The seven trumpets are part of the seventh seal in the book of Revelation and in chapter 11 the seventh trumpet has sounded, which follows incredible disasters that have struck the earth and the people have been dying in the millions. This is like a bad nightmare to the apostle John who is on the isle of Patmos, and is in vision and he is seeing what is going to happen in the future end time events on the Day of the Lord. Now we come to Revelation 12 which is an explanation of what is going on, that includes some history in symbolic language, in order to bring you up to date as to what is happening so you can understand the pattern that you see before you. There are some things here that may not be clear until future events begin to happen and hopefully we then can make sense of it.

1. Does John now see a great sign in heaven? (Revelation 12:1). Was this woman clothed with the sun? What was under her feet? What did she have on her head? Was this woman pregnant and about to give birth? (Verse 2). This is not a real woman. This woman is a sign of something else.

2. Did Joseph have a dream? (Genesis 37:9-12). Did he dream that the sun, the moon, and the eleven stars bowed down to him? Joseph was one of the twelve sons of Jacob whose name was changed to Israel and his twelve sons became the twelve tribes of Israel. Did Jacob understand the meaning of the Joseph’s dream? (Verse 10).

Note: Joseph’s dream then reveals to us who the woman is in John’s vision in Revelation 12:1-2. The woman represents Old Testament Israel, the people of God. This woman Israel gave birth to the Messiah, who was Jesus Christ. Jesus Christ was born of the virgin Mary who was Jewish and He was also a descendant of king David who was Jewish, so obviously Jesus was Jewish (Hebrews 7:13) and you can trace His genealogy back to Judah in Matthew 1. Jesus was known as the ‘son of David’ (Matthew 21:9, 22:42, Mark 12:35) which is a term for the Messiahship of Jesus.

3. Was there another sign that appeared in heaven? (Revelation 12:3). How many heads, horns and diadems did this fiery red dragon have? (Same verse). Did this dragon’s tail draw one third of the stars of heaven? (Verse 4). Did the dragon desire to devour the woman’s child as soon as it was born? Did the woman bear a male child who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron? Was her child caught up to God at His throne?

4. Is Satan the Devil this fiery red dragon? (Revelation 12:9). Is the term ‘stars of heaven’ symbolic for ‘angels in heaven’? (Revelation 1:20, 12:9). Did Satan desire to kill Jesus when He was a small child under the age of two? (Matthew 2:16). Satan did this through Herod the king by inspiring him to kill all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under. Jesus was protected by an angel appearing to Joseph in a dream saying: "Arise, take the young Child and His mother and flee to Egypt" (Matthew 2:13-14). Will Jesus rule with a rod of iron? (Revelation 19:15). Did Jesus ascend to God’s throne? (John 20:17, Hebrews 8:1).

5. Did this woman flee into the wilderness in a place of God’s protection for one thousand two hundred and sixty days? (Revelation 12:6). If we take this verse literally for what it says and we think of the time setting as being the end time ‘day of the Lord’ vision of John, then this verse is saying that the woman who is ‘believing Israel’, the one hundred and forty four thousand sealed servants of God of Revelation 7:1-8 will be protected by God for one thousand two hundred and sixty days which is three and one half years.

6. Does an angelic war break out in heaven? (Revelation 12:7.) Does the arch angel Michael and his angels fight with the ex-arch angel Satan and his demonic angels? Did Satan and his demonic angels lose this battle? (Verse 8). Where were they cast to? (Verse 9). Does Satan the Devil deceive the whole world? Was there a previous war in heaven? (Ezekiel 28:16-19, Isaiah 14:12-15, Luke 10:18)

7. What was the loud voice saying that John heard? (Revelation 12:10). Is Satan the accuser of the brethren? How often does he accuse a converted person before God? What three requirements could be required for a true Christian to overcome Satan the Devil? (Revelation 12:11).

8. After this war in heaven and Satan has been cast down to the earth, will he be upset? (Revelation 12:12). Why will he be filled with great wrath? When this happens will end time events happen quickly? (Matthew 24:42-44).

Note: After Satan has been cast down to the earth and realizes he only has a short time, this then is when end time events will begin to happen very quickly and unexpectedly like a thief in the night as Jesus said.

9. Does Satan the dragon pursue and persecute the woman Israel who gave birth to the male child? (Revelation 12:13). Some people might think that in this verse that the woman is referring to the Church but it says the woman who gave birth to the male child. The Church did not give birth to Jesus Christ, Jesus Christ gave birth to the Church. Jesus said: "On this rock I will build My church" (Matthew 16:18).

10. Was this woman given two wings of a great eagle that she could fly into the wilderness? (Revelation 12:14). Did Moses and Isaiah talk about being given wings of an eagle? (Exodus 19:4, Isaiah 40:31). Who will help protect God’s people? (Daniel 12:1).

Note: Ancient Israel walked out of Egypt. The phrase ‘wings of an eagle’ means to be in a hurry, to do it quickly, you don’t have much time to think about it.

11. Is Satan called a serpent? (Revelation 20:2). Did Satan spew a flood of water after the woman Israel? (Revelation 12:15). Did the earth help the woman? (Verse 16). Can a flood symbolize the army of the enemy? (Isaiah 59:19, Jeremiah 46:7-8). Did Korah have an earth swallowing experience? (Numbers 16:26-32).

Note: Satan the Devil has been trying to destroy Israel for a very long time. The holocaust of World War II took the lives of six million Jews and is only a late example of Satan’s insane mind to destroy God’s people.

12. Who did Satan make war with next? (Revelation 12:17). Now Satan makes war with the Church, those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

The Woman and the Dragon

(Revelation 12 NKJV) 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. {2} Then being with child, she cried out in labor and in pain to give birth. {3} And another sign appeared in heaven: behold, a great, fiery red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. {4} 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. {5} 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. {6} 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. {7} And war broke out in heaven: Michael and his angels fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his angels fought, {8} but they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them in heaven any longer. {9} 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. {10} 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. {11} "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. {12} "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." {13} Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. {14} 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. {15} 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. {16} 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. {17} 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.