evelation 12:3The imagery of the dragon is used throughout the OT to represent evil kingdoms that persecute God’s people, and this is in mind here. “Dragon” (drakōn) is another word in the OT for the sea monster that symbolizes wicked kingdoms that oppress Israel [MH: the Leviathan/chaos image]. Often the wicked kingdom of Egypt is portrayed by this emblem. God is spoken of as defeating Pharaoh as a sea dragon at the exodus deliverance and at later points in Egypt’s history (Ps. 74:13–14; 89:10; Isa. 30:7; 51:9; Ezek. 29:3; 32:2–3; Hab. 3:8–15; Pss. Sol. 2:29– 30; see Ps. 87:4, where “Rahab” is a synonym for Egypt [MH: Rahab is one of thewords in Psalm 89 for the chaos monster]; cf. Jer. 51:34, where Babylon is the subject [MH: in the same context]; see also Amos 9:3)…

It's a reference to the birth and the ascension. This description is an allusion to
Psalm 2:7-9, which prophesied that the Messiah would defeat God's enemies
and be installed as ruler over all the nations. The Psalm allusion is coupled with a
description of an ascent of the child up to God and his throne. In short, John’s
wording here and the immediate context is designed to create the impression
that it appeared as if the devil had won the day. The dragon is right there waiting
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to kill the child when it's born. The child is going to be killed and devoured—but
the resurrection (and of course, the ascension—the ultimate return to the right
hand of God) resulted in victory for the Messiah, the child. The dragon was
therefore defeated.
So John is combining all these elements in just the space of a few verses. We're
very clear who the child is. Now the third figure—the dragon. Scholars of the
book of Revelation have long noted the connection of the dragon to Old
Testament terminology for the sea monster that symbolized chaos. Again, this is
very well-known. I even have a motion graphic video on my website and my
YouTube channel about the chaos theme of the sea monster. This is Old
Testament 101. As Grant Osborne notes in his commentary on Revelation:
Throughout the ancient Near East, the sea monster symbolized the war between
good and evil, between the gods and chaos. . . Obviously, in similar fashion to the
meaning of “abyss” in 9:1–2, this builds on the fact that for the nations
surrounding the Mediterranean basin, the sea meant unfathomable depths and
the chaos of death. Thus, Leviathan or the “dragon” came to represent all the
terrors of the sea and thus the presence of evil and death. . . . [I]t also signified
nations that stood against God and his people.
This is because the nations become agents of chaos, agents of destruction,
agents of destroying the order God wants (which, of course, includes this thing
called Israel and the Messiah) because he wants to restore Eden. This is wellknown imagery.
There are two major candidates for the dragon with respect to constellations.
Malina (again, in his book on Revelation) explains it this way:
The second sign is the fire-colored Dragon. The color red locates it in the southern
sky. . . The fact that the Dragon’s tail sweeps (present tense) away a third of the
stars of the sky further points to a location generally lacking in stars compared to
other sky locations. This, again, is the south, in the region of the Abyss [MH: which
is another constellation]. . . The question we might pose now is, which
constellation does John label as the red Dragon, the Dragon in the south?
Obviously it is not Draco, which is found at the North Pole. Boll [MH: Franz Boll,
another author] opts for Hydra. . . Immediately above Hydra and accompanying it
are the constellations of Corax (Raven) and Crater, which have seven and ten
stars respectively. Corax with seven, corresponding to the number of heads [in
Rev 12] lies closer to Virgo. . . On the other hand, Lehmann-Nitsche [MH: another
author] argues that the prototypical Dragon of the sky is really ancient Scorpio,
originally a larger set of stars than the present constellation. It was truly gigantic,
even by celestial zodiac standards, since it originally consisted of two [modern]
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zodiacal signs (Libra/Claws and Scorpio). [MH: Libra would form the claws of
Scorpio in the ancient world.]
You have two options... just some opinion of my own. Hydra has the advantage
of matching the description of the seven heads atop the dragon (Revelation
12:3). It's also conceived of as a sea serpent (imagery that matches descriptions
from Revelation, like 13:1 that tells of the beast that emerges from the sea, which
in turn come from leviathan material of the Old Testament like Isaiah 27:1).
However, Hydra is not precisely on the ecliptic, so we have to ask ourselves if
that matters. It's adjacent to the ecliptic and only slightly below the woman. In
other words, Hydra is not positioned directly under the feet of the woman waiting
to devour the child as soon as it emerges from the woman, but it's close. The
ecliptic problem is resolved if we opt for Scorpio as John's reference point. But
that said, the text of Revelation 12 only has the dragon present ("it stood before
the woman"). It doesn't really say it has to be directly under the feet. So both
options are sort of workable and possible. Pick the one that you like. I have a bit
of a disagreement here with my astronomer friend. He might win me over, who
knows. But anyway, you've got two options there.

In the Gospel of Matthew, we read about Maji from the east that see the Star that points to the birth of the newborn king.

The word used in verse 2 and 9 is the same word that can be used for constellations, comments and other star phenomenon (@Whiton2018-ce). Do a study on this chapter you can find out some points that any sign or star has to meet to be the sign of the Maji:

1. It signified birth.
2. It signified kingship.
3. It had a connection with the Jewish nation.
4. It rose in the east, like other stars.
5. It appeared at a precise time.
6. Herod didn’t know when it appeared.
7. It endured over time.
8. It was ahead of the Magi as they went south from Jerusalem to Bethlehem.
9. It stopped over Bethlehem.

Many theory over the years have been proposed to figure out what it could be, in hopes it may lead to the day Christ was born. Based on the passage above, it can not be a comet, Supernova, or supernatural star as it doesn't meet the above criteria. There is one star that does seem to match the account that Matthew gives- Jupiter.

More Context For The Star Of The Messiah

Before we go into the Star that the Magi saw, it is important to get some additional context from the Bible. For millennia the coming Messiah has been associated with the appearance of a star. One of the first references to a star showing the arrival of the Messiah is the words prophesied over Israel by the pagan sorcerer, Balaam, while we were encamped in the wilderness.

This passage has been used though history to show that a literal star will be associated with the Messiah, such in the recordings of the Dead Sea Scrolls (@Vermes2004-tj).

Rabbi Akiva gave the name “Bar Kochba” to a rebel military leader named Shimon ben Kosiba, and then proclaimed him to be the Messiah (@Astor2010-lw). Similar sentiments are also recorded by Philo, the Peshitta, Targums Neofiti, Onkelos, Pseudo-Jonathan, and the Fragmentary Targum, as well as the testimonies of both Judah and Levi in The Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs.

Perhaps the most fascinating reference to this phenomenon is in the post-rabbinic midrash Aggadat HaMashiach:

The Jewish nation is composed of twelve ancient tribes. Jewish prophecy states that a particular tribe will bring forth the Messiah: the tribe of Judah. The symbol of Judah’s tribe is the lion. You can see these connections in an ancient prediction of Messiah’s coming found in the first book of the Bible, the Book of Genesis, Chapter 49:

The lion/king association is confirmed in Revelation 5:5

Jupiter, the Star Of Bethlehem

Starting from the day given in Revelation 12 you will see that there is a number of astronomical sign that seem to match the account in Matthew—namely Jupiter in its retrograde motion. It circles the Sun far beyond Earth, in an orbit of about twelve years duration. In ancient times, planets like Jupiter were considered “wandering stars”. Near opposition, Jupiter will appear to go into retrograde motion for a period of about 121 days, moving backward through an angle of 9.9° before returning to prograde movement.[139]

1. Signified Birth: around September 11 3 B.C., a sequence of Jupiter’s movements began, coinciding with the Jewish New Year, Rosh ha-Shanah—a day associated with new beginnings and divine judgment. For the magi, the triple conjunction between Jupiter (the “King Planet”) and Regulus (the “King Star”) in the constellation Leo would have indicated the birth of a royal figure. The significance of Regulus cannot be overstated; known as the “King Star,” it was associated with rulership and kingship in multiple ancient cultures. The Babylonians called Regulus Sharu, which means ‘king.’ The Romans called Regulus Rex, which means ‘king.’ Positioned in Leo, the constellation representing the tribe of Judah, this alignment would have been a clear sign pointing to a Jewish king. It was the chief or head sign of the zodiac and had special importance in astrological circles (@Hastings2000-wp).

2. Signified Kingship: Jupiter’s conjunction with Regulus wasn’t a singular event but occurred three times over several months due to Jupiter’s retrograde motion. Starting September 14, 3 BC, Jupiter met with Regulus, creating a "crown" effect. As Jupiter moved forward and then retrograde, it returned to align with Regulus on February 17, 2 BC, and once more on May 8, 2 BC. This triple conjunction would have appeared as Jupiter “crowning” Regulus three times, underscoring the kingly symbolism. In Hebrew, Jupiter was also called Sedeq, meaning “righteousness,” a term associated with the Messiah. For the magi, these movements were powerful signs of divine authority and kingship linked specifically to a Jewish Messiah.

3. Connection with the Jewish Nation: Leo, the constellation of the lion, represented the tribe of Judah in Hebrew tradition, and prophecy pointed to a ruler from Judah. This connection would not have been lost on the Magi. They would have seen Jupiter and Regulus’ repeated alignments in Leo as an astronomical signal tied directly to Israel. They recognized that these celestial events were pointing to the fulfillment of Jewish Messianic prophecies, making the events specifically meaningful as a signal of a Jewish king’s birth.

4. Rising in the East: As Jupiter rose in the eastern sky, it met the description from Matthew’s account: the star that the magi “saw in the east.” Ancient magi interpreted the position of stars and planets as meaningful indicators, and it oriented the magi toward Jerusalem and signaled the start of their journey westward, following the “star.”

5. Appeared at a Precise Time: The timing of these conjunctions—especially between Jupiter and Regulus—would have been observable and precise, fitting the description of a star that appeared at specific, identifiable times as intentional signs, not random celestial phenomena.. This pattern allowed the magi to track Jupiter’s journey over time.

6. Unnoticed by Herod: Herod and others in Jerusalem, unfamiliar with the symbolic meanings and celestial patterns, were unaware of the conjunctions until the Magi explained them.

7. Endured Over Time: The retrograde motion of Jupiter around Regulus spanned several months, providing a lengthy timeframe for the magi to journey from the East to Jerusalem. By the time they arrived, the series of conjunctions was still in progress, ensuring that they could follow Jupiter’s motion as a guide during their trip. The timing allowed for a realistic journey, with the Magi able to observe the celestial signs both at their point of origin and as they approached their destination.

8. Guided the Magi South from Jerusalem: By the time the Magi reached Jerusalem, Jupiter had moved in a way that, from their perspective, would have appeared to lead them southward toward Bethlehem, where Jesus was born.

9. Stopped Over Bethlehem: Jupiter’s retrograde motion created a stationary effect in the sky on December 25, 2 BC. From Earth’s perspective, Jupiter appeared to “stop” over Bethlehem for several days. This phenomenon, known as the “stationary point” in retrograde motion, gave the appearance that the star had come to rest over the town, guiding the Magi to their destination.

In fulfilling each of these criteria, Jupiter stands out as a plausible and meaningful candidate for the Star of the Magi, merging astrological significance, cultural symbolism, and observable astronomy into the momentous event described in Matthew.

See the table here for more information.