(More Bible studies available @ www.marktabata.com)
It is written:
Hosea 3:4-For the children of Israel shall abide many days without king or prince, without sacrifice or sacred pillar, without ephod or teraphim.
The religion known as Asatru is the religion which is focused on the gods of the Norse pantheon (such as Odin, Thor, etc.). One interesting aspect of Odinism is in regards to teraphim.
The Hebrew word translated as “teraphim” (often rendered as “idol” or a corresponding term) is used some fifteen times in the Old Testament Scriptures (Genesis 31:19, 34, 35; Judges 17:5; 18:14, 17,18, 20; 1 Samuel 15:23; 19:13, 16; 2 Kings 23:24; Ezekiel 21:21; Hosea 3:4; Zechariah 10:2). The origin and nature of teraphim are very interesting.
Ken Johnson (elaborating on the fascinating book of Jasher) informs us:
“Teraphim The teraphim were idols used in ancestor worship. They were supposed to allow you to communicate with your ancestors at the proper astrological times. My guess is that the teraphim were not a new invention, but a continuation from the pre-flood world. There are two types of teraphim mentioned in the book of Jasher. The first type was created by taking the first born male of the family and cutting off his head. The victim’s head was supposed to retain contact with the departed spirit. With the proper ritual, the mummified head could serve as a conduit to the spirit world, passing information between a family and their ancestor gods. The second type of teraphim was created by constructing an idol of the deceased and was used in the same way. The rituals had to be done at the proper astrological time. The ceremony used candles and other paraphernalia. Laban’ s teraphim were the second type: little gold gods with the astrological tables carved on them, rather than the first type mentioned, the mummified head of a real ancestor. “And this is the manner of the images; in taking a man who is the first born and slaying him and taking the hair off his head, and taking salt and salting the head and anointing it in oil, then taking a small tablet of copper or a tablet of gold and writing the name upon it, and placing the tablet under his tongue, and taking the head with the tablet under the tongue and putting it in the house, and lighting up lights before it and bowing down to it. And at the time when they bow down to it, it speaketh to them in all matters that they ask of it, through the power of the name which is written in it. And some make them in the figures of men, of gold and silver, and go to them in times known to them, and the figures receive the influence of the stars, and tell them future things, and in this manner were the images which Rachel stole from her father, Laban.” Jasher 31: 41-43 In ancient Egypt, Canaan, and other places, archeologists have found communities with bones of infants buried in the walls of most homes. We can see this is connected to the teraphim form of ancestor worship. The ancient pagans believed that contacting the nature spirits helped in their evolution. The magic rites included blood rituals, burning candles, astrology, and idols/ teraphim. The Egyptians had burial grounds for regular Egyptians (Jasher 14: 13 14); but they buried their firstborn children in the walls of their homes. This was the Egyptian form of teraphim. Jasher records that when the death angel killed all the first born in Egypt, the angel also tore the remains of the sacrificed firstborn children out of the walls of the Egyptian houses (Jasher 80: 44-46). This information indicates the plague of the firstborn was directed against the teraphim, showing that the God of Israel was superior to all the so called gods of Egypt, including all their ancestor gods!” (Ken Johnson, Ancient Paganism: The Sorcery Of The Fallen Angels, 54-56 (Kindle Edition))”
The teraphim also have ties with the Norse religion. While researching for my book on Paganism: A Study Course, I learned about the interesting connections to this with the story of the skull of Mimir.
“Mimir is the name of a wise god from whom Odin learned nine spells. It is declared that he was once a full-bodied man that was decapitated. Being desirous of the occult knowledge of Mimir, Odin retained control over Mimir’s head. Using magic spells and various potions, Odin kept the head preserved and used it to speak with the dead. Later, the head of Mimir was deposited into a well. Sometime after this, Odin plucked out one of his eyes (it is not declared which one) and sacrificed it for further occult knowledge at the Well Of Mimir.” (Mark Tabata, Paganism: A Study Course: A Comparison of Christianity, Norse Religion, Buddhism, Wicca, and Reincarnation, 77 (Kindle Edition): Charleston, AR: Cobb Publishing)
Researchers have noticed the commonality of teraphim like beliefs in Norse and other religious beliefs.
“The head of Mimir seems to be the only example of a magical head in Norse lore, but severed heads are a staple of Celtic tradition and may have inspired the Scandinavian story. In Pagan Celtic Britain, Anne Ross devotes an entire chapter to the Cult of the Head. In Gaul, Celtic chieftains would preserve the heads of distinguished enemies in cedar oil and stone heads from ritual sites abound. In the Welsh Mabinogion, on their retreat from the war in Ireland, the gods carried with them the head of Bran the Blessed to advise and prophesy, and finally buried it beneath the Tower of London to guard Britain. The lore of early Ireland includes a number of stories in which placing a severed head in a well causes the well to become magical.” (Diana L. Paxson, Odin: Ecstasy, Runes, & Norse Magic, 226-227 (Kindle Edition); Newburyport, MA; Weiser Books)
The need for Odin to utilize such occult practices reminds us again that he is not truly Divine. Indeed, the evidence is clear that Odin is a demon (i.e., a Nephilim spirit killed during the Flood who was worshiped and deified by humans).
According to recognized Norse scripture:
In the Prose Edda, we find this interesting note: “The lineage of Sif I cannot tell; she was fairest of all women, {p. 7} and her hair was like gold. Their son was Lóridi, who resembled his father; his son was Einridi, his son Vingethor, his son Vingener, his son Móda, his son Magi, his son Seskef, his son Bedvig, his son Athra (whom we call Annarr), his son Ítermann, his son Heremód, his son Skjaldun (whom we call Skjöld), his son Bjáf (whom we call Bjárr), his son Ját, his son Gudólfr, his son Finn, his son Fríallaf (whom we call Fridleifr); his son was he who is named Vóden, whom we call Odin: he was a man far-famed for wisdom and every accomplishment. His wife was Frígídá, whom we call Frigg…. And wherever they went over the lands of the earth, many glorious things were spoken of them, so that they were held more like gods than men.” (Snorri Sturlson, Prose Edda (Translated by Arthur Gilchrist Brodeur), 11 (Kindle Edition)
Ken Johnson tells us about the true origins of Odin:
““Six ancient manuscripts still preserve the linage of the Scandinavian people of Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Iceland, and the Anglo-Saxons…. “These six histories show a combined list of twenty generations from Noah to Odin. Scholars have long noted that the Scandinavians refer to Japheth, Noah’s son, as Sceaf…. “The twentieth generation is Oden or Woden. Oden was the principle ancestor worshiped as a god by the pagan Scandinavians.”. (Ken Johnson, Th.D., Ancient Post-Flood History: Historical Documents That Point To Biblical Creation, 2378-2435 (Kindle Edition)) Later, in explaining the research of the church fathers into these matters, Johnson noted: “In order to spread the gospel, the early church fathers (Lactantius and several others) started researching history books that were already very ancient in t heir time. These included the history books of Herodotus, Strabo, Sanchoniathon, Ennius and others. The church fathers discovered the “gods” were simply deified men. The fathers identified where the “gods” actually ruled, died, and where they were buried…. “What we should take from this history is that, as Christians, we need to find the truth behind the myths and legends of false religions and cults. The church fathers dug up all this history from books already ancient in their time. They wanted to show from the sacred texts of the Greeks and Romans that their gods are simply deified men. Why worship what you know are not gods but just dead men? This information helped Christians take over the pagan Roman Empire. We can use the same method today. If we expose the real history behind the false religions and cults from their own “sacred” texts, we will have a stronger chance to convert unbelievers.” (Ken Johnson, Th.D., Ancient Post-Flood History: Historical Documents That Point To Biblical Creation, 2846-2995 (Kindle Edition)”. (Mark Tabata, Paganism: A Study Course: A Comparison of Christianity, Norse Religion, Buddhism, Wicca, and Reincarnation, 44-45 (Kindle Edition): Charleston, AR; Cobb Publishing)
The use of teraphim in some of the most popular Norse beliefs reminds us again about the origins of the “god” known as Odin.
The eternal God, by contrast, has revealed Himself through nature (Romans 1:18-20) and through the Holy Scriptures (2 Timothy 3:16-17), with several confirmatory evidences.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit, be with you all. Amen.
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