What is the purpose and meaning of the stars?
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Credit Photo: The Book "God's Voice in the Stars"

Let's consider these Bible texts to answer this question.
Psalm 19:1 "The heavens declare the glory of God."
Isaiah 40:26 "Lift up your eyes on high and see who has created these stars, the one who leads forth their host by number, He calls them all by name; because of the greatness of His might and the strength of His power, not one of them is missing."
Genesis 1:14 "And let them be for signs, and for seasons, and for days, and years."

So, what may we conclude about stars from the above scripture texts?
1. They declare God's glory.
2. God created and named them.
3. They are for signs, for seasons, days and for years.

When you go out on a clear starry night and look up and see the majestic Milky Way, it's not hard to imagine the glory of God. To dwell on the thought of our own Milky Way galaxy, where there are more than two billion stars. I think of Psalm 8:3,4 which says, "When I consider thy heavens, the work of thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which thou hast ordained; what is man, that thou are mindful of him?" What an awesome statement made by King David expressing the majesty of God while reflecting on man's trivial importance in the universe. I wonder what David would have said if he had had the knowledge of our modern day astronomy?

Isaiah 40:26 leaves no doubt it was God who created the stars. In the first book of the Bible it says He made two great lights and he made the stars also. (Genesis 1:16) Man hasn't figured out how God did it, but Psalm 136:5 says by His wisdom He made the heavens. I also take comfort in the fact God did not just toss the stars about in the heavens, but He placed them in specific places for a reason as mentioned in Psalm 8.

In Genesis 2:19,20 God told Adam to name the animals. However, as we previously read in Isaiah 40, it was God who named the stars. Think about how many stars are in our own galaxy, multiply that by billions of galaxies and you can see why God would be the only one able to name them all.

In Genesis 1:14 we noted they were for "signs and for seasons". God placed them where He did to indicate prophetic happenings and the seasons told of the times concerning the "signs". Therefore, when we understand the meanings of the stars and the signs, prophetic events will be revealed.

Let's consider first the "signs". When I refer to the "signs" I am referring to those signs such as Virgo, Gemini, Leo, etc which make up what is called the zodiac. There are 12 signs in all and when people hear of these signs they often think of horoscopes or "astrology". It is true that astrology uses these signs in their predictions but they did not invent them. We can trace these "signs" and their symbols, with competent research, back beyond the ancient Babylonians. If you follow other civilizations such as the Egyptians, Greeks, Romans, Aztecs, Mayans, Chinese and others, you will see the same basic symbols. Even the meanings are similar, but unfortunately each culture distorted the "true" meanings to suite their own needs and desires.
In the months ahead you will discover how astrology, even today, has taken these "signs" and is using the same corrupted meanings from the past, added a few modern day fallacious interpretations which completely changes the meanings originally intended by God.

Earlier, I mentioned how God named the stars and I believe He gave them meaningful names to ultimately give them prophetic significance. There are several informative books on the meanings of the stars and how they relate to Bible prophecy. The first one, which was published in 1863, entitled "Mazzaroth" by Frances Rolleston is a good starting point for comprehensive research on this subject. She spent years investigating the root meanings of star names in ancient civilizations. She discovered many of the same basic ideas are still apparent in the modern languages of today and thus can be translated correctly into the "true" meanings that God had intended. I would also recommend a book by Kenneth C. Fleming called "God's Voice in the Stars". This book will give an even more straightforward, easy to understand explanation of Frances Rolleston's book on the meanings of the "signs", expressly connecting past, current and future Bible prophecies.

Quoting from "God's Voice in the Stars" by Kenneth C. Fleming, "It is in the names of the stars and constellations that the gospel first becomes apparent. The ancient meanings of these names will be recognized by every Bible student as being strikingly similar to the written revelation regarding a coming Redeemer who would suffer because of sin, but ultimately triumph over it and save fallen man".
Keeping this thought in mind, in future months, I will present a additional signs and explain what is believed to be the correct interpretation originally given to man. It is my personal opinion, after considerable research on this subject, that this knowledge of the stars was given to the people in the antediluvian era or pre-flood.