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- Unicorns
In the Bible
"My
horn shall be exalted like the horn of the
Unicorn."
The Book of Psalms
"He
hath as it were the strength of a
unicorn"
The Book of Numbers
"Will
the Unicorn be willing to serve thee?"
Job
According
to the book of Genesis,
God
gave Adam the task of naming everything he
saw.
In
some translations of the Bible, the Unicorn
was the first animal named; thereby, elevating
it above all other beasts in the
universe.
When
Adam and Eve left paradise, the Unicorn went
with them and came to represent purity and
chastity.
Thus,
the Unicorn's purity in the Western legends
stems from its Biblical beginnings.
The
Bible also offers an explanation about why the
Unicorn has not been seen for so long.
During
the flood that engulfed the world for 40 days
and 40 nights,
Noah
took two of each animal to safety ; but
Unicorns were not among them.
A
Jewish folk tale mentions they were originally
on board but demanded so much space and
attention that Noah banished them.
They
either drowned or managed to swim during the
flood and still survive somewhere in the world
or, as some believe, evolved into the
narwhale.
In
addition, there are seven clear references to
the Unicorn in the Old Testament;
although,
there
is now doubt about the original translations
that may have erroneously named another animal
as a Unicorn.
The
Jewish Talmud also makes many similar
references to the Unicorn.
In
Jewish folklore it is the fiercest of all
animals and is able to kill an elephant with a
single thrust from its horn.
Throughout
history, the church has interpreted the Unicom
in a number of different ways.
In
medieval times, it became a symbol of Christ
himself, and its horn was symbolic of the
unity of Christ and God.
Some
medieval paintings show the Trinity with
Christ represented by a Unicom.
On
the other hand, the Unicom also appears as a
symbol of evil in the book of Isaiah. Overall,
however, the Unicom has come to be regarded as
a pure and virtuous animal.
Regardless
of the place of the Unicom in Biblical theory,
it
is evident that there was a strong belief in
the animal's existence in Biblical times, as
well as in the following centuries.
After
all, it appears so often in the Old Testament
that it can hardly be overlooked in the
Christian world.
The
fact that it appears in the Bible meant that
no devout
Christian could doubt its
authenticity
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