Sunday, September 20, 2009

The Heavens Proclaim the Glory of God - Scorpius (Scorpio)

Genesis 1:14-15: And God said, Let there be *lights in the firmament of the heaven to divide the day from the night; and let them be for **signs, and for ***seasons, and for days, and years: And let them be for lights in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth: and it was so.


*lights: Hebrew maor = lightholders or luminaries.

**signs: Hebrew oth = things to come.

***seasons: Hebrew moed = appointed times.




(Above chart is from Lost Constellation Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt:

www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2004/prince.html)



SCORPIO -


  


 ∞


   Considered to be among the oldest constellations recognized by human civilizations, these 12 patterns were of particular significance to ancient cultures like the Babylonians because, as the Babylonian astronomers noticed, they mark the path through which our Sun, moon and planets appear to travel through the course of a year. The stars of Scorpius trace out the spine of the Scorpion (or of a dragon, according to Chinese legend), making it perhaps the most faithfully rendered constellation in the sky.


   Scorpio or Scorpius lies between Libra to the west and Sagittarius to the east. It is a large constellation located in the southern hemisphere near the center of the Milky Way.


   The Hebrew name Akrab means ‘scorpion’ but it also means ‘conflict or war’. The Coptic name is Isidis meaning ‘the attack of the enemy’ or ‘oppression’. The Arabic name is Al Akrab ‘wounding him that cometh’. The brightest star is Antares meaning ‘the wounding’. It should be noted also that the serpent is trying to seize the royal crown Corona.


   Three bright stars form the "head" of Scorpius, the celestial scorpion, while its tail curves away below it in the southern sky of summer. The brightest star in Scorpius is Antares ("Rival of Mars"), which is right at the heart of the scorpion's curving body. There is only one other red super-giant that is this bright and it's on the opposite side of the sky, in the constellation that dominates the winter sky - the star Betelgeuse in the constellation Orion. If you placed Antares at the center of our own solar system, it would swallow Mercury, Venus, Earth, and Mars, and almost reach Jupiter. Antares is estimated to be between 285 sun diameters to about 700 suns. Antares probably does not have much time left to it. It is massive enough someday to develop an iron core and eventually to explode as a brilliant supernova. The event may be a million years off, an astronomical blink of an eye; or it may occur tonight, so keep a watch on one of the great stars of the nighttime sky. An old Arabic name was Kalb al Akrab (the 'Scorpion's heart). The best time to view Antares is on or around May 31 of each year, when the star is at opposition to the Sun. At this time, Antares rises at dusk and sets at dawn, and is thus in view all night. For approximately two to three weeks on either side of November 30, Antares is not visible at all, being lost in the Sun's glare.



   The two stars lambda and upsilon, both called "The Sting" in Arabic, traditionally form the stinger


   Job 9:9 calls this sign "the Chambers of the South", referring to its opposition to Taurus and the Pleiades, directly across the sky. The Greek name of Scorpio was Chelai ("the Claws"), the Coptic name was Isidis ("oppression", cf. Ps 17:9), and another Egyptian name was Zugon ("the yoke"). The Akkadian name was Girtab, "the Seizer and Stinger" — reaching out to take hold of the Altar of Libra. The Greeks identified Scorpio with Typhon (Python), hundred-headed father of the multi-headed dog of hell, the Hydra, and the three-headed, fire-breathing Chimera. The tribe of Dan ("judge") is linked to Scorpio by being “a serpent by the way, a viper by the path, that bites the horse's heels”. Altogether, this constellation has 44 stars, but it had 21 when it was designed.


1 Corinthians 15:55-56: O death, where is your victory? O death, where is your sting?”

Revelation 9:1-11: Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen to earth from the sky, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. When he opened it, smoke poured out as though from a huge furnace, and the sunlight and air turned dark from the smoke. Then locusts came from the smoke and descended on the earth, and they were given power to sting like scorpions. They were told not to harm the grass or plants or trees, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. They were told not to kill them but to torture them for five months with pain like the pain of a scorpion sting. In those days people will seek death but will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them! The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. They had what looked like gold crowns on their heads, and their faces looked like human faces. They had hair like women’s hair and teeth like the teeth of a lion. They wore armor made of iron, and their wings roared like an army of chariots rushing into battle. They had tails that stung like scorpions, and for five months they had the power to torment people. Their king is the angel from the bottomless pit; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon—the Destroyer.

Revelation 12:9: This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world - was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.


   In this sign we see the conflict between the man and the serpent and the scorpion. The following three Decans add more detail.


   The sign shows Scorpio trying to sting the heel of a mighty man Ophiuchus, who struggles with Serpens the serpent. But the man crushes the Scorpion’s heart with his foot. Scorpio continues the battle between Christ and the serpent. So we have Satan's attack and battle with Christ, who, as the Seed of the woman, is to bruise Satan's head while Satan bruises Christ's heel.


   The ancients divided the sky into 36 parts called Decans. The word, Decans, means pieces, divisions, or faces. Today we still see the root word when we talk about the deck of a ship. The decans were divided into twelve groups of three each, and each group of three was associated with one of the constellations of the zodiac. The word zodiac stems from the Arabic word for way, that is, path. The zodiac follows the path traced out by the sun in the course of a year. The moon also moves through the zodiac in the course of a month, and all the planets except Pluto move through the zodiacal constellations in the course of their years.


Decans of Scorpio:



  1. Ophiuchus, wrestling with the Serpent, stung in one heel by the Scorpion, and crushing it with the other.

  2. Serpens, struggling with Ophiuchus.

  3. Hercules, wounded in his heel, the other foot over the Dragon's head, holding in one hand the Golden Apples and the three-headed Dog of hell, and in the other the uplifted club.




   There is war, oppression, conflict and battle in Scorpio's star names. Looming over the scorpion is Ophiuchus, holding a serpent in his hands. His foot star is called bruise. The brightest star in the serpent is the accursed, the reptile. Hercules is the strong one who was wounded and now chastens, the kneeling branch about to bruise the serpent, Draco. At this stage of the message we can see the battle between ‘the rulers of the darkness of this world’ (Ephesians 6:12) and our mighty Redeemer.


   Ophiuchus is from Arabic Afeichus = the serpent held. He is the strong man in a struggle with Serpens the serpent, overcoming and keeping him from the crown. He also has one foot raised, crushing Scorpio's head while the other foot is being attacked by Scorpio. The Coptic name for him means the Chief who cometh. In Greek he is Aesculapius, the healer, the physician, the Desired one, one who brings cure. The myth goes that he not only cured the sick but raised the dead by blood from the sides of the goddess of justice and the slain gorgon and finally himself suffered death from the lightning's out of heaven because of the complaints of the god of hell, but he was raised to Glory by the influences of Apollo. So in this decan we have the strong man fighting with the serpent, also the sent healer and redeemer of mankind. This has been recognized for over 4,000 years, as a great giant wrestling a serpent.


   The name Ophiuchus means ‘the serpent held’. The Arabic name of the brightest star in the head of Ophiuchus is Ras Al Hagus meaning ‘the head of him that holds’. A star in the same figure’s foot is called Saiph (Hebrew) meaning ‘bruised’. Genesis 3:15 gives the prophecy of this bruising: And I will cause hostility between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring. He will strike your head, and you will strike his heel.”


   The Egyptian image is Apibau ("the coming king") — a man with the head of a hawk (enemy of serpents), seated on a throne.


   The Egyptian name for Serpens is Khu ("ruled" or "enemy"). Its major star, in the neck, is Unuk ("encoiling"), also called in Hebrew Alyah ("the accursed") and in Arabic Al Hay ("the reptile"). Next in brightness, in the jaw, is Chelbalrai (Arabic for "the serpent enfolding"). The serpent is trying to get the Crown (a decan of Libra), to obtain dominion.


   Hercules (the mighty man) - in the picture he is seen cloaked in the skin of a lion, bending on one knee, with his left foot over the head of Draco the dragon. His right hand grasps a club and the left hand holds a triple headed monster Cerberus. In Arabic he is called Al Giscale ‘the strong one’. In the temple of Denderah in Egypt, a similar figure is called Bau meaning ‘who cometh’ (as with Boötes, "the coming one"). The Arabic name of the brightest star in the head is called Ras Al Gethi meaning ‘the head of him that bruises’. In the right arm base is a star named Kornephorus meaning ‘the branch kneeling’. In the right elbow is a star named Marsic meaning ‘the wounding’. In the upper left arm, a star named Ma'Asyn meaning ‘the sin offering’. Finally in the lower part of the right arm is Caiam or Guiam meaning ‘punishing’. In Arabic it means ‘treading under foot’. These names and their meanings completely portray the Messiah crushing that old serpent (Satan) so rescuing the world from sin.

Isaiah 27:1: In that day the Lord will take his terrible, swift sword and punish Leviathan, the swiftly moving serpent, the coiling, writhing serpent. He will kill the dragon of the sea.



   So in the constellation of Scorpio and its decans, we have the obvious picture of Christ's struggle and battle with Satan, keeping him from the crown. Our redeemer and healer, the bruiser of the serpent. Our Branch, Christ Jesus.



Here is the story the Mazzaroth presents to us, with the first three that we've covered thus far in bold:



  1. The seed of the woman shall come.

  2. There shall be a price paid by Him for a purchased possession.

  3. The price shall be a conflict with the serpent-foe, and a wound in the conqueror's heel.

  4. He shall be sent forth swiftly, surely, as an arrow from a bow.

  5. He shall be slain as a sacrifice.

  6. He shall rise again and pour out blessings on His people.

  7. His people shall be multitudes, and held in union with each other and Himself

  8. He who was slain, whose heel was bruised, shall rule, and shall tread His enemy under foot.

  9. He shall come in power, triumphant, and have dominion.

  10. He shall be the Son of God and the son of man, the victim and the ruler.

  11. He shall hold fast His purchased possession, the reward of His work.

  12. He shall finally put all enemies under His feet, coming with ten thousand of His saints to execute judgment upon all, separating the evil from the good.



   Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation of the Bible.



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Monday, September 7, 2009

The Heavens Proclaim the Glory of God - Libra



(Above chart is from Lost Constellation Testifies of Christ by John P. Pratt:

www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2004/prince.html)



LIBRA - THE REDEEMER'S ATONING WORK.


  


   Libra defines and develops the manner and object of the death of the coming seed covered in Virgo.


   The name of this sign together with its three decans and the names of the stars give the complete picture of this redemption. This sign shows that with the birth and murder of Jesus there is a great judgment and a weighing of all men.




The second zodiac constellation is the Balance or Scales (Libra), which were used before coins for weighing out money for payment. The meaning seems to be that Christ would "pay the price" in order to redeem mankind. Indeed, Christians have been "bought with a price" (I Corinthians 6:20, 7:23). The corresponding title of the Savior is the Redeemer.



  • The Hebrew name of this sign is Mozanaim, the Scales, weighing.

  • The Arabic name is Al Zubena, purchase, or redemption.

  • In Coptic, it is Lambadia - house of propitiation. In Arabic Lam is Grace and Badia is Branch.

  • In Latin, it is Libra, which means weighing.

  • The older Akkadian name was Tulku, which means the sacred mound or the holy altar.

  • The brightest star is named Zuben al Genubi - which means the purchase or price which is deficient (Man is weighed in the balances and found wanting).

  • The second brighter star is Zuben al Chemali - the price which covers. It also has another name: al Gubi - heaped up or high.

  • The third brightest star is near Centaurus and the Victim slain. It is called Zuben Akrabi or Zuben al Akrab - the price of the conflict.


Daniel 5:25-27: “This is the message that was written: Mene, Mene, Tekel, and Parsin. This is what these words mean: Mene means ‘numbered’—God has numbered the days of your reign and has brought it to an end. Tekel means ‘weighed’—you have been weighed on the balances and have not measured up.


Psalm 49:7: Yet they cannot redeem themselves from death by paying a ransom to God.

1 Corinthians 6:20, 7:23: for God bought you with a high price. So you must honor God with your body...God paid a high price for you, so don’t be enslaved by the world.


Psalm 62:9: Common people are as worthless as a puff of wind, and the powerful are not what they appear to be. If you weigh them on the scales, together they are lighter than a breath of air.


Matthew 20:28: For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”



DECAN #1: CRUX - THE CROSS



   The First Decan is the sign of the Southern Cross, the Crux, in which the Centaurus is advancing towards.


   The Hebrew name of this sign is Adom which means cutting off:

Daniel 9:26: And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. (King James version)

This name means a cross, but a deeper meaning is ‘it is finished’. The meaning of Crux was echoed by Jesus on the cross Just before he ‘yielded up the spirit’ (Matthew 27:50) saying in John 19-30. ‘It is finished’. The more popular name is the Southern Cross. This sign is situated immediately below Centaurus.


   The Southern Cross points to the forgiveness available through His cross:

1 Peter 1:18-19: For you know that God paid a ransom to save you from the empty life you inherited from your ancestors. And the ransom he paid was not mere gold or silver. It was the precious blood of Christ, the sinless, spotless Lamb of God.

1 Peter 2:24: He personally carried our sins in his body on the cross so that we can be dead to sin and live for what is right. By his wounds you are healed.


   The Southern Cross was just visible in the latitude of Jerusalem at the time of Christ's birth. It was no longer visible in the northern latitudes when Christ died on the cross, due to the gradual recession of the Polar Star. Dante sang of "the four stars never beheld but by the early race of men."


   In the zodiac of Dendera, this constellation is a figure of a Lion with its head turned backward, his tongue hanging out of his mouth in a consuming thirst. Christ, when on the cross, had a consuming thirst, and of course he is the Lion of the tribe of Judah.


   It is well known that the cross was a sacred emblem in the Egyptian mythology. The Arabians and Indians also, before the coming of Christ, venerated this emblem. There is in the British Museum a large silvery cross, taken from the mummy of an Egyptian priest. Sozomenes, AD 443, relates that "there was found in the temple of Serapis the sign of the cross, surrounded by hieroglyphics, which meant the life to come." The last letter in the Hebrew alphabet, thau, was originally in the form of a cross; and its name means boundary, limit, finishing (as in Genesis 49:26), as of the Messiah's work, as when He said, "It is finished."



DECAN #2: LUPUS or VICTIMA- THE VICTIM



   Although known as the wolf, this picture could be that of any animal. The Greek name is Thera, meaning ‘a beast’, the Latin name is Victima meaning ‘the victim slain’ and the Hebrew name is Asedah 'to be Slain'. The important point is that it has been slain (by the Centaur) and is falling down dead. In the Zodiac, in the temple of Denderah in Egypt this sign is pictured as a little child with its finger on its lips, and he is called Sura, a lamb. In view of the divine message so far, this would be more appropriate. Nevertheless the message is the same - the victim (Jesus) gives up his life (for us all).




  • John 10:17: “The Father loves me because I sacrifice my life so I may take it back again. No one can take my life from me. I sacrifice it voluntarily. For I have the authority to lay it down when I want to and also to take it up again. For this is what my Father has commanded.”

  • Isaiah 53:7: He was oppressed and treated harshly, yet he never said a word. He was led like a lamb to the slaughter. And as a sheep is silent before the shearers, he did not open his mouth.

  • Hebrews 9:26: If that had been necessary, Christ would have had to die again and again, ever since the world began. But now, once for all time, he has appeared at the end of the age to remove sin by his own death as a sacrifice.

  • 1 Corinthians 15:3: I passed on to you what was most important and what had also been passed on to me. Christ died for our sins, just as the Scriptures said.

    Philippians 2:8: he humbled himself in obedience to God and died a criminal’s death on a cross.

  • Revelation 5:9: And they sang a new song with these words: “You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seals and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.


   Lupus is inconspicuous, lying partly in the Milky Way, south of Libra and Scorpio, east of the Centaur (Centaurus).



DECAN #3: CORONA - THE CROWN BESTOWED



   The modern name Corona Borealis meaning ‘the northern crown’. The Hebrew name is Atarah ‘a royal crown’ and the Arabic name is Al Iclil ‘an ornament or jewel’. The brightest star has the name Al Phecca ‘the shining’. A royal crown can only be destined for a king.



  • Hebrews 2:9: What we do see is Jesus, who was given a position “a little lower than the angels”; and because he suffered death for us, he is now “crowned with glory and honor.” Yes, by God’s grace, Jesus tasted death for everyone.

  • 2 Timothy 4:8: And now the prize awaits me—the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous Judge, will give me on the day of his return. And the prize is not just for me but for all who eagerly look forward to his appearing.

  • Matthew 27:29: They wove thorn branches into a crown and put it on his head, and they placed a reed stick in his right hand as a scepter. Then they knelt before him in mockery and taunted, “Hail! King of the Jews!”


   The first Adam lost the crown to the serpent in the garden. The last Adam (Jesus) gained it back again. The contest is for Dominion! It was the Devil, in the form of a serpent, that robbed the first man of his crown; but in vain he struggled to wrest it from the sure possession of the Second Man. Not only does he fail in the attempt, but is himself utterly defeated and trodden under foot. The serpent is also attempting to seize our crowns:

Revelation 3:11 – I am coming soon. Hold on to what you have, so that no one will take away your crown.



   Libra and its decans we have the perfect picture of Christ paying the adequate price by going to the cross, becoming the victim by his own doings, and obtaining the Crown of Glory so that every knee will bow and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord.


Here is the story the Mazzaroth presents to us, with the first two that we've covered thus far in bold:



  1. The seed of the woman shall come.

  2. There shall be a price paid by Him for a purchased possession.

  3. The price shall be a conflict with the serpent-foe, and a wound in the conqueror's heel.

  4. He shall be sent forth swiftly, surely, as an arrow from a bow.

  5. He shall be slain as a sacrifice.

  6. He shall rise again and pour out blessings on His people.

  7. His people shall be multitudes, and held in union with each other and Himself

  8. He who was slain, whose heel was bruised, shall rule, and shall tread His enemy under foot.

  9. He shall come in power, triumphant, and have dominion.

  10. He shall be the Son of God and the son of man, the victim and the ruler.

  11. He shall hold fast His purchased possession, the reward of His work.

  12. He shall finally put all enemies under His feet, coming with ten thousand of His saints to execute judgment upon all, separating the evil from the good.



   Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture quotations are from the New Living Translation of the Bible.



On-Line Sources:



Off-Line Sources:


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