What do we know of the main three gods that seduced ancient Israel: Baal, Astarte (Ishtar), and Moloch3? Every one of these pagan gods was obsessed with self, sex. human-sacrifice, and power / domination — the chief purveyors of corrupting iniquity. But despite continual warnings, God's people and their kings repeatedly succumbed to the seductions of self, sex, and child-sacrifice. And what, in our day, is abortion4 if not child-sacrifice?
Can we thus recognize that we are, this very day, in the midst of the same four seductions and emulations. Many of our nations have now passed laws sustaining the ways of the pagan gods and rejecting the God of Salvation. Yet it appears that the majority have still not awakened to the awful situation that envelopes US. Yes, we must have compassion for the truly confused and deceived, but to march in SOD5 parades and promote SOD agendas of inversion and pretense is to follow in “the [divinely denounced] way of Jeroboam”6 — the first king of “the Northern” tribes of Israel who turned the people to confusion and idolatry to preserve and protect power.
And though many nations have, over time, fallen into the way of Jeroboam, do we dare admit which nation now stands as the national Jeroboam? Is it the nation presenting itself as the golden head of empires, as the king of kingdoms7? the USian nation of “the North” American continent? In its founding, Israel was laden with promise, hope, and responsibility, yet what happened to it? Repeated apostasy.
As we consider our present culture and social media contagions, what do we see but the obsessions of self, sex, and tyrannical power? — the emulation and promotion of pretense and pagan god values? the resurgence of the iniquities that have marked the decline and death of every empire?
So what can we do? Inform ourselves. Study The Return of the Gods. Recognize the déjà vus and parallels of history. Discuss these parallels with others. Expose the resurgent spirit of the pagan gods. Stand by Constitutional values and principles. Leave others free to choose their private life-style, but not free to publicly coerce or tyrannize others. Be courageous. Be intensely prayerful. And ponder this:
8 ¶ Behold, ye trust in lying words, that cannot profit.-----------------------------------/
9 Will ye steal, murder, and commit adultery, and swear falsely, and burn incense unto Baal, and walk after other gods whom ye know not;
10 And come and stand before me in this [White] house, which is called by my name [and calling8], and say, We are delivered to do all these abominations? (Old Testament | Jeremiah 7:8 - 10)
* Old Testament | Joshua 24:14 - 15
14 ¶ Now therefore fear the LORD, and serve him in sincerity and in truth: and put away the gods which your fathers served on the other side of the flood, and in Egypt; and serve ye the LORD.
15 And if it seem evil unto you to serve the LORD, choose you this day whom ye will serve; whether the gods which your fathers served that were on the other side of the flood, or the gods of the Amorites, in whose land ye dwell: but as for me and my house, we will serve the LORD.
Book of Mormon | Alma 30:7 - 11
7 Now there was no law against a man's belief; for it was strictly contrary to the commands of God that there should be a law which should bring men on to unequal grounds.
8 For thus saith the scripture: Choose ye this day, whom ye will serve.
9 Now if a man desired to serve God, it was his privilege; or rather, if he believed in God it was his privilege to serve him; but if he did not believe in him there was no law to punish him.
10 But if he murdered he was punished unto death; and if he robbed he was also punished; and if he stole he was also punished; and if he committed adultery he was also punished; yea, for all this wickedness they were punished.
11 For there was a law that men should be judged according to their crimes. Nevertheless, there was no law against a man's belief; therefore, a man was punished only for the crimes which he had done; therefore all men were on equal grounds.
Pearl of Great Price | Moses 6:33
33 Say unto this people: Choose ye this day, to serve the Lord God who made you.
1. Book and Audio available on Hoopla, or most book stores:
The Return of the Gods - Audiobook | Unravel the Enigma of Ancient Deities, by Jonathan Cahn AudioBooksCollection | Apr 20, 2023 | Time 6:38:09 min.) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bFClRkQGqd0
YT Segment: The Mystery Of The Transformer | Jonathan Cahn Special | The Return of The Gods (Jonathan Cahn Official | Feb 16, 2023 | Time 5:30 min.) at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hr12LUVIuiE
2. Doctrine and Covenants | Section 93:53
53 And, verily I say unto you, that it is my will that you should hasten to translate my scriptures, and to obtain a knowledge of history, and of countries, and of kingdoms, of laws of God and man, and all this for the salvation of Zion. Amen
3. ▪ Fertility Cults of Canaan - https://www.thattheworldmayknow.com/fertility-cults-of-canaan
▪ “The Hebrew Bible was quite fierce in its denunciations of Molech, not simply because of the sin of idolatry but also because of the custom of the worshipers of Molech of sacrificing children to the god by fire. The Hebrew prophet Jeremiah describes with horror the ancient rites, telling us that God says, “They built high places to Baal in the Valley of Beth-hinnom and immolated their sons and daughters to Molech bringing sin upon Judah; this I never commanded them, nor did it enter my mind that they should practice such abominations. (Jeremiah 32:35)” - https://www.redlandsdailyfacts.com/2007/01/11/baal-ashtoreth-and-molech-gods-old-testament-rivals/
▪ “The chief evil arose from the fact that the Ba'als were more than mere religious fantasies. They were made the symbols of the reproductive powers of nature, and thus their worship ministered to sexual indulgences, which it at the same time legalized and encouraged. Further, there was placed side by side with the Ba'al a corresponding female symbol, the Ashtoreth (Babyl. "Ashtar") and the relation between the two deities was set forth as the example and the motive of unbridled sensuality.” https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/2236-ba-al-and-ba-al-worship
▪ https://www.britannica.com/topic/Baal-ancient-deity
▪ “One of the main prophetic objections to Baal-worship was its association with ritual sex. That Babylonian religion involved ritual sacred harlotry is clear in the original sources, where it was associated with the goddess Ishtar. It is not unlikely that the Canaanite worship of Astarte (the consort of Baal and equivalent deity to Ishtar) also involved enactments of the "sacred marriage." Israelites allegedly also participated in such rituals, as is indicated by the prophets' denunciation of these practices. ... // Another issue is that of child sacrifice. The prophet Jeremiah indicates that infant sacrifice was offered to Baal as well as to other gods (Jer. 19:5). However, it seems to be more prevalent with other deities such as Moloch.” https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Baal
▪ “Baal worship was rooted in sensuality and involved ritualistic prostitution in the temples. At times, appeasing Baal required human sacrifice, usually the firstborn of the one making the sacrifice (Jeremiah 19:5). The priests of Baal appealed to their god in rites of wild abandon which included loud, ecstatic cries and self-inflicted injury (1 Kings 18:28).” https://www.gotquestions.org/who-Baal.html
▪ “Baal worship also included, at times, child sacrifice, which we see some Israelite kings engaging with later on. ...” https://www.christianity.com/wiki/bible/who-is-baal-in-the-bible.html
▪ “Archaeologists have recovered hundreds of mythological, epic, and ritual texts written in an alphabetic cuneiform script from this coastal site since its rediscovery in 1929. The Baal revealed in these texts is an aggressive and powerful warrior who vies for kingship among the gods.” https://www.encyclopedia.com/philosophy-and-religion/ancient-religions/ancient-religion/baal
▪ Ishtar: “A goddess of fertility, love, sex and war. In the Babylonian pantheon, she was the divine personification of the planet Venus; the Assyrian and Babylonian counterpart to the Sumerian Inanna and to the northwest-Semitic goddess Astarte.” https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/Ishtar
▪ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Inann
▪ “[T]he cult of the baals and Ashtaroth was characterized by gross sensuality and licentiousness. The fragmentary allusions to the cult of Baal Peor (Num. xxv., Hos. ix. 10, Ps. cvi. 28 seq.) exemplify the typical species of Dionysiac orgies that prevailed.4 On the summits of hills and mountains flourished the cult of the givers of increase, and "under every green tree" was practised the licentiousness which in primitive thought was held to secure abundance of crops) see Frazer, Golden Bough, 2nd ed. vol. ii. pp. 204 sqq.). Human sacrifice (Jer. xix. 5), the burning of incense (Jer. vii. 9), violent and ecstatic exercises, ceremonial acts of bowing and kissing, the preparing of sacred mystic cakes, appear among the offences denounced by the Israelite prophets, and show that the cult of Baal (and Astarte) included the characteristic features of heathen worship which recur in various parts of the Semitic world, although attached to other names.” https://theodora.com/encyclopedia/b/baal.html
▪ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Baal_in_popular_culture
4. As for the recent 2023 reversal of Roe v. Wade (federal abortion law of 1973), we will someday know the true story and motives behind that reversal; and though it has undoubtedly saved some lives, abortions still continue, including full-term and after-birth termination (murder).
5. SOD: self-obsessed diva / divo. Genuine dysphorics just want to live their lives without demanding that the world affirm, applaud, and pay bending homage to their choice. They wish to attend social, sports, or other functions in their chosen persona without fanfare and without the narcissistic need to have the entire event and all actors, athletes, and audience roll out the lavender carpet in spectacular welcome, which, by the way, violates every one of their trumpeted mantras: diversity, equity, inclusion. Where is the diversity and equity in excluding everyone who is not SOD in the special recognition and affirmation of their lifestyle? Where is the DEI in their vociferous demands for special privilege and exemption from criticism or challenge or hurt feelings?
See also:
▪ https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2023/04/let-us-be-clear.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2023/03/dei-ology-great-pretense.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2023/04/correction-fwoke.html
6. Old Testament | 1 Kings 11:37 - 38
37 And I will take thee [Jeroboam], and thou shalt reign according to all that thy soul desireth, and shalt be king over Israel [10 tribes].
38 And it shall be, if thou wilt hearken unto all that I command thee, and wilt walk in my ways, and do that is right in my sight, to keep my statutes and my commandments, as David my servant did; that I will be with thee, and build thee a sure house, as I built for David, and will give Israel unto thee.
Old Testament | 1 Kings 12:25 - 31
25 ¶ Then Jeroboam built Shechem in mount Ephraim, and dwelt therein; and went out from thence, and built Penuel.
26 And Jeroboam said in his heart, Now shall the kingdom return to the house of David:
27 If this people go up to do sacrifice in the house of the LORD at Jerusalem, then shall the heart of this people turn again unto their lord, even unto Rehoboam king of Judah, and they shall kill me, and go again to Rehoboam king of Judah.
28 Whereupon the king took counsel, and made two calves of gold, and said unto them, It is too much for you to go up to Jerusalem: behold thy gods, O Israel, which brought thee up out of the land of Egypt.
29 And he set the one in Beth-el, and the other put he in Dan.
30 And this thing became a sin: for the people went to worship before the one, even unto Dan.
31 And he made an house of high places, and made priests of the lowest of the people, which were not of the sons of Levi.
Old Testament | 1 Kings 15:32 - 34
32 And there was war between Asa and Baasha king of Israel all their days.
33 In the third year of Asa king of Judah began Baasha the son of Ahijah to reign over all Israel in Tirzah, twenty and four years.
34 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of Jeroboam, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin.
Old Testament | 1 Kings 16:1 - 2
1 THEN the word of the LORD came to Jehu the son of Hanani against Baasha, saying,
2 Forasmuch as I exalted thee out of the dust, and made thee prince over my people Israel; and thou hast walked in the way of Jeroboam, and hast made my people Israel to sin, to provoke me to anger with their sins;
Old Testament | 1 Kings 16:25 - 28
25 ¶ But Omri wrought evil in the eyes of the LORD, and did worse than all that were before him.
26 For he walked in all the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, and in his sin wherewith he made Israel to sin, to provoke the LORD God of Israel to anger with their vanities.
27 Now the rest of the acts of Omri which he did, and his might that he shewed, are they not written in the book of the chronicles of the kings of Israel?
28 So Omri slept with his fathers, and was buried in Samaria: and Ahab his son reigned in his stead.
Old Testament | 1 Kings 22:51 - 53
51 ¶ Ahaziah the son of Ahab began to reign over Israel in Samaria the seventeenth year of Jehoshaphat king of Judah, and reigned two years over Israel.
52 And he did evil in the sight of the LORD, and walked in the way of his father, and in the way of his mother, and in the way of Jeroboam the son of Nebat, who made Israel to sin:
53 For he served Baal, and worshipped him, and provoked to anger the LORD God of Israel, according to all that his father had done.
7. ▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2022/12/bald-eagle-symbol-of-what.html
▪ https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2022/11/the-mahan-strategy.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2020/01/lost-soul-of-america.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2008/06/memo-to-cindy-mccain-et-al.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2018/09/metaphors-for-meghan-mccain-et-al.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2018/07/beyond-naive.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2017/08/to-hear-to-see-or-not.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2010/01/voices-of-warning.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2018/01/faux-socialists.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2017/09/your-lawyers-your-judges-llps-or-not.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2020/05/the-t-point.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2009/07/to-loyalists-everywhere.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2008/05/offering-up-children_06.html (A Hypocritical Nation)
▪ https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2017/05/an-hypocritical-nation.html
▪ https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2017/08/false-patriotism.html
▪ https://dejavu-times.blogspot.com/2017/10/operation-psychopath.html
8. Despite diverging opinions, the Federal founders were committed to the separation of Church and State, but not the separation of moral values and state. There was to be no religious coercion of the individual, but integrity in government was expected. This post (https://dejavu-timestwo.blogspot.com/2022/12/patterns-of-exodus-preparing-for-exodus.html), and this book (Godawa, Brian. Wall of Separation: The Phrase that Divided America, Warrior Poet Publishing. Kindle Edition) document the Biblical values and principles that guided the founders, but their overarching commitment to liberty of conscience was the same as subsequently expressed by the Prophet Joseph Smith in 1842 when he wrote: “11 We claim the privilege of worshipping Almighty God according to the dictates of our own conscience, and allow all men the same privilege, let them worship how, where, or what they may” (Pearl of Great Price | Articles of Faith 1:11). The individual would be left free to choose values and principles according to conscience, while the state was to govern itself within the limits of constitutional powers and civil jurisdiction by honest and wise men and women according to justice and equity.
