Actions have strings of consequences. They ripple out, and affect everything they touch. Still water is good, but turbulent water is filled with waves and can topple a boat. So every action you commit that’s evil, puts a disturbance in the water. It’s like walking in a clear stream, where someone’s drinking. You root up the dirt, they can’t drink. Only a little bit fouls up the water. Or defecating in your water source leads to sepsis and hepatitis. The more you sin, the dirtier the stream gets, and the less you can drink peaceably. And if everyone’s doing it, sooner or later the stream gets bloody because everyone’s fighting for safe water.

Martin Turner already gave a great answer, but I’ll add my two cents in, if it’s worthy.

One of the lesser known, and often overlooked aspects of the Old Testament, is in Genesis, when Joseph runs the priesthood for the Egyptians. Now you might think, “Eegat! That’s blasphemy”. But it’s actually not. I think in this particular part of the Bible, we’re to respect other traditions. We’re not to speak against other people’s religions, if those religions produce good ethics.

Genesis 47:26 And Joseph made it a law over the land of Egypt unto this day, that Pharaoh should have the fifth part, except the land of the priests only, which became not Pharaoh's.

Here Joseph respects the religious institutions of Pharaoh, and does not try to undermine it. Nor does Daniel while in Babylon.

There’s another part of the scripture, in Isaiah, where it describes the Millennial Kingdom, when Christ Himself reigns on the Earth for 1000 years. All the other people will carry on with their worship, but we will worship the LORD our God in truth.

“1But in the last days it shall come to pass, that the mountain of the house of the LORD shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills; and people shall flow unto it.

2And many nations shall come, and say, Come, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, and to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for the law shall go forth of Zion, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem.

3And he shall judge among many people, and rebuke strong nations afar off; and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up a sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.

4But they shall sit every man under his vine and under his fig tree; and none shall make them afraid: for the mouth of the LORD of hosts hath spoken it.

5For all people will walk every one in the name of his god, and we will walk in the name of the LORD our God for ever and ever.”

So, it also says not to despise an Egyptian or an Edomite. For they’re our brother.

Deuteronomy 23:7 Thou shalt not abhor an Edomite; for he is thy brother: thou shalt not abhor an Egyptian; because thou wast a stranger in his land.

But, it does say not to tolerate religious traditions that elevate sin, therefore some peoples were never allowed to enter into the Temple, and one was said to be perpetually warred with, until they were no more, as they were wicked in their occult practices, and God told Israel to destroy them.

Deuteronomy 23:3 An Ammonite or Moabite shall not enter into the congregation of the Lord; even to their tenth generation shall they not enter into the congregation of the Lord for ever:

1 Samuel 15:3 Now go and smite Amalek, and utterly destroy all that they have, and spare them not; but slay both man and woman, infant and suckling, ox and sheep, camel and ass.

Exodus 17:16 For he said, Because the Lord hath sworn that the Lord will have war with Amalek from generation to generation.

Deuteronomy 20:17 But thou shalt utterly destroy them; namely, the Hittites, and the Amorites, the Canaanites, and the Perizzites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites; as the Lord thy God hath commanded thee:

Why?

Deuteronomy 20:23 And ye shall not walk in the manners of the nation, which I cast out before you: for they committed all these things, and therefore I abhorred them.

Deuteronomy 9:5 Not for thy righteousness, or for the uprightness of thine heart, dost thou go to possess their land: but for the wickedness of these nations the LORD thy God doth drive them out from before thee, and that he may perform the word which the LORD sware unto thy fathers, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob.

So the Persian Religions of Zoroastrianism, or Samus worship, wouldn’t be something God would hate. Or Islam or Hinduism—if it’s the right kind. Or Buddhism. But, God does hate sin, in any form, and when a religion elevates it, it is God’s mortal enemy, and He will utterly make an end of it and its practitioners. The LORD hates Sin. So all derivatives of that bastard religion, and it’s not to be made peace with, but utterly destroyed. But the LORD has respect to religions that elevate His law, as the LORD’s Word is above even His name.

Psalm 138:2 I will worship toward thy holy temple, and praise thy name for thy lovingkindness and for thy truth: for thou hast magnified thy word above all thy name.

Life’s not that important, actually. The only thing to get, is there’s a better one yonder, and do everything you can to spread the news of that.

Games are stupid. You play them too much, you become a petulant child your whole life. Play a few games every now and then, you’re alright. A little Pinochle, a little Cribbage, a little Chess. You can be a professional gamer—and that’s perfectly alright—to help other people enjoy life, as you’re very good at it, and they enjoy watching you at peak performance. But, very few can get to that level, or should.

Books are vain. You read them too much, you come away with funny ideas about life. You find they don’t tell the truth half the time, and the other half you have to go digging for them. A little Dickens, a little Austen, a little Tolstoy and Poetry. You can be a professional writer—and that’s perfectly alright—to help other people enjoy and learn about life, if you’re very good at it and seek out responsible information. So they learn, and are edified.

Sex is vain. You make love, it stings a little bit, you have flesh upon flesh, and see beauty and feel the sting. You make children, and raise them off the moments of extreme intimacy with your partner. A little game best played between two so infinitely devoted to one another, the two lives cannot ever be separated. You have that watersource, and the beauty of your lover, and your family teaches you how to be a grown man—that’s the stuff of life, but so few are able to find it because of vain philosophies about happiness.

Food is vain. You can make the most decadent foods, drink the most decadent drinks, have the spices of ten spices in your palate, and fats of meats and vegetables, and wine. It doesn’t make a difference. You eat, life is about eating and drinking, and making merry with your friends and family. But, even that is vain. As not many people get that enjoyment, and the world tells you it is wrong to enjoy it. So, you go through life, bitter and in anguish about life, as the one thing good in life is good food and fine company.

Work is vain. You strive endlessly to do something, and accomplish, but your work feeds everyone else, and you are destitute. You are given power to move mountains, build cities, power industry, feed nations, but you yourself cannot eat of it. And if you can, all men want what you have for envy, and will try to take it from you. You work hard at your trade, and every man wishes to satiate himself on your production, and take from you what you built. And if you have it, it is a good thing, premier in life, but few will let you have it for envy’s sake.

Love. Love is not vain. Caring for other people, and being yourself kind, charitable, forgiving and true and honest to the core of your being—as hard as it is—is the only thing in life that isn’t vain. Love for God and Love for neighbor, are the only two things in life that truly satisfy, as the world opens up all the other things, and makes them more enjoyable. You can have all of it, and be unhappy, without love. And you can have none of it, and be in bliss, with love. Therefore, I have found love for God and Neighbor preeminent of the meaning of life.

I just don't trust men to be gods, or to be moral arbiters. Christ was the true Ubermensch. And we need Him. For far more than we realize. Flat, Globular, Old, Young, Evolution or not, we need Christ. As Paul said, "All I know is Christ." We need His example as the first principle. Socrates is right [about using bodily exercise to strengthen oneself for the service of others]... nobody will argue with that, and ethics have been found by many sages, but we need the redemption and clean slate of Blood Atonement, of God's very death Himself, and His resurrection. That's the only true way to be freed from the bondage of humanity's condition.

[T]he problem is there's so few Godly women left, as they envy men and want to supplant them in their relationships. It's not your fault, bros, that you don't have a wife. It's society's and culture's fault for making them unworthy. Your righteousness isn't measured by your wife, but by your devotion to God. A wife isn't our goal in life... yes Hephzibah is given to us, but that's not here. Desire heaven like you would a girlfriend, and it may just be God adds you one.

Accusing men, and making them think it's their fault is an issue in itself. It's not their fault. There's plenty of truly devoted saints who have no wife. It's just the way of the world, women are taught to be obstinate, selfish and disobedient. So, my brothers, don't feel your worth is found in her, but find it in Him. You can be single all your life, and a true man of God. The reward isn't a wife, but Hephzibah, the Eternal Kingdom, Beulah Land. That is our reward. And only that.

Because the truth be told, there's many economic factors that are going to prevent you from having a wife, in the upcoming days. It's just the truth, people are becoming poor because corrupt leaders are in power, putting out messages like this [that a man isn't righteous enough to have a wife, while] not addressing the true roots of the problem. In fact, they're making it worse by perpetuating it.

I don't say I'm righteous enough to receive a Godly wife, but the truth is, [pastors] should be ashamed of [themselves] for blaming men for a problem that is systemic and now rooted in the culture, all the way back to the fall of man.

I felt absolutely no peace from this [message I watched, blaming me for not having a wife]. Which means, its not from a right motive or good heart [that this message was made, but rather from an accusing spirit]. When I read the Ladder of Divine Ascent I feel at peace, knowing what is my fault. But [pastors are] teaching people to find lovers, when that's not the Gospel at all. The Gospel isn't "Make your bed here, and find your wife, and get rich." That's man's gospel, and the gospel is "Do your best, and live for Christ." There is no addendum to it, saying, "Well, if you do these things you'll get a wife, too." Satan will try to supplant everyone and anything, and the sin of the world is just that, the World's Sin. You're to be wise as a serpent, and innocent as a dove, and not wrap up your righteousness in a wife. As that's idolatry. Your wife doesn't make you righteous. In fact, many of the worst sinners accrue wives{} and children. That's not the measure at all.

So, the age old question is upon us, "Why would Jesus say He would be three days in the belly of the Earth, three days and three nights, like Jonah?" And Jesus seems to have been crucified on Friday Morning, put in the tomb Friday evening, in the grave Friday night, Saturday morning and night, and raised on the third day, Early Sunday morning.

Atheists will say, "Aha! Jesus is a liar!" 

But no... much the same way Bible discrepancies are also called into question, when they shouldn't be, and here's the reason.

It is not healthy for the human being, to think about things so literally. As some researchers point out, the Left Brain, which focuses on such small trivial details, is the predatory brain, while the right brain comprehends the larger picture, and is not focused on such things.

This gets to the fact that the Bible is very much meant to be interpreted as a story. It's a true story--like Alexander, or Caesar, or Cyrus or Darius--but it is more fluently understood as a story, in that plot framework. Which, inconsistencies are not as important as the words themselves, and their meaning.

Too many people interpret things to the literal letter, and such is bad for the brain. It draws out all the wrong instincts in people, and makes them too focused on trivial matters, and doesn't get to the wider berth, nor does it comprehend the wider breadth of what's being said.

With this being told, when King Saul dies two ways, or Judas, we can part hairs trying to reconcile it--and it can be reconciled--but need it be? The fact is it's told in a story narrative, to make it interesting, and what's more important--like the stories of Alexander, or Caesar, or Cyrus or Darius--is what the stories mean. The events, surely, happened, and likely Cleopatra would have presented herself to Caesar in a fascinating way--we know it's  not two ways--but it's still recorded that she impressed him by smuggling herself to him, and making him fall into fatal attraction with the mere appearance of herself from the carpet or laundry bag or what have you.

So it is with the scripture, people are meant to look for the wider truths, and not the narrow truths, as it's more respectable for the brain, and it helps it comprehend the important structures, rather than the unimportant, which those unimportant things draw to the brain the schizophrenic and predatory instincts.

***

[U]pon further looking at the thing, it seems Passover may have been on Wednesday and Christ may have been crucified that very day, as the Resurrection happened in 31AD, and Passover was on a Wednesday that year, and Christ was in the grave from 15th of Nisan to 18th of Nisan. There's nowhere in the Bible where it says "Friday" was the day he was crucified. And Guang Wu says there was an eclipse of both the sun and moon on 31AD, and Phlegon of Trelles does too. And they wanted Him off the cross for the High Sabbath. And there's literally only a six day discrepancy with the eclipse recorded in China, which is easily accounted for.

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However, there are some things which are too deep. Trust me... if you ever encounter that, just have faith in God that He's omnipotent, and can work everything for the good. And trust the Bible, no matter what. Just trust it... even if you see something you can't understand one day... trust it. It's like the News Report of God's dealing with His people.

I mean, maybe that's also understood in the Church Liturgy, on Ash Wednesday? I think I remember that, actually.

https://brandon.water.blog/2024/05/29/the-annals-of-guang-wu-31ad-the-eclipse-happened-and-a-month-later-guang-wu-issued-the-decree/

Level 1: Marx, Freud, Christ, Confucius, Jefferson, Washington
Level 2: Plato, Major and Minor Prophets, Solomon, Aristotle, Kierkegaard, Machiavelli and Eric Hoffer, Camus, La Rochefoucauld, Orwell, Bradbury, Huxley
Level 3: Tolstoy, Wordsworth, Byron, Keats, Coleridge, Lao Tsu
Level 4: Moses, Mozi, Mencius, Nietzsche, Jung
Level 5: Blake, Western and Eastern Mythologies, Tolkien, Lewis, Euclid, Lucretius
Level 6: Pythagoras, Christ and Confucius again, Ptahotep, Paul. You also realize Buddha and Kant said practically the same thing, and that all philosophy is cyclic. And that similar ideas produce similar effects on the consciousness, which produce similar behaviors.
Level 7: My Lanta, the Bible had it all and I didn't even realize it.