A Land in the Far East

A Land in the Far East

"Philippines" is no biblical name and in no way can be found in the pages of the Bible. Besides, the Old and New Testaments were written down hundreds of years before Fernando Magallanes gave this archipelago a name. 

But this archipelago has been in existence since the ancient times, perhaps in different names or appearance. For example, it is believed by old historians that the place named Ophir in the Old Testament where King Solomon used to fetch gold was the present day Philippine Archipelago. Greek historians like, Pomponius Mela, Marinos of Tyre and the Periplus of the Erythraean Sea, have also made reference to an island east of India rich in gold. They called this island Chryse, and is basically the equivalent to the Indian Suvarnadvipa, the “island of gold”. Another Jewish historian named Josephus called this island in Latin Aurea, and equates it with the biblical Ophir. Ptolemy locates the island of Chryse east of the “Golden Peninsula” i.e. Malaya Peninsula. North of Chryse was a land called Thin. Early European called China by the name Thin.

The Chinese were already in an established trade relations with the early settlers of this archipelago thousands of years before this group of islands were known to the west traders. Beginning from the Qin Dynasty, the Chinese were well aware of a “golden land” far to the south. The Buddhist pilgrim I-Tsing mentions Chin-Chou, “Isle of Gold” in the archipelago south of China on his way back from India. Medieval Muslims refer to the islands as the Kingdoms of Zabag and Wakwak as rich in gold, referring to the eastern islands of the Malay Archipelago, the location of present-day Philippines and Eastern Indonesia.

Thanks to the latest found chronicles and accounts of the earlier settlers of the Philippines written by foreign chroniclers of other countries, many correlations were revealed proving that above-mentioned claims. One particular description was that of Antonio Pigafetta, Fernando Magallanes' chronicler, he wrote. “On the island [Butuan] where the king came to the ship, pieces of gold as large as walnuts or eggs are to be found, by sifting the earth. All the dishes of the king are of gold, and his whole house is very well set up.” Pigafetta goes on to describe the huge gold ornaments, gold dagger handles, tooth plating and even gold that was used to decorate the outside of houses! Succeeding waves of Spanish conquistadors were amused of the abundance of gold that when they arrived, the Philippines was so gilded with gold that most of the gold mines had been neglected. According to De Morga: “...the natives proceed more slowly in this, and content themselves with what they already possess in jewels and gold ingots handed down from antiquity and inherited from their ancestors.”

Many psychics, seers and Christian religious advocates are also unanimous in their claim that the Philippines is the New Jerusalem, the land in the far east mentioned in Isaiah 46:11 for some reasons: First, it is the only Christian country in the far east; Second, there are so many spiritual healers and mystics in the country which suggest that the supernatural powers in the world is most likely centered in the Philippines, and; Third, there are many Filipinos claiming to be prophets or the returned messiah. Will this suggests that the present-day “true prophets” or the “Returned Messiah” are most likely Filipinos?