THE WORLD OF ANCIENT RELIGION

STUDY TIP: See The World.

It is instructive to study non-Biblical resources so that we can have an informed perspective on the Bible similar to what ancient Israel had. We therefore recommend the following resources for study:

What we should expect to learn from these resources is that neither Judaism and Christianity are unique in their fundamental beliefs and practices. In fact, God has said as much when he said there is nothing new under the sun.

To be under the influence of either nation meant exposure to their respective religious practices and strong pressure to adhere to those practices. For some, that exposure, when combined with intermarriage, resulted in conversion to the prevailing religion or to adoption of some of its religious practices. This, of course, stands in direct opposition to God’s commands about doing what other nations do. And we must keep in mind that when God says, “You shall not do as they do (i.e. in Egypt or Babylon, or in any other religion), he means that Israel (including Christians) should not adopt any of the practices found in those other religions.

Lest we who live in these enlightened modern times think that this warning could not possibly apply to us, we need to be reminded that God is not just warning about setting up physical idols or making animal sacrifices, or other practices commonly associated with pagan religions. He is warning about adopting any religious practices (e.g. buildings, priests, offerings, sacraments, rituals, etc.) that are found in all religions past and present. Because all religious practices include rules and regulations (i.e. laws) designed and administered by men, they all represent Old/First Covenant religions which are fulfilled through physical, fleshly activities that are contrary to spiritual activities.

In Biblical terms, these fleshly religious activities, and the religious environments in which they occur, are symbolically represented as the “world.” In other words, when we read “the world’ in the Bible, we should interpret “the world of religion”.

Furthermore, when God refers to nations and various cities such as Egypt and Babylon we must keep in mind that he is not talking about natural, historic, governmental or ethnic places. Rather, he is referring to religions of all types that have always existed in all cultures in all generations. With that understanding, we then see that God has given ample warning that his people should not do anything that other religions do or ever have done.

Knowing that God does not want his people to learn from or adopt the religious practices of other religions, it seems counter-intuitive that he would send them to places like Egypt and Babylon. Sending them into hotbeds of religious activity does not seem like the best way to guard them from learning religious practices that they have otherwise been told to avoid. But that is what God did many times in the Biblical record. Consider these examples:

Because these are only a few examples of a pattern that exists throughout the Bible, we must assume that God continues with that pattern in these modern times. In fact, there is nowhere in the world that anyone can go to avoid exposure to ungodly pagan religion. Constant exposure to what the world does religiously presents constant challenges to avoid adopting the religious ways of the world.

Christians and Jews should not be comforted in believing that they would never be deceived into adopting worldly religious behaviors just because they claim to believe in God and Jesus and trust the Bible for direction in their lives. Using God’s name and Jesus’ name in worship and in everyday language does not guarantee immunity from the toxic influence of the world’s religious ways that are so easily identified through various religious forms. In fact, we have argued strongly throughout this website that Judaism and Christianity embody many unbiblical practices and beliefs that clearly demonstrate their spiritual immaturity through their affections for religious form. We refer to these practices as Old/First Covenant doctrines and practices that are the substance of RELIGION.