Nadene Goldfoot
Jews had been held as slaves for 400 years in Egypt. They had entered Egypt with Jacob that had the Pharaoh of that day's blessing for he was pleased with Jacob's son, Joseph, who had become his right-hand man. The next pharaoh had other fears of their high count from multiplying, taking the Israelites as slaves.
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Finally, along came Moses and his brother, Aaron, who talked this Pharaoh into letting all 603,550 slaves, a mixed bag of Israelites and others go. Moses had the unusual background of having lived through a purge, killing all males his age through the fears of this Pharaoh and being found and raised by one of the Pharaoh's daughters. He had all the education of a son of a royal, so could read, write and do math as well as being educated in army maneuvers and such.
The biblical descriptions of G-d's manifestations during Moses' time, when we read about the pillar of cloud by day and fire by night guiding the Israelites during the Exodus, resemble modern UFO phenomena, leading some to view them as divine spacecraft or advanced technology. To the people of the Exodus, they were seen as G-d's tangible presence. Moses was born in about 1391 BCE, which was 3,416 years ago. He died at age 120, which was in 1271 BCE or 3,297 years ago. He was still on the Exodus, buried in a secret place. Joshua took over his position as leader of the Exodus group. The pillar seen as fire at night leading them continued in its job for 40 years until they reached Canaan from Egypt. It wasn't that far away if taken by a few men, but moving 600,000 some people over unchartered land except for an Egyptian excursion now and then took time. Besides that, it took time to change the people from a slave mentality to a unified religious one that was to last for all eternity.
UAPs, or Unidentified Anomalous Phenomena, are unexplained observations in the sky, space, or underwater that can't immediately be identified as known objects or phenomena, replacing the older term UFO (Unidentified Flying Object) to encompass more than just aerial sightings and encourage scientific study, with potential explanations ranging from drones, balloons, and atmospheric effects to advanced foreign technology or, less commonly, extraterrestrial craft. The U.S. government and NASA now formally study UAPs, focusing on data analysis to identify prosaic explanations while acknowledging a few cases remain unexplained.
Couldn't it be that the pillars and fire described in the Bible are like the cigar-shaped UFO's sighted in our generation?
Ezekiel's Chariot
Ezekiel of the 6th century BCE, a prophet, part of priestly family of Zadok, served in the Temple before 586 BCE by Babylonians; among those exiled before to Tel Abib on the river Kebar in Babylonia, had a vision.
Ezekiel's Vision is a c. 1518 painting by Raphael showing the prophet Ezekiel's vision of God in majesty. It is housed in the Palatine Gallery of Palazzo Pitti, Florence italy...It's how Raphael saw it;In a vision the prophet Ezekiel sees "the appearance of a man" sitting on a throne shaped by four creatures. The creatures have different faces: that of a man, an ox, a lion and an eagle. The "appearance" speaks to Ezekiel, who realizes that it is God himself who speaks to him. Ezekiel didn't exactly ride something, but he saw a spectacular vision of God's throne-chariot, described in Ezekiel 1, featuring four winged creatures (Cherubim) with four faces (man, lion, ox, eagle) and complex, eye-covered wheels that moved with them, all surrounded by blinding light and appearing like a rainbow. Artists have depicted this as a radiant chariot, a "flying machine," or a complex celestial vehicle, with famous examples including Raphael's "Ezekiel's Vision" (c. 1518) showing the throne-chariot with glowing figures and wheels.
Ezekiel's vision (wheel within a wheel), are also sometimes reinterpreted as UFOs by people today, contrasting with mainstream religious understanding that he would have had that sees these as angelic or divine encounters.
In describing what one sees, it depends on how they can understand what they see according to their own environment.
- Elisha lived in 9th century BCE: a vivid description in 2 Kings 2:11-12, where a fiery chariot and horses of fire appear, separating Elijah from Elisha as Elijah ascends to heaven in a whirlwind, symbolizing divine power and transition. Famous artistic depictions, like those by Gustave Doré, often show Elisha watching Elijah's ascension, highlighting this miraculous moment of the prophet's departure.
- He was said to have resurrected the dead and other miracles: Elisha's Fiery Chariots (2 Kings 6:17): Elisha's servant saw the mountain "full of horses and chariots of fire all around Elisha," revealing an unseen army of divine protectors.
- Seraphim in Isaiah's Vision (Isaiah 6:2-3): Isaiah was a prophet in Jerusalem from the death of Uzziah until the middle of Hezekiah's reign (740-701 BCE) of a noble family;
- Six-winged angelic beings (Seraphim) described as covering their faces and feet with two wings and flying with two, declaring "Holy, holy, holy is the Lord Almighty".
- God's Chariot-like Clouds (Psalm 104:3): God described as making the clouds His chariot, riding on the wings of the wind.
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