“He who made the Pleiades and Orion, and turns deep darkness into the morning, and darkens the day into night, who calls for the waters of the sea, and pours them out upon the surface of the earth, the Lord is his name,” Amos 5:8
I woke up early this morning and captured this image of the Pleiades in the northeast sky of Guam.
The Pleiades (also known as the Seven Sisters or Messier 45, M45) is a bright, open star cluster located about 440 light-years away from Earth in the constellation Taurus. The cluster contains more than 1,000 stars created from the same cloud of gas and dust, and is highlighted by a bright blue reflection nebula of interstellar dust. (Mann and Sohn)
The word “Pleiades” appears in the Hebrew Scriptures two other times in addition to verse in the Book of the Prophet Amos, cited above. Both instances are in the Book of Job (9:9 and 38:31). All three instances use the Hebrew word, “כִּימָה”, pronounced “kee-MAH” meaning “a cluster, jewels, i.e. necklace, bracelet”. (“Strong’s Hebrew: 3598. כִּימָה (Kimah) — Pleiades.”) The Greek Old Testament (Septuagint) uses forms of the word Πληϊάδες (Pleiades) in the two verses from the Book of Job. (Brenton)
In Greek mythology the name “Pleiades” was used for seven divine sisters. Eventually, the name was said to be derived from that of a mythical mother, Pleione, effectively meaning “daughters of Pleione”.
Two other explanations for the name seem to be more plausible, or at least, earlier in origin. The name could have arisen from the Greek word “πλέω”, meaning “sail” (“Πλειάδες.”) since the cluster appeared in ancient times during the Mediterranean summer sailing season. (Ridpath)
Alternatively, the name “Pleiades” could have been derived from the Greek word “Πελειάδες” (peleiades), meaning ‘flock of doves’,as it seemed to many to be a flock of doves pursued by the hunter, Orion.
Praise God!
Works Cited
Brenton, Lancelot Charles Lee. The Septuagint with Apocrypha: Greek and English. Edited by Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton, translated by Lancelot Charles Lee Brenton, Hendrickson Publishers, 1986.
Mann, Adam, and Rebecca Sohn. “The Pleiades: Facts About the ‘Seven Sisters’ Star Cluster.” Space, Future US, 19 July 2023, https://www.space.com/pleiades.html. Accessed 28 Jul. 2026.
“Πλειάδες.” Logeion, University of Chicago, logeion.uchicago.edu/Πλειάδες. Accessed 28 July 2026.
Ridpath, Ian. “Taurus Continued: The Pleiades – Seven Celestial Sisters.” Star Tales, www.ianridpath.com/startales/taurus2.html. Accessed 28 July 2026.
“Strong’s Hebrew: 3598. כִּימָה (Kimah) — Pleiades.” Bible Hub, 2004–2026, biblehub.com/hebrew/3598.htm. Accessed 28 July 2026.
Great article!