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By
Jon
Nessle
"Look! Look", they cried, "up in the sky!" We looked and
saw nothing. Yet they insisted it was out there. There
in a portion of sky as small as a grain of sand held at
arm's length it was, albeit, invisible to the naked eye.
The proud Hubble Telescope Scientists unveiled to us that
incredible picture of that small portion of sky magnified,
full of galaxies, billions of light years away. There was
that indisputable photograph standing in the press conference
room with the label at the top, "Hubble Deep Field". But
for us it had another label, a challenge, and a question: "How
big is your God?
Long, long ago another group of astronomers stared, surprised,
up into the sky at another amazing celestial light. These
also were the respected scientists of their day and what
they saw was significant enough to prompt them to make
an 800 mile journey into enemy territory on a quest to
honor a new-born king. The Bible contains the account of
their journey.
Matthew 2:1,2
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.
What did they see? Let's look at the evidence. It says
that these wise men saw a star in the East. Later in Matthew
2:10 it says that the celestial phenomenon occurred again.
What could it have been? Well it certainly was not what
most traditional stories of the birth of Jesus Christ portray.
Had it been a laser beam in the sky, a search-light beaming
down on a manger in Bethlehem, no one would have come to
witness the event. They all would have been scared out
of their wits.
What was something that they'd
call a star? Today we know of many celestial phenomena:
stars, planets, nova, meteors, comets, etc. To the people
of that time, they all were simply called "stars"; they were some kind of light in
the sky. But what kind of "star" would prompt the wise
men to make such a journey? If it were a meteor, how could
it have repeated itself? If it were a nova, an exploding
star, which would produce a spectacular light in the heavens,
certainly the Chinese astronomers would have included it
in their detailed astronomical annals that have survived
to this day. What novas repeat themselves? What could it
have been? There is a clue. The wise men said that they
saw it in the east.
In the ancient texts, the word
east is plural when it refers to the direction east,
and literally means "risings".
The word translated "east" in Mathew 2:1 is plural and
is translated correctly as the direction east. The wise
men were the Magi, learned astronomers who came from the
Parthian Empire in Mesopotamia, located where Iraq or Iran
is today. They had traveled into Roman territory around
the Fertile Crescent and probably down the Kings Highway
through Damascus to Jerusalem. However, in Matthew 2:2
the word "east" is not plural. It is singular. It should
have been translated "We have seen his star in the rising,
[the sunrise]. That is the clue we need to begin to identify
what the star of Bethlehem was.
What kind of "stars" can appear in the sunrise? Let's
do a thought experiment. If you are in a room right now
as you are reading this, get up and move a chair into the
center of the room and then go back and sit down where
you were. Now imagine the entire universe of stars painted
upon the walls, floor and ceiling of the room and you are
the earth and the chair in the center of the room is the
sun. The earth circles the sun and as it does so the earth
also turns. So right now, look in another direction away
from the chair in the center of the room and then slowly
turn your head until the chair in the center of the room
comes into view in the corner of your eye. You have just
simulated a sunrise. Now, what's on the wall on the opposite
side of the room directly in line with the chair that represents
the sun? That would be a star that appears just before
the sunrise and then is eclipsed by daylight. Now continue
to turn to fully view the chair in the center of the room
which represents the sun. You have now simulated it becoming
day. The earth also goes around the sun. Move forward a
bit in the room as if you are beginning to move in a circle
around the center chair and look at the chair in the center
of the room again. What's on the wall on the opposite side
of the room directly in line with it now? Something different.
If you were to circle the chair in the center of the room
and repeat this process all the way around, all the objects
on the opposite wall which lined up with the chair representing
the sun each time you looked at it would be located on
a plane that astronomers call the ecliptic. That's exactly
what the wise men saw. They saw the "star" in the sunrise
so the "star" had to be something on the plane of the ecliptic.
When a star appears on the ecliptic
just before the sunrise it is called a "heliacal rising". It was thought in ancient
times that this was a significant time for that star. What "stars" appear
on the plane of the ecliptic? Well, there are a number
of them in the various constellations which are on the
ecliptic and they regularly appear in the sunrise once
a year. But that is not unusual enough. What else is on
the ecliptic? The constellations themselves are there too.
These 12 constellations on the ecliptic make up what's
called the Zodiac. But they are not unusual either. As
the earth makes it's yearly orbit around the sun, each
of the constellations in turn appears in the background
behind the sun during sunrise. What else appears on the
ecliptic? The planets. Back then the ancients beheld the
heavens and wondered what these wandering "stars" were.
There were five of them that were visible: Mercury, Venus,
Mars, Jupiter and Saturn. They did not realize they were
planets circling the sun like the earth was. As the earth
circled the sun these "wanderers" as they were called,
moved against the backdrop of stars and all followed the
same course in the sky, the ecliptic. But was a planet
unusual enough to cause a group of scientists to get so
excited that they organized a trek into enemy territory
in search of a newborn king? No, but maybe a conjunction
of planets could.
A conjunction of planets is when two or more planets seem
to come together in the sky from the perspective of a viewer
from earth. Most conjunctions come only as close as the
apparent space of your thumb held at arm's length against
the backdrop of the sky. Conjunctions occur often in the
night sky as the earth circles the sun. What could be significant
enough about that to cause the scientists to budge? Well
maybe it was a sequence of conjunctions or and unusual
conjunction itself.
What would be significant enough
to have caused them to decide to go to Jerusalem? If
an unusual sequence of conjunctions occurred with the
constellation Leo in the background, that could do the
trick, because Leo was the lion and that was significant
of the tribe of Judah in Israel. In fact, there was an
unusual set of conjunctions in 3 and 2 BC which meet
all the criteria. This set of conjunctions was begun
in a spectacular way. On August 12th, 3BC, Jupiter and
Venus, the second and third brightest objects in the
night sky (next to the moon) came so close together in
conjunction that from the viewpoint of someone on the earth,
they merged into one star. Leo was in the background. This
close of a conjunction is extremely, extremely rare. It
is so unusual that the curator of the Adler Planetarium
in Chicago, Illinois stated that "it has not happened since".
That was enough to get the attention of the Magi and set
them scurrying to make arrangements to go to Jerusalem.
But there is more…
The earth circles the sun in a shorter period of time
than the outer visible planets, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn.
As the earth catches up with and passes one of these planets
an optical phenomenon occurs, especially with Jupiter.
It appears to move backwards for a while and then as the
earth finishes passing by, it resumes it's normal forward
movement through the sky. This is called retrograde motion.
This occurs once a year as the earth catches up with and
then passes Jupiter. Soon after that unusual conjunction
between Jupiter and Venus that year, Jupiter went into
retrograde motion. But this year that retrograde motion
occurred with the constellation Leo the lion in the background
and Jupiter had three conjunctions with the brightest star
in Leo. This star is named Regulus. It is on the ecliptic
and represents the heart of the lion. These conjunctions
occurred September 14th, 3BC, February 17, 2BC and May
8th, 2 BC. Regulus was known as the king star and Jupiter
was known as the king planet and Leo signified Judah.
After this, there were two more planetary conjunctions.
On June 17th, 2BC, Jupiter and Venus had another conjunction
in Leo and finally on August 27th, 2BC a multiple conjunction,
or what's called a massing of planets, occurred with Jupiter,
Mars, Mercury and Venus again in Leo. This unusual sequence
of celestial events was enough to get the wise men to make
the necessary arrangements with their government and get
moving toward Judea.
The birth of Jesus Christ itself is recorded in the Gospel
of Luke when Mary and Joseph had traveled to Bethlehem,
the city of their fathers, to be enrolled for a census
for taxation.
Luke 2:6,7
And so it was, that, while they were there, the days were accomplished that
she should be delivered.
And she brought forth her firstborn son, and wrapped him in swaddling clothes,
and laid him in a manger [stable]; because there was no room for them in
the inn.
The word manger does not mean "feed trough" like
we see in modern nativity scenes. The manger was a stable.
The inns of that period are called caravanserai and were
often rectangular with rooms around the perimeter, a
gate in front and a stable around back where the animals
were kept. Also we need to understand the significance
of the swaddling clothes. How many of you have christening
gowns that have been handed down in your family? The
modern day christening gown is similar to the ancient
swaddling clothes in that they were made of high quality
fabric and were handed down in the family for a ceremonial
purpose. Swaddling clothes were not rags because the
parents of Jesus were poor. They were used in a short
ceremony where the parents prayed and committed themselves
to raise their child to be upright.
Verse eight contains information that also helps date
the season of the birth of Jesus Christ. It says that the
shepherds were watching their flocks by night. This is
practiced in either the spring or fall, but it is not done
during the winter because it gets too cold (below freezing)
at night in Palestine. (Other information in Luke 1 regarding
the time of the conception and birth of John the Baptist
and the six month period between John's conception and
that of Jesus fix the time of the birth of Jesus to be
in the fall.)
Luke 2:8-14
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping
watch over their flock by night.
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord
shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings
of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ
the Lord.
And this {shall be} a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling
clothes, lying in a manger [stable].
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising
God, and saying,
Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.
There is a great irony here. Why did God give this information
to the shepherds only? He certainly would have liked to
have revealed it to many more, but alas the country was
rife with unbelief. Their reaction shows that they were
faithful because they reacted with haste.
Luke 2:15,16
And it came to pass, as the angels were gone away from them into heaven,
the shepherds said one to another, Let us now go even unto Bethlehem, and
see this thing which is come to pass, which the Lord hath made known unto
us.
And they came with haste, and found Mary, and Joseph, and the babe [newborn]
lying in a manger [stable].
Here it says that Mary, Joseph
and Jesus were in the manger. That's why that word cannot
mean "feed trough", but must
be translated "stable". Bethlehem was a small town. Many
of the homes may have had a stable on their lower floor.
But the largest stable at the local inn was probably the
first place they'd check. Why was the swaddling clothes
part of the sign? Almost every Judean Hebrew child was
swaddled when they were born. The significance was that
the swaddling clothes were only on for a short period of
time while the parents prayed. There may have been a number
of newborn infants in Bethlehem, maybe even some in stables
because the town was filled with visitors for the taxation
census, but Jesus was the only one in swaddling clothes
in a stable when they arrived there.
Luke 2:17,18
And when they had seen {it}, they made known abroad the saying which was
told them concerning this child.
And all they that heard {it} wondered at those things which were told them
by the shepherds.
How would you like to have been one of those shepherds?
Of all the people in the area that could have been told,
they were the ones. Why didn't God appear to the high priest
in Jerusalem and tell him? Because they were in a state
of unbelief. Oh, they were filled with faith in their interpretations
of the law, their ceremonies and their traditions but there
was not much room for the truths of God's Word. Had they
noticed the stellar announcements? No they were asleep,
both physically and spiritually.
Imagine the turmoil in Jerusalem
when the wise men appeared. They were highly regarded
in the Parthian Empire and would have been received in
Jerusalem like ambassadors. But then they asked the most
wrong question that one could possibly ask, "Where is he who is born king of the Jews?" Herod
was an extremely jealous and ruthless king. Every hint
of any challenge to his rule had been dealt with severely.
The Jews disliked him intensely for he represented the
Roman dominion over them. In fact, this visit of the wise
men probably happened a couple months before Herod's death.
He probably was suffering from what finally caused his
death. Josephus, the historian, chronicled the circumstances
of Herod's death in great detail. This man was so ruthless
that later just before he was to die, he ordered all the
chief men of all the cities of his kingdom to be held in
a stadium and all were to be killed when Herod finally
died. Herod knew that there would be rejoicing in the streets
upon news of his death and he wanted the country to be
filled with mourning instead. Now, here stood the wise
men who innocently asked about a new unknown king who was
foretold by a sign in the heavens. This news shook Herod
and all Jerusalem.
Matthew 2:3-6
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 thou Bethlehem, {in} the land of Juda, art not the least among the princes
of Juda: for out of thee shall come a Governor, that shall rule my people
Israel.
The high priests and captains of the temple should have
been looking for the messiah. They must have seen the first
spectacular conjunction of Jupiter and Venus as well, but
they were blind to its significance. Yet, they had access
to the knowledge but were sitting on it. Their religious
agendas were elsewhere. So was Herod's.
Luke 2:7,8
Then Herod, when he had privily 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 ye have found {him}, bring me word again, that I may
come and worship him also.
This information breaks with the
traditional view of the birth of Christ which puts the
wise men there at the manger at the time of his birth
with the star gleaming overhead. Verse seven in Matthew
chapter two puts the first appearance of the star in
the past tense. Verse eight describes him as a "young child" and not a "newborn" like
in the Gospel of Luke. Those words are two entirely different
words in the Greek text. A newborn infant is unmistakable
from a toddler. The wise men actually arrived in Jerusalem
fifteen months after Christ's birth, probably in late
2 BC, after the string of conjunctions had ended.
Luke 2:9,10
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.
Now as the wise men departed from
Jerusalem going southward, up in the southern sky they
beheld the common element to all the conjunctions, Jupiter
the king-planet, on its upward arc through the evening
sky. As the earth turns, the sky in the northern hemisphere
revolves around the polar star and the stars rise from
their place in the eastern sky and climb to their zenith
and then fall towards the west. Jupiter was in the southern
sky at that time in December of 2 BC and would be nearing
its highest point in the sky when the Magi made their
usual predawn observations. Bethlehem was due south of
Jerusalem. But was that unusual enough to cause them
to rejoice with exceeding joy? Well, maybe so if there
were other significant celestial events going on simultaneously.
According to Ernest Martin in the book "The
Birth of Christ Recalculated", there were.
Remember Jupiter's retrograde motion earlier in 3 BC?
It was starting it again in late December of 2 BC. When
Jupiter starts its retrograde motion, there is a period
of six days when it apparently comes to a standstill! Guess
what constellation was in the background? Virgo, the virgin.
And even more significant, Jupiter came to a standstill
in the portion of Virgo that was her womb!
Now this simultaneous set of celestial
events concerning Jupiter would have more than raised
their eyebrows! Their early morning arrival in Bethlehem
coincided with both Jupiter's arrival at its highest
point in the sky that night and when it stood still beginning
its retrograde motion with Virgo's womb in the background!
This day also could also have coincided further with
the winter solstice. Jupiter reached this high point
every night, but what made it significant to the wise
men was that this early morning in December of 2 BC this
high point coincided with so many other things! In ancient
astronomy, the term "to stand" is
used for this arrival at the highest point in the sky.
It also clearly describes the state of Jupiter when it
began its retrograde motion and began to be stationary
in the heavens just when they arrived in Bethlehem! That
would have filled them with exceeding joy.
Matthew 2:11
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.
Did they find him in a manger? Did they find a newborn?
Does it mention that Joseph was present? No. It was morning.
He'd already left for his carpentry job that day. The wise
men arrived in town and inquired about a young child not
a newborn. The first place they probably went was the inn
because it was the only place that could house their caravan.
Now, because the shepherds had spread the word months earlier,
the wise men were able to find Mary and Jesus residing
in the house of one of their relatives. The innkeeper or
the elders at the gate very well could have been the first
persons in Bethlehem they asked. Either surely would have
remembered the shepherd's reports. This is what convinced
the wise men that they had found the right family.
What an exciting time it must have been for everyone!
The wise men were thrilled because everything fit what
they had seen declared in the heavens. They'd followed
the dawn-star Jupiter through its remarkable set of significant
celestial movements to bring them into the presence of
the king of kings! For Mary, this was yet another confirmation
that Jesus truly was the messiah. God had moved heaven
and earth to bring these men there!
Right here is the greatest scientific
evidence for the truth of birth and existence of Jesus
Christ, as well as the truth of the rest of the Bible
and the existence of God. Go ahead and turn back your
planetariums or celestial computer programs and see for
yourself. It was written across the sky! This is the
greatest scientific proof I know of. For most, faith
and the constant proofs that come when one believes the
scriptures and walks by them is enough. But this is even
more… Our faith is confirmed even more
when we realize that way back in the beginning God spun
the planets so that they'd line up like this to announce
the birth of His Son! Can you have any more doubts? Now
take it further. Do you have any needs? The God who moved
heaven and earth to bring the Magi into the presence of
the lord is no respecter of persons. If you have a need
and believe for God to supply it, and base your expectation
upon the promises of His Word that your need will be met,
God will meet your need even if He has to move heaven and
earth to do so!
This is our God, creator of the heavens and the earth,
Hubble Deep Field and all!
Psalms 19:1-6
The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament sheweth [sets forth
the greatness of] his handywork.
Day unto [after] day uttereth speech, and night unto [after] night sheweth
knowledge (the story of redemption written in the skies as the common world-wide
ancient ancestor of the Zodiac).
{There is} no speech nor language, {where} their voice is not heard.
Their line [surveyor's line through the sky] is gone out through all the
earth, and their words [teachings] to the end of the world. In them (the
heavens) hath he set a tabernacle [house i.e. the original Zodiac houses]
for [of] the sun,
Which {is} as (full of life, joy and song as) a bridegroom coming out of
his chamber, {and} rejoiceth as (brashly and virulently as) a strong man
to run a race.
His going forth {is} from the end of the heaven, and his circuit (as in the
ecliptic) unto the ends of it: and there is nothing hid from the heat thereof.
Tradition says that there were three wise men, inferring
that from the fact that three gifts were presented. This
could not have been the case. The Magi never would have
safely arrived, had there only been three of them. They
would have been robbed and killed by the highwaymen who
lurked in the no-man's-land between the Roman and Parthian
Empire's borders. No, an ambassadorial level contact between
the Parthian and Roman Empires such as this would have
required an entire caravan! There had to be more than three
Magi both for them to make the trip and for them to be
given audience by Herod. There were not three gifts, there
were three kinds of gifts. What color clothing would you
bring to a baby shower where a son was expected? Blue.
What color for a daughter? Pink. What if you did not know
the gender? Green or yellow. Why? Because that is our culture.
In some far eastern countries they bring pink for a boy.
In the Biblical culture when a newborn king was to be honored,
culture dictated three kinds of gifts, gold frankincense
and myrrh. They probably brought a lot of each.
Matthew 2:12-15
And being warned of God in a dream that they should not return to Herod,
they departed into their own country another way.
And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph
in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee
into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek
the young child to destroy him.
When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed
into Egypt:
And was there until the death of Herod: that it might be fulfilled which
was spoken of the Lord by the prophet, saying, Out of Egypt have I called
my son.
Herod's wrath was a grave threat.
He would not have permitted even the rumor of a future
king other than one from his own lineage, how much less
would he have allowed someone with that reputation to
live. God always warns of impending danger and he did
so for both the Magi and the family of Jesus. The Magi
already had their means of transportation and took their
caravan home by an alternate route. However, how was
Mary, Joseph and Jesus going to get out of town? There
was no Avis Rent-a-Camel in downtown Bethlehem… But
Joseph now had something valuable, gold, frankincense and
myrrh. He could have easily traded some for a camel or
two and by morning they were far from Bethlehem. How could
he and his family survived as strangers in the foreign
land of Egypt? He couldn't have built much of a carpentry
business for few would have done business with him because
he was an outsider and besides that he probably left many
of his tools behind. But they had gold, frankincense and
myrrh which were valuable commodities in those times. That
is probably how they lived in Egypt. God's blessings are
profitable, both immediately and ultimately.
It is also worthy of note to realize that Joseph was probably
16 to 18 years old and Mary 15 to 17 years old. That was
the usual ages for young women and men to be betrothed
in that culture. How would you like to lay the responsibility
of raising the Messiah at the feet of your teenagers? Mary
and Joseph were wonderful, mature, young adults. They also
were filled with the holy spirit. Look at the fortitude
of Joseph who obeyed the revelation and moved his family
out in the middle of the night and traveled into a strange
land. How many teenagers would get up in the middle of
the night without argument and do that? It surely raises
our respect for them and what teenagers can do if they
obey God's Word and are filled with the spirit!
Matthew 2:16-18
Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding
wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem,
and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according
to the time which he had diligently inquired of the wise men.
Then was fulfilled that which was spoken by Jeremy the prophet, saying,
In Rama was there a voice heard, lamentation, and weeping, and great mourning,
Rachel weeping {for} her children, and would not be comforted, because they
are not.
This terrible deed fits with Herod's temperament shortly
before his death as documented by the first century Palestinian
historian, Josephus. It also supports the fact that the
wise men arrived in Bethlehem months after the birthdate
of Jesus. Had he been a newborn, why kill those two years
old and under? A newborn is easily discerned from a toddler.
He had diligently inquired the Magi of the time of the
celestial events.
Matthew 2:19-21
But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream
to Joseph in Egypt,
Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land
of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life.
And he arose, and took the young child and his mother, and came into the
land of Israel.
Jesus and his family were safe. This information also
dispels the theory that Jesus and his family were poor.
No, he and his family were in the lower middle class. Carpentry
was a respected profession in that time and after Joseph
returned to Galilee and set up shop again, he made a good
living at the trade and were able to provide for Jesus
and the rest of the family adequately. Joseph in his godly
wisdom probably utilized the gifts of the Magi for the
sake of Jesus and his family for a long time.
This has been a lesson in tradition
versus truth. How shallow our understanding was before
we came to God's Word to find out what it actually says.
The question remains, how much else that we believe could
be supercharged by returning to the Bible as our sole
source of truth? So now at the time of this writing we
are preparing to celebrate the millennium. But we're
doing so two years late! We're actually celebrating 2002!
Jesus was born in 3 BC. Some monk monkeyed with the date
and that's why were we're all late. And we're late for
the birthdate of Jesus as well because he was born in
the fall of the year when shepherds do watch their flocks
by night out in the fields of Palestine. But regardless,
we're thankful for the time we can set aside in his honor.
And we're thankful for mankind's response during this
time of year, for any time is a wonderful time to declare "Peace on earth and good will toward men"!
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