Starry Starry Night.

I love this time of year. The cool clear nights allow me to sit out in my back garden and gaze up at the night sky. I have always loved astronomy. I’m not very good at it but I enjoy it anyway. When I was younger I just used to look and see if I could identify any of the constellations. But now as I am older and know a bit more about The Heavens I find myself wondering about the distances and depths of space.

Every year, around late September, there is a very familiar star pattern appears in the sky. It is the constellation of Orion and it is very easily identified as having three bright stars in a row. This is known as Orion’s Belt. Orion, along with some other star constellations are mentioned in the Bible…

Job ch9: ⁽⁹⁾He made the Bear, Orion, and the Pleiades…

Amos ch5: ⁽⁸⁾He made the Pleiades and Orion

Other ancient lore tells of the legend of Orion. He moves up from the horizon around September time and then makes his journey across the Autumn and Winter night sky until close to Springtime when he drops down below the horizon again. The ancient sages interpreted this as being the time to go hunting. In September the harvests have all been gathered in. The yearly cycle of wild animals has been completed and the nests and homes are starting to empty after the summer breeding. It’s time to go hunting.

There are many other ancient stories and folk lore to help people use the night sky as a way of telling the times and seasons. Indeed the use of the stars as a guide to the times of year is nothing to do with any ancient cultural religion. It has been recorded in Scripture itself….

Genesis ch1: ⁽¹⁴⁾ Then God said, "Let there be lights in the firmament of the heavens to divide                                 the day from the night; and let them be for signs and seasons, and for days and                                         years;

Psalm ch104: ⁽¹⁹ He appointed the moon for seasons; The sun knows its going down. 

So this just goes to show how long these constellations have been gazed upon by humanity.

But the evening stars had another purpose which sorted out a complex issue for the Hebrew priests and worshippers. And it was to do with the question of “When does the night time actually begin?” You see it has long been a grey area as to when the daytime actually stopped and night time began. Is it at sunset? Or is it when darkness falls? And it led to a lot of conflict and complications in determining when the Sabbath, also known as Shabbat, and the Feast Days actually began.

According to some customs in Hebrew life, that little twilight period between the sun actually going down ("shekiah")  and it not actually being dark is causing a bit of confusion. At what part of this time period is it actually night time? Ancient Hebrew Elders made the decision that when three stars appear it is then night time.  (Source:- https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/526873/jewish/The-Jewish-Day.htm)

So as I gaze up at the night sky, I am filled with wonder. The stars and planets were there from the very foundation of our Universe…

Job ch38: ⁽⁴⁾"Where were you when I laid the foundations of the earth? Tell Me, if you have                                     understanding. ……⁽⁷⁾When the morning stars sang together, And all the sons of                                       God shouted for joy?”

And I can only be amazed by the things that I can see above me. I lie back in the chair and watch Orion make his trek with his sword (properly known as Pleiades) hanging from his belt. Or watch The Great Bear circle around the sky always keeping watch on the North Star. I am rendered into quietness, wonder and contemplation. And when I visit planetariums, read astronomy books and watch documentaries about our Cosmos they let me know things about God’s creation that is too far away for me to see. And I understand a little bit more about it.

The Bible is very much like this. As a child I heard the stories of the Old Testament characters and the Gospels. I was made to learn the parables and The Beatitudes. I was taught to recite the books of the Bible in sequence. And these were just the basic stories that most children are taught in church and religious education classes. But the Bible helped me see more. I can see beyond the life of Christ as told in the Gospels and see the whole biblical history of who He is and why He came.

So the nightsky is just another little way that I can worship God. Just to stand and look, and wonder at his creation. For these are the very same stars that our ancestors looked up to at night. For this all leads me to the One who is “the bright and morning star”…

Revelation ch22: ⁽¹⁶⁾"I, Jesus…….I am the Root and the Offspring of David, the Bright                                                         and  Morning Star." 

Lift up your heads to the coming King.
Bow before Him and adore Him. Sing.
To His Majesty, let your Praises be.
Pure and Holy, giving Glory
To the King Of Kings

He made the stars to shine; He made the rolling sea;
He made the mountains high, and He made me.
And this is why I love Him, for me He bled and died,
The Lord of all Creation became the crucified.

 

 

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