Approaching Zion: The Seven Heavens

[Above: Wall painting in Deir el-Medina, Valley of the Kings]

The Times of the Gentiles Fulfilled

   I am the first-born,
   the light of the sky.
   I breathe in the presence
   of a powerful god . . . .
   My breath is like a child to me.

   ― Egyptian Book of the Dead, "Giving Breath to Osiris"

The Times of the Patriarchs (from Abraham to Christ) lasted roughly 2000 years.

The Times of the Gentiles (from Christ to today) lasted roughly 2000 years.

So what's next?  Well, it depends.  What do you believe was in the beginning, for "the first shall be last, and the last shall be first."

​It is my opinion that the constellation Aquarius was anciently associated with the Tribe of Ephraim, and speaks to Ephraim's destiny (since there are 12 Tribes of Israel and 12 constellations in the Zodiac, is there a correspondence?).

In Egyptian mythology, Aquarius was identified with the flooding of the Nile river (which happened seasonally).  The banks of the Nile were said to flood when Aquarius put his jar into the river, bringing the spring.

The Chinese have a tradition that Aquarius's water jar is "the Army of Yu-Lin."  Yu-Lin means feathers and forests; its army sweeps across the earth.

These images remind me of Jacob's blessing upon his son Joseph:

   Joseph is a fruitful bough,
   even a fruitful bough
   by a well; whose branches
   run over the wall.

(Gen. 49:22)

The NIV is a little clearer:  "Joseph is a fruitful vine, a fruitful vine near a spring, whose branches climb over a wall."

You see, Ephraim (Joseph's heir) spread over the walls of the well like water flooding the earth, his posterity becoming a fulness of nations (i.e., gentiles).

The dawning of the Age of Aquarius is the turning of the wheel.  If you're not familiar with astrological ages, just know they represent spirals of time that are tied to the 12 signs of the Zodiac based on the earth's 26,000 year cycle of precession.  Each "age" lasts roughly 2,000 years.

Christ inaugurated the Age of Pisces ("I will make you fishers of men"), and now we are entering the Age of Aquarius, which symbolizes the baptisms of water and fire (the two streams poured out of Aquarius's jar).

We see familiar motifs in the creation account, when the Lord created light and divided the waters.  We are back at the beginning.

The Millennium represents the culmination of another cycle, returning the earth to Eden.

But before the Millennium, the earth is going to experience a cataclysm, even as a woman in travail who experiences a difficult childbirth.

[Above: Stele of Akhenaten, depicting the king and his queen, Nefertiti, beneath the sun-god Aten] 

Calamity

   I have traveled through the tomb,
   dark and lonely ground.
   I am here now.
   I have come.

   ― Egyptian Book of the Dead, "Coming Forth and Passing Through"

The beginning of this dispensation began ominously, with a warning, as the angel told Joseph Smith that the earth "shall burn as an oven" and consume the wicked; the angel quoted the prophet Joel at length, saying the sun shall be darkened in a day of "fire and pillars of smoke" (Joel 2:30).

Then, in 1831, the Lord spoke of a coming calamity:

   Wherefore, I the Lord,
   knowing the calamity
   which should come
   upon the inhabitants
   of the earth, called upon
   my servant Joseph Smith, Jun.,
   and spake unto him
   from heaven.

(D&C 1:17)

What is the "calamity" the Lord is referring to?  If there's a global disaster on its way, what is it?

Well, ironically the "calamity" coincides with, and is integral to, the earth's graduation from a telestial to a terrestrial glory ― just as a mother's painful contractions serve to bring the baby down the birth canal.  These are related; it's one of the reasons it's both a great ― and dreadful ― day.

We needn't be shocked when the earth shakes like a baby's rattle.  The Lord is sending His servants out for the last time to prepare the vineyard before it takes fire:

   This is the last time
   that I shall nourish my vineyard;
   for the end is nigh at hand . . . .
   And then cometh the season
   and the end; and my vineyard
   will I cause to be burned
   with fire.

(Jacob 5:77)

So there is going to be an end (even though we know there is no end, neither beginning).  But we can consider this an end of the current chapter of the earth.  We will have finished another cycle.

In preparation for the end, the Lord is shedding upon the hearts of men and women more light and truth than ever; more seems to be pouring out every day, as if the windows of heaven have sprung a leak.

While there is much I am still learning ― and though I have but the spiritual vocabulary of a toddler ― let me share a few things I have learned, in the same spirit that God has entrusted me with these things.

[Tomb of Inherkau, "The great cat of Heliopolis killing the enemy of the sun, Apophis."]

Have You Heard of Apophis?

   Hor, justified, Son of One . . . 
   Master of the Secrets,
   God's priest . . .
   May your soul live.
​
   ― "Breathing Permit of Hôr," from Fragment I of the Joseph Smith Papyri, translated by Rhodes, 2002.

​In Egyptian mythology, the Great Serpent Apophis (also called Apep) is the great enemy of the gods.  Apophis is always trying to thwart the gods' eternal progress through the heavens (sound familiar?).

Apophis's plan is not complicated: he wishes to kill Ra and prevent the sunrise, thereby plunging the world back into chaos and darkness.  

Because of the Serpent's evil design, the Egyptians associated Apophis with earthquakes, disorder, storms, darkness, and destruction.  Your classic bad guy, basically.

The Egyptian religion tells of how gods and goddesses united to defeat Apophis and restore order, overcoming the forces of chaos and extending light into the universe.

In the Egyptian Book of the Dead (Spell 17), there is a depiction of the god Mau (who holds the secrets of eternal life) defending the Tree of Life from Apophis.  You can see this in the image, above: Mau is depicted as a cat.

Gods and snakes and the Tree of Life: this iconography predates the writing of the Book of Genesis, which adopted a similar motif in its Garden of Eden story.

But in the Egyptian account, Mau mortally wounds Apep with a knife, cutting the snake into pieces.

But there's a problem with snakes who regrow lost limbs: they are relentless and return; the darkness is never destroyed, only kept at bay.

You see, the Egyptian gods defeated the Serpent every night, but during the day (as Ra sailed across the sky in his ship), Apophis would slowly regenerate and was ready to resume the war at dusk.

The story highlighted the eternal seesaw between light and dark ― one we continue to experience today.

[Above, an engraving from the Book of Gates, in the tomb of Ramses I, 1290 B.C.]

Nibley, Of Course

In the picture, above, notice how Apophis (the Great Serpent) boxes in the light surrounding Ra, wishing to prevent its radiance from spreading outward.

It illustrates the way the chaos is always searching for cracks and seams through which to get in.  And the darkness would succeed, too, if not for the light-bringers who traverse creation, carrying the eternal Flame.

According to the earliest accounts found in the Egyptian Coffin Texts, Apophis existed in the dark waters before the light of creation (the ben-ben) dawned.  Ever since he has sought to extinguish the light and plunge us back into the void.

​The Egyptian priesthood had various rituals to assist in preserving the light against the forces of oblivion; these rituals symbolized the overthrow of Apophis, representing the never-ending struggle between good and evil, order and chaos.

I first learned about Apophis from reading Hugh Nibley's book, The Message of the Joseph Smith Papyri: An Egyptian Endowment (2nd Ed.).

In Nibley's book, I was intrigued with the depiction of Apophis (see below); Nibley explains how Apophis is coiling around the familiar four canopic figures (representing the four elements from which the human body is composed, or its vital organs).

See how Apophis is present in all of our members: he passes through us, just as we must pass through him.

Nibley commented that "according to the Egyptians, all things must pass [through Apophis] to be reborn."  (Nibley, Egyptian Endowment, p. 93).

As we shall shortly see, the earth itself is traveling through the coils of Apophis as she winds her way through the Milky Way galaxy.

The coming calamity is related to the earth's tumultuous journey as she encounters some difficult neighbors.

The Sign of the Son of Man

Joseph Smith taught that prior to the Lord's return, the earth's atmosphere will become congested to the point that light from the sun cannot travel through it, preventing even a rainbow from forming.  (History of the Church, 6:254; from a discourse given by Joseph Smith on Mar. 10, 1844.)

The fact that the sun is "darkened" is a bad sign.  Joseph commented:

"There will be . . . signs in the heavens above and on the earth beneath, the sun turned into darkness and the moon to blood, earthquakes in divers places, the seas heaving beyond their bounds; then will appear one grand sign of the Son of Man in heaven.  But what will the world do?  They will say it is a planet, a comet, etc.  But the Son of Man will come as the sign of the coming of the Son of Man, which will be as the light of the morning cometh out of the east."  (History of the Church, 5:337; from a discourse given by Joseph Smith on Apr. 6, 1843.)
 
Joseph Smith's end-time views appear to align with the "Shiva Hypothesis," also called Coherent Catastrophism.  (FYI, Shiva was the Hindu god of destruction ― another bad sign.)

Catastrophism postulates that global natural disasters, such as extinction events (sorry dinosaurs!), happen at regular intervals because of the motion of the Sun and planets in relation to the Milky Way and other celestial bodies.

In Nibley's book (see the figure below), we find our friend Apophis at it again.  Nibley remarks, "The serpent (Apophis), attempting to arrest the eternal progression of the subject (here represented by the scarab 'Ra' of 'becoming,' or transition, and the heavenly wings), is smitten and rendered helpless by seven deadly knives." (Nibley, Egyptian Endowment, p. 179).

In the Egyptian myths, Apophis is slain by being cut into pieces.  As you can see in the image, the snake is severed into seven pieces, with seven knives.  Why is the number seven significant?

Is it any wonder God has warned us: He has charted the earth's course through the heavens, and knowing of our current trajectory through the galaxy, is trying to prepare us for a catastrophic celestial event, which the ancient prophets foretold.

We find the coming destruction on the earth's itinerary as a consequence of it traveling towards the higher heavens; all of this is calendared like clockwork, set in motion before the world began, foreseen by God and the faithful.

Ouroboros

   Let there be prepared for me
   a seat in the boat of the Sun
   on the day wheron the god saileth.
   
   ― Egyptian Book of the Dead, "A Hymn to Ra" 
​
You thought the snake in the garden of Eden was alone?  He's got company!  We've talked about Apophis, and now I wish to mention another serpent, Ouroboros.  These snakes appear to represent, like Satan, the archetypical Snake who introduced death into the world.

In ancient Egypt (and later Greece) the serpent Ouroboros is curiously depicted with its tail in its mouth, forming a circle, eternally devouring itself.

As you can imagine, Ouroboros symbolizes the unity of all things, the eternal cycle of destruction and re-creation, life and death and rebirth.

Ouroboros reminds us of God's nature (a nature we've inherited).

   The course of the Lord
   is one eternal round.

(1 Nephi 10:19)

God tears down in order to build; He burns the vineyard to bring forth new life from its soil.

   Who buildeth up
   at his own will and pleasure;
   and destroyeth
   when he pleases.

(D&C 63:4)

The Egyptians understood that God encompasses both Day and Night, creation and destruction, life and death.  For Christians, we equate these as the Keys that Christ holds over His dominion.

Created to become Christs ourselves, we are destined to wield the Keys of the Kingdom, just as He does.  We call this the power of eternal lives.  But one cannot possess eternal lives without also possessing eternal deaths.  For this reason the apostle Paul calls Jesus "the Lord both of the dead and living" (Romans 14:9).

The Egyptian term Duat is usually translated as "Underworld," but originally, the meaning of the word referred to the starry heavens; only later did it it become associated with the Underworld. (Nibley, Egyptian Endowment, p. 202.)

I think it is significant that the Egyptians linked the celestial stars to the Underworld: up is down; we rise through descent.

"It is not always possible to discern with certainty whether certain terms apply particularly to heaven, to earth, or to both."  (Nibley, page 202 of the Egyptian Endowment).

So there we have it: earth is heaven and heaven is earth; it's a mess.  Life and death become one: new life is found through death; over and over, one eternal round.

So when we read in the scriptures about the coming of a future "new heaven and new earth," we might wonder what it really means.

You see, it's easy to hear about the elements melting with fervent heat and to interpret these prophecies as saying the earth is going to be an entirely different place.

But, surprise!  The prophet Ether taught that the new heaven and the new earth "shall be like the old save the old have passed away, and all things have become new" (Ether 13:9).

But if things will "be like the old," then what will have changed?  What is going to be "new?"

[Above: Ouroboros (detail), from the tomb of Tutankhamun; notice how the pharaoh's path is encompassed about by Ouroboros]

The Veil Shall Burst
​
​"There is a great deal of unmapped country within us.”

   ― George Eliot

Ouroboros is an appropriate symbol for our eternal progression.  We are constantly being recast into new roles, new forms, and new creatures who are given new names.

​We always talk about mankind's eternal progression, but no one seems to contemplate the earth's own progression.

The earth's spiritual evolution is marked by its celestial journey through the heavens; her place in the cosmos influences the extent and nature of the celestial energy she receives from her governing stars.

This was hinted at by Joseph Smith in his hierarchical order of the universe, where stars and planets energetically "govern" or rule the spiritual evolution of other stars and planets (see, Abraham 3 and Facsimile 2).

This interplanetary power is called by Joseph "Kae-e-vanrash."  Presiding over the earth in our cosmic hierarchy is an interstellar godhead; according to Joseph, this cosmic Trinity is comprised of three planetary star powers: "Oliblish, Enish-go-on-dash, and Kaii-ven-rash, are the three grand central powers that govern all the other creations."  (Alphabet of the Egyptian Language.)

Have you ever noticed that our spiraling galaxy resembles a coiled snake?  The earth has its own struggle against Apophis, blazing onward against the chaos, cutting the snake into seven pieces (i.e., heavens).

A Redemptive Cosmology

   The moon’s unveiling. . .
   now it is returning
   flooding back to me:
   the taste of colostrum
       oh! thy milk
       is marrow in my bones

   ― "Unveil"

​​To state things plainly, the earth is currently ascending Jacob's Ladder.  There are seven rungs on the ladder (meaning seven heavens).  We are in the process of stepping from the third rung to the fourth.

Apophis being "slain" and severed into seven pieces is a type and shadow of our eternal progression through the seven heavens, overcoming death and darkness at each stage (as represented in truncated form in the LDS temple ceremony).  We are traversing a celestial Menorah.
 
I say there are seven heavens, but that is not quite right.  There are actually heavens and worlds without number (at least to our understanding).  However, the heavens are grouped together in sevens, like a musical scale (an octave).

We are in the middle of the current Octave.  In a far-future day, when we pass beyond the Seventh Heaven, we shall begin again at the bottom of a new Octave above our own, and so on, forever (as hinted at in D&C 130:10).

As the Lord told Moses, "As one earth shall pass away, and the heavens thereof, even so shall another come; and there is no end" (Moses 1:38).

The Fall describes the earth's descent phase, by which I mean, its condescension from a higher Octave.  Prior to the Fall, the Lord commissioned the Sons of God (the noble and great ones), even the exalted Fathers, the Kokaubeam, or Great Lights, saying:

   We will go down
   [condescend to the lower heavens],
   for there is space there,
   and we will take
   of these materials
   and we will make an earth
   whereon these may dwell.

(Abr. 3:24)

The earth responded to the Lord's call.  The earth was sort of essential to the whole operation.  You see, down here we've got eternal, but unsheltered (by which I mean, disembodied), lowly spirits trapped in this heavenly Heptagon.  We needed an earth from which to materialize; our incarnation was not possible in the celestial realms where the Elohim dwell in everlasting burnings.

And so the earth left its exalted orbit near the throne of God and entered into a galactic journey that would, over many eons of time, bring it back ― having completed a circuit (or one eternal round), to become the abode of God. 

The purpose of Christ's condescension was to create a Gate in the gateless barrier that separates us from those above.  In order for us to pass between this glory to the next, we must all pass through the singular Gate of baptism (birth, I mean).  There is no other way.

We were created "from the dust" of the earth, meaning that our bodies share the qualities and elements of the earth.  We incarnate in physical bodies that parallel the planet's.  Her glory becomes our own.  Those born in the Millennium, for example, will receive bodies that are terrestrial, commensurate with the earth's paradisiacal glory, and so on.

And so, in great love and sacrifice, the earth condescended in order to, specifically, provide the Fathers and Mothers of the Elohim (3 Nephi 1:14) with tabernacles of lesser glory, similar to those of the incarnating spirits in this Octave, to bring them up into God's higher kingdoms.

So in a way, Jesus is the Stargate.  He is the door between glories.  The Gate is rebirth into a higher glory through the resurrection.  Our elemental bodies delimit our cosmic mobility; impurity cannot dwell in God's habitation.

As Lehi taught, the Children (Adam and Eve) "Fell" to provide physical bodies for "the family of all the earth" (2 Nephi 2:20).  Albeit, the fallen Kokaubeam who followed Lucifer were forbidden from taking bodies, sort of (a sidebar I'll reserve for another time).

And thus the earth entered a confluence of spiritual streams allowing Christ to create a bridgehead, a portal, across which the spirits from these heavens could ascend in the Great Dance.  By "Great Dance," I am talking about the spirits here receiving bodies in which they may enter into the ultimate adventure: the New and Everlasting Covenant of God.

For those entering into the New and Everlasting Covenant (many did so long ago, before this lifetime; others are being offered another opportunity; and so on it goes: it is difficult to not get caught up in the intricacies), we have a rare opportunity to be grafted into the Tree of Life.  This is accomplished through being born into one of God's kingdoms through the baptism of water and spirit and blood (referring to our past and future incarnations) (Moses 6:59-63).  (Yes, I know we're told our resurrected bodies won't have blood; but Christ's mortal body bled from every pore, so).

Because of Christ's redemption, those who are born again become freed from the captivity of death and hell, and are thereby able to escape the event horizon of this heaven and enter into the next.

"Beam Me Up, Scotty!"

   To see a World in a Grain of Sand
   And a Heaven in a Wild Flower 
   Hold Infinity in the palm of your hand 
   And Eternity in an hour

     ― William Blake, "Auguries of Innocence"

​Now, I mentioned before that the Great Serpent is a fitting representation of the spiraling path the earth is taking through the galaxy, passing through the mythical Seven Trials of Esfandiyar.

In the ancient temple mysteries of Mithraism (50 B.C.), temple initiates had to ascend through seven grades of initiation; the initiates were called syndexioi ("united by the handshake").

In the New and Everlasting Covenant, we are initiates ascending God's own Body, or temple.  At the same time, God's spirit, or light, is ascending through us.

St. Jerome described the seven ascending orders of the Syndexioi:

   1.  (Lowest Order).  The raven, represented by a caduceus (the snake staff carried by the god Hermes, the messenger).  This level was symbolized by the planet Mercury.

   2.  Bridegroom.  Represented by a veil, and associated with Venus.

   3.  Warrior.  Represented by a lance, and associated with Mars.

   4.  Lion.  Represented by a laurel / crown, and associated with Jupiter.

   5.  Scholar.  Represented by a Phrygian cap for wisdom, and associated with the Moon.

   6.  Sun-Runner.  Represented by a torch, and associated with the Sun.

   7.  (Highest Order).  Father.  Represented by a shepherd's staff (yes!) and associated with Saturn (please note that Saturn's place was above the sun, interestingly).

In the initiation for the Sixth Level, the Sun-Runners, the initiate was escorted through a solar journey around the temple, representing our path through the cosmos.

The earth is not alone in sky: she is situated within a solar system that is governed by our Sun.  Together with the moon and planets, we form a solar family.

The Sun has a large toroidal field of energy which astrophysicists call the heliosphere.  Like the earth's magnetic field, the Sun's heliosphere shields us and buffers us from the direct impact of harmful solar electromagnetic radiation.

I cannot be the only one who has noticed that the heliosphere acts as a sort of womb for what we call 'the solar system'; the planets are like children to be birthed.

Local Bubble

Our solar system resides in what scientists call a space bubble.  Yes, it is actually named the Local Bubble (so if someone says we live in a bubble, they're right!).

This gigantic, invisible space bubble is actually a gas pocket about 1,000 light years wide that is incredibly important to life on earth, and casts "a shroud" (a garment, if you will) over those within it (in the words of the Smithsonian).

The Bubble was formed eons ago through the explosions of approximately 15 supernovae.

And lo-and-behold, about 5 million years ago our solar system crossed into the Bubble.  "Look, everyone: it's earth!  Now we've got a party!"

The Harvard and Smithsonian Astrophysics Center quoted professor Alyssa Goodman as saying, "What are the chances that we are right smack in the middle of one of these things? ... The Sun sits ― just by luck ― almost right in the bubble’s center."

Luck?  Au contraire.

Why does this matter?  Are we earning an astronomy merit badge?

No, but remember, there are seven heavens that reside within each of us, even the seven energetic centers of the subtle body.

[The god Atum in the tomb of Rameses I in the Valley of the Kings, pictured fighting the serpent Apophis, the enemy of the sun]

Millennial Midwives

   Charting
   migratory paths
   predictably across millennia
   as whales journeying
   thru firmament's fire

   ― "Life Signs"

We have a proactive role to play in birthing the New Earth as midwives.

In the Book of Revelation, we read of a Woman giving birth to a son, which represents the Kingdom of God.

   The woman being with child,
   cried, travailing in birth,
   and pained to be delivered.

(Revelation 12:2)

This is not going to be an easy birth.  There are complications.  We are midwives sent by God to assist in delivering the Kingdom of God to earth.  In case I haven't made it clear, earth is our ticket back to the Elohim.  Those who are unable to abide the earth's terrestrial (and ultimately celestial) glory will have to find a home elsewhere (meaning they will have to incarnate in the future on other planetary bodies of lesser glory).

Things are going to get messy; so how does the woman in Revelation escape with her infant?  Well, she had help.  Specifically, we read that the woman was assisted by (1) two wings of a great eagle (Rev. 12:14), and (2) the earth herself.

   And the earth helped
   the woman,
   and the earth opened
   her mouth and swallowed
   up the flood which
   the dragon cast
   out of his mouth.

(Revelation 12:16)

Recall the "dragon" has seven heads.  The Woman must escape the "flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth."  What kind of dragon-fire are we talking about, here?

What is a dragon, but a winged serpent?  We find woven throughout prophecy the image of the Serpent (dragon), and thinking of Apophis, we see it now in a new light.

Even though I am taking artistic liberties with this account (my apologies to the apostle John), pretend this describes Apophis seeking to arrest the birth of the Woman's son, or to kill the boy as soon as he is born, when he is most vulnerable, so he cannot grow.

The Woman, though, is protected by an eagle.  What does that represent?  Wings, remember, symbolize power and movement (D&C 77:4).

The earth herself comes to the rescue.  Picture the wings of the earth unfolding as we travel through the galaxy, waging a mighty contest against the forces of darkness and entropy.

Like the woman, we will require a "refuge" from the forces of planetary destabilization that will occur before the end.

In the Parable of the Space-Kingdoms (my name) found in D&C 88:51-61, the master visits each "field" (planet) in turn at separate hours, so they might all enjoy:

   the light of the countenance
   of the Lord.

(D&C 88:56)

To me this imagery screams astronomy.  The Lord concludes the parable by saying that each kingdom (planet) has appointed "in its hour, and in its time, and in its season" a path decreed by God (D&C 88:61).

The path of the earth is charted through the various dominions, thrones, and powers of heaven, each in its time.  Just as we would die if the Lord appeared in glory in our present state, the earth cannot endure the greater celestial glories she will encounter on her journey unless she is translated (receives a paradisiacal glory).

At the end of the path we find the archetypical Light, God, who is "the Bright Morning Star" (Revelation 22:16).

But St. Peter, knowing the mystery, said:

   [To] the word of the prophets . . . 
   you will do well to pay attention,
   as to a light shining
   in a dark place,
   until the day dawns
   and the morning star
   rises in your hearts.

(2 Peter 1:19, Berearn Translation)

Based on what Peter knew, maybe we should stop looking to the sky for signs of Christ's return, and start looking inward, to Him "rising in our hearts."

Conclusion: "The Ravager"

Isaiah, who spoke of all things concerning the destiny of the house of Israel, spoke of "the ravager."  He compared it to a hot flame or coal.

   It is I who create the smith who fans the flaming coals,
   forging weapons to suit his purpose;
   it is I who create the ravager to destroy.
   Whatever weapon is devised against you,
   it shall not succeed.

(Isaiah 54:16-17, Gileadi Translation)

In the King James Version, the ravager is translated, "the waster."  This same Ravager / Waster is called, by Jeremiah, "the spoiler."

   O daughter of my people,
   gird thee with sackcloth . . . 
   for the spoiler
   shall suddenly come upon us.

(Jeremiah 6:26)

What is this Spoiler?  It is describing astronomical events that will destroy the wicked.  It is unavoidable.

   Because the spoiler is come
   upon her, even upon Babylon,
   [that] her mighty men
   are taken, every one
   of their bows is broken . . . . 
   The broad walls of Babylon
   shall be utterly broken,
   and her high gates
   shall be burned with fire.

(Jeremiah 51:56, 58)

John saw these events, and gave the destroyer a name: Abaddon (Revelation 9:11).

The Hebrew term Abaddon (אֲבַדּוֹן) means "destruction" or "doom."  Its Greek equivalent is Apollyon (Ἀπολλύων), meaning "Destroyer."

This appears to be "an angel of the abyss" or bottomless pit, a heralder of the ruin of the world.

I believe what these prophets are trying to describe is an astronomical event that rocks the earth from its axis to the point giant fissures in the earth will erupt, flooding the earth with molten fire.

Earthquakes shall bring us to our knees.  Solar flares and other celestial phenomena will weaken earth's geomagnetic shield as the earth emerges into a new heaven as a baby being born, having passed through the valley of the shadow of death.

At last, after much travail, she will have defeated Apophis once more.