The Child Defeats the Devil

“Now a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of 12 stars.” [1]

After six trumpet blasts followed by six sets of plaques, God reminds people of the Gospel. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is a great sign. Road managers place signs on roadsides to provide helpful directions to travelers. God’s great sign to the people of the earth is believers in Him who propagate His Gospel. The woman clothed with the sun symbolizes people who have Jesus Christ, God’s Son, abiding in the them. Throughout Scripture, God uses the metaphor of a woman, and a bride, for His people. The Lord is referred to as the Sun of Righteousness with healing in His wings in Malachi 4:2. The Lord clothes those who believe in Him with His righteousness even as the sun clothes people with its light. The moon under her feet represents the earth where the Church reflects the glory of Christ to those in darkness. The 12 stars represent the 12 tribes of Israel through whom the Lord gave to us His Word. The 12 apostles who were eyewitnesses of God enfleshed in humanity were from the tribes of Israel. They recorded Christ’s teaching for us and modeled for us how to live according to it. [2]

“Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.” [3]

The Child that the people of God proclaim is Christ. He is Emmanuel – God with us. [4]

The Lord gave His servants Jeremiah and Isaiah words about this before it came to pass. Isaiah wrote, “Who has ever heard of such things? Who has ever seen things like this? Can a country be born in a day or a nation be brought forth in a moment? Yet no sooner is Zion in labor, than she gives birth to her children.” Jeremiah wrote, “The Lord has created a new thing in the earth—a woman shall encompass a man.” The nation that brought forth in a moment was the Kingdom of God when Mary gave birth to Jesus. Jesus was a preborn manchild placed in the womb of Mary by the Holy Spirit. The Kingdom of God is birthed inside a person in a moment when with the help of the Holy Spirit he or she believes and professes faith in Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. He or she becomes a citizen of God’s Kingdom on that day. A person who is born again and transformed by the power of God is a great sign to the world. [5]

“And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads.” [6]

Another sign given by God is the revelation of the devil. While some scoff at the idea of the existence of the devil, the Bible confirms his existence. The devil is manifest by evil. The seven heads, ten horns and seven diadems represent places and rulers who are enemies of God, and enemies of God’s people. Bible commentator Matthew Henry interpreted the seven heads as the seven hills of Rome, the ten horns as the ten provinces of Rome and seven diadems as seven consecutive kings of Rome who persecuted God’s people. The fiery red color of the dragon symbolizes his rage against God.

The Lord gave prophetic words about these leaders in Daniel 7:4-7, 24. The Lord told Daniel that the ten horns are ten kings. Later, in Revelation 17:12, the Lord reveals that the ten horns are ten kings who are against Him and against His people.

“His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born.” [7]

His (the devil’s) tail drags down a third of the stars (angels) from heaven. He persuaded them to rebel against God. When Christ is born of Mary, he wants to devour Christ, but an angel warned Joseph in a dream of the devil’s plot to use a king (Herod) to kill the Child, and Joseph escaped with Mary and the Child to Egypt. [8]

This deliverance of Jesus from Herod also alludes to God’s deliverance of His people from Pharaoh of Egypt. Pharoah, whose name means crocodile, demanded that the people of Israel drown their baby boys in the Nile River. They cried out to God, and He raised up a deliverer from among them named Moses to bring them out of that cruel place. Jesus Christ is the Deliverer who brings us out of this cruel world to God’s heavenly Promised Land. [9]

“She bore a male Child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron. And her Child was caught up to God and His throne.” [10]

The Child she bore was Jesus Christ. “Therefore the Lord Himself shall give you a sign; behold, a virgin shall conceive, and bear a Son, and shall call His name Immanuel.” After Jesus completed His mission on earth, He ascended to heaven. The Book of Revelation culminates in the elimination of the devil and of evil kingdoms on the earth. The Book of Revelation concludes with Jesus reigning over a new heaven and a new earth, and all who believed in Him are with Him enjoying the paradise of God. [11]

“Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there 1,260 days.” [12]

1,260 days in the wilderness symbolizes the time in which Gentile believers have been grafted into the Israel of God, and for a season it is the Gentiles who predominantly propagate the Gospel. Like David, who lived among the Philistines for a time to avoid being slain by his own people, Jesus Christ abides in the Gentiles until the last days when the Jews open their hearts to Him and want Him to be their King and want Him to reign in their lives. The good news of the last days is that the Jewish people will turn in great numbers to faith in their Savior Yeshua Ha Mashiach. [13]

“And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.” [14]

Jesus Christ spoke of Satan’s fall from heaven, saying, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven.” He spoke of him being cast out. [15]

The Son of God partook of flesh and blood so He could die on the cross as a sacrifice for our sin and remove Satan’s claims against us. As long as we have unforgiven sin our lives, the devil can claim that we belong to him, but with our sin removed, he has no more claim against us. “Forasmuch then as the children are partakers of flesh and blood, He also Himself likewise took part of the same; that through death He might destroy him that had the power of death, that is, the devil.” “The Son of God was manifested that He might destroy the works of the devil.” Jesus teaches us about the devil and his wiles so we know how to overcome him. Jesus prays for us knowing that Satan wants to destroy us. He says to us, “The God of peace shall bruise Satan under your feet shortly.” “Nothing shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord.” [16]

“Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, “Now salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren, who accused them before our God day and night, has been cast down.” [17]

God has given us who are in Christ Jesus salvation, strength, His Kingdom and His power. We are no longer separated from God by our sin. We have been forgiven. Satan may accuse us, but his accusations are meaningless because God has forgiven us, justified us and glorified us.

“What shall we then say to these things? If God be for us, who can be against us? He that spared not His own Son, but delivered Him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things? Who shall lay anything to the charge of God’s elect? It is God that justifies. Who is he that condemns? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us.” [18]

“And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death.” [19]

At the beginning of Revelation, Jesus promised blessings to the ones who overcome the trials and temptations of this life. It is by faith in Him... in His forgiveness and by the power of the new life He has given us by His indwelling Holy Spirit that we overcome. [20]

“Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time.” [21]

Satan focuses his power on destroying as many souls as he can. Though no longer able to accuse the elect in heaven, he can tempt and persecute them on the earth. He holds many unsaved souls captive to do his will.

“Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child.” [22]

The devil persecutes those who profess Christ. He does this through those whom he controls. The Psalmist put it is this way, “The wicked plots against the just, and gnashes upon him with his teeth. ... The wicked have drawn out the sword, and have bent their bow, to cast down the poor and needy, and to slay such as be of upright conversation.” [23]

“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.” [24]

The wings symbolize God’s helping hands to life His servants out of the pits in which the devil would like to hold us captive. The Lord provides for us who serve Him seasons of refreshing.

“You have seen what I did unto the Egyptians, and how I bare you on eagles’ wings, and brought you unto Myself.” “As an eagle stirs up her nest, flutters over her young, spreads abroad her wings, takes them, bears them on her wings... So, the Lord alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.” “They that wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.” “Repent therefore, and be converted, that your sins may be blotted out, when the times of refreshing shall come from the presence of the Lord.” [25]

“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. 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.” [26]

The enemy uses various tactics to destroy the servant the Lord. He will try to overwhelm us with a flood a trials all at once, but the Lord says to us, “When the enemy shall come in like a flood, the Spirit of the Lord shall lift up a standard against him.” The standard that God raises against the flood are His promises recorded in the Bible. The Holy Spirit brings them to mind. [27]

“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.” [28]

The devil wants to destroy the servants of the Lord because we are the ones whom God uses to set captive souls free from sin and death. The devil urges his captives to hate God’s commandments and to hate Jesus Christ. It makes no sense to hate commandments to love and to hate the Savior who died on the cross to save sinners, but the devil deceives people into thinking that this the right thing to do.

The Book of Revelation has numerous passages about how the people of the world war against proclaimers of Christ. [29]

The Lord encourages us to keep God’s commandments and the testimony of Jesus because the rewards for those who do are great and the rewards are everlasting. Jesus commissioned us to teach disciples to observe all things He commanded us. John the Apostle, inspired by the Holy Spirit, wrote, “By this we know that we love the children of God, when we love God, and keep his commandments.” [30] 

[1] Revelation 12:1
[2] John 13:34-35; 17:23; Jeremiah 2:2; Matthew 25:1-10; 2 Corinthians 11:2; Ephesians 5:25-32; Revelation 21:2
[3] Revelation 12:2; Isaiah 14:12-15
[4] Mattew 1:18-23
[5] Isaiah 66:7-8; Jeremiah 31:22; John 3:3-8; Romans 10:9-10; 1 Peter 2:9-10
[6] Revelation 12:3
[7] Revelation 12:4
[8] Matthew 2:13-18
[9] Exodus 1-15
[10] Revelation 12:5
[11] Psalm 2; Isaiah 7:14; Mark 16:19; Revelation 2:26-27; 19:15; 21-22
[12] Revelation 12:6
[13] 1 Samuel 27; Romans 9-11
[14] Revelation 12:7-8
[15] Luke 10:18; John 12:31
[16] Hebrews 2:14; 1 John 3:8; Matthew 4:10; Luke 13:16; Luke 22:31-32; Acts 5:3; Acts 26:18; Romans 16:20; Romans 8:31-39
[17] Revelation 12:9
[18] Romans 8:31-34
[19] Revelation 12:11
[20] Revelation 2:7, 17, 26; 3:5, 12, 21; John 16:33; 1 Corinthians 15:57; 2 Corinthians 10:3-5; Ephesians 6:13-18; 2 Timothy 4:7-8; 1 John 2:13-14; 4:4; 5:5
[21] Revelation 12:12
[22] Revelation 12:13
[23] Psalms 37:12-14
[24] Revelation 12:14
[25] Exodus 19:4; Deuteronomy 32:11-12; Isaiah 40:31; Acts 3:19
[26] Revelation 12:15-16
[27] Isaiah 59:19; John 14:26
[28] Revelation 12:17
[29] Revelation 13:7; 17:6, 14; 18:20
[30] Revelation 14:12; 22:14; Matthew 28:20; 1 John 5:2