Living in Truth:
Archaeology and the Patriarchs

Lesson 3   Book Navigator  

by Charles N. Pope
Copyright ©1999-2004, 2016 by Charles Pope
United States Library of Congress
All rights reserved under International and
Pan-American Copyright Conventions

Tutorial: Lesson 4
"Swift upon the Prey"
(Benjamin Takes the Nature of Levi and Kingship of Joseph and Shiloh)


The Seventh God and Patriarch

Horus the Elder, killed in battle by Seth, was survived by his son of Hathor, namely Horus the Younger. The younger Horus was further designated as the heir of Osiris and Isis. This Horus was a small, weak, and sickly child, nursed by his adoptive mother, and protected, especially from the evil intent of Set. Although never defeated, Set eventually conceded his claim to the greater throne and submitted, more or less, to "rightful authority." In the final years before the Great Flood, the regency of Egypt belonged to Thoth, who was of the male line of Shu.1 Under him was Horus the Younger, heir of the secondary line of kings.  Isis also ruled alongside her father Thoth under her epithets of Sheshat and Maat.2

As a Genesis Patriarch Thoth is called Lamech. Lamech, upon attaining sovereignty, uses it to pronounce a curse. He is to be avenged 77 times if killed in retaliation for the murder of a godlike but offensive youth. The victim was Osiris (Patriarch Mehujael, "killed by God"), who was murdered by Seth with the help of Thoth and approval of Re. Emphasis on the number seven is a further association of Lamech, the seventh Patriarch, with Thoth.3 Of the seven Pre-Flood Patriarchs mentioned in Genesis only Lamech (Thoth) and Mehujael (Osiris) were natural descendants of Abel (Alal) and his heir (Shu-Enlil).4 The others were of the line of Adam and Cain.

There are three prominent women named in the Lamech discourse of Genesis. Two are wives and one is a daughter. Lamech also has three leading sons. Jabal, "father of tent-dwellers," that is Semites, is the most senior son. He surfaces again after the Flood in Genesis by a different name, Shem the eldest "son" of Noah. The mother of Jabal/Shem is named as Adah (Hathor). She is also identified as the mother of Jubal (Horus the Younger), however not by Lamech but by a former partner (Horus the Elder).5 Jubal also emerges after the Flood by a different name, Ham (Har) the second "son" of Noah. The other "wife" of Lamech is called Zillah (Nut). By Lamech she is the mother of a daughter Naamah, "pleasantness," who corresponds to the goddess Isis, "The Sweet of Voice." Zillah is also the mother of Tubal-Cain (Seth),6 not by Lamech, but by a former partner (Geb). The Genesis narrative therefore provides a "Who's Who" in the days before the Flood, which maps directly to what is known from Egyptian myth.

The Redemption of Seth

After Lamech we would expect the account of Noah and the Great Flood to immediately follow.7 That story is presented in due course, but the author of Genesis has something else in mind first. Abruptly the narrative interjects a list of nine new Patriarchs. These arise, we are told, because "Adam knew his wife - again."8 The first Patriarch of this new dynasty is called Seth (Levi), and identified as "another seed" to replace that of the murdered Abel. The words translated above as "again"9 and "another"10 encode that the House of Seth did not replace (or displace) the first dynasty of Patriarchs in Genesis, but came entirely after it. In other words, the second line is patterned after the first, even as the first is itself patterned after the far earlier "divine" dynasty.11

Certain traits, such as extreme longevity, are attributed to the last (second) line of Adam as if by direct inheritance from the primordial gods themselves, and as if by skipping over the "generation" of the Adam whose life spans are not given. Even so, the latter line of Adam and Eve closely resembles the one that precedes it. Both include a Patriarch named Enoch and another named Lamech. Other names are not exactly the same but quite similar in form. Therefore, the last line of Adam is not intended to be a perfect reduplication, but a variation on the repeating theme. For example, in the previous line of Adam, Seth (the Egyptian god Set) is represented by a lesser Patriarch called Tubal-Cain, "flowing (from) Cain."12 However, Seth son of the last Adam is a featured Patriarch - he is no longer following after the "sinner" Cain but "righteous" Abel instead.13

In the first line of Adam (emulating the divine dynasty of Atum), Patriarch Abel was considered the superior of Cain, not only by virtue of a more pleasing offering to God but because he was considered a "son of God." Cain on the other hand was a natural son of "lowly Man/Adam." In the next repetition, Seth, although designated as a son of Man/Adam rather than of God, is claimed as a "substitute" (symbolically, an heir) for Abel's defunct line. This elevates the status of the new House of Seth/Levi, at least in a spiritual sense. It also reveals an ancient belief that each cycle was a type of "new creation" and brought the hope of rectifying the errant ways of former ones, such as the homicidal tendencies of Cain and Tubal-Cain (Seth I).

Something else serves to fix the last line of Patriarchs as to their late date of arrival, and also in dignity. In the time of Enosh son of the second Seth, God, it is said, was invoked as never before. The Patriarch Enosh corresponds to a suppressed member of the previous repetition, that being, Shu-El/Enlil (Asher) son of Abel. The previous Asher stood for pride and idolatry. After his namesake among the divine dynasty, he was called the "son of God" and the "Supreme." Enosh however is a new and different Lord Asher (En-Ash). This go-around he is contented with the title "son of Man."14 The name Enosh means "mortal, a man, bloodthirsty,"15 and is derived from the Hebrew anash, "frail." He sublimates the worship of mortal man in the creation of a "true religion" - the reverence of a Universal Spirit rather than a finite being.

"Calling on the name of the Lord" was of critical importance to the Genesis author. The Patriarch associated with this revolutionary act is not only able to redeem the role of Asher, but also worthy of being called a new Adam, as the name Enosh also implies. After Enosh in the last list of Patriarchs comes Kenan, a new if not improved Cain son of Adam. The name of the next Patriarch, Jered, is likewise a variant of the earlier Irad. Following him is Mahalalel, a variant of Mehujael in the former list. After him is Methuseleh, a variant of Mehushael. Then follows Enoch. This Enoch appears very late in the last list (as compared to the previous Enoch), and he also departs prematurely.16 The final Patriarch of the last set of Patriarchs is another Lamech. With this Lamech there is a confluence of the two Patriarchal lines of Adam and the narrative can without further delay proceed to Noah and the Great Flood.17

Enoch and the New World Order

Although Noah follows Lamech in the list of Patriarchs, he is not one of his true sons. Tradition dictated that he be the son and protégé of Enoch. The archetypal Flood Hero was called Adapa, the most wise.18 He was son and priest to Ea/Enki at his city of Eridu. Adapa was not originally considered a god but became "as the gods" after defying the Deluge. He was also counted among the renowned Seven Sages (Apkalla, derived from the Sumerian ab-gal, "Great Father"). The initial "Great Flood" involving mankind signaled the end of the fabled first time (Sep Tepi) of the gods. Adapa filled the breach. He was last in the first group of Patriarchs and first of a new cycle of revered "Great Fathers." He belonged to both and to none.

Enki father of Adapa had proved both his genius and discretion in the creation and salvation of mankind.19 He had skillfully and persistently worked within the choking constraints placed on him by his superior Enlil, and without resorting to murder or open rebellion. However, in one myth the divine age ends with the ever-loyal under-royal Ea no longer biting his tongue but angrily chiding Enlil for being so simpleminded and shortsighted. The surpassing of Enlil by Ea/Enki, once accomplished, was viewed as a fait accompli and therefore a legitimate precedent to be followed in future dynasties.20

According to the Book of Genesis, in the days of Noah, mankind was once again given up for dead by "God" (that is, the king ruling in the place of Enlil). It is therefore Enoch (playing the god Ea/Enki) that must rescue one of his own favored sons and declare him "father" to all others that survive.  And so the cycle was repeated - not only in the days of Enoch and Lamech of Genesis 4 but also in those of the Enoch and Lamech of Genesis 5.21

Career Change for a Drunken Sailor

There is no mention of wives or children in the Legend of Adapa, though we can presume, even predict, them in reverse. In Genesis are we told that the Flood hero has three sons, and that they and their wives are spared along with Noah and his wife to carry on after the Flood. Although characterized as a peaceful and humble tiller (Heb. abed), Noah had been designated as "binder" (Heb. obed), that is, "father" not just to his own offspring alone, but also to the other leading princes. After the Flood, he was expected to become more than a fisherman, farmer, or even a priest-king, but head of a new ruling house. Noah instead plants a garden, makes wine, and falls into a drunken stupor. There seems to be little interest or aptitude on his part to enforce his appointed authority. On the contrary, one of his so-called sons named Ham wastes no time in asserting himself. Sleep for Noah, as it did for Adam, symbolizes the death of sovereignty.

Ham is the Biblical identity of Horus the Younger as a nominal son of Noah. Prior to the Flood, this same Horus was numbered among the sons of Lamech and called Jubal. The name Ham is a direct adaptation of the Egyptian Har.22 Ham in Hebrew means "hot,"23 and connotes "anger, poison (from its fever), rage, fury, and intense heat as from the sun."24 Horus, called "Avenger of His Father," was bent on securing the greater throne of his legal father Osiris. As heir and avenger of Osiris-Sokar-Sekhem, younger Horus was called Sekhem-wy and Sekhem-hotep.25 Sekhemwy connotes Sekhem II or "little Osiris," and Sekhem-hotep indicates that Osiris was satisfied or expatiated by the punishments inflicted by his avenger Horus on all who might oppose him as heir.

Horus as Ham was also passionate about restoring the praise of Horus the Elder (Mehushael/Judah), his namesake and true father. This father-and-son relationship was determined from Egyptian myth, but is also evident in Mesopotamia. Immediately after the Flood the most active figure is the hero Lugalbanda. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, Lugalbanda is identified as the father of Gilgamesh and as a greatly feared god. The Sumerian name or epithet Lugalbanda means, "little big man." Lugal is "great man, chief." Banda is defined as "young; junior; vigorous; impetuous; fierce; proud,"26 and makes identification with the "fierce" but "beloved" god Adad. More specifically, Lugalbanda, as Biblical Ham, was the diminutive but domineering son of Adad - he was Adad, Jr.27

All About the Benjamins

Thus far the archetypes for Jacob and eleven of his sons have been found among the ancient pantheon. The last, and also least in physical size and in the eyes of the Genesis author, is Benjamin. Benjamin is traditionally defined as "son of the right hand," indicating a favored son. However, more correctly, the name stigmatizes its bearer as a subordinate to a more favored ruler than himself. Benjamin refers geographically to the south as being "below" the north.28 Throughout the time of the gods, Mesopotamia was considered the seat of authority. Egypt and its rulers were "under" the king of the north. This convention derived from the division of the world by lots, in which the superior Enlil received a northern portion and the south ("underworld") fell to Enki.

Horus the Younger was the final "Benjamin" in a line of secondary god-kings. The progenitor of that junior line was Adam (Dan), who in some circles was denied the title of king and considered only a "judge."29 The countenance of Cain (Gad) as a "son of Man/Adam" was cast down before the "sons of God," first to Abel and then Shu-Enlil (Asher) and his sons.30 Cain's son Enoch (Joseph) and grandson Irad (Jacob) were also subordinates of Enlil and his house. Irad, the Patriarchal name of the god Re, in particular was known as a judge in Egypt, and over both the living and the dead.31 However, with the death of Osiris and exile of Re on account of it, a new heir to the "right hand" line of Enlil was named, that being, Thoth (Simeon). Horus the Younger (Benjamin) was then designated as successor to the minor line of the exiled Re, and as such he became the new "son of the right hand."32

Of the twelve sons of Patriarch Jacob, Benjamin is by far the youngest, a son born to him in his old age. Jacob is overprotective of Benjamin, presumably because Joseph, the only full brother of Benjamin, is thought to be dead.33 It can however now be seen that doting over the youthful Benjamin was a necessary part of fulfilling tradition. Benjamin as incarnation of Horus the Younger was to be a little and persecuted prince, but later take on the nature and name of Levi in order to become a mighty champion, even a savior-figure.34 He was "destined" to overtake the ruling house, which was bequeathed by Jacob to Joseph's son Shiloh, which isn’t a synonym of Solomon, but instead that of a Joshua-figure.  In other words, Shiloh is a vigorous and youthful prince that establishes peace not so much by law but war.

In the Blessing of Benjamin, this son is compared to a ravenous wolf that begins to attack at sunrise and does not divide the spoil until night. In Egypt Horus personified (and deified) the rising and strengthening sun. The symbol of Horus was the falcon, bird of prey par excellence. Horus came to represent conquest and the periodic renewal of hostilities among nations and men.35 Horus as Ham/Benjamin was characterized as a "natural born killer." He was a "poster child" for the state sponsored terrorism (maher shalal hash baz)36 associated with ancient kingship, an institution the Book of Genesis refuses to dignify, at least directly.

Horus the Younger, the archetypal Benjamin, was son of the praised Horus the Elder, archetypal Judah.37 In the Bible, Benjamin and Judah are paired geographically. They, along with Levi, are also the names most commonly associated with rightful (and Messianic) kingship.38 Horus symbolized the ever-youthful and tireless warrior. He is the first "royal god" and founder of the ancient royal house. Virtually all pharaohs adopted a "Horus Name" as this was the first royal title. The triumph of Horus became the inspiration for all future contenders for the throne, rightful or otherwise, from his own son Scorpion (the Horus Aha - "fighting") and grandson Narmer (the Horus Huni -

"smiting"), all the way down to the infamous Herod the Great. Even in the New Testament, the small but forceful Paul boasts of a lineage from Benjamin, which is established in Scripture not by any genealogy but his presumed power over the deadly poison of a serpent.39

As a child, Horus endured a near-fatal poisoning and was nurtured back to health by his adoptive mother Isis in the seclusion of the Nile Delta marshes.40 Later, there would be no place for others to hide from his fury. Ironically, the young prince groomed to replace the bully Set became his better in violence.41 The Greeks called the young champion Horus-Apollo. The appending of Apollo to the name Horus captures the political succession of Horus from Set-Montu,42 the military prowess of Horus ala Set, and also his status as a sun god. In the early dynastic period, there was a concerted attempt to reconcile and assimilate the nature of Set with that of Horus. This is evidenced by a new cult fetish called the Nubti, which co-joined the images of these two gods on a single standard.43


Notes:

  1. During the time of the gods, authority was held by the House of Enlil (Shu), which included Ninurta (Geb), Dumuzi (Osiris), Enkimdu (Set), and Utu/Shamash (Thoth).
  2. The original Inanna/Ishtar (Isis) was referred to as the twin sister of Utu/Shamash (Thoth) rather than his daughter. The original Utu was the grandson of Enlil rather than a son. In Patriarchal times the relationships varied slightly and this was evidently considered acceptable. These variations may also be responsible for contradictions found in the myths. For example, the two versions of how Dumuzi-Osiris was captured (in the field verses at a banquet) and killed by Enkimdu-Set might reflect a difference in how the original Dumuzi-Osiris of the divine age met his fate as opposed to the Osiris-Dumuzi of Patriarchal times. The age at death of the original Osiris-Dumuzi also appears to have been much greater.
  3. Lamech (as "incarnation" of the gods Sin and Utu) may have also had a hand in the punishment of Cain (as "incarnation" of Anu).
  4. The Blessing of Asher states, "His bread (lechem) shall be fat (shaman)." The Hebrew word lechem is a word play (by transposition) on Lamech son of El/Asher. The Hebrew word shaman is perhaps a reference to Shamash, a Mesopotamian name of Thoth, or to his son and heir Shem/Jabal.
  5. Jubal is called the "father" of those who play the harp (as King David himself played). Jubal is the son of archetypal Judah, whose name means, "praise."
  6. Tubal is the "father" of those who fashion and sharpen metal, as for use in farming but also weaponry and killing. Tubal-Cain, "flowing (from) Cain," is the Seth of the first line of Adam. The word tubal is a Hebraized variant of the Sumerian tibira, meaning "metalworker" (See, S. N. Kramer, The Sumerians, p 41.) The ancient city of Bad-tibira was the birthplace of metalworking. Compare the Hebrew char-o-sheth (2799) "mechanical work." Compare also the Hebrew choresh (2794) "artificer, fabricator, mechanic," from charash (2790) "to scratch, plough, farm, devise, act secretly/cunningly, let alone, to cease talking, hold the tongue, to shut the lips and ears, become deaf and dumb." Compare choresh and Chemosh, a regional identity of the god Set/Baal. Compare choresh and Koresh (3556/3567), the Hebrew form of the Persian name Cyrus. Compare koresh (3770) "swollen belly or hunched back." The successors of Cyrus assumed throne names in Egypt that alluded to the god Set, for example Darius (Setutre) and Cambyses (Mesutire).
  7. As also indicated by 2 Peter 2:5, where Noah is called the eighth and not the tenth (Patriarch).
  8. Genesis 4:25
  9. again, Heb. od (5750) "iteration, reduplication" (Note that this is not the same word translated as "again" in Genesis 4:2.)
  10. another (312) acher "hinder; gen. next, other, etc:- (an)other (man), following, next." from (309) achar, "to loiter (i.e. be behind); by impl. to procrastinate:- continue, defer, delay, hinder, be late (slack), stay (there), tarry (longer)." In this context, the phrase "another seed" refers to a following therefore a future/later lineage.
    Compare achariyth (319) "the last or end, hence the future; also posterity"
    Compare achariyth (320) "later, latter"
  11. The mother of the second line ("seed") is not mentioned by name. She is implicitly another queen Eve, appointed as wife to a new Adam. Compare seed (2233) zara (pronounced zaw-raw'), and queen, sarah (pronounced saw-raw').
  12. Seth of the second line logically comes after Tubal-Cain of the first. The second line is then not a parallel dynasty but follows after the first.
  13. Seth (8352) "put, appointed" from shiyth (7896) "to place, appoint, let alone, regard, set." Compare set (7846) "a departure from right, i.e. sin:- revolt(er), that turn aside." The first Seth killed Osiris. Ironically, the second Seth is "appointed" as a substitute for Abel the one killed by Cain. Another example (besides the Persian dynasty mentioned above) of a new dynasty being founded by a Seth-figure is the Egyptian 19th Dynasty in which Pharaoh Seti I declared a "repetition of births" after the demise of the previous dynasty.
  14. Enosh corresponds to the founder of the Egyptian 12th Dynasty, pharaoh Amenemhet I, who was the first king known to call himself "son of Man." See, "The Prophesy of Neferti," in Ancient Near Eastern Texts, J. Pritchard, ed., p 444.
  15. Enosh, Strong's (582/583 from anash, 605)
  16. This Enoch-Joseph died before the great Middle Kingdom Flood in Egypt and his bones had to be carried out during the Exodus. The previous two Enoch's were apparently still alive at the time of their respective Great Floods.
  17. The reoccurrence of devastating floods provided a convenient and logical post on which to tie together the histories of the two lines of Adam. In the Book of Genesis, there is only one Noah. However, the story of the Great Flood is actually a composite of at least three "Noahs" and three floods. One flood ended the dynasty of Adam through Seth (the Egyptian Middle Kingdom), another ended the dynasty of Adam through Cain (the Egyptian dynasty of Re, preceding the Old Kingdom), and a far earlier flood that ended the so-called divine age of the gods and nearly exterminated the race of primordial Adam. The Egyptian Middle Kingdom Flood was perhaps more devastating than the previous flood, at least for Egypt. Excessively high waters associated with the inundation of the Nile did not last 7 days as in Adapa's Flood, nor the 40 days of the first Noah, but ravaged Egypt annually over a period of 40 years. It required not only a revival of the role of Noah but also of Re as Moses.
  18. The Legend of Adapa. The epithet "Most Wise" is the Akkadian word atrahasisa. Atrahasis is used as a proper name in a separate Great Flood epic, The Legend of Atrahasis.
  19. Genesis 6:5,11 (KJV) states, "The wickedness of man was great in the earth and every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually. The earth also was corrupt before God [the Elohim], and the earth was filled with violence." The senior god Enlil had been against the "creation of mankind," and was later disturbed by their growing numbers and noisome activity. After being frustrated again and again in his attempts to control them, Enlil ultimately decided to destroy them by withholding knowledge of an impending Flood. The other gods, especially Enki, did not share the sentiment or sentence proposed by Enlil. Nevertheless, as senior god, Enlil pulled rank and imposed his will, or so he thought.
  20. In the Sumerian King List, the first king of Eridu is called Alulim, which was evidently a name or epithet of Enki as king in Eridu. This name Alulim is not easily translated, but can indicate both water and sheep. It appears then to be related to Ea/Enki's symbol the "goat-fish scepter." (Z. Sitchin, The 12th Planet, p 293) Alulim might also connote "Every Man (Sumerian Lulu)," and allude to Ea/Enki as prototypical Adam/Atum ("Totality"). The second king of Eridu is called Alalgar, a name that indicates both rain and rest (Z. Sitchin, The 12th Planet, p 294)  At Eridu there was then an archetypal Enoch followed by an archetypal Noah. Similarly, the later Patriarch Joseph is followed immediately (not distantly) by Shiloh, a name that is equivalent to Joshua.
  21. In some copies of the Sumerian King-List two additional kings are named for a total of nine pre-Deluge rulers instead of seven. However, it can be shown that there were only seven unique names, two being duplicates. In Genesis, the first series of Patriarchs contains seven "generations" before the Flood and the second contains nine, which is in deference to the Sumerian King-List variants.
  22. Har, variously spelled as Hor, is the ancient Egyptian form of Greek Horus/Herakles.
  23. Cham (2526) khawm, from 2552; hot, Ham
  24. chema (2534) heat; figuratively anger, poison (from its fever), rage, fury and
    chammah (2535) heat; by implication the sun.
  25. Sekhem-wy and Sekhem-hotep are prominent names of the early dynastic period.
  26. from the on-line Sumerian Lexicon: www.sumerian.org
  27. Adad is the source of another Biblical name, David, king of Judah.
  28. yamiyn (3225) "the right hand or side (leg, eye) of a person or other object (as the stronger and more dexterous) locally, the south." There is also a linguistic path between Benjamin, Ham, and Adad. Compare the Hebrew name Jemima, "warm, affectionate" [Job 42:14] from (3117) yowm, "to be hot, a day (as the warm hours), perpetually renewing (as the sun), younger." Compare also chamam (2552) "to be hot (lit. or fig.)" and (3179) yacham (yaw-kham') "to be hot."
  29. The name Dan means "judge."
  30. These included Geb (Reuben), Osiris (Issachar), and Set (Levi).
  31. In the Book of Ezra (1:5; 4:1; 4:59; 10:9-10), the name of Benjamin is equated to Jacob-Israel. Prior to Horus the Younger's election as "the Benjamin," Re had held this junior office. Only in this sense was Horus the Younger a "son of Re" and also a "Benjamin son of Benjamin." And only in later tradition was Re (as archetypal Jacob) honored as the superior of Shu-Enlil and all other members of the ancient pantheon.
  32. The name Benjamin is also written as Ben Jemini. This form seems to relate Horus the Younger to his regent Gemini/Thoth/Ningishzidda. Thoth as Gemini ("The Twins") was both the "double" of the gods and "doubler" of men, that is, master of the "twin serpents" of sexual reproduction, which was his symbol. Horus the Younger seems to have also claimed the title of Minh as an inheritance from Thoth and Ptah. Horus the Younger is called Minh in the Book of the Dead.
  33. In the Jacob story, Benjamin and Joseph are considered full brothers. In myth, Ea (Joseph) would have been something of an uncle to Lugalbanda (Benjamin). Ea (Joseph) and Adad (Judah) are called "twins," both being the sons of Anu (Gad).
  34. In the Moses cycle, Gershom-Joshua plays the role of Horus/Ham/Benjamin. His older brother Eliezer-Elishama is killed in fulfillment of his role of Osiris/Issachar.
  35. Horus/Benjamin/Ham represents the Zodiac phase of Aries.
  36. "Speedy to the Spoils (of War), Swift upon the Prey," a Biblical cliché (Cf Isaiah 8:1,3), and one clearly alluded to in the Blessing of Benjamin.
  37. Horus would have been pronounced by some speakers with a hard "h" as Chorus, which in Greek connotes praise, as does the Hebrew name Judah. Judah also relates to the Semitic Adad, variously spelled as Addu, Hadad, and Hudha. The name Benjamin ("son of the right hand/side/eye") links the younger Horus to both Horus the Elder and to Re.
  38. In Exodus, Moses is called a descendant of Levi. During the Hasmonean Era, Levi also became associated with the Messianic line. In the Kings/Chronicles history, the first king of Israel, Saul, is called a Benjamite and is followed by David, said to be of Judah. In the Book of Genesis, the Patriarch Jacob tried to change the typecasting of his fifth son from Issachar to that of Benjamin/Ham son of Judah. Issachar, the younger brother of Judah, was made "son" of Judah and given the pseudonym of Hamor. This was an (unsuccessful) attempt by Jacob to save the life of Issachar and also cause the royal succession to go through Issachar rather than a true son of Judah or Benjamin son of Rachel. In fulfillment of the earlier precedent, we might expect that Rachel's son Benjamin was not sired by Jacob but by Judah, and that Joseph also had been sired by a family member in the role of Cain rather than by Jacob. We are told that Rachel was barren for a long time before giving birth to Joseph and Benjamin. Perhaps this barrenness was not due to her being pre-pubescent but not being fertile with Jacob.
  39. Acts 28:1-7; Romans 11:1; Phillipians 3:5. Paul also said that he was appointed Apostle last, and as "one born out of due time" (1 Cor. 15:8), again alluding to his archetype Benjamin/Horus.
  40. In Greek myth the infant Herakles (Horus) is attacked by snakes but survives. In Egypt, the poison is injected by a "scorpion."
  41. As "Avenger of His Father (Osiris)" the aggression and mass killings performed by Horus the Younger could be rationalized and deemed "righteous." He was not content to occupy the lesser throne of Ptah and Ra, but relentlessly pursued the prize of greater kingship once promised to Osiris. It must be suspected that the throne of Osiris (and of Shu-Enlil) had never been promised to the younger Horus, but only claimed by him and for him after it was taken.
  42. Montu was an Egyptian cult that venerated both the solar aspect of Set and also his aggression. Set-Montu is the Egyptian equivalent of the Greek sun god Apollo.
  43. As a "son" and successor of Set, Horus the Elder could be referred to both as Benjamin and as Levi.
BOOK ONLINE - Living in Truth - Contents | Part I Charts | Part II Charts | Part III Charts - Tutorials - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 - Supplements - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5
Chapters - 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | 24 | 25 | 26 | 27 | 28 | 29 | 30 | 31 | 32 | 33 | 34 | 35 | 36 | 37 | 38 | 39 | 40 | 41