The Black Presence in the Bible Pt 1
Identity is very important – both naturally and spiritually
Even the story of Jesus begins with his roots
For Black slaves in America, their first spiritual identity was tied to Israel
Israel was enslaved in Egypt for 400 years, crying out to God for freedom
This Biblical connection gave the Black slave hope
But after freedom & partial incorporation into American society.
A new generations of Blacks sought to find our roots – our identity
The Bible didn’t seem to be relevant to this new quest for identity
Blacks haven’t seen themselves in the scripture
Not because we aren’t there.
But because we didn’t know how to look
Have you ever heard that the Bible teaches that Black people, descendants of Ham, are cursed?
C.I. Scofield: the popular Scofield Reference Bible – pioneered the ‘Study Bible’
One of the best-selling Bibles in history and at one time the main Bible for Evangelicals
· Scofield was a Confederate soldier
On Genesis 9:24-26
“A prophetic declaration is made that from Ham will descend an inferior and servile posterity”
Genesis 9:24–25 (NKJV)
So Noah awoke from his wine, and knew what his younger son had done to him.
25 Then he said: “Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants he shall be to his brethren.”
You may not have heard these teachings specifically, but they are at the heart of the reason people question and are suspicious
People ask the ridiculous question, “How did Ham become Black?”
That question assumes that people were White to begin with
The first peoples were peoples of color – Biblically & scientifically
“The Search for Adam & Eve” – Newsweek, January 11, 1988
Eve is not the “milk-skinned beauty in Renaissance art.”
Eve was more likely a dark-haired, black-skinned woman.”
This is universally accepted as fact by scientists, anthropologists, & scholars
that the human race descended from dark-skinned, curly-haired people.
We need to be able to see ourselves in the Bible
And we must be able to respond to questions & criticism of Christianity
This is important for Evangelism – especially to men
1 Peter 3:15
Always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you.
The Bible is a White man’s book
Church art has reinforced that
The Bible has been used by racist to support their slavery, segregation, etc.
Luke 12:47 KJV
That servant, which knew his lord’s will, and did not do it, shall be beaten with many stripes.
The New Testament was written in Greek
There are no European writers of scripture
Do you know that the first person in the Bible to be called “mighty” was a Black Man?
Genesis 10:8 says that Nimrod, the son of Cush, “was the first on earth to be a mighty man.”
The Black Man was also the first empire builder.
Names are one way to identify Black people in the Bible, as well as genealogy.
· Cush was the son of Ham
· Cush means Black
How often do you hear about the great Moses being married to a Black woman?
Do you know that God defended Zipporah against bigotry?
Numbers 12:1, 9-10
Then Miriam and Aaron spoke against Moses because of the Ethiopian woman whom he had married; for he had married an Ethiopian woman.
9 So the anger of the Lord was aroused against them, and He departed. 10 And when the cloud departed from above the tabernacle, suddenly Miriam became leprous, as white as snow. Then Aaron turned toward Miriam, and there she was, a leper.
Ethiopia refers to the land south of Egypt, the continent of Africa, not Ethiopia the nation
Do you know that the first Leadership Lesson taught in the Bible was taught by a Black man? In Exodus 18, Jethro, Zipporah’s father, instructed Moses on how to set up a Leadership Structure to deal with a million people. This leadership lesson is still being taught and used in churches & corporations today
Do you realize that we have the book of Jeremiah because of a Black man?
Jer 38:7-13, Ebed-Melech, the Ethiopian saved the life of Jeremiah by advocating for him before the king, after Jeremiah was put into a dungeon to die. Ebed-Melech took 30 men, made a rope of old clothes and rags, and they pulled Jeremiah out of the dungeon
Do you know that 2 of the first 3 leaders of the Gentile church were Africans
Acts 13:1-2 list the prophets and teachers who led the church at Antioch: Simeon, who was specifically called "the black man", Lucius from Cyrene, which is in Africa, and Manaen, who was a Jew and the childhood companion of King Herod
2 Africans and 1 Jew led the Church. No Europeans.
Barnabas, and Saul, both Jews, had been with them at first, but left to do missions
Ethiopians became Christians without fanfare, (Acts 8) while God had to make Peter preach to Europeans (Acts 10). And even then, Peter faced criticism from the church leaders
The Ethiopian was returning from worshiping in Jerusalem – Acts 8:27
So please stop calling the Bible “a White man’s book”.
The Bible is a book of color
It’s actually much easier to find Black people in scripture than it is White people
Do you know that the Ethiopians translated the Bible into their language over 800 years before King James authorized an English version?
Ethiopian Bible was translated into Ge’ez in the 4th century
Charles Darwin – another renown racist author
The full title of the book is On the Origin of Species by Means of Natural Selection,
or the Preservation of Favoured Races in the Struggle for Life
Shem – Jews, Semetic People
Cush (Ethiopians, Sudanese)
Mizraim (Egyptians)
Noah Ham Put (Cyrenians, Libyans)
Canaan (Hivittes, Jebusites, Amorites, Hittites, etc.)
Japheth – Gentiles, Caucasians
Ways to Identify Children of Ham in the Bible:
Note: the name ‘Africa’ is not in the Bible
Ethiopia in the Bible does not refer to the modern nation of Ethiopia, but to the land south of Egypt, and in part of Asia
1. Names and adjectives:
Biblical names are descriptive
Cush (Hebrew) – black
Ethiopia (Greek) – dark faced
Kedar – dark
Phinehas – the Nubian (Ex 6:25; Num 25:11; Judg 20:28)
Personal names became People names became Place names:
Canaan (person), Canaanites (people), Canaan (place)
Cush (person), Cushite (peoples), Cushan (place)
Tahpanhes: “Palace of the Nubian” – Jer 43:7
Adjectives:
Moses’ wife is called “a Cushite woman” – Num 12:1
The Ethiopian Eunuch – Acts 8:27
Simeon the Prophet is called “Niger” (dark complexioned) – Acts 13:1
2. Look at the Family Tree:
Identify Black through their ancestors – Cush, Put, Sheba, etc.
Bathsheba – daughter of Sheba 2 Sam 11:3
Prophet Zephaniah’s father was named “Cushi” – Zeph 1:1
3. Locations / Maps
Identify the lands where a people lived or were born
Simon a Cyrenian (carried the cross of Christ) – Mark 15:21
Lucius of Cyrene – Acts 13:1
4. Bible Aids, i.e., Dictionary, Concordance, Handbook, Commentary, Atlas
5. Historical, Cultural, Archeological & Scientific References
Books
It’s clear that the Bible recognizes the Ethiopian or Cushite as Black
Jer 13:23
Can an Ethiopian change the color of his skin? NLT