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 Seeing the Story in the Stars

 March 19, 2014

“The heavens declare the glory of God…” Psalm 19:1-4

God painted a story in the sky for us to see His glory. He tells the story through the star pictures, a universal language, so all men will know Him. He placed twelve constellations or star groupings in the heavens. When viewed from the North Star, these groupings form a circle around the equator. In this article we will look at four of these constellations and share their story. Each great constellation has three minor constellations that further explain the story.

 How were the first pictures found in the sky? Seth, the third son of Adam, knew the signs of the stars, according to Josephus in Antiquities of the Jews. The Jews, Greeks and Egyptians all recorded the stars’ names. Some cultures altered the meanings because of deception by Satan who seeks to change the story. 

Today, we hear of the Zodiac predicting our future. Satan takes God’s story and distorts it. God’s story speaks of Christ, what He has done and will do. Satan turns the story from Christ and tells about us. We’ve lost the names of the stars and their meanings. We’ve forsaken the story. This article refocuses our attention back to Christ and thus the story found in the stars. 

“Then God said, ‘Let there be lights in the expanse of the heavens to separate the day from the night, and let them be for signs and for seasons and for days and years….’” (Genesis 1:14) A sign represents something. The signs in the sky tell the story of Christ.

 “He counts the number of the stars; He gives names to all of them.” (Psalm 147:4-5) By knowing the names of the stars, we find the story that God has written for us.

 The twelve constellations parallel the Bible. The Redeemer born from the Seed of a Virgin. Wounded, He returns to crush the serpent’s head and to judge and rule in righteousness.

Virgo, the Virgin

With that brief overview, let’s begin by looking at the first constellation: Virgo, the Virgin, pictured as a woman with a branch in her right hand and seven ears of corn in her left hand. “Behold, the virgin shall be with child and shall bear a Son and they shall call His Name Immanuel, which translated means, ‘God with us.’” (Matthew 1:23) This woman, of course, is Mary, mother of Jesus, who was a virgin when Christ was born. 

She holds the Branch referring to Christ in Zechariah 3:8. Jesus, denoted by the corn, called himself the corn or seed which ‘falls into the earth and dies.’ (John 12:23-24) The Seed knows from His birth that He must suffer to bring His Father glory.

 Within this constellation, three minor constellations further explain the picture. 

 Coma, the infant.

Coma, the infant, shows a woman with a child in her arms. Daniel promised that a ‘star of Bethlehem’ would appear at the time of the Lord. This star shone ‘brighter than the morning star.’ This new star appeared on the infant of this constellation at the time of Christ’s birth. The Wise Men, from the land where Daniel lived, watched for it. They followed it and found the New Baby King. The Wise Men returned to their lands worshipping the Savior Who had come for them. The stars spoke. They heard. They worshipped. 

 

 

Centaurus.

The infant grows into manhood. In growing, two natures, God and man, reveal themselves. Fully God. Fully man. Centaurus, the next minor constellation, shows the next scene. Centaurus, with a man’s head, trunk and arms and a horse’s body and legs, direct a spear at the victim’s heart. Centaurus hunts. His spear points to an innocent sacrifice. Christ, the God-man, was fatally wounded by a poisoned arrow from heaven not intended for him. “He became sin for us.” (Isaiah 53:10) The stars’ names speak of One despised, rejected of men, (Isaiah 53:3) becoming the sin offering.

The promised seed and miracle virgin-born Child grows to manhood. He suffers and dies for our sin. 

Bootes.

The story does not end with His death. Bootes, the Coming One shows a strong man walking quickly with a spear in his right hand and sickle in his left. “…for He is coming to judge the earth.” (Psalm 96:13) His name Arcturus, He cometh. The individual star names show the grown child coming as keeper and guardian of the sheepfold. He wields his sickle separating those who are His from those who are not. He decides, He rules. “Then I looked, and behold…one like a Son of Man, having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand…put in your sickle and reap…” (Revelation 14:14-16)

 This first constellation—Virgo with her three minor constellations show Christ as coming Savior, born of a virgin, having two natures—God and man, slain for sin that was not His own, becoming triumphant over death to return claiming those who are His.

The Scales

The second constellation shows the price:  the Scales. The four brightest stars’ names in this constellation deepen the story.

Star 1 –means the price is not enough.

Star 2—means the price which covers.

Star 3—heaped up high.

Star 4—conflict’s price.

 Man was weighed and found wanting. Redemption’s price was too high. Man was left hopeless without the other side of the scales.

Crux, the cross.

Tipped to cover the price on the other side of the scales is Crux, the minor constellation. It forms a cross. Positioned in the darkest section of heaven, the cross means cut off from life. (Tradition says it disappeared from view when Christ died.) Man’s price for salvation lay through the cross. 

 

 Lupus, the victim.

Lupus, the victim, is the animal the Centaur’s spear kills. Christ, the lamb, brought to slaughter. He became the sin offering for our sin.

 

 

  

 Corona Borealis, the crown.

Through His suffering, Corona Borealis, the crown jeweled with the twinkling kind of stars, presents the glory given to the Lamb of God.

 The second constellation: the Scales show man’s inability to pay the cost for his sin, but through the cross, the Lamb of God paid the price and receives glory for His payment.

Scorio, the Scorpion

Now, the third major constellation, Scorio, scorpion, shows the very heart of the battle. The scorpion is positioned to sting the heel of a mighty man fighting with a serpent. Man crushes the scorpion with his foot on the serpent’s heart.

 The scorpion Akrab means conflict or war. The scorpion’s battle puts enmity between the serpent and the seed of the woman. We see the minor constellations picture this conflict: Serpent and Serpent Holder. The entire conflict is presented in one picture.

 We can trace the battle throughout history as the serpent, Satan, tries to destroy the Seed and seize the crown. The serpent wants dominion. He seeks to take possession of the crown.

In Genesis, it was the serpent who attempted to take the dominion from man. Man fell.

In Exodus 1, Pharaoh kills all baby boys to prevent the Israelite nation from prospering. Moses is spared.

In II Kings 11, Athaliah sought to destroy ‘all the royal seed.’ The king’s son is saved.

In Esther, Haman’s attempt to massacre the entire Jewish nation is thwarted.

In Matthew 2, Herod slaughters all babies two years and younger in an attempt to kill Christ. He fails.

The serpent fights again in the Garden of Gethsemane striving for dominion. His time is running short.

In the battle at the cross, the serpent thinks he has won when Christ is killed. The scorpion struck the woman’s seed.

 In spite of the serpent’s attempts, the Serpent Holder defeats and tramples the serpent under His foot. Christ arose from the dead. He shows dominion over life and death. He is victorious.

 The third constellation shows the struggle—good fights evil. The serpent still deceives, destroys and desires control. The fight that started when sin entered continues until Christ comes with judgment.

 Hercules, the Mighty Man

Hercules, the Mighty Man occupies a large portion of the heavens. He bows on one knee, with his heel lifted as if wounded, his left foot stands on the head of the dragon. He wields a club in his right hand. His left hand grabs a three-headed creature. He wears a lion’s skin. “You will tread upon the lion and cobra, the young lion and the serpent you will trample down.” (Psalm 91:13)

 The Man begotten of God who from birth to death through severe suffering by great conflict was brought to His knees yet vanquished the evil powers. “And being in agony He was praying very fervently; and His sweat became like drops of blood, falling down upon the ground.” (Luke 22:44) Christ fought the lion and the dragon. He fell, but later comes as King of kings. He will wield His club, subdue all His enemies and set up His kingdom.

Sagittarius, the Archer

The fourth constellation, Sagittarius, the Archer shows the Centaur, both God and man, riding majestically with arrow pointed from his bow at the heart of the Scorpion. “Behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it had a bow…he went out conquering and to conquer.” (Revelation 6:2) “But God will shoot at them with an arrow; suddenly they will be wounded. So they will make him stumble…then all men will fear and they will declare the work of God and will consider what He has done.” (Psalm 65:7-9)

 The minor constellations elaborate.

 Lyra, the eagle and harp.

Older versions of Lyra depict an eagle darting forward with power and strength upon its enemy the serpent. “Behold, I am coming quickly, and My reward is with Me, to render to every man according to what he has done.” (Revelation 22:12)

 Lyra contains the star Vega which is a hundred times that of our sun in magnitude. Fourteen thousand years ago, Vega was the north Polar Star. In about eleven thousand years from now, it will occupy the same position.

 Present day versions of Lyra give an eagle holding a harp. The harp connects the actions of Sagittarius with delight and praise. “And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, ‘To Him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” (Revelation 5:13)

 Ara, the Altar.

The second minor constellation, Ara, the Altar covered with a burning fire faces the lower regions of ‘darkness’ (the invisible south pole). Ara brings the curse brought by the fall of man. This altar shows of coming judgment.

 

 

 

 Draco, the dragon.

The third minor constellation Draco, the dragon, extends over one-half of the northern sky. This serpent lies under Sagattarius’s foot. The most prominent star Thuban, means subtle. It was the north Polar Star 4600 years ago.

(On a side note, when it was a polar star, the Great Pyramid of Giza in Egypt pointed to it. In the bottom of the passage deep within its foundation, the star could be seen by day and night.)

 The Draco, sly, creeping, and deceiving, manifests evil. The Dragon and the serpent are the same. “In that day the Lord will punish Leviathan the fleeing serpent, with His fierce and great and mighty sword, even Leviathan the twisted serpent; and He will kill the dragon who lives in the sea.” (Isaiah 27:1)

 The fourth constellation tells of the God-man coming in victory, in judgment, in triumph. He will finish the battle started at the beginning of time. He will destroy the serpent-dragon who threatened to thwart His plan. He will judge. He will conquer.

 Those four constellations tell God’s story in the stars. God sent His Son, fully God and fully man, made of a virgin, to be our sin offering. Because of our sin, we lacked the price to pay. He redeemed His own and balanced the payment by the cross as He became sin for us, thus earning the glory of His Father but not without great cost. The battle continues between good and evil. The serpent cannot stop desiring the dominion that he almost had. He fights until he is destroyed by the Coming Archer Who attacks, kills and judges. We see God’s story in the stars—a picture of what He tells in His Word.

 If you continue around the circle of constellations, you would see the fruits of His work, and the prophecy of deliverance.

 We stop here, but hope that this explanation of the stars’ story encourages you to see in the stars, not what your future holds, but Who holds your future and how He is able to hold your future because of His redemption bought from the beginning of time and the victory that He has promised for the future. 

1All Scriptures are New American Standard Bible. The text of the New American Standard Bible may be quoted and/or reprinted up to and inclusive of five hundred (500) verses without express written permission of The Lockman Foundation, providing the verses do not amount to a complete book of the Bible nor do the verses quoted account for more than 25% of the total work in which they are quoted.

2Bullinger, E.W. The Witness of the Stars. Philologos.org/_eb-tws/chap11.htm.

3Capt, E. Raymond. The Glory of the Stars. Glendale, CA: Dolores Press, 1976. Pp. 1-66.

4Hutchings, N.W. God: The Master Mathematician. Southwest Radio Church Publications, Oklahoma, 1985.

5Josephus. Antiquities of the Jews. Chapter 2.



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Author of Biblical fiction, married to my best friend, and challenged by eight sons’ growing pains as I write about what matters.

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