Jacob

There are those who affirm that, in 1984, a team of archeologists, headed by American Ron Wyatt, discovered the site of the real Mt. Sinai in the Arabian desert. The possibility that Mt. Sinai may be located in Arabia is stated in Galatians 4:25.

In Arabia, the team discovered, among other findings, large altars situated in the vicinity of a mountain with a scorched peak; and in the Gulf of Aqaba, which adjoins the Red Sea, they discovered coral-encrusted chariot wheels strewn about a partially destroyed land-bridge situated approximately 30 ft. below sea level. The scorched peak at the top of the mountain was not caused by volcanic lava flow as only the rock's exterior surface is burnt; and concerning the chariot wheels in the sea, Exodus 14:25 mentions that the Egyptian army removed their chariot wheels to avoid getting stuck while they were pursuing the Israelites across the sea. Photos of these discoveries can be viewed on various websites.

It is written in Exodus 3:1 that Moses, the Hebrew prophet and lawgiver from the tribe of Levi, encountered the "Mountain of God" well before the infamous plagues that may have befallen the Egyptians in the time of the pharaohs. It wasn't until after the plagues, when the Israelites were escaping Egyptian rule, that (as mentioned in Exodus 13:21) the Lord led the Israelites in a pillar of a cloud by day and in a pillar of fire by night; and not until the third day of their arrival at Mt. Sinai that (as mentioned in Exodus 19:18) God was revealed to them as fire atop the mountain. There was considerable time, perhaps up to forty years, for Moses and the Levites to plot the elaborate staging of these events and establish for themselves power over the Israelites as priests. The description of the fire atop Mt. Sinai, as "darkness clouds and thick darkness" in Deuteronomy 4:11, seems consistent to that of a fire which has been set with oil.

According to Exodus 32:28, the sons of Levi killed about three thousand men in one day. This slaughter was carried out to punish people for supposedly worshipping the "Golden Calf". Perhaps the real reason for the massacre was to prevent Israelites from questioning the presence of God atop Mt. Sinai. Most survivors certainly would have held their tongue.

According to 1 Kings 12, the northern kingdom of Israel (Israelites) had desired to free themselves from the yoke of religious duty and high taxes imposed on them by the southern kingdom of Israel (Judah); yet it is prophesied in Ezekiel 37:21-28 that, in the future, all Israelite tribes will be reunited and that God's sanctuary will be in their midst. This seems to advocate the creation of a new world order headed by the state of Israel; a dangerous concept if the supposed true God of the Bible was originally a Levite invention merely intended to control Israelites.

Jacob

lauraclay

And that would explain so much. For example, why the Israelites were the only "Chosen People".

__________________

The purpose of a fish trap is to catch fish,
and when the fish are caught, the trap is forgotten.

The purpose of a rabbit snare is to catch rabbits.
When the rabbits are caught, the snare is forgotten.

The purpose of words is to convey ideas.
When the ideas are grasped, the words are forgotten.

Where can I find a man who has forgotten words?
He is the one I would like to talk to.

Jacob

Apparently "God in a fire" from Mt. Sinai told the Jewish faction of Israelis that Palestine is their country and that it is okay to unjustly oppress Palestinians (Philistines) in their own homeland. "God in a fire" spooks the American christian right into backing a lot of seemingly immoral wars. "God (Allah) in a fire" has been known to get boys as young as ten years old to blow themselves up as suicide bombers.

Now that I'm done writing this post, I reach for my cigarette lighter and flick on a flame. To my amazement, I see God inside the flame. He asks me if I'd like to be a prophet.

"Not particularly." I answer.

Then I say, " I know that I shouldn't smoke, but would you mind lighting my cigarette?"

He does. What a wonderful God!


Jacob

Jacob

Flick* "Hey, there's God appearing inside the flame of my cigarette lighter again."

"Is Jesus your son?" I ask.

He answers, "Jesus?... oh you mean Yeshua, I think. Sure, but all humans could be considered my kids; if I, in fact, existed. Why don't all you people help each other out? Maybe you could address the African aids crises or something ...and quit blowing a hole through the ozone layer. I'm getting a little tired of patching that thing back up.

Jacob

jaej

I heard somewhere that if we dumped a bunch of iron filings in the Indian Ocean it would make a lot of algae or something grow and pretty much fix the ozone problem overnight.

I doubt it.

__________________
Μολὼν Λαβέ

Lasciate ogne speranza, voi ch'intrate

Jayhawker Soule

There are idiots everywhere, and there are those ever ready to disseminate their nonsense.

Jayhawker Soule

What a pathetic bozo ...

Quote:

The historic Philistines (Hebrew פְּלְשְׁתִּים, plishtim; Arabic: فلسطين Filasṭīn, Falasṭīn) (see "other uses" below) were a people who invaded the southern coast of Canaan around the time of the arrival of the Israelites, their territory being named Philistia in later contexts. Their origin has been debated among scholars, but modern archaeology has suggested early cultural links with the Mycenean world in mainland Greece. Though the Philistines adopted local Canaanite culture and language before leaving any written texts, an Indo-European origin has been suggested for a handful of known Philistine words (See Philistine language). There is basis to the claim that the etymology of this word can be based on the Semitic word plishah (פְּלִישָׁה, meaning invasion). The Arabic word "Philistine" is also from what we derive the English translation "Palestinian". [source]

If and when you wish to debate the Middle East, feel free to start an appropriate thread on the topic. But try to at least learn something first.

Jacob

Photos proving the existence of the real Mt. Sinai can be viewed on various websites. Also, the NBC-TV show "Dateline" did a show in the 90's featuring a story about this site. Don't be so sure that you're not the idiot.

Jacob

Jacob

Jayhawker Soule Re: an invitation to debate

You are such a delight to discuss things with. However, I decline your offer to debate about the Middle East. I see no evidence that you have any particular credentials; except for perhaps your proficiency in the art of "ad hominem".

Jacob

sisterX

Jacob I agree, and the jews are not the only semites. Semites are all the descendants of Shem, one of the three sons of Noah. This will include the Arabs, Babylonians, Assyrians, Arameans, and Hebrews.

In rabbinical texts of the Jews, the priesthood of Shem is transferred to Abraham, and it is from this transference of priesthood that the Jews take themselves to be the chosen people and claim ownership of the lands of Canaan, in which lies present day Palestine.
They claim the 'Shekinah' to have transferred to Abraham and his progeny, specifically Isaac, and thus the Semitic preference of God is specific to them, and more specifically the Israelites, the progeny of Israel, also known as Isaac, son of Abraham.

The Quran talks about the Israelites being a chosen people, because God chose to raise prophets amongst them. Not because they are superior in any way nor are they entitled to any more that everyone else.

“And We bestowed upon him (Abraham) Isaac and Jacob, each of them We guided, and before him, We guided Noah, and among his progeny David, Solomon, Job, Joseph, Moses, and Aaron. Thus do We reward the good doers. And Zachariah, and John and Jesus and Elias, each one of them was of the righteous. And Ishmael and Elisha, and Jonah and Lot, and each one of them We preferred above all the worlds. And also some of their fathers and their progeny and their brethren, We chose them, and We guided them to a Straight Path. This is the Guidance of God with which He guides whomsoever He will of His slaves. But if they had joined in worship others with God, all that they used to do would have been of no benefit to them. They are those whom We gave the Book, the Understanding, and Prophethood…” (Quran 6:83-87)

This preference given to the Israelites was not on account of their racial superiority, as I have mentioned earlier, but rather due to the great sacrifices of Abraham and his supplications which God answered, and this preference was given to the Israelites as long as they kept to their covenant which God made with them. And have they?

This fact is also stated by Jews themselves: “Because of our acceptance of Torah, Jews have a special status in the eyes of God, but we lose that special status when we abandon Torah.”

It is mentioned in the Quran that the Jews broke the covenant to God from falling into error and worshipping others besides God, an act which broke the first of the ten commandments, changing and interpolating the Torah to what they saw fit.

But God continued to send prophets to them for their rectification. Instead of following the Prophets which God sent to them, they would reject the Prophets and even kill them. They tried to kill Jesus too. Due to this, the favor which God had for the Jews was lifted.

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"But as for me (I believe) that He is Allah, my Lord, and I shall associate none as partner with my Lord." Surah Al-Kahf verse 38. Holy Quran