I.     Satan’s Former Hatred for God and His People (12:1–5)

A.     His sin at the beginning (12:3–4): This seems to refer to his original fall.

B.     His sin at Bethlehem (12; 1–2, 4–5)

1.     Satan’s persecution of God’s nation (12:1–2)

2.     Satan’s persecution of God’s Son (12:4b, 5b)

a.     The birth of Jesus (12:4a, 5a)

b.     The ascension of Jesus (12:5c)

And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:

And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered [Rev. 12:1–2].

Let me give you my translation:

And a great sign was seen in heaven: a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars; and she was with child, and travailing in birth, and being tormented to be delivered.

The important thing here is: “Who is the woman?” You are acquainted with the interpretation of the Roman church that she represents the Virgin Mary. There are Protestant interpreters who have been as far wrong as that. Today most of them follow the method of Rome and interpret the woman as the church of all ages. Practically all denominational literature follows this line.

There have been several female founders of cults who could not resist the temptation of seeing themselves pictured in this woman. Joanna Southcott said that she herself was the woman in chapter 12 and that in October, 1814, she would have the man child. She never did, but she had 200,000 followers. We have had in the United States several founders of cults and religions who thought they were this woman. In Southern California, we even had a few female preachers who got the idea they might be the woman, but they weren’t. We can dismiss all these claims, unless we want to forsake all intelligent approach to the interpretation of Scripture.

The identifying marks of the woman are the sun, moon, and stars. These belong to Israel as seen in Joseph’s dream: “And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. And he told it to his father, and to his brethren: and his father rebuked him, and said unto him, What is this dream that thou hast dreamed? Shall I and thy mother and thy brethren indeed come to bow down ourselves to thee to the earth?” (Gen. 37:9–10). Old Jacob interpreted the sun, moon, and stars to mean himself, Rachel, and Joseph’s brothers. And they did bow down before Joseph before things were over with (although Rachel had died by that time).

The woman is a sign in heaven, although her career is here on earth. She is not a literal woman; she is a symbol. The career of the woman corresponds to that of Israel, for it is Israel that gave birth to Christ, who is the Child.

At Christmastime we all use Isaiah 9:6 and other verses concerning the birth of Christ. This verse does concern the birth of Christ, but it does not concern us at all; rather, it concerns the nation Israel. “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace” (Isa. 9:6). Who is referred to here when Isaiah says, “Unto us”? The church? No; it’s the nation Israel. It is quite obvious that Isaiah is speaking to the nation Israel, and he is speaking not relative to a Savior but to a Governor, a Ruler, a King, One who was to come and rule over them. “For unto us a child is born, unto us a son is given.” It is interesting that as a child He was born in His humanity; but as a Son from eternity, He was given. “And the government shall be upon his shoulder”—we are not talking now about the Savior but about the One who is coming as King. We will see that happen in the Book of Revelation. “And his name shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father, The Prince of Peace.” There will not be any peace until He comes. When the rulers of this world say, “… Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them …” (1 Thess. 5:3). They were having a big peace conference in Holland when World War I broke out, and most of the delegates almost got fired upon before they got home! When men say, “Peace and safety,” it is idle talk, because man is working at peace from the wrong end. It is the human heart that is wrong, and only Jesus will bring peace. He is the Prince of Peace. Isaiah is talking to Israel when he says, “Unto us a child is born,” and that is the figure that John picks up here in Revelation.

The writer to the Hebrews says, “For it is evident that our Lord sprang out of Juda …” (Heb. 7:14). Paul writes in Romans: “Who are Israelites; to whom pertaineth 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 for ever. Amen” (Rom. 9:4–5). Paul is talking about Israel. He begins by asking the question: “Who are Israelites?” The answer just happens to be: “And of whom as concerning the flesh Christ came.” The woman at the well was accurate when she identified the Lord Jesus as a Jew: “… How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? …” (John 4:9, italics mine). We read in Micah 5:2–3: “But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth have been from of old, from everlasting. Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which travaileth hath brought forth: then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.” Notice that He will be born in Bethlehem, but He comes out of eternity.

“Travailing in birth” is a figure associated with Israel: “Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child. Who hath heard such a thing? who hath seen such things? Shall the earth be made to bring forth in one day? or shall a nation be born at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children” (Isa. 66:7–8). Israel will go through the Great Tribulation after Christ was born in Bethlehem—“before her pain came, she was delivered of a man child,” meaning Christ.

Therefore, we identify the woman as the nation Israel. No one woman who has ever lived, including the Virgin Mary, fits into this. It is the nation Israel and certainly not the church of all ages. If we just keep our bearings here and not lose our heads, we know that this is the Great Tribulation Period and that the church has already gone to heaven. This woman is not the church of all ages.

“Being tormented.” Certainly Israel has suffered satanic anti-Semitism from the time of the birth of Christ to the present, in fact, even since before that day, because Satan knew that Christ would come from this nation.

12:1 sign. A symbol pointing to something else. This is the first of 7 signs in the last half of Revelation. Cf. v. 3; 13:13,14; 15:1; 16:14; 19:20. a woman. Not an actual woman, but a symbolic representation of Israel, pictured in the OT as the wife of God (Is. 54:5,6; Jer. 3:6–8; 31:32; Ezek. 16:32; Hos. 2:16). Three other symbolic women appear in Revelation: 1) Jezebel, who represents paganism (2:20); 2) the scarlet woman (17:3–6), symbolizing the apostate church; and 3) the wife of the Lamb (19:7), symbolizing the true church. That this woman does not represent the church is clear from the context. clothed with the sun … moon under her feet … twelve stars. Cf. Gen. 37:9–11. Being clothed with the sun speaks of the glory, dignity, and exalted status of Israel, the people of promise who will be saved and given a kingdom. The picture of the moon under her feet possibly describes God’s covenant relationship with Israel, since new moons were associated with worship (1 Chr. 23:31; 2 Chr. 2:4; 8:13; Ezra 3:5; Ps. 81:3). The 12 stars represent the 12 tribes of Israel.

12:2 cried out … in pain. Israel, often pictured as a mother giving birth (cf. Is. 26:17,18; 54:1; 66:7–12; Hos. 13:13; Mic. 4:10; 5:2,3; Matt. 24:8), had agonized and suffered for centuries, longing for the Messiah to come and destroy Satan, sin, and death, and usher in the kingdom.