The Religion of Timna

3000 year old fibers found at Timna

(Read more about this discovery in Edom.)

Alice C. Linsley

Seeds produce plants when they fall to the ground. Human semen produces humans. The seed that should fall to the earth is the seed of plants, which spring forth from the earth. The seed of man should fall on his own type (the womb), from which man comes forth. Clement of Alexandria wrote, “Because of its divine institution for the propagation of man, the seed is not to be vainly ejaculated, nor is it to be damaged, nor is it to be wasted” (The Instructor of Children 2:10:91:2 A.D. 191). In the Biblical worldview, onanism represents a violation of the divine order in creation.

This takes us to the strange story of Judah and his cousin wife, a daughter of Shua "a Canaanite" (Gen. 38:1-11). Shua's daughter bore Judah two sons: Er and Onan. The name Onan is Onn (Heliopolis), a Horite shrine on the Nile. Joseph married Asenath, the daughter of the "priest of Onn" (Gen. 41:45). It is likely that Joseph’s brother Judah also married into this prestigious priestly line. The first born of Shua was Er, but Onan was likely the first born of Judah's cousin-wife. If so, she named her firstborn after her father, following the custom of the Horite Hebrew of Edom.

Er was married to Tamar, the daughter of a Horite priest, but he "offended Yahweh and Yahweh killed him."  Following the levirate law, Onan then married Tamar to produce an heir for his dead brother.  Here we encounter a clue that this story is a late interpolation intended to slur the Canaanites. It falls in the same category as the curse of Ham and the incest of Lot.  It clearly represents a time well after the people named in the story because it fails to recognize that Er already had an heir.

That Er's line continued is evident from the appearance of his name.  One of Joshua's sons was a descendant of Er by Joshua's cousin-wife.

Onan's motivation in not impregnating Tamar appears to be the security of his heir by his sister-wife. Tamar was his cousin/niece wife and her firstborn son would ascend to the throne of her father, who isn't named in the Biblical text. Apparently, Onan's spilling of his seed was motivated by fear of a son who might rule in competition to his heir. At this time Horite land holdings were smaller than those of the great Kushite kingdom builders such as Nimrod (Sargon the Great). Evidently, there was greater competition between ruling sons.

Onan's denial of a son to Tamar was serious because the anticipated "Seed" of Genesis 3:15 might come by a cousin/niece wife. Indeed David's ancestry is traced to Tamar and Judah as is that of the Son of God.

The key to understanding this story lies with the identity of Tamar's father.  He appears to have been connected to the shrine of Hathor at Timna. Hathor was the virgin mother of Horus who was called "son of God.'  Here is a celestial archetype to make note of because it is the pattern whereby Abraham's Jewish descendants would come to recognize the identity of Jesus, the only begotten Son of God who was born of the Virgin Mary.

Hathor was the patroness of metal workers. Timna was famous for its copper mines.  It was at the entrance to this shrine that Judah had intercourse with Tamar (Gen. 38:12-30). This strongly suggests that Tamar was the daughter of the Horite ruler-priest at Timna. This suggestion is strengthened by what happened after Judah discovered that Tamar was pregnant. He called for her execution according to the law pertaining to the daughters of priests (Lev. 21:9). She was to be burned alive.

Judah is not presented in a positive light in this story, but Tamar is. Judah ends up praising her initiative whereby she fulfilled the requirement of the law. Judah says about her "She was more righteous than I." (Gen. 38:26)


The Horite Shrine at Timna

Timna is the site of some of the world's oldest copper mines. The mines are at least 6,000 years old and there are newer ones as well, totaling about 10,000 shafts. The oldest mines were worked almost continuously by Kushite and Horite metal working clans until the Roman Period. There are ancient rock carvings showing Kushite warriors in chariots, holding axes and shields. A temple dedicated to Hathor was discovered at the southwestern edge of Mt. Timna by Professor Beno Rothenberg of Hebrew University.

The highlighted circle marks the location of the Hathor Shrine.

The Chalcolithic metal works at Timna were found at the Wadi Nehushtan in the foothills along the western fringe of the southern Arabah Valley. The smelting works, slag and flints at this site were found to be identical to those discovered near Beersheba where Abraham spent much of his time.  The metal workers of Timnah and the metal workers of Beersheba were kin and the patroness of their mining and smelting operations was the mother of Horus who was venerated or worshipped by the Horites. In other words, these were Horite metal workers. In his book Timna, Rothenberg concluded that the peoples living in the area were "partners not only in the work but in the worship of Hathor." (Timna, p. 183)

During the early Iron Age, a Canaanite tent-sanctuary replaced the Hathor temple of the Timna mining area. However, according to Nissim Amzallag, "the metallurgical character of this shrine was maintained."

Tumulus of a pregnant woman found at Timna.

So it appears that Judah brought forth twin sons by the daughter of the priest of Timna, one of the oldest Horite shrines known to exist outside of Kush. She was a woman of high social rank whose people patterned every aspect of their lives on the celestial archetype of God Father (Re) and God Son (Horus). They believed that Horus was born at the winter solstice because from that day forward the Sun grows in strength. The ancient Egyptian ritual involved placing a male baby before the image of Hathor, and the "divine son" was presented with gifts by the priests.

The Horites observed the death of Horus in a 5-day festival. The first 3 days were marked by solemnity (as Plutarch noted in Isis and Osiris, 69). The last 2 days were a time of feasting and rejoicing. Horus is said to have died on the 17th of Athyr. His death was commemorated by the planting of grain. On the third day, the 19th of Athyr, there was a celebration of Horus’ rising. It is no coincidence that Jesus alludes to the Horite narrative when describing his passion and resurrection. “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone; but if it dies, it bears much fruit." (John 12:24) He identifies himself as the "Seed" of Genesis 3:15.

The Horite Hebrew believed in the "second death" (Rev. 21:8) and prayed that this would be avoided. They offered sacrifice for and prepared the bodies of their dead in the hope that their bodies might rise to life at a future time.


Related reading: Timna Valley Mines Linked to House of David; The Afro-Asiatic Metalworkers; The Peoples of Canaan; Edom and the Horites;  The Ra-Horus-Hathor Narrative; Joseph and Judah as Instruments of Deliverance; Jacob Dunn on Timna

Gene Robinson on the Bible

Alice C. Linsley


The gay activist and Episcopal Bishop Gene Robinson has been making the circuit of universities and seminaries. He delivered a speech on March 30 at Emory University titled “Why Religion Matters in the Quest for Gay Civil Rights.” In an interview about that speech, Robinson made these claims:

1. "..beliefs about homosexuality amongst Jews and Muslims and Christians are actually affecting the secular debate over gay civil rights. If you factored out the religious opposition to our civil rights, I think we would be there..."

2. "..what I perceive in the secular movement towards equal rights for gay folk is that we have an instance where the state is impinging on the secular society."

Robinson insists that progressive Christians need to "rescue" the Bible from the religious right. He is quoted here as saying, "It will take religious people and religious voices to undo the harm that has been done by religious institutions … It’s time to start demanding separation of church and state."

Now there's clear thinking! The religious right holds the Bible captive and the solution is to separate church and state. Could someone clarify this for me?

Robinson attacked anti-gay arguments based on the Bible, citing the example of eating pork and wearing two types of cloth as also being classed as "abominations". He obviously does not understand that the first restriction pertains to ritual purity and the second pertains to the binary reasoning of the biblical Hebrew from whom we receive belief in God Father and God Son. 

Eating pork is a dietary restriction of the first order for devout Jews and Muslims, most of whom consider homosex an abomination. Could someone explain Robinson's reasoning to me?

The prohibition against mixing types, be they fibers or blood, is like the prohibition against confusing the holy with the unholy, or blurring the distinction between life and death, such as happens when a baby goat is boiled in its mother's milk (also forbidden in Scripture). Robinson obviously doesn't understand the binary distinctions that frame the biblical worldview. Or if he does, he rejects them, whereby necessarily rejecting the whole of biblical revelation.

Gene and other activists seem not to recognize that the biblical consideration of homosex is not restricted to a few verses in Genesis and Romans. It is fundamentally part of the binary framework of the entire Bible.He said: "You can’t take a 20th century word, stick it back into an ancient text, and expect it to mean something entirely unknown to the authors of the text. These verses are quoted as if our world has never changed."

The Anglican Primates don't agree. Last month, the Archbishop of Sudan, Dr Daniel Deng Bul, said "we cannot have a different Bible for the 21st century. We can’t change our Bible because of changes in human rights."

Gene, you might note that Archbishop Deng Bul, for whom you have so little respect, is actually a century ahead of you!

Beside that, the world hasn't changed in any essential way. Nothing ever really changes. That is what Plato understood and why he is still the greatest of the philosophers! There is one Reality and all people, in all times and places, exist in that one cross-shaped Reality. Things can only become more what they were created. They can't become less what they were created without rebelling against God's design.

You may say that the ancients didn't "understand homosexuality", but that's a deception and contrary to the evidence. They understood it all too well and tried to keep it hidden. The only verified evidence of homosex in ancient Egypt is a painting hidden on the wall of a cave in the mountains.

Robinson has said, “Although I believe the New and Old Testaments to be the word of God, I do not believe it is the words of God."

Gene, why don't you just admit it? You don't believe that the Bible is the authoritative written word from God. You reject the Bible as an authority for your life and you encourage others to foolishly do the same.

Robinson also cited verses in the Book of Genesis that are used to argue against homosex, saying they should be taken in the context of their time.

I fully agree with that statement. When we consider Genesis in historical and cultural context, we see clearly why homosex was considered an abomination. It blurs the binary distinctions by which God orders our thinking to preserve our lives and souls.

According to Gene Robinson, the verses which forbid the spilling of a man's seed (onanism) should be considered in light of the ancient Hebrews, who as a minority struggling to multiply, saw the waste of semen as murder.

Wrong. The spilling of seed should be considered in the context of the binary reasoning of the Bible. Onanism is a violation of the order of creation. The seed that should fall to the earth is the seed of plants, which spring forth from the earth. The seed of man should fall on his own type (the womb), from which man comes forth. Clement of Alexandria wrote, “Because of its divine institution for the propagation of man, the seed is not to be vainly ejaculated, nor is it to be damaged, nor is it to be wasted” (The Instructor of Children 2:10:91:2 A.D. 191).

Further, Abraham's Hebrew people were quite fruitful. They took the divine command to multiply and fill the earth seriously. The ruler-priests among his people had two wives and concubines as well. Abraham had eight sons. Jacob had twelve and Jesse had eight. And the Bible doesn't list their daughters. So, the struggling minority interpretation does not fit the facts.

Evaluation of Robinson's crusade "to take back the church" makes it apparent that it is driven by ignorance and misrepresentation of the Church and of the Bible.

He said, "I am doing everything I can to undo the harm that has been done by churches... " Indeed, he will do everything he can to undermine the authority of the Scriptures, Church Tradition, and the divine order evident in creation.

Vicky Gene reduces the Gospel to social activism.

"I have tried to bring God's voice to the struggle we are all in. God's voice has been abused in the name of hatred and bigotry for far too long and it is time we took Scripture and the Church back from those that would use it to hurt us."

Gene, it would be easier to start your own church. Oh! You and Louie Crew already did that. It's called "The Episcopal Church."

And were your ego to permit you to work with others, you could help Max Mitchell write his gay bible. Yes, that's the logical thing to do, and ultimately much safer than messing with God's Book.

Related reading: Male and Female are Primary in the Hebrew Scriptures; Genesis on Homosex: Beyond Sodom; Is Opposition to Homosexual Activity Irrational? by Thomas Stork; Gay Agenda Must Destroy the Priesthood; Sweeping Away Gender and the Biblical Worldview; Binary is a Bad word These Days