manner honoring their forebears by returning to the more ancient faith of Abraham and his ancestors, returning to the worship of the heavenly host. This overt worship of the lights in the heavens and the deities they represented was commonplace in the Israelites pre-captivity history.

II Kings 17:16-19
And they forsook all the commandments of Yahweh their God and made for themselves molten images, even two calves, and made an Asherah and worshiped all the host of heaven and served Baal. Then they made their sons and their daughters pass through the fire, and practiced divination and enchantments, and sold themselves to do evil in the sight of Yahweh, provoking Him. So Yahweh was very angry with Israel, and removed them from His sight; none was left except the tribe of Judah. Also Judah did not keep the commandments of Yahweh their God, but walked in the customs which Israel had introduced.

After the captivity, the idolatry of the Hebrews obtained a more hidden nature. Instead of engaging in visible worship of Baal, Ashtoreth, Molech, Chemosh, Remphan/Saturn, and all the host of heaven, they began to introduce heretical elements of the worship of these gods into the worship of Yahweh. The rabbis through the Oral Torah, the Talmud, Midrash, and Kabbalistic writings, brought forth interpretations of the Bible/Tanakh that defiled the worship of Yahweh until it became the worship of Satan.

As an example of the sophistry employed by the rabbis, we find in the Talmud that the candlestick which stood in the Tabernacle of Moses and in the Temple of Solomon, has been re-interpreted to be symbolic of the seven visible planets. (From antiquity, the Sun, Moon, Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn have been recognized as seven celestial lights that differed from the stars in their motions. The five planets mentioned in this list are the only planets visible to the unaided eye.)

In the Midrash (Bamidbar Rabbah 15:7) the seven lamps of the Menorah are compared to the seven planets listed above. The Talmud goes much further in commenting on the symbolism of the lights of the Menorah and the planets associated with them. In Tractate Shabbat 156a we find the following commentary.

R. Hanina said to then, [his disciples]: Go out and tell the son of Levi, Not the constellation of the day but that of the hour is the determining influence. He who is born under the constellation of the sun  will be a distinguished  man: he will eat and drink of his own and his secrets will lie uncovered; if a thief, he will have no success. He who is born under Venus will be wealthy and unchaste [immoral]. What is the reason? Because fire was created therein.  He who is born under Mercury will be of a retentive memory and wise. What is the reason? Because it [Mercury] is the sun's scribe. He who is born under the Moon will be a man to suffer evil, building and demolishing, demolishing and building. eating and drinking that which is not his and his secrets will remain hidden: if a thief, he will be successful.  He who is born under Saturn will be a man whose plans will be frustrated.  Others say: All [nefarious] designs against him will be frustrated. He who is born under Zedek [Jupiter] will be a right-doing man [zadkan] R. Nahman b. Isaac observed: Right-doing in good deeds.  He who is born under Mars will be a shedder of blood. R. Ashi observed: Either a surgeon, a thief, a slaughterer, or a circumciser. Rabbah said: I was born under Mars.  Abaye retorted: You too inflict punishment and kill. It was stated. R. Hanina said: The planetary influence gives wisdom, the planetary influence gives wealth, and Israel stands under planetary influence.

This Talmudic entry sounds very much like Babylonian astrology, looking to the hour and day of one’s birth to forecast what a person’s life and character will be. It can hardly be coincidental that Mercury is mentioned as the Sun’s scribe, and the Romans held Mercury to be the messenger of the gods. There is clear evidence of idolatrous influences in the opinions of the rabbis which are recorded in the Talmud, and Midrash. This influence is even more pronounced in the Kabbalistic writings of the Jews. The primary document of Kabbalistic teaching, The Zohar, makes the following comment regarding the candlestick in the Jewish Temple: "These lamps, like the planets above, receive their light from the sun."

Modern Freemasonry is derived from Kabbalah. We can therefore look to the writings of Freemasonry to discern what the Jewish mystics believed about the planets and their relationship to the golden candlestick, or menorah, that Moses commanded to be built. Frank C. Higgins in his book The Beginning of Masonry, published in 1916, writes the following regarding the Jewish seven-branched candlestick (the illustration is taken from his book):

Thus the seven planets were the seven old gods of the Babylonians, - Shamash, the Sun; Sin, the Moon; Nebo, Mercury; Ishtar, Venus; Nergal, Mars; Marduk, Jupiter; and Ea, Saturn.

The Jewish seven-branched candlestick and its symbolism.

From left to right, the seven flames correspond to the following planets:

Saturn-Jupiter-Mars-the Sun-Venus-Mercury-the Moon

According to Talmudic dogma, it is forbidden for anyone to construct a seven-flame candlestick of the same pattern delivered to Moses. Consequently, any menorah that a Jew possesses in their home, in a synagogue, or any other public or private place, must have fewer than, or more than, seven lights. The Hanukiah abides by this stricture, as it possesses nine lights.

Did you note that Frank Higgins stated that the central flame, that which corresponds to the Sun, is called by the Babylonians “Shamash”? This is the same name the Jews give to the central candle on the Hanukiah, though they provide the explanation that the Hebrew word “Shamash” means “attendant,” or “servant.” The Talmud instructs the Jewish believer to always set the “Shamash” candle apart, either higher, or lower, than the other eight candles. Most typically, it is elevated over the other candles.

In the previous chapter it was mentioned that there is a specific order given in the Talmud, specifying how the candles on the Hanukiah are to be lit. This order is illustrated in the graphic above. The Shamash candle must be lit first. It is used to light every other candle. Supposedly, this is the reason for it being called Shamash, the attendant, or servant. This candle is the only one of the nine on the Hanukiah to be given a name.

One might ask, “How can the Hanukiah be related to the worship of Saturn if the central candle is named Shamash, and Shamash is the Babylonian name for the Sun and the deity it embodies?” On the Roman calendar, Sol Invictus Dies Natalis followed the Saturnalia. Sol Invictus was the celebration of the Birthday of the Unconquerable Sun (Which is the source of the Christian tradition of celebrating the birth of the Son of God on the same day). If the Shamash candle is representative of the Babylonian Sun-god, then we would have to logically conclude that Hanukkah is a solar festival, not a Saturnian festival.

Among the Babylonians, the Sun and Saturn had a very intriguing relationship. The name the Babylonians called Saturn by was Alap-Shamash, meaning “Star of the Sun.” It is interesting to note that a great many Hanukkah Menorahs incorporate what is referred to as ‘the star of David’ in the body of the candlestick. This six-pointed star is an ancient occult symbol relating to the worship of Satan.

Satan is known by the name Lucifer which means “light bringer,” or “light bearer.” Satan styles himself as a benevolent being who has brought the light of wisdom and knowledge to mankind. Throughout human history he has donned many personas or images that are a variation on this theme. One of them is as Prometheus, the Titan who taught mankind the secret of fire and of many of the hidden arts of the gods. Because Prometheus defied the gods in giving forbidden knowledge to mankind, he was cruelly punished by Zeus, chained to a mountain side where a great eagle would daily come and eat his liver only to have it regenerate every night due to his immortality.

Prometheus Statue at Rockefeller Plaza, New York City

The Rockefeller family has erected a statue of Prometheus in New York City. The Rockefellers are an Illuminati family. They serve the one who claims to be a bringer of light to mankind. Satan rewards those who worship him. In the gospel of Matthew, we observe him offering to reward the Son of God if He would only bow down before him.

Matthew 4:8-11
Again, the devil took Him to a very high mountain, and showed Him all the kingdoms of the world, and their glory; and he said to Him, “All these things will I give You, if You fall down and worship me.” Then Yahshua said to him, “Begone, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’”

Although the Son of God rebuffed Satan and refused the “gifts” he offered, there have been many men and women who have sold their souls to the devil in order to receive fame, fortune, or some worldly gain in return. Among them are the Rockefellers and the Rothschilds. Tragically, many Jews have been led astray to worship Lucifer as the god of light. These are the same ones Yahshua declared to be sons of their father, the devil.

Prometheus at Rockefeller Center

Every Christmas, directly above the statue of Prometheus/Lucifer at Rockefeller Center, an enormous Christmas tree is erected amid much pomp. The tree is adorned with lights, and a blazing star signifying Lucifer, the angelic light bearer, crowns the top. Note the symbolism of Prometheus holding the gift of fire directly under the tree where the Christmas presents would be placed. Satan boasts of having brought the blazing light of knowledge to humanity. I would postulate that this is precisely the same image being presented with the Shamash candle which stands apart from and above the other candles on the Hanukiah. This candle is used to light all the others. Thus is Satan/Saturn/Lucifer depicted as being the source of all light, and bringing that light to mankind.

II Corinthians 11:13-15
For such men are false apostles, deceitful workers, disguising themselves as apostles of Christ. And no wonder, for even Satan disguises himself as an angel of light. Therefore it is not surprising if his servants also disguise themselves as servants of righteousness; whose end shall be according to their deeds.

When Satan tempted Adam and Eve to eat of the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, he was offering them a gift. He was alluring them with forbidden knowledge. Yet, to Satan’s disciples, the transgression of this fallen angel is styled as a benevolent gift, and Yahweh is figured as a tyrant who punished Satan unjustly. In Satan’s guise as Prometheus, we read the following words regarding this being, the words being inscribed beneath the statue.

Prometheus, teacher in every art, brought the fire that hath proved to mortals a means to mighty ends.

In the New Testament the word for angel is also translated as “messenger.” Consequently, the phrase “angel of light” and “messenger of wisdom and knowledge” become synonymous with one another. What is depicted in the lighting of the Christmas tree and the laying of gifts beneath it, is the same story being told through the Shamash candle being used to light the eight candles of the Hanukiah. Lucifer, the light bringer, is portrayed as giving his light/wisdom/knowledge to mankind.

It is of little consequence whether Shamash refers to the Babylonian Sun-god, or whether it is a reference to Alap-Shamash, the deity associated with the planet Saturn. Both roads lead back to Satan who styles himself as the heavenly ruler and the source of light for all mankind. Recognizing that the days of the week are all dedicated to various deities, and understanding that Satan is an usurper, wanting to ascend to the place reserved for Yahweh, it follows logically that he would wish to usurp unto himself that day which is peculiarly reserved for the worship of Yahweh. In the Bible, that day is the Sabbath, the seventh day of the week. It is notable that the seventh day Sabbath has been replaced among a great many nations of the world with the worship of Saturn. Hence, in the English speaking portions of the world, we call the seventh day Saturday (Saturn’s Day).

Although it is not readily apparent why the planet Saturn would come to such prominence, since it is among the dimmest of the seven ancient planets due to its great distance from the Sun and earth, historians relate that this planet and the god it represents held a position of preeminence among the heavenly lights. Diodorus Siculus, a Greek historian who lived in the first century B.C., wrote that the Chaldeans regarded Saturn as the most prominent of the planets.

But above all in importance, they (the Chaldeans) say, in the study of the influence of the five stars known as planets, the one named Cronus by the Greeks (i.e., Saturn) is the most conspicuous.

Also affirming the elevated position of Saturn in the pantheon of the gods, we find that in the Sanskrit language Saturn is named Grahanayakah. This name is a compound of “graha(h)” (planet), and “nayakah” (chief or leader). Thus, Saturn was accorded the title of “Chief Planet” by those who spoke the ancient language of Sanskrit which flourished from approximately 2,000 B.C. until 600 B.C.. Sanskrist is the religious language of the Hindus, Buddhists, and Jains.

In Sanskrit another name attributed to Saturn is Shani. In this language the seventh day of the week is called Shanivar which translates as Saturn's day. In Cambodia the seventh day is named in honor of Prah Sau, which again corresponds to the planet Saturn. In Japanese, the seventh day is Do Youbi, and is associated with Dosei (Saturn). In the solar calendar of Thailand, the name of the day is derived from a Pali word for Saturn (Pali now being an extinct language).

Throughout the world we find that the seventh day which was declared holy by Yahweh, has been supplanted by idolatrous religions that worshiped Saturn. If we follow the trail leading back to the worship of Saturn, we find additional correspondence with the celebration of Hanukkah. One of the chief sources on the Roman celebration of Saturnalia is the book titled Saturnalia written by Macrobius Ambrosius Theodosius. The date of this encyclopedic writing is around 400 A.D.. In this work it is stated that Saturn was considered by the Romans to be “the foremost of the gods” and that the Romans “celebrate Saturn with the greatest honor, among all the other (gods).”

In Macrobius’ Saturnalia, a character is discoursing on the origin of the festival and its various rites and symbols. He explains how the worship of Saturn became associated with the kindling of lights. The story goes that Saturn was formerly worshiped with human sacrifice. The heads of men who had been slain were required to appease the god. This changed when Hercules persuaded the people to substitute the offering of men for that of burning lights. It is explained that the Latin word “phota” means both “man” and “lights.” Thus the custom of exchanging candles during the Saturnalia began. (Source: Macrobius’ Saturnalia, edited and translated by Robert A. Kaster, page 81).

If one accepts this explanation of the lighting of the candles being a substitute for human sacrifice, it is a serious matter for those who light the Hanukiah. As each light is set ablaze it is offered up as a substitute for human sacrifice. In other words, the lives of mankind are being symbolically offered up to Saturn/Satan.

A second significance of the lighting of candles relates to the association between light and knowledge. Macrobius writes:

Others think that candles are exchanged precisely because it was under Saturn’s guidance that we passed out from a dark and uncultured way of life to the light cast by the knowledge of beneficial skills.
[Ibid, page 83]

Whether a person is symbolically offering human sacrifice to Satan, or honoring him as the giver of knowledge and gifts to mankind, the act is one of immense evil.

As I mentioned at the end of the preceding chapter, another association between Hanukkah and Saturnalia is derived from the alternate name The Feast of Dedication. The rabbis in the Talmud, and the authors of I and II Maccabees, inform us that it was the Jewish Temple in Jerusalem that is in reference here. Yet, if we peel away the deceit, and look back to a more ancient source for this celebration, we find that Saturnalia was held on the day that the Temple of Saturn was dedicated in Rome in the year 497 B.C., long before the reported victory of Judas Maccabeus over the Seleucid armies. Two further associations to Hanukkah are observed as we read what is revealed in the Wikipedia article on the feast of Saturnalia.

Saturnalia is a festival of light leading to the winter solstice, with the abundant presence of candles symbolizing the quest for knowledge and truth...

Gambling and dice-playing, normally prohibited, or at least frowned upon, were permitted for all, even slaves.
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Saturnalia]

The Roman Saturnalia was referred to as the “Festival of Light.” This same name is given to the Jewish celebration of Hanukkah. From the second statement above we derive another correspondence. Other than the nine-candle menorah, one of the most widely associated symbols of Hanukkah today is the Dreidel.

Dreidels

Dreidels are given as gifts, especially to children, during the eight days of Hanukkah. The dreidel originates from a gambling device called the teetotum. It is basically a dice that spins. The Wikipedia entry on the teetotum contains the following information.

In its earliest form the body was square (in some cases via a stick through a regular six-sided die), marked on the four sides by the letters A (Lat. aufer, take) indicating that the player takes one from the pool, D (Lat. depone, put down) when a fine has to be paid, N (Lat. nihil, nothing), and T (Lat. totum, all), when the whole pool is to be taken.
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Teetotum]

A square with a stick in one side is a very good description of a dreidel. Is it mere coincidence that Saturnalia was “marked by gambling and dice-playing,” and the dreidel has become an inseparable part of the Hanukkah observance today?

A final association between Hanukkah and Saturnalia that I will mention to close this chapter, is the tradition of cooking oily foods, such as latkes (potato pancakes) during Hanukkah.

Latkes

The statue of Saturn in its temple in Rome has been described by ancient historians as being hollow and constructed of wood. Saturn is depicted as a veiled figure holding a scythe. The hollow statue was filled with oil. It is reported that it was filled anew every year on the anniversary of the dedication of Saturn’s temple. This is at the time of the Saturnalia festival, and corresponds to the season of Hanukkah.

One modern explanation for the emphasis on oily foods during Hanukkah points back to the miracle of the oil recorded in the Talmud. As has been shown, however, this story of the temple menorah burning for eight days on a single day’s worth of oil is a fabrication of the rabbis. It was not reported in the much older accounts in I and II Maccabees and in Josephus’ Antiquities of the Jews. A more plausible explanation for the emphasis on oil during Hanukkah is that the Jews practiced syncretism as they adopted the rites and symbols of the worship of Saturn. Saturn from antiquity has had an association with oil as is observed in the worship of Shani, which was mentioned earlier as a Hindu equivalent of Saturn.  Shani was “one of the... nine primary celestial beings in Hindu astrology... Shani is embodied in the planet Saturn and is the Lord of Saturday” [Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shani]

Note the ladder behind the statue to enable worshipers to ascend to the head of the idol in order to pour oil over it. This idol is found in India, a land of many languages. The rite of pouring oil over the statue is referred to in the following manner in the local languages. In Sanskrit, Telugu and Malayalam the rite is called Tailabhishekam (Tailam means oil). In Telugu the rite is also called Nuvvula Nune (Nuvvulu means Sesame; Nune means oil). In the language Kannada, the rite is referred to as Ellenne (Ellu means sesame; enne means oil).

There is an English expression that states, “If it looks like a duck, swims like a duck, and quacks like a duck, then it probably is a duck.” The Hanukkah celebration passes the test for being a Jewish adoption of the ancient worship of Saturn. It shares the same holiday names as Saturnalia: The Feast of Dedication; The Festival of lights. It shares the same rites with the lighting of the candles, the giving of dreidels as gifts, and the focus on oil. It even incorporates the Babylonian name Shamash, a name related to the worship of Saturn, in its major symbol and rite. Additional correspondence could be expounded upon, such as the traditional use of beeswax candles among the Hebrew celebration and in the ancient worship of Saturn.

If Christians are going to separate themselves from the observances of Christmas and Easter due to their proven links back to Roman and Babylonian idolatry, should they not do the same with the Jewish Hanukkah? Some further thoughts on this Hebrew festival will be shared in the following chapter as we segue into an exploration of related topics.

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