The last verse of the preceding chapter belongs to the twelfth chapter. The vision in that verse has a distinctly Jewish connection. The Ark of God was seen in His Temple. The Ark of old was the throne of God in the midst of His people Israel. We have then, things which pertain to Israel, past, present, and future, presented as God sees them, who sees the end from the beginning, and who “calleth those things which be not as though they were” (Rom. 4:17).
Israel, then, is the woman “clothed with the sun” who is destined to have the chief place on earth when Christ and the church reign over it from heaven. The sun means supreme authority—Israel’s new and glorious day of blessing under the New Covenant. Under her feet—the moon—that is “the adoption, and the glory, and the covenants, and the giving of the law, and the service of God, and the promises; whose are the fathers, and of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came, who is over all, God blessed forever” (Rom. 9:4-5). “On her head a crown of twelve stars.” The loaves on the table of shewbread in the tabernacle in the wilderness are helpful in understanding this. The crown of twelve stars speaks of the administration of the kingdom by Christ in connection with the twelve tribes of Israel. Of Israel came the Christ, which fully explains the second verse.
The “great red dragon” is now seen. The ninth verse tells us exactly who is thus represented—namely “that old serpent,” called the Devil, and Satan. The “dragon” speaks of persecuting cruelty. He is set forth in the character in which he will oppose the claim of Christ to the kingdoms of this world—seven crowned heads—complete power in evil—and ten horns incomplete as to total power for administration of the kingdom which he aims to usurp. He himself had placed the seven crowns upon his head. Here one refers with joy to that scripture concerning our precious Savior, “on His head were many crowns” (Rev. 19:12). God Himself—there is none greater—has crowned Him with glory and honor—“Thou settest a crown of pure gold on his head” (Psa. 21:3) and again “but unto the Son He [God] saith—Thy throne, O God, is forever and ever: a scepter of righteousness is the scepter of Thy Kingdom” (Heb. 1:8).
Now the vision moves from Satan’s “last day” appearance back to the birth of Christ the “man child.” In Herod’s slaying of “all the boys that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under” (Matt. 2:16) we see the Dragon’s unsuccessful attempt to devour the man child who was destined “to rule all nations with a rod of iron.” Well do His saints know who He is! But before He comes to rule, He “was caught up unto God, and to His throne.” Here we have briefly Christ’s session of two thousand years or so in heaven at the Father’s right hand while He builds His church, which may be looked upon as “caught up” with Him.
Israel, however, “the woman clothed with the sun” is the subject of the prophecy here, not the church. Consequently in the sixth verse we are immediately introduced to Israel’s history after the church has been removed from earth to heaven. The Jews in the land during the last half of Daniel’s seventieth week are brought before us. God has prepared a place for them and will also feed them, in spite of the Roman beast and the Antichrist, for “a thousand two hundred and threescore days.”
Many of them will be “overcome” by their enemies as we shall see later on, but of them it is written “blessed and holy is he that hath part in the first resurrection” (Rev. 20:6).
The casting out of Satan and his angels from heaven comes before us, beginning with the seventh verse. When on earth Jesus had spoken of this event to His disciples, saying “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven” (Luke 10:18). Small wonder then that we read “the heavens are not clean in His sight” (Job 15:15). The presence there of Satan and his evil hosts is confirmed by the sixth chapter of Paul’s epistle to the Ephesians—“put on the panoply of God, that ye may be able to stand against the artifices of the Devil; because our struggle is not against blood and flesh, but against principalities, against authorities, against the universal lords of this darkness, against spiritual [power] of wickedness in the heavenlies” (Eph. 6:11-12 JnD). From Hebrews 9:23 we see that the sacrifice of Christ has availed for the purification of the heavenly things. The captain of the Lord’s hosts is Michael. This fact alone shows us the connection with God’s people in the last days. This view is supported by Daniel 12:1—“and at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation, even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.” The casting out of Satan and his angels from heaven forever is a deeply important event. What a relief to God, His Christ, the elect angels, and the saints. The Book of Job is extremely interesting as showing us the inimical activity of Satan against God’s servants. He has knowledge of their doings on earth and also accuses them before God in heaven (see v. 10). The loud voice in heaven, a commanding voice, seems to call the saints together for the important proclamation to be made. God is steadily going forward with His object of glorifying His Son, and here salvation, strength, the kingdom of God, and the authority of His Christ is come!
The heavens, and the dwellers therein are called to rejoice at the departure of the accuser forever. Alas, doubtless Satan has often brought before God the faithless conduct of His people, but conduct was not the ground of their acceptance with God, but “the blood of the Lamb.” Those whose faithful testimony ended in “resisting unto blood” are here no doubt in view. While not overlooking the noble host of Christian martyrs, I think that here we have particularly the “souls under the altar” in the ninth verse of the sixth chapter. They are the saints from the godly Jewish remnant, who have part in the first resurrection, every one of whom sealed his testimony in his blood.
The closing part of the chapter depicts the change from heaven to earth to which Satan now comes down, finding God’s people there—“the woman which brought forth the man child.” Here we enter upon the days of Antichrist (Rev. 13:11-17)—“a time, and times, and half a time”—that is three and one half years, the last half of Daniel’s seventieth week. During this period God will providentially save a remnant of His people in “the time of Jacob’s trouble.” This is no doubt the time referred to by our Lord—“for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be (Matt. 24:21).
From the last verse in the chapter—the seventeenth—it is beautiful to see that even in this awful time, God will have witnesses. They will keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ in the very days of Antichrist. “For the spirit of prophecy is the testimony of Jesus” (Rev. 19:10). They will thus have abundant testimony from the Scriptures to give them light and guidance for the dark and difficult days through which they will pass. They will be familiar with the Old Testament prophets, but will read the New Testament too—for instance such a passage as “then let them which be in Judea flee unto the mountains” (Matt. 24:16). The number of the beast, given in the next chapter, will also be for their particular time, during which Satan, Beast, and False Prophet (Antichrist) will seek to obliterate God’s people from the face of the earth.