The Watchtower Society and John and Morton Edgar - A2Z.org

-.- - 1.. /- 1--. .?heGob Age for May 11, 1921 473 --ent nations were the same, each being fashioned in India ae Isi and Iswara And even in Thibet,sfter the pattern of the "Mother" nation Baby- China, and Japan, missionaries wore mtoniahodIon Regarding this Layard says: "Of the great to h d the exaot coanterpart of the Madomantiquity of this primitive worship there is and her child as devoutly raverenoed ar inabundant evidence, and that it originated among Papal Rome itself 1the inhabitants of the Assyrian plains, we havethe united testimony of sacred and profane Tha Egyptian Bod O8i& wad Nhrod.- history. It obtained the epithet of perfect, and In Egypt the Mother was worshiped as Isb,was believed to be the most ancient religious and _the Son as Osiris, though more often! - - system, having preceded that of the Egyptians. as Horus. Regarding Osiris, Bunsen show8!Che identity of many of the Assyrian doctrines that he was represented as at once the son andwith those of Egypt is alluded to by Porphyry husband of his mother, and actually bore aabnd Clemsns." Birch, also, says: "The Zodiacalone of his titles of honor the name "HusbandBigns . . . show unequivocally that the Greeks of the Mother". (Bunsen, Vol. I, pp. 438, 439)derived their notions and arrangements of the This serves to identify Osiris with Ninus, who.Zodiac [antl consequently their Mythology, married his own mother. There are manywhich was intertwined with it] from the Chal- strong proofs that Osiris was Nimrod, or Nindeans.The iclrntity of Nimrod with the con- us. In sonle of his forms Osiris was presentedstellation Orion is not to be rejected."--Layard, clothed in a leoylrd's skin; and as it is a princi-Nineceh and its Remains, Vol. II, pp. 439, 440. ple in every religion that the high priest wearsWe see, therefore, that ancient Babylon was the insi,&a of the god whom he serves, thea fitting type of that wonderful "Mystery of Egyptian high priest wore a leopard's skin when.Iniquity'' of the gospel age, called "Babylon officiating on all important occasions. This' the Great". Just as that great system had its article of apparel was intended tocommemoratesmall beginning in the days of the apostles, some outstanding event in connection with the- bing alluded to by Paul in 2 Thessalonians god Osiris; for d the strange clothing and '2: 7-"The mystery of iniquity doth already head-gear of the heathen gods and priests wereworY-and afterwards attained so great di- sips or symbols intended to convey some meanmensionsthat it has deceived the whole world, ing to those who were educated to mderstandso the typical mystery in literal Babylon also them-that is, to the "initiated". We who arebegan in a small way, then grew and extended, initiated into the mysteries of God's gloriow'and latterly hecame so universal that all nations plan of the 8gP9 (Bfark 4: I), have understandweremade "mad", i.e., void of judgment. Only ing of the syllibolisms of the garments of thethose who worship the true God have tlie spirit Jezvislh high priests.of a sound mind.-2 Timothy 1 : 7. The name Ximrod means literally "The subduerof the leopard", being derived from nimr,"Yother and Son" Worship "a leopard," and rad, "to subdue". In theseWhile in "Babylon the GreatJ' the principal ancient days much significance was attaahdsubjects of devotion are the Madonna and her to names, as students of the Bible are aware.child (said to be the virgin Mary and Jesus), Nimrod's name, therefore, implied that his famoeo in typic~l Babylon the popular worship was as a hunter rested mainly on the fact that haextended to a goddess mother and her son, who had discovered the art of training the leopardhad their origin in Semiramis and her son to aid him in hunting the other wild beaskNinus> ,(The Hebrew word for "son" is nk) A particular kind of leopard, named the oheeteh,Remembering the religious influence whiah is used for hunting in India even at thia w.proceeded from Babylon, we have here the When we find that Osiris and his priests snexplanation of the universal adoration of the represented arrayed in leopards' skins, we ma7'%other gnd Sort"' In Greece they were wor- be sure that deep meaning was attached to tbfrshiped a$ Ches, the great mother, m-ith the oostume; we believe that it was intended tobabe at hem breast; or as Irene the goddess of oonvey to the initistee the understanding thatPeace, with tbe boy Plutus in her arms; in their god Osiris was In reality Nimrod, thePagan Rome as Fortuna and Jupiter-puer, or wnowned "Leopard-tamer". It ie well knownJupiter the boy;in Asia as Cybele and DeSinsj that Nimrod, or Ninus, on becoming mighty,-