Scripture Reading: Genesis 10:8-12
“And Cush begat Nimrod: he began to be a mighty one in the earth. He was a mighty hunter before the LORD wherefore it is said: ‘Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.’ And the beginning of his kingdom was Babel, and Erech, and Accad, and Calneh, in the land of Shinar.” (Genesis 10;8-10)
Ham had four sons: Cush, Mizraim, Put and Canaan (upon whom the curse of Noah fell) (Genesis 9:25-26). Although the curse did not fall on Cush (it fell on his youngest brother Canaan) Cush, the son of Ham, became a great rebel, and the founder of all apostasy. Every false religion dates back to him, especially Hinduism, Buddhism, and even Islam and some aspects of Christianity (where it has gone astray from the truth) had its origin in the religions founded by Cush.
The rebellion in the heart and life of Cush could have been the result of the anger that he felt towards Noah and his God when Noah, his grandfather, got drunk on his homemade wine. Rashi, the great Jewish rabbi and teacher, comments, “Noah made himself profane, degraded himself. He should have planted anything but the vine.” The Haftorah says that the vine has been the source of much sin and crime among the children of men.
Cush’s rebellion and anger was passed on to his son Nimrod, the mighty hunter and the co-builder of Babylon, together with his father, the founder, and the rest of the non-Semitic people who lived on the plain of Shinar.
It is written of Nimrod, “And Cush begat Nimrod; he began to be a mighty one in the earth” (Genesis 10:8). The Haftorah says, “He acquired dominion and ascendancy by conquest and by the terror he inspired.” Josephus says that he trained young men to ride horses and make sudden attacks on undefended villages and towns, slaughtering the people who resisted him, and carrying off their property. He was a very evil and cruel man. He was the first to train other men in military tactics and warfare. He had a warring spirit.
“He was a mighty hunter before the LORD; wherefore it is said: ‘Like Nimrod a mighty hunter before the LORD.'” (Genesis 10:9)
He was a “mighty hunter” — the literal translation of that is “a hero of the chase.” He began by hunting animals and ended by hunting down human beings. He ruled through terror and power. His kingdom was extended even to the building of Ninevah.
Nimrod, in his apostasy, probably was the instigator of the building of the Tower of Babel which was an outright act of defiance against the God of his grandfather, Noah, and the God of his uncle Shem (who never joined in his apostasy).
Nimrod is the first, early type of the Antichrist. All through the years Satan has tried to rule over the whole world and its people. He is always looking for a man whom he can possess and control who would be his agent for terror, war, and the control of the souls of men. In this century alone, we have seen how Satan has had different men whom he has used to bring mass destruction, men such as Hitler, Mao Tze-Tung, Joseph Stalin, and perhaps even Emperor Hirohito (though he may not have been behind Japan’s aggressive attack on Pearl Harbor).
The true World Ruler will not be an evil, cruel, and destructive man, whose whole life’s aim is to go contrary to the Almighty. He will win the hearts of men through love and through compassion. He loved so greatly, He even died for His creation. And although man’s sin will bring judgment upon man, the outpouring of that judgment will only come after God has done all He can to turn the world around through love.
Satan’s weapons are guns, swords, and bombs.
The Lord’s weapon is LOVE.
When the Kingdom of Heaven is on earth the Lord will reign as King of kings and Lord of lords. It will be a reign of love and mercy. His people will obey Him because they love Him. Now is the time to prepare yourself for that wonderful time when the world will be filled with the Love of God. Only those who have that love will be permitted to rule and reign with Him.
In the Beginning by Gwen Shaw
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