Unleashing the Beast

C OSMIC S IGNS AND L AST D AYS P ROPHECY / 247

king star in the heavenly constellations. Another example showing the connection of Biblical symbols to the signs in the heavens is Revelation 1:16. John saw Christ in heaven holding seven stars in His right hand. These seven stars represent the pastors of the seven churches listed in Revelation 2 and 3 (see Revelation 1:20). There were certainly more than seven leading churches at the time John wrote this. Why did Christ choose these particular seven churches to receive His prophetic message? History reveals that the seven churches mentioned in Revelation 2 and 3 were all located in Asia Minor, or what is today modern Turkey. All were located at the base of the Taurus Mountains. The parallel is this: In the heavens, there is a constellation called Taurus, the bull; in the ancient Jewish Temple, a bull offering was designated for the high priest (Leviticus 3:6-14). Within the constellation Taurus is a star cluster called the Pleiades. It consists of a main star surrounded by seven other stars. The word Pleiades means "congregation of the ruler." The Arabic name is al-Cyclone, meaning center, because ancient Jews and Arabs considered the Pleiades the center of the universe. How significant it is that the Pleiades, with one star surrounded by seven others, is in the constellation Taurus, and the seven churches were located at the base of the Taurus Mountains! (The Pleiades is mentioned in the Bible in Job 9:9 and Job 38:31). Christ had seven stars in His right hand, and He addressed the seven churches. We can see that this vision of Christ has a parallel star picture in