by
Damien
F. Mackey
There is a false astrology, condemned by the Bible (e.g. Deuteronomy
18:10-12; cf. Leviticus 19:26; Isaiah 47:13-14; Jeremiah 10:2), and a true
astrology based on God’s structural design - from the beginning - of the
heavenly bodies for “signs and seasons” (Genesis 1:14).
Since everything that God has created
through his Wisdom has been effected with marvellous precision and meaning,
there must be a profound significance to the structure of the universe.
Wise souls down through the ages have sought to
make sense of it all, with the wisest - those prepared to be instructed by the
Designer - such as King Solomon, being able to claim, as Solomon did, a ‘sure
knowledge’ and an ‘understanding of the structure of the universe’, and of more
besides (Wisdom 7:17-21):
He it was who gave me sure knowledge of what exists, to understand the
structure of the universe and the action of the elements, the
beginning, end and middle of the times, the alternation of the solstices and
the succession of the seasons, the cycles of the year and the
position of the stars, the natures of animals and the instincts
of wild beasts, the powers of spirits and human mental processes, the varieties
of plants and the medical properties of roots.
And now I understand everything,
hidden or visible, for Wisdom, the designer of all things, has instructed me.
Dr. Ernest L. Martin has concluded, from
scrutinising the biblical data, that there was a common Divine pattern
regarding the structure of the universe; the Garden of Eden; the Hebrew camp in
the wilderness; and the Temple built by King Solomon.
Others have attempted to do the same.
What I like about this sort of approach
regarding the universe - whether any given effort be actually correct, or not -
is that it is at least a search for a meaning that must surely be there, rather
than one’s simply considering the universe as a vast and unintelligible mass.
We read of Dr. Martin’s particular view in Roger
Waite’s “The Lost History of Jerusalem” (pp. 37-38): http://www.rogerswebsite.com/articles/TheLostHistoryofJerusalem.pdf
Another way we see this pattern between what is on earth and
what is in the heavens is in the comparison between the three general
compartments within the Temple and the three heavens noted in scripture.
….
This is what Ernest Martin writes about the similarities
between the three compartments of the Temple and the three heavens:
The Temple and its environs were further patterned after
God's heavenly palace and its celestial surroundings that existed in the north
part of the heavens…The Bible shows these "three heavens."
Numerous texts show that the "first heaven" is
the atmosphere where the birds fly and where all weather phenomena take place.
The "second heaven," however, was beyond the
earth's atmosphere and embraced all the visible planets and stars, including
the sun and the moon.
The "third heaven," that the apostle Paul
referred to in 2 Corinthians 12:1-4 that he called Paradise, was that of
God's official residence in his heavenly region which was separate from the
other two heavens.
These "three heavens" were symbolically pictured
in the Temple at Jerusalem. In fact, the three main sections of the Temple were
designed to show these three heavens.
When an Israelite entered the main Temple from the east, he
or she would first be within the Court of the Israelites. This first section of
the Temple (which continued westward up to the eastern portion of the priests'
court in which was the Altar of Burnt Offering) was not covered with a roof.
The first section was open to the sky and to all weather phenomena. Birds could
also fly within it. This area of the Temple answered in a typical manner with
the "first heaven," which was like our atmosphere surrounding the
earth.
The "second heaven" in the Temple in a symbolic
sense began at the eastern curtain in front of the Holy Place. Josephus tells
us this curtain had the principal stars of the heavens displayed on it in
tapestry form. It represented the entrance into the starry heavens beyond our
atmosphere.
Josephus tells us that west of this curtain, one could
witness the center of the zodiacal circle with the seven [visible] planets
displayed on the south side in the form of the Menorah (the seven lamps) with
the twelve signs of the Zodiac denoting the twelve months displayed on the
north side by the twelve loaves of the Table of Shewbread. This second court of
the priests represented all the starry heavens above the earth's atmosphere.
But beyond this "second heaven," there was yet a "third
heaven."
This "third heaven" was the Heaven of Heavens, or
in Temple terminology, the Holy of Holies, which equaled God's celestial abode
where his palace and divine precincts were located which the apostle Paul
called Paradise (Temples, p.253).
Each one of the twelve tribes of Israel had a zodiacal
sign associated with it. “Moses positioned each of the twelve tribes of Israel
as representing a particular zodiacal sign in its regular astronomical order”.
We read the following in Roger Waite’s “The Lost
History of Jerusalem” (p. 28): http://www.rogerswebsite.com/articles/TheLostHistoryofJerusalem.pdf
In addition to the symbolism of the three compartments of
the tabernacle and Temples, according to Ernest Martin, there was also an
astronomical pattern in the design of the camp in the wilderness and where each
of the tribes of Israel were placed in relation to the tabernacle. This pattern
was also established around the environs of Jerusalem itself. Ernest Martin
writes the following about the position of the tribes around the tabernacle:
Though the Holy Scriptures in other areas utterly condemn
the use of Astrology as conceived by the Gentiles and when the celestial
motions are used for wrong purposes (Isaiah 47:11-13), the placement of
the twelve tribes of Israel around the Tabernacle was intended by Moses to
provide the authorities in Israel with a knowledge of God's plan for the nation
of Israel .…The Gentiles actually corrupted the prophetic teaching found in the
design of the "Camp of Israel" and placed on it a hodgepodge of
heathen interpretations that completely obliterated the true prophetic meaning
that God gave to Moses…
So, what about this astronomical design of the
"Camp"? The outer boundary of this zodiacal design was an imaginary
circle positioned by the Jewish authorities to be 2000 cubits (a radius of
about 3000 feet) from that central point in the Holy Place of the Temple. It is
important to realize that the outer boundary of this circle denoted the limits
of the "Camp."
Moses positioned each of the twelve tribes of Israel as
representing a particular zodiacal sign in its regular astronomical order.
The tribe of Judah was given the prime position in this
zodiacal design by being located directly east of the entrances to the
Tabernacle and the later Temples. Let me explain. Four principal tribes were
selected to denote each of the four seasons of the year. Judah was first, Dan
was second, Reuben was third and Ephraim was fourth. The positions of these
four prime tribes were arranged 90 degrees from each other (within a 360 degrees
circle) to accord with those four seasons of the year. Judah was selected to be
the tribe directly east of the Tabernacle and it was given first place...
The zodiacal story is a prophetic account that actually
centers on the Messiah of Israel who was destined to come from the tribe of
Judah. For this reason, Judah was reckoned as the chief tribe and it was
located in Moses' arrangement of the "Camp" directly east of the
Temple.
The tribe of Judah had for its tribal symbol the Lion
(called Leo today). Judah had a subsidiary tribe of Israel located on each of
its sides. As the chief tribe, Judah (Leo) and its sign was positioned to
dominate the summer season in prophetic and calendar matters…The twelve tribes
in their arrangement in the encampment also represented the twelve months of
the year.
The next pivotal tribe proceeding counterclockwise around
this zodiacal design of this "Camp of Israel"… was Dan with a
subsidiary tribe of Israel located on each of its sides. It was positioned on
the north side of the Temple and Jerusalem as a venomous creature, sometimes
displayed as an eagle with a snake in its talons (called Scorpio, the venomous
scorpion today). It dominated the autumn season in the prophetic calendar of
Israel.
Reuben…with a subsidiary tribe of Israel located on each of
its sides was placed on the west side of the Temple and Jerusalem in the
original arrangement. Reuben was connected with water, as a Man bearing water
(called Aquarius today), and it dominated the winter season in the original
prophetic calendar….
And finally there is Ephraim…with a subsidiary tribe of
Israel located on each of its sides. He was on the south side of the Temple and
Jerusalem as a bullock (called Taurus today). It was positioned to dominate the
spring season in a prophetic and calendar sense. And, of course, if one
continued…another 90 degrees, one would then return to Judah (Leo) for the
start of another calendar or prophetic year…
Another form of this astronomical arrangement surrounding
the Temple and Jerusalem (and patterned after God's abode in heaven) was the
four sides of the cherubim mentioned by Ezekiel (1:4-14) and the Book
of Revelation (4:6-7). The cherubim were reckoned by the biblical writers
as encompassing the throne of God in heaven. These angelic cherubim also had
the four zodiacal signs representing the seasons of the year associated with
them (Lion, Eagle, Man, Bullock which are today called Leo, Scorpio, Aquarius,
Taurus and they were analogous to the four principal tribes of Israel: Judah,
Dan, Reuben and Ephraim)….
The above view is supported by what we
read in the following intriguing article (http://www.johnpratt.com/items/docs/lds/meridian/2005/12sons.html),
Twelve Sons, Twelve Constellations
There is a strong Hebrew
tradition that each of the twelve tribes of Israel was associated with one of
the twelve constellations of the zodiac. The precise identification of which
constellation goes with which of Jacob's sons has only been known with
certainty for four of the tribes. Each of the twelve carried a banner or flag,
and the many of those flags are believed to have displayed one of the zodiac
symbols. Thus, those figures came to symbolize the entire tribe to a large
degree, much as the eagle represents the United States. This article proposes a
correspondence of each of those tribes to one of the zodiac emblems, based on
proposed dates for the birth of each. Knowing those dates then leads to greater
understanding of the holy days on the Hebrew Calendar, and testifies of the
Lord's foreknowledge of all things and of his great plan of salvation.
What does the zodiac have to
do with the twelve tribes of Israel? Aren't the zodiac signs the basis of
astrology, and isn't that a false belief system? Wasn't Israel admonished over
and over not to worship the hosts of heaven? Why would Israel put zodiac
figures on their flags?
It is not surprising if these
are your first questions as you read this article, especially if this is the
first you've read on the subject. As has been pointed out in numerous earlier
articles,[1] the Book of Enoch records that an
angel revealed the constellation figures to the prophet Enoch some 5,000 years
ago, and many scholars claim they symbolize the key features of the gospel of
Jesus Christ. Last month's article proposed that each of the twelve
constellations of the zodiac, through which the sun appears to travel during
the year, represents one of the twelve principal roles of the Savior.[2]
Satan twists truth and
perverts it for his own purposes, which he has clearly done with the zodiac
signs. That causes many to avoid the entire subject, but the symbolism of these
figures is so rich that it would be a tragedy not to learn of the beauty of their
meaning, and the clarity of their symbolism. So my articles on the subject
attempt to ignore the perversions and focus on the good. My position is that
the sun, moon, and planets are like the hands on a huge clock, with the twelve
zodiac constellations through which they move being the 12 numbers on the clock
face. The Lord uses his clock to time key events in world history. But when
Israel began to worship the hands on the clock, as did the pagan nations, then
they were told they had missed the whole point, and to desist. Similarly today,
if someone believes the planets are controlling his life, rather than merely
keeping time, then Satan could falsely convince him that he is not responsible
for his actions.
Having that disclaimer in
mind, let us look at the evidence, even from the Bible itself, that the twelve
sons of the prophet Jacob were each identified with a different sign of the
zodiac.
First, consider the dream of
Jacob's son Joseph, of the sun, moon and 11 stars (11 constellations?). He
dreamed that they all bowed down to him (Gen. 37:9). When he told the dream to
his family, they immediately knew that the 11 stars referred to his 11
brothers. Was that just because of the number eleven, or what it also because
they already knew that each was associated with a different zodiac
constellation? Evidence for answering this question affirmatively comes from
noting that most of their names have close ties to the zodiac constellations,
as discussed below.
Secondly, when the tribes
received blessings under the hands of their father Jacob and many years later
by Moses, many unmistakable references were made to zodiac constellations.
Moreover, visions such as those of Ezekiel and John, describe figures with the
heads of a man, lion, ox, and eagle, which just happen to match the four
"cornerstone" constellations (Ezek. 1:10, Rev. 4:7).[3] It is precisely these four key
figures which are the most easily matched with the four principal sons of
Israel because each is mentioned in the blessings. Reuben is compared to a man
and to water, Judah is compared to a lion, Dan to a serpent (counterpart of the
eagle), and Joseph's two sons to the horns of the wild ox. Those link to the
constellations of the Water Bearer, the Lion, the Scorpion, and the Bull,
respectively (Gen. 49: 4, 9, 17; Deut. 33:17). Those four sons are each also
assigned to four directions (Num. 2:3, 10, 18, 25), and those four
constellations are evenly spaced around the circle, as are the four points of a
compass. And even non-Israelite prophets, such as Balaam, have used the same
figures to represent the tribes (Num. 24:7-9). All of this has been discussed
in detail in earlier articles, and is summarized here only as review and to
make it clear that the Lord himself uses the symbolism. There is something very
profound going on here, and it is certainly seems worth investigating.
Until now, the identification
of the constellations associated with the other eight tribes has not been known
with any degree of confidence. The other references to the zodiac are sketchy,
and different scholars have proposed a variety of associations based on
scriptural clues. But historical evidence of exactly what emblems were shown on
which flags has been weak, and is based mostly on tradition. Thus, the
information about the zodiac associations has been lost. This article proposes
a correlation based on the "brute force" method of actually
determining the birth dates of the twelve sons, and then looking at which
constellation the sun was in at their birth. ….
“Jesus
was born of Judah … Leo the Lion … and the first sign in a counterclockwise
direction that anyone within the camp would encounter would be Virgo, the
Virgin … . And certainly, Jesus was accepted by Christians as being born of a
virgin”.
We read the following in Roger Waite’s “The Lost
History of Jerusalem” (p. 28): http://www.rogerswebsite.com/articles/TheLostHistoryofJerusalem.pdf
In fact, the design of the biblical Zodiac that the tribes
of Israel displayed in their encampment prefigured the history of the Messiah
of Israel as certainly interpreted by the early Christians…
Jesus was born of Judah (Leo the Lion, the month of Ab) and
the first sign in a counterclockwise direction that anyone within the camp
would encounter would be Virgo, the Virgin (Elul, the 6th Hebrew month). And
certainly, Jesus was accepted by Christians as being born of a virgin.
Then, in the New Testament narrative, Jesus at the start of
his ministry then met Satan for his temptation as shown by Dan (the sign of the
venomous serpent or scorpion). He later came into deep waters (e.g. Psalm
124:4) through his apprehension, trial and crucifixion at Jerusalem (which
is symbolized by Reuben, the sign of the Water Bearer a man carrying water).
But then comes the Springtime (as indicated by the Joseph
tribes, particularly Ephraim, Taurus the Bull) and this represented the
resurrection of Jesus from the dead.
Finally, one returns in this circular (or celestial)
journey within the camp to the first part of the tribe of Judah (Leo the Lion,
back to the first fifteen degrees of the month of Ab) where the chief star called
Regulus the King Star is located (which happens to be the closest star in the
heavens to the ecliptic, the path of the Sun), and this represents the Christ
being crowned King of Kings and sitting on the right hand of the Father, whom
the Sun represents (Malachi 4:2).
The four cherubim which represent the four seasons (and the
four principal tribes) are the primary actors in this zodiacal or celestial
design of the fortunes of the Messiah within the Camp of Israel. It is
reflected in the story found in Psalm 19 where the Sun comes forth as a
bridegroom and begins to tell a prophetic history that Israel can understand.
Indeed, the apostle Paul quoted Psalm 19 (Romans 10:18) and referred it
to Jesus and his message as going forth like the messages in the sun, moon and stars
into all the world. The early Christians saw the astronomical message found in the
zodiacal arrangement of the tribes of Israel within their encampment as giving highlights
of the career of Jesus in his role as the Christ of God (Secrets of Golgotha
[referred from here on as Golgotha], p.53-60).
E.W. Bullinger in his book “Witness of the Stars” has gone
into much detail about how the plan of God can be seen in the various
constellations in the heavens. One can't help but wonder about that and the
evidence of design in the heavens when one sees the Southern Cross. Two of the
brightest stars, Alpha and Beta Centauri, point to it and seem to highlight how
Christ died on the cross to pay for our sins.
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