Raiders of the Lost Ark became the highest-grossing film of 1981 and there is no question it is an entertaining and beloved movie. From a Christian perspective, it introduces many people to the Ark of the Covenant in perhaps a wrong way. And I will explain why I think that.
So, we are going to look at the timeline of both the movie and Ron’s discovery. Secondly, to see how Biblical accurate the movies’ portrayal of the ark is, and the moral of the movie.

I grew up in front of the TV. I watched this movie when I was a kid several times and I really loved it at the time. It is entertaining. And the fact is, action-filled movies give you dopamine and adrenaline. You know. It’s why people enjoy it or feel rewarded after watching something. The same with this movie. It’s an action-filled movie with an interesting storyline. It is a famous Spielberg movie.
I know this is JUST made for entertainment, however, because this movie has influenced many people’s conception of the Ark I think it is worth addressing. A lot of people only know about the Ark through this movie. Secondly, life imitates art and I have encountered several who have come up with ideas inspired by something said in this movie.

Many have made fun of Ron Wyatt, claiming he is an Indiana Jones wannabe, or even inspired by Indiana Jones when making his ark discovery claim. So let’s first look at the timeline of the movie and Ron’s excavation.

It is claimed the first idea for this movie came to George Lucas around 1973, however, it was an unfinished draft and Lucas played with the idea of a treasure but he had not thought of the Ark of the Covenant to be that treasure.

When Lucas brought Philip Kaufman into the project in 1975 it is claimed that he came up with the idea of the Ark of the Covenant. As you know Steven Spielberg became part of the project and they got Lawrence Kasdan to help tie their ideas and the script together. And they all did the script in January 1978 over several days. And so all the scenes involving the ark undoubtedly came after the idea of the treasure being the ark came on the table. Now, why the Ark`? Most people don’t know much about it. All four men, Lucas, Kaufman, Spielberg, and Kashdan, have Jewish backgrounds and would be introduced to it growing up or in contact with family and other relations. And the Ark of the Covenant is a central piece in the Tankah, the Jewish bible. So they were probably not oblivious to what it was when Kaufman introduced it. I don’t know their hearts but I doubt they were religious at the time, I don’t think a religious jew with respect for God would make this movie.

They had a rough start getting the funding, but eventually got Paramount Pictures president Michael Eisner onboard, who is of course also Jewish. So he most likely knew what the Ark was too.

Ron Wyatt planned to go to Noah’s Ark in 1975 to find evidence of the Bible stories. He didn’t get the opportunity to go before the summer of 1977.
However, his search for the Ark of the Covenant began with the calling he felt he got on his summer trip in 1978. He then discussed it with a prominent Israeli Jewish man.
The script writing for the Indiana Jones movie began six months after Ron began his research on the Ark of the Covenant. It appears that everything is happening parallel to each other.
The pre-production of RAIDERS OF THE LOST ARK began in December 1979.

Within the same month, exactly the same year, Ron came to Jerusalem and started the excavation process there. January 1979

You have to know that Ron is not aware that he is racing the clock with a movie at this time.

If you believe in the God of the Bible, you will know that he has an enemy who is eager to confuse and ruin what God wants to do. According to my belief system, that is what was happening. Satan noticed that God was beginning to move, and he hurried to do what he could to sabotage it.

Ron did not win that race, because God is not competing with Hollywood or with Satan. He has His own schedule and plans. His superior. The movie got millions of dollars to produce, and Ron was working almost broke with little help. And so he was forced to take his time.
Part of God’s plan was for Ron to find the crucifixion site first so He could not rush him past that stage.
It took Ron three and a half years from the beginning of research to find the Ark, and then he was forced to first keep silent on it. The Jewish authorities told him not to say anything.

Although the Indiana movie was being made at the same time as Ron excavated, the production went much faster and they first started principal photography in the summer of 1980. The movie was finished and first released in 1981. That is half a year before Ron found the Ark.
Ron was then painfully aware that someone was working against him. However, the people behind the movie did not stop there. The movie was re-released several times, in July 1982, six months after Ron found the Ark, and then again in March 1983.

And it is popular to this very day, a new Indiana Jones movie is set to be released soon. And no doubt will give interest to the first movie and introduce the new generation to it.
So was Ron Wyatt inspired by Indiana Jones to look for the Ark? As you can see, not at all. His search for the Ark had nothing to do with that movie. When they started the production of it, he was already excavating for it.

So what about Ron’s Indiana jones look-alike style? They are nothing alike. Ron wore typical clothing, later fitting for his line of work.  Something that can’t be said about Indiana Jones. Some have made fun of Ron wearing a hat.
Well, Ron is from Tennessee, they like hats and he spent a lot of time in the sun on all his projects. He was involved in several archeological projects, so yes, he was wearing a hat. Many different ones.

As you now know, the discovery of the Ark of the Covenant and the movie about its discovery happened around the same time. In the end, the world rejected Ron’s testimony and embraced the Indiana movie.
They liked the fantasy in the movie. It’s an amusement that doesn’t demand anything from anyone. It gave the message with the Ark that if we leave God alone, He will leave us alone. On the other side, people were offended by Ron’s claim. Here was preached a God stretching His arms out to sinners bidding them to come to Him. It reminded us that we have a responsibility. That we have a choice to make.
The movie received millions of dollars in funding, but Ron didn’t have any money when he discovered the Ark.

The movie received instant recognition, and people all over the world put it up in their cinemas. Ron struggled to get his story out there and find ways to inform people. The movie earned and is still earning big bucks, unapologetic. Ron however, had to work with limited resources and people criticizing him for every donation he received as he was some kind of crook for needing funding for the work. The money coming in for the movie made it possible to create more movies containing more violence and idol worship. The second movie made human sacrifices entertainment. Ron’s discovery leads people to Christ.
Ron was limited to how much work he could do, even though a lot more could be done, because of lack of means.
We have seen this contrast before in God’s work have we not? There is a reason Christ was born in poverty, and not in a castle.
This is not about Ron, it is about the Lord of this world, Satan, who hates his creator. He will sabotage anything that honors God or draws men to God.
The Bible says: «For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places». (Ephesians 6:12 )

We will look at some of the damage this movie caused to God’s cause and testimony regarding the Ark.

We are going to examine the differences between the two discoveries of the Ark of the Covenant. The fictional in the movie and the real deal. And lastly, we will look at how the movie fits with the Bible.

MOVIE CONTENT:

As most of you know the Ark was made to house the ten commandments. God’s moral law. The Ark with Christ’s blood was found to show how much God paid to atone for us breaking the law and how important the moral of the law is. The testimony is to show us that sin is a bad thing, something that hurt our Creator and fellow humans. But at the same time, He loves us and has forgiven us.

The Indiana Jones movie is a love feast to the breaking of the law in the Ark.
If it was not, nobody would have loved it. It’s the way of the world. In ancient times they watched gladiator battles in the roman open theaters, now it’s violence on TV. And what people see now, although acting, is far more brutal and immoral than the Greeks and Romans could come up with. People love sex and violence. They love their hormones.

In contrast: Ron Wyatt, was a godfearing man who believed in the importance of keeping God’s morals and laws and did his best to do so.

The first thing Indiana Jones do in the film is to retrieve a golden IDOL statue, and we see a subtle sign of the sun worship religion in this scene. (7:33min and 8:00min)
As you probably know idol worship is a heartache for God. In the book of Ezekiel, we see how God’s people are turning their backs on the ark and the law and worshipping the sun instead of God. Choosing the moral of the pagans instead of God’s morals. The feasts of the pagans instead of God’s feasts. Their fascination with images and the stories behind them was more important than God and their own history.
We also learn they used golden idols. Even though Indiana isn’t worshiping the idol, he makes the viewer excited about these things and shows respect for them.

Ten Commandments
In addition to being introduced to idols, we see theft in the movie, we see God’s name cursed. Words like “goddamn,” “hell,” “bastard,” “damn,” and “oh my God.” are expressions used. We watch 57 people die for entertainment purposes in this movie.
Even the person sitting in the colosseum in Rome back in the day would have never seen that many die within one and a half hours. Even though one was real and this isn’t, it still changes us to enjoy evil. “I will set no wicked thing before mine eyes: I hate the work of them that turn aside; it shall not cleave to me” (Psalm 101:3. See also 1. John 2:15-17; Phil.4:8)
“The Lord trieth the righteous; but the wicked and him that loveth violence, His soul hateth” (Psalm. 11:5)

Indiana Jones, the “hero” kills maybe up to 10 of the men, one in a comedic way. We are meant to laugh at it. His love interest in the movie kills just as many if not more.
We learn Indiana Jones had an intimate relationship with her and she defined herself as a child at the time and he abandoned her shortly after taking advantage of her.
According to Wikipedia, the original idea was that she was to have been 11 years old at the time of the love affair, but it was removed and now in the movie, she just says: “I was a child!” In this way, it can be interpreted that she was young. It is still fornication either way.
And the movie is also mentioning the manmade sabbath that competes with the fourth commandment, the one from the law in the Ark, as the place to learn your Bible. So you could say the movie makes entertainment of breaking all the Ten Commandments in the storyline.
In addition, the scene where Indiana finds the Ark is edited parallel with another scene where drunkenness and desire are displayed. The mixture of Indiana coming before “the holy Ark” with the other scene of alcohol, seduction, and laughter brings the viewer to an indifference to the true meaning of the Ark and its discovery.

The Ark was God’s Throne
I should also mention the Ark was God’s throne on earth and it was built after God defeated the Egyptian pharaoh and the Egyptian gods and took His people out of captivity there.

In the movie, there is a reversal of power. God’s throne was put under the Pharaoh’s power in his temple with his gods and kept in a tomb there for thousands of years.
When Jerusalem was conquered by the Babylonians God told His remaining people not to return to Egypt because of the great disobedience it would signify and the bad testimony it would give regarding God and His leadership (Jer. 43 & 44). This movie takes God’s throne back to Egypt.

You will be the judge if this is insulting to the God of the bible.

The plot of this movie is that the Nazi wants the Ark to win more wars or get more power, but they fail. I don’t mind Jews taking a kick at Nazi Germany. That is fine. Let them. So I will not comment on that plot. 
However, it is well known Hitler hated anything Jewish and the Old Testament. He also hated the ten commandments that were in the Ark and which the Ark was named after. Hitler said: “The Ten Commandments have lost their vitality. Conscience is a Jewish invention; it is a blemish, like circumcision”.

Let us look at some more details.

The Ark is in this movie found hidden in the Egyptian city of Tanis. A place in the North-Eastern Delta of Egypt. It was a real ancient Egyptian city, so the city itself is not fictional.

Although the Ark being hidden here is pure fiction from the boys club in Hollywood, there are many stories about the ark being taken to Egypt.
Many of the speculations and claims related to the Ark in Egypt have come after the Raiders-Ark movie.

Part of the damage this movie did was also to make looking for the Ark something cool and recognized. This caused many people, archeologists, and professors to come up with theories, and this caused Ron’s testimony to be doubted even more. The more popular looking for the Ark got after the movie, the less inclined people were to hear Ron’s story.  Ron’s story is the only story that contains a message from God to the world, and so that sets it apart from all the others.
Ron’s story did not have what is valued high in the world. People wanted the same excitement they felt from the movie in a story. An expectation was created. They didn’t want a moral discovery, they wanted gold, treasures, and honor. When we taste junk food we are less declined to choose the healthy dish. And this is in part what this and other movies do.
“See to it that no one takes you captive by philosophy and empty deceit, according to human tradition, according to the elemental spirits of the world, and not according to Christ” (Kol.2:8).

In the city, where Indiana finds the ark, there is a temple for Amun-Ra. The god of the Egyptians that God proved to be a false god in the Exodus story. In the movie, God’s throne is held captive by those He defeated in the Bible. The Bible also tells us that the pagan gods are really demons, working for Satan.
( They offered sacrifices to demons, which are not God, to gods they had not known before, to new gods only recently arrived, to gods their ancestors had never feared. Deuteronomy 32:17
 “But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God” 1.Cor.10:20 )

So in the Bible, the false gods, including the sun-god, are really fallen angels led by God’s enemy, Satan.

In the movie, Indiana is first looking for the HEADPIECE OF THE STAFF OF RA. And it is claimed that by using the staff (remember, the staff was a symbol of authority in ancient times), to create a light beam from the sun unto a map, the way to the Ark is discovered. The strange is that this medallion is not in Egyptian hieroglyph but in Paleo Hebrew, making it odd that it is supposed to be the headpiece of the staff of Ra. The inscription claim to give some respect to the Hebrew God as a gesture which makes little sense considering the situation: “6 Kadam for Ra and then take 1 Kadam off to honor the God of the Ark”. This means the staff of Ra’s hight was almost 183 cm (72 inches) but “to honor God” they were to use a smaller one 152 cm (around 60 inches). In the end, Indiana uses a staff a head taller than himself and so all is nonsense of course.
However, it is disrespectful toward the meaning of the Ark as God’s throne. And also condescending while claiming to honor God. So by getting the staff of the sun-god, and the power of the sun god, they get possession of the Ark.

In contrast, Ron Wyatt found the Ark of the Covenant in Jerusalem, a place in the Bible that is called God’s holy mountain. A mountain God once reigned from. A mountain He is said to judge from. A mountain said to belong to Him. His property.  
“And many peoples will come and say, ‘Come, let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; that He may teach us concerning His ways and that we may walk in His paths.’ For the law will go forth from Zion and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem” (Isaiah 2:3).

Ron was able to find the Ark by finding the crucifixion site, which pointed to Christ, the son of God, who died to save mankind.

That is a big contrast. In the movie, the pagan sun god leads the way, and with Ron, the cross of Christ leads the way. It is basically Satan versus Christ.
And the message could not be any different.

Christ died to save mankind from “spiritual Egypt”, spiritual slavery. In this movie, God Himself is defeated and finds His throne resting place in Egypt under Pharaoh’s authority. A place God uttered a curse if His own people returned to.

BLASPHEME?

In Ron Wyatt’s testimony, four angels are guarding the Ark. And the chamber contains the other holy items from the tabernacle. Each of these items represented how God provides protects, and cares for His people.

In the Indiana movie, snakes are covering the chamber with the ark. Also, FOUR pillars with serpents are on each side of the ark. I can’t read it properly, but I see the word for Ra on one of these pillars. In the Bible, the serpent represents Satan.

Basically, they have placed the ark of the covenant captive under the sun god and Satan.

In Ron’s testimony, the ark is protected and controlled by God and has a purpose. No one can tamper with it. In the Bible, when the Ark was placed with other gods, those gods were defeated and cast down before the ark. God never permitted His Ark to stand with idols without casting down the idols. This is not the case in the movie.
In ancient Egypt, the serpent was connected to the god Atum, the underworld.
Ron said four angels of God protect the ark. In this movie in front of the ark are four statues of, what to me at first glance look like, the god Sobek. A god sometimes manifested as a crocodile. It also represented military power and pharaonic power, but also fertility.

This god was normally painted on the walls of burial chambers in Egypt, and considering all the dead bodies that we see are in the neighboring room of the ark, this chamber is a tomb, and represents an underworld.
However, a second look at the face of one of the four “protectors” show serpent fangs. But serpents don’t have a full set of teeth. And so I have no idea what they are trying to depict. It might fit in with the serpent theme of the chamber. The Ark is in a burial chamber and in this movie it has nothing to offer mankind but death. There is no atonement tied to the Ark like there was in the Bible. God’s throne only offers death, but not mercy. Both the dead and “God’s throne” are held captive. This is Satan’s attack on God throughout time. That God is a severe judge that can not show mercy and that His law only brings death.

In the movie, the Ark is just a trophy for its conquerer. A pharaoh that robbed God’s temple, a triumph for the serpent and its ruler. And the message given in the movie is

that the Ark should not be disturbed, or looked for, meaning it should be left in a wasteland covered with serpents (48:30).
Biblically, without the Ark, there was no final atonement. The message behind this statement in the movie is one of two. Either that humanity should be left to its own devices and their sins not atoned for. Or the message briefly shared is that the law demands death and so the problem is the law and not us. We are the “victims of the law” and God’s judgment. In that way, we should just leave the Ark among “the dead”. This is very consistent with false gospel teachings that preach that the only way for God to save us is to abolish or set aside His own law.

It is interesting that as these words are written down in the Indiana Jones movie script by the scriptwriters – Ron started the preparation for the excavation of the Ark in Jerusalem.
Revealing God’s offer of atonement to the world.
Again, the difference between what was said in the movie and what was happening in real life is very interesting.

In the movie the underground chamber the ark is placed in Egypt is called the ’Well of souls”.
The Well of souls is an actual place, but not in Egypt. It is situated underneath where many believe the Ark once stood in Jerusalem. Underneath the Dome of the Rock. A couple of Jewish rabbis have claimed to have seen the ark underneath the well of souls in Jerusalem, which is not confirmed of course.

The name “Well of Souls” derives from a medieval Islamic legend that at this place the spirits of the dead can be heard awaiting Judgment Day,[4] although this is not a mainstream Islamic view. The name has also been applied to a hypothetical chamber that may exist beneath the Dome of the rock.[5]

This is the same place some Jewish traditions say the creation of the world took place and where Abraham prepared to sacrifice his son Isaac.

So, placing the well of souls in a chamber in Egypt is blending this tradition into the movie.
It appears to me that the screenwriters must have known about this to use this name. They are subliminally putting the message of the Ark being at the well of souls into people’s heads.

The blood on the Ark speaks salvation, releasing prisoners and offering life and paradise. The Ark’s resting place, therefore, witnesses the opposite of that portrayed in the movie, the freedom of our souls and not the captivity of souls. God’s testimony is one of hope and love, and in this movie the Ark offers nothing. Still, most prefer this fairytale to the real deal.

17:55

In the movie the Ark is inside a stone case, I think it is a burial case. It has hieroglyphs on it, but I can’t really make any sense of them. It looks very random and repetitive. The stone case looks in style a little bit like a sarcophagus from the old Egyptian kingdom. 

In Ron’s discovery, the Ark was also placed inside a stone box.

Let us look at the appearance of the Ark of the covenant in the movie. It looks in style like some older illustrations of the Ark. It is said it is inspired by the 19th-century painter James Tissot, who was raised in a catholic home. He drew several images with the Ark and painted many bible stories. He painted from his imagination as he had never seen the ark. But many artists have been inspired to draw the ark in a similar way after his and the Raiders movie’s popularity. It is not to be underestimated how the illustration of the ark in this movie has affected what people expect the ark to look like. And it has also made many people question Ron’s testimony about how the Ark really looked.
As a curiosity, the four serpent pillars and canopy in the movie really reminded me of the Pope’s canopy in St Peter’s Church. It too has a four-pillar canopy with a serpent shape.

19:45.

BIBLICAL ACCURACY

Broken tablets in the Ark?
17:18 – In the beginning, Indiana Jones says the Ark contained the tables that were broken. The Bible says that the first tables were broken, but they were not put in the ark. God wrote on a new set of stones, and those were never broken and are the ones placed into the ark. So the broken set was not the ones inside the ark. (Deu 10:2)

Did Pharaoh Shishak take the Ark?
According to the movie at 17:48 Pharaoh Shishak invaded the city of Jerusalem in 980 BC and took the Ark back to the city of Tanis.
This is based on a biblical account. There was a pharaoh named Shishak who was said to have raided the Jerusalem temple. The Ark is however not mentioned in this raid. It does say temple treasure was taken:

«And he took away the treasures of the house of the Lord, and the treasures of the king’s house; he even took away all: and he took away all the shields of gold which Solomon had made.» (1.King.14:26)
This happened when King Solomon’s son reigned.

The reason we know the Ark was not taken is that according to the Bible, the Ark was still in Jerusalem long after Shishak invaded the land. When king Josiah tells the priest to bring the Ark back into the temple, we see that it has been in hiding in Jerusalem. 
“And said unto the Levites that taught all Israel, which were holy unto the LORD, Put the holy ark in the house which Solomon the son of David king of Israel did build; it shall not be a burden upon your shoulders: serve now the LORD your God, and his people Israel” (2Ch 35:3) 

The reason the Ark was removed from the temple was that King Manasseh turned the temple into a temple for the pagan gods instead. Again God did not permit the Ark to stand with idols as it does in the movie. It would make it unholy for its purpose.
King Josiah reformed the city, got rid of the idols around the temple, and then had the Ark brought back into the temple.

Did the Ark leave cities desolate?
The movie says that the Ark destroyed the city of Tanis and left it like a desert. This is probably inspired by the Ark causing plagues on the Philistines when they had the ark. However, the cities were not abandoned or turned into deserts at the time the Ark was there. The concept that the Ark’s presence caused plagues over the cities that had taken it is Biblical, although the event described in the movie is not.

This is an example of fiction inspired by Biblical events. However, God did not tolerate His throne being placed with the philistine gods. In this movie, the Egyptian gods remain intact and God seems to have accepted the fate of His throne.

Leveling mountains?

20:12 in the movie one person says: “the Ark leveling mountains and laying waste to entire regions”.

This is not in the Bible and is pure fiction from the movie creator.

Is the Ark a weapon?
20:20 movie statement: «An army that carries the ark before it is invincible».

This is also a Biblical error. When the Ark went before the people at war towards Jericho they won, but it was stated that an angel of God would go with them with a heavenly army (Jos 5:13-15). This was the reason for their victory. The angels helped them. The Ark was a symbol and did not have power on its own.
The ark itself did not fight any battles and when someone thought bringing the ark into battle could make them win the war, God proved them wrong and let them loose. This happened when the philistines won over the Israelites and captured the Ark. Because the Bible already debunked this idea there was no reason to make it a movie plot. (1Sa 4:3-11)

“Not of this earth“
«Not of this earth» The Ark was God’s earthly throne, built by earthlings, with earthly materials. It was built so God would dwell among His people. So God is not of this earth, it is true. The Ark is of this earth and for this earth.

“Surrounded by death”
The «death» has always surrounded it» claim, is in part true. The blood of the atonement, animal sacrifices, was taken upon it and in front of it. The law requires the death penalty for those who broke its standard. And so animal blood was placed upon it to atone for this sin and to deliver the sinner from the penalty. Although the blood represented death, once placed upon the altar it represented forgiveness and life to the sinner. In fact, the mercy seat, the top part of the ark was really called ‘Koppereth’ which comes from the word ‘kapar’ which means atonement. It’s part of the arks name and the reason it was designed. Atonement is the same as mercy and forgiveness.
Back to Ron Wyatt’s discovery. It shows the price has been paid. Christ’s death, His blood upon it, and that mankind are saved from the death penalty because of it. The Ark now carries the proof of God’s offer to grant us life. And so the blood on the mercy seat represents life.
The «death has always surrounded it» also might refer to that several people tampering with it died. On one account a man touches it and dies. On another 70 men open the ark and die. The Bible does not explain how this happened. This story is partly why so many myths about the Ark now exist (1Sa 6:19; 1Sa 6:19).
So I would say regarding this statement, it is in part true, but it’s misunderstood and distorted.

Is The Ark a Transmitter, or radio?

45:20: In the movie, it is said that «The Ark is a transmitter, its a radio for speaking to God». They again fantasize based on something from the Bible. But this sentence alone has inspired so many Ark theories you can find online today. The idea that the ark was electric or supernatural etc. A fixation on the Ark as a mystical object with supernatural powers.
Life usually imitates art. This is why God has a problem with graven images and idols in the first place. People create stories and then they imitate them.
In the Bible, God reaches through people in many ways. However it does say God communicated from above the cherubim with Moses, no one was allowed to enter without God first giving them an allowance or making contact first. The Bible also explains God spoke to Moses’ face to face and so it was not through the Ark he communicated but in person.
“And the LORD spake unto Moses face to face, as a man speaketh unto his friend. And he turned again into the camp” (Exo.33:11) And so it could not be used to get access to God. Prayer and praise are used in the Bible as a means of communication. God’s communication is not dependent on the Ark.

Did they carry the Ark in the open?
1:05: In the movie, Indiana Jones and his friend are carrying the ark without covering, which was forbidden in the Bible. The ark was carried by people who had to take the veil from the sanctuary and place it over the ark so they didn’t look at it. They then carried it only while it was covered.

Back to the 19th-century artist James Tissot who inspired the look of the Ark, we see this idea that it was carried without covering. These images, however, are not biblical.

Can two people carry the Ark?
An additional error is the ark weight. The Bible tells us about the size and the material used to make it.
The Ark was too heavy for 2 people to carry. The cherub and mercy seat was made of pure gold, a very heavy metal, and considering the size and that the chest was also covered in gold in addition to the wood, it would take at least 6 to 8 very strong men to carry the ark.

Can you open the Ark if you do a Jewish Torah prayer?

1:44: The film displays a Jewish prayer-ritual before they open and look inside the ark. One of the men dresses up as a Levite priest and says:
La al enash rachitzna, v’la al bar elohin samichna…d’hu eloha k’shot v’oraytei k’shot…Bei ana rachitz v’lishmei kaidsha yakira …tushbechan.
Translated: “I do not rely on man, and I do not depend on any angel, but on the God of truth whose Torah is true. I rely on Him, and to His holy and precious name…praises.” The last part of the traditional prayer is omitted in the movie and is about God blessing the Jewish people.
This is not a Biblical text, however, it is a jewish traditional prayer used when opening the Torah arks on holy days.
As the Jewish men writing this script know, using this prayer to open the ark is not Biblical. It was illegal to open the lid of the ark under any circumstance unless God allowed it. No ritual words could be performed that gave anyone permission. And that included the High Priest.
In this movie, the man dressing in Levite attire is holding a goat staff. Again just a fantasy, no such staff was used in the tabernacle rituals in the Bible.
In Leviticus, we learn that the high priest could not enter into the holiest with the Ark of the Covenant at any time he wanted. Only once a year and he had to bring the blood for the mercy seat if he wanted to live. Not even then was he permitted to open the chest.

So to the death scenes in the movie.

– Did the Ark contain or have some kind of Electricity coming out from it killing people? The Bible is silent on the matter of course. Spite popular belief, it does not say that the Ark killed them at all in the two instances where people were touching the ark. It says God did. It says God was upset and punished him. 1Ch 13:10

The same with the other instance in Beth Shemesh. It doesn’t say that the ark killed them, but that God smote them for disrespecting his ark. And so the Ark does not have superpowers.

1:46: In the movie we see female-looking spirits coming out of the ark. There is nothing in the Old Testament about spirits inside the ark. It says the ten commandments were in it and that it was built and named after this purpose.

The idea of spirits can have been taken from Revelation 15 where the angels bringing judgment upon the earth comes from the holiest in the temple in heaven, where the ark in heaven is. They are however not sent to punish people looking into the ark, but to punish mankind for all their crimes against each other and for rebelling against God. It is a huge difference and it does not say they come from inside the ark. They are sent to carry out a mission. In the movie, the ghost-like creatures then change appearance into something demonic, which again is very disrespectful towards God and unbiblical. Nowhere are God’s angels changed into demonic figures during a scene of judgment.

In the scene in the movie where the Nazis are killed for opening the ark a fire emerges from the ark and hits all the people present as lighting.
This is probably inspired by the story at Bet Shemesh where 70 men died after looking in the ark. However, again, in that story, there is no mention of fire, lightning, or demons! It just says God “smote the men”.

This could therefore also be inspired by The New Testament. It is said in Revelation 11 that the ark is seen in his temple and there comes lightning, but not necessarily from the ark.
“And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail” (Rev.11:19) 

If the lightning comes from the Ark, does the earthquake and the hail too? Of course not. These are events happening simultaneously, not from the inside of the Ark. It is speaking of a judgment over mankind. They are clearly distorting the bible record for the audience’s amusement. In this scene from the movie, where lighting and fire come, the people die by melting and exploding. The creators are trying to make their death funny for the viewer. Again disrespectful towards God. They are making a mockery of God’s earthly throne and judgment and that is no small offense and certainly not entertainment. The melting part is most likely inspired by Zechariah 14:12, a plague said to befall those who try to take Jerusalem in a war against God. But it is unlikely it would happen in such a way as portrayed in the movie.

The scene ends with a pillar of fire standing over the ark. Again a misrepresentation of the pillar of fire standing over the ark mentioned in the Bible. It is clear the idea of the pillar does come from the Bible. But the setting in this movie is wrong.

The purpose of the pillar of fire was to encourage the people of the Lord’s presence, caring for them, protecting them, and lighting up in the dark. (Exo.13:21)

The Ten Commandments are not inside the Ark
Another terrible error Indiana said was that the broken set of laws was in the ark however when they actually open the ark they find no tables of stone, only sand. Either the law is completely destroyed and turned into sand or they are just gone.

This reveals in my opinion who is the inspiration behind this movie. In the Bible, God’s law can not be destroyed. It is the foundation of His throne. It contains His name, His title and who is the origin behind all of creation. Without it, He is not able to judge anyone. Without His law, God judges randomly and lawlessly.
Jesus said: “Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets. I have not come to abolish them, but to fulfill them. For I tell you truly, until heaven and earth pass away, not a single jot, not a stroke of a pen, will disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished” (Matt.5:17)

Having an ark placed in an Egyptian burial chamber, guarded by the Egyptian god, conquered by God’s enemy the pharaoh, stripped of His law, no mention of His atonement and gift, basically, they have stripped God of everything but resentment.

People forget all of this while watching the bad nazis and nazi sympathizers being punished. It can seem for a little bit that God is triumphing, but in the movie, God is made weak, defenseless, lawless, and resentful with absolutely nothing to offer anyone.

The Ark’s resting place

In the end, the Ark is placed inside a warehouse. The movie shows the Ark burning the Nazi symbol on the box, but at the end, it is placed in a similar box with the American military symbol on it. This time, the ark does not burn the logo. Nor did it with the Egyptian text when in Egypt. Logic fault. But I don’t blame Jews for fantasizing about God punishing the Nazis. I am sure God caused Hitler’s fall and was not a fan of him. But in the bible, Egypt was God’s enemy too, and if you believe some interpretations of Revelation, so is the US. They will make the world take “the mark of the beast”. God is not only upset when His people are targeted, but he is also upset when the truth is distorted and trampled upon like it is in this movie. (Dan.8: 12; Rev.18:6, 20, 24, Rev.12:17, Dan.7:25, and so on)

The irony of the ending is that the Ark is still lost to the public and the government hides the fact that it is no longer lost. This is pretty much what the Israeli government did. They kept the truth from the public and made people think it was still lost.

From the continuing series of Indiana Jones we learn the Ark just remains in that cargo box, forgotten and irrelevant.

In the real world, according to the New Testament and Ron Wyatt’s testimony, the Ark of the Covenant is going to become a part of the end conflict on this planet.

Ron Wyatt’s discovery presented the beauty of God’s plan of salvation, while this movie just confirmed the lies about God. That he is nothing and only cares for Himself.

Looking at the timeline, I have no doubt that this movie came to distract people from understanding the real ark discovery and God’s testimony to the world.  It inspires Indiana-wanna bees to take the attention away from God’s testimony to the world. It was made to make Ron Wyatt look foolish.
Ron had to find out how to tell people about this discovery right in the middle of the repeated releases of this movie. How difficult. It looked like he was trying to make himself something after being inspired by the movie. And that is what some are accusing him of. But I think the saddest part is that God’s beautiful testimony is in part twisted and even silenced by this movie. Again Jesus is given poverty and ridicule and the sinners the fame and money. I think Satan knew exactly what he was doing knowing the Ark was about to be found. And he hurried to inspire the making of this movie.

The Ark in the movie only brought death, but the Ark in real life shows God’s gift of life.

Most people will prefer the lie and the fairytale over the truth.

Why? Because fantasy demands nothing of us. It gives us dopamine and adrenaline, while the truth asks us to examine ourselves and change what is bad in our lives.

This is why lies often feel good, while the truth does good. It is important to understand the difference.

The end conclusion here is:
This movie is disrespectful towards God and Ron Wyatt was not inspired by Indiana Jones when he started His search for the Ark of the Covenant.