Sunspots 983

 

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

The BBC has fact-checked President Trump's meeting with the President of South Africa. His claims don't stand up. Other sources have published similar findings.

Earth.com reports on breakthroughs in identifying long-dead North American megafauna (mammoths, giant sloths, etc.)

The BBC discusses the so-called Golden Done defense system.

The BBC also discusses the noise associated with Bitcoin mining (whatever that is!). Apparently it's quite annoying and pervasive.

Gizmodo reports on a study of how giant sloths disappeared.

Gizmodo also reports that Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy's recent paper on Making America Healthy Again refers to health studies that were never carried out.

Gizmodo also reports that two different species of termites are mating and producing hybrids, which may be really destructive.

Bears in the Bible

Image from Pixabay.

A search for the topic, bears (animals) in the Bible, is complicated by the abundance of occurrences of the word "bear," used to describe carrying something, physical, or mental, as in giving birth (bearing a baby) or laboring because of emotional stress (bearing grief).

This post is concerned only with bears as animals. There are a few such references in the Bible.

For more about the biology of bears, see the Wikipedia article. From that article, it appears that the bears mentioned in the Bible, which must have lived in Eurasia, were similar, or even part of the same species, as those found in North America. There is also a Wikipedia article on cultural depictions of bears, as for instance, in the story of Goldilocks and the three bears.  

The first Bible reference to bears is in the dialog between Saul and David, with David stating that, since he was able to defeat a predatory bear, he could defeat Goliath.

In 2 Samuel 17, warning is given that attacking David and his followers is like attacking a bear with offspring. Proverbs 17 has a similar idea, about a female bear protecting her offspring. So does Hosea 13.

In 2 Kings 2, Elisha apparently causes two female bears to attack some boys who were mocking him.

In Job 9, the constellation known as the Bear is mentioned, along with other groups of stars. (The King James version uses Arcturus, not bear, whereas the World English Bible has "bear.") Job 38 repeats the use of the Bear as a constellation.

In Proverbs 28, a wicked ruler is compared to an angry bear, or to a lion.

In Isaiah 59, the Israelites, who have lost their way spiritually, are compared to frustrated bears.

In Daniel 7, Daniel is asked to interpret a dream that the king had, in which an animal like a bear appeared.

In Amos 5, a bear is symbolic of putting oneself (or one's people) in danger.

There are no uses of the bear, an animal, in the New Testament.

I previously posted a study of the use of the word "lion" in the Bible.

Thanks for bearing with me in this study.

Sunspots 982

 

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

Gizmodo reports on a study that found that all of the largest US cities are sinking.

Kenneth Schenck discusses politics and Christianity.

Gizmodo reports that the new pope (and the previous one) has warned about possible dangers from artificial intelligence.

Equus, and other sources, report that horses are especially able to move fast because of a gene peculiar to horses and their relatives.

Gizmodo on whether Pope Leo XIV is an environmentalist (and on whether Francis was).

CNN reports on the melting of polar ice and its dire consequences.

NPR reports that the Centers for Disease Control is no longer warning the medical community about disease threats.

Important Lesson: don't complain

A lesson I hope I've learned, which may be of value to others.

Paul wrote two epistles to the Corinthian church. One small section of the first epistle gives some warnings to the church, and, it seems, to the church of today:

1 Corinthians 10:6b Now these things were our examples, to the intent we should not lust after evil things as they also lusted. ⁷ Don’t be idolaters, as some of them were. As it is written, “The people sat down to eat and drink, and rose up to play.” ⁸ Let’s not commit sexual immorality, as some of them committed, and in one day twenty-three thousand fell. ⁹ Let’s not test Christ, as some of them tested, and perished by the serpents. ¹⁰ Don’t grumble, as some of them also grumbled, and perished by the destroyer. (World English Bible, public domain - source is here.)

OK. A list of don'ts. What's in the list? idolatry, however it occurs in the 21st Century, is no surprise. We shouldn't worship anything but God, our creator, redeemer, and guide. Sexual immorality isn't a surprise, either, although it's possible that Paul, or today's church, may overemphasize it, and not emphasize gossip, pride, greed, and other sins enough. I'm not clear as to what "testing Christ" means. As to grumbling, Paul seems to be referring to Numbers 11, wherein the Hebrews complained about the manna God was sending them. They missed the food they had in Egypt. Although God sent quail for them to eat, at this time, He was far from pleased by their complaints about the food.

Bottom line. It seems that grumbling, or complaining, is as dangerous a sin as idolatry or sexual immorality. I shouldn't have a complaining, grumbling attitude, and I should be grateful to God for His blessings, including the food I eat, even if it is not prepared well, or isn't what I'm used to. (Most likely, the Israelites on the Exodus complained about more than the food: "There isn't anything to do here," and/or "Do I have to wear this again?")

I have been around some people who were seemingly never satisfied with what they had to eat, the thermostat's temperature, or the clothes they had to wear, and were known as complainers. I don't want to be known as a complainer. 

Thanks for reading.

Sunsppts 981

Things I have spotted that may be of interest to others:

The Trump administration wants to change the Endangered Species Act so that destruction of habitat that endangered species need won't be considered harm.

ZDNet discusses passkeys and passwords.

Gizmodo reports that My Pillow maker, and Trump backer, Mike Lindell's, lawyers filed a brief that was generated by a ChatBot, and which contained several references to non-existent past legal rulings.

National Public Radio reports on Catholic reaction to a picture, apparently approved by the White House, of Donald Trump as pope.