Order of the Orbs
(Part 1 of 3-part novella)
by Michael Mitchell Maxim
Chapt 1_ The Hidden Earth Prophecy
Chapt 2______Six Becomes Seven
Chapter 4
Max clicked his remote and displayed a new image on the screen overhead. In it was the dwarf planet Ceres, and the two super-giants of Jupiter and Saturn. Above the image were two words. Thunder Balls.
Thunder Balls
It is interesting to observe that our tiny dwarf planet Ceres is overshadowed by the two gas super-giants of Jupiter and Saturn that orbit adjacent to Ceres. They appear as two giant eyes watching over tiny Ceres. And that brings us back to Dinah. Bible students will remember the story. In Genesis chapter 34 we read the account of how Dinah was raped by Shechem the Canaanite. And how Simeon and Levi, Dinah’s brothers who were also sons of Leah, avenged her defilement by slaying all the men of the entire Canaanite village. And apparently these two brothers executed this vengeance single-handedly.
When he found out that his sons being filled with rage had slaughtered the nearby Canaanites, Jacob was greatly distressed. These two brothers were both impetuous and extremely bold. They fiercely stood watch over their sister, Dinah. It is interesting to note that planet Jupiter is named for the Roman mythological god of thunder– a god known to throw bolts of lightning in fits of rage. Jupiter and Saturn as the two gas giants in our solar system, orbiting next to tiny Ceres, would appear to provide perfect symbolism for Dinah’s brash brothers of Simeon and Levi, her bold and impetuous avengers and next of kin. Simeon and Levi were truly Thunder Balls.
Just then a thought crossed Max’s mind. Something from a movie. He jammed his foot down and came to a complete halt. A light fog of dust drifted in the air. He turned the key and paused for a moment. He almost immediately noticed that the theater was silent. Every face was intently focused on the speaker. No ringtones had interrupted, and no one was scrolling through apps. He stood in silence as he thought about his audience. They just gazed at him. Waiting for more.
So Max turned the key again to fire the engine. And stomped the accelerator. Rocks, gravel, and thick dust flew violently as he fishtailed forward. “Screw it. I guess they’re along for the ride.” In his mind Max heard the roar of the engine and the shifting of gears. And felt the g-force pulling him back. He made only a flash whip of his head with a glance from the corner of his eye to see who was still with him. It was the whole gang. They were all hanging on for dear life. Truth is not for the meek. Max then thought about the years of getting to this point. All of his research that defied the experts. “Maybe I’m not Mad after all.” Then in a blink he was back on stage. Under the thunder.
In the New Testament we find a parallel to the twelve sons of Jacob recorded in the Old Testament. This parallel is the twelve apostles selected by Jesus. But we know that one of these twelve, Judas, was a traitor known by Jesus from the very beginning. And this Judas was never truly of the twelve. If you choose you can look that up later.
Max posted a graphic listing three Bible verses on screen.
II Timothy 2:19
John 6:64
I John 2:19
So during Jesus’ ministry there were only eleven true disciples who would become apostles; and these apostles were the first of His spiritual brethren. But Jesus himself is described in scripture as being an “apostle.” It thereby follows that as Joseph was a prophetic fore-type of Jesus, in like fashion Joseph and his eleven brothers are prophetic fore-types of Jesus and his eleven apostles. Twelve apostles. Including Jesus. And twelve brothers. Including Joseph. Magnifying this parallel, we have the record where Jesus stated that His apostles would be assigned leadership of the twelve tribes of Israel in God’s kingdom, just as Joseph and his brothers became founders and leaders of the twelve tribes in ancient Judea.
Max read the scripture to the watchers:
So Jesus said to them, “Assuredly I say to you, that in the regeneration, when the Son of Man sits on the throne of His glory, you who have followed Me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.
(Matthew 19:28 NKJV)
Additionally, Joseph was not just one man among eleven friends or associates, but rather one brother among eleven other brothers. And such is the association between Jesus and the eleven disciples. Jesus became the Firstborn among many brethren. Jesus’ eleven disciples became the first of His spiritual brothers when they received the Holy Spirit made possible by His sacrifice. Jesus was one brother among eleven other brothers, just as Joseph was one brother among eleven other brothers.
Max once again used his remote to project a new image on the screen overhead. Above the image were the words PAIRED PLANETS.
Understanding this fact that Joseph and his eleven brothers prophetically parallel Jesus and His eleven apostles, we can make another observation regarding our 13 planets. Observe in the graphic image overhead that the eight true planets of our solar system are grouped into four pairs. This has become a common practice in graphical depictions demonstrating comparative size of our planets.
Paired Planets
Jupiter – Saturn
Uranus – Neptune
Earth – Venus
Mercury – Mars
As you see, Jupiter is paired with Saturn. Uranus is paired with Neptune. Earth is matched with Venus. And Mercury is matched with Mars. Now notice a parallel to this pairing of the planets. Our New Testament record of Jesus’ ministry on earth provides for us some of the details of His selection of the men who would become His apostles. It appears He selected all of His disciples in pairs, either as brothers, or as close friends. Peter and Andrew were called as brothers. As were James and John. Then shortly after His selection of the twelve, Jesus began to send these young men out, two-by-two, to preach the gospel. Matthew chapter 10 lists these apostles-to-be as six pairs: Peter and Andrew, James and John, Philip and Bartholomew, Thomas and Matthew, James and Lebbaeus, Simon and Judas. The twelve are also listed as six pairs in Luke chapter 6. So just as the planets that symbolized Jacob’s sons have come to be matched in pairs, in exact parallel the disciples who became apostles are also depicted in matched pairs. The planets of our solar system were created by the Creator to be prophetic symbols of both Joseph and his brothers in ancient Egypt, and ultimately Jesus and His apostles ruling the Kingdom of God.
Once again Max’s speech was paused by thoughts that came flooding into his mind. He saw a pair of dice rolling in slow motion and settling on two twos. And immediately he felt an impetus to add a comment to his presentation though he had no graphic to display on the screen.
It is interesting to note that a pair of dice will produce six matched pairs. Double-one through double-six. For a total of twelve. Twelve paired brothers.
This is how Max had acquired all of the key information he was presenting to his audience. It just came to him through inspiration, rolling into his mind. Roll after roll. But Max knew it was not a game. And it wasn’t chance. He knew it was divine inspiration.
Now regarding these twelve disciples who became the twelve apostles, focus your attention on the second pair, the two brothers of James and John, the sons of Zebedee. Jesus named these two young men “Boanerges.” Which means “sons of thunder.” From this naming it appears that James and John were very bold of nature. And we see this boldness manifested in the biblical record where James and John approach Jesus with an almost unbelievable request.
Max displayed the scripture overhead and began reading.
Then James and John, the sons of Zebedee, came to Him, saying, “Teacher, we want You to do for us whatever we ask.” And He said to them, “What do you want Me to do for you?” They said to Him, “Grant us that we may sit, one on Your right hand and the other on Your left, in Your glory.”
(Mark 10:35-37 NKJV)
This is an extremely bold request. In fact it was so bold that it very much angered the ten other disciples under Jesus’ tutelage who were appalled that James and John would seek to be granted the two highest positions in Jesus’ government over His Father’s Kingdom.
Exploring further, we find a second event where James and John were equally as bold in asking their Master a question. It is in the book of Luke.
Max displayed the scripture overhead and began reading:
Now it came to pass, when the time had come for Him to be received up, that He steadfastly set His face to go to Jerusalem, and sent messengers before His face. And as they went, they entered a village of the Samaritans, to prepare for Him. But they did not receive Him, because His face was set for the journey to Jerusalem. And when His disciples James and John saw this, they said, “Lord, do You want us to command fire to come down from heaven and consume them, just as Elijah did?”
(Luke 9:51-54 NKJV)
Once again we see dramatically bold behavior coming from the sons of thunder who desired to command fire down from heaven. Like bolts of lightning.
In light of this passage it is interesting to note that Saturn is the only planet other than Earth where enormous lightning storms have been observed by scientists. This was recorded in photos taken by the Cassini space probe in April of 2010. So as we’ve previously seen, planet Jupiter is named for the god of thunder; and on planet Saturn we see bolts of lightning. These two planets would appear not only to parallel Jacob’s sons of Simeon and Levi, but also to be a perfect parallel for James and John, the two apostles Jesus named Boanerges– sons of thunder.
Contemplating these sons of thunder, we might ask the question– Is there any indication in scripture which one of these two planets might represent James, and which one John? Well there is. At least possibly. When we look at the thirteen planets we see quite visibly that there is one planet that truly stands separate from the rest. The planet Saturn. Only Saturn is encircled with a brilliant crown of rings. And when we look at the life of the apostles there is likewise one apostle who stands separate from the rest. The apostle John.
John’s brother James was the first of the apostles to be martyred. We find that in Acts 12:2. But in contrast John himself was the last of the apostles to die. No exact date is known for John’s death but it is commonly estimated that he lived some 40 years beyond the death of the other apostles. There is also a widely believed Christian tradition that John was the youngest of Jesus’ 12 disciples. Yet John’s long life eventually made him the oldest apostle when he was laid to rest in Ephesus. This extraordinary length of life gives John a unique place in church history. For it is John who wrote the book of Revelation and finalized the canon of scripture around the close of the first century. So why was John afforded this extra length of life that the other apostles were not? The answer might be found in John’s first writing… the Gospel of John. In this book John describes a disciple of Jesus who Jesus befriended differently than the others. Five times John describes this young man as the “disciple whom Jesus loved.”
Max displayed five verses on the screen overhead. John 13:23, John 19:26, John 20:2, John 21:7, John 21:20. And John 21:24. Then he continued.
John then clarifies that these accounts of the “beloved” disciple are actually references to himself, the author of the book of John. John was the disciple whom Jesus loved. This unique relationship with Jesus the Messiah may be why John was afforded such a longer life than the other apostles. And it may be that this endearing and unique relationship with Jesus was prophesied many millennia ago when a crown of rings was placed on the planet Saturn. So as the planets Jupiter and Saturn are a perfect parallel to the brothers of James and John whom Jesus named Boanerges, it certainly may be that John’s special relationship with Jesus is symbolized by Saturn’s unique crown of rings. As the disciple whom Jesus loved, John was unique among the other apostles. In like fashion Saturn with its rings is unique among all the other planets. So following this pattern when looking at the two sons of thunder, John would be symbolized by Saturn and James would be symbolized by Jupiter.
Having made this observation, it becomes all the more interesting to notice that in ancient Egypt Joseph had a unique and special relationship with one of his eleven brothers as well. It was the youngest of his brothers– Benjamin. Benjamin was Joseph’s only full brother, being born to Rachel. And being the youngest of the 12 sons of Jacob, Benjamin held a special place in Joseph’s heart, just as John, the youngest of the disciples, held a special place in Jesus’ heart.
Bible fact is stranger than fiction. James and John, the “sons of thunder,” like Simeon and Levi of old, are well symbolized by the two super giants of Jupiter and Saturn– the true planetary sons of thunder in our solar system.
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M M Maxim 