The Final Triumph

Verses 1, 2: 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. And she was with child; and she cried out, being in labour and in pain to give birth. Whom does this woman symbolise? The best way to interpret Scripture is by comparing Scripture with Scripture. There is only one place in the entire Bible where "the sun, moon and 12 stars" are used to describe a community of people - and that is in Genesis 37:9, where Joseph related his dream to his brothers saying, "The sun and the moon and eleven stars bowed down to me". His father understood what it meant and rebuked him saying, "Shall I and your mother, and your eleven brothers actually come to bow ourselves before you to the ground?" But that was what finally happened in Egypt. So the Bible interprets the sun, moon and 12 stars as a picture of Jacob's family members. So the woman in Revelation 12 is actually a symbol of the nation of Israel that came from that family. The woman was in labour. In Micah 5:2-4, we read, "Bethlehem....from you One will go forth for Me to be ruler in Israel....e will give them up until the time when she who is in labour has borne a child. Then the remainder of His brethren (the Gentiles who would be converted) will return to the sons of Israel. And He will arise and shepherd His flock in the strength of the Lord". There we see the woman Israel being in labour and bringing forth Jesus Christ. (See also Romans 9:4, 5). Verse 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. This dragon is Satan (verse 9). We will study the seven heads and ten horns in detail when we study chapter 13. But let me just say here that they symbolise a world government and this signifies Satan's control of the governments of the world. We read in Daniel 10 of an evil spirit who was in control of the nation of Persia. And we read in Ephesians 6:12 that we wrestle with the world's rulers who sit in the heavenly places. The real world-rulers are not in the capital cities of the world. Those leaders are only the puppets who are pulled by the strings operated by spirit-forces in the heavenlies. This is why the church is told to pray for those who are in authority, so that the activities of those evil spirits are bound. Thus the church has authority to influence the government leaders of every country. The dragon is red - the colour of blood and murder. Jesus said in John 8:44 that the devil was a murderer. He also said that Satan comes to steal, to kill and to destroy. That is why he is a red dragon. When God created him, he was not like this. He was the most beautiful of all of God's creation. We read in Ezekiel 28:13 that he was an anointed cherub who once ruled over the garden of God. But when pride and a rebellious attitude came into his heart, he became a horrible dragon. Even one who is as pure as an angel can become like a dragon if he allows pride to enter his heart. Or let a little of the spirit of rebellion against authority come into your heart - whether that authority be your parents or your boss in the office or your elder in the church - and you will soon become like a dragon. Satan is forever seeking to make people just like himself, just as the Holy Spirit seeks to make people like Jesus! Satan succeeds in making people like himself whenever he is able to infect them with his spirit of pride or rebellion. Verse 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. Since the angels are called stars in Job 38:7 and in Revelation 9:1, 2, this probably indicates that one third of the angelic host joined Satan in his rebellion. In Isaiah 9:15 a deceiving prophet is called "a tail". So the dragon's tail possibly speaks of the deception of Lucifer with which he led astray millions of God's angels who then became demons. The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth so that when she gave birth he might devour her child. This has had a partial fulfilment throughout the history of Israel. In Exodus 1:16, we read that Pharaoh gave an order to the Israeli midwives that all newborn males should be killed as soon as they are born. Satan has always been against the Jewish people, because the Messiah was to come through them. In Esther, we read of another Satan-inspired man Haman, who tried to destroy the entire Jewish people. But Haman did not succeed. So we see many partial fulfilments of this picture of the dragon waiting to devour the man-child. But Satan has never succeeded in destroying the Jewish people - whether through Pharaoh, or Haman, or Hitler, or through any other world-leader. Satan knew that the Messiah would be born, because of what God had said in Eden that "the seed of the woman, will bruise the head of the serpent". So he waited to destroy the man-child. When Jesus was born, Satan instigated Herod to send his soldiers to Bethlehem to kill all the male Jewish children under the age of two. But the baby Jesus escaped. Verse 5: 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. Jesus is the man-child who will "rule all the nations with a rod of iron" (Revelation 19:15). He is called here 'a son' and 'a child', reminding us of Isaiah 9:6 where it says, "A Child will be born to us and a Son will be given to us". The word "rule" is translated as "shepherd" in the margin. Jesus is not going to rule the world like earthly rulers rule today. He is going to shepherd the nations. True rulership in God's eyes is that which is done in the spirit of a shepherd who leads his sheep from the front by example. All God-appointed leaders can be identified by this mark. They will be shepherds, not bosses. The child is caught up to GOD'S throne. This also proves that the child is Jesus Christ. In Revelation 3:21, we read that the overcomer sits with Jesus on Jesus' throne and not on the throne of God the Father. Only Jesus Himself sits with the Father on His throne. What is literally true of Israel is symbolically true of the church. So we could look at the woman also as a picture of the church to learn some spiritual truths from here. Galatians 4:26 says, "The Jerusalem above is free and she is our mother". Paul says in Galatians 4:19: "My children, with whom I am again in labour until Christ is formed in you". God is looking for those who have a spirit of travail to bring forth the nature of Christ in others. Verse 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. This will take place during the reign of the Antichrist, after he breaks his covenant with the Jews. That will be a time of tremendous persecution. But at that time the true "Israel" will be protected and nourished by God in the wilderness for a period of 1260 days. As it says in Jeremiah 30:3-7, I heard the sound of terror....hy do I see every man with his hands on his loins as a woman in childbirth?....las! for that day is great. There is none like it. It is the time of Jacob's distress. But he will be saved from it". Verse 7: And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. And the dragon and his angels waged war. We read in Daniel 12:1: Now at that time Michael the great prince who stands guard over the sons of your people (Israel) will arise And there will be a time of distress (the great tribulation) such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time; and at that time, your people, everyone who is found written in the book will be rescued". And we read further, And I heard the man dressed in linen, who was above the waters of the river, as he raised his right hand and his left toward heaven, and swore by Him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time (3½ years); and as soon as they finish shattering the power of the holy people, all the events will be completed (Daniel 12:7). Verses 8, 9: And they were not strong enough, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven, 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. This will take place during the final 3½-year period just before Jesus establishes His kingdom on the earth. Satan will be thrown down to the earth then. At present, Satan is in the heavenly places. Many think that Satan is in hell. But he is not there. He will be cast in the lake of fire one day. But right now, he is in the heavenly places. Today, we have to wrestle with the "evil forces of darkness in the heavenly places" (as we read in Ephesians 6:12). The Bible speaks of three heavens. The first heaven is the visible heaven of the universe and space (Psalm 8:3). The third heaven, where the apostle Paul was caught up, is also called Paradise - where God's throne is (2 Corinthians 12:2, 4). Between the first and the third heavens must be "the second heaven". When we pray, we have to penetrate through this second heaven to get to the third heaven. The best way to penetrate is by praising God. The one thing that the devil cannot stand is praise to God! So, if you find it difficult to pray, stop praying, and start praising God. Get connected to the third heaven and then start praying. The dragon and his angels were thrown down out of heaven. Jesus once said, "I beheld Satan fall from heaven like a lightning" (Luke 10:18). Jesus saw Satan's fall when he fell initially and became Satan. But He also foresaw Satan being cast down to earth, being locked up in the bottomless pit, and finally being cast into the lake of fire. Then Jesus told His disciples, "I give you authority to tread upon serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of Satan. Nothing shall injure you". When we have seen what Jesus saw, we will no longer be afraid of Satan. He is a defeated enemy, for he was defeated on the cross by our Lord. The prince of the world has been judged. It is ridiculous for a believer now to be afraid of Satan. There is no need to be afraid. Ask God to open your eyes to see the fall of Satan. Satan hates the book of Revelation because it describes his final doom. Michael and his angels are the ones who cast Satan out. There was a time long ago when Satan, as Lucifer, was above Michael. But he lifted himself up, and he was cast down. Finally Michael is given the job of clearing the second heaven of Satan and his hosts. Satan is called here the serpent of old and the devil. The word 'devil' in Greek is 'diabolos' from which we get the English word 'diabolical'. But the word 'diabolos' in Greek actually means 'a slanderer' or 'a backbiter', and is used in 1 Timothy 3:11, where it says, "Women must not be diabolos". What that means is that women must not be little devils, who slander others, speaking evil about them behind their backs. Of course, men should not be slanderers either. It says in 2 Timothy 3:2, 3, that, "in the last days, difficult times will come, for men....ill be little devils (diabolos)." It says further in Titus 2:3, "Older women should not be diabolos." So both men and women are warned against becoming "devils" who slander others! A slanderer gets Satan's name, just as a Christian gets Christ's name. Another name for the devil is Satan which means 'the adversary,' the resister of God, resister of the truth, resister of God's people. He is also called the Deceiver, the deceiver of the whole world. Satan will be on earth for 1260 days. He is not here yet. If things are already so bad, you can imagine what it is going to be like when Satan is thrown down to earth with his angels. It says here that he will have great wrath at that time. Verse 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 (slanderer) of our brethren has been thrown down, who accuses them before our God day and night.' Here Satan is called 'the accuser of our brethren'. If anyone slanders his brothers or sisters, let him realise that he is in fellowship with Satan, the chief accuser of the brethren. Satan accuses us before God day and night saying, "See how Your child is behaving there! See how Your child is talking there!" The Devil watches our private life carefully and thereby gets plenty of material to accuse us before God. Satan accused Job before God saying that Job served God only because God had blessed him. Satan will accuse believers like that today as well. Since God is righteous, He will not say that Satan is wrong, if He sees that you are indeed serving God with wrong motives. Jesus Christ is a "righteous Advocate" (1 John 2:1). He cannot cover up for us if we are wrong. That is why we must always be honest with God in judging and cleansing ourselves, because then the blood of Jesus Christ will cleanse us from all sin and there will be no more ground for Satan to accuse us before God. Verse 11: And they overcame him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and because they did not love their life even to death. These are disciples of Jesus who overcame Satan. They used three weapons. The blood of Jesus Christ that cleansed them because they were walking in the light of God. The word of their testimony. They told Satan with their mouths that they had been forgiven and cleansed and that he no longer had any claim on them. They did not love their lives even unto death. They took up the cross and died to Self daily. It was on the cross of Calvary that Jesus defeated Satan, and it is when we take our place as crucified with Christ, and die to ourselves every day, that we too can overcome Satan. Why do we speak about taking up the cross daily? Because we want to overcome Satan daily. The day we are unwilling to die to ourselves, Satan will overcome us. Verse 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. There are three places in the New Testament, where it speaks about heaven rejoicing. Luke 15:7: There is joy in heaven over a sinner who repents. Revelation 12:12: There is joy in heaven when a believer overcomes. Revelation 19:7: There is joy in heaven at the marriage of the Lamb, because the bride has made herself ready. These three occasions are actually three stages of our Christian life. Stage 1: When we repent of our sins. Stage 2: When we overcome Satan in our personal lives. Stage 3: When we have made ourselves ready as a bride for the marriage of the Lamb. Every one of us can be a source of joy to the heavenly hosts, if we are willing to go through these three stages. Jesus has already overcome Satan. Now He gives us the privilege of executing that victory which He has already won, as it says in Romans 16:20: "The God of peace shall crush Satan under your feet shortly". Satan tried to devour Christ when He was born (Revelation 12:4), but he did not succeed. In heaven he fought with Michael and his angels, but he got thrown out (verses 7-9). Now he fights with us. Are we going to be defeated? No! That which Jesus accomplished on the cross, we are to execute today so that the God of peace is able to crush Satan through us in our daily life, and finally completely. The devil is a student of prophecy and knows that he will have only 3½ years once he comes down to earth. So his wrath will be great. And it is going to be a terrible time on the earth. Verse 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. Immediately after Satan comes to earth, he will start persecuting the nation of Israel that gave birth to Jesus Christ. Verses 14-16: 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. 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. 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. The wings of an eagle may refer to the nation of Israel being airlifted to safety into the wilderness where God has prepared a place to protect them. The river flowing out of the serpent's mouth refers to a flood of persecution that will seek to sweep Israel away. But there will be even more people then, than in the Second World War, to help the Jews, so that they are not swept away from the earth. Verse 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. The dragon was enraged with Israel because he could not harm her. So he goes out to make war with "the rest of her offspring". That refers to wholehearted disciples of Jesus - those who obey God and are witnesses for Jesus. They are called "the woman's offspring" because the church was born through the witness of the twelve apostles, who were all Israelites. This proves that there will be Christians on earth at this time, who obey God and hold to the testimony of Jesus Christ. They will overcome Satan and be a powerful testimony for the Lord on earth. God is now preparing His people for that day. So let us be faithful in these days to overcome Satan completely so that he is crushed under our feet. Jeremiah 12:5 says that the Lord teaches us now to run with men so that one day we can run with horses. He trains us in a time of peace so that when "the flood of Jordan" comes, we will be able to stand. We cannot be prepared overnight. It takes time. So, if we take every opportunity that comes our way now, to humble ourselves and to die to Self now, then when the flood comes (the great tribulation) we will be able to stand true to the Lord and be a testimony for Him on the earth.