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Astronomy in the Bible
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The first words found in the Bible introduce us to the Creator of
all things through astronomy when it states, "In the beginning
God created the heavens and the earth." (Genesis
1:1, HBFV).
They boldly declare that sometime in the distant
past an all-powerful Supreme Being created the earth and all the celestial
objects we see at night.
This article will look at references to
astronomy related phenomena found in God's word.
Astronomy, in general, is the study of celestial
bodies, and the universe as a whole, excluding the earth.
It includes the study of stars, planets,
galaxies and other objects that are beyond the atmosphere of earth.
The Bible does reference several objects, such
as planets and constellations, found in what we today call space.
For example, the most studied star in astronomy,
the sun, is directly mentioned at least 160 times in the KJV translation, with
the moon referred to 51 times.
During Biblical times, the only planets viewable
from the earth were Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
Some of these can be found in Scripture, not by
the names we call them today, but through the false gods associated with them.
Astronomy tells us that next to the sun and
moon, the planet Venus is the brightest object we can see in the night sky.
Its ability to reflect light is due to its close
proximity to the sun and the highly reflective clouds of sulfuric acid that
shroud it.
Many times it can easily be seen just before
sunrise, hence its reference as the "morning star."
It can even be viewed during the day, lending to
it also being called the "day star."
There are allusions in Scripture to Christ being
the morning star.
Since Venus was the brightest of all the points
of light in the sky the analogy would be that Christ would be the brightest (or
have the preeminence) over the other heavenly bodies, which are the stars that
correspond to angels (2 Peter 1:19, Revelation 2:26, 28, 22:16).
According to a 1913 Catholic Encyclopedia
article on Astronomy, the planet Saturn is directly referenced in the book of
Amos.
The Encyclopedia states, "Saturn is
no less certainly represented by the star Kaiwan (called "Chiun" in
the KJV translation), adored by the reprobate Israelites in the desert.” (Amos 5:26)
In Stephen's discourse just before his
martyrdom, he mentions God's condemnation of ancient Israel's idolatrous
worship of "your god Remphan." (Acts 7:43)
Remphan was the Egyptian name for Saturn (JFB commentary on Amos 5:26).
According to the JFB, Isaiah 65:11 alludes to
Jupiter and Venus when it refers to "fortune" (Hebrew Gad, the Babylonian god linked to Jupiter) and "fate" (Hebrew Meni, linked with Venus).
Holy writ also contains several references to
constellations or groupings of stars.
The book of Job mentions astronomy related
phenomena more than any other book.
Constellations such as the Bear (Arcturus),
Orion, and Pleiades are written about in Job 9:8-9, 38:31-33 and also Amos 5:8.
How many stars does astronomy tell us exist? Do
they truly number like grains of sand?
The number of stars in the visible universe (not
the entire universe) is currently estimated to be between 10 to the 22nd power
(10 sextillion) to 10 to the 24th power (1 septillion).
This means it is estimated that we on earth can
"observe" objects 46 to 47 BILLION light years away in any direction.
The entire universe itself, however, is much
bigger!
In fact, because of expansion, with some distant
regions speeding away from us FASTER than light, there are vast parts of God's
creation that will never be "observable" from earth!
Alan Guth, creator of the theory of cosmic
inflation, calculates that it is 300 sextillion, or 3 followed by 23 zeros,
times LARGER than the observable universe!
God, through astronomy in the Bible, has left
mankind with no excuse regarding his awesome power.
The heavens are a constant testament that
He exists.
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