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The Woman and the Dragon

12 A great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was with child and cried out in labor and in pain to give birth. Then another sign appeared in heaven: There was a great red dragon with seven heads and ten horns, and seven diadems on his heads. His tail drew a third of the stars of heaven, and threw them to the earth. The dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as He was born. She gave birth to a male Child, “who was to rule all nations with an iron scepter.”[a] And her Child was caught up to God and to His throne. The woman fled into the wilderness where she has a place prepared by God, that they may nourish her there for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.

Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought, but they did not prevail, nor was there a place for them in heaven any longer. The great dragon was cast out, that ancient serpent called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world. He was cast down to the earth, and his angels were cast 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 brothers,
    who accused them before our God day and night,
    has been cast down.
11 They overcame him
    by the blood of the Lamb
    and by the word of their testimony,
and they loved not their lives
    unto the death.
12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens,
    and you who dwell in them!
Woe unto the inhabitants of the earth and the sea!
    For the devil has come down to you in great wrath,
    because he knows that his time is short.”

13 When the dragon saw that he was cast down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child. 14 The woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is to be nourished for a time and times and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. 15 Then the serpent spewed water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood. 16 But the earth helped the woman. The earth opened its mouth and swallowed the flood which the dragon spewed out of his mouth. 17 Then the dragon was angry with the woman, and he went to wage war with the remnant of her offspring, who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

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The Woman and Her Son Versus the Dragon

12 And a great sign appeared in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun and with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars, and who was pregnant[a] and was crying out because she[b] was having birth pains, and was in torment to give birth. And another sign appeared in heaven, and behold, a great fiery red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and on his heads were seven royal headbands.[c] And his tail swept away a third of the stars from heaven and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, in order that whenever she gave birth to her child he could devour it. And she gave birth to a son, a male child, who is going to shepherd all the nations with an iron rod,[d] and her child was snatched away to God and to his throne. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she had a place prepared there by God, so that they could feed her there for one thousand two hundred sixty days.

Satan Thrown Down from Heaven to Earth

And there was war in heaven; Michael and his angels fought against[e] the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back[f]. And they did not prevail, nor was a place found for them any longer in heaven. And the great dragon was thrown down, the ancient serpent, 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 And 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,
because the accuser of our brothers has been thrown down,
    the one who accuses them before our God day and night.
11 And they conquered him by the blood of the Lamb
    and by the word of their testimony,
and they did not love their lives until death.
12 Because of this, rejoice, you heavens,
    and those who live in them!
Woe to the earth and to the sea,
    because the devil has come down to you,
having great anger,
    because he[g] knows that he has little time!”

13 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. 14 And the two wings of a great eagle were given to the woman, in order that she could fly into the wilderness, to her place where she is fed there for a time, and times, and half a time, from the presence of the serpent. 15 And from his mouth the serpent spouted water like a river after the woman, in order that he could make her swept away by a river. 16 And the earth came to the aid of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the river that the dragon had spouted out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was angry at the woman, and went away to fight against[h] the rest of her children, those who keep the commandments of God and who hold to the testimony about Jesus.

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Footnotes

  1. Revelation 12:2 Literally “who was having in the belly”
  2. Revelation 12:2 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“was having birth pains”) which is understood as causal
  3. Revelation 12:3 Or “diadem crowns”
  4. Revelation 12:5 An allusion to Ps 2:9
  5. Revelation 12:7 Literally “made war with”
  6. Revelation 12:7 Literally “made war”
  7. Revelation 12:12 Here “because” is supplied as a component of the participle (“knows”) which is understood as causal
  8. Revelation 12:17 Literally “to make war with”