From time to time I get e-mails asking why the Bible shouldn’t be taken literally. One of the reasons is that the scripture itself makes this clear. I’ve decided to provide the scriptural reasons themselves all in one post so I can refer people to it. This is by no means an exhaustive list, but it gets the point across.
Old Testament Scriptures
1) Psalms 78:2:
“I will open my mouth in a parable: I will utter dark sayings of old.”
Dark sayings of old are ancient teachings in the forms of riddles and parables. The Biblical writers call them “dark” because the meanings are hidden, or concealed. They are meant to figure out through careful meditation, prayer, and contemplation.
Why would the Lord speak to us like this? The answer is provided in the following scripture.
2) Proverbs 25:2:
“It is the glory of God to conceal a thing: but the honor of kings is to search out a matter.”
God’s glory is always concealed from the lower, or natural man. It’s an honor to become a king and figure it out. How do we become a king? Kings are symbolic for the ruling quality of the soul. We become symbolic kings by learning the spiritual meaning to the scriptures and applying them. As I stated in scripture number 1, we must involve our minds in careful meditation and prayer when thinking about the scriptures in order to understand their deeper meanings.
3) Proverbs 1:5-6:
“A wise man will hear, and will increase learning; and man of understanding will attain unto wise councils: to understand a proverb, and the interpretation; the words of the wise, and their dark sayings.”
Notice how the above scriptures states that proverbs need an interpretation. This is not just referring to the book of Proverbs; it’s speaking about all scripture. The dark sayings of the wise, which need to be interpreted, are parables and mythology that conceal spiritual truth.
4) Ezekiel 20:49:
“Then said I, Ah Lord God! They say of me, doth he not speak in parables?”
Ezekiel is clearly stating God speaks in parables.
5) Ezekiel 17:2:
“Son of man, put forth a riddle, and speak a parable unto the house of Israel.”
Again, we can see that God loves riddles!
6) Isaiah 6:9-10
“And he said, Go, and tell this people, Hear ye indeed, but understand not; and see ye indeed, but perceive not. Make the heart of this people fat, and make their eats heavy, and shut their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their heart, and convert, and be healed.”
Besides being a prophecy fulfilled in the New Testament, God is telling us through this scripture that when most hear or see the scriptural stories and sayings, they do not understand. Our hearts have to be opened to the spiritual truth which is beyond any literal interpretation or meaning.
New Testament Scriptures
7) Matthew 13:34
“All these things spoke Jesus unto the multitudes in parables, and without a parable spake he not unto them.”
As you can see, Jesus didn’t speak to the multitude unless it was in a parable. Why would he do this?
8) Mark 4:11:
“And he said unto them, unto you it is given the mystery of the kingdom of God, but unto them who are without, all these things are done in parables.”
Who are those without? It is those who do not realize that the kingdom of heaven is within (Luke 17:21). Notice also how Jesus said the kingdom of God is a mystery. It, too, is part of the dark sayings of old. The entire Gospel story and the Old Testament is all a dark saying of old.
9) 2 Corinthians 3:6
“Who also hath made us able ministers of the New Testament; not of the letter, but of the spirit: for the letter killeth, but the spirit giveth life.”
Paul is telling us that the New Testament is not of the letter (literal), but of the spirit (spiritual). The letter of the law or the literal leads to death because the literal interpretation has no life in it. Anyone who stops at the literal interpretation will eventually die in what they think (doctrines) when life has run its course. The literal interpretation cannot transform a person’s mind. It is the spiritual interpretation, especially when understood properly, that opens the heart and mind to the truth which is beyond any literal or physical interpretation.
10) Galatians 4:24:
“Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants, the one from mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.”
Notice how Paul directly states that the story of Isaac, Ishmael, Sara and Hagar are an allegory. They are the two covenants, one of promise (faith) and the other of bondage. The Greek word Paul uses literally translates as allegory, which in English means, an expressive style that uses fictional characters an events to describe some subject by suggestive resemblances.
11) 2 Corinthians 4:3:
“But if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to them that are lost.”
Paul is telling us that the spiritually lost see the Gospel through a veil. This is because without the proper understanding and knowledge, the Bible becomes a letter that kills and confuses (with hundreds of opposing doctrines), not one that gives life (the true understanding).
12) 2 Corinthians 3:14:
“But their minds were blinded: for unto this day remaineth the same veil untaken away in the reading of the Old Testament; which veil is done away in Christ.”
I want to make a few important notes here. Paul didn’t consider any of his writings or any of the New Testament scripture. It is a known fact that he wrote his letters before the Gospels were penned, so Paul didn’t even have a New Testament, nor did the church during his day. The Old Testament was the only thing considered scripture. This is why Paul emphasizes the Old Testament above. For him the New Testament was a spiritual interpretation that was not of the letter of the law, not some book we refer to as the New Testament. For Paul, Christ is the spirit that is born in us, which also gives us the true interpretation to scripture. When the Christ arises, spiritual interpretation comes in as intuition, for it is all spiritual anyway.
13) 1 Corinthians 2:7:
“But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery, even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory.”
Notice how Paul states that the wisdom of God is a hidden mystery. The Greek word for hidden means higher spiritual wisdom, which is again is spiritual, not literal.
14) 1 Colossians 1:26:
“Even the mystery which has been hid from the ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints.”
The saints are like the kings who interpret the word correctly. They are the spiritually pure and are able to peer beyond the literal for true understanding.
15) Matthew 22:29:
“Jesus answered and said unto them, Ye do err, not knowing the scriptures, nor the power of God.”
Jesus is speaking to the Pharisees who interpret scripture by the letter, or literal interpretation. If the scriptures were meant to be literal, do you think Jesus really could have said this to the very experts who knew scripture by heart better than anyone in their day?
16) Hebrews 5:13:
“For everyone that uses milk is unskillful in the word of righteousness: for he is a babe.”
Here the author of Hebrews is explaining that everyone who doesn’t understand the hidden meanings of the word is unskillful. A babe is the one who stops at the literal meaning instead of diving beneath it for the spiritual meat that is the only interpretation that gives life.
What does all this mean?
Wordsworth once stated:
“Hebrew history, as written by the Holy Spirit in the Old Testament, is a divine parable.”
Even though Wordsworth boldly declared the Old Testament to be parables, he still called them “divine.” A lot of the time Christians get caught up in the idea that if the scriptures aren’t literal history, then they’d be worthless stories and all their faith would be for nothing. This couldn’t be further from the truth. As divine parables they illustrate the spiritual laws of the inner world through outer reflections. This was their purpose all along. And they were certainly inspired of the Spirit.
The Bible has always been one of the greatest road-maps for the soul ever compiled. It doesn’t have to be literal history to fulfill this role.
Blessings!
Oh Josh, Well done for compiling this one stop scriptures for our references, but you forgot one of the last and most important scripture. thus: 2 Corinthians 3:15 that reads, “But even to this day, when Moses is read, a veil lies on their heart”. May be you should comment on this. Blessings.
No problem, Bernhardt. And you’re right, I should have mentioned that one. It simply means that the religious miss the greater spiritual meaning because they are too focused on a literal interpretation.
I found someone who understands! Don’t worry your secret is safe with me.
these are not secrets… it’s esoteric teachings / gnosticism
you should invest in a satire sarcasm and jokes 101 course
Incorrect that the only thing considered scripture was the OT. “…and regard the patience of our Lord as salvation; just as also our beloved brother Paul, according to the wisdom given him, wrote to you, as also in all his letters, speaking in them of these things, in which are some things hard to understand, which the untaught and unstable distort [wrestle] as they do ALSO THE REST OF SCRIPTURE [to OTHER scripture], to their own destruction. – 2 Peter 3:13-16
Let’s take it one step further….because the Bible itself declares that some its writings are not true…according to the Prophet Jeremiah…he states that some of the scriptures are a ‘Lie.’
Jeremiah 8:8 (NAS) “How can you say, ‘We are wise, And the law of the LORD is with us’? Behold, the lying pen of the scribes Has made it into a lie.”
Thus, the question on the mind of any honest Christian believer today, should be…how can we tell – which writings in the Bible are ‘true’…and which are a ‘lie’?
And…why doesn’t the clergy in any church, in all the land…tell the laity about these things?
Why not at least warn the laity…that when they read the Bible….they might be believing an outright lie?
After doing a small amount of research on Jeremiah 8:8 it looks like the word for Lie here is “sheqer” which can mean any of the following: untruth, shame, lie or in vain. If this is the case then the verse would not be saying the text is a lie but rather that it was written in vain.
However, I can not speak to the truth in this instance. Maybe Anny will proved some clarification on the topic.
Be Blessed;
Justin
Justin, thanks.
You gave (4) choices…. ‘untruth, shame, lie or in vain.’
It seems to me that no matter what color one paints it… “A turd is still a turd.”
Lol!!! Axaxaxa!!!!
Allen,
Thanks for this big question. The answer is simple. The clergy did not enter in themselves according to Luke 11:52. So they don’t have the parameters to filter what is true and lies, i may say.
Blessings
Thank you for this article. I wanted to share it on facebook, but don’t see a FB share button.
Penny, thanks for your comment. I am sorry the facebook button wasn’t working. I’ll look into it.
I s this not a contradictory statement………………..
#9 2Corinthians 3:6
Paul is telling us that the New Testament is not of the (literal) but of the spirit (spiritual)
Here he speaks literally of the Testament being new
#12 2 Corinthians 3:14
Paul didn’t consider any of his writings or any New Testament Scripture
Paul speaks of Old Testament and it is stated the New Testament was written yet
Paul obviously was aware of the New Testament in 2 Corinthians 3:6
Mary, not at all. Paul is not speaking of the written word here, but of the testament of the Christ within, which is the gospel that he received by direct revelation and from no man. Read Galatians again and this will become clear.
Blessings.
I believe you have to take literal where it is literal and non – literal where it is obviously non-literal like the Book of Revelation and other parts of scripture. There were definitely real people in the Bible and many of the stories may have happened the way they were written but I understand your point of the underlying importance of spiritual realities.
Thank you
I absolutely must agree with Martin. Adam and Eve were real; Abraham was a real person; as were Noah, and Moses; Jacob and Esau, etc. Hebrews 11 also testifies to this fact, does it not?
Perhaps you have heard of the four levels of interpretation of the Scriptures: PaRDeS: THE FOUR LEVELS OF Interpretation. This is also an acronym for the 4 levels:
[P]ashat….”simple”
[R]emez…..”hint”
[D]rash……”search”
[S]od………”hidden”
The four Gospel books are written according to these levels. Matthew (P), Mark (R), Luke (D), and John, with all of its symbolism, (S).
This, therefore, says to me that the BIble is indeed literal, but as you have pointed out beautifully in your TITHING article, this is the difference between the ‘milk and the meat’.
Sir/Maam,
With all due respect, Hebrews 11 testifies no real people in the Bible. These people were the representation of ourselves undergoing in 42 phases of involution and evolution (Matthew 1). From the generation of Adam to Christ, is a symbolism. Everything must not be taken literally. I will not believe that they are truly real people unless I see them, with scriptural or literal proofs. And I believe that Bible is a great Book of Allegory and Wisdom. Albeit, i respect your belief. As the Bible is Holy, and do you wander by Proverbs say that it is the glory of God to conceal a thing?
PS: How can a spiritual God inside us or within us (Luke 17:21) talk to a literal person such as you say?
If people want to remain “babes” when it comes to the real truht hidden beneath the veil of the literal renderings, so be it. I, my-self, when I found out about the SOD level, i prayed for that understanding and the spirit guided me due to my sincere request. God knows ther heart. Your higher consciousness knows all about you.The “you” that you are in private and the “you” that you are in front of others. Sometimes, the two are completely opposite to one another. The SOD level is the level that profits your soul the most. People are at different stages of their development of the soul inside. The hidden meaning will seem like “foolishness” to those who are blinded by their carnal appetites. They must be fed”milk”, or the literal until their stomachs are developed enough to digest the “MEAT”, the inner, hidden meanings. That is why when you try to explain to certain people what YOU HAVE BEEN GIVEN, It flies completely over their heads, so to speak. So, we must assess their souls stage of development which comes through discernment, and “ease” INTO THE DEEPER MEANINGS. THE GOOD NEWS IS THAT GOD(UNIVERSAL TRUTH/CONSCIOUSNESS) IS THE OWNER OF THE SOUL(ALL SOULS BELONG TO GOD), AND WILL BRING THAT SOUL ALONG IN (ITS/GODS) TIMING. WHAT AN INDIVIDUAL CAN DO TO RECEIVE THE HIDDEN MEANINGS IS SACRIFICE LUST, ENVY, GREED, ANGER, JEALOUSY, LACK OF SELF CONTROL, LYING, THIEVING, RACISM, JUDGEMENTAL ATTITUDES, SELFISHNESS(THE TRUE ANIMALS THAT MUST BE PLACED ON THE ALTAR OF THE HEART AND COMPLETELY BURNED UP!) ONCE THESE ANIMALS OF THE LOWER NATURE ARE BURNED UP COMPLETELY, YOUR HIGHER NATURE(YOUR SPIRT/IMAGE OF GOD) CAN BEGIN TO TEACH YOU. YOUR MINDSET CAN BE CHANGED TO ONE THAT IS IN UNION WITH GOD(THE UNIVERSAL TRUTH). THERE IS MUCH WORK TO BE DONE BY EACH ONE OF US AS WE SUBMIT, WITH A HUMBLE HEART, TO THE VOICE OF TRUTH HIDDEN DEEP WITHIN OUR PSYCHE. THE WORLD “NEVER” WANTS TO GIVE UP ITS RULE OVER YOU!
Larry, I totally resonate with you.
Off late I have accepted the idea of the wounded healer. It sure does apply to me.
My ‘failure’ to heal the separation of marriage caused me to go rock bottom, from these depths I cried my yearning to heal into the world. The world answered back from inside, my journey of redemption began, first on the outside and now more and more on the inside.
God Bless
So we can do away with the written word?
Do away with it? Not taking every syllable of the Bible literally, does not mean disregarding all the truth, meaning, symbolism, lessons, wisdom, and revelation that is included in the Bible. Just as reason does not negate faith; acknowledging the allegories and parables of the Bible, especially within the Old Testament, does not negate the Bible’s meaning nor the salvation and grace in one’s personal relationship and belief in Jesus Christ
I believe the Bible is cover to cover snares for the wicked/carnally minded/natural man. ….The Bible is saying He rains snares on the wicked. The pure genius of a “Book” that is able to ensnare virtually EVERY person that comes across it! All that is required to completely miss truth is to just be a natural prideful human being fully willing to lean on OWN discernment of what is good and evil AS RIGHT (righteous)…whether this manifests as one being an atheist or roman catholic or sect of jew or mormon ot WHATEVER finally makes little difference if each is virtually swearing to OWN discernment via “the letter” (the literal)
The more one speaks of the Spiritual nature of Scripture, the less likely it will be that anyone wants to engage. It is perhaps the most unpopular “way” in Christendom. Forget that it alone FINALLY has the Bible harmonizing with amazing brilliance! Forget that rock solid evidence can be extracted out in endless glorious succession! It just flies in the face of carnal man and is hated (rejected) above about everything as near as I can tell ….but then to follow Jesus (Spiritually the WORD) is to have no place to lay the head ….the gospel message to “come OUT from among them and be ye separate” is to great a price for the heavily invested natural man who can not bear to “sell all that you have and follow ME” ….how it is missed especially after one begins to show it is just a miracle if you ask me!
[Luk 18:9-14 KJV] 9 And he spake this parable unto certain which trusted in themselves that they were righteous, and despised others: 10 Two men went up into the temple to pray; the one a Pharisee, and the other a publican. 11 The Pharisee stood and prayed thus with himself, God, I thank thee, that I am not as other men [are], extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even as this publican. 12 I fast twice in the week, I give tithes of all that I possess. 13 And the publican, standing afar off, would not lift up so much as [his] eyes unto heaven, but smote upon his breast, saying, God be merciful to me a sinner. 14 I tell you, this man went down to his house justified [rather] than the other: for every one that exalteth himself shall be abased; and he that humbleth himself shall be exalted.
So thankful to read spiritual truth!
This is the narrow path, spiritual path. That is why the Spirit of truth teaches us what no man can. Many are called, few are chosen. When we go by our understanding we are limited. The Lord our God encourages us to depend on His higher way of thinking, Spiritual, Heavenly. Not of the flesh but of the Spirit. It is the Spirit of truth that testifies of Christ. Then Christ leads us to God.
Jesus warned the Deciples of the Leven of the religious rulers. When he fed the 5,000
There was much left over because the people were full of the literal words of the religious rulers. No one was hunger for spiritual words Jesus offered. Even the small amount he offered. They collected many baskets afterwards.
It shows how even in this example Jesus taught a parable because of the warning at the end. Not about bread but about religious literal teaching..
Aware of their discussion, Jesus asked, ‘You of little faith, why are you talking among yourselves about having no bread? Do you still not understand? Don’t you remember the five loaves for the five thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? Or the seven loaves for the four thousand, and how many basketfuls you gathered? How is it you don’t understand that I was not talking to you about bread? But be on your guard against the yeast of the Pharisees and Sadducees.’ Then they understood that he was not telling them to guard against the yeast used in bread, but against the teaching of the Pharisees and Sadducees.
Matt. 16:8-12
May we all remember God’s will…
Yet a time is coming and has now come when the true worshippers will worship the Father in the Spirit and in truth, for they are the kind of worshippers the Father seeks. God is spirit, and his worshippers must worship in the Spirit and in truth.’
John 4:23-24
Thank you, Angela, for the reply and additional info!
Thank you for this comment, Angela, and the extra info provided!
I believe there are some passages that need to be taken literally for example the passages that tell you how to get to heaven easier for example John 3:16 Whoever believes in him shall not perish but have (literal) eternal life. Here is another example Matthew 18:3 unless you change and become like little children (literal) you will never enter the kingdom of god and if The Tree of Knowledge was not a literal tree then how come you don’t see people naked in public. I agree there are some verses that should not be taken literally like for example the ones about inflicting harm on the human body like Exodus 21:24 eye for eye and tooth for tooth Matthew 18:8-9
Anonymous…
I understand the sentiment, but disagree with the reasons why. Jesus stated that the kingdom of God (heaven) is within you. First seek ye the kingdom of God. Heaven is not “out there.” Read Luke 17 carefully. Jesus tells us not to look here nor there. Meaning, outside of yourself.
Believing is Christ through doctrine or a set of standards means nothing. Beliefs are a dime a dozen. It’s about a personal, transformation, a personal “experience,” not beliefs. He that is born again is a new creature, not someone who “believes” some new thing.
The reason you don’t see people naked in public is also shortsighted. Genesis chapter 1 states there was a morning and evening, day 1, and yet there is no sun yet (created on day 4). You can’t have a literal day without the sun. None of it is meant to be literal, in the way we understand it. The tree of knowledge of good and evil is about consciousness experiencing duality. Now man experienced “death” in the sense that he / she became a physical being with a lower nature that experiences death / change in a physical world.
Remember, the Bible Psalm 78:2 is a “dark saying” and a parable. You have to dig to find out what it really means. A dark saying is not usually understood by the masses. Don’t give up. Dig. Question. Uncover 🙂
BLessings
The knowlege of the within & without (microcosm and macrocosm) is in the qabalah. Combine it with tarot and you got a great guide there on how to manifest heaven here instead of hell.
Cause hell is what we got. Cause those who run this mad house, keep people in ignorance, hence manifesting their “better to rule in hell, than to serve in heaven” world. Where they reap all the benefits and everyone else are their slaves.
So yeah, the change starts within. When you truely become that being that fights for true freedom, against the adversary (manipulators, satanists, dark luciferians = self-gain cults.) As long as they are there, slavery will never end
I love your knowledge of TRUE Christianity and have been a follower of this way of spirituality for the last 2 years. I do have a question. In the scripture in Mark 4:11, there’s a portion that states, …”but unto them who are without, all these things are done in parable.” Those who are without are those who do not believe that the kingdom is within. The end is where I’m a little confused. Unto them who don’t believe in an inner kingdom, all these things are done in parable. Am I understanding the ending correctly?
Those that are without, are those that aren’t seeking within in meditation, so those that are without all things are done in parables, they will never understand the true meaning, but to those that are within, meditating, then the scriptures are revealed to you by the spirit.
Jesus’ mother stood WITHOUT desiring to speak with him, but could not. You can only speak with Jesus if you are WITHIN.
And if I am understanding that correctly, then are we supposed to believe that these things are done in parable, or not?
The Scriptures were edited and falsehood written in it for ultra important reasons. One, to test us. Two, to see a deeper meaning. A lot of the stories in the Bible, some is historical, but things added later to the historical account. I prefer to stay away from literal interpretation at this moment in my life. Thanks for the article!!! Shalohhhhm and Namaste.
Thanks for the comment, Donald!
While yes, you are correct that the translators didn’t understand what they were doing, we can still pick out the core elements of basic symbolic truth which is a great understanding of man’s soul. But yes, they have many issues.
Josh
why does everyone
read the bible
literally?
Because they have
CHARIOTS of IRON,
BARS of BRASS, and
GATES of STEEL forged
into their minds by the
religious (the Pharisees),
says the Bible.
In modern terminology,
we say someone is HARD
headed or stubborn, the
terminologies , such as
chariots of iron, bars of
brass and gates of steel,
to describe the HARD
HEADED, BRUTISH,
STUBBORN as a JACK
ASS ones.
It’s ALL in the MIND!!
And they had chariots of
IRON in their valleys
lower levels of
consciousness, evil
thoughts, and GOD
could not remove the
inhabitants , THOUGHTS
of the city ( the center
of your consciousness )
Iron in the bible
mythology is THOUGHT,
why? Because it weighs
you down mentally, it is
a heavy burden,
especially heavy when
other people have
ruined your life and you
can’t stop thinking about
it, it will cause you to go
mad or kill someone and
wind up in Prison, if you
keep the iron in the
coals stoked with your
emotions ( SIN ), then all
HELL will break loose
and you will go off the
deep end.
Failure of modern effort
to read the deep
message of the Bible is
due to the fact that
modern scholars
stupidly and stubbornly
refuse to see that
ancient scriptural
writing was esoteric or
hidden as to its meaning,
and allegorical and
symbolical as to its
method.
The ancients did not use
newspaper directness.
On the contrary they
put up their secret
wisdom, vouchsafed to
them by the great Sages,
in the form of allegories
and myths, which were
to be taken as fiction in
their outward dress, but
as the cinematograph of
profoundest truth and
knowledge in inward
sense
By a combination of
symbols, nature signs
and allegories, often
woven into a
background of real
history, they sought to
portray the deepest
types of spiritual
experience and an
intellectual grip on
reality.
The Bible has been
crassly taken for literal
truth about living
personages on the stage
of mortal history. It has
been rendered literally
and historically.
This is the most
egregious blunder, the
most grandiose error, in
all human history, this
mistaking of spiritual
allegorism for literal
human narrative.
We are in position to
make the unqualified
declaration for the first
that there is not one iota
of history, in the
ordinary acceptation of
that term, in the Bible
from beginning to end.
Some portions of Jewish
history are utilized as
the base and frame of
spiritual myths. The
several Judges,
Patriarchs and Kings are
made to stand for the
central figure of the
Christos.
Geographical names and
historical persons are
mentioned but only as
characters in the mystic
or religious drama.
According to Eusebius,
one of the three chief
formulators of Roman
Christian theology, the
Gospels of the New
Testament are
themselves nothing but
old dramatic books of
the Essenes in preChristian days.
The earliest and greatest
of the framers of
Christian theology,
Philo, Clement and
Origen, expressly
declared it was
impossible and an
impiety to assert that
the logos of God could
take the flesh of a
human personality.
New research makes it
positively clear that the
Old Testament
narratives are in their
entirety rewritings of
old Egyptian material,
distorted and obscured
as it passed through
later Hebrew hands.
And Egyptian scripture
was never historical. It
was spiritual symbology,
pure and unalloyed. The
weirdest phenomenon of
history transpired when
later ignorance took the
Egyptian constructions
and converted them into
absurd literal narrative.
And the thinking of the
whole world of the
civilized West has thus
been based on history
that never occurred, and
the Christian Church has
been founded on a set of
miracles that were never
performed.
The only miracle
envisaged in ancient
theology was the
transformation of
human character by the
indwelling god, and this
spiritual miracle was
poetized, dramatized
and allegorized in a
hundred forms of
outward representation,
all of which was
absurdly taken for
personal history later.
This conversion of
spiritual into
biographical history has
made Christianity the
instrument of the
grossest degradation of
sublime ancient truth to
which it has ever been
subject.
That is to say, that all
Christian doctrines
present the ancient
wisdom in a more literal
and hence cruder form
of meaning than had
ever been done before in
national religions.
In the nailing of a
personal Jesus on a
wooden cross
Christianity reduced the
glorious drama of the
spiritual life to its
grossest and most
repellent form.
It is the business of
enlightened Theosophy
to lift this weight of
crass literal dogmatism
from off the modern
imagination and
conscience at whatever
cost.
The human soul is itself
bound on the cross of
gross superstition so
long as these crude
notions dominate the
conscious and
subconscious thought of
modern man.
The light of the true
spiritual Gnosis of olden
times must be cast into
the dark nooks and
corners of modern
thinking, and disperse
the mists of such errant
and arrant doctrinism.
It is our declaration,
based on years of the
most assiduous research,
that it is impossible to
understand the
allegories of the Bible
without a knowledge of
ancient methods of
sacred writing, and of
the ancient philosophies.
Our work in this field
has been rewarded by a
number of the most
signal discoveries which
are basic for further
grasp of the material.
The composers of
ancient scriptures were
poets, allegorists,
dramatists and
mythicists. They never
wrote literally.
They were in the line of
generations of sages and
seers who had developed
the art of spiritual
representation to a point
of the utmost ingenuity
and complexity,
completely shrouding
the intended real
meaning under veils of
symbolism, which have
utterly misled modern
scholars who could not
pierce the outer veil to
read the truth hidden
underneath.
Hence the works can not
be read without the keys
to the myths and
reference to the symbols
used. The ancients
themselves testify
plentifully that the
scriptures are allegories.
Origen regards the
whole Bible as a set of
allegories. But the most
astonishing declaration
to this effect is St. Paul’s
own statement in
Galatians that the whole
story of Abraham and
Sarah and Hagar is “an
allegory.”
There is not a scrap of
evidence anywhere to
identify the Israelites as
the historical Hebrews
or Jews. The latter
simply appropriated the
distinction to themselves
and fitted their history
into the sacred scheme.
As proof of this it is
offered that a
monument in Egypt
contained hundreds of
Palestinian place names,
afterward localized in
the Holy Land of Judea,
before the “historical”
Exodus from Egypt.
Hence the modern
discovery of a town in
Palestine bearing the
name of a place
mentioned in the Bible
does not offer a single
whit of proof that the
Bible is history.
It only proves that the
religious formulators of
the national epic had
given to a certain place a
name already found on
the uranograph or
spiritual chart, much as
European explorers gave
sacred names such as
Salem, Providence, New
Haven, Canaan, Newark,
Corpus Christi and Santa
Fe to new towns when
they came to America.
Jerusalem, Egypt, Sodom,
Babylon and others are
therefore only spiritual
names transferred to the
map from the celestial
chart.
We are prepared to
support the statement,
then, that the Bible,
sadly misinterpreted by
its most loyal devotees,
is in reality a collection
of ancient works that
embody in veiled figures
the fundamentals of the
genuine old wisdom of
the hierophants.
One might say indeed,
that it is a repository of
the great Mystery
teaching of early times.
In fact it is an
assemblage of material
comprising the
substance of
Hermeticism,
Gnosticism, Kabalism,
Chaldean astrology,
Greek Orphism and
Hindu Wisdom, drawn
mostly from ancient
Egypt. It would not
inaptly be described as a
book of Platonic
Theosophy.
Richard,
One of the most brilliant and truer comments I have read in a long time. Thank you for putting the time into it here. I see you are a student of Theosophy.
Blessings.
Josh
Does anybody besides me recognize heresy when they read it? Is there anyone else who can even spell it or even know what a heretic is? If you don’t and read this article then you were introduced to it and to one. Yeshua said beware of false teachers as well did Paul, John, Peter and James. Perhaps some of you need to take off your blinders and quit scratching your ears and accept, believe and trust what the word of God says rather than what the idiot who wrote this article.
Hi Drew. Always good to have a diverse opinion of thought, especially for the benefit of others who are making their own decision as independent thinkers.
I never get offended at anyone who disagrees, or even criticizes the content. But, I do find it odd when someone talks about heresy without addressing something to support your ideas.
For example, would you be so kind as to explain what a “dark saying” is, which Psalms 78:2 clearly states the Law (i.e., Torah) is? Could you elaborate on how dark sayings were used in all ancient scriptures, and place it in the context of the Hebrew culture of the time? I would be happy to change my views if you have something valuable to offer that is logical, coherent, and applied in precedent. I think this would also be a good thought exercise for the readers. Again, I am always open to learning.
You might not be able to change my views, but at least you could give something for other readers to consider.
Thanks, and blessings.
So it is true..it is REAL.
I thought it was just me fooling myself, because i am not particularly worthy.
I get a rush in blocks of thought/intuition/insight when i read scripture that comes in so fast i cannot write it down in words fast enough.This may be how Spirit speaks?
I will get a different than common sense of scripture and as this is happening i can feel the unconditional love in my heart, blows my socks off…it is the wildest thing…it is ecstatic.
I don’t take how the creation happened literally in the Bible; but other people do and think I am wrong when I know they aren’t right either. should I take it literally when science proves it wrong? some people just don’t get it and don’t like when what they want to be true is contradicted with other evidence. is it ok when I tell others this?
I don’t interpret the creation in the Bible literally but others do and get ignorant when I say I don’t. they just seem to not like when something contradicts what they want to be true. should I interpret it literally when science disproves it? I don’t think so what do you think?
When my spouse sent your article to me, I was expecting for your focus to prove your point that the Bible from Genesis to Revelations is not to be taken literally. However, I did not find that to be true because I think your thesis statement is false and misleading (16 Scriptural Reasons NOT to take the Bible Literally!) We have been taught that the Bible is God breathed so it comes from Him. These are His words. So let me go into detail.
As far as parables go, I agree that the tale is more than the story line and that deeper investigation along with other Scriptures illustrates a more profound, valuable moral lesson. That valuable lesson is more about God’s point of view for our understanding. A tale teaches us in the story how we should conduct ourselves and have a deeper understanding of our Lord. So, let’s take the prodigal son parable for this conversation. Your thesis statement is saying this scripture is not to be taken literally. And you are partially right as the story is to teach us that God is looking to rejoice when all his stray sheep come into his fold. If I was to take this parable literally, then I would focus on the story about a man who rejoices and receives his lost son, and the deeper meaning would be lost. But I challenge you to say this story is not literally true. The scripture starts off by stating “There was a man who had two sons.” So how do we know there was not this man or if this story is not true. My God has been with us throughout time so He would know better than us. Granted the point is not the man and his story but the deeper meaning but again it’s about your thesis statement.
Let’s take this discussion to non-parable writings. And let’s site something easy, like the ten commandments. According to the thesis statement I am not to take the “Do not commit adultery” literally. So let me try that with my spouse. Honey, according to this thesis God literally did not mean for me to not commit adultery so it’s okay if I do. Hopefully you can see how the thesis is misleading.
I think you would have been better off describing your point that the Bible is not always to be viewed from our worldly interpretation (the physical or secular) and should look at the deeper meaning from the Spiritual or God’s point of view.
Thanks for your attention to this matter.