Evolutionists try to parlay the belief that ancient man was intellectually inferior to modern-man. The theory does not fit the facts. While there are numerous theories on how structures like the pyramids were built, no one has been able to duplicate the results using what is known of ancient technology. Some have been so perplexed by this historical enigma that they have postulated that alien technology or even fallen angels—the Nephilim—had made these advancements possible. But there is a better and more reasonable explanation. The intellectual capacity of ancient man is no different from modern man because God created us in His image. We should expect to find evidence of that creative capacity soon after creation. And we do.
Consider the work of Heron (or Hero) of Alexandria who lived in the first-century A.D., probably from A.D. 10 to 75. He was a mathematician and practical inventor. He invented a sacrificial vessel where water flows only when money is dropped in a slot. Heron also constructed a small temple so that when a fire was lit, the doors opened spontaneously and shut again when the fire was extinguished. These devices were designed, most probably at the behest of the king, to make people believe that the gods were real and near. Heron also developed elaborate entertainment devices that set wooden actors and props in motion without any of the pulleys and weights visible to the audience. He is most famous for inventing the aeolipile, the precursor to the steam engine.
Many people who read Revelation 13:15 assume that this verse must be describing a modern-day demonic miracle where an inanimate object comes to life. Given what we know about the ancients, especially the work of Heron, there is nothing implausible about believing, if we pursue a strict literal rendering, that an image could be made to “speak” during Nero’s day. All the technology was available, and since Heron lived during the generation preceding the destruction of the temple in A.D., the timing is also right.