The Stars: Exhibit the Greatness of God's Power
Jump to: Torrey'sLibrarySubtopicsTerms
Topical Encyclopedia
The stars, as celestial bodies created by God, serve as a profound testament to His infinite power and majesty. Throughout the Bible, the stars are frequently mentioned as symbols of God's creative authority and His meticulous order in the universe. The vastness and beauty of the starry heavens invite believers to reflect on the greatness of God and His sovereign control over all creation.

Creation of the Stars

The creation of the stars is recorded in the book of Genesis, where it is stated, "And God said, 'Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to separate the day from the night, and let them serve as signs to mark seasons and days and years, and let them serve as lights in the expanse of the sky to shine upon the earth.' And it was so. God made two great lights—the greater light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the night—and He made the stars as well" (Genesis 1:14-16). This passage underscores the intentionality and purpose behind the creation of the stars, as they are not only decorative but serve practical functions in marking time and seasons.

Stars as a Measure of God's Power

The sheer number and complexity of the stars are often used in Scripture to illustrate God's omnipotence. In Isaiah 40:26, the prophet declares, "Lift up your eyes on high: Who created all these? He who brings out the starry host one by one, calling each by name. Because of His great power and mighty strength, not one of them is missing" . This verse emphasizes that God not only created the stars but also sustains them, demonstrating His unparalleled power and attention to detail.

Stars in the Psalms

The Psalms frequently reflect on the stars as evidence of God's glory. Psalm 8:3-4 states, "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?" . Here, the psalmist marvels at the vastness of the heavens and the stars, which highlight the contrast between God's grandeur and human insignificance, yet also His care for humanity.

Stars as a Symbol of God's Faithfulness

The stars also serve as a symbol of God's faithfulness and His covenant promises. In Genesis 15:5, God takes Abraham outside and says, "Look now at the heavens and count the stars, if you are able. Then He told him, 'So shall your offspring be'" . The innumerable stars become a metaphor for the countless descendants promised to Abraham, illustrating God's unwavering commitment to His promises.

Stars in Prophecy and Revelation

In prophetic literature, stars often symbolize significant events or divine intervention. For instance, in the book of Daniel, stars are used metaphorically to describe the righteous: "Those who are wise will shine like the brightness of the heavens, and those who lead many to righteousness, like the stars forever and ever" (Daniel 12:3). In the New Testament, the book of Revelation uses stars as symbols of angels and churches, further demonstrating their role in God's divine plan (Revelation 1:20).

Conclusion

The stars, in their vast number and radiant beauty, are a powerful testament to the greatness of God's power. They serve as a constant reminder of His creative authority, His faithfulness, and His sovereign control over the universe. Through the stars, believers are invited to contemplate the majesty of God and His intimate involvement in the cosmos.
Torrey's Topical Textbook
Psalm 8:3
When I consider your heavens, the work of your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have ordained;
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Isaiah 40:26
Lift up your eyes on high, and behold who has created these things, that brings out their host by number: he calls them all by names by the greatness of his might, for that he is strong in power; not one fails.
Torrey's Topical Textbook

Library

The Treasure of Grace
... did he delight in those doctrines that exhibit the freeness ... feed there is countless
as the stars of heaven ... to another point to illustrate the greatness of the ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 6 1860/the treasure of grace.htm

On Repentance and Remission of Sins, and Concerning the Adversary.
... on a nativity, nor on a conjunction of stars, as some ... Thou hast seen the greatness
of his evil deeds: come ... Roe and Casaubon, exhibit a recension of the Lecture ...
/.../cyril/lectures of s cyril of jerusalem/lecture ii on repentance and.htm

The Sovereignty of God in Operation
... sun itself to stand still, and the stars in their ... they might know "what is the exceeding
greatness of His ... of miraculous signs which he was to exhibit at the ...
/.../pink/the sovereignty of god/chapter six the sovereignty of.htm

The Christ of the Gospels. By Rev. Professor Schaff.
... of Eden, "when the morning stars sang together ... His greatness is singularly
unostentatious, modest, and quiet ... same proportion in which they exhibit their virtues. ...
/.../the christ of the gospels.htm

Saved by Grace;
... him; the obedience of the sun, moon, stars, clouds, and ... That it is not the greatness
of sin that excludeth ... content without the power and Spirit of God in your ...
/.../bunyan/the works of john bunyan volumes 1-3/saved by grace.htm

Abbott -- the Divinity in Humanity
... in man of dormant possibilities of greatness and nobility ... something which the sun
does not exhibit, and makes ... men through movements of the stars, through all ...
/.../kleiser/the worlds great sermons volume 8/abbott the divinity in.htm

Thomas Traherne and the Spiritual Poets of the Seventeenth Century
... They exhibit, in their loose and unmoralized freedom, the ... filleth the whole world,
and the stars are your ... every man in respect to the greatness of Christ's love ...
/.../chapter xvii thomas traherne and.htm

Christian Stewardship.
... Then I thought of the greatness of the task, if ... of those who fell from heaven like
stars to eternal ... equipage, his dress and his table, exhibit some appearance ...
/.../dibble/thoughts on missions/chapter ii christian stewardship.htm

The Knowledge of God Conspicuous in the Creation, and Continual ...
... put out the light intended to exhibit God clearly to ... counting the number of the stars,
ascertaining their ... his works, declaring that his greatness will thereby ...
/.../calvin/the institutes of the christian religion/chapter 5 the knowledge of.htm

Israel in Egypt
... May God the Holy Spirit enable me to exhibit the parallel ... be for a season, even as
the stars refuse to ... now be seized with sudden fear; by the greatness of thy ...
/.../spurgeon/spurgeons sermons volume 3 1857/israel in egypt.htm

Resources
What do the seven stars represent in Revelation? | GotQuestions.org

How can the light of stars billions of light years away from the earth have reached us if the earth is only thousands of years old? | GotQuestions.org

What does the Bible say about astrology and the zodiac? Is astrology something a Christian should study? | GotQuestions.org

Stars: Dictionary and Thesaurus | Clyx.com

Bible ConcordanceBible DictionaryBible EncyclopediaTopical BibleBible Thesuarus
Subtopics

Stars

Stars of the Deliverer

Stars: Comets

Stars: Constellations of

Stars: Created by God

Stars: Crown of Twelve Stars

Stars: Darkening of

Stars: Differ in Splendor

Stars: Falling of

Stars: Orion

Stars: Planets

Stars: Serpent

Stars: Seven Stars of the Seven Congregations

Stars: The Morning Star

Stars: Worship of, Forbidden

Stars: Worshiped

The Stars of Angels

The Stars of Christ

The Stars of Ministers

The Stars of Princes and Subordinate Governors

The Stars: (Bright and Morning Star) of Christ

The Stars: (Morning Star) of Glory to be Given to Faithful Saints

The Stars: (Setting the Nest Amongst) Pride and Carnal Security

The Stars: (Shining of) the Reward of Faithful Ministers

The Stars: (Wandering) False Teachers

The Stars: (Withdrawing Their Light) Severe Judgments

The Stars: Appear After Sunset

The Stars: Appear of Different Magnitudes

The Stars: Arcturus

The Stars: Astrology and Star-Gazing Practised by the Babylonians

The Stars: Called: Stars of Heaven

The Stars: Called: Stars of Light

The Stars: Called: The Host of Heaven

The Stars: Exhibit the Greatness of God's Power

The Stars: False Gods Frequently Worshipped Under the Representation of

The Stars: God: Appointed to Give Light by Night

The Stars: God: Created

The Stars: God: Established, for Ever

The Stars: God: Numbers and Names

The Stars: God: Obscures

The Stars: God: Set, in the Firmament of Heaven

The Stars: Idolaters Worshipped

The Stars: Impure in the Sight of God

The Stars: Infinite in Number

The Stars: Made to Praise God

The Stars: Mazzaroth

The Stars: Morning Star

The Stars: One of Extraordinary Brightness Appeared at Christ's Birth

The Stars: Orion

The Stars: Pleiades

The Stars: Punishment for Worshipping

The Stars: Revolve in Fixed Orbits

The Stars: Shine in the Firmament of Heaven

The Stars: The Israelites Forbidden to Worship

The Stars: Use of, in Navigation, Alluded To

The Stars: when Grouped Together Called Constellations

Related Terms

Lord'the (1 Occurrence)

Is'the (1 Occurrence)

The (669438 Occurrences)

Oak-the (1 Occurrence)

Saying'the (1 Occurrence)

Jok'the-el (1 Occurrence)

The-oph'ilus (2 Occurrences)

The-not-beloved (1 Occurrence)

Ko'hathites (19 Occurrences)

Kohathite (18 Occurrences)

Kir'iath-je'arim (18 Occurrences)

Zin (9 Occurrences)

Zarephath (4 Occurrences)

Kirjathjearim (17 Occurrences)

Vintage (14 Occurrences)

Kore (4 Occurrences)

Knives (12 Occurrences)

Zidonians (11 Occurrences)

Kareah (14 Occurrences)

Vegetation (18 Occurrences)

Kanah (3 Occurrences)

Vine-dressers (18 Occurrences)

Vicinity (18 Occurrences)

Zeboim (7 Occurrences)

Kadeshbarnea (9 Occurrences)

Kare'ah (14 Occurrences)

Volition

Kol

Kirjath-jearim (17 Occurrences)

Vashti (10 Occurrences)

Zabdi (17 Occurrences)

Knitted (9 Occurrences)

Kids (12 Occurrences)

Killeth (23 Occurrences)

Vial (12 Occurrences)

Zelophehad (9 Occurrences)

Home-born (14 Occurrences)

Kingship (17 Occurrences)

Kadesh-barnea (9 Occurrences)

Zealot (4 Occurrences)

Kibroth-hattaavah (5 Occurrences)

Kibrothhattaavah (5 Occurrences)

Victorious (17 Occurrences)

Zacchaeus (3 Occurrences)

Zenas (1 Occurrence)

Kneel (10 Occurrences)

Zachariah (6 Occurrences)

Kebar (8 Occurrences)

Kerethites (9 Occurrences)

Zeeb (3 Occurrences)

Zoheleth (1 Occurrence)

Zarethan (4 Occurrences)

Kinnereth (7 Occurrences)

Knowledge

Knelt (20 Occurrences)

Visible (12 Occurrences)

Zeus (3 Occurrences)

Ziph (9 Occurrences)

Zebadiah (9 Occurrences)

Zorah (10 Occurrences)

Kenite (9 Occurrences)

Kick (8 Occurrences)

Kedar (11 Occurrences)

Zichri (12 Occurrences)

Ko'rahites (6 Occurrences)

Zeru'iah (24 Occurrences)

Kei'lah (16 Occurrences)

24000 (10 Occurrences)

Vapor (6 Occurrences)

Vanished (13 Occurrences)

Verdict (7 Occurrences)

Violated (23 Occurrences)

Knop (4 Occurrences)

Visiting (10 Occurrences)

Zaphon (4 Occurrences)

Zephani'ah (10 Occurrences)

Zaccur (10 Occurrences)

Koz (5 Occurrences)

Kadmiel (8 Occurrences)

The Stars: Called: The Host of Heaven
Top of Page
Top of Page