This past spring a movie came out called Oz the Great and Powerful. Now, I'm not admitting to have seen that movie. In fact, if I had, I probably would have made a pact with the guys who watched it me, agreeing that we would never admit to having seen it. However, some of you may have seen this movie. And it you did, you know that it was a prequal of sorts to a more familiar story, The Wizard of Oz. The idea is that the movie that came out this spring provides a back story to that more popular film.
When I was a young boy, I vaguely remember seeing the movie The Wizard of Oz. It’s about these four characters who go off to see this great wizard. But by the end of the movie, you find out that this great wizard whose image appears quite large in the sky and whose voice booms through the air is actually just a man behind a curtain. And the movie ends as those who are searching for the wizard to provide them with what they need realize that they’ve had it or found it along the way. But the question that apparently was never answered in the film is how in the world this wizard character ever got there in the first place, what events led him to pretend to be a great wizard, etc. And that was the intent of the movie that came out this spring. Whether it did it well or poorly, it gave a behind the scenes view of all that had transpired to lead to the circumstances that provided the setting for The Wizard of Oz.
The way that movie this spring was supposed to function I think gives us a picture into how Revelation 12 functions in this book. Just as many know the story of The Wizard of Oz (whether having read the book or seen the movie) and yet have questions as to why all of the events of the movie came about in the first place (which was the basis for the movie that came out this spring), so the first hearers of the content of this book of the Bible would have been familiar with many of the truths that have been shared in the book to this point. They would have known, for example, that there are many people out there who were against the people of God, as the book tells us will characterize this age, all the way until the return of Christ. They would have tasted some of it firsthand. We know, for example, that the church in Pergamum had one of their own, Antipas, killed among them and that the church in Smyrna was going to be thrown into prison and some killed. And even if they were not suffering persecution themselves, they were well aware that Peter, Paul, and others had been martyred, killed at the hands of wicked men. And not only that, they knew that all around them individuals were trying to tempt them to believe things that were untrue and conflicted with the teaching that had been handed down from the apostles while others were attempting to seduce them into practicing sexual immorality. The attacks all around them would have been well known.
But there was a question that perhaps they were asking. It may be a question we are asking as well. And that question is, “Why?” That is, why have the people of God always been the object of men’s enmity, scorn, hatred, and persecution? I mean, in the early centuries of the church, Christians became such a focus of persecution at times that a saying became famous: “If God does not send rain, lay it to the Christians.” That is, whatever goes wrong or is a disappointment, seize it as an opportunity to blame and persecute Christians. And they did. Foxe’s Book of Martyrs is filled with stories of great persecution borne by believers through the ages. But why? Why have Christians continually been the object of scorn, ridicule, and attack? Why were believers in the first century under the Roman Empire often persecuted and killed? Why have there continued to be so many Christian martyrs in the world today that it is regularly noted that there have been more martyrs in the last couple of centuries than in all the previous ones combined?
Well, Revelation 12 gives us an answer to that question. It pulls back the veil and allows us to see a reality that perhaps we have missed. It reveals a truth that Jesus knew that his people in the first century under Roman persecution needed to recognize and one that all his people need to recognize until his return. It is a truth we need to see this morning.
Therefore, what I want to do this morning, as we walk through this chapter is to ask three questions that I think this text answers, and then show you the answers from this chapter. And I hope that as we do so, we’ll have a better understanding of the reality that exists in this world and hopefully be moved to great faithfulness in our witness and in prayer. So, the first question I want to ask is:
And the answer I think this text gives is this:
Because Satan is the deceiver of the whole world and holds sway over unbelievers.
Now, we already know that Satan deceives the whole world and holds sway over unbelievers from other texts. We’re told in 2 Corinthians 4:4 that Satan blinds the minds of unbelievers and in Ephesians 2:2 that unbelievers follow the “prince of the power of the air, the spirit that is now at work in the sons of disobedience,” which I also think is a reference to Satan. However, we also see it in Revelation 12, and it is given to us here in a powerful image.
We’re told in the beginning of the chapter that John saw two great signs. The first was a woman. We read in verses 1-2, “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.” Now, the question is, “Who in the world is this woman?”
Well, some might guess, “Mary, the mother of Jesus.” After all, when you get to verse 5 we read that the woman gave birth to a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron, and it’s obvious that this is a reference to Jesus. Therefore, the logic could go, if this is a woman who gives birth to Jesus and only Mary gave birth to Jesus, then the woman must be a reference to Mary, who married Joseph and lived in the first century.
However, I don’t know that you’ll find one commentator who holds that view. And though there are many reasons that could be given in arguing that this isn’t Mary, perhaps the main one is that in v. 17, there is a reference to the “rest of her offspring” (i.e., those in addition to Jesus), and they are identified as “those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.” That is, the “rest of her offspring” is clearly a reference to all believers.
Therefore, the woman most likely represents the true Israel, the true people of God before Christ and then her offspring is the believing people of God after Christ. After all, the people of God are often spoken of as having a “mother.” For example, in Isaiah 54:1, we read, “Sing, O barren one, who did not bear; break forth into singing and cry aloud, you who have not been in labor! For the children of the desolate one will be more than the children of her who is married.” Similarly, in Isaiah 66:8 speaks of Zion being in labor and bringing forth children. And this theme continues throughout the Old Testament where the people of God, are pictured as a mother giving birth to the Messiah and great offspring. Paul even continues this theme in the New Testament, saying in Galatians 4:26, “But the Jerusalem above is free, and she is our mother.”
Therefore, I think the woman in the text symbolizes the true Israel, the true people of God who were waiting in the Old Testament for the coming of their Messiah, looking at their suffering as if it were birth pangs that preceded the advent of their Savior. This is further confirmed by the reference to the woman wearing a crown of twelve stars – a number which is consistently used to represent the people of God throughout the book of Revelation. And the reference to her being clothed with the sun, then, most likely speaks of her beauty or radiance and the moon under her feet as a sign of her greatness and power.
But the woman isn’t the only sign. John tells us he saw another sign. We read in verses 3-4, “And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven 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.”
The dragon’s identity is a bit easier, isn’t it? After all, we read in verse 9 that the dragon is “that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan.” The dragon symbolizes Satan. And he is red (probably a reference to being a murderer), with seven heads, ten horns, and seven diadems (probably showing the comprehensiveness of his power and wisdom – able to influence and deceive the whole world). In fact, we are told in v. 9 that he is “the deceiver of the whole world.” And we see that with his tail, he sweeps a third of the stars out of the heavens, casting them to earth, which shows us his great, great power, though reminds us that he is not almighty. Only the Lord is almighty.
And then we’re given a terrible scene. The woman is about to give birth and deliver her child, while the dragon is waiting there, ready to eat this newborn child, devouring it. It is a reminder of the promise from the very beginning. Do you remember the Lord’s words from Genesis 3:15? There, he said to the serpent, “I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel.”
From that point on, Satan has been on a mission to thwart the coming of the Son and thwart the saving mission of the Son. This is why the godly line of Israelites who would bring about the Messiah (pictured if Revelation 12:1-5) always had enemies who persecuted them. Abel is killed by Cain. Isaac is persecuted by Ishmael. Jacob wars with Esau. Pharaoh sought to kill anyone who might deliver the Israelite people from captivity. All kinds of people make war with Israel. And if you ask why, then the answer is because the deceiver of the world who holds sway over unbelieving mankind was warring against the Messiah. He was attempting to devour and thwart the work of Jesus, the Christ. That’s why God’s true people, through whom the Messiah would come, were consistently persecuted. It’s why Herod gets the bright idea when he gets news of the birth of Jesus of Nazareth to slaughter all the male children in Bethlehem and in that region who were two years old or under (Matt. 2:16). Satan was out to destroy the Christ.
Do you see the point? Old Testament history might list all kinds of people as God’s enemies, but the ultimate answer is that behind every attack was Satan himself. When Herod sought to killed Jewish infants, two and under, it was the outworking of Satan. This is why when Peter tells Jesus that he won’t let him go to the cross and die, Jesus says, “Get behind me Satan.” It wasn’t that he thought Peter had turned into the devil. It’s that he rightly saw this temptation to avoid his saving mission as a scheme of Satan. This is why Paul tells us in Ephesians 6:11-12, “Put on the whole armor of God, that you may be able to stand against the schemes of the devil. For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against rulers, against the authorities, against the cosmic powers over this present darkness, against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly places.” If you asked any first century believer who they had to fight with daily, they would have named for you some Romans, but the more fundamental answer was that they were at war with Satan, who deceives the whole world and holds sway over unbelievers.
That’s the answer to our first question. So, let’s then ask another:
And the text gives us multiple answers to this question. I’ll note four:
Notice what happens in verse 5. The dragon is ready to devour this child who is going to be born, but he fails. We read, “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.” Now, this is obviously a quick reference to Jesus’ entire life and ministry. It’s not like Jesus was born in Bethlehem and then ascended into heaven. Rather, he was born, lived a perfect life, died for our sins, was raised from the dead, and ascended into heaven. But this is just a brief summary, probably intentionally brief so that we might get feel the truth here, namely, that the dragon was unable to accomplish his mission to devour the Son and thwart his saving work.
Satan couldn’t stop him. Jesus succeeded. But you get the idea already, don’t you, that Satan then turns himself toward the people of God. It’s hinted at in verse 6 where we read that after giving birth to the child and this Messiah ascending into heaven, “the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared for her by God, in which she is to be nourished for 1,260 days.”
There are two hints here that the woman is going to suffer at the hands of the dragon – or, we can say, that the people of God are going to suffer the attacks of Satan. The first is that she “fled.” You normally don’t flee when there’s no sense of danger. The second is that the Lord cares for her in the wilderness (even as the wilderness was the sight of the Lord provided for and nourishing his people in the OT) for 1,260 days. You’ll remember from last week that 1,260 days is the same as 42 months, which is the same as 3.5 years, which is the same as the reference “times, time, and half a time,” and that it symbolizes a time when the people of God will go through tribulation. The message last week was though this entire age will be filled with tribulation, we’ll be preserved by God, and I think that’s the message of verse 6 as well. But nonetheless, verse 6 is a reminder that the enemy has turned his attacks on the people of God. He comes after us, for one, because he has failed in his attempts to devour the Son and thwart his saving mission.
We have a scene in verses 7-12 where there is a war in heaven. Michael, the archangel, and his angels are fighting against the dragon and his angels, but the dragon was defeated. Now, why was the dragon defeated? I think the answer is that he was defeated because Christ succeeded in his saving work. Jesus successfully lived, died, and was raised, despite Satan’s every attempt to thwart that. I think that’s what we’re to understand because of a few reasons. First, what precedes this description of the heavenly war is the reality that Satan failed to stop Jesus’ saving work. So, it’s most natural to assume this point just in reading the text. Second, we’re explicitly told that the devil has been conquered “by the blood of the Lamb” in v. 11. Third, we’re told that he was defeated with the announcement (in verse 10) that the salvation of God has come, and we know that God’s saving work was brought about through the life, death, and resurrection of Christ. And, finally, the result of Satan being thrown down from heaven is that he’s no longer able to accuse the saints before the very throne of God.
Let me elaborate on this last one for a second. In the Old Testament we read of times when Satan was in the very presence of God, don’t we? Remember, for example, in the story of Job how Satan came right into God’s presence to talk with him. And what was he doing? Well, he was accusing Job. He was telling God basically that if God would take away all of Job’s stuff that Job would curse him. He was accusing Job. And we read the same thing in Zechariah as Satan was standing before the Lord accusing Joshua. Well, apparently this was Satan’s consistent task for the entire time before the Lord’s victorious death and resurrection. We’re told that at the end of verse 10 that Satan accused the Lord’s people “day and night before our God.”
So, what would stop that? What would destroy his ability to accuse? The answer is Christ’s perfect life, penalty-bearing death, and justifying resurrection. Once Jesus lived, died, and was raised, Satan was cast down from heaven, no longer able to have a standing before the very presence of God to accuse his people. This is why Martin Luther can write, ““When the devil throws our sins up to us and declares that we deserve death and hell, we ought to speak thus: ‘I admit that I deserve death and hell. What of it? Does this mean that I shall be sentenced to eternal damnation? By no means. For I know One who suffered and made satisfaction in my behalf. His name is Jesus Christ, the Son of God.”1 If you’re Satan, you have no answer for that, do you? Satan has been cast out of heaven, away from God’s presence.
However, this doesn’t mean we’re through with his torment. In fact, listen to verse 12, “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 Satan has been dealt a lethal blow so that he can no longer accuse the saints before God, he is seeking now on earth in his wrath to devour as many as possible. And this leads us to a third reason why Satan attempts to devour God’s people.
I deliberately cut short the reading of verse 12, but you see how it ends. “The devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows that his time is short!” Jesus has conquered the devil by his death and resurrection. But Jesus still allows his resistance for the time being. Satan has not yet been fully and finally judged, but he knows it’s coming. And since that is the case, he is furious, trying to wreak as much havoc against the Lord’s people as possible.
Finally, Satan seeks to devour the Lord’s people:
Just as knowing his time is short makes him furious, so his failures make him furious. We read of his attempts to destroy the church and the Lord’s preservation of the church in verses 13-14, “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.” This, I think is simply a reference to the Lord preserving his people throughout Satan’s wicked attacks.
But it doesn’t stop him. We continue reading in verse 15, “The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood.” Since the water comes from his mouth, this is probably a reference to the many lies and deceitful words that Satan tries to convince the people of God of in this world. But again, we read of the Lord’s provision in verse 16, “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.”
Again, I think this is just a reference to the Lord’s provision. But does this failed attempt mean that Satan simply gives up? No, it only makes him more furious. We read in verse 17, “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.”
You see, because Satan’s attempts to stop the Son have been thwarted, because he has been cast out of heaven, because he knows his time is brief, and because the Lord has limited his success against his people, Satan is furious, and he continually seeks to devour the church. This is why this age will always be filled with hatred and attack against the Lord’s people. And the Lord will sometimes allow us to suffer greatly and even die. Satan will be allowed to have minor successes. We’ve seen it. But he’ll never be able to pull one of Christ’s own out of the Lord’s hand.
But let’s then end with one more question:
The answer to this question is:
We overcome by holding in faith to the gospel of Jesus Christ and trusting in God’s preserving grace.
We’re not called to resist Satan by taking up the sword. We have an enemy seeking to devour us, but we’re not called to oppose him or those under his influence with weapons. Rather, we’re called to stand firm and hold fast to faith in the gospel, declaring by our testimony that Jesus Christ alone is Lord, and trusting in God’s grace to preserve us and provide for us all we need to walk in faithful obedience to him in this life.
We read a great line in verse 11 – “They have conquered him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony.” But why? Why did they continue to hold fast to faith in the gospel and continue to testify that Jesus was their Lord when in many cases it meant that they would lose their lives? The answer is the end of verse 11 – “For they loved not their lives even unto death.”
When our position is that our faith is in the finished work of Christ, and we live to honor and please him, even willing to give our lives for his sake, what can man do to us? Sure, they could kill us, but that is gain, isn’t it? Therefore, this morning, let our proclamation be that whatever Satan brings through the persecution of unbelievers, we will hold fast to the gospel, hold fast to our testimony that Christ is Lord, and trust in our God to give us preserving grace. After all, we can know that the one who has given us grace to make it to today will no doubt give us the grace necessary to make it home. Let that be our proclamation then as we come to the table. Amen.