We all have the same spiritual ancestry

©Shawn Murphy, Hamilton Bermuda, 2001

God gave Moses three divine gifts during his 40 days on Mount Sinai. The first one, the Ten Commandments, has formed the basis for social justice throughout the world. We take them for granted today, but they were given to Moses at a time when no social law existed.

Only the Jews recognize the second one, although they lost its true meaning during their Babylonian exile (597 to 538 BC). The Menorah has become a symbol of Judaism, but it was originally much more than that.

The third gift has only been recognized recently, and to many people today, seems to be a minor gift. On Friday, April 27, 1244 BC, Moses led the Israelites out of Egypt. At this point in history the only form of written communication available was picture based. These types of languages have a vast number of pictures. Egyptian hieroglyphics have had over 10,000 various pictures during their entire history. Those able to learn to read and write hieroglyphics were only the most highly educated. Fortunately, Moses grew up in the house of the Pharaoh and received this type of education. It would prove to be a great asset when it came time for him to learn the new alphabet that God would give him on Mount Sinai.

The 40 days that Moses spent with God on the Mount would be a conceivable length of time in which a person, who could read and write a picture-based language, could learn a 24-character alphabet and write the Ten Commandments onto some flat stones in this new alphabet. If God had just conjured them up out of the rocks, Moses would not have needed to be away from his people for so long. It is most likely that the Ten Commandments were written in the hand of Moses, but since they have not yet been found, we presently cannot prove this theory.

The first signs of an alphabet-based writing discovered by archeologists have been dated to 1231 BC. These were found in the Sinai desert and the dating fits within the 40 years that the Israelites spent there. Since then, many cultures adopted this ingenious, simple form of communication. It has allowed every man, women and child the opportunity to be able to read and correspond, regardless of the house they grew up in.

Now that we understand the amazing social and spiritual value of both the first and third gifts from God, let us return to the second gift. It cannot be possible that God was just telling Moses how to make a nice, decorative lamp for the temple. It must have a similar spiritual or symbolic value as the other two gifts.

When we look at the description of the Menorah in Exodus 25:31-40 it does not give any initial hint to its true meaning. Physically, it can still be seen today in Rome. It is engraved in the Arch of Titus, depicting the Romans bringing back the spoils from their victory over the Jews in 70 AD. It has a large base with a single column in the center that supports the six arms. Everything is symmetrical about the center column. In total there are seven places for lights and 24 knobs in total on the six arms.

What could the seven lights and 24 knobs symbolize? Besides the 24-character alphabet mentioned above, where else in the Bible do we come across 24? The most obvious is the 24 Elders that John describes after God allowed him to open his spiritual eyes and look into Heaven. (Revelation 4:1-11) John also describes the seven lights at the top of the Menorah as the seven Spirits of God before the Throne of God.

If we look at the Menorah as being symmetric about the center column, then we see that these 24 knobs could also symbolize 12 pairs. This means that they could symbolize the twelve tribes of Israel. The seven lights at the top then become three pairs plus one that stands alone. This one is on top of the column that supports all, the six plus the 24. Is it the trunk of a spiritual family tree? Jesus/Yahweh often depicted Himself in this role. For instance, He called Himself the vine and us its branches. The other six lights would then symbolize the six Archangels.

When we look further at John’s descriptions of the Throne, we see that there are “Four Living Creatures” between the 24 Elders and the Throne. This is most likely his description of the symbolism associated with these three plus the one. When we compare John’s four creatures with the gods of Egypt we find great similarity. I mentioned in my last article the three gods of Egypt: Amon (Lucifer), Horus (Aholah), and Hathor (Aholibah) carry the symbols of lion/sphinx, falcon, and cow respectively. When we add Maat to these three, we get the same picture as John describes, since Maat is always depicted in Egypt with a human face.

The common opinion of Revelations is that God was showing John what is to come. But, when we realize that John’s revelation was one looking back in time, before the Fall, things become clearer. This allows us to match the three fallen Archangels up with their Heavenly counterparts: Raphael with Lucifer as lionesses and lion, Gabriel and Aholah as eagle and falcon, and Michael and Aholibah as steer and cow.

In the description of Paradise in Genesis, we find that “the river Pishon skirts the whole land of Havilah”. The river Pishon is symbolic for Jesus/Yahweh and the three things found in the land of Havilah are good: gold (yellow), bdellium (white) and onyx (black). After the Fall, when Lucifer was now referred to as “the tree of the knowledge of good and evil”, Jesus/Yahweh had only three of the Archangels with Him: Gabriel, Raphael and Michael.

There is one other notable 24 and each of carries it with us: our 12 pair of ribs. Since we know that Eve was made from a rib, it would be good to look at this symbolic relationship. Our ribs differ from the Menorah in one respect: all 24 knobs are attached to the center column in the Menorah, but only 14 ribs are attached to the sternum. We have 14 true ribs and 10 false ribs that are not connected to the sternum. We know that 1/3 of Heaven fell with Lucifer in the Fall. It could, therefore, be that 14 of the 24 Elders remained true to Jesus/Yahweh (the sternum) and the other 10 fell along with Lucifer and the other two, less known Archangels. Therefore, Eve was not made from just a rib; she was made from a false rib. This is concept is supported by the depiction in the Bible of the beast with 10 horns (Lucifer with the 10 elder followers) in Daniel 7:17-24 and Revelation 17:1-12.

God’s second gift to Moses, the Menorah, is not just a nice table decoration; it is a spiritual family tree. It symbolizes Jesus/Yahweh, the only begotten Son of God, through whom all of us were made. It shows the three Houses of Heaven, as they originally were, all stemming from Jesus/Yahweh, Raphael and Lucifer founders of the white race, Aholah and Gabriel leaders of the yellow race and Aholibah and Michael heading the black race. All of God’s creation is one big family and every part of His family was torn apart in the Fall. All of us, regardless of race, have suffered equally from the Fall. All of us are on the same road back to God; it is just that some of us have only started the journey while others are lucky enough to be close to the final goal. One’s race cannot declare how far down the road some one is, it only declares to the world the great diversity in God’s creation.

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