Ark of the Covenant may be hidden in Africa, biblical scholars believe

[Crow]

Gidday Kanacki

Franklin raised an interesting point.

In the Second Book of the Maccabees 2:4-8 claiming that the prophet Jeremiah rescued the Ark of the Covenant and hid it in a secret cave under Mount Nebo in modern-day Jordan. The full passage reads as follows.....

“It was also in the same document that the prophet, having received an oracle, ordered that the tent and the ark should follow with him, and that he went out to the mountain where Moses had gone up and had seen the inheritance of God [i.e. Mount Nebo in modern-day Jordan]. Jeremiah came and found a cave-dwelling, and he brought there the tent and the ark and the altar of incense; then he sealed up the entrance. Some of those who followed him came up intending to mark the way, but could not find it. When Jeremiah learned of it, he rebuked them and declared: ‘The place shall remain unknown until God gathers his people together again and shows his mercy. Then the Lord will disclose these things, and the glory of the Lord and the cloud will appear, as they were shown in the case of Moses, and as Solomon asked that the place should be specially consecrated.'”

Crow

 

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[KANACKI]

Gidday Kanacki

Franklin raised an interesting point.

In the Second Book of the Maccabees 2:4-8 claiming that the prophet Jeremiah rescued the Ark of the Covenant and hid it in a secret cave under Mount Nebo in modern-day Jordan. The full passage reads as follows.....

“It was also in the same document that the prophet, having received an oracle, ordered that the tent and the ark should follow with him, and that he went out to the mountain where Moses had gone up and had seen the inheritance of God [i.e. Mount Nebo in modern-day Jordan]. Jeremiah came and found a cave-dwelling, and he brought there the tent and the ark and the altar of incense; then he sealed up the entrance. Some of those who followed him came up intending to mark the way, but could not find it. When Jeremiah learned of it, he rebuked them and declared: ‘The place shall remain unknown until God gathers his people together again and shows his mercy. Then the Lord will disclose these things, and the glory of the Lord and the cloud will appear, as they were shown in the case of Moses, and as Solomon asked that the place should be specially consecrated.'”

Crow

Hola amigo my fine feathered friend....

There are multiple serious issues with taking this as a factual account, however. First of all, the Second Book of the Maccabees was written in Koine Greek sometime around 124 BC or thereabouts, probably in Alexandria. In other words, this text was written nearly five hundred years after the events it describes supposedly took place.

Although the book purports to cite certain unnamed “records” to support its claim, it is unclear which “records” the text is citing and no one can guess how old these supposed “records” are. Furthermore, we do not even know if these unnamed “records” really existed or if the author of 2 Maccabees simply made them up to make his account sound more credible.

Kanacki

 

[Crow]

Hola amigo my fine feathered friend....

There are multiple serious issues with taking this as a factual account, however. First of all, the Second Book of the Maccabees was written in Koine Greek sometime around 124 BC or thereabouts, probably in Alexandria. In other words, this text was written nearly five hundred years after the events it describes supposedly took place.

Although the book purports to cite certain unnamed “records” to support its claim, it is unclear which “records” the text is citing and no one can guess how old these supposed “records” are. Furthermore, we do not even know if these unnamed “records” really existed or if the author of 2 Maccabees simply made them up to make his account sound more credible.

Kanacki

Gidday Kanacki

The Second Book of Maccabees, also called 2 Maccabees, is a deuterocanonical book originally in Greek which focuses on the Maccabean Revolt against Antiochus IV Epiphanes and concludes with the defeat of the Seleucid Empire general Nicanor in 161 BC by Judas Maccabeus, the "hero of the Jewish wars of independence. I have not seen the 161 version but you can see a 12 century Latin version from Austria below.

Bible leaf, 12th century: II Maccabees 1:26 to 2:23 (Beals 11 Folio 1 verso)



I have to agree in part the 161 BC parchment by Judas Maccabeus was taken from unknown records probably lost with library of Alexandria?

But we can only speculate on the accuracy of the oldest known version telling of events 500 odd years earlier.

One question that should be examined is MT Nebo mentioned in 161 BC the same mt Nebo identified today?

Historical place names can some times change over time. Place names on the copper scroll is a prime example.

Nabu, biblical Nebo, major god in the Assyro-Babylonian pantheon. He was patron of the art of writing and a god of vegetation. Nabu's symbols were the clay tablet and the stylus, the instruments held to be proper to him who inscribed the fates assigned to men by the gods.

Crow

 

[KANACKI]

Hola Crow

The Leningrad Codex (Latin: Codex Leningradensis, the "codex of Leningrad") is the oldest complete manuscript of the Hebrew Bible in Hebrew, using the Masoretic Text and Tiberian vocalization. It is dated 1008 CE (or possibly 1009) according to its colophon.

The Aleppo Codex, against which the Leningrad Codex was corrected, is several decades older, but parts of it have been missing since 1947, making the Leningrad Codex the oldest complete codex of the Tiberian mesorah that has survived intact to this day.

Does it have the first mention of Mount Nebo in the context of The eponymous Mount Nebo in the Abarim mountain range, probably also known as Pisgah? (see Numbers 27:12-14 and Deuteronomy 34:1). Just before Moses died, God showed him the promised land from that mountain.

Kanacki

 

[Crow]

The point I am trying to make from the time of the alleged event you have versions translate from Hebrew to Greek then to Latin. How much over time these versions have had things taken out of context?

Crow

 

[DizzyDigger]

Crow, you've brought up a good point.

The Masoretic Text came from the Masorites, a very strict Jewish
sect of scribes and scholars who were responsible for making exact
copies of the text. They were located in the Antioch area.

At the same time you also had manuscripts being copied/reproduced in
Alexandria.

KANACKI has probably read it already, but a great book on the beginnings
of the bible is "Tale of Three Cities" by Dr. David Reagan.

The debate over Biblical manuscripts is on-going, and no doubt will continue
til the end of time. There are a multitude of opinions, and each has a bit
of merit. IMHO, it's a brain-drainer, but some people will spend their entire
life studying every jot and tiddle. Twenty years ago I came to the conclusion
that there are no absolutes.

As to the subject at hand, I do believe that there was/is an Ark of the Covenant.
Where it is physically located, today, I have no idea.

 

[Crow]

Crow, you've brought up a good point.

The Masoretic Text came from the Masorites, a very strict Jewish
sect of scribes and scholars who were responsible for making exact
copies of the text. They were located in the Antioch area.

At the same time you also had manuscripts being copied/reproduced in
Alexandria.

KANACKI has probably read it already, but a great book on the beginnings
of the bible is "Tale of Three Cities" by Dr. David Reagan.

The debate over Biblical manuscripts is on-going, and no doubt will continue
til the end of time. There are a multitude of opinions, and each has a bit
of merit. IMHO, it's a brain-drainer, but some people will spend their entire
life studying every jot and tiddle. Twenty years ago I came to the conclusion
that there are no absolutes.

As to the subject at hand, I do believe that there was/is an Ark of the Covenant.
Where it is physically located, today, I have no idea.

Gidday Amigo

Definitely perplexing as all versions of events have merits and issues that do not quite fit the bill. Was the Ark still hidden under the temple mount? Was the Ark taken and hidden in Ethiopia? Or was the Ark taken to a cave in Mount Nebo and hidden?

The other possibility is what Go deep mentioned is that the Ark may of been destroyed and the gold looted off it. During the sacking of the first temple?

As for

The debate over Biblical manuscripts is on-going, and no doubt will continue
til the end of time. There are a multitude of opinions, and each has a bit
of merit.

I could not agree more.

I believe it existed and I think Ark was just a vessel used to act as visual symbol to represent the "covenant" the agreement between god and the Jews that their faith was based on.

Arks are more common than what we think?

Because Ethiopia has several ceremonial Arks.



Even the ancient Egyptians have Arks like the Ark of Anubis found in King Tuts Tomb below., easily recognizable as an anthropomorphized jackal or dog, was the Egyptian god of the afterlife and mummification. He helped judge souls after their death and guided lost souls into the afterlife. ...

The Ark of Anubis was symbolic vessel to carry the soul into the afterlife.





There is a long history of These Arks purpose was more symbolic in nature rather than a physical artifact. Because the covenant means an agreement. The Ark of the covenant was symbolic vessel of the covenant agreement between the Jewish people and God.

Just like the Ark of Anubis a symbolic vessel of the agreement between Anubis and the people of Egypt to judge the souls of dead to the afterlife.

Crow

 

[KANACKI]

Hola Crow

Indeed the Ark of Anubis is an excellent parallel.

The best non-Israelite parallel to the Ark of the Covenant comes not from Mesopotamia or Arabia, but from Egypt. The sacred bark was a ritual object deeply embedded in the Egyptian ritual and mythological landscapes. It was carried aloft in processions or pulled in a sledge or a wagon; its purpose was to transport a god or a mummy and sometimes to dispense oracles. The Israelite conception of the Ark probably originated under Egyptian influence in the Late Bronze Age.

Kanacki

 

[KANACKI]

Hola Amigo

We forget about another source for the Ark Of the Covenant being mentioned?

Ark of the Covenant is mentioned in the Quran to contain artifacts from the household of Musa (Moses) and Harun (Aaron).

Ark of the Covenant is referred to in verse (2:248) of chapter (2) sūrat l-baqarah (The Cow)

And their prophet said to them, "Indeed, a sign of his kingship is that the chest will come to you in which is assurance from your Lord and a remnant of what the family of Moses and the family of Aaron had left, carried by the angels. Indeed in that is a sign for you, if you are believers."

Kanacki

 

[Crow]

Gidday Kanacki

Dizzy digger makes a great point.

One thing for sure is over time the story of the Ark has been manipulated to suit religious political agendas over the last 2000 years and even now today with a flood of conspiracy books of claims and counter claims it hard to know the truth.

Even devoted academics cannot agree on the exact details.

Crow

 

[franklin]

If you can find the "Gold Cup of Christ" it reveals the location of the "Ark of the Covenant of God." There are only two locations where the "Ark of the Covenant of God," can be found. One is modern and the other is thousands of years old. If the latter then the "Ark of the Covenant of God" was hidden about 16,710 years ago and the Pyramids of Giza were built 2,757 years later. But also this could go further back through cycles to Ancient times in cycles and could therefor be hundreds of thousands of years old. The Pyramids were built 13,952.692 years ago.