How thankful we are for the completed, written Scriptures which are the full and final revelation of God for man. Our Bible is the verbally inspired Word of God that will never pass away. But was there a revelation of God to man before the Scriptures were written? In addition to His Word through men such as Enoch (Jude 14), many think that God prophetically revealed His great plan of redemption to early man in the stars and their constellations. If so, our believing ancestors from Adam to Abraham were likely just as grateful for their "star Bible" as we are for the written Bible.

There are many Scriptures which support this idea. Psalm 19 is divided into two parts: verses 1-6 speak of the heavens, and verses 7-14 deal with the Word of God. Thus we have God's two-fold revelation to man, both in the starry heavens—a universal message to all men, and in His written Word—an individual message to every human being. The divine message they proclaim is the same, as Christ is the main theme of both. "The heavens declare the glory of God; and the firmament showeth His handiwork. Day unto day uttereth speech, and night unto night showeth knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their line is gone out through all the earth, and their words to the end of the world" (Psalm 19:1-4). This specially coded message reaches everybody of every nation, of every tongue, night after night. No one can stop this gospel message, nor destroy it, though Satan has tried to hide its true meaning.

In the creation account we read that stars were part of the lights created to be not only "for seasons, and for days," but also for "signs" in the sky (Genesis 1:14). As we shall see, God has provided in the stars a witness to mankind of the coming Redeemer who would save fallen man from the enemy (Satan), destroy the enemy and his power, though being Himself wounded in the process, and finally establish His own kingdom of righteousness.

Not only did God create the stars and place them in their constellations, but He also gave them their names, and it is through the meaning of these names that the gospel message in the stars becomes apparent. Because they were given from a common source, the meanings of these names are the same in the records of the Hebrews, Aztecs, Babylonians, Egyptians, Chinese, and others. The following chart shows the names of ten of the brightest stars in the sky and their meanings.

Romans 1:19,20 also provides evidence regarding the purpose of the stars and of all creation: "Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them. For the invisible things of Him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even His eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse."

Job 38:32 gives more detail concerning the sign language in the heavens. God asks Job, "Canst thou bring forth Mazzaroth in his season?" Scholars agree that Mazzaroth refers to the twelve signs of the zodiac and their associated constellations (decans). This Scripture tells us that God Himself designed and established the parade of these "signs" regularly through the sky month by month each year. The following chart gives the Greek names for the signs and a brief summary of the meanings seen through their names.

For many of us, the fact that the Scriptures mention the zodiac may come as a surprise, as we have only thought of these things in relation to the evils of astrology, which is a major part of the occult revolution taking place in our society today. Since we have the written Word, we no longer need to depend on the "star Bible," yet it is encouraging to faith that the gospel message is revealed in the stars.