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The founding of the Order was carried out under the austere eye of King Nebuchadnezzar II, who was responsible for the destruction of the first Temple in Jerusalem after his military conquest in 587 B.C. As is recorded in the Holy Scriptures, he carried off the finest of the Jews after the conquest to Babylon, and sought to condition them to embrace the dainties of a life in the center of the world, that city of harlots. As it is written, many resisted this conditioning, including Daniel, Hananiah, Mishael, and Azariah. It was at this time that the Lord saw fit to humble
Nebuchadnezzar.
The king had a dream, so he called a council of the wise men of Babylon to interpret it, yet only Daniel, in the power of the Most High, was able to
comprehend it. The interpretation was a prophecy of insanity which came to pass, where that sovereign king was made to be as a brute beast and eat the grass of the field. Nebuchadnezzar recorded this event in detail in a letter to all nations, which is included in the book of Daniel, Chapter 4. Nebuchadnezzar understood that what he literally experienced was an illustration of all men, who become as brute beasts apart from God – dumb, carnal, mad, and empty. Yet it is also with God that
one is restored and made whole. After extolling the truth and might of the Most High God, Nebuchadnezzar again called upon Daniel to learn of him, to learn of his God, and the hope that he had in a Final Restoration. Finally, he called a council with the wisest of the Jews, lead by Daniel, master of the Magi, with Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, and many others, charging them to possess the Spirit of God in great fullness. He commissioned them to look for the Coming One who will bring the Final Restoration, true sanity, and change a human from brute beast to crown of creation. They became the first council.
Generations later, Grandmaster Matthan, in 2 B.C., commissioned the journey of three Priest-Kings: the Magi, out of Babylon, who were wise in the prophecies of Daniel, to greet the Messiah at His coming. Those three kings, known as Larvandad, Gushnasaph, and Hormisdas in their native tongue, offered the submission and humility before the King
of Kings that the first Grandmaster, Nebuchadnezzar, was never able to.
They offered Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh: gold for kingship, frankincense for priesthood, and myrrh, a burial herb for His death, for they knew from the writings that “Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself”, (Daniel 9:26), exactly as Daniel prophesied, 483 years later, according to his calculation. Thus, the great hope of the Order was fulfilled.
Nebuchadnezzar.
The king had a dream, so he called a council of the wise men of Babylon to interpret it, yet only Daniel, in the power of the Most High, was able to
comprehend it. The interpretation was a prophecy of insanity which came to pass, where that sovereign king was made to be as a brute beast and eat the grass of the field. Nebuchadnezzar recorded this event in detail in a letter to all nations, which is included in the book of Daniel, Chapter 4. Nebuchadnezzar understood that what he literally experienced was an illustration of all men, who become as brute beasts apart from God – dumb, carnal, mad, and empty. Yet it is also with God that
one is restored and made whole. After extolling the truth and might of the Most High God, Nebuchadnezzar again called upon Daniel to learn of him, to learn of his God, and the hope that he had in a Final Restoration. Finally, he called a council with the wisest of the Jews, lead by Daniel, master of the Magi, with Hananiah, Mishael, Azariah, and many others, charging them to possess the Spirit of God in great fullness. He commissioned them to look for the Coming One who will bring the Final Restoration, true sanity, and change a human from brute beast to crown of creation. They became the first council.
Generations later, Grandmaster Matthan, in 2 B.C., commissioned the journey of three Priest-Kings: the Magi, out of Babylon, who were wise in the prophecies of Daniel, to greet the Messiah at His coming. Those three kings, known as Larvandad, Gushnasaph, and Hormisdas in their native tongue, offered the submission and humility before the King
of Kings that the first Grandmaster, Nebuchadnezzar, was never able to.
They offered Him gifts of gold, frankincense, and myrrh: gold for kingship, frankincense for priesthood, and myrrh, a burial herb for His death, for they knew from the writings that “Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself”, (Daniel 9:26), exactly as Daniel prophesied, 483 years later, according to his calculation. Thus, the great hope of the Order was fulfilled.