Following: http://hotspuds.blogspot.com.au/2014/01/what-did-those-magi-see.htmlSo the magi in the palace at Babylon had us out of bed early to see the first of Jupiter’s three conjunctions with Regulus in the constellation of Leo.
“Pardon the yawn…what’s the big deal?”
Why are they now so interested in a sunrise over a tiny crescent moon barely visible just above the horizon?
Ah!...these magi might not have our fancy optics and computers but they would know that below that ROYAL RENDEZVOUS in Leo and behind this ordinary sunrise is this…..
….the constellation of Virgo!...with Leo’s tail swishing her face, Venus the ‘mother’ planet on her shoulder, Mercury the ‘swift messenger’ on her upper arm, the Moon witnessing discreetly at her feet and of course there’s the brilliant star Spica on that spike of wheat pointing to the ground.
What’s more… over 500 years before this, a Jewish prince named Daniel was Prime Minister of Babylon and he had recorded that the Jewish Messiah would make His appearance 483 years after the order to rebuild the city of Jerusalem. It’s no secret – the world knows that momentous day is just around the corner!...but do the magi know of the strange predictions in the Jewish scriptures?...
· a Star shall come out of Jacob
· this Man is called ‘The Branch’ as King, as Lord and even as Servant
(Look!...Virgo even has the peace symbol of a palm branch in her right hand!)
(Look!...Virgo even has the peace symbol of a palm branch in her right hand!)
· last but not least - a virgin conceiving will be used in the redemption plan
What they don’t know is that a Jewish carpenter will soon identify with the ‘corn of wheat that falls into the ground and dies….bringing forth much fruit’.
We also know that the apostle John will eventually see, while exiled on Patmos, a great sign in heaven:
“a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: and she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered.”
..and here she is, clothed with the sun and the moon under her feet - maybe now with child!
..and here she is, clothed with the sun and the moon under her feet - maybe now with child!
Do the magi believe that a swift messenger has appeared to a virgin, announcing she will give birth to ‘the Son of the Highest’?...which Isaiah called ‘The Branch of the Lord’.
After seeing 3 conjunctions of Jupiter with Regulus over 8 months, what else will they see in the night-sky that makes them so sure they should travel hundreds of miles west to Jerusalem, to honour the new King of the Jews?
Acknowledgements:
David Reneke, 'Sky & Space'
Rick Larsen / DVD, The Star
Image credits:
Stellarium
David Reneke, 'Sky & Space'
Rick Larsen / DVD, The Star
Image credits:
Stellarium
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