REVELATION CHAPTER 12, “The Two Great Signs In
Heaven: The Woman And The Great Red
Dragon”
By
1.
INTRODUCTION
1.1.
In our last
study, we were in chapter 11 and we continued
in the interlude before the sounding of the seventh and last Trumpet judgment,
which then occurred in verse 15. During this
interlude we discovered that there are two witnesses who will be upon the earth
for 3 ½ years as they prophesy and testify to the world concerning the gospel
and the judgments to come.
1.1.1. We speculated about who
these two witnesses might be, and concluded they are Elijah and Moses or Enoch.
1.1.2. We looked at the very
important ministry of these two witnesses.
1.1.3. We noticed that they are
able to do incredible miracles and that they were unable to be harmed until the
time of their ministry was complete, and then the Beast killed them.
1.1.4. When the two witnesses were
killed, we saw that people all over the earth were watching them and rejoiced,
however in 3 ½ days they were raised up from the dead and ascended into heaven,
instilling fear and a sense of awe upon the people of the world.
1.1.5. After the miraculous
resurrection of these two witnesses, we saw that people did not repent, even
though they had seen the incredible miracles associated with them and heard
their preaching of the gospel.
1.2.
In our study today, we will look at chapter 12. In this chapter, we will see that John sees
two great signs in heaven: a woman who
is gloriously adorned and about to give birth to a child, and a great red
dragon. We will see that this chapter
then details a huge persecution against the Jews that will occur during the
second half of the 7 Year Tribulation period.
1.2.1. The woman symbolizes
1.2.2. The great red dragon
symbolizes Satan.
1.2.3. The Lord has a special place
of refuge where He will protect and provide for
2.
VS 12:1-2 - “12:1 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman
clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of
twelve stars; 2 and she was with child; and she *cried out, being in labor and
in pain to give birth.” - John tells us that he saw a great sign appear
in heaven, a woman appears who is clothed with the sun, and the moon under her
feet, and a crown of 12 stars on her head, and she is with child and ready to
give birth
2.1.
In this chapter we see that there are two ‘signs’ which John
writes about. The
word used by John for ‘sign’ in this chapter is the same word typically
used by the gospel writers to describe the “attesting works” that Jesus
performed and which confirm who He is and His work.
2.1.1. The ‘woman’ mentioned in the first verse here is described as ‘a great sign’.
2.1.2. The ‘great red dragon’
mentioned later in the chapter is the second sign.
2.2.
The woman and the dragon are “signs” in the sense that they are “word
pictures” and they are to be interpreted symbolically, for they
convey something that is very
significant to the reader of this book.
2.3.
The description of the ‘woman’
mentioned in verse 1 reminds us of
Joseph’s dream in Genesis 37:9, “9 Now he had still another dream, and
related it to his brothers, and said, “Lo, I have had still another dream; and
behold, the sun and the moon and eleven stars were bowing down to me.””
2.4.
There have been many interpretations
by various individuals and churches of who this ‘woman’ is who is
mentioned in this chapter:
2.4.1. The Catholic Church has
taught that it is Mary, the mother of Jesus:
2.4.1.1.This interpretation makes no
sense because this chapter details for us the persecution of the woman in the
later days (see verse 13 of this chapter),
and it is nonsensical to think of Mary being persecuted at that time.
2.4.1.2.It is also the case that if it were Mary, why would she be seen clothed with the sun,
standing upon the moon, and with a crown of seven stars on her head?
2.4.2. Mary Baker Eddy claimed that
she was the woman and that the Christian Science beliefs and religion were the
son whom she gave birth to.
2.4.3. There have been other women who
claimed to be prophetesses and stated that this scripture prophesied concerning
them.
2.5.
Tim Layahe quotes Dr. H.A. Ironside concerning the
importance of understanding the identity of this woman, “I think I may say without exaggeration that I have read or carefully
examined several hundred books purporting to expound the Revelation. I have learned to look upon this twelfth
chapter as the crucial test in regard to the correct prophetic outline. If the interpreters are wrong as to the woman
and the man-child, it necessarily follows that they will be wrong as to many
things connected with them.”
2.6.
It is important to understand on
the outset when looking at this chapter that
it is very clear that in this chapter that the woman is symbolic of the nation
of Israel, and there are a few things in the scriptures that support this view,
including:
2.6.1. In the Old Testament, the nation of
2.6.2. Israel is symbolically the
wife of Jehovah in Isaiah 54:5,6,
Jeremiah 31:32, and Hosea 2:19-23, for instance, and a woman in travail in Isaiah 66:7-9 and Micah 4:10-5:3.
2.7.
The ‘woman’ in this vision by John has a very brilliant
appearance, being clothed with the sun. The
nation of
2.7.1. Jesus told His disciples
that He is the light of the world (John
8:12).
2.7.2. Believers are to put off the
deeds of darkness and put on the armor of light, and put on the Lord Jesus (Romans 13:12, 14).
2.7.3. Christ Himself is the
believer’s glorious apparel, and thus the woman is clothed with the sun.
2.8.
John wrote that the woman had the moon under her feet, and since the
moon is a mere reflection of the light of the sun and not the actual
source of that light, it could be that
the woman is being described as having victory over the deception of those who
appear as angels of light, but in whom there is in reality no light at
all (2 Cor. 11:14).
2.9.
Also, to be “under the feet” in scripture means to be subjugated,
trodden upon, and held in bondage (Psalm
91:13, and 1 Cor. 15:25). It is through
2.10. The twelve stars in the
crown on the woman’s head could very well be symbolic of the twelve tribes of
2.11. Is interesting that the
woman who is displayed so gloriously is also described as being ‘in labor
and in pain to give birth’. There
is another woman mentioned in the early part of the book of Genesis, chapter
3:15, and she will give birth to a son who is to bruise the head of the
serpent, “15 And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman, And between
your seed and her seed; He shall bruise
you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.”” This woman is Eve, of course, and the
incident occurred in the garden after the fall of man. And, those
words that are spoken to the serpent, are spoken to Satan himself. God
speaks of two seeds, the seed of
the woman and the seed of the serpent.
These two seeds are always to be in enmity with one another. All of history could actually be viewed as
the conflict between these two seeds.
The book of Revelation deals with the wrap up of the conflict between these
two seeds. The seed of the woman symbolizes Christ,
the eternal Son of God, and the seed of
the serpent symbolizes all wicked men upon the earth, however
prototypically one day it will be
Satan’s man whom he has chosen to rule the earth, the Beast (or
anti-Christ). Here in the book of
Revelation we see that the seed of the
woman crushes the head of the seed of the serpent, the Beast. The nation of
2.11.1.From the book of Genesis, we
see that Satan tried to stop the seed of the woman from being delivered:
2.11.1.1.Sarah, Abraham’s wife, was
unable to conceive until the Lord miraculously touched her and enabled her to bring forth a child.
2.11.1.2.Then, there was the delay in
the birth of Isaac.
2.11.1.3.Then, there was the
continual persecution of the descendants of Jacob, the son of Isaac, after that
time in
2.11.1.4.Then, there was the effort
during the time of Esther in which Satan tried to cause the entire Jewish
people to be exterminated.
2.11.1.5.Numerous times in the kings
and Chronicles, the Devil incited men and women to try and kill off all of the
male offspring of the kings of
2.11.1.6.Etc., etc.
2.11.2.It then has been the history
of the nation of
2.11.3.More than any other people
or race in history, the Jews have been
persecuted.
2.11.4.Thus, the ‘woman’ in
these verses is seen as being in labor and pain in order to give birth to her
child, which is Christ.
3.
VS 12:3 - “3 And another sign appeared in heaven: and behold, a
great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven
diadems.” - The next sign appears in heaven: the great red dragon
3.1.
I mentioned in my
introduction to the book of Revelation, the
number ‘seven’ in the book symbolizes completion or perfection. This verse though shows that the dragon (who is Satan) has ‘seven’ heads, so the idea of
completion or perfection for the number
does not necessarily always extend to moral perfection in the book.
3.2.
In this verse, we
see the second ‘sign’ which John writes about in this chapter. Just
as with the woman, this is a ‘sign’ because it is an object lesson and a
symbolic of something. This ‘sign’
appears to John ‘in heaven’, and as we will see the ‘dragon’ appears ‘in heaven’ because he is going to be
cast down to the earth.
3.3.
Ancient cultures have fables concerning “dragons”, and in these
fables the ‘dragon’ is seen as being something that is evil and
terrifying. Most
often the ‘dragon’ appears
in the fables as breathing out fire, and having wings for flying. The dragon in the book of Revelation is shown
by John to be the Devil.
3.4.
The Devil here is seen as being ‘red’ because ‘red’ is the
color of blood, and the Devil is going to try to kill as many of God’s people
as he can after he is cast to the earth at the beginning of the second half of
the 7 year tribulation.
3.4.1. Red is a good color for this
dragon because Jesus told us in John 8:44 that the Devil has always been a
murderer, “44 “You are of your father the Devil, and you want to do the
desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and does not
stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. Whenever he speaks a lie,
he speaks from his own nature; for he is a liar, and the father of lies.”
3.5.
The Devil is portrayed in this vision by John as being a ‘great’
red dragon, for he is mighty, of
considerable size and stature, and a formidable beast terrifying to behold.
3.5.1. The scriptures teach us that when Lucifer, the Devil’s pre-fall name, was created he was the greatest
and most powerful of all of the angels.
3.6.
Next, John writes
that the dragon has ‘seven heads and
ten horns, and on his heads were seven diadems’. This description of this dragon is very similar to the vision of the Beast in
Daniel’s prophesy of chapter 7 of his book, and this is because the Devil is
the one who produces his special ruler for the earth (the Antichrist or Beast)
and who also establishes his reign.
3.7.
This dragon also seems to closely correspond with the “scarlet beast”
described in Revelation chapter 17, of
which John wrote in Revelation
17:3,9-13, “3 And he carried
me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; and I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet
beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns…9 “Here is
the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the
woman sits, 10 and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other
has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. 11 “And the
beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth, and is one of the seven,
and he goes to destruction. 12 “And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings, who
have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the
beast for one hour. 13 “These have one purpose and they give their power and
authority to the beast.”
3.7.1. However, this dragon in
chapter 12 is Satan and that Beast in chapter 17 is the “antichrist”
Beast.
3.8.
Interestingly, the beast that comes out of the sea in Rev.
13:1 has seven heads and ten horns, however he has crowns not on his heads as
this beast, but rather he has crowns on his ten horns, “13:1 And he stood on
the sand of the seashore. And I saw a
beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his
horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names.”
3.8.1. The dragon mentioned in this
chapter symbolizes Satan himself, however the beast that comes out of the sea
in chapter 13 symbolizes the “antichrist” Beast, however the two are so
similar that their descriptions are virtually identical.
4.
VS 12:4 - “4 And his tail *swept away a third of the stars of heaven,
and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was
about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child.” - The Dragon sweeps away 1/3rd of
the stars of heaven and throws them to the earth
4.1.
In this verse,
there are two incidents that are
described by John.
4.1.1. First, John mentions the
fall of Satan when he took ‘a third of the stars’ (whom we know to sometimes symbolize angels in the
Bible, especially in the book of Revelation) who fell along with him at the
same time.
4.1.1.1.We do not know for certainty
when the fall of Satan and the rest of the fallen angels occurred, however we do see from the serpent tempting Eve in
the garden of Eden in Genesis chapter 3 that the fall had already occurred.
4.1.1.2.The ‘stars’ (rather angels) are seen here as having been swept away and thrown to the earth
because the demons after Satan’s fall also no longer have the same level of
access to the throne of God as they had before the fall. The book of Revelation reveals to us that some of those angels were actually bound and
are being held in the Bottomless Pit, and earlier we saw in the book
that some are currently bound at the
river
4.1.2. The second thing that John
describes in this verse looks back in time to point just before Jesus was born
when the Devil worked in the heart of King Herod to try and kill baby Jesus.
4.1.2.1.Herod ordered all children
under the age of 2 to be killed in
4.2.
As I mentioned earlier in this chapter, the Devil has unsuccessfully
tried all throughout history to destroy the promised seed of the woman who one day would crush his own head.
5.
VS 12:5 - “5 And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to
rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught up to God and
to His throne.” - The woman gave birth a son and he is to rule
all of the nations with a rod of iron and even be caught up to God and His
throne
5.1.
The woman of verse 1 now gives ‘birth to a son’, and this son is
destined ‘to rule all the nations with a rod of iron’. Further, this
child is ‘caught up to God and to His throne’.
5.2.
The child mentioned here is Christ Himself, and we know this for
several reasons:
5.2.1. Christ is the promised “seed”
of the woman in chapter 3 of Genesis, and
as we look in the book of Revelation we see that the struggle that takes place
is between God’s seed, and the Devil’s seed, the antichrist Beast.
5.2.2. Christ is mentioned in Rev.
19:15-16 as ruling ‘the nations with a rod of iron’, “15 And from His mouth comes a sharp sword, so
that with it He may smite the nations; and He will rule them with a rod of
iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16
And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND
LORD OF LORDS.””
5.2.3. The word used for ‘caught
up’ in this verse is the same word as that used in 1 Thess. 4:17 which
talks about the “rapture” of the church, and although at this point in the book of Revelation there have been
men and women raptured up to heaven, only
Christ truly has been caught up ‘to the throne’ to rule.
5.2.4. We know from many references
in the New Testament that Christ is at the right hand of God, referring to his
reigning now with God upon His throne.
5.2.4.1.Mankind will reign with Christ during the Millennium,
however right now during the book only Christ is upon the throne of God.
5.3.
There are those who want to say that the woman only refers to the virgin
Mary who actually bore Christ, however as we see later in the chapter the Devil
persecutes the woman, and therefore the woman cannot refer to the virgin
Mary. The woman must refer to the nation of
6.
VS 12:6 - “6 And the woman fled into the wilderness where she
*had a place prepared by God, so that there she might be nourished for one
thousand two hundred and sixty days.” - John tells us that the woman flees
into the wilderness to a place prepared for her by God where she can be
nourished for 3 ½ years
6.1.
In this verse, we see that Israel is going to flee into a ‘wilderness’
area when the Beast seizes control of the Jewish Temple and forces all mankind
to worship him rather than Jehovah. This event is known in scriptures as the “Abomination of Desolations”.
6.2.
Surely, not all
6.3.
We believe that the “Abomination of Desolation” will occur at the
beginning of the second half of the seven year Tribulation period.
6.3.1. The period of time in which
the Israelites will have to flee and hide will be exactly 3 1/2 years, the period of time of the last half of the Tribulation when the Beast is ruling the world and
has taken his seat in the temple and is demanding worship of himself by
everyone upon the face of the earth.
6.4.
There are many places in
6.5.
This refuge for the Israelites is a
place which has been ‘prepared by
God’, and it is a special place where God will nourish His people
miraculously. This way of
nourishing them could be very similar
to how He provided manna and water for the Israelites as they wandered for 40
years in the hot desert wilderness.
6.6.
God has many times in the Bible provided miraculously for His
people. He fed Elijah through ravens,
provided miraculously for the widow of Zarepath, etc.
6.7.
In Matthew 24:15-21, Jesus told the Jews what to do at this point of time
when the Beast takes his place in the temple causing the “Abomination of
Desolation”, they were to flee as
fast as possible, “15 “Therefore
when you see the abomination of desolation
which was spoken of through Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy
place (let the reader understand), 16 then let those who are in Judea flee to
the mountains; 17 let him who is on the housetop not go down to get the things
out that are in his house; 18 and let him who is in the field not turn back to
get his cloak. 19 “But woe to those who are with child and to those who nurse
babes in those days! 20 “But pray that your flight may not be in the winter, or
on a Sabbath; 21 for then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not
occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever shall.”
6.7.1. We know that Jesus
could not have been talking to anyone but the Jews when He said these
things, for to whom else would it
matter whether or not their flight would have to be on the Sabbath? On the Sabbath, the Jews were to gather for
worship and not to work, so therefore they would not be able to flee if they
had to on that day. During their history, the Israelite’s enemies
often attacked them upon the Sabbath because they knew that the people
would be at worship and no prepared to go to battle.
7.
VS 12:7-9 - “7 And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels
waging war with the dragon. And the dragon and his angels waged war, 8 and they
were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in
heaven. 9 And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is
called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to
the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” - John tells us that the dragon (Satan) and his
angels were waging war in heaven with Michael and his angels, however the
dragon and his angels couldn’t prevail and were thrown down to the earth
7.1.
In these verses, we see a great battle that occurs ‘in
heaven’, a battle between the holy angels and the fallen angels.
7.2.
God Himself wages this war, however He graciously allows His holy angels
the privilege to fight and overcome the Devil and his fallen angels.
7.3.
Michael is the only angel in the Bible who is called an “Arch”
angel (whatever that is), and here we see that he is marshaling ‘his angels’ in the fighting of this battle.
7.4.
In the scriptures, we see that Gabriel is the angel who makes
announcements and Michael is the angel who fights in battles.
7.5.
There can be no question in these verses about the identity of the dragon
being Satan. He is called by several of his Biblical
titles, plus he has his own angels who are battling Michael’s angels. For
instance, Satan here is called:
7.5.1. ‘The serpent of old’ (first appearance is Genesis 3 in the garden of Eden)
because he is wily.
7.5.2. ‘The Devil’ because
he is the “accuser” of God’s people.
7.5.2.1.Strong’s Greek Dictionary
has the following entry for this word ‘Devil’ used in these verses: 1228 diabolos \{
dee-ab’-ol-os\} from 1225; TDNT - 2:72,150; adj AV - Devil 35, false accuser 2,
slanderer 1; 38 GK - 1333 \{ diavbolo" \}
7.5.2.1.1.prone to slander, slanderous, accusing falsely
7.5.2.1.1.1.a calumniator, false accuser, slanderer,
7.5.2.1.2.metaph. applied to a man who, by opposing the cause of
God, may be said to act the part of the Devil or to side with him
7.5.3. “Satan” because he is
the adversary of God’s people, and the one ‘who deceives the whole world’.
7.5.3.1.Stong’s Greek Dictionary has
the following entry for this word translated as ‘Satan’ used in these
verses:
4567 Satanas \{ sat-an-as’\} of Aramaic origin corresponding to 4566
(with the definite affix); TDNT - 7:151,1007; n pr m AV - Satan 36; 36 GK -
4928 \{ Satana'" \}
7.5.3.1.1.adversary (one who opposes another in purpose or act),
the name given to
7.5.3.1.1.1.the prince of evil spirits, the inveterate adversary
of God and Christ
7.5.3.1.1.1.1.he incites apostasy from God and to sin
7.5.3.1.1.1.2.circumventing men by his wiles
7.5.3.1.1.1.3.the worshippers of idols are said to be under his
control
7.5.3.1.1.1.4.by his demons he is able to take possession of men and
inflict them with diseases
7.5.3.1.1.1.5.by God’s assistance he is overcome
7.5.3.1.1.1.6.on Christ’s return from heaven he will be bound with
chains for a thousand years, but when the thousand years are finished he will
walk the earth in yet greater power, but shortly after will be given over to
eternal punishment
7.5.3.1.1.2.a Satan-like man
7.5.3.1.1.3.Satan the prince of the demons, the author of evil,
persecuting good men, estranging mankind from God and enticing them to sin,
afflicting them with diseases by means of demons who take possession of their
bodies at his bidding.
7.6.
The Devil is thrown down to the earth and now no longer will have access
to the throne of God. We see from a couple of scriptures in the Bible that the Devil post-fall still has access to the
throne of God, and that he constantly
brings accusations to God against His people. He is called “the accuser of the brethren”
in scripture, however he will no longer have the privilege.
7.6.1. In Job chapter 1, the Devil
brings an accusation to God against Job
which sets in motion the events of the book of Job.
7.6.2. Likewise, we see in Zechariah 3:1 an accusation brought before God by the Devil on behalf
of Joshua the high priest at the time.
7.7.
Not having access
to God as the accuser, the Devil will
know that his time is running out, so his being thrown out of heaven will cause
the greatest persecution of God’s people of all time.
7.8.
Besides the
Devil, there also are no other wicked
spirits will have access to
God’s throne any longer.
7.9.
So then, these are the things that will happen at this midpoint of
the Tribulation:
7.9.1. The two witnesses will be killed (Rev. 11:7).
7.9.2. The harlot
7.9.3. The Beast breaks the treaty with the Jews (Dan.
9:27b).
7.9.4. The Beast demands to be worshipped (Rev. 13:8).
7.9.5. Satan is cast out of heaven (Rev. 12:9).
7.9.6. There is an intense persecution of the Jews (Rev.
12:13).
8.
VS 12:10 - “10 And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now
the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the authority of
His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been thrown down, who
accuses them before our God day and night.”” - John hears
a voice from heaven proclaiming God’s salvation, power, and kingdom have now
come, now that Satan has been cast of our heaven
8.1.
Here in this
verse, we see that a ‘loud voice’
responds to what John has seen in the Devil being cast out of heaven. We do
not know the source of the voice that comes from heaven although many
have speculated as to who might be making the announcement.
8.2.
In this loud proclamation made from
heaven, God is exalted because of:
8.2.1. The ‘salvation’ that
He is about to accomplish in saving mankind forever from the “presence”
of sin (God’s people have already been
saved from the penalty of sin, and they are in the process of being saved from
the power of sin).
8.2.2. His ‘power’ which
will be unleashed in order to punish wicked spirits and men.
8.2.3. The ‘kingdom’ He is
establishing by His own ‘authority’.
8.3.
We see in this
verse that the Devil has been accusing
all of God’s people continually (‘day and night’) before the throne of God, something that has
been his work since the fall of man in the garden of Eden. That accusing
has now come to an end as Satan is cast out of heaven, having been ‘thrown
down’ to the earth.
9.
VS 12:11 - “11 “And they overcame him because of the blood of the
Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love their
life even to death.” - John tells us that God’s persecuted people
overcame the Devil because of the blood of the Lamb and the word of their
testimony
9.1.
Here in this
verse, the loud voice that is speaking from heaven proclaims how it has been
that the saints have been able to have victory over the Devil during the time
upon the earth. God’s saints ‘overcame
him’ (the Devil) because of three things:
9.1.1. It was ‘because of the
blood of the Lamb’.
9.1.1.1.Jesus’ blood has made full
and complete atonement for the sins of
mankind.
9.1.1.1.1.In Heb. 2:14-15 we see that
when Jesus died upon the cross He rendered the Devil powerless, and thus His people have victory because of that
victory first obtained by Jesus over the Devil, “14 Since then the children share in flesh and blood, He Himself
likewise also partook of the same, that through death He might render powerless
him who had the power of death, that is, the Devil; 15 and might deliver those
who through fear of death were subject to slavery all their lives.”
9.1.1.1.2.In Heb. 9:12-15 we see that
Jesus’ blood cleanses the believer from all of his sins.
9.1.1.1.3.In 1 John 1:9
we see that the believer is cleansed just by the confession of his sins, “9 If we confess our sins, He is faithful
and righteous to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all
unrighteousness.”
9.1.2. By (or because of) ‘the
word of their testimony’.
9.1.2.1.In Matt. 10:33, Jesus told His disciples that if they will confess Him before men, He
will confess them before their Father in heaven. Likewise, if they deny Him before men, He
will also deny them before their Father in heaven.
9.1.2.2.The
believer’s “confession of Jesus Christ” is such a key element of a
victorious walk. John wrote in 1
John 4:4, “4 You are from God, little children, and have overcome them;
because greater is He who is in you than he who is in the world.”
9.1.2.3.As the believer in Christ
confesses Him, Jesus reciprocally gives him victory over the evil one.
9.1.3. By “self-sacrifice”.
9.1.3.1.‘They did not love their
life even to death’.
9.1.3.2.In Luke
9:23-24, Jesus taught that those who follow Christ are called to deny
themselves, take up their cross, and follow Him, “23 And He was saying to them all, “If anyone wishes to come after Me,
let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me. 24 “For
whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for
My sake, he is the one who will save it.”
9.1.3.3.A person cannot be saved
until he lays his life down, dies to self, and then takes up his cross and
begins to walk obediently following His Lord
wherever He may lead him.
9.2.
The Book Of Acts, Foxe’s Book Of Martyrs, and other preserved historical accounts
show us that God’s people have been given tremendous courage by Him during
times of persecution so that they have been able to endure them victoriously.
9.3.
The loud voice that comes out of heaven preaches quite a sermon to us who are
God’s people.
9.3.1.
We see in these words that this voice speaking gives
us three keys to victory over the evil one:
9.3.1.1.Appropriate
the blood of Christ over your sins.
9.3.1.2.Confess the
name of Jesus Christ.
9.3.1.3.Let your life
be a life of self-sacrifice for Christ.
9.4.
We who are God’s people should never be enslaved to anything but to the
Lord.
Nothing should ever master us,
and we should walk in victory over the enemy, and we will do so if will
just apply these things in our life.
9.5.
Satan had all of His authority and power taken away by Christ upon the
cross, and He must flee from us when we place ourselves in God’s hands and
commit our way to Him.
9.6.
The scripture tells us as believers that concerning that we are to submit
ourselves to the Lord, resist the Devil, and he will flee from us (James 4:7).
10.
VS 12:12 - “12 “For this reason, rejoice, O heavens and you who
dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the Devil has come down to
you, having great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time.”” - John tells us that when the Devil is cast
down to earth he is going to have great wrath because he knows that he has only
a short time left
10.1. As I mentioned already, after the Devil has been cast down to the earth, he knows that he has
just a short time left before he is cast into the Abyss for a thousand years
only to be removed and go into the Lake of Fire where he will burn and be
tormented for eternity.
10.2. This loud voice from heaven
proclaims a reason to rejoice as well as a woe because the Devil has been cast
down to the earth.
10.2.1.The ‘heavens’ and
those ‘who dwell in them’ are told to rejoice, and rejoice they will
when Christ again takes His rightful place of authority over all of creation.
10.2.2.However, those
who are unrepentant upon the earth, and wicked spirits, they have no hope, and
thus the voice proclaims only a woe for them.
11.
VS 12:13 - “13 And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to
the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child.” - John tells us that when the dragon, the
Devil, is cast down to earth that he is going to persecute the woman
11.1. As I mentioned earlier, the Devil has the utmost hatred for Israel because of what they stand for
as God’s chosen people, and thus now
that he has been ‘thrown down to the earth’, he is going to begin the
worst persecution of God’s people that history has ever seen.
11.2. Apart from the ones who
received the special seal by God’s angels, most of those who come to faith in
Christ will suffer the death of martyrdom
because they refuse to worship the Beast or receive the mark of the Beast.
11.3. The rest of this chapter
details the persecution brought about by the Devil (after being thrown down to the earth) against God’s people, and God’s protection and
provision for His people in the wilderness.
12.
VS 12:14 - “14 And the two wings of the great eagle were given to
the woman, in order that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where
she *was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of
the serpent.” - John tells us that two wings of the great
eagle were given to the woman so that she might fly into the wilderness were
the Lord would nourish her for 3 ½ years
12.1. In Isaiah
40:31, Isaiah writes about the fact that those who wait upon the Lord
will gain new strength, “31 Yet
those who wait for the Lord Will gain new strength; They will mount up with wings like eagles,
They will run and not get tired, They will walk and not become weary.”
12.2. The eagle represents
strength and it also represents speed, and the nation of
12.3. Some have speculated that
the
12.3.1.This speculation has come
about largely because the
12.4. John reiterates that the
nation of
13.
VS 12:15-16 - “15 And the serpent poured water like a river out of
his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the
flood. 16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and
drank up the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth.” - John tells us that the serpent poured water
out of its mouth like a river after the woman in order to try to sweep her away
with the flood, but the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river
13.1. In verse 15, we see that John writes about the Devil trying to somehow hinder and/or harm the
nation of
13.2. Some have said that they thought
that the flood could be a literal release of water meant to drown and hinder
the fleeing nation. Then, in that case, the earth will literally
open up and swallow the flood waters keeping Israelites safe.
13.3. However, it is perhaps more likely
regarding this river that John is speaking in symbolic terms about Satan’s
effort through persecution to hinder the nation.
13.4. In any case, the Lord will thwart
Satan’s scheme to hinder the fleeing woman from occurring, or allows the nation of
14.
VS 12:17 - “17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went
off to make war with the rest of her offspring, who keep the commandments of
God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.” - John tells us that the dragon
(Satan) went off to make war with the offspring of the woman since his effort
with the flood to stop her was unsuccessful
14.1. Since the Devil realized
that he was not going to be successful in impeding or harming the fleeing
Israelites, he leaves them and then goes away so that he can persecute to the
death other of God’s people who were not
fortunate enough to quickly flee into the wilderness area with the Israelites.
14.2. This verse may indicate that the Israelites who will
be hidden and protected by the Lord at this time are in fact “completed Jews”,
or Jews who have converted to having faith in Christ for salvation. This is because the ‘rest of her offspring’
are those who ‘hold to the testimony of Jesus’.
14.3. As we read this chapter, we
Christians ought to realize just how safe we are when we place our lives in the
Lord’s hands.
14.3.1.The Lord can and He will
protect us, and we do not need to fear any creature, nor any circumstance. This does not
mean that we may not experience difficulties, and even attacks by our enemy the
Devil, however as we look to and depend upon the Lord He will have victory over
all things in our lives.
14.3.2.David in the Psalms gives us
much encouragement about the Lord’s protection over our lives.
14.3.2.1.David, who was constantly hunted by King Saul for a
long time, wrote in Psalm 27:5
about how the Lord will protect us from harm when those who would harm us are
encompassed about us, “5 For in the
day of trouble He will conceal me in His tabernacle; In the secret place of His tent He will hide
me; He will lift me up on a rock.”
14.3.2.2.David wrote in Psalm
31:20 about how the Lord protects His people even from the verbal
attacks from our enemies on earth, “20 Thou
dost hide them in the secret place of Thy presence from the conspiracies of
man; Thou dost keep them secretly in a
shelter from the strife of tongues.”
14.3.2.3.Likewise, in Psalm
91:1-13, David wrote many things to encourage us concerning the Lord’s
protection of His people, “He who
dwells in the shelter of the Most High Will abide in the shadow of the
Almighty. 2 I will say to the Lord, “My
refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!” 3 For it is He who delivers you from the
snare of the trapper, And from the deadly pestilence. 4 He will cover you with His pinions, And
under His wings you may seek refuge; His
faithfulness is a shield and bulwark. 5
You will not be afraid of the terror by night, Or of the arrow that flies by
day; 6 Of the pestilence that stalks in
darkness, Or of the destruction that lays waste at noon. 7 A thousand may fall at your side, And ten
thousand at your right hand; But it
shall not approach you. 8 You will only
look on with your eyes, And see the recompense of the wicked. 9 For you have made the Lord, my refuge, Even
the Most High, your dwelling place. 10
No evil will befall you, Nor will any plague come near your tent. 11 For He will give His angels charge
concerning you, To guard you in all your ways.
12 They will bear you up in their hands, Lest you strike your foot
against a stone. 13 You will tread upon
the lion and cobra, The young lion and the serpent you will trample down.”