This year marks the 400th birthday of the King James bible. I know this post should have been out last week, but I have been very busy trying to get the video blog ready to go which should be ready this week.
In 1604 King James commissioned 47 Church of England Scholars to convert the Hebrew and Greek texts into English and that work was completed on 1611. While this was not the first but the third English version, it is the one that we still have today. The earlier English versions had enough errors and religious slants in it that the Puritans demanded a new version. What makes the King James Bible so special is that many editions today do not go back to the original texts. Instead, they use other English texts and try to modernize the language. I am sure that anyone who has played the telephone game in kindergarten can tell you taking a message from a message is never a good idea. The other thing that makes this version special is that the scholars who translated it were Christian. A very important factor when getting translations done.
One last note to mention is the fact that the scholars that translated this work sent a letter to you, as the reader of the book, stating that they tried their best, but errors are inevitable. Sadly, this letter has been removed from modern printings of the bible. I strongly recommend reading that letter at least once. You can obtain that letter here by signing up for the newsletter.
I know of three podcasts that I am going to listen to on the topic:
Fidei Defensor, Latin for defender of the faith, was given to King Henry the VIII by Leo X. The Catholic church revoked the title after Henry established the Church of England. Parliament restored the title in the 16th Century and since then England has always had a monarch crowned with that title. The coronation, I might add that occurs atop the stone of scone or Jacob’s pillar.
Now it seems that only half of Britons feel that England is still a Christian nation. Does this prove that Queen Elizabeth II has failed to protect what she has sworn to do? I find it sad to see that Christians are now under attack for their beliefs in a county that has a leader sworn to protect that very faith.
As Christians what is one to do about such a thing? Should a Christian allow their beliefs to be eroded or compromised simply because the law demands penalties if we do not? Paul tells us in Romans that a nation is only in existence by the will of God and that a nation must protect your right to practice your beliefs as long as you abide within its laws. So is it then Christians that are allowing these things to happen. God gives us power over all our enemies. Maybe its time for us to stop waiting for an aging monarch to do her job and start doing our job.
Revelation 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
This isn’t the first time that the moon has been eclipsed nor will it be the last time. It is interesting to note that this winter solstice and lunar eclipse hasn’t occurred since 1638 and will not occur again 2098. Remember God put the sun, moon and stars in the sky for signs and seasons.
Whether or not this means anything is hard to tell, but it would be wise to take note of it.
How long ago do you believe God formed the earth? Six thousand years ago? Twenty thousand?Millions? Billions? Do you believe science when it says that it was created billions of years ago? Do you think that is false because you believe that the Bible tells you that it is only six thousand years ago? Sadly, many Christians today either try to ignore the biblical account of how the world was created, passing it off as just a story, or they ignorantly state that science is wrong.
Let’s set the record straight!Science tells us that the earth is billions of years old. There are countless rocks and fossils to back this up. Christians have the bible, and the Bible states in Genesis 1 that the world was created in six days, and that on the seventh God rested. Whom do you believe? Would you believe that science is only just now proving what the Bible has said all along?
The truth is, the science backs up what Bible says, and the Bible backs up what science says… the earth IS billions of years old.
Genesis 1:1 In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.
Period. There isn’t a time frame affixed to that statement.
Genesis 1:2. And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.
“Was”? Why is the word, “was,” here? The word in the Hebrew is H3445–hayah, in the Strong’s, and should be translated as became. Look it up for yourself. It should read, “…[T]he earth became without form, and void…” Why did it become that way? Because, God created the earth perfectly, and it was perfect until Satan had a war in heaven with God. Most people know that there was a war in Heaven, and that Satan fell. When do you think this happened? The war between the angels wasn’t in the Garden of Eden. So then, when? It was before God’s recreation of the earth. How do you explain buttercups, fresh plant life, in the belly of a woolly mammoth that has been frozen solid? Buttercups do not grow in such cold temperatures, and science cannot explain how a gigantic animal, like the woolly mammoth, can freeze instantly. Surely the earth’s plates didn’t suddenly slide to the north pole in a matter of minutes. Nature doesn’t work that way.
As a second proof, lets look in Isaiah 45:18:
Isaiah 45:18For thus saith the LORD that created the heavens; God himself that formed the earth and made it; he hath established it, he created it not in vain, he formed it to be inhabited: I [am] the LORD; and [there is] none else.
He created it not in vain. The word, “vain,” here is the same word (in the Hebrew) as the word, “void,” used in Genesis 1:2. The word is H922 in the Strong’s Concordance, “bohuw (bo’-hoo) from an unused root (meaning to be empty); a vacuity, i.e. (superficially) an undistinguishable ruin:–emptiness, void.” So let’s have a look.
God says in Isaiah that He did not create the earth empty, but in Genesis it states that the earth was void or empty. Is the bible contradicting itself? No, because if you understand that Genesis 1:2 states, “And the earth became without form, and void…” then there isn’t a contradiction. The earth was no longer perfect because of the rebellion of Satan and his followers. God gave our souls a second chance, and He recreated the world that is talked about in Genesis 1:1. God didn’t create the world void and decide to fill the earth; it became void and God recreated it.
The translators of the King James Bible did the best they could, but by their own admission they were not perfect. Those of you interested in reading the letter they put in their original version, warning you of this, can sign up or our newsletter and we will send it to you.
2nd Peter 3:5-6For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water: Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:
I strongly encourage you to read this whole chapter, but for the purposes of this article, let’s just look at these two verses. Most people, when they read these verses, pass it off as a discussion of Noah’s flood. This word, “perished,” leaves no room for Noah and his family to be floating around on a boat with a bunch of animals. It’s not talking about the Noah story, Peter is talking about Genesis 1:2, “…[T]he Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.” The world that was there at that time became void–overflowed with water and it perished.
Jeremiah 4:22-27 For my people is foolish, they have not known me; they are sottish children, and they have none understanding: they are wise to do evil, but to do good they have no knowledge. I beheld the earth, and, lo, it was without form, and void; and the heavens, and they had no light. I beheld the mountains, and, lo, they trembled, and all the hills moved lightly. I beheld, and, lo, there was no man, and all the birds of the heavens were fled. I beheld, and, lo, the fruitful place was a wilderness, and all the cities thereof were broken down at the presence of the LORD, and by his fierce anger. For thus hath the LORD said, The whole land shall be desolate; yet will I not make a full end.
As we see here, in the above verses of Jeremiah 4, in this particular flood, no man was left. Noah was a man (person), and so were the other seven family members with him, but in Noah’s flood, those eight people remained in the area of the flood, which we will discuss in future articles how the Bible actually says it was not covering the entire globe. In this flood, the birds had fled, which means that there were already birds, in this prior time, just as we learn about in biological history. There were plants and even cities full of God’s sottish children here on earth.
I would also like to point out that this is why, after Noah’s flood, God said He would never again send a flood of water to destroy the land. He had already sent flood waters twice to destroy the wicked people on earth.
Genesis 9:11 And I will establish my covenant with you; neither shall all flesh be cut off any more by the waters of a flood; neither shall there any more be a flood to destroy the earth. And God said, This is the token of the covenant which I make between me and you and every living creature that is with you, for perpetual generations: I do set my bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a token of a covenant between me and the earth. And it shall come to pass, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow shall be seen in the cloud: And I will remember my covenant, which is between me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and the waters shall no more become a flood to destroy all flesh. And the bow shall be in the cloud; and I will look upon it, that I may remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is upon the earth. And God said unto Noah, This is the token of the covenant, which I have established between me and all flesh that is upon the earth.
So, why do some Christians challenge the scientists by proclaiming that the earth isn’t billions of years old? Do they forget what Peter said in 2nd Peter Chapter 3:7?
2nd Peter 3:7-8 But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. But, beloved, be not ignorant of this one thing, that one day [is] with the Lord as a thousand years, and a thousand years as one day.
Now why would Peter bring up now a thousand years as one day here? Because, he is thinking of Genesis 1 not Genesis 6. Why would he put such emphasis on it saying, “…[B]e not ignorant of this one thing…”? Because the ignorance of this fact turns people away from God on a daily basis. People, often, will not believe in a God that doesn’t make logical sense to them.
I will close with this food for thought:
Genesis 1:28And God blessed them, and God said unto them, Be fruitful, and multiply, and replenish the earth, and subdue it: and have dominion over the fish of the sea, and over the fowl of the air, and over every living thing that moveth upon the earth.
Why would God tell man to replenish the earth if it had never been full? You do not tell someone to refill something unless it had once before been filled.
The earth is billions of years old. God recreated it in Genesis, and He recreated our world that we now know for our flesh bodies after the war in Heaven.
For more study on the topic I encourage you to read the great work done by E.W. Billinger, for which I have provided this link.
When all men were together and speaking one language they began to think of themselves as gods or equal to god.
Genesis Chapter 11
1 And the whole earth was of one language, and of one speech.
2 And it came to pass, as they journeyed from the east, that they found a plain in the land of Shinar *Babylonia*; and they dwelt there.
3 And they said one to another, Go to, let us make brick, and burn them throughly. And they had brick for stone, and slime had they for morter.
4 And they said, Go to, let us build us a city and a tower, whose top [may reach] unto heaven; and let us make us a name, lest we be scattered abroad upon the face of the whole earth.
This “let us make a name for ourselves” is them declaring themselves independent of God. Have no fear, God can handle rabble like Nimrod. (Though not strictly biblical it’s believed he is the builder of the Tower of Babel.)
5 And the LORD came down to see the city and the tower, which the children of men builded.
6 And the LORD said, Behold, the people [is] one, and they have all one language; and this they begin to do: and now nothing will be restrained from them, which they have imagined to do.
7 Go to, let us go down, and there confound their language, that they may not understand one another’s speech.
8 So the LORD scattered them abroad from thence upon the face of all the earth: and they left off to build the city.
9 Therefore is the name of it called Babel; because the LORD did there confound the language of all the earth: and from thence did the LORD scatter them abroad upon the face of all the earth.
See all it takes is a thought from God and He can change the language you speak and scatter you to the four winds. Except for the time when Peter received the Holy Spirit on Pentecost (See Acts Chapter 2) man has struggled to communicate. Now those barriers God put in place are starting to crumble. Language translation gets better everyday. What started with a language dictionary turned to subtitles on your DVD. Now we can simply click a button on Google Chrome and it will simply convert the language on a page to whatever language you desire.
So why does this matter? Is understanding people who speak a different language bad? God forbid! For we know that being able to use another language is a gift from God. God is the author of peace, not confusion. So why then? And why does this mean anything to us today? My being able to understand someone who lives halfway around the world doesn’t cause me to believe I am better than God.
Lets look at the scripture. First off it takes place in Babylon. Babylon in Hebrew means confusion. Satan is the author of confusion. Second when Judah was captured and sent away where did they go? Babylon. Where they were forced to learn in Babylonian schools, eat Babylonian food and worship Babylonian gods. This is a society that takes what they will from other cultures twists what they will and call it their own. It is the city that at the end of Revelation (Chapters 14 and 18) that will be torn down.
But Babylon has been gone for centuries you might say. I ask you, has it? Has it really? Are we only talking about a physical location? Let us remember 1 Corinthians 10:11
11 Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come.
What things? What things happened? This Tower of Babel. This society that takes what they want and builds towers into the sky to shout to the heavens in defiance.
What is the Tower of Babel today? Is it Google Chrome? Is it Babelfish? No. It is that evil spirit that accompanies that society. Alexander the great conquered lands and told them they didn’t need to become Macedonian. You can stay where you are and be who you want to be just as long as you pay me tribute. Rome did much the same thing. They took what they wanted from other cultures and made them their own. It’s an evil trap my friends and today they no longer call it Babel. They call it “The One World Order.” Napoleon and Hitler (along with countless others) tried to take Europe by force. Tried to make them French or German. The One World Order states you can call yourselves whatever you want. Just as long as you use our currency. Europe’s united like never before and without a shot being fired. People are now taxed more than ever before. Because they say the system knows how to handle your money better than you do. Do they not? Free handouts to whoever asks. Whatever happened to personal charity? I do not need to give to who I think is best because I give to the government and they handle it.
When a society says to itself I do not need to pray for rain, I can seed the clouds, I do not need to pray for healing, I have medicine and I do not need the unction of the Holy Spirit I have insurance, you are in a society of babel. So I ask you my friend, Is the Tower of Babel back?
