The God Culture: The Mystery of the Three Kings Book Review, Part 4: The Prophecy of Messiah's Star
Timothy Jay Schwab who is The God Culture devotes a whole chapter in his new book The Mystery of the Three Kings to analyzing different prophecies from the Bible and elsewhere about Jesus being a star. That is because according to Revelation of the Magi The Star of Bethlehem was actually Jesus Christ.
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| pg. 130 |
In fact, one must wonder why the Philippines has the longest celebration on Earth for Messiah’s birth. That, also, is not Catholic. They begin their season in September and end with the birth of Messiah three months later. The culmination is Three Kings’ Day or Epiphany. Sure, the Catholic Church injected the occult Christmas at the wrong time of year, with the wrong Magi, and the wrong Jesus (Yahusha). They add even occult elements far from scripture in embellishment.In our chapter titled When Was Jesus Born? (10), we will lay out the timeline Luke especially preserves for Messiah’s birth on the Bible Feast of Shavuot in June, nowhere near December. His death and resurrection were during the Feast of Unleavened Bread. The logical reason for the precedence of three months is this Feast cycle. Jesus (Yahusha) was put to death on the First Day of Unleavened Bread in Abib (March-April). He was born on Shavuot in June (See Chapter 10). That is a long celebration in which He embedded Himself in the Biblical Feasts. This practice can never pass away, and does not in any scripture. Even Paul kept these Feasts in the New Testament which he preached as well.In the Magi Isles, the Catholic Church (the captor who conquered them), obviously took the three-month observance and moved it to the occult Christmas (formerly known as Saturnalia), the birth of His enemy and the sun god of many names (such as Mithra).
pg. 131
Right away Tim presents conjecture as fact. Where is there any evidence Filipinos had four months of celebration from March to June before the Spanish arrived? Where is there any evidence such a festival season was moved by the Catholic Church to September through December? Tim gives none. He simply states it as a fact calling it obvious. Well, it's not obvious and he needs to prove his claims.
It is very clear in Revelation of the Magi that Jesus Christ is the Star that appeared to the Wise Men. The Star appears to them in the Cave of Treasures and speaks to them.
13:10 And I am everywhere, because I am a ray of light whose light has shone in this world from the majesty of my Father, who has sent me to fulfill everything that was spoken about me in the entire world and in every land by unspeakable mysteries, and to accomplish the commandment of my glorious Father, who by the prophets preached about me to the contentious house, in the same way as for you, as befits your faith, it was revealed to you about me.
This is a very problematic verse which Tim has nothing to say about. Here is the footnote from Brent Landau.
This sentence contains an intriguing theological concept: that Christ is the underlying reality of all systems of religious belief in the world. Although other early Christian writings admit the possibility of revelation through non-Christian channels (e.g., Acts 14:15-17, 17:22-31), the RevMagi demonstrates a novel “theology of world religions,” the precise form of which is found nowhere else, to my knowledge, in ancient Christian sources.
Revelation of the Magi states in no uncertain terms that Jesus Christ is the source of all religious belief in the world and not just in Israel. Such a claim is to be found nowhere else in ancient Christian sources or in the Bible. The Magi say they were sent because Jesus has worshippers in every country.
17:5 And he commanded us in a great vision to come to this land to worship him in reverence because he has worshippers in every country.
This ecumenism is simply not true. While there are worshippers of Jesus Christ in every country today such was not the case in the time of the Magi. The Lord is very clear that of all the families on the earth he only knew Israel.
Amos 3:2 You only have I known of all the families of the earth
It is quite telling that Tim has nothing to say about verses 13:10 and 17:5 and claims there is nothing bothersome in the text. He should be very bothered about those verses and the doctrine they teach. Despite this terrible and heretical theology unbothered Tim says Revelation of the Magi is inspired and espouses good theology.
Enter Revelation of the Magi from the Vatican Library, translated into English and published in 2010 by Brent Landau. Notice how this text explains Matthew and brings clarity to this entire account. That is what inspired documents do and when they do, they prove to be inspired. One does not have to add this to the Canon, but we should all be aware of the information in geography and all the many holes in Matthew get filled in.
pg. 141
Revelation of the Magi is espousing good theology here.
pg. 149
Tim's claim that the Jesus was prophesied to be an actual star can be written off because Jesus was also prophesied to be a scepter.
Numbers 24:17 A star will come from Jacob, and a scepter will arise from Israel
Tim comments on this verse:
First, in the prophecy of Balaam, the “Him” here is firmly the Messiah to come. We are not unaware of any scholar that would debate that. Balaam can see Him prophetically in the future, not in his time and he beholds him far away from himself as a Star, literally.
pg. 132
Balaam spoke of a star and a scepter. If Jesus is literally a star then what about the scepter? What about the "will come from Jacob" part? It's pretty clear star and scepter as applied to Jesus Christ are metaphorical for greatness and authority. Matthew Henry comments:
He shall come out of Jacob, and Israel, as a Star and a Sceptre; the former denoting his glory and lustre; the latter his power and authority. Christ shall be King, not only of Jacob and Israel, but of all the world; so that all shall be either governed by his golden sceptre, or dashed in pieces by his iron rod.
Tim appears to be unaware that this particular prophecy of Balaam is proof that the Wise Men (Magi) came from Persia.
and that the appearance of a star in Israel was a sign of the Messiah's coming is certain from Matthew 2:1 of which the Magi were informed by Zoroastres (e) their founder, who, being of Jewish extract, had got it from this prophecy of Balaam; and it is as evident that the Jews expected the appearance of an extraordinary star at the time of the Messiah's coming; for so they say more than once, in an ancient book of theirs (f), that when the"Messiah shall be revealed, a bright and shining star shall arise in the east;''which expectation must be founded on this prophecy
Elsewhere Tim says the star appeared as an eagle and this connects it to Philippine prophecy. Discussing The Book of The Bee Tim writes:
The footnote for this point offers another confirmation that scholars knew the Star appeared two years prior to the Wise Men arriving in Jerusalem. They knew this was not actually a Star, as we see them, but far brighter, which is an excerpt in concept from Revelation of the Magi. That further details another point, which also brings attention to the Philippines, as it says the Star appeared in the form of an eagle. That is the national symbol of the Philippines to this day and that eagle appears in prophecy. It is the largest eagle on Earth. Within the Star was the form of a young child, (which is also a direct quote from Revelation of the Magi).
pg. 61
So, now the star was an eagle or in the shape of an eagle? Where is that in Revelation of the Magi? Where is that anywhere? Tim simply grabs on to whatever he thinks will help promote his false cause. In this case a footnote mentions a legend about the star appearing as an eagle, the eagle is associated with the Philippines, the Magi came from the Philippines, therefore it all fits! Leave it to Tim to use a footnote as a source rather than finding the reference to which the footnote points.
The fact is the Star Child who appears in Revelation of the Magi and says
"my Father, who has sent me to fulfill everything that was spoken about me in the entire world and in every land by unspeakable mysteries"
is most certainly not Jesus Christ. The only mysteries Jesus fulfilled were those in Israel, the law and the prophets, not those "in the entire world and every land." This heretical doctrine is enough to dismiss Revelation of the Magi as bunk.
In four articles I have now dismantled Timothy Jay Schwab's arguments for Revelation of the Magi proving the Magi originated in the Philippines and his arguments that the content of the text is inspired. He is wrong on every count. Perhaps there will be more to say at a later date.
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