Clean Transcript

Hairy Goats and Idolatry

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• Alright, let's open our Bibles to the book of Leviticus chapter 17 verses 1 through 9. Leviticus 17 verses 1 through 9. When I told Roy the subject of my message today, he just simply says, "What?" So the subject that I'm going to be dealing with is hairy goats and idolatry. And yes, that's right, H-A-I-R-Y, hairy goats and idolatry. You'll see why a little bit later. Leviticus 17, verse 1, "And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Speak unto Aaron and to his sons and to all the children of Israel, and say unto them, This is the thing which the Lord hath commanded, saying, What man shall there be of the house of Israel, that killeth an ox, or a lamb, or a goat in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp?"

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• "And bring it down to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation to offer an offering unto the Lord before the tabernacle of the Lord. Blood shall be imputed unto that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people, to the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices, which they offer in the open field, even that they may bring unto the Lord, unto the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priests, and offer them for peace offerings unto the Lord. And the priest shall sprinkle the blood upon the altar of the Lord at the door of the tabernacle of the congregation and burn the fat for a sweet savor unto the Lord. And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils after whom they have gone a whoring."

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• "This shall be a statute forever unto them throughout their generations. And thou shalt say to them, Whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel or of the strangers who sojourn among you that offer the burnt sacrifice or offering, and bring it not to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation offered in the Lord even that man shall be cut off from among his people." Let me begin by asking a question.

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• Have you ever wondered about goats in the Bible? And the answer is probably not. I'm sure that the average Christian does not awaken one morning and say to himself, "Wow, I need to check out what the Bible says about goats." I mean, you know, usually things like that just simply do not happen. But in order to pique your curiosity, let me ask a few leading questions. First of all, why is one of the leading symbols of Satanism a goat head? Why are goats associated with idolatry? And I could also ask, why are those who are lost referred to as goats?

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• Now, the theme of the book of Leviticus chapters 17 through 22 is an obvious one. Israel is not to walk in the ways of the heathen and especially in the way of the Canaanites and whose land they are going to possess. Israel is to walk solely in the statutes of the Lord. Therefore, from Leviticus chapter 17 through 22, God is demanding a marked difference. He is saying that Israel must walk differently in their attitude, in their disposition, and in their worship.

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• The key sin in the Bible is the sin of idolatry. Over and over we are warned concerning idolatry. I don't know if you are aware of this or not, but there are some scholars that state that they believe the last book written chronologically is the Book of First John. In other words, it would not be the Book of Revelation. It would be the Book of First John. Revelation would have been written before the Book of First John. If that is correct, then of course, First John would be the last book and not Revelation.

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• And therefore, there would be an interesting scenario. What am I talking about? Well, Genesis 1:1 just simply says, "In the beginning, God created the heaven and the earth." So the Bible then would begin with a declaration concerning the one true and the living God. If 1 John would be the last book written, chapter 5 verse 21 would be the last verse in the Bible then, which says, "Little children, keep yourselves from idols." So begin then with a declaration of the one true and the living God, and end then with a warning against idolatry and apostatizing from the true God. Now, it's amazing, as you read through the Bible, to find out the trouble that Israel had with idolatry. One would think, after having seen the mighty works of God and having experienced his great deliverance, that their hearts would have been fixed and set upon the one true and living God.

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• But alas, it was not so. As you study the Bible, you'll find out that civil rulers, priests, and even the common people fell into the same idolatries over and over again. It seems as if they never learned the simple truth that there is one God and they were required to worship that one God with all their heart and with all their soul and with all their mind. In fact, that is why God gave the Shema Israel in Deuteronomy 6 verses 4 and 5, where it says, "Hear, O Israel, the Lord our God is one Lord, and thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, with all thy mind, with all thy soul, and with all thy might."

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• So Leviticus chapter 17 then is crying out against idolatry, and it is forbidding it in several unique ways. In the book of Leviticus, God lays down the law of the atonement. That is, there is to be an atoning sacrifice made for His people. And we know that that atonement, of course, is typical of the Lord Jesus Christ, who is our Passover, whom the Bible says in 1 Corinthians 5 and verse 7, has been sacrificed for us. And when you get to Leviticus 17, here are two prohibitions that are listed which are for the preservation and for the honor of that atonement. What are those prohibitions? Well, in Leviticus 17 verses 1 through 9, God is saying that, first of all, there is to be no sacrifice offered by anyone other than the priests, and that that sacrifice must be offered at the door of the tabernacle. So no one but God's ordained priests could offer the sacrifice, and the sacrifice had to be given at the door of the tabernacle.

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• Now, the second prohibition, which I'm not going to cover this morning, is found in verse 10, and that is a prohibition against eating blood. Now, Leviticus chapter 17 verses 1 through 9 then oblige the people to bring their sacrifices to God's altar and there to be sacrificed. Do you understand that previously, like when you read in the book of Genesis, this demand was not necessarily made at that particular time. There the individual patriarchs were allowed to build altars and to offer sacrifices to God wherever God specifically and particularly made a manifestation of himself. Think of all the times that God appeared to Abraham, to Isaac, and Jacob. And whenever God appeared to them in a unique way, there they built an altar, and there they worshipped the one true and living God.

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• You have to remember, before the law was given, basically, every man was a patriarch in his own family. For instance, if you look in your Bibles to the book of Job, Job chapter 1, and by the way, the book of Job was written during patriarchal times. And I'm not going to go into that other than to point out the fact that Job was the patriarch of his family, and he was the priest of his family, and he offered sacrifices. This would have been back during the time like of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. But in Job 1 and verse 5, the Bible says, "And it was so that when the days of their feastings were going about, that Job sent and sanctified them and rose up early in the morning and offered burnt offerings according to the number of them all."

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• For Job said, "It may be that my sons have sinned and cursed God in their hearts." Thus did Job continually. So Job then as the patriarch of his family, Job then as the priest of his household, offered sacrifices unto God himself.

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• Now, some scholars have said in light of Leviticus chapter 17, it is easy to see then how this liberty could become an occasion of idolatry. Because when every man is his own priest and he has his own altar and he's offering his own sacrifices, by degrees it is possible then for someone to become vain in their imaginations and of course invent gods of their own and therefore sacrifice to those gods. Well, that is certainly easily understood and easily seen. However, I do not necessarily think that that is the explanation that fits the context of Leviticus chapter 17. When you come to the book of Leviticus chapter 17, you must remember that Israel has just been brought out of the land of Egypt. In fact, the book before Leviticus is known as Exodus. And the book of Exodus is concerned with the Exodus, that is, of Israel's leaving Egypt. So they've just been brought out, and when you get to the book of Leviticus, God is laying down the sacrificial ordinances, the priestly ordinances, and everything concerning His worship.

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• Leviticus and Numbers and Deuteronomy all deal with Israel in the wilderness. So what am I talking about? I'm just simply saying this. Since Israel had just come out of the land of Egypt, Leviticus chapter 17 then, I believe, deals with their recent events in Egypt and in the context of the surrounding pagan nations.

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• Now you've got to ask yourself this question. Why would God demand that every sacrifice be brought to the door of His tabernacle? Look at it, Leviticus chapter 17, verse 3. God said, "What man soever there be of the house of Israel that killeth an ox, or a lamb, or a goat, in the camp, or that killeth it out of the camp, and bringeth it not to the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, to offer an offering unto the Lord before the tabernacle of the Lord, blood shall be imputed of that man. He has shed blood, and that man shall be cut off from among his people." Now if God says, look, I don't care whether you're killing this animal inside the camp or outside of the camp, you must bring the blood to me. The animal has to be sacrificed here. Look down in verse 5. "To the end that the children of Israel may bring their sacrifices which they offer in the open field."

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• That is out in the woods, out in the wilderness. "Even that they may bring them unto the Lord into the door of the tabernacle of the congregation, unto the priests, and offer them for peace offerings unto the Lord."

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• Now, there is some division as to the interpretation of these verses. The division is very simple. We must ask, is God dealing with just simply animals for sacrifice? Or is God dealing with just simply any animal that is killed for human consumption, so to speak? So, is the open field demanding that the blood and the fat of that animal be brought there if your family is just going to consume it?

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• Or is He talking about some type of worship? Now, I want you to understand this before I get into a further explanation. The blood and the fat were always to be offered unto the Lord. I hope everyone knows that both blood and fat were forbidden foods. For instance, look at Leviticus chapter 17, verse 10. "And whatsoever man there be of the house of Israel or of the strangers that sojourn among you, that he eateth any manner of blood I will even set my face against that soul that eats blood and will cut him off from among these people. For the life of the flesh is in the blood, and I have given it to you upon the altar to make an atonement for your souls, for it is the blood that makes the atonement for the soul. Therefore, I said to the children of Israel, no soul of you shall eat blood, neither shall any stranger that sojourneth among you eat blood." So blood was absolutely prohibited to Israelites or anyone associated with them. Now, you will note in pagan cultures, people do eat blood.

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• In fact, you have seen, as well as I, that there have been people in Africa, people in the Muslim countries, I suppose, people up around Mongolia. If they get thirsty and there's nothing to drink, they just simply pierce the artery or vein of their animal and drink the blood. I mean, that's just part of it. In England, you have blood pudding. Well, God says you're not to eat the blood. Now, I'm not dealing with that right now as to why, but I'm just simply pointing out that blood was forbidden. Also was the fat.

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• You'll find that in Leviticus chapter 3, verses 9 through 11. You don't have to turn there. But you'll also find it in 1 Samuel chapter 15 in verse 22. Because the fat was the chiefest part of the sacrifice, and the fat was to be always offered unto God. So the blood and the fat were always given to God. So the children of Israel then were by this law forbidden to kill any animal for sacrifice in the camp, out of the camp, or in the open field that they did not bring to the door of the tabernacle. Some would go farther and say that they were forbidden to kill any animal, even for human consumption, that they did not offer it unto the Lord first and foremost.

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• And I might point out that the context does indeed favor that interpretation as you read it. However, if you will look in your Bible to the book of Deuteronomy chapter 12, you're going to find that after the people got into the land, this ordinance was lifted. Notice in Deuteronomy chapter 12, beginning there with verse 21. In fact, let's begin reading with verse 20. Deuteronomy 12, verse 20.

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• "When the Lord thy God shall enlarge thy border as he has promised thee, and thou shalt say, I will eat flesh because I so long as eat flesh, thou mayst eat flesh whatsoever thy soul lusteth after, in the place where the Lord thy God hath chosen to put his name there, be too far from thee, then thou shalt kill of thy herd and of thy flock which the Lord hath given thee, as I have commanded thee, and thou shalt eat of it in thy gates, whatsoever thy soul lusteth after." So we know after they got into the land, anything for human consumption, they did not have to bring to the tabernacle.

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• Certainly they would have had to for sacrifice. Maybe it was because not only the tabernacle was so close to them for this regulation in Leviticus chapter 17, but there is also another reason that's going to be given just momentarily. And you're going to see, I believe, the real reason God said, while you're in the wilderness, anything you kill, you bring the blood and you bring the fat to the door of the tabernacle.

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• Now, you do know that the children of Israel, even after they got in the land of Canaan, three times a year had to go before the Lord in Jerusalem to those seven annual feasts. And there, of course, they sacrificed. And there, of course, they offered to the Lord.

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• Now, let's ask some questions as to what in the world is going on in Leviticus chapter 17. Why is God saying, "Whatever animal you kill, you bring the blood and the fat to the door of the tabernacle." And once that blood and the fat were offered to the Lord, well, of course, then the meat was given back to the individual as a peace offering, and the individual just simply took it home and enjoyed it.

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• Now, let me lay down several propositions for you to consider, and I think you'll see it. First of all, I want you to understand that God is absolutely sovereign. OK, now, since God is sovereign, he has the absolute right to tell us what we may eat and what we may not eat. He also has the right to tell us where we may eat and when we may eat and how we may eat, because he's God. As God, he may do whatever he pleases. And certainly whatever he pleases is right, righteous and holy. So God does have that sovereign right.

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• So he tells his people, "You can't do this unless you bring this to my tabernacle." Secondly, you've got to understand this. That life can only be taken upon God's terms. God is the creator, God is the sustainer, God is the preserver of life, and therefore he has the sovereign right to delineate upon what terms life may be taken, even the life of animals. If you would hold the book of Leviticus 17 and turn in your Bibles to Psalm 50, look what God says beginning there in verse 9.

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• This is just one passage. It occurs in several passages. But in Psalm 50, verse 9, notice what God says. "I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he goats out of thy foals. Why? For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the fowls of the mountains, and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee why, for the world is mine, and the fullness thereof." God said, "I own everything. Everything's mine." So God says, "If you're going to kill my animals, you kill them on my terms." By the way, I hate to bring this up, but it just irritates the living daylights out of me. How the states claim ownership to all the animals in the states.

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• That's why if you go deer hunting, the state wants you to purchase their license so you can kill their deer. But when their deer run in front of your car and do $2,500, that's just $2,500 worth of damage, they're no longer their deer then. I'm just simply pointing out, God says the animals are mine. And life may be taken only upon God's terms, because they certainly belong to Him.

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• Thirdly, let me point this out. There were indeed specific reasons for this requirement. Why was God saying, "All right, whether you kill an animal in the camp, out of the camp, out in the open field, you've got to bring that animal to the door of the tabernacle. You give the blood and the fat to me, then you may have the meat back then as a peace offering." I believe God was doing this to teach them that there was to be a constant, continual communion between himself and his people.

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• Do you realize that in the Bible, eating together is not just simply an act of fellowship, but an act of worship? If you were to go to the Middle East today, even if you were to go to an Arab's tent, and that Arab invited you in to eat, or even gave you something to drink, he then is duty-bound and honor-bound to protect your life. That's amazing. That's even true today.

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• So here is a union and a communion that God is saying, "You bring the fat and the blood to Me. I'm going to give you back the meat. And we're going to be having a fellowship and a communion together."

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• Now, all you've got to do is look at all of the offerings in the Old Testament, look at the Passover in the Old Testament, look at the Lord's table in the New Testament, because it is called the communion of the body and the blood of our Lord. And when you have communion, you are communing together. You're fellowshipping. You're worshipping together.

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• Now, I hope you understand that there is a specific reason then why the Apostle Paul wrote what he wrote in 1 Corinthians 10 and verse 31. And let me just quote it because I don't want you to turn there and lose your thought. Here it is. "Whatsoever you do, whether you eat or whether you drink, do all to the honor and the glory of God."

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• Now, that's essentially what he was trying to teach these people in picture form in Leviticus chapter 17, verses one through nine. So he's teaching us that there is to be a constant, continual communion between ourself and our Lord.

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• Fourthly, and this is what I'm going to deal with today. The main reason for this requirement is given to us in verse seven. Look at it. "And they shall no more offer their sacrifices of the devils. After whom they have gone a whoring. This shall be a statute forever unto them throughout their generation." Now, God says, here's the main reason I'm requiring you to bring your sacrifice to the door of the tabernacle. That you should no more offer your sacrifices unto devils after whom you've gone a whoring. You see, Israel learned a great deal in Egypt. And all that she learned was not good.

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• Now, the question has got to be asked, is Leviticus 17 and verse 7 relevant for us? I mean, God told them the reason he was requiring them to bring those sacrifices was so that they would no more offer sacrifices on the devils after they'd gone a whoring. You said, "Brother Weaver, we do not offer physical sacrifices." That's true. Let me ask you a question. Is it possible for Christians to have fellowship with devils?

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• Now don't answer out loud. Is it possible for Christians to have fellowship with devils? Well, let's allow the Word of God to answer that, okay? Turn in your Bibles to 1 Corinthians chapter 10. I want you to see what the Apostle Paul said to these Corinthian Christians. And by the way, they were abusing and misusing and perverting the Lord's Supper. 1 Corinthians chapter 10, and let's begin reading in verse 14. Watch carefully.

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• "Wherefore, my dearly beloved, flee from idolatry." So he's talking about idolatry. "I speak as to wise men, judge you what I say. The cup of blessing which we bless, is it not the communion of the blood of Christ? The bread which we break, is it not the communion of the body of Christ? For we being many are one bread and one body, for we are all partakers of that one bread. Behold Israel after the flesh," that is, look at Israel in the Old Testament, "Are not they which eat of the sacrifices partakers of the altar? What say I then?"

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• "That the idol is anything? Or that which is offered in sacrifice to idols is anything? But I say that the things which the Gentiles or the pagans sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils and not to God." Watch it. "And I would not that you should have fellowship with devils. You cannot drink the cup of the Lord in the cup of devils. You cannot be partaker of the Lord's table into the table of devils."

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• Now, look what he said. He said, "You look at Israel after the flesh." Now, Israel after the flesh did not always sacrifice to the one to the living God. Sometimes she sacrificed to devils. And he said, "Are not they who eat of the sacrifices partaker of the altar." So if you're eating of the devil's sacrifice, then you're partakers with him. And he says in verse 20, "I would not that you should have fellowship with devils." And then when you get to verse 21, verse 21 demonstrates that we cannot have fellowship with God and with devils at the same time, we may have fellowship one with the other, but we certainly cannot have fellowship with both at the same time.

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• Now, the question has got to be asked. If Israel was sacrificing to devils, exactly how are they sacrificing the devils? You don't ever find Israel saying, "Oh, there's the devil, let's worship him. Let's give him a sacrifice." Now, you don't see Israel doing that, nor would you see anybody with one eye and half sense doing that today. But go back to Leviticus chapter 17 and verse 7. Get ready. "And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils after whom they have gone a whoring."

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• "This shall be a statute forever unto them throughout their generation." So the statute forever is you are not to offer sacrifices of the devils. All of your sacrifices are to be the one true of the living God. Now, what in the world world are the devils? Well, the interesting thing is Leviticus 17, verse seven, the Hebrew word for devils. And I'm going to show it to you a little bit later.

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• Is literally rough, hairy goats. Rough, hairy goats. That's why I told you I was going to preach on hairy goats and idolatry. Now, how can a hairy goat be associated with the devil and idolatry?

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• Now, you're going to find this same Hebrew word that is translated devil in Leviticus 17, verse 7. It's translated goat in Leviticus 4 and verse 24. And it's also translated devil in Second Chronicles 11 and verse 15. Turn over to Second Chronicles 11 and verse 15. Second Chronicles 11. Verse 15.

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• Now we're talking about Jeroboam, Jeroboam was the first king of Israel, of the northern tribe, Jeroboam the son of Nebat, quote the Bible says, "And he ordained him priests for the high places, and for the devils, and for the calves which he had made." You remember Jeroboam made the two golden calves, one he put in Dan, the other he put in Bethel? Well evidently he made more than the two golden calves, he made him some devils, and here the word devils is he made him some rough hairy goats. And the word goats, rough hairy goats is translated as devils here in 2nd Chronicles 11 verse 15 as well as Leviticus chapter 17 and verse 7. Now the word devil in Leviticus 17 verse 7 is the translation of the Hebrew word seir, S-A-I-R, which literally means a goat or a satyr. If you will turn in your Bibles to Isaiah chapter 13, you will see the word satyr. In fact, the Hebrew word is pronounced sa-ir. Notice, if you would please, Isaiah 13 and verse 21.

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• Isaiah 13, verse 21. And God is pronouncing His judgment upon Babylon. In fact, let's begin reading with verse 19 and Babylon, the glory of the kingdoms, the beauty of the Chaldees' excellency. "Excellency shall be is when God overthrew Sodom and Gomorrah. It shall never be inhabited. Neither shall it be dwelt in from generation to generation. Neither shall the Arabian pits tent there. Neither shall the shepherds make their fold there."

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• "But wild beasts of the desert shall lie there. And their houses shall be full of doleful creatures, and owls shall dance there, and satyrs," that is, rough-haired goats, devils, "shall dance there. And the wild beasts of the island shall crime their desolate houses, and dragons in their pleasant palaces. And her time is near to come, and her days shall not be prolonged." So he's talking about satyrs there.

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• If you will turn to Isaiah 34 and look at verse 14, you'll see the same words. This same word, satyr, is also rough, hairy, goat, or devil. Notice Isaiah 34 and verse 14. He says, "The wild beast of the desert shall also meet with the wild beast of the island, and the satyr shall cry to his fellow. The street owl also shall rest there and find for herself a place of rest."

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• Once again, it deals with God's judgment. Now, what in the world were these satyrs? What in the world were these rough-haired goat devils? What were they? Well, I'm going to show you in just a moment, but let me ask that you go ahead and turn in your Bibles, first of all, to Deuteronomy chapter 32, and then we're going to Psalm 106, because I want you to see that Israel had a problem with this. You're going to think we don't, but I believe you're going to concur that we do. Look at it in Deuteronomy, chapter 32 and verse 17, Deuteronomy 32, verse 17. God says concerning his people, "They sacrifice of the devils, not to God, to God's whom they knew not, to new gods that came newly up, whom your fathers feared not."

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• What did he say they did? They sacrificed. Look at Psalm 106 and verse 37. Psalm 106 and verse 37. Psalm 106, verse 37. "Yea, they sacrificed their sons and their daughters unto devils."

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• Now in Leviticus 17:7, in 2nd Chronicles chapter 11 in verse 15, it is literally rough, hairy goat devils. Has anyone in here ever heard of the mythical god Pan? OK. What was Pan? Who can tell me? Half goat, half man. Don't you remember the old adage, Pan, Pan? The goat man, half goat, half man. Well, I'm going to show you it was not just the Egyptians, but a lot of the pagans that worshiped Pan, Faunus, and Saturn, whose recognized symbol was a goat.

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• Now, this form of idolatry was particularly practiced in Egypt, especially in the province of Mendes. Now, listen carefully, Pan was supposedly to preside over the mountainous and desert regions. Would you please tell me where the Israelites were for 40 years? In the mountainous and desert regions. What would those heathen people do when they killed an animal? They would pour out the animal's blood to the god of the region. Kind of like our early American Indians who would kill an animal and then thank the earth for providing it and pour the blood on the ground to the earth god or to the wood god. Well, Pan then was supposed to have been the goat god of the mountains and the deserts and undoubtedly some of these Israelites thought that they must propitiate this goat god, that they must worship Him. So God says, look, I'm not going to allow you to do that. You bring that blood to the door of the tabernacle. And if you don't, you'll be cut off from among your people. I will not put up with your idolatry.

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• By the way, the worship of Pan, or the worship of any of the goat gods was extremely licentious and obscene and it gave rise to the grossest impurity. Thus God says you shall not sacrifice to devils. Now the worship of goats as gods, particularly Pan, who was represented in the form of a goat, was the personification of the male and fertilizing principle of nature. Hope you're already clicking in your mind.

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• Which shows you something in our land today known as the sexual revolution. OK. By the way, I'm going to give you two quotes right here because I think this is interesting. In the Masonic religion, you have a connection with goats. And part of the initiation ceremonies for one of the degrees is called riding the goat. And I'm going to give you two quotes taken from Masons themselves. Listen to this first one. It's taken from the Freemason by Michael Lawrence. Here's his quote.

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• "Greek mythology introduced Pan, the man-goat personage, and the early Dionysian artificers accepted this figure as the symbol of the temple builders. Temple construction was viewed by these early schools as a source of understanding the mystery and the nature of God. The school produced the ionic column, which literally held up the temple, the symbolic home of their God. Thus, we now have the goat as a symbol of man's quest for his God and in conjunction with man, supporter or cornerstone of God's home." So he's saying we now have the goat as a symbol of man's quest for God.

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• Here's another quote, and I don't know exactly how to pronounce this fellow's name. It's Eugene W. I'm going to say PlaWiuk, P-L-A-W-I-U-K. This was in a lecture that he gave to the Masonic Lodge on September 3rd, 1991. He says this, "As I mentioned earlier, the boat and the goat god Pan became equated with the devil in medieval Christianity. But to medieval occultists, especially Rosicrucians, the goat symbolized the elemental energies of the earth, the sign of Saturn, and the alchemical element derived therefrom. In the tarot, it is the major arcana," you know the tarot cards, which are totally wicked, "but in the tarot, it is the major arcana card number 15, the devil who shows a goat-headed deity with a man and woman chained to him."

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• "The symbolism is that of people who strive for material rather than spiritual gain. The goat Mendes, or Baphomet, whom the Templars were accused of worshipping, is a goat-headed deity being formed of both male and female principles, with a caduceus of mercury for its phallus. One arm points up and one arm points down, with the Latin solve et coagula written on them." Then he says this. "This is not the Christian devil, but a symbol of the ancient alchemist, representing the fact that nature and nature's God is a combination and balance of male and female forces, light and darkness, moisture and dryness."

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• "Their principle is, as above, so below." Now, you know about confusing God with his creation. I mean, that is totally blasphemous. But anyhow, I'm still quoting. "Another goat-headed deity worshipped by the ancient pagan Celtic peoples was Cernunnos, the horned god of the wood. Today in witchcraft covens, the goat head is seen to symbolize this ancient deity. Unfortunately to those who remain in the dark," I suppose that's anyone who's not a Mason, "but unfortunately to those who remain in the dark, these goat deities are seen as something evil rather than as the symbol of the earth, fertility, the primal matter, and the first principle."

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• "Freemasonry in its past, like its predecessor, the Knights Templar, have been accused of being in league with the devil, being a satanic tool, etc. That has arisen from the fact that Freemasons, by their initiation into the light, have been eager to research and study the mystical symbols of the past and present without fear or irrational prejudice. In times past of religious persecution and superstition, the mystical Mason has treaded the path of heresy in search of the light of the truth." End quote.

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• Now, note if you would what he is saying. He's saying, first of all, that Pan only became associated with the Christian devil during the medieval times. That would be in the 1500s. Well, we already found the hairy goat back in Leviticus 17. That was far before medieval times. And God called him a devil back then. But the interesting thing is, he said, in search of truth, they follow the path of heresy. Now, I'm just simply pointing out the fact that the worship of goats and particularly Pan, who was represented in the form of a goat, was a personification of the male and fertilizing principle in nature. Therefore, the Israelites had learned in Egypt not only to sacrifice to these demons, but to participate in the worship of these demons. Therefore, look back in Leviticus 17 and verse 7, look what God says. Leviticus 17, verse 7. "And they shall no more offer their sacrifices unto devils or the goat demons."

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• "After they have gone a whoring." In other words, God says that to go a whoring after anything or anyone other than the one true and the living God is idolatry. And God uses the term to go a whoring, just like there would be the term a whoring used in application to someone who's unfaithful to his marriage vows. So God says here is someone who's unfaithful to his covenantal vows to me that I am his God and that he is my child. And so God said, I'm going to require that you do this in Leviticus 17.

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• so that you will no more sacrifice to rough, hairy goats. Now, let me make some applications because I'm sure you're wondering, how in the world does all this apply to us? Well, I think you can find out very quickly. What are some of the hairy goats of idolatry? Well, first of all, there's the hairy goat of environmentalism. What was Pan? He was the god of the mountains and the desert.

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• What were they trying to do? They were trying to appease him. Let me tell you something, folks. It is true that we must respect God's creation and we must take care of it and treat it with the utmost care and concern. And we may only use God's creation as a stewardship unto him for his honor and his glory, as well as for our good. However, whatever you begin to place the land or the world or the trees or anything above and beyond God, it is idolatry, pure and simple. Whenever you begin to misuse and abuse and pervert God's creation, it is idolatry, pure and simple.

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• I have seen bumper stickers that said this: "Trees have feelings, too." Oh. So now we cannot use God's creation, which He has told us to subdue and exercise dominion over. Why? Because trees have feelings too. How about this one? I'm sure that you have seen it. And this one just aggravates me to no end. Here is on a bumper sticker a round ball of the earth and it says, "Be kind to your mother." Earth is not my mother. I did not come from the belly of the earth. Nature is not my mother. And it burns me up to hear these weathermen speak of Mother Nature. Mother Nature hasn't fathered anybody. Hasn't nurtured anybody. God is the Creator. God is the Father.

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• I've done a lot of preaching in the Northwest. You know what some of the environmentalists have done? They will sneak out to a timber site where the timber is being cut, and they will drive nails deeply into a tree. Why? The nail can't be seen from the outside. They'll drive it all the way in the tree. Because when the lumberjack then begins cutting the tree down, his chainsaw will hit that nail and bounce back and cut him. In other words, they're more concerned about the tree than they are the man.

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• Whenever you begin to elevate the creature above the creator and worship the creature more than the creator, it's an idolatry. Environmentalism is nothing more than idolatry.

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• Secondly, what about the hairy goat of animal rights? Now, I've got news for you, I believe that animals should be respected as well. And I believe God tells us how we're to treat his creation and his animals, and I've taught on how to deal with animals before when I dealt with biblical law. Let me tell you something, folks, there is something seriously wrong with someone or with some organizations when they will spend millions of dollars to try to save a baby whale or a baby baboon or a baby mouse and walk across the street to save a man. It's amazing how these same organizations that will fight for the life of baby animals will fund abortions. Point I'm trying to make, folks, is this. The rough hairy goat god is still around.

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• We just don't recognize him by the name of Pan, but he's still here. Third, let me point out that any occult or any cult, any organization or any false religion, whatever that elevates animals above and beyond the Lord Jesus Christ and gifts to those animals, the honor and the glory that belongs to Jesus Christ is an idolatrous organization, no matter how respectable it is. And then I pointed out, there's the hairy goat of the sexual revolution.

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• Now, I realize it started a number of years ago, and I realize that AIDS and venereal disease have cut down on some of that, but it's still going on. And have you ever noticed? What did you call a lecherous old man? You old what? You old goat? Isn't that amazing? Because you see, that was associated with the worship of Pan. And the worship of the goat god.

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• is extremely licentious and wicked. The sexual revolution is part and parcel of the goat god idolatry. We may not recognize it as that, but it is. Let me point out this and make this exceedingly emphatic. If men do not worship the Lord Jesus Christ and him alone, according to 1 Corinthians 10 verse 20, Revelation 9 verse 20, and 2 Chronicles 11 verse 15, all they're doing is worshipping devils. That's all. Can you imagine, just stop and think with me now, can you imagine all of the churches in this country that have a form of godliness but deny the power thereof, that they meet, they assemble, and they go through what they call a worship service, yet they deny the deity of Christ, they deny His blood atonement, they deny the Word of God, and guess what? God says they are worshipping devils. They're not worshipping Christ. It's that simple. You either worship Christ or you worship the devils.

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• By the way, that is why the lost are referred to as goats in Matthew 24. Because if you're not in Christ, you're lost, and what did our Lord say in John 8:44 to those Pharisees, "You are of your father, the what? The devil." So you either worship Christ, or you're worshiping devil.

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• Thirdly, according to Leviticus chapter 17, for the suppression of idolatry and for the prevention of idolatry, God said these sacrifices must be given at the door of my tabernacle under the eyes of my priest and done only by the hands of my priest. Let me just translate an application for you. Basically speaking, what that means is this, whatever we do in word or deed is to be always done in accordance with the mandates of Holy Scripture. It's to be done biblically and scripturally. And according to the mandates that God has laid down. Let me give you another application for it. What would happen? Or what should happen, I might ask. When all the people in the camp, that whatever they killed, they brought to the door of the tabernacle, gave the fat and the blood to God, took the meat to themselves.

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• Would you not be meeting your neighbor there? Would you not be meeting your friend there? Well, of course you would. I mean, so here is something that was designed by God to promote the unity of the brethren, to show that we were one with each other. Now, the Bible said in Psalm 33, "Behold, how good and pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity." And by the way, God wants us to understand that we are to be one in him. And that we are to be brethren. And we're to work together as well as worship together. Fifthly, I want you to understand this, although we do not offer physical sacrifices now, we do offer spiritual sacrifices. What does the Bible say? The Bible says that we are to offer up spiritual sacrifices, that is, the fruit of our lips, which is acceptable unto God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

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• You say, "Brother Weaver, I don't bring my sacrifice to the door of the tabernacle." Sure you do. Hebrews 13, verse 10 talks about Jesus Christ. It says we have a tabernacle. We have an altar. We have an altar where those who serve the physical tabernacle have no right deed. Who is our altar? It's Jesus Christ. When we offer up the spiritual sacrifice of our lips, giving thanksgiving unto God through Jesus Christ, we are coming to the door of the tabernacle to our altar, who is none other than Jesus Christ himself. Let me give you one other application today. You know, the Bible says in Hebrews 10 and verse 25, "Forsake not the assembling of yourselves together as the manner of some is, but exhorting one another and so much more as you see the day approaching." So he says, forsake not the assembling of yourselves together.

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• Now, let me ask you a question. Can you worship privately in your home? Yes. Can you worship while you're out in your automobile? Yes. Can you worship while you're out fishing? Yes. But although you can worship in those areas, in those ways, it does not take the place of public worship. Those Israelites were being trained. They might pray in their tents. They might pray out in fields. But when it came time for public worship, they had to bring their sacrifices to the door of the Tabernacle. You see, folks, God demands public as well as private worship.

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• That's why he said, "Forsake not the assembling of yourselves together as a matter of some ease." And what you do Monday through Saturday should be preparing you for what you do on Sunday. Your private worship is to encourage you and build you up so that on the Lord's Day you may worship him in spirit and in truth. And give him the glory which he deserves. I could end with this message with a caution.

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• Watch out for rough hairy goats. Because they're really everywhere. You might not think they are. But they are. And what we need to do is to recognize idolatry as idolatry. Does it matter the modern shape or the modern form or the modern version? It is still idolatry. And any time we worship anyone or anything other than Jesus Christ, we're worshiping the devil. Let's pray. Father, we ask that you would help us.

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• Lord, lead us and guide us and direct us. May we be faithful and true unto thee. And may we not be guilty of idolatry. May we always examine everything in light of the Word of God and bring everything to the door of thy truth. May we worship thee, Lord, in spirit and in truth. In thy name we pray. Amen.

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deepseek | deepseek-v4-pro | clean_readable_transcript | 2026-06-05T17:27:20Z