Christians face spiritual battles as long as they are on this earth. Spiritual battles cannot be fought without the help of God. The spiritual battle in Revelation 12:4 is described simply as: “to devour her child as soon as it was born.”

1 The object of the devourer (Rev 12:1-2)

In Revelation 12:1, God used the image of a woman to help us understand that “great wonder in heaven.” It refers to the nation of Israel which God will use to bring forth His only begotten son in flesh and blood to fulfil His salvation plan. It is a great miracle because God used the 12 sons of Jacob to form the nation of Israel. From the 75 souls of Jacob’s family in Egypt, God grew it over a period of 430 years to two million people. Israel became a nation in the Promised Land at the end of Joshua’s ministry. The messianic line is now insulated within the nation of Israel. Through the nation of Israel came Jesus, the “child” in Revelation 12:2. The devil would try to devour the “child,” but God, time and again, protected the “child” until the time when He would be born.

2 The nature of the devourer (Rev 12:3-4)

Revelation 12:3 describes “another wonder in heaven…a great red dragon.” The red dragon is a creature that is ferocious, and it is red because of the blood from its perpetual killing and devouring. Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Medo-Persia, Greece and Rome were the six empires that impacted the first coming of Jesus. Before the Messiah was born, each empire was devoured by the next in the devourer’s attempt to destroy the Messiah even before He was born.

Finally, the seventh empire (that of the Antichrist) will impact the second coming of Jesus. The “ten horns” (Rev 12:3) describe the powerful nations that will support the Antichrist. Just as Jesus came in the image of the Almighty God, the Antichrist will have the image of the “great red dragon,” i.e. the devil himself.

3 The continuation of the devourer (Rev 12:5-6)

Revelation 12:5-6 mentions the first coming of Jesus. He would finish His mission on earth, and the devil will fail to stop the work and will of God. This passage then moves on to describe Israel in the final seven years of her existence. The devil will continue to attack and devour Christians, making their lives on earth challenging. He will not stop until the second coming of Christ.

Today, we are in the midst of the spiritual battle. Without God's help, we can never win; with God's help, we can never lose. This is a battle that Christ has already won for us. Will you be faithful till the very end?