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 twelve stars.
Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth.
And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads.
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.
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.
Then the woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that they should feed her there one thousand two hundred and sixty days. Revelation 12:1-6
The Woman, The Child and the Dragon, Part I
Today we return to our verse by verse study of Revelation after a seven month hiatus. As we have discussed before, Revelation is not the easiest book in the Bible to interpret, but it is the only one that promises a blessing to those that read (or teach) and those that hear it's message (1:3). With that in mind, lets get back into our study.
We enter into a section of Revelation that is largely symbolic in nature. Dispensationalists like myself interpret the Bible literally, taking the Word of God at face value. That being said, we also allow in our interpretation imagery found in poetry, symbolism, similes and metaphors and other literary devices. We are accused, sadly, of departing from our roots of literal interpretation in some of the sections of Revelation. However, what we seek to do is to "let the Bible interpret the Bible", and also remember that God made literal promises to the nation of Israel that He will never break.
The late Dr. J. Vernon McGee in his Thru The Bible Commentary, stated "An outstanding and very intellectual minister years ago made the statement: "If you tell me your interpretation of the woman in the twelfth chapter of Revelation, then I'll tell you your interpretation of prophecy." At the time, I thought he was foolish, but I have come to agree with him."
Sadly, what I have found is that often theologians often "put the cart before the horse" in interpretation. What do I mean by that? They will use their theological model dictate what a certain passage says no matter how wild and crazy it may be. We will see, in the next few weeks, how this is indeed the case.
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 twelve stars. Rev 12:1 (NKJV)
Just Who Is This Woman? Part I
"If you tell me your interpretation of the woman in the twelfth chapter of Revelation, then I'll tell you your interpretation of prophecy." We saw this quote by Dr. J. Vernon McGee and these first two verses are the "pebble in the theological pond" that carries interpretive ripples throughout the entire canon of Scripture. It all comes down to one question: "Just who is this woman?
Before we get started on just whom this woman actually is, let's make it clear that a faulty view of the identity of this woman does not necessarily mean that a person that holds that view is going to Heaven or Hell. Yes, there are some crazy views are heretical and are not of God we must be quite careful in making such a statement that a persons view on this particular section of scripture or even a person's eschatology (view of the end times) does not necessarily determine their eternal destination.
We see above that this "woman" is one of four different women in Revelation:
Jezebel: Nevertheless I have a few things against you, because you allow that woman Jezebel, who calls herself a prophetess, to teach and seduce My servants to commit sexual immorality and eat things sacrificed to idols. (Revelation 2:20 NKJV) Jesus dictates this message to the church of Thyatira to John. The woman is not actually Jezebel, the infamous wife of King Ahab (1 Kings 16:30-31) who led the nation of Israel astray into worshiping the false god Baal. This is, instead, a woman whose teaching and lifestyle was corrupting the church of Thyatira. Judgment from God was imminent to those that followed her, called "her children', making this real woman a figurative Jezebel "mother" to them.
The Harlot: Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and talked with me, saying to me, "Come, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication." Revelation 17:1-2 (NKJV) We will study chapter 17 in a few months Lord willing, but I will tell you in advance that this "harlot" is a false religious system that is a tool used by Antichrist, and not a literal person.
The Bride: Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready." And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Then he said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!' " And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God." Revelation 19:7-9 (NKJV) This Bride is not a literal bride, but instead is the church.
The Woman Clothed With The Sun: This is one of seven key figures in Revelation 12 and 13.
Just Who Is This Woman? Part II
Just whom is this woman? Is she a literal woman, or is she a figurative one?
Here are the four main views regarding the identity of the woman:
View # 1: Mary, mother of Jesus.
Let's first look at the thought that the woman is Mary, mother of Jesus. This view is held by a scant few Protestant and Evangelical denominations, but is mainly the doctrine of the Roman Catholic Church. But if we consider the Scriptures, this can't be the case.
First, we see that this is a sign. The Life Application Bible states "A clue to understanding this chapter is in the first phrase—what John would describe as a sign—a picture of something with deeper significance. The woman here represents much more than a woman."
Second, the setting is in Heaven, not on terra firma. Jeff Lasseigne, in Unlocking The Last Days, states "Mary was not in heaven prior to her death. Remember that when she was to give birth to Jesus, she was a teenager living in Nazareth."
Third, Mary was never "clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a garland of twelve stars" anywhere in Scripture. Instead, she has always been depicted as a highly moral young woman, a sinner herself that stated in what theologians call The Magnificat: "And my spirit has rejoiced in God my Savior" (Luke 1:47). Warren Wiersbe states that Luke 1:47 "indicates that Mary was a sinner like all of us and needed to trust the Lord for her eternal salvation." (from The Bible Exposition Commentary) Only sinners need a Savior, and Mary was not sinless (Romans 3:10, 11, 23). Mary was indeed favored in bearing Jesus, but she was not sinless.
Fourth, verse 15 speaks of the woman being in danger of a flood, which is not mentioned elsewhere in scripture regarding Mary. This, instead, speaks of an entirely different event in the future. From a careful study of the Scriptures, we can see that this "woman" cannot be Mary mother of Jesus; to assume such ignores the context. More tomorrow.--JH
View #2: The Woman as the church.
This view is most often held by "Preterists" or "Amillennialists", those that view the book of Revelation as symbolic in it's entirety or in most of it's volume. There are some of these theological camps that view the woman initially as Old Testament saints but change up to view the woman as the church proper in the latter part. This ignores the obvious Jewish flavor to Revelation. Let's look today at specifically why the woman cannot be the church.
First, in verse two above, we can see that the woman was pregnant and in labor and in verse five gives birth to a whom we will see is Jesus. If we were to view the woman as the church it would not make sense as the church did not exist until after the death, burial, resurrection and ascension of Jesus (Gospels, Acts 1 and 2). The church technically did not exist until Pentecost, when the Holy Spirit then indwelt believers. How could the church give birth to it's founder, and Lord?
Secondly, it appears that there are two groups of people addressed in Chapter 12. The woman goes into "her place" (v 14), a place we will discuss in a future devotional, while her offspring (literally, her seed) is warred upon by "the dragon" (v 17). This, then, speaks of two distinct groups; the woman and her offspring.
Thirdly, the woman cannot be the church because the Bride (Rev 19) is not married yet. If this were the church, then the woman would have "offspring" and they would be illegitimate. When Jesus marries the church--his "bride", she will be "without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish." Ephesians 5:27
View #3: The Woman as a leader of a certain cult or sect.
In short, there are some cultic leaders (Mary Baker Eddy of Christian Science "church", a cult) that state that the woman is the cult leader. This is the ultimate in conceit and heresy, trying to present themselves as being the father of the Savior. No more needs said.
View #4: The Woman As Israel
This is the interpretation that makes the most sense from a Biblical reference standpoint. In other words, there is a direct reference in God's Word for the imagery found in this passage.
Then he dreamed still another dream and told it to his brothers, and said, "Look, I have dreamed another dream. And this time, the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to me." So he told it to his father and his brothers; and his father rebuked him and said to him, "What is this dream that you have dreamed? Shall your mother and I and your brothers indeed come to bow down to the earth before you?" Genesis 37:9-10 (NKJV)
Joseph's dream, when explained to his father and brothers, was not taken well. In fact, Jacob (a.k.a., Israel) rebuked Joseph as he obviously knew the meaning of the dream: that one day he, his wife and his other sons would bow down to Joseph. Later, this came to fruition when Joseph ended up in charge in Egypt, second only to the Pharaoh himself. Now let's take a look at the meaning behind both the Genesis and the Revelation passage.
First, this great sign is that of a woman. Since it is a sign, it would not be a person but a representation of a greater truth. In the Old Testament, Israel is often compared to a woman, and even a woman in travail (Isa. 54:5; 66:7; Jer. 3:6-10; Micah 4:10; 5:2-3). (Warren W. Wiersbe). In different passages in the OT, Israel is pictured as the wife of Jehovah God.
Second, the woman is clothed with the sun. John MacArthur notes: "That the woman was clothed with the sun reflects redeemed Israel's unique glory, brilliance, and dignity because of her exalted status as God's chosen nation (cf. Deut. 7:6; 14:2; 1 Kings 3:8; Pss. 33:12; 106:5; Isa. 43:20). It also links her with Jacob (the sun in Joseph's dream), an heir in the Abrahamic covenant; Israel's continued existence as a nation reflects the ongoing fulfillment of that covenant (cf. Gen. 12:1-2)." The sun in the Genesis passage is obviously understood by Jacob as being himself.
Third, we see the moon under her feet. The moon does not give off light of it's own, but reflects the light of the sun. This would be either Rachel or Leah, Jacob's wives. While most commentators view the moon in Revelation as Rachel, I think that Leah is more fitting for two reasons. First, Rachel was already deceased at the time of the Genesis 37 vision, and secondly Leah was the mother of Judah, part of the line to Jesus Christ.
Fourth, we see the garland or crown of twelve stars. The eleven stars were viewed by Jacob as being his sons; here we have twelve stars which would include Joseph in that number. Obviously, in light of the imagery involved, the woman is not Mary, not the church, definitely not a cultist but instead is Israel.
