[Revelation 12]

This chapter has often been described as the start of a whole new series of visions up until 15:4.  The repetition of the words: I saw and Behold reveals seven sections of signs.

• The conflict of the woman and her seed (12:1-17)
• The persecution of the beast from the sea (13:1-10)
• The persecution of the beast from the land (13:11-18)
• The Lamb and the 144 000 on Mount Zion (14:1-5)
• The proclamation of the Gospel and the judgment by three angels (14:6-13)
• The Son of man’s harvest of the earth (14:14-20)
• The Saint’s victory over the beast and their song (15:2-4)

Other parts of the book are also divided into sections of seven – the seals, trumpets and bowls.

This chapter is a deeper dimension of the conflict between the Church and the world.  The seals reveal the spiritual forces of evil unleashed against believer and unbeliever alike.  The trumpets demonstrate God’s judgment on hardened humanity.

The story is the same as in Revelation 1-11 but now reveals the source of evil as the Source of salvation was revealed as the highest and greatest.  Insight into evil is essential for living a victorious Christian life.

Four figures: the devil, the beast, the false prophet, the harlot– all meet their demise in 12-22 in reverse order than they are introduced.

We live in the age of fantasy stories. I sometimes get the impression the filmmakers are enjoying themselves even more than their audiences, who travel into magical and mysterious worlds with life-like characters appearing real. The discussions around the latest idiosyncrasies of authors and directors, sound bizarre and outlandish. It is a weird world created in the imagination and realized on film or in books.

Revelation, as a sequence of events in metaphor and symbols, could be classified into this genre of fabulous fantasies. No filmmaker, however, has even come close to endeavour a version of this ready-made script. The four horses of the apocalypse have found their way into some film adaptations, but not recently. Scary horses are part of so many stories – just think of the blood-sweating horses of the black riders in The Lord of the Rings. The four horses are only the first four seals of the seven seals mentioned in Revelation. What about the action of the trumpets and the bowls?

While reading on into the more intimidating and daunting code, we should once again keep our goal in mind. This study is an introduction into the “secret language”, if I may call it that, of the first century Christian message, delivered into a hostile and risky environment of the Roman Empire desperately clinging to the glory it once had, with all the inglorious means it could muster.

In this atmosphere of power play at the highest level, the first Christmas is celebrated. A baby is born to a very ordinary couple, caught in the administration of an Empire, much bigger than the parents themselves could ever care to think about. Whatever one believes about the century-old Christmas story and how many “mistakes” are made in our narrative and nativity scenes, including the date, circumstances or people involved, this event was noticed in the highest circles of government, eventually precipitating the worst trial in recorded Jewish history culminating into the nastiest of execution-styles of the ancient world. 

Many Jewish scholars have written about the gross miscarriage of justice of the Sanhedrin that fateful night of the trial of Jesus and their sly scheming to bring on the execution by the Romans by whom the Jews were legally forbidden to perform a death penalty. 

We know the story. It is written in the Gospels. We hang the golden balls to celebrate the season – rightly so.

Let us look deeper as the Word of God always calls us to do.

Our Christmas story is what happened in the physical realm. A baby in a cave or manger – you can choose; an angel choir appearing to shepherds watching over the lambs being prepared for slaughter at the Passover, who rush to witness the arrival; wise men brought to the place by a miraculous star; wide-eyed parents who marvel at the wonder of the truth of prophecy and a mad king who slays babies to calm his own insecurity – quite a story!

Walk with me into the miraculous scene of Revelation 12 as John uses all the signs of divinity and beauty to describe the spiritual images of the first Christmas.

Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars. ² Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.

³ And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. ⁴ His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born. ⁵ She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne. ⁶ Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days.

The sun and moon are often used in divine descriptions. God’s garment is light as described in Psalm 104:2. In Malachi 4:2 Jesus is named the Sun of Righteousness with healing in His wings. The Song of Solomon’s loved one is fair as the moon and clear as the sun (Song 6:10). In this dramatic description of the woman of heaven, John also added something the pagans would understand – she is crowned with a garland of the 12 signs of the Zodiac.

We must always remember, whatever heavenly bodies of the universe paganism or false religions may use, the symbols and signs of the universe belongs to God. Nothing in this earthly realm, used in whatever distortion and deception, could be hijacked from us as children of the Creator.

The sun, moon, and eleven stars are mentioned in Genesis 37:9 metaphorically representing Jacob and the eleven tribes of Israel.  They bow down to Joseph, the twelfth tribe.

The woman is the Messianic community from whom the Messiah is born. She is in labour, symbolizing the pain of their oppression and the expectant lingering for the Promise to be fulfilled.

Women in the Old Testament were often the symbol of the bride of God.

For your Maker is your husband, the Lord of hosts is His name; (Isaiah 54:5)

The restored Israel is described as a woman in Isaiah 60:19-20; 62:3,5.

She wears a crown, the reward of God – uncompromising and faithful – powerful against the onslaught. (2:10; 3:11; 4:4-; 14:14)  Her brightness comes from being in the presence of God.  She is clothed in the light of Christ’s glory.

Jeremiah talks about the harlot being unfaithful in Jeremiah 3:6-10 and Hosea with his unfaithful wife, is a life lived in the metaphor of God as the lover of Israel and the people’s betrayal of that love. God promises betrothal (Hosea 2:19-20) with all the joyful expectancy of a wedding feast with the protection and provision implied in such a union.  The harlot represents the unfaithful community.

Revelation tells of the marriage of the Bride (faithful community) of the Lamb (19:7, 21:9) and Paul writes that we are betrothed (promised) to God as pure.

For I am jealous for you with godly jealousy. For I have betrothed you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ. (2 Corinthians 11:2)

The Church is now the community from whom the Messiah is proclaimed. The Church is always referred to as female. Jerusalem is also female. The old Jerusalem has literally fallen and failed the purposes of God. The new Jerusalem is the Church and carries the purposes of God spiritually. The forces of destruction – evil and human – are resolute to destroy this community, but it is under God’s protection and cannot be destroyed.

A woman in labour is often mentioned in Isaiah – 7:10-14; 26:17-27:1; 51:2-11; 66:7-10)

The great fiery red dragon is a well-known symbol of Babylonian mythology, which depicts a red-gleaming serpent. The image appears in the Old Testament as Rahab in Isaiah 51:9: Are You not the arm that cut Rahab apart, and wounded the serpent?

The dragon had seven heads and ten horns and seven royal diadems, which all depict mighty power over the kingdoms of the earth as opposed to the kingdom of God. There are two players in the struggle for mankind. Evil is trying to destroy all that God made good. The struggle culminates in the Cross.  Seven and ten indicate completeness.  The completeness of the oppressive power means it is worldwide.

The dragon represents all evil kingdoms oppressing the true Israel.  Pharoah is seen as the sea dragon. (Psalms 74:13-14; 89: 10; Isaiah 30:7;51:9; Ezekiel 29:3; 32:2,3; Habakkuk 3:8-15)

The dragon has 10 horns like the fourth beast of Daniel 7:7,24 and also comes from the sea. The scarlet colour is the same as the harlot being drunk on the blood of the saints and represents the violence of the oppression.

The seven diadems are the completeness of the false claim of authority and sovereignty.  The true King wears many diadems which in Hebrew means a higher authority to overrule all others. (19:12;19-21)

A third of the stars – an attack on the Church is an attack on the angels and God himself.  He attacks as the woman is giving birth – an attack to destroy the Messiah himself.

The Child, who will rule with an iron rod, is Jesus.  (Psalms 2:7-9)

The Child is snatched up to heaven out of reach. This description is a snapshot of Christ’s entire life in one line.  His life is condensed like in John 13:3; 16:28; Romans 1:3-4; 1 Timothy 3:16)  Jesus is the firstborn from the dead. (Colossians 1:18)

This is the protection God guaranteed for the fulfillment of His purpose. Satan, in the shape of the dragon, may have a plan of destruction, but God will protect what is His. Heaven is not the faraway place, somewhere in the vastness of the universe. It is the Presence of the Father. It is the secret place of the Most High and the shadow of the Almighty. It is the ultimate place of safety.

He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High

Shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty.

I will say of the Lord, “He is my refuge and my fortress;

My God, in Him I will trust.” (Psalm 91:1,2)

The word used for snatch (raptured) is the same as used in 1 Thessalonians 4:17 and 2 Corinthians 12:2 to describe the action to be caught up in heaven. John’s emphasis is on the heavenly Jesus, not His earthly life. It is all about the exalted Christ. In the greater time calculation of God, Jesus’ earthly life was just a flash. Even so, the event had eternal consequences.

They escape to the desert, which is a place of safety and nourishment. For Elijah, as for us, it was a place of divine provision. (1 Kings 17:1-7 and 19:1-8) Shortly after the birth Jesus and his parents had to flee (Matthew 2:13.)  It is symbolic of the messianic community living in the Church age.  The woman is on earth, where the people of God are.  In the desert they are protected and nourished.

Jesus initiated end-time living with his temptation in the wilderness. (Matthew 4:1; Mark 1:12; Luke 1:80; 4:1)  Just as the relationship of Jesus with the Father has been protected, so our covenant relationship with Jesus is protected.

During the evil times of Antiochus Epiphanes, the priests kept the law in secret in the wilderness. Again, after the destruction of Jerusalem in 70AD, they fled to the mountains, into wilderness-like places to be safe.

The Church today finds solitude and provision in the wilderness. It is there where the table is spread, right there in the shadow of the valley of death. It is a place of provision and communion. Jesus knocks at the door of our heart to sit down for the evening meal, the relaxed chat over good food, which restores our sick and weary souls. (Revelation 3:20)

The place prepared is synonymous with the word Temple, dwelling place of God. It is an invisible place of safety and provision. The church in Ephesus could have suffered the horrific consequences of lovelessness – the lampstand would be removed.  Thus is will not be a church anymore – exactly what happens to so-called churches that do not reflect the love of God in his church.

The place is a symbolic realm of divine protection in the 1260 days of persecution that commences with the Resurrection and ends with the Second Coming.

Satan Thrown Out of Heaven

⁷ And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, ⁸ but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. ⁹ So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

¹⁰ Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down. ¹¹ And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. ¹² Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.”

From John’s perspective angels are mediators for the Church (2-3) and the elders as representatives of the Church. (4-5)  Michael is the archangel in charge of God’s people. (Daniel 10:13,21; 12:1)  He is fighting against the demonic powers over Persia and Greece oppressing the people of God.  In Daniel 10:5-21 “one like the Son of man” joins the fight.  Michael represents God’s people in the heavenly sphere.  He is a reflection of Christ’s victory.

That is why Christ’s victory on earth is immediately reflected in heaven by the defeat of the devil and his forces.  The war of the angels is symbolic of the fight against the dragon, the devil, the serpent or whatever he is called.  Symbolism always refers to something real.

Satan is the enemy of God. He is in war with God and the saints. It is symbolic of the war in heaven when a third of the angels went against God (Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28). Lucifer was the morning star, the leader of worship. The Pharaoh declared himself the morning and the evening star. Music is still infiltrated with evil and very much on the agenda of deception. At the same time there is an explosion of worship music all across the world, to sing the praises of God and draw people to God.

Lucifer fell because of pride. The saints are warned against pride (1Timothy 3:6).

Satan still has access to the Presence of God as illustrated in- Job 1:6-9 and 2:1-6, Zechariah 3:1,2. Satan means adversary. Balaam (Numbers 22) can be called a satan against the angel. He is always the accuser, against Job; also against Joshua in Zechariah 3.  He has access but he no longer has a place in heaven. 

Be aware of the raspy voice of the accuser in contrast to the still small voice of the Holy Spirit spoken in perfect love in your inner being.

In Greek Satan is diabolos, which means slanderer. In the New Testament satan is called the devil or the tempter. Matthew 4, Mark 1 and Luke 4 describe him where the temptation of Jesus in the wilderness is recorded.

We find good examples of Satan’s work throughout the Bible. Remember, he is not creative. He cannot think of new strategies. He will always go back to age-old methods and invoke them craftily to snare the saints.

Since this is so, we find Satan engaged in certain nefarious purposes in the New Testament.

• He seeks to seduce Jesus in his temptations.
• He puts the terrible scheme of betrayal into Judas’ mind (John 13:2, 27, Luke 22:3).
• He is out to make Peter fall Luke 22:31.
• He persuades Ananias to keep back part of the price of the possession he had sold (Acts 5).
• He is the cause of illness and pain (Luke 13:16, Acts 10:38, 2 Corinthians 12:7).
• He hinders the work of the gospel by sowing the tares, which choke the good seed (Matthew 13:39), and by snatching away the seed of the word from the human heart before it can gain an entry
(Mark 4:15; Luke 8:12).
• He uses every wile (Ephesians 6:11) and every device (2 Corinthians 2:11) to achieve his seducing

Jesus taught us to pray against him in the Lord’s prayer – deliver us from the Evil One – Matthew 6:13.

He is the ruler of this world.

I will not speak with you much longer, for the ruler of the world (Satan) is coming. And he has no claim on Me [no power over Me nor anything that he can use against Me]; (John 14:30) Also John 12:31,16:11.

Satan’s history is tragedy – once great, now fallen. His future is defeat.

The definition of satan is: “the malevolent critic of creation, the sleepless vigilance of evil against good.”  He is slanderer, deceiver and adversary.

The victory of the saints will be his downfall. Our choice for the true life is his defeat. Our victory is the Blood of the Lamb. There is no condemnation for those in Christ; therefore the accuser has no power over us.

He will always try to injure Christ through the church. When Paul was cruelly determined to wipe out the followers of Jesus, he heard the voice on the road to Damascus. Jesus absolutely identified with His church and asked Paul:

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting and oppressing Me? (Acts 9:4)

The defeat of satan is the establishment of God’s kingdom on earth.  It is the stone in Daniel 2 that defeats the last four great Kingdoms. (2:44)  This is confirmed by Jesus’ victory over death.

The dragon is the serpent of old. (Garden of Eden – Genesis 3:1,14)

John hears a loud voice – a hymn in Revelation is the summary of a vision.  It interprets what is seen.  Here it confirms the establishment of the Kingdom – our God and our brethren.

The ascription of power to Christ echoes the words of Chapters 4 and 5.  It is introduced by the word NOW.  It is not a mere anticipation of something to come.  It is here. 

The resurrection is the turning point of all history.   The death and resurrection of Jesus satisfied all the requirements of salvation history – for those after his life on earth as well as for those who lived before his life on earth.  (1 Peter 3:19; 4:6)

This is the consequence of the decisive victory of Jesus – We SHALL overcome – by the Blood of the Lamb and the word of our testimony.  Satan can battle our bodies but he has forever lost the battle for our souls.  Suffering for Christians is a sign of the victory of the saints, not a sign of their defeat.  All believers have overcome and shall overcome.

The saints command all heaven to rejoice. (12:12)  They live in heaven – the Kingdom.  The great wrath of the defeat of the devil he unleashes upon the earth. 

A short time – the consummation of the Kingdom and the final defeat of evil.  It indicates a limited time just like Daniel’s times and the 42 months etc.  It is figurative and corresponds with little time in 6:11.  The devil has limited power.  He is locked in the abyss (a symbol of the authority of God over him) and cannot harm the souls of the sealed saints. (20:1-6)  His war with the Church will come to nothing – it has a heavenly identification.

In the third year of Cyrus king of Persia a message was revealed to Daniel, whose name was called Belteshazzar. The message was true, but the appointed time was long; and he understood the message, and had understanding of the vision.  (Daniel 10:1)

The Woman Persecuted

¹³ Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child.¹⁴ But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. ¹⁵ So the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. ¹⁶ But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. ¹⁷ And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The woman escapes with eagles’ wings. 

You have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings, and brought you to Myself. (Exodus 19:4)

The image of eagles’ wings has always been a spiritual pillar of support.

“As an eagle that protects its nest, that flutters over its young,

He spread out His wings and took them, He carried them on His pinions. (Deuteronomy 32: 11-12)

But those who wait for the Lord [who expect, look for, and hope in Him] will gain new strength and renew their power;

They will lift up their wings [and rise up close to God] like eagles [rising toward the sun]; they will run and not become weary,

They will walk and not grow tired. (Isaiah 40:31)

The wings of an eagle are symbolized in the outstretched arms of Jesus on the Cross. It is always inclusive and welcoming to all.

The serpent is enraged by the escape of the woman. He invokes the flood to destroy, but the waters will not destroy the woman. The earth opens to swallow the river. In God’s hands Nature is used to save, rather than destroy. Water in Asia Minor often went underground to reappear later.

The promise to the saints stands firm. God controls the flood. (Psalm 42:7, 124:4, 32:6.)

 When you pass through the waters, I will be with you;

And through the rivers, they will not overwhelm you.

When you walk through fire, you will not be scorched,

Nor will the flame burn you. (Isaiah 43:2)

God promises that the flood will not prevail against you. You will be victorious.

So shall they fear The name of the Lord from the west, And His glory from the rising of the sun; When the enemy comes in like a flood, The Spirit of the Lord will lift up a standard against him. (Isaiah 59:19)

Daniel calls a conquering enemy a flood. (11:10,22,26,40)

David describes Saul’s pursuit:  The pangs of death surrounded me,
And the floods of ungodliness made me afraid.  (Psalms 18:4)

Stretch out Your hand from above;
Rescue me and deliver me out of great waters,
From the hand of foreigners,

 Whose mouth speaks lying words,
And whose right hand is a right hand of falsehood.  (Psalms 144:7,8)

The Red Sea was the waters blocking Israel’s escape.  John alludes to the  Exodus as well as Daniel 9:26.

The wilderness is a place of protection and provision against the devil’s efforts to destroy the Church from within (deception) and from the outside (persecution).

The flood was swallowed just like Pharoah was swallowed by the sea.  The miracle worked in favour of Israel and against their enemies.

Psalms 74:13-14 the Leviathan represents Pharoah.  Also Isaiah 51:9-10 and Ezekiel 29:3; 32:2-3 identifies Pharoah as the sea dragon.

The barrier of the sea has been removed.

The offspring of the woman is the multitude of individual believers suffering under the dragon.  He is enraged that he cannot overcome them.  He can attack but not defeat.  Their souls are safe with God.

Keep the testimony of Jesus – given to the Church and proclaimed by the Church.   Whenever the persecution, deception and compromise are resisted, the devil is defeated. (Romans 16:17-20)

The end is being modelled on the beginning.  Strategy against Eve was deception and the temptation to compromise.

The spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus. (Revelation 19:10)

The fierce anger of the Lord will not return until He has done it,
And until He has performed the intents of His heart.

In the latter days you will consider it. (Jeremiah 30:24)

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