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Sermon preached on Revelation 12 by Rev. W. Reid Hankins during the Morning Worship Service at Trinity Presbyterian Church (OPC) on 03/23/2025 in Petaluma, CA.
Sermon Manuscript
Last week we ended the cycle of the seven trumpets. Now we come to another interlude before we come to the cycle of the seven bowls in chapter 15. We previously encountered interludes between the sixth and seventh seals and again between the sixth and seventh trumpets. Interestingly, when we get to the seven bowls, there won’t be any interlude interrupting them. But here, there is this interlude between the seven trumpets and the seven bowls. This interlude is longer than the previous interludes and itself able to be divided up into seven main scenes. It is not some mere aside in Revelation, but a significant extended vision in itself. This interlude is placed at the center of this book, at the heart of a chiastic structure. This interlude is central to the entire book of Revelation. It will again take us through the entire history from Christ’s first to his second coming. This interlude even reveals why the world is trying to stop us Christians. It’s because of Satan, our chief foe. Thankfully, Revelation reveals how we overcome in Christ, and today’s chapter begins to tell us about that. We’ll study this chapter in three parts, looking first at the child caught up to heaven in verses 1-6. Then we’ll look at the dragon being thrown down to earth in verses 7-12. Lastly, we’ll look at the dragon’s wrath and fury in verses 13-17.
We begin first then with verses 1-6 seeing this child caught up to heaven after being born on earth. This first section begins with a vision of this woman in verse 1. There it describes a great sign, which is language again at the end of this interlude in chapter 15, showing it is one big story line. This language of a sign also reminds us what we were told in Revelation 1:1, that this is a book full of symbolism to interpret. So then, we have a woman seen in a vision and we need to interpret what she symbolically represents.
To identify the woman, we need to begin by recognizing that she is a pregnant and giving birth to a male child. The child being born to her is the Messiah, Christ Jesus. Verse 5 describes the child as king who will rule the nations with a rod of iron, refencing the messianic Psalm 2:9. Jesus already used that same psalm to refer to himself back in Revelation 2:27. Verses 10 and 11 also speak of Christ and the Lamb, which in context is further describing the child. Jesus is this male child, the Messiah, the Christ, the Lamb.
Some have naturally assumed the woman then must represent Mary, the physical mother of Jesus. As attractive at that might be at first glance, the rest of the passage speaks against that interpretation. For example, verse 17 references the woman’s other offspring which it seems to define as all Christians throughout this age. That describes something bigger than just Mary and her few other children we know she had. So then, another suggestion people have made is if this woman refers to Eve. That is also attractive, because this passage’s description of the dragon can remind us of the Garden of Eden and the devil’s tempting of Eve. We naturally remember how the first gospel promise came there of a child that would be born to the woman, i.e. through Eve in a grand sense. Yet, Eve doesn’t quite fit the full picture here either, such as this woman herself giving birth just prior to this final symbolic 3.5 year period which we’ve said represents the new covenant era. What rather seems to be the correct view is that the woman symbolically represents the church, especially the old covenant church. Israel the church ultimately gave birth to the Messiah. Jesus is the seed of Abraham and he is the seed of David. The church likewise now has given birth to other offspring, i.e., other Christians. It fits the picture, including the apocalyptic description in verse 1, that the woman is clothed with the sun, feet on the moon, and a crown with twelve stars. Her clothing brings to mind that dream Joseph had in Genesis with the sun, moon, and eleven stars bowing down to him. Joseph’s dream was interpreted to portray Israel the church as a sun, moon, and twelve stars. This woman is clothed like this to tell us she represents Israel. She represents that old covenant church which ultimately gave birth to Jesus and all the Christians now who continue that church under the new covenant. In that sense, we can include Mary and Eve, and all who hoped in the promised, coming Messiah.
So then, we see a scary and powerful dragon here that represents the devil, as we’ll see. The dragon is imaged as great, red, seven headed, ten horned, and with seven diadems. His red color might evoke the idea of bloodshed. The seven heads likely suggests his wisdom, albeit the crafty and shrewd kind. The ten horns speak to his great strength. The diadems, which are crowns that a king wears, implies his grand dominion. This powerful beast in the vision uses his tail to cast down a third of heaven’s stars to earth. That might refer to Satan using his crafty power to attack many, which we know he has done. But this might specifically refer to him deceiving many angels into following him, making them fallen angels, i.e. demons. I lean toward that, though the text doesn’t elaborate. What is clear in this vision is that this is one terribly powerful enemy.
The vision then shows how he is an enemy to the woman. This opening scene presents him sitting their waiting to devour the boy as soon as he is born to the woman. Notice that the woman is writhing in birth pains beforehand. This likely represents the sufferings the church endured in its days before the birth of Christ, while they longed for the one who would save them and lead them in righteousness. But the dragon fails to stop the child. For in a moment we see that the child is caught up to heaven to God and his throne. This surely represents how after Jesus’ death, he not only raises from the dead, but ascends up into heaven and is seated at God’s right hand. In fact, the gospels record that Jesus’ death was Satan’s attempt through Judas Iscariot to try to devour the Christ. But his plan backfired as evidenced in Christ’s resurrection and ascension.
Verse 6 then describes what the passage will elaborate on later. After the woman which is the church gives birth to Jesus, she flees from the dragon and hides in the wilderness for 1,260 days. Yes, that’s the same time frame we saw last chapter for the ministry of the two witnesses in the world. This is surely the same time period and covers the period from a different perspective. I said last week and also earlier today that this 3.5 year time period symbolically represented the church between Christ’s first and second comings, depicted as a period of suffering. I pointed to how that time period was referenced repeatedly in Daniel in that sense. I also made a connection with Israel’s wilderness wandering, which this passage also alludes to as well. We can also remember Elijah who went into hiding during a 3.5 year famine, his own sort of wilderness wandering, and surely also background for Daniel’s usage of that 3.5 year time. My point is that last chapter’s vision presented the church as witnessing in power and divine protection during this time period. Today’s vision complements that by describing the church as simultaneously in a period of wilderness wandering. We also see in verse 6 that this is all according to God’s plan and is a time where God nourishes the church.
Let’s turn now in our second point to consider the dragon being thrown down to earth in verses 7-12. The section begins with war in heaven. Given the context, this is likely a war that comes out of what was just briefly referenced, the victory of Jesus when he came to earth and died, rose again, and ascended up into heaven. The announcement right after the war seems to confirm this, that Jesus’ victory at the cross translates to then this battle and victory in heaven. The two sides are Michael and his angels versus the dragon and his fallen angels. In Jude, Michael is described as an archangel and in Daniel as a chief angel overseeing Israel. So, for the dragon and his demons to fight Michael and his angels is showing that this heavenly war reflects the spiritual warfare between Satan and the church, aka Israel. The outcome of the battle is that there is a defeat of Satan which results in his being cast out of heaven down to earth, along with his demons.
Verse 9 takes a moment to tell us the identity of this dragon. This is interpreting the symbolism of the dragon to identify who it represents. The interpretation reminds us there are several names and descriptions used in the Bible to talk about this same enemy. Verse 9, he is the devil which is a Greek word that means slanderer or accuser, a common function of this enemy throughout the Bible. He is also called here Satan, a Hebrew word with a similar meaning, either accuser or adversary. Think of how Satan accused and opposed Job, for example. He is also called the deceiver of the whole world. We remember his craftiness, how he masquerades as light when really he is evil and darkness. He is also called that ancient serpent and we remember the garden of Eden and how he got Adam and Eve to disobey God. That garden incident setup this ongoing conflict between the serpent and the seed of the women until finally the promised one of Genesis 3:15 was born into this world to destroy the devil. That is why the dragon wanted to devour the child.
But Jesus was victorious over him. That is what the loud voice declares starting in verse 10. There is an interesting already and not yet aspect to the proclamation there. On the one hand it presents the victory as past tense. By this point, devil has already lost the heavenly war and been cast out. It declares the salvation and power and kingdom and authority of God and his Christ has arrived. It’s like what Jesus said after his resurrection, that then he now possessed all authority in heaven and earth. Jesus had to first suffer and then enter into such subsequent glory. The very attempt of the dragon to stop him resulted in his death and subsequent resurrection. The serpent struck Jesus’ heel only to find that Jesus was actually crushing the serpent’s head. Jesus’ victory at the cross is then extended to believers in verse 11. It says that we conquered Satan by the blood of the lamb and by the word of our testimony even as we are willing to die for Jesus. All that is put in the past tense. That’s the “already” part of the victory.
But then notice that the announcement goes on in verse 12 to describe joy and woe. There is joy in heaven because of the already victory. But there is yet woe in this world because the devil has been cast down here. Indeed, the passage will go on to describe how Satan tries to afflict God’s people who are still on earth. This is the “not yet” aspect of this victory proclamation. The blood of lamb has given the primary death blow against Satan. He is a defeated enemy. But he is yet allowed for a short time to bring his wrath and fury to this world, especially directed at the church.
That lead us to our third point to look at the dragon’s wrath and fury in verses 13-17. This section begins by now expounding on what was briefly mentioned in verse 6, that the women fled to the wilderness for 3.5 years. Now we see why the women fled, because the dragon in his wrath is pursuing to destroy her. Yet, God protects the woman with two wings of the great eagle, an allusion back to Exodus 19:4 where God metaphorically spoke of how he delivered Israel from Egypt into the wilderness with the wings of an eagle. Like at the Exodus, so today, it is God who safely delivers the church from the enemy into the metaphorical wilderness that becomes an ordained place of refuge and nourishment.
The allusion to the Israelite wilderness wandering continues when the dragon attacks with water from his mouth. I appreciate the contrast in weapon here. Last chapter the two prophets which were the church had the weapon of fire from their mouths, reflecting the power of the word they testify. Here, in contrasting opposite, Satan also has a weapon from his mouth, but it is water not fire. Surely Satan speaks his powerful lies from his mouth to destroy, even as our power is from the truth we speak. But that’s where the wilderness wandering theme picks up again. For the earth comes to the rescue of the woman, swallowing up the threat. For we remember, how God cause the earth to swallow up the devilish rebellion of Korah against Moses in the wilderness (Num 16). This reminds us that it will be God’s power to protect his church during this season of wilderness wandering.
Yet, that is not the end of the matter. After the devil couldn’t destroy the woman, he went after her offspring. Again, you can think of how the woman represents the church that brought forth Jesus. But that same church has brought forth many more children. The description of those children is in verse 17. These children are the ones who keep God’s commandments and the ones who hold to the testimony of Jesus. These are not meant to be two different things. We Christians profess Jesus as Savior and Lord. And we Christians have, reliant on the grace of God, embraced his righteousness in a way that the world does not. Chapter 14 will reference this same description again and identify them as the saints. The offspring of the woman here represents Christians, the saints of God.
Verse 17 says that the dragon, in his fury, has gone off to make war on these offspring, on all us Christians. We will learn what that entails as the interlude continues next chapter. The setup is the last verse of our chapter. The dragon stands on the sand of the sea. Next chapter begins with a beast that looks like the dragon rising up out of that sea. The implication is that the dragon brings forth the beast. The chapter goes on to describe how the beast will make war on the us Christians. Later in the chapter another beast comes to further support this devilish opposition.
Let’s put this all together. The woman, representing the church as a whole, is in a season of being protected in the wilderness. Like the Old Testament type, this period of being in wilderness will end when the church comes into the Promised Land of the age to come. The church in the wilderness is protected by God from Satan. Yet, simultaneously, we will see next chapter that the dragon through the beast will be allowed to make war on the offspring of the woman. In other words, individually Christians in the church will face trouble from Satan in this life. Let the reader understand that both these things are true. As a whole, the gates of hades will not prevail against the church. But yet we as individual Christians will experience devilish opposition for a time. In fact, we’ll see it will get very bad at the end. But Christ will return to save us from it and bring us into glory.
Trinity Presbyterian Church, today we have come to the heart of this book. We are seeing the reason for all the persecution we face in this world, it’s this devil named Satan. We are also reminded of how this ancient serpent tempted us to fall into sin in the first place. He has tempted us, accused us, and now wants to destroy us. What do we do in the face of such an enemy? In the grand scheme of things, we take comfort that as the church God has ordained and will protect and nourish the church in the wilderness. But we also recognize that we are in the thick of a battle against Satan between now and Christ’s return. He wants to destroy us. But Jesus wants us to overcome, to conquer. That’s how each of those seven letters to the churches ended. He gave us a call to conquer.
So then, my closing application directs us back to verse 11. How will we conquer Satan?
Verse 11 “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.” Will we do the same with the blood of the lamb and with the word of our testimony, not loving our lives even unto death. What does that look like?
Every time Satan accuses us, let us plead the blood of the lamb. Every time Satan tries to deceive the world, let us testify to the blood of the lamb. When Satan threatens us with persecution and even death, let us not fear because we love Jesus even more than our earthly lives. For we know that not even death can separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus. This is the path God has prepared for our victory over the devil. Let us have patient endurance to keep our hoped founded on Christ’s sacrifice as we courageously testify to it in this fallen world.
Amen.
Copyright © 2025 Rev. W. Reid Hankins, M.Div.
All Rights Reserved.
