People and Places

REVELATION 12:1-2

In Revelation 12 we are introduced to a variety of personages.

And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered (Rev. 12:1-2).

Because of the description, I believe this "woman" in heaven is the nation Israel.

Jacob had twelve sons. Joseph was the eleventh son of Jacob. Because Jacob loved Joseph, his brothers became very jealous of him. Once Joseph had a dream in which he was binding his sheaf of corn and his brothers were binding theirs, but all their sheaves bowed down to his sheaf. When Joseph told them his dream, they became even angrier with him and said, "You think we're going to bow down to you? You've got another think coming!"

Joseph had another dream which he told his father. "I dreamed that the sun and the moon and the eleven stars bowed down unto me." Jacob rebuked his son Joseph and said, "It's wrong to think that your mother, your brothers, and I will all bow to you." The sun and the moon referred to Jacob and his wife. The eleven stars referred to the eleven brothers (Genesis 37:5-10). This dream was fulfilled when Joseph became the Prime Minister of Egypt and his brothers came to buy grain from him. Therefore, the sun, moon, and eleven stars speak of the nation of Israel.

REVELATION 12:3-4

And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads. And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born (Rev. 12:3-4).

The second personage of Revelation 12 is this "great red dragon" with seven heads and ten horns. The dragon, of course, is Satan. The dragon has always been the symbol for Satan.

In Chinese parades people run underneath a huge paper concoction. As it twists and turns through the street, it gives you an allusion of a floating dragon. As part of the curse after Adam and Eve had sinned, the serpent was to go upon its belly in the dust (Genesis 3:14). It's interesting that the dragon is still the symbol for Satan in China. Some of you have lovely dragons in your homes as artifacts. Personally, I wouldn't want one.

The fact that the dragon draws a third part of the stars with his tail perhaps indicates that Satan at his fall took with him a third of the angelic beings. Prior to his rebellion, Satan was in the garden of God and had every precious stone for his covering. He was perfect in beauty, perfect in wisdom, perfect in all his ways - until iniquity was found in him (Ezekiel 28:11-15). Satan had tremendous influence, yet God cast him forth from heaven and his position and authority. However, Satan still had access to heaven.

In Job, when the sons of God were presenting themselves unto God, Satan also came with them. God said unto Satan, "Where have you been?" He replied, "Going to and fro through the earth." God said, "Have you considered my servant Job, an upright man, one who fears God, and loves good and hates evil, a perfect man?" Satan began to accuse Job before God (Job 1:6-11). Later in Revelation 12 Satan is called the accuser of the brethren, accusing them before God day and night continually (v. 10).

Not only does Satan accuse us before God, but he accuses us to ourselves. He's quick to jump on our weaknesses and our faults, trying to drive us away from God's grace and mercy. He tries to make us afraid to come to God. He points to our own weaknesses and tells us how unworthy and how undeserving we are. Yet, God is gracious and merciful, and He bestows His love and His grace upon us even though we are unworthy.

There were angels which kept not their first estate (Jude 6). When Jesus faced the demonic Gadarene, He asked him his name. He replied, "Legion, for we are many" (Mark 5:9). There are many evil spirits, demons, fallen angels, principalities, and powers of darkness and evil who align themselves with Satan's rebellion against God's authority.

REVELATION 12:5-6

And she [the woman] brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she had a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there for a thousand two hundred and sixty days (Rev. 12:5-6).

The man child is thought to be Christ, because the verse speaks of him as the one who is to rule all nations with a rod of iron and He has been caught up to His throne. We know that Jesus is at the right hand of the throne in heaven. And we know that He shall rule all nations with a rod of iron. "Ask of me," God said,

"and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel (Psalm 2:8-9)."

It is significant that, when addressing the church of Thyatira, Jesus promised to him "that overcometh... will I give power over the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron; as the vessels of a potter shall they be broken to shivers" (Rev. 2:26-27). This is a promise to the church of Thyatira to rule over the nations and to sit in their thrones in the kingdom of God. Therefore, sitting upon the throne and ruling over the nations with a rod of iron is not an exclusive ministry of Jesus Christ, but also belongs to the overcomers. Which has caused some to identify the woman as the church and the man child as elect overcoming saints who will be raptured.

There are real problems with this view. First of all, the Scripture said, "She being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered." The church is to be the virgin bride of Christ. If she's pregnant, she's in trouble. Secondly, I reject the man child as being an elite kind of saint, who only will be raptured. This teaching does despite to the Spirit of grace.

I believe that the identity of the woman as Israel is definite. There is a third view that the man child is the 144,000 who, in the midst of the Tribulation, will be caught up to their thrones and take their places in the heavenly scene. At that time Israel flees into the wilderness where God has prepared a place for her. He will feed her there for three and a half years, the last half of the Great Tribulation period.

When Jesus was talking to the Jews, the disciples said, "Lord, what will be the sign of your coming, and of the end of the world?" One of the signs that Jesus gave them was: When you see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, then flee into the wilderness. If you're on your housetop, don't even bother to stop for your goods, but get out as fast as you can (Matthew 24:3,15-17).

This particular time of abomination when Israel flees was spoken of by Daniel the prophet (Daniel 9:27), and it is spoken of here in Revelation 12.

When the Antichrist comes on the scene, he'll have a false prophet who will lead the world to worship the Antichrist. Then an image of the Antichrist will be set up in the Holy of Holies of the rebuilt temple. This blasphemous image profanes again the temple of God as did Antiochus Epiphanes (c. 168 B. C.), who was a type of the Antichrist.

One thousand, two hundred and ninety days after Antichrist stops the oblations and brings this horrible blasphemy, Jesus is coming again with power and great glory and with His church to establish the kingdom of God upon the earth (Daniel 12:11).

REVELATION 12:7-17

At the time of this desecration of the rebuilt temple "there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels" (Rev. 12:7). Those angels which kept not their first estate, which chose to rebel with Satan, are fighting on the side of Satan against Michael and the angels of God.

And [Satan] prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceived the whole world he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him (Rev. 12:8-9).

It's interesting that God in His toleration has allowed Satan to be around for so long, but the day will come when God casts him out.

At that day, John said,

I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death (Rev. 12:10-11).

The victory over Satan was through the blood of Jesus Christ. That is our victory over Satan today - the blood of Christ, the word of our testimony, and our total dedication by loving not our life unto death.

"Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and you that dwell in them" (Rev. 12:12). What a glorious time when Satan is finally booted out of heaven. Rejoice, he's gone! Rotten accuser! But, "Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has but a short time" (Rev. 12:12).

He knows it's over. He's ready now to rip things up in this last three and a half year period.

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman [Israel] which brought forth the man child. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent (Rev. 12:13-14).

A "time" is a year. "Times" would be two years. "Half a time" would be half a year. So, the woman is protected for three and a half years "from the face of the serpent."

And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman [" flood" symbolizes an army], that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 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. And the dragon was angry with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ (Rev. 12:15-17).

This place in the wilderness is actually the ancient rock city of Petra where the Jews will flee during this last three and a half year period. Petra is an impregnable fortress that lies back in the Ha'arva valley in Jordan, south of the Dead Sea.

In Isaiah God declares that Sela, which is Petra, will be the place of shelter for the Jews when they are cast out. God commands those of Jordan to open their doors and to receive His people and to give them shelter until the indignation be past (Isaiah 16:1-4).