[Advanced Medical Knowledge of the Bible]
When faced with the question of “How do we know the Bible is the Word of God?” It is easy to freeze up and get caught up in many different topics or areas. The question itself is simple but seems to be a very loaded question on the recipient's end. To help all of us better understand why the Bible is the direct revelation from God I am starting a new topic in the catalog for this very question… with many locations to choose from, I chose to begin with Medical knowledge in the Torah.
The main point of this argument is not that the Bible serves as an all-around textbook where you can find answers to every field of knowledge therein. What we mean by that is that there is Medically effective and useful information and instruction within the Torah that was impossible for ancient people to know about. There is awareness of germs and microbes that until the start of the 20th century were simply denied. Germs weren't widely known until 1890 and before that medical environments were not ideally clean, so going back to the 13th century Bc, their knowledge was nearly non-existent. Most ancient cultures around that time practiced dangerous and fatal ingredients and applications, as will be seen in a moment. Therefore the Hebrews having an awareness of germs within their law begs for an explanation because they were slaves in Egypt for 400 years so they were bound to adopt Egyptian practices.
[Egyptian Medical Knowledge]
Most of our knowledge of Egyptian medical practice comes from several hundred prescriptions in Papyrus Ebers. Despite being the most technologically advanced nation of their time, Egyptian medical knowledge is actually quite scary to read about. It was extremely primitive, imaginative, and downright fatal. Even though Egyptian medical knowledge was limited (and that is an understatement), they still admired it as much as they did their other achievements. Now, let's look at some Egyptian remedies.
Have a splinter and need to prevent infection? Apply this ointment made from mushed-up worms mixed with donkey poo! Do you have hair loss? Rub this solution on your head made from horse, crocodile, cat, and snake fat along with crushed-up donkey teeth! Are you a new parent, will your baby not stop crying? Feed it spn seeds mixed with fly poo mixed into a paste and filtered to drink, the baby will stop crying immediately (from its guaranteed death). Pharmacies prescribed “medication” made from Lizard blood, swine teeth, putrid meat, stinking fat, gunk from pig ears, milk, goose grease, asses’ hoofs, animal fats, excreta from animals including; humans, donkeys, antelopes, dogs, cats, and flies. “An Ancient Egyptian Herbal” by Lise Manniche says they used “Cat’s dung, hippo dung, donkey hoof, gazelle dung, snakeskin, and fly dung.” As you can see the practices of the Egyptians were astounding in the risk of infection, disease, and death.
Moses grew up in Egypt, the Old Testament tells us that Moses was adopted by the Pharaoh's daughter. In that position, he would have access to royal and priestly education. Josephus tells us that Moses, as a prince of Egypt became a great general in a war against the Ethiopian empire. In this position, He was highly educated in Egyptian literature and practices. “And Moses was learned in all the wisdom of the Egyptians, and was mighty in words and deeds” (Acts 7:22). If Moses was raised and educated from childhood about these medical practices, then how did he know and come up with the incredibly accurate and far advance sanitization and quarantine laws? Only if the designer of the human body was inspiring him to write these very important laws because Moses could not have obtained them from Egypt.
[God’s Laws on Hygiene, Sanitation, and Dead Meat]
Before the late 1800s and early 1900s many doctors thought illness was transmitted by bad luck or bad air/spirits and many patients (dead or alive) were often kept in small rooms close to each other. They had no idea that germs could contaminate utensils and clothing. Leviticus 6:28 says “But the earthen vessel in which it is boiled shall be broken. And if it is boiled in a bronze pot, it shall be both scoured and rinsed in water.” This law says to dispose of cracked or broken pottery, this is rather significant because cracks in clay pots can contain harmful bacteria that cannot be scrubbed away. The law also mentions scouring and rinsing in running water which is a very effective way to disinfect metal tools without advanced disinfecting agents.
Another law says “And as for you, remain outside the camp seven days; whoever has killed any person, and whoever has touched any slain, purify yourselves and your captives on the third day and on the seventh day. Purify every garment, everything made of leather, everything woven of goats’ hair, and everything made of wood.” Then Eleazar the priest said to the men of war who had gone to the battle, “This is the ordinance of the law which the Lord commanded Moses: “Only the gold, the silver, the bronze, the iron, the tin, and the lead, everything that can endure fire, you shall put through the fire, and it shall be clean; and it shall be purified with the water of purification. But all that cannot endure fire you shall put through water. And you shall wash your clothes on the seventh day and be clean, and afterward you may come into the camp (Numbers 31:19-24).” These laws regulate all plunder taken from war to be carefully washed. Anything that was to withstand burning is to be burnt which would annihilate all germs present on the equipment. This protected the Israelites from harmful infections and germs from 1. The pagans who weren’t as clean, and 2. The results of war. The Torah not only contains laws that clearly understand the existence of microscopic germs but also a high regard for the risks of dealing with dead bodies.
Throughout most of Human history, people stored their meat with spices and herbs in an attempt to prevent decay and hide the smell of decay already started. So without refrigeration or a way to keep the meat cool and fresh, eating it ran with the risks of sickness, especially carrion. The Bible has something to say about this in Leviticus 11:35 “And everything on which a part of any such carcass falls shall be unclean; whether it is an oven or cooking stove, it shall be broken down; for they are unclean, and shall be unclean to you.” Here Moses reveals the dangers of dangerous bacteria from animal corpses, so much so that if any part touched even a clay oven, it was to be deconstructed and disposed of. Moreover, if you touch them, you are unclean as well. To go even further, there are laws preventing the Israelites from eating meat from animals that died naturally or from predators. “And the fat of an animal that dies naturally, and the fat of what is torn by wild beasts, may be used in any other way; but you shall by no means eat it (Leviticus 7:24).” This protected them from whatever disease or infection killed the animal as well as the bacteria that developed from animals who were victims of other animals. Completely opposite from the Egyptians.
[Laws Preventing Infection, Plagues, and Leprosy]
There are laws on how to identify illness, quarantine the sick, clean the caretakers, and dispose of the dead that were unheard of in the time of Moses. Running water is a big factor because stagnant water does not get rid of germs, even the mixture of this cleansing water is important as we will see later. “‘This is the law when a man dies in a tent: All who come into the tent and all who are in the tent shall be unclean for seven days; and every open vessel, which has no cover fastened on it, is unclean. Whoever in the open field touches one who is slain by a sword or who has died, or a bone of a man, or a grave, shall be unclean for seven days. ‘And for an unclean person, they shall take some of the ashes of the heifer burnt for purification from sin, and running water shall be put on them in a vessel (Numbers 19:14-17).” Again throughout human history, the knowledge of germs was nonexistent, and dead bodies were not disposed of carefully or at all. Dr. Ignaz Sammelwies was a Hungarian physician who, fessed up with the mortality rate of women in Vienna in 1845, created a system of hand washing during and between patient care because he thought that was their main issue, he wanted them to wash them in a mixture of water and chlorinated lime.
The first hospital he worked at resisted his new system and eventually fired him. Ignaz eventually found another hospital that embraced his idea where the mortality rates dropped from 15% to 1%. He gained recognition from the Hungarian Government that established his system demanding that all medical staff wash their hands. Thousands of years before this God was already commanding His people to wash their hands in running water. “And when he who has a discharge is cleansed of his discharge, then he shall count for himself seven days for his cleansing, wash his clothes, and bathe his body in running water; then he shall be clean (Leviticus 15:13).”
The books of Numbers and Leviticus contain laws that effectively quarantine and treat infectious diseases. There are laws that command the Priests to act as medical inspectors that check the sick and make judgments on their situations (Leviticus 13:43-44). Two verses later they are commanded to separate those who are identified as infected with leprosy “He shall be unclean. All the days he has the sore he shall be unclean. He is unclean, and he shall dwell alone; his dwelling shall be outside the camp (Leviticus 13:46).” Those who were infected weren't even permitted to participate in annual festivals (Numbers 19:20) and after they recovered they were to be under seven more days of strict inspection to prove they were healed (Leviticus 14:1-9). The OT laws were a light among the ancients on identifying and maintaining disease to a world that had almost no medical knowledge. So much so that Arturo Castiglione wrote “The laws against leprosy in Leviticus 13 may be regarded as the first model of a sanitary legislation.” (A History of Medicine, Pg 71).
[Laws of Cleanliness, and Waste Removal]
To get some context in the back, the time of Moses (1300s BC) was very unclean. Human waste was often tossed into gutters along roads until rain washed it out (somewhat). These cultures used poop in medicine as seen with the Egyptians and many ancient cultures didn’t properly dispose of it. So when God commanded the Israelites to build an incinerator outside the camp, He had their best interests in mind. “But the bull’s hide and all its flesh, with its head and legs, its entrails and offal, the whole bull he shall carry outside the camp to a clean place, where the ashes are poured out, and burn it on wood with fire; where the ashes are poured out it shall be burned (Leviticus 4:11-12).” Waste of animals and humans was to be burned outside of the camp which protected thousands of ancients from exposure to bacteria and parasites found in poop and entrails.
Even before Israel officially received the 10 commandments they were commanded to wash their clothes: “Then the Lord said to Moses, “Go to the people and consecrate them today and tomorrow, and let them wash their clothes (Exodus 19:10).” Exodus chapters 29 and 40 both command Priests to clean themselves before getting dressed in their garments (Exo 29:4 & 40:31-32). While God commanded the Israelites to protect themselves from microscopic organisms and viruses by properly quarantining and disposing of risky people or waste is amazing, God commanded them to create what, for all practical reasons, is an Ancient Disinfectant.
[An Ancient Disinfectant]
Numbers 19 contains the law regulating the Red Heifer sacrifice. Grant R. Jeffery has an entire section covering the spiritual significance of this sacrifice in his book “Signature of God” pages 182-185. That is the isolation of the Heifer from the camp, the sex of it as female, and the way it proceeds all points to the work of Jesus Christ on the Cross, but while a valuable thing to know it is not my point. I want to focus on a specific mention of the ingredients used in the purification water that is mentioned in these verses: “THEN THE HEIFER SHALL BE BURNED IN HIS SIGHT: ITS HIDE, ITS FLESH, ITS BLOOD, AND ITS OFFAL SHALL BE BURNED. AND THE PRIEST SHALL TAKE CEDARWOOD AND HYSSOP AND SCARLET, AND CAST THEM INTO THE MIDST OF THE FIRE BURNING THE HEIFER. Then the priest shall wash his clothes, he shall bathe in water, and afterward he shall come into the camp; the priest shall be unclean until evening. And the one who burns it shall wash his clothes in water, bathe in water, and shall be unclean until evening. THEN A MAN WHO IS CLEAN SHALL GATHER UP THE ASHES OF THE HEIFER, AND STORE THEM OUTSIDE THE CAMP IN A CLEAN PLACE; AND THEY SHALL BE KEPT FOR THE CONGREGATION OF THE CHILDREN OF ISRAEL FOR THE WATER OF PURIFICATION; it is for purifying from sin. And the one who gathers the ashes of the heifer shall wash his clothes, and be unclean until evening. It shall be a statute forever to the children of Israel and to the stranger who dwells among them. ‘He who touches the dead body of anyone shall be unclean for seven days. He shall purify himself with the water on the third day and on the seventh day; then he will be clean. But if he does not purify himself on the third day and on the seventh day, he will not be clean. Whoever touches the body of anyone who has died, and does not purify himself, defiles the tabernacle of the Lord. That person shall be cut off from Israel. He shall be unclean, because the water of purification was not sprinkled on him; his uncleanness is still on him (Numbers 19:5-13 Emphasis Added).”
The water for purification included these ingredients: The ashes of the Red Heifer, Cedar, Hyssop, and Scarlet Thread. The mixture produces oils that protect the Israelites from illness. The Cedar and Hyssop both produce oils in this process, the oil from the Cedar would irritate the skin and encourage scrubbing while the Hyssop oil (similar to mint, anise, or marjoram) is an effective antiseptic and antibacterial agent. Hyssop Oil can contain as high as 76% Carvacrol which is an effective antiviral, antibacterial, and antifungal agent that is still used in medicine today. This water was used to clean those who had cared for or touched a dead body as well as sin purification. When this is known, we can see that these laws not only contained Spiritual and Symbolic actions and benefits, but also Physical and Biological benefits as well. God, the designer of the human body and creator of all plants knew exactly what the Israelites needed to keep them safe from the invisible micro-world that could kill any of them if they were not careful. What a blessing it truly is to be aware of such revelation thousands of years before the greatest modern medical minds did it!
[Conclusion]
With the context of Moses’ childhood in mind and the fact that Israel spent 400 years in Egypt as slaves, and the far advanced medical laws that they produced, a question begins to boil in the pot. How did they know about Microbiology and the preventative methods for disease? I don’t think Moses was actively aware of bacteria and cells when he recorded these laws, he was receiving direct revelation from God (Example of Moses going to God for a solution can be found in Numbers 27:1-11). This is also obvious from his entire education from Egyptian royalty. The only logical explanation is that Moses had direct revelation from the designer of the Human body and all of its systems. The knowledge recorded in the Old Testament is thousands of years in advance to some of the brightest medical minds of modern medicine. This is but another testimony that the Bible is in fact the inspired Word of God.
It is amazing to know that Jesus Christ was there with Moses, guiding him along to make some of the first medically accurate practices of the Ancient World. Then to come down as the Space-Time person of Iesous Christos to suffer on a cross the separation that all of Mankind deserves. In the most loving act of grace, God redeemed a people who couldn’t redeem themselves and saves any person who realizes the truth of the historical resurrection of Jesus Christ, the Son of God. Amen
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