Verses 1 - 2
"...a great wonder in heaven..."
John sees here a wonderful and marvellous sight in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, having the moon under her feet and a crown (garland) of twelve stars upon her head.
"...crown of twelve stars..."
As mentioned earlier in this study (Chapter 6) there are only three place in all of the New Testament where the word "crown" refers to the headdress of royalty. All other references to crowns are to an honorary headdress (garland) given to those who are victorious against their competitors or adversaries.
It has also been previously stated that public games, such as the Olympics, are an example of the type of honor which was conferred upon those who exemplify excellence in their area of testing. In modern times the Gold Medal is seen as the prize to strive for in the Olympics. In Biblical days, the garland was the much sought after symbol of excellence.
The crown of twelve stars worn by this woman is likened unto one of those garlands of victory, and should not be seen here as the headdress of royalty. Those who were deemed worthy to wear such garlands were held in high esteem, and as such were lifted up to an exhalted position.
This appears to be what is being portrayed here, with the woman pictured as being in heaven. It's not that she is physically in the heavens, but that she has received an elevated status from heaven itself; giving her a position above all of her earthly peers. She is lifted up symbolically. As we get further into this chapter it will become clear that the woman is, in a literal sense, living on the earth.
The woman pictured in this verse is the first of three women mentioned in the Book of Revelation. The others are found in chapters {17:18} and {21:9-10}.
There are a number of opinions as to who, or what the woman of this chapter represents.
Some believe the segment presented here, shows the woman to be Mary, with the man child representing Jesus. This appears to be based on the account of the birth of Jesus, and Herod's subsequent attempt to destroy Him (Matt. chapter 2).
The events depicted there however, appear to be a prophetic foreshadow of what is to transpire during the tribulation period, as portrayed here in the Book of Revelation. An initial attempt to destroy the man child (Jesus) will be followed by an attempt to destroy the other children of Bethlehem (Israel). So it is that we also see in Rev. 12. First there is an attempt to destroy the man child. Being unsuccessful in this, Satan next turns his wrath upon the remnant of the woman's seed (verse 17).
One of the problems with the above view point is that Jesus, Mary and Joseph fled into Egypt together to escape Herod's wrath. Here in Chapter 12, the child alone is being caught up to heaven. Also, if we take the woman here, in the literal sense, to be Mary, we are also forced to take the dragon mention in this chapter to be literal, as well. We are clearly told however, that the dragon of this chapter represents Satan. We know, from this, that we are dealing with symbolic terms here.
The Roman Catholic Church often depicts, in its art work, the scene of this woman clothed with the sun, as though it was literal. She is seen as the Virgin Mary, wearing a crown as the Queen of Heaven, and holding the Christ Child in her arms. This view seems to be little bit out of line, given the fact, that they view the entire Book of Revelation as allegorical (totally figurative in its presentation).
That view point came into prominence in the church through the writings of Saint Augustine in the 5th century. There is no belief, in the Catholic Church, that Jesus is destined to rule this world for a thousand years {Rev. 20:4}. The declared position of the Roman Catholic Church is that when Jesus does returns; the world as we know it will be judged, and then come to a fiery end. This is the Amillennial (no Millennium) view point. Those who adhere to the thousand years reign of Jesus, followed by a fiery judgment of the world, are referred to as Premillenial Christians.
Still others view the woman as representing Israel, with the man child constituting the church, which was born in that nation; and which is destined to be caught up to heaven to rule with Jesus. This child however, is caught up just prior to the mid-point of the tribulation period. Other evidence indicates that the church will be caught up before the tribulation period begins, not at the mid-point.
Given the fact that the other two women of the Book of Revelation are representative of great cities (Babylon and new Jerusalem), it seems more probable that the woman of chapter 12 also represent such an entity. Biblically speaking, the prime candidate for that honor would be have to be earthly Jerusalem. As we continue through this study, we shall see that her anti-type will be one of the other two women: Babylon the Great (17:5,18).
The woman of chapter 12 (earthly Jerusalem), becomes the faithful one, true to the King of Heaven. Her counterpart, Babylon, on the other hand, is the great prostitute, who gives herself to the many kings of the earth. She will be destroyed near the end of the tribulation period. Earthly Jerusalem, on the other hand, will ultimately be snatched out of the hands of the Antichrist, in the midst of the Battle of Armageddon.
Earthly Jerusalem will continue its existence through the millennial reign of Christ {Luke 1:32 ; Rev. 20:4}. After that, it will be incinerated with the earth and heavenly elements, {Rev. 20:7-9 ; II Peter. 2:10} and pass away as God brings forth a new heaven and earth. Earthly Jerusalem will be replaced by the new eternal Jerusalem, which will then descend out of heaven to its place on the new earth {Rev. 21:1} .
"...moon under her feet..."
It is with this phrase that we are given understanding of the reason this woman is seen wearing the garland of victory upon her head. What exactly has she prevailed over?
The moon here appears to represent the ruler of darkness {Gen. 1:16}. The primary sin of the entire Book of Revelation is idolatry. This is portrayed most clearly in the worship of the image of the beast, as well as, the worship of the materialism of Babylon. It may also point back to the measuring of the temple in chapter 11 to see who is worthy to receive the garland of victory, which is seen upon the head of the woman in this chapter.
In that the moon is shown here as being under her feet; seems to signify that she has put the perverted ways of the ruler of darkness (Satan) away from herself. No matter how far she has strayed in the past, Satan has been unsuccessful in getting her to forsake the God of Israel and turn to him. She has gotten victory over his wiles and the deception, and as such, has been given to wear the garland of victory {REVIEW}. The garland which she wears represents a unified Israel, and the twelve stars in it, are representative of the twelve tribes which make up that unity.
In a sense, Jerusalem is the mother of all the Jewish people. In Matt. 23:37 Jesus said," ...O Jerusalem, Jerusalem,... how often I would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chicks under her wings, and ye would not!"
Now God has sent His two witnesses (Chapter 11), and she has finally received their testimony. In doing so, she has received what is necessary to prevailed over the Prince of Darkness.
"...woman clothed with the sun..."
The light radiating from the woman is probably being emitted by the holy child within her, of which she is about to give birth (verse 2).
As stated above, many believe that the child spoken of here is Jesus, and point to Herod's attempt to destroy Him (Matt. 2:7-18) as the literal fulfillment of this. The fact that Jesus is also to rule the nations with a "rod of iron" {Ps. 2:7-9 ; Rev 19:15}, is another point used to support this view. We will now look at a couple of strong reasons why this may not be the correct interpretation for this passage.
Firstly, the man child of chapter 12 ascends up to heaven once. Jesus, on the other hand, ascended to heaven twice: once before appearing to the disciples {John 20:17} ; and then after appearing to them {Acts 1:9}.
In Matt. 28, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary encountered an angel at the tomb, who told them Jesus was not there, but had risen from the grave. They were then told to go tell the disciples this news. As they ran from the tomb, Mary Magdalene presumably in the lead, they met Jesus. Scripture says that Mary Magdalene was the first to see him (Mark 16:9). As they both came to Him, they fell down and held Him by the feet (verse 9).
In John 20:17, Jesus told Mary Magdalene,
"...Touch me not, for I am not yet ascended to my Father: but go to my brethern, and say to them, I ascend unto my Father, and your Father; and to my God, and your God.".
This was said to her because He was then acting in the role of the priest, who was carrying the sacrificial blood of the Passover Lamb (His own blood).
At some point, after this encounter, Jesus ascended to heaven and applied his own blood to the altar of sacrifice which is located there, to finally wash away (not cover) the sins of those who would trust in Him.
Later, on the same day, He appeared to some of the disciples. A week later He appeared again, and "doubting Thomas" was allowed to touch the nail prints in His hands and feel the spear wound in His side (John 20:19-27).
Secondly, we see in Acts chapter 1, with all the faithful assembled together, Jesus ascends to heaven. When He ascended, He did so as a conquering prince {Col. 2:15} ; {Eph. 4:8}; not as a child needing the protection of the archangel Michael and his army. Remember that the Dragon stood before the woman to devour her child as soon as it was born. Here we see the reason for the arrival of Michael and his army.
While it is true that Jesus will rule the nations with a rod of iron, He stated in {Rev. 2:26-27} that those who overcome the world, would also rule with a rod of iron.
