Tag image and likeness

The New Age and Alien Channelers often speak of bodies of light that the other-worldly beings possess.  The truth is, however, that bodies of light were first spoken of in the Bible. In this post we will examine the many places Scripture speaks of bodies of light and how our DNA emits light. Understanding the truth will again help us to spot the demonic deception that is coming in these last days.

We have seen that Adam was created in God’s image and likeness which includes the appearance of God. We can deduce more of how Adam was before the Fall and also how we shall be upon resurrection from the teaching of the Lord Jesus. We first note that while up by Cesarea Philippi Jesus took the disciples Peter, James and John to the top of Mount Hermon. [i] “And He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light [phos φως],” (Matthew 17:2). Jesus’ clothes were not only white, but they were literally white as light, which is the Greek word φως phos from which we get the word photo or photon. In other words, the light of Jesus, Who is the source of that light, emanated through His clothing. When the end of the tribulation draws to a close the Lord Jesus will return to earth on a horse and those who have trusted in Him will return with Him. Speaking of the called out ones (believers in Jesus) John notes in Revelation: “And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright [lampron λαμπρον], for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints,” (Revelation 19:8).

We see from this verse that the covering will be bright or luminous. The Greek word λαμπρον lampron signifies bright or shining. The Liddell, Scott and Jones Classical Greek Lexicon defines it as “bright, radiant, of the sun and stars”. Thus, when we occupy our heavenly or celestial bodies we will also be enveloped in or clothed in garments of light. Jesus confirmed this reality when he said concerning the righteous in the world to come: “Then the righteous will shine forth [eklampo ἐκλάμπω] as the sun in the kingdom of their Father,” (Matthew 13:43). The same was revealed to Daniel concerning the resurrection of the righteous. The Septuagint (LXX) version uses the same word as is found in Matthew 13 above, which is also related to the garments in Revelation 19:8.

Those who are wise shall shine [LXX: eklampo ἐκλάμπω, Heb. יַזְהִ֖רוּ] like the brightness [LXX: lamprotes λαμπρότης] of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever, (Daniel 12:3).

Click here to read full article

God made Adam in his image and likeness but what is that image? God is an infinite being and has many communicable and non-communicable characteristics such as creativity, vision, passion, ability to love, mercy. Could the image of God actually include what He looks like? The verses interpreted literally will surprise you!

THE IMAGE OF GOD

Douglas Hamp

Ezekiel’s Vision of God

And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness [k’mareh כְּמַרְאֵ֥ה] with the appearance of a man [adam אָדָ֛ם] high above it.

• Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber [electricity] with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around …This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. (Ezekiel 1:26-28).
  

  God Radiating Fire and Electricity

Prophets Seeing God

• I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple, (Isaiah 6:1).
• I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire, (Daniel 7:9).

One like the Son of Man

• One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool [like Daniel 7:9], as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. (Revelation 1:12-18).

A Spiritual Body

• So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable… It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body, (I Corinthians 15:42-44).
• As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven, (I Corinthians 15:45-49).
• Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself, (Philippians 3:21).
• As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; ​I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness [t’munah]. (Psalms 17:15)
  • I speak with him face to face, Even plainly, and not in dark sayings; And he sees the form [t’munah] of the LORD…” (Numbers12:8)

Partakers of the divine nature

• by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire. (2 Peter 1:4 ESV)
• “when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is,” (1 John 3:2).
•  “He [Jesus] is the image [eicon εικον (icon)] of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,” (Colossians 1:15 NET).
• “and have been clothed with the new man that is being renewed in knowledge according to the image [eicon εικον] of the one who created it,” (Colossians 3:10 NET).

Bodies of Light

• “and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light [phos φως].” (Matt 17:2)
• Then the righteous will shine forth [eklampo ἐκλάμπω] as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears to hear, let him hear! (Matthew 13:43)
• Those who are wise shall shine [LXX: eklampo ἐκλάμπω] Like the brightness of the firmament, And those who turn many to righteousness Like the stars forever and ever.  (Daniel 12:3)
• “it was granted her to clothe herself with fine linen, bright [λαμπρον] and pure – for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.” (Revelation 19:8 ESV)
• Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD! But let those who love Him be like the sun when it comes out in full strength (Judges 5:31).
• But the path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day (Proverbs 4:18).
• The light of the righteous rejoices, ​But the lamp of the wicked will be put out. (Proverbs 13:9)
• Whoever curses his father or his mother, ​His lamp will be put out in deep darkness. (Proverbs 20:20)
  • For there will be no prospect for the evil man; ​The lamp of the wicked will be put out. (Proverbs 24:20)

Supported by Ancient Jewish Interpretation

• The Midrash Rabbah (Rabbinic literature from the first or second century AD) of Genesis 3:21 reads, “AND THE LORD GOD MADE FOR ADAM AND HIS WIFE GARMENTS OF SKIN [‘or עֹור], AND CLOTHED THEM (III, 21). In R. Meir’s Torah it was found written, ‘Garments of light (or)’ this refers to Adam’s garments, which were like a torch, broad at the bottom and narrow at the top.”

Biophotons

• DNA Emits light

Around 1923 Ukrainian Biologist Alexander Gurwitsh discovered that living things such as onions and yeast produced an ultra-weak photon emission… confirmed independently by Russian scientists around 1950 they discovered an “ultraweak photon emission” from living organisms.

confirmed independently of the previous finding by Italian nuclear physicists L. Colli, [et al] in 1955 who “by chance discovered a ‘bioluminescence’ of seedlings,”.[1]

School of Medicine at Kanazawa University, in Kanazawa, Japan:

“All organic life absorbs, emits, and processes light. Biophoton emission or spontaneous ultraweak light emission has been observed from almost all living organisms” intensities ranging from 10^-19 to 10^-16 W/cm^2[2]

Moses’ Shining Face

Now it was so, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai […] that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone [פָּנָ֖יו עֹ֥ור קָרַ֛ן] while he talked with Him. So when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him… (Exodus 34:29-30, 33).

Destroyed From the Lord’s Presence

• the Lord Jesus is revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire taking vengeance on those who do not know God, and on those who do not obey the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. These shall be punished with everlasting destruction from [by virtue of] the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power, (2 Thessalonians 1:7-9)
• He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. (Revelation 14:10)
• For Tophet [was] established of old, Yes, for the king [c.f. Isa 14:5, Ezekiel 28:12] it is prepared. He has made [it] deep and large; Its pyre [is] fire with much wood; The breath of the LORD, like a stream of brimstone, Kindles it. (Isaiah 30:33)
  • “And they have built the high places of Tophet, which [is] in the Valley of the Son of Hinnom, to burn their sons and their daughters in the fire…(Jeremiah 7:31)

The Believer Tested by God’s Fire

• Now if anyone builds on this foundation with gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, straw, (1 Corinthians 3:12) each one’s work will become clear; for the Day will declare it, because it will be revealed by fire; and the fire will test each one’s work, of what sort it is. (1 Corinthians 3:13) If anyone’s work which he has built on it endures, he will receive a reward. (1 Corinthians 3:14) If anyone’s work is burned, he will suffer loss; but he himself will be saved, yet so as through fire. (1 Corinthians 3:15)

Click here to read the research of part one in narrative format:

In order to spot the deception we first need to understand the original. God is infinite

and of course there are things that we will never understand about Him. However, all that the Bible does reveal we ought to firmly apply to our general concept of who He is and how He is. Something that is fundamental to understanding God is His image. God tells us that He made man in His image and in His likeness in Genesis 1:26 – but just what does that mean?

Then God said, “Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness; let them have dominion over the fish of the sea, over the birds of the air, and over the cattle, over all the earth and over every creeping thing that creeps on the earth.” (Genesis 1:26)

How are we to understand image and likeness? Does image connotate something physical in the way God “looks” or is it merely His divine character? Is the likeness simply talking about His attributes? Is it possible that it could be referring to what God looks like? Generally speaking commentators assume the word image refers only to God’s attributes. Any time we have language in Scripture talking about God’s hands, head, feet or the like it is explained as anthropomorphic language (they are describing God in terms that we mortals can understand). Nevertheless, the Scriptures demonstrate that where there is some prophetic vision or description of God we are catching a glimpse of His image (what God looks like). [i] Having a good grasp of the image of God will aid us in figuring out what is in the believer’s future and also how the enemy has tried to destroy the image in us in the past and will deceive the world in the very near future.

According to Scripture, God is the eternal one and there is none like Him: “that the LORD Himself is God in heaven above and on the earth beneath; there is no other,” (Deuteronomy 4:39). He is the one “Declaring the end from the beginning, And from ancient times things that are not yet done,” (Isaiah 46:10). God states “I am the First and I am the Last; Besides Me there is no God,” (Isaiah 44:6). God also declares “​​​​​​​​I made the earth and created man on it; it was my hands that stretched out the heavens, and I commanded all their host,” (Isaiah 45:12). God exists in and of Himself, was never created and has no end. There is none like Him in heaven above, on the earth or below the earth.

The first Man (Adam) was created approximately six thousand years ago [ii] and every last human being on the planet is a descendant of Adam, hence we are all created beings. We will never become gods in that we can never through our efforts attain godhood. We are not evolving to a higher order or existence. Man will never be a god nor equal to the Almighty! The Bible is clear that Man fell from how he had been created. We were created in the image and likeness of God but at the fall, when sin and death entered into the world, the image of God in man was corrupted. The question before us, however, is just what exactly God meant when he said that He created us in His image and likeness.

There are several ways that we can ascertain the correct meaning of that phrase. First of all, we will examine the Hebrew words in every instance that they appear in the Bible to see how they are used in other contexts. In real estate the name of the game is location, location, location. In Bible studies it is context, context, context. A word’s context determines what a word means. We can also use comparative linguistics to see how other Semitic languages understood the same root in their languages. We can turn to the early translations such as the Greek Septuagint and Aramaic Targumim to glean how those words were translated.

We will then turn our attention to what God reveals about Himself in portions of Scripture. The Bible says that God is spirit. Clearly God is not flesh and blood (dependent on oxygen, food, water – not a carbon based life form) but does the fact that He is spirit mean that He does not have a body? Paul distinguishes amongst the different types of bodies in I Corinthians 15. We will also examine passages where a prophet, seer or disciple “sees” a vision of God in heaven or the like. How should these be interpreted in light of Paul’s discussion of heavenly bodies?

The next thing to look at is the seed of God. 1 John 3:9 says that we have the seed of God dwelling in us. The word, sperma [sperma σπερμα], is the same as is used to describe human and even animal seed which is used to propagate the race. Peter says that we have been redeemed with incorruptible seed. What does it mean that we have God’s seed (incorruptible)? How does that differ from the corruptible seed that we currently have? Could it be that this is why Jesus so emphatically said that we had to be born again? Paul says that we are a new creation, the old has passed away. Does the imparting of the Holy Spirit have anything to do with the fact that God breathed into man in the garden? Was that lost when man sinned?

The biblical evidence will demonstrate that image and likeness of God refer not only to God’s character and attributes but also to His form or shape, that is, what He generally “looks like” when perceived with the eye (or the mind’s eye). Furthermore, God’s seed, while not composed of proteins and amino acids in DNA strands, is what we receive in our new bodies. This was also the essence of what Adam was pre-fall. Adam was also clothed in light (as God is) before the fall – something that will be restored to us once in the heavenly / spiritual realm.

In God’s Image and Form

God states in Genesis 1:26-27 that He made Adam in his image. “Then God said, ‘Let Us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness’ […] So God created man in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them,” (Genesis 1:26-27). This fact is reiterated “Whoever sheds man’s blood, By man his blood shall be shed; For in the image of God He made man,” (Genesis 9:6). God is an infinite being and has many communicable and noncommunicable characteristics that are in view here. Certainly man is neither omnipotent nor omniscient like God. But he does share to a lesser extent God’s creativity, vision, passion, ability to love, mercy etc. – qualities that are part of his image and likeness. However, for our study, we will not focus on those aspects but specifically how both image and likeness are used in the Bible in relation to His form. Words and the combination of words are what make up the Bible and consequently, our theology is built upon the words that we find in Scripture. For this reason, tracing a word throughout Scripture is a very practical means of understanding its significance and just how we are to interpret it.

Tselem צֶ֥לֶם

The word image (Hebrew tselem צֶ֥לֶם) is used 15 times [iii] in the Hebrew Bible. The basic meaning of the root means a “shadow” cf. Gesenius’ Hebrew Lexicon. [iv] Based on its usage we can confidently deduce the following definition: ’a living or non living representation of something else.’ In eleven of the fifteen verses image is used to refer to idols. Idols were the image (a physical representation) of a demon (or “men” in Ezekiel) as Paul tells us in I Corinthians. Paul states that idols were in fact demons: “that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons [v] and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons,”(1Corinthians 10:20).

The word tselem is used to describe these idols or images which were just representations of demons that were truly being worshiped. “destroy all their engraved stones, destroy all their molded images, and demolish all their high places,” (Numbers 33:52). [vi] The verses from Ezekiel are especially telling since they demonstrate that the images were representations of men – a form we can certainly agree on: “As for the beauty of his ornaments, He set it in majesty; But they made from it the images of their abominations,” (Ezekiel 7:20); “

made for yourself male images and played the harlot with them,” (Ezekiel 16:17). Ezekiel 23:14 shows that an image is accurate in its representation of the real thing: “She saw men portrayed on the wall, the images of the Chaldeans”. Clearly an image is not the same as the real thing. An image can’t walk or talk in these cases, but they do faithfully depict how the men looked – in the same way in that the modern photo of a person isn’t the person but is an image of the person. Indeed, I have seen photos of people and know what they look like but perhaps knowing nothing about the person. Therefore, an image conveys only some information about a person and not all of the details.

The last verse which we need to discuss for our study to be complete is Genesis 5:3 which states that Seth was begotten to Adam in his image (tsalmo צַלְמֹ֑ו).

When Adam had lived 130 years, he fathered a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him Seth, (Genesis 5:3).

This verse is an amazing illustration of how we are in the image of God. Just as our children act like us (likeness) they also look like us. When I see my children I see in their faces and bodies a combination of my wife and me. They very much look like us – they are in our image. My little son reminds me of when I was a child in that he acts like me – he is in my likeness! When God made man He fashioned Adam to both act like God and to look like God. Even though my children look like me and act like me, they are obviously separate and distinct beings. So too, God made Adam to act and look like God but Adam was not the same as God. Some people might argue that this lowers the majesty of God. I would argue that it rather demonstrates the level from which man has fallen. Furthermore, this does not make God in man’s image; it was man who was made in God’s image.

T’munah

The word t’munah [תְּמוּנָה] means shape, image or form and is very much analogous to the word tselem which we have already examined. According to God Himself, Moses saw the Lord’s form (t’munat YHWH תְמֻנַ֥ת יְהוָ֖ה).

I speak with him face to face [pe el pe אֶל־פֶּה פֶּה], Even plainly, and not in dark sayings; and he sees the form of the LORD [t’munat YHWH תְמֻנַ֥ת יְהוָ֖ה]. Why then were you not afraid to speak against My servant Moses?” (Numbers 12:8).

Previously the Israelites were instructed to not make any t’munah of things in heaven or in earth:

You shall not make for yourself a carved image  [pesel פֶּ֖סֶל] –any likeness [t’munah תְּמוּנָה]  of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth, (Exodus 20:4).

The same word t’munah is used for what Moses did see and also to describe what the Children of Israel did not see. They were not able to look upon the actual form of God as Moses had been able. Yet, this same word is used to describe “images” and likenesses of things – that is to say, what they looked like. Moses recounts to the people the fact that they did not see God’s form – even though he had. Therefore they should not make an image of God.

And the LORD spoke to you out of the midst of the fire. You heard the sound of the words, but saw no form [t’munah תְּמוּנָה]; you only heard a voice. ;”Take careful heed to yourselves, for you saw no form [t’munah תְּמוּנָה] when the LORD spoke to you at Horeb out of the midst of the fire, lest you act corruptly and make for yourselves a carved image [pesel פֶּ֖סֶל] in the form [t’munah תְּמוּנָה]  of any figure: the likeness of male or female, […] Take heed to yourselves, lest you forget the covenant of the LORD your God which He made with you, and make for yourselves a carved image [pesel פֶּ֖סֶל]  in the form [t’munah תְּמוּנָה] of anything which the LORD your God has forbidden you. “When you beget children and grandchildren and have grown old in the land, and act corruptly and make a carved image in the form of anything, and do evil in the sight of the LORD your God to provoke Him to anger, (Deuteronomy 4:12, 15 16, 23, 25).

As testimony of what we have in store for us, the Psalmist tells us that we will be in God’st’munah (form) when we awake or when we are resurrected. “As for me, I will see Your face in righteousness; I shall be satisfied when I awake in Your likeness, [t’munatkhaתְּמוּנָתֶֽךָ],” (Psalms 17:15). Thus Moses saw God’s form and we shall awake in His likeness (form); t’munah (תְּמוּנָה) is a shape/form of any figure.

Ezekiel’s Vision of God

The prophet Ezekiel tells of a vision he had in chapter one of his book. He describes the visual aspects of a series of creatures which he saw that went wherever the Spirit went.

Now it came to […] that the heavens were opened and I saw visions of God. Then I looked, and behold, a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber, out of the midst of the fire. Also from within it came the likeness  [d’mut דְמוּת] of four living creatures. And this was their appearance [mareihen מַרְאֵֽיהֶ֔ן]: they had the likeness  [d’mut דְמוּת] of a man [adam אָדָ֖ם]. As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, like the appearance of torches going back and forth among the living creatures. The fire was bright, and out of the fire went lightning. And the living creatures ran back and forth, in appearance like a flash of lightning, (Ezekiel 1:1, 4-5, 10-14).

He then describes what he saw above the creatures: “The likeness [d’mut דְמוּת] of the firmament above the heads of the living creatures was like the color of an awesome crystal, stretched out over their heads,” (Ezekiel 1:22). Having described in great detail the appearance or likeness of the creatures Ezekiel then shares that he saw YHWH above the expanse:

And above the firmament over their heads was the likeness of a throne, in appearance like a sapphire stone; on the likeness of the throne was a likeness [k’mareh כְּמַרְאֵ֥ה] with the appearance of a man [adam אָדָ֛ם] high above it. Also from the appearance of His waist and upward I saw, as it were, the color of amber with the appearance of fire all around within it; and from the appearance of His waist and downward I saw, as it were, the appearance of fire with brightness all around. Like the appearance of a rainbow in a cloud on a rainy day, so was the appearance of the brightness all around it. This was the appearance of the likeness of the glory of the LORD. So when I saw it, I fell on my face, and I heard a voice of One speaking, (Ezek 1:26-28).

Verse 26 shows us that the one on the throne (whom we know clearly to be God or the Lord from verse 28) has the appearance of a human. The Hebrew text says “as the likeness of Adam” (k’mareh adam אָדָ֛ם כְּמַרְאֵ֥ה). In other words, God, the one sitting on the throne, looks like Adam. Ezekiel is not making God in man’s image; if we recall Genesis 1:26-27, it is man who was made in God’s image. Thus, Ezekiel tells us that God has the appearance like Adam which is really to say that man (Adam) has the appearance or image of God.

Ezekiel has another encounter with this person of fire in Ezekiel 8:2.

Then I looked, and there was a likeness, like the appearance of fire [Septuagint reads “man” [vii] ] -from the appearance of His waist and downward, fire; and from His waist and upward, like the appearance of brightness, like the color of amber. (Ezekiel 8:2)

We know that this also is God due to the fact that in the following verses “He” speaks in the first person and declares the He is the one who is being provoked and will also judge.

And He said to me, “Have you seen this, O son of man? […] then they have returned to provoke Me to anger. […] Therefore I also will act in fury. My eye will not spare nor will I have pity; and though they cry in My ears with a loud voice, I will not hear them,” (Ezekiel 8:17-18)

One like the Son of Man

This “man” of fire is the same as the one that we see revealed in the book of Revelation as the one who says that He “lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore.” He is also described as the “Son of Man” which is the Hebrew way to say “human”.

Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I saw seven golden lampstands, and in the midst of the seven lampstands One like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head and hair were white like wool [like Daniel 7:9], as white as snow, and His eyes like a flame of fire; His feet were like fine brass, as if refined in a furnace, and His voice as the sound of many waters; He had in His right hand seven stars, out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword, and His countenance was like the sun shining in its strength. And when I saw Him, I fell at His feet as dead. But He laid His right hand on me, saying to me, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death, (Revelation 1:12-18).

All of the evidence points out that man looks like God. Certainly God is infinitely far above His creation, but nevertheless, He has made us look like Him. One day we will be like Him (Psalm 17:15, 1 John 3:2 etc) in that we too will glow and have the fiery aspect as well.

A Spiritual Body

Nevertheless, how can this be when we are told so clearly in John 4 that God is spirit? How can God have a shape or form? We need to turn to I Corinthians 15 where Paul makes it clear that in the world to come we will not be bodiless but we will have a new kind of body. This body here, which Adam was originally made of, was made of dirt. That is to say, he was a carbon-based life form and literally had an earthly body. However, the heavenly body will be of a different nature and not limited like the carbon-based or dirt-based earthly one we have here and now. Paul responds to the question that was raised “How are the dead raised? With what kind of body do they come?” (I Corinthians 15:35) by giving an in depth exposé of the various types of bodies (humans, animals, birds, fish, and natural and spiritual) and what our new bodies will be like.

What you sow does not come to life unless it dies. And what you sow is not the body that is to be, but a bare kernel, perhaps of wheat or of some other grain. But God gives it a body as he has chosen, and to each kind of seed its own body. For not all flesh is the same, but there is one kind for humans, another for animals, another for birds, and another for fish. There are heavenly bodies and earthly bodies, but the glory of the heavenly is of one kind, and the glory of the earthly is of another. There is one glory of the sun, and another glory of the moon, and another glory of the stars; for star differs from star in glory, (1Corinthians 15:35-41).

Paul makes a series of important revelations concerning how Jesus is and how we will be upon resurrection. He starts by saying that there are first of all different kinds of flesh; animal, fish, human and then he divides between heavenly and earthly.

So is it with the resurrection of the dead. What is sown is perishable; what is raised is imperishable. It is sown in dishonor; it is raised in glory. It is sown in weakness; it is raised in power. It is sown a natural body; it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body, (I Corinthians 15:42-44).

Paul is showing the parallels between the earthly body and the spiritual body. Just because our future body will not be made of dirt does not mean that it is not tangible. On the contrary, our future body will be tangible, touchable and permanent.

Thus it is written, “The first man Adam became a living being”; the last Adam became a life-giving spirit. But it is not the spiritual that is first but the natural, and then the spiritual. The first man was from the earth, a man of dust; the second man is from heaven. As was the man of dust, so also are those who are of the dust, and as is the man of heaven, so also are those who are of heaven. Just as we have borne the image of the man of dust, we shall also bear the image of the man of heaven, (I Corinthians 15:45-49).

Here we learn that just as we were in Adam’s likeness (bodily) so too will we bear the image of Jesus (bodily).

I tell you this, brothers: flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God, nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable. Behold! I tell you a mystery. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed. For this perishable body must put on the imperishable, and this mortal body must put on immortality. When the perishable puts on the imperishable, and the mortal puts on immortality, then shall come to pass the saying that is written: “Death is swallowed up in victory,” (I Corinthians 15:42-54) [viii]

Paul’s bottom line is that spiritual doesn’t mean nebulous or bodiless. It simply means having a body but in the spiritual dimension (to be discussed in a later chapter). The resurrected body of Jesus seems to be the paradigm for what ours will be like. His resurrected body is a body that is not subject to sin, corruption, decomposition, decay or death. It can walk through walls and exist in the spiritual realm and yet enter into this one and eat and drink at will. If Jesus is the paradigm, then that means that we will have a similar if not exactly parallel body. Paul states that our new self is in God’s likeness: “and that you put on the new man which was created according to God, in true righteousness and holiness,” (Ephesians 4:24).

Conformed to His Body

Paul is even more specific in the book of Philippians where he states that our bodies will be conformed to His body. Our existence in the world to come will not be a soul without a body, but we will have a body that is even more real and tangible than our current body. It just won’t be made of the dirt that we are made of now. We will be made of “spirit” and that will be like the Lord Jesus Himself!

Who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which He is able even to subdue all things to Himself, (Philippians 3:21).

John corroborates this in his first epistle when he states: “when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is,” (1 John 3:2). What we learn is God is spirit and of course He is not earthly – He is not composed of dirt; His essence is spirit (and uncreated). However, that is not to say that he is bodiless; He has a spiritual body and made man after Himself. Our body is a reflection or shadow of what His is. The heavenly realm according to Scripture is the original and things here on this earth are more or less a copy. We read in Hebrews 8:5 concerning the priests,

Who serve the copy and shadow of the heavenly things, as Moses was divinely instructed when he was about to make the tabernacle. For He said, “See that you make all things according to the pattern shown you on the mountain,” (Hebrews 8:5).

In fact, every place where God is seen in a vision in the Bible He has traits that we would associate with a body. In addition to the revealing text from Ezekiel 1, there are several other texts in which something of the form or shape of God is described.

Then Moses went up, also Aaron, Nadab, and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Israel, and they saw the God of Israel. And there was under His feet as it were a paved work of sapphire stone, and it was like the very heavens in its clarity. But on the nobles of the children of Israel He did not lay His hand. So they saw God, and they ate and drank, (Exodus 24:9-11).

Here we have the same reference to the sapphire stone as we saw in Ezekiel 1:26. Here it appears that only His feet are visible, but that is significant. If we interpret this text straightforwardly, we must conclude that Moses and the elders actually saw God including His feet. Could it be that the text means just what it says? The Prophet Micaiah in 2 Chronicles 18:18 describes what he saw ” Therefore hear the word of the LORD: I saw the LORD sitting on His throne, and all the hosts of heaven standing on His right hand and His left.” From this we learn that God sits. While we can surmise that God doesn’t need to sit due to fatigue like human kings, His body is seen in a sitting position upon His throne. This is also seen by both Isaiah and Daniel:

• I saw the Lord sitting on a throne, high and lifted up, and the train of His robe filled the temple, (Isaiah 6:1).
• I watched till thrones were put in place, and the Ancient of Days was seated; His garment was white as snow, and the hair of His head was like pure wool. His throne was a fiery flame, its wheels a burning fire, (Daniel 7:9).

Daniel sees even more than Isaiah. He notes that the Ancient of Days was seated and also that His garments were white as snow and the hair of His head was like pure wool. Not only is God sitting but He has hair upon His head. Often scholars have sought to explain these descriptions away by interpreting them figuratively or by claiming that the Biblical authors are using anthropomorphic language (see for example John Gill; Daniel 7:9). However, this inpterpretation breaks down under closer inspection. After all, we have seen that Ezekiel says that he saw the appearance like “Adam” seated on the throne. Certainly, God is far greater than we can understand, but His basic form or silhouette does not seem to be truly in question. He exists as a spiritual body. Can we completely understand that? No. But the general idea is simple enough to grasp. Apparently scholars are zealous to guard God’s character; they perhaps fear that if the language of God’s hands, feet, head and hair were taken too literally it might lead people to reduce God into man’s image. But as we have already explored, just the opposite is true; God has created Adam and humanity in His image and likeness (see appendix four concerning the triune nature of God and how He could be seen). We were created perfectly in God’s image and likeness (what He looks like and how he acts) but the fall of sin corrupted that image. When Adam and Eve listened to the cunning words of the serpent they died immediately and yet it took Adam 930 years to finally succumb to death – how can both be true?  We will answer that in our next installment.

Something ominous is coming upon the world:it is Satan’s final effort in the battle to destroy the image that man was created in, which has been raging since the beginning of time. If Satan can destroy the image, then he can avert his own destruction. [Editor’s note: All notations will be cited in the final report. The information is based on research contained in Douglas Hamp’s new book: Corrupting the Image: Satan’s War to Destroy the Image of God] God created man in His own image and likeness; when man sinned that image was corrupted, but not lost. However, as a result man cannot be with God in person since man’s genetic code (and spiritual composition) has been compromised (or corrupted). God sent His Son to give his life to correct the genetic (and moral) problem through the cross; the correction will be ultimately fulfilled when we receive our new bodies. However, there has also been a move on the enemy’s part to completely destroy what is left of the image. The principle verse of this book is found in the declaration of Genesis 3:15: her seed brought forth the Savior; Satan’s seed will bring the Destroyer. In other words, the serpent will one day mix his seed as a counterfeit of the incarnation (subsequent chapters will demonstrate this). Our aim therefore is to fully investigate the prophecy from the pages of the Bible, from a genetics perspective, from a historical perspective and finally its end times impact.

When the Image Was Corrupted

The story begins in the Garden of Eden and ends with the Lord’s second coming. Immediately after the sin of Adam and Eve, God declared that there would be hatred between the serpent and the woman. And I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your seed [זַרְעֲךָ] andher seed [זַרְעָהּ]; He shall bruise [יְשׁוּפְךָ] your head, and you shall bruise [תְּשׁוּפֶנּוּ] His heel, (Genesis 3:15). This statement is often called the proto-Gospel in that it is the first declaration by God that He will make a way for man to be saved and for the devil to be destroyed. It not only speaks of good news for humans and bad news for Satan, but also tells us something about how that redemption will be played out and how Satan has and will try to subvert God’s plans. God specifically declared that there would be hatred between Satan’s seed and the seed of the woman and that “He”, the offspring of her seed (Jesus) would strike the serpent [on] the head and that Satan would strike His heel. “Her seed” became a reality through the Lord Jesus and therefore, consistent Bible interpretation means that “your seed” (that is Satan’s seed) will be fulfilled in like manner. Ever since the fall in the Garden and in a manner similar to the virgin birth of Jesus, Satan has been trying to find a way for “his seed” to become a reality. He almost succeeded in the days of Noah when the sons of God (fallen angels) came down and took women as wives and engendered a race called the Nephilim, which were genetic hybrids (Genesis 6). The Nephilim were on the earth again and had overrun the land of Canaan while the children of Israel were in Egypt. Daniel spoke of a time when 10 kings would mingle (hybridize) themselves with the seed of men (Daniel 2:43). Lastly Jesus said that the last days would be like the conditions before the flood (Matthew 24:37). According to the Genesis prophecy, Satan will one day mix his seed with humanity to bring forth the Antichrist as a counterfeit of the incarnation of Jesus.

The Promised Seeds

We can be confident that the “seed of the woman” is referring to the Messiah by the personal pronoun “he” (Hebrew: הוּא). This is not just talking collectively about mankind versus Satan (the serpent cf. Revelation 20:2) but rather is referring to what the Messiah would do to the work of Satan. This interpretation is testified to by many ancient Jewish and Christian commentators and modern scholars as well. Bible commentator Thomas Constable articulates well the importance of this most ancient of prophecies: This is a prophecy of the victory of the ultimate “Seed” of the woman (Messiah) over Satan (cf. Rev. 19:1-5; Gal. 3:16, 19; Heb. 2:14; 1 John 3:8). Most interpreters have recognized this verse as the first biblical promise of the provision of salvation (the protoevangelium or “first gospel”). The rest of the book, in fact the whole Old Testament, proceeds to point ahead to that seed […] When that ‘seed’ is crushed, the head of the snake is crushed. Consequently more is at stake in this brief passage than the reader is at first aware of. A program is set forth. A plot is established that will take the author far beyond this or that snake and his ‘seed.’ It is what the snake and His ‘seed’ represent that lies at the center of the author’s focus. With that ‘one’ lies the ‘enmity’ that must be crushed, (Constable, Genesis 3:15, emphasis mine). [i] The Targum of Pseudo Jonathan, what we might think of as an ancient Jewish commentary [ii], says that this will take place in the days of Messiah: “and they shall make a remedy for the heel in the days of the King Meshiha.” The Targum of Onkelos, another ancient commentary of sorts, understood that both the serpent (Satan) and the woman would each have a son of promise: And I will put enmity between thee and between the woman, and between thy son andher son. He will remember thee, what thou didst to him (at) from the beginning, and thou shalt be observant unto him at the end, (Targum Onkelos Genesis 3:15, emphasis mine). From these two ancient sources we can understand that the remedy for the striking of the heel will center on the Messiah and also that her seed is referring to a son who is connected with Eve. [iii] However, “thy son”, is a reference to Satan’s son who, according to hermeneutical consistency, must also be a genetic descendant. Early Church Father Iranaeus, in his book Against Heresies, identified Jesus as the seed of the woman and antichrist as the seed of the serpent who would be trampled down by the Messiah: He, the sole of whose foot should be bitten, having power also to tread upon the enemy’s head; but the other biting, killing, and impeding the steps of man, until the seed did come appointed to tread down his head, — which was born of Mary, of whom the prophet speaks: “Thou shalt tread upon the asp and the basilisk; thou shalt trample down the lion and the dragon;” (Psa 91:13) — indicating that sin, which was set up and spread out against man, and which rendered him subject to death, should be deprived of its power, along with death, which rules [over men]; and that the lion, that is, antichrist, rampant against mankind in the latter days, should be trampled down by Him; and that He should bind “the dragon, that old serpent” (Rev 20:2) and subject him to the power of man, who had been conquered (Luke 10:19) so that all his might should be trodden down.  [iv] Note that Iranaeus identified the dragon of Psalm 91:13 (Hebrew tannin) as Satan in accord with Revelation 20:2 (“the dragon, that serpent of old, who is the Devil and Satan”). However, he also identified the Antichrist who would come in the last days. Thus he sees in Genesis 3:15 both a reference to Satan’s ultimate demise and to the ones who come in Satan’s power. He later wrote concerning the incarnation of the Lord: “And the Lord summed up in Himself this enmity, when He was made man from a woman, and trod upon his [the serpent’s] head.” [v] The renowned commentators Keil and Delitzsch note that through Jesus’ incarnation, which will be through the seed of the woman, Adam can be restored to his original state. This spiritual seed culminated in Christ, in whom the Adamic family terminated, henceforward to be renewed by Christ as the second Adam, and restored by Him to its original exaltation and likeness to God. In this sense Christ is the seed of the woman, […] (Keil and Delitzsch Genesis 3:15 emphasis mine). Bible commentator Adam Clarke demonstrates his conviction that the serpent was in fact actuated by Satan and that the seed of the woman was the Lord Jesus. it is evident that Satan, who actuated this creature, is alone intended in this part of the prophetic declaration. […] the seed of the woman; the person is to come by the woman, and by her alone, without the concurrence of man. […] and it was in consequence of this purpose of God that Jesus Christ was born of a virgin; this, and this alone, is what is implied in the promise of the seed of the woman bruising the head of the serpent. (Clarke, Genesis 3:15).

The Bottom Line

We have seen that both Jewish and Christian interpreters are convinced that the reference to her seed found its culmination in the Messiah. We can write out the elements of Genesis 3:15 in the following way:

1. Enmity between Satan (serpent) and Eve
2. Enmity between Satan’s (your) seed and her seed (Christ)
3. Christ (He) will bruise Satan’s head
4. Satan (you) would bruise Christ’s (his) heel

We glean the following from the points above:

1. Enmity = antithetical, opposite, converse, contradictory
2. If “her seed” equals Christ, then “your seed” must be its antithesis, thus: antichrist
3. ”her seed” (Christ) is superior to “your seed” (Antichrist)
4. “your seed” (Antichrist) is inferior to “her seed” (Christ)

Point number two is the most significant of the four; her seed did in fact result in the incarnation of the Lord Jesus. Before we can adequately understand what is meant by “your seed” we must first see that Scripture clearly states that Jesus’ incarnation would be a union of the seed of the woman (Mary’s seed) and that of the Holy Spirit. Unraveling the Deception In order to unravel the deception that is now unfolding in the world, we must go back to the beginning; we must first grasp what Adam was like when he was created, what he lost both spiritually and genetically and how corruption through disobedience has caused us to be separated from God. From there we will be able to plumb the depths of the promise that the Seed of the Woman would bring redemption for man and with that in mind we will see how God will restore His perfect image in the believer via the new birth through the Seed of the Woman. Once we have understood the implications of the Seed of the Woman then we will focus on how Satan has been attempting to destroy the image of God throughout history (as described in the Bible and confirmed by extra-biblical evidence) and how he plans on imitating and counterfeiting God’s redemptive work in the ultimate hybrid of all time whom the Bible calls “the Beast” (Antichrist). Satan’s plan is already well underway and will be accomplished in part via transhumanism and the “alien” deception. These have both been made possible through the teaching of the theory of evolution which, at its core, denies there is a God – Satan has used this denial to pave the way philosophically for the acceptance of going to the next level of humanity and because man denies God, he believes he ought to continue evolving. The transhumanist movement boasts that man can direct his own destiny through the rewriting of his DNA code. Transhumanists seek to make man into gods by directing his own evolution. Rather than accepting that God originally created Man in His image and man is now fallen, but (through Jesus) will be restored to that original and unfallen image, the transhumanist insists that man can do it himself. In fact, Transhumanist Richard Seed audaciously declared: “We are going to become Gods, period […]” [vi] Man is ready to forsake the image of the Creator that created him. Satan will use man’s desire to be his own god to deceive him into believing the ultimate lie – that his fallen messengers are both the creators and saviors of man. He will not do this openly but will deceive mankind through demons which are masquerading as ”aliens” who are spreading the message that the inhabitants of the earth can evolve to be like them and obtain transcendent powers. Finally, the seed of the Serpent will come; he will be a man who will be greater than his fellows, who will understand sinister schemes and shall rise up and become the Antichrist.

Click here to read other articles from Corrupting the Image

The New Age and Alien Channelers often speak of bodies of light that the other-worldly beings possess.  The truth is, however, that bodies of light were first spoken of in the Bible. In this post we will examine the many places Scripture speaks of bodies of light and how our DNA emits light. Understanding the truth will again help us to spot the demonic deception that is coming in these last days.

We have seen that Adam was created in God’s image and likeness which includes the appearance of God. We can deduce more of how Adam was before the Fall and also how we shall be upon resurrection from the teaching of the Lord Jesus. We first note that while up by Cesarea Philippi Jesus took the disciples Peter, James and John to the top of Mount Hermon. [i] “And He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and His clothes became as white as the light [phos φως],” (Matthew 17:2). Jesus’ clothes were not only white, but they were

literally white as light, which is the Greek word φως phos from which we get the word photo or photon. In other words, the light of Jesus, Who is the source of that light, emanated through His clothing. When the end of the tribulation draws to a close the Lord Jesus will return to earth on a horse and those who have trusted in Him will return with Him. Speaking of the called out ones (believers in Jesus) John notes in Revelation: “And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright [lampron λαμπρον], for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints,” (Revelation 19:8).

We see from this verse that the covering will be bright or luminous. The Greek word λαμπρον lampron signifies bright or shining. The Liddell, Scott and Jones Classical Greek Lexicon defines it as “bright, radiant, of the sun and stars”. Thus, when we occupy our heavenly or celestial bodies we will also be enveloped in or clothed in garments of light. Jesus confirmed this reality when he said concerning the righteous in the world to come: “Then the righteous will shine forth [eklampo ἐκλάμπω] as the sun in the kingdom of their Father,” (Matthew 13:43). The same was revealed to Daniel concerning the resurrection of the righteous. The Septuagint (LXX) version uses the same word as is found in Matthew 13 above, which is also related to the garments in Revelation 19:8.

Those who are wise shall shine [LXX: eklampo ἐκλάμπω, Heb. יַזְהִ֖רוּ] like the brightness [LXX: lamprotes λαμπρότης] of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever, (Daniel 12:3).

This truth was revealed as far back as the time of Judges when Deborah, Barak and Abinoam sang: “Thus let all Your enemies perish, O LORD! But let those who love Him be like the sun when it comes out in full strength.” (Judges 5:31a). This is further evidenced in the book of Proverbs “But the path of the just is like the shining sun, that shines ever brighter unto the perfect day,” (Proverbs 4:18). If we recall that Jesus said that in the resurrection we will be like the angels, then taking a look at them and how they are radiant beings shows us that we too shall be like that. This is also the conclusion of Bible commentator Arthur Pink when he states in his book The Doctrine of Revelation:

So far from regarding his soul as a mysterious, nebulous and indefinable thing, the believer looks upon it as a living, intelligent, sentient being—his real self. We should view a disembodied soul as one which has cast off its earthly clothing and is now appareled in a garment of light, or, to use the language of Scripture, “clothed in white raiment” (Revelation 3:5; 4:4). At death the soul of the saint is freed from all the limitations which sin had imposed upon it, and its faculties are then not only purified, but elevated and enlarged. [ii]

There are many verses that reference the angels’ glorious appearance. We of course recall that the angels shone in the night sky at the announcement of the birth of the awaited Messiah in Luke 2:9. The root word in that passage is perilampo (περιλάμπω), meaning “to shine around”, which is simply a derivative of lampo, “to shine”. In Luke 24:4 we read that there were two men (or angels) who stood by the tomb in “shining garments” (astrapto ἀστράπτω, like what a star does). This same word for shining is used to describe lightning as it shines from one part of heaven to the other according to Luke 17:24.

Perhaps the most telling examples of what angels look like and how we will look are found in Daniel and Revelation. In Daniel chapter ten, Daniel tells us of a vision in which he saw an angel (who was detained by the prince of Persia and thus could not be Jesus) and how he had a shining appearance.

I lifted my eyes and looked, and behold, a certain man clothed in linen, whose waist was girded with gold of Uphaz! His body was like beryl, his face like the appearance of lightning, his eyes like torches of fire, his arms and feet like burnished bronze in color, and the sound of his words like the voice of a multitude, (Daniel 10:5, 6).

John also saw shining angels in the book of Revelation. The angels were clothed in linen that was shining (lampron λαμπρον). “And out of the temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in pure bright [lampron λαμπρον] linen, and having their chests girded with golden bands,” (Revelation 15:6). We can therefore conclude that our future “clothing” is in the likeness of how God is clothed in light according to Psalm 104:1-2 and because Adam was created in His image then Adam must have lost the light at the fall. “You are clothed with splendor and majesty, covering yourself with light as with a garment, stretching out the heavens like a tent,” (Psalm 104:1-2).

Supported by Ancient Jewish Interpretation

What is fascinating is that Jewish interpretation held that Adam and Eve were at first clothed in garments of light and then later clothed in garments of skin. The Midrash Rabbah (Rabbinic literature from the first or second century AD) of Genesis 3:21 reads,

AND THE LORD GOD MADE FOR ADAM AND HIS WIFE GARMENTS OF SKIN [‘or עֹור], AND CLOTHED THEM (III, 21). In R. Meir’s Torah it was found written, ‘Garments of light (or)’ this refers to Adam’s garments, which were like a torch, broad at the bottom and narrow at the top.

The Soncino Zohar of Bereshith, though a medieval (Jewish) writing, describes in even greater detail how the rabbis interpreted the original garments of Adam and Eve:

AND THE EYES OF BOTH OF THEM WERE OPENED. R. Hiya says, their eyes were opened to the evil of the world, which they had not known hitherto. Then they knew that they were naked, since they had lost the celestial lustre which had formerly enveloped them, and of which they were now divested. AND THEY SEWED FIG LEAVES. They strove to cover themselves with the (delusive) images from the tree of which they had eaten, the so-called “leaves of the tree”. AND THEY MADE THEMSELVES GIRDLES. […] Afterwards God clothed Adam and Eve in garments soothing to the skin, as it is written, HE MADE THEM COATS OF SKIN [‘or עֹור]. At first they had had coats of light [‘or אֹור], which procured them the service of the highest of the high, for the celestial angels used to come to enjoy that light; so it is written, “For thou hast made him but little lower than the angels, and crownest him with glory and honour” (Ps. VIII, 6). Now after their sins they had only coats of skin [‘or עֹור], good for the body but not for the soul, (emphasis mine). [iii]

The (Soncino) Zohar, chapter Shemoth (Exodus) further comments on how Adam was originally clothed with light [‘or אֹור] so that he could be in the garden; if he had not had that, the text suggests that he could not have been in God’s presence.

Adam in the Garden of Eden was attired in supernal raiment, of celestial radiancy. As soon as he was driven from the Garden of Eden and had need of forms suited to this world, “the Lord God”, Scripture says, “made for Adam and for his wife garments of skin [‘or עֹור] and clothed them” (Gen. III, 21). Formerly they were garments of light [‘or אֹור], to wit, of the celestial light in which Adam ministered in the Garden of Eden. For, inasmuch as it is the resplendency of the celestial light that ministers in the Garden of Eden, when first man entered into the Garden, the Holy One, blessed be He, clothed him first in the raiment of that light. Otherwise he could not have entered there. When driven out, however, he had need of other garments; hence “garments of skin, (emphasis mine). [iv]

The Jewish apocryphal work of the Life of Adam and Eve, written sometime between the third and fifth century A.D. records the belief many held concerning the original state of Adam and Eve before their fall.

But as they [Adam and Eve] were going in the way, and before they reached that place, Satan, the wicked one, had heard the Word of God communing with Adam respecting his covering. […] Then came the Word of God to Adam and Eve, and said to them, “This is he who was hidden in the serpent, and who deceived you, and stripped you of the garment of light and glory in which you were. This is he who promised you majesty and divinity. Where, then, is the beauty that was on him? Where is his divinity? Where is his light? Where is the glory that rested on him? Now his figure is hideous; he is become abominable among angels; and he has come to be called Satan. [v]

Confirmed by Ancient Christian Interpretation

The understanding that Adam and Eve were once clothed in light before their fall is not only confirmed by the ancient Jews but also hinted at by the ancient Christians in what they have to say concerning the celestial bodies that are awaiting the believer. Church Father Arnobius, in his work Against Heathens writes in the notes the following about what believers have to look forward to:

But let us not reason from things terrestrial as regards things celestial: our coarse material fabrics are “shadows of the true.” The robes of light are realities, and are conformed to spiritual bodies, as even here a mist may envelop a tree. [vi]

Methodius, another church father says the following concerning the light that we shall be clothed with. He derives his comments from Isaiah 60 which speaks of the future messianic kingdom in which Israel will be in the center. He envisions what a body completely free from sin and corruption will be like. He writes:

Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the Lord is risen upon thee. […] It is the Church whose children shall come to her with all speed after the resurrection, running to her from all quarters. She rejoices receiving the light which never goes down, and clothed with the brightness of the Word as with a robe. For with what other more precious or honourable ornament was it becoming that the queen should be adorned, to be led as a Bride to the Lord, when she had received a garment of light, and therefore was called by the Father? Come, then, let us go forward in our discourse, and look upon this marvelous woman as upon virgins prepared for a marriage, pure and undefiled, perfect and radiating a permanent beauty, wanting nothing of the brightness of light; and instead of a dress, clothed with light itself; and instead of precious stones, her head adorned with shining stars. For instead of the clothing which we have, she had light; and for gold and brilliant stones, she had stars; but stars not such as those which are set in the invisible heaven, but better and more resplendent, so that those may rather be considered as their images and likenesses, (emphasis mine). [vii]

The second century Christian document, the Revelation of Peter, written after 135 AD affords us a wonderful commentary as to what undoubtedly many Christians believed had happened and would come to pass. Again, we do not look at such texts as inspired of God, but as early Christian commentary on the Scriptures. Concerning the resurrected believers, the text states:

There appeared two men standing before the Lord […] upon whom we were not able to look. For there issued from their countenance a ray as of the sun, and their raiment was shining so as the eye of man never saw the like: for no mouth is able to declare nor heart to conceive the glory wherewith they were clad and the beauty of their countenance. Whom when we saw we were astonished, for their bodies were whiter than any snow and redder than any rose. And the redness of them was mingled with the whiteness, and, in a word, I am not able to declare their beauty. […]These are your (our) righteous brethren whose appearance ye did desire to see. […] the dwellers in that place were clad with the raiment of shining angels, and their raiment was like unto their land, (emphasis mine). [viii]

Note that the writer of this document believed that the resurrected saints would literally emit light from their bodies just as we have seen from numerous Scriptures. The writer identifies the two saints as Moses and Elias (Elijah). He also sees the shining analogous to the colors of a rainbow just like the colors that surround God in Ezekiel 1:28.

‘The Son at his coming will raise the dead . . . and will make my righteous ones shine seven times more than the sun, and will make their crowns shine like crystal and like the rainbow in the time of rain (crowns) which are perfumed with nard and cannot be contemplated (adorned) with rubies, with the colour of emeralds shining brightly, with topazes, gems, and yellow pearls that shine like the stars of heaven, and like the rays of the sun, sparkling which cannot be gazed upon.’ Again, of the angels: ‘ Their faces shine more than the sun; their crowns are as the rainbow in the time of rain. […] Their eyes shine like the morning star. […] Their raiment is not woven, but white as that of the fuller, according as I saw on the mountain where Moses and Elias were. [ix]

There seems to be little doubt that the early Church interpreted the resurrected bodies of the believers to be such that they would emit light and shine like the sun. Given that Jesus came as the second Adam and that we are in the corrupted image of the first Adam, we can infer that when God made the first Adam (in an uncorrupted state), that Adam must have radiated light in a manner similar to our resurrection bodies.

Biophotons

Remembering that man is in the image of God will serve as a clue to answer our question as to the origin of the light and with a bit of logic we will see that the light must come from God’s essence. Returning to Ezekiel 1 we recall that the prophet saw: “a whirlwind was coming out of the north, a great cloud with raging fire engulfing itself; and brightness was all around it and radiating out of its midst like the color of amber [khashmal חַשְׁמַ֖ל], out of the midst of the fire,” (Ezekiel 1:4).

We learn in verse 28 that this was the entourage of the Lord Himself, a man of fire, as it were and thus, the light must radiate out from the Lord Himself (and not from His robes, per se). In fact, we are told that specifically “The city had no need of the sun or of the moon to shine in it, for the glory of God illuminated it. The Lamb is its light,” (Revelation 21:23). Isaiah describes the light coming from God as well:

The sun shall no longer be your light by day, Nor for brightness shall the moon give light to you; But the LORD will be to you an everlasting light, And your God your glory. Your sun shall no longer go down, Nor shall your moon withdraw itself; For the LORD will be your everlasting light, And the days of your mourning shall be ended, (Isaiah 60:19-20).

Paul affords us this insight into what we shall become: “to put on the new man who has been created in God’s image – in righteousness and holiness that comes from truth,” (Ephesians 4:24 NET).

Our new man has been created in God’s image – imagine that! We, as new creations are in the image of the One who made us! Paul states that Jesus is the image of God: “He is the image [eicon εικον (icon)] of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation,” (Colossians 1:15 NET). Then he states that we are in that image using the same Greek word eicon (εικον) “and have been clothed with the new man that is being renewed in knowledge according to the image [eicon εικον] of the one who created it,” (Colossians 3:10 NET). We must not forget, however, that Adam was originally created in the image of God. Thus if in our new man we will be like God (not be God in all of his glory, but like Him!), then we must conclude that when God made Adam in His image (the Septuagint translates the Hebrew tselem צֶ֥לֶם as eicon εικον) and likeness, Adam emitted light in a way similar to God. Since we will have bodies of light once our image is fully restored, so too Adam must have had that covering of light before his fall into corruption. There appears to be no difference between Adam in his pre-fall state and we in our heavenly state as far as our bodies are concerned. Nevertheless, there will be one enormous difference: Adam could have refrained from sinning and so have enjoyed the bliss of the Lord’s presence. However, he never would have known the depths to which God was willing to humble Himself to buy back his creation. As redeemed sons of God, we and Adam will now enjoy the bliss of heaven and know full well that we are there because of the mighty sacrifice of our Lord Jesus.

The ultimate deception that Satan so cleverly concocted for the first couple was to entice them to eat the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil in order to become like God when they already were! They looked like God (Exodus 24:9-10, Daniel 7:9, Isaiah 6:1-6, Ezekiel 1:26-28, Revelation 4), they had the Spirit of God and they emanated light like God. Lastly, they were already wise (or prudent) and were not ashamed. Thus, they were perfectly suited to have fellowship with God. When Satan deceived them he suggested things that they already had – the real deception was that they already were like God.

We have seen that Adam being “clothed” with light is a very likely biblical possibility. Now let’s consider just how Adam might have radiated light.

DNA Emits light

Around 1923 Ukrainian Biologist Alexander Gurwitsh discovered that living things such as onions and yeast produced an ultra-weak photon emission according to the Fritz-Albert Popp Institute. [xvi] This discovery was then confirmed independently by Russian scientists around 1950 when they discovered an “ultraweak photon emission” from living organisms. Again, the discovery of photon emission was confirmed independently of the previous finding by Italian nuclear physicists L. Colli, U. Facchini, G. Guidotti and R. Dugnani-Lonati, M Orsenigo in 1955 who “by chance discovered a ‘bioluminescence’ of seedlings,”. They published their finding in an article. Further Measurements on the Bioluminescence of the Seedlings [xvii] even though they did not believe it to be of great consequence.

The fact that DNA emits light is now a well established fact, even if it is relatively unknown to the general public. The Fritz-Albert Popp

Institut discusses the work going on in the field around the world. Independently from each other and driven by different motivations scientific groups in Australia (Quickenden), Germany (Fritz-Albert Popp), Japan (Inaba), and Poland (Slawinski) showed evidence of ultraweak photon emission from biological systems by use of modern single-photon counting systems. [xviii]

Just what is a biophoton? A biophoton is the emission of light from DNA. Dr. Popp and the Marburg group discovered that the “essential source of non-equilibrium biophoton emission is the DNA.” [xix] They define biophotons in the following way:

Biophotons are single quanta being permanently and continuously emitted by all living systems. They are a subject of quantum physics and they display a universal phenomenon attributed to all living systems. [xx]

Researchers from the School of Medicine at Kanazawa University, in Kanazawa, Japan confirm the universality of DNA emitting light. They add that light is not only emitted but also absorbed by living things.

All organic life absorbs, emits and processes light. Biophoton emission or spontaneous ultraweak light emission has been observed from almost all living organisms, with intensities ranging from 10^-19 to 10^-16 W/cm². [xxi]

A recent article published by researcher Daniel Fels discusses the possibility that light appears to be the mode of communication with cells. Fels states the following:

Cells can influence each other without using a molecular signal for the purpose: this means that not all cellular processes are necessarily based on a molecule-receptor recognition. The nonmolecular signals are most probably photons. If so, cells use more than one frequency for information transfer and mutual influence. The effects are manifold, acting positively or negatively on cell growth, correlated growth and energy uptake […] it might be that many cell processes are triggered by photons, (emphasis mine). [xxii]

Adam’s Biophotons

Could biophotons have anything to do with the covering that Adam once had? The answer is arguably yes. From all that we have seen, Adam was covered with light as with a garment, similar to his Creator. We also have seen that the Holy Spirit was indwelling Adam when he was created (see appendix two). Given all of the evidence so far, we can create a picture of what life was like before and after the fall. What life was like before the fall is especially exciting as we will be going back to those Edenic conditions in the age to come. A summary of the points will help us create the composite image of just what Adam was like back then.

• God is light and in Him is no darkness at all (1 John 1:5, Revelation 21:23).
• Jesus transfigured and emitted light (Matthew 17:2).
• Angels emit light (Daniel 10).
• Angels look very similar to God (Dan 7, 10, Ezekiel 1, Matthew 28:3, Revelation 10:1; 22) and can be mistaken for God.
• We will be like the angels in the world to come (Matthew 22:30, Luke 20:36).
• Our bodies will be like God’s (1 John 3:2, Psalm 17:15, Ephesians 4:24, Philippians 3:21, Colossians 3:4, 10; 2 Peter 1:4).
• Sons of God have the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:14).
• Adam was a Son of God (who fell) (Luke 3:38).
• We will be given shining garments (Revelation 19:8).

Thus God created Adam in His image and likeness concerning his general shape (head, shoulders, hands, and feet) plus Adam was emitting light in a manner similar to God and he was also inbreathed with the Spirit of God. We have learned that our DNA not only emits light, but absorbs light as well. It would seem that our DNA is like an electric capacitor which can store tiny amounts of electricity and then discharge it (capacitors do not produce their own energy like a battery). In a similar way, we can speculate that the light that was coming from Adam was not being produced from his own self, but was first absorbed from God and then reemitted, very much like how things glow in the dark.“Glow-in-the-dark objects need to be exposed to light, or charged, in order to glow. The light energizes the phosphors and excites their electrons. As the electrons lose this extra energy, they release it as a light of their own.” [xxiii]

When Adam sinned the Holy Spirit left him and the direct connection to the light source was broken. Thus, the light that is now emitted from living things is not coming from the ultimate light source which is God himself but presumably from the sun. Before his fall, Adam therefore must have emitted large quantities of light, very similar to the angels who have access to God’s light and energy. Thus we are left with the picture that as this light came out of Adam’s very DNA, it would have covered his body in a way similar to the shining of the angels and he was therefore covered with a garment of light.

Moses’ Shining Face

We have apparent evidence of God energizing our DNA with His light when Moses was on the mountain with God for forty days. The Bible says:

Now it was so, when Moses came down from Mount Sinai […] that Moses did not know that the skin of his face shone [פָּנָ֖יו עֹ֥ור קָרַ֛ן] while he talked with Him. So when Aaron and all the children of Israel saw Moses, behold, the skin of his face shone, and they were afraid to come near him. And when Moses had finished speaking with them, he put a veil on his face. But whenever Moses went in before the LORD to speak with Him, he would take the veil off until he came out; and he would come out and speak to the children of Israel whatever he had been commanded. And whenever the children of Israel saw the face of Moses, that the skin of Moses’ face shone, then Moses would put the veil on his face again, until he went in to speak with Him, (Exodus 34:29-30, 33-35).

Moses didn’t realize it, but in his talking with God he had received the light from God. In a manner similar to material that glows after being exposed to a light source, so too did Moses glow after being exposed to the light of God. As we have seen, God is a “man of fire” if you will. Tremendous energy and electricity [xxiv] are radiating out of His being. Light is coming out of the Lord and as Moses spoke face to face with God, that light was absorbed by Moses and then reemitted causing Moses to shine. Moses was apparently in very close proximity to the Lord as the Scriptures say “So the LORD spoke to Moses face to face, as a man speaks to his friend (Exodus 33:11). However, Numbers 12:8 adds another level of closeness between the LORD and Moses. While the English translation reads “face to face”, the Hebrew actually says “mouth to mouth”: I speak with him face to face [pe el pe אֶל־פֶּ֞ה פֶּ֣ה], Even plainly, and not in dark sayings; And he sees the form of the LORD [t’munat YHWH תְמֻנַ֥ת יְהוָ֖ה] (Numbers 12:8 ).

Just how close they were we do not truly know, but the description is sufficient to give us the picture that Moses was in fairly close proximity to God’s face. Nevertheless, God must certainly have remained somewhat veiled, since God Himself said that no one could see his face and live. He must have indicated a complete unveiling of His glory was impossible, but a partial unveiling was possible.

We conclude, therefore, that Adam must have emitted large amounts of light or photons from his DNA. When he sinned, the light that he received from God, the source of the light, was presumably extinguished and the small traces of light that are emitting from our bodies are due to the light of the sun and not from God. Proverbs 13:9 says: “The light of the righteous rejoices, But the lamp of the wicked will be put out,” (see also: Proverbs 20:20, 24:20; Job 18:5, 21:17). I would like to suggest that when a non-believer dies the little bit of internal light that he had (due to the sun) is lost and being completely disconnected from God, his light is extinguished. However, the believer, just like Adam, will have light emitting from his spiritual body (hence “clothed in light”) which is not his own light, but is the absorption and reemission of the Lord’s light and so we will be restored to the true image of our Creator. Let’s see next how the Scriptures demonstrate that Jesus would come as the second Adam to restore in us the uncorrupted image of God.

Click here to read more about Corrupting the Image