Observations

125Observations

Perspective

Religious Idolatry

Faith is Seductive…

We are reminded of something we considered not long ago. The Towrah is the most effective way to negate the influence of religious babel. Those who know what the Towrah reveals and those who understand its purpose cannot be fooled by anyone seeking to demean it, to change it, to reject it, to replace it, or to annul it.

It matters not how eloquent, smooth-talking, or seductive the voice of treachery may be, nor how grand and gilded the edifice may appear from which these jaundiced voices emerge. We know better.

This installment of Yahowah’s parental advice culminates with these words…

“You should not continuously find her beautiful or her graceful appearance desirable in your heart, thereby affecting your judgment!

Do not let her obtain control of you with her flaunting displays, her flashiness, her pretense of being enlightened, or her flirting eyes! (Mashal / Proverb 6:25)

For indeed, the price of the loathed Whore is the same as a loaf of bread, however, the soul of the woman or man she stalks and victimizes is valuable. (Mashal / Proverb 6:26)

Can a man consistently scoop up and carry away fire in his lap or his deceitful garments and not be burned by the serpent? (Mashal / Proverb 6:27)

126Can an individual continually walk upon the burning coals or the flashing light from the sky and his feet not be scorched? (Mashal / Proverb 6:28)

Therefore, anyone who goes to and pursues the one associated with his immoral country, he will not be pardoned nor seen as innocent – including all who make contact because they are plagued by her. (Mashal / Proverb 6:29)

Don’t they have contempt in this regard for the thief and kidnapper, even if he captures people and steals property to satisfy his soul because he is famished? (Mashal / Proverb 6:30)

If he is discovered, he will repay, making restitution, sevenfold for his claims. For all of the wealth and possessions found in his household, he will pay. (Mashal / Proverb 6:31)

Actively committing adultery by way of religious idolatry and infidelity with this Whore is impoverishing and life-threatening, depriving an individual of good judgment, and corrupting the soul of those who consistently choose to act like this. (Mashal / Proverb 6:32)

He will obtain the plague, an insult of the lowly and little one. His contemptuous and taunting slurs will not be wiped away. (Mashal / Proverb 6:33)

Because indeed, envy makes a human venomous, hostile, and antagonistic. He will not take pity or show mercy on the day of reckoning. (Mashal / Proverb 6:34)

He is consistently unwilling to accept or endure the presence of any compensation, ransom payment, or appeasement. He is unwilling to yield, and therefore He will refuse to accept you no matter how great and numerous your gifts or influence.” (Mashal / Proverb 6:35)

127This begins with ha Satan | the Adversary using religion to position himself as attractively as possible, just as a prostitute wears seductive clothes. It’s a superficial, and yet effective, ploy. It concludes by speaking of a plague, the insulting taunt of the lowly and little one which shall not be wiped away, resolved or appeased, no matter the size of the donation or how great the donor’s influence. As we make our way through these words, we should see if there is a way to properly ascribe the title of this contemptuous individual to Paul, the subject of God’s previous condemnation.

Examining the full implication of each word God selected, we find the following advice…

“You should not genuinely or continuously covet nor find desirable (‘al chamad – you should not actually or habitually take pleasure in, delight in, obtain wealth from, or desire (qal – addressing a genuine relationship, imperfect – representing ongoing behavior, jussive – a third-person expression of volition and as a means to strengthen an instruction regarding what we should not do in the second person, and thus represented by the “!” in English, active indicating that we should not act upon the Whore’s allure)) her beautiful and graceful appearance (yophy – her attractiveness and implied desirability, her brightness and splendor, akin to yophya’ – high place (used in Ezekiel 16:25 to depict Satan’s abhorrent desire to be seen in the highest places as the almighty, as graceful and beautiful, especially at the beginning of every pathway the Adulteress has opened for mankind to walk to whoredom), known as Beatification in Roman Catholicism when religious “saints” are elevated in stature) in your heart, which will thereby affect your judgment (ba leb – by the way you define yourself, as part of your character or persona, in the place your attitudes and desires are manifest, in that part of you which constitutes your most authentic nature and becomes the very fabric of your life, 128where that which is known, considered, and accepted serves to provide your perspective, guiding your thoughts and conduct, becoming the source of your understanding and motivations, your goals and ambitions, your preferences and purpose)!

And (wa) do not let her obtain control of you on an ongoing basis (‘al laqach – do not, and this is important, allow her to grasp hold of your hand, seize you, snatch you away, acquire, or marry you (qal, imperfect, jussive, active)) with her flaunting display of flashing rays of light or her flirting eyes (ba ‘aph’aphym – by way of her brandishing her wavering and flashy nature, with her unsteady and inconsistent flashes of light (which is how Paul admits to seeing her on the road to Damascus) and by way of her glancing, flitting, blinking gaze, from ‘uwph – to fly away by darting to and fro, to flaunt a variant which covers over, making one dark)!” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:25)

Yahowah said that the Whore representing Satan is attractive and alluring and appears desirable. This not only affirms that the religious depictions of Satan are wrong, but it also means that the Adversary seeks to influence and control humankind through things that are pleasing, considered desirable, pleasurable, beautiful, enriching, and graceful. This being true, to avoid encountering Satan, stay out of the grand edifices mankind has erected in the name of religion and governance.

To gain some perspective, let’s compare this to the next Mashal / Proverb, to something God says in Mashal 7:7-15: “And among those lacking discernment and judgment I saw among the children a man devoid of understanding, passing through the street near her corner, taking a path to her house at twilight, in the evening, in the darkness of night.

129Behold and pay attention, a woman met him wearing the garments of a prostitute and possessing a cunning mind.

She was rebellious, not satisfied with holding dominion over her family. Time and again in the street, time and again in the square, and beside almost every corner, she set an ambush, and she laid hold of him and kissed him.

With a shameless presence, she said to him: ‘I have pursued a confession, thereby reconciling with the god of Babylon. I have made a vow to the Mother of God and to the Queen of Heaven.

Therefore, I have come out to meet you to try to convert you to the Babylonian religion, and in this, I have been successful.’”

Yahowah is equipping us with valuable information so that we are not duped by one of the most common misconceptions regarding Satan because many have been beguiled into believing that the Devil wants to be known and worshiped as the Adversary in some kind of dark occult ceremony. That is simply not true. Based on what Yahowah has and will continue to reveal, this religious perception is literally the opposite of what Satan is seeking to achieve. He wants people to believe that he is God.

To accomplish this feat, he presents himself as the Lord, as the god of religion, and as mankind’s object of worship. He accomplishes this right out in the open, in city centers, before large crowds, in the most spectacular edifices man can construct. Therefore, rather than antagonizing the religious, and enticing believers to forego their faith, Satan is luring them in because he wants the religious to believe that he is God.

As long as it is not “ha satan – the Adversary, a.k.a., Satan,” the Towrahless One does not care what name 130people call him. He is not particular regarding what religion people choose to worship him so long as millions bow down to him, prostrating themselves. So long as most believe him, he has achieved his goal – which is to be seen above the Most High, the actual God whom most people either ignore or reject.

The grander the shrine, the more elaborate the temple, the more gilded the church, the more imposing the mosque, the more impassioned the oratory, the more people included therein, the more pleading their prayers, the more empowering it is for Satan. By human standards, from the human perspective, the Adversary is beautiful and is seen as desirable. Those who serve the ruwach of babel, find pleasure in doing so. The Whore commands respect, adorned in all of the transgender, seductively alluring, manmade religious garb the creation can muster.

Satan is an extrovert, typically showy, ostentatious, flamboyant, and glitzy. He is a fleeting flash of light, too brief to be of any value, followed by a fearsome boom. The Adversary is continually trying to impress the gullible into misconstruing his nature and intent. And in so doing, he confuses the religious into believing that Satan is his foe rather than his actual nature.

To appreciate his sleight of hand, Satan is a descriptive title, revealing that the Spirit of Babylon is adversarial. The Adversary’s name is actually Heylel ben Shachar according to what we read in Yasha’yah / Isaiah 14. There and elsewhere, particularly throughout Ezekiel, we learn that he is driven by his ego and preys upon the egos of men and women.

Ha Satan is duplicitous and inconsistent to a fault. This Whore of Babel / Confusion is also flirtatious, not caring how many different incarnations there are of him. So long as he is considered influential and attractive, he is content being seen as an aspect of creation, from a mighty tree to a 131tall mountain, from the moon to the sun, and even the stars. And should a person esteem men and women and lust for them, he provides human alternatives that are perceived as great and godly.

He would like those who serve him to deceive others on his behalf, to rob them of their liberty to choose an alternative to him, and even to kill for him. But what they call him, where they do it, and how they categorize themselves in reference to him is irrelevant. In fact, the more names, the more ways, the more places the better. It all adds to the confusion. Pick your poison: Paul, Akiba, or Muhammad to name a few.

While his religious pageants are often spectacular, and the emotions experienced by the audience usually stirring, the cost is unconscionable. It breaks my heart to see the impassioned faces of throngs, often numbering into the millions, of Roman Catholics swooning before a papal parade or of Haredi children bobbing their heads against a rock wall.

“For indeed (ky – by way of branding and as a sign of ownership by another), the price (ba’ad – the payment or fee, the exchange for the service leading to an anterior position and adverse relation, the quid pro quo) of the loathed Whore and female influence (‘isah zonah – of the despised woman harlot and prostitute, of the unmarried woman seeking favors or bribes for pretending to be a wife, for the unfaithful, unreliable, and unprincipled female) is just as much as (‘ad – is the same as, no more than, an eternal and unlimited stealing and spoiling of) a loaf of bread (kikar lachem – talent (70 pounds) or unbroken expanse of grain, a round wafer, from karar – to whirl around (comparing and contrasting the bread of life, matzah, and the round wafers of Christianity’s Communion or Eucharist)), but (wa – and yet) the woman’s (‘ishah – a female individual’s or wife’s) or the man’s (‘iysh – a male individual or husband’s) soul (nepesh) she stalks and 132eternally victimizes (tsuwd – chases after and hunts as a predator, capturing and controlling forever, ultimately ensnaring and harming to the point of killing (qal imperfect)) is highly prized and valuable (yaqar – precious and greatly esteemed).” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:26)

This comparison is between the everlasting merits of the un-yeasted bread of Pesach and Matsah compared to the religious alternatives such as eating Kosher or participating in the Eucharist and Communion. These religious substitutes are so expensive the cost is calibrated in souls.

While reality seldom resonates when it comes to religious beliefs, in actuality, the things of God yield perfect immortal souls while the faith-based counterfeits deprive their victims of their nepesh | consciousness. There is a price to pay for the worthless religious alternative while the most valuable gift is free. As such, this is a referendum on religion versus relationship.

I suspect that Dowd cringed when he wrote this line because of what it would cost him to resolve this problem on behalf of his people. After fulfilling Pesach to open the Door to Life in Heaven by serving as the Passover Lamb, he volunteered to have his soul laden with the corruptive guilt of his people on Matsah. He would perfect the Children of the Covenant by taking their yeast into She’owl, where it would never be seen again.

As we continue to examine the advice of Father and Son, realize that the Whore they are exposing and excoriating isn’t actually a promiscuous woman. She is not earning a living as a prostitute, offering feigned affection for pay. In fact, this has nothing to do with sex or sexual promiscuity. The perverted sexual nature of prostitution simply serves as an apt metaphor to highlight the seductive 133nature of religious corruptions of the Covenant’s vows. Souls are at stake here as is our relationship with God.

The Whore is religion, a beast loathed by God for the seven reasons He has articulated. While political and military regimes amass supporters and pile up body counts, it is only religion that continually stalks and eternally victimizes souls. And this abhorrent creature is an extension of Satan – the Whore of Babylon, the author of “babel – corruption and confusion.”

Seeking to be seen as greater than Yahowah, either as “Ba’al – the Lord,” or “Allahu Akbar – Allah is Greater,” Satan has inspired the worst of humankind to establish a religious counterfeit to confuse the unwary into believing that the Adversary is the Lord, Queen of Heaven, and Mother of God. The ultimate spiritual prostitute even masquerades as the Virgin with Child. With the Devil, it is all about disguises and deception. Nothing is what it appears to be. It is all an illusion.

Yahowah is sharing this with us because He doesn’t want us to be fooled into believing that the Lord is God or that man’s way is valid. So, the more we come to know about “Babel – Babylon” and understand its religious, political, military, and economic implications and history, the better equipped we will be to assess the belief systems and nations that have emerged from this mold. God’s insights prepare us, helping us recognize the ongoing influence of Satan as the Whore of Babylon in our world. God wants us to avoid these snares and to effectively warn others about them. That is the purpose of this Mashal / Proverb, and of the 7^th, which follows.

We have all heard the line, “Play with fire and you are going to get burnt.” Well, now we know from whence it came. In addition, we discover that Satan’s enlightenment as the Whore of Babel/Confusion is a fire that can consume a soul. And like fire, if we get too close, if we linger too 134long, if the flame touches us when we are not properly protected, especially if a person is dressed in inappropriate religious garb, it will engulf them.

“Can (ha – is it possible for) a man (‘ysh – an individual) consistently scoop up and continually carry away (chathah – actually grasp hold of a heap, eternally piling up (qal imperfect), written identically to chithah – fear, terror, and torture, ironic shame borne of enmity) fire (‘esh – combustible material which is burning and flaming) in his lap (ba cheq – in his chest or bosom) or (wa) his deceitful garments (beged – his treacherous clothing or fraudulent, cunning, and devious robes) and not be burned by the serpent (wa lo’ saraph – and not be consumed and destroyed by the snake’s fire (with the nifal stem the one carrying the fire is burned by it, while the imperfect indicates that they are consumed and destroyed by the serpent forever))?” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:27)

This is the “fire” associated with “hell,” but not in the sense of light or heat, instead as a metaphor denoting that a fire’s fuel is consumed in the flames. Just as people fuel religion, enabling it to engulf entire nations, this fire is symbolic of the souls burned by religion, scorched to the point that they can no longer support life, ceasing to exist.

The image of a serpent is used to represent Satan because of the cold-blooded reptile’s venomous and deadly bite, because of its serpentine movements which are never straightforward, because of its inability to walk upright, having to slither along the ground, and because of the lightless dens snakes burrow within the earth which are reminiscent of She’owl.

The realm of the dead exists as a singularity, a confining darkness limited in every way but time, a place whose very existence was predicated upon quarantining the Adversary and his brood of venomous and serpentine 135allies. She’owl, like a Black Hole, will eternally keep his blinding flashes of light from escaping.

God finds religious dress-up to be appalling. It disgusts Him to see a woman wearing an Islamic veil as a sign of modesty and submission, recognizing that Muhammad was a sexual pervert and predator. Similarly, He sees the black suits of Mormons and Orthodox Jews as their feeble attempt to cover-up the deceitful nature of the religion lurking inside. Religious outfits, especially the robes and religious attire worn by rabbis, pastors, priests, and imams, cardinals and popes, are “beged – garments of treacherous betrayal adorning those perpetrating a cunning fraud.”

“Or can (‘im – underscoring the point, is it possible for) an individual (‘iysh) continually walk (halak – to consistently and without ceasing travel (with the piel stem the object (the individual’s feet) suffers the effect and with the imperfect conjugation the action is continual, without end)) upon (‘al) the burning coals or the flashing light from the sky (ha gachal – the hot embers of a live, charcoal-based fire or a bolt of lightning, from gachon (spelled identically in the text) – the belly of a reptile) and his feet (wa regel / ragal – and that which enables a person to go out as an explorer, observing slanderous tellers of tall tales as well as to teach others to walk upright) not be scorched (lo’ kawah – not be burned and branded (with the nifal stem the subject (the individual walking on the coals) is burned and causes others to be branded along with him while the imperfect speaks of an eternal, ongoing, consequence))?” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:28)

Context is central to understanding, and in the framework of this Fatherly presentation, the flickering flames that would have ignited these coals came from the Serpent’s fire which is why the word for “burning coals” can also be translated as “flashing light from the sky.” This, 136once again, directs our attention to Paul’s encounter with Satan on the road to Damascus, a blinding visual experience he described in these same words. It even brought him to his knees, crippling his ability to walk.

Historical context is also relevant. One of the ancient world’s most celebrated religious rituals required believers to walk over burning coals to prove their faith and to test their souls. Therefore, the scorching and branding Yahowah is discussing is a result of engaging in sacred customs.

Since religion is not a victimless crime, since belief systems are the most debilitating and deadly institutions ever conceived by man, the perpetrators must be held accountable. And God would like us to share His objections to and intolerance of those who have misled so many people. It is a necessary response for humankind to grow and thrive.

It’s also important to keep the big picture in mind, one framed by the metaphors of the Covenant existing as a faithful and monogamous marriage vow compared to the adulterous and unreliable nature of religious affairs promoted by the Whore. The contrast is designed to frame and expose the way Satan seduces souls, enticing them to choose religious veneration of the Adversary as opposed to a relationship with God.

These lyrics are repetitive because Yahowah wants His children to know that the Adversary seeks to be seen as a beautiful and satisfying alternative. The Whore does everything she can to look credible, to seem believable. The more attractive the religion appears, the more souls it attracts. So do not be fooled by what you see, no matter how beautiful. Don’t be persuaded by popularity either. In Babylon, Assyria, Egypt, Greece, and Rome, the temples were elaborate, and the religions were universally accepted, and yet they were all absolutely worthless. 137Nothing changed with the advent of Christianity, Islam, or Secular Humanism.

“Therefore and likewise (ken – pertaining to what has just been revealed, and for this reason, it follows and is verifiable), the one who goes to and pursues (ha bow’ ‘el – the one who seeks to be included in association with, who is numbered among, and enters into (qal stem denotes an actual relationship is being genuinely formed, the active absolute participle indicates that the pursuing is deliberate, that the association comes to define the individual, and that the individual is now linked to and seen as included with the wicked woman)) this evil, improper, and immoral one (‘ishah rea’ – the female individual associated with his nation’s loudmouthed and evil public speakers, and the women who comprise a troubling social, geographical, racial, or religious group; his troublesome wife who is mischievous and unethical, wicked and injurious, displeasing and disagreeable, malignant and harmful, noisome and for naught, repugnant and obnoxious), he will not be pardoned nor seen as innocent (lo’ naqah – he will not be free or blameless, he will not be acquitted or forgiven, and as a result, may not go unpunished (nifal (subject receives and carries out the action of the verb) imperfect (ongoing and thus continual) jussive (emphasizing an admonition of what should not be done in the second person while conveying third-person volition))) – including all (kol – everyone, the totality of those) who make contact and are thereby plagued (ha naga’ – who reach out and touch and are thereby afflicted) by her (ba hy’).” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:29)

While ‘ishah is the feminine of ‘ysh and thus depicts a female individual, a woman, a wife, or a mother, the term is often used to depict a spiritual being – and thus is addressing the Whore of Babylon in this context. This conclusion is underscored by the fact that the primary 138meaning of rea’ is “public speeches which are shouted aloud,” thereby addressing political pontifications and religious sermons as well as commonly shared societal and media pronouncements.

Further, as we now know, rea’ was written identically to ra’ in the text and therefore means “evil, no good, immoral, improper, troubling, and harmful.” This is now the fourth time in twenty-nine statements that Yahowah has associated ra’ / rea’ with mischievous and unethical, wicked and injurious, displeasing and disagreeable, malignant and destructive, noisome and for naught, repugnant and obnoxious” political and religious schemes perpetrated in honor of the Whore. Methinks God isn’t impressed by such things. He bluntly stated that those plagued by her could not be saved.

That’s ironic in a way. You see, Pauline Christianity was based upon the myth that, if a person failed to “obey” a single “law” of the ‘old testament,” they were guilty of violating them all and thus were condemned by the “Law” and could not be saved. And while the Towrah actually exists to perfect the imperfect, there is something from which God cannot save anyone – religions like Christianity, which God specifically denounces as “the plague of death.”

Judaism is not better, and likely worse. By claiming to be “Torah-observant” when they are instead fixated on their Talmud, and by referring to the Towrah as “the Law,” rabbis have done more to discredit God’s testimony than anyone else.

The author of this Mashal enjoyed the embrace of 18 lovers and then committed adultery by coveting another man’s wife. And while scolded for the Bathsheba affair, he was ultimately forgiven by Yahowah. By contrast, since pursuing this malignant and destructive Whore and cavorting with her is unforgivable and cannot be pardoned, 139it demonstrates that this is a far more serious crime, a spiritual encounter rather than a sexual embrace. Therefore, we not only know that Yahowah is addressing the harmful nature of religion, the immorality of politics, and the impropriety of the human establishments that flirt with Satan, but this Whore of Babylon is a plague that is not resolved and will remain so until Yahowah’s return.

From God’s perspective, and I would trust Him on this, religion is a plague – infecting anyone and everyone who is exposed. Religion is a disease to be avoided at all costs because it is deadly to souls. And there is no cure. Those engaged in it, and counted among the religious, cannot be saved even by God, Himself. Unless a person divorces themselves from religion and politics, there is no path to forgiveness, no means to be acquitted. Religion is a malignancy far more invasive than cancer.

If you want to be seen as righteous before God, you will have to walk away from religion, not toward it. Those who pursue an association with the Whore of Babylon, whether it be through Hinduism, Christianity, Judaism, Islam, or Humanism, are disassociating themselves from Yahowah, further distancing themselves from Him with every step they take in the wrong direction. It is a dead end – at least while a person is actively pursuing it and counted among the faithful.

In spite of the religious translations and commentaries to the contrary, this Proverb is not about marital infidelity, promiscuity, or fornication. As I’m sure you recall, there was no mention of adultery or any form of sexuality in the long list of admonitions presented previously by Yahowah. And as we have learned, the primary meaning of rea’ isn’t “neighbor” nor is ‘ishah principally “wife.” The wicked woman is the whore of religion – an injurious and immoral institution that accepts contributions to make people feel better.

140Instead of warning a son about the risks of extramarital sex, Yahowah is revealing how contact with the Whore, and thus with religion, plagues the souls of those who actively pursue an association with such flirtatious and disingenuous institutions.

From the beginning, this discussion has been about the choice we are being encouraged to make between the trustworthy and reliable nature of the Towrah and the nurturing relationship presented therein versus the deceptions associated with the doctrines inspired by the Whore of Babylon which come out of the mouths of men.

Speaking of malfeasance, all too often we are prompted to forgive petty theft because someone suggests that the crime was the result of poverty and hunger or the lack of a proper education or equal opportunity. But no matter what the situation or motives, some crimes remain too contemptible for forgiveness. For example, despite what the Quran says or what Muhammad did, there is no justification for kidnapping, for selling people into slavery, for rape, or for terrorism. In that light, God may be telling us that even though men and women seem predisposed to be religious, even though faith seems to be somehow satisfying and fulfilling, the perpetrators are nonetheless kidnapping the souls of the faithful and holding them hostage by way of their web of lies.

“Don’t they have contempt for (lo’ buwz – don’t they disrespect, deride, and despise, even judge as evil), in this regard (la), the thief or kidnapper (ha ganab – the one who steals property or people by stealth, selling what he has taken) even if (ky – especially when indeed) he controls people or steals property (ganab – he kidnaps and confiscates through deception what does not belong to him) to satisfy (la male’ – to fill himself up, mollifying, appeasing, assuaging, pacifying, placating, and soothing) his soul (nepesh) because (ky) he is famished (ra’eb – he is hungry or starving, lacking in sufficient nutrition, from 141ra’ – willfully evil and rea’ – speaking of a country or countryman)?” (Mashal / Meaningful, and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:30)

Souls are not physical entities. They have no mass or volume. They cannot starve. Therefore, this is addressing souls longing to satisfy their desire to pillage and plunder which is excused and justified by their religious or political beliefs. But according to God, such people and institutions deserve our contempt and ought to be judged, derided, and despised.

“And (wa) if he is discovered (matsa’ – if he is found and information is obtained about him through the unfolding process of observation and discovery of sufficient evidence, and the truth becomes known and is sufficient (nifal participle absolute passive sequential)), he will repay, making restitution (shalem – he will be finished, fulfilling his obligation, providing recompense (piel imperfect)), sevenfold for his claims (shib’athym – seven times for their oaths), for all (‘eth kol) of the wealth and possessions (hown – riches found desirable in a society that were considered readily available and easy to obtain, and were made light of) of his household (beyth – home and family), he will provide, giving back (nathan – he will offer up (qal imperfect)).” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:31)

Those who steal souls, confiscating the most valuable commodity in the universe, will be held accountable for what they have done. Therefore, while robbing the faithful has been easy for the religious, their recompense will fit their crime. They exchanged a worthless promise of eternal life for tithes and offerings. But when they are judged, they will not only forfeit all of the possessions they found so desirable, including their houses of god, but they will endure a sevenfold diminishment for every soul they cheated out of life.

142This is typically interpreted as paying back seven times the amount stolen, but since kidnapped souls are too valuable to be monetized, I don’t think Yahowah is speaking of silver and gold, especially in the context of the final judgment. Also, since the consequence of being religious is to die, ceasing to exist, and the penalty for promoting religion is to be imprisoned in She’owl for an eternity, a sentence requiring a sevenfold time of death would be nonsensical.

If I may posture an idea. What if the recompense is to be diminished sevenfold? With Yahowah and His Home existing in the seventh dimension, expulsion to She’owl, a singularity akin to a black hole, would serve as the ideal sentence, one befitting the crime. These religious and political scoundrels robbed millions of the opportunity to transcend this life and enter the seventh dimension, living with Yahowah for all time. So why not eternally dispatch them to a one-dimensional realm, reduced to the size of the question mark dot at the end of this sentence?

“Actively committing adultery by way of religious idolatry and infidelity (na’aph – most often used to address adultery in the sense of idolatrous worship and religious infidelity, i.e., cheating on and breaching the Covenant) with this female individual (‘ishah – with the woman previously identified as the Whore) is impoverishing and life-threatening, depriving the individual of good judgment (chaser leb – is internally bankrupting, ruining a person’s ability to be rational, depriving the heart of what is needed to survive, promoting an improper attitude, bereaving the inner person of life), and corrupting and destroying (shachath – ravaging and devastating, blemishing and spoiling, sliming and putrefying, even entombing in a dungeon and lightless pit) the soul (nepesh) of those (huw’) who consistently choose to act like this (‘asah hy’ – who continually engage in this way, wanting to actually do this on an ongoing basis (qal 143stem denotes a genuine relationship, the imperfect conjugation addresses ongoing and habitual behavior, and the jussive mood reveals that this is a desired choice, a free expression of volition and will)).” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:32)

Recognizing that chaser is “to be without something, to lessen and to diminish something that is required to function properly, to lack something absolutely necessary, and to be bereft and bereaved of what is required to support life,” we benefit from understanding that at the time this was written, the “leb – heart” was the “seat of reason” and spoke of the “place where that which is known, considered, and accepted serves to provide perspective, prompting rational and logical decision-making.”

Therefore, God is saying that religion destroys a person’s ability to think, to exercise good judgment, and to process information rationally. When an individual is deprived of this capacity, there is nothing anyone, including God, can do to reach them, to awaken them, to reason with them, and, therefore, to save them. This is the most debilitating aspect of religion. Believers don’t think. It is why Yahowah said, “My people are destroyed for lack of understanding.” Here, He is explaining the reason why this occurs and has connected cause and consequence.

There are many places throughout the Torah, Prophets, and Psalms where the imperfect conjugation is a lifesaver. This is one of them. Consistent with all seven of the instructions Yahowah inscribed upon the second of the two stone tablets, it is ongoing behavior that gets us into trouble. The life-threatening nature of religious corruption is only debilitating to those who habitually go to church and who continue to believe the lies. The moment we walk away, the curse is lifted, the disease goes into remission, the plague no longer afflicts.

144All Yahowah asks is that we choose of our own volition to walk away from babel, from the Whore of Babylon, from patriotism and religion. Moreover, the request for us to walk away implies that most people are or have been so associated at some time in their lives. Fortunately, having been religious is resolvable. Having been patriotic is curable.

However, continuing to be either is considered spiritual adultery, an act of religious infidelity. It is life-threatening and impoverishing – destroying the souls of the ongoing participants. That is why the instruction Yahowah chiseled in stone teaches us not to make a habit of adultery.

Consistently educating His children regarding the most devastating religious pandemic ever unleashed by the Whore of Babylon, some four hundred years after this Proverb was composed, Yahowah revealed that Sha’uwl, the given name of the self-proclaimed apostle Paul, would be a plague of death. Now, after exposing and condemning him and his religious abomination in every way possible, from every angle and perspective, Yahowah ascribes the taunting slurs of the Christian faith to an insult perpetrated by the lowly and little one. Paulos, the Latin name chosen by Paul, means “lowly and little.”

“He will obtain (matsa’ – he will find and cause) the plague (nega’ – the infection and fungus, the trauma and pandemic disease, the stroke), (wa), an insult of the lowly and little one (qalown – the shame, dishonor, ignominy, scorn and slander of the public disgrace, the lack of esteem and disrespect demonstrated by the infamous one, the degraded nature of the person and the contempt and disdain shown by the one of lowly status). His contemptuous and taunting slurs and rebuke (cherpah – his shameful insult and lowly status, his harmful and slanderous words) will not be wiped away (lo’ machah – will not be washed off or blotted out and will never be removed (nifal 145imperfect)).” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:33)

God is again reminding us in general terms that the taunting slurs of religion stain souls beyond what He is either able or willing to remove. And specifically, Christians have been put on notice that the shameful and slanderous plague inspired by Paul, the Lowly and Little One, cannot be cured.

Paul was pathetically insecure, a debilitating malady that he tried to assuage by viciously demeaning his rivals, while egotistically overstating his value. Insecure individuals, like Paul, claim that they cannot lie while errantly calling their foes liars. They are antagonistic and destructive, uncontrollably venomous. And it is all driven by envy, the same malady that precipitated Satan’s fall from heaven. That is what Yah is revealing here…

“Because indeed (ky), envy (qin’ah – a state of ill will caused by one trying to obtain a perceived advantage in a relationship; from qana’ – anger borne of envious jealousy) makes a human being (geber) venomous, hostile, and antagonistic (chemah – as poisonous as a snake, enraged and wrong, emotionally worked up in angry turmoil), and (wa) He will not take pity or show mercy (lo’ chamal – He will not spare, deliver, or help, He will show no compassion (qal imperfect)) on the day (ba yowm) of reckoning and payback (naqam – of retribution and inflicting punishment, of being avenged).” (Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:34)

An insecure person unmercifully undermines the character of those they envy. They are not only unlovable, but they also ruin relationships for others. Such was the case with Paul which is why he will be shown no mercy on the day of reckoning.

146Very few Christians consider Paul’s final words to Timothy. And yet, he admitted that everyone he had known and conversed with had rejected him. He was abandoned and alone, pathetic and miserable.

Since Paul’s venomous attacks on Towrah-observant Jews are so blatant, so demeaning, and his envy of their place with God so obvious, there is no reason to explore what drove these hostilities. The evidence affirming his envy is overwhelming, demonstrated in part by the uncontrolled and overtly hostile tantrums he foisted against Yahowah and His Towrah. By doing so in such a childish way, he actually destroyed what little credibility he would otherwise have achieved by the force of his personality with rational individuals. So why did he risk everything he sought to accomplish for himself by littering his letters with these venomous and antagonistic outbursts?

I suspect that the answer to that question goes beyond the more common resentment associated with troubled individuals who blame their failings on God. Based upon Paul’s confession in Second Corinthians, I think the answer lies in the demon who possessed him. Paul admitted that the thorn in his side was a representative and messenger from Satan, serving as a constraint to keep his ego in check.

Therefore, Paul was just like Satan, indistinguishable from the Whore in character, motives, and means. He claimed for himself what is due God. He sought to elevate his testimony above God’s. And as was the case with Muhammad, both men projected their own personas on their personal rendition of their god. Considering the absurdity of this, the only mystery is why anyone believed Satan or his emissary.

In that Proverb 6:34 speaks of a “Day of Reckoning,” a date yet in the future, this would be the opportune time to convey another amazing irony. Paul, the self-proclaimed apostle and founder of the Christian religion, and the 147religion’s most legendary foe, the “Antichrist,” are so similar in substance and style that they are essentially indistinguishable. While Paul remains the only man in the long history of men to embody every criticism Yahowah has delineated, there will be another. Every condemnation of Paul will be manifest in the words and deeds of the Towrahless One known to Christians as the “Antichrist.”

And while Revelation’s depiction of him wasn’t worth the parchment it was scribed upon, the Adversary’s adversary, Dowd, contributed considerably to our knowledge of the Whore of Babylon while communicating to Daniel. As a result, we know that the corporeal incarnation of this Beast will enter Jerusalem on the 1^st of ‘Abyb in year 5997 Yah with promises of peace. But his intent will be to preclude the Miqra’ey, eliminating any chance of salvation for God’s people, and then proclaim himself divine. His goal will be to set up Jews for extinction because he knows that, if he can preclude the family reunion promised by Kipurym, he will prevail by foiling God’s plans.

In this regard, the satanic spirit that Paul acknowledged possessed him will also influence the Towrahless One. As a result, each of the warnings we have been given concerning Paul can be applied to the “Antichrist.” The former was known for his travels, and the latter will become a worldwide sensation.

However, do not be fooled. The human incarnation of Satan will be pro-christ, not anti-christ. The myth that a person named Jesus was the Christ, the Son of God, and Savior, has served him better than any other. Therefore, this manifestation of the Beast will be anti-Dowd, anti-Mashyach, and anti-Yahowah.

One has, and the other will, seek to be accepted by Gentiles, convincing them to oppose Israel. The audience was and will be chosen because they lack what is necessary 148to refute the false prophet’s lies. While understanding the Towrah is easier now than ever before, few invest the time, and most reject it out of ignorance.

One was, and the other will be, opposed to circumcision. While its health benefits continue to be affirmed, opposition to circumcision continues to arise with more and more of the world’s secular elite wanting to ban the sign of the Covenant.

The idea of inactivity leading to laziness defines the dependency of the entitlement generation – causing an increasing preponderance of people to be susceptible to the tactics that will be used to control humankind. Lethargy, ignorance, and apathy are universal, depriving the masses of common sense through the imposition of political correctness. Most will be easy prey, willingly accepting the deceitful, destructive, and deadly mandates of the Towrahless One – just as Gnostic Greeks and Romans unwittingly embraced Paul’s mantra.

One came, and the other will arrive, behaving like a leader or guide, taking control, while promising to save the world. The former’s letters and the latter’s speeches were and will be confusing and invalid, an intoxicating blend of religion and politics.

Paul was, and the Beast will be wrong when it comes to God, perverting and corrupting, assailing and negating His Towrah and its Covenant while proposing and imposing their agenda.

One was, and the other will be, self-promoting and arrogant. With perverse corruptions that inverted reality in his heart, Paul devised and inscribed antagonistic schemes without consideration of their consequence. His adversarial and contentious message sought to do away with the one thing absolutely vital to our survival. The Towrahless One will follow suit. The latter will be indistinguishable from the former.

149While some may consider Paul to be the prototype for the Towrahless One, I see Paul as having written the script for the Whore of Babylon. Paul created the mold from which the Towrahless One will emerge. His advocacy of Pauline Christianity will enhance his appeal providing the foundation upon which he will achieve world domination. And since Jews did not know how to respond to him in 33 CE, most will do no better in 2033.

And yet, they were forewarned. The comparisons are undeniable. Virtually every prophecy that applies to Paul describes the Towrahless One including the fact that Yahowah’s most direct condemnation of Sha’uwl was recorded 666 years before the self-proclaimed apostle scribed his first letter.

Now, moving on to the Mashal’s final warning, we find its author, who I suspect was Dowd, warning the rich and powerful...

“He is consistently unwilling to actually accept or endure (lo’ nasa’ – He will not lift up, raise up, bear, support, nor receive, he will not tolerate, forgive, nor show any respect for (qal imperfect)) the presence of (paneh – the face, mouth, or appearance of) any compensation, ransom payment, or appeasement (kol kopher – any payment, including any hush money, indulgence or contribution, any penitence or bribe, any cover-up or sum of money, from kaphar – reconciliation, atonement, propitiation, placation, or pacification).

And He is unwilling to yield, and therefore He will refuse to accept (lo’ ‘abah – He will not consent to, submit to, agree with, nor relent to) you no matter how great and numerous your gifts or influence (ky rabah sochad – you regardless of the multitude or magnificence of your offerings, tributes, services, inspiration, position, ransom payments, presents expecting a quid pro quo, or bribe).” 150(Mashal / Meaningful and Easy to Remember Sayings / Proverb 6:35)

It should be no surprise. You cannot buy God’s approval. He isn’t for sale. There is no amount of money that will open Heaven’s Door. The Mormons and Scientologists, who demand a cut of their victim’s income, and the Roman Catholics, who offered indulgences at an exorbitant price, were and remain dead wrong as is the jizyah imposed by oppressive Muslim regimes upon those they subjugate. Religion is big business, a money laundering scheme that is as disgusting as the ones deployed by drug lords – even distributing an equally addictive product with similar results. And there are few schemes more lucrative than rabbis selling their Kosher blessing.

God does not need or want your money. He does not ask for it. He does not authorize anyone to solicit it or redistribute it for Him. What Yahowah is offering is both priceless and free. Man’s religious alternative, like the human political option, is of no value, and it will cost those who subscribe to it their souls. And as for paying more for Kosher, there is no support in the Towrah for doing so.

I would be remiss if I did not inform you that, at its heart, Islam was founded as a criminal enterprise. Muhammad conceived it to rob his neighbors because he was jealous of them. Terrorism was his lone tactic. The armed robbery of civilians served as the means to his fame and fortune.

Paul’s scheme wasn’t as vicious. He solicited religious donations the old-fashioned way. Giving money to his church became the Christian thing to do. But if it were not for these donations, there would be no churches. The money that was given in hopes of saving the donor’s soul has served to rob others of their souls. It is what God calls 151“making merchandise of men.” It just isn’t the Godly thing to do.

Charitable donations are often used as a measure of whether or not a person is good. But as we will learn in a subsequent chapter, God is no more impressed by a person being good than He is with their donations.

Heaven is not a reward for anything, much less for being a good person. Heaven is simply God’s Home. And His Family is a relationship, not a prize. Entry into God’s Home, and thus inclusion into His Family, is predicated upon correctly responding to the conditions of the Covenant and then engaging in the resulting relationship. It is about being right, not good.

Being good will not earn any credit with God. No amount of good works will cause heaven’s door to open. There is nothing you can do, bring, or say that will influence God in the least. On this issue, He is unwilling to yield.

Heaven’s door opens for those God recognizes, for participants in the Covenant, for His children, because they are Family.

Here now is the entire Mashal, one that may be helpful to read again in advance of the ninth chapter, entitled The Whore of Religion. Yah’s message flows out of one into the next.

“My son, if you have at some point given a pledge, and if you have joined in with a foe to be accepted in association with your immoral country, then you have bound yourself to that which is illegitimate and unauthorized, foreign and estranged from the palm of My hand. (Mashal / Proverb 6:1)

You lure others into relinquishing their freedom and are yourself ensnared and controlled by the statements of your mouth. You are caught by way of the 152words which comprise your speech. (Mashal / Proverb 6:2)

So then decide to engage thusly, My son, and of your own freewill elect to tear yourself away, delivering yourself from harm.

For if, even temporarily, you have actually come to bow down before the hand, influence, or control of your immoral country, choose to actually go in an unpretentious way, willing to get a bit dirty, and press one’s reasons for contention with the adversarial individual or institution, boldly astonishing and overwhelming them, showing great courage against your loudmouthed and evil public spokesmen. (Mashal / Proverb 6:3)

Do not give yourself over to slumber, to being oblivious, concerning your eyes or altered state of awareness by closing your eyelids. (Mashal / Proverb 6:4)

Choose to escape, defending yourself, like a gazelle, from the hand of power. And similar to a chirping bird, be free of the hand of the fowler. (Mashal / Proverb 6:5)

The habitually inactive and lethargic should observe and examine the movement of the ant, her ways, and be wise. (Mashal / Proverb 6:6)

Beneficially, and from a relationship perspective, she has no leader or ruler, no commander or officer, no government or imposed authority, she has no work foreman or public official, not even a clerk or scribe, nor anyone claiming to be in charge or in control, and most especially not a lord who reigns over her. (Mashal / Proverb 6:7)

She prepares in the summer, during the warmer period when the fruit of plants is plentiful. She gathers 153in the harvest, storing it as a source of nourishment. (Mashal / Proverb 6:8)

For how long and to what extent, inactive, apathetic, and lethargic one, will you lie there and remain sedentary? When and what will it take for you to arise and stand up from your altered state of awareness? (Mashal / Proverb 6:9)

A little inactivity leads to laziness, to folding one’s hands together in a lethargic manner to rest. (Mashal / Proverb 6:10)

For he will come, walking and behaving like a leader and guide, taking control. And you will lack what is needed, demonstrating a scarcity of something absolutely vital, causing you to be bereaved and diminished. (Mashal / Proverb 6:11)

A confusing and invalid, destructive and corrupt, inconsistent and difficult to understand man, an unjust, dishonest, evil, and vain individual, travels about with speeches which are wrong, perverting, and corrupting. (Mashal / Proverb 6:12)

With a sinister winking of his eyes, he subtly signals the vacillating nature of his proclamations. And by shuffling about regarding his stance on circumcision, he casts aspersions with his fingers. (Mashal / Proverb 6:13)

With confusing and false perceptions which invert reality and corrupt his judgment, he devises and inscribes antagonistic schemes without consideration for their consequences which are adversarial, creating controversies and contentious strife, all while claiming to be sent out as a messenger to do away with something important. (Mashal / Proverb 6:14)

Upon this, therefore, suddenly, unexpectedly, yet openly, albeit briefly, he will come with his destructive opposition and ruinous calamity. He will smash and 154shatter, breach and break something vital, and as a result, he will suffer affliction, surprising many. And there will not be any remedy or cure. (Mashal / Proverb 6:15)

Behold, these six things Yahowah hates, and the seventh is an abomination to His soul: (6:16) haughty eyes and visions of grandeur, including a rebellious perspective; a deceptive tongue; hands that shed innocent blood; (6:17) a heart which devises troublesome, false doctrines; feet which impetuously approach that which is evil; (6:18) a maligning soul whose breath utters sedition, breathing out slanderous and deceptive testimony which incites the deluded to worship false gods as a false witness; and especially one who claims to be sent out as a messenger to do away with something vital, creating controversy and strife between brothers. (Mashal / Proverb 6:19)

My son, choose to be spared and remain safe by closely observing and attentively focusing upon, so as to be protected and preserved by accepting the instructive terms of the relationship agreement of your Father and do not ever actually forego or reject the Towrah, which is the teaching of your Mother. (Mashal / Proverb 6:20)

Choose to fasten them upon your heart, continuously electing of your own freewill to place them as an adornment upon your neck. (Mashal / Proverb 6:21)

In your walking, She will lead and guide you. Accompanying you when you rest, She will watch over you. And when you are awake, She will communicate with you, enabling you to seriously consider the situation and instructions. (Mashal / Proverb 6:22)

For indeed, the prescriptions and conditions of this relationship accord are a lamp illuminated by olive oil, and the Towrah is Light. They are the way of lives, 155existing for rational discourse about being right regarding accurate instruction and correct teaching, (6:23) for the purpose of you closely examining and carefully considering so as to protect you from the woman who is evil, severing the relationship as a result of the smooth and seductive tongue of the foreign female. (Mashal / Proverb 6:24)

You should not continuously find her beautiful and graceful appearance desirable in your heart, thereby affecting your judgment! And do not let her actually obtain control of you with her flaunting display of flashing rays of light or her flirting eyes! (Mashal / Proverb 6:25)

For indeed, the price of the loathed Whore is the same as a loaf of bread, however, the soul of the woman or man she stalks and victimizes is valuable. (Mashal / Proverb 6:26)

Can a man consistently scoop up and continually carry away fire in his lap or his deceitful garments and not be burned by the serpent? (Mashal / Proverb 6:27)

Can an individual continually walk upon the burning coals or the flashing light from the sky and his feet not be scorched? (Mashal / Proverb 6:28)

Don’t they have contempt in this regard for the thief and kidnapper, even if he captures people and steals property to satisfy his soul because he is famished? (Mashal / Proverb 6:30)

If he is discovered, he will repay, making restitution, sevenfold for his claims. For all of the 156wealth and possessions found in his household, he will pay, giving back. (Mashal / Proverb 6:31)

He will obtain the plague, an insult of the lowly and little one. His contemptuous and taunting slurs will not be wiped away. (Mashal / Proverb 6:33)

Because indeed, envy makes a human being venomous, hostile, and antagonistic, and He will not take pity or show mercy on the day of reckoning. (Mashal / Proverb 6:34)

He is consistently unwilling to accept or endure the presence of any compensation, ransom payment, or appeasement.

He is unwilling to yield, and therefore He will refuse to accept you no matter how great and numerous your gifts or influence.” (Mashal / Proverb 6:35)

Suffice it to say: God hates religion.

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