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

The Woman and the Dragon

12 Then I witnessed in heaven an event of great significance. I saw a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon beneath her feet, and a crown of twelve stars on her head. She was pregnant, and she cried out because of her labor pains and the agony of giving birth.

Then I witnessed in heaven another significant event. I saw a large red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns on his heads. His tail swept away one-third of the stars in the sky, and he threw them to the earth. He stood in front of the woman as she was about to give birth, ready to devour her baby as soon as it was born.

She gave birth to a son who was to rule all nations with an iron rod. And her child was snatched away from the dragon and was caught up to God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where God had prepared a place to care for her for 1,260 days.

Then there was war in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon and his angels. And the dragon lost the battle, and he and his angels were forced out of heaven. This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.

10 Then I heard a loud voice shouting across the heavens,

“It has come at last—
    salvation and power
and the Kingdom of our God,
    and the authority of his Christ.[a]
For the accuser of our brothers and sisters[b]
    has been thrown down to earth—
the one who accuses them
    before our God day and night.
11 And they have defeated him by the blood of the Lamb
    and by their testimony.
And they did not love their lives so much
    that they were afraid to die.
12 Therefore, rejoice, O heavens!
    And you who live in the heavens, rejoice!
But terror will come on the earth and the sea,
    for the devil has come down to you in great anger,
    knowing that he has little time.”

13 When the dragon realized that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 But she was given two wings like those of a great eagle so she could fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness. There she would be cared for and protected from the dragon[c] for a time, times, and half a time.

15 Then the dragon tried to drown the woman with a flood of water that flowed from his mouth. 16 But the earth helped her by opening its mouth and swallowing the river that gushed out from the mouth of the dragon. 17 And the dragon was angry at the woman and declared war against the rest of her children—all who keep God’s commandments and maintain their testimony for Jesus.

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Footnotes

  1. 12:10a Or his Messiah.
  2. 12:10b Greek brothers.
  3. 12:14 Greek the serpent; also in 12:15. See 12:9.