The Pleroma the Waters Above the Heavens Genesis 1:7

The Pleroma the Waters Above the Heavens

An Opening reading from The Dialogue of the Savior

The Lord said, "When the Father established the cosmos, he [collected] water from it, and his Word came forth from it, and it experienced many [troubles]. It was more exalted than the path [of the starts] surrounds the entire earth.

[He continued] the collected water [above] is beyond the stars and beyond the water is  a great fire encircling them like a wall. [Periods of ] time began to be measured once many beings that were within had separated from the rest. When the [word] was established, he looked [down], and The Father said to him, 'Go, and [send something] from yourself, in order that [the earth] may not be in want from generation to generation, and from age to age.' 

The Hebrew shamayim (always in the plural), which is rendered “heaven(s),” seems to have the basic sense of that which is high or lofty. (Ps 103:11; Pr 25:3; Isa 55:9)

Genesis Verse 1  In the beginning God created the heavens (Heb. hushomayim – plural) and the earth. (Genesis 1)

If we read the history of the creation as a revelation to inhabitants of Earth we find it informs us of the order in which the things narrated would have developed themselves to our view if we had been placed on some projecting rock and observed the events revealed. We must remember this. The Mosaic account is not a revelation of the formation of the boundless universe to inhabitants on other planets removed from the Earth. Rather, it was given to humans as inhabitants of this terrestrial system. (1)

God existed before he created the Heavens and the earth. God exists outside of time and space in the Bythos or depth. 

First of all the Pleroma did not always exist it was produced and formed by the Eternal Spirit this we call the emanation.

(He created the holy Pleroma in this way The Untitled Text in the Bruce Codex)

The word Pleroma means "fullness". It refers to all existence beyond visible universe. In other words it is the world of the Aeons, the heavens or spiritual universe. Bythos is the spiritual source of everything which emanates the pleroma,

The Pleroma is both the abode of and the essential nature of the True Ultimate Deity or Bythos.
The Pleroma as well as being the dwellings place of the Aeons is also a state of consciousness.

What does it mean by "in the beginning" you see some can argue that he means beginning as in God forever and eternal past but if that's the case there really is no beginning with God others might argue well beginning in the sense that when God conceived of creating the perfect sons and daughters of God the human beings whatever other beings he might have created in the universe that was the beginning

When this "beginning" was we are not told. But we are taught that wisdom was revealed in the acts of creation from the beginning. John states that "in the beginning" was the Word or Logos (John 1:1). Logos signifies the outward expression of inward thought or reason. It represents more than a mere word, for it incorporates the thought behind the word expressed. Elsewhere, we learn that wisdom was with God in the beginning, and was manifested in His acts of creation (Prov. 8:22). Hence, all that was done, was done with His ultimate purpose in mind, and not as the result of blind force or chance

atmospheric region or sky

Mat 6: 26 Observe intently the birds of heaven, because they do not sow seed or reap or gather into storehouses; still YOUR heavenly Father feeds them. Are YOU not worth more than they are?

Heavens of earth’s atmosphere. . “The sky” is sometimes meant, that is, the apparent or visual dome or vault arching over the earth.—Mt 16:1-3; Ac 1:10, 11.

After the very first verse of the Bible we are told that there is a body of ‘deep’ water presumably in or around the earth:

Genesis Verse 2  And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters. (Genesis 1)

This scripture also seems to be making a lot of play of the word ‘face’ or surface.

A little further on, God then made a firmament which divided the body of water into two bodies of water, one below and one above it: (2)

Genesis Verse 7  And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so. (Genesis 1)

This atmospheric region corresponds generally to the “firmament [Heb., raqia`]” formed during the second creative period, described at Genesis 1:6-8. It is evidently to this ‘heaven’ that Genesis 2:4; Exodus 20:11; 31:17 refer in speaking of the creation of ““the sky and the dry land. (3)

A typical dictionary definition of the word firmament is ‘expanse’ so this firmament would appear to be an expanse of space or sky surrounding the earth with a body of water on the earth and the other body of water sitting above the expanse of space.

Now it starts to get interesting. In verse 8 God now called the firmament ‘Heaven’. Whilst the word for heaven in verse 8 is also the plural ‘shomayim’ it does not contain the definite article as does the heavens in verse 1. OT Hebrew nouns without the definite article attached are likely to indicate a proper name, the ‘Sky’ or  atmospheric region it is the element of the heavens that mankind can see.

 The waters below the firmament are what formed the seas and the water in the earth’s atmosphere in the form of clouds and rainfall. So  the firmament is both the extent of the Earth’s atmosphere or sky and the visible universe therefore the firmament is intended to comprise both of these expanses: (4)

8  And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day. (Genesis 1)

The firmament may have seemed like a glass dome.

“Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, the middle layer of water solidified,and the nether heavens and the uppermost heavens were formed. Rab said: [God's] handiwork [the heavens] was in fluid form, and on the second day it congealed; thus Let there be a firmament means ‘Let the firmament be made strong*. R. Judah b. R. Simon said: Let a lining be made for the firmament, as you read, And they did beat the gold into thin plates…R. Simon said: The fire came forth from above and burnished the face of the firmament.” Gen. Rab. 4:2

“R. Phinehas said in R. Oshaya’s name: As there is a void between the earth and the firmament, so is there a void between the firmament and the upper waters, as it is written, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, meaning, midway between them. R. Tanhuma said: I will state the proof. If it said, And God made the firmament, and He divided between the waters . . . which are upon the firmament, I would say that the water lies directly upon the firmament itself.” Gen. Rab. 4:3

“But after that he makes the firmament, that is, the corporeal heaven. For every corporeal object is, without doubt, firm and solid; and it is this which “divides the water which is above heaven from the water which is below heaven.” Origen. Homily on Genesis

The firmament is the limit, the middle or boundary between the Physical Heavens and the spiritual heavens called the pleroma

Outer space. 

The physical “heavens” extend through earth’s atmosphere and beyond to the regions of outer space with their stellar bodies, “all the army of the heavens”—sun, moon, stars, and constellations. (De 4:19; Isa 13:10; 1Co 15:40, 41; Heb 11:12 These heavens show forth God’s glory, even as does the expanse of atmosphere, being the work of God’s “fingers.” (Ps 8:3; 19:1-6)
The divinely appointed “statutes of the heavens” control all such celestial bodies. Astronomers, despite their modern equipment and advanced mathematical knowledge, are still unable to comprehend these statutes fully. (Job 38:33; Jer 33:25) Their findings, however, confirm the impossibility of man’s placing a measurement upon such heavens or of counting the stellar bodies. (Jer 31:37; 33:22;
Yet they are numbered and named by God.—Ps 147:4; Isa 40:26.

“Heavens of the heavens.

” The expression “heavens of the heavens” is considered to refer to the highest heavens and would embrace the complete extent of the physical heavens, however vast, since the heavens extend out from the earth in all directions.—De 10:14; Ne 9:6.

Solomon, the constructor of the temple at Jerusalem, stated that the “heavens, yes, the heaven of the heavens” cannot contain God. (1Ki 8:27)

27 “But will God truly dwell upon the earth? Look! The heavens, yes, the heaven of the heavens, themselves cannot contain you; how much less, then, this house that I have built!

Yahweh measures the physical heavens as easily as a man would measure an object by spreading his fingers so that the object lies between the tips of the thumb and the little finger. (Isa 40:12) Solomon’s statement does not mean that God has no specific place of residence.

Nor does it mean that he is omnipresent in the sense of being literally everywhere and in everything. This can be seen from the fact that Solomon also spoke of Yahweh as hearing “from the heavens, your established place of dwelling,” that is, the heavens of the pleroma the eternal realm.—1Ki 8:30, 39

. 30 And you must listen to the request for favor on the part of your servant and of your people Israel with which they pray toward this place; and may you yourself hear at the place of your dwelling, in the heavens, and you must hear and forgive.

, 39 then may you yourself hear from the heavens, your established place of dwelling, and you must forgive and act and give to each one according to all his ways, because you know his heart (for you yourself alone well know the heart of all the sons of mankind)

In Deuteronomy 10, we find the strongest evidence possible that there is more than one heaven. Verse 14 refers to the heavens in the plural but also references the heaven of the heavens. Whilst concordances and lexicons routinely consider the Hebrew word ‘shamay’ as an unused singular noun, this very rare form of the word for heaven in the OT scriptures does appear in this verse. This to my mind draws this specific word out with the special meaning of God’s home being singularly supreme and above the other heavens:

14 Behold,the heavens (Heb. Shamayim) and the heaven (Heb. Shamay – singular?) of heavens (Heb. Shamayim) is the LORD'S thy God, the earth also, with all that therein is. (Deuteronomy 10)

To further emphasise these points 1Kings Chapter 8 contains the same phraseology and Hebrew grammar:

27 But will God indeed dwell on the earth? behold, the heaven and heaven of heavens cannot contain thee; how much less this house that I have builded? (1Kings 8)

Nehemiah Chapter 9 but with one added ingredient. Here each heaven comes with its own host. This could be referring to the stars in the sky as well as the sons of God beyond the stars.

6 Thou, even thou, art Yahweh alone; thou hast made heaven, the heaven of heavens, with all their host, the earth, and all things that are therein, the seas, and all that is therein, and thou preservest them all; and the host of heaven worshippeth thee. (Nehemiah 9)

Psalm 33 paints a similar picture:

6 By the word of Yahweh were the heavens made; and all the host of them by the breath of his mouth. (Psalms 33)

1 Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. (Genesis 2)

Spiritual Heavens.

James 1:17 Every good gift and every perfect present is from above, for it comes down from the Father of the [celestial] lights, and with him there is not a variation of the turning of the shadow.

the Father of the [celestial] lights, "Father of spirits" (Heb 12:9); "Father of the heavenly lights" (Jam 1:17

 The same original-language words used for the physical heavens are also applied to the spiritual heavens. As has been seen, Yahweh Elohim does not reside in the physical heavens, being a Spirit. However, since he is “the High and Lofty One” who resides in “the height” (Isa 57:15), the basic sense of that which is “lifted up” or “lofty” expressed in the Hebrew-language word makes it appropriate to describe God’s “lofty abode of holiness and beauty.” (Isa 63:15; Ps 33:13, 14; 115:3)

“army of the heavens,” often applied to the stellar creation, sometimes describes these angelic sons of God. (1Ki 22:19; compare Ps 103:20, 21; Da 7:10; Lu 2:13; Re 19:14.) So, too, “the heavens” are personified as representing this angelic organization, “the congregation of the holy ones.”—Ps 89:5-7; compare Lu 15:7, 10; Re 12:12.

12 Is not God in the height of heaven? (Heb. plural Shamayim) and behold the height of the stars, how high they are!
13 And thou sayest, How doth God know? can he judge through the dark cloud?
14 Thick clouds are a covering to him, that he seeth not; and he walketh in the circuit of heaven. (Job 22)

Job Chapter 22 teaches that God’s heaven is above the stars but that He can see through the darkness that covers Him from our sight.

4 Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. (Psalms 148)

Now while ‘waters’ refers to God’s heavenly hosts or dwelling pleace that is the Pleroma in the symbolic meaning, the literal meaning would be the waters of the flood:

Ge 7:11 ¶ In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, the seventeenth day of the month, the same day were all the fountains of the great deep broken up, and the windows of heaven were opened.

4 Praise him, ye heavens of heavens, and ye waters that be above the heavens. (Psalms 148)

The allusion here is to the waters which are above the lower heaven, that is, the air or sky and outer space, this higher region where the waters are is a higher heaven called the upper waters or the Pleroma. (5)

Note the Pleroma and the Aeons are called the deep

The Pleroma is also called the ‘emanations of the Father’, the ‘treasuries of light’ and the ‘immeasurable deep’.

As the ‘immeasurable deep’: “After these things there is another place which is broad, having hidden within it a great wealth which supplies the All. This is the immeasurable deep.” (Untitled Text in the Bruce Codex)

The Upper Aeons are spiritual, invisible, immobile and are filled with light. They are described as ‘the Silence’ or a ‘watery light’ and contain archetypal images or reflections of the One. The Lower Aeons are material, visible, mutable and filled with darkness. They are described as ‘fiery’ and contain shadows, copies or images.

- Called ‘Watery light and life’, ‘water-light’, ‘light-water’, ‘Luminous Waters’, ‘Living Waters’, ‘the Silence’, ‘the silent Silence’, ‘the living Silence’, ‘the Treasure-House’, ‘the Store-House’, ‘the Dwelling-Place’, ‘crown’, ‘the kingless realm’.

- As water: “...the waters which are above.” (Melchizedek), “...the waters which are above matter.” (Apocryphon of John)

- As Living Water: “...the Aeons in the Living Water.” (Trimorphic Protennoia)

- As a watery light and life: “For it is he who looks at himself in his light which surrounds him, namely the spring of the water of life. And it is he who gives to all the aeons and in every way, (and) who gazes upon his image which he sees in the spring of the Spirit. It is he who puts his desire in his water-light which is in the spring of the pure light-water which surrounds him.” (Apocryphon of John)

They will receive you into aeonian dwellings (Luke 16: 9). We have a building from God, an aeonian house in heaven, not built by human hands (2 Cor 5: 1). I am going to prepare a place for you, so that you also may be where I am (John 14: 3). Ps 104:3  (103:3) Who covers his chambers with waters; who makes the clouds his chariot; who walks on the wings of the wind. LXX

3  Who frameth of the waters the beams of his upper-chambers; who maketh the clouds his chariot; who walketh along upon the wings of the wind:

Ps 104:3 Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters: who maketh the clouds his chariot: who walketh upon the wings of the wind:

     Who layeth the beams of his chambers in the waters The word here rendered “layeth” — from hrq — means properly to meet; then, in Hiphil, to cause to meet, or to fit into each other, as beams or joists do in a dwelling. It is a word which would be properly applied to the construction of a house, and to the right adjustment of the different materials employed in building it. The word rendered “beams” — hYli — means “an upper chamber, a loft,” such as rises, in Oriental houses, above the flat roof; in the New Testament, the υπερωον, rendered “upper room,” #Ac 1:13 9:37,39 20:8. It refers here to the chamber — the exalted abode of God — as if raised above all other heavens, or above the universe.

The house which covers, frameth and layeth in the upper waters is the Pleroma 

The word “waters” here refers to the description of the creation in #Ge 1:6,7 — the waters “above the firmament,” and the waters “below the firmament.” The allusion here is to the waters above the firmament; and the meaning is, that God had constructed the place of his own abode — the room where he dwells — in those waters; that is, in the most exalted place the Pleroma outside of our universe.

 It does not mean that he made it of the waters, but that his home — his dwelling-place — was in or above those waters, as if he had built his dwelling not on solid earth or rock, but in the waters, giving stability to that which seems to have no stability, and making the very waters a foundation for the structure of his abode. 

1. The earth is at the centre of the model;

2. The lower waters are upon and below the surface of the Earth in the form of its seas;

3. The outer surface of the sky (i.e. the outer edge of Earth’s atmosphere) being above the lower waters which were contained within Earth’s atmosphere either as clouds in the sky or on and below the Earth’s surface as the seas;

4. The heavenly bodies (stars, sun and moon) contained within the visible universe of outer space (the firmament) being above the outer surface of the Earth’s atmosphere; The waters below the firmament are what formed the seas and the water in the earth’s atmosphere in the form of clouds and rainfall

5. The upper waters being above the visible universe. On this basis we must reach the inescapable conclusion that the upper waters are the invisible heavens of God’s domain the Pleroma, outside of the physical universe.

The word Pleroma means "fullness". It refers to all existence beyond visible universe. In other words it is the world of the Aeons, the heavens or spiritual universe. 
Bythos is the spiritual source of everything which emanates the pleroma. 
The Pleroma is both the abode of and the essential nature of the True Ultimate God.

Aeonology Hebrews 11:3

Aeonology

or 

The doctrine of the emanation of the Aeons 

To begin this study we will have an opening reading from Hebrews 11:3:

by faith we understand the ages to have been prepared by a saying of God, in regard to the things seen not having come out of things appearing; (Hebrews 11:3 Young's Literal Translation)

So what is aeonology? 

From Ancient Greek αἰωνιολογία (aiōniología, “the study of aeons”), from αἰώνιος (aiṓnios, “eternal, everlasting, endless”) from αἰῶν (aiôn, “lifetime, lifespan, aeon, epoch”) + λόγος (lógos, “speech, oration, study”); Surface etymology is aeon +‎ -logy.

So has you can tell this post will be a study of the word aeon

Aeon Its Meaning

The Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible (vol. IV, p. 643): Time: The O.T. and the N.T are not acquainted with the conception of eternity as timelessness. The O.T. has not developed a special term for "eternity." The word aeon originally meant "vital force," "life;" then "age," "lifetime." It is, however, also used generally of a (limited or unlimited) long space of time. The use of the word aeon is determined very much by the O.T. and the LXX. Aeon means "long distant uninterrupted time" in the past (Luke 1:10), as well as in the future (John 4:14). 

αἰών Aiwn is compounded of aei and wn. The word aei is from aw, aew, or ahmi, signifying primarily, "to blow, to breathe"; secondly, "to live, to pass or spend time." From this derivation aei would present the idea of a going on; and as a particle of time is expressive of that which is unlimited or undefined; "not so much that which cannot be bounded as that which is not bounded -- which is not attempted to be defined, but is considered as going on, on, on. Aei, therefore, alone, would not express the true idea of eternity, but only of time, whose end is not bounded by any specification. This flowing word, indicative of passing time, must be connected with, and, as it were, anchored upon another of more stability, in order to give it any kind of fixedness." This other word is wn, the particle of that verb of existence which expresses, in its philosophical sense, the highest mode of being. One part of the compound word, then, is unconfined; the other, since wn is of all tenses, altogether excludes the idea of time. Aiwn, then, is not time, long or short, bounded or endless. Dr. John Thomas Eureka

Time is said to move in a circle, on account of its likeness to an Aeon; hence an aeon, and a cycle or circle, are analogous. It is therefore used in the indefinite sense of life, existence, or state of being. Thus, that end which contains the period of each existence is called its aiwn. The aeon of man is three-score years and ten; while the aeon of Deity is "from time indefinite even to time indefinite." It is, therefore, A COURSE OF TIME, aei, circling around, well, BEING; the circling depending upon the nature of the being circled. Hence, Deity being essentially life, the circling of time can never cease in relation to him; but priesthood and man being essentially terminable, the circling of time around them cannot always continue. The diameters of their aeons may be measured by their continuance. Dr. John Thomas Eureka

Eternity is not an endless number of years, and things that are spiritual and eternal cannot be measured by days and months and years.

It is, however, also used generally of a (limited or unlimited) long space of time. The use of the word aeon is determined very much by the O.T. and the LXX. Aeon means "long distant uninterrupted time" in the past (Luke 1:10), as well as in the future (John 4:14).

Hebrews 1:2 says: di hou kai epoiesen tous aeonas, "through Whom also He makes the aeons." Notice the Greek word aeonas is rendered "worlds" in this passage in the KJV. The ASV margin says "ages;" and the New Scofield Bible reads "ages." Ephesians 3:11: "according to the purpose of the aeons which He makes in Christ Jesus our Lord." 

Both these passages state that God makes the Aeons; therefore they had a beginning, and so were not "eternal" in the past. 

Time

Divisions of time make up an aeon this can be seen from the Tripartite Tractate found in the Nag Hammadi Library:

Just as the present age, although a unity, is divided by units of time and units of time are divided into years and years are divided into seasons and seasons into months, and months into days, and days into hours, and hours into moments, so too the age of the Truth, since it is a unity and multiplicity, receives honour in the small and the great names according to the power of each to grasp it - by way of analogy - like a spring which is what it is, yet flows into streams and lakes and canals and branches, or like a root spread out beneath trees and branches with its fruit, or like a human body, which is partitioned in an indivisible way into members of members, primary members and secondary, great and small. (The Tripartite Tractate)

The reading from the Tripartite Tractate says that the present age or aeon is divided into units of time

Time signifies the measure of events. The events are the main thing and they should always be so recognized, else the measure of them assumes undue importance. Divisions of time signify degrees of of spiritual growth and development; night being ignorance, and day understanding.

Divisions of time into hours, days, weeks, years and ages are prepared by the word of God. (Heb 11:3). From the spiritual viewpoint there is no such thing as time in the way that man has come to regard it. With God a thousand years are as one day and one day is as a thousand years.

What is the spiritual significance of the Scriptural reference to “days”? A day, in the Scriptures, represents a degree of spiritual understanding. The “first day” represents the first perception of spiritual truth. The “second day” represents a still more advanced and understanding of Truth. Each day up to the “sixth day” represents higher degrees of understanding; the sixth day represents the highest perception of Truth in the consciousness.

Aeon/Age--A cycle or a dispensation. Jesus was acquainted with cycles or ages of spiritual development of which the natural man knew nothing. Jesus came at the end of an age. Age to mortal man is the measurement of the life or existence of a person or thing. It is based on the false concept of time as reality. "What is the signal of Your presence, and the completion of this age?" (Matt. 24:3,)

Father Time

The ancient Greeks had two words for time: chronos (χρόνος) and kairos.  In some Greek sources, Kairos is mentioned as a brother of Chronos. However, other sources point out that it is his son.

The Greek deity Chronos (not to be confused with the Titan Cronus) is the personification of time in Greek mythology

Chronos is usually portrayed as an old, wise man with a long, grey beard, such as "Father Time".

Father Time is usually depicted as an elderly bearded man, dressed in a robe and carrying a scythe and an hourglass or other timekeeping device.

5550. χρόνος chronos [khron’-os

The Greek word Aeon is also personified as a deity in Greek mythology

So both the words Age and Time are personified as deities, this will help us to understand the Gnostic term Aeons as personifications of the Deity or aspects extensions of being, attributes or archetypes of the Deity.

Aeon is Time Indefinitely

Aeon (Greek Αἰών). The "time" represented by Aeon is unbounded, in contrast to Chronos as observed time divided into past, present, and future. He is thus a god of eternity.

We mustn't confuse Aeon/Age with the word epoch which can be a variation of time periods.

And Philo seems to have taken this view. He (i. 277) regards aeon, "age," as the archetype, or spiritual equivalent, of chronos, "time." Time, chronos, is measured by the motions of the visible Cosmos, who is "the younger son" of the Father, whence it follows that Time (i. 277) "has the rank of grandson in relation to God" not Time, he says, but "Age, aeon, is the name that must be given to their life (/Stos)" by "their" apparently meaning that of God and the Elder Son, the Logos. Age, aeon (he implies) is measured by the motions of the invisible Logos, who is the Elder Son of the Father. Hence, though he does not use the expression, he would apparently agree with the statement, that the Logos, or Word, is "the Father of the aeons" (Light on the gospel from an ancient poet by Edwin Abbott Abbott)

The Aeonian Nature

Isaiah 57:15  For thus saith the high and lofty One that inhabiteth eternity, whose name is Holy: I dwell in the high and holy place, with him also that is of a contrite and humble spirit, to revive the spirit of the humble, and to revive the heart of the contrite.

Yahweh is residing in eternity or as the Septuagint rendering puts it dwelling (in) the aeon. This shows that aeon is the nature of the Yahweh;

Malachi 3:6 “Because I, Yahweh, do not change, you descendants of Jacob have not been destroyed.

Yahweh's nature being aeonian he does not change 

Paul wrote, we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is aeonian (2 Cor 4: 18). The word aeonian describes those things human eyes have not seen, and ears have not heard, because they belong to the unseen realm of the kingdom of God.

Both in the New Testament (Rom 16: 26) and in the Old, God himself is described as the aeonian God. Abraham called upon the name of the Lord, the aeonian God (Gen 21:33).

Rom 16:26  But now made manifest, and through means of prophetic scriptures, according to the command of the age-abiding God, for obedience of faith unto all the nations made known,

Gen 21:33 After that he planted a tamarisk tree at Beersheba and called there upon the name of Yahweh the indefinitely lasting God “God to time indefinite.” Heb., ´El `ohlam´, “God of eternity.”

These two scriptures quoted above signifies that God always was, is now and always will be. He is the great I am, creator of time and space, and himself outside and beyond both. He is spirit, not flesh and is invisible to human sight.

Heb 9:14 How much more shall the blood of Christ, who through the eternal Spirit offered himself without spot to God, purge your conscience from dead works to serve the living God?

In Heb 9: 14 we read of Christ, who through the aeonian Spirit offered himself unblemished to God. The Greek word pneuma, translated into English as Spirit, basically means wind. Hence it seldom appears alone, but needs qualification to make its meaning clear. Most commonly we read of the Holy Spirit or the Spirit of God. Here Paul uses the words Aeonian Spirit, to make it clear that he is referring to the supernatural, heavenly, invisible Spirit that proceeds from God, rather than its earthly shadow the wind.

Aeons as emanations of "God"

To emanate is to bring about and sustain all things from inward outward via light/waters that the True Deity supplies through GNOSIS. Gnosis meaning the truth/logos/knowledge/wisdom, or essence of God’s nature

2tim 3:16 Every scripture, is God-breathed (2315. θεόπνευστος theopneustos), and profitable--unto teaching, unto conviction, unto correction, unto the discipline that is in righteousness,--

[Inbreathing (2315 /theópneustos) relates directly to God's Spirit( Gk pneuma) which can also be translated "breath."]

[G. Archer, "2315 (theópneustos) is better rendered 'breathed out by God' as the emphasis is upon the divine origin of the inscripturated revelation itself" (A Survey of OT Introduction, fn. 7, 29).]

Heb 11:1 Faith is the assured expectation of things hoped for, the evident demonstration of realities (5287 ὑπόστασις hupostasis hoop-os’-tas-is) though not seen.
2 For by means of this the men of old times had witness borne to them.
3 By faith we perceive that the ages (165 αἰών aeon ahee-ohn’) were put in order by the word of God, so that what is seen has come to be out of things that do not appear.

The ages or aeons were set in order by the word of God that means they were "God-breathed",or 'breathed out by God' this means that the ages emanated from God they are the unseen realities 

1 Cor. 8:6  yet to us there is but one God, the Father, out of whom are all things and we in Him, and one Lord Jesus Christ on account of whom are all things, and we by Him.

The Father, out of whom are all things 

The Deity is Absolute power from whose incorruptible substance radiates holy spirit or active force before all existing things. This self-existing incorruptible substance is essentially spirit—spirit substance—moral and physical: The Divine One —all things are out of Deity (1 Cor. 8:6). All things being out of Deity, they were not made out of nothing. The sun, moon and stars, together with all things pertaining to each, were made out of something, and that something was the radiant flowing out of His substance, or active force, which pervades all things. By his active force, all created things are connected with the creator of the universe, which is light that no man can approach unto, so that not even a sparrow falls to the ground without the Father, who is not far from every one of us.

John 1:3  All things, through him, came into existence, and, without him, came into existence, not even one thing: that which hath come into existence,

The Eternal Spirit (Heb. 9:14) as Creator, is necessarily before all things, and is, therefore, the "Theos," and the "Logos" of John 1:3, where it is testified that "all things were made on account of Him; and without Him was made not one thing which exists."

For out of Him, (ex autou) and through Him, and for Him are all things. To Him be the glory for the Aeons. Amen" (Rom. 11: 33-36).

The source or fountain of power in the universe is one. It is a unit. Therefore, everything which exists is out of Him. Hence the Creator did not "make all things out of nothing."

Hence the sun, the moon, and the stars, and all the things they can see, taste, feel, smell, and hear upon earth, are God. But do not confuse that which "is of Him" with the "Him" out of whom all things proceed.

The Fullness of the Aeons

Odes of Solomon 7:11 Because he is, he is imperishable the pleroma of the Aeons and their Father. Michael Lattke translation.

7:11 For He it is who is incorrupt, the perfection of the worlds and their Father. James Charlesworth  translation

Now let's look at the word essence now this is from the latin word essentia, essencia  from Latin essentia meaning "being, essence," abstract noun formed (to translate Greek ousia "being, essence") from essent-, present participle stem of esse"to be," from PIE root *es- "to be."

Now why am I talking about this word called essence because that is exactly what the Aeons are they are the essence of God they are different parts of God different to be parts of God states of God and we have many different kinds of aiions in the plural they are listed as word, will, thought, life, understanding, grace, perception prudence you see these are essences of God they are parts of God and they make up the wholeness

The word aeon originally meant "vital force," "life;" then "age," or "lifetime." this is because αἰών is so connected with ἄημι (aēr 109) to breathe, blow, as to denote properly that which causes life, vital force.

Liddell and Scott's Greek-English Lexicon: Aeon: A period of existence; one's lifetime; life; an age; a generation; a long space of time; an age.

The key words are a period of existence vital force a lifetime a generation a long space of time it's hard to to get this as human beings because we live in space-time continuum in the physical self.

What you have is you have different parts of yourself that are making up your existence or your vital force you see in the make up your lifetime or your long span of space and time. This is the active part of the understanding of the word aeon which is the vital force in just simply being shining itself forth or emanating and so forth. It isn't merely existing that is what an aeon essentially means through the Greek word the essence of that being that is shining in space-time continuum is the aeonic expression when it's done in its most pure essence of that being is intended from the beginning then the aspect of that individual or vital life force or essence or existence shines forth and is truly living you see in time-space that's why it's called an a on this is what we really understand from the beginning of the route understanding of this word through the Latin word aeon

Now the divine Aeons are not in time and space the Aeons of Mother-Father they always have been and they are and they always will be as they are part of God just our thought or gnosis of the existence of the true Mother-Father brings about the creation of those things the beginning of those things for us you see but they always were those vital forces or those essences always existed.

The analogy of the pantry

You can think of it again like different herbs in a pantry and the door shut and you open the door and you take the pepper out that is one essence of God or one Aeon of God. So the pepper has a certain spice to it or a certain characteristic or essence or vital force to it and so you put the pepper on the spaghetti. 

You see because you are making spaghetti no pepper on it that is your mission you are on a mission to have more spicy spaghetti. So you put that aeon on or that vital force or essence on your spaghetti so you can have the experience which is gaining the wisdom or the knowledge of what it’s like to have spaghetti with that spicy or has a spice on it known as pepper.

 But that pepper was always in that infinite pantry but when you grabbed it, you made it apart of your experience in the space-time continuum chronologically in your sequence sequence of doing things. And thus it became part of your existence you see that’s how it works but we understand it existing when we become aware of it. but it always was this is what an aeon is now. 

Do those aeons have their own awarenesses do they exist in the plural individual - mother father they do just as we do so we all have our characteristics even though we're part of God we still are separate from God in our will we are free moral agents in other words we have complete independent will to shape whatever we want

God emanates the different aspects and they come to be their own essence that's why they're called individual Aeons even though they are made up of the unity and it's hard to know that or understand that because we live in the universe of compartmentalization 

so we will always understand rather through time and space the way to overcome or transcend time and space is to see it that way in your mind.  

So I give you that analogy of the pantry the eternal pantry that you open up and you get different spices you have access to all of these vital forces or essences of God. 

You have access to all of these vital forces or essences of God 

God is not hiding them from you. 

God is actually wanting to reveal them to you and he did this through gnosis which is the path through Christ

Christ mission was to revel the true father and the essence of who God really is and not what you've been told by the Church

now there are different aspects of God if you want the essence of faith then you go through that Aeon if you want the essence of truth then you go through the Aeon known as Christ 

if you want the essence of God through wisdom then you go through that and so forth in it so on

 but all of these Aeons have always been accessible to you because you are an extension of God you are part of God you it has always been part of you from the eternal past in the eternal moment and the eternal future.

 that's there too so that you may have individuation because everybody's gonna come to their truth in their own way through the darkness through the ignorance but the ignorance is there so that you may find your wisdom that's what wisdom is wisdom is not had by it being given to you

 wisdom can only be had through experiencing the essence of existence through the Aeons and with Soph witches in this case is through Sophia 

now there are different aspects of God if you want to if you want the essence of faith then you go through that Aeon if you want the essence of truth then you go through the Aeon known as Christ 

if you want the essence of God through wisdom then you go through that and so forth in it so on but all of these Aeons have always been accessible to you because you are an extension of God you are part of God you it has always been part of you from the eternal past in the eternal moment and the eternal future.

The Aeons are a series of hypostases (extensions of being attributes or archetypes of God) that emanated outward from a common source.
The Aeons are extensions of the Deity’s unity, but without spacial or temporal measure (i.e. boundless and eternal).

The aeons are a stretching or expansion of the One: “This one, however, stretched himself out and it was that which he stretched out which gave a foundation and a space and a dwelling place for the universe, a name of his being” (Tripartite Tractate)

- Aeons are emanations of the Father: “All the spaces are his (the Father’s) emanations.” (Gospel of Truth)

- As emanations, the aeons have no spacial or temporal measure: “since the emanations are limitless and immeasurable”(Tripartite Tractate)

- Aeons are an extension of the Father, without separation: “The emanation of the Totalities, which exist from the one who exists, did not occur according to a separation from one another, as something cast off from the one who begets them. Rather, their begetting is like a process of extension, as the Father extends himself to those whom he loves, so that those who have come forth from him might become him as well.” (Tripartite Tractate)

- This expansion of the One (monad) to the many (the all) continued from tens of thousands to countless myriads: “Among the things that were created the monad is first, the dyad follows it, and the triad, up to the tenths. Now the tenths rule the hundredths; the hundredths rule the thousandths; the thousands rule the ten thousands. This is the pattern among the immortals.” (Eugnostos the Blessed) “They (the immortals) provided for themselves hosts of angels, myriads without number for retinue.” (Eugnostos the Blessed)

Aeon; These are the emanations from first cause, the Parent. The word not only refers to the "worlds" of emanation the Pleroma, but to the personalities as well. Sophia, Logos, and the other high principles are aeons, they are aspects of the divine mind.

The word aeon means temporal sometimes a spatial concept in addition it is also used for personal beings whether spiritual or material.

The fallen aeon

I'm a fallen aeon lost in a cosmos where I don't belong

The Great Dragon controls the land

It's Dark and gloomy world void and desolate

The emptiness of forgetfulness

However I remember the fullness where I once belonged

The Demiurge has control

Yaldabaoth, Yaldabaoth, Yaldabaoth

The People cry

not knowing The One above All

May The One above All

Sand the Illuminator of Knowledge to free me

Suffering

Suffering

Underlying all the loose thinking on the subject which has been surveyed so far is one basic assumption: it is that suffering is evil in itself. It is this belief that suffering is the essential evil that lies at the root of Buddhism. The Bible view is radically different: suffering is not evil in itself, but a symptom of a deeper evil. The Scriptures portray suffering as a consequence of sin: not necessarily the sin of the individual who suffers, but sin in the history of man and in human society. Its origin is succinctly put by the Apostle Paul:

"Wherefore, as by one man sin entered into the world, and death by sin; so death passed upon all men, for that all have sinned" (Romans 5:12).

The sentence upon the woman after the disobedience in Eden says:

"I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee."

To the man God says:

"In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return" (Genesis 3:16,19).

The teaching is simple. With man's disobedience there came a dislocation in the relationship between the Creator and the created; the relation between God and man is out of joint. The first sin brought a fundamental change which affects all with the evils which are common to man. Death is universal: God does not modify it for the particular individual. The Bible teaching is that men are left to their own ways and the working of natural law, though there may be times when natural disaster is divinely directed as a judgement upon man and for the cleansing of the earth. The outstanding example is the flood in the days of Noah.

At the same time it is true that in the Bible, for those who seek to serve God, suffering takes on new meaning; they are in a new relationship to the Creator, and will learn to see tragedy in a new light. What is it?

The literal meaning of the Hebrew expression translated “slow to anger” (“long-suffering” in some translations) is “length of nostrils [where anger flares up].” (Ex 34:6; Nu 14:18; .) The Greek word ma·kro·thy·miʹa (long-suffering) literally means “longness of spirit.” (Ro 2:4, Int) Both the Hebrew and Greek expressions denote patience, forbearance, slowness to anger. The English word “suffering” in the word “long-suffering” has the sense of “putting up with, permitting, tolerating, holding up, or delaying.” “Long-suffering” means more than merely enduring pain or trouble. It does not mean merely “suffering long” but involves deliberate restraint

 Creative Suffering (as in contrast to unnecessary suffering): All suffering is primarily an expression of energy. When such energy is producing change, purification or growth for a person, such energy expression is creative.

Useless, unnecessary suffering in human beings is not entirely useless and unnecessary; it is useless and unnecessary to the Earth and to the individual person, but it becomes food for the moon.

Useless, Unnecessary Suffering: The worst thing that can happen to any person (except that we "feed the moon"). Unity equates this with the opposite of God's will for man. This is the type of suffering which man does not need but which does create for himself. The energy of this type of suffering does not go into man's creative growth but is drained from him for purposes other than his own benefit. In Bible symbolism, useless, unnecessary suffering is called damnation and suffering in hell.

Errors Doctrines to be Rejected by Gnostic Christians

Errors Doctrines to be Rejected by Gnostic Christians 

 

Doctrines to be Rejected

(With Explanations Expressed Positively — in italics)

Valentinians and Cathars did not share all what would be classed as the classical Gnostic teachings on the Demiurge, the nature of immortality, and the nature of Christ

 1. We reject that the Bible is only partly the work of inspiration — or if wholly so, contains errors which inspiration has allowed. [The Bible, in its original text, is altogether the work of inspiration, and that God has been the true author of every part of His Word, thereby constituting it infallible — 2Tim. 3:16; 2Pet. 1:19-21.]

 2. We reject that God is three persons. [The doctrine of the trinity being false, it remains that God is a Being of Spirit; the Lord Jesus Christ is His Son, born of the virgin Mary; the Holy Spirit is His power — 1Tim. 2:5; Jn. 1:14; Lk. 24:49.]

To the Cathars, the Holy Trinity is a lie. For the Cathars, Jesus was neither divine nor man. He was a manifestation of the Holy Spirit sent by the good god to show us the way to freedom.

 3. We reject that the Son of God was co-eternal with the Father. [Jesus was begotten of the virgin Mary; he was only “known” beforehand in the mind and purpose of Yahweh from the beginning — Gal. 4:4; Jn. 1:1].

4. We reject that Christ was born with a “free life”. [A “free life” signifies that Christ’s nature was not under Adamic condemnation as is that of all other members of the human race, and that therefore his sacrifice was a substitute for the “lives” of others. However, he needed to obtain redemption himself in order to redeem his “brethren” — Gal 4:4; 1Tim. 2:6; Heb. 9:12.]

We reject the doctrine of docetism

Furthermore, they will say of him that he is unbegotten, though he has been begotten, (that) he does not eat, even though he eats, (that) he does not drink, even though he drinks, (that) he is uncircumcised, though he has been circumcised, (that) he is unfleshly, though he has come in the flesh, (that) he did not come to suffering, <though> he came to suffering, (that) he did not rise from the dead, <though> he arose from the dead. (Melchizedek text from The Nag Hammadi Library)

Odes of Solomon 8:21 

1. And you who were loved in the Beloved, and you who are kept in Him who lives, and you who are saved in Him who was saved.

42:18

1. May we also be saved with You, because You are our Savior.

The Gospel of Philip

Jesus appeared at the Jordan River with the fullness of the kingdom of heaven.
He was born before there was birth.
He was anointed once and was anointed anew.
He who was redeemed redeemed the world. 

 5. We reject that Christ’s nature was immaculate, or that he was of a different nature from other men. [Through his birth he inherited a nature sin-affected, and destined to death, being mortal, as all others — Heb. 2:14.]

Heracleon: Fragments from his
Commentary on the Gospel of John

Fragment 10, on John 1:29 (In John 1:29, “The next day he saw Jesus coming toward him, and said, ‘Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!’”) John spoke the words, "Lamb of God" as a prophet, but the words, "who takes away the sin of the world" as more than a prophet. The first expression was spoken with reference to his body, the second with reference to Him who was in that body. The lamb is an imperfect member of the genus of sheep; the same being true of the body as compared with the one that dwells in it. Had he meant to attribute perfection to the body he would have spoken of a ram about to be sacrificed.

 6. We reject that the Holy Spirit is a person distinct from the Father. [The Holy Spirit is the exclusive power which emanates only from God to perform His determination — Lk. 24:49.]

The Holy Spirit is a feminine aspect of god

 7. We reject that man has an immortal soul. [The soul of man defines his being, his life, his existence; and is related to his attitude and emotions. He is wholly mortal, and has no immortal essence hereditarily.]

Heracleon: Fragments from his
Commentary on the Gospel of John

Fragment 40, on John 4:46-53 (In John 4:46, “So he came again to Cana in Galilee, where he had made the water wine. And at Capernaum there was an official whose child was ill.) The official was the Craftsman, for he himself ruled like a king over those under him. Because his domain is small and transitory, he was called an “official,” like a petty princeling who is set over a small kingdom by the universal king. The “child” “in Capernaun” is one who is in the lower part of the Middle (i.e. of animate substance), which lies near the sea, that is, which is linked with matter. The child’s proper person was sick, that is, in a condition not in accordance with the child’s proper nature, in ignorance and sins. (In John 4:47, “When he heard that Jesus had come from Judea to Galilee, he went and begged him to come down and heal his child , for it was at the point of death.”) The words “from Judea to Galilee” mean ‘from the Judea above.’. . . By the words “it was at the point of death,” the teaching of those who claim that the soul is immortal is refuted. In agreement with this is the statement that “the body and soul are destoyed in Hell.” (Matthew 10:28) The soul is not immortal, but is possessed only of a disposition towards salvation, for it is the perishable which puts on imperishability and the mortal which puts on immortality when “its death is swallowed up in victory.” (1 Corinthians 15:54)

 8. We reject that man consciously exists in death. [At death, man ceases to exist in every respect. He has no consciousness in death — Ecc. 3:19; Psa. 49:17-20.]

20 Man that is in honour, and understandeth not, is like the beasts that perish.

The Gospel of Philip 

Ignorance is the mother of [all evil]. Ignorance leads to [death, because] those who come from [ignorance] neither were nor [are] nor will be.

 9. We reject that the wicked will suffer eternal torture in hell. [The wicked are destined to eternal oblivion in the grave, excepting only those of their number who are answerable to God and will be raised to condemnation, to return eternally to the grave. — 2Thes. 1:8-9.]

A child claims the father’s legacy,
but those who inherit the dead are dead.

Heirs to the living are alive
and are heirs to life and death.

The dead are heirs to nothing.

How can the dead inherit?
Yet if the dead inherits the living,
the living won’t die and the dead will survive.

GENTILES, JEWS, CHRISTIANS

A gentile doesn’t die, never
having been alive to die.

10. We reject that the righteous will ascend to the kingdoms beyond the skies when they die. [None ascend to heaven; the Lord Jesus being the only exception, and in this case for the purpose of his continuing mediatorial work. The righteous await the return of Christ for the bestowal of immortality — Jn . 3:13.]

Yeshua said,
If your leaders tell you, “Look, the kingdom is in heaven,”
then the birds of heaven will precede you.
If they say to you, “It’s in the sea,”
then the fish will precede you.
But the kingdom is inside you and it is outside you.
When you know yourselves,  then you will be known,
and you will understand that you are children of the living father.
But if you do not know yourselves,
then you dwell in poverty and you are poverty.

11. We reject that the devil is a supernatural personal being. 

[The devil is variously manifested as that which falsely “accuses.” It is the manifestation of the ungodly characteristics of sin’s flesh, and will cease to exist when sin is ultimately destroyed — 1Pet. 5:8; Rev. 20:10.]

We reject the doctrine that Yaldabaoth and the Demiurge is the same person

Valentinian never use the word Yaldabaoth 

As we have amply demonstrated, the Demiurge in Valentinianism is quite different in character from the hostile Ialdabaoth familiar from the Sethian school. The Demiurge acts as an intermediary between the higher powers and the material world. The Valentinian view of the world created by the Demiurge is also quite different. According to Valentinian teaching, the world is created to aid the spiritual element to return to the Fullness (pleroma). Its creation was necessitated by the primordial fall into deficiency and suffering.

We reject the doctrine that the Demiurge is evil

The Valentinian teacher Ptolemy strongly criticizes non-Valentinian Gnostics who taught that the Demiurge was evil. In his view, those who view the creator as evil "do not comprehend what was said by the Savior...Only thoughtless people have this idea, people who do not recognize the providence of the creator and so are blind not only the eye of the soul but even in the eye of the body" (Letter to Flora 3:2-6). They are as "completely in error" as orthodox Christians who taught that the Demiurge was the highest God (Letter to Flora 3:2).

In contrast, he and other Valentinians steadfastly maintained that "the creation is not due to a god who corrupts but to one who is just and hates evil" (Letter to Flora 3:6). He carefully distinguished the Demiurge from both God and the Devil. According to Ptolemy, "he is essentially different from these two (God and the Devil) and is between them, he is rightly given the name, Middle" (Letter to Flora 7:4). He is "neither good nor evil and unjust, can properly be called just , since he is the arbitrator of the justice which depends on him" (Letter to Flora 7:5).

12. We reject that the Kingdom of God is “the church.” [The Kingdom of God is a divine political empire to be established on earth at the return of Jesus Christ. — Isa. 2:2-5]

13. We reject that the gospel is the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ merely. [The gospel includes the covenants of promise granted to Abraham and David and involves the establishment of God’s kingdom on earth — Gal. 3:8.]

14. We reject that Christ will not come until the close of the thousand years. [Jesus Christ returns to establish the millennium, and will reign as king during that period — 1Cor. 15:24-29; Rev. 20:6.]

15. We reject that the tribunal of Christ, when he comes, is not for the judgment of saints, but merely to divide among them different degrees of reward. [The Judgment seat of Christ is for the purpose of revealing the motives, actions and characteristics of all the responsible, and to prepare the righteous for the granting of immortality — Rom. 14:10; 2Cor. 5:10.]

16. We reject that the resurrection is confined to the faithful. [The resurrection will involve all who have known the Will of God, including those who have rejected that Will and those who have failed to uphold it in a faithful life — Jn. 12:48; 9:39-41; 15:22; Acts 15:24.]

17. We reject that the dead rise in an immortal state. [The dead come from the grave in the same state as they entered it; they will remain mortal as they appear before the judgment seat.]

Some are afraid that they will ascend from death naked, and they want to climb back to life in their flesh.They are unaware that those who wear their flesh are naked, and those who strip are not naked. “Flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of god.” What will we not inherit? The flesh we wear on us.
But what then will we inherit as our own? The body of Jesus and his blood. And Jesus said, “Whoever will not eat my flesh and drink my blood has no life within him.”  What does he mean? His flesh is the word and blood the holy spirit.
Who has received these has food and drink and clothing. I condemn those who say the flesh won’t rise. Then both are wrong. You say the flesh won’t ascend. Tell me, what will rise so I can honor you? You say spirit in the flesh and light in the flesh. What is the flesh?
You say there is nothing outside the flesh. Then rise in the flesh, since everything exists in it. In this world those wearing garments are better than garments. In heaven the garments are better than the wearers.

18. We reject that the subject-nations of the thousand years are immortal. [The nations will consist of mortal men and women, subject to the laws of Jesus Christ — Isa. 65:20.]

19. We reject that the law of Moses is binding on believers of the gospel. [The Law being fulfilled in Jesus Christ, its demands are not binding upon Christ’s disciples, as they are now subject to his commandments — Heb. 8:13.]

20. We reject that the observance of Sunday is a matter of duty. [Although the “first day” is commonly used for remembrance of the Christ-covenant, there is no obligation to limit such observance to a Sunday. It is a matter of “as oft as we do so,” whatever the day — 1Cor. 11:25.]

21. We reject that baby sprinkling is a doctrine of Scripture. [Baptism is only valid upon a confession of understanding the complete Will and purpose of God. It is the outward manifestation of an inner conviction — Mark 16:16; Acts 8:12.]

22. We reject the doctrine - that those without knowledge - through personal choice, immaturity, or lack of mental capacity - will be saved. 

[Salvation is based upon a reasonable and logical understanding of the Truth; those who are foreign to the gospel, who lack the capacity to perceive its responsibilities; or who are unable to comprehend, are outside the sphere of salvation — Acts 8:12.]

23. We reject that man can be saved by morality or sincerity, without the gospel. [Morality and sincerity must be accompanied by an acknowledgement of the gospel for salvation — Acts 10:1-6.]

24. We reject that the gospel alone will save, without the obedience of Christ’s commandments. [Obedience to the commandments is a responsibility required of all believers; salvation will be determined upon the application of faith and obedience. Rev. 22:14; Mat. 7:26; 2Pet. 2:21; Mat. 28:20; Gal. 6:2]

25. We reject that a man cannot believe without possessing the Spirit of God. [In this case, the “Spirit of God” identifies a direct, miraculous influence from God in a person’s life. Belief comes from understanding the Word of Truth.]

26. We reject that men are pre-destined to salvation unconditionally. [Salvation is based upon a personal decision by a believer to uphold God’s Truth, and is dependent upon the grace of God — Eph. 2:8.]

27. We reject that there is no sin in the flesh. [The flesh is hereditarily related to sin, caused by the transgression of Adam, the effects of which have passed upon all men, including the Lord Jesus Christ — 2Cor. 5:21.]

28. We reject that Joseph was the actual father of Jesus. [Joseph was his guardian; Yahweh, through His Spirit acting on the virgin Mary, was his Father — Lk. 1:35.]

29. We reject that the earth will be destroyed. [The earth has been created for Yahweh’s glory, and will never be destroyed — Psa. 37:11; Num. 14:21.]

30. We reject that baptism is not necessary to salvation. [Baptism establishes a covenant-relationship, and is an act of obedience required for salvation — Acts 2:38.]

31. We reject that a knowledge of the Truth is not necessary to make baptism valid. [Baptism is only valid upon a knowledge of God’s revealed will and purpose, and an open declaration and confession thereof — Acts 8:12.]

32. We reject that some meats are to be refused on the score of uncleanness. [No foods are forbidden on the grounds of divine law or ceremonial defilement; such decisions are a matter of personal conscience — 1Cor. 6:11; Col. 2:16; Mk. 7:15.]

33. We reject that the English are the ten tribes of Israel, whose prosperity is a fulfilment of the promises made concerning Ephraim. [The ten tribes comprise the Jewish people in dispersion, descendants of Shem. The English people are descendants of Japheth, and do not form part of natural Israel — 1Pet. 1:1; Jas 1:1.]

34. We reject that marriage with an unbeliever is lawful. [Marriage with the unbeliever, or with a divorced person whose spouse is living, is forbidden by the law of Christ — 1Cor. 7:39; Mk. 10:8-12.]

35. We reject that we are at liberty to serve in the armed forces, in the police force, take part in jury duty or politics, or recover debts by legal coercion. [These constitute elements of society and its law-enforcement requirements, of which the believer will have no part. — Jn . 17:16]

36. We reject that Holy Spirit Gifts are available today. [These special and miraculous personal gifts were limited to the apostolic era, and are not manifested today — 1Cor. 13:8-10.]

37. We reject that the sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ was not required for the cleansing of his sin nature. [The Lord's sacrifice was necessary for his own redemption. His sacrifice was a public demonstration that his flesh was rightly related to death and a declaration of the righteousness of God that required the offering of his life in devotion to Him. By his sacrifice the ungodly propensities (diabolos) of his nature was destroyed (Heb. 2:14; 9:12; 7:27), thus providing for the granting of immortality.

 38. We reject that the Bible account of creation is figurative, or parabolic, of a type of organic evolution in which all living things evolved from simpler varieties. [The record of Genesis 1-3 describes the literal work of God in creating this world and its creatures out of the previous void and chaos. Each day was a period of 24 hours duration, and does not permit an evolutionary process].

 For this reason error was angry with him, so she persecuted him. She was distressed by him, and she was made powerless. He was nailed to a tree.  He became a fruit of the knowledge of the father. He did not, however, destroy them because they ate of it. He rather caused those who ate of it to be joyful because of this discovery.

For this reason Jesus appeared; he put on that book; he was nailed to a tree; he published the edict of the Father on the cross. O such great teaching! He draws himself down to death, though life eternal clothes him. Having stripped himself of the perishable rags, he put on imperishability, which no one can possibly take away from him. Having entered the empty spaces of terrors, he passed through those who were stripped naked by oblivion, being knowledge and perfection, proclaiming the things that are in the heart, [...] teach those who will receive teaching.

 Not only (that, but) I have come to reveal to you the truth, which is within the brethren. He included himself in the living offering, together with your offspring. He offered them up as an offering to the All. For it is not cattle that you will offer up for sin(s) of unbelief, and for the ignorances, and (for) all the wicked deeds which they will do [...]. And they do not reach the Father of the All [...] the faith ...

I have offered up myself to you as an offering, together with those that are mine, to you yourself, (O) Father of the All, and those whom you love, who have come forth from you who are holy (and) living. And <according to> the perfect laws, I shall pronounce my name as I receive baptism now (and) forever, (as a name) among the living (and) holy names, and (now) in the waters. Amen."

(The Nag Hammadi Library Melchizedek)