Exegetical and Hermeneutical Commentary of Revelation 12:13

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man [child.]

The Deliverance of the Woman, Rev 12:13-17

13. he persecuted the woman ] The reference is probably in the first instance to the Roman persecution of the Jews, in and after the wars of Titus and Hadrian: both the bitterness with which those wars were conducted (Josephus probably exaggerates the clemency of Titus), and the savage fanaticism which provoked it, were the Dragon’s work. So also were the medival persecutions of the Jews by Christians: and so is the social or intellectual intolerance which is by no means extinct yet, and which is actually often bitterest against a Christian Jew who does not forget his nationality.

Fuente: The Cambridge Bible for Schools and Colleges

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth – That is, when Satan saw that he was doomed to discomfiture and overthrow, as if he had been cast out of heaven; when he saw that his efforts must be confined to the earth, and that only for a limited time, he persecuted the woman, and was more violently enraged against the church on earth.

He persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child – See the notes on Rev 12:5. The child is represented as safe; that is, the ultimate progress and extension of the church was certain. But Satan was permitted still to wage a warfare against the church – represented here by his wrath against the woman, and by her being constrained to flee into the wilderness. It is unnecessary to say that, after the pagan persecutions ceased, and Christianity was firmly established in the empire; after Satan saw that all hope of destroying the church in that manner was at an end, his enmity was vented in another form – in the rise of the papacy, and in the persecutions under that an opposition to spiritual religion no less determined and deadly than what had been waged by paganism.

Fuente: Albert Barnes’ Notes on the Bible

NOTES ON CHAP. XII., BY J. E. C.

Verse 13. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth] When the heathen party saw that they were no longer supported by the civil power: –

He persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.] The heathens persecuted the Christian Church in the behalf of which Divine Providence had raised up a dynasty of Christian Roman emperors.

Fuente: Adam Clarke’s Commentary and Critical Notes on the Bible

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth; when the devil saw that he could not uphold his kingdom by paganism, nor further execute his malice by pagan emperors, but was wholly routed and overcome, as to that power.

He persecuted the woman which brought forth the man-child; to let us know that he retained his malice, though he had lost his former power, he goes on in pursuing the church of God to its ruin, only doth it in another form; heretofore in the form of a pagan, now under the pretence of a Christian; by heretics, the spawn of Arius and Photinus, (who were before this time), and by Pelagius, Nestorius, and Eutyches, who all were between the years 400 and 500, and by antichrist, the beast we shall read of, Rev 13:1, with seven heads and ten horns.

Fuente: English Annotations on the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole

13. Resuming from Re12:6 the thread of the discourse, which had been interrupted bythe episode, Re 12:7-12(giving in the invisible world the ground of the correspondingconflict between light and darkness in the visible world), this verseaccounts for her flight into the wilderness (Re12:6).

Fuente: Jamieson, Fausset and Brown’s Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth,…. When the devil perceived he had not the power in the Roman empire he formerly had; and that his influence was only over the common and meaner sort of people, or over the earthly part of the church, and the barbarous nations in the world:

he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man [child]: he was enraged at the church, and pursued her with great wrath, who had brought forth a Christian emperor, by whom the kingdom of Christ was encouraged and supported in the empire; and because he could not come at this child to destroy it, that being caught up to God and to his throne, he attacks the woman, the church, in a new way, by stirring up earthly minded professors of Christianity, the Arians, against her, and by bringing in an inundation of the barbarous nations into the empire, now become Christian; for this persecution cannot be understood of the persecution raised by the Jews, under the instigation of Satan, against the Christian church, quickly after the ascension of Christ to heaven, for then the dragon had his place and power in the Roman empire, whereas this persecution was not till after the downfall of Paganism in it; and for the same reason it cannot design the persecution against the Christians begun by Nero, and carried on under succeeding emperors, which were the ten days of tribulation under the Smyrnaean church state, and were now over; these were the pains and birth throes of the woman, the church, antecedent to, and which brought on, the birth of the man child; and the persons that endured them were those that overcame Satan by the blood of the Lamb, the word of their testimony, and their death, which were all previous to these times: nor does it respect so much the persecution under Julian, which was carried on not by open force and violence, but by subtlety; be abstained from corporeal punishments and shedding of blood, observing that these methods in former times had given the Christians an opportunity of showing their faith, patience: and fortitude, which had been the means of increasing their number; wherefore he betook himself to more private and artful methods, as to content himself with taking away the revenues of the ministers of the word, not suffering any Christians to be in military employments, denying their children the use of schools, encouraging the Jews, their sworn enemies, and tolerating all sorts of heresies among themselves, that so they might destroy one another; to which may be added, that his reign was but one year and seven or eight months, and therefore can scarcely be thought to be pointed at here; but inasmuch as the Arian persecution was the first after the fall of Paganism, and the principal one before the rise of antichrist, this may most reasonably be concluded to be meant here; and this began even in Constantine’s time, for by means of an Arian presbyter that belonged to his sister Constantia, he was prevailed upon, towards the close of his days, to believe that Arius was not the man he was said to be, and that he had had hard measure; insomuch that he was recalled, and received into communion, and Athanasius was driven from his church, and banished to Triers in France: and the historian says w, that Constantine exercised “vim persecutionis”, the force of persecution, or a violent one; bishops were exiled, the clergy were severely handled, and laymen taken notice of, who separated themselves from the communion of the Arians. Under Constantius, his son, the persecution raged much, Athanasius being gone from Alexandria, and one Gregory put in his room; and the people being uneasy at it, some were banished, others cast into prison, and others had their goods confiscated; women were dragged by the hair of their heads to the tribunals, and used very ignominiously; three thousand soldiers entered a church on an Easter day, and killed many women and children; virgins were stripped naked, and the bodies of those who died of their wounds were denied a burial, and cast to the dogs; and the persecution did not stop here, but went through Egypt, where the bishops, some of them, were beaten with rods, others were laid in bonds, and others were banished: in Egypt and Lybia ninety bishops were forced away, sixteen were banished, whose churches were delivered to the Arians. Lucius of Adrianople was bound in chains, cast into prison, and there perished; Paul of Constantinople was first expelled, after that murdered, and Macedonius, an Arian, put in his room; and such who refused to commune with him suffered stripes, bonds, imprisonment, and other tortures, of which they died, and others were banished, where they perished; women that refused had their breasts cut off, or burnt, either with red hot irons, or with eggs roasted at the fire to a very great heat x; with other instances too many to recite. Under Valens the emperor things were still worse, who became an Arian at the persuasion of his wife, and was baptized by Eudoxius, the Arian bishop of Constantinople, who, at his baptism, obliged him to swear that he would defend Arianism, and persecute those of a contrary opinion; and accordingly he moved an irreconcilable war against them; at one time he expelled Melesius from Antioch, Eusebius from Samosata, Pelagius from Laodicea, and Barsis from Edessa; and all the rest that would not communicate with Euzoius, an Arian, he punished, either with pecuniary fines or with stripes; and he is said to drown many in the river Orontes. This persecution went through the churches of Thrace, Dacia, and Pannonia; but what is most shocking of all is, that some chosen ecclesiastical men, to the number of four score and one, were sent to him from Constantinople to Nicomedia, with a supplication to redress some injuries and grievances; at which he being angry, ordered Modestus, the governor, to take them and put them to death; but the governor fearing to do it openly, lest there should be an insurrections, ordered a ship to be got ready, pretending to carry them into exile, but directed the mariners to go in a fisher’s boat behind, and set fire to the ship, which they accordingly did when at sea, where all the above worthy men perished at once y. It would be endless to rehearse all the instances of cruelty under this persecution; it need only be observed, that this was at the instigation of the devil, as all persecution is; and that Satan herein acted like himself, as the great dragon, as he was when Rome Pagan was in power: these were Christian emperors in name, but they exercised all the cruelties of the Heathen ones, if they did not exceed them; and a greater regard was shown to Paganism than to the orthodox religion. Valens tolerated all religions but that, especially Heathenism; all his reign the fire burned upon the altars, images were honoured with libations and sacrifices, the public festivals of the Heathens were kept, and the rites of Bacchus were performed in the streets z; and this persecution was followed by the inundation of the barbarous nations, of which hereafter.

w Sulpitii Sever. Hist. Sacr. l. 2. x Hist. Eccl. Magdeburg. cent. 4. c. 3. p. 50, 56. y Hist. Eccl. Magdeburg. cent. 4. c. 3. p. 73, 74. z Ib. p. 73. & c. 7. p. 304.

Fuente: John Gill’s Exposition of the Entire Bible

He persecuted (). First aorist active participle of , to pursue, to chase, hostile pursuit here as in Matt 5:10; Matt 10:23, etc. John now, after the “voice” in 10-13, returns to the narrative in verse 9. The child was caught away in verse 5, and now the woman (the true Israel on earth) is given deadly persecution. Perhaps events since A.D. 64 (burning of Rome by Nero) amply illustrated this vision, and they still do so.

Which (). “Which very one.”

Fuente: Robertson’s Word Pictures in the New Testament

1) “And when the dragon saw,” (kai hote eiden ho drakon) “and when the dragon perceived (recognized,” or realized that he had been defeated in his battle against Michael and his angels in heaven, Rev 12:7-12.

2) “That he was cast unto the earth,” (hoti eblethe eis ten gen) “that he was thrown out into the earth,” out of heaven, where he had so long had access, bringing derogatory charges against God’s children on earth; his limit of activity and that of his host of angel-demons was thereafter restricted to the earth, Rev 12:9-12.

3) “He persecuted the woman,” (edioksen ten gunaika) “he pursued (to harass) or persecute the woman,” Israel (natural Israel), the receiver of the Law and administrator of the Old Testament, Rom 3:1-2; defeated in heaven in his accusation against the saved, the Devil attempted to annihilate the people Israel, over whom Jesus was to reign, to bring peace on earth, Luk 1:32-35.

4) “Which brought forth the man child,” (heteis eteken ton arsena) “who bore (gave birth to) the male, the son child, Christ Jesus,” as long promised by prophets and fulfilled in the “fulness of time,” Isa 7:13-14; Isa 9:6-8; Mic 7:15; Luk 2:4-7; Gal 4:4-5.

Fuente: Garner-Howes Baptist Commentary

Strauss Comments
SECTION 37

Text Rev. 12:13-17(18)

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast down to the earth, he persecuted the woman that brought forth the man child. 14 And there were given to the woman the two wings of the great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness unto her place, where she is nourished, for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth after the woman water as a river, that he might cause her to be carried away by the stream. 16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon waxed wroth with the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, that keep the commandments of God, and hold the testimony of Jesus:

Initial Questions Rev. 12:13-17

What change has taken place between Rev. 12:1 and Rev. 12:13 with regards to the location of Satans influence?

How does nature help the woman in Rev. 12:13? Does this show Gods ultimate control over all things?

The dragon prepared to make war with whom in Rev. 12:17?

Rev. 12:13

The dragon momentarily rallied from his defeat, and immediately began pursuing the woman who bore the masculine child. Though it is too difficult to consider here in our brief commentary, the woman probably symbolizes both the mother of our Virgin born Lord and Spiritual Israel The Church. If we were producing a technical commentary this is the interpretation the present author would attempt to defend, or at least make feasible. Note that the action is again on the earth.

Rev. 12:14

Satan relentlessly attacks the masculine child in order to destroy him, but Gods providential protection sustains in the hours of greatest threat. The identification of the time element here (as a time and times and half a time) with the 1260 days of Rev. 12:6 is most helpful. In both verses, the scope of time covered the period of the womans nourishment.

Rev. 12:15

Satan seeks to destroy the woman by way of a great amount of water (hs or as like a river John is not declaring that it was a river). It is clear from this verse that Satan has great powers.

Rev. 12:16

Nature is here utilized by God to protect the woman. Satan and his angels have great unnatural powers, because the dragon cast out of his mouth a river (see Rev. 12:15 hs like or as a river). This clearly implies that the working of mighty deeds do not always find their source of power in God often the source is Satan. Today we have many who preach things which are contrary to the scriptures and at the same time claim that God is blessing their ministry by enabling them to perform mighty deeds. The claim is easy enough to make, but it is impossible to prove that the deeds are of God!

Rev. 12:17

Satan could not destroy The woman, as the woman stands for both the mother of Christ and Spiritual Israel or The Church. Christ said that the gates of hades will not prevail against it (Mat. 16:18), so he (Satan) redirected his forces to attack the Church. John calls The Church the ones keeping (present participle continually keeping) the commandments of God, and the ones having (present participle continually having) the witness of Jesus. This description could only fit The Church of Jesus Christ giving faithful testimony. The two marks of a New Testament Christian are always (1) keeping the commandments; and (2) bearing testimony to Christ as Lord.

Rev. 12:18

The 1901 translation places this last verse with chapter 13 and makes it verse one of that chapter instead of Rev. 12:18 of chapter 12. Why? We cannot here enter textual criticism, nor the problem of verse and chapter divisions (neither of which were in the original or oldest extant Greek texts), but the text reads and he stood (estath 1st aor. passive voice 3rd person sing. instead of estathn 1st aor. passive 1st person singular) on the sand of the sea. The antecedent of he connects grammatically with Rev. 12:17, but if the text reads I, then it would connect best chapter Rev. 13:1. There are texts which have both readings (not the same text), but the best attested reading is he stood.

Note: For advanced students the following works will be imperative. H. Gunkel, Schpfung und chaos in Urzeit und Endzeit (Creation and Chaos in Beginning Time and End Time this work is a comparative critique of Genesis chp 1 and Revelation chp. 12. This work takes a negative attitude toward Gods Word via its form-analysis; and Pierre Prigent, Histoirie de lexgse, J. C. B. Mohr, Tubingen, 1959 (this is a history of the exegesis of Revelation, chp. 12 excellent.)

Review Questions Chapter 12

Read Gen. 3:15 and then discuss the significance of the victory of the masculine child over Satan.

Discuss Satans attempts to destroy Christ as recorded in the Gospel record.

Who prepared the hiding place of the woman Rev. 12:6?

Who do the Jehovahs Witnesses say that Michael is Rev. 12:7?

How can we harmonize Christs victory over evil and the empirical fact that evil persists to this day Rev. 12:8?

What enabled the saints to attain final victory Rev. 12:11?

Is the vicarious atonement of Christ alone enough for our salvation Rev. 12:11?

How does Satans knowledge of his limited time affect his efforts to destroy the work of God Rev. 12:12?

Does Satan have supernatural power Rev. 12:15?

10.

Discuss Satans power in light of the contemporary claims to be able to perform miracles.

11.

What are two marks of a Christian Rev. 12:17?

12.

Discuss why the present author places Rev. 12:18 with chp. 12 instead of placing it as Rev. 12:1 chp. 13. The 1901 gives the reading he stood, yet still places the verse in chp. 13. What is the antecedent of he in this case?

AN OUTLINE TO THE BIBLICAL DOCTRINE OF THE VIRGIN BIRTH

INTRODUCTION: The early twentieth century modernist-fundamentalist controversy; controversy renewed since publication of R.S.V. (1954) and the change of virgin (of K.J. Version, 1901) in Isa. 7:14 to young woman. See also the new Jewish translation.

VOCABULARY: ETYMOLOGICAL (OR ROOT) SIGNIFICANCE AND BIBLICAL USE:

Oth sign(not the regular word for miracle).

Num. 14:22; Deu. 11:3; Isa. 7:14.

Mopheth wonder, sign, miracle(regular word for miracle).

almah

Gen. 24:43; Exo. 2:8; Psa. 68:25; Pro. 30:19; Son. 1:13; Son. 6:8; Isa. 7:14.

bethulah (metaphorically used of Israel as married to God)

Joe. 1:8; Jer. 18:13; Jer. 31:4; Jer. 31:21.

c.f. Very important: Rebekah is called bethulah in Gen. 24:16 and almah in Gen. 24:43.

II.

OLD TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES

Isa. 7:14 f: Study of Background:

Situation under which Isaiah made the assertion.

The significance of the statement for 18th century B.C. Israel and for the Christian today.

III.

SEPTUAGINT VERSION (Gr. version of the Hebrew Old Testament)

Parthenos (virgin): translates bethulah, narah, almah. L.X.X. use of parthenos to refer to young girl no longer virgin Gen. 34:13.

IV.

NEW TESTAMENT SCRIPTURES

Mat. 1:23 parthenos.

The virgin birth and the Biblical Doctrine of Christ (nature of).

THE VIRGIN BIRTH AND MARYOLATRY

Mat. 1:25 Knew her not till.

Luk. 1:26-38highly favored (passive participle the having been favored one).

Latin translation Ave gratia plena (Hail, full of grace) (implies that Mary can and does dispence grace to sinners).

K.J. Luk. 1:28Blessed art thou among women; Textually this phrase does not belong in Scriptures.

Jesus brothers (adelphoi) Mat. 13:55-56; Luk. 11:27-28.

Jesus refused special reverence to be accorded her (Mat. 12:46-50).

Marian Congress at Ottawa in 1947 provided Mary with the status of co-redemptrix (queen of heaven as co-redeemer).

Pope Pius XII issued the bull, Ineffabilis Deus Dogma of Immaculate Conception.

Munificentissimus Deus dogma of the bodily assumption of Mary.

Marys supposed Immaculate Conception and the Non-biblical doctrine of original sin.

VI.

THE VIRGIN BIRTH IN PATRISTIC LITERATURE (APOSTOLIC FATHERS)

2nd Century attack and answers (attack on V.B. is not new).

Justin Martyr DIALOGUE OF TRYPHO

VII.

SCIENCE AND THE VIRGIN BIRTH

Modern scientific logic and the virgin birth.

Miracle and the Biblical world view.

Note: Revelation, chapter 12, 1ff. Reference to Virgin Birth the masculine child problem of Virgin Birth in light of Revised Standard Version and new edition of Jewish Bible.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

Bratcher, Robert G., Study of Isa. 7:14, The Bible Translator, Vol. 9, no. 3, July 1958; Good, but not exhaustive bibliography.

Christianity Today Volume IV, No. 5, December 7, 1959.

McRay, John, The Virgin Birth provides many valuable bibliographical items vol. 3, no. 2, 2nd q., 1959, The Restoration Quarterly the only competent quarterly produced by men committed to Restoration Principle non-instrumental brethren.

Strauss, James D., Miracle of His Coming, The Christian Standard, Cincinnati, Ohio, December 24, 1960

Fuente: College Press Bible Study Textbook Series

(13) And when the dragon . . .The wrath of the defeated dragon is manifested in persecution of the woman. The present verse explains the reason of the flight into the wilderness mentioned in Rev. 12:6.

Fuente: Ellicott’s Commentary for English Readers (Old and New Testaments)

13. Persecuted the woman We might have expected, that after the dragon’s expulsion from heaven the woman would be restored to her original place in the sky. That was still her right place; but the influence and power of the dragon, doubtless, it is, which really bring her to the earth until the war is over.

Fuente: Whedon’s Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

‘And when the monster saw that he was cast down to the earth he persecuted the woman who brought forth the male child, and there were given to the woman the two wings of the 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 face of the serpent.’

So persecution comes from the fact that Satan is defeated. This persecution by the serpent begins in Acts with the martyrdom of Stephen (Acts 7), and continues on through the history of the early church in Jerusalem. The fleeing into the wilderness to be nourished does, as we have seen, parallel the experience of Elijah, and the period, three and a half years, is the same, but here it is stated in days to demonstrate God’s daily concern for His people. Especially in mind is the flight from Jerusalem, Judea and Galilee, from the persecutions of false ‘Messiahs’ and equally vicious Romans, at the time of the final destruction of the Temple in 70 AD.

The idea of the wings of ‘the great eagle’ has in mind ‘the flying eagle’ in Rev 4:7 which was one of the living creatures, referred to again in Rev 8:13 as ‘a flying eagle’ with ‘a great voice’. This would suggest the participation of a living creature, one of the cherubim, in the protection of the woman, the faithful in Israel. The psalmist tells us of God that ‘he rode upon a cherub and did fly, yes, he flew on the wings of the wind’ (Psa 18:10), and that is in mind here. The woman is privileged to ride, as it were, to safety on a cherub. In other words she has God’s special protection as she flees.

It is also connected with Exo 19:4 where God says to Israel “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself”, i.e. to Mount Sinai in the wilderness, the place of God’s revelation of Himself and the making of the covenant. So her flight is seen as a precursor to later enjoyment of ‘the Promised Land’.

The description of the eagle as ‘a great eagle’ goes beyond just this, however, and suggests, as we have seen, the participation of the living creature. We can recognise from Exo 19:4 that the woman was not borne away from God in her flight, but was borne to Him. It was not a loss but a gain.

Compare how God was borne to the people of Israel in exile on the wings of the cherubim (Ezekiel 1). There His people had been forcibly taken away, but when they reached their destination they found God was there with them. (The greatest eagle of all is found in Deu 32:11, where the eagle who bore Israel is God Himself, but that was from the wilderness, not to it. God will not leave His people in the wilderness permanently).

John clearly has in mind in this description (how could he not?) the fact that the woman’s flight parallels the previous flight by the people of Israel into the wilderness for safety from the threat of Pharaoh (Exo 14:5), where they also were fed by God. Then it was Pharaoh who sent his armies after them to his own destruction.

In Jer 46:8 these armies of Egypt are in fact likened to ‘waters like rivers’ that cover the earth. ‘Egypt rises up like the Nile, and his waters toss themselves like the rivers, and he says “I will rise up, I will cover the earth, I will destroy the city and its inhabitants”.’ So Egypt and its armies are visualised in terms of the Nile whose waters like rivers seek to destroy, like a great river sweeping over the land. This picture John now takes up.

Fuente: Commentary Series on the Bible by Peter Pett

The dragon’s hatred for the woman:

v. 13. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.

v. 14. 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 a half a time from the face of the serpent.

v. 15. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

v. 16. 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.

v. 17. And the dragon was wroth 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.

The narrative is here continued with a description of the manner in which the dragon carried out the persecution of the woman that was mentioned in v. 6: And when the dragon saw that he was thrown to the earth, he persecuted the woman that had given birth to the man-child; and there were given to the woman two wings of a huge eagle that she might flee to the wilderness, to the place set apart for her, where she was nourished a time and times and a half time away from the face of the serpent. The hatred against Christ and against all that believe in Him gives Satan no rest. Through his instruments, the children of unbelief, he persecutes the Church. But the Lord holds His protecting hand over them that are His, for the Church continues to exist in spite of all hatred, even though it be only in secret places and hidden from the eyes of men. All this happened while the power of Anti-Christ’s kingdom was at its height, for three and one half times, and all the rage of the devil did not succeed in exterminating the believers.

But the rage of the devil continued unabated: And the serpent poured out of his mouth, after the woman, water like a river in order to sweep her away with the flood. But the earth assisted the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth. This is a picture of the floods of tribulation which Satan time and again poured forth against the Church. We need but think of the times of great persecutions against the true Church, of the period of the Inquisition, to note in what manner the devil makes fanatics of men against the preaching of the truth. In many a case the rulers of the earth, though otherwise indifferent to the pure doctrine, were the instruments for stemming the tide of persecution and bringing times of comparative peace to the Church and her work.

And still the devil’s fury gives him no rest: And the dragon was enraged against the woman and went off to wage war on the rest of her offspring that keep the commandments of God and hold the testimony of Jesus. As long as this earth stands, the devil will not change. Whenever he has the opportunity and whenever he can create the opportunity, he will continue his hellish warfare against the Christians that continue in the Word of their Lord, that cling to the Gospel of salvation through the redemption of Jesus. But the Church of God cannot be destroyed, though all the portals of hell be arrayed against her; God is in the midst of her, she shall not be moved; God shall help her, and that right early. That is our comfort.

Summary

The seer pictures the Church as a woman whose children and offspring the dragon, Satan, tries to devour; but, owing to the resistance of Michael and the heavenly host, through the power of Christ, all the attempts of the devil are foiled, and the Church is kept safely in the hands of God.

Fuente: The Popular Commentary on the Bible by Kretzmann

Rev 12:13-17. And when the dragon saw, &c. When the dragon was thus deposed from the imperial throne, and cast unto the earth, he still continued to persecute the church with equal malice, though not with equal power. He made several attempts to restore the pagan idolatry in the reign of Constantine, and afterwards in the reign of Julian; he traduced and abused the Christian religion, by such writers as Hierocles, Libanius, and others of the same stamp and character; he rent and troubled the church with heretics and schisms; he stirred up the favourers of the Arians, to persecute and destroy the orthodox Christians. But the church was still under the protection of the empire, (Rev 12:14) and to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle;as God said to the children of Israel, “Ye have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagle’s wings,” &c. Exo 19:4 so the church was supported and carried, as it were, upon an eagle’s wings. But the similitude is the more proper in this case; an eagle being the Roman ensign, and the two wings alluding probably to the division that was then made of the eastern and western empire. In this manner was the church protected, and these wings were given, that she might fly into the wilderness,into a place of retirement and security, from the face of the serpent;not that she fled into the wilderness at this time, but several years afterwards;and there she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time; that is, three prophetic years and a half; which is the same period with the thousand two hundred and threescore days or years before mentioned, Rev 12:6. So long the church is to remain in a desolate and afflicted state, during the reign of antichrist; as Elijah, while idolatry prevailed in Israel, was secretly fed and nourished three years and six months in the wilderness; 1 Kings 17; 1 Kings 18. Luk 4:25-26. But before the woman fled into the wilderness, the serpent cast out of his mouth water, &c. Rev 12:15 with intent to drown, or wash her away. Waters, in the style of the Apocalypse, ch. Rev 17:15 signify people and nations; so that here was a great inundation of various nations, excited by the dragon, or the friends and patrons of the old idolatry, to oppress and overwhelm the Christian religion. Such appeared plainly to have been the design of the dragon, when Stilicho invited the barbarous Heathen nations, the Goths, Alans, Suevi, and Vandals, to invade the Roman empire, hoping to raise his son Eucherius to the throne; who, from a boy, was an enemy to the Christians, and threatened to signalize the beginning of his reign with the restoration of the Pagan, and the abolition of the Christian religion. Nothing indeed was more likely to produce the ruin and utter subversion of the Christian church, than the irruptions of so many barbarous Heathen nations into the Roman empire. But the event proved contrary to human appearance and expectation; the earth swallowed up the flood; (Rev 12:16.) the barbarians were rather swallowed up by the Romans, than the Romans by the barbarians; the Heathen conquerors, instead of imposing their own, submitted to the religion of the conquered Christians; and they not only embraced the religion, but affected even the laws, the manners, the customs, the language, and the very name of Romans. This course not succeeding according to probable expectation, the dragon did not therefore desist from his purpose, (Rev 12:17.) but only took another method of persecuting the true sons of the church, as we shall see in the next chapter. It is said, that he went to make war with the remnant of her seed, who keep the commandments, &c. which implies that at this time there was only a remnant; that corruptions were greatly increased, and “the faithful were minished from among the children of men.”

Inferences and REFLECTIONS.Whatever concealed and unknown wonders may be intimated in some parts of this grand and aweful vision, in others it contains very obvious and important instructions.While we are beholding this emblematical representation of the Christian church, let us adore the great original Sun of righteousness, who has decked her with his glorious beams, and will at length cause every faithful member of this blessed society, to shine forth as the Sun in his Father’s kingdom. And let us be desirous of treading this changeable and uncertain world under our feet. Let us thankfully own the hand which has crowned the church with the apostles, as with a diadem; and, taught by their precepts, and inspired by their example, let us prepare ourselves for that sacred war, to which we are called, the war against the devil and his confederate hosts. It is, indeed, under a very formidable type that he is here represented:his cruelty, his subtilty, his experience in all the arts of destruction, are painted out with dreadful propriety, in the old serpent, the great dragon; but, formidable as his violence, or artful and potent as the confederacy of infernal spirits may be, here is a victory gained over him, which calls for the congratulation of all the armies of the Lord: the dragon and his angels are cast out; the saints are enabled to triumph over him, feeble and impotent as they are. But, in what way are they able to overcome him? It is by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony. Instructive and edifying admonition! Let this be our confidence, even the banner of the cross, the blood of the Saviour, who died upon it; and, in this signal, we shall come off conquerors too; faith in him shall be our shield; the word of God shall be our sword, the sword of the Spirit; and Satan, thus resisted, shall flee before us, (Jam 4:7.): thus, vain will be the floods of temptation, which he may attempt to throw out of his mouth, to debauch our principles, or practices; they shall be entirely swallowed up. And though the church be for a while in the wilderness, it shall be happily sheltered, and tenderly nourished, even all the faithful saints of God, till the time which he has appointed for its triumph. In the mean while, however the sons of malice, under the instruction and influence of the great accuser of the brethren, may defame them: however persecution may attack and harass them; let them be courageous and undaunted, not loving their lives even to the death, in the cause of Christ; for then they shall rise again to certain victory and glory; nor shall death bring down their heads so low, as to render them unworthy of wearing a crown of life.

Fuente: Commentary on the Holy Bible by Thomas Coke

Rev 12:13-17 . The dragon, cast down to the earth, pursues first the woman fleeing into the wilderness; but as she also, like the child (Rev 12:5 ), is delivered from his snares, he turns to the conflict against the rest of her seed.

. The dragon, finding himself cast upon the earth, must first perceive that thereby all his persecution of the child itself would become impossible; so he employs himself with pursuing ( , aor.) the woman, just because she was the mother of that man-child. [3162]

[3162] . Cf. the accurate use of this relative also, Rev 9:4 , Rev 3:2-4 , Rev 19:2 , Rev 20:4 .

Fuente: Heinrich August Wilhelm Meyer’s New Testament Commentary

B.THE DRAGON UPON THE EARTH; OR, CHRISTIANITY, AND, OPPOSED TO IT, ANTICHRISTIANITY, IN ITS DEVELOPMENT AND IN THE TWO GROUND-FORMS OF ITS MATURITY; THE BEAST OUT OF THE SEA AND THE BEAST OUT OF THE EARTH

Rev 12:13Rev 13:18

Rev 12:13-17 24

a. The Dragon and the Prelude of Antichristianity

13And when the dragon saw that he was cast [thrown] unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which [who] brought forth the man child [male son]. 14And to the woman were given [ins. the25] two wings of a [the26] great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished [ins. there] for [om. for] a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 15And the serpent cast out of his mouth [ins. after the woman] water as a flood [river] after the woman [om. after the woman], that he might cause her27 to be carried away of the flood [river]28. 16And the earth helped the woman; and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood [river] which the dragon cast out of his mouth. 17And the dragon was wroth with [concerning29] the woman, and went [departed] to make war with the remnant of her seed, which [who] keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ [om. Christ]30.18* And I [he]31 stood upon the sand of the sea, [.]

Footnotes:

[25]Rev 12:14. [Tisch. inserts , with A. C. P.; Treg. marks with *; Alf. brackets; it is omitted by . B*.E. R. C.]

[26]Rev 12:14. [Alf., Treg., Tisch., insert before ; it is omitted by .E. R. C.]

[27]Rev 12:15. [Gb. and Sz. read with P. 1, 7, instead of , given by Modern Eds. with . A. B*. C.E. R. C.]

[28]Rev 12:15. [An unusual compound adjective is here employed, ; the literal translation of the sentence is, that he might make her river-borne.E. R. C.]

[29]Rev 12:17. The presents the Woman as the ground and occasion, not as the immediate object, of the Dragons wrath. Comp. Mat 18:3; Mar 3:5, etc.; and see Winer, 52, c. Lillies Notes. Winer, 52. c. (c), gives in this place the force of over.E. R. C.]

[30]Rev 12:17. [Modern Editors omit with all the Greek Codd.; it is given by the Vul. Cl., om. by Am. and Fuld.; Lange retains.E. R.C.]

[31]Rev 12:18 (Rev 13:2).This reading is given by . A. C., Vulg., etc. The Rec. (retained by B*. [P.], etc., Gb., Tisch., etc.), has the internal connection against it. The standpoint of the Seer is immovable; the scenes he beholds are movable. [The reading of Lange, with which Lach., Alford, and Treg. agree, is adopted.E. R. C.]

Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange

SPECIAL DOCTRINO-ETHICAL AND HOMILETICAL NOTES (ADDENDUM)

Section Eleventh

Earth-picture of Antichristianity. (Rev 12:13 to Rev 13:18)

General.The climax manifest in the development of Antichristianity on earth, is signalized by the names: the Dragon, Antichrist, and the False Prophet, added to which, as a sort of supplement, is the dominant Antichristian congregation, with its Antichristian symbols of fellowship.

At first, the Dragon has no conscious organs on earth; he does but vomit forth the water-floods, as will-less or unfree masses of peoples, against the Woman, to cause her to be carried away. Nor can he, after this attempt, at first do more than direct his temptations, in single demonic attacks, against individual believers or isolated communities.

Subsequently, however, he procures a conscious human organ: the Beast which rises out of the sea of national life, and in which he himself vanishes for a long time. In Antichristianity, which is at first a fellowship of Antichristian sympathies, but which finally becomes personal in geniuses of wickedness who attain their meridian in the Man of Sin, the Satanic essence is reflected in heightened potency. It appears as the consummate compound of all demonic and antitheocratic world-powers, or the four Danielic Beasts. The names of blasphemy, visible on its head, must, doubtless, be regarded as indirect blasphemies; it assumes many attributes of a blasphemous nature, e. g. absolute authority as a ruler and teacher, and the like. With these names are also connected the direct blasphemies which are providentially permitted him by the gift of the mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; aye, which must aid in the execution of judgment upon God-estranged Christendom. That, however, which is in the highest degree conducive to the dominion of Antichristianity, is the apparent perfect revival of it in its ungodly, worldly essence, after the mortal wound dealt to it by Christianity in one of its heads (in a special world-power).

Thus are the outward victory of the kingdom of darkness over the saints, and its temporary public rule over the nations, brought about; assuredly, under forms of subtile worldly refinement and by means of the sympathy of infatuated millions. Nor is the devil-worship which is established in the same manner to be regarded as a rude shamanism. The whole submission and homage of the nations arise from a cowardly recognition of the apparently invincible power of falsehood, hate and violence.

Violence exercised in the sphere of religion shall, however, meet its judgment; and the more consummate will be that judgment, the more thoroughly the faithful learn, themselves to abstain from all violence contrary to the dictates of conscience and the provisions of justice.
Antichristianity attains its full power, however, only through the medium of the False Prophet, who, at all events as such, proceeds from the Church in its external constitution. That he does not conduct the entire institution over to the hostile camp, is evident from the subsequent fact that the Harlot is killed by the Beast; nevertheless, he denotes the true essence of its worldly spirit, the turning-point, subsequent to the appearance of which the familiar relationship between the Woman and the Beast, in which the Beast was at first subservient to the Woman, changes its character, and the Woman is brought into subjection to the Beast. We are thus furnished with a picture of the most disgraceful apostasy, first appearing in back-sliding sympathies, next exhibited in prominent examples of defection, and finally reaching its climax in a perfect genius of perfidy.

The consummate hypocrite then establishes the consummate Antichristian congregation, which exhibits the complete counterpart of the true Church, in that it, like the true Church, has its wonders of revelation, its symbolic cultus, its symbolic marks, and its ban of excommunication. Its wonders of revelation, however, are delusions; its cultus is a worship of the Beasts Image; its marks are brands of spiritual slavery; and its ban is more than the great banit is a social outlawry of the faithful.
The very mark, however, by which the Antichristian is to be recognized, presupposes the continuance of a quiet Church of God in this troublous time, for the benefit of whose members the mark is designed.

Special.

[Chap. 13.] The Beast and the False Prophet, or the relations, antipathies and sympathies between the secular and the spiritual Babylon.

[Rev 12:13.] The Satanic power, the woe-engendering spirit on earth. Also in the domain of the symbolic earth, the institution and order of Church and State.The spirit of the kingdom of darkness, a spirit of persecution.

[Rev 13:14.] The safety of Gods Church on earth, ensured by the wildernesses of poverty and renunciation.Holy dwellers in the wilderness: Moses, Elijah, John the Baptist, Christ.Churches of the wilderness.The blossoming wilderness.Borne away on eagles wings from the persecutors of earth: 1. Israel; 2. The Christian Church; 3. All believing souls.Preservation and nourishment of the Church even through times of sorest distress.

[Rev 13:15.] And the serpent cast out of his mouth, etc. The dragon now becomes a serpent, and again the serpent becomes a dragon.The river [water as a river] in its symbolical import, in respect of its bright and its dark side.

[Rev 13:16.] The earth under the same aspects.Historic dependence of the Church on the earth. Her apparent mergement in the earth. Her solicitude for the earth.

[Rev 13:17.] Isolated temptations [trials] of the true children of the Church and witnesses of Jesus. By isolated attacks, it is true, the power of faith is divided, but so, likewise, is the power of evil.Satan seeks Christians. But for what reason?

[Rev 13:1.] The Beast out of the sea. His dark intent. His horrible and monstrous appearance. His business (the bringing into vogue of a worship of the Dragon, blasphemy against the Holy One and holy things, and the conquest of holy men [the saints]. His history. His success.His blasphemy, (a) indirect, (b) direct. Against (1) the Name of God, (2) His Tabernacle, (3) them that dwell in Heaven (see Exeg. Notes).The great world-monarchies depicted, as regards their bright side, in the human figure of Daniel 2.; as regards their dark side, in the bestial figures of Daniel 7.Concentration of all ungodly and antigodly principles in the last Antichristian world-power.The nature of the Wild-beast, nay, of consummate bestiality, in the semblance of, and with the claim to, consummate civilization. The Beast in the antithesis of (1) sensuality and blood-thirstiness; (2) stupidity and an absolute lack of appreciation of the Divine, and deviceful animal cunning; (3) a lust for prey and an impulse to destruction.The Apocalyptic Beast, in its elegant, spotted body resembling the leopard; in its heavy and clumsy paws resembling the bear; in its heads, horns and crowns perfect monstrosity and deformity.In what respect may we speak of a conquest of the saints by the Beast, and in what respect is the expression an improper one?Universalism, or the international power of Antichristianity.Devil-worship in its gross, subtile and extra-subtile forms.The heavenly Book of Life.Watchword of the Church of God under the persecutions of this world (Rev 13:10).

[Rev 13:11-17.] The False Prophet: 1. His types in Holy Writ; 2. His examples in Church History; 3. His fundamental traits at all times.Apostasy is a twofold hypocrisy, just as hypocrisy is a twofold apostasy (perfidy at once toward Heaven and hell).Hypocrisy, the mother of apostasy.Perfidy, or specific depravity, the brand of apostasy.Distinction between sinners who are only wicked [Bse] and those who are depraved [Schlechte].Satan, because he finds his tools in the depraved, calumniates all men as depraved, but in this presupposition he is put to shame (see Job; Zechariah 3; Matthew 4).All tyrants are put to shame when they make the assumption that humanity is rotten and depraved at the core.God has placed a rock in the midst of the way of worldly history upon which all godlessness must be confounded.The mock character and work of the apostate. His mock-holiness (like the Lamb); his mock-miracles; his mock-cultus; his mock-church.Horrid picture of the church of Satan.Horrible opposites in the nature of evil: in the nature of the Beast; in the nature of the False Prophet; in the nature of the Antichristian community.Outlawry of believers in the time of the perfect dominion of unbelief: (1) subtile; (2) universal.

[Rev 13:18.] The mysterious number. Taken as a riddle, it is infinitely obscure (the most diverse interpretations of it have been given). Taken as a symbol, it is clear enough. The Antichristian signature of a life full of endless, vain and frustrated plots, toils, malignities and intrigues.The mysterious description of the Beast, a great warning for faithnot a great problem for curious investigation.The grand combinations of the hellish spirit are always confounded by reason of one mistake in his calculation: 1. He holds all to be as depraved as himself; 2. He says: there is no God (Psa 14:1), and he regards the holy and excellent ones that are on earth (Psa 16:3) as chimeras.

Starke, Cramer: God has many ways and means of preserving His Church, and can quickly give her wings, that she may easily escape the malice of tyrantsfor the Church is to endure forever.However long or short a space the tribulation of Gods faithful ones is to continue, God has beforehand decreed and meted it out.

Rev 13:16 (Psa 124:1-5). This style of expression is drawn from the natural shutting up of waters in the earth (Psa 93:3-4).Quesnel: No one who is of the true seed of the Church escapes the temptation and persecution of Satan (2Ti 3:11-12).A worldly kingdom is called a Beast because its government is often conducted with bestial irrationality, tyranny, unrighteous violence and brutish lusts (Dan 7:4; Dan 7:23).Worldly kingdoms are subject to many and great vicissitudes, for God setteth up and removeth kings (Dan 2:21; Dan 5:25-28).As lions are of great courage, and very strong and cruel, so the kings of Assyria and Babylon were very haughty, powerful and cruel. As bears are indeed very fierce, and yet have something in common with men, in that they eat all sorts of food, and are especially fond of honey, and can be tamed so that they will dance to our music, so certain kings of Persia were very cruel, whilst others, again, were very amiable toward the people of God. As leopards are spotted, wily and swift, thus was the Grecian monarchy (Rev 13:2).The Spirit of God speaks in His children, the spirit of the devil speaks, likewise, in his members.The multitude and high position of those who profess a false religion do not convert error into truth.The patience of believers in their affliction is their great crown.The shape of a lamb and the heart of a dragon.As the Egyptian sorcerers counterfeited some miracles, etc.False religions are set up by violence and cruelty; the Gospel, by humility and patience. We should bear in our bodies the mark of Christ, but not that of the beast (Gal 6:17).The Antichrist practices two kinds of violence; he deprives true believers of life and (or) of freedom, which is as dear as life.As the Beast is not some individual person, but a fellowship of men, so the name of the Beast cannot be the name of a prince, etc. The name Adonikam would be quite suitable for Antichrist (Ezr 2:13, etc.), since there were 666 of the family of Adonikam that returned out of captivity to their own land. (It is doubtless from this source, or from the still earlier one of Vitringa, that Hengstenberg derived his explanation.)True wisdom consists in knowing how to distinguish the Spirit of God from the spirit of darkness.

Lmmert, Babel, das Thier und der falsche Prophet (see p. 74): Rev 13:1-7. After John has seen the pure Church of God and the Dragon which persecutes her, he is made to behold the Beast out of the sea, the Dragons representative on earth. This connection obliges us to revert to Revelation 12.

H. W. Rinck, Die Lehre der Heiligen Schrift vom Antichrist (see p. 73): Interesting communications and dissertations on the subject of the spiritists [Spiritisten]. The False Prophet is here regarded as the representative of false science, and is distinguished and separated from the great Harlot Babylon.

Fuente: A Commentary on the Holy Scriptures, Critical, Doctrinal, and Homiletical by Lange

(13) And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. (14) 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. (15) And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. (16) 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. (17) And the dragon was wroth 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.

At this verse, if I am correct, may be dated the rise of heresy in the professing Church, after the Empire became what is called Christian. When the dragon found, that the Emperor and his court acknowledged Christianity, and the idols had tottered and fallen, being cast out of the palace and city, as an unclean devil, he thought it best to come in a clean devil. Hence, he himself in his angels or messengers professed Christianity. But, by a masterpiece of subtilty, he took up the profession of a new faith, and robbed Christ of his Godhead. To use the words of our Lord, as long as he had been the strong man armed, and the Empire continued sunk in the darkness of paganism and idolatry, his goods and his captives were at peace. But, when the stronger than he came upon him, and overcame him, his armor of idolatry was over. Hence, he saith I will return into my house, (still his house, in every instance where there is no change of heart by regeneration,) from whence I came out. And when he is come, he findeth it swept, and garnished of all the idols he had once set up there. But now returning with all the various heresies, the human mind untaught of God is capable of receiving, he enters in and dwells there, and the last state of that man is worse than the first. Mat 12:43-45 .

The flight of the Church into the wilderness, from the persecution raised against her in the city, is a striking but just figure of those wilderness exercises, the Lord’s people sustain under persecution. To every child of God, truly regenerated by the Spirit of God, and who from that regeneration and teaching of the Holy Ghost, knows Christ in his Godhead, and Person, and offices, and character, the present day is a wilderness day, into which the soul is brought. He cannot but find wilderness dispensation, while he hears the blasphemy. Hence, like David, his language is, Rivers of tears run down mine eyes, because they keep not thy laws, (Christ) Psa 119:136 .

The serpent casting out of his mouth water, as a flood after the Church, very plainly means to show, the flood of heresy, which the devil about this time raised up in the Church. Not the heresy of Popery or Mahometanism, for neither of those Anti-Christian powers were as yet in being. But the flood of heresy was that of Arius, who denied the Godhead of Christ. And another famous, or rather infamous heretic by this time had appeared, Pelagius, who denied original sin, and by insisting upon man’s purity by nature, and an holiness of will to obey God, he totally set aside among all his followers, the necessity of redemption by Christ’s blood. There were also the Nestorian heresy, and the Macedonian at this time, and followed not by a few. The former divided the Person of Christ, and the latter would admit neither of the Person nor Godhead of the Holy Ghost. These were among the great torrents of schism, with which the Church of Christ was then beset, beside some lesser sweeping streams, to annoy her in the purity of her worship.

By the earth helping the woman, just as an opening made in the earth, comes seasonably to swallow up a flood, is probably meant, that men of no religion, displeased with the cruelties exercised upon the real godly, in those times (of which profane history is full with the account,) put a stop at them, not unfrequently. The providence of God so overruled things, that when the wrath of man, instigated by the devil, was very great, the Lord made it to praise him, by inducing the very reverse the enemy intended. And when that wrath was more than ministered ultimately to the Lord’s glory, the Lord restrained it, Psa 76:10 . Oh! how often may the people of God set their seal to this great truth. Very frequently their enemies are led by the Lord to do the very reverse of what they design, and become the unconscious ministers of producing good, where they intend evil. When the Jews crucified Jesus, what did they design? In Christ’s death, what did they accomplish? When hell pursued the Church with error, what was the object? But from those heresies the devil stirred up, God’s taught children, through the Lord’s teaching, have learnt the greater blessedness and preciousness of the truth. Oh! the depths of divine wisdom! Oh! the unsearchableness of divine love!

Fuente: Hawker’s Poor Man’s Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child .

Ver. 13. He persecuted the woman ] As the matter of his calamity. The devil infinitely hates Christ, and sins that sin against the Holy Ghost every moment. His instruments, also, carried with hellish malice, cease not to malign and molest the Church, to their own utter ruin: for Christ must reign when all is done.

Fuente: John Trapp’s Complete Commentary (Old and New Testaments)

NASB (UPDATED) TEXT: Rev 12:13-17

13And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. 14But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, so that she could 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. 15And 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. 16But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon poured out of his mouth. 17So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.

Rev 12:13 “the woman” Possibly originally “the woman” referred to the OT believing community; now it refers to the NT people of God (cf. Rev 12:17; Rev 13:7). In Word Pictures in the New Testament, Vol. 6, A. T. Robertson calls her “the true Israel on earth” (p. 395).

Rev 12:14 “the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman” These eagle wings are symbolic of God’s protection and provision (cf. Exo 19:4; Deu 32:11; Psa 36:7; Psa 57:1; Psa 63:7; Psa 90:1; Psa 90:4; and Isa 40:31). This may be another allusion to the new exodus.

“so that she could fly into the wilderness to her place” The wilderness is seen as a place of divine protection, alluding to the Wilderness Wandering Period of Israel’s history (cf. Rev 12:6). This would be great encouragement to a hurting church.

“a time and times and half a time” This is an allusion to Dan 7:25; Dan 12:7. For a full note on this phrase see Rev 11:2; Rev 12:6.

Rev 12:15 “the serpent poured water” There is no exact OT parallel to this. It may be a metaphor connected to God’s wrath in Hos 5:10 or metaphors of times of pressure and sorrow like Psa 18:4; Psa 124:4-5. But because chapter 12 has drawn so much of its imagery from Ancient Near Eastern creation myths, it possibly refers to watery chaos, the primeval struggle of good versus evil, order versus chaos.

Nature fought for Barak and Deborah against the Canaanite city of Hazor and her military general, Sisera: (1) the rain stopped their chariots (cf. Jdg 5:4) and (2) even the stars (thought of as angelic powers) fought against Sisera (cf. Jdg 5:20).

Rev 12:17 “. . .and went off to make war with the rest of her offspring” The evil one tried to destroy the Messianic community by

1.destroying the Messiah

2. destroying the mother church

3. by destroying all Messianic followers.

The phrase “to make war” is metaphorical of spiritual, political, and economic oppositions. This is an allusion to Dan 7:21 (cf. Rev 11:7; Rev 13:7). This persecution is the very evidence of the church’s victory through Christ (cf. Php 1:28).

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

This is a study guide commentary which means that you are responsible for your own interpretation of the Bible. Each of us must walk in the light we have. You, the Bible, and the Holy Spirit are priority in interpretation. You must not relinquish this to a commentator.

These discussion questions are provided to help you think through the major issues of this section of the book. They are meant to be thought provoking, not definitive.

1. Describe the content of the seventh trumpet.

2. Why is the vision of the Ark of the Covenant so encouraging to these first century Christians?

3. Who is the woman of Revelation 12?

4. When did this battle in heaven occur?

5. How are the devil’s angels related to the demonic?

6. What does the phrase “a time, times and a half-time” mean in Daniel and Revelation?

7. How would this passage encourage first century, persecuted Christians?

CONTEXTUAL INSIGHTS TO Rev 13:1-18

A. Chapter 13 is a further development of the imagery of Rev 12:13-17.

B. The OT background of this chapter is Daniel 7. The four predicted Near Eastern empires of Daniel are combined in this one ultimate, universal, anti-God, end-time kingdom.

C. The emperor worship of the first century (esp. in Asia Minor) is one historical fulfillment of the worship of the beast, as will be the end-time man of sin (cf. 2 Thessalonians 2), and the little horn of Daniel 7 (cf. Rev. 13:8,11,20,25), which is out of the fourth kingdom, Rome.

D. The beast has been identified in two ways

1. As an ongoing, false teaching/teacher(s) (cf. 1Jn 2:18; 1Jn 2:22; 1Jn 4:3; 2Jn 1:7). It is both plural and singular, both present and future.

2. As an actual person, possibly foreshadowed in evil persons throughout history (Antiochus, Roman Emperors, Hitler, etc., but ultimately personified in an end-time figure, cf. 2Th 2:1-10).

E. See Special Topic below.

SPECIAL TOPIC: HUMAN GOVERNMENT

Fuente: You Can Understand the Bible: Study Guide Commentary Series by Bob Utley

saw. App-133.

east = east down, Rev 12:9.

man child = male. See Rev 12:5.

Fuente: Companion Bible Notes, Appendices and Graphics

Rev 12:13. …, and when the dragon saw that he was cast to the earth) Arnolf, a monk of Ratisbonne, says Ussher, who makes himself an eye-witness of the matter, affirms that a portentous dragon was seen in the air about these times (de S. Emmerammo, l. 2, t. 2, ant. lect. H. Canisii, pp. 98, 99). Having been placed in Pannonia some years before, on a certain day from the third hour to the sixth, I saw the devil, or a dragon, suspended in the air. But his magnitude was incredible, his length so great, that he seemed to be extended, as it were, through the space of a mile. Admonitius, who converses with him in this dialogue, asks of Arnolf: Did you at all remember at that time any of these things, which the blessed John writes in his Apocalypse respecting the dragon and the beast? He replies: Truly these things came into my memory, but the recollection of what is written in the same Apocalypse especially harassed me, in which is contained: Woe to you, because the dragon is come to you with great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.-[Ussher[129]] de success. Eccles. Christian, f. 46, 47. The same, s. 36, from Glaber Rodulph, relates that such a portent was seen in Gaul, about A. 1000 or afterwards. And Arnolf flourished about A. 1040. Wherefore the visions related by Rodulph and Arnolf were between the beginnings of the short time and of the 3 times, and then the dragon was certainly already cast to the earth, persecuting the woman: but I am not credulous enough to assent to the statement, that this enemy was then actually seen in Gaul and in Pannonia. Yet I thought that this account ought to be mentioned, because a man of great weight, James Ussher, both related it, and plainly enough assented to it. Let those who find more testimonies of such phenomena, produce them: let those who are strong in spiritual judgment, weigh them.

[129] Usshers collected works, vol. ii., p. 101.

Fuente: Gnomon of the New Testament

Rev 12:13-17

4. THE WOMAN IN THE WILDERNESS

Rev 12:13-17

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast down to the earth, he persecuted the woman that brought forth the man child.–In the symbol John saw the dragon persecute the woman because he was cast down to earth. When Satan saw that his war on the church through the pagan empire was not effective because Christianity had been accepted by the emperor, he persecuted the church through other means. This fact will appear evident from the following verses.

14 And there were given to the woman the two wings of the great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness unto her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.–Whatever uncertainty there may be about the historical fulfillment of the symbols in this book, no position can be safe that conflicts with events known to have transpired already. The end of pagan Rome’s persecution of the church, the establishment of the church in the empire, the rise of the papacy and the Protestant Reformation are plain facts that must be considered in interpreting prophetic symbols.

In the symbolic vision John sees the woman given two wings of an eagle by which she might fly into the wilderness. Similar words–“on eagles’ wings”–are used regarding God’s bringing Israel out of Egypt. (Exo 19:3-4.) A wilderness would mean a place of safety, as was used by David and Elijah. (1Sa 23:14-15; 1Ki 19:4.) The woman here refers to the true church in its apostolic purity. The simple idea seems to be that the church, in spite of the opposition, would be preserved as an institution. Hidden in the wilderness indicates that she would not appear as a visible body in congregational organizations, but the truth would still remain. Christ, as the head, could not be destroyed, and the New Testament, as its law, God would providentially preserve. Hence, though hidden from public view, the institution would remain. This is indicated in the expression that during the time in the wilderness the church would be “nourished”–that is, sustained. All that is necessarily meant here is that during the long period of obscurity the apostolic church would not become extinct. This is in accord with Daniel’s statement that God would set up a “kingdom which shall never be destroyed.” (Dan 2:44.) That means that no other kingdom would succeed it, or be built upon its ruins, as was the case of the four universal empires described by Daniel.

A careful comparison of Rev 11:2-3; Rev 12:14; Rev 13:5 will show that twelve hundred sixty days, forty-two months, and time, times, and a half time all refer to the same period; hence, must all mean the same. But verse 6, when compared with verse 14, will show definitely that they do mean the same. That the expression is to be understood symbolically–a day for a year–and means 1,260 years seem certain. For reasons already given the probable time for the beginning of the 1,260 years was A.D. 533. See notes on Rev 11:3-4.

From Christianity’s exaltation by Constantine till the bishop of Rome was declared universal bishop was a period of 208 years. During that time Satan, called the dragon or serpent, continued to make war on the church–largely through the introduction of false doctrines and the exercise of human authority in religion. Gradually the church was corrupted until at the beginning of the 1,260 years the organization became the fully developed “man of sin” and the true church began its wilderness experience–lost to view as a visible organization.

15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth after the woman water as a river, that he might cause her to be carried away by the stream.–The woman “nourished” during 1,260 years means that the church was providentially kept alive in spite of Satan’s persecutions, which in the symbol here are represented as a flood of waters being cast out of the serpent’s mouth. David in referring to God’s help in troubles said “He drew me out of many waters.” (Psa 18:16.) Jeremiah spoke of warring enemies as “an overflowing stream.”(Jer 47:2.) This is a bold figure to represent the relentless hatred of Satan against the true church, and the fact that at no time will he cease his efforts to destroy it.

16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth.–The vision John saw was an onrushing flood about to overwhelm the woman when the earth with an open chasm swallowed up the water. The dragon is represented as the source of these floods of persecution. As already learned, the dragon is only the agent through which Satan operates. The lesson presented in this part of the symbol appears to be this: The true church, for the 1,260-year period, would be in obscurity–unseen as an organized body–during which time Satan would continue his efforts for its annihilation; but from unseen sources, like the earth swallowing up a flood, its complete destruction would be prevented. Jesus would still remain its head in spite of all pretenders; the gospel would be its law regardless of all false teaching; hence, as an institution, it would continue ready to appear in visible congregations, when the long period designated had come to an end. This verse guarantees that the church, as an institution, would not become extinct, though its true character and teaching would remain obscured for centuries. It is useless to try to point out certain events that prevented the annihilation of the church, for we now know from history that it was not annihilated.

17 And the dragon waxed wroth with the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, that keep the commandments of God, and hold the testimony of Jesus:–The first general effort to destroy the church was made through the dragon beast–paganism. Failing to accomplish this result, the wrath and indignation of idol worshipers against the church would reach extreme limits. Satan being repulsed in his efforts to blot out the church as an institution changed his plans of attack. Evidently his method from that time on was to persecute the individual members of the church, here referred to as the “seed” of the woman. The statement of the woman being in the wilderness and the dragon “went away to make war” would indicate this change of method. This war was to be waged against “the rest” of her seed–that is, against individual followers of Christ who were trying to keep faithfully the commandments of God ; those who in persecutions would not deny Christ’s words those martyred because they would not renounce their faith. Multitudes of these, during this long night of spiritual darkness, are solemn witnesses that what this symbol declares actually came to pass. The things here symbolically predicted are presented in detail in the following chapter.

This paragraph presents unmistakable evidence that the Catholic church cannot be the one here represented by the woman, for the woman being in the wilderness indicates that the true church was, as an institution, in obscurity during this 1,260-year period. The Catholic church claims a continued visible existence during that period; hence, cannot be the true church symbolized by the woman.

Commentary on Rev 12:13-17 by Foy E. Wallace

6. He persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child-Rev 12:13. Here the scenes narrated in verses four to nine were resumed. These descriptions repeated in different symbols the events of the first series which chapters four to eleven had envisioned.

In verses four to nine of this chapter the womans flight into the wilderness was related. Here in Rev 12:13-14 the reason and manner of her flight were described. The reason was that under the guardianship of Michael and his hosts the dragon and his forces prevailed not in the war in heaven–in the high places of authority in governments– against the womans seed. Being defeated it was said that neither was their place found any more in heaven–that is, in the sphere of previous activity against the church, in the realm of political authority and government. But Michaels triumph and the dragons failure to destroy the womans seed did not prevent the further persecutions. Enraged at being thwarted in his plans to annihilate the church by the destruction of the man child in Jerusalem, where it was born, and which was caught up to God and to his throne, the dragon turns upon the woman and launched a general persecution against the whole church. It was at this point and for this reason that the woman fled into the wilderness (verse 6), the manner of the flight being described here in verse 13.

The two wings of a great eagle that were given to her was the same symbol of divine strength employed in the exodus of Israel from Egypt. In Exo 19:4 God said to Israel, Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles wings, and brought you unto myself. The instinct of the eagle, when its young are ready to attempt flight, is to hover over the nest and flutter its wings to lead the young ones into the venture. In Deu 32:11-12, in the Song of Moses, it is recorded that as an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreacleth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings: so the Lord alone did lead him (Israel), and there was no strange God with him. In this same imagery, and doubtless in allusion to it, the seer of Revelation represents Gods hovering protection and imparted strength in the flight of the woman from besieged Jerusalem into the wilderness, as God did for Israel in the exodus from Egypt, to a place prepared of God (verse 6), or into her place (Rev 12:14) –the same place.

As previously noted, the Lord foretold this flight in similar description of the tribulation of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be. According to this statement of the Lord there cannot ever be events of the future to fulfill these descriptions. It is evident that the context of Revelation is only an extension of the Lords predictions in Matthew twenty-four, and that the Revelation was received and recorded several years before the destruction of Jerusalem, the impending present distress of 1Co 7:26, which was so soon coming upon the church of the God. In the same Corinthian context the apostle said, the time is short. The darkest threatening cloud and the most frightening, horrifying portents hanging over the whole church, were the siege and destruction of Jerusalem and their attending tribulations.

7. Where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent-Rev 12:14. In this wilderness, or place prepared of God, where Jesus instructed the disciples who later formed the Jerusalem church to flee, the verse states concerning the woman that she was nourished for a time, times and a half time. This nourishment of the woman in her place compares with the manna by which Israel was fed in the wilderness, upon which event this description is based. In the Old Testament experience it was the result of the flight from Egypt of the church of Moses in the wilderness of Sinai; in the experience of Revelation it was the church of Christ in the flight from Jerusalem to her place in the wilderness of Pella –that place prepared of God, where she was nourished by providential protection. The numerical designation for a time, and times and half a time was equivalent to the forty and two months (of Rev 11:2), and the thousand two hundred and threescore days of Rev 11:3 and Rev 12:6, and they were equal to the same thing. They all refer, as explained in the comments on their mention in the preceding verses, to the mathematically calculated period of twelve hundred and sixty days between Neros order to Vespasian in the declaration of war and the completion of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem which brought an end to the Jewish state and the system of Judaism.

The mystically phrased expression of time and times and half a time was related to the ebbing and flowing of the tide of the persecutions and was comparable to the reference in Rev 17:8 the beast that was, and is not, and yet is. The beast was when the persecutor was active; the beast was not when there was an interval of time between the persecutions; and the beast was seen as being reactivated in the last expression yet is. In a similar way the time and the times, of chapter twelve, referred to the period of the persecution in stages, and the expression half a time was the symbolic reference to the shortening of the period of tribulation as indicated in Rev 11:9 in the expression three days and a half, and as foretold by the Lord in Mat_2422. It is consistent that the time and times and half a time shall be considered to mean the same shortened period as indicated in the expression three days and an half, in both of which the exact period from the commencement of the siege to the termination of it was certainly designated. (See comments on Rev 11:9)

It is said in Rev 12:14 that the woman was nourished for this time from the face of the serpent (Rev 12:14), in a place far from, and safe from, the scene of the siege and its accompanying trials, humiliations and horrors.

8. And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood-Rev 12:15. The water as a flood from the mouth of the serpent was the symbol of an overwhelming tide of persecution, combining all of the Satanic forces of destruction at the command of the serpent. The psalmist David used the same imagery in Psa 18:4; Psa 18:16 : The floods of ungodly men made me afraid . . . he drew me out of many waters. In a poem of salvation Isaiah, the prophet, exclaimed: When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him. (Isa 59:19) The prophet Jeremiah foretold the destruction of Philistia with the same symbolic description as David and Isaiah: Behold waters rise out of the north, and shall be an overflowing flood, and shall overflow the land and all that is therein: then the men shall cry and all the inhabitants of the land shall howl. (Jer 47:2)

The most significant Old Testament use of the flood symbol is Daniels parallel prophecy on the destruction of Jerusalem, generally referred to as the seventy weeks of Daniel. (Dan 9:27) The mathematical computations bring the fulfillment of this prophecy from the going forth of the commandment to rebuild and restore the temple to the final destruction of Jerusalem–the whole period from the proclamation of Cyrus to the end of the Jewish commonwealth– in the words of Daniel the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. (Dan 9:26) The dual phrases the end thereof shall be with a flood and unto the end of the war desolations are determined referred to the flood of persecution and the end of the war terminating in the fall of Jerusalem and end of the Jewish state. Thus the prophecy of Daniel is identified and merged with the apocalypse of John on the siege with its overwhelming flood of persecution.

Such is the evident application of chapter 12, verse 15, of Revelation–And the serpent cast out of his mouth as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. The woman escaped this flood of the horrible onslaught of this war of the Romans against Jerusalem, declared by Nero, ordered by Vespasian and executed by Cestius Gallius and his general, Titus. These related events blend naturally and historically with the apocalypse, and they are not anachronistic.

9. 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”-Rev 12:16. The symbol of the earth in Revelation has been defined as the place of nations. That was its meaning here. The rebellions and uprisings and local wars which were occurring and increasing at this time, causing many conflicts among the subordinate kingdoms and nations of the empire, diverted the attention and action of Rome, and thus detracted Roman authorities from the persecutions. It had the effect of a diversionary strategy.

Here again the predictions of Jesus in Matthew twenty-four parallel the apocalypses of Revelation. Jesus said: For nation shall rise up against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. This is exactly what occurred–and that is how the earth helped the woman and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. The leading thought is that divine providence overruled the transpiring events to protect and sustain and deliver the woman–his church–in the day of her persecution.

10. And the dragon was wroth 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 12:17. Because his strategy to destroy the church within Jerusalem, by the womans flight and the help she received from the earth, the dragons wrath mentioned in Rev 12:12, was intensified in the persecution of the remnant of her seed–or as otherwise translated, the rest of her seed. By the phrases remnant, or rest of her seed was meant that part of the church which did not dwell in Jerusalem and Judea and was not of the martyred number.

The womans seed was composed of two classes–first, the man child, represented collectively as first-fruits, who were caught up unto God, symbolizing the martyrs; second, the remnant or rest of her children who were not martyrs, but remained on the earth to pass through the tribulation. The word man child is an aggregate term which could not have referred to a single person, any more than the collective phrase rest of her seed could have had singular meaning.

The text will not yield to the view that the womans man child was Christ. There is no principle of exegesis which can represent the church as the mother of Christ. But there are numerous examples that represent both the nation of Israel in the Old Testament and the church in the New Testament collectively as composed of the same ones who are separately called the children, as a part of the whole. Hos 4:6 referred to Israel as a whole, and then mentioned them as thy children.

Isa 66:7-8 prophesied of the nation that brings forth children. Jer 31:15 had Rachel (the nation of Israel) weeping for her children. (Also Mat 2:18) Dan 12:1 made reference to Israel as a people, but as thy children. Mat 13:38 refers to the children of the kingdom. The kingdom is composed collectively of them all, as a whole, yet they were children of it. Gal 4:26 calls the spiritual Jerusalem the mother of us all–it is composed of us all collectively, but the mother of us all separately. Heb 12:23 refers to the general assembly and church of the first born. The word firstborn is in the plural number in the Greek text and means the firstborn ones. The general assembly and church are collective, but the firstborn are the children of it. So it is in Revelation with the woman–the church; and her seed, children composed of the two classes–the man child (martyrs) caught up unto God; and the rest of her seed, throughout the empire, against which the dragon went to make war, and who, with the plaudit of the seer, kept the commandments of God and had the testimony of Jesus Christ. The commandments mentioned here pertained to their fidelity in the tribulation; and the expression the testimony of Jesus Christ referred to the witness or testimony that He had borne to them concerning the outcome of the period of trial through which they were passing, as in Rev 3:20 : Because thou hast kept the word of my patience, I also will keep thee from the hour of temptation (trial) which shall come upon all the world, to try them that dwell in it. The world referred to the Roman world, and them that dwell on the eartrefererred to Christians in every kingdom, nation or tributary, in every place or part of the empire.

(3) The summary of the symbols.

The context of chapter twelve yields three major points which must be classified and discriminated in order:

First, the woman was a symbol of the Jerusalem church –represented as the new Jerusalem, in chapter 21:2 at the close of the Revelation, and stands for the whole church.

Second, the man child referred to the martyred souls as the firstfruits unto God and the Lamb. (Chapters 6:10- 11; 14:4; 20:4) The womans seed caught up unto God and to his throne, who thereby entered into a state of victory over the dragon and his wrath in a distinctive sense. (Chapter 12:5)

Third, the remnant or rest of the womans seed were distinguished from the man child, as being that part of the womans seed who suffered the trials of the great tribulation but were not slain or beheaded as were the martyrs. (Rev 6:9-11 and Rev 20:4)

The woman of this chapter, therefore, must be considered as the organic body of the church–the totality of its members; distinguished from her seed, or children–the constituent members of it, in the two classes mentioned. The text and context will sustain this analysis, and these viewpoints can be maintained.

Commentary on Rev 12:13-17 by Walter Scott

THE DRAGON AND THE WOMAN.

Rev 12:13-17. – And when the dragon saw that he had been cast out into the earth, he persecuted the woman which bore the male (child). And there were given to the woman the two wings of the great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished there a time, and times, and half a time, from (the) face of the serpent. And the serpent cast out of his mouth behind the woman water as a river, that he might make her be (as) one carried away by a river. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river 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, who keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus. The deeply interesting episode of the war in Heaven (Rev 12:7-12) had to be introduced in order to account for the womans flight into the wilderness. Satan, baffled in his attempt to destroy the Man-Child, turns his rage against the mother (Israel). So long as he had a place in Heaven his fitting title was the accuser of the brethren, and chief, too, of the mighty spiritual host against which we war (Eph 6:12). But the war in Heaven is decisive so far as Satan and wicked spirits in the heavenlies are concerned. They are cast down; the heavens are for ever cleared of their presence. But on the completion and victory of the heavenly war the earthly contest begins. The issue of the former is an everlasting expulsion from the heavens; the issue of the latter will be the confinement of Satan in the abyss for a millennium.

The broken thread of history is then resumed (Rev 12:13); the parenthesis (Rev 12:7-12) accounting alone for the flight of the woman. The dragon is on earth. He seeks to wreak his vengeance on Judah then restored to the land, and representing the whole nation before God, for as yet Ephraim, or the long lost ten tribes, has not come into view. In Rev 12:6 the flight of the woman is mentioned, being repeated in Rev 12:14. Persecution caused her to fly (Rev 12:13).

Rev 12:14. – There were given to the woman the two wings of the great eagle. The insertion of the definite article, omitted in the Authorised Version, marks the definiteness of the action. Wings convey a double thought, namely, rapid motion and guaranteed protection. Both these are granted to the woman. Evidently the allusion to the wings of the eagle refers to Jehovahs past care of His people and deliverance from then impending danger (Exo 19:4; Deu 32:11-12). In the earlier reference the wings are attributed to Jehovah; here they are given to the woman. All in this part of our chapter is providential.

The symbolic force of the term wilderness into which the woman fled has been already considered.(*See remarks on Rev 12:6.) She has a place prepared of God, and can also count upon the exercise of divine care. In Rev 12:6 the period of her isolation in the wilderness is counted by days, 1260, but here it is spoken of in more ambiguous terms as a time (one year), and times (two years), and half a time (Seven times (Dan 4:16; Dan 4:23; Dan 4:25; Dan 4:32); times are years. Seven years Nebuchadnezzar lived as a beast, i.e., without heart or conscience to God, just what his and the succeeding empires became, beastly in character and action (Dan 7:1-28). See also separate article, The Celebrated Prophecy of the Seventy Weeks.) (six months), in all three years and a half. This mode of reckoning is taken from Dan 7:25. We have months (Rev 11:2; Rev 13:5). days (Rev 11:3; Rev 12:6), and times (v. 14). All these variously expressed periods refer to the same time, the last half week of sorrow spoken of by the Hebrew prophet as the midst of the week (Dan 9:27). When the period is spoken of as days the suffering saints are specially in view.

Rev 12:14 – The face of the serpent. Nations and peoples in the time of Satans activity on earth fall under his malignant influence; are directed and controlled morally and politically. The former is that special form of evil referred to here, from which the woman is preserved. The dragon persecutes, the serpent ensnares.

Rev 12:15. – The serpent cast out of his mouth behind the woman water as a river (For the force of the symbol see remarks on Rev 8:10-11.) that she might be carried away by it. The devil here uses a certain power, or powers, which are under his influence to accomplish the destruction of the Jewish nation. God providentially frustrates the effort of the serpent. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth. The settled governments of that day befriend the Jew, and providentially (how we know not) frustrate the efforts of the serpent. The means employed by Satan are rendered abortive, not by war, but in neutralizing and circumventing Satans plans to destroy the people. This, we gather, is signified by the earth swallowing the river.

The failure rouses the ire of the dragon, and in his baffled rage he goes to make war with the remnant of her seed, i.e., individual Jews who had not escaped when the Tribulation burst forth (Mat 24:15-20). These individual and faithful witnesses are doubly characterised: they keep the commandments of God – the great and distinguishing mark of a godly life, and one common to all believers at all times – and have the testimony of Jesus. This, of course, is special, and refers to His coming in His kingdom. The testimony of Jesus in this book is prophetic in character.(*See remarks on Rev 1:2.) In the Gospels it is of a different nature – one of grace and moral display.

REVIEW OF THE CHAPTER.

The last verse of the previous chapter intimates that Israel comes on the prophetic scene, but not as viewed on earth, although actually there. The sign is in Heaven, the first instance of the word in the Apocalypse (Rev 12:1). The woman is not the Church, but Israel. The Church is the bride of the Lamb (Rev 19:7). Israel is the mother of the Lord according to the flesh (Rom 9:5). The Male Son – a singular expression – is Christ, so called as He alone is the sum of human excellence, and by birth steps into the rights and dignities of Psa 2:1-12. Who but He could shepherd the nations with a rod of iron? Others through grace are associated with Him in the exercise of universal dominion (Rev 2:26-27). But the Male Son (The Man-Child is the Lord Jesus Christ, and none other. – Alford.) can only refer to One, the embodiment of all masculine virtue.

The woman is represented as the possessor of all supreme earthly authority – the sun. The pale and silvery moon, the queen of the night, is under her feet. She is royal in rank, too, for on her head reposes a crown in which is gathered up in grand display the fulness in earthly administration of all lesser powers – twelve stars. This is Israel as God sees her; not what she is now, nor even what she has been, but it is a great sign of what awaits her in millennial times.

Another sign is then seen in the Heaven. A dragon, great, for he is the unseen yet mighty leader of the hosts of evil in the heavens and on earth; red because of his murderous character, delighting in bloodshed; with seven heads crowned with diadems signifying that the fulness of imperial, autocratic power is his; ten horns, the latter condition of the empire in its ten-kingdom form, but not yet in existence, so the horns are not crowned; then his tail in which his venom and deceit lie sweeps across the political horizon, and casts down to the ground, morally, of course, the sum of eminent persons in the western part of the empire.

The dragon is Satan – the former denoting his character, the latter the personal opponent of Christ and adversary of the saints – who is witnessed confronting with murderous purpose the woman in order to destroy her seed. He is baffled, for the Son is caught up to God. The life and even death of the Lord, rich as these are in fundamental truth and teaching, are passed over in silence. The ascension follows the birth, all between being regarded as a parenthesis.

Then the woman flees into the wilderness, and we meet with another and yet more lengthened parenthesis. Between the ascension of the Man-Child and the womans flight, yet future, the history of Christianity comes in. The great point to lay hold of is the connection between Christ and Israel, not Christ and the Church, hence the two omitted parenthetic periods: (1) between the birth and ascension; (2) between the ascension and the flight.

Then follows the interesting account of the war in Heaven, introduced here to show why the woman had to flee. Satan and his angels are for ever cast down from Heaven, which fact, along with the knowledge that his career on earth is of brief duration, rouses his anger against the mother; previously his rage was directed against the Child. The means he employs to accomplish her ruin are in the providential ordering of God rendered ineffectual. Both the Son and the woman escape his vengeance. But individual God-fearing Jews become the objects of his murderous hate. (To make war (Rev 12:17) implies every form of attack upon the bodies of the saints whether by persecution or war. Physical hurt and evil of every kind is referred to under the technical expression (see Rev 11:7; Rev 16:14; Rev 17:14; Rev 19:19).)

So closes this wonderful chapter, in which are grouped perhaps the greatest events related in this marvellous book. It is a chapter second to none in its range of subjects, and goes further back in its historical grasp than any other portion of the book. Who but God could have furnished such a connected grouping of events?

Commentary on Rev 12:13-17 by E.M. Zerr

Rev 12:13. Was cast unto the earth. The attempts of Satan against the forces of heaven were completely overthrown. That left only the territory of the earth for future operations, and as a persistent general he began at once to carry out his wicked strategy. His objective was to persecute the woman (the church) who had given birth to the man child, namely, the principle of “self-determination.”

Rev 12:14. This is a repetition of verse 6 with the additional information about the two wings that were given her. They are symbols and refers to the Old and New Testament, for it is the word of God that sustains the church in all the trying scenes of this world. It is by this word the woman (the church) was to be nourished (given spiritual food) while she is in the wilderness. The length of her exile in the wilderness is the same actual period that has been stated elsewhere, only it is indicated with different figurative terms. The word “time” in figurative language means “year;” this is indicated in Dan 4:16 Dan 7:25 Dan 12:7. Our verse calls for time (one), times (two) and half a time. It sums up three and a half times or years. Multiply 360 by three and a half and you have 1260, the period of the Dark Ages.

Rev 12:15. Sometimes when specific temptations do not make the desired “dent” in the character of a Christian, he may be finally overcome by an avalanche of afflictions. The devil (in the form of a serpent) tried this last method on the church. It was symbolized by having the devil cast a flood of water out of his mouth, hoping to engulf the woman in it there being no way to escape due to its volume. The Roman Empire used both methods in opposing the Lord’s people. Sometimes an outstanding instance would be used such as burning a man at the stake or nailing some disciple to a cross. Then again the government would let loose a wholesale sweep of persecutions.

Rev 12:16. In the case of a flood there would appear to be no possible way of escape. But an unexpected opening in the earth let the water down and the woman was thereby saved. Likewise it happens that when matters seem to be at a crisis, and when “no earthly help is nigh,” something will occur to defeat the enemy and rescue the would-be victim.

Rev 12:17. If the devil fails to make a wholesale destruction of the church, he will work on as many of the individual members as he can contact. This is the only explanation I can see that will harmonize the parts of this verse which might seem to be in difficulty. The woman (the church) is made up of individual disciples, and to attack one is to attack the other. Yet there is a distinction between the church as a whole and the individual members thereof. Paul said “ye are the body of Christ, and member in particular” (1Co 12:27).

Commentary on Rev 12:13-17 by Burton Coffman

Rev 12:13

And when the dragon saw that he was cast down to earth, he persecuted the woman that brought forth the man child.

He persecuted the woman that brought forth the man child … It is a gross error to read this as if it said, “He persecuted the woman after the man child was caught up to God.” To be sure, he did that also, but such an understanding of the passage imports a time element that does not belong there. When did he persecute the woman? As soon as he was cast down to earth. That persecution existed in Eden (Gen 3:15) and has been going on ever since. The woman is to be identified with God’s people throughout all dispensations.

That brought forth the man child … is therefore to be viewed merely as an identification of the woman (which certainly included Eve and her descendants) and has the meaning of “the woman who was in time to bring forth the man child”; but when John wrote, the man child had already appeared, hence the past tense in this identifying clause.

He persecuted the woman … The duration of this persecution is that of the human race itself. There has never been a time, nor will there ever be, when Satan does not persecute the righteous. He persecuted the old Israel, then her son Christ, then the holy church throughout the time of her pilgrimage. Why? The two reasons visible here are: (1) Satan was thrown out of heaven to earth where mankind was available to him as an object of his hatred and wrath; and (2) Satan knew that he had but a little time. “It is short with reference to eternity.”[74] How is the persecution carried on? In every way. “It includes persecution of the hand, of the tongue, and of the pen.”[75]

[74] Ibid.

[75] Frank L. Cox, op. cit., p. 81.

Rev 12:14

And there were given to the woman the two wings of the great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness unto her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

The two wings of the great eagle … The great drama of persecution has here moved into its third phase: (1) It first raged against the woman before Christ was born. (2) It reached it bitterest and most intense malignity during the ministry of the Son of God. (3) It next fell upon the young church, the old Israel itself being a satanic instrument in this. The first outrages against the church were promulgated by the Jews. The church would sorely need the wings of the great eagle in order to flee from her foes.

This figure of eagle’s wings is an old one, God himself having used it in speaking of his deliverance of Israel from Egypt (Exo 9:4), of which God said, “I have borne you on eagles’ wings.” Here the wings are given to the woman, and thus there is both a difference and a resemblance. “The strength of the earlier dispensation was a strength often used for, rather than in, the people of God; the strength of the latter is a strength in them.”[76] There is a plain indication in this passage that the experiences of the church are the antitype of the escape of Israel from Pharaoh, “and her preservation in the wilderness.”[77] The church also has her wilderness wanderings. “The typology seems to remind the people of the new covenant that, like the people of the old covenant, they are pilgrims having no settled home in the world.”[78]

Where she is nourished … The manna and other marks of divine favor given to Israel in the wilderness are a pledge that God will also provide for his church. “The gates of Hades shall not prevail against it” (Mat 16:18).

For a time, and times, and half a time … This is the same period as the forty-two months (Rev 11:2-3); and, “This is the whole period of the church’s experience upon the earth.”[79] “These forty-two months may contain an allusion to the forty-two stations of the wilderness wanderings (Num 33:5 f).”[80] The historicist interpreters limit this period to 1,260 years after the rise of the papacy, and extending to the days of Martin Luther.[81] As stated repeatedly, we do not despise this method of interpretation, because there very definitely are very startling suggestions of the things held to be prophesied here; but our preference for another view is inherent in the evident purpose of Revelation to encourage Christians; and it could have been no encouragement at all for the suffering saints of the first century to be told that the Lord would start nourishing the church in her wilderness some four or five centuries after they lived.

[76] W. Boyd Carpenter, Ellicott’s Bible Commentary, Vol. VIII (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Zondervan Publishing House, 1959), p. 595.

[77] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 314.

[78] G. R. Beasley-Murray, op. cit., p. 205.

[79] Charles H. Roberson, op. cit., p. 88.

[80] Leon Morris, op. cit., p. 164

[81] John T. Hinds, A Commentary on the Book of Revelation (Nashville: Gospel Advocate Company, 1962), p. 185.

Rev 12:15

And the serpent cast out of his mouth after the woman water as a river, that he might cause her to be carried away by the steam.

Water as a river … This flood is thought to represent “overwhelming misfortune, every form of destructive and bitter persecutions,”[82] “all manner of delusions,”[83] etc. Caird thought the river is “the river of lies which the serpent spewed out of his mouth.”[84] The fact of the serpent’s mouth being mentioned here as the source of the river, and also the fact of his original deception of Eve with a base lie suggest that the river is indeed a great and never-ending stream of vicious and delusive lies. In ancient times, it was the lies of the Gnostics and various delusive heresies that rose from within the historical church herself; but the old serpent’s falsehood business is a prolific and prosperous as ever. It is not difficult to cite examples. Lenski cited evolution; Pieters named:

Ebionism, Gnosticism, Manichaeism, Montanism, Arianism, and Pelagianism from early centuries, and Romanism, Socinianism, Unitarianism, Modernism, Russellism, Christian Science, Spiritualism, etc., from later and present times.[85]

For ourselves, we shall add Solifidianism, Materialism, Communism, and Humanism.

[82] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 314.

[83] R. C. H. Lenski, op. cit., p. 384.

[84] G. B. Caird, op. cit., p. 159.

[85] Albertus Pieters, op. cit., p. 165.

Rev 12:16

And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth and swallowed up the river which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

Earth helped the woman … swallowed up the river … There are two different interpretations of this:

(1) Beasley-Murray illustrated this with Jdg 5:20, where it is said that, “The stars in their courses fought against Sisera,” also citing the case of the waters of the Red Sea withdrawing and enabling Israel to escape from Pharaoh.[86] Barclay also took a very similar view thus:

Nature itself is on the side of the man who is faithful to Jesus Christ. As Froude the historian pointed out, in the world there is a moral order; and, in the long run, it is well with the good and with the wicked.[87]

It cannot be denied that in nature itself there are many providences that “help the woman.”

(2) A second view was expressed by Cox.

When Christ’s disciples are of the world, the world loves its own (Joh 15:19). When the church’s tone and life are lowered by yielding to the influences of the world, the earth itself is ready to hasten to her side.[88]

While this is true enough, it is not clear how such a thing would be called a “help” to the woman, except indirectly through providing a less hostile atmosphere for the true Christians resisting worldly influences. Perhaps we should leave the “how” of this with the Lord. “What is certain is that the church is preserved in a wonderful and even miraculous way from the efforts of Satan.”[89]

[86] G. R. Beasley-Murray, op. cit., p. 206.

[87] William Barclay, op. cit., p. 86.

[88] Frank L. Cox, op. cit., p. 82.

[89] A. Plummer, op. cit., p. 314.

Rev 12:17

And the dragon waxed wroth with the woman, and went away to make war with the rest of her seed, that keep the commandments of God, and hold the testimony of Jesus:

And the dragon waxed wroth with the woman … What is meant here is not an intensification of Satan’s wrath, but an extension of it. Progressively, Satan had persecuted Israel (the woman) before Christ was born, and then the Christ himself, upon whom the fullest anger and hatred of the devil reached its most intense and bitter climax on the cross; and, at this point, his wrath was directed to the destruction of the infant church, a project inherent in the activity both of Saul of Tarsus and of Herod Agrippa II; but when the church fled into the wilderness (the scattering that arose upon the martyrdom of Stephen), Satan extended and continued his persecution of God’s people, called here “the rest of her seed,” and meaning the Christians of all ages.

The rest of her seed … This suggests Gal 3:16; Gal 3:29, where Paul spoke of all Christians as “the seed of Abraham.” Thus the woman is both the old Israel and the new Israel, but in both cases, only the true Israel. “The rest means the whole body of Christians, not merely those who are contrasted with the church in Jerusalem.”[90] “The church is every believer’s mother. She precedes us and brings us forth as her seed.”[91] The signal to Christians in this is that satanic hatred, persecution and violence are to be expected throughout the whole life of the church on earth.

That keep the commandments of God, and hold the testimony of Jesus … This makes a distinction between the false and the true Christian. The world indeed may love “and help” the church in the person of its weak and compromising members (as in view 2, above); but those who really honor the word of God and the testimony of Jesus shall suffer persecution. “These are the true members of the body, not merely worldly professors.”[92]

Rev 13:1 a, and “I stood upon the sand of the sea.” (KJV)

Rist was of the opinion that the RSV should be followed here (also our own version the ASV); but we have followed the KJV for the sake of the following comments. The reading “He” stood upon the sand of the sea gives the meaning that, “the dragon is summoning help from the sea, and is going to give up his authority to the beast that comes up out of its depths.”[93] In this chapter, Satan, the great enemy of mankind, depicted here as the dragon, has been introduced; but he will appear repeatedly in several different guises in the subsequent chapters of this prophecy.

This picture of the dragon halting on the seashore to call his terrible ally is one of the highest interest, and forms a real feature of Revelation. The student must not think of the sea as calm and peaceful, but as restless and troubled (It is a symbol of earth’s populations).[94]

[90] Isbon T. Beckwith, op. cit., p. 630.

[91] R. C. H. Lenski, op. cit., p. 386.

[92] Charles H. Roberson, op. cit., p. 90.

[93] Martin Rist, op. cit., p. 459.

[94] Charles H. Roberson, op. cit., p. 90.

Commentary on Rev 12:13-17 by Manly Luscombe

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. The dragon sees that he has lost his spiritual battle. Since he tried over and over to prevent Christ from coming, and failed. He tried to prevent the preaching of the gospel by killing Christ, and failed to keep him in the grave. Satans only recourse is to persecute the church. There is a human parallel here. When the dog bites you, you kick the cat. Sometimes we will be angry at something our boss does at work, and we take out our frustration on our spouse or children. Satan is angry with Christ and is kicking the church.

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. The church in under the care and protection of God. Similar to Elijah by the brook, or the children of Israel in the wilderness, God will take care of His own. This verse is similar to verse 6. The church is given two wings (two showing strength; wings of eagles demonstrate the ease of escape) and is able to fly into the wilderness. God cares for the church during this time and times and half a time (3 times). It should be clear that these terms are used interchangeably.

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. Satan is at work seeking to persecute and destroy the church. One of his methods of destroying the church is the use of the flood from his mouth. The Word of God is the water of life. The water from the mouth of Satan, the deceiver and liar, must be false teachings, lies and deceptions. Satan can harm the church by getting Christians to argue over false teachings that would lead some astray. When we argue, fuss, and disagree with each other, we are NOT taking Christ to the world. Satan wins. When we are feuding with each other over issues like: 1. One cup vs. individual communion cups. 2. Eating in the church building, having social occasions like a wedding or funeral in the building, having a kitchen or fellowship area. 3. How to care for orphans – church support of an organization. 4. Churches cooperating in works like evangelism on TV. Jesus said it very clearly in Joh 13:35. If we love one another, if we are united, Satan is helpless. If we are fussing, feuding, arguing with each other, Satan is delighted.

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. In some way the earth (dwelling place of Satan) is helping the church. How does this happen? I believe that this means that there are people, though not Christians, who are doing things to make the existence and survival of the church easier. For example, some denominational people, have not obeyed the gospel fully, but believe and teach some parts of the gospel message. Many denominational preachers have preached many moral truths. They have preached the message of the love of God, the death, burial and resurrection of Christ. There are many teaching the inspiration of the Bible. All of these people make our preaching the truth easier. They are helping us, even though they are of the earth (not Christians).

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. Satan is angry. He feels he is losing control. He is venting his anger at the church. The rest of her offspring (seed) is defined as Christians. Jesus was the seed of Abraham. (Gal 3:16) Christians are the seed of Abraham. (Gal 3:29) As Christians, we are the rest of the offspring. Paul taught Timothy, who taught others, who passed it on to others, who are able to teach others. (2Ti 2:2) This was Gods plan as Jesus commanded in Mat 28:19-20. Teach the converts all things that Jesus commanded. If you keep the commandments, you are the object of Satans wrath. If you are faithful in the testimony of Jesus Christ, you are the object of Satans wrath. In 2Ti 3:12 is a warning that the godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution.

Sermon on Rev 12:1-17

The Dragon

Brent Kercheville

We were told in Rev 10:11 that John still had to prophesy about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings. Now that the fall of the Jewish nation has been detailed in Revelation 11, our attention is turned to the next object of Gods judgment. Curiously, many of our brethren see chapters 12-19 as a recapitulation of the events we have read about in chapters 6-11. That is, if the author sees Rome destroyed in chapter 11, then chapters 12-19 are about the fall of Rome from a different perspective. Similarly, if the author sees Jerusalem destroyed in chapter 11, then chapters 12-19 are about the fall of Jerusalem from a different perspective. I believe the book of Revelation is moving forward in prophecy rather than restating that which was already predicted in the earlier chapters of the book. The prophecy about many people and nations is beginning in chapter 12.

The Woman (Rev 12:1-2)

A new sign is given for John to see. A woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She is pregnant and experiencing labor pains. The imagery pictures her as a glorious woman. She has been given authority and honor as seen with the crown of twelve stars and the moon under her feet. The important image to identify this woman is found in the description of her labor pains. This is a prophetic image found in a few places in the Old Testament.

Now why do you cry aloud? Is there no king in you? Has your counselor perished, that pain seized you like a woman in labor? 10 Writhe and groan, O daughter of Zion, like a woman in labor, for now you shall go out from the city and dwell in the open country; you shall go to Babylon. There you shall be rescued; there the LORD will redeem you from the hand of your enemies. (Mic 4:9-10 ESV)

Micah prophesies that Israel will go into Babylonian captivity in severe pain like a woman in labor. But there they will be rescued and redeemed. The picture is of suffering bringing about a remnant, Gods spiritual nation, that God will rescue and redeem. Micah continued this imagery a few verses later in his prophecy.

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are too little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose coming forth is from of old, from ancient days. 3 Therefore he shall give them up until the time when she who is in labor has given birth; then the rest of his brothers shall return to the people of Israel. 4 And he shall stand and shepherd his flock in the strength of the LORD, in the majesty of the name of the LORD his God. And they shall dwell secure, for now he shall be great to the ends of the earth. (Mic 5:2-4 ESV)

Micah says that the suffering of the nation will continue until the remnant brings about the birth of the Messiah. This was a prophecy of hope. The Messiah will come and shepherd his flock in the strength of the Lord. You will recognize the birthplace of the Messiah predicted, the small town of Bethlehem. The labor pains were a prediction of the suffering of the physical nation of Israel which would result in the purifying of the people so that God would have his remnant. The remnant would be people through whom the Christ would come.

The Dragon (Rev 12:3-4)

The next sign given in Revelation 12 is a great red dragon with seven heads and ten horns. On the seven heads were seven diadems. The horns are a symbol of power and the crowns are a representation of authority. The seven heads and ten horns picture a terrifying image of great power, authority, knowledge, and strength. It is worth noting that the word diadems (a transliteration of the Greek word diadema) can only be found in Revelation and in no other book in the New Testament. It is a different word than the crown (stephanos) we read the woman having in Rev 12:1. The distinction between the word crown and diadem is that the crown represents a permanent victory, while the diadem represents a ruling authority and power. This great power is shown in verse 4 where the dragon is able to sweep down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. The sweeping of the stars is a display of the dragons great authority. Stars frequently represent nations and kings. The dragon has some power over the nations and kings of the earth. Verse 9 makes clear who the dragon represents. The dragon is that ancient serpent who is called the devil and Satan. He is the deceiver of the whole world. Verse 4 reveals that Satan is awaiting for the birth of the Christ so as to destroy him.

The Child (Rev 12:5-6)

Rev 12:5 confirms our interpretation of these symbols using language reserved for the Messiah. The child is the one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. This is a reference to the messianic prophecy in Psa 2:9.

I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, You are my Son; today I have begotten you. 8 Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. 9 You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potters vessel. (Psa 2:7-9 ESV)

We will see Christ later in the book of Revelation ruling with a rod of iron.

From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. (Rev 19:15 ESV)

The dragon (Satan) is attempting to devour the child (Christ). However, the Christ is born and caught up to God and to his throne. Satan attempts to kill the Christ, but Christ is raised from the dead and ascends to the Father. The woman (the remnant) flees for protection in a place prepared by God. The spiritual nation, the true people of God, are preserved for 1260 days. We learned in Revelation 11 that 1260 days is the same as 42 months, which is the same as a time, times, and half a time. This is referring to a limited period of distress, persecution, and tribulation. The people of God are under attack by Satan, but they are spiritually secure.

Satan Cast Down (Rev 12:7-12)

A battle is described occurring in heaven. Michael and his angels are fighting the dragon and his angels. The dragon was defeated and thrown down to the earth along with his angels. A battle occurred and Satan lost. What event is this referring to? For help, let us turn to the words of Jesus while he was on the earth.

Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? Father, save me from this hour? But for this purpose I have come to this hour. 28 Father, glorify your name. Then a voice came from heaven: I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again. 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, An angel has spoken to him. 30 Jesus answered, This voice has come for your sake, not mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out. 32 And I, when I am lifted up from the earth, will draw all people to myself. 33 He said this to show by what kind of death he was going to die. (Joh 12:27-33 ESV)

Jesus said that Satan would be cast out when he died and rose from the dead. Jesus is picturing the victory he is about to achieve. He will draw all people to himself as he is glorified on the cross. The heavenly counterpart to Christs victory on the cross and at his resurrection are described in Rev 12:7-9. I do not think we should start reading this as a literal activity of Satan living in heaven but now lives on the earth. Rather, the symbolism continues. Christ has dealt a blow to Satan with his death and resurrection. Satan has been defeated. Satans plans have been thwarted. All that Satan has left to do is battle the people of God on the earth. The battle against Christ, the heavenly battle, was lost.

The effect of Christs victory on the cross over Satan and sin is declared in verse 10. Salvation has come. Power has come. The kingdom has come. The authority of Christ has come. The accuser has been thrown down. Christ has shown his power. Christ has exercised his authority in his victory on the cross. Through Jesus death and resurrection salvation has come and Christ is exercising his rule in his kingdom. No longer can Satan accuse us because of Christs redemptive work on the cross.

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus. (Rom 8:1 ESV)

Who shall bring any charge against Gods elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died-more than that, who was raised-who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. (Rom 8:33-34 ESV)

The effect of this expulsion from heaven will be illustrated in Rev 20:1-3. The ultimate meaning of Christs victory over Satan will be graphically revealed to us in Revelation 20. The people of God through Christ are victorious (Rev 12:11). Notice the wording in Rev 12:11. Who conquered Satan? They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, for they loved not their lives even unto death. Here is a picture of those who conquer Satan. We conquer because of the blood of the Lamb. We needed his redemptive work on the cross so that we can defeat Satan. Further, we conquer by the word of our testimony. We are those who overcome when we proclaim this good news to the world. Through all things, the people of God must be faithful, testifying and confessing Jesus, even to the point of death. The conquerers do not love their lives. They love Jesus and will give their lives for him. Rev 12:12 tells us that there is cause for rejoicing because of our status in Christ. But woe to the earth because Satan is enraged and he knows his time his short. Satan is not done. But his time is short.

Satans Attack (Rev 12:13-17)

Because Satans plan has been thwarted to destroy the Christ, Satan turns his attention to the woman. We were told back in verse 6 that the woman would flee to the wilderness for protection during these tribulation times. Rev 12:13 picks back up on that thought after noting the effect of Christs victory over Satan. Satan looks to attack the faithful remnant that brought about the Christ. However, the woman was given two wings of the great eagle to fly to wilderness for protection for a time, times, and half a time.

Being carried on eagles wings into the wilderness is a reference to how God delivered the Israelites from Egyptian slavery into the wilderness to Mount Sinai. You yourselves have seen what I did to the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagles wings and brought you to myself. (Exo 19:4 ESV)

It is also a picture of comfortand security to the remnant, the spiritual Israel. But they who wait for the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint. (Isa 40:31 ESV)

Flood waters are used to describe persecution. David used language like this when Saul was trying to kill him. The cords of death encompassed me; the torrents of destruction assailed me. (Psa 18:4) David uses a torrent of water to describe the persecution. Then he uses waters to describe his deliverance. He sent from on high, he took me; he drew me out of many waters. (Psa 18:16) Therefore, Satan does not give up even though the remnant are protected. Satan will try to destroy the true people of God. But verse 16 shows that he will fail in that effort.

Rev 12:17 shows that this failure enrages Satan all the more. Satan turns his attention to the rest of her offspring to make war with them. We are told who the rest of the offspring are. Those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. This gives us a time frame for what is going on in this chapter. The woman represented the remnant of Israel who were spiritually true to the Lord and brought about the child, the Christ. The woman is attacked by Satan but is preserved. The woman is still the first century remnant who are enduring tribulation but are spiritually secure. All that is left is for Satan to take his attack to the future. He is going to make war with the rest of her offspring. Satan is going to turn his attention to the church. This is what we are going to read about in chapter 13. Chapter 13 is going to show us how Satan is going to take his attack to the church in the future. Satan was unsuccessful in defeating Christ and unsuccessful in extinguishing the remnant. Satan now attacks the church, those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. More persecutions are to come.

Lessons

1. The victory we have in Christ (Rev 12:10-11)

2. The call for faithfulness (Rev 12:11). Do not love your lives even to death.

LESSON 17.

THE WOMAN AND THE DRAGON

Read Revelation 12

1. Describe the woman arrayed with the sun. Ans. Rev 12:1-2.

2. Describe the great red dragon. Ans. Rev 12:3.

3. How did the dragon cast down a third part of the stars? Ans. Rev 12:4.

4. Why did he stand before the woman? Ans. Rev 12:4.

5. Who was born of the woman? Ans. Rev 12:5.

6. How was the child saved from the dragon? Ans. Rev 12:5.

7. Where did the woman flee? Ans. Rev 12:6.

8. How long was she nourished there? Ans. Rev 12:6.

9. Between whom was there war in heaven? Ans. Rev 12:7.

10. Who was victorious in this conflict? Ans. Rev 12:8-9.

11. To what place were the dragon and his angels cast down? Ans. Rev 12:9.

12. Give four other names applied to the dragon. Ans. Rev 12:9.

13. What did a great voice in heaven say had now come? Ans. Rev 12:10.

14. How was the dragon overcome? Ans.Rev 12:11.

15. Why was this an occasion for rejoicing in heaven and for sorrow on earth? Ans. Rev 12:12.

16. Whom did the dragon persecute after he was cast down to earth? Ans. Rev 12:13.

17. How did the woman escape the dragon? Ans. Rev 12:14.

18. How then did the dragon attempt to destroy the woman? Ans. Rev 12:15.

19. How did the woman escape this attempt of the serpent? Ans. Rev 12:16.

20. Upon whom did the dragon then make war? Ans. Rev 12:17.

E.M. Zerr

Questions on Revelation

Revelation Chapter Twelve

1. What appeared in heaven?

2. Tell what personage was seen.

3. With what was she clothed?

4. Tell what was under her feet.

5. What was on her head?

6. How many stars did it have?

7. State the condition of this woman.

8. What other wonder appeared in heaven?

9. How many heads and horns did it have?

10. What did he do with his tail?

11. Where did the dragon stand?

12. What was his purpose?

13. Tell what the woman then did.

14. State what this child was to do.

15. What now was done with the child?

16. And what did the woman do now?

17. Tell what God had here done for her.

18. For how long will she be there?

19. What occurred in heaven?

20. Who were the combatants?

21. How did the contest end?

22. What was done to the dragon and his angels?

23. When did they return to their place there?

24. State the names of the dragon.

25. Where did John hear a voice?

26. In what were they rejoicing?

27. Who had been cast down?

28. By what did they overcome him?

29. What was their attitude toward death?

30. What were the heavens bid do?

31. Why the woe to the inhabitants of the earth?

32. For what reason is the devil full of wrath?

33. What did the dragon realize?

34. This caused him to persecute whom?

35. What had the woman done?

36. Tell what was given to the woman.

37. For what use were they to her?

38. ‘ro what place did she fly?

39. How is she to be treated while there?

40. For how long will this continue?

41. From what face. is she thus separated?

42. What was then cast from the serpent’s mouth?

43. In what amount was it?

44. State his purpose in this.

45. What helped the women?

46. By what act did it do so?

47. How did this affe.t the dragon?

48. What did he go to make?

49. With whom was it to be?

50. What were these people keeping?

Revelation Chapter Twelve

Ralph Starling

Three great battles are recorded in chapter 12.

that’s worthy of our time and mind to dwell.

Battles that were engaged and fought in Heaven

by the angels of Michael and those of the devil.

The war was about a child to be born and the devil was

determined to destroy him with great scorn.

But he woul be cast down and despised by the blood

of the Lamb, their testimony and their lives.

When the Devil was cast out of heaven on the earth,

He persecuted the woman who gave the man-child birth.

But the earth protected her in her time of need,

And the Devil went to war against the remnant of her seed,

And continued his battle of hatred and spite against all

who became followers of Christ.

Fuente: Old and New Testaments Restoration Commentary

Rev 12:4, Rev 12:5, Gen 3:15, Psa 37:12-14, Joh 16:33

Reciprocal: Neh 4:7 – then Psa 102:23 – He weakened Isa 54:11 – thou afflicted Dan 11:34 – they shall be Joh 8:40 – now Rev 11:10 – dwell Rev 13:2 – dragon Rev 20:2 – the dragon

Fuente: The Treasury of Scripture Knowledge

Comments by Foy E. Wallace

Verse 13.

6. He persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child–Rev 12:13. Here the scenes narrated in verses four to nine were resumed. These descriptions repeated in different symbols the events of the first series which chapters four to eleven had envisioned.

In verses four to nine of this chapter the woman’s flight into the wilderness was related. Here in verses 13 and 14 the reason and manner of her flight were described. The reason was that under the guardianship of Michael and his hosts the dragon and his forces prevailed not in the “war in heaven”–in the high places of authority in governments– against the woman’s seed. Being defeated it was said that neither was their place found any more in heaven–that is, in the sphere of previous activity against the church, in the realm of political authority and government. But Michael’s triumph and the dragon’s failure to destroy the woman’s seed did not prevent the further persecutions. Enraged at being thwarted in his plans to annihilate the church by the destruction of the man child in Jerusalem, where it was born, and which was caught up to God and to his throne, the dragon turns upon the woman and launched a general persecution against the whole church. It was at this point and for this reason that the woman fled into the wilderness (verse 6), the manner of the flight being described here in verse 13.

The “two wings of a great eagle” that were given to her was the same symbol of divine strength employed in the exodus of Israel from Egypt. In Exo 19:4 God said to Israel, “Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bore you on eagle’s wings, and brought you unto myself.” The instinct of the eagle, when its young are ready to attempt flight, is to hover over the nest and flutter its wings to lead the young ones into the venture. In Deu 32:1-52, in the Song of Moses, it is recorded that “as an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreacleth abroad her wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings: so the Lord alone did lead him (Israel), and there was no strange God with him.” In this same imagery, and doubtless in allusion to it, the seer of Revelation represents God’s hovering protection and imparted strength in the flight of the woman from besieged Jerusalem into the wilderness, as God did for Israel in the exodus from Egypt, to “a place prepared of God” (verse 6), or “into her place” (verse 14) –the same place.

As previously noted, the Lord foretold this flight in similar description of the tribulation of the siege and destruction of Jerusalem, “such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.” According to this statement of the Lord there cannot ever be events of the future to fulfill these descriptions. It is evident that the context of Revelation is only an extension of the Lord’s predictions in Matthew twenty-four, and that the Revelation was received and recorded several years before the destruction of Jerusalem, the impending “present distress” of 1Co 7:26, which was so soon coming upon the church of the God. In the same Corinthian context the apostle said, “the time is short.” The darkest threatening cloud and the most frightening, horrifying portents hanging over the whole church, were the siege and destruction of Jerusalem and their attending tribulations.

Fuente: Combined Bible Commentary

Rev 12:13-14. From what has been said it will be evident that with the 13th verse there is no reverting to the point which we had reached at Rev 12:6. On the contrary, another step is taken in advance; and we are invited to behold in actual warfare the forces that in the first scene had been only ideally described, and the entrance of one of which into the world had been brought before us in the second. The dragon has not been led to submission by the fact that he had been driven out of heaven. He has rather been roused to greater fury (Rev 12:12), and in that fury he attacks the woman. She is described as the woman which brought forth the child of mans sex, and is thus identified with the woman of Rev 12:1. Yet she is not exactly the same. Then she was viewed as the ideal, now she is viewed as the actual Church, not indeed as the Church of Israel, but as the Church universal, the Church of every age and nation, the Church within which the light of Divine truth shines, and which is persecuted by the devils darkness.

Although, however, thus persecuted the woman is not overcome. The light is safe under the care of God. This circumstance is set forth in the fact that to the woman were given the two wings of the great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness into her place. The flight, the wilderness, the nourishment afforded there, and the flood of water to be immediately spoken of, remind us so much of the flight of Israel from Egypt to the promised land as to leave no doubt that these events lie at the bottom of the description, although, as usual, they are treated with great freedom, forming only the starting-point from which the Seer proceeds to the clothing of his idea. The eagle is certainly not that of chap. Rev 8:13. Yet the articles employed in the original, which are not generic, show that a definite eagle is meant. It can be no other than the eagle of Exo 19:4; Deu 32:11; Psa 36:7. The eagle is God Himself, and its wings are His wings. On these wings the woman flies into the desert, into her place, i.e the place of Rev 12:6, the place already prepared for her, and where, though in the desert, she shall be secure. What is good, what is Divine, has not in this world its Canaan. It is still in the wilderness, but it is preserved there by the loving care of the Most High.

In this place she is nourished. The reference is probably to the history of Elijah, who was nourished first at the brook Cheritn and then at Zarephath during the three years and a half when there was no rain; but it may be also to the extraordinary means by which God sustained His people in the wilderness, not by natural supplies of food, but by the manna, the water, and the flesh with which He miraculously provided them.This is done for a time, and times, and half a time, or for three years and a half,the whole period of the militant condition of the Church in a present world.

Fuente: A Popular Commentary on the New Testament

Observe here, The incessant and restless malice of Satan and his instruments against the church; neither his fore-mentioned disappointment, his present foil and downfall, nor his fear of future destruction, could move him to desist: but, having attempted to destroy the church with the fire of persecution before, he endeavours to drown it with a flood of errors now. Diabolus mutat consilium, non deponit malitiam; the devil sometimes changes his methods in doing mischief, but never lays down his malice: he persecutes the woman, the church of Christ, after another manner, namely, by a flood of errors and heresies.

Observe, 2. The care that God took for his church’s preservation from this fatal mischief also: to the woman were given the wings of a great eagle, for flight into the wilderness; that is, all means and ways of evasion, which God out of his care for his church provides for her safety and protection in the time of trouble: the church’s flight in time of persecution is by no means to be censured or condemned, especially when God by his providence provides her wings, that is, gives her opportunity so to do.

Observe, 3. The place she flies into for safety, namely the wilderness, called her place, because prepared by God for her safety; here she is nourished, that is, hath spiritual food provided for her by God, and a number of faithful ministers are qualified for the feeding of her; for a time, and times, and half a time, that is, for a certain time determined by God, but altogether unknown to us; thus when the church meets with new distresses, God provides for her new deliverances.

Fuente: Expository Notes with Practical Observations on the New Testament

Since he could not defeat Christ on earth or in heaven, Satan naturally turns his attentions to the righteous who brought Him forth.

Fuente: Gary Hampton Commentary on Selected Books

Rev 12:13-17. And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth: &c. When the dragon was thus deposed from the imperial throne, and cast unto the earth, (Rev 12:13,) he still continued to persecute the church with equal malice, though not with equal power. He made several attempts to restore the pagan idolatry in the reign of Constantine, and afterward in the reign of Julian; he traduced and abused the Christian religion by such writers as Hierocles, Libanius, and others of the same stamp and character; he rent and troubled the church with heresies and schisms; he stirred up the favourers of the Arians to persecute and destroy the orthodox Christians. But the church was still under the protection of the empire, (Rev 12:14,) and to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle As God said to the children of Israel, (Exo 19:4,) Ye have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles wings, &c.; so the church was supported and carried, as it were, on eagles wings: but the similitude is the more proper in this case, an eagle being the Roman ensign, and the two wings alluding probably to the division that was then made of the eastern and the western empire. In this manner was the church protected, and these wings were given, that she might flee into the wilderness, into a place of retirement and security, from the face of the serpent Not that she fled into the wilderness at that time, but several years afterward; and there she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time That is, three prophetic years and a half, which is the same period with the twelve hundred and sixty days, or years, before mentioned. So long the church is to remain in a desolate and afflicted state, during the reign of antichrist; as Elijah, while idolatry and famine prevailed in Israel, was secretly fed and nourished three years and six months in the wilderness. But before the woman fled into the wilderness, the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood, (Rev 12:15,) with intent to wash her away. Waters, in the style of the Apocalypse, (Rev 17:16,) signify peoples and nations; so that here was a great inundation of various nations excited by the dragon, or the friends and patrons of the old idolatry, to oppress and overwhelm the Christian religion. Such appeared plainly to have been the design of the dragon, when Stilicho, prime minister of the Emperor Honorius, invited the barbarous heathen nations, the Goths, Alans, Sueves, and Vandals, to invade the Roman empire, hoping by their means to raise his son Eucherius to the throne, who from a boy was an enemy to the Christians, and threatened to signalize the beginning of his reign with the restoration of the pagan, and abolition of the Christian religion. Nothing indeed was more likely to produce the ruin and utter subversion of the Christian Church, than the irruptions of so many barbarous heathen nations into the Roman empire. But the event proved contrary to human appearance and expectation: the earth swallowed up the flood, Rev 12:16 The barbarians were rather swallowed up by the Romans, than the Romans by the barbarians; the heathen conquerors, instead of imposing their own, submitted to the religion of the conquered Christians; and they not only embraced the religion, but affected even the laws, the manners, the customs, the language, and the very name of Romans. This course not succeeding according to probable expectation, the dragon did not therefore desist from his purpose, (Rev 12:17,) but only took another method of persecuting the true sons of the church, as we shall see in the next chapter. It is said that he went to make war with the remnant of her seed, who kept the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Which implies that at this time there was only a remnant; that corruptions were greatly increased, and the faithful were diminished from among the children of men.

Fuente: Joseph Bensons Commentary on the Old and New Testaments

12:13 And when {17} the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man [child].

(17) The third part: a history of the woman delivered, consisting of two parts, the present battle of Satan against the Christian Church of the Jewish nation, in Rev 12:13-16 : and the battle intended against the Church of the Gentiles, which is called holy by reason of the gospel of Christ in Rev 12:17 .

Fuente: Geneva Bible Notes

The dragon’s vengeance on the woman 12:13-17

The revelation of Satan’s activity, which the song of the martyrs (Rev 12:10-12) interrupted, now resumes.

Fuente: Expository Notes of Dr. Constable (Old and New Testaments)

Satan will concentrate his vengeance on Israelites during the Great Tribulation, under the sovereign control of God, since He cannot antagonize Christ. The Israelites will flee from Satan in the future as they fled from Pharaoh in the past (cf. Exo 14:5; Jos 24:6). Jesus predicted this flight in the Olivet Discourse (Mat 24:15-28; Mar 13:14-23). The reason Satan will oppose the Jews is that Christ, his archenemy, came from them and is one of them. They are also the special objects of His favor.