Hope of Israel Ministries (Ecclesia of YEHOVAH):

The Pagan “Star of David”

The Blackwell Dictionary of Judaica gives the following synopsis of the Magen David:

"('Shield of David'). The name given in Judaism to the symbol consisting of two superimposed triangles forming a star (it is also known as the Star of David). Although it was used in the synagogue at Capernaum as early as the 3rd century, it was not commonly adopted as a Jewish symbol until much later. From the 13th century the name figures in practical kabbalah, and the symbol (believed to have magical properties) is found in association with the pentagram (or Star of Solomon). The Magen David occurs in a Jewish context in Prague in the 17th century. In the 19th century it was adopted by the First Zionist Congress as its symbol, and it appears on the flags of the Zionist Organization and the State of Israel. The Nazis employed a yellow six-pointed star as a Jewish badge" (Dan Cohn-Sherbok, p. 336).

Because of its geometric symmetry, the hexagram has been a popular symbol in many cultures from earliest times. Anthropologists claim that the triangle pointing downward represents female sexuality, and the triangle pointing upward, male sexuality; thus, their combination symbolizes unity and harmony. In alchemy, the two triangles symbolize "fire" and "water"; together, they represent the reconciliation of opposites. Some medieval alchemists even borrowed the Talmudic punish mayim, fiery water, and shamayim, heaven -- to demonstrate the interpenetration of the two realms. Because if this symbolism, the hexagram was even used occasionally as the emblem displayed above a brandy shop!

According to the book, Masonic and Occult Symbols Illustrated,

“The Hexagram is formed by united the Water Triangle with the Fire Triangle, which is the Six-pointed Star, Star of David, Solomon’s Seal, etc. When the two triangles (the ‘Water Triangle’ and the ‘Fire Triangle’) are joined together into one symbol, it forms a six pointed star known as a double triangle, hexagram, Crest of Solomon, star of the microcosm and the Shield of David, among other names. It is even called the ‘talisman of Saturn’” (Dr. Cathy Burns, p. 38).

Early Origin

According to Dankenbring, "the first martyr of the Christian church, Stephen, in his defense before the Sanhedrin, warned the Jewish nation, as he reviewed the history of Israel: 'Then God turned and gave them up to worship the host of heaven, as it is written in the books of the Prophets: Did you offer Me slaughtered animals and sacrifices during forty years in the wilderness, O house of Israel? You also took up the tabernacle of Moloch, and THE STAR of your god Remphan, IMAGES which you made to WORSHIP' (Acts 7:42-43). Notice! This pagan worship was derived from EGYPT, and even when Israel left Egypt under Moses, some of them brought the Egyptian pagan idols and images with them, secretly!" (ibid.)

The earliest known Jewish use of the hexagram was as a seal in ancient Israel (6th century B.C.) and then twelve centuries later in a synagogue frieze in Capernaum. But these early hexagrams may have been only ornamental designs; ironically, a swastika, another popular ancient motif, appears alongside the hexagram on the Capernaum synagogue wall. In the Middle Ages, hexagrams appear frequently on churches, but rarely in synagogues or on Jewish ritual objects. It was the menorah that served as the primary Jewish symbol from antiquity until the post-Renaissance period, not the "Jewish star."

Although scholars have attempted to trace the Star of David back to King David himself; to Rabbi Akiva and the Bar Kokhba ("son of the star") rebellion (135 A.D.); or to kabbalists, especially Rabbi Isaac Luria (16th century), no Jewish literature or artifacts document this claim. Rather, all evidence suggests that the early use of the hexagram was limited to "practical Kabbalah" -- that is, Jewish magic, probably dating back to the 6th century A.D. Legends connect this symbol with the "Seal of Solomon," the supposed magical signet ring used by King Solomon to control demons and spirits. Although the original ring was inscribed with the Tetragrammaton, the sacred Four-Letter Name of YEHOVAH God, medieval amulets imitating this ring substituted the hexagram or pentagram (five-pointed star), often accompanied by rampant lions, for the sacred Name. The star inscribed on these rings was usually called the "Seal of Solomon."

In addition to such legends about Solomon's ring, medieval Jewish magical texts spoke of a magic shield possessed by King David which protected him from his enemies. According to these texts, the shield was inscribed with the seventy-two letter name of YEHOVAH God, or with Shaddai (Almighty) or angelic names, and was eventually passed down to Judah Maccabee. The 15th-century kabbalist, Isaac Arama, claimed that Psalm 67 -- later known as the "Menorah Psalm" because of its seven verses (plus an introductory verse) -- was engraved on David's shield in the form of a menorah. Another tradition suggests that Isaiah 11:2, enumerating the six aspects of the divine spirit, was inscribed on the shield in the outer six triangles of the hexagram. In time, the hexagram replaced this menorah in popular legends about David's shield, while the five-pointed pentagram became identified with the Seal of Solomon.

However, the so-called "Star of David" is essentially nothing more than a "hexagram," and there is no Biblical or Jewish evidence that traces this ancient occult symbol back to either King David or King Solomon of Israel.

The Real David and Solomon!

On the other hand, it has been discovered by some researchers that this "Star of David" (also called "Shield of David" and "Seal of Solomon") was NOT a symbol relating to either the Biblical King David or Solomon, but to Solomon ben Duji the Khazar, and his son, David al-Roy. While some sources do not identify them as Khazars, evidence indicates that they clearly were. Notice what Arthur Koestler has to say:

"David al-Roy was assassinated -- apparently in his sleep, allegedly by his own father-in-law...But the cult did not stop there. According to one theory, the six-pointed 'shield of David,' which adorns the modern Israeli flag, started to become a national symbol with David al-Roy's crusade. 'Ever since,' writes Baron, 'it has been suggested, the six-cornered "shield of David", theretofore mainly a decorative motif or a magical emblem, began its career toward becoming the chief national-religious symbol of Judaism...it was attributed to David in mystic and ethical German writings from the thirteenth century on, and appeared on the Jewish flag in Prague in 1527.' Baron appends a qualifying note to this passage, pointing out that the connection between al-Roy and the six-pointed star still awaits further elucidation and proof" (The Thirteenth Tribe).

Research indicates that in the twelfth-century an Ashkenazim, a Khazar Jew, called Solomon ben Duji (or Ruhi or Roy) claimed he was Elijah and his son Menahem ben Duji was the Messiah. They wrote letters to all the Jews in the lands about them proclaiming the coming of the Messianic Kingdom. It appeared to have had little effect, for, twenty years later Menahem had assumed the name "David al-Roy," and the title of "Messiah" and that the movement shifted from Khazaria to Kurdistan. After vain attempts to rouse the Diaspora to action and to invade the Holy Land, Menahem, or David al-Roy, was assassinated in his sleep, allegedly by his own father-in-law, whom someone had bribed to do the deed.

According to one source --

"...In the early 12th century Russia produced an attempt at a Jewish Crusade, aimed at conquering the Holy Land by force of arms. This was started by a Khazar Jew named Solomon ben Duji (Ruhi or Roy in some translations), with the help of his son Menahem and a Palestinian Jewish scribe. They wrote letters to the Jewish communities of the Middle East, announcing that the time had come when God would bring His people back to Jerusalem, that Solomon ben Duji was Elijah, and that his son was the Messiah. However, those appeals seem to have had little effect, for we hear nothing until twenty years later; at this time Menahem moved from Russia to northern Iraq, changed his name to David al-Roy, and proclaimed himself the Messiah. Then he assembled a substantial armed force of Khazars and local Jews, and took possession of Amadie, a strategic fortress northeast of Mosul.

"It seems that from here the plan was to lead the army to Edessa, and fight through Syria to the Holy Land. Because of the constant feuds between Crusaders, Sunni and Shiite Moslems, the enterprise did not seem as hopeless as it does now. Besides, some Moslem commanders might have welcomed the prospect of a Jewish Crusade against those Christian castles.

"One of David al-Roy's messengers went to Baghdad and boldly told the Iraqi Jews to assemble on a certain night on their flat roofs, and from there they would be flown on clouds to the Messiah's camp. Many Jews spent that night on their roofs, awaiting a flight that never came for them. Not long after that, David al-Roy was assassinated in his sleep, allegedly by his own father-in-law, whom some interested party had bribed to do the deed. That ended the Crusade, but as with Abu Isa, David al-Roy continued to have followers for many years afterward. He also existed for centuries in Jewish literature as an example of the all-conquering king the Messiah was expected to be; Benjamin Disraeli, the famous 19th-century British Prime Minister, even wrote a historical romance about his career, called The Wondrous Tale of Alroy...." (www.shiachat.com/forum/topic/ 51565-the-roots-of-zionism/).

Solomon ben Duji and his son Menahem had used the magical symbol of two equilateral triangles having a common center, the six-pointed star, or Hexagram, or Magen David, that then became known as the Seal of Solomon.

Magen David in Jewish liturgy signifies "God as the protector" (shield) of David, and in this context, the symbol gained currency among medieval Jewish mystics who attached magical powers to King David's shield. Especially following the influence of the Kabbalist Isaac Luria (1533-72), the hexagram became accepted by "the Jews" as "the Shield of David," before this time, there was no general usage of the six-pointed star in Jewish culture.

Archaeological Evidence

Almost every researcher of the Star of David mentions the "seal from Sidon", but although the seal was purchased in Sidon It belonged, according to the inscription on it, to a man named Joshua son of Asayahu, who lived in Israel during the later kingdom -- the sixth century B.C. In this finding of the Star of David it appears partially and blurred, if it is a Star of David at all. Scholem declared this finding as the oldest appearance of the Star of David in Judaism. However, the Librarian Shlomo Zucker noted (on the margin of Scholem's book) that the identification of this shape as the Star of David is uncertain, since it is "by a certain interpretation", and referred the reader to a book where the author, Diringer, claims that the Magen David that appears in the seal of Sidon was a decorative motif, and that we can understand from it that the Magen David was a sign used by the Jews already in this early period.

In the courtyard of the Museum of Tarentum (Italy) there's a tombstone bearing the Hebrew inscription: "Here rests the wife of Leon son of David ✡ of Milo". This tombstone is no earlier than the sixth century A.D. From the inscription on the tombstone researchers concluded that in the sixth century A.D. there was already a connection between the name and the shape of the Star of David. This is the first Jewish tombstone bearing the Star of David. Later it appeared here and there on other tombstones, until it became one of the most popular motifs that mark the graves of Jews.

In the Tarentum tombstone and in the seal from Sidon the Star of David does not appear alone -- it appears along with Hebrew words, and is understandable in the light of the context that these words create for it.

The "Seal from Sidon" comes from, apparently, the land of Israel, and the Tarentum tombstone was found out of Israel, in exile, in Italy. Discovering the Star of David in Israel is particularly important because it may verify the legend (which first appeared in the Middle Ages) about the shield that protected King David in his wars. It has been assumed that if the Star of David is discovered in excavations within the State of Israel, then it must be Jewish, but out of all the findings of the Stars of David in Israel, a majority of them are actually Christian hexagrams discovered in a church or a monastery or near a Cross. This includes findings from Acre, from Khirbet er-Ribba, from Khirbet Carmel near Hebron, from Roglit in the Negev, from Shilo. In the Euthymius monastery mosaic appears a crescent in the inner hexagon and it indicates a Muslim influence or a Muslim design of the mosaic.

Three reliefs, carved in stone and containing the Star of David, were discovered by German archaeologists Kohl and Watzinger in Capernaum, on the shore of the Sea of Galilee in Israel. Alongside them were also discovered, among other things, reliefs of a Menorah, an Ark on wheels, a Pentagram, a Pelta ("Amazons' Shield") and a swastika. Kohl and Watzinger noted in their book on ancient synagogues in the Galilee that the origin of the Star of David is indeed pagan, and its meaning for pagans was magical, but its amazing appearance among the decorations of synagogues in Israel shows that the Jews have adopted it as an emblem, although their spiritual leadership ignored it as part of the fight against idolatry. Gershom Scholem, however, concluded from these findings the opposite conclusion. He says:

"...in the synagogue of Capernaum (second or third century C.E.) it is found side by side with the pentagram and the swastika on a frieze. There is no reason to assume that it was used for any purposes other than decorative" (On the Kabbalah and Its Symbolism).

Recently, however, archaeologist Professor Jodi Magness, from the University of North Carolina, dated the construction of the synagogue in Capernaum to the first half of the sixth century A.D.

A relief of the Star of David framing a Rosetta engraved in stone was discovered in a synagogue in the excavations (sixth century A.D.) at the ruins of Shura in the Upper Galilee. This star is probably the only archaeological find, from the first centuries A.D., discovered in Israel, whose Jewishness is not controversial.

Engravings resembling the Jewish Star of David were unearthed at two Khazar sites -- one along the Donets River in eastern Ukraine and the other along the Don River in southern Russia. This one is a circular metal disc, interpreted by Professor Bozena Werbart of Umea University as Jewish but seen by others as shamanistic or pagan. The circular nature of the disc may represent the sun, and the six points may represent rays of the sun. Scholars lean towards assigning the disc to Tengri shamanism due to the fact that there are also known examples of Khazarian sun discs with five or seven points, rather than consistently six. Some of the Jewish-Turkic graves at Chelarevo in what used to be Hungary contain engravings of the Star of David and are believed by some to belong to Khazar Kabar migrants.

Later Uses

In fact, notes Dankenbring, "a Jewish Orthodox internet website tells us: 'The Magen David (shield of David, or as it is more commonly known, the Star of David) is the symbol most commonly associated with Judaism today, but it is actually a relatively new Jewish symbol. It is supposed to represent the shape of King David’s shield (or perhaps the emblem on it), but there is really no support for that claim in any early rabbinic literature. In fact, the symbol is so rare in early Jewish literature and artwork that art dealers suspect forgery if they find the symbol in early works'" (The "Star of David" is Pagan!).

The hexagram was also widely regarded as a messianic symbol, because of its legendary connection with David, ancestor of the Messiah. On Sabbath eve, German Jews would light a star-shaped brass oil lamp called a Judenstern (Jewish star), emblematic of the idea that Shabbat was a foretaste of the Messianic Age. The hexagram was also popular among the followers of Shabbatai Tzevi, the false messiah of the 17th century, because of its messianic associations.

Another use of the hexagram in medieval times was as a Jewish printer's mark or heraldic emblem, especially in Prague and among members of the Jewish Foa family, who lived in Italy and Holland. In 1354, Emperor Charles IV of Prague granted the Jews of his city the privilege of displaying their own flag on state occasions. Their flag displayed a large six-pointed star in its center. A similar flag remains to this day in the Altneuschul, the oldest synagogue in Prague. From Prague, the "Magen David" spread to the Jewish communities of Moravia and Bohemia, and then eventually to Eastern Europe. The Jewish community of Prague first used the Star of David as an official symbol in the 17th century and, since then, the six-pointed star, Magen David or the Star of David, became the official seal of many Jewish communities. In 17th-century Vienna, the Jewish quarter was separated from the Christian quarter by a boundary stone inscribed with a hexagram on one side and a cross on the other, the first instance of the six-pointed star being used to represent Judaism as a whole, rather than an individual community.

With Jewish emancipation following the French Revolution, Jews began to look for a symbol to represent themselves comparable to the cross used by their Christian neighbors. They settled upon the six-pointed star, principally because of its heraldic associations. Its geometric design and architectural features greatly appealed to synagogue architects, most of whom were non-Jews. Ironically, the religious Jews of Europe and the Orient, already accustomed to seeing hexagrams on kabbalistic amulets, accepted this secularized emblem of the enlightened Jews as a legitimate Jewish symbol, even though it had no religious content or scriptural basis.

In the 19th century, Jews almost universally adopted the Star of David as a symbol of their race -- only decades after the Rothschilds adopted this symbol in 1822 as their family coat of arms. Since the Rothschilds were Kabbalists, they adopted this powerful magic symbol for their coat of arms in order to claim its inherent occult power as their own.

The Modern State of Israel

"Why and how did the six-pointed star -- the pagan occult symbol -- become connected with the MODERN state of Israel?" asks Dankenbring -- "It was adopted as the family crest or shield by the Rothschild family during the 19th century. The Rothschilds bought a great deal of property in Israel, from the Turks and Arabs, and were amongst the major supporters of the Zionist movement in the early decades. The influence of the Rothschilds and their heavy financial support of Israel, led the Jewish nation to adopt the so-called 'Star of David' as their own symbol as a nation" (The "Star of David" is Pagan!).

When an Ashkenazi Jew by the name of Mayer Amschel hung a red hexagram on his door to identify his address, he was also proclaiming himself a master Kabbalist. Moreover, it symbolized the appropriation of the Magen David by the Ashkenazi (the Khazar Jews) as the future symbol for their movement. Mayer then changed his name to "Roth Schild," meaning "Red Shield" when he became a supplier of coinage to the royal court and when his family's unexampled rise to power truly began.

The nascent Zionist Movement, led by Theodor Herzl, adopted the House of Rothschild's blazonry because its ultimate source was this family and its fabulous wealth and power. Consequently, both destinies, the Rothschild and Zionism, became intertwined with the Zionist Movement -- wholly dependent upon the goodwill and largesse of this Khazar family. In time, the hexagram appeared in the center of the flag of the new Jewish state of Israel and has become associated with national redemption.

During the Holocaust, the Nazis chose the yellow star as an identifying badge required on the garments of all Jews. After the war, Jews turned this symbol of humiliation and death into a badge of honor.

Today, the Star of David is the most popular and universally recognized symbol of the Jewish People. In his seminal work entitled the Star of Redemption (1912), Franz Rosenzweig framed his philosophy of Judaism around the image of the Jewish star, composed of two conceptual "triads," which together form the basis of Jewish belief: Creation, Revelation, and Redemption; God, Israel, and World. On the popular level, Jews continue to use the Jewish star as it was used for centuries: as a magical amulet of good luck and as a secularized, though pagan, symbol of Jewish identity.

Hope of Israel Ministries -- Courage for the Sake of Truth is Better Than Silence for the Sake of Unity!

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