Verses one and two

And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars: And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. This scene opens with a vision of a woman in heaven.

The proper understanding of this verse is possible only by having a proper understanding of the heaven in which the action in this verse takes place. The language in this Chapter of Revelation is highly symbolic. The word "wonder" is translated from a Greek word that means sign. In other words John saw an amazing sign in heaven. The common perception about this heaven is it is the heaven where God lives. A careful study of the text will reveal that this is not the heaven where God lives. This is an important point to understand. As the study of this text continues, it will become clear that the wonder John saw was not in the heaven where God’s throne resides.

There are basically three types of heaven in the scriptures. For the purpose of understanding, let’s take a moment to consider the word ‘heaven" as it is used in the scriptures. The word "heavens" as used in this verse is an exalted place. We can find an example of this type of heaven in Ephesians 1:3. In this verse the inspired Apostle informs us that all believers are blessed with all spiritual blessings in "heavenly places" in Christ. Those that are saved are in an exalted position because they are in Christ. This is true of the woman that John saw in the twelfth Chapter of Revelation. The sign that John sees is in the ecclesiastical or spiritual/exalted heaven.

The other use of the word heaven that does not apply to this verse is found in the first verse of the Bible. In Genesis 1:1, the reader is introduced to the aerial heavens. This heaven includes the sun, moon, and stars, etc. Some may call it the celestial heavens. Paul refers to the third type of heaven in 2Corinthians 12:14, when he speaks of a third heaven or paradise. This is the heaven where God’s throne resides. As the study continues in this Chapter, it will be come clear that the woman and the dragon are not in the same heaven where God’s throne resides.

The next sign to consider is the woman who holds center stage of the action at this point. There are several opinions as to whether this woman is a symbol of Israel or is she a symbol of Mary, the mother of Jesus. The correct answer is neither. This woman is a symbol of the Church of God. The basis of this understanding comes from 2Corinthians 11:2 among other scriptures that describes the believers as a chaste virgin. There shouldn’t be much doubt that the Church of God is the Lamb’s wife. If one can understand that the woman is a symbol of the Church of God, it should be easy to understand her garment.

The woman is seen wearing the sun. The sun is the heavenly body that provides light during the day. In Malachi 4:2 Christ is referred to as the Sun of Righteousness. As the sun provides light to bring an end to the darkness of night, Christ is the light of the world. When Christ comes into a person’s heart, he brings light that drives away the darkness of the lack of knowledge of the things of God. This women being clothed in the sun is a symbol of being clothed in Christ. That is what happens to a person when he gets saved. The saved individual puts on Christ and wears him as a garment of righteousness. This helps us to understand that the woman must be a symbol of the true Church.

The vision of Revelation 12:1 reveals the woman has the moon under her feet. We know that the moon receives its light from the sun. The moon has no light of itself. The moon is a symbol of the Old Testament institution of the Mosaic Law. It is through the light of the Gospel we receive the proper understanding of the ceremonies found in the Law of Moses. The light of the moon is a reflective light and is not perfect. Therefore, it was necessary that the light of the moon be replaced. However, the light of the moon is the foundation that we build our understanding of the light of the Gospel. Ephesians 2:20, teaches us that the Church is built upon a foundation of the apostles and prophets with Jesus Christ being the Chief cornerstone. The woman standing on the moon is a symbolic representation of what is expressed in Ephesians 2:20. The moon is part of the foundation on which the woman stands. The woman standing on the moon shows the relationship of the Mosaic Law to the Church.

John also saw the women with a crown of twelve stars on her head. The crown is a symbol of royal authority. Revelations 1:6 teaches us that God has made the believers kings and priest. Peter teaches us in 1Pet. 2:9 that the believers are a royal priesthood. John saw a royal woman in the twelfth Chapter of Revelation. The crown signifies that the woman in John’s vision was reigning. The twelve stars are a symbol of the twelve apostles. This is based on the use of stars when used as symbols. Jude likens false teachers as wondering stars to illustrate that they are useless for helping one to find his way. Christ refers to the pastors of the Churches in Revelation as stars. One should be able to see from this there is a basis for understanding the usage of stars as symbols of teachers. Teachers are guides for the ignorant in the same manner that stars are guides for those seeking enlightenment. The stars in the woman’s crown refer to the apostles because they were the ones given the authority to impart the doctrine of Jesus Christ to the world (John 17:18-20). So they are not only teachers, but they are teachers with authority as signified by the crown with the twelve stars that was worn by the woman.

Finally, we see that the woman is pregnant and in labor. When the Church preaches and lives the gospel, converts are conceived. This is the purpose of the Church in the world. The fact that this woman was in travail symbolizes the tribulation and pain that the Church was going through at the time of this vision. In spite of what she was going through, the Church still was able to prosper in bringing forth converts. There is Old Testament scripture that verifies the understanding just given of the Church being a mother bringing forth children. This Old Testament example is found in Isaiah 66:6-8.

A voice of noise from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of the Lord that rendereth recompence to his enemies. Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. Who hath heard such a thing? Who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once? For as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.

Keeping the above scripture in its proper context, it is a prophecy describing the day of Pentecost when the Church of God was conceived in one day. The woman that travailed and brought forth children in this prophecy is Zion. Hebrews 12:22,23, shows us that Zion is the Old Testament name for the New Testament Church. This woman had the ability to birth a whole nation in one day. The man-child in this scripture is described as a nation. This man-child is described as the woman’s children. The woman brought forth her children in this passage of scripture without pain. This is unlike the similar passage in our text in Revelation. In Isaiah the woman gave birth without pain. In Revelation the woman pained to be delivered of the man-child. In Isaiah we find a prophecy concerning the day of Pentecost. The Church was born in a day when there was no persecution. After being established, the Church continued on with its work of bring souls into the fold of God. This brought on a great persecution. The vision that John saw in the Revelation was at a later time then Pentecost. It was during a time when the Church was going through much tribulation.

Verses three and four

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

In this part of the vision John saw another sign or wonder. This time he saw a red dragon. This dragon had seven heads and ten horns. On his seven heads, the dragon had seven crowns. The tail of the dragon drew the third part of the stars of heaven and cast them down to the earth. Let us consider the dragon.

The color of the dragon may have some significance. Red is a color that signifies war and bloodshed. If this is the case, the dragon being red shows its violent bloodthirsty nature. With its seven heads and ten horns, it shouldn’t take much consideration to conclude that there is not any such animal. However, the dragon here is a terrifying bloodthirsty symbol. There are a few scriptures that will help one to understand the symbol of the dragon.

In Jeremiah 51:34, Nebuchadrezzar is described as a dragon. Nebuchadrezzar was a pagan king over a pagan nation. In Ezekiel 29:3, Pharaoh is called a dragon. Pharaoh was a pagan king over a pagan nation. From these two scriptures, we can find justification to conclude that the dragon is a symbol of a pagan nation that will have seven forms of government each head representing a form of government.

The scripture teaches that the seven heads are a symbol of seven kingdoms (Rev. 17:9,10). It is popularly believed that the dragon is a symbol of the devil. However, such an interpretation is not consistent with the use of symbols in this context. As part of apocalyptic literature, animals are used to symbolize nations in the seventh and eighth chapter of Daniel. It is consistent for animals to symbolize nations in the book of Revelation. The dragon is a symbol taken from the animal kingdom. The nature that is attributed to dragons gives us an idea of the nature of the kingdom that is represented here.

Another feature of the dragon is its horns. In the scriptures horns are a symbol of power. We can find an example of horns being a symbol of power in Habakkuk 3:4. The dragon had seven horns. In Daniel 8:21 we find that the horns are symbols of the rulers in particular. These facts help us to understand that the dragon is a symbol of a pagan nation. We identify this dragon to be a symbol of the Roman Empire in its pagan state or before the rise of Catholicism. The writer makes this statement knowing that many believe the dragon to be a symbol of the personal Devil. This will be discussed in more detail later.

The description of the dragon moves from his make-up to the role he plays in regard to the Church. The dragon’s tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven. We have already noted that stars are symbols of teachers. We can determine whether the star is a symbol of a Godly or ungodly teacher by the context of the passage in which the symbol is found. It appears that these teachers were godly men that came under the pagan influence of the dragon. It is important that we notice that only one third of the stars came under this influence. When the dragon brought the stars under his influence, he cast them from their heavenly position to the earth. This shows the falling away of only one third of the stars of heaven or teachers that bowed to pagan influences and corrupted the Gospel of Jesus Christ. One third of the stars is not the whole Church. Though these fallen stars did exert some influence, it is not known how much influence they had in causing others to leave the true faith of Jesus Christ as it was once delivered unto the saints.

The rest of the verse explains why a third of the stars were brought under the influence of the dragon. The dragon was in opposition to the woman. It sought to destroy the offspring or the converts of the Church of God as soon as they were born. This set the stage for war between the Church and the followers of pagan worship as well as those that professed the true faith but were under the influence of the dragon.

Verse five

And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

This verse lets us know that the man-child was born of the woman. As stated earlier this man-child represents the converts that the woman won to the cause of Christ. This is another way of saying she gave birth to him. The fact that the man-child was caught up to the throne of God suggests that the dragon was successful in causing the death of many of the converts. We know from verse seventeen in this Chapter that some of the remnant of the woman escaped the wrath of the dragon. This passage of scripture describes the conflict between the Church and the forces of paganism. It is comforting to know that the converts that lost their natural life were not forgotten. God remembered them and took them to himself. Revelation 2:27 comforts the child of God that if he overcomes sin and keep the words of God unto the end, God will make him a ruler over the nations. This promise in the second Chapter of Revelation lets us know that the nations will not be able to stop the saints from fulfilling the wishes of God Almighty. The rod of iron is a symbol that lets us know the strength of the saints’ abilities to rule and have victory over the nations.

Verse six

And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days.

The dragon waited to devour the man-child as soon as it was born. However, the warfare was not just against the man-child. The dragon power also was in war against the woman. The plan appears to be twofold. Destroy the woman as soon as possible. But until the woman is destroyed, destroy her offspring before they have a chance to sire more offspring. John saw the woman flee into the wilderness to a place where God had prepared for her. Much like God led Israel into the wilderness after bringing them out of Egypt so he could establish her, God led the Church into the wilderness so he could nourish her for twelve hundred and sixty prophetic days.

For the sake of the truth several things should be reviewed at this time. Verse five closes out on a victorious note. The man-child of the woman is to rule the nations with a rod of iron. Once again we must state that the man-child represents the converts or the offspring of the woman which represents the Church. Some of the converts will die and go to be with God and some of them will rule while still on the earth. When the woman fled into the wilderness it was under the inspiration of God. How can one know this to be a fact? The text says she fled to a place prepared for her by God. When the woman arrived at that place in the wilderness, she was feed there for a period of 1260 days. The woman was in the wilderness, but she didn’t starve there. The woman went into the wilderness because there was a blessing there for her. God did not prepare a place for her to flee so he could destroy her. God prepared a place for the Church so she could be fed and prosper. This thought is in keeping with truth that we find in the prophecy of Isaiah. Isaiah wrote, "And a man shall be as an hiding place from the Wind, and a covert from the tempest, and rivers of water in a dry place, as the shadow of a great rock in a weary land." Isaiah 32:2

Many Church of God preachers insist that the woman fleeing into the wilderness is a symbol of the apostasy of the Church. I totally reject that idea. The Church never apostatized. God has always had a people to stand for Him against the opposing powers of hell. The people that stayed true when everyone else was falling away were the real representatives and members of the Church of God. The prophet Isaiah teaches us in Isaiah 1:9 that unless God left unto Himself a remnant we would all be like Sodom and Gomorrah.

For those who believe that the fleeing into the wilderness by the woman is a symbol of a complete apostasy of the Church, I would like for you to consider ancient Israel. When God got ready to deliver Israel from Egypt, he took them into the wilderness. Israel had not a backslider at that point! God took the Children of Israel into the wilderness to prepare them for the promise land. This fact is found in the eight Chapter of the book of Deuteronomy. I advise the reader to consider the text of the whole eighth Chapter of Deuteronomy. For right now consider verse sixteen. Moses wrote, "Who fed thee in the wilderness with manna, which thy fathers knew not, that he might humble thee, and that he might prove thee, to do thee good at thy latter end;"

There is evidence in the scriptures that the wilderness is a place where the people of God are blessed at God’s hand. God’s intention for sending his people into the wilderness is so he can bless them. We read earlier that only one third of the stars of heaven came under the influence of the dragon. These stars came under the influence of the dragon before the woman went into the wilderness. What about the remaining stars that went into the wilderness? Well, they were being fed. The Church continued her victory in the wilderness.

The woman was nourished in the wilderness for a space of 1260 days. I believe these to be prophetic days. Numbers 14:34 and Ezekiel 4:6 are examples in the scriptures of prophetic days. A prophetic day is equal to one year. So1260 days are the same as 1260 years. God provided for the woman that was clothed in the Sun for 1260 years. Please be reminded at this time that we have not read where the woman lost her clothing. If she was clothed in the Sun at the beginning of the Chapter, we must believe that she still was clothed in the Sun while in the wilderness. The woman never lost the righteousness of Christ. She held this righteousness even while in the wilderness!

Verse seven through nine

And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

The dragon warred against the woman and her seed. The dragon at this point is running a string of defeats. He sought to devour the man-child as soon as he was born, but God caught him up to his throne. He couldn’t devour the woman because God allowed her to flee into a place prepared for her in the wilderness. Yet, the dragon is not discouraged. He continues to war against the woman in heaven. However, this war brought Michael and his angels on the side of the woman against the dragon and his angels. Before I go too far with this, I would like to remind the reader to consider the three types of heaven in the scripture. There will be more discussion about how this war could not have taken in the place in the heaven where the throne of God resides. But before engaging in that discussion, something should be said of Michael.

According to Daniel 10:13, Michael is one of the chief angels. In Jude nine we read about Michael the archangel. An archangel is a compound word that is made up of the words "arch" and "angel". Arch simply means chief. The Michael in Daniel, Jude and Revelation are the same. A chief angel has angels under his authority. Thus, Michael the archangel is not Jesus Christ. It does not matter what reason we use to justify calling Michael Christ, one cannot go past the Word of God. Daniel 10:13 states that Michael is just one of the Chief princes. Christ is the undisputed only begotten Child of the Father. Christ is King of kings and Lord of lords. There is nothing in creation that is equal to the King of kings and Lord of lords. Jesus Christ is the one and only Lord by the will of God the Father. So if Michael lead this fight against the dragon in heaven, it is essential that we understand the nature of the warfare.

The scriptures show us many cases where the spiritual world influences events on earth. The case of Job is an example as well as the lying spirits in Ahab’s day. We read about the death angel in Egypt playing a major role in convincing Pharaoh to let the Children of Israel go. Daniel reveals how angels influenced the Persian kings to follow a course of action that was favorable to Israel. The list can be continued. Our point is to show that while the saints were resisting the dragon on earth there was a heavenly influence on the behalf of the saints. In this war between Michael and the dragon, the dragon lost. One can see an example of this warfare while reading the nineteenth Chapter of Acts. Luke details in that Chapter how a silversmith incited the people to a frenzy in the defense of the goddess Diana. The people were ready to kill Paul and his peers. But God worked things out so Paul and his peers were able to escape. This is the nature of the spiritual conflict between good and evil. Our text in the twelfth Chapter of Revelation reveals that the dragon will not prevail in this conflict.

Many believe that this dragon is the personal devil. They justified this belief because the dragon is called the devil. Our previous discussion on the dragon should discourage this type of thinking. Further evidence of why the dragon in Revelation Chapter twelve is not to be confused with the personal Devil is found in the Gospels. Jesus called Herod a fox. No one that I know of is going around teaching that Herod was a fox. Jesus called Peter Satan. No one I know of is going around teaching that Peter and Satan are one and the same. Herod was called a fox because he had the nature of a fox. Peter was called Satan because he resisted the things of God. The dragon was called the devil and Satan because it was a tool of the devil.

The dragon is a symbol of pagan Rome. It was through the preaching and teaching of the Gospel of Jesus Christ that paganism as a world religion came to an end. In every nation but one, paganism was the norm for religious worship. When the early Church exalted Christ through the Gospel, paganism began to lose its hold on the minds of men. As we will find later in the Revelation, a corrupted form of Christianity replaced paganism. John, in this vision of the war in heaven, saw paganism lose its war with Christianity. Through the Gospel, men were able to see that there is only one God and he is the Lord of all. John saw this change in religious thinking as the dragon and his angels were cast out of their exalted position. Once cast down to the earth, the dragon lost his power to deceive and be an effective tool of the personal Devil.

Many in the Christian world are convinced that the Devil was in heaven until he was kicked out and the verses in this Chapter are part of the reason why. A careful reading of the text shows that many of the popular teaching involving this Chapter do not follow the narrative closely. Because so many believe that this Chapter has reference to the personal Devil it is necessary to further examine the details of the facts as given by John.

On the surface this text is a strong argument for the teaching that the Devil was cast out of heaven. However a closer look will reveal that this scripture does not contradict what Jesus taught about the Devil in St. John 8:44 when he said:

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

So if Jesus’ observation is correct, and it is, then the personal devil never dwelled in the truth. This suggests that from the very beginning he was a liar and did not reside in the place of God’s throne. This being true, it is essential to understand just whom the dragon is that John saw in this vision. Most students of the Bible will readily accept that the book of Revelation is written in symbols. One must understand the interpretation of symbols to get its message. There is much disagreement among Christians concerning the interpretation of the symbols of Revelation. A review of the facts should help the reader sort out truth from error.

The twelfth Chapter of Revelation starts by describing a scene in heaven. This scene tells of a woman standing on the moon and cloth in the sun. It also reveals a red dragon having seven heads and ten horns. It is impossible for a literal woman to be clothed in the sun while standing on the moon. There is no such animal as a seven- headed dragon with ten horns. It is clear that the woman and the dragon were in the same heaven. The dragon was cast out of heaven to the earth. There is no mention of the woman being cast out of heaven to the earth. If she was not cast out of heaven to earth, are we to believe there is a wilderness in heaven where God is? A red dragon was waiting to devour the child while the woman was in travail. Are we to believe there will be pain in the heaven where God lives? Will we be under the attack of such vicious animals as seven headed dragons? The scripture text tells us that when the child was born, it was caught up to God and his throne. Doesn’t this seem to suggest that the heaven where this scene takes place is a different heaven than where God is? If not, is the heaven in which the woman gave birth the same heaven in which God resides? The text in the twelfth Charter gives details about a war in heaven in which the dragon is the loser. In verse eleven, people who used the blood of the lamb as a weapon overcame the dragon. They also were successful because of the word of their testimony and that they loved not their lives until the death. This seems to suggest that the war was not physical but spiritual in nature. Besides, just when was the dragon kicked out of heaven? Was it before or after the blood of the lamb was shed? Do we believe that the Devil was kicked out of heaven before the Garden of Eden? Were there saints that overcame the dragon by the blood of the lamb in heaven before Christ died on the cross? We know from John 4:24 that God is a spirit. We find in 1Corinthians 15:50, that flesh and blood can not inherit the kingdom of heaven. If this is true, one must explain how people in God's heaven can lose their lives. One must also consider that when the dragon was cast down unto the earth, he persecuted the woman. Was the woman in heaven where God resides? If so, where in the Bible does one find that she was ever cast down unto earth? The text reveals that the dragon, called the devil, was cast out to the earth. If the woman was still in heaven where God resides, how did the dragon get at her to persecute her? In Revelation 13:2, we find the dragon gave up his power and seat and authority to a beast that rose out of the sea. Does this mean that it is not the Devil that tempts us? Is it a beast that is really tempting us to do wrong? If not, when did the dragon take his power, seat and authority back? A careful reading of the twelfth chapter of Revelation makes it impossible for one to believe that the devil was in heaven. The Devil could not reside in heaven with an all-knowing God whom can tell the end from the beginning!

Verse Ten

And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

The result of the dragon being cast down brought rejoicing among the people of God. Please note that this casting down did not bring defeat and apostasy for the Church. It brought salvation, strength, and the kingdom of God and the power of Christ. People being convinced that there is not a multitude of gods to be feared, they could now focus on the one true God. The dragon having lost his power to deceive would soon lose his support of the people to persecute the Church. This would give the saints a small breather from their persecutions that enabled them to continue to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Truth. The casting down of the dragon was a great victory for the morning Church.

Verse eleven

And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death. Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

This verse reveals how the saints that had victory over the dragon managed not to come under the influence of the dragon. First of all the saints were saved by the blood of the lamb. They would not allow the dragon and his forces to take away their testimony of being saved by grace. Next the saints did not love their lives more than they loved the things of God. Many chose death over backsliding. This dedication and the victory it brought caused much rejoicing in the family of God. No longer able to work effectively through the dragon, the devil showed his displeasure with great wrath. Not able to destroy the saints, the devil took his wrath out on the unsaved. Realizing that his time is short, the devil wanted to take as many as he could into eternity with himself.

Verse thirteen through seventeen

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 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. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth. And the dragon was 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.

After being exposed for what he really was, the dragon did not give up on the woman. He continued to persecute the woman. However, God still intervened on the woman’s behalf. The woman was given the wings of a great eagle. We find in Isaiah 40:28-31 that those that wait on the Lord will renew their strength and mount up with wings of eagles. The wings of an eagle are a symbol of the strength that the woman was given. It was strength to rise above doubt and confusion. Strength that enabled the woman to flee to the wilderness to a place prepared by her God. God nourished the woman in the wilderness from the face of the dragon. In an attempt to counteract God’s nourishment of the woman, the dragon sent a flood after her. This flood represents the false doctrines that the dragon introduced to deceive the woman from staying with her God. Once again apostasy was prevented. The earth helped the woman by absorbing the false doctrine. The scriptures teach that only those who don’t love the truth can be deceived. Those who did not love the truth swallowed up the flood of false doctrine that was sent out to overcome the woman. The earth is used here as a symbol of those who did not love the truth, but they swallow the flood that was released by the dragon. Their help of the woman wasn’t intentional. Being fleshy they loved the fleshy doctrines of the dragon and swallowed them up. The saints being nourished by God were not thirsty for the things of the dragon. The woman escaped the devices of the dragon once again only to stir up his wrath. The vision closes by revealing that the dragon changed the focus of his attention to the remnant of the woman’s seed. These were the saints that survived the persecution and continued on to obey the commandments of God and keep the testimony of Jesus.

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