The Sounds of War (The Genesis Series Book 2) (5 page)

Taking a deep breath, Kirsten nodded
. As she slowly let the air out of her lungs, she forced the tears that stung the backs of her eyes to stay out of her voice. “Mom, answer me this, if you thought about having a future with someone, wouldn’t you at least give a voice to your desire?”

“Maybe…it would depend on my insecurities and how the other per
son felt about me. Kirsten, get the benefit of your father’s council or at least talk with Caleb or Josh.”

“No,” Kirsten shook her head, “I don’t want to prejudice them against Justin. Please don’t say anything to anyone about this
. Maybe tomorrow things will be different when I see him. I need to get to the mall before the rain comes.”

I looked and behold, a door standing open in heaven. And the first voice, which I heard, was like a trumpet speaking with me saying, “Come up here, and I will show you things which must take place after this.” Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne…and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald. Revelation 4:1-4

I saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud. A rainbow was on his head; his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire. He had a little book open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, and cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roars. When he cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices… Revelation 10:1-4

A
fter the Adversary’s actions activated death and decay, the Creator issued a prime directive: occupy, clear the portals, keep the fallen angels out of the pathways. Keep communication open between Earth and Heaven. As a direct result of this edict, a new Celestial council assembled with the purpose to appoint judges and assigned territories for these judges to administer. These judges were not only to institute El Elyon’s decree, but also to magistrate all the directives that constituted the decree. The advent leading to El Elyon’s directive and the resulting Celestial assembly was the notification the waters upon the surface of Earth were receding.

The summons called for all seventy
judges to amass before the throne of El Elyon. The Ancient Ones listened as the Most High spoke, “There’s nothing not known to me, however, for the record and because everything must remain within the legal constructs that have been set, you must speak into the record what was decreed concerning the firstborn.”

The answer came as many voices spoke in unison, “Adonai, the firstborn of any spe
cies sets the pattern of behavior and the subsequent authority of that species.”

From the seat of grace, El Elyon nodded and informed, “The first
born human I named Adam because his flesh was formed from the red clay of Earth. Adam’s flesh succumbed to the effects of death; he no longer rules but awaits transference to Heaven from the depths of Hades. It is up to us to deal with the spirit of Death, but before I do, there are yet more requirements for Earth and its inhabitants.

“
Adam failed to complete my purpose for his species, consequently, he has encountered the first death. I have watched the Prince of Darkness, and taken note of his attempts to destroy what I created within Earth. Two hundred of the Watchers, who I sent to watch and report, abandoned their duties to me and stayed within the constraints of Earth. These Watchers subjugated themselves to the Adversary. In so doing, they too caused great harm and massive destruction within Earth.

“Michael, my faithful guard, has chained the
treacherous Watchers to the inner spatial core of Earth. There they shall remain until the Day of Judgment.

“Even so, many iniquitous spirit-beings roam within the crevices of invisible space as disembodied, depraved spirits
and as the seed of the despicable Watchers they are Earth-bound. As disembodied beings, they seek to placate their lusts by invading and stealing the bodies of men and animals.

“According to my Book of Remembrance, I have appointed this time upon Earth for the implementation of another firstborn
. Through him, I will establish a new covenant that will be the downfall of the Adversary. Therefore, using the second son of Noah, I will initiate my plan.”

El Elyon turned
and spoke through the dimension of time-space to Noah, “Come out of the ark Noah, and go forth; take with you all the animals. You and your family go forth and increase. Repopulate the Earth and be fruitful.”

Grateful he and his family had survived the flood
, Noah built an altar on the mountain where the ark came to rest. The Malakhim immediately descended from the heavens and took their place beside Noah’s altar. After filling their censors with Noah’s praise and mixing the praise with the smoke of burnt offerings, they returned to the Shamayim and placed the incense upon the Golden Altar of the Most High God.

Pleased, El Elyon not only received the
beautiful fragrance of Noah’s offering, he entered into a covenant with the Earth’s Melek. “As long as Earth endures there will be seedtime and harvest, cold and heat, summer and winter, day and night. These things will never cease. Noah, I accept this offering on behalf of you, your sons and all future generations of Earth born beings.

“From this time forth, you wil
l notice the animals and birds will not respond to men as they have in the past for I am placing a fear in them toward all men. This is for their protection, to keep them from the abuse they experienced before the flood. As they repopulate in the Earth you may hunt and fish as needed for food, but don’t kill needlessly. I give you the produce of the land as well. I give to you everything that you need.

“The only thing you must not do is eat meat with the life still in it. You must not be as the giants who terrorized my creation before the flood. Ha-N’piliym and their fathers ate while life still existed in their prey. This is not right
. I abhor this practice and will not tolerate it!

“The instructions for life are found in the blood and I demand a record of all life
. Therefore, an account of all blood will be made. You shall especially be accountable to me for all blood spilled in innocence. I created a sound, which I alone can hear, in blood and it calls to me!

“The ground is cursed because of Adam’s willful disobedience
. Do not add additional curses. Remember I created man in my image. My likeness is upon the face of all humanity. You shall respect my image and if you violate one another, you violate me.

“Noah, to you and your offspring I establish a covenant
. Never again will floodwaters cover all of Earth. As a sign of this covenant, I place an arc, a rainbow within the sky. Every time you see the rainbow remember, never again will a judgment be issued to cover the entirety of Earth by water. This arc represents my government and its essence is from my throne. The rainbow you see represents the light and colors of my authority and within it, the sound of shalom that I establish with you and your sons.”

Time intersected with light under this newly decreed covenant
. A new era was upon Earth. The judges recorded this advent as they witnessed light refracting inside the atmosphere of Earth and creating the rainbow that would henceforth symbolize an arc of safety by joining the past to an everlasting future.

I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals; and I heard one of the four living creatures saying with a voice like thunder, “Come and see.” And I looked, and behold, a white horse. He who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer. Revelation 6:1-2

And the garments of skin, which God made for Adam and his wife, when they went out of the garden, were given to Cush. For after the death of Adam and his wife, the garments were given to Enoch, the son of Jared, and when Enoch was taken up to God, he gave them to Methuselah, his son. And at the death of Methuselah, Noah took them and brought them to the ark, and they were with him until he went out of the ark. And in their going out, Ham stole those gar
ments from Noah, his father, and he took them and hid them from his brothers. Book of Jasher 7:24-27

N
oah, after preparing the ground, planted the cuttings from the roots of his best antediluvian vines. An excellent husbandman before the flood, he was determined to be so again. He prayed for two things continually, to have another son, and an abundant grape harvest. As the Sheviit (seventh anniversary) of the flood drew near, the petitions of Noah were granted. As he began the preparation to reap a bumper grape harvest, his wife informed him they would have another child.

In a state of ecstasy, Noah laid out the plans for the first high-holy days following the flood. Setting things into
order, he gathered the grapes, bottled the wine, and appointed the time of celebration by forecasting when the festival would start. It would be on the seventeenth day of the second month after the reckoning of the autumn equinox.

As the time of celebration drew near,
Noah searched his flocks until he found four unblemished lambs. He, as Melek would also perform the official duties as priest. Once he knew all preparations were ready, Noah climbed the mountain behind his home, and standing on the highest ledge, lifted the ram’s horn to his lips and blew. The shofar’s blast announced the celebration had commenced.

Japheth, Shem, and Ham with their respective families assembled at the appointed place
. An olive tree grove in the valley below the altar of sacrifice. Noah had built an altar on the highest peak of the mountain where his family lived. Sacrifices would be placed upon the altar the last day of celebration. The sacrifices would serve as the yearly sin and blood offerings.

After the sacrifices and the Malakhim
had come and gone, each family would return to their respective home thus ending the fall feast days. Japheth and his wife had five sons, they too were about to have another child. Shem and his wife had two sons and two daughters, Ham and his wife, four sons and a daughter, with another child on the way. It was a beautiful mid-autumn day, each man hurriedly assembled tents and temporary shelters as their wives began the food preparation.

T
he rules demanded the completion of chores before sunset and as twilight fell, the vast table was ready. Noah’s new wine was poured and the merriment began. The family built new memories as they laughed and made fun of each other’s antics. The men dramatized the hardship of rebuilding after the flood, the each story becoming more elaborate and each tale more outlandish than the preceding one. The riotous laughter grew and reached a crescendo, compelling the young children to stop their games and beg to listen to the anecdotes of their parents.

After the exaggerations slowed and the food no longer held its appeal, Noah’s grandchildren requested a journey into the past.
Forming a circle around him, the youngest two skirmished for his lap. Noah recounted how he came to possess the animal skins of Adam.

Noah, the tenth firstborn son from Adam had not personally known the father of humanity, but his father and grand
father had. Many times, he had heard his grandfather, Methuselah tell and retell of the days when Adam and Eve lived in the Garden of Eden.

“Eve partook of the forbidden tree first, but she was deceived,” Noah shifted his youngest grandson to the ground
; the child pulled his beard and made it difficult to focus on his next thought. “She believed the fruit of the tree would make her wise. That was because she didn’t understand the source of wisdom is relationship with El Elyon. Adam fell into the trap laid by the King of Darkness when he too chose to disobey El Elyon’s warning about not eating the fruit. And that was how the curse came about, and it continues even now, imposing death upon us and shall do so until the Promised Seed comes.

“Adam and Eve did what we do when our festivities are over
. They offered blood sacrifices. Adam, shown by the Creator how to offer blood sacrifices became the Earth’s first priest. And all meleks since him must act as priest and continue with this method of sin sacrifice until the ultimate Sacrificial Lamb arrives. Adam, shown how to use lambs as blood sacrifices, taught his son and thus from generation to generation we’ve learned the procedure. The lambs are substitutes, a sort of payment to redeem brokenness. The first lambs also provided the skins that made the garments. The garments were not just a covering to clothe Adam, but also a temporary substitution for what he lost.

“The garments hold symbolic meanings
. Only a blood sacrifice can adequately cover sin and at the same time provide a covering or protection to the flesh of man. And since that time, the garments have passed from melek to melek. It has been so for generations.” Noah paused as he looked around at those sitting at his feet. Excusing himself for a moment, he went to his tent and retrieved the skins and then upon returning allowed each child to take a turn holding the skins as he admonished, “These skins symbolize the covering and provision of El Elyon because Adam and Eve were exposed and vulnerable. They needed the nakedness of their flesh covered. God made an exchange.

“El Elyon, after providing a substitute, removed his kabod, which is the bounty of his glory, from Earth’s natural dimensions. Actions often speak louder than verbalized words because actions are intents
and they are sounds spoken by the heart. My point, sin births a sound of disharmony, a sound of chaos and causes decay and death. God’s kabod had to leave or man had to die. Sin and kabod could not co-exist. The lambs’ blood purchased righteousness and replaced the sound of Adam’s sin. God removed his kabod and it will not return until the Promised Seed comes.”

Taking the lambskins from Ham’s youngest son, Noah
continued, “Lambs have a uniqueness that ties them to humanity. All terrestrial born beings have a uniqueness, blood. Celestials do not have blood. So man had to die immediately or the lambs did, there was no other available substitute. This is the reason we use lambs, because they have blood and because of their meekness. They became the perfect sacrificial replacement, and until the day El Elyon shall send the Promised Seed, we must continue to offer sin sacrifices.

“
The lambs who wore these skins died. Their blood gave the needed atonement for sin and the sound of innocence in their blood cloaked the accusations of Adam’s sin. The fig leaves that Adam and Eve attempted to cover themselves with couldn’t cover the sounds of sin.” Noah paused, rubbing the nubby wool gently. As he released a deep sigh, he contemplated the meaning of the treasure he held. Silently he prayed for his grandchildren, praying that each would someday understand all that he had just imparted. Slowly continuing he added, “I know you do not fully understand all I have said.” Folding the lambskins, he laid them gently across his lap, “But please remember this, to possess these skins is a great privilege and only the Melek of Earth may possess these skins. The Melek of Earth must represent all humanity and he must act as priest at least once a year. This is mandated and must not change until the Promised Seed comes.”

Again rubbing the wool of the skins, he paused before he spoke his thoughts, “They’re my most treasured possession. Just as these skins have passed from Adam to Seth and on down to my grandfather
. I will give these skins to one of my sons.” Sighing deeply, he remembered the day the lambskins became his, the week before he entered the ark, the day his beloved grandfather died. The pain of separation, even though seven years had passed, was still acute. Sighing again he continued, “Remember as much of what I have said as you can. One of you will one day possess these lambskins.”

Feeling the need to change the subject, Noah asked the children if they knew who Seth was
and upon realizing most did not, he began explaining why Seth was a favored ancestor. It was from the edifices Seth had built that he as a child had learned the names of the constellations. Seth had placed diagrams and engravings within these monuments, thus making them vast storehouses of knowledge. As a child, he was fascinated by Seth and as an adult even more intrigued at the many accomplishments of his ancestor. Noah told his grandchildren of some of the possessions he had of Seth’s and of the stories handed down to him from Methuselah.

“On
one of the skins are drawn the pathways of the planets and another are the winds of the seas. Seth, a builder of strong sailing vessels, traveled the seas and the waterways of Earth most of his life. He died a few years before I was born. I have always regretted that I did not personally know him. An intriguing man, Seth explored most of Earth and passed on many of his findings to Grandfather. Grandfather made sure I was educated from both the written and oral teachings of Seth. Often still, I make my way at night to a quiet place where I contemplate the meanings of Seth’s teachings as I observe the stars.”

As Noah continued his musings, he began talking of a rebellious angel named Azazel, and of the fallen Watchers
. He spoke of how these angels along with their offspring had come with a great perversion. “The flood destroyed the remaining offspring of these fallen Celestials, but their evil still exists and they will come again to interfere in the affairs of man.” Slapping his chest and chuckling he added, “But of course, listening to your grandfather is more important than anything, so don’t forget to offer sacrifices and to worship El Elyon! If you do, you’ll not need to fear the Evil Ones!”

The older children fascinated by the stories of the past urged Noah for more
. They especially wanted more details concerning the Titans and the wars between the Titans and the Nephilim called the Elioud. The stories progressed, taking Noah from one recollection into another. Noah told how the Titans and the Elioud fought each other and how the Elioud despised men, but as he talked the effect of the wine and the fatigue of preparation began to interfere with his recollection of detail.

Noah’s youngest son Ham, realizing his father’s predicament, began supplying many of the missing particulars. In the middle of telling a certain war story, Ham notic
ed his father’s head nodding. However, because he had everyone’s attention and wasn’t yet ready to end the story he did not pause. Continuing, he related how one of the most gruesome battles had started nearly two hundred years before the flood. It had been a war between Azazel, who was the father of the Titans, and of Semjaza, the originator of the Elioud. They had not only fought against each other in the upper atmosphere, but had also sent their offspring into bloody combat. The giants had left carnage strewn across the entirety of Earth. Just as Ham finished the story, Noah’s head dropped to his chest and he began snoring.

Japheth, Noah’s oldest son, tried not to laugh as the snickers went around the campfire
. He woke Noah and offered to assist his father to his tent and to bed. But Noah stood and shaking his head excused himself and retired to his tent under his own volition. After undressing, Noah covered himself with the same lambskins he had only a short time before shown his grandchildren.

Later, when Noah’s wife Naamah
, entered their tent she found him in a deep sleep. Not wanting to disturb him, she moved her couch to a separate partitioned area of the tent. Laying on the couch, she could feel the new life within her stir. An elation at the thought of holding and nursing that new life overtook her. When she fell asleep, she did so blissfully unaware of the dark figure that lurked outside her tent and of the evil that would steal her dreams.