Three Weary Sojourners

Transcription

1 Three Weary Sojourners Comp. Michael Post Part I You once portrayed one of three weary sojourners who have come up from the captivity of Babylon who had to endure rough and rugged roads on your journey to Jerusalem to help aid and assist in the rebuilding of the House of the Lord. But who are these three Sojourners? If we were to read Manual of Freemasonry by Richard Carlile (1845) we see that a clue as to whom they were and how nowadays we should find a special reverence for these weary Sojourners. You may pass without impediment through the provinces between this and Judea, you must give to the three first Babylonish Guards in succession the words of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, and altogether to the fourth. These words will carry you to your native country: but if more is demanded of you, give them the sword up and down as a sign. Thrice tried and thrice approved companion, pass in the name of the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. The best scenery for this ceremony, that the place where the chapter is held will admit, is used. We braved those rough and rugged roads, from Babylon through the banks of Euphrates and around by the way of Tadmore and Damascus. We passed the bank of the ever running river of the Euphrates through the vineyards of Tadmore through a bridge that almost failed us to Damascus through the forest of Lebanon to the plains of Judah between Succoth and Zardatha and finally arrive at Jerusalem were we approach the Tabernacle. Upon approaching the Tabernacle we are met with resistance and asked who we are and what our intentions are. We find that they are Most Excellent Masters that can mark out their lineage back to the Building of King Solomon s Temple. Why is this important? Tradition has it, that only those who can trace their lineage or ancestry of a Jewish nature or that were employed during the building of King Solomon s Temple were allowed to work on the Temple. These Most Excellent Masters were Giblimites. The Giblemites, or, as they are called in Scripture, the Giblim, were inhabitants of the city and district of Gebal, in Phoenicia, near Mount Lebanon, and were. Therefore, under the dominion of the King of Tyre. The Phœnician word "gibal," which makes "giblim" in the plural, signifies a mason or stone squarer. In the Second Book of Kings, v. 17, 18, we read that "the King commanded, and they brought great stones, costly stones, and hewed stones, to lay the foundation of the house. And Solomon's builders and Hiram's builders did hew them, and the stone squarers." which last word is, in the original, giblim. Gesenius says that the inhabitants of Gebal were seamen and builders, and Sir William Drummond asserts that "the Gibalim were

2 Master Masons, who put the finishing hand to Solomon's Temple." In this sense the word is also used in the Book of Constitutions, which records that John de Spoulee, who, as one of the deputies of Edward III., assisted in rebuilding Windsor Castle, was called the "Master of the Ghiblim." The Giblim, or the Giblimites, were, therefore, stone-squarers or Master Masons.(1) The tradition is, that when the temple was about completed, a day was set apart for the placing of the capestone, at which time the whole craft were assembled and the stone carried in procession and deposited in its proper place, amidst the plaudits and rejoicings of the vast assemblage ; that King Solomon availed himself of this occasion to reward the skillful and meritorious craftsmen, with such marks' of his favor and esteem as seemed best calculated to promote their interest for the future. New grades were established; among others that of Most Excellent Master, to which none but those who were distinguished for their superior merit and assiduity were promoted; and these were especially authorized and commanded to instruct others in whatever part of the world they might travel in search of employment. Among this class were the Giblimites, and as a further proof of the estimation in which he held them, Solomon offered all of those who wished to remain within his jurisdiction ample employment. (2) So here we hear of the tradition of the Most Excellent Masters and if we were to think back to the Past Masters degree we have a better picture of how each degree keeps unfolding. So what do we really know? We know that they were Most Excellent Master and that they were Giblimites. But who were they? These three Sojourners, whose fortune it was to discover that stone of foundation, so intimately connected with the history of Freemasonry and to which we have before had repeated occasion to allude, are supposed by a Masonic tradition to have been Esdras, Zachariah, and Nehemiah, the three holy men, who, for refusing to worship the golden image, had been thrown by Nebuchadnezzar into a fiery furnace, from which they emerged uninjured. In the Chaldean language, they were known by the names of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. (3) Apart from Masonic tradition nothing else is known regarding these three Sojourners. As we can see from above a hypothesis has been put forth from the writings of Bro. Albert Mackey that identified the three Sojourners as none other than Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, the Three Holy children and friends of Daniel who were delivered from the fiery furnace. This theory y we will now break down to see if there is any validity to it. Many Masonic Scholars find that there is no basis to this claim but we delve more closely into this theory to see for ourselves where the truth may lie. 1. Book of the Chapter, p. 56. Albert Mackey, (1870, 1858) 2. Masonic Houshold Library Vol. I, A.T.C. Piekson 3. Encyclopedia of Freemasonry Albert Mackey, Vol I (1873) & Vol II (1878)

3 Part II So where do we start? How about the timeline of the Temple? Now, the following is research that has been done is as it relates to the years connected destruction of the first Temple, the the return from exile and the completion of the second Temple. With that said I did not know how difficult that would be! What comes next is been a very difficult venture. What we are going to talk about is a period of time that is generally referred to as the "Babylonian Exile" or "Babylonian Captivity". This is a reference of Judah or Jerusalem, more particularly the people in exile or captivity. Here, also a connection to a prophesy from Jeremiah For, during the seventy years that the land lay desolate 20 And those who escaped from the sword he carried away to Babylon, where they became servants to him and his sons until the rule of the kingdom of Persia, 21 to fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths. As long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath, to fulfill seventy years. 2 Chronicles 36:20-21 New King James Version * Historians cannot agree as to what date that the destruction of the first Temple happened. To that point there is debate as to when the fall of Babylon occurred. These to dates are pivotal to our discussion. So where should we start? The Babylonian Chronicles tell us the exact date, which Babylon fell, October 13, 539 BC. According to historical records a man named Gubaru, a Mede, was appointed by King Cyrus to be ruler in Babylon at this time. Gubaru was born in 601 BC, which would make him 62 years old when he invaded Babylon. Exactly the age found in Daniel 5:31 of Darius the Mede. The Babylonian record of Darius the Mede s conquest of Babylon is given below (1): In the month of Tashritu, at the time when Cyrus battled the forces of Akkad in Opis on the Tigris River, the citizens of Akkad revolted against him, but Nabonidus scattered his opposition with a great slaughter. On the 14th day, Sippar was taken without a fight. Nabonidus then fled for his life. On the 16th day, Gubaru the leader of Gutium along with the army of Cyrus entered Babylon without any opposition. Later they arrested Nabonidus when he returned to Babylon. On the third day of the month of Arahshamnu, Cyrus marched into Babylon, and they laid down green branches in front of him. The city was no longer at war, Peace being restored. Cyrus then sent his best wishes to the residents living there. His governor, Gubaru, then installed leaders to govern over all Babylon.

4 4. Bible Believer's Archaeology: The Search for Truth, John Argubright, 2003 To add to the The Watch Tower Society, said on page 94, concerning 539 B.C.: The outstanding Absolute date for the B.C. period of the Hebrew Scriptures is that for the fall of Babylon as the capital city of the third world power at the hands of Cyrus, king of the Persians... This date is made Absolute by reason of the archaeological discovery and deciphering of the famous Nabunaid Chronicle, which itself gives a date for the fall of Babylon and which figure specialists have determined equals October 13, 539 B.C., according the Julian calendar of the Romans.(2) The 1963 All Scripture Is Inspired of God and Beneficial book also discussed what it termed "absolute dates." On page 85, paragraph 3, it said: This date 539 B.C.E. is an absolute date, that is, a date fixed, proved and accepted by secular history. Compare this to the wording of the 1990 edition, page 85, paragraph 3: This date 539 B.C.E. is a pivotal date, that is, a date that may be harmonized with both secular and Biblical history. Because such significant events for Israel s history swirled around Babylon s rise to power, it became the focal point of poetry, curses, theological reflection history, and general perspectives on the world and the future. But what are the TRUE dates of these events? Scholars around the world with various religions still argue this to exhaustion. So the question comes back unto us again, so where do we start? What I will attempt to do is delve into the 70 year exile theory. From this explanation we will be able to see historically if Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego could be the same Most Excellent Masters that are within our ritual. This might be over kill, but I feel this is a necessary step to see if the theory these three holy men is a plausible answer. The most accepted date to for the fall of Babylon is 539 B.C with the edict of Cyrus at 538 BC. Time for some math, if we accept the date of 539 and add the 70 years of exile to 539 we get the date of 609 BC. Now there were three different times that when people from Jerusalem were taken into exile. If we were to assume that 609 BC was the beginning of the fall of Jerusalem or the rise of the Babylonians we would see that Daniel was taken in the third year of Jehoiakim which would give the following dates: 605 BC - This is when Daniel and other members of Judah's elite were taken into captivity (see Daniel 1:1 & 2 Kings 24:1,2) 597 BC - Jehoiakim surrendered. At the same time he stripped the temple of its remaining treasures (2 Kings 24:13), part of which had been carried away in the first deportation (Daniel

5 1:2), took other treasures, and placed Jehoiachin's unlce, Mattaniah, on the throne of Judah, changing his name to Zedekiah. 586 BC - After a 3 year siege, Jerusalem was conquered and the Temple destroyed, and most of the remaining people were taken into captivity, along with articles from the temple. Back to the 70 years of desolation for Jerusalem with the math that we just did we can find two different timeframe that the 70 years of desolation can be calculated to: 609 to 539- This would be the time frame from the beginning of Nebuchadnezzar II rule to the fall of Babylon. or 586 to 516- This would be the timeframe from the total destruction of the First Temple and the fall of Jerusalem to the completion and rededication of the Second Temple under Zerubbabel (Although most Scholars believe this date more closely to 515BC) So now we have a basis for our research and the timeframe unto which the characters lived. Below is a collection of dates that I have researched and some dates may be inaccurate ( as discussed above)but, as far as my research has taken me and as said before there is no definitive answer as to when these events actually happened. Along with the accepted dates there is a conflict among Jewish historians as to the date of the destruction of the First Temple. Some Jewish historians, for instance believe that the complete destruction of the first Temple was 423 B.C rather than the more accepted date of 586 B.C. Thus, there exists a 163-year gap in the timeline of Jewish History, with that period of time lying in the period of the First Temple. What happened in those missing years, or whether there are, in fact, missing years, is an unresolved obscurity that I will not try to solve. 609 BC - Nebuchadnezzar ruled as co-regent with his father 605 BC - Babylon Nabopolarras dies, his son Nebuchadrezzar II becomes king. This is when Daniel and Daniel s three friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah their royal family, nobility other members of Judah's elite were taken into captivity 597 BC - Jerusalem surrenders to Nebuchadrezzar II, king Jehoiakim in taken into exile: Nebuchadnezzar soon dealt with these rebellions, capturing Jerusalem in 597 BC and deposing King Jehoiakim, the armies of Nebuchadnezzar II seized Jerusalem that following spring. 588 BC - Rebellion of Zedekiah against Nabuchadrezzar II who then assails Jerusalem 588 BCE Zedekiah refuses to pay tribute to Nebuchadnezzar, breaks his oath of allegiance. Nebuchadnezzar invades Judah, besieges Jerusalem

6 586 (423) BC - Nebuchadnezzar lays siege to Jerusalem, burning the city, murdering inhabitants, Destroying the Temple and deporting many if not all the Jewish population of Judea to Babylon 582 /581 - The Babylonian general Nebuzaradan took another 745 men and their families into captivity, thus emptying the land of its Jewish inhabitants. 580 BC - Nebuchadnezzar II builds eight monumental gates, the Esagila complex, the sevenstorey ziggurat, and the Hanging Gardens 576 BC - Birth of Cyrus the Great 562 BC - Nebuchadnezzar II dies 539 BC - Fall of Babylon; Persian king Cyrus the Great defeats the Babylonians and allows the Judeans (now also known as Jews) to return from exile. About 50,000 Jews return to Jerusalem, led by the prophets Haggai and Zechariah 538/537 BC - Remnant of about 50,000 Jews return from Babylon by edict of King Cyrus First Jews return from Babylon in small numbers to rebuild the city and its walls. 70 years of exile terminated. (Daniel 9, Haggai 2:18-19) (Some say the date is closer to 541). The seventy years of captivity are over. Cyrus the Persian gives the decree as the prophet Isaiah had predicted 170 years earlier. 530 BC - King Cyrus dies. While leading his army into the far north, he was fatally wounded. His body was returned to Pasargadae, the Persian capital, for burial. 520 BC - Darius issues a royal decree to search the rolls which are quickly located and he issues a decree to return all the gold and silver vessels taken by Nebuchadnezzar from the Temple to be returned to Jerusalem, and commands that the Second Temple be rebuilt. 515 BC - Completion and rededication of the Second Temple under Zerubbabel (Ezra ) A smaller and less elaborate Second Temple is rebuilt on the site of Solomon's original Temple. 1. Bible Believer's Archaeology: The Search for Truth, John Argubright, The Pivotal Date 539 B.C., Alan Feuerbacher Notes: *20And them that had escaped from the sword carried he away to Babylon; where they were servants to him and his sons until the reign of the kingdom of Persia: 21To fulfill the word of the LORD by the mouth of Jeremiah, until the land had enjoyed her Sabbaths: for as long as she lay desolate she kept Sabbath, to fulfill threescore and ten years.

7 Part III In this edition we will explore who these three weary Sojourners were and why Masonic tradition would use these three righteous men. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah Daniel 1:6 During the first siege of Jerusalem led by Nebuchadnezzar in 605 BC. Daniel and his three friends, Hananiah, Mishael and Azariah their royal family, nobility other members of Judah's elite were taken into captivity. And he carried away all Jerusalem, and all the princes, and all the mighty men of valour, even ten thousand captives, and all the craftsmen and smiths: none remained, save the poorest sort of the people of the land. 2 Kings 24:14 When Daniel and his friends arrived in Babylon, they were handed over to Ashpenaz, the chief eunuch for they were both wise and without blemish, and he was to properly educate them in the Babylonian ways and customs. After this three year training period, they were to be presented before the King, who would then assign them duties within his government. [5] The king assigned them a daily portion of the food that the king ate, and of the wine that he drank. They were to be educated for three years, and at the end of that time they were to stand before the king. [6] Among these were Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah of the tribe of Judah. [7] And the chief of the eunuchs gave them names: Daniel he called Belteshazzar, Hananiah he called Shadrach, Mishael he called Meshach, and Azariah he called Abednego. Daniel 1:5-7 Daniel s name signified, judge for God and was changed to Belteshazzar signifying prince of Bel. Hananiah, meant gift of the Lord which became Shadrach, meaning servant of Sin (the moon god). Mishael, means who is what God is and was changed to Meshach, which means who is what Aku is (Aku being the Sumerian equivalent of Sin, the name of the moon god). Azariah, signifies whom Jehovah helps who was renamed Abednego, the servant of Nebo.

8 The Good News Bible, (1967) reads that these youths had to be handsome, intelligent, welltrained, quick to learn, and free from physical defects, so that they would be qualified to serve in the royal court (1:4). All these youths were to be educated for three years, so that at the end of that time they could be stationed in the king s court The purpose of changing the young men s names was to help erase their attachment to their own nation and religion. Note how each Hebrew name includes a reference to the only true and living God, whereas the Babylonian name points to a false god worshipped by the Babylonians. However, Daniel and his three companions remained fiercely loyal to their religious and cultural character. Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego rose to influential positions in the empire Nebuchadnezzar and the Babylonians had built. One day their civil service was interrupted when they learned that they and all the other officials were to gather at the plain of Dura. King Nebuchadnezzar built a massive 90-foot idol for all the people in Babylon. He invited them to the dedication of the idol and had already made up in his mind, if anyone dares to defy the decree given by the king, to worship the idol; they were to be put to death by a blazing, fiery furnace. The three Jewish refugees from Jerusalem refused to obey. Because of, what some would say, a personal linking they were called before the king he gave them another chance to bow. But they did not, would not, could not, compromise their faith. 17 If it be so, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and he will deliver us out of thine hand, O king. 18 But if not, be it known unto thee, O king, that we will not serve thy gods, nor worship the golden image which thou hast set up. Daniel 3:17-18 Enraged by this Nebuchadnezzar ordered the Jews thrown into the furnace. As ordered the soldiers threw the three young men into the furnace. Because of the intense heat of the furnace soldiers who threw the three young men into the furnace were themselves burned to death. In astonishment Nebuchadnezzar (and all those with him see that not only those three were not burning they didn t even get their hair singed. But also another amazing thing is happening in the midst of the furnace, do they see the three walking around inside the furnace, no longer tied up, but with them is a fourth person! The Biblical story ends with King Nebuchadnezzar releasing them from the fire and saying Blessed be the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego, who hath sent his angel, and delivered his servants that trusted in him, and have changed the king s word, and yielded their bodies, that they might not serve nor worship any god, except their own God. He ends with a decree that no one speak anything against the God of these three faithful men. Then the king promoted them within the region of Babylon. Now we know the biblical story of we can see why that Masonry would chose such characters of unwavering faith, commitment and courage. These men walked faithfully, knowing God could

9 save them but open to the reality that if He didn t, it would not change what they believed or who they believed in. Thus the faith of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego was vindicated and Almighty God was glorified by the faithfulness of these three young men who loved God and thought to obey him was more precious than even life itself. So what we have learned is that three weary Sojourners were Giblimites taken at a young age from Jerusalem and exiled into Babylon. They were taught the ways of the land in w faith, commitment and courage which they were exiled and became officials in the land. They were tested in their faith and were to be sent to their death but because of their faith, commitment and courage their God saved them from death. Legend has it these three were the Most Excellent Masters at the rebuilding of the second Temple. We have also explored the time frame in which these me lived but, can this be historically correct? To find out if these three can be historically traced we must first go back to the three dates of captivity we discussed earlier, 605 BC, 597 BC and 586 BC. The first invasion of the Babylonians to the complete destruction of the first temple and fall of Jerusalem Next, we need to discover at what age that they were taken. What we do know from scripture is that they were children. Now among these were of the children of Judah, Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah Daniel 1:6 So we now that they were children. So when does a boy become a man? The answer to this must go far beyond biology and chronological age. As defined in the Bible, manhood is a functional reality, demonstrated in a man s fulfillment of responsibility and leadership. (1) But there is no exact mention of a specific age that a boy becomes a man. However, the bible mention that age 12, Jesus is called a "child". Now his parents went to Jerusalem every year at the feast of the Passover. 42 And when he was twelve years old, they went up to Jerusalem after the custom of the feast. 43 And when they had fulfilled the days, as they returned, the child Jesus tarried behind in Jerusalem; and Joseph and his mother knew not of it. Luke 2:41-43 According to Jewish customs the Bar /Bat Mitzvah marks a legal change of status, from childhood into adulthood, nothing more. With or without a ceremony and party at 12 or 13 all Jews become, "subject to the commandments." Bar mitzvah does not appear in the Bible however, by the first century of our era adulthood was universally held to begin at 13 for boys and 12 for girls, a view codified in the Talmud, which states, "At age 13, one becomes subject to the commandments. The earliest reference to any ceremony to mark this change dates from the

10 Second Temple period, when a special blessing was recited for 13-year-old boys who had completed their first Yom Kippur fast. (2) Then we must finally get to the rebuilding of the Second Temple. We know that at around BC about 50,000 Jews return from Babylon by edict of King Cyrus to rebuild the city. With those three things in mind we can know see if it is plausible that Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego are the Most Excellent Master we find in Masonic lore. So now we have dates and a timeframe in which these weary Sojourners lived. Naturally what comes next is to find out who we think these Sojourners are and if it is plausible that they are one and the same. We will now take the three different dates and dissect the time frames to see if there is any reasonable fact as to whether there is any basis, historically for this legend. 605BC If we start with the date of 605 BC and we assume that they (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) were from the ages of 8 and 18 and end at sometime around 538 we get 67 years which would place the appropriate age of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego around 75 to 85 years old. 597 BC If we start with the date of 597 BC and we assume that they (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) were from the ages of 8 and 18 and end at sometime around 538 we get 59 years which would place the appropriate age of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego around 67 to 77 years old. 586 BC If we start with the date of 586 BC and we assume that they (Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego) were from the ages of 8 and 18 and end at sometime around 538 we get 48 years which would place the appropriate age of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego around 56 to 66 years old. At any period we pick they seem to be pretty old if they were even alive during the construction of the Second Temple. Could they have lived that long, could they have even made it through that rough and rugged road to Jerusalem? Scripture does not tell of the death of these three nor can we find the time and circumstances of their friend Daniel's death for that has not been recorded either. However, tradition maintains that Daniel was still alive in the third year of Cyrus according to the Tanakh (Daniel 10:1). So here we have quit and age difference, from anywhere from the age of 56 to 85 years old. During this time if we assume that these men were 60+ years old some believe they would have hardly be in any type of shape to do any of the hard labor. Now I am not one to assume that any 60 year old man cannot do hard labor for I have seen many old man out work many younger men in my short span in life. What we also need to look at now is our ritual it states that the

11 Grand Council found them able to perform any of the work, even the most difficult; they were put to work removing the rubbish from the eastern portion of the ruins..in order to lay the cornerstone or foundation of the second temple.. Now we ca look at this three ways, that they were truly found able to perform any of the work, even the most difficult or that this was away for the Grand Council to instill pride and not look down on these old men and allow them to do their part in rebuilding the House of God. Is it conceivable that the three weary Sojourners were Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego? I believe that they can and are one and the same. As you braved this long road with me to find an answer I believe that the braved a long journey of enjoy the glory of the first Temple, exiled to foreign lands always keeping their faith and committed to return to help rebuild the second Temple. Whether historically or allegorically I can think of no other men I would like to imitate than Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego. I pray that my faith can be as strong as them, my commitment to God as fervent as theirs and my courage as fierce as theirs. Thrice tried and thrice approved companion, pass in the name of the God of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abednego. (3) 1. When does a boy become a man, Dr. Albert Mohler (2005) Republican, Richard Carlile (1825) /Manual of Freemasonry, Richard Carlile (1845),Red cross sword of Babylon.