IMPORTANT! The Centerpiece of the Book.
“And there was war in heaven, Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war, and they did not prevail, and there was no longer a place found for them in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the serpent of old who is called the devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.” – Revelation 12 :7-9 (NASB)
The war in Heaven is described in military language: The Greek words: ‘polemos,’ ‘polemesai’ and ‘epolemesen’ in Revelation 12 normally describe armed conflict. But they can be used in figurative ways as well, to heighten the drama of quarrels and verbal disagreements (e.g. James 4:1). Upon closer examination, the war in heaven is more a war of words than a military event. There are 4 main pieces of evidence for this in Chapter 12.
First, the dragon sweeps 1/3rd of the stars down from heaven with his tail (Greek: oura). The tail is an Old Testament symbol for a prophet who teaches lies (Isa 9:15). Second, the dragon is defined in Revelation 12:9 as “that ancient serpent”, a clear reference to the lies about God spoken to Adam and Eve in the garden (Gen 3:1-6). Remember Jesus told us in John 8:44 that he was the “Father of lies.” Satan literally means slanderer.
Thirdly, the dragon/satan is cast out of heaven as the “accuser of the brethren” in Revelation 12:10. It is his accusing, slanderous words, rather than physical weapons, that result in his being cast out. Finally, the dragon/satan is overcome by “the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony” (Revelation 12:11).
So, the war in Revelation 12 is not a military battle; it is a war of words and ideas.Considering that we have, up until this point in the book, been dealing with symbolic and conceptual language, we can also be quite positive that just like the woman or the dragon, we are dealing with figures and symbols that represent ideas as well as realities that trigger responses in believers. The character of God is on display in this “theatre of the universe” as is the character of the protagonist.
The theatre of the universe expression comes from a literal translation of 1 Corinthians 4:9 which uses the Roman arena as an illustration. The NIV gets closest to the Greek when it translates the Greek phrase ‘theatron tov cosmo’, as “We have been made a spectacle to the whole universe, to angels as well as to human beings.” I’m sure you can see the English word we get from ‘theatron’ and the word we get from ‘cosmo.’ The takeaway for you is that something is being revealed to a watching universe. Did not Shakespeare say in the play As You Like It, “All the world’s a stage, and all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances; And one man in his time plays many parts…” Compare also Ephesians 3:9-12 which talks about the mystery being revealed to the principalities and powers in heavenly places.
The point is, while our lives may appear insignificant, according to scripture we have a part to play in the vindication of God’s character by demonstrating that we have a free will and that we can freely choose to follow God’s way or the devil’s way. There is no middle ground! Jesus said, “If you are not for me, you are against me.” (Matthew 12:30)
The fact that Revelation 12 is the physical and spiritual heart of the book (according to the chiastic structure) should tell us something significant about the narrative that has been unfolding as we read, and about that which is to come in the second half of the book.
Lucifer had stood in open revolt against God (Isaiah 14:12-15), and after being cast out of heaven, became the self-proclaimed ruler of this world after usurping Adam’s rule. By His death and resurrection, Jesus redeemed what was lost and satan’s true character was revealed before the universe. At the cross, lucifer demonstrated to a watching universe, that he would if he could, put God himself to death. In contrast the cross demonstrated the length to which God was willing to go to for this wayward planet.
Henceforth satan’s work was restricted. Revelation 4 and 5 described how before the watching cosmos, the rule over the earth was transferred back to Jesus, and He was proclaimed the legitimate sovereign. (Eph 1:20 – 22, Phil 2:9-11). Eventually, as this text in Philippians says, whether saved or lost, “Every knee shall bow” even satan himself!
Hi Ross. Thankyou so much for your studies in Rev. Really appreciated.
I’m struggling with there not being a literal struggle to “cast out” Lucifer and angels.
Was it like this:” We’re sorry Lucifer but you will have to leave now.”. “ Really, ok well we’ll be off then.”
This was a revolt. I can’t see them leaving unless they really have to.”There was war in Heaven.”
Blessings. Mike
Maybe you misunderstood me Mike. Of course there was a literal “casting out” when lucifer was banished to this planet. But the war was not with swords etc it was a war of ideologies in the sense that lucifer was a lier and slanderer (the meaning of the word satan) against the character of God.