The Woman

And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth. And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. She gave birth to a male child, one who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, but her child was caught up to God and to his throne, and the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days. Revelation 12:1-6

The allegory in chapter 12 is a historical narrative of Israel. The woman arrayed like royalty represents true Israel; those Jews who believe in, and are waiting for their Messiah. The stars of her crown are the twelve tribes of Israel, descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Israel’s pregnancy means the Messiah will be born from her. She is anxiously awaiting His birth, but she is under extreme pressure in the world because of her relationship with God. She wants to bring forth the Messiah, but knows His presence will bring greater conflict with the forces of evil.

The conflict is with the great red dragon. Red means rulership. He is a super-intellectual who rules seven empires and controls ten kings. This describes the final Gentile world-power, with the major nations consolidated under one global government. It describes religious internationalism. God designed nations for the protection of the human race, just as He designed families for the same purpose. Internationalism breaks down the protective boundaries within which a nation can operate in freedom from foreign oppressors. This dragon wears seven diadems, meaning he is the ultimate ruler of these confederate nations.

This dragon, when he was demoted from his heavenly position, was accompanied by one third of the angels (stars), and they set up headquarters on earth. The story of Lucifer’s demotion is recorded in Ezekiel 28:13-19. He wants to be God. He tries to be God. He constantly challenges God’s authority. He led a revolt against God in heaven, and apparently influenced a great many of the angels to follow him in his rebellion. They are now demons in the atmosphere, on the earth and under the earth. Their king is Satan, represented in this allegory by the red dragon.

Satan knew about the promised Messiah; that He must be true humanity and that He would be born a Jew. With that knowledge in mind, Satan’s primary objective in the angelic conflict has been to prevent the birth of the truly human Messiah, and failing to do that, he then set out to cause sin in Him. Failing that, Satan’s goal was to kill the Messiah before He could make atonement for the sins of mankind. He was awaiting the birth and attempted through Herod to kill the infant Jesus. Of course, he could not, because Jesus is God’s Own Son, and His mission was the most important work that has ever been done.

Jesus was an infant at His first advent. He was sinless and truly human as well as God, and after His work of atonement was finished, He was “caught up to God.” That event introduced the Church age. Israel became dispersed all over the world for the undefined period of the Church age. In the time of the great tribulation, a large population of Jews will have gathered back into Palestine, their prophetic land of promise. During the worst 3½ years of the tribulation, the true Jews (those who have believed in Jesus) will be protected and nurtured in a place provided by God as they await the Messiah’s second advent. By that time they will realize Who He is, and that He is their only hope.

Up until the middle of the tribulation, Satan has had access to the throne room of God, even though he no longer has any authority there. There is one glimpse of his appearance there in the book of Job, so it is apparent that he continually accuses God’s people and attempts to destroy the faithful among us.

Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him. And I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying, “Now the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ have come, for the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down, who accuses them day and night before our God. And 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. Therefore, rejoice, O heavens and you who dwell in them! But woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” Revelation 12:7-12

In this huge heavenly battle with Michael the archangel and his angelic troops, Satan is defeated and permanently evicted from heaven. He won’t be allowed there anymore, after the first half of the tribulation. So, of course, his intense fury will be inflicted on the inhabitants of earth. The believers he constantly accuses have overcome him by receiving salvation through Jesus’ atonement, and they have faithfully witnessed to His gospel, even to the point of death. Heaven now rejoices in Satan’s absence, but the earth will receive even more of his raging wrath. He is running out of time.

And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea. Revelation 12:13-17

Having been banished from heaven, Satan’s wrath is intensified against Israel and he goes after her with all his fury. He couldn’t prevent the birth of the Savior. He couldn’t prevent the atonement of the Savior. Now he wants to prevent the fulfillment of God’s promise to the nation Israel. Anything to usurp the authority of God. God protects His people, for His own name’s sake. The believers of Israel are given help from sympathetic Gentiles, perhaps, with the resources to fly them to safety in the wilderness (Petra?). She will be hidden and nourished for the duration of the tribulation, even though the dragon has pulled out all the stops in his persecution of her. His raging oppression of all living believers in Jesus Christ continues until Jesus returns.

Jesus will soon return and totally defeat Satan. God keeps His promises to Israel.