The Pagan Roots of Easter

Most of orthodox Christendom will celebrate Easter. When they do, they will have no clue that their “Christian” holiday has pure pagan roots. Most will celebrate with colored eggs, Easter baskets, bunny rabbits and some will even participate in a sunrise service. As Christians, they will be proudly participating in what they think is the holiest of all Christian holidays.

The word Easter is very simply Ishtar, a pagan ritualistic celebration named after the goddess and queen of heaven, Semiramis. The celebration goes back to the days of Noah’s grandson Nimrod. Ishtar (Semiramis) established the mystery religion of Babylon.

 As the story goes, Nimrod took his mother Semiramis to be his wife. At some point Nimrod was killed. His wife told the people of Babylon that Nimrod had ascended to the sun and was now to be called "Baal" the sun god. Semiramis taught that the moon was a goddess that went through a 28 day cycle and ovulated when full and that she had come down from the moon in a giant moon egg that fell into the Euphrates River at sunrise at the time of the first full moon after the spring equinox, on a Sunday. Semiramis became known as "Ishtar" which is pronounced "Easter". She is called Ashtoreth in the Hebrew Scriptures (1 Kings 11:5, 11:33 and 2 Kings 23:13), and her egg became known as "Ishtar's" egg." One of her titles was the Queen of Heaven, and two of her fertility symbols were the rabbit and the egg. She soon became pregnant and claimed that it was the rays of the sun-god Baal (the ascended Nimrod) that caused her to conceive.

She named her son Tammuz. Tammuz, like his father, became a hunter. Tammuz was killed while hunting. Queen Ishtar told the people that Tammuz was now ascended to his father, Baal.

Ishtar was now worshiped as the "Mother of God and the Queen of Heaven". Queen Ishtar told the worshipers that when Tammuz was killed some of his blood fell on the stump of an evergreen tree and that his blood caused the stump to grow into a new tree overnight. This made the evergreen tree sacred. Modern Christianity also carries on this tradition in direct opposition to God with their “Christmas trees”. (See Jeremiah 10:1-4).

Worshipers were told meditate upon the sacred mysteries of Baal and Tammuz, and to make the sign of a “T” in front of their hearts for Tammuz as they worshiped. They also ate sacred cakes with the marking of a "T" or a cross, on the top. The first Sunday after the first full moon after the spring equinox, a celebration was made. It was Ishtar's Sunday and was celebrated with rabbits and eggs. Is this sounding familiar?

Ishtar came to be represented as the fertility goddess of the east. The original pagan festival of "Easter" was a sex orgy that celebrated the return of life via the fertility of Ishtar's conception of Tammuz. Worshipers celebrated the conception of Tammuz on the first Sunday after the Full Moon that followed the Spring Equinox. They celebrated it by facing East and waiting for the sun to rise on their special day. Yes, they had a sunrise service! They baked cakes for Ishtar, got drunk, engaged in orgies and in the temple of Ishtar.

Jeremiah spoke against this practice (Jeremiah 7:17-19; 44:19-29). Ezekiel also speaks against the celebration of the rites of Ishtar which were taking place in the temple and the weeping for Tammuz (Ezekiel 8:14) which refers to the mourning process and the weeping for Tammuz.

The Christian’s of today believe that they are celebrating the death, burial and resurrection of their Savior. Why do they call it Easter instead of what Luke called it, Passover? Is Christ not our Passover lamb?

1 Peter 1:19-21 but with precious blood, as of a lamb unblemished and unspotted--Christ's--foreknown, indeed, before the foundation of the world, and manifested in the last times because of you, who through him do believe in God, who did raise out of the dead, and glory to him did give, so that your faith and hope may be in God. (Young’s Literal)

Christendom of today cannot even get the day of the week correct. The Greek scriptures say that Christ was raised form the dead on one of the Sabbath’s – Not on the first day of the week. The King James says: Mark 16:9 Now when Jesus was risen early the first day of the week, he appeared first to Mary Magdalene, out of whom he had cast seven devils. (KJV) But guess what, here is what the Greek says in an ultra-literal word for word translation: Yet to-morning before-most of Sabbath He appeared before-most to Mary the Magdalene…(Concordant Greek Text). The Greek word Sabbatan is clearly visible in the Greek uncial texts. From the Concordant Commentary we read:

The Passover was always on the 14^th day of the first month and the festival of the unleavened bread began on the fifteenth. The First day of unleavened bread was a special Sabbath. This was followed by the weekly Sabbath so the two Sabbaths came together on this occasion. The Lord was crucified on the preparation day for the great Sabbath and rose on the weekly Sabbath which followed.  

Additionally, when Christ was raised He had completed his work. He was raised on the weekly Sabbath (seventh day, the Sabbath) to signify a finished work as opposed to being raised on the first day of the week which begins a new week and a new struggle.

A colossal mistranslation in the King James Bible occurs in Acts 12:4 in which the Greek word for Passover is translated Easter. Here is the verse: And when he had apprehended him, he put him in prison, and delivered him to four quaternions of soldiers to keep him; intending after Easter to bring him forth to the people. (KJV) The KJ Only folks will want you to believe that King Herod was going to celebrate Ishtar, however, Luke used the word pasca,  pascha, pas'-khah which always means Passover. Even John Wycliff who translated from the Latin Vulgate in the late 13oo’s rendered Acts 12:4 as “Passover”. All modern translations that I know of also use Passover.

Unfortunately orthodox Christendom misses the mark in many aspects concerning this Holiest of holidays. It is too bad the churches will not remove the pagan rituals and symbology from the true Christianity. They will continue to erect evergreen trees at the winter solstice and have Ishtar egg hunts on the church lawn in the spring after their sunrise service.

I thank God that most Christians understand that our Christ, the Son of the Living God, was made to be our sin, was hung on the cursed tree until death, was buried and was resurrected after three days. He paid the price and His work is finished. Christ Himself stated: John 12:32 And I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me. (KJV) Do you believe Christ? He was raised – He was lifted up from the earth; Believe! Dear friend Christ IS our Passover Lamb. He said He will draw ALL MEN! This includes the unshaven, tattooed drunk who was passed out in the ditch that you drove by on the way to your Ishtar egg hunt.

Luke records in Acts at 3:20,21 And he shall send Jesus Christ, which before was preached unto you: Whom the heaven must receive until the times of restitution of all things, which God hath spoken by the mouth of all his holy prophets since the world began.

Yes brothers and sisters, since the world began the prophets have been speaking of the restitution of ALL things! Paul echo's this thought in 1^st Timothy 4:10: For therefore we both labour and suffer reproach, because we trust in the living God, who is the Saviour of all men, specially of those that believe. (KJV) Believe it, Christ died for ALL men. Paul says He is the Savior of ALL men!

Rejoice today that where sin increases, grace superexceeds! You cannot out sin God’s grace. His word says so. Happy Passover!