When the Heavens Disappear

And all the host of heaven shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a fig from the fig tree. Isaiah 34:4

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. Revelation 12:9

Is the Bible saying that literal stars will fall from the sky to the earth? What manner of cosmology is this? We all know that even very small stars are far too large and hot to fit on earth. Surely this is symbolic.

In fact, to everyone who scoffs at the Bible, it is all symbolic. Who could possibly take these passages literally?

Enter the Naive Literalist, non-scientific interpretors of the Bible, like me. Only I consider the Bible to be Super Scientific, beyond science. Kind of like a NASCAR racer competing with a garbage truck.

If we pursue God's Word, or allow it to pursue us, we learn Bible cosmology. Among other things, this helps us eliminate the idea of a red-suited Satan, living in hell, and laughing as he pokes sinners with a trident.

The so-called Prince of Darkness, was Lucifer, covering angel of the throne of God, a great light-giver and heavenly star. When my father was young, phosphorus matches were called "Lucifers". Even this quaint reference was derived from the Bible concept of the Devil as a light-giver.

But Lucifer and his angels as stars, actually being cast from the starry heavens to the earth--who can believe that?

On the road to Damascus, Paul saw Christ, brighter than the Sun. That's the idea. Unbelievers and weak believers will stagger at the idea, presented in a number of places in Scripture, of the occupants of the sky as sentient beings. Eventually we learn the cosmology of the Bible though.

As far as the world's children and their disbelief, I don't give a "fig" about them.