Michael Starts a War - Rumor notes 91

 

Revelation 12

7 There was war in the sky [heaven]. Michael and his angels made war on the dragon. The dragon and his angels made war.

There was war in the sky/heaven

This is where we enter the very core of this entire book where the most crucial information and revelations are laid out that unveils the back story needed to make sense of everything else. Here we find listed the two main protagonists along with their sympathizers, where the war began, who initiated it, and the immediate after-effects.

In most people's minds, heaven and war are not usually thought about together. In fact the idea of such negative activity in heaven seems like an oxymoron. Yet we find stated plainly that heaven is where the mother of all wars began, and much to many people's astonishment it was not Satan who initiated the war but rather God's representative Michael. Key to appreciating this is the fact that before this time there had never been any kind of conflict or anything similar. This kind of activity and animosity was foreign and strange and bewildering in a universe created in love and that had always and only thrived on selfless love and joyful, humble service to others by everyone.

To understand why and how this war began and what the contest is over is understood by assembling clues from all over Scripture and from the entire span of history from which we discern repeating patterns that hint at what likely transpired in heaven as things went sour. One thing is for certain though – the positive ID of the enemy whose subtle and seemingly innocuous activities required push-back by Michael is spelled out explicitly in this passage.

Keep in mind that the word translated here as war is different from how we are used to thinking of what happens in war. This word war comes from the Greek word polemos from which we get polemics – words used in politics, verbal abuse and debate. This war involves deception. It subverts truth and exploits trust. This cosmic war is not a contest over who is physically powerful, but rather who should be trusted to be our leader. Satan lusts for power rather than trusting in love, humility and joy in serving others. This is the root of this war and feeds into everything we are studying.

A mouth speaking great things and blasphemy was given to him. Authority to make war for forty-two months was given to him. He opened his mouth for blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his dwelling, those who dwell in heaven. It was given to him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them. Authority over every tribe, people, language, and nation was given to him. (Revelation 13:5-7)

He deceives my own people who dwell on the earth because of the signs he was granted to do in front of the beast; saying to those who dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast who had the sword wound and lived. (Revelation 13:14)

I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, something like frogs; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs; which go forth to the kings of the whole inhabited earth, to gather them together for the war of that great day of God, the Almighty. (Revelation 16:13-14)

Contrast this with the way the Hero of heaven conducts war as spelled out explicitly later on.

I saw the heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it is called Faithful and True. In righteousness he judges and makes war. (Revelation 19:11)

Michael and his angels made war on the dragon

It is vital that we appreciate the true nature of this war. The choice of weapons are the key issue as they are very different on the two sides. This war that began in heaven is as much over the choice and use of weaponry as it is over who will gain our trust and allegiance. We must be settled in our thinking and in our heart that the methods, motives and means of winning relied on exclusively by those loyal to God are in fact able to achieve victory in this war. This involves our perception of what victory looks like as well, for victory means very different things to different people depending on what they believe they are fighting to accomplish. This is where a great deal of confusion comes in, for so long as we remain infected by the inferences and doubts about God's integrity that is at the very root of sin, we will fail to understand or appreciate the wisdom or value of the way the Son of God pursues a singular path toward God's intended outcome in this war. This is even more relevant right now.

This is why it is so important to appreciate the nature of life and social design before the war ever began. Without this perspective it is very easy to be confused about how God works toward victory, because we have been so conditioned to view victory as subjugating those who oppose us. This is never God's disposition, for His only purpose is the restoration of all creation to His original design while faithfully maintaining the core principles of love and freedom for each created being to choose whether or not they will live in joyful fellowship with their Creator or pull away from Him who is the only Source of all life. Freedom is actually one of the key issues in this war. Lucifer has actually waffled on this point by first insisting that there was no need for law because angels were created perfect, therefore they should be free to follow their own desires. Later he asserted that freedom is too risky and there needed to be artificial safeguards of fear to protect the common good.

The reason Michael initiated this war was because it was necessary to challenge openly Lucifer's subtle insinuations and deceptions that were infecting the disposition of myriads of angels, undermining their trust in God's integrity. It has always been the divine One who alone knows God's heart more intimately than any other being in the universe, and it is He who has been at the forefront of this war throughout all of its stages. This is why He is identified as Michael at this point in history when there were no human beings in existence. God's nature remains the same no matter where one looks in the flow of time at how He deals with challenges against His design of creation.

I am aware that with many there is serious question as to the identity of Michael, and I respect each person's need to be convinced for themselves of whatever they choose to believe. For me it is not an issue, for after years of contemplating the underlying principles of design that reflects God's heart in creation, it is plain that the Godhead has always provided one of Them as the faithful Witness to be directly involved in the lives of Their creatures in a form through which they can relate. After humanity was created to reveal God's hidden side more than any other race of beings, God had His Son later take on the form of a human for the purpose of reflecting to the universe the truth about God's character from that unique perspective. And while many believe that Jesus was God incarnate, what is far less appreciated is the pattern this reveals, for this was not the first time God 'incarnated' Himself into the form of created beings so they could appreciate His invisible attributes. That is why I am convinced that in the beginning of creation, before Lucifer invented sin by twisting truth and exploiting God's design intent of vulnerability, God incarnated Himself through the Son by taking on the form of the angel who was known as Michael which literally means, Who is Like God.

To me, the very least of all saints, was this grace given, to preach to the Gentiles the unsearchable riches of Christ, and to make all men see what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God, who created all things through Jesus Christ; (Ephesians 3:8-9)

who is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. For by him all things were created, in the heavens and on the earth, things visible and things invisible, whether thrones or dominions or principalities or powers; all things have been created through him, and for him. (Colossians 1:15-16)

For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity; that they may be without excuse. Because, knowing God, they didn't glorify him as God, neither gave thanks, but became vain in their reasoning, and their senseless heart was darkened. (Romans 1:20-21)

While this passage clearly refers to our world and our situation, it is paralleled by an earlier version when this war over who to believe about God and His character gripped the rest of the universe causing a massive rift and polarization among the angels in heaven as described in what we are studying right now. Yet the same principles and patterns are active in each stage of the war and the similar accusations are used or recycled in a new form with the intent to deceive and mislead as many as possible to embrace the lies of God's archenemy who denies the very existence of agape love. In that earlier battle, God's agent who stood as God's faithful Witness was Michael, while in the rerun of the war here on earth God's faithful Witness is the human, but same Son of God, Jesus. Yet in all cases the Son has always been the Godhead's representative to display Their disposition, character and hidden attributes, Their expression of the very essence of what God is really like.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him. Without him was not anything made that has been made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. (John 1:1-4)

The very core of this war is over whose testimony will be trusted relating to the invisible, unapproachable (light and power too intense to get close enough to perceive or understand well) God who is the source of all life, all power and everything that exists. This is the issue in chapters 4 and 5.

"[Trust]Worthy are you, our Lord and God, the Holy One, to receive the glory, the honor, and the power, for you created all things, and because of your desire they existed, and were created!" (Revelation 4:11)

saying with a loud voice, "[Trust]Worthy is the Lamb who has been killed to receive the power, wealth, wisdom, strength, honor, glory, and blessing!" I heard every created thing which is in heaven, on the earth, under the earth, on the sea, and everything in them, saying, "To him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb be the blessing, the honor, the glory, and the dominion, forever and ever! Amen!" (Revelation 5:12-13)

This war is primarily over God's reputation and what everyone comes to believe about His character. The controversy is about who we will believe is telling the truth about God, whether Michael or Lucifer, God's Christ or Satan's assertions. What we are seeing here is a peek into the origin of this war that started in heaven long before our world came into existence, caused by a betrayal of God's crowning specimen of creation Lucifer who was intended to convey the most light of truth about Him to the angels, but who turned traitor by asserting that his accusations are the standard of truth about God, not Michael's version.

You said in your heart, "I will ascend into heaven! I will exalt my throne above the stars of God! I will sit on the mountain of assembly, in the far north! I will ascend above the heights of the clouds! I will make myself like the Most High!" (Isaiah 14:13-14)

Shall the throne of iniquity, which devises evil by law, Have fellowship with You? (Psalms 94:20 NKJV)

This war came to involve two major fronts, the the first as being who should be viewed as the legitimate representative of God's will and character, and then after the creation of our world it expanded to who should represent God's reflector beings on earth in the assembly of the sons of God in heaven. The Son of God in His earlier form as Michael initiated the first battle in heaven to unmask the insidious inroads of doubt that was spreading like a fast replicating virus throughout the vulnerable created beings of the universe. This involved subtle insinuations, inferences and suggestions about God's character of perfect love as supposedly being balanced by a hidden darker side to God. Later after Satan successfully captured the dominion of this planet from Adam, he insisted on occupying the seat designed for Adam in the assembly of representatives for all the inhabited worlds that sits on the mountain of God, whatever that symbolizes. Thus the war expanded to include both aspects – representing God directly and then representing God's reflectors. Both fronts have been and continue to be contested by the Son of God over time though from two different forms.

The idea of throne needs to be understood in the light of the real truth about how God governs. The passage from Psalm 94 is highly significant for appreciating the contrast between how God governs and how Satan insists that God governs. This is why this is a powerful exposé on the truth about Satan's counterfeit, for despite his insistence that God relies on a system of imposed laws like how we do here on earth, this verse clarifies that this can never happen. There can be no fellowship, no compromise, no collusion or cooperation between the principles of agape love that defines God design and the system of law enforcement that operates by fear in Satan's system.

This phrase, I will be like, or I will make myself like, is only one word in the original Hebrew. Thus this is not saying that Lucifer was referring to what he intended to become, but rather that his views and disposition and character was the more accurate testimony about what God is like, contradicting Michael's version. Lucifer was in essence declaring, “I AM the most reliable source to inform you about the invisible God.” This explains the resistance aroused when Jesus came and used the I AM title first declared to Moses at the burning bush. This war is not merely over who is authorized to represent humans in the assembly of heaven, but even more so over which being we will believe when it comes to representing God. Both Michael [God's Christ] and Lucifer claim the I AM title, the authoritative witness of what God is like as well as the best way to govern societies.

We glimpse a reference to this war in the words of Jesus facing off against religious leaders who reflected Satan's views of God by stoutly resisting His clear testimony. This was the same war and similar to the showdown to what took place in heaven long before this world was ever created.

You are of your father, the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and doesn't stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks on his own; for he is a liar, and the father of it. (John 8:44)

The beginning referred to by Jesus here is actually the second of three beginnings. And each one directly involved the divine representative of the Godhead. Let me explain further.

When we hear this phrase in the beginning, most likely our mind goes to Genesis 1 describing the terraforming of our planet.

In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty. Darkness was on the surface of the deep. God's Spirit was hovering over the surface of the waters. (Genesis 1:1-2)

While this was a very important beginning, it was the third major beginning involving this war. In fact, the account of the creation of this world in Genesis is full of inferences and references indicating that the war was in full engagement already and what was happening here was a response from heaven to the onslaught of deceptions that may well have brought the universe to an apparent impasse in the war. That is why it is noted that darkness was on the surface of the deep. This was not just literal but even more importantly it was symbolic of the state brought about by the myriads of lies Satan was using to obscure the light of truth about God's nature and disposition and to discredit and twist the truth about the viability of God's way of governing.

There are three important beginnings noted in this war, and the creation account was the third beginning, not the first as we might initially presume. The first beginning is found in the account of John who is also the author of the book we are studying right now and who had a better grasp of the backstory more than anyone else, especially after God gave him this revelation to share with us.

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. The same was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him. Without him was not anything made that has been made. In him was life, and the life was the light of men. (John 1:1-4)

This is the Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things which must happen soon, which he sent and made known by his angel to his servant, John, who testified to God's word, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, about everything that he saw. (Revelation 1:1-2)

Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, existing in the form of God, didn't consider equality with God a thing to be grasped. (Philippians 2:5-6)

We are going to unpack this much more, but for now I simply want to tie this together with the three beginnings that outline the progression of the war. The first beginning was the reality that before anything ever existed and long before sin was ever an issue, the Son of God existed eternally in the Godhead whose very definition is love and will continue to exist with that divine identity for all eternity. This actually is the core issue that brought about the objections Lucifer had that were used to rebel against God's ways and government, for it was the issue of whether or not Christ in the form of Michael was actually part of God or not. That is when the second beginning happened, the beginning of sin and the spirit of rebellion that has led to all the mayhem, evil and distrust of God anywhere. God's response to this second beginning was the third beginning, a demonstration of the nature of His disposition and use of power that exposed Satan's allegations as invalid which in turn led the unfallen angels, referred to as stars in Job, to sing together with joy at this revelation.

It is well that we take time to explore this mysterious being identified as Michael using the clues given. Many question why God was not more clear about identifying Michael for us, but I believe this is partly because for humans, the incarnated Son of God in the form of Jesus is the main person for us to focus on given our fallen condition and confusion about God. Jesus was the human form of God, come to correct and restore God's original design for humanity as reflectors of God's image and to develop a character like God. He is the channel of communication to us while Michael is different.

Michael was God's primary representative to the angelic hosts before humans ever existed. Just as Jesus is the primary form of God designed to engage humans in coming to know God intimately, Michael was the same entity but in a different form, designed to interact and engage angels to know God accurately. But Michael is not central for our remediation, but for the angels it was important (with or without the fall of Lucifer) that God communicate and interact with them in a way they could grasp a true awareness about the invisible attributes of God for themselves.

The key here is that God's Christ has ever carried out the role of being the main communicator who reveals the true nature of the Godhead as Their great communicator, the go-between, the mediator and intercessor even long before there were doubts or sin or rebellion bringing about a need for reconciliation and correction.

Because part of the Godhead took on the form of an angel called Michael (Who is Like God) and retained that identity until much later when He took on the form of the human Jesus, we see how serious God is about making sure everyone has an Agent through which they may access the mind and heart of God as much as possible. For humans, that link is our Savior and High Priest Jesus Christ. For the angels it was Michael who was the divine representative of the Godhead who alone knew the Father's heart like no other and interacted with the angels for the purpose of revealing the Father just as He did as Jesus later.

We need to begin by reviewing the purpose and design of angels, then examine how Scripture confirms the incarnation of the Son into that form before He became a human being much later.

The entire first chapter of Hebrews focuses intently on the contrast between the authority and role of God's only Son and that of angels and why they were created. The reason this clarification was necessary in Hebrews was because the war that began in heaven was over this very issue – who was to be believed as telling the truth about the invisible God. When Lucifer began circulating sly suggestions and innuendoes about God's integrity and character, it was impossible for any of the created beings to know what was true since Lucifer's assigned role in heaven was to relay the realities of the invisible God to the visible universe in existence at that time. Because Lucifer was exploiting the trust of all the angels who relied on him to explain things that were beyond their access as God designed for Lucifer to do, the fact that Lucifer used this to his advantage was even more reprehensible. Thus in Hebrews 1 we catch a brief glimpse, a tiny synopsis of what transpired in the war over God's reputation that began in heaven before our world was brought into being.

The author of Hebrews indicates that there was intense questioning over who was to be believed as telling the truth about God. This is implied in the idea of Sonship that is the core issue all throughout the war, yet today has been subverted to be an issue of whether or not the Son of God Jesus lived eternally with God in the past or whether we was brought out and separated as unique being from the bosom of God at some point. This argument is a scheme of Satan to divert attention away from the far greater meaning of this phrase only begotten son. In Scripture, the primary meaning of being a son is about revealing the nature and disposition of the father and the family attributes, not about genealogy as Satan wants us to imagine. This is why who God identifies as being His legitimate Son is key to grasping what is discussed in this chapter, because it was central to the war that began in heaven over which being was relaying the truth about the invisible God.

His Son is the radiance of his glory, the very image of his substance, and upholding all things by the word of his power, when he had by himself made purification for our sins, sat down on the right hand of the Majesty on high; having become so much better than the angels, as he has inherited a more excellent name than they have. For to which of the angels did he say at any time, "You are my Son. Today have I become your father?" and again, "I will be to him a Father, and he will be to me a Son?" Again, when he brings in the firstborn into the world he says, "Let all the angels of God worship him." (Hebrews 1:3-6)

This passage summarizes an enormous amount of hidden history that took place in heaven related to the passage in Revelation we are looking at right now. Hebrews 1 is a synopsis of that first stage of the war before it moved to this planet, but the patterns of how the war carries on repeat themselves over and over. This is how we can discern from our perspective in this late stage of the war, what likely may have taken place in the earlier stages, for the arguments used to undermine trust in God's heart have been consistent from the very outset, and the challenge that unmasks their insidious nature has been always initiated by the Son who alone is affirmed as being the only reliable One to reveal the truth that alone is trustworthy about who God is and what He is like. This is why the name of this presumed angel meant Who is Like God, because only the Son was like God, both in the way He acted and the testimony He gives that contradicts that of the created angel Lucifer who transformed into Satan the great rebel who spread lies and accusations against God.

Hebrews makes it clear that only God has the definitive word as to who is to be trusted as revealing the truth about Himself. Chapter 1 strongly infers that there was another angel claiming to be telling the truth about God that was at variance with the One identified by God as His Son. This passage infers that originally the question in the minds of the universe involved which angel could be trusted. This is why it asks, to which of the angels did he say at any time... This was because at that point in history, the Son was in the form of an angel, and as thus He appeared to be no different than the other cherub Lucifer who was contesting the witness of Michael because it appeared there was no significant material difference between them.

This should not sound strange, for this same Son of God met the same resistance as a human while among us here on earth. He was constantly challenged over the issue of authority to represent God because He appeared so 'normal' like any other human being.

Who has believed our message? and to whom has the arm of Yahweh been revealed? For he grew up before him as a tender plant, and as a root out of a dry ground: he has no form nor comeliness; and when we see him, there is no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised, and rejected by men; a man of suffering, and acquainted with disease: and as one from whom men hide their face he was despised; and we didn't respect him. (Isaiah 53:1-3)

This was no new revelation about God that was not already present when the Son had the form of the angel Michael. God never changes, and neither does the testimony about God throughout the entire history of creation and the war that was caused by Lucifer's distortions some time after creation. God knew what was coming, so He provided a faithful witness called Who is Like God as His agent and revealer of truth for all who would believe in His testimony that God's power is made most clear in apparent weakness. When the Son took on the form of an angel, His character and the likeness of God revealed through His interactions with all other created beings was identical to what He reflected when He later took on the form of a human. This sequence is spelled in Philippians.

Have this in your mind, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, (1) existing in the form of God, didn't consider equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, taking the (2) form of a servant, being (3) made in the likeness of men. (Philippians 2:5-7)

This clarifies three stages of existence the Son of God experienced to bring reconciliation and synchronization to the entire universe, both fallen and unfallen. The Son originally existed in the form of God and was always equal with God. But in order to expose what is invisible to created beings about the nature of what God is really like, the Son (the one that alone reveals the full truth about the father which is what being son really means) exhibited the humble nature of God by emptying Himself or laying aside the privileges and power of living as the supreme being over all, and took on the form of a servant.

This servant phase is key for appreciating why the angel Michael can be understood to simultaneously be the Son of God. We must appreciate the meaning and purpose of what it means to be an angel. Again, Hebrews one spells that out plainly in the same chapter that outlines the original issues that began this war.

But which of the angels has he told at any time, "Sit at my right hand, until I make your enemies the footstool of your feet?" Aren't they all serving spirits, sent out to do service for the sake of those who will inherit salvation? (Hebrews 1:13-14)

Angels were specifically designed as ministering spirits. That is their purpose and design, and their joy is found only as they fulfill that servant function, just as our joy is found only in fulfilling our design to reflect the glory of God as His image and thus develop characters that is just like His. This spirit of ministering to others is also a reflection of God's heart, for the truth about the invisible essence of what God is like requires all the different aspects of creation to even begin to display the magnitude of God's greatness.

That which is known of God is revealed in them, for God revealed it to them. For the invisible things of him since the creation of the world are clearly seen, being perceived through the things that are made, even his everlasting power and divinity.... (Romans 1:19-20)

This is a key principle of creation design that unlocks many things that presently seem mysterious to us. Paul explains that all creation is a magnification and revelation of the invisible attributes of God. Thus all creation plays a role in helping everyone come to appreciate and love the Creator, even if they have never known about Him intellectually or cognitively.

The heavens declare the glory of God. The expanse shows his handiwork. Day after day they pour forth speech, and night after night they display knowledge. There is no speech nor language, where their voice is not heard. Their voice has gone out through all the earth, their words to the end of the world.... (Psalms 19:1-4)

Yet beyond the testimony about who God is as revealed in how all creation together is to reflect perfect harmony and beauty, God has always had an objective faithful Witness called His Son who also is the Creator and ongoing Sustainer of all creation. The Son may assume different forms of created intelligence, but He has always been present and active in one form or another in order to facilitate ready communication with the mind and heart of God.

In Daniel we find more clues that help identify this Michael as being the divine revelation of God rather than simply being another created angel. In Daniel's account of visions given to him long ago, Michael is said to play a pivotal role in the war raging as the enemy sought to interfere with God bringing about fulfillment of previous prophecies, even as God was revealing to Daniel important aspects of the backstory along with important prophecies of future events to overturn Satan's power.

But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me twenty-one days; but, behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me: and I remained there with the kings of Persia.

But I will tell you that which is inscribed in the writing of truth: and there is none who holds with me against these, but Michael your prince. (Daniel 10:13,21)

Many translations I believe fail to correctly render verse 13. In the Hebrew it indicates that Michael is the one who is the chief of all the supernatural princes, not merely one among many. This mistranslation can bring confusion preventing us from seeing the significance of what is mentioned about the Prince who identifies specifically with all who are loyal to God.

The only translation I have found that identifies this is Young's Literal Translation.

And the head of the kingdom of Persia is standing over-against me twenty and one days, and lo, Michael, first of the chief heads, hath come in to help me, and I have remained there near the kings of Persia; (Daniel 10:13 YLT)

At that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince who stands for the children of your 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 your people shall be delivered, everyone who shall be found written in the book. Many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, and some to shame and everlasting contempt. (Daniel 12:1-2)

Here we find Michael as identified as the prince who stands for God's people as well as being linked to the resurrection of the righteous at the second coming of Christ at the beginning of the millennium.

Following these links allows us to see more clearly that in fact Michael was the same entity as the one who later became Christ as a human being and who will return to resurrect His children as well as the one who ever stands up for them no matter what difficulties they have to endure. Michael is the Prince above all princes just as He is Lord and lords and King of kings.

Keep in mind that up until the human incarnation of Christ, the Son of God retained the form of an archangel, meaning the highest authority above all created angels. The Son of God as we have already pointed out, took on the form of a servant angel, and it was in this form that He interacted by coordinating the activities of all the angels of God in heaven working to rescue fallen humanity and to counter the wily schemes of the enemy sabotaging heaven's activities for both our salvation as well as God's. Thus it is likely that it was in the form of Micael that Christ acted as the agent of heaven, communicating God's will and directions as the chief administrator of heaven's involvement in this war that started in heaven..

But Michael, the archangel, when contending with the devil and arguing about the body of Moses, dared not bring against him an abusive condemnation, but said, "May the Lord rebuke you!" (Jude 1:9)

For the Lord himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with God's trumpet. The dead in Christ will rise first, (1 Thessalonians 4:16)

It is true that putting all these verses together does not conclusively prove that Michael was in fact the same entity as the Son of God. I understand that, and each one is free to evaluate all the evidence and come to their own conclusion. This does not preclude that Michael was a created angel of very high rank. But for me, it simply makes more sense and fits into the larger picture that, just as Satan is identified under many different labels, so too can the Son of God be seen acting within various capacities under different titles and functions. These last two verses for me provide compelling evidence that it was more likely Christ, the Creator with power to raise the dead to life, who was identified as Michael the archangel, as well as the fact that He most accurately portrays the disposition of the Father's heart by refusing to be drawn into contention with the accuser.

In these verses we see the tight connection between Michael as the archangel and the resurrection. Jesus declared that He is the resurrection and the life, and we know that Jesus is also the Son of God, the only one who is fully like God and the only one who has seen and knows God intimately. The pattern is quite clear when we view it from the much broader perspective of the entire scope of the war against God and His people. The Son while taking on various forms through the course of the existence of creation that He himself spoke into existence, has involved Himself inside that creation while not losing His original identity as being God even though He willingly laid aside all that power and honor. He did so because that is part of how He reveals the true nature of God, for He says unequivocally that if we have seen Him we have seen the Father. This has been true all along, whether He was representing God as Michael to the angelic hosts in heaven or revealing God to the watching universe and to us as a humble, weak and vulnerable human being fully trusting in and reflecting His Father's true glory as the greatest Servant of all.

Whoever of you wants to become first among you, shall be bondservant of all. For the Son of Man also came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. (Mark 10:44-45)

This is the testimony of our Prince about the disposition of God we are designed to reflect. Just as Jesus did not come to be served but to serve, in the same way God is not looking to be served but to serve. Jesus is the express image of God in every way, and when we begin to grasp this as the reality that defines His testimony all throughout the history of creation, the amazing beauty and attractiveness of God and His design has the power to transforms us as we become willing to participate in reflecting this unique and unexpected aspect of His glory.

When Michael contended with the devil over resurrecting the body of Moses (keep in mind that no one had ever been resurrected from the dead up to this point in the history of the rebellion), the Son of God was revealing the nature of God's disposition towards His archenemy who is the great accuser and ultimate arguer. God and all who reflect Him, never argue with the accuser but simply defer the matter to another source of authority. This is the nature of agape love, for love never seeks to fight for its rights or even defend itself but always trusts that God will work things out for our best good and for the glory of His reputation in the long run.

He had seven stars in his right hand. Out of his mouth proceeded a sharp two-edged sword. His face was like the sun shining at its brightest. (Revelation 1:16)

These are those who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are those who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These were redeemed by Jesus from among men, the first fruits to God and to the Lamb. In their mouth was found no lie, for they are blameless. (Revelation 14:4-5)

This highlights the reality that this war is over control of the mind, capturing the imagination and heart, and about the nature of what is in the mouth. Jesus fights this war with a sword that is exclusively seen as coming from His mouth, never in His hand. This is highly significant and central to understanding how we are to follow His example if we are willing follow wherever He leads us.

A Place Prepared by God - Rumor notes 90

 

Revelation 12

6 The woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that there they may nourish her one thousand two hundred sixty days.

The woman fled into the wilderness

Two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, so that she might be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. (Revelation 12:14)

There is something extremely significant here as these two verses almost duplicate each other. It is like they act as bookends for everything that comes in between, and in a sense they do. Both of these verses refer to the woman fleeing into the wilderness, and both of them refer to the same length of time. This is no coincidence. Here verse 6 is preceded by the cause for her desperation as being the dragon, while in verse 14 he is identified as the serpent.

In between these bookends we find a concentrated overview of the war around which this entire book revolves. This is the context for the woman representing God's people on earth, for His representatives are the target of the protagonist in this war who wants like everything to hurt, kill and destroy as many as possible of those loyal to his rival, the Son of God who in following verses is identified as Michael. But we will examine that in much more detail when we get there.

The question is, why is this arranged this way? This is a chiastic structure, which means that the most important things are at the center of this bell curve. Being aware of this arrangement allows us to see why this first occurrence is duplicated again a few verses later on the other side of the high point. (Refer to the chiastic chart of this chapter in a separate document.)

This symbolic woman is represented as fleeing into the wilderness to escape the threat of the dragon monster who is determined to eat her newborn baby alive. The symbol of a wilderness figures prominently throughout the history of God's people on earth. It is well to contemplate the meaning of this term and appreciate why it factored so often in the experience of those who went into or through a wilderness at different stages of history and how this may have meaning for us in our time.

In the third month after the children of Israel had gone forth out of the land of Egypt, on that same day they came into the wilderness of Sinai. When they had departed from Rephidim, and had come to the wilderness of Sinai, they encamped in the wilderness; and there Israel encamped before the mountain. (Exodus 19:1-2)

Get you hence, and turn you eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan. It shall be, that you shall drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there. So he went and did according to the word of Yahweh; for he went and lived by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan. The ravens [Midianite raiders] brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. (1 Kings 17:3-6)

Arise, get you to Zarephath, which belongs to Sidon, and dwell there: behold, I have commanded a widow there to sustain you. So he arose and went to Zarephath; and when he came to the gate of the city, behold, a widow was there gathering sticks: and he called to her, and said, Please get me a little water in a vessel, that I may drink. As she was going to get it, he called to her, and said, Please bring me a morsel of bread in your hand. She said, As Yahweh your God lives, I don't have a cake, but a handful of meal in the jar, and a little oil in the jar: and behold, I am gathering two sticks, that I may go in and bake it for me and my son, that we may eat it, and die. Elijah said to her, Don't be afraid; go and do as you have said; but make me of it a little cake first, and bring it forth to me, and afterward make for you and for your son. For thus says Yahweh, the God of Israel, The jar of meal shall not empty, neither shall the jar of oil fail, until the day that Yahweh sends rain on the earth. She went and did according to the saying of Elijah: and she, and he, and her house, ate many days. The jar of meal didn't empty, neither did the jar of oil fail, according to the word of Yahweh, which he spoke by Elijah. (1 Kings 17:9-16)

Ahab told Jezebel all that Elijah had done, and how he had killed all the prophets with the sword. Then Jezebel send a messenger to Elijah, saying, So let the gods do to me, and more also, if I don't make your life as the life of one of them by tomorrow about this time. When he saw that, he arose, and went for his life, and came to Beersheba, which belongs to Judah, and left his servant there. But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is enough; now, O Yahweh, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. (1 Kings 19:1-4)

As I live, says the Lord Yahweh, surely with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out, will I be king over you: and I will bring you out from the peoples, and will gather you out of the countries in which you are scattered, with a mighty hand, and with an outstretched arm, and with wrath poured out; and I will bring you into the wilderness of the peoples, and there will I enter into judgment with you face to face. Like as I entered into judgment with your fathers in the wilderness of the land of Egypt, so will I enter into judgment with you, says the Lord Yahweh. I will cause you to pass under the rod, and I will bring you into the bond of the covenant; and I will purge out from among you the rebels, and those who disobey against me; I will bring them forth out of the land where they sojourn, but they shall not enter into the land of Israel: and you shall know that I am Yahweh. (Ezekiel 20:33-38)

Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him." He arose and took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt, and was there until the death of Herod; that it might be fulfilled which was spoken by the Lord through the prophet, saying, "Out of Egypt I called my son." (Matthew 2:13-15)

Immediately the Spirit drove him out into the wilderness. He was there in the wilderness forty days tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals; and the angels were serving him. (Mark 1:12-13)

The idea of wilderness is not so much about location and physical condition but what a wilderness represents spiritually. We began this study in the first verse of this book establishing that the way we will approach everything in this book is to view it first and primarily as symbolic, and then seek to learn what that symbol actually was intended to convey to us by using the rest of the Bible to guide us in interpreting its meaning and implications. Wilderness is one of those symbols that we need to understand, partly because the woman represents God's people near the end of this world's history, and if we claim to be a part of that woman, we should know what it means to be in the wilderness along with the advantages and dangers involved in that location spiritually.

Interestingly, this phrase drove him out comes from the same Greek word usually referencing the casting out of demons. That gives a different perspective on what this may be saying. Additionally, this reference to wild animals has far more significance than what appears on the surface. Symbolically this refers to demons as much or more than to merely predatory animals. This term actually refers to all predators of any kind. In other words, Jesus was compelled to go to a place He would not naturally want to go immediately after receiving the public affirmation of His identity from God. There He would encounter with every demon who were hell bent on stripping Him of assurance of what He had just heard about His identity and value from God. Jesus first had to deal first with any doubts, fears or insecurities He may have felt in His humanity before He could be ready to deal with others. This was a battle over His own faith in His Father as the sole source of His identity, the same battle we encounter as well. He was sent to the wilderness filled with demonic forces to secure the authority He would need to face off with them again later.

This parallels closely what we are studying here involving the wilderness, the predatory dragon bent on destroying everything vulnerable, and the tactics used both in the aggression as well as the response by those relying on God's methods of response. It also alerts us to our own need of preparation for the supernatural onslaught we are sure to encounter. We must first deal with any internal insecurities and weaknesses and anchor our faith solidly and exclusively on what God says about our identity and value if we are to be prepared to meet similar struggles externally and more publicly.

she has a place prepared by God

that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, so that she might be nourished .... (Revelation 12:14)

We will see more about this later, but here are a few verses we might ponder about this place now.

In my Father's house are many homes. If it weren't so, I would have told you. I am going to prepare a place for you. If I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again, and will receive you to myself; that where I am, you may be there also. (John 14:2-3)

Come, my people, enter into your chambers, and shut your doors behind you. Hide yourself for a little moment, until the indignation is past. (Isaiah 26:20)

But God, being rich in mercy, for his great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead through our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ (by grace you have been saved), and raised us up with him, and made us to sit with him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, that in the ages to come he might show the exceeding riches of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus; for by grace you have been saved through faith, and that not of yourselves; it is the gift of God, (Ephesians 2:4-8)

This is the kind of nourishing that the bride of Christ needs to embrace while in the wilderness.

This concept of a place for nourishing is closely linked to the description of a contrasting situation a couple verses later. The idea of needing a place to exist, to live and thrive is central to the narrative of life, especially since the war that is taking place displaces so many things we were meant to enjoy and that brings us satisfaction and a secure sense of belonging.

They didn't prevail, neither was a place found for him any more in heaven. (Revelation 12:8)

This is such an intensely sad statement that we can hardly begin to grasp with our small capacity how tragic it is. Yet it speaks volumes as we shall see when our study focuses on it very soon.

there they may nourish her

so that she might be nourished .... (Revelation 12:14)

...when your herds and your flocks multiply, and your silver and your gold is multiplied, and all that you have is multiplied; then your heart be lifted up, and you forget Yahweh your God, who brought you forth out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of bondage; who led you through the great and terrible wilderness, in which were fiery serpents and scorpions, and thirsty ground where was no water; who brought you forth water out of the rock of flint; who fed you in the wilderness with manna, which your fathers didn't know; that he might humble you, and that he might prove you, to do you good at your latter end: and lest you say in your heart, My power and the might of my hand has gotten me this wealth. But you shall remember Yahweh your God, for it is he who gives you power to get wealth; that he may establish his covenant which he swore to your fathers, as at this day. (Deuteronomy 8:13-18)

Get you hence, and turn you eastward, and hide yourself by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan. It shall be, that you shall drink of the brook; and I have commanded the ravens to feed you there. So he went and did according to the word of Yahweh; for he went and lived by the brook Cherith, that is before the Jordan. The ravens brought him bread and flesh in the morning, and bread and flesh in the evening; and he drank of the brook. (1 Kings 17:3-6)

It was right after this event that Elijah was sent to the very hometown of Jezebel to a humble woman whose willingness to trust in God's promise of provision allowed her to be nourished with her son and Elijah for a considerable extended time. We looked at that story previously.

What I believe we need to keep in mind in these stories is the tender kindness of God through angels sent as servants to care for His children on earth. This has been going on all throughout history and is what angels were created to do. Notice in this next story how gentle and kind the angel is in spite of the fact that Elijah is operating out of fear and despair and has forgotten his true identity. This is encouraging since we too, so often forget our true identity in Christ and react in fear and lose our rest.

But he himself went a day's journey into the wilderness, and came and sat down under a juniper tree: and he requested for himself that he might die, and said, It is enough; now, O Yahweh, take away my life; for I am not better than my fathers. He lay down and slept under a juniper tree; and behold, an angel touched him, and said to him, Arise and eat. He looked, and behold, there was at his head a cake baked on the coals, and a jar of water. He ate and drink, and laid him down again. The angel of Yahweh came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat, because the journey is too great for you. He arose, and ate and drink, and went in the strength of that food forty days and forty nights to Horeb the Mount of God. (1 Kings 19:4-8)

He was there in the wilderness forty days tempted by Satan. He was with the wild animals; and the angels were serving him. (Mark 1:13)

one thousand two hundred sixty days

Our study of these numbers can be found in the notes for Revelation 11:3.

This time prophecy is anchored back to the prophecies of Daniel, meaning it is likely referring to a historical prophetic time period but can still potentially include an end-time length of time, but more likely literal time which would be 3 ½ years if that is the case.

Protection by Rapture - Rumor notes 89

Revelation 12

4 The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child. 5 She gave birth to a son, a male child, who is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron. Her child was caught up to God, and to his throne. 6 The woman fled into the wilderness, where she has a place prepared by God, that there they may nourish her one thousand two hundred sixty days.

The dragon stood before the woman

The king of Egypt spoke to the Hebrew midwives, of whom the name of the one was Shiphrah, and the name of the other Puah, and he said, "When you perform the duty of a midwife to the Hebrew women, and see them on the birth stool; if it is a son, then you shall kill him; but if it is a daughter, then she shall live." (Exodus 1:15-16)

As an interesting side note, here is the meaning of the midwife's names.

Shiphrah – brightness; garnish

Puah – to glitter; brilliancy

You shall not go up and down as a slanderer among your people; neither shall you stand against the life of your neighbor. I am Yahweh. (Leviticus 19:16)

Why do the nations rage, and the peoples plot a vain thing? The kings of the earth take a stand, and the rulers take counsel together, against Yahweh, and against his anointed, saying, "Let's break their bonds apart, and cast their cords from us." (Psalms 2:1-3)

Through his policy he shall cause craft to prosper in his hand; and he shall magnify himself in his heart, and in their security shall he destroy many: he shall also stand up against the prince of princes; but he shall be broken without hand. (Daniel 8:25)

He showed me Joshua the high priest standing before the angel of Yahweh, and Satan standing at his right hand to be his adversary. (Zechariah 3:1)

This same dragon first appeared before the first woman in Eden, before she ever had a child. But he knew that it was it was God's design that through human beings would come the male child that would somehow work to defeat his evil power and seek to disarm his power. That is why from the very outset, Satan has done everything possible to hijack, thwart or block every plan of God to bring Satan's rebellion to an end. This is the larger context in which we are to view this phrase.

I think we often fail to grasp the level and extent of the malignity and intensity of hatred that Satan has against Christ in particular. Our brainwashing inherited from Eden infects us with the counterfeit principle of balance. This causes us to imagine that evil must always be balanced by good, which in turn subconsciously leads us to fail to see the pure diabolical nature of our enemy. Jesus makes it plain that there is nothing good in Satan, there is no light, no goodness, no capacity left for repentance but plenty of capacity to fool us into thinking otherwise. The devil is a master of deception and can easily portray himself as sympathetic or reasonable when it suits his evil intent. But he was the inventor of lying and became so proficient at it that he can no longer do otherwise.

You are of your father, the devil, and you want to do the desires of your father. He was a murderer from the beginning, and doesn't stand in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaks a lie, he speaks on his own; for he is a liar, and the father of it. (John 8:44)

This raises an interesting point. How could he be this way from the beginning? Did not God create him perfect and without sin? Did God create him evil from the beginning? How could Jesus say this?

Lucifer was not the devil from the beginning. Lucifer was created as a light bearer similar to how humans are designed to reflect God's glory. But through resisting the Holy Spirit, denying the truth and replacing it with the great lie that God is not fully trustworthy, Lucifer transformed himself into the devil and Satan which means accuser. The beginning of the devil was not what God created in the beginning but was an artificial identity fabricated out of the matrix of delusions and the diseased imagination caused by Lucifer's abuse of his own gifts and capacities. Thus the beginning of the devil as a murderer was when Lucifer morphed himself into the devil, not by God's design of creation.

You were perfect in your ways from the day that you were created, until unrighteousness was found in you. (Ezekiel 28:15)

The devil and Satan began his existence when the original being Lucifer who was designed to bear only light, transformed himself into the great obscurer and distorter of light, truth and love. The devil identity is the by-product of the effect of indulged sin that grows an artificial identity through distortion and desertion of the original identity created by God. Artificial identity is a counterfeit of the true beings designed by God to live in constant love. Thus false identities are parasites grasping for scraps of life from original identities to maintain existence, yet denying their true identity because of lies circulated by Satan's version of reality. If this all seems confusing, it is because we are born into confusion about our own original identity and need to come into awareness of the truth about who we really are along with what our Creator is like who we are intended to reflect.

This dragon is the ultimate exploiter of weakness and vulnerability – the very attributes most necessary for true love and intimacy to exist and bond us to others in love. This is important to keep in mind if we are to understand better the deeper meaning of these symbols here in Revelation. The dragon stands before a woman – the weaker side of humanity – for the purpose of devouring her newborn baby – the weakest and most vulnerable stage of life fresh out of the womb. This makes explicitly plain the sadistic and diabolical disposition of Satan as ruthless, heartless and only intent on inflicting violence and death, particularly against anyone viewed as a threat to his own interests. This is an illustration of the true nature of evil that must be seen so we might be weaned from it.

The birth of Christ was of course not the only time when Satan stood with evil intent to work through human agents to viciously attack God's Son. Throughout the life of Jesus Satan repeatedly stood before Him attempting to block the light of God's love from sustaining Jesus and seeking to entice Him to indulge natural desires for relief in some way to escape the pain He had to endure.

The devil, leading him up on a high mountain, showed him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time. The devil said to him, "I will give you all this authority, and their glory, for it has been delivered to me; and I give it to whomever I want. If you therefore will worship before me, it will all be yours." Jesus answered him, "Get behind me Satan! For it is written, 'You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.'" (Luke 4:5-8)

To tell Satan to get behind Him exposes the fact that Satan was trying to stand before Him to interfere with His view of God as the only reliable Source of His identity and purpose. We face this same temptation repeatedly ourselves and need to learn from Jesus how to relate to this seductive lie about who we are and where our worth and identity comes from.

From that time, Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders, chief priests, and scribes, and be killed, and the third day be raised up.

Peter took him aside, and began to rebuke him, saying, "Far be it from you, Lord! This will never be done to you." But he turned, and said to Peter, "Get behind me, Satan! You are a stumbling block to me, for you are not setting your mind on the things of God, but on the things of men."

Then Jesus said to his disciples, "If anyone desires to come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me. For whoever desires to save his life will lose it, and whoever will lose his life for my sake will find it. (Matthew 16:21-25)

What did Jesus mean when He said we have to deny ourself to follow Him? What are we to deny? What is the stumbling block?

What are the things of God we need to keep our mind set on?

What are the things of men that block us from living in the freedom and power in which Jesus lived? In what way does the dragon stand before us to devour us as he wanted to do to Christ?

I believe this has everything to do with how we perceive our identity and who we look to for worth and purpose and status. Satan invented the idea that our worth can be affected by what we do or what we have or by influencing what others think about us. This is what he constantly sought to get Jesus to do and was the temptation thrust on Him in the words of Peter that Jesus strongly denied. Jesus was denying the false self identity that Satan was attempting to attach to Him in the same way He had just instructed us to do – deny our false identity of variable worth and cling to the truth of our real value based on how Christ defines us in Him.

Satan exploited the vulnerability of the woman separated from her man in Eden to gain access to entrap the man through her. This does not make the woman somehow inferior to a man but rather highlights the true nature of the evil heart of our enemy and our need to remain united in order to reflect God as we are designed to do. By blaming others, particularly women, Satan entices us to participate in his schemes to continually divide us to fight against one another instead of uniting in humility from the Spirit of God. Through fear of vulnerability and weakness, through shaming and blaming, it is we who lend our authority that keeps the dragon in power.

when she gave birth he might devour her child

Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, "Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him." When Herod the king heard it, he was troubled, and all Jerusalem with him.

Then Herod secretly called the wise men, and learned from them exactly what time the star appeared. He sent them to Bethlehem, and said, "Go and search diligently for the young child. When you have found him, bring me word, so that I also may come and worship him."

Being warned in a dream that they shouldn't return to Herod, they went back to their own country another way. Now when they had departed, behold, an angel of the Lord appeared to Joseph in a dream, saying, "Arise and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and stay there until I tell you, for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him."

Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked by the wise men, was exceedingly angry, and sent out, and killed all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all the surrounding countryside, from two years old and under, according to the exact time which he had learned from the wise men. (Matthew 2:1-3,7-8,12-13,16)

It is important to ponder how a pregnant woman and a helpless baby could elicit such an intense reaction in a being called a dragon. This speaks to the level of threat that the dragon feels in relation to this, for clearly these do not represent natural threats to a dragon but are symbols of weakness and vulnerability. Dragons are known for being the opposite of vulnerable, and this is reinforced in the description of the symbols of Satan in God's discourse with Job. The impervious scales and the display of vicious, intimidating power are meant to send a clear signal that these beings are the opposite of vulnerable and cannot be tamed. Yet the ultimate symbol of fearlessness is here apparently very agitated as he hovers in front of a woman in a weakened condition about to give birth, intent on eating her baby. We cannot ignore this glaring dissonance in this symbology.

Be sober and self-controlled. Be watchful. Your adversary the devil, walks around like a roaring lion, seeking whom he may devour. (1 Peter 5:8)

The thief only comes to steal, kill, and destroy. I came that they may have life, and may have it abundantly. (John 10:10)

The reason this war has dragged on so long is because all sympathy with the enemy must be eradicated before the universe can ever be safe for the meek to thrive again. We must be divested of all resonance with the lies of the enemy in order that the truth as revealed by Jesus, both about Satan's diabolical and sinister character as well as the pure truth exposing the nature of God's heart of passionate love devoid of any dark motives or Satan's principles of trading. This is the nature of God's salvation, for it is primarily God's reputation that is on trial and we are His witnesses. The misrepresentations about Him by the dragon must all be fully exposed and proven baseless before God's authority and honor can be restored. This is what it means to give God glory, for it must be seen clearly that God is not at all like the Devil and does not use any of Satan's methods or motives.

She gave birth to a son, a male child

Therefore the Lord himself will give you a sign. Behold, the virgin will conceive, and bear a son, and shall call his name Immanuel. (Isaiah 7:14)

Hear the word of Yahweh, you who tremble at his word: Your brothers who hate you, who cast you out for my name's sake, have said, Let Yahweh be glorified, that we may see your joy; but it is those who shall be disappointed.

A voice of tumult from the city, a voice from the temple, a voice of Yahweh that renders recompense to his enemies. Before she travailed, she brought forth; before her pain came, she was delivered of a boy. Who has heard such a thing? who has seen such things? Shall a land be born in one day? shall a nation be brought forth at once? for as soon as Zion travailed, she brought forth her children.

Shall I bring to the birth, and not cause to bring forth? says Yahweh: shall I who cause to bring forth shut the womb? says your God. (Isaiah 66:5-9)

She shall bring forth a son. You shall call his name Jesus, for it is he who shall save his people from their sins. (Matthew 1:21)

rule all the nations with a rod of iron

Refer to the notes for the study of Revelation 11:15 related to this phrase rule all the nations.

We unpacked this idea of ruling with a rod of iron in depth when we examined Revelation 2:27 some time ago. I will just bring this thought from that study which will come up again in chapter 19.

A rod can represent a scepter as a symbol of authority, or a shepherd's rod which is a tool for protection, correction and defense. Iron is not consumed by fire. Ruling with a rod of iron represents the inflexibility of the principle of cause and effect. The sure result of unrepentance is the erosion of life from the heart by sin that has been written with an iron pen Jeremiah 17:1.

Her child was caught up to God, and to his throne

After the three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered into them, and they stood on their feet. Great fear fell on those who saw them. I heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here!" They went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies saw them. (Revelation 11:11-12)

In the story of the literal Son born to Mary, the escape from being killed as a baby did not immediately involve ascension to heaven. We know that God instructed Joseph to take his family to Egypt where he lived for around 4 years to protect Jesus as a child. What seems clear is that this prophecy, and indeed this whole chapter and the next one, are broad summaries of the grand sweep of history about the war we are in. It is the main points of the war that are highlighted in order to sharpen our focus on what is most important.

While the life of the child Jesus was preserved by escaping to Egypt to avoid being killed by Herod, after living out a rather short life as a human here on earth, Jesus was in fact murdered by the dragon, unlike how this outline portrays. Of course we know that He was soon brought back to life, immune to death and then shortly later ascended to heaven. But how does this all fit in to the progression of this story and why does this prophecy skip over so much of that?

I believe that being caught up to heaven is as much symbolic as it was literal, especially in the mention of God's throne. Not only was Jesus brought back to heaven to function as the representative of all humanity to displace Satan from that role, but Jesus reassumed equal authority with the Father on His throne which is a bigger issue than simply having His life preserved or restored. This is the message of this entire book that begins in earnest in chapters 3 and 4 where the Lamb is seen to have earned His credibility by being killed. The Lamb is also the only One with the capacity to save God's reputation and government from the total onslaught of the enemy bent on undermining and ultimately displacing God's power and replacing it with one reflective of his own nature.

I want to address specifically an issue that troubles many that comes up here. At times it can seem a bit unfair that Jesus left us here on earth while He went to live apparently risk free in a safe place where joy and love are not threatened by evil like how we have to live here on earth. We sometimes may resent the idea that Jesus left us here and returned alone, even though He promised to return to pick us up later. Why did He have to leave anyway. This is a good question.

Jesus said to her, "Stop clinging to Me, for I have not yet ascended to the Father; but go to My brethren and say to them, 'I ascend to My Father and your Father, and My God and your God.'" (John 20:17 NAS95)

Do not let your hearts be troubled. Believe in God, believe also in me. In my Father's house there are many dwelling places. If it were not so, would I have told you that I go to prepare a place for you? And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come again and will take you to myself, so that where I am, there you may be also. (John 14:1-3 NRSV)

It is to your advantage that I go away, for if I don't go away, the Counselor won't come to you. But if I go, I will send him to you. (John 16:7)

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you. You will be witnesses to me in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the uttermost parts of the earth." When he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up, and a cloud received him out of their sight. (Acts 1:8-9)

There are many more references that could be given, but the main point I want draw from this is the concept of strategic advantage. The top general in charge of salvaging God's reputation could not organize and oversee the war as effectively while remaining on the ground, as important as it is to stay connected to each person involved. There are extremely important issues that must be addressed from a position of highest perspective where everything can readily be assessed instantly. The Son of God become the Son of Man is the only one strategically and uniquely positioned who can represent both God as well as those created to reflect Him here on earth. There are resources throughout the entire universe that need to be strategically coordinated for the purpose of wrapping up this conflict and bringing it to a final resolution, and only Jesus is qualified to do this successfully.

One more thought before I leave this caught up to heaven phrase. I believe it is no coincidence that while the Hero of Revelation is threatened at His most vulnerable condition (symbolized as a newborn baby), He is exalted above all, taken up into heaven. This is intentionally contrasted with what is coming just ahead in our study where we learn about the dragon being thrown down from that same position. The newborn is caught up to heaven while the dragon is going the opposite direction – opposites in every way, in disposition, character, methods, choices about how to relate to relative position and opposite direction of movement in the outcome from their choices. This is highlighted at the end of the opposite description of the disposition of Jesus found in Philippians 2 as contrasted with the disposition of the rebellious Lucifer found in Isaiah 14.

And being found in human form, he humbled himself, becoming obedient to death, yes, the death of the cross. Therefore God also highly exalted him, and gave to him the name which is above every name; that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those in heaven, those on earth, and those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. (Philippians 2:8-11)

Having then a great high priest, who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold tightly to our confession. For we don't have a high priest who can't be touched with the feeling of our infirmities, but one who has been in all points tempted like we are, yet without sin. Let us therefore draw near with boldness to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy, and may find grace for help in time of need. (Hebrews 4:14-16)

As high priest in heaven located at the right hand of all power and having full authority with God, Jesus can accomplish much more than He could begin to do were He to remain here on earth. This war is not about making people feel better who might blessed enough to be to get close to Jesus physically. This war involves a cosmic crisis that must be addressed effectively and permanently, for it targets the very fabric of God's design of government. This war of deception and slander undermining God's credibility can only be resolved through a full revelation of the light of truth, and this requires both time for principles to be matured so their true nature may be exposed, along with strategic use of all available resources so that the principles of truth may be laid out clearly in order that each individual may make an informed choice free of any intimidation or coercion by God.

Love, truth and freedom are all essential ingredients for the well being and happiness of the entire universe. These fundamental elements cannot be violated or suspended by God lest they be seen as less than reliable as the only safe foundation of all social order. This war is over whether or not freedom is even safe to defend for everyone; whether love is enough or something more is required to guard against societal collapse into chaos and anarchy, whether truth is valuable enough to defend and stand on its own without resorting to threats or force. This is the nature of the battle raging between the highest powers, and it involves every part of creation to one extent or another. It is this backstory that provides us needed perspective as each one of us is faced with choosing whom we will trust, believe, admire and choose to be reflected in our own lives, who is permitted to shape our character and destiny.