"Its tail swept a third of the stars out of the sky and flung them to the earth." My wife and I have been talking about the end coming for a good while now. Revelation is a maze of cryptic messages that is up to us to interpret correctly. How many of these Movie Stars, Rap Stars, Rock Stars are going to fall? Watch for the signs for the return of our Lord and Savior
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The hermeneutic used to interpret the stars in Revelation 12:4 as angels who fell is largely based on the context of the passage, symbolic language, and intertextual connections within the book of Revelation and other biblical texts. We should always allow the biblical texts to interpret themselves whenever possible.
Context: In Revelation 12, the passage describes a great red dragon (Satan) who sweeps a third of the stars out of the sky with his tail. This is followed by a description of a cosmic battle between the dragon and the archangel Michael. The context suggests a celestial and spiritual conflict rather than a literal event.
Symbolic Language: The book of Revelation is known for its extensive use of symbolic language. Stars are often used symbolically to represent angels or heavenly beings in the Bible (Job 38:7; Daniel 8:10; Revelation 1:20). In this context, the stars being swept from the sky by the dragon likely symbolize angels who rebelled against God and were cast out of heaven.
Intertextual Connections: The imagery of a dragon and stars can be traced back to Old Testament passages such as Isaiah 14:12-15 and Ezekiel 28:12-17, which are often interpreted as referring to the fall of Satan and his rebellion against God. These passages provide a backdrop for understanding the symbolism in Revelation 12.
Consistency with Other Biblical Themes: The idea of angels falling from heaven due to pride and rebellion is a consistent theme in the Bible. For example, Lucifer's fall is described in Isaiah 14:12-15, and Jesus himself refers to seeing Satan fall like lightning from heaven (Luke 10:18).
Understanding the Old Testament symbols and imagery is key to understanding/decoding the book of Revelation.
P Diddlers high school is called Mount St Michael and has that famous statue of St Michael the Archangel slaying Satan… right in front of the school.