Leo, The Lion [Middle English, from Old French, from Latin leo, leon-, from Greek leon, of Semitic origin Hebrew labi’], contains the bright stars Regulus and Denebola and is on the Meridian on April 10. Leo was recognized as a lion by the ancient Sumerians, Babylonians, Persians, Syrians, Greeks, and Romans. In the ancient Chinese zodiac it was a figure of a horse. The Incan lore represented a springing puma.
The very early Sumerians saw in the curve of stars we call the Sickle an asterism they knew as Gismes, the "curved weapon." Just why these stars came to be known as a lion is disputed. Some say the Sun was among them during the hottest days of summer in the last two millennia B.C., they were associated with the most powerful beast known.
Others say that because the lions came to cool themselves on the banks of the Nile in summer, people connected them with the constellation through which the Sun passed at that time of year.
The Sickle is recognized as a backwards question mark or fishhook opposite of the Aquarius lucky stars. In the New Testament the Greek word for sickle is (Drepano) a pruning-hook, a sickle used figuratively as the instrument of God’s judgment in Mark 4:29; Rev. 14:4,15,16,17,18,19.
The Sun lies within this constellation from August 12 to September 17.
Revelation 5:6 "And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts (one was like a lion), and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth."
In Arabic, Hebrew, Coptic, or Syriac the name of this constellation means "He That Rends, That Tears Asunder." The lion is a majestic, kingly, and noble creature. It is king of beasts in the jungle and spiritually represented by the King of Kings.
In the OT:
From the NT:
The word "lion" (panthera leo) appears 98 times and with "lion’s" and "lionesses," they total about 150 places in Scripture. Daniel’s testing in the lion’s den (Dan. 6) demonstrate an oriental rulers use of the lion as a means of execution, and protection by the Almighty. The Lion "mighty among beast, who retreats before nothing" (Prov. 30:30) symbolizes the unvanquished hero. The lion is shown in a orthostat found in Hazor dated to 1500-1200 B.C.
Hosea 13:7,8 "Therefore I will be unto them as a lion: as a leopard by the way will I observe them… them as a bear that is bereaved of her whelps, and will rend the caul of their heart, and there will I devour them like a lion: the wild beast shall tear them". Note: "He That Tears Asunder."
Revelation 5:5 "Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book".
We see a connection between the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world, and the Lion of the Tribe of Judah. Lion of Judah, is a symbol of the Israeli tribe of Judah. At His first coming into this world, Jesus, as the Lamb of God, came meekly and humbly to lay down His life, and to shed His blood for the sins of the world. As the Lion of God, which represents His second coming, where He shall come in great power and glory. Leo is clearly and incontestable that this is a picture of the destruction of the wicked.
Daniel described Babylon as a winged lion--a religious symbol used in the ancient pagan world--while Peter warned his contemporaries that the devil prowls around like a roaring lion (1 Peter 5:8).
Epiphany is a Christian feast celebrating the manifestation of the divine nature of Jesus to the Gentiles as represented by the Magi.
[Middle English epiphanie, from Old French, from Late Latin epiphania, from Greek epiphaneia, manifestation, from epiphainesthai, to appear : epi-, forth; see EPI- + phainein, phan-, to show].
"Epiphany or "Little Christmas", is a holy festival observed on January 6 in the Roman Catholic, Anglican, Eastern and other Christian churches.
Originally Epiphany was the term marking a feast to celebrate the baptism of Christ (Matt. 3:16-17) and still does so in the churches of the Eastern Orthodoxy. The Lord had similarly "revealed his glory" at his first miracle in Cana of Galilee (John 2:11). From the fourth century, however, Epiphany has been linked with Christ’s manifestation of himself to the Magi, the first Gentiles who believed in him (Matt. 2:1-12).
The Magi (Gr. magoi) were members of the Zoroastrian priestly caste of the Medes and Persians. Also considered are the wise men from the East who traveled to Bethlehem to pay homage to the infant Jesus. A sorcerer; a magician [From Middle English magi, magi, from Latin mag, pl. of magus, sorcerer, magus, from Greek magos, from Old Persian magus]. Their devotion to astrology, divination, and the interpretation of dreams led to an extension in the meaning of the word, and by the first century B.C. the terms "magi" and "Chaldean" were applied generally to fortune tellers and exponents of esoteric religious cults throughout the Mediterranean world.
Another theory is that the "wise men from the East" where nothing is known of their land of origin, may have come from Arabia Felix (Southern Arabia). Astrology was practiced there and a tradition of Israelite messianic expectation may have survived in the region since the days of the Queen of Sheba. Earlier legend connects Southern Arabia with Solomon’s Israel. Ancient report, linked to later astrological study, may have prompted the famous journey, but this theory is speculation only.
2 Thessalonians 2:8 "And then shall that Wicked be revealed, who the Lord shall consume with the spirit of His mouth, and destroy with the brightness of His coming."
"Brightness" is a Greek word "epiphaneia" or "epiphany" in English and refers to the shining forth of His coming.
In Cygnus "Fafage" means "The Glorious Shining Forth," as one would note that the "Sickle" of Leo, the " lucky stars" of Aquarius and Deneb "the lord or judge to come" of Cygnus all align around the end of the Age of Aquarius.
When the Lord Jesus came to Bethlehem, it was His first epiphany. Titus 2:11 uses that word epiphaneia when it says, "For the grace of God that bringeth salvation hath appeared to all men."
When he comes again it will be another epiphany. He will take His church out of this world, and then He is coming to the earth to establish His Kingdom. At that time the Antichrist shall be consumed and destroyed with the brightness of His coming.
