While the Bible is indeed God’s Word handed down to Moses on Mount Sinai from YAHWEH Himself, the Scriptures have undergone many manmade revisions to reflect how the names of certain places have changed throughout the centuries.
For example, if I was to tell you that…
“This summer I want to visit ‘The Land of 10,000 Smokes’ for vacation”.
Your response would probably be something like…
“What place?”
“Come again?!”
Because you would have know idea which place I’m talking about.
Well, the answer would be Los Angeles.
Hundreds of years earlier before the Europeans or Mexicans ever settled in that area, L.A. was inhabited by the Chumash Indians and that is what they called it.
However, if I was writing a history book and talking about where the Chumash Indians lived prior to the white man and the Mexicans, I would say “They resided in Los Angeles.” simply because that is the name that everybody in our day and age is familiar with.
Bible redactors have done the same thing.
Look at Genesis 21:34.
“And Abraham stayed in the land of the Philistines for a long time.”
This is obviously a redaction because the Philistines did not immigrate into Canaan until about four centuries later.
So we can see that the Bible editor wanted to use a place name that would be familiar to the people in his time.
These changes occur quite frequently in Scripture.
For example, in the Bible we will encounter a place called Jebus.
This place is actually Jerusalem.
It’s the same place but just being spoken about in two different languages in two different time periods.
A similar transformation also occurred with the name “Jesus”.
First, it was YEHOSHUA.
Then it was shortened to YESHUA.
Afterwards due to Greek influence it became “IESOUS“.
Eventually, due to Latin influence it morphed into “IESUS”.
Next, when the letter “J” was introduced into England during the Norman Invasion, all male names that began with “I” or “Y” were replaced with “J” because it sounded more masculine.
For example, “IAMES” became “JAMES” or “YACOB” became “JACOB“.
And then finally “IESUS” became “JESUS“.
NEXT TIME WE BEGIN GENESIS CHAPTER 22
I think the Land of 10,000 smokes is in Alaska… I can find no reference to it in California.
Hi Lisa,
Thanks for sharing.
Was it in Alasaka? Do you have a reference for that?
Maybe there were two places called the “Land of 10,000 Smokes”.