Then Joshua son of Nun secretly sent two spies from Shittim. “Go, look over the land,” he said, “especially Jericho.” So they went and entered the house of a prostitute named Rahab and stayed there.

//Could Rahab be the most famous prostitute in the Bible? Let’s be clear about one thing: Rahab is no back-alley whore. She dwells in a high tower atop the fortifications of the city and has access to a private roof. When the men of the city come to her asking about Joshua’s spies, she admits to harboring Israelites and points out the direction they left. There is no distrust by the men, no insistence upon searching her home. She is treated with respect, more like a queen than a peasant.

Secretly, as we know, Rahab hid the Israelite spies on the rooftop until she could lower them down to safety outside the walls. Rahab knows that their mighty military leader, Joshua, will be coming for battle soon, and she asks to be spared. The spies tell her to hang a scarlet cord in the window to identify her home.

What was Rahab like? Some legends claim she was the most beautiful woman in the world. Her very name, Rahab (which means “proud, arrogant,”) evokes images of bewildering, untamed chaos. Recall that Rahab is also the name of the beast God destroys to overcome the primordial chaos in the beginning of the world:

The pillars of the heavens quake, aghast at his rebuke. By his power he churned up the sea; by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces. By his breath the skies became fair; his hand pierced the gliding serpent. –Job 26:11-13

Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in days gone by, as in generations of old. Was it not you who cut Rahab to pieces, who pierced that monster through? Was it not you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep, who made a road in the depths of the sea so that the redeemed might cross over? –Isaiah 51:9-10

Into the lair of Rahab came Joshua. Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, Joshua! Tomorrow, the rest of the story.

I John, who also am your brother, and companion in tribulation, and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus Christ, was in the isle that is called Patmos, for the word of God, and for the testimony of Jesus Christ.

//Many readers of my book conclude that I believe John the Apostle wrote the book of Revelation, and that this John was also John of Gischala from Josephus’s writings.

No. I should set the record straight. I do not believe this, nor should you. In fact, I’m horrible at believing stuff. Which works out just fine for this line of work, because in writing as a Bible scholar, it’s important for me to be able to suspend any beliefs I do have, and report as objectively as possible.

What I believe is that I have highlighted and presented a reasonable answer to the question of Revelation’s authorship. Nothing more.

So who do I think wrote the book? Well, I’m a numbers guy, and as for John of Gischala’s chances, it’s mostly a matter of measuring the possibility of coincidence, given the clues. After this study, I’d guess there’s a 50% chance John of Gischala wrote or dictated it. I’d guess there’s a 40% chance John the Apostle did. Perhaps there’s a 40% chance neither wrote it. I’d estimate a 25% chance it was written as or about John the Apostle, or perhaps hoped that authorship by this John would be assumed, though not truly written by him. I’d give it a similar 25% chance that it was in many ways inspired by the real-life experiences of John of Gischala, though not written by him. Put them all together, and you get a reasonable chance that authorship has been determined, and a decent chance the two Johns are the same.

Tomorrow, I will surely change my mind slightly. Such is the nature of ongoing scholarship.

★★★★★

I don’t really review audio-only books, but I should make an exception to tell you about The Bible Experience, just in case you’ve never heard of it. This is a reading of Today’s New International Version of the Bible. If you’ve got a road trip planned, this should be your companion.

It employs a cast of a couple hundred actors in the star-studded cast—Samuel Jackson, Angela Bassett, and Cuba Gooding Jr. to name a few—and sound effects that bring ancient times alive. This is just a reading of the Bible, nothing more, yet the written Word is somehow elevated into an absolutely stunning audio experience. No book of any genre that I’ve listened to compares to this, and certainly no audio Bible version compares. This is the one you want.

Pick up the Gospel of John, lie down in a meadow, and put on your ear buds for a couple hours. Or tune in to Revelation and listen to the angels sing. If you’re looking for meaningful Christmas presents, then after you buy my books, buy this!

The LORD appeared to Abraham near the great trees of Mamre while he was sitting at the entrance to his tent in the heat of the day. Abraham looked up and saw three men standing nearby. When he saw them, he hurried from the entrance of his tent to meet them and bowed low to the ground.

But why didn’t Matthew read the entire chapter before referencing verse two? Did he really think Jesus would fight a military battle against the Assyrians? If Matthew expected a military victory from his Messiah, did he think the defunct Assyrian dynasty would be restored after 600 years? Do those who expect Jesus to return and fight at Armageddon expect the Assyrian dynasty be restored after 2,600 years?

★★★

This is the first of a three-volume series about messiahs: Christ, the Messiah of 2000 years ago; Reverend Moon, the appointed Messiah of this age; and the many messiahs around us. In fact, everyone is a messiah. The book is well-written and easy to read, apologetic in nature, but it didn’t seem convincing enough to me to expect Bible-readers to embrace the ideas within. Thus, a three-star rating.

Nseka is a member of the Unification Church, and writes from that perspective. He believes literally in the Bible story; in particular, the story of the Garden of Eden and the Fall of mankind. This theme—the restoration of mankind from the Fall—pervades this entire volume. Adam and his wife Eve sinned, and history up to this point has been a redemption from sin.

Here’s how it works: Jesus is the Messiah, capital M, but the mission of the Messiah is to bring harmony. To establish the Kingdom of Heaven. Given that this has not yet happened—indeed, Satan has only grown stronger than ever—we may conclude that Jesus didn’t entirely fulfill the role of Messiah. For one thing, both Adam and Even sinned, and Jesus could only absolve Adam’s portion of the original sin;  both a male and female messiah are required to cover them both. Jesus represents only the second Adam. Had Jesus married, thus anointing a wife to serve as the female Messiah, perhaps he could have completed the messianic requirements. He didn’t, so we need a Second Coming.

Luckily, Reverend Moon is married. His first marriage didn’t work, but thankfully he found another wife, so the two of them can finish the job begun by Jesus. Jesus himself passed the torch to Rev. Moon, who serves as the Second Coming of Jesus. Rev. and Mrs. Moon are the True Parents, establishing a family and lineage under God in the Second Advent. Salvation comes through the marriage ceremonies for which Rev. Moon has become famous. Through the Blessing of a Moon-endorsed wedding (he plays matchmaker, selecting the wife for each man), humanity is able to conceive children within the lineage of God—children born without original sin, like Jesus.

And there you have it. Today, the Unification Church and the newly-inaugurated Kingdom of Heaven has grown considerably, and the providence of restoration has reached a point where Rev. Moon no longer needs to match people. So great has the movement grown, that in 2010 he retired from that service and instructed candidates on how to pick their own spouses.

No one has outperformed Jesus save for the Rev. Sun Myung Moon (p. 163).

//This is Paul talking, comparing Jesus to a rock. Remember this story? Israel, traveling through the desert, grew thirsty and God told Moses to strike a rock to produce water. Moses whacks it with a staff, and it bleeds water (Exodus 17:6).