Ask the average Bible reader if anyone has ever seen Yahweh, the “God of
Israel” and the prompt reply is likely to be “No”. He may also add that the
only person who almost saw Yahweh was Prophet Moses, but that even he only
saw Yahweh’s backside.
But that is not true.
At least on one occasion, 74 men saw the God of Israel Face to face. Not
only that, they also ate and drank in his presence —and probably with him.
The 74 men saw Yahweh’s feet and described the pavement on which the feet
rested. This is clearly recorded in the Bible.
But why in the name of all that is true and honest have Bible readers
down the ages pretended not to see this passage and prefer to continue
mouthing that cheap, common lie that nobody has ever seen the God of
Israel?
The truth is that the passage puts the lie to the idea being
promoted by certain interests that the entity, Yahweh, is the invisible God
of the whole universe.
To now admit that 74 persons saw him face to face reduces him to the
level of a finite, physical being. But that is exactly what the Bible
passage clearly states:
“Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and seventy of the elders of Israel
went up, and they saw the God of Israel; and there was under his feet as it
were a pavement of sapphire stone, like the very heavens for clearness. And
he did not lay his hand on the chief men of the people of Israel; they
beheld God and ate and drank.”(Revised Standard Version, Second Edition)
I shan’t disclose the passage right away.
That’s mild penalty for our penchant for
mouthing age-old fallacies simply because
some “hallowed” authorities claim so.
It should be noted that the scribe who
recorded this encounter on Mt. Sinai, was
himself surprised that the elders who saw
Yahweh did not fall dead or something as
was the belief then (even today) that no
mortal sees God and lives.
So the surprised scribe writes: “And he did not lay his hands on
the chief men of the people of Israel.” Then the scribe repeated in even
greater wonder: “…They beheld God and ate and drank.”
Rendered in modern palance, the scribe
was saying something like: “Can you beat
that! Those old fellows actually saw God–
-live! And rather than die or something,
they actually had a great time eating and drinking!”
Now, let’s see how other Bible versions render this passage. One of
the versions indeed put an exclamation mark (!) at the end of the passage.
“Then went up Moses and Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and seventy of the
elders of Israel; and they saw the God of Israel, and there was under his
feet a pavement as it were of sapphire stone and as it were the body of
heaven in its clearness. And upon the nobles of the children of Israel, he
laid not his hand, also they saw God, and did eat and drink.” (King James
Version)
“Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and seventy of the
elders of Israel. And they saw the God of Israel and there was under his
feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very
heavens in its clarity. But on the nobles of the children of Israel, he did
not lay His hand. So they saw God and they ate and drank.” (New King James
Version)
“Then Moses Aaron and Nadab Abihu and 70 elders (leaders) of Israel
went up the mountain. On the mountain, these men saw the God of Israel. God
was standing on something that looked like blue sapphire as clear as the sky
*.*
All the leaders of Israel saw God, but God did not destroy them. They
all ate and drank together.”(Easy-to-read version)
(Apparently rattled by this passage, the translators of this Bible
version quickly explain in a footnote: “The Bible says that people cannot
see God. But God wanted these leaders to know what he was like so he let
them see him in some special way.”)
“Then Moses, Aaron, Nadab and Abihu and seventy of the elders of
Israel went up the mountain. There they saw the God of Israel. Under his
feet there seemed to be a pavement of brilliant sapphire, as clear as the
heavens. And though Israel’s leaders saw God, he did not destroy them. In
fact, they shared a meal together in God’s presence!”(New Living
Translation)
A million pities that we may never corner Prophet Moses or any of
those elders for an interview. We would have loved to ask so many questions.
• What did Yahweh’s feet look like?
• Were they bare or shod?
• What did his face look like?
• What type of food was served? Manna and ambrosia or lamb meat with
goat milk?
• In what kind of plates was the meal served?
• Who served the meal? Were there females among them? Did any of the
elders sneak away part of the delicacies as memento for his people back in
the Israelite camp?
• Did Yahweh partake of the meal? Nothing in the passage says he did not.
• What type of furniture was there?
Or did you not know there was furniture on Mt Sinai?
Yahweh himself told Moses: “And let them make me a sanctuary that I may
dwell in their midst. According to all that I show you concerning the
pattern of the tabernacle and all of its furniture.”(Ex 25:9)
Some of my beloved friends have argued that what Moses and the elders saw
was a vision and not a true-life Yahweh.
But again, that’s not true. Yahweh himself had declared that with other
prophets, he spoke in dreams and visions, but with Moses it was “face to
face like a man with his friend.”
Angered that Aaron and Miriam had criticised Moses for marrying an
Ethiopian lady, Yahweh lashed out at the two: “If there is a prophet among
you, I Yahweh make myself known to him in a vision, I speak with him in a
dream. Not so with my servant Moses. He is entrusted with my entire house
(which house?). With him I speak mouth to mouth, clearly and he beholds the
form of the LORD.”(Numbers 12: 6-8)
Exodus 33: 11 also says:
“Thus Yahweh used to speak to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his
friend.”
Who really is this entity who had his residence on Mt Sinai where he
received and entertained special guests?
Yahweh’s dwelling must be quite expansive to accommodate 74 guests at a
time, excluding the permanent residents.
Many times, Moses disappeared into this dwelling for up to 40 days or
more. That Moses was never reported to have looked weak or famished after
such sojourns suggest that there were provisions there to accommodate and
feed Moses for such long periods.
Who was/is this entity who treated 74 men to a sumptuous meal on Mt
Sinai?
Until the world, especially Africans, snap out of the mental rut of
“letting things be”, of “leaving well alone”, too scared to ask pertinent
questions about so-called sacrosanct religious materials, the Western
powers and their puppeteers will continue to fool us with retrogressive
religious docility while they make advances in science and technology
—and flex muscles with the very gods…
(*That passage where 74 fellows saw Yahweh? Exodus 24: 9-11*)
