Jehovah's Plagues on Christendom - A Star Falls From Heaven

"And the third angel blew his trumpet.  And a great star burning as  a lamp fell from heavewn, it it fell upon a third of the rivers and upon the fountains of waters. And the name of the star is called wormwood. And third of the waters turned into wormwood, and many of the men died from the waters, because these had been made bitter. " (Revelation 8:10, 11)   Once again, other parts of the Bible help us to see how this scripture applies in the Lord's day.

We have already met the symbolism of a star in Jesus' messages to the seven congregations, in which the seven stars symbolize the elders in the congregations.  (Revelation 1:20)  Anointed "stars," along with all others of the anointed, inhabit heavenly places in a spiritual sense from the time that they are sealed with the holy spirit as  a token of their heavenly inheritance.  (Ephesians 2:6, 7)  However,  the apostle Paul warned that from among such starlike ones would come apostates, sectarians, who would mislead the flock.  (Acts 20:29, 30)  Such unfaithfulness would result  in a great apostasy, and these fallen elders would come up to make a composite man of lawlessness that would elevate himself to a godlike position among mankind.  (2 Thessalonians 2:3, 4)  Paul's warning were fulfilled when the clergy of Christendom appeared on the world scene.  This group is well represented by the symbol of "a great star burning as a lamp." 

John sees this particular star falling from heaven. How?  The experiences of an ancient king helps us to understand. Speaking to the king of Babylon, Isaiah said:  "O how you have fallen from heaven, you shining one, son of the dawn!  How you have been cut down to earth, you were disabling the nations!" (Isaiah 14:12)  This prophecy was fulfilled when Babylon was overthrown by the armies of Cyrus, and its king made an abrupt descent from the world rulership to shameful defeat. Thus, a fall from heaven can refer to losing a high position and falling into ignominy.

When the clergy of Christendom apostatized from true Christianity, they fell from the lofty "heavenly position described by Paul at Ephesians 2:6, 7.  Instead of offering fresh waters of truth, they served up "wormwood,"  butter lies such as hell fire, purgatory, the Trinity, and predestination; also, they led the nations into war, failing to build them up as moral servants of God.  The result?  Spiritul poisoning  of those who believed the lies.  Their case was similar to that of the unfaithful Isralites of Jeremiah's day, to whom Jehovah said:  "Here I am making them eat wormwood, and I will give them poisoned water  to drink. For from the prophet of Jerusalem apostasy has gone forth to all the land. -  Jeremiah 9:15; 23:15. 

Next time: Jehovah's Plagues on Christendom - A Star Falls From Heaven -Conclusion

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