Hebrew Astronomy: Part 8 The Stars and the Serpent

There was a Serpent in the Garden of Eden. When the ISV translates Genesis 3, it calls him, the Shining One.

Genesis 3 v 1 (ISV)

Now the Shining One was more clever than any animal of the field that the LORD God had made.

In Hebrew, the word we translate as The Serpent, is ‘Ha-Nachash’. ‘Ha’, in this context means ‘The’ and ‘Nachash’ is usually translated as snake. However, due to the ambiguity in Ancient Hebrew, you could translate it in the following three different ways:

• The Shining One

• The Writhing One

• The Deceiving One

Traditionally, the translators have opted for The Writhing One, The Serpent. As the word relates to snakes later in the Scriptures. But it is feasible to pick one of the other options.

The Serpent, Snakes and Angels

In the story of Moses and the snake on the pole, we find some interesting connections between the serpent and the angels.

Numbers 21 v 6-9

So the LORD sent venomous snakes (Nachash) among the people, and many of the Israelites were bitten and died.

Then the people came to Moses and said, “We have sinned by speaking against the LORD and against you. Intercede with the LORD so He will take the snakes (Nachash) away from us.” So Moses interceded for the people.

Then the LORD said to Moses, “Make a fiery serpent (Saraph) and mount it on a pole. When anyone who is bitten looks at it, he will live.” So Moses made a bronze snake (Nachash) and mounted it on a pole. If anyone who was bitten looked at the bronze snake (Nachash), he would live.

Because of the peoples’ complaining, God sends snakes (Nachash) to bite them. They repent and ask God for help. So God tells Moses to make a snake (Saraph). Moses instead makes a Nachash and puts it on the pole. When the people look at the Nachash, they are healed.

Moses is commanded to make a Saraph, but makes a Nachesh instead. So there appears to be a connection between Nachash and Saraph.

Saraph is mentioned again in Scripture, in the Book Isaiah.

Isaiah 6 v 2

Above him were seraphim (Saraph), each with six wings: With two wings they covered their faces, with two they covered their feet, and with two they were flying.

Seraphim are similar to the snake on the pole. This implies these angels are winged snakes. When God curses The Serpent, He says he will crawl on his belly. It’s as though The Serpent has his wings removed.

As angels are metaphorically represented by stars. It creates a link between The Serpent and the stars.

Serpents and Planets

In regard to Hebrew astronomy, the three descriptors of The Serpent in Genesis can relate to the planets.

• Planets shine. They are a shining ones.

• Planets writhe. When looking at the planets from the Earth, we see that they move in a retrograde motion. Sometimes they circle back on themselves, and sometimes they make an S-shape in the sky (almost like a snake).

• Planets deceive. When we look at the night sky, we could conclude that the planets have an orbit which wanders. But in fact, we know through astronomy, that the planets orbit in an elliptic and the retrograde motion is just a deceptive illusion. The astronomical term for this illusionary orbit is called ‘synodic’. The actual movement of the planets is described as the ‘sidereal’ orbit.

My proposal is the Hebrews were aware of both the sidereal and synodic orbits. This is a controversial view, but I believe there is enough evidence in my research on Genesis 5 to make a strong case. Read more here:

Conclusion

The Serpent in the Garden was an angel. He was likely a Seraphim, a throne guardian, metaphorically similar to a flying snake. On Earth, he became The Nachesh and after tempting Eve, he had his ‘wings’ removed. There is a link between The Nachesh and the Seraphim.

The Seraphim may metaphorically be linked to the planets through the meanings behind the name, Ha-Nachesh. So when the ancient Hebrews looked up at the sky and saw the planets, they may have seen them as guardians to the Throne of God in the Highest Heavens.

In this post, I have linked some concepts which seem to fit nicely together, but I am aware I am relying on conjecture. And I wonder if this is a stretch too far. In any case, it is worthy of more research, looking at other ancient cultures and seeing if there are other similar serpent/planet motifs.

For example, the Gorgons in Greek mythology where serpent creatures and Quetzalcoatl in Aztec myth was a feathered serpent related to the planet Venus.

Also we need to consider the link between the ancient gods and planets too. After all, most of the planets are named after Roman gods. The Bible treats the ancient gods as created beings who fell after the nations began worshipping them.

In my next post, I will talk about the flashing sword which guards the way to the Garden of Eden.