Pasi K Pohjala. Verre et Bible January 2013. Synoptic Apocalypse (Matt 24:27 and Luke 17:24) description of PAROUSIA of Son of Man OOSPER GAR HE ASTRAPEE EKSERKETAI APO ANATOLOON KAI FAINETAI EOOS DUSMOON, OUTOOS ESTAI HE PAROUSIA TOU HUIOU TOU ANTHROPOU In the PGM XIII the Book of Moses we also find notable description of ritual at the sunrise, described in XIII.115ff after sleeping with special arrangements appropriate to such rituals of prayers “rising at dawn, greet Helios through seven days, each day saying first the (names of the) gods of the hours, then those set over the weeks.” (Translation of Morton Smith). In this ritual central role is also for the Tripod and the Pythian serpent, the PUTHIOS DRAKOON. But slightly differently reading PURIOS DRAKOON (a fiery dragon) instead of PUTHIOS DRAKOON we comprehend that in these rituals was religion of FIRE DRAGON (PURIOS DRAKOON), appropriately for the central use of the Tripod in these rituals. So we are also reminded of Encountering the Divine in Isaiah 6, the fiery SERAFIM DRAGONS. Then we notice in XIII.188 SU TEEN DOKSAN TOU FOOTOS PERITHEMENOS ESEE MET’ EME Also is here interesting scene of birth of the Pythian serpent in XIII.193ff. Latin New Testament: Agnus Dei or Anguis Dei Divine Serpent New Testament Readers are quite familiar with the characterisations of Jesus as AGNUS DEI, Divine Lamb. But Latin word ANGUIS means a Serpent, so that attentive Readers now ponder (and have been pondering) that actually thus the Latin Bible may allude to DESCRIBING JESUS AS DIVINE SERPENT (ANGUIS) Important and quite interesting recently widely available knowledge of this notorious tradition is found in the pages of St. CUTHBERT GOSPEL (former the Stonyhurst Gospel), that British Library recently acquired and generously made digitised visible to ALL interested Readers. We find in this important old Gospel statements of AGNUS DEI, writing ALTERA DIE ITERUM STABAT IOHANNES ET EX DISCIPULIS EIUS DUO ET RESPICIENS IHM AMBULANTE DICIT ECCE AGNUS DI ET AUDIERUNT EUM DUO DISCI PULI LOQUENTEM ET SEQUTI SUNT IHM CONVERSUS AUTEM IHS (Gospel of John 1:35-38 in St. Cuthbert Gospel, f4 recto) Currently writers may emphasise certain words and statements with different typographical methods, often using bold or italic letters, underlining words or writing letters in upper case and many other typographical details that plausibly convey to Readers (usually schooled in some special tradition) special importance of some words or expressions. The text of this St. Cuthbert Gospel now alerts Readers of importance of words with special layout of the text and placing of certain words. In our times we read every day hundreds of articles, probably in some different languages and visually follow numerous reports from distant cities and regions. For us it is certainly worth stopping for a minute to consider how enormously precious such St. Cuthbert Gospel was to the community in their early times! This Book is of course well kept, actually intact, so that reading this currently is well possible; much easier than e.g. regarding many Qumran writings only in fragments kept. Compared to ancient circumstances, we thus are very happy to read thus almost intact kept St. Cuthbert Gospel where also letters are clearly written and easily read. Thus we now notice here in John 1 written DICIT ECCE AGNUS DI. But attentive Readers now notice that this statement actually emphasises “change” in writing ALTERA DIE and CONVERSUS AUTEM and important also is the SEQUTI SUNT. This is the special reading that finds in the AGNUS DI the ANGUIS Serpent, changing the place of letters N and G. Attentive Readers scrupulously looking at this page of St. Cuthbert’s Gospel ALSO see somehow behind letter N shining through something like letter G (written on the verso). Thus, for official purposes, this Gospel indeed reads AGNUS DI, fully in accordance with Latin Bible text- BUT for more attentive Readers such intriguing details of this Gospel indicate that important is also to consider usual Latin word ANGUIS in reading this statement. This St. Cuthbert Gospel thus importantly refers to tradition of comprehending Jesus as ANGUIS, Divine Serpent. Also in this St. Cuthbert Gospel we find similarly the other statement of AGNUS DEI intriguingly alluding to comprehending Jesus as ANGUIS, so that Jesus is presented as Divine Serpent. We read TRANS IORDANEM UBI ERAT IOHANNES BAPTIZANS ALTERA DIE VIDET IOHANNES VENIENTEM AD SE ET AIT ECCE AGNUS DI ECCE QUI TOLLIT PECCATUM MUNDI HIC EST DE QUO DIXI POST ME VENIT VIR QUI ANTE ME FACTUS EST QUIA PRIOR ME ERAT (Gospel of John 1:28b-30 in St. Cuthbert’s Gospel, f3verso) Also here the St. Cuthbert’s Gospel writes of AGNUS DI. Also here this statement emphasises the alterations and changes, writing of ALTERA DIE VIDET where also change of letters DIE IDE is noticed and thereafter notices questions of former and latter, noticing POST ME and ANTE ME. Readers of this writing thus officially find written the AGNUS DI that is in accordance with churchly canonised Latin text, BUT these mentions in this text emphasise Readers to think of changes and alterations- such as slightly changing the order of letters in AGNUS and thus finding the ANGUIS, statement of JESUS AS ANGUIS Divine Serpent! Notoriously, ALSO here through the page from the recto shine as if behind the letter N in the word AGNUS shines G; this emphasised to ancient Readers to seriously contemplate that Jesus is ANGUIS- the DIVINE SERPENT. Readers may themselves study these statements in the currently digitally published St. Cuthbert’s Gospel, generously by the British Library made digitally visible to ALL Readers! Now we remind all Readers that very famous and quite usual figure appearing in the ancient religious engravings and amulets especially of Greco-Roman times was the ANGUIPEDE. This figure has usually a pair of snakes in place of feet; a human body and often human head, although also lion head appears, and quite often head is the head of a cock. For the study of history of dragon and snake figures in or associated with ancient Jewish religion, the ANGUIPEDE thus is apparently very important indeed. The famous and very learned Erwin R. Goodenough in his major work Jewish Symbols in the Greco-Roman Period writes quite extensively of this important ANGUIPEDE symbol, and notoriously questions after observations: “DOES THIS MEAN THAT IN THE ANGUIPEDE WE AT LAST HAVE AN IMAGE OF THE TRADITIONALLY ANICONIC GOD OF THE JEWS?” (Goodenough Symbols, Vol.2, p.251) I wish to emphasise the radical importance of this statement by the very learned E.R.Goodenough by simply repeating this question that he here poses “DOES THIS MEAN THAT IN THE ANGUIPEDE WE AT LAST HAVE AN IMAGE OF THE TRADITIONALLY ANICONIC GOD OF THE JEWS?” (Goodenough Symbols, Vol.2, p.251) The Anguipede symbol is so usually occurring in Greco Roman times and before Medieval times that E. R. Goodenough characterises it as “the most important single figure on the amulets of our period” (p.245). We have been discussing the statements of St. Cuthbert’s Gospel concerning Jesus as the AGNUS DEI. Every Reader can in the digitally published version see that indeed the AGNUS there is written, fully in accordance with teaching of Christian Church. But students and scholars of Latin language well know and have known the ANGUIS that notices Serpent. In reading of the AGNUS DEI we thus come in midst of questions of HOW usual ANGUIPEDE figure symbol may later have been. Notoriously, in the ring of Siffred, Bishop of Chichester (d. 1150) was engraved ANGUIPEDE picture. And ANGUIPEDE was more usual in Cabbalistic charms. In the engravings, the figure ANGUIPEDE is indeed very often engraved with name IAO that specifically connects the Anguipede with Jewish tradition. Often also name ABRASAX in such engravings is written. In comprehensive study concerning symbol ANGUIPEDE, emphasises Procope-Walter (ARW xxx, 1933) that the symbol ANGUIPEDE very often indeed occurs with names IAO and ABRASAX and therefore comprehends ANGUIPEDE as “the sun-god IAO ABRASAX”. We thus once more repeat E. R. Goodenough in his questioning “DOES THIS MEAN THAT IN THE ANGUIPEDE WE AT LAST HAVE AN IMAGE OF THE TRADITIONALLY ANICONIC GOD OF THE JEWS?” (Goodenough Symbols, Vol.2, p.251) Let us well remember that the ANGUIPEDE is quite usual symbol of Greco-Roman times and before Medieval times, so Readers notice the enormous importance of this question for ancient reading of Jesus as AGNUS DEI in Gospel of John. Traditions of AGNUS are especially important also in the Book of Revelation. We notice to the Readers that the Greek New Testament here writes (John 1.29) IDE O AMNOS TOU THEOU O AIROON TEEN HAMARTIAN TOU KOSMOU and the other statement is in Greek New Testament in John 1:36 written KAI EMBLEPSAS TO IEESOU PERIPATOUNTI LEGEI IDE O AMNOS TOU THEOU et platea civitatis aurum mundum tamquam vitrum perlucidum et templum non vidi in ea Dominus enim Deus omnipotens templum illius est et agnus et civitas non eget sole neque luna ut luceant in ea nam claritas Dei inluminavit eam et lucerna eius est agnus et ambulabunt gentes per lumen eius Revelation 21:21b-24a in Vulgate This statement in Latin Vulgate is notoriously important concerning lights. The current Author Pasi K. Pohjala has recently written comprehensive studies of mentions of Glass in Bible; here in Revelation 21:21 noticed quite transparent glass, tamquam vitrum perlucidum, is one important statement of glass in Bible; and Greek writes here OOS HUALOS DIAUGEES. Earlier studies have considered more the words HUALOS and KHRUSTALLOS and at those times proceeding glass production technologies that then indeed produced white and quite clear transparent glass in some larger quantities. NOW we consider question of light and mention of AGNUS. For religious contemplation this text is, of course, one of most beautiful Christian consolations providing bright hopes for future. We read here that LUCERNA EIUS EST AGNUS However, considering the ANGUIS Serpent tradition, we now consider alternatively in Rev 21 LUCERNA EIUS EST ANGUIS ITS LIGHT IS THE SERPENT Thus we find in Revelation 21 notorious allusion to LIGHT BEARING SERPENT DRAGON. Now I strongly here acknowledge that I have NOT found empirical evidence in ancient Latin MSS traditions for such quite notorious reading ANGUIS here in Revelation 21:23b; but for fluent Latin readers undoubtedly such reference to quite usual word ANGUIS has easily occurred. And in public reading the Readers sometimes make smaller mistakes in spelling words slightly differently- in this statement spelling ANGUIS utters to audience description of LIGHT BEARING SERPENT DRAGON, even if the written text spells AGNUS. Importantly the Latin Bible also writes in 14:1 ET VIDI ET ECCE AGNUS STABAT SUPRA MONTEM SION Words TB designating snakes and serpents The current study of Old Testament snake religion now proceeds with noticing that also TB words notices snakes and serpents. Every Reader notices that this is really a big question of Bible reading- really usually the TB words are comprehended noticing quality good. We notice that in ancient Egyptian language the S))BT notices a spotted snake. (For comparison, the NHS word usually comprehended in Hebrew Bible as noticing snakes, indeed is similar to the ancient Egyptian name NHTYT for the Victorious Cobra; this history is specifically important for NHS words considering the old Egyptian domination of regions of Palestine, and apparently reflected in old traditions and sayings in those regions. Reading Hebrew Bible, the NHS is actually considered be the usual word for “snake”). In Egyptian the S))BT noticing a spotted snake now is important for many meanings, remembering also that SBT in Hebrew Bible notices staffs and rods, and thus also snake staffs; also connection to festival of SHABBATH is very important. But now we consider the TB words in Hebrew Bible and notice, importantly, that often the TB words indeed present God unmistakably as snake or snake god, or in such discussion that this is quite clear! Every Reader of course well knows that often modern Old Testament translations present that God is good, referring thus to his providence or benevolent character or to his forgiveness. These statements in Old Testament are quite usual and certainly these characterisations are usual in Christian and Jewish understanding of Providence and forgiveness and mercy. Importantly, these statements in Old Testament often are formulated with TWB words where the TWB is rendered as designating providential nature and mercifulness of God. There are in the Hebrew Bible indeed many statements writing that God is TWB. Thus recognising that many of these statements in Hebrew Bible actually have described Snake God or Serpent God certainly may enrich enormously the Biblical reading of Readers and bring indescribable rejoicing for such important improved comprehending of Bible! We now study writings of TWB in Old Testament and find in these many statements where TWB is so used that it certainly describes God as Snake or Serpent. The Egyptian traditions thus notice S))BT as Spotted Snake. In ancient Greek traditions is the TYPHOON snake or serpent truly famous (in Aramaic and Hebrew readings often are S and T letters changed, so that from the ancient Egyptian S))BT Spotted Snake easily is formed tradition of TBT in developments of various stages of Aramaic, and towards its one dialect, Hebrew). And Arabic parlance very usually notices meanings that TUBAN is a snake or serpent (124) and TABIA notices to track and trail, and to follow (108). Everyone knows the important office of TABIB medical doctors; and since times ancient have snakes been associated with medicine men and healers, in Hellenistic times e.g. was the Asclepios almost always depicted with snake staff. Concerning history of old Greek pantheon it is in these remarks of history important to emphasise that name ASCLEPIOS also includes the S-B that quite parallels in Old Egyptian the S))BT word designating the Spotted Snake, and the name ASCLEPIOS is in this comparison found easily to be notoriously similar with Arabic TABIB in remembering the usual change of S and T letters in Semitic languages, so that Arabic TABIB also refers thereby to the S-B words. These are notoriously important historical notices concerning words for Snakes in ancient Eastern Mediterranean world of ancient Egyptian culture and also Aramaic language, and developments of Greek language. Traditions usual in Eastern Mediterranean, both Egyptian, Greek and Arabic traditions thus emphasise considerations of TB words as words designating snakes. These considerations hugely enrich and widen our comprehension of Biblical statements for rejoicing of all Readers! For Bible Reading, this is going to develop substantially Readers’ knowledge! Everyone remembers well that the Ark of Noah is TEBA in Hebrew Bible. Thus we recognise that the Ark of Noah was