Revelation 12 – the woman, the dragon and 1260 days

The Woman is national Israel, for the following reasons:

  1. She pre-exists the male child.
  2. She gives birth to the male child who will rule all nations.
  3. She has other offspring, who keep the testimony of Christ
  4. She is the mother of the child, not the bride.
  5. Jacob (Israel) had 12 sons who are listed as gates in heaven; Jacob and his wife were the sun and moon and his sons are the stars, as revealed to Joseph in a dream.1 The Church is never described in such fashion.

A basic summary of the chapter:

  1. Woman, clothed with the sun, moon under her feet, and a crown of 12 stars.1
  2. Woman gives birth, and the dragon (Satan (v.9)), tries to devour the child.
  3. The child is caught up to heaven.
  4. Woman flees into the desert to a place prepared where she is nourished for 1260 days.
  5. Satan is kicked out of heaven by Michael and his angels.
  6. Satan pursues the woman.
  7. Woman flees from Satan into the desert for times, time, and half a time (1260 “days”).
  8. Satan spews water out of his mouth to overwhelm the woman, but the earth rescues the woman.
  9. Satan goes to make war against the rest of her offspring – those who keep the commandments of God, and the testimony of Jesus.

Note that the description of the woman fleeing to the wilderness is given twice. It appears that this is merely a recasting of the persecution of the woman.

The woman is clearly Israel. The child is clearly Jesus. The Dragon is Satan (v.12).

The particular part we’re initially interested in is the attempted destruction of the Woman.

3 When the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach. 15 Then from his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river, to overtake the woman and sweep her away with the torrent. 16 But the earth helped the woman by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was enraged at the woman and went off to wage war against the rest of her offspring—those who keep God’s commands and hold fast their testimony about Jesus. – Revelation 12

  • Jews flee the land of Israel after having been persecuted by the Dragon for some time. (v.14). The Jews flee outside of the Dragon’s reach (the Dragon’s power is concentrated in a particular region at this time). (v.14).
  • Israel returns after 1260 years having fled the land (v.14).
  • Then the Dragon spews water like a river (continual flow of people cf. Rev 17:15) to overwhelm Israel (v.15). After the mid-late 1960s, as it was evident, that the wars against Israel were not succeeding, especially as the Western nations supported and protected Israel, particularly the USA, Satan went to wage war against those who keep the testimony of Jesus (Western Nations). (v.16)
  • Satan has since flooded the Christian nations with waters (people) who hate Christianity and to make war against them in their own nations. (v.17)

The woman fled the land of Israel after already being persecuted for an unknown period of time, and including the temple mount, leaving them desolate. The verse states that she will be given the wings of a great eagle. Many assume this to be the USA, however, God himself says of Israel fleeing Egypt “You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.2.” Thus, we can see that it is not required to have a practical fulfilment. God took Jews from Egypt to Israel on eagles’ wings, He can carry them to a place of safety in the same way.

Israel fleeing is likely to be connected to the Abomination of Desolation, (a) because the temple and land become desolated (abandoned), and (b) because Jesus says in Matthew 24 to flee when they see the Abomination of Desolation standing in the Holy Place. So for Israel to abandon the land and temple mount, there is a strong parallel at least with Daniel’s and Jesus’ prophecy, and a good chance that it is in fact the same event. Jesus statement in Luke 21 that Jerusalem would be trodden underfoot until the time of the Gentiles was completed, is also fulfilled.

They will be killed by the sword and be led captive into all the nations, and Jerusalem will be trampled by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled.

When Mark Twain visited Israel in 1867 and wrote: “The further we went the hotter the sun got, and the more rocky and bare, repulsive and dreary the landscape became…There was hardly a tree or a shrub any where. Even the olive and the cactus, those fast friends of a worthless soil, had almost deserted the country…Palestine is desolate and unlovely. And why should it be otherwise? Can the curse of the Deity beautify a land? Palestine is no more of this work-day world. It is sacred to poetry and tradition – it is dream-land.”

The persecution that followed the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa mosque is unparalleled in human history, both the duration and intensity.

I am of the view that the 1260 days are actually years for the following reasons:

  1. It follows Daniel’s prophecy of the Abomination of Desolation coming 1290 years after the daily sacrifices ceased3. Those were also described as days, but are in fact years. If the Woman abandons and leaves desolate as Jesus says, then this event fulfills the Abomination of Desolation, and the days here are likely to be correctly interpreted as years.
  2. It is 1260 solar-years between the start of the construction of the Dome of the Rock (AD688) and Israel’s return to the land in AD1948).
  3. It is 1260 yeas between the Al Aqsa mosque (AD 705) and Israel regaining control of Jerusalem.
  4. It is exactly 1260 360-day years from AD 705, when the Al Aqsa mosque was completed and Jews abandoned Israel, and November 1947, when the UN helped Israel and passed a resolution declaring Israel’s right to the land. Some will argue that east Jerusalem was still being trodden underfoot (which is not part of this prophecy), however if you take 1260 solar years, it ends in 1966, and in 1967, Jerusalem was liberated completely. Another fulfilled prophecy from Jesus.
  5. Jesus said after the Abomination of Desolation, a tribulation so great would come that its like was never found in the past and never found again. Islam persecuted Christians and Jews for 1260 years with such ferocity that its like was never seen even in Roman times.
  6. the logistics involved in having an entire nation flee for 3.5 literal years, is untennable, especially when combined with the persecution of the Sea Beast (Revelation 13) with a world dominating power.
  7. Many theologians in the past have concluded that these are 1260 years, not days45

It is worth noting that almost none of the time frames given in prophecies are literal times, so an interpretation requiring a literal interpretation will need to justify it. For those of you who believe that the Abomination of Desolation is the pig sacrificed by Titus in AD.70, I have written 3 chapters that for you to read (see table of contents).

After Jesus is caught up to Heaven, Rome harasses Jews significantly, but until the invasion of Islam, Jews were the majority in Israel and they were sacrificing on and off, on the temple mount. After the invasion of Israel and the construction of the Dome of the Rock and Al Aqsa mosque, Jews were prohibited from praying or sacrificing on the temple mount, and were persecuted by Mohammad’s followers and caused the Jews to flee to nations all over the earth.

After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1924, the land of Israel was given to England as a British Mandate – a protectorate until such time as locals could develop self-government. After numerous failed attempts at self-governance due to the squabbling between various groups, in November 1947, the “Earth” (the UN) recognised Israel’s historical right to the land, and Jews started to return home. They used the wealth earned in their host nations to buy land, swamps, & desert, and started to reform the land. The Islamic nations around Israel hated this and mounted war, after war, trying to overwhelm the fledgling nation. Israel was swamped with “immigrants” from neighbouring lands trying to cash-in on the growing economy. “Immigration” to spread Islam and overwhelm countries and communities is a tactic taught by Mohammad. Hijra is the time Mohammad and his followers moved from Mecca to Medina having been rejected from Mecca. It begins the process of moving a nation from Dar al-Harb to Dar al-Islam But Mohammad also taught that when they were few in number to not cause problems, only when they were over 10% of the population. Today, Imams actively encourage immigration to the West to spread Islam.

Take-away:

The 1260 days of Revelation 12, started with the Dome of the Rock/Al Aqsa mosque and the Jews fleeing to different parts of the world where the prospered, and ending when the “Earth” the UN, recognised Israel’s right to her homeland.

Satan tried to overwhelm the Jews in the years before the return, by Nazi’s and other similar groups, many nations deported their Jews when Israel was created. Satan again spewed wave after wave of “immigrants” and war at Israel trying to overwhelm the nation, but it did not succeed. From then the “immigrants” were redirected to “Christian” nations to overwhelm and destroy the testimony of Jesus Christ there.

One only has to google immigrant wave to be inundated with images. Below are cartoons, depicting the deluge of immigrants into the West. This has only happened into Europe after the mid-late 60s and accelerated ever since.

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  1. https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Gen+37%3A9-11&version=CSB
  2. Exodus 19:4
  3. See the explanation of the Abomination of Desolation
  4. https://endtim.es/1260-years-note-1/
  5. Historical support – https://endtim.es/1260-years-note-2-historical-support/