SpaceWeather.com has an very interesting video of the planet Mars in ‘retrograde’. I looked up the meaning of retrograde in Webster 1828 dictionary and the 2nd meaning is, ‘In astronomy, apparently moving backward and contrary to the succession of the signs, as a planet.‘
The video shows Mars being stationary, coming to a stop September 9, 2020, they going backwards, and closest to the planet Earth on October 6. Mars is then in opposition on October 13 and then again stops November 14 before it goes back on course for 2021. Very interesting indeed!
Graphic Artist Larry Koehn of SpaceWeather.com comments, “Basically, Earth is lapping Mars in a two-way race around the sun. Our planet is faster, so Mars seems to go backwards during the weeks of closest approach.” (italics and bold are mine)
Since I like to connect heavenly signs with Biblical Astronomy (not the witchcraft of astrology), I will bring out the meaning of these signs. Psalm 147:4 tells us, “He (God) counts the stars and calls them all by name.” Isaiah 40:26, “Look up into the heavens. Who created all the stars? He brings them out like an army, one after another, calling each by its name. Because of his great power and incomparable strength, not a single one is missing.”
Ma’adim, ‘the Red One’ is what the Roman’s renamed Mars after their Roman god of War. This is where the term ‘martial arts’ comes from. This is known as the ‘planet of war’ since historically when it is clearly seen, war breaks out on the Earth. During this present transition of Mars being so close to the earth, you can ‘eyeball’ (without telescope) this red wandering star/planet before dawn each morning looking South.
Mars’ pass-by near the earth in was written in Gulliver’s Travel by Jonathan Swift (1667-1745) as he described the 2 moons in Mars. This was discovered to be true in 1877 by a new telescope at the US Naval Observatory.
What really interested me was the Constellation Mars chose to give a magnificent night sky viewing experience this Fall. PISCES. The sign of Pisces means ‘the fishes’, and describes the connection of the Church and Israel, the “One New Man”. (Eph 2:15)
God named this constellation Dagim, ‘the fishes’, which is closely connected with the multitudes, as in Genesis 48:16, when Jacob was blessing Manasseh and Ephraim. The number 2 in Scripture represents ‘multiplication’.
But the sign of Pisces before the Church began was always been interpreted as the nation of Israel. Why two fish? Maybe because while they were strangers here on this earth, Abraham knew there was a heavenly city, whose builder and maker is God. (Hebrews 11:10) Verse 14 of that Chapter in Hebrews said, ‘These all died in faith, not having received the promises, but having seen them afar off were assured of them, embraced them and confessed that they were strangers and pilgrims on the earth.”
The same for the Church, I Peter 2:11 (NLT) tells us, “Dear brothers and sisters, you are foreigners and aliens here.” We may live on this earth, but we are not of this earth! We are divinely tied to Heaven! Strangers are those without a home and pilgrims are those who are journeying home. Just like Father Abraham, we are looking forward to that heavenly city!
Abarbanel, a Jewish commentator, writing on Daniel, affirms that the Sign Pisces always refers to the people of Israel. He gives five reasons for this belief, and also affirms that a conjunction of the planets Jupiter and Saturn always betokens a crisis in the affairs of Israel. Because such a conjunction took place in his day (about 1480 AD), he looked for the coming of Messiah. (Witness of the Stars, E.W. Bullinger, pg 96-97)
The two fish are tied by a cord which is called “al Risha”, in Arabic meaning ‘a common bond’. This is also called “The Band” and is a separate constellation. The ancient Egyptian name for this cord is U-or, which means “He cometh”. Aries, the Ram, is seen with his paws on this band, as though about to loosen the bands and set the captives free, and to fast bind their great oppressor!! Hosea 11:4, “I drew them with gentle cords, with bands of love, and I was with them as those who take the yoke from their neck.”
The common bond that connects the Church and Israel is the making of ‘one new man’ but connecting the Old Covenant and the New Covenant. One is pointing to the North Polar star and the other is on the line of the ecliptic, the path of the Sun.
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