Book of Revelation – Chapter 12
What follows in chapters 12 and 13 are things that have thus far remained unsaid in previous descriptions of the Trumpet period. Satan’s ruling passion is the theme of chapter 12, and Satan’s regent prince is the theme of chapter 13.
What is Satan’s ruling passion? Simply put, to exterminate all the Jews. We will understand why as we explore chapter 12, which has to do with the woman, the war, and the woe.
Satan hates whatever God loves, which means Israel and anyone trusting in Jesus Christ for their eternal salvation. In verse 1, the woman is a sign, a great wonder in heaven, symbolizing Israel (becoming a nation again in 1948). In verse 2, she is about to give birth to a child. Birth to whom? Jesus Christ, the Son of the living God.
Another wonder in heaven is the great red dragon. Of course, we know this dragon to be a biblical symbol for Satan. The heads, the horns, and the crowns are symbols of the earthly power that Satan claims. The seven heads picture his wisdom (Ezekiel 28:12). The ten horns speak of his universal power, but he is not omniscient (all-knowing) or omnipresent (in all places at all times). The dragon symbolizes cruelty, blood-lust (an uncontrollable desire to kill or maim others), and power. He is the cause of the woman’s many sufferings.
The same devil who attempted to destroy the woman’s (or Israel’s) son in centuries past is now about to strike out against the woman herself (Israel) during the Great Tribution period (the last 3.5 years). In Satan’s initiall rebellion in heaven, one-third of the stars (angels) got thrown out of heaven along with him; the cast-outs actively sought to destroy Israel and still do. The devil waited for Jesus to be born to devour him. At the time, Herod was Satan’s tool. But Christ escaped the sword of Herold. He grew up, died for our sins, resurrected three days later, and was caught up to God in heaven and His throne.
The Great Tribulation period (last 3.5 years) carries the description “great” because of its intensity and immensity. Those days of the Great Tribulation become shorter for the elect’s sake. The “elect” here refers to the Jews. God protects the children of Israel.
The War. A war in space or heaven occurs in verses 7 thru 9. The archangel, Michael, and his angels fight against the great dragon (Satan) and those angels following him. The good angels fought to cast Satan and his angels out of heaven and down to earth. By succeeding, Satan no longer has any place in heaven. He no longer accuses the saints of their shortcomings before God. Some scholars believe that this war begins at the Rapture of the Church in chapter 4, verse 1.
NOTE:
Many scholars believe that three heavens exist.
ONE is the aerial heaven or first heaven, the atmosphere, and the multi-spheres extending above the earth. It is where our sky and clouds exist.
TWO is the stellar heaven or second heaven consisting of the cosmos or outer space where the sun, moon, and stars move.
THREE is heaven as we think of it, or the third heaven where God and Christ rule and reign with the angels. Refer to 2 Corinthians 12:2.
Satan was in the 3rd heaven until his fall. He is now in 1st heaven (the aerial heaven) and 2nd heaven (the stellar heaven) but no longer in the third heaven. He is “the prince of the power of the air” (Ephesians 2:2). And there he remains, creating chaos and trouble for Israel and the saints. But in verse 9, he is cast to the earth only. Satan’s demise began upon being thrown out of the third heaven (see Isaiah 14:12-14).
Now out of all the heavens and on earth only, he knows that his end is coming and has only a short 3.5 years left. So the hot spot will be where men walk and breathe. The only place of safety will be in the arms of the Lord Jesus Christ through His shed blood. “Be faithful unto death, and I will give you a crown of life.” Revelations 2:10.
In the meantime, rejoicing and praise are heard in heaven because:
- Satan’s lost his atmospheric control.
- God’s strength has crushed Satan’s might.
- The kingdom of Christ is about to arrive on earth.
- The power of Christ will be evident as He comes to set up His kingdom.
In verses 13 and 14, the purge of the Jews takes place. But God intervenes immediately. He protects His chosen people (Israel) for the final 3.5 years. In verse 15, the flood portrays a volume of propaganda of anti-Semitic insinuations, slanders, and slurs released internationally. Yet the people of GOD are protected. It is at this point that Satan reaches the height of his anger. So he turns to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keeps the commandments of GOD and has Jesus Christ’s testimony. Those that are Tribulation saints will become Satan’s focus.
The Woe. With the devil (Satan) cast to the earth, his hatred grows strongly. It is Satan himself that personally supervises the last bloodbath of anti-Semitic persecution. Israel’s situation will be desperate, but God will encourage many Gentiles to render help to shield and shelter the Jews at significant personal risk.
Next, chapter 13 – the Two Beasts
Book of Revelation – Chapter 10
We are now at another lull in the judgments. This break lies between the sixth and seventh trumpet blasts and continues throughout chapter 10 and into chapter 11, verse 14. Did you wonder what God and Satan have been up to during the blowing of the trumpets? We are about to find out. Be assured that God has not abandoned this besieged planet to His foes.
We now turn our eyes upon Jesus in the first three verses of chapter 10. Check out His character. “And I saw another angel (this is the Lord Jesus Christ) come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud and a rainbow was upon His head, and His face was as it were the sun, and His feet as pillars of fire.” A few things to notice:
(a) Christ, in His deity, is usually surrounded by a cloud. Refer to these passages: Psalm 97:2, Exodus 16:10, 19:9 & 16, 40:34 & 38, Matthew 17:5, Luke 21:27, Revelation 1:7.
(b) The rainbow pictures mercy amid judgment. After the great flood, God made a covenant with Noah by placing a rainbow in the sky, symbolic of His mercy.
(c) Often, pictured as One with a shining face like the sun is Christ.
(d) Christ’s feet as pillars of fire picture judgment. Refer to chapter 1, verse 15.
Verse 2 draws attention to Christ’s claims. “He had a little book open (containing the record of judgments to be unleased) in His hand, and He set His right foot upon the sea and His left foot on the earth.” Jesus Christ is preparing to take control of the earth and sea. They all rightfully belong to Him. At any moment, He will rise from the throne and make the formal assertion of His right to reign. But this is not His final coming, for other things must first occur.
Verse 3 draws attention to His cry. The Angel “cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roars and seven thunders uttered their voices when He had cried.” This cry is a cry of warning of impending danger. John was about to write down what he heard the seven thunders said, but he was forbidden to do so by God. “Seal up those things the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.” We will know someday, but presently GOD commands that this one portion of Scripture be kept secret.
With the final trumpet blast, the Tribulation hour comes to an end. There will be no more waiting periods, no more delays from this point forward. We are now at midnight on the prophetic time clock. There will be great rejoicing in heaven at the proclamation of this news.
Taken out of Christ’s hand is the open book of judgments. John eats or devours the book (he studies and digests the information and knowledge in God’s Word). Absorbing God’s Word through study and personal application it’s both sweet and bitter at times, as it should be with us. John must prophesy before many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings. He is faithful to the end, proclaiming the good news and the bad, presenting the sweet and the bitter. He does this in the following chapters.
Special note to the reader: chapters 12 through 19:15 run concurrently with the judgments already discussed and are considered a repeat of chapters 6 through 11.
Book of Revelation – Chapter 9
Next, we begin the three woe trumpets, with the first four war trumpets sounding.
Fifth Trumpet – Woe #1, A Satanically Energized Belief
Humanity, already preconditioned, will look “to the occult for entertainment, enlightenment, and eventual enslavement.” John Phillips commentary, page 124. The star falling from heaven to earth is Satan. Given the key to the bottomless pit, opening the gate, he releases thousands of foul, evil spirits. Satan was given the key and had permission to release those terrible beings upon humanity. We cannot imagine what the earth will be like with the Church removed from the world.
John Phillips’s commentary stated that we are told 13-things about these released spirits.
(1) they are incarcerated in the bottomless pit. God mercifully chained them there for humanity’s sake but now lets them loose upon the earth for judgment upon man.
(2) these demons are infernal (hellish; diabolical). They are not ordinary locusts, for they are supernatural and are incapable of being killed.
(3) they are insatiable (impossible to satisfy). Locust-like in their appetites, they go after unregenerate, godless men, those who did not have the seal of God in their forehead. Those with the seal of God are not to be touched.
(4) they are intolerable. The sting of these locust-like demons brings great torment, so great that men scream for death but cannot find it. These tormented men cannot die yet are in anguish beyond words to describe. The torment lasts for 5-months.
(5) they are intrepid (fearless) like horses prepared for battle; defiant, eager to torment godless men.
(6) they are invincible. With golden crowns, these demons conquered all in their path. No weapons defeat them.
(7) they are intelligent as men’s faces, exercising rational thought with a diabolical cunning. This curse would be like an intellectual virus that chooses who and who not to attack, and there is no cure.
(8) they are insidious. “As the hair of women” means something is attractive about these locusts. The occult fascinates humanity, but it will lure men to their doom.
(9) they are inexorable (impossible to stop). These locusts have the teeth of lions. Nothing can pry them loose once these fearsome demons fasten to their human victims.
(10) they are insensitive. The locust-like demons have breastplates like iron. None of these monsters act with sympathy toward those suffering, crying, and in agony. Being unmoved, they are without heart, showing no mercy.
(11) they are inescapable. Demonic locust-like wings were like the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. These attackers move like the wind, flying swiftly and surely toward their prey. Men have no place to hide, no refuge, none at all.
(12) they are injurious (causing damage or harm) with tails like a scorpion with stingers. Notice that this description is repeated twice in verse 10 and verse 3 for emphasis. Such a force has only one aim – to injure man for the next five months.
(13) they are indivisible. This destructive force has a king over them, the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek language has his name Apollyon, meaning “the destroyer.” One woe is not past, but two more woes are coming.
Sixth Trumpet – A Satanically Energized Battle Altering History
The apostle John heard the voice say, “Release the four angels bound in the great river Euphrates.” We know of angelic princes existing from Daniel 10:13, 20-21. These four angels get released to carry out a predetermined plan that God planned long ago for this hour. The “four” are a unique four of significant influence and power because they can marshal their armies by the millions the moment they are released. John heard their number as 200 thousand-thousand or as 200 million. God gave the “four” thirteen months and one day to slay one-third of the remaining humans on earth. This event is under God’s control, and nothing happens without His approval.
Something that we need to note. These 200 million are not the 200 million in chapter 16 at the battle of Armageddon. “The chief feature of that battle (Armageddon) is the involvement of the hordes of the Far East. Here in chapter 9, there is no reference to ‘the kings of the East,’ nor Armageddon. This battle array is another battle altogether, but one that is only slightly less important.” John Phillips commentary pages 130-131.
This army of 200,000,000 are men driven by demonic forces. Driven mad, they march directly into battle with the latest modern weapons. The warfare will be gruesome as the carnage staggers the mind. This battle will leave more than 1 billion dead. At this point, the Beast is now in power and rapidly stepping forward to assume his role as this world’s god.
For more about this battle in chapter 9, we should refer to Ezekiel 38-39. Briefly, Russia invades Israel along with thousands and thousands of others. Joined with Russia are Libya, Iran, Ethiopia, to name a few. Who is the opposition? Only a few Western nations who wag their fingers and complain in front of a television camera. But the speed of the attack by Russia will leave them wondering how they missed this troop movement. When the smoke clears, Israel, left with a seven-year supply of captured fuel, will take over seven months to bury all the dead bodies of the invaders. Only 1 out of 6 Russians will make it out alive as they run home into Siberia, far away from the slaughter.
The survivors remained unrepented. Nor did they repent of their murders, sorceries, fornications, or thefts. They continued to worship devils, idols of precious metals, stone, and wood.
Next, another parenthesis occurs in Chapter 10 with the Lord Jesus Christ placing His claim to the earth.
Book of Revelation – Chapter 7
Chapter 7 is God’s parenthesis or pause until the opening of the last seal. He is informing us of what lies ahead for His people (Israelites and Gentiles) in the terrible period of trial that follows the Rapture of the Church. This chapter may be divided into two portions dealing with two groups and portrays God as compassionate, merciful, and loving. These saved and sealed multitudes are probably the fruit of the ministry of the two mysterious witnesses (to be discussed later).
In verses 1 through 8, four angels hold back the four winds. This pause gives time for a great revival on earth after the Church is gone. These servant multitudes are sealed by God in their foreheads. Also, during this stillness, 144,000 Jews are sealed. There are 12,000 from each of the 12 tribes of Israel. As God lays claim to His own, that does not mean they necessarily escape the everyday disasters of earth. It does mean that God watches over them and takes careful note of their affairs. Notice there are two very different groups of people in chapter 7. “One company is Jewish (144,000); the other is Gentile. One passes unscathed through the fiery furnace of the Tribulation; the other is martyred to the very last man.” (John Phillips commentary, page 110). The sealed 144,000 defy the totality of Satan’s secular dominion. The sealed multitude of Gentiles saved during the Tribulation will close their testimony with their blood.
During the Tribulation hour, the presence of the Holy Spirit exists. In the passage of 1 Thessalonians 2:6-7, the Holy Spirit is the Hinderer. Since the Holy Spirit lives within all believers in Christ and He is everywhere, only His restraining influence over sin is removed during the Tribulation hour when the Church is Raptured home to heaven. His continued presence on earth produces one of the greatest revivals in the history of humanity. While we (believers) remain on earth, we are the salt of the earth and the world’s light, as stated in Matthew 5:13-16.
In verses 9 through 17, John sees a multitude of new believers standing before the throne of GOD. He doesn’t know who they are since they came after the Church went to heaven. This multitude comes out of the Great Tribulation. These glorious martyrs have not died yet; they may not even have been born, but God wants the saints of all ages to know about them. Hence, the reason for revealing them now.
Each group of believers saved during different dispensations of time has various duties to perform.
(1) The Church is the bride of Christ and enjoys the 1,000-year honeymoon upon the earth (chapter 20, verse 4), reigning with Christ as rulers, kings, and priests (1 Peter 2:9 and Revelation 1:6).
(2) The 144,000 serve as bodyguards of the Lamb (the Lord Jesus Christ) and His bride (the Church) – see chapter 14, verse 4.
(3) The Gentiles saved during the Tribulation will be Temple servants, waiting on Christ and His bride. They serve in the glorious Temple described in Ezekiel chapters 40 through 48.
Man’s wickedness, rebellion, and sin produce these judgments. “They that plow iniquity, and sow wickedness, reap the same” (Job 4:8). God, in love, creates a lull before the storm to call men to salvation and revival.
Now, Chapter 8 and the subsequent and final seal judgment.
Book of Revelation – Chapter 8
Seventh Seal
With the opening of the seventh seal comes seven angels. Their role is to blast a warning of each subsequent judgment. We have seen the release of the four-horse riders. Conditions on earth are worsening rapidly. But we are told that this is just the beginning of sorrows. Satan is cast out of heaven and thrown to earth during these trumpet judgments in this chapter.
“And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about half an hour.” This silence gives time to contemplate what was coming next in the trumpet blasts. Also, God uses this time to receive and weigh the prayers of His Tribulation saints. He waits while His tormented and terrified people on earth pray.
Trumpets blown do not act as a siren of impending danger but to summon attention to what will happen next. These blasts call for the advancement of God’s judgment upon the earth’s inhabitants. Seven trumpets go to the seven angels. They prepare to blast their trumpets as another angel cast the “fire of the altar” to earth. Notice that the first four trumpets are war trumpets. The last three trumpets are woe trumpets. The angel standing at the altar is the Lord Jesus Christ himself because of His ministry to GOD and man (1 Timothy 2:5). He adds incense (effectiveness) to the prayers offered by the saints of GOD on earth. These prayers are for vengeance and answered judgment. The silence ends! “The prayers of God’s people have tipped the balance in favor of heaven’s immediate resumption of hostilities” John Phillips commentary, page 118.
First Trumpet – The Brewing Storm
Hail and fire mixed with blood fall upon the earth. One-third of all trees and 100% of all grass burned; an ecological disaster without parallel in history. Mass destruction like this can toss people in leadership out and lead to a mass depopulation of the globe.
Second Trumpet – The Boiling Sea
“As it were,” a great mountain burning with fire was in the sea, cast. Since “as it were” was used, we understand it as symbolic and not literal. Yet ships seem literal enough. One-third of the sea becomes blood, one-third of the sea creatures die, and one-third of the ships become sunk or damaged. If the description is symbolic, the sea is well-known as godless humanity. A mountain frequently symbolizes a great nation. “The mountain mentioned here in the Apocalypse is a volcano, a burning mountain” John Phillips commentary, page 120. Besides a volcano, the mountain crashing into the oceans could be a giant meteor—much damage results.
Third Trumpet – The Banished Star
Now a giant step forward in the judgment process is taken. A colossal star falls from heaven. It burned brightly like a lamp. “Wormwood” was its name because it causes the lakes, rivers, and water sources to become bitter, poisonous, and cause death. The effect will be to embitter the earth’s waters so that the water is undrinkable. It’s easy to see how chaos and terror will result. Humans can only survive a couple of days without water. Those people in the affected water areas will become so desperate they will drink the bitter waters and die by the thousands, if not millions.
This star is Satan himself, cast out of heaven to earth in a symbolic sense. He is bitter since he knows that his time is short. Bitterness in men causes many people to die. Strong support for this view comes from Revelation chapter 13. The Beast will already be here in the world, as yet benign. But now Satan arrives. Satan’s plans for the planet are only a step or two away from maturity.
Fourth Trumpet – The Blackened Sky
The fourth trumpet brings significant changes everywhere. The sun darkens, giving off less light, and the moon, therefore, reflects much less sunlight at night. But even one-third of the stars darken and can not be seen. An angel loudly said, “Woe, woe, woe,” to earth’s inhabitants because of the other trumpets yet to sound. Now we see that the old natural order is breaking apart. Convulsions seem to break out everywhere with the true Church gone. With the gradual removal of restraints completed, Satan with his fallen angels are on earth, and all traditional guiding lights are gone. The worst is yet ahead! The first 3.5 years of the Tribulation are not nearly as severe as the final 3.5 years. Matthew 24:8 describes this first half as the beginning of sorrows, with the last half described as the Great Tribulation. As the Tribulation hour approaches its climax, the judgments become more severe and the loss of life more significant.
Bill Wyler
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