Revelation 12:9

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him. THAT OLD SERPENT - (Genesis 3:1; Genesis 3:4.) As destroyer, he is a "roaring lion:" as deceiver, a "serpent." DEVIL - Greek for 'accuser,' 'slanderer.' SATAN - Hebrew for adversary, especially in a court of justice. The twofold designation marks the twofold objects of his accusations and temptations-the elect, Gentiles and Jews. WORLD, [ oikoumeneen (G3625)] - 'habitable world.'...

7-11 The attempts of the dragon proved unsuccessful against the church, and fatal to his own interests. The seat of this war was in heaven; in the church of Christ, the kingdom of heaven on earth. The parties were Christ, the great Angel of the covenant, and his faithful followers; and Satan and his instruments. The strength of the church is in having the Lord Jesus for the Captain of their salvation. Pagan idolatry, which was the worship of devils, was cast out of the empire by the spreading of Christianity. The salvation and strength of the church, are only to be ascribed to the King and Head of the church. The conquered enemy hates the presence of God, yet he is willing to appear there, to accuse the people of God. Let us take heed that we give him no cause to accuse us; and that, when we have sinned, we go before the Lord, condemn ourselves, and commit our cause to Christ as our Adv...

Verse Revelation 12:9. _THAT OLD SERPENT_] The rabbins speak much of this _being_, sometimes under the notion of הרע יצר yetser hara, _the evil_ _principle_, and sometimes _Samael_. _HE WAS CAST OUT INTO THE EARTH, AND HIS ANGELS WERE CAST OUT_ _WITH HIM._] This is very like a saying in the book _Bahir_, in _Sohar_ _Gen_., fol. 27, col. 107: "_And God cast out Samael and his troops_ _from the place of their holiness_." NOTES ON CHAP. XII., BY J. E. C. Ver. Revelation 12:9. _AND THE GREAT DRAGON WAS CAST OUT_, c.] By the terms _Devil_ and _Satan_ mentioned in this verse, Pareus, Faber, and many other commentators, understand literall

AND THE GREAT DRAGON WAS CAST OUT - See the notes on Revelation 12:3. That there may be an allusion in the language here to what actually occurred in some far distant period of the past, when Satan was ejected from heaven, there can be no reason to doubt. Our Saviour seems to refer to such an event in the language which he uses when he says Luke 10:18, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven”; and Jude, perhaps Revelation 12:6, may refer to the same event. All that we know on the subject leads us to suppose that at some time there was a revolt among the angels, and that the rebellious part were cast out of heaven, for an allusion to this is not infrequent in the Scriptures. Still t

EXPOSITION This chapter commences another series of revelations. Again St. John returns to the beginning, and traces the spiritual history of the Church and the Christian in their warfare with Satan. But the visions which now follow are somewhat different in character from those already related, inasmuch as the conflict is now described rather as between the powers of heaven and hell than between the individual Christian and his oppressors. As with the other visions, so here, the recital seems calculated to support the suffering Christian in his trials, since the overthrow of the powers of darkness is foretold; and the whole series culminates in an account of the final abasement of the devil, and the exaltation of the Church and the bliss of heaven. The following analysis will help to make clear the relation of the several parts of the vision. I. THE ORIGIN OF THE...

AND THE GREAT DRAGON WAS CAST OUT,.... From heaven, or from power and authority in the Roman empire, namely, the devil, where he had long presided; it is observable that Constantine himself speaks of "the dragon" being removed from the government of the commonwealth by the providence of God, and by the ministry, or means of him m; and he had his own effigies on a table placed before the porch of his palace, with the cross over his head, and a dragon under his feet thrust through with darts, and falling headlong n; THE OLD SERPENT; who is so called, because, of old, from the beginning, almost as soon as the world was, he appeared in the form of a serpent, or rather made use of it as an instrument and means, by which he seduced Eve, and so brought on the ruin of mankind, it is very usual with the Jews to call the devil נחש הקדמוני, "the old serpent" o; wherefore John uses this phrase as a...

Revelation 12:1. _And there appeared a great wonder in heaven: a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:_ This is that woman of whom the promise runs, «The seed of the woman shall bruise the serpent's head.» John saw this in a vision in the heavenly places; he saw the Church of God, enthroned, made glorious, clothed with the sun, having the brightness of divine light about her, with all that is variable, changeable as «the moon under her feet, and upon her head the crown «that her Lord had given, her « twelve patriarchs, twelve prophets, twelve apostles, a complete number of glorious lights kindled from heaven. Revelation 12:2. _And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered._

WORLD (Greek, "oikoumenē", means "inhabited earth"). (_ See Scofield) - (Luke 2:1). _ ANGELS (_ See Scofield) - (Hebrews 1:4). _...

REVELATION 12. THE VISION OF THE WOMAN, THE CHILD, AND THE DRAGON. This chapter has always presented difficulties to the student of Revelation. Two questions present themselves: (_a)_ What is the connexion of this chapter with the previous part of the book? (_b_) What interpretation did the writer intend his readers to put upon the vision? The first question has been answered in many ways. Some scholars regard this passage as a fresh interlude, and think that it is unconnected with the main movement of the drama. It is often explained as a fragment of a Jewish Apocalypse which the writer determined to utilise, though he failed altogether to weave it into the thread of the argument. The most probable explanation is as follows. The theme of the second part of the Apocalypse is the struggle against Antichrist, and this chapter forms the introduction. Antichrist is first introduced almost in...

WAR IN HEAVEN. And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she bath. place prepared of God, that they should feed her there. thousand two hundred and three score days. And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him."--12:6-9. The flight of the woman into the wilderness. will consider in connection with verse 14 which refers to the same event. In the order of time this flight occurs after the events related in verses 7-14. These verses describe. conflict which John saw in heaven, the overthrow of the dragon and the song of victory sung in heaven. If we will remember th...