Sound The Trumpet : Revelation 12:1-2

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“Revelation 12:1-2”
by Art Sadlier
March 29th, 2009

"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:" Rev. 12:1.

Notice a "great wonder", this word also means sign. This is an important sign, a sign of great meaning and significance.

"A woman clothed with the sun," Who is this woman?

There four symbolic women in the book of Revelation who are symbols of religion.

The FIRST one is called Jezebel, she represents paganism. We read about her in Rev., 2:20, this symbol is taken from a real woman who was alive during Elijah's day. She was a woman who led Israel into idolatry.

The SECOND one is the harlot, Rev. 17:1-2. A woman who is unfaithful to her husband is called a harlot. A church that is unfaithful to Christ her Lord is a harlot church. This woman is a symbol of apostate Christianity during the tribulation period.

The THIRD one is the Lamb's wife, the Bride of Christ, Rev. 21: 9, a symbol of true Christianity.

The FOURTH one found here in Rev. 12:1 is a symbol of Israel. The scripture is always the best commentary on scripture. To discover this symbol we go to Gen. 37:9-10, we have there the meaning of this symbol, which is the nation of Israel. This woman cannot be Mary, compare Rev. 12: 13-14. Mary did bring forth Jesus, but Mary does not flee into the wilderness at the mid tribulation point. The scripture tells us who does in Matthew 24: 15-20. Though Jesus was born of Mary, yet in a very real sense it was Israel that brought forth the Messiah. He was the seed of Abraham and David and of the royal line, stretching down over the centuries. The woman cannot be the Church, the church did not bring forth Jesus; Jesus brought the church. Israel is the theme of chapter 12, that is the key.

Verse 2, ''Ànd she being with child, cried travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered." The child is none other than Christ, verse 5 confirms this. We see in this verse the Incarnation, the Ascension and the Second coming. ''Travailing'' - ''Pained'', these verbs are present tense, indicating continuous action, thats how Israel laboured for centuries to bring forth Christ as Messiah.

But there is a second birth alluded to in this chapter as well, the spiritual birth of the nation of Israel which is yet to come. Remember the story of the dry bones in Ezekiel 37, Israel was spiritually dead and miraculously restored to spiritual life. ( Read Ezekiel 37: 1-14) Revelation 12 is dealing the spiritual rebirth of Israel during the last half of the tribulation period.

In Matthew 24:7 we have description some of the tribulations of that time. In verse 8, ''All these are the beginnings of sorrows,'' the Greek word "sorrows" speaks of the pain of a woman giving birth. ''Beginning of sorrows'', speak of the first half of the tribulation period. Those birth pains will intensify in the last half of the tribulation period, verse 21 tells us that. "Great tribulation", that represents the final labour pains in which Israel will be reborn spiritually as a nation. In Jeremiah 30:7 that period is called ''Jacob's trouble'', Jeremiah goes on to say, ''He (Israel) shall be saved out of it'', that speaks of Israel being reborn spiritually at the end of the tribulation period. That is the topic of chapter twelve.

Looking for His glorious appearing! Titus 2:13