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An Exposition of Revelation 12
Chapter twelve of the book of Revelation has references to Genesis, Psalms, Daniel, and more. The opening verse appears to be a reference to Joseph's dream of Genesis 37. That would mean that the woman clothed with the sun, moon and stars represents the people of Israel. That this woman is Israel seems to be born out by the fact that verse 13 tells us that the dragon persecutes the woman which brought forth the man child. If this woman were meant to be Mary, the mother of Jesus, history has told us nothing of her persecution. However if this woman is Israel, we have ample historical evidence of the Hebrew people being persecuted in every age.
It is interesting how the Roman Catholic Church has adopted this verse discribbing a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars and have dogmatically asserted that this is Mary, and taking it a step further have dubbed her the Queen of Heaven. Biblelight.net has rightly pointed out that just as the Jews foresook God for the worship of Baal and Ashtaroth ( worshipping the sun and the queen of heaven) so Catholics have done the same by bowing down and kissing and crowning statues of their Mary, Queen of Heaven.
Verse three introduces the red dragon who draws a third of the stars to Earth. This dragon has seven heads and ten horns. In Daniel 7 there are also 7 heads and ten horns associated with the ungodly succession of world empires. Since the red dragon is obviously Satan, we can find more deatils about his fall in Isaiah 14 and Ezekiel 28.
Verse six brings in a familiar theme to prophecy students, 1260 days ( or 3.5 Jewish years ). This is repeated in verse fourteen, and expressed as, "for a time, and times, and half a time". The prophet Daniel used these same terms when dealing with the last days. This informs us of the seven year tribulation which is divided exactly at the center point by the Abomination of Desolation ( an event which was wonderfully foreshadowed by Antiochus Epiphanes ). God informs Daniel that after an extra 30 and 45 days more, "Blessed is he that waiteth, and cometh to the thousand three hundred and five and thirty days." (Dan 12:12).
Zola Levitt and HisSheep.org note that since the Hebrew calendar can be exactly divided in half, that it may be a reasonable guess that the Tribulation will begin during the fall feasts, the Abomination of Desolation would occur exactly 3.5 years latter during Passover, and the period will end again during the fall feasts 3.5 years from the Abomination of Desolation. Then the extra 30 and 45 days God informs Daniel of would bring us to the celebration of Hanukkah, or the rededication of the Temple ( how appropriate! ).
In times past a popular way to handle the 1260 days was to use the historicism method sometimes referred to as the "Year/Day Theory". Bible Scholar Tommy Ice notes that, "historicism would take numbers like the 1260 days (3 1/2 years) of Daniel and Revelation and postulate that each day represents one year, hence the "Year/Day" theory." This errant method of interpretation led to the 'Great Disappointment'. William Miller and his followers the Millerites figured they would count 1260 years from the time when Nebuchadnezzar profaned the Temple in Jerusalem to Christ's second coming. They expected 1843 or 1844 to be the year. Tommy Ice points out, "that year came and when, like any other year".
Answers.com points out that, "A distinct feature of Historicism, which makes it very controversial, is the identification of the Antichrist, the Beast, the Man of sin and the Whore of Babylon with the Roman Catholic Church, the Papal system and each successive Pope himself (a common position held by protestants in the reformation, which is not prevalent today)... One famous proponent of historicism, for whom eschatology informed on politics, is Ian Paisley, leader of the Democratic Unionist Party in Northern Ireland and Moderator of the Free Presbyterian Church of Ulster. Paisley's party is the largest in the region, and many believe that his political philosophy based on his eschatological view was one of the major exacerbations of the political violence that prevailed for so long." Ian Paisley seems to be militantly opposed to the view of a pre-tribulational view of the raptured church.
Chapter twelve goes on to show how the woman ( national Israel - the believers in Yeshua HaMeshiah, Jesus Christ as Messiah) of the last days flees to the wilderness for divine protection. Perhaps the Lord himself will lead them back to Jerusalem after the Battle of Armegeddon. This would explain the words found in Habakkuk that say, "God came from Teman, and the Holy One from mount Paran. Selah. His glory covered the heavens, and the earth was full of his praise." (Hab 3:3). Teman is near the Ancient Rock city of Petra, where many dispensational expositors believe the remnant will flee to.
Not all would agree with my interpretation of Revelation 12. Adam Clarke says of the twelve stars, that they are a, "very significant representation of the twelve apostles, who were the first founders of the Christian Church, and by whom the Gospel was preached in great part of the Roman empire with astonishing success."
Albert Barnes says of the woman, that she is a "representation of the church, under the image of a woman about to give birth to a child". Matthew Poole would agree, saying "she is the spouse of Christ".
Despite debate on various interpretations a few thing are certain. God tells us through Daniel, that in the end times knowledge will increase and God further informs us via John and the Revelation that there is a blessing for those who read and study the book of Revelation. "Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand." (Rev 1:3). Indeed, the time is at hand.
Sources...
1- Jamieson, Fausset, and Brown Commentary ( OLB Software )
2- Notes on the New Testament by Albert Barnes ( OLB Software )
3- Commentary on the Bible by Adam Clarke ( OLB Software )
4- Annotations upon the Holy Bible by Matthew Poole ( OLB Software )
5- Answers.com
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Historicism_(Christian_eschatology)
6- HisSheep.org
http://www.hissheep.org/hebrew/hanukkah_-_the_feast_of_lights.html
7- Sermoncentral.com
http://www.sermoncentral.com/sermon.asp?SermonID=42932&ContributorID=3883
8- Biblelight.net
http://www.aloha.net/~mikesch/sunburst.htm
9- OLB Software - The OnLine Bible Software Deluxe Package
http://www.online-bible.com/maconlinebible.html
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