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Michael & Debi Pearl

No Greater Condemnation?

michael & debi pearl no greater condemnation false teachers

Is there any greater condemnation than that upon a false teacher or false prophet (e.g. Jeremiah 23; Ezekiel 13; Matthew 23; 23:14; Mark 12:40; 2 Peter 2; Jude)? False teachers and/or false prophets come in the name of the Lord, but they lead people away from God's Word onto their own (Matthew 15:8-9). Such a thing brings a curse (Jeremiah 17:5), and if continued in, damns the soul ("destructive heresies" 2 Peter 2:1). Michael and Debi Pearl of nogreaterjoy.org are false teachers. The blackness of darkness is reserved for them (2 Peter 2:17).

Their error is well illustrated in their comic book, “Good and Evil.”1 On the copyright page (copyright 2008 by Michael and Debi Pearl) it says,

This product is a story form of God's Word.

In the Introduction Pearl claims the comic book is “the same message” as the Bible. He writes,

We have created a product that will sell itself on any roadside stand in Thailand or India. It will find acceptance in countries otherwise closed to Christians. A box of them can be given to a Moslem or Hindu vendor, and he will put them on his stand for sale. They will go where no Bible is allowed, but they will carry the same message.

This is simply a lie. It is not the same message. It doesn't take much reading before it's obvious Michael thinks nothing of adding to God's Word (Proverbs 30:5-6).2 He does so repeatedly throughout his short 26 page book. He also mixes in his own false doctrine and fills the book with lies. Therefore, his comic book is fantasy. It is not God's truth. It is not “the same message.” But, the Pearls think it is, as it is written on page 2 in the first quote of the comic.

This story is told in an old book thousands of years old. Every word I am about to tell you is true. Some of it will be hard to believe, but the truth often is stranger than fiction.

They claim “Every word . . . is true.” That's a lie many times over (see below). Ironically, they speak of fiction. Their book is fiction. It is not true.

I. Lies About Lucifer

It begins with a fictional depiction of Satan. Although, because false Christians are turned aside to fables (2 Timothy 4:3-4), it is thus sadly not an uncommonly believed fiction they depict.

First, in the comic on page 2 Mr. Pearl places Satan's fall and the fall of his angelic host before the creation of the heavens and the earth, and on page 4 at the creation of man, Pearl has “THE EVIL ONES WATCHING.” This is pure fiction.

Scripture does not teach Satan fell before the creation of the earth. It does not reveal any evil beings watching the creation of man. This is Pearl's fable and addition to Scripture (Proverbs 30:5-6). It is not “the same message” as the Bible. It is fiction.

Indeed, Scripture has the heavenly host watching at the creation of the earth (Job 38:4-7), but there is no mention any where in the Word of any evil creatures at that point.

Revelation 12 speaks of Satan (the dragon, Revelation 12:9) and his tail drawing “a third of the stars of heaven” and throwing them “to the earth.” Here, in Revelation 12, Satan's fall is depicted in the Bible to be after the creation of the earth. As it is written,

And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. (Revelation 12:3-4)

The earth here is depicted to be already in existence.

Moreover, as Mr. Pearl references at the bottom of page 2, many believe Ezekiel 28 speaks of Satan. Yet, in Ezekiel 28 the cherub who falls into sin is described to be in a perfect state, “full of wisdom and perfect in beauty . . . in Eden.” As it is written,

You were the seal of perfection, full of wisdom and perfect in beauty. You were in Eden, the garden of God (Ezekiel 28:12b-13a; see also verses 14-19).

With the mention of Eden and the mention of “the seal of perfection” in that context, it's evident from this text that this cherub that sinned had not done so until after the creation of the world, after the creation of Eden (Genesis 2:8).

So, Mr. Pearl has Satan's fall before creation and has “THE EVIL ONES WATCHING,” but Scripture depicts the fall to be afterward and does not have any evil ones watching. Thus, Pearl's story begins in the fantasy of his own imagination, ends therein (see below), and is throughout filled with his own doctrine (Matthew 15:8-9). That kind of teaching damns the soul (Jeremiah 17:5; 2 John 9).

Pearl also claims Satan went through a name change. He writes,

Lucifer's name was changed to Satan (page 2).

Really? None of the Bible references he gives at the bottom of the page teach this (Isaiah 14:12-14; 45:18; Ezekiel 28:13-19; Matthew 25:41; Luke 10:18; Revelation 12:4; 20:2). If anything, it's the other way around. Satan's name was changed to “Lucifer.”

“Lucifer” is a transliteration of the Latin word “lucifer.” It's found in the Latin Vulgate translation of Isaiah 14:12. The Hebrew word is הֵילֵ֣ל (hêylêl)3 “shining one.”4 “Lucifer” is also how the Latin Vulgate translates the Greek word φωσφόρος (phôsphoros) in 2 Peter 1:19 which refers to Christ. So, “the king of Babylon” in Isaiah 14:4-21 is called “Lucifer” in Isaiah 14:12, and the “King of Kings”5 likewise is called “Lucifer” in 2 Peter 1:19 in the Latin Vulgate. For some reason the one stuck to Satan and the other seems to have been forgotten about.

Nonetheless, even if Isaiah 14:12 were speaking of Satan, no name change is mentioned. In fact, just the opposite is portrayed, as it is written,

How you are fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! How you are cut down to the ground, you who weakened the nations! (Isaiah 14:12)6

Here he is called “Lucifer” after he is “fallen from heaven.”

II. Lies About Adam7

On page 5 Pearl claims,

EVERY DAY, GOD TALKED WITH ADAM, . . . .

Besides the fact that Pearl is only in the context of day six of creation, it nowhere says God talked with Adam every day. In Pearl's context, there is no every day. It's only the sixth day. Adam is at best a few hours old. Plus, Scripture nowhere teaches God talked with Adam every day. This is more of Pearl's fiction. His statement is not true, as he claims (“Every word . . . is true”).

Pearl continues,

EVERY DAY, GOD TALKED WITH ADAM, AND LIFE WAS WONDERFUL. GOD BROUGHT ALL THE ANIMALS BEFORE ADAM SO HE COULD GIVE EACH ONE A NAME. AS THE ANIMALS PASSED, ADAM CAME TO REALIZE HE DID NOT HAVE A MATE AS THEY DID. (underlining added)

This is more of Pearl's fantasy. The Bible says no such thing (Proverbs 30:5-6). The only one in the Bible to realize or say anything about Adam not having a mate is God. As it is written before the animals are brought to Adam,

And the Lord God said, "It is not good that man should be alone; I will make him a helper comparable to him." (Genesis 2:18)

The animals are then brought to Adam, and after Adam names them all it says,

But for Adam there was not found a helper comparable to him. (Genesis 2:20)

The One looking for a mate was God, and whether Adam realized “HE DID NOT HAVE A MATE AS THEY DID” it doesn't say.8 But, that doesn't bother Pearl one iota. He claims to know more than what God has revealed and adds to God's Word (Proverbs 30:5-6).9

Of course, at this point Pearl continues to interject his fiction with,

SATAN, THE EVIL ONE, WATCHED.

He also claims,

THEY WERE HAPPY IN THE GARDEN. THERE WAS NO SIN, NO HUNGER; IT NEVER GOT TOO HOT OR TOO COLD.

It's amazing the insight Pearl has! Scripture nowhere teaches there was no hunger. Hunger is not necessarily a result of the fall, nor is it necessarily a bad thing. Hunger lets the body know it's time to eat. Moreover, who says it never got too hot or too cold? Perhaps, that is likely so, but Pearl assumes things “beyond what is written” (1 Corinthians 4:6).

III. Lies About The Serpent

On page six Pearl writes,

SATAN HATED GOD AND WANTED TO DESTROY WHAT GOD WAS DOING, BUT HE NEEDED A WAY TO COMMUNICATE WITH EVE, SO HE ENTERED THE BODY OF A BEAUTIFUL CREATURE AND SPOKE THROUGH ITS MOUTH. (underlining added)

Here we get some insight into what Pearl thinks is “BEAUTIFUL.” Take a look at the cartoon of the serpent! That's “BEAUTIFUL”? Wow! What's ugly?

Nonetheless, Pearl continues on with his fictional story. He claims Satan “NEEDED A WAY TO COMMUNICATE WITH EVE.” No such need is found between Genesis and Revelation (Proverbs 30:5-6). Moreover, Pearl claims Satan, “ENTERED THE BODY” of a serpent. No such concept is found in the Word.

In Revelation 12:9 Satan is identified as “that serpent of old.”10 It refers to him as the actual serpent himself. It says nothing of entering a body, or that somehow Satan wasn't actually the serpent. Pearl assumes upon the text of Scripture.

Pearl also adds dialogue that is not there. On page 6 Pearl has Satan saying to Eve,

HA! YOU WILL NOT DIE. YOU WILL BE LIKE THE GODS WHEN YOU EAT. YOU WILL BE ENLIGHTENED AS WE ARE, AND YOU WILL KNOW ALL ABOUT GOOD AND EVIL. (underlining added)

Genesis does not record Satan saying, “as we are.” The focus of Satan's words in Genesis were not on him at all (Genesis 3:1-5). The reference to “YOU WILL BE LIKE THE GODS”11 is a reference to the real Gods, God Himself, as Genesis 3:22 says,

Then the Lord God said, "Behold, the man has become like one of Us, to know good and evil.

“Us” refers to God, or that is, the Gods in the Godhead. For more on that, see “He Is Holy Gods” (out of Joshua 24:19).12

IV. Lies About Eve

More fiction can be found on this same page where immediately after Eve eats the forbidden fruit it says,

TOO LATE, EVE REALIZED SHE HAD BEEN DECEIVED. IT CAUSED HER TO KNOW GOOD AND EVIL, BUT THE EVIL TOOK CONTROL. (p. 6, underlining added)

Pearl's novel here reads like it's another story (which it is) with similar actors. Where does it say Eve realized she was deceived before she gave the fruit to her husband? It doesn't, but that doesn't stop Pearl.

Scripture does reveal Eve realized she had been deceived by the time God confronts her on her evil deed (Genesis 3:13). But other than that, God knows (we don't) when she realized this. Just because she came to have the knowledge of good and evil, that does not mandate she immediately realized she had been deceived (as Pearl assumes). Humans to this day have that same knowledge of good and evil, and most don't realize they have been deceived (Revelation 12:9 “deceives the whole world”; 2 Timothy 3:13).

Pearl further adds to this account when he writes,

EVE TOOK THE FRUIT TO HER HUSBAND AND TALKED HIM INTO EATING IT. (page 6, underlining added)

Then Pearl gives his fictional words of Eve,

SEE, I DIDN'T DIE. EAT, AND IT WILL MAKE YOU WISE ALSO.

No talking “HIM INTO EATING IT” or dialogue on Eve's part is found in God's Word. Here Pearl adds the concept of Eve attempting to deceive Adam with the likewise Satanic deception of, “SEE, I DIDN'T DIE.” Such words blaspheme Eve (2 Timothy 3:2 “blasphemers”) and attribute actions to Eve Scripture never does.

Genesis 3 records,

So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, that it was pleasant to the eyes, and a tree desirable to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate. She also gave to her husband with her, and he ate. (Genesis 3:6)

She indeed gave to her husband. It says nothing of any talking to him or deceptive statement as, “SEE, I DIDN'T DIE.” That makes for some good make-believe story line, and some good condemnation from God (Proverbs 30:5-6; Hebrews 4:12-13; Revelation 21:8 “all liars”), but it does not equate to God's Truth. And, it is only through the truth by which we are saved (John 14:6).

On the next page Pearl continues to add (Proverbs 30:5-6) dialogue with Satan supposedly saying to the new couple,

HA, HA, HA, HE WILL KILL YOU NOW! LOOK WHAT HE DID TO ME.

Besides the fact that it is nowhere even implied that the serpent said any such thing, this “LOOK WHAT HE DID TO ME” is a fairy-tale.

The context is before God curses the serpent, before God comes on the scene. And, even in the comic illustration it can be seen that the serpent is in the same condition as he was when he arrives where he is initially talking with Eve. What is Pearl talking about, “LOOK WHAT HE DID TO ME”? It doesn't even fit his own fable.

Pearl claimed earlier that Satan “ENTERED THE BODY” of the serpent because, “HE NEEDED A WAY TO COMMUNICATE WITH EVE.” So, according to Pearl, they wouldn't even be looking at Satan. They'd be looking at a serpent. Did the serpent (who, according to Pearl is not actually Satan) do something bad from which he received retribution from God before all this? After all, Pearl claims the serpent said,

HA, HA, HA, HE WILL KILL YOU NOW! LOOK WHAT HE DID TO ME.

Pearl doesn't explain or illustrate this statement, so it is impossible to know what he is talking about. Perhaps we should do as he has done to God's Word and assume things and add concepts to his words and explain them for ourselves? No doubt, Pearl would find that very appropriate, wouldn't he? He thinks nothing of doing so to God. So, for us to do so, shouldn't that be fair game? No, obviously, that would be sinful to do (Proverbs 14:5). Yet likewise, but far worse, is Pearl sinning before God (Proverbs 30:5-6).

On the next page (p. 8) Pearl has Eve saying to God,

THE SERPENT DECEIVED ME. HE TOLD ME I WOULDN'T DIE, THAT I WOULD BE LIKE YOU, BUT I AM NOT LIKE YOU. I FEEL AWEFUL. (underlining added)

“BUT I AM NOT LIKE YOU” is a lie. The “LIKE YOU” in the context is “YOU WILL BE LIKE THE GODS” (p. 6) knowing good and evil, and they indeed were like the Gods, as Genesis 3:22 clearly states. Pearl has Eve deceived here and speaking a lie, neither of which does Scripture ever portray (Proverbs 30:5-6).

V. Lies About Death

On page 9 Pearl continues on with his fairy-tale and writes,

IT WAS NOW TIME FOR ADAM AND EVE TO DIE JUST AS GOD PROMISED. BUT INSTEAD OF KILLING THEM, GOD KILLED ANIMALS IN THEIR PLACE AND TOOK THE SKINS AND MADE COATS FOR ADAM AND EVE. (underlining added)

And,

ADAM AND EVE DIDN'T DIE THAT DAY, BECAUSE INNOCENT ANIMALS DIED IN THEIR PLACES. (underlining added)

None of the underlined sections are found in God's Word. Adam and Eve died that day, just as God said they would.

but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die. (Genesis 2:17)

They became “dead” on that day in their sin (Ephesians 2:1; Romans 6:23), as it is also written,

through one man sin entered the world, and death through sin (Romans 5:12).

Death entered the world that day. Adam and Eve became “dead in trespasses and sins” as all mankind thereafter have (Ephesians 2:1-3; Romans 5:12-21; etc.).

Furthermore, Pearl presumes God was going to physically kill them. Scripture says no such thing (Proverbs 30:5-6). Moreover, Pearl assumes “GOD KILLED ANIMALS” on that day for Adam and Eve, but that is an assumption as well. He very well could have, but there is nothing that mandates He did. It simply says,

Also for Adam and his wife the Lord God made tunics of skin, and clothed them. (Genesis 3:21)

God could have “made” them in the sense of simply supernaturally creating them, as “made” is used for the creation of the heavens and the earth in Exodus 20:11. Or, He could indeed have killed an animal or two or three? There's no saying (Deuteronomy 29:29), but Pearl thinks there is.13

Also on this page Pearl writes,

SINCE ADAM AND EVE WERE NOW SINNERS, GOD PUT THEM OUT OF THE BEAUTIFUL GARDEN SO THEY WOULD NOT EAT OF THE TREE OF LIFE AND LIVE FOREVER IN THEIR SINFUL STATES. (underlining added)

Here is yet another lie. Scripture does not teach they would “LIVE FOREVER IN THEIR SINFUL STATES,” if they were to eat of the tree of life. No such concept is found in Scripture (Proverbs 30:5-6).

Those who are in their sinful states, even at the resurrection are still called “dead” (Revelation 20:11-12). The saved are resurrected to “life,” the wicked to “condemnation” (John 5:28-29). The wicked will forever be in conscious existence indeed, as the rich man in Luke 16:19-31 and those in Revelation 20:10 (“tormented forever”), but this is not eternal life. This is eternal death (Isaiah 66:24), the second death.

For Scripture, eternal life depicts salvation from sin and truly living forever, knowing God (John 17:3). The tree of life is the tree of Christ (John 14:6) and it depicts salvation (Proverbs 3:18; Revelation 2:7; 22:14). This is what God didn't want them to get in Genesis 3:24, just as Jesus didn't want them to be saved; and so He spoke in parables (Mark 4:10-12; Luke 8:10; John 12:37-40).

But such things are unknown to the Pearls, and so they make stuff up (or borrow from another) to their own destruction (2 Peter 2:1).

VI. Lies About Their Children

On page 10 Pearl assumes “THEIR SONS AND DAUGHTERS” married each other. This is an assumption. Scripture doesn't say. Theoretically, only one son and one daughter of Adam and Eve could have married. Nothing mandates there was more than one such union. There's also nothing dictating there wasn't several such unions, but Pearl assumes upon himself knowledge he doesn't have.

Likewise, on page 10 Pearl claims,

CAIN AND ABLE KNEW ABOUT GOD AND THE EVENTS IN THE GARDEN. BUT GOD NO LONGER WALKED AND TALKED WITH HUMANITY. ADAM AND ALL HIS DESCENDANTS WERE SEPARATED FROM GOD BY ADAM'S DISOBEDIENCE. LIFE WAS HARD WITHOUT GOD. (underlining added)

This is a blatant denial of Scripture. In this very context God talks with Cain, both before and after he kills his brother (Genesis 4:6-15). Pearl is simply a liar (“all liars” Revelation 21:8) and a false witness of God and His Word (Proverbs 12:17). Plus, later Genesis 5 records, “Enoch walked with God” (Genesis 5:24; Hebrews 11:5). Pearl's claim is simply not true.

Also on page 10 Pearl completely botches and ruins the story of Cain's sacrifice. He writes,

CAIN MADE AN OFFERING OF THE BEST HE HAD, BUT IT WAS NOT A BLOOD SACRIFICE. CAIN DID NOT UNDERSTAND THAT HIS SIN OFFENDED GOD. (underlining added)

Scripture never teaches it was the best he had. It never condemns Cain for not offering a blood sacrifice. It never teaches Cain did not understand that his sin offended God. Pearl lies and makes all of this up.

Later on page 11 Pearl adds dialogue to the account and has Cain and Abel saying things to each other regarding the lack of a blood sacrifice on Cain's part. It's pure fiction. Pearl makes it an issue of a blood sacrifice, but in this context, that is not the issue.

Furthermore, Romans 1:32 dictates the exact opposite of Pearl's claim that “CAIN DID NOT UNDERSTAND THAT HIS SIN OFFENDED GOD.” God says in the context of “since the creation of the world” (Romans 1:20) regarding wicked men,

who, knowing the righteous judgment of God, that those who practice such things are deserving of death, not only do the same but also approve of those who practice them. (Romans 1:32)

That well describes Cain's heart. He knew the righteous judgment of God. He knew his sin offended God. Pearl ascribes ignorance upon Cain that Scripture does not.

Pearl continues,

GOD REJECTED CAIN'S OFFERING BECAUSE IT WAS WITHOUT BLOOD. (page 11)

That is a lie. Scripture says no such thing and indicates no such thing. It does not mandate that a sacrifice for sins is even in view in Genesis 4, as Pearl makes it out to be for both Abel and Cain.

Fruit of the ground, as illustrated by the law later, was an acceptable sacrifice to God and was commanded by Him in the law (e.g. Exodus 22:29; 29:41). It is not a concept rejected by God, and Genesis 4 doesn't even imply that is the problem. Abel was a keeper of sheep. Cain was a tiller of the ground (Genesis 4:2). They both simply brought a sacrifice of the fruit of their labor.

The reason Cain's offering was not accepted by God is because it was not offered in faith, as it is written,

By faith Abel offered to God a better sacrifice than Cain, through which he obtained the testimony that he was righteous, God testifying about his gifts, and through faith, though he is dead, he still speaks. (Hebrews 11:4)

Cain worshiped God in the flesh.14 Abel worshiped Him in the Spirit (by faith). Those “who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24). Cain had neither. He was “of the wicked one” (1 John 3:10-12), and so are Michael and Debi Pearl (2 John 9).

On the next page (p. 12) Pearl claims Cain fled from God with his wife. This is more fantasy. Scripture simply says Cain “went out from the presence of the Lord” (Genesis 4:16). It does not say he fled, nor does it say he even had a wife at this point. In the next verse it does indeed say, “And Cain knew his wife, and she conceived and bore Enoch.” When Cain acquired her it does not say, but again, that doesn't dissuade Pearl from claiming he knows.15

VII. Lies About Noah

On page 14, in the context of speaking to Noah, Pearl has God instruct Noah to bring into the ark animals “THAT ARE PERMISSIBLE TO EAT.”16 That is simply a lie. There is no recorded permission given to man to eat animals until after the flood, not before.

There are indeed animals classified as either clean or unclean (e.g. Genesis 7:2), but for food man and animals were given the green herb to eat (Genesis 1:29-30). The permission to eat animals came after the flood, and in that permission, all animals were given with no distinction between the clean or unclean. They were all permissible to eat (Genesis 9:3).

Moreover, Pearl tells more lies about Noah and the events of his life stating,

IT MADE NOAH SAD TO THINK OF EVERYONE PERISHING IN THE COMING FLOOD, SO AT EVERY CHANCE HE WARNED THEM TO STOP SINNING. (p. 15)

Then Pearl has Noah saying,

I AM TELLING YOU ONE LAST TIME. GOD IS GOING TO DESTROY THE WORLD WITH A GREAT FLOOD. YOU MUST BELIEVE ME AND JOIN ME ON THE BOAT. (p. 15, underlining added)

This is yet another lie. Noah preached no such message.17 God told him at the very beginning he and his family would be the only humans on the boat (Genesis 6:13, 17-18). God gave no salvation plan for anyone else to be saved from the flood.18

Pearl also claims,

GOD SHUT THE DOOR OF THE BOAT AND FOR SEVEN DAYS NOTHING HAPPENED. (p. 16)

This appears to be a misunderstanding of Genesis 7:4-10, because Genesis 7:11-13 makes it clear the flood waters came on “the very same day Noah . . . entered the ark” (Genesis 7:13), as Jesus said,

And as it was in the days of Noah, so it will be also in the days of the Son of Man: They ate, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. (Luke 17:26-27; see also Matthew 24:38)

Furthermore, after a fair amount of fictional dialogue, Pearl focuses on Noah's sacrifice after the flood and claims,

THE ANIMALS REPRESENTED THE EIGHT WHO SHOULD HAVE DIED IN THE FLOOD, BUT WERE SPARED BY THE GRACE OF GOD. IT WAS SOMETHING LIKE GOD DID IN THE GARDEN WHEN HE KILLED THE ANIMALS TO MAKE COVERINGS FOR ADAM AND EVE. (p. 18)

Pearl's imagination is just too active. Scripture does not teach “THE ANIMALS REPRESENTED THE EIGHT” (Proverbs 30:5-6).

Noah's sacrifice was quite extensive (Genesis 8:20). He sacrificed “every clean animal and every clean bird” (Genesis 8:20). There is not even a hint to the “eight.” Nonetheless, his sacrifice was a beautiful act of worship toward God, and it pleased God well (Genesis 8:21-22).

Now, more provocation19 can be found on page 18 where, besides making the unbiblical claim that “THE NEW WORLD WAS LONELY WITH JUST FOUR FAMILIES,” Pearl blasphemes Noah and makes him out to be a drunkard. Pearl claims,

NOAH DISCOVERED THAT BY PUTTING FRUIT IN A CONTAINER AND LEAVING IT FOR A FEW WEEKS, IT MADE AN ALCOHOLIC DRINK THAT CAUSED HIM TO FEEL FUNNY. NOAH GOT TO LIKING THE DRINK SO MUCH THAT AT TIMES HE COULDN'T WORK. HE WOULD JUST FALL DOWN UNCONSCIENCE. IT MADE HIM DO THINGS THAT DISPLEASED GOD. (p. 18)

ONE DAY NOAH GOT SO DRUNK THAT HE MADE HIMSELF NAKED AND THEN PASSED OUT. HIS SON, HAM, LOOKED ON HIS FATHER'S SHAME AND FOUND PLEASURE IN IT. HE TOLD HIS BROTHERS IN A MOCKING TONE WHAT HE HAD SEEN. (p. 19)

This is utterly ridiculous, blasphemous, and pure fiction. Scripture records Noah got drunk once (Genesis 9:20-21). In this one time event, it doesn't even say he was unconscious or passed out because he was so drunk. He indeed at some point fell asleep from the wine (Genesis 9:24), but how did he know “what his younger son had done to him” (Genesis 9:24) unless he was awake at the event?

Pearl claims,

WHEN NOAH AWOKE, HIS SONS TOLD HIM WHAT HAM HAD DONE. (p. 19)

That is not what Scripture says. The Word says,

So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him. (Genesis 9:24)

Scripture gives no discourse from Noah's sons. Instead, it depicts Noah knowing what his younger son had done upon his awaking from his wine.

Furthermore, in the prior quote Pearl adds to Ham concepts that are not revealed. Scripture simply says Ham, “told his two brothers outside” (Genesis 9:22). Pearl adds “pleasure” and “mocking” that isn't there (Proverbs 30:5-6).

VIII. Lies About Nimrod

Promoting common lies20 about Nimrod, Pearl writes,

NIMROD GREW UP TO BE A MIGHTY HUNTER, AND WAS WELL KNOWN THROUGHOUT THE WHOLE EARTH. HE REFUSED TO OBEY GOD AND STARTED HIS OWN FALSE RELIGION IN A PLACED CALLED BABYLON. (p. 20, underlinging added)

Scripture does not attribute to Nimrod any particular false religion. Mythology does, but God's Word does not (Proverbs 30:5-6). Pearl continues,

THE PEOPLE OF BABYLON DID NOT WANT TO SCATTER AND REPOPULATE THE EARTH AS GOD HAD COMMANDED, SO THEY GOT TOGETHER AND BUILT A GREAT AND HIGH TOWER AS A CENTER OF WORSHIP. (p. 20)

Neither Genesis 11 nor any where else in the Bible does it teach that the tower of Babel (or Babylon)21 was a “center of worship.” This is a commonly held belief in a popular fable (2 Timothy 4:3-4 “turned aside to fables”), but it is not the teaching of God's Word.

IX. Lying Illustrations

A. A False Cherub

One of the images in the magazine is not “the same” as what is described in the Bible but grossly different. On page one there is an image of what is supposed to be a cherub with a flaming sword, which is supposed to depict the event of Genesis 3:24 (see page 9). There are several problems with this image.

This cherub has the single head and face of a lion, what appears to be a single wing on his back (presumably a pair), and it is wearing body armor. In Scripture no cherub is described like that. No such image exists in the Word (Proverbs 30:5-6).

The cherubs which are described in Scripture are vastly different than this “cherub.” Pearl's cherub is a product of a man's imagination (Jeremiah 17:5). Cherubs of the Word are described in great detail in Ezekiel chapter 1 & 10, and they are very different than Pearl's.

Instead of a single face as in Pearl's cherub, the Biblical cherubs each have four faces. And, a cherub's face, in particular, is noted as that of an ox (compare Ezekiel 1:10 & 10:14-15).22 Indeed, one of the four faces is a lion, but that is one of the four, not a single head and face of a lion (as Pearl has it).

The cherubs of Scripture also each have four wings (Ezekiel 1:6), look like “burning coals of fire,” have lightening shooting out of the fire of their person (Ezekiel 1:13), have four awesome (high) rims of wheels within wheels “full of eyes, all around the four of them” (that is, the four rims, Ezekiel 1:18) with “their whole body, with their back, their hands, their wings, . . . were full of eyes all around” (Ezekiel 10:12). Also, the wheels are part of the cherub's very person, as it says, “the spirit of the living creatures was in the wheels” (Ezekiel 1:20-21).

So, when Pearl's cherub is compared to Scriptural cherubs, there is really no comparison. Ezekiel 1 & 10 give an entirely different image to Genesis 3:24 than does Pearl's far less majestic make-believe cherub.

B. Abel Was Stoned?

Another bad image is found on page 11 where Pearl pictures Cain killing his brother, Abel, with a large stone by hitting Abel on the head. Scripture doesn't say how Cain killed Abel, but that doesn't stop Pearl. Pearl adds his own ideas.

Scripture says,

Now Cain talked with Abel his brother; and it came to pass, when they were in the field, that Cain rose up against Abel his brother and killed him.

Did Cain choke Abel, or stab him, or beat him to death, or slit his throat, or etc.? It doesn't say, and so we shouldn't either; but Pearl heeds not God's warning (Proverbs 30:5-6).

Conclusion

At the bottom of Pearl's introduction to his book Pearl has,

IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ THE STORIES IN THE BIBLE ITSELF, SIMPLY LOOK UP THE REFERENCES NOTED AT THE BOTTOM OF EACH PAGE.

Please do. Therein is the salvation of your soul, God's Word (Proverbs 13:13; John 1:1, 14; 14:6; Hebrews 4:12-13; James 1:21; Revelation 19:13). His Word is alive (1 Peter 1:22-25). Pearl's word is dead (Jude 1:12).

Endnotes:

1http://goodandevilbook.com/book/#/Good%20and%20Evil/8

2See under Illustrations where page one begins with a ficticous (not Biblical) depiction of a cherub. Moreover, adding to God's Word makes one a liar (Proverbs 30:5-6). First, they claim it is God's truth, but it is not; since it is not in the Bible. Second, even if some statement just happened to be true (but wasn't actually in Scripture), by claiming it is God's revealed Word (when it isn't in the Word), that is still a lie, since it is not found therein.

3Only found in Isaiah 14:12. It is akin to the word “shines” e.g. Job 31:26 (יָהֵ֑ל).

4LXX ἑωσφόρος (eôsphoros) “Day Star” (NETS); Instead of “Lucifer” in Isaiah 14:12 NAS has “star of the morning.”

51 Timothy 6:15; Note also the king of Babylon is called “king of kings” in Ezekiel 26:7 & Daniel 2:37. Artaxerxes calls himself “king of kings” in Ezra 7:12.

6A more literal translation of Isaiah 14:12 reads, “How you have fallen from the heavens, shining one, son of the dawn. You are cut down to the earth, who weakened the nations.”

7On page 4 Pearl writes,

God called the new creature man and gave him the name Adam.

Actually, God called the new creature Adam, and Adam called himself “man.” Genesis 1:26-27 more literally reads,

Then God said, “Let Us make Adam 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.” So God created the Adam in His own image; in the image of God He created him; male and female He created them.

Here in the very first use of the term “Adam” God refers to “Adam” as “them,” and that is how “Adam” is used much in Scripture as a reference to mankind, including both male and female as here in Genesis 1:26 (e.g. Genesis 5:1 [“man” is Adam]; 2 [“mankind” is Adam]; 6:1-2 [“men” is “the Adam”], 3 [“man” is Adam], etc. about 563 times in the OT).

Genesis 2:23 says,

And the Adam said: "This is now bone of my bones and flesh of my flesh. She shall be called woman [אִשָּׁ֔ה], because she was taken out of man [אִ֖ישׁ]."

Yes, Adam was indeed the God given name of the first man (e.g. Genesis 4:1; 1 Corinthians 15:45).

8Someone might argue Adam was cognitive of his need for a mate via what God says in Genesis 2:18. That is certainly possible, but it is not definitive due to the lack of information on whether or not Adam heard these words. Moreover, Pearl makes the claim it was via the process of naming the animals that Adam “came to realize he did not have a mate.” Pearl does not claim it is through God's declaration, but rather via Adam's interaction with the animals. Conversely, the “mate” issue was there before any interaction with animals.

9At this point, after the creation of Eve, on page 5 Pearl gives the KJV wording of Genesis 1:28, “replenish.” Replenish means, “to fill up again.” That fits neither the context nor the Hebrew word therein. The word the KJV translates “replenish” is מִלְא֥וּ (mil'u) and it simply means to “fill,” as the KJV well illustrates in Genesis 1:22. There the exact same word is used, within the same kind of context and command, and there the KJV translates it simply, “fill.”

10KJV “that old serpent” ὁ ὄφις ὁ ἀρχαῖος (ho ophis ho archaios) more literally, “the old serpent.”

11 Genesis 3:5 in the 1611 KJV reads,

For God doeth know, that in the day ye eate thereof, then your eyes shal-bee opened: and yee shall bee as Gods, knowing good and evill.

12www.atruechurch.info/heisholygods.html

13Later on page 10 Pearl reiterates this claim adding (Proverbs 30:5-6) that this knowledge of this supposed sacrifice in the garden motivates Abel to offer his own blood sacrifice. Of course, none of that is found in the Word. Pearl also adds more dialogue to the text and adds concepts not found therein, as Pearl has Abel saying,

OH GOD, I AM A SINFUL MAN; I KILL THIS LAMB AND OFFER IT TO YOU IN THE PLACE OF MY OWN DEATH.

Where in Scripture are we told Abel had such a perspective? Nowhere (Proverbs 30:5-6).

14This is the “way of Cain” mentioned in Jude 11. It is the worship of God in the flesh and hating the righteous. It is the same error as the Jews who worship God in the flesh and not by faith (Romans 10:31-32), and they hate those who are of the Spirit (Galatians 4:29).

15Also on this page (p. 12) Pearl adds a “MUTANT GENES” concern that is not found in Scripture. He writes,

WHEN MAN WAS FIRST CREATED, MUTANT GENES THAT CAUSED DEFORMITIES THROUGH INBREEDING HAD NOT YET DEVELOPED, BUT LATER WHEN IT BECAME A PROBLEM, GOD COMMANDED THAT CLOSE RELATIVES SHOULD NOT MARRY.

Scripture teaches no such thing (Proverbs 30:5-6). God indeed commanded later against close relative marriage (Leviticus 18), but it never says it was because of mutant genes or deformities. That is Pearl's idea, not God's revealed Word.

16Pearl also claims animals came “FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD” (p. 15). The Bible doesn't teach that (Proverbs 30:5-6). It simply says, “they went into the ark to Noah” (Genesis 7:9, 15).

17Noah was indeed a “preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5), but Pearl's supposed message is pure fiction. If Noah was a preacher of righteousness, and indeed he was, then his preaching was consistent with the truth God had revealed to him. God had revealed to him that all flesh would perish, except his own family and the animals he brought into the ark. Hebrews 11:7 says Noah “condemned the world.”

18See also 1 Peter 3:18-20; 4:5-6.

19Job 12:6 - “those who provoke God are secure” - Pearl's false teaching provokes God's wrath (2 Peter 2:3), yet it is not yet manifest. The wicked are often “secure” until they die (Psalm 73).

202 Timothy 4:3-4 reveals false Christians will be turned aside to “fables” (lit. myths, μύθους [muthous]). See www.atruechurch.info/babylonreligion.html.

21What is translated “Babel” in Genesis 10:10 & 11:9 and what is translated “Babylon” elsewhere in the OT (e.g. 2 Kings 17:24) is the same Hebrew word, בָּבֶ֔ל (bâbel).

22Ezekiel 10:15 says, “And the cherubim were lifted up. This was the living creature I saw by the River Chebar.” This dictates the cherubim described in Ezekiel 10 are the same living creatures Ezekiel saw in chapter 1 (1:1 “by the River Chebar”).

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