View source for Astronomy:Revelation 12 sign prophecy

{{rewrite|date=July 2019}}
The '''Revelation 12 sign prophecy''' is an [[Unsolved:Apocalypticism|apocalyptic belief]] that an astronomical alignment on September 23, 2017 fulfilled the first two verses of Revelation 12.  This date coincided with the Autumnal equinox and the end of the Catholic September [[Philosophy:Ember days|Ember Days]]. This theory, promoted by some Christians and Christian news organizations, proposed that a literal fulfillment of the prophecy made in the [[Religion:Book of Revelation|Book of Revelation]] 12:1-2<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Revelation+12:1-2&version=KJV|title=Bible Gateway passage: Revelation 12:1-2 - ,King James Version|website=Bible Gateway|access-date=22 August 2017}}</ref> occurred on this date over [[Place:Jerusalem|Jerusalem]].

The passage in the [[Religion:Book of Revelation|Book of Revelation]] 12:1-3 describes "a woman clothed with sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth." (NIV).<ref name="Rev12">[http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0769.html Saunder, Rev. William. "Woman Clothed with the Sun", ''Arlington Catholic Herald'', 2004. Catholic Education Resource Center. Retrieved July 6, 2011] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130713052830/http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/religion/re0769.html |date=July 13, 2013 }}</ref> Some people believe that an astronomical alignment involving the constellations [[Astronomy:Virgo (constellation)|Virgo]] and [[Astronomy:Leo (constellation)|Leo]], the sun, moon, and planets Mercury, Mars, Venus, and Jupiter that occurred in September 2017 fulfilled this prophecy word-for-word.<ref name="WaPo">{{cite news|title=The first solar eclipse to cross America in 99 years is coming. To some, it's an act of God.|date=March 15, 2017 |author=Julie Zauzmer|work={{wipe|The Washington Post}} |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/acts-of-faith/wp/2017/03/15/the-first-solar-eclipse-to-cross-america-in-99-years-is-coming-to-some-its-an-act-of-god/ |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref><ref name="Compendium">{{cite news|title=The Revelation 12 Sign Compendium|date=January 11, 2017 |work=[[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] |url=http://www.unsealed.org/2017/01/the-revelation-12-sign-compendium.html |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref><ref name="tapley">{{cite web|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W5ZTvwago38 |title=Stellarium |date=April 7, 2011 |author=William Tapley |website=[[Company:YouTube|YouTube]]|access-date=July 29, 2017}}</ref> The sign is also known as the [[Religion:Woman of the Apocalypse|Woman of the Apocalypse]]. Some of the most common Christian interpretations of this passage interpret the woman as Mary or ancient Israel, the man child as the incarnate Jesus and the (''teknon'') child being the Body of Christ, and the woman's other offspring as the Church that forms during the tribulation.<ref name="Rev12"/>

Revelation 12:6 describes a consequent duration of 1260 days that ended on March 6, 2021.

==Overview==

On April 7, 2011, William Tapley's channel ThirdEagleBooks published the first video about the alignment entitled "Stellarium" giving the 2017 date of the great sign and explaining how the planetary alignment that year matched the text of Revelation 12 better than a 2011 alignments, which he said three earlier videos from other people had mentioned.<ref name="tapley"/> A few months later, on July 30, 2011, Scott Clarke from ERF Ministries posted a video on [[Company:YouTube|YouTube]] describing the alignment.

During 2011, Scott Clarke continued to popularize the alignment on YouTube. On December 10, 2012, [[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] suggested that the purported sign might be connected to the [[Religion:Rapture|rapture]] of the Church.<ref>{{cite news|title=God's Calendar: A Shocking Story|date=December 10, 2012 |work=[[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] |url=http://www.unsealed.org/2012/12/gods-redemptive-calendar-shocking-story.html |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref> Also in 2017, Luis B. Vega connected the sign to a "Conception Comet".<ref name="ALittleStrength">{{cite web|url=http://www.alittlestrength.com/articles/2017/1705-exit-sign.htm|title=The Exit Sign|last=Lauer|first=Greg|date=May 2017|website=A Little Strength|access-date=25 August 2017}}</ref>

The Apocalypse of John describes "a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head." Proponents of the ''Revelation 12 Sign'' say that the woman represents the constellation Virgo and the crown of twelve stars represents the nine stars of the constellation Leo in conjunction with Mercury, Mars, and Venus. The moon appears to be under the "feet" of the constellation Virgo in September 2017 and the sun will be passing through the constellation, which proponents interpret as the woman being "clothed with the sun".<ref name="Compendium"/> The second verse of the twelfth chapter of John's Apocalypse goes on to say that the woman "was pregnant and cried out in pain as she was about to give birth."  Some people suggest this will be fulfilled because the planet [[Astronomy:Jupiter|Jupiter]] will be traversing the constellation after having undergone [[Astronomy:Apparent retrograde motion|apparent retrograde motion]] after entering what they perceive to be Virgo's "womb" around November 20, 2016.<ref name="FiveDoves">{{Cite web|url=http://www.fivedoves.com/letters/july2017/luisv730.htm|title=Revelation 12 sign - Conception Comet C/2017 E1|website=www.fivedoves.com|access-date=2017-09-20}}</ref> Jupiter exits the lower part of the "womb" 42 weeks later, which is the approximate length of a [[Medicine:Pregnancy|human gestation]] (normal gestation periods lasting from 37 to 42 weeks).
It was also discovered that the apparent retrograde of [[Astronomy:Jupiter|Jupiter]] in the womb of Virgo was preceded by C/2017 E1 (Comet Borisov) which is being called the ''Conception Comet''.  This comet traveled from the loins of the constellation Leo to the womb of the constellation Virgo on November 17, 2016,<ref name="FiveDoves" /> just before the entrance of Jupiter into the womb.  Some proponents of the Revelation 12 Sign are suggesting that this comet represented the divine insemination of the woman, which subsequently produced the male child (Jupiter). This will be the comet's only trip through our solar system as it is not a solar orbital. The complete astronomical alignment occurred on September 23, 2017, over Jerusalem.<ref name="WaPo"/><ref name="Compendium"/>

The Revelation 12 Sign may have coincided with the High Holy Day of Rosh Hashanah on the Jewish calendar, which is also called the ''Feast of Trumpets''. The Feast of Trumpets is the first of the Fall Feasts and its timing is traditionally based on the visibility of the new moon,<ref name=templewitness>{{cite web|url=http://www.templeinstitute.org/rosh_hashana/late_arrival.htm |title=The Temple Institute: Rosh HaShana in the Holy Temple: The Late Arrival of a Witness |access-date=2017-07-29}}</ref> which in 2017 is began on the evening of September 20 and ended on the evening of the 22nd .<ref name=jewcal>{{cite web|url=http://www.chabad.org/calendar/view/month.asp?tdate=9/29/2017 |title=September, 2017 - Jewish Calendar |access-date=2017-07-29}}</ref>  Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year celebration, in this case marking the end of the year 5777 (sometimes abbreviated to the [[777 (number)#Religious significance|significant number 777]]) and the beginning of 5778.

Interpretations of Revelation 12 vary, but the general consensus of those who promoted this theory was that the September 2017 alignment was the Great Sign which is described in this passage of Scripture: that the woman represents the nation of Israel, which they believe is about to enter into a multi-year period of Tribulation, and the male child represents the global [[Religion:Church invisible|Church]], which might be [[Religion:Rapture|rapture]]d to [[Unsolved:Heaven|Heaven]] before the Tribulation period begins according to Revelation 12:5.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=revelation+12:5&version=KJV|title=Bible Gateway passage: Revelation 12:5 - King James Version|website=Bible Gateway|access-date=22 August 2017}}</ref> Many proponents say that in order for people to escape before this impending judgment on the world and be "raptured", they must accept that the Christian Messiah Jesus Christ died for their sins, rose again, and is the only means of being reconciled to God. These views are shared by all of the major proponents of the Revelation 12 Sign Prophecy.<ref name="Compendium"/><ref name="WaPo"/><ref>{{cite news|title=Revelation 12 – The Sign for Israel|date=February 4, 2017|author=Daniel Matson|work=Signs of the End |url=http://watchfortheday.org/signofisrael.html |access-date=June 18, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=About Salvation - Get Washed Clean!|author=Scott Clarke|work=ERF Ministries |url=http://erfministries.com/blog_salvation.php |access-date=June 18, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=Revelation 12 Sign|work=Revelation 12 Daily |url=https://rev12daily.blogspot.com/p/basic.html |access-date=June 18, 2017}}</ref>
See Brenda Weltner on YouTube for further teaching regarding the Revelation 12 sign as the start of Daniel's final week, the last 7 years prior to the return of Christ to rule the world. The 23rd September 2017 was also the date of the 'Filial Correction' of Pope Francis.<ref>See [[Religion:Correctio filialis de haeresibus propagatis|Correctio filialis de haeresibus propagatis]]</ref>

==Media attention and criticism==
The Revelation 12 Sign has received media attention including from ''{{wipe|The Washington Post}}'',<ref name=WaPo /> ''The Boston Globe'',<ref>{{cite news|title=It's the end of the world as we know it — again|date=June 19, 2017 |author=Alex Beam|newspaper=The Boston Globe |url=https://www.bostonglobe.com/opinion/2017/06/18/end-world-know-again/iBdTo7vWNgsFoeQWLeHR6I/story.html |access-date=June 19, 2017}}</ref> and ''The Catholic Astronomer''.<ref>{{cite news|title=Biblical Signs in the Sky? September 23, 2017|date=January 25, 2017 |author=Christopher Graney|work=The Catholic Astronomer |url=http://www.vofoundation.org/blog/biblical-signs-sky-september-23-2017/ |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref>

A number of critics have offered rebuttals of the purported sign arguing that the sign is not unique or is only [[Unsolved:Astrology|astrology]].  Critics include ''Answers in Genesis'' author Dr. Danny Faulkner,<ref>{{cite news|title=What Will Happen on September 23, 2017?|date=May 1, 2017 |author=Dr. Danny R. Faulkner|work=Answers in Genesis |url=https://answersingenesis.org/astronomy/stars/what-will-happen-september-23-2017/ |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref> Christian author Joel Richardson,<ref>{{cite news|title=THE FALSE SIGN OF SEPTEMBER 23, 2017|date=February 13, 2017 |author=Joel Richardson|website=Joelstrumpet.com |url=https://joelstrumpet.com/underground-episode-65-false-sign-september-23-2017/ |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref> Jan Markell from Olive Tree Ministries,<ref>{{cite news|title=It Could Happen Today|date=May 13, 2017 |author=Jan Markell|work=Olive Tree Ministries |url=http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/understanding-the-times/listen/it-could-happen-today-596457.html |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref> Christian bible prophecy author Craig C. White,<ref name=craigwhiterev12>{{cite news|title=Biblical Signs in the Sky? September 23, 2017|author=Craig C. White|work=Revelation 12 sign – September 23 Rapture: The child in Revelation 12 is Jesus not the Church |url=http://hightimetoawake.com/revelation-12-sign-september-23-rapture/ |access-date=August 14, 2017}}</ref> Christian blogger and author Tim McHyde.<ref name=timmchyderev12>{{cite news|title=What The September, 2017 Revelation 12 Sign Tells Us|author=Tim McHyde|url=https://escapeallthesethings.com/sept-2017-revelation-12/ |access-date=August 15, 2017}}</ref>

Examples of rebuttals include Faulkner's statement that "Jupiter appears in the part of Virgo corresponding to her womb, along with the sun in Virgo and the moon at her feet for a day or two every 12 years or so",<ref>{{cite news|title=What Will Happen on September 23, 2017?|date=May 1, 2017 |author=Dr. Danny R. Faulkner|work=Answers in Genesis |url=https://answersingenesis.org/astronomy/stars/what-will-happen-september-23-2017/ |access-date=July 3, 2017}}</ref> and Craig C. White statement that "the Apostle John says that 'there appeared a great wonder in heaven'. He doesn't say 'there will be a great wonder in heaven'. He doesn't tell us to 'look for a great wonder in heaven'."<ref name=craigwhiterev12 /> According to Tim McHyde, "Clarke's theory, like all invented prophecy theories, depends on taking a verse out of its context and re-purposing it to serve some new theory. When you ignore the context of a verse, you are set up to misinterpret it. That's how you turn a solid reliable Bible prophecy into an unreliable quasi-biblical man-made prophecy interpretation."<ref name=timmchyderev12/> [[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] responded to criticisms by simply reiterating their belief.<ref>{{cite news|title=Why The Revelation 12 Sign Can't Be Debunked|date=August 1, 2017 |work=[[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] |url=http://www.unsealed.org/2017/08/why-revelation-12-sign-cant-be-debunked.html |access-date=August 25, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=A Defense Of The Revelation 12 Sign And Its Connection To The Rapture|date=February 14, 2017 |work=[[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] |url=http://www.unsealed.org/2017/02/a-defense-of-revelation-12-sign-and-its.html |access-date=June 16, 2017}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|title=The Celestial C-Section|date=January 11, 2017 |work=[[Religion:Unsealed World News|Unsealed World News]] |url=http://www.unsealed.org/2017/05/the-celestial-c-section-defense-of.html |access-date=May 5, 2017}}</ref>

An AT&T original documentary, ''The Sign'', explored the intersections of science, religion, and history behind the Revelation 12 debate. It aired on Audience on September 14, 2017.<ref>{{cite press release|url=http://about.att.com/story/att_audience_network_premieres_documentary_film_the_sign.html|title=AT&T AUDIENCE Network Premieres Documentary Film "The Sign" on Sept. 14 at 8 p.m.|website=AT&T Newsroom|date=September 6, 2017}}</ref>

Christopher M. Graney on ''EarthSky'' criticized the alignment, arguing that it has happened 4 times in the last thousand years.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://earthsky.org/human-world/biblical-signs-in-the-sky-september-23-2017|title = Biblical signs in the sky on September 23, 2017? &#124; Astronomy Essentials &#124; EarthSky|date = 23 September 2017}}</ref>

==Isopsephy==

The isopsephic value of the Greek verse (Revelation 12:1) is 16767 in both the Scrivener and Novum versions of the text. When factorized, 16767 = 1*729*23 which appear to correspond to the date's (23-9-2017) non-zero numbers in an anagrammatic fashion.

==See also==
* [[Astronomy:Blood moon prophecy|Blood moon prophecy]]
* [[Unsolved:Unfulfilled Christian religious predictions|Unfulfilled Christian religious predictions]]
* David Meade, a conspiracy theorist who also predicted an apocalyptic event on September 23.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite book | last = Broome | first = Jamison | title = The Final Harbinger: Countdown to Rosh Hashanah 2017 and the Sign of Revelation 12 | publisher = Revelation 12 Ministries | year = 2017 | isbn = 9780692885321 }}
* {{cite book | last = Matson | first = Daniel | title = Israel: The Handwriting in the Heavens | publisher = Joy Publishing | year = 2015 | isbn = 978-0-939513-09-3 }}
* {{cite book | last = Prinsloo | first = Jaco | title = God's Roadmap to the End | publisher = Smashwords | year = 2016 | isbn = 9781311009227 }}
* {{cite book | last = Moser | first = Phil | title = The Revelation 12 Sign | publisher = Archway Publishing | year = 2017 | isbn = 9781480847200 }}
* {{cite book | last = Vega | first = Luis | title = The Great Sign of Virgo | publisher = Lulu Publishing | year = 2016 }}

{{doomsday}}

[[Category:Astronomy]]
[[Category:Biblical exegesis]]
[[Category:Book of Revelation]]
[[Category:Apocalypticism]]

{{Sourceattribution|Revelation 12 sign prophecy|1}}