THE CREATION OF STARS!
Genesis 1:14-19 - 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. And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: He made the stars also. And God set them in the firmament of the heaven to give light upon the earth, and to rule over the day and over the night, and to divide the light from the darkness: and God saw that it was good. And the evening and the morning were the fourth day.
Psalm 136:7-9 - To Him that made great lights: for His mercy endures forever: the sun to rule by day: for His mercy endures forever: the moon and stars to rule by night: for His mercy endures forever.
Jeremiah 31:35 - Thus says the LORD, Who gives the sun for a light by day, and the ordinances of the moon and of the stars for a light by night, which divide the sea when the waves thereof roar; the LORD of hosts is His name.
Amos 5:8 - Seek Him that made the seven stars and Orion, and turns the shadow of death into the morning, and makes the day dark with night: that calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out upon the face of the earth: the LORD is His name.
Notes: The word "star" is not clearly defined in the Hebrew. It is said to have the properties of luminaries, but also that stars "roll" in unison in orbit around the Earth. The word "firmament" is used for two areas or spaces: it is the atmosphere where birds fly (Gen. 1:20); and it is what we call outer space (Gen. 1:6-7, 14-18). The word "also" is not found in the Hebrew text, but was most likely added for clarity by the translators. It shows that the stars were created in addition to the "greater light" (the Sun); both the stars and the Sun are used to tell/record time: days, seasons, and years.
GOD WARNS AGAINST IDOLATRY!
Deuteronomy 4:15-19 - Take you therefore good heed . . . lest you corrupt yourselves, and make you a graven image, the similitude of any figure, the likeness of male or female, the likeness of any beast that is on the earth, the likeness of any winged fowl that flies in the air, the likeness of anything that creeps on the ground, the likeness of any fish that is in the waters beneath the earth: and lest you lift up your eyes unto heaven, and when you see the sun, and the moon, and the stars, even all the host of heaven, and should be driven to worship them, and serve them, which the LORD your God has divided unto all nations under the whole heaven.
THE CHRISTMAS "STAR!"
Matthew 2:1-11 - Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judaea in the days of Herod the king, behold, there came wise men from the east to Jerusalem, saying, Where is He that is born King of the Jews? For we have seen His star in the east, and are come to worship Him. When Herod the king had heard these things, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him. And when he had gathered all the chief priests and scribes of the people together, he demanded of them where Christ should be born. And they said unto him, In Bethlehem of Judaea: for thus it is written by the prophet: And you Bethlehem, in the land of Judah, are not the least among the princes of Judah: for out of you shall come a Governor, Who shall rule My people Israel. Then Herod, when he had privately called the wise men, inquired of them diligently what time the star appeared. And he sent them to Bethlehem, and said, Go and search diligently for the young Child; and when you have found Him, bring me word again, that I may come and worship Him also. When they had heard the king, they departed; and, lo, the star, which they saw in the east, went before them, till it came and stood over where the young Child was. When they saw the star, they rejoiced with exceeding great joy. And when they were come into the house, they saw the young Child with Mary His mother, and fell down, and worshipped Him: and when they had opened their treasures, they presented unto Him gifts; gold, and frankincense, and myrrh.
Notes: "Wise men" were Middle Eastern Magi or astrologers. While the number of the "wise men" is not given, they, as a group, sought to worship the Christ Child. They had followed the "star" from the east to the west, and arrived in Jerusalem about a year after they first saw the "star." The timing would explain why Herod had all the male children up to the age of two killed. Notice that Jesus was living in a house by that time. The reason I have used quotes for the word "star," is that it did not follow the natural orbit of the stars: it went from east to west, and then, when it was seen again, it moved from north to south! Bethlehem is directly south of Jerusalem. That would mean the "star" made a ninety degree left turn at Jerusalem, which no other "star" does.
REGARDLESS OF WHETHER OR NOT
THE "CHRISTMAS STAR" WAS A STAR,
ONE THING IS CLEAR:
THOSE WHO ARE WISE STILL SEEK THE SAVIOR!
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