COMMENTARY

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THE GOSPEL OF GOD

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PARALLEL PERSPECTIVES was generously given permission to post below the first chapter of Clinton Clark’s,

THE GOSPEL WRITERS.

 

[NOTE: This is an unedited working draft. All rights reserved by the author.

Please do not copy or distribute in any form.]

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Inspiring and interesting reading for Christians, Jews, Muslims,
Pagans, Atheists, Glorious Heathens, and the rest of us.

The Gospel Writers

Authored by Clinton S. Clark
Copyright © 2004 Clinton S. Clark
All Rights Reserved

VERSION: FULL DRAFT - June 16.  2004

 

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Introduction

The Search and Rescue of Historical Jesus

Which makes more sense to you?

A) A man named Jesus, son of God, who was buried in a tomb, who has historical documentation outside of the Bible, and who has physical artifacts to support his existence?

B) A man named Jesus, son of God, who was buried in a tomb, who has no historical documentation outside of the Bible, and who has no physical artifacts to support his existence?

If your choice is letter (A), then you have found Jesus, son of God.  If your choice is letter (B), then it would be a waste of your time to continue to read The Gospel Writers.

The Gospel Writers is the search and rescue of historical Jesus and not of a legend left in the wake of cultural need.  Together, we will be looking at various behavioral attributes of Jesus minus commentary attached to those behavioral attributes. 

In the American Civil War between the Northern and Southern states, history records different views of noteworthy individuals, depending upon whether the history was seen from the Northern perspective or from the Southern perspective.  The same famous General for one side, can appear to be almost two different people, depending on whose point of view is being expressed.  However, if we look at the behavioral attributes of that famous General, minus commentary attached to his behavioral attributes, we see a profile emerge that is consistent, regardless of whose view is being expressed.

Therefore, we will not be concerned with, "Why Jesus said something" or  "Why Jesus did something" in The Gospel Writers.  We will only be concerned with, "What Jesus said" and "What Jesus did." 

By approaching this search and rescue of historical Jesus in this way, we can map out and build an accurate “Profile of Jesus”  that can be used to compare his profile with the profiles of other people.  Then, if Jesus was know by another name or from a different point of view, we should still be able to locate him.

Another important step in building an accurate Profile of Jesus is to compare his behaviors with the Mediterranean Sea Basin society at his time in history.  As a scholar himself, Jesus would have studied many of the Egyptian and Greek writings that you and I have available to read today.  He grew up in a Hellenized Roman world, not in a vacuum.  His behaviors would have had  similar attributes.  In fact, had he not had similar attributes, he would have been regarded as a fraud by the very people he was trying to convince.

Jesus's intent was never to start a brand new religion called Christianity; his intention was to change Judaism.  The problem with Jesus is that he was involved in changing the direction of Judaism forever and apparently never recorded as making an attempt to do so by the Jews.  How can this be?  How could a Jewish leader with the legitimate authority to debate Pharisees, Sadducees, and Scribes, fail to be recorded in any of the typical Rabbinic records?  Other Jewish leaders had fallen out of favor with the Great Sanhedrin, such as Rabbi Meir, and were still recorded even if it was anonymously.  When looking for legal precedence in the practice of Judaism, today's Jews still refer to these ancient records.  That's how important these records are.  Considering the amount of record-keeping behavior that the Jews have exhibited, it is highly

 

unlikely that Jesus was not recorded as a matter of legal record.  Whether he was a proponent or an opponent, he should still be in those records somewhere. 

Most Jews have never been willing to recognize Jesus for what the Christians said he was.  And most Christians have never been willing to recognize Jesus for what the Jews said he was not.  I myself do not believe in ghosts, gods, spirits or spooks.  It is my belief that we dishonor this great philosopher of religion by either not acknowledging him as having existed or by acknowledging him falsely.

One of the tactics used by both Jews and Christians to keep their respective forms of Judaism separate, was to use different names for functionally-similar cultural artifacts.  We are going to change that in this study to enhance our search and rescue capabilities.  As an example, a dunking in water is still a physical dunking in water, whether it is referred to as a baptism or a ritual immersion.  As another example, a house to God is still a place of religious exercise, whether it is referred to as a Church, Synagogue, or Temple.   We are going to cut down on this confusion as much as possible, even in quoted materials.  And in cases where a passage is modernly unclear, it will be edited for clarity. 

The cultural words, Church, Synagogue, Temple, or Mosque, will all be referred to as, "Temple-Church."  The Old Testament (Tanakh) Jewish God will be referred to as, the "Jewish God of Moses."  Additional culturally attribute changes will be introduced along the way.  The lean will generally be toward New Testament (NT) verbiage.

 

The use of the word "Christ"

In English: Christ, from Latin: Christus, from Greek: Christos, from Hebrew: Messias,  all meaning: the anointed.  And "the anointed" meaning,  divinely legitimate or distinguished above something or someone else. 

From the Stromata of Clement,  "And Christ our Lord, ‘the Holy of Holies,’  having come and fulfilled the vision and the prophecy, was anointed in his flesh by the Holy Spirit of his Father.  In those ‘sixty and two weeks,’  as the prophet said, and ‘in the one week,’  was he Lord."

From Acts 4:23-28,  "When they had been released, they went to their own companions and reported all that the chief priests and the elders had said to them.  And when they heard this, they lifted their voices to the NT Jewish God with one accord and said, "O Lord, it is you who MADE THE HEAVEN AND THE EARTH AND THE SEA, AND ALL THAT IS IN THEM,  who by the Holy Spirit, through the mouth of our father David your servant, said, `WHY DID THE GENTILES RAGE, AND THE PEOPLES DEVISE FUTILE THINGS?  `THE KINGS OF THE EARTH TOOK THEIR STAND, AND THE RULERS WERE GATHERED TOGETHER AGAINST THE LORD AND AGAINST HIS CHRIST.'  For truly in this city there were gathered together against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed, both Herod Antipas and Pontius Pilate, along with the Gentiles and the peoples of Israel, to do whatever your hand and your purpose predestined to occur."

From Acts 10:38,  "You know of Jesus of Nazareth, how the NT Jewish God anointed him with the Holy Spirit and with power, and how he went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for the NT Jewish God was with Him."

From Luke 4:1-19,  "And Jesus returned to Galilee in the power of the Spirit, and news about him spread through all the surrounding district.  And He began teaching in their (Galilee's) Temple-Churches and was praised by all.  And he came to Nazareth, where he had been brought up; and as was his custom, he entered the Temple-Church on the Sabbath, and stood up to read.  And

 

the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.  And he opened the book and found the place where it was written, "THE SPIRIT OF THE LORD IS UPON ME, BECAUSE HE ANOINTED ME TO PREACH THE GOSPEL TO THE POOR.  HE HAS SENT ME TO PROCLAIM RELEASE TO THE CAPTIVES, AND RECOVERY OF SIGHT TO THE BLIND, TO SET FREE THOSE WHO ARE OPPRESSED, TO PROCLAIM THE FAVORABLE YEAR OF THE LORD."

From Luke 7:46-47,  "You did not anoint my head with oil, but she anointed my feet with perfume.  For this reason I say to you, her sins, which are many, have been forgiven, for she loved much;"

The word "christ" and the word "the anointed" are synonymous.  And "the anointed" means,  divinely legitimate or distinguished above something or someone else.  Objects or persons can be referred to as "christ."  In other words, your favorite coffee cup could be anointed (with oil or perfume if you prefer), and called "christ."

 

The use of the word "Lord"

In the Bible, the word "Lord," can refer to any of the following:

·        Above all else

·        First and foremost

·        Holding the highest position

However, the word can be referring to a person, a place, a statement, or a thing.  It does not always refer to a holy person or holy entity. 

Example One:

Leviticus 19:18, "Take no revenge and cherish no grudge against your fellow countrymen.  You shall love your neighbor as yourself.  I am the LORD.” 

 

The last line, "I am the LORD," means: above all else, the first and foremost of all these writings. 

Saul confirms this in his letter to the Galatians, Galatians 5:14, “For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, "You shall love your neighbor as yourself.”

Example Two:

The God of Moses is often referred to as the LORD of Hosts, i.e. the first and foremost of all the Hosts.   All the gods together are referred to as “Elohim,”  which is the plural of “El.”  "El" is Hebrew for the word “god.”  From Genesis 1 verse 1:

"In the beginning Elohim (gods) created the heavens and the earth.” 

At this time in history, the Jews as well as the other Mediterranean Sea Basin cultures, believed that many gods existed.  However, the Jews were told that no other god should be more important then the Jewish God of Moses.  From Exodus 20:1-4:

Then God spoke all these words, saying, "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.  "You shall have no other gods before Me.”

The Jewish God of Moses never said, “I am the only god.”  He only stated that the Jews should not consider any of the other gods as LORD.  A number of ancient Jewish artifacts have also confirmed that the Jews believed in other gods.  However, to them there was to be only one Jewish God that was LORD, according to Moses.

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Chapter One
Mediterranean Sea Basin Society

The Gospel of God

From the time of Spartacus, c.109 BCE - 71 BCE, to the end of the Second Temple-Church in Jerusalem, c.68 CE - 70 CE, some amazing changes occurred in the history of the Mediterranean Sea basin. 

The word Gospel (Aven - Euaggelion - Evangelion), translated, refers to, good news from angels.

Gods and goddesses, ghosts, spooks, and spirits were abundant in all cultures of the Mediterranean Sea Basin cultures at the time of Jesus.  To expect that Jesus of Galilee would have been an exception to these cultural behaviors would be naive.  Stories of these heavenly and Earthly cosmological dramas served as teaching vessels and as entertainment.  At night, small groups of friends, family, and workmates would sit around a fire and lookup into the stars, like viewing an immense big screen television, and tell each other wonderful stories of great battles and of love tragedies.  Through the telling and listening of these stories, important bonds were formed between people.  Great scholars would gather and debate science, politics, and the mysteries of the universe.  All of these topics were intricately woven into the origins of life, the contemplations of death, and into  the histories of humankind.  John and Jesus, both of Galilee, were two of these outstanding scholars. 

The Jewish God of Moses had said, "I am a jealous god, and there is no other god beside me."  But by announcing this he indicated to the angels, who attended him, that there exists another god.  For if there were no other god, of whom would he be jealous of?  SOURCE: 81

Jesus said, according to Thomas, "I will give you what no eye has seen, what no ear has heard, what no hand has touched, what has not arisen in the human heart.”  SOURCE: 83 verse 17

Jesus made it clear, according to Luke in Luke 12:49-53, that he was about to teach something new.  And that this new idea would divide the Jews.  He said,

"I have come to cast fire upon the earth; and how I wish it were already kindled!  But I have a baptism to undergo, and how distressed I am until it is accomplished!  Do you suppose that I came to grant peace on earth?  I tell you, no, but rather division; for from now on five members in one household will be divided, three against two and two against three.  They will be divided, father against son and son against father, mother against daughter and daughter against mother, mother-in-law against daughter-in-law and daughter-in-law against mother-in-law."

 The author of Romans 1 writes:

 

"For I am not ashamed of the Gospel of God, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.  For in it, the righteousness of God is revealed from faith to faith; as it is written, "BUT THE RIGHTEOUS man SHALL LIVE BY FAITH."  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men who suppress the Truth in unrighteousness, because that which is known about God is evident within them; for God made it evident to them.  For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse.  For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as God or give thanks, but they became futile in their speculations, and their foolish heart was darkened.  Professing to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the incorruptible God for an image in the form of corruptible man and of birds and four-footed animals and crawling creatures.  Therefore God gave them over in the lusts of their hearts to impurity, so that their bodies would be dishonored among them.  For they exchanged the Truth of God for a lie, and worshiped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed forever. Amen."

 

Saul of Tarsus describes the Jewish God of Moses in Romans 7:9-11, "I was once alive apart from the Law; but when the commandment (of the Jewish God of Moses) came, sin became alive and I died; and this commandment, which was to result in life, proved to result in death for me; for sin, taking an opportunity through the commandment, deceived me and through it, killed me."

 

Wikipedia online has more information on the Jewish God of Moses, known as Yaldabaoth:

Yaldabaoth (the Demiurge) was the name given to the deity responsible for the creation of the physical universe and the physical aspect of humanity.  His name is derived from ancient Greek, meaning an artisan or craftsman (like a carpenter).

Marcion of Sinope (c.70 CE - 150 CE), characterized Yaldabaoth (the Demiurge) as being Jehovah, the Jewish God of the Old Testament, in opposition and contrast to the Jewish God of the New Testament.  Marcion, who lived from the late first century to the mid second century CE, was an early Christian teacher whose opinions were later condemned by the orthodox Temple-Church as heresy.

Marcion was a wealthy ship owner who became a Bishop in the Christian Temple-Church, and a major financial supporter of the Christian movement.  He was excommunicated by the Temple-Church at Rome in 144 CE.

Marcion's teaching was that Jesus Christ revealed to the world an entirely new Jewish God, who was different from the Jewish God in the Hebrew Bible.  According to Marcion, the Jewish God of the Hebrew Bible was jealous, wrathful, and legalistic. The material world he created was defective, a place of suffering; the god who made such a world was the bungling or malicious demiurge.  Jesus was not the Messiah promised by Judaism;  that Messiah was to be a conqueror and a political leader.  Rather, Jesus was sent by a Jewish God greater than the Jewish creator God of Moses.  Jesus's role was to reveal the transcendent Jewish God of light (Truth) and pure mind, different in character from the creator Jewish God of the Hebrew Bible.  Jesus's NT Jewish God was free from passion and wrath, wholly benevolent; and Jesus was sent to lead believers out of subjection to the limited, wrathful creator Jewish God of the Old Testament.

Marcion produced the first Christian canon, (a list of the books of the Bible), that he considered authoritative.  His list however, was much smaller than that current cannon.  Marcion's canon included the Gospel of Luke, the Acts of the Apostles, and ten of the letters attributed to Saul of Tarsus.  According to Marcion, these books were the ones that contained the true teachings of Saul.  He completely rejected the Old Testament, believing and teaching that it should not be part of the Christian Bible and was of no value to Christians. SOURCE: 84
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 A man, so close in time to the original source (c.70 CE - 150 CE), elected to the post of Bishop, and a major financial supporter of Christianity would have to be considered as a credible source. 

He was an avid supporter of Jesus and of Jesus's teachings and says nothing disrespectful about Jesus.  As we will soon learn, the early Temple-Church had a significant "conflict of interest," which allows us to count Marcion's writings as dependable.  And as a dependability check, Marcion's writings also reflect again, the typical behaviors of the cultures in the Mediterranean Sea basin, by insisting that two Jewish gods existed with differing personalities.

As mentioned before, a key element in the historical search and profiling of Jesus, will be to look for religious writings that have similar behavioral attributes to other typical writings near the time of Jesus.  In other words, if a religious writing in support of Jesus outside of the teaching version of the Gospel of God, does not have a sense of Egyptian, Geek, and Roman culture in it, it should be considered highly suspect. 

Conversely, if it does have a sense of  Egyptian, Geek, and Roman culture in it, and especially if it was also labeled as heresy by the Temple-Church, those writings need to be considered as highly probable and stanch accounts of Jesus.  Why?  Jesus was born in, lived in, educated in, and taught in a Hellenized Roman world.  There is no way of getting around this historical fact.  Only a Jesus with Hellenized Roman behaviors would have historically existed. 

Biblical scholars could argue that Jesus was different, therefore the NT versions of the Gospel of God could be complete and authentic for the times.  This dogma defense, (that because he was a holy being, he could have been different), does not fly; because it was not Jesus being different that would have been the problem.  The whole of society would have to have been different.  The entire population in the Mediterranean Sea basin, would have had to have been as different as Jesus, or nobody would have freely listened to him.  Because, these are the people that had to believe in what Jesus was telling them; along with believing that Jesus had the authority, the knowledge, and the legitimacy to offer changes to Judaism.

Had Jesus not had an elaborate story with Egyptian-Greek cultural attributes in it, no one would have considered him an authority on these matters.  Jesus said, according to Mark in Mark 4 verses 33-34:

"With many such parables Jesus was speaking The Word to them (the Jews), so far as they were able to hear it; and he did not speak to them without a parable; but he was explaining everything privately to his own disciples.”

Putting a social oddball into the middle of a Hellenized Roman society, and expecting the two to be able to relate to one another, is a pipedream.

There is a rule for Mediterranean Sea Basin gods, whether they were Egyptian, Canaanite, Phoenician, Greek, Roman, or Jewish.  They can morph, meaning they can die and be reborn into some other set of personality characteristics.  They can merge.  However, the one cultural rule they cannot break, is abruptly change personalities without some elaborate event, usually involving other gods.  History has shown us that when either the function and/or philosophy of a deity change, you either modify the existing deity or you build a new one.  This included the Jewish God of Moses.

Question:  If the Jewish God of Moses, Yaldabaoth, and the Jewish God of Jesus, were not the same Jewish God, why package the Old Testament with the New Testament? 

Answer:  Because the Old Testament is Jesus's legal source and legal precedence for debates.  When Jesus debates with Pharisees, Sadducees, and scribes, he draws from the Old Testament for legitimacy against his opponents.  We can think of the Old Testament as a legal document archive, containing previous case histories.  Packaging it with the New Testament would have offered a sense of legal continuity for Jews who were in the process of deciding if they wanted to adopt Jesus's form of Judaism.

So, how did Jesus know that his new idea would ever catch on?  He knew, because he had done his market research.  He knew what the consumers of Judaism needed. 

John and Jesus were pacifists.  The foundation for Jesus's behavior was his strong believe that  kindness begetting kindness behaviors would atone for sins.  The Jewish God of Moses was a jealous and wrathful God with many rules and regulations.  The Second Temple-Church leaders had used the God of Moses to promote separateness from the rest of the Mediterranean Sea Basin society.  This separateness created a sense of rejection in non-Jews; which in return caused hostility toward, what appeared to be, these arrogant, non-caring, and less then loving Jews.  This obsessive need for separateness, along with cleanliness (trying to remain pure like the Essenes), will be better understood when we discuss Moses and Leontopolis, Egypt, later on.  The Second Temple-Church leaders were also using the God of Moses to generate obscene amounts of wealth for the Temple-Church in Jerusalem.

 

The majority of Jews in Palestine and surrounding areas (Turkey and Egypt), were in terrible financial shape.  They were extremely poor.  What had made them so poor was the financial burden the Second Temple-Church leaders had placed on them.  Participating in their own religion had caused them to suffer in poverty.  It was a terrible burden to shoulder.

 

To make matters worse, there was no money left to pay their Roman taxes.  The Second Temple-Church was seen as a competitor by the Romans, competing for available financial resources in Jewish occupied areas.  Jews who could not pay their debt to either the Second Temple-Church  or the Romans were forced into slavery until the debt was recovered or until a relative could redeem them.  The Romans eventually outlawed the practice of Judaism and destroyed the Second Temple-Church.

 

Jesus's NT Jewish God was much different then the Second Temple-Church God of Moses. This Jewish God advocated harmony among different cultures instead of separateness or just token tolerance of another culture.  Jesus's NT Jewish God had only one rule: "You shall love your neighbor as yourself." 

 

Saul confirms this in his letter to the Galatians, Galatians 5:14, "For the whole Law is fulfilled in one word, in the statement, You shall love your neighbor as yourself."

And unlike the Second Temple-Church God of Moses, Jesus's NT Jewish God did not require tithing to participate in Judaism.  Jesus specifically said in Matthew 10 verse 5-10:

"These twelve (disciples) Jesus sent out after instructing them: "Do not go in the way of the Gentiles and do not enter any city of the Samaritans; but rather go to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.  And as you go preach saying, 'The kingdom of heaven is at hand,'  heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons.  Freely you received, so freely give.  Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker (of the NT Jewish God) is worthy of His support."

Jesus's version of the Jewish God was a radical version that annulled sacrifices, burnt offerings, and oblations for the atonement of sins.  As we can see from Matthew 10 above, not only was this new version a radical departure from the current form a Judaism, it was also free.  Free Judaism?  No Jew, at least from the time of the reconstruction of the Second Temple-Church, had ever experienced that.

 

I would speculate that, this is one of the major reasons why Jesus knew that his form of Judaism would catch on and spread like wildfire.  Who would turn down a Covenant that cost nothing to participate in? 

 

According to Jesus, the Second Temple-Church leaders had caused Jesus's original Jewish God to die, meaning to be forgotten, by covering him over him with greed and corruption.  And, the Temple-Church leaders were teaching a form of Judaism that had manipulated  the Jews (their spirit-souls) into forgetfulness.  Therefore, the Jews forgot from who they had originated from.

 

Pope Clement, according to Tertullian, was ordained by Peter and was the first of the Apostolic Fathers.  Clement wrote:

 

"To these men who spent their lives in the practice of holiness, there is to be added a great multitude of the elect, who, having through envy endured many indignities and tortures, furnished. us with a most excellent example.  Through envy, those women, the Danaids and Dircae, being persecuted, after they had suffered terrible and unspeakable torments, finished the course of their faith with steadfastness, and though weak in body, received a noble reward.  Envy has alienated wives from their husbands, and changed that saying of our Father Adam, "This is now bone of my bones, and flesh of my flesh."  Envy and strife have overthrown great cities and rooted up mighty nations." SOURCE: 85

 

Jesus was well trained in Egypt, Greece, and in Babylon.  From his studies and training, his understanding was that the original kingdom of the NT Jewish God on Earth through Adam, was a democracy in which no man ruled over another without having been voted into a position of leadership by a majority.  Unfortunately, many non-democratic kingdoms developed after this first and Holy ordained one, creating a problem for a pacifist like Jesus. 

 

The use of military force would not have been an option for consideration by Jesus.  He decided that, to recreate the first kingdom of his Jewish God, he would have to promote its recreation in the hearts of humankind.  He would have to show that this kingdom existed everywhere, including in everyone, from the very beginning of humankind; all the way back to Adam.

 

Jesus believed that at birth, a preexisting spirit-soul would descend from the heavens and occupy a new body being formed in the womb.  When the body died, this spirit-soul would ascend back into the heavens.  These spirit-souls were everlasting and never died.  However, when on Earth, through the unrighteous teachings of others, a spirit-soul could become covered over by lies and forget from where they originated.  However, at birth and in very early childhood, they knew who they were and from where they had come.  Therefore, through the power of Truth, they could be again be revealed and remember their origin.  Jesus would call this process, being reborn.  Performing deeds of loving kindness, as in  loving thy neighbor as thy self, demonstrated that the spirit-soul had been resurrected from its forgetfulness.  Because this was, according to Jesus, the true spirit and nature of the NT Jewish God.

 

Peter in 1 Peter 1:22-23, "Since you have, in obedience to the Truth, purified your souls for a sincere love of the brethren, fervently love one another from the heart, you have been born again; not of seed which is perishable, but imperishable.  That is, through the living and enduring Word of God.

 

Adam was synonymous with "Truth" and "Truth" was synonymous with "Son" because the Son was the Truth that Jesus's original Jewish God existed.  In other words, a Son is the Truth that a Mother and Father existed.  

 

As there were different kinds of Love in religion and philosophy, there were different kinds of Truth.  This kind of Truth was an original Truth; a Truth that had always existed and was the undefiled and incorruptible Truth.  This Truth had the combined power of the Father, the Mother, and the Son.  No matter what you do the biological Son of a Father and a Mother, the fact is, that the Son always is and remains the biological Son of a Father and a Mother.  That is an undefiled and incorruptible Truth.

 

And Jesus had his work cut out for him. On his list of things to do:

·        ·       Develop a form of Judaism that was free; one that allowed the Jews to participate in a Covenant with the NT Jewish God.

·        ·       Develop a form of Judaism that offered atonement of sins for free.

·        ·       Develop a  form of Judaism that the Jews could practice discretely and virtually unnoticed by the Romans.

·        ·       Resurrect the Truth which had died, through the unrighteous teachings of the greedy Second Temple-Church.

·        ·       Demonstrate how the NT Jewish God had saved Adam, the Father of humankind, from his forgetfulness.

The first action item on Jesus's list was to debunk, Yaldabaoth, the jealous God of Moses.  Jesus would have to legitimately debunk the Jewish God of Moses, in order to replace that god with the NT Jewish God. 

 

When researching this first topic, I needed to find similar behaviors between Jesus and the Mediterranean Sea Basin culture in the writings during the time of Jesus.  The behavior in these  writings would have Egyptian-Greek cultural attributes in it, i.e. elaborate character development  and not resemble the watered-down versions of the Gospel of God in the NT.  The writings would be that of a pacifist, demonstrating problem solving though intellectual maneuvers and not through war maneuvers or brute force.  Jesus's cousin, John ben Zebedee, who wrote The Apocryphon of John, fits these requirements.  From the Nag Hammadi Library:

 

 

 

The Apocryphon of John ben Zebedee

 

 

The teaching of the Truth, and the revelation of the mysteries and the things hidden in silence, even these things which he (the Truth) taught John, his disciple.

 

And it happened one day, when John, the brother of James - who are the sons of Zebedee - had come up to the Temple-Church, that a Pharisee named Arimanius approached him and said to him, "Where is your master whom you followed?"  And he said to him, "He has gone to the place from which he came."  The Pharisee said to him, "With deception did this Nazarite (Nazarene) deceive you, and he filled your ears with lies, and closed your hearts, turned you from the traditions of your fathers."

 

When I, John, heard these things I turned away from the Temple-Church to a desert place.  And I grieved greatly in my heart, saying, "How then was the Truth appointed, and why was he (the Truth) sent into the world by his Father, and who is his Father who sent him, and of what sort is that aeon to which we shall go?  For what did he mean when he said to us, This aeon to which you will go is of the type of the imperishable aeon, but he did not teach us concerning the latter, of what sort it is.

 

Straightway, while I was contemplating these things, behold, the heavens opened and the whole creation which is below heaven shone, and the world was shaken.  I was afraid, and behold I saw in the light (the Truth) a youth who stood by me.  While I looked at him, he became like an old man.  And he changed his likeness (again), becoming like a servant.  There was not a plurality before me, but there was a likeness with multiple forms in the Truth, and the likenesses appeared through each other, and the likeness had three forms.

 

 

 

 

He said to me, John, John, why do you doubt, or why are you afraid?  You are not unfamiliar with this image, are you? - that is, do not be timid! - I am the one who is with you always.  I am the Father, I am the Mother, I am the Son.  I am the undefiled and incorruptible Truth.  Now I have come to teach you what is and what was and what will come to pass, that you may know the things which are not revealed and those which are revealed, and to teach you concerning the unwavering race of the perfect Man.  Now, therefore, lift up your face, that you may receive the things that I shall teach you today, and may tell them to your fellow spirits who are from the unwavering race of the perfect Man.

 

And I asked to know it, and he said to me, The Monad is a monarchy with nothing above it. It is He who exists as God and Father of everything, the invisible One who is above everything, who exists as incorruption, which is in the pure Truth into which no eye can look.

 

He is the invisible Spirit, of whom it is not right to think of him as a god, or something similar.  For He is more than a god, since there is nothing above Him, for no one lords over Him.  For He does not exist in something inferior to Him, since everything exists in Him.  For it is He who establishes Himself.  He is eternal, since he does not need anything.  For He is total perfection.  He did not lack anything, that He might be completed by it; rather He is always completely perfect in light (Truth).  He is illimitable, since there is no Truth prior to Him to set limits to Him.  He is un-searchable, since there exists no one prior to Him to examine Him.  He is immeasurable, since there was no one prior to Him to measure Him.  He is invisible, since no one saw Him.  He is eternal, since He exists eternally.  He is ineffable, since no one was able to comprehend Him to speak about Him.  He is un-nameable, since there is no one prior to Him to give Him a name.

 

Comment: He is the nameless, and more than a god.  Since He lacks nothing to be complete, He is both male and female, i.e. literally the power of creation.

 

He is immeasurable Truth, which is pure, holy immaculate.  He is ineffable, being perfect in incorruptibility; not (just) in perfection, nor in blessedness, nor in divinity, but He is far superior.  He is not corporeal nor is He incorporeal.  He is neither large nor is He small.   There is no way to say, 'What is his quantity?' or, 'What is his quality?', for no one can know Him. 

 

He is not someone among beings, rather He is far superior.  Not that He is superior, but his essence does not partake in the aeons nor in time.  For he who partakes in an aeon was prepared beforehand.  Time was not apportioned to Him, since He does not receive anything from another, for it would be received on loan.  For he who precedes someone does not lack, that he may receive from Him.  For rather, it is the latter that looks expectantly at Him in His Truth.

 

For the perfection is majestic.  He is pure, immeasurable mind.  He is an aeon-giving aeon.  He is life-giving life.  He is a blessedness-giving blessed one.  He is Truth-giving knowledge.  He is goodness-giving goodness.  He is mercy and redemption-giving mercy.  He is grace-giving grace, not because he possesses it, but because He gives the immeasurable, incomprehensible Truth.

 

How am I to speak with you about Him?  His aeon is indestructible, at rest and existing in silence, reposing, being prior to everything.  For He is the head of all the aeons, and it is He who gives them strength in his goodness.  For we know not the ineffable things, and we do not understand what is immeasurable, except for Truth who came forth from Him, namely the Father.

 

For it is he who told the Truth to us alone.  For it is he who looks at himself in his Truth which surrounds him, namely the spring of the water of life.  And it is he who gives to all the aeons and in every way, who gazes upon his image which he sees in the spring of the Spirit.  It is he who puts his desire in his water-light which is in the spring of the pure light-water which surrounds him.

 

And His thought performed a deed and She came forth, namely She who had appeared before Him in the shine of His Truth.  This is the first power which was before all of them, which came forth from His mind, She is the forethought of the ALL - Her Truth shines like His Truth - the perfect power which is the image of the invisible Virginal Spirit who is perfect. The first power, the glory of Barbelo, the perfect glory in the aeons, the glory of the revelation, She glorified the Virginal Spirit and it was She who praised Him, because thanks to Him, She had come forth. This is the first thought, His image; She became the womb of everything, for it is She who is prior to them all,

 

 

and the first to come forth.

 

She requested from the invisible Virginal Spirit - that is Barbelo - to give Her foreknowledge.  And the Spirit consented.  And when He had consented, the foreknowledge came forth, and it stood by the forethought; it originates from the thought of the invisible Virginal Spirit.  It glorified Him and his perfect power, Barbelo, for it was for Her sake that it had come into being.

 

And She requested again to grant her indestructibility, and He consented.  When He had consented, indestructibility came forth, and it stood by the thought and the foreknowledge.  It glorified the invisible One and Barbelo, the one for whose sake they had come into being.

 

And Barbelo requested to grant Her eternal life.  And the invisible Spirit consented.  And when He had consented, eternal life came forth, and they attended and glorified the invisible Spirit and Barbelo, the one for whose sake they had come into being.

 

And She requested again to grant Her Truth.  And the invisible Spirit consented.  And when He had consented, Truth came forth, and they attended and glorified the invisible, excellent Spirit and His Barbelo, the one for whose sake they had come into being.

 

Comment: The Androgynous Pentad -- the five, having the nature of both male and female.

 

This is the pentad of the aeons of the Father, which is the first man, the image of the invisible Spirit; it is the forethought, which Barbelo, and (1) the thought, and (2) the foreknowledge, and (3) the indestructibility, and (4) the eternal life, and (5) the Truth.  This is the androgynous pentad of the aeons, which is the Decad of the aeons, which is the Father.

 

And He looked at Barbelo with the pure Truth which surrounds the invisible Spirit, and with His spark, and She conceived from Him.  He begot a spark of Truth with a Truth resembling blessedness.  But it does not equal His greatness. This "Truth" was an only-begotten son of the Mother-Father which had come forth; it is the only offspring, the only-begotten one of the Father, the pure Truth.

 

Comment: It is the teachings in Kabbalah, which means "received teachings," that pay a great deal of attention to the feminine aspects of God.  Kabbalah was not included in its entirety in the Christian Bible, nor explained in depth, however it should have been.  It is a significantly important missing piece to understanding Jesus and the NT.  Jesus had this knowledge and he used it often.  I would speculate that due to the threat it would have posed to male dominated cultures at various times throughout history, it was excluded; even though Jesus had a female disciple.  And even as a female disciple, she was falsely portrayed as a prostitute, which she was not as we will learn later on.  We continue now with what John was learning:

 

And the invisible Virginal Spirit rejoiced over the Truth which came forth, that which was brought forth first by the first power of His forethought, which is Barbelo.  And He anointed it with His goodness until it became perfect, not lacking in any goodness, because He had anointed it with the goodness of the invisible Spirit.  And the Truth attended Him as He poured upon it.  And immediately when the Truth had received from the Spirit, the Truth glorified the holy Spirit and the perfect forethought, for whose sake the Truth had come forth.

 

And the Truth requested to give the Truth a fellow worker, which is the Mind, and He consented gladly.  And when the invisible Spirit had consented, the Mind came forth, and it attended the Truth, glorifying Him and Barbelo.  And all these came into being in secrecy.

 

And the Mind wanted to perform a deed through the Truth of the invisible Spirit.  And His will became a deed and it appeared with the Mind; and the Truth glorified the Mind.  And the Truth followed the will.  For because of the Truth, Christ the divine Autogenesis created everything.  And (1) the Eternal life, His will, and (2) the Mind, and (3) the Foreknowledge attended and glorified the invisible Spirit and Barbelo, for whose sake they had come into being.

 

Comment: In English: Christ, from Latin: Christus, from Greek: Christos, from Hebrew: Messias,  all meaning: the anointed.  And "the anointed" meaning,  divinely legitimate or distinguished above something or someone else.  In the line above, "Christ the divine Autogenesis," can be restated as, " the divine and legitimately chosen Autogenesis (autogenes, self-acting-birth)."

 

And the holy Spirit completed the divine Autogenesis, His son (the divine Autogenesis), together with Barbelo, that he may attend the mighty and invisible Virginal Spirit as the divine Autogenesis, the Christ whom He had honored with a mighty voice.  He (the divine Autogenesis) came forth through the forethought. And the invisible Virginal Spirit placed the divine Autogenesis of Truth over everything.  And He subjected to him (the divine Autogenesis) every authority, and the Truth which is in him, that he may know the ALL which had been called with a name exalted above every name.  For that name will be mentioned to those who are worthy of it.

 

For from the Truth, which is the Christ, and the indestructibility, through the gift of the Spirit the four Truths (came fourth) from the divine Autogenesis.  He expected that they might attend him.

 

And the three are  (1) will, (2) thought, and (3) life.  And the four powers are (1) understanding, (2) grace, (3) perception, and (4) prudence. 

 

And grace belongs to the Truth-aeon Armozel, which is the first angel.  And there are three other aeons with this aeon: (1) grace, (2) truth, and (3) form.  And the second Truth is Oriel, who has been placed over the second aeon.  And there are three other aeons with him: (1) conception, (2) perception, and (3) memory.  And the third Truth is Daveithai, who has been placed over the third aeon.  And there are three other aeons with him: (1) understanding, (2) love, and (3) idea.  And the fourth aeon was placed over the fourth Truth Eleleth.  And there are three other aeons with him: (1) perfection, (3) peace, and (3) wisdom.  These are the four Truths which attend the divine Autogenesis.  These are the twelve aeons which attend the Son of the mighty one, the Autogenesis, the Christ; through the will and the gift of the invisible Spirit. 

 

And the twelve aeons belong to the Son of the Autogenesis.  And all things were established by the will of the holy Spirit through the Autogenesis.

 

And from the foreknowledge of the perfect Mind, through the revelation of the will of the invisible Spirit and the will of the Autogenesis, the perfect Man appeared, the first revelation, and the Truth. 

 

Comment: Adam was synonymous with "Truth" and "Truth" was synonymous with "Son."

 

It is he, the perfect man, whom the Virginal Spirit called Pigera-Adamas, and He placed him over the first aeon with the mighty one, the Autogenesis, the Christ, by the first Truth Armozel.

 

And with him are his powers.  And the invisible one gave him a spiritual, invincible power.  And he spoke and glorified and praised the invisible Spirit, saying, 'It is for thy sake that everything has come into being and everything will return to thee. I shall praise and glorify thee and the Autogenesis and the aeons, the three: the Father, the Mother, and the Son, the perfect power.'

 

 

Comment: If it has not already occurred to you, this scholarly interpretation would have been next to impossible to transmit via Oral Tradition at the time of Jesus; nor would it have likely been understood by the majority of illiterate and unscholarly masses in the Mediterranean Sea Basin at that time.  If knowledge could not be distributed orally or via pictorially by coinage, it would have gotten lost or really distorted.  A much simpler version would need to be developed, one that could withstand the rigors of Oral Tradition.  We continue now with what John was learning:

 

And he placed his son Seth over the second aeon in the presence of the second Truth Oriel.  And in the third aeon, the seed of Seth was placed over the third Truth Daveithai.  And the souls of the saints were placed there.  And in the fourth aeon the souls were placed of those who do not know the Pleroma and who did not repent at once, but who persisted for a while and repented afterwards; they are by the fourth Truth Eleleth.  These are creatures which glorify the invisible Spirit.

 

And the Sophia of the Epinoia, being an aeon, conceived a thought from herself and the conception of the invisible Spirit and foreknowledge.  She wanted to bring forth a likeness out of herself without the consent of the Spirit, - he had not approved - and without her consort, and without his consideration.  And though the person of her maleness had not approved, and she had not found her agreement, and she had thought without the consent of the Spirit and the Truth of her agreement, she still brought forth.  And because of the invincible power which is in her, her thought did not remain idle, and something came out of her which was imperfect and different from her appearance, because she had created it without her consort.  And it was dissimilar to the likeness of its mother, for it has another form.

 

And when she saw the consequences of her desire, it changed into a form of a lion-faced serpent.  And its eyes were like lightning fires which flash.  She cast it away from her, outside that place, that no one of the immortal ones might see it, for she had created it in ignorance. 

 

And she surrounded it with a luminous cloud, and she placed a throne in the middle of the cloud that no one might see it except the holy Spirit who is called the mother of the living.  And she called his name Yaltabaoth (the God of Moses).

 

This is the first archon who took a great power from his mother.  And he removed himself from her and moved away from the places in which he was born.  He became strong and created for himself other aeons with a flame of luminous fire which exists now.  And he joined with his arrogance which is in him and begot authorities for himself. 

 

The name of the first one is Athoth, whom the generations call the Reaper.  The second one is Harmas, who is the Eye of Envy.  The third one is Kalila-Oumbri.  The fourth one is Yabel.  The fifth one is Adonaiou, who is called Sabaoth (or possibly Sabbath).  The sixth one is Cain, whom the generations of men call the Sun.  The seventh is Abel. The eighth is Abrisene.  The ninth is Yobel.  The tenth is Armoupieel.  The eleventh is Melceir-Adonein. The twelfth is Belias, it is he who is over the depth of Hades. 

 

And Yaltabaoth placed seven kings - each corresponding to the firmaments of heaven - over the seven heavens, and five over the depth of the abyss, that they may reign.  And Yaltabaoth shared his fire with them, but he did not send forth from the Power of the Light (Truth) which he had taken from his mother, for he is ignorant darkness.

 

And when the light (Truth) had mixed with the darkness (False), it caused the darkness (False) to shine.  And when the darkness (False) had mixed with the light (Truth), it darkened the light (Truth) and it became neither light nor dark, but it became dim (a Grey Area).

Now the Archon, who is weak, has three names. The first name is Yaldabaoth, the second is Saklas, and the third is Samael.  And he is impious in his arrogance which is in him.  For he said, "I am God and there is no other God beside me," for he is ignorant of his strength, the place from which he had come.

And the Archons created seven powers for themselves, and the powers created for themselves six angels for each one until they became 365 angels. 

And these are the bodies belonging with the names: the first is Athoth, he has a sheep's face; the second is Eloaiou, he has a donkey's face; the third is Astaphaios, he has a hyena's face; the fourth is Yao, he has a serpent's face with seven heads; the fifth is Sabaoth, he has a dragon's face; the sixth is Adonin, he had a monkey's face; the seventh is Sabbede, he has a shining fire-face. This is the seven-ness of the week.

But Yaldabaoth, the weak Archon, had a multitude of faces, more than all of them; so that he could put a face before all of them, according to his desire, when he is in the midst of seraphs (celestial beings).  He shared his fire with them; therefore he became Lord over them.  Because of the power of the glory he possessed of his mother's Truth, he called himself God.

And he did not obey the place from which he came.  And he united the seven powers in his thought with the authorities which were with him.  And when he spoke it happened.  And he named each power beginning with the highest. 

The first is goodness with the first authority, called Athoth.  The second is foreknowledge with the second authority, called Eloaio.  The third is divinity with the third authority, is called Astraphaio.  The fourth is lordship with the fourth authority, called Yao.  The fifth is kingdom with the fifth authority, called Sabaoth.  The sixth is envy with the sixth authority,  called Adonein.  The seventh is understanding with the seventh authority, called Sabbateon.  And these have a firmament corresponding to each Aeon-heaven. 

They were given names according to the glory which belongs to heaven for the destruction of the powers.  And in the names which were given to them, by their originator, there was power.  But the names which were given them, according to the glory which belongs to heaven, mean for them destruction and powerlessness.  Thus they have two names.

And having created (...) everything, Yaldabaoth organized according to the model of the first Aeons which had come into being, so that he might create them like the indestructible ones.  Not because he had seen the indestructible ones, but the power in him, which he had taken from his mother, produced in him the likeness of the cosmos. 

And when he saw the creation which surrounded him, and the multitude of the angels around him, which had come forth from him, he said to them, "I am a jealous God, and there is no other God beside me."  But by announcing this he indicated to the angels, who attended him, that there exists another God.  For if there were no other God, of whom would he be jealous of?

Comment: Good point, "For if there were no other God, of whom would he be jealous of?"

Then the mother began to move to and fro.  She became aware of the deficiency when the brightness of her Truth diminished.  And she became dark because her consort had not agreed with her.

And I (John) said, "Lord, what does it mean that she moved to and fro?"  But he smiled and said, "Do not think it is, as Moses said, 'above the waters.'  No, but when she had seen the wickedness which had happened, and the theft which her son Yaldabaoth had committed, she repented.  And she was overcome by forgetfulness in the darkness of ignorance and she began to be ashamed.  And she did not dare to return, but she was moving about.  And the moving is the going to and fro.

And the arrogant one, Yaldabaoth, took a power from his mother.  For he was ignorant, thinking that there existed no other except his mother alone.  And when he saw the multitude of the angels which he had created, then he exalted himself above them.

And when the mother recognized that the garment of darkness was imperfect, then she knew that her consort (who she had mated with to create Yaldabaoth) had not agreed with her (did not produce a good offspring).  She repented with much weeping.  And the whole pleroma heard the prayer of her repentance, and they praised, on her behalf, the invisible Virginal Spirit.  And He (the invisible Virginal Spirit) consented; and when the invisible Spirit had consented, the Holy Spirit poured over her from their whole pleroma.  For it was not her consort who came to her, but He (the invisible Virginal Spirit) came to her through the pleroma in order that He might correct her deficiency.  And she was taken up not to her own Aeon, but above her son Yaldabaoth, that she might be in the ninth until she has corrected her deficiency.

And a voice came forth from the exalted Aeon-heaven: "The Man exists and the Son of Man."  And the chief Archon, Yaldabaoth, heard and thought that the voice had come from his mother above him.  Yet, he did not know from where it came.

Comment: And "a voice came forth from the exalted Aeon-heaven": The perfect Man exists and the Word of Man exists.  The first perfect Man was Pigera-Adamas, the "Truth" that the Holy and Perfect Mother-Father existed and had created the legitimate first aeon.  

Also from John 1 verses 1-4:  "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with the NT Jewish God, and the Word was the NT Jewish God.  He (the Word) was in the beginning with the NT Jewish God.  All things came into being through him.  And apart from him, nothing came into being that has come into being.  In him (the Word) was life, and the life was the Truth of Men."  We continue now with what John was learning: 

And Yaldabaoth taught them (the whole Aeon of Yaldabaoth), the complete foreknowledge of the Holy and Perfect Mother-Father, the image of the invisible one (the Virginal Spirit), who is the Mother-Father of the ALL and through whom everything came into being, (including) the first perfect Man.  For He (the invisible Virginal Spirit) revealed His likeness in a human form.

And the whole Aeon of Yaldabaoth trembled, and the foundations of the abyss shook.  And of the waters which are above matter, the underside was illuminated by the appearance of His image (the invisible Virginal Spirit) which had been revealed.  And when all the authorities and Yaldabaoth looked, they saw the whole region of the underside which was illuminated.  And through the Truth they saw the form of His image in the water.

And Yaldabaoth said to the authorities which attend him, "Come, (now that we know what he physically looks like) let us create a man according to the image of the invisible Virginal Spirit and according to our likeness; that his image may become a Truth for us."

And they created by means of their respective powers in correspondence with the characteristics which were given.  And each authority supplied a characteristic in the form of the image which they had seen in His natural Man form.  Yaldabaoth created a being according to the likeness of the first, perfect Man.  And they said, "Let us call him Adam, that his name may become a power of Truth for us."

And the powers began: the first one, goodness, created a bone-soul; and the second, foreknowledge, created a sinew-soul; the third, divinity, created a flesh-soul; and the fourth, the lordship, created a marrow-soul; the fifth, kingdom created a blood-soul; the sixth, envy, created a skin-soul; the seventh, understanding, created a hair-soul.  And the multitude of the angels attended him and they received, from the powers the seven substances of nature, in order to create the proportions of the limbs and the proportion of the rump and the proper working together of each of the parts.

The first one began to create the head. Eteraphaope-Abron created his head; Meniggesstroeth created the brain; Asterechme (created) the right eye; Thaspomocha, the left eye; Yeronumos, the right ear; Bissoum, the left ear; Akioreim, the nose; Banen-Ephroum, the lips; Amen, the teeth; Ibikan, the molars; Basiliademe, the tonsils; Achcha, the uvula; Adaban, the neck; Chaaman, the vertebrae; Dearcho, the throat; Tebar, the right shoulder; (...), the left shoulder; Mniarcon, the right elbow; (...), the left elbow; Abitrion, the right underarm; Evanthen, the left underarm; Krys, the right hand; Beluai, the left hand; Treneu, the fingers of the right hand; Balbel, the fingers of the left hand; Kriman, the nails of the hands; Astrops, the right breast; Barroph, the left breast; Baoum, the right shoulder joint; Ararim, the left shoulder joint; Areche, the belly; Phthave, the navel; Senaphim, the abdomen; Arachethopi, the right ribs; Zabedo, the left ribs; Barias, the right hip; Phnouth the left hip; Abenlenarchei, the marrow; Chnoumeninorin, the bones; Gesole, the stomach; Agromauna, the heart; Bano, the lungs; Sostrapal, the liver; Anesimalar, the spleen; Thopithro, the intestines; Biblo, the kidneys; Roeror, the sinews; Taphreo, the spine of the body; Ipouspoboba, the veins; Bineborin, the arteries; Atoimenpsephei, theirs are the breaths which are in all the limbs; Entholleia, all the flesh; Bedouk, the right buttock (?); Arabeei, the left penis; Eilo, the testicles; Sorma, the genitals; Gorma-Kaiochlabar, the right thigh; Nebrith, the left thigh; Pserem, the kidneys of the right leg; Asaklas, the left kidney; Ormaoth, the right leg; Emenun, the left leg; Knyx, the right shin-bone; Tupelon, the left shin-bone; Achiel, the right knee; Phnene, the left knee; Phiouthrom, the right foot; Boabel, its toes; Trachoun, the left foot; Phikna, its toes; Miamai, the nails of the feet; Labernioum - .

And those who were appointed over all of these are: Zathoth, Armas, Kalila, Jabel.  And those who are particularly active in the limbs (are) the head Diolimodraza, the neck Yammeax, the right shoulder Yakouib, the left shoulder Verton, the right hand Oudidi, the left one Arbao, the fingers of the right hand Lampno, the fingers of the left hand Leekaphar, the right breast Barbar, the left breast Imae, the chest Pisandriaptes, the right shoulder joint Koade, the left shoulder joint Odeor, the right ribs Asphixix, the left ribs Synogchouta, the belly Arouph, the womb Sabalo, the right thigh Charcharb, the left thigh Chthaon, all the genitals Bathinoth, the right leg Choux, the left leg Charcha, the right shin-bone Aroer, the left shin-bone Toechtha, the right knee Aol, the left knee Charaner, the right foot Bastan, its toes Archentechtha, the left foot Marephnounth, its toes Abrana.

Seven have power over all of these: Michael, Ouriel, Asmenedas, Saphasatoel, Aarmouriam, Richram, and Amiorps. And the ones who are in charge over the senses (are) Archendekta; and he who is in charge over the receptions (is) Deitharbathas; and he who is in charge over the imagination (is) Oummaa; and he who is over the composition Aachiaram, and he who is over the whole impulse Riaramnacho.

And the origin of the demons which are in the whole body is determined to be four: heat, cold, wetness, and dryness.  And the mother of all of them is matter (as in physics).  And he who reigns over the heat (is) Phloxopha; and he who reigns over the cold is Oroorrothos; and he who reigns over what is dry (is) Erimacho; and he who reigns over the wetness (is) Athuro. And the mother of all of these, Onorthochrasaei, stands in their midst, since she is illimitable, and she mixes with all of them.  And she is truly matter (as in physics), for they are nourished by her.

Comment: It is worth stating again, that if it has not already occurred to you, this scholarly interpretation would have been next to impossible to transmit via Oral Tradition at the time of Jesus; nor would it have likely been understood by the majority of illiterate and unscholarly masses in the Mediterranean Sea Basin at that time.  If knowledge could not be distributed orally or via pictorially by coinage, it would have gotten lost or really distorted.  A much simpler version would need to be developed, one that could withstand the rigors of Oral Tradition.  We continue now with what John was learning: 

The four chief demons are: Ephememphi, who belongs to Pleasure, Yoko, who belongs to Desire, Nenentophni, who belongs to Grief, Blaomen, who belongs to Fear.  And the mother of them all is Aesthesis-Ouch-Epi-Ptoe. 

And from the four demons, passions came forth.  And from Grief (comes) envy, jealousy, distress, trouble, pain, callousness, anxiety, mourning, etc. 

And from Pleasure much wickedness arises, and empty pride, and similar things.

And from Desire (comes) anger, wrath, and bitterness, and bitter passion, and unsatedness, and similar things. 

And from Fear (comes) dread, fawning, agony, and shame.  All of these are like useful things as well as evil things.  But the insight into their true nature is Anaro, who is the head of the material soul, for it belongs with the seven senses, Ouch-Epi-Ptoe.

This is the number of the angels: together they are 365.  They all worked on the body of Adam  until, limb for limb, the natural and the material body was completed by them. 

Now there are other ones in charge over the remaining passions whom I did not mention to you.  But if you wish to know them, it is written in the book of Zoroaster. 

Comment: We will learn more about Zoroaster, the Persian Prophet, and Cyrus, the King of Persia, later on and how the two relate to each other (Zoroaster - Zarathushtra).

And all the angels and demons worked until they had constructed the natural body of Adam.  And their product was completely inactive and motionless for a long time.

And when the mother wanted to retrieve the power which she had given to Yaldabaoth, she petitioned the Mother-Father of the ALL (the invisible Virginal Spirit), who is most merciful. 

He sent, by means of the holy decree, the five Truths down upon the place of the angels of Yaldabaoth.  They advised Him that they should retrieve the power of the mother.   And they said to Yaldabaoth, "Blow into Adam's face something of your spirit and his body will arise."  And he blew into Adam's face the spirit which was the power of his mother; he did not know this, for he exists in ignorance.  And the power of the mother went out of Yaldabaoth into the natural body of Adam, which they had fashioned after the image of the Mother-Father who exists from the beginning.  The body moved and gained strength, and it was luminous.

And in that moment, the rest of the powers became jealous, because Adam had come into being through all of them and they had given their power to the man, therefore his intelligence was multiplied and greater than that of those who had made him, and greater than that of the chief Archon. 

And when they recognized that he was luminous, and that he could think better than they, and that he was free from wickedness, they took him and threw him into the lowest region of all matter.

But the Blessed One, the Mother-Father, the beneficent and merciful One, had mercy on the power of the mother which had been brought forth out of Yaldabaoth, for they (the Archons) might gain power over the natural and perceptible body of Adam. 

And so he sent, through his beneficent Spirit and his great mercy, a helper to Adam, luminous Epinoia which comes out of the Mother-Father, and who is called Life. 

And she assists Adam, by toiling with him, and by restoring him to his fullness, and by teaching him about the descent of his seed (the Truth), and by teaching him about the way of ascent. 

And the luminous Epinoia was hidden in Adam, in order that the Archons might not know her, but that Epinoia might be a correction of the deficiency of the mother.

And Adam came forth because of the shadow of the Truth which is in him.  And his thinking was superior to all those who had made him (365 angels). 

When they looked up, they saw that his thinking was superior.  And they took counsel with the whole array of Archons and angels.  They took fire and earth and water and mixed them together with the four fiery winds.  And they wrought them together and caused a great disturbance.  And they brought Adam into the shadow of death, in order that they might form him again, from earth, and water, and fire, and the spirit which originates in matter, which is the ignorance of darkness and desire, and their counterfeit spirit. 

This is the tomb of the newly-formed body, with which, the robbers had clothed Adam in the bond of forgetfulness; and he became a mortal man, instead of the immortal he had been.

This is the first one who came down, and the first separation.  But Epinoia of the Light (Truth), which was in him, she is the one who was to awaken his thinking.  And the Archons took Adam and placed him in paradise, called the Garden of Eden.

Then Epinoia of the Light (Truth) hid herself in Adam.  And Yaldabaoth wanted to bring her out of his rib.  But Epinoia of the Light (Truth) cannot be grasped.  Although darkness pursued her, it did not catch her.