Predestination

Where did the idea of predestination come from? 

Predestination is the idea that people have a predetermined eternal destination.  Since their eternal destination is predetermined, there is nothing that they can do to change their eternal destination. 

If their predetermined destination is salvation, then they will be saved.  They are destined to do whatever actions are necessary to be saved. 

If their predetermined destination is damnation, then they will be lost.  They are destined to do whatever actions are necessary to be damned.

Many people point to Romans 8-11 in the Renewed Covenant as their source for this idea.  They point out that the word "predestinate" is actually used in two verses of chapter 8 (Romans 8:29-30).  Yet, are these chapters really about predestination?

Chapter 8 (Romans 8) is mostly about the work of the Spirit of Truth (Ruach HaQodesh aka The Holy Spirit aka The Holy Ghost) in the life of the Children of Truth (those who obey The Father of Truth because they love Him), and the depth of love that the Father of Truth (YHVH aka God aka THE LORD) and the Man of Truth (Yeshua HaMashiach aka Jesus Christ) have for them.   

Paul the Jew (Shaul aka Saul aka The Apostle Paul) begins chapter 8 with a proclamation that the Man of Truth has made it possible for people to fulfill the righteous demands of the Law of Truth (Torah aka The Law), by following the leading of the Spirit of Truth, instead of being ruled by the desires of their flesh (Romans 8:1-4).  He goes on to explain the people can only be subject to the Law of Truth, by being in pursuit of the Spirit of Truth (Romans 8:5-8).  He continues to explain, that the Spirit of Truth gives the Children of Truth the power to overcome the desires of their flesh (Romans 8:9-13).  He then proclaims, that it is following the leading of the Spirit of Truth, which makes people part of the Children of Truth (Romans 8:14-16).  He further explains, that the Children of Truth will be given resurrected bodies, because they have been given the Spirit of Truth (Romans 8:17-25).  He goes on to explain, that the Spirit of Truth helps the Children of Truth overcome their weaknesses, and intercedes on their behalf when they pray in tongues, so they can carry out the will of the Father of Truth (Romans 8:26-27).  He continues to proclaim, that everything will work out for the Children of Truth, because the Father of Truth is for them, so they can carry out His will (Romans 8:28-31).  He then offers as proof of this, that the Man of Truth died and rose again for this very purpose (Romans 8:32-34).  He concludes the chapter by telling the Children of Truth, that nothing can separate them from the love of the Man of Truth (Romans 8:35-39).

It is really strange to point to chapters 9-11 (Romans 9-11), since they have nothing to do with predestination, but are about the people of Israel.

Paul the Jew begins chapter 9 with a heartfelt cry for the people of Israel, who have been called to make the way of Father of Truth known to the world (Romans 9:1-5).  He then proceeds to explain that even though all were called, not all were chosen, because many lived after the flesh, instead by faith in the promise of the Father of Truth (Romans 9:6-9).  He then uses the Law of Truth to show, that the Father of Truth promised before either son was born, to cause Israel to rule over his older brother (Romans 9:10-12).  He then proceeds to quote a Jewish Prophet of Truth, to show that Israel indeed came to be preferred above his older brother Esau (Romans 9:13).   He then goes on to show from the Law of Truth, that the Father of Truth had mercy on the people of Israel to fulfill His promises concerning Israel (Romans 9:14-16).  He then continues to use the Law of Truth to show how He raised up Pharaoh and then hardened his heart to fulfill his promises concerning the people of Israel (Romans 9:17).  He goes on to explain, that the Father of Truth knows how to motivate people seeking their own will, to do their part to carry out His will (Romans 9:18-23).  He then quotes Jewish Prophets of Truth to show, that this process of being chosen for salvation by answering the call to live by faith in the promise of the Father of Truth, works exactly the same for the Gentiles and the people of Israel (Romans 9:24-26).  He then quotes another Jewish Prophet of Truth to show, that a remnant of Israel was chosen for salvation (Romans 9:27-29).  He ends this chapter by explaining that the rest of Israel was not chosen, because they did not answer the call to live by faith in the promise of the Father of Truth (Romans 9:30-33).

Paul the Jew begins the next chapter with his heart felt desire for the people of Israel to be saved (Romans 10:1).  He explains, that the problem is that most of the people of Israel have sought be righteous by their own efforts to obey the Law of Truth, and have missed the point of the Law of Truth, which is that the Man of Truth is the only means of righteousness (Romans 10:2-4).  He then quotes the Law of Truth, to show it says, that it is impossible to be saved by keeping the Law of Truth, since people would have to do it perfectly every day of their life to be saved (Romans 10:5).  He then quotes the Law of Truth further, to show it says, that salvation comes from believing the Word of Truth (Romans 10:6-8).  He then quotes the Jewish Prophets of Truth to prove, that both Jews and Gentiles are saved by exhibiting faith in the Word of Truth by making the Man of Truth their Lord (Romans 10:9-13).  He proceeds to further quote Jewish Prophets of Truth to prove, that the Good News is the Word of Truth, which must be believed for the people of Israel to be saved (Romans 10:14-15).  He ends the chapter by quoting both Jewish Prophets of Truth and the Law of Truth to prove, that most of the people of Israel were not chosen to be saved, because they refused to answer the call to live according to the Word of Truth (Romans 10:16-21).

Paul the Jew begins the last chapter by explaining that the Father of Truth has not cast away the people of Israel as a group (Romans 11:1-2).  He then quotes another part of the Original Covenant (Tanakh aka The Old Testament) to show that there has always been some of the people of Israel, who answered the call to live by faith in the Father of Truth (Romans 11:2-4).  He goes on to explain that those, who answered the call to live by faith in the Father of Truth, did so by accepting His gift that enabled them to do so, while the rest of the people of Israel tried to do so in their own strength (Romans 11:5-7).  He then quotes the Original Covenant again to show, that rejecting His gift has caused the rest to be unable to answer the call (Romans 11:8-10).  He then proceeds to explain, that although most of the people of Israel were not chosen yet, the day is coming when all of the people of Israel will be chosen, so that the Father of Truth can bring everything good thing to the world, which He had marked out before to bring through the people of Israel (Romans 11:11-12).  He goes on to explain to the Gentiles, that when all of the people of Israel are finally chosen, that it will bring salvation to the entire world (Romans 11:13-15).  He then warns the Gentiles, that the people of Israel serve as living proof that the Father of Truth will only choose the few, who answer the call to live by faith in Him (Romans 11:16-22).  He then tells the Gentiles, that any of the people of Israel, who change their minds and answer the call, will be chosen again (Romans 11:23-24).  He clarifies that the day will come, when all of the people of Israel will answer the call, and be chosen to be saved, because the Father of Truth will not repent of calling the people of Israel to live by faith in Him (Romans 11:25-29).  He ends the chapter by proclaiming that people of Israel will answer the call, through the Gentiles answering the call, because that was always the plan of the Father of Truth (Romans 11:30-36).

So the consistent theme in Romans 8-11 is, that anyone, who answers the call to follow the leading of the Spirit of Truth, live by faith in the Father of Truth, and make the Man of Truth their Lord, will be chosen to be saved.  These chapters are not about anyone being predestinated to do anything.

So, where did the doctrine of predestination come from?

Some people use a passage from Romans 8 as proof that some people were predestined for salvation:

And we know that all things work together for good to them that love God, to them who are the called according to his purpose.  For whom he did foreknow, he also did predestinate to be conformed to the image of his Son, that he might be the firstborn among many brethren.  Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified. (Romans 8:28-30).

We will examine this passage closely, now that we have went over the context of this chapter.  In the context of this chapter, them are those who follow the leading of Spirit of Truth, instead of the desires of their flesh, so that the Spirit of Truth enables them to be subject to the Law of Truth.  This obedience to His commandments shows that they love God (1 John 5:2-3).  So all things do not work together for good to those who are the called according to his purpose, regardless of what they do, but only for those who answer His call, by following the leading of the Spirit of Truth in obeying Him out of love.

Next, some basic understanding of the Greek words translated as "foreknow" and "predestinate" is in order.

In four hundred years, the meaning of words in English sometimes change.  So, even if a translation was accurate it was when it was made, that does not mean that generations later, people will get the same meaning the translators originally intended.

For example, the word "nephew" used by Paul the Jew (1 Timothy 5:4).   Today, "nephew" means son of a sibling of a parent, but in the 1600s it meant son of a child of the parent.  When you take a peak under the hood to examine the Greek word translated as "nephew", you find that it indeed means "a descendant".  So, while the translation was accurate at the time, the original meaning is lost unless you look under the hood.

The literal meaning of the Greek word translated as foreknow is "to know before".  It does not necessarily mean to know before an event occurs, for Paul the Jew uses this Greek word to describe how many Pharisees knew him before he started following the Man of Truth (Acts 26:5).

The literal meaning of the Greek word translated as predestinate is "to mark out the boundaries before".  It is a compound Greek word made from two Greek words, "pro" and "orizo".  The Greek word "pro" means "before".  The Greek word "orizo" means "to mark out the boundaries".  It is where the English word "horizon" comes from.

So, the Father of Truth knew before He gave the call that there would be people, who would answer His call.  Therefore, He marked out the boundaries of the call, before He ever called them.  This is the idea that the translators were trying to convey over four hundred years ago.  The words they chose have taken on a different meaning since then.

Of course, those whom he did predestinate could not know the boundaries that He marked out before giving the call, unless he also called them.

The certainty of this can known by examining another group that the Father of Truth did the exact same thing with - the people of Israel.  This is why there is a long discussion about the people of Israel in Romans 9-11.

The Father of Truth marked out the boundaries of the call to Moses (Moishe), before He sent Moses to give His call (Exodus 19:3-6).  Moses then gave His call to the people of Israel (Exodus 19:7).  The people of Israel agreed to answer the call, by doing what they were called to do (Exodus 19:8). 

Later, Moses reminded the people of Israel of the call, which they had agreed to answer (Deuteronomy 5:1-6).  However, the people of Israel did not have a heart, which was willing to do what they were were called to do, so the Father of Truth could not give them everything within the boundaries that He had marked out, before Mose gave them His call (Deuteronomy 5:27-33).

Finally, Moses rebuked the people of Israel for turning a blind eye and a deaf ear, to everything they had seen the Father of Truth do and had heard Him say (Deuteronomy 29:2-4).  Moses reminded them of everything that the Father of Truth had done to start bringing about everything, which had been marked out in the boundaries of the call, which He had given to them through him (Deuteronomy 29:5-13).  Moses warned them to not vainly imagine that they would not be destroyed, if they did not do what they were called to do, just because they were given the call (Deuteronomy 29:19-21).  Moses said, it would be apparent to everyone, that they were not chosen to gain everything within the boundaries marked out for the call, because they did not do what they were called to do (Deuteronomy 29:22-28).  Therefore, they were given the call, so they could be chosen for answering the call, by doing what they were called to do (Deuteronomy 29:29).

So even though, all the people of Israel were called, only the few, who lived by faith in the promises of the Father of Truth, were chosen (Romans 9:4-8).  Many were not chosen, because they did not do what they were called to do (Romans 10:19-21).  The majority refused to see what the Father of Truth had done for them, and refused to hear what He called them to do (Romans 11:7-10).  However, the day is coming, when all the people of Israel will stop refusing to see, will start doing what they were called to do, and will be chosen to gain everything marked out by the boundaries of the call (Romans 11:25-27).  The Father of Truth marked out the boundaries of the call to the people of Israel, before He gave the call to the people of Israel, and He will not take back that call, even though only a few of the people of Israel have been chosen, for doing what they were called to do, until this day (Romans 11:28-29).

So, it is certain that these verses do not support any idea of the Father of Truth predestining people to do anything. 

So, where did the doctrine of predestination come from?

Yet some might say, is not the Father of Truth predestining every single descendant of Israel on earth to be saved in the future?  The first thing to notice is they will all be saved after the Man of Truth drives out disobedience from them to cause their sins to be taken away (Romans 11:26-27).   This is a process that is only understood by digging into the Original Covenant that Paul the Jew is quoting.

First, the Father of Truth will gather every descendant of Israel together, so they can live in the Promised Land (Deuteronomy 30:3-5).  This will even include those descendants of Israel, which have had their ancestry hidden from them (Psalm 83:3-4).  The gathered descendants of Israel will first be taken into the wilderness, where every single one of them, who refuses to do everything within the boundaries that He marked out before, will be destroyed (Ezekiel 20:34-38).

So, all rebels will be removed from the descendants of Israel (Isaiah 27:9).  The Man of Truth will come to rule over all of the remaining descendants of Israel (Isaiah 59:20).  So, every descendant of Israel left on Earth will be saved, because they will all do everything within the boundaries that He marked out before (Isaiah 59:21).

So, the Father of Truth has predestined a process for the group of all descendants of Israel on Earth to be saved in the future, but has not predestined any individual descendant of Israel to be part of that group.  They will decide their own destination by either choosing to do everything that is within the boundaries that He marked out before, OR by choosing to refuse to do everything that is within the boundaries that He marked out before.

It will work the same way with the Gentiles.  The Father of Truth has predestined a process for all of the Gentiles on Earth to be saved in the future. 

When every descendant of Israel is saved, then it will begin an era of peace and prosperity for the entire world (Romans 11:12).  When every descendant of Israel is saved, then it will save the Earth from dying off completely and bring it back to life (Romans 11:15).

The Man of Truth will bring about bring about the end of all wars, when the Gentiles answer the call of the boundaries that His Father marked out before (Isaiah 2:2-4).  He will bring peace between nations and prosperity to every person, when the Gentiles do everything within the boundaries that His Father marked out before (Micah 4:1-4).

The Gentiles will enjoy the benefits of the Man of Truth reigning over them, with the help of the Children of Truth, for a thousand years (Revelation 20:1-6).  The Gentiles will be given the opportunity to rebel against the Man of Truth, so that every single one of them, who detests doing everything within the boundaries that His Father marked out before, will be destroyed (Revelation 20:7-9).

So, all rebels will be removed from the Gentiles (Revelation 20:10-15).  The Man of Truth will continue to rule over all of the remaining Gentiles (Revelation 21:5-6).  So, every Gentile on Earth will be saved, because they will all do everything within the boundaries that His Father marked out before (Revelation 21:24-26).

So, the Father of Truth has predestined a process for the group of all Gentiles on Earth to be saved in the future, but has not predestined any individual Gentile to be part of that group.  They will decide their own destination by either choosing to d everything that is within the boundaries that He marked out before, OR by choosing to refuse to do everything that is within the boundaries that He marked out before.

So, the Father of Truth has not predestined anyone to salvation or damnation.  He lets all people determine their own eternal destination (Romans 2:6-11). 

There can be no doubt about this.  The Father of Truth did not make the Chamber of Horrors for the punishment of people, so it is certain that He did not predestinate some of them to go there (Matthew 25:41). 

So, where did the idea of predestination come from?

The earliest record of the idea that the Father of Truth predestinated people was in first century Judaism.

Josephus wrote that the Pharisees and Essenes believed that the Father of Truth ordered all human events.  The Essenes believed that people had no choice in these events, while the Pharisees believed that people still made their own choices, and the Father of Truth used those choices to bring about His will.

The belief of the Essenes were tied to their belief in pre-existence.  This was an idea that many Jews picked up from the Babylonians during their exile in Babylon.  This idea of pre-existence was, that deeds which they had done before their birth, caused fortune or misfortune in their current life.  

For example, they believed that sin committed before birth, could cause a person to be born blind (John 9:2).  The Man of Truth completely rejected the idea of pre-existence (John 9:3).

The first Gentile reference to the idea that the Father of Truth predestinated people was from Origen during the third century AD.  The doctrine of predestination by every theologian afterwards, up to the time of John Calvin in the 1500's AD, can be traced back to his original doctrine of predestination.

His doctrine, like that of the Essenes, was also tied to the idea of pre-existence.  More specifically, he taught that human souls were created sinless, became sinful, and then were placed in human bodies.  Their eternal destination was already determined by the choices they made before they were born.

Origen was well trained in Greek philosophy and mythology.  In particular, he prescribed to Predeterminism.  Predeterminism was the philosophy that all human choices and actions were predetermined before people were born.  It came from belief in the Three Fates of Greek mythology.

So, the idea of predestination is based on the very same philosophies and vain deceit that Paul the Jew warned the Children of Truth to avoid (Colossians 2:8).  It is founded in the very idolatry that the Gentiles were called to leave behind (1 Thessalonians 1:9).

Everything from idolatry is from the Spirits of Lies (devils aka demons aka unclean spirits aka gods), therefore the Children of Truth of Truth should have nothing to do with anything that comes from idolatry - like predestination  (1 Corinthians 10:19-21).

Ultimately, the Father of Lies (HaShatan aka Satan Aka The Devil) is behind every lie that predestination was built upon (John 8:44)!

This idea of predestination did not come from the Father of Truth!  

The Father of Truth sent the Man of Truth into this world, so people could come into the House of Truth, and change their eternal destination to salvation (John 3:16-17)!  He did not predestine any to a destination of damnation, for He desires for all men to come into the House of Truth (2 Peter 3:9)!

The Father of Truth is commanding you to come into the House of Truth, because you are determining your eternal destination by your choice (Acts 17:30-31).  You can change your eternal destination to salvation, by making the Man of Truth ruler of your life, because you believe that He raised him from the dead (Romans 10:9)!  You will determine your eternal destination, so come into the House of Truth (Revelation 20:11-15)!

Come into the House of Truth!