Topical Bible: The Stars: God: Numbers and Names

◄ The Stars: God: Numbers and Names ►

Jump to: Torrey's • Library • Subtopics • Terms

Topical Encyclopedia

The stars, as part of God's creation, hold a significant place in the biblical narrative, reflecting His power, wisdom, and sovereignty. The Bible frequently references the stars to illustrate God's majesty and the vastness of His creation.

Creation and Purpose

The stars were created by God on the fourth day of creation, as recorded in Genesis 1:16: "God made two great lights—the greater light to govern the day and the lesser light to govern the night. He also made the stars." This passage underscores the stars' role in marking time and seasons, serving as signs for humanity.

God's Sovereignty and Knowledge

The Bible emphasizes God's intimate knowledge and control over the stars. In Psalm 147:4, it is written, "He determines the number of the stars; He calls them each by name." This verse highlights God's omniscience and personal involvement with His creation, suggesting that each star is known and named by Him, reflecting His meticulous care and authority.

Symbolism and Significance

Stars often symbolize God's guidance and presence. In the account of Abraham, God uses the stars to illustrate His promise of countless descendants: "Look now at the heavens and count the stars, if you are able to count them. Then He said to him, 'So shall your offspring be'" (Genesis 15:5). This imagery conveys the vastness of God's promises and His ability to fulfill them beyond human comprehension.

Stars in Prophecy and Revelation

Stars also appear in prophetic and apocalyptic literature, symbolizing divine messages and cosmic events. In the book of Job, the stars are associated with God's creative power and the mysteries of the universe: "Can you bind the chains of the Pleiades or loosen the belt of Orion?" (Job 38:31). This rhetorical question underscores God's unmatched power over the cosmos.

In the New Testament, the star of Bethlehem is a pivotal sign of Christ's birth, guiding the Magi to the newborn King: "After they had heard the king, they went on their way, and the star they had seen in the east went ahead of them until it stood over the place where the child was" (Matthew 2:9). This event signifies divine intervention and the fulfillment of messianic prophecy.

God's Glory and Human Response

The stars, in their vast number and beauty, evoke a response of awe and worship. Psalm 8:3-4 reflects this sentiment: "When I behold Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You set in place—what is man that You are mindful of him, or the son of man that You care for him?" The stars serve as a reminder of God's grandeur and the humility of humanity in the face of His creation.

In summary, the stars in the Bible are a testament to God's creative power, His intimate knowledge of the universe, and His sovereign control over all things. They serve as symbols of His promises, His guidance, and His glory, inviting believers to respond with reverence and trust in the Creator.

Torrey's Topical Textbook

Psalm 147:4
He tells the number of the stars; he calls them all by their names.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

God's Barriers against Man's Sin
... Let your eyes behold the stars; God alone can tell their numbers, yet he calls them
all by names; by him they are marshalled in their spheres, and travel ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 4 1858/gods barriers against mans sin.htm

All Association with Idols is to be Avoided.
... to swear by the sun, or by the moon, or by the stars; nor by ... who glorify imaginary
beings instead of those that are real, whom God for their ... 3050] Numbers 25:3. ...
/.../constitutions of the holy apostles/sec ii all association with idols.htm

Psalm CXLVII.
... His understanding is no numbering." He who "numbereth the stars," Himself cannot ...
God: too little is it to say, to God: even by ... Numbers themselves who numbereth ...
/.../augustine/exposition on the book of psalms/psalm cxlvii.htm

The Eternity of God
... Job 38:8. When the morning stars sang together, and all ... the worm, the fire, the curse
of God, all these ... In the sacrifice of jealousy, Numbers 5:55, no oil was ...
//christianbookshelf.org/watson/a body of divinity/3 the eternity of god.htm

The Arians are Condemned by the Holy Spirit through the Mouth of ...
... fall to the lot of the Wisdom of God to know ... connection of the Vergili?? and of the
other stars, or of ... number or names, as does He "Who numbers the multitude ...
/.../ambrose/works and letters of st ambrose/chapter xvi the arians are.htm

The Anathemas against Origen.
... say that the sun, the moon and the stars are also ... all will be placed at the right
hand of God, as well ... one, when the hypostases as well as the numbers and the ...
/.../schaff/the seven ecumenical councils/the anathemas against origen.htm

On the Formation of the Character of Believers, and on Giving of ...
... a full heart and a willing soul sings, "The chariot of God is ten ... The choir of stars
strikes us with admiration, declaring Him that numbers them, and ...
/.../various/constitutions of the holy apostles/sec ii on the formation of.htm

The Lamb of God, the Great Atonement
... The innumerable stars, the worlds, which however large in themselves ... by looking to
the brazen serpent (Numbers 21:9 ... of every man in the sight of God: and that ...
//christianbookshelf.org/newton/messiah vol 1/sermon xvi the lamb of.htm

City of God
... Chapter 15.--Concerning Certain Stars Which the Pagans Have Called by ... by Which the
Holy Angels Know God in His ... Six, Which is the First of the Numbers Which is ...
//christianbookshelf.org/augustine/city of god/

The Story of God's Mighty Acts
... windows of heaven, and quenched the very stars of God ... congregation have begun to
depend upon our numbers and so ... We may have thought: "Surely God must bless us ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 5 1859/the story of gods mighty.htm