Day 2461 – Theology Thursday – Slaying the Sea Monster – I Dare You Not To Bore Me With The Bible

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Welcome to Day 2461 of Wisdom-Trek, and thank you for joining me.

This is Guthrie Chamberlain, Your Guide to Wisdom – Theology Thursday – Slaying the Sea Monster – I Dare You Not To Bore Me With The Bible.

Wisdom-Trek Podcast Script - Day 2461 Welcome to Wisdom-Trek with Gramps! I am Guthrie Chamberlain, and we are on Day 2461 of our Trek. The Purpose of Wisdom-Trek is to create a legacy of wisdom, to seek out discernment and insights, and to boldly grow where few have chosen to grow before. Today is the twenty-second lesson in our segment, Theology Thursday. Utilizing excerpts from a book titled: I Dare You Not To Bore Me With The Bible written by Hebrew Bible scholar and professor the late Dr. Michael S Heiser, we will invest a couple of years going through the entire Bible, exploring short Biblical lessons that you may not have received in Bible classes or Church. The Bible is a wonderful book. Its pages reveal the epic story of God’s redemption of humankind and the long, bitter conflict against evil. Yet it’s also a book that seems strange to us. While God’s Word was written for us, it wasn’t written to us. Today, our lesson is: Slaying the Sea Monster! Slaying the Sea Monster When we think of creation, we think of everything beginning with God’s spoken word—as Genesis 1 tells us. But some Old Testament writers concentrate on another aspect of creation—and a weird one at that. In Psalm 74, in the middle of God’s ordering of the sea and dry land, His establishing of the sun, moon, stars, and the seasons, we find another event: God destroying sea monsters. ¹² You, O God, are my king from ages past, bringing salvation to the earth. ¹³ You split the sea by your strength and smashed the heads of the sea monsters. ¹⁴ You crushed the heads of Leviathan^[a] and let the desert animals eat him. ¹⁵ You caused the springs and streams to gush forth, and you dried up rivers that never run dry. ¹⁶ Both day and night belong to you; you made the starlight^[b] and the sun. ¹⁷ You set the boundaries of the earth, and you made both summer and winter. (Psa 74:12-17). Warring the Sea Monster The reference to God breaking “the heads of the sea monster” and crushing “the heads of Leviathan” has led many on a desperate study of Old Testament zoology. But this, along with many other confusing Old Testament images, has a cultural context. In the ancient world, the original (“primordial”) chaotic conditions of creation were often portrayed as a monstrous dragon. This is reflected in stories from ancient Babylon and Israel’s closest neighbor, Ugarit (ancient Syria, just north of Israel). In the literature of ancient Ugarit, the god Baal battles Yamm, who is portrayed as a chaotic, churning sea, and a terrifying sea dragon named Tannun or Litanu. These terms are equivalent to the Hebrew words in Psalm 74:13-14: “You split the sea (□’, yam) by your strength and smashed the heads of the sea monsters. (D’Tin, tanninim) You crushed the heads of Leviathan (| n’lb, liwyatan)” Other parallels are found elsewhere in the Old Testament. In Ugaritic stories, Litanu is described as a “twisting serpent” and a “fleeing serpent.” Those precise phrases are used to describe the sea beast Leviathan in the Old Testament (Isa27:l: lob 26:13). What’s the Point? God didn’t really fight a literal dragon at the beginning of creation. This imagery reflects the mindset of the ancient world, which viewed the sea as unpredictably violent and unable to be tamed. It frightened the ancients. Only the power of a mighty God could produce a habitable world from the chaotic sea—a deed portrayed as a battle with the untamed deep. God was victorious in this conflict, as told in Psalm 74. This imagery was intentionally repurposed throughout the Old Testament. In Isaiah 51:9-10, the sea monster image (this time called “Rahab”) is applied to the Israelites’ escape from Egypt. It was the arm of the Lord “who cut Rahab in pieces” and “who pierced the dragon (| ‘3J1, tannin)... [and] the one who dried up the sea, making a path of escape through the depths so that your people could cross over?” This imagery—the same imagery used in creation stories—effectively describes the birth of a new nation after God’s defeat of Egypt. Isaiah also describes the end of days with the same language: In that day, the Lord will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan,^[a] the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea. (Isa 27:1). The book of Revelation, taking its cue from Isaiah 27:1, describes a time when there will be “no more sea” (Rev 21:1). The elimination of all that opposes God will only come with His final reign on earth. Only when the new heaven and new earth are brought into being will the violent sea monster truly be slain. The lessons that make up Theology Thursday on the Wisdom-Trek Podcast for the next couple of years will satisfy the statement, “I Dare You Not to Bore Me with the Bible.” I trust you’ll enjoy them—and, of course, not be bored. Reflect… If you found this podcast insightful, subscribe and leave us a review, then encourage your friends and family to join us and come along tomorrow for another day of ‘Wisdom-Trek, Creating a Legacy.’. Thank you so much for allowing me to be your guide, mentor, and, most importantly, I am your friend as I serve you through this Wisdom-Trek podcast and journal. As we take this Trek together, let us always:

1. Live Abundantly (Fully)
2. Love Unconditionally
3. Listen Intentionally
4. Learn Continuously
5. Lend to others Generously
6. Lead with Integrity
7. Leave a Living Legacy Each Day

I am Guthrie Chamberlain….reminding you to’ Keep Moving Forward,’ ‘Enjoy your Journey,’ and ‘Create a Great Day…Everyday! See you next time for more daily wisdom!