Yada asked me to post the following from the yet unreleased Kippurym chapter, in the hopes of starting/furthering discussion on this topic.
Any thoughts from anyone on: the need for, role of, and nature of The Adversary?
Yada writes:
Moving deeper into ZakarYah 12:10, we discover that caphad, the Hebrew word translated “mourning” can also mean “to be snatched and caught up, to be removed and gathered together, even to become assigned and attached.” The word does not specify whether the collected and allied groups are saved or destroyed, and that’s important because the outcome of this day is very different for the foes and friends of God. But since Yahshua ties His return to a time in which “the whole earth mourns” in Matthew 24:30, we must not diminish the importance of wailing, anguish, and mourning in ZakarYah 12:10. On the occasion of Yah’s return to earth there will be “mourning (caphad – lamenting) as one wails (misped – cries out) for an only begotten son, grieving bitterly (marar) over Him as one suffers anguish (marar) over a firstborn.” Those who have sided with Satan will cry out in anguish, recognizing their fate. Those who have sided with God, will have lumps in their throats and tears in their eyes as they gaze upon their Creator and Savior, knowing what we have done to Him. No one will be laughing. No one will be indifferent. No one will be unaffected.
“In (ba – on and during) the day (yowm) that (ha) He (hu) is great (gadal – exalted, honored, glorified, magnified in praise) the shouts (misped – voices crying out) in Yarusalayim, will be like (ka) the wailing of Hadad Rimmown in the valley (baq’ah – depression or plain) of Megiddo (Magiddown – the basis of Armageddon).” (ZakarYah / Zechariah 12:11) Yahuweh’s prediction regarding the time and circumstance of His return is depicted identically in Matthew and Revelation.
Hadad Rimmown is the Anti-Messiyah. Hadad, as the name of a wind and storm god, was adopted as the name of several Edomite (Jordanian) kings, just as Ramses named himself after the sun god Ra. It is a derivative of ‘adad, which in turn is associated with ‘adown, “lord,” and Adonis. Hadad was also the name of Ishmael’s son, but more on that later. Keep in mind that Yahweh referred to Satan as “the ruler and prince of the air,” and thus as a “wind and storm god.” And it is in this vein that the Adversary first tormented Job.
Rimmown was both the name of a Babylonian wind and storm god and the title bequeathed to the idol Hadad. In the ancient world, wind was synonymous with spirit, and thus Hadad Rimmown was a spiritual entity—just like Satan.
As an aid to understanding, the Hebrew word for spirit, ruach, also means “wind.” Wind is something outside of us which is powerful. It can be beneficial or harmful, and it can be felt and inhaled, and yet it cannot be seen. Similarly, the Hebrew word for soul, nepesh, also means “breath.” This is air warmed and changed by life. But unlike the wind which constantly continues to blow, man’s breath is temporal, signifying mortality. All spirits, good and bad, are immortal.
Coveting Yahweh’s symbols and counterfeiting them, the Rimmown title was chosen by Satan because it means “pomegranate.” Yahweh used pomegranates to decorate the Tabernacle because of their blood red color and stain, which was symbolic of blood atonement. In Satan’s case, it was the symbol of death.
Yahweh listed the twelve tribes that would be derived from Ishmael in Genesis 25:12-16. Hadad is not only one of them, this tribe came to inhabit Palmyra, the Arabian home of the moon god cult which inspired the Ka’aba, Mecca’s shrine to the moon deities: Allah, Al Lat, Minat, and Al Uzza. It was this pantheon which gave rise to Islam. Each was represented by a sacred stone placed in the Ka’aba. Appropriately, Allah lived in the Black Stone.
Ishmael’s first born was Nabajoth. Josephus identified him with the Nabataeans, people who lived in the Arabian Desert east of the Red Sea. They spoke Arabic and occupied what is today, Mecca and Medina. After battling the Assyrians in 668 BCE and again in 703 BCE, these Hagarines (named after Ishmael’s mom) retreated into the Arabian Desert where they were safe from attack, but also isolated from the civilized world. Their only interaction with advanced cultures occurred as the result of camel caravans and trading. It was in this vacuum of knowledge and culture that Islam was born.
Moving on to the other important name in the passage, Magiddown was a Canaanite city associated with Jezreel, the Whore of Babylon, in I Kings 4:12. It is based upon gadad, meaning “to invade, penetrate, attack, and cut oneself.” There is an inference in the name suggesting the “gathering of troops or large crowds into a fortified position.” Gadad also means “to be cut down.” Gaduwd is “a marauding band of warriors out on a raid.” Other related terms are migbaoth, “turban headgear,” meged, “choice,” and migdol, “tower,” Magiddown, with the addition of har, meaning “mountain or power, forms the basis of Armageddon. And while that term is familiar to many due to its inclusion in Revelation, we’re reading Zechariah.
That said, there is an additional level of detail provided for us regarding this attack on Jerusalem and Yahweh’s return in the 16th and 17th chapters of Revelation. That account includes the fall of Satan and the Whore of Babylon. These things are all related, so while we’ll cover the Renewed Covenant material in due time. But for now, I want to continue the Zechariah narrative because of where it ends.
-Yada
