Is Jesus Your Dragon Slayer? (Revelation 12)
GIST: Spiritual warfare is real and devastating, so put on the armor of God, and trust in the victory of Jesus— our dragon slayer!
We’ve officially passed the halfway point in Revelation! Well, at least we’ve passed the halfway point of the book. Truthfully, we probably passed the halfway point of our study a while ago (which should come as some unexpected encouragement for you!). From this point forward, everything continues to build from to the final picture of Jesus’ triumphant return. Because of that, the text lends itself to being broken into some bigger chunks at times, and we’ll do that.
Today, we’re going to try and look at all of chapter 12. I told you a few weeks ago that this passage had a dragon in it, so maybe you’ve been looking forward to (or dreading) this discussion. Let me give a little background explanation before we dive in today though. This chapter introduces a set of symbols John will develop for the next two chapters but also sprinkle throughout the rest of the letter. Like his other symbols, these rely heavily on Old Testament imagery, but they also make references to “current events” these original readers would have picked up on. We’re not exposed to either of these in the same way, so they’ll appear more foreign to us. Likewise, John writes this section like a story, so it reads like an adventure tale… or one of the Greek myths this original audience would have grown up hearing.
Why? Again, this letter is showing us who Jesus is and what life will be like before and when He returns from lots of different angles, so we don’t miss it. Here, we’re given a very stylized picture to help solidify these truths because stories resonate with our hearts. I mean, look at how Jesus taught. How often did He use parables, which are stories, to communicate big truths? (That’s rhetorical, but the answer is… a lot!)
C.S. Lewis & J.R.R Tolkien often referred to this concept as the “true myth”. That was originally going to be part of my title, but I know it can sound really confusing, and we might even get a knee jerk reaction to it because we know Jesus is not a myth. What they were expressing, however, is that Jesus is the truth behind all our stories. He’s the real hero. He’s the ultimate romancer. He’s everything our hearts long for even if we have never been able to put that into words. What John does in these next two chapters, really hammers that truth home. That was a longer intro than I intended, so here’s our gist: Spiritual warfare is real and devastating, so put on the armor of God, and trust in the victory of Jesus— our dragon slayer!
Let’s start by considering the→
I. The Characters (1-6)
“1 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. 2 She was pregnant and was crying out in birth pains and the agony of giving birth.”
The Woman. First, we’re told this picture of the woman is a sign. That means she’s meant to represent something. The first description we get draws heavily from Joseph’s dream from Genesis 37. “9…Behold, I have dreamed another dream… the sun, the moon, and eleven stars were bowing down to me.” This dream wasn’t received well, of course, because it was a picture of his family bowing down to him. However, in John’s picture here in Revelation, the woman encompasses the whole family. She is clothed in the sun, has the moon at her feet, and is wearing a crown with twelve stars. Cool…but what does that mean? We’ve seen this kind of language all throughout the book, especially with the use of twelves to represent the twelve tribes (OT) and the twelve apostles (NT). The woman is a picture of the people of God.
So… why is the Church pregnant ☺️? This portion of the sign often leads people to say this is Mary, and in a sense, it is, because Mary is part of the Church, and played a pivotal role in what this image is pointing to. However, what we have here is the people of God in eager anticipation of the long-expected Messiah, longing for Him to come (which will actually happen in just a few verses here).
“3 And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads seven diadems. 4 His tail swept down a third of the stars of heaven and cast them to the earth…”
The Dragon. Again, we’re told this is a sign. Thankfully, we’re also told later in the chapter exactly who this sign represents: Satan. Look ahead to verse 9: “9 And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world…” I love it when the passage tells us exactly how to interpret it!
Now, he’s a dragon with seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns. Again, there is a lot of OT imagery here. In Daniel 7, the prophet describes a beast with ten horns, so it seems to be pulling directly from that passage. In the OT, horns represented strength. This beast from Daniel 7 with ten horns was actually the last of four beasts described, and the rest all had no horns, so it was meant, at least in part, to be taken as being even more destructive than the others. So, we have Satan being described in those terms: powerful and destructive. He’s also wearing seven crowns on seven heads. Hm. I think we’ve seen this number before, right? Sevens are used all throughout Revelation to represent completeness and have been specifically applied to God. His people. His purposes. His judgments…etc. So Satan is portrayed as imitating the authority of God. We’ll see this fleshed out even more throughout the following passages as it becomes very clear this is only a kind of mock authority.
Sometimes the reference to him taking out ⅓ of the stars is taken to refer to the other fallen angels. However, it likely refers even more to his destructive power, especially against the people of God who have just been described as stars. Remember all the ⅓ references from earlier in the vision which symbolically refers to ‘many, but not all’? John seems to be giving us yet another perspective on that same image. (I know, you’re probably getting tired of hearing that ☺️.)
“4… And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she bore her child he might devour it. 5 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, 6 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.”
The Child. Notice, this is the only character who is not called a sign. Without doubt, the child is Jesus. We have his life in a nutshell. Born to reign. Pursued by Satan. Murderously sought after by many. Ascended into Heaven. Reigning on His throne.
Ok, there are several points to get here. We’ll see this developed more in the next vision, but we’re given a peak behind the current to see why life is the way it is. We’re shown spiritual warfare. Satan wanted to destroy Jesus but didn’t. Jesus then ascended to heaven, and His people were taken into the desert or wilderness. This is where we are now. Remember that 1,260 days thing we talked about a few weeks ago? This is the time between Christ’s ascension and return (so… now).
During this time, God’s people are said to be nourished in a prepared wilderness. In the Old Testament, the wilderness is always a place of both trials and provision. It is not easy, but it is blessed. That’s our life if we belong to Jesus. It will be hard, but it is here we will be nourished. ALSO, we cannot miss out on the fact that the wilderness is the place where God’s people were just before entering the promised land. Guys, we have the same hope!
II. The Dragon Slayed & Raging (7-12)
Ok, so that was a really long first point, so I’ll try to hit this a bit faster.
“7 Now war arose in heaven, Michael and his angels fighting against the dragon. And the dragon and his angels fought back, 8 but he was defeated, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. 9 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. 10 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. 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.”
There is, of course, some debate on chronology here, but I would say this is not a new scene, but another perspective on the same. We see a picture of Satan being cast from Heaven. He is defeated by the blood of the Lamb, by Jesus’ sacrificial death, and is now roaming the earth enraged. He’s been beaten but has not yet been cast into Hell. He is furious and determined not to squander his short time.
We’ll dive more into this in the application, but this is simultaneously an encouragement and a warning. Jesus has defeated Satan—He’s slain the dragon—and we can conqueror him by clinging to and witnessing about the blood of the Lamb. Nonetheless, Satan is still actively working on earth against God and His people. And that’s basically how this chapter will wrap up, as well→
III. The Church Pursued But Protected (12-17)
“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 he knows that his time is short! 13 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. 14 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. 15 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 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. 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.”
Pursued and Protected Saints. Lots of imagery here. Frankly, it’s really cool. The message? Satan is attacking God’s people. He is flooding them with his onslaught, but God raises them up on eagle’s wings or causes the earth to swallow up the attacks. Man, this makes me think of Isaiah 40:29-31. The war will continue until Jesus returns (time, times, and ½ a time=3 ½ years=42 months=1,260 days=now), but “29 He gives power to the faint, and to him who has no might He increases strength. 30 Even youths shall faint and be weary, and young men shall fall exhausted; 31 but they who wait for the Lord shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings like eagles; they shall run and not be weary; they shall walk and not faint.”
TAKEAWAYS
Spiritual warfare is real. The worst thing we can do is not take this point seriously. Satan is real. Demons are real. Yes, we are impacted first and foremost by the effects of sin because it rests within our own nature. On top of that, however, there is a spiritual battle taking place all around us. We can look at the problems of this world and attribute them to many earthly causes. On a deeper more profound level, though, they all have spiritual causes. We cannot forget this. D.A. Carson put it something like this: ‘If we focus on the earthly causes for our problems, we will try to solve them primarily by earthly means. Recognizing the more fundamental spiritual side gives us a better perspective.’ (Not anywhere near a direct quote, but the gist of what he said ☺️.) There is a very real spiritual battle, and Satan is devoted to destroying God’s people. He wants to see us fall. He wants the Church discredited because we are just like the world—or worse. Until Jesus returns, this will continue to intensify. Satan knows his time is limited, and he is not wasting it.
So put on the armor of God. James told us to, “7 Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. 8 Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you. Cleanse your hands, you sinners, and purify your hearts, you double-minded.” (James 4:7-8) This is not a message that tells us to go and slay Satan. We cannot, but, as we’ll hit in the last takeaway, God already has. We fight this spiritual battle by drawing near to God, clinging to Him. Look at what our passage today says: “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.” Our victory is won by clinging to Jesus and sharing that hope with the world while valuing Jesus above all else...even our own lives. Our victory comes when we’re changed by His sacrifice, and we live to share that with others. Think about what Paul calls the armor of God. It’s nearly all defensive as we cling in faith to His truth. Our only weapon is… GOD’s Word. Get into it. Know it. Use it.
And trust in the victory of Jesus—our dragon slayer! Be encouraged. If you are in Christ, Satan can no longer accuse you. Though the battle is real, the war is won. If we are in Christ, we have this assurance: “...37b we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. 38 For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, 39 nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.” (Romans 8:37-39)
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