The Man Child of Revelation 12 --- Who is He?
The church must correctly
identify the man child (male child) of Revelation 12 in order to correctly
identify her end-times destiny and role in God’s plan to restore His
creation. Although many believe the
birth of the man child is a sign of Jesus as an individual birthed 2000 years
ago, there is much to suggest that he is a sign of Jesus --- not as an
individual --- but as a portion of His corporate body birthed 3-1/2 years
before the very end of the age.
If he is Jesus as an
individual, that means one thing. But
if he is a portion of the church --- in the form of the corporate body of
Christ --- then we need to understand what that means for those of us who make
up the body of Christ and who are alive at the end of the age. For without that
understanding and vision, the church will be unaware of and unprepared for her
glorious end-time calling.
1 A great sign appeared in heaven: a
woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and on her head a
crown of twelve stars;
2 and she was with child; and she cried out, being
in labor and in pain to give birth.
3 Then another sign appeared in heaven: and behold,
a great red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were
seven diadems.
4 And his tail swept away a third of the stars of
heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who
was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child.
5 And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who
is to rule all the nations with a rod of iron; and her child was caught
up to God and to His throne.
6 Then the woman fled into the wilderness where
she had a place prepared by God, so that there she would be nourished for one
thousand two hundred and sixty days.
7 And there was war in heaven, Michael and his
angels waging war with the dragon. The dragon and his angels waged war,
8 and they were not strong enough, and there was
no longer a place found for them in heaven.
9 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.
10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven, saying,
"Now the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God and the
authority of His Christ have come, for the accuser of our brethren has been
thrown down, he who accuses them before our God day and night.
11 "And they overcame him because of the blood
of the Lamb and because of the word of their testimony, and they did not love
their life even when faced with death.
12 "For this reason, rejoice, O heavens and
you who dwell in them. Woe to the earth and the sea, because the devil has come
down to you, having great wrath, knowing that he has only a short time."
13 And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down
to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child.
14 But the two wings of the great eagle were given
to the woman, so that she could fly into the wilderness to her place, where she
was nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of
the serpent.
15 And the serpent poured water like a river out of
his mouth after the woman, so that he might cause her to be swept away with the
flood.
16 But the earth helped the woman, and the earth
opened its mouth and drank up the river which the dragon poured out of his
mouth.
17 So the dragon was enraged with the woman, and
went off to make war with the rest of her children, who keep the commandments
of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus.
(Revelation 12:1-17 NASB)
There are four main
individuals or people groups in this great sign: the woman, the man child, a
great red dragon, and the “rest of her children”. The dragon is identified for us in verse 9 as Satan. The “rest of her children” are identified in
verse 17 as Christians, because they keep the commandments of God and hold to
the testimony of Jesus. The woman is
harder to identify, but she fits the description of those Israelites blinded
for the sake of the Gentiles until the fullness of the Gentiles comes in at
which time she will be grafted back in.
That is why she (they) must be protected for 3-1/2 years so she (they)
can survive to the end of the age.
Revelation 12:8 explains
that there was no longer any place in heaven found for Satan. In other words, something had just happened
which changed his position of authority.
What happened? The man child had
just been caught up to heaven. There
followed a great war in heaven, and as a result Satan was thrown down to
earth. It would seem that Satan being
thrown down to earth is a direct result of the man child being caught up to God
and to His throne. The phrase
“to His throne” implies that the man child has assumed a position of authority
in heaven. This suggests that the
spiritual authority for throwing Satan out of heaven to earth has been
delegated to the man child. And that is
consistent with the authority that Jesus has given His church.
Jesus Authorizes the Church
Let’s
begin by considering the authority that Jesus has given His church.
17 The
seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to
us in Your name."
18 And He said to them,
"I was watching Satan fall from heaven like lightning.
19 "Behold, I have
given you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the
power of the enemy, and nothing will injure you. (Luke 10:17-19 NASB)
18
"I also say to you that
you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of
Hades will not overpower it.
19 "I will give you the keys of the kingdom of
heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and
whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven." (Matthew 16:18-19 NASB)
Jesus can delegate
authority to whomever He wants, since He has all authority on heaven and earth
(Matthew 28:18). He has chosen to apply
His authority over Satan through His corporate body. Jesus living in and through His people is a great and wonderful
mystery. The crux of it is that it’s
still Jesus doing the work, but He is doing it through His body of saints. And if we refer to Ephesians 3:8-12, we see
that it is through the church that God desires to demonstrate His
manifold wisdom, which is His eternal purpose in Christ Jesus and the reason He
created all things. So although He has
delegated authority to His church, it is still Jesus doing the work, for He
says, “Without Me you can do nothing.”
Luke 10:19 indicates that
Jesus has delegated all authority over the devil to His church. Jesus is now sitting at the right hand of
the Father waiting until His enemies be put under His feet. In other words, He is waiting for the church
to step into the authority that He has given her. And He’s not going to take that authority back because the church
has been slow to rise to the occasion.
Jesus came to earth and did what He came to do, and now it is the
church’s turn to do what she has been called and delegated to do. This is the great testimony of the book of
Revelation. The man child has authority
to eject Satan from heaven to earth.
The saints on earth then overcome Satan by the blood of the Lamb, the
word of their testimony, and by not loving their lives unto death.
When the disciples
returned after their first successful missionary venture, Jesus rejoiced
greatly in the Holy Spirit, and He saw Satan fall like lightning from
heaven. It was the first successful
test of their delegated authority. And
the test was satisfactory. And I
believe that’s why Jesus rejoiced. He
knew it was the Father’s plan to defeat Satan through the church, and Jesus
came to put the Father’s plan into motion.
But did that fall take place 2000 years ago, or did He see a vision of
something that would happen in the future in the same way John saw the future
events of Revelation? Did He and John
both see that event which would eventually take place in Revelation 12:9 at the
beginning of the final 3-1/2 years of the age?
When does Satan
Fall?
We are constrained to
understand the “time, times and half a time” referred to in Revelation as a
literal 3-1/2 years, as it is identified as equivalent terms of 42 months and
1260 days. At the beginning of this final
3-1/2 years of the age, the man child is birthed and caught up to heaven. He is birthed following increasingly intense
events which Jesus describes in the gospels as “birth pains.” If there are birth pains associated with the
end times, then there will be a birth.
Who or what is being born? It is
obvious from a overall view of the book of Revelation that the man child and
the glorified saints are the product of this birthing. The church is birthed in splendor as a bride
without spot or wrinkle.
There are a number of
clues that indicate his birth is at this 3-1/2 year point before the very end
of the age. The famines, earthquakes,
wars, and the persecution that Jesus describes as birth pains are events commonly
associated with tribulation and/or great tribulation. The birth pains that Jesus describes did not take place 2000
years ago. They take place near the
very end of the age. After the birth,
the woman goes off into the wilderness to be protected for 3-1/2 years. Satan is then cast down from heaven to
earth, and we know from other scriptures he then indwells the antichrist who is
immediately revealed at this 3-1/2 year point.
Jesus takes us back to the book of Daniel to point this out in Matthew
24:15.
There is a crisis of
intense events that takes place at this 3-1/2 year point. These last 3-1/2 years represent perhaps the
greatest time of testimony on the earth except for the time when Jesus walked
the earth 2000 years ago. We remember
the prophecy of Elijah when as a result it did not rain for 3-1/2 years. Scholars believe Jesus’ time of public
ministry was also 3-1/2 years. The two
witnesses of Revelation 11 testify for 1260 days, or exactly 3-1/2 years. This last 3-1/2 years of the age will be an
awesome testimony --- the final testimony before Jesus returns. Therefore the book of Revelation covers it
repeatedly and thoroughly. It is the
final lap of the race the church has been running for 2000 years, and it is the
most crucial. It is described in detail
that we might understand. One of
Satan’s ploys is to try to convince the church that she is not in view in these
scriptures.
Approximately two-thirds
of the book of Revelation is devoted to the last 3-1/2 years of the age ---
from about the middle of chapter 6 unto the early part of chapter 20. This is an indication of the importance of
what takes place during this brief period of time. The whole plan of God to restore His creation is brought to
fruition. Satan is defeated. The church is brought to maturity and glory.
The Man Child . . . Why?
19 For
the anxious longing of the creation waits eagerly for the revealing of the sons
of God.
20 For the creation was subjected to futility, not
willingly, but because of Him who subjected it, in hope
21 that the creation itself also will be set free
from its slavery to corruption into the freedom of the glory of the children of
God.
22 For we
know that the whole creation groans and suffers the pains of childbirth
together until now. (Romans 8:19-22
NASB)
All creation is eagerly
awaiting the revealing of the sons of God, for it is the sons of God who will
set in final motion the defeat of Satan and the restoration of all
creation. If this seems like excess,
remember that it is all God’s plan. He
will glorify Himself through His church.
It’s not that we in ourselves are significant in stature, it’s that He
has elected to work through the weak and foolish. It pleases God to do things that way, and whatever pleases God
pleases the Son.
21 At
that very time He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit, and said, "I praise
You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth, that You have hidden these things from
the wise and intelligent and have revealed them to infants. Yes, Father, for
this way was well-pleasing in Your sight.
(Luke 10:21 NASB)
26 For consider your calling, brethren, that
there were not many wise according to the flesh, not many mighty, not many
noble;
27 but God has chosen the foolish things of the
world to shame the wise, and God has chosen the weak things of the world to
shame the things which are strong,
28 and the base things of the world and the
despised God has chosen, the things that are not, so that He may nullify the
things that are,
29 so that no man may boast before God. (1 Corinthians 1:26-29 NASB)
Characteristics of the Man Child
I believe that Revelation
Chapters 11, 12, 13, and 14 are all repeated looks at the final 3-1/2 years
from different perspectives. At the
beginning of Revelation 14, we see a company of 144,000 in heaven. I believe this is another look at the man
child of Revelation 12 after he has been caught up to heaven.
1
Then I looked, and behold, the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him
one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father
written on their foreheads.
2 And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound
of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard
was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps.
3 And they sang a new song before the throne and
before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the
song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from
the earth.
4 These are the ones who have not been defiled with
women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the
Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits
to God and to the Lamb.
5 And no lie was found in their mouth; they are
blameless. (Revelation 14:1-5 NASB)
We need to carefully and
prayerfully consider the description of this company. They are blameless without lie in their mouths. They are chaste. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God
and to the Lamb. They have applied the
promises of God as described in 2 Peter 1:3-4 to their lives and have purified
themselves. They have taken to heart
God’s commandment to “Be holy, for I am holy.”
They are seen in heaven
before the great tribulation begins.
There is nothing that these saints needed to repent of. They are blameless. They had already washed their robes and made
them white in the blood of the Lamb before the onset of great tribulation. They are contrasted with those of the church
at Thyatira who were given opportunity to repent, but did not want to, and as a
consequence will find themselves thrown into great tribulation. And during this time all those of the
churches will find their hearts and minds searched and will receive according
to their deeds. Notice that the man
child of Revelation 12 and the overcoming saints of the church at Thyatira are
both promised to rule the nations with rods of iron. The man-child company is clearly a portion of the overcoming
church.
21 'I gave her time to repent, and she
does not want to repent of her immorality.
22 'Behold, I will throw her on a bed of sickness,
and those who commit adultery with her into great tribulation, unless they
repent of her deeds.
23 'And I will kill her children with pestilence, and
all the churches will know that I am He who searches the minds and hearts; and
I will give to each one of you according to your deeds.
24 'But I say to you, the rest who are in Thyatira,
who do not hold this teaching, who have not known the deep things of Satan, as
they call them--I place no other burden on you.
25 'Nevertheless what you have, hold fast until I
come.
26 'He who overcomes, and he who keeps My deeds
until the end, TO HIM I WILL GIVE AUTHORITY OVER THE NATIONS;
27 AND HE SHALL RULE THEM WITH A ROD OF IRON,
AS THE VESSELS OF THE POTTER ARE BROKEN TO PIECES, as I also have received
authority from My Father; (Revelation
2:21-27 NASB)
The difference between
those who achieve man-child status and those who do not and are thrown into
great tribulation may simply be a matter of taking or not taking verse 21 to
heart: “I gave her time to repent, and she does not want to repent of her
immorality.” It seems clear that there
is no victory over Satan short of achieving holiness. As long as he has something in us, we will be compromised and
there will be no victory. We will not
be a bride without spot or wrinkle.
There is still time ---
as of this writing --- to make this decision.
The whole church does not do so.
For the man child is only the first fruits of the final harvest which
takes place at the end of Revelation 14.
Those who are not first fruits must go through great tribulation to the
extent needed to wash their robes and make them white in the blood of the
Lamb. It seems we have the choice to
purify ourselves now and avoid the need to be purified during great
tribulation.
31 But if we judged ourselves rightly, we would
not be judged.
32 But when we are judged, we are disciplined by
the Lord so that we will not be condemned along with the world. (1 Corinthians 11:31-32 NASB)
The Lord only
disciplines those He loves --- if necessary.
6
In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if
necessary, you have been distressed by various trials,
7 so that the proof of your faith, being more
precious than gold which is perishable, even though tested by fire, may be
found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus
Christ; (1 Peter 1:6-7 NASB)
Consequently
--- if necessary --- we will find ourselves entering great tribulation because
God loves us and insists that we be found without spot or wrinkle when Jesus
returns.
13 Then one of the elders answered, saying to
me, "These who are clothed in the white robes, who are they, and where
have they come from?"
14 I said to him, "My lord, you know."
And he said to me, "These are the ones who come out of the great
tribulation, and they have washed their robes and made them white in the blood
of the Lamb.
15 "For this reason, they are before
the throne of God; and they serve Him day and night in His temple; and He who
sits on the throne will spread His tabernacle over them. (Revelation 7:13-15)
Notice that these ones
are before the throne, whereas those of the man-child company were
caught up to the throne.
Discipline . . .
The Lord is increasing
His discipline in these days that we might turn from our sins and our old ways
of thinking to be filled with the fullness of Christ and to assume our
responsibilities as ambassadors of the Kingdom of God in power. If the kind messenger is not heeded, then a
harsh one will be sent, for God will have His church without spot or wrinkle. He is both kind and severe. To the extent we are not walking in holiness,
the enemy will have access to our families, our property, our health, our
finances, and our minds. When I fall
short now in my striving against sin --- which is sometimes far too casual ---
I pay a price. The principles of great
tribulation are already here. To the
extent we choose not to deal with our sins, we will be thrown into situations
where the enemy has access to us. God
is turning up the heat. The time is short.
We must make a choice.
Father, open our eyes
that we might see these things as You would have us see them. Discipline us as sons and daughters that we
might rise to this call on the wings of Your mercy and grace. Prompt us to repentance as necessary that we
might quality as first fruits of Your harvest and that we might wash our robes
and make them white now, if possible, before the fires of great
tribulation. But if that fire should be
needed, then give us strength to endure to the end, that we might glorify You
in the process, and that we might ultimately stand before You and hear the
words, “Well done, good and faithful
servants.”
For more written and
audio material along this line, readers are invited to visit the parent website
at http://www.restoringthevision.com
where an on-line book “Restoring the Vision of the End-times Church” and
other articles are freely available for download or reading on-line.