The Woman, the Child, and the Dragon

12 A great sign[a] appeared in heaven:(A) a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head.(B) She was pregnant and cried out in labor and agony as she was about to give birth.(C) Then another sign[b] appeared in heaven: There was a great fiery red dragon(D) having seven heads and ten horns,(E) and on its heads were seven crowns.[c] Its tail swept away a third of the stars in heaven and hurled them to the earth.(F) And the dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she did give birth it might devour her child.(G) She gave birth to a Son, a male who is going to rule[d] all nations with an iron rod.(H) Her child was caught up to God and to his throne. The woman fled into the wilderness, where she had a place prepared by God,(I) to be nourished there[e] for 1,260 days.(J)

The Dragon Thrown Out of Heaven

Then war broke out in heaven: Michael(K) and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels also fought, but he could not prevail,(L) and there was no place for them in heaven any longer.(M) So the great dragon was thrown out—the ancient serpent,(N) who is called the devil and Satan,(O) the one who deceives the whole world.(P) He was thrown to earth, and his angels with him.(Q) 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say,

The salvation and the power
and the kingdom of our God
and the authority of his Christ
have now come,(R)
because the accuser(S) of our brothers and sisters,
who accuses them
before our God day and night,
has been thrown down.
11 They conquered him
by the blood of the Lamb(T)
and by the word of their testimony;(U)
for they did not love their lives
to the point of death.(V)
12 Therefore rejoice, you heavens,
and you who dwell in them!(W)
Woe to the earth and the sea,
because the devil has come down to you
with great fury,
because he knows his time is short.

The Woman Persecuted

13 When the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he persecuted[f] the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 The woman was given two wings of a great eagle,(X) so that she could fly from the serpent’s presence to her place in the wilderness, where she was nourished for a time, times, and half a time.(Y) 15 From his mouth the serpent spewed water like a river flowing after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. 16 But the earth helped the woman. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the river that the dragon had spewed from his mouth. 17 So the dragon was furious with the woman and went off to wage war(Z) against the rest of her offspring[g](AA)—those who keep the commands of God(AB) and hold firmly to the testimony about Jesus.(AC)

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Footnotes

  1. 12:1 Or great symbolic display; see Rv 12:3
  2. 12:3 Or another symbolic display
  3. 12:3 Or diadems
  4. 12:5 Or shepherd
  5. 12:6 Or God, that they might feed her there
  6. 12:13 Or pursued
  7. 12:17 Or seed

A woman, her child, and the dragon

12 Then a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant, and she cried out because she was in labor, in pain from giving birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: it was a great fiery red dragon, with seven heads and ten horns, and seven royal crowns on his heads. His tail swept down a third of heaven’s stars and threw them to the earth. The dragon stood in front of the woman who was about to give birth so that when she gave birth, he might devour her child. She gave birth to a son, a male child who is to rule all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was snatched up to God and his throne. Then the woman fled into the desert, where God has prepared a place for her. There she will be taken care of for one thousand two hundred sixty days.

Michael and the dragon

Then there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought back, but they did not prevail, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. So the great dragon was thrown down. The old snake, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world, was thrown down to the earth; and his angels were thrown down with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say,

“Now the salvation and power and kingdom of our God,
        and the authority of his Christ have come.
The accuser of our brothers and sisters,
        who accuses them day and night before our God,
        has been thrown down.
11 They gained the victory over him on account of the blood of the Lamb
        and the word of their witness.
Love for their own lives didn’t make them afraid to die.
12 Therefore, rejoice, you heavens and you who dwell in them.
But oh! The horror for the earth and sea!
        The devil has come down to you with great rage,
            for he knows that he only has a short time.”

The dragon pursues the woman

13 When the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he chased the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she could fly to her place in the desert. There she would be taken care of—out of the snake’s reach—for a time and times and half a time. 15 Then from his mouth the snake poured a river of water after the woman so that the river would sweep her away. 16 But the earth helped the woman. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon poured out of his mouth. 17 So the dragon was furious with the woman, and he went off to make war on the rest of her children, on those who keep God’s commandments and hold firmly to the witness of Jesus.

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