A Sign In The Sun, Moon, And Stars!

There will be signs in the sun, moon and stars.  On the earth, nations will be in anguish and perplexity at the roaring and tossing of the sea.

There are only two signs in the entire Bible called “great signs” (σημεῖα μεγάλα in the Greek) and these are found in Revelation 12:1–2 and Revelation 15:1.  The former has been a centerpiece of discussion here since 2012 because the astronomical alignment on September 23–24, 2017 perfectly matched the description given in John’s vision.  That’s truly phenomenal.  Furthermore, Jesus said there would be signs in the sun, moon, and stars and the vision of an astronomical sign in Revelation 12:1–2 is the only sign in the entire Bible that simultaneously contains all three.  That’s also phenomenal.  More pastors, teachers, and students of Bible prophecy should be engaged and aware of what’s happening, because it’s happening whether or not it fits within your dogma.  It is what it is.

I’m reminded of the resurgence of Christian scholarship in the 19th century which began to recognize the literal truth of Bible prophecy—dispensationalism was the natural result of a literal interpretation of Scripture.  When Jesus came the first time, He fulfilled well over one hundred prophecies literally.  Yet, when it comes to events surrounding His return, for which there are a far greater number of prophecies, Christianity has typically applied allegorism to virtually all but the most essential predictions.  That’s faulty on its face.  There is certainly such a thing as apocalyptic literature and apocalyptic literature certainly contains symbols, but these symbols are often—if not always—defined in the text.  When symbols are not used, we are in the wrong for allegorizing what was intended to be a clear, literal message of warning to the world.  Have no doubt about it: the remaining prophecies will be fulfilled just as they were written.

When those 19th century scholars began accepting God’s word at face value, they came to the inevitable conclusion that the Church, composed of Jews and Gentiles believing in Jesus in this present age, had not replaced the nation of Israel.  There were still numerous promises yet to be fulfilled, which were made to the Israelite nation.  Yet that meant that the Jewish people would necessarily return to the Holy Land and the nation would be reconstituted.