CHAPTER 14

Satan’s Objectives Nearly Achieved – The Gauntlet Thrown Down

Isaiah 14:13-14 (KJV) “I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: … I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.” The conjunction with Alnilam in Orion’s Belt and with the Orion Nebula sees Satan’s direct challenge to the gates of Heaven and to the throne of God. The claimed exchange of energies affected during the extended situation of Venus above these stars is the fulfilment of Lucifer’s boast. Indeed, he would be like God if the astrological principles previously elucidated are godly and legitimate.

What will be God’s Response?

Both Ezekiel 28 and Isaiah 14 give the general answer. In those chapters, Lucifer is brought down to the ground and his ultimate destination is the pit (hell). The specifics relate to the nature Of God and His character as incorporated in the Constellation of Orion. All three of the objects being oppressed are in Orion. Orion is so important, he is not only accompanied by two hunting dogs, but his rest is assured by two footstools, one forward, the other to the rear. The latter is made from a quartet of stars in his prey, Lepus the Hare (originally a serpent), of which Arneb (Alpha Leporis) is at the upper right hand corner. This is reminiscent of Psalm 110:1 “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool.” Lepus which is a serpent is not only crushed by the heel of Orion, but he will become a footstool.

Orion - the Central One:

In every aspect, Orion is the symbol of Christ the LORD. This is the resurrected Christ who defeats His enemies. The constellation Lepus which is now depicted as a hare (albeit a very evil hare) was portrayed in the oldest surviving zodiac, the Denderah Zodiac, as serpentine. His left heel and is raised above the head of the enemy as if in the very act of crushing him.

Orion is known as the “Mighty Hunter” (a mighty man as in Isa. 42) and is by far the brightest constellation of the northern heavens. It should be no surprise that he should represent the “Coming Prince”. It is a prominent constellation located on the celestial equator and is visible throughout the world.

The constellations of Orion and Taurus take up only 3.37% of the night sky. If the brightest stars in the sky were evenly distributed, only one of the brightest 31 stars would be within the boundaries of these two constellations. In fact seven bright stars in that range are contained therein. Those stars according to brightness of visible light are:

6 Rigel In the left foot of Orion

9 Betelgeuse In the right shoulder of Orion

13 Aldebaran The eye of the bull in Taurus

27 Bellatrix In the left shoulder of Orion

28 El Nath The tip of one of the horns of the bull

30 Alnilam The centre star in Orion’s Belt

31 Alnitak A The left hand star in Orion’s Belt

　

The references in Job to Orion and the Pleiades (in Taurus) identify the richest concentration of bright stars in any part of the galaxy. Although Betelgeuse comes in at #9, it is actually the brightest when all wavelengths are taken into account, because only a small percentage of Betelgeuse’s light is in the visible spectrum.

To reinforce the message of his power, Orion is holding in his left hand the skin and head of a lion and in his mighty right hand he is holding above his head a large club. At the shoulder of that right arm is the star Betelgeuse, the most common translation of which is “the hand of Orion”. If Orion is the Mighty Hunter, then he has a “mighty hand”, a term used about twenty times to describe the method of God’s salvation for his people from the tyranny of Egyptian rule. Deuteronomy 26:8 “And the LORD brought us forth out of Egypt with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with great terribleness, and with signs, and with wonders:”

Therefore, the promise to us in Deuteronomy 7:19 could well be outworked through Orion in the very near future at the time of the oppression of the congregation (the Church and the believers) as indicated by the signs in the stars, such as Orion with his mighty hand and his outstretched arm. “The great temptations which thine eyes saw, and the signs, and the wonders, and the mighty hand, and the stretched out arm, whereby the LORD thy God brought thee out: so shall the LORD thy God do unto all the people of whom thou art afraid.” This Scripture is absolutely emphatic that He will use the same mechanisms in the future (i.e. signs, wonders, His mighty hand and His stretched out arm). Isaiah 42:13, 14

"The LORD shall go forth as a mighty man,
He shall stir up jealousy like a man of war;
He shall cry, yea, roar;
He shall prevail against His enemies.
I have [He says] long time holden my peace;
I have been still, and refrained myself:
Now will I cry like a travailing woman;
I will destroy and devour at once."

Compare this to Psalm 50:2-4 (King James Version)

“Out of Zion, the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.”

These two verses show the patience of God who is no longer willing to remain silent. The time has come and His fierce anger will be exacted against His enemies. At this time in history, the moment is about to arrive when God shall send fire to “devour before Him”. Betelgeuse – The Hand of Orion (the Central One): Betelgeuse which is pronounced Beetle Juice as in the 1989 movie starring Michael Keaton, is the red super-giant that marks the right shoulder of Orion (the Mighty Hunter). It is one of the biggest stars known, and almost 1,000 times larger than our Sun. It is also one of the most luminous stars known, emitting more light than 14,000 Suns. It is believed to be at least the size of the orbit of Mars and at maximum diameter may possibly equal the orbit of Jupiter. Only about 13% of the radiant energy is emitted in the form of visible light, so if our eyes were sensitive to radiation at all wavelengths, Betelgeuse would appear as the brightest star in the sky.

With an age of only a few million years, Betelgeuse is already nearing the end of its life and is soon doomed to explode as a supernova. When it does, the supernova should be seen easily from Earth, even in broad daylight. New observations based on data generated by the Hipparcos Satellite which was launched in the 1990’s indicate the giant star has shrunk by more than 15 per cent since 1993. This could be a sign of a long-term oscillation in its size, or the star's first death knells. When Betelgeuse becomes a supernova, which will be the brightest ever recorded, it will outshine the Moon in the night sky. In results presented on June 9, 2009 at a meeting of the American Astronomical Society, Betelgeuse is now estimated to be located around 430 light-years from Sol. The previously estimated distance for Betelgeuse was up to 640 light-years.

The Betelgeuse Supernova – Implications:

We have seen that mighty man (Orion/Christ) who has restrained himself will prevail against his enemies. (Isaiah 42:13, 14)

Isaiah 13:6, 9, 10 and 13 says,”6Howl ye; for the day of the LORD is at hand; it shall come as a destruction from the Almighty. 9Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. 10For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. 13Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.”

As stated earlier, the word “constellations” in verse 10 is used only once in Scripture, but the Hebrew word ‘kesil’ or ‘chesil’ is translated as Orion on three other occasions. The implication is that Orion and surrounding constellations will not be visible because of an action or event that is the result of God’s anger and judgment. Part (a) of verse 10 should therefore read as, “For the stars of heaven and Orion shall not give their light:”

Whenever Betelgeuse goes supernova, it will be with the brightness equal to five billion suns. The brilliance of the initial flash would last for weeks or even months. The stars in and around Orion would be outshone by many orders of magnitude, therefore masking them from our view, fulfilling Isaiah’s prophecy. This is also a confirmation that Heaven is in Orion.

Astronomers speculate that the supernova event can occur at any time. Fortunately, we are about 25 million times further away from Betelgeuse than we are from the Sun. If we take the typical magnitude of a Type II supernova as -17, then at the star's distance of roughly 425 light years, it would shine at magnitude -11.4, which is extremely bright, but not quite as bright as the Full

Moon. It would be easily visible during the daytime at first, and would probably be easily visible to the naked eye for many years, even as it faded. The thing is that even though it wouldn't be as bright as the Moon, it would probably seem to be as bright, because unlike the Moon, its light would be concentrated in an extremely small area of the sky.

Betelgeuse – right place, right time:

Out of all the possible dates within the next 1,000 years on which this super-giant may potentially explode, I’m putting my money on June 6th 2012. On the basis of pure chance, I’ve got 1 chance in 365,000 of being correct. However, the date derived is based on a methodical analysis of the data, plus what is hoped will be seen as intelligent interpretation of the statements in God's written Word. The reason that I’ve opted for that date is that it is the date of Venus’ transit of the Sun when everyone will be watching with great interest anyway. That point could be important because in Ezekiel 28:18, we are told, “Therefore I have brought forth a fire from your midst; it has consumed you, and I have reduced you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who looked at you.” In other translations, it says “in the sight of all those who were watching you”. During the transit, people will definitely be watching because it is such a rare event. In the later explanations of the Sun and of the star Cursa, we see that these simultaneous conjunctions give Lucifer access to the eternal Throne of David and to the River of Life, potentially giving him the right to say that he is like God if he is allowed to succeed (Isa 14:14).

The supporting Scriptures to the frustration of Satan's plan:

Psalm 89:13-14 says, “Thou hast a mighty arm: strong is thy hand, and high is thy right hand. Justice and judgement are the habitation of thy throne: mercy and truth shall go before thy face.” This is a description that can only be attributed to Orion for two verses preceding (v11), we are told, “The heavens are thine, the earth also is thine: as for the world and the fullness thereof, thou hast founded them.” This psalm speaks of a mighty right arm held high in the heavens and the stars, and Orion is the only constellation that fully fits the image described. The following Scripture shows Orion bringing that mighty arm down in judgement.

Isaiah 30:30 (Amplified Bible) confirms the action, “And the Lord shall cause His glorious voice to be heard and the descending blow of His arm to be seen, coming down with indignant anger and with the flame of a devouring fire, amid crashing blast and cloudburst, tempest, and hailstones.” Psalm 19:3-4 (Amplified Bible) reminds us, “There is no speech nor spoken word [from the stars]; their voice is not heard. Yet their voice [in evidence] goes out through all the earth, their sayings to the end of the world.” The “Lord’s glorious voice” from Isa. 30:30 is therefore identified as the evidence of a happening in the stars, that event involving the descending blow of His arm (in anger) together with a flame of devouring fire. Once again, this can only be Orion.

Ezekiel 28:18b “…Therefore I have brought forth a fire from your midst; it has consumed you, and I have reduced you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who looked at you.” Keep in mind that this forecast event would occur when Venus/Lucifer is close to Orion, therefore Venus would appear to be in the midst of the fire. Remember that it is the Lord who says, “I have brought forth a fire from your midst”. This is a deliberate act of God on the enemy who would exalt himself above God.

Psalm 21:8-10 (Amplified Bible) “Your hand shall find all Your enemies; Your right hand shall find all those who hate You. You will make them as if in a blazing oven in the time of Your anger; the Lord will swallow them up in His wrath, and the fire will utterly consume them. Their offspring You will destroy from the earth, and their sons from among the children of men.” Once again, it is the Lord’s right hand that is in play, again corresponding with the earlier Scriptures. Compare the words ‘the fire will utterly consume them’ with Ezek. 28:18 ‘it has consumed you, and I have reduced you to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all who looked at you’. The message is identical, and in Ezekiel, Lucifer is reduced to ashes in the sight of people. This is symbolic of his loss of power and prestige. It is reminiscent of the message brought back by ten of the twelve spies sent out by Moses in relation to the stature of the giants. Numbers 13:33 (KJV) “And there we saw the giants, the sons of Anak, which come of the giants: and we were in our own sight as grasshoppers, and so we were in their sight.”

Psalm 50:2-4 (KJV) “Out of Zion (the mountain of God), the perfection of beauty, God hath shined. Our God shall come, and shall not keep silence: a fire shall devour before him, and it shall be very tempestuous round about him. He shall call to the heavens from above, and to the earth, that he may judge his people.” Once again, we are dealing with the heavens. Also, the message of a devouring fire reinforces the imagery that has been presented.

Satan Humiliated in a Final Defeat:

The Morning Star will no longer have its prominence in the sky. In the space now occupied by Orion will be a feature of such dazzling brilliance that attention will be diverted from Venus’ much-vaunted transit of the sun on June 6th 2012. In the field of astronomy, there is much excitement and anticipation of this rare event, but as with Satan, the reputation of Venus will be in ashes. If Venus is symbolically “devoured” by fire as described in the Scriptures and as a consequence is replaced by what will be the brightest object in the night sky, is this a shade of meaning to the words of Jesus in Rev. 22:16 which state, “..I am the bright morning star”? It seems redundant to describe the Morning Star as “bright” as that fact is self-evident. The constellation of Orion which is the most prominent symbol of Christ in the heavens will be replaced by a new symbol of Christ that outshines the old one. There may be other explanations and these words that may all be equally meritorious, but in the context of what is written herein, there could be this added dimension.

There are numerous star groupings that demonstrate the whole spectrum of the character of God. It is obvious from the focus in the Scriptures that Orion has a special place in the heavens. With Venus humbled and the stars in the Constellation Orion no longer visible because of the brightness of the Betelgeuse supernova, it is easy to see how a new “superstar” for astronomers to study would be referred to as the “bright morning star”.

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