Page 2 of 3:   Earth Beast; his mark; False prophet; 3 1/2 yr Christian tribulation where the saints are persecuted unto death by Antichrist (beast) and from her will come many tribulation Christian martyrs.

Page 3 of 3: Heaven Christ opens 6 seals; the raptured saints and nature help the tribulation church

          Revelations 12 continued Con*****  

Click on image for review of events in Rev 12 and timeframe 3) and  main players leading up to the rapture (birth of the manchild). Current study is what happens after the rapture to the woman (church left behind).

  Rev 12:13-17 tells the story of the church left behind after the rapture. This time period is known as the Great 3 1/2 year Christian Tribulation

Rev 12:13-17
13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

13 And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.

  The dragon (Satan) saw that he and his angels was cast down to earth by Michael and his angels. They have now lost their vantage point in the heavens which they ruled from ever since the time of Adam and Eve.  Satan is very angry because he did not prevent the birth of the manchild (rapture of the true church - (see Rev12:1-5). The raptured saints have now taken over his heavenly territory that he and his angels once ruled. They are now the new powers of the air with Christ (see rapture).

Rev 12:7,8 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 8 And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. Rev 12:12 Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabitors of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

  Satan being now on earth cannot get at the raptured saints in heaven so he sets his eyes on the woman (the professing unsaved church) left behind. He wants to make sure that no one that is left behind becomes saved (true Christian). Before Satan and his angels are cast down we read in Rev 12:6 the woman is already fleeing (click on image for review). The church left behind know they missed the rapture and know from scriptures they heard that they are going to face great tribulation. They heard the Word of God and had the opportunity to be saved and to be caught up in the rapture and be a part of the manchild (Rev 12:5) company (true church). Instead, they played church when all the prophetic signs were fulfilled to let them know different. Now their in hiding because they cannot meet in their local church anymore. Jesus talked about the tribulation days and said the love of many shall wax cold and those that turn to Christ after the rapture will be betrayed, offended, hated by all nations, afflicted, and killed (Matt 24:9-12).

Matt 24:9-12
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.
10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.

14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might flyinto the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

  First the woman is fleeing (Rev 12:6) into the wilderness (see above). Then Satan and his angels are cast down to earth (Rev 12: 7-12). Now the woman is helped by being given two wings of a great eagle and nourished (fed) for a period of times, time, and a half a time which equals 3 1/2 years (verse 14 time is a Jewish term for 1 year). The two wings of a great eagle to make her fly is the great outpouring of God's Holy Spirit after the rapture that comes upon the tribulation saints - that is - the ones that turn to Christ after the rapture and now facing the wrath of Satan.

Deut 32:11
As an eagle stirreth up her nest, fluttereth over her young, spreadeth abroad her
wings, taketh them, beareth them on her wings:
12 So the LORD alone did lead him, and there was no strange god with him.

Isa 40:31
But they that wait upon the LORD shall renew their strength; they shall mount up with wings as eagles; they shall run, and not be weary; and they shall walk, and not faint.

  Just like the manchild (true church) was in the womb of the woman (Rev 12:1-5) before the rapture took place, so now after the rapture there is a remnant within the professing church left behind that turn to Christ. They know they were the foolish virgins (see rapture) but now many will be willing to give their life for Christ. There is tremendous revival. Peter in Acts 2 quoting the prophet Joel 2:28-32 applies his words to the last days and the great outpouring of the Holy Spirit in the time of the Christian tribulation and what signs they would see.

Acts 2:17-21
17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams:
18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy:
19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke:
20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

  Notice Peter like Joel puts all these signs before the notable Day of the Lord - timeframe 5 (verse 20 - see chart below). Jesus talked of the effects of the outpouring of the Holy Sprit on the tribulation saints (Luke 21:12-19). They would be able to stand before kings and nations and God will give them boldness and what words to speak

Luke 21:12-19
12 But before all these, they shall lay their hands on you, and persecute you, delivering you up to the synagogues, and into prisons, being brought before kings and rulers for my name's sake.
13 And it shall turn to you for a testimony.
14 Settle it therefore in your hearts, not to meditate before what ye shall answer:
15 For I will give you a mouth and wisdom, which all your adversaries shall not be able to gainsay nor resist.
16 And ye shall be betrayed both by parents, and brethren, and kinsfolks, and friends; and some of you shall they cause to be put to death.
17 And ye shall be hated of all men for my name's sake.
18 But there shall not an hair of your head perish.
19 In your patience possess ye your souls.

                                  

                              
 
  We read (Rev 12:6) the woman is fed for 1,260 days, and here in Rev 12:14 we read nourished for times, time, and half time. Daniel 7:25 gives the time of the Christian tribulation also as times, time, and a half time. Likewise Rev 13:5 saying 42 months the saints will be given over to be persecuted by Antichrist. All of these time verses say the same length of time - the great Christian tribulation immediately after the rapture is 3 1/2 years (see charts above).
   In Rev 12:5 we studied that the manchild (true church) was caught up to God's throne at the rapture. Both Rev 12:6 and Rev 12:14 told us that 'they' shall feed and nourish the woman to keep her alive for 3 1/2 years.  Who is 'they'? The answer is that 'they' are the manchild company - the Christians that were caught up to meet Christ in the air and now have resurrected bodies (see Rev 12:5, rapture). The church in heaven after the rapture has taken over Satan's former territory in the heavenlies and the church in heaven now has the advantage. While Satan on earth will not let the gospel be preached in churches, tent revivals, radio, TV or the internet, he will not be able to stop the immortal resurrected Christians preaching the gospel from heaven during the tribulation period (see the first seal in timeframe 4 page 3)

First Seal (Heaven's view)

white horse		Rev 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
Habakkuk 3:7-11 7 I saw the tents of Cushan in affliction: and the curtains of the land of Midian did tremble. 8 Was the Lord displeased against the rivers? Was thine anger against the rivers? Was thy wrath against the sea, that thou didst ride upon thine horses and thy chariots of salvation? 9 Thy bow was made quite naked, according to the oaths of the tribes, even thy word. Selah. Thou didst cleave the earth with rivers. 10 The mountains saw thee, and they trembled: the overflowing of the water passed by: the deep uttered his voice, and lifted up his hands on high. 11 The sun and moon stood still in their habitation: at the light of thine arrows they went, and at the shining of thy glittering spear. 12 Thou didst march through the land in indignation, thou didst thresh the heathen in anger. 13 Thou wentest forth for the salvation of thy people, even for salvation with thine anointed; thou woundedst the head out of the house of the wicked, by discovering the foundation unto the neck. Selah.	White - Work of righteousness Bow - Word of God (Hab 3:9) ( Crown - Victory Crown given to the saints after the rapture - Victory Crown given to the saints after the rapture g The activity of the white horse fulfills Jesus words quoted above from Matt 24:7-14 that cover the Christian tribulation period 14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.	Habakkuk saw the full effect of the 6 seals that are opened in heaven during the 3 1/2 year Christian tribulation period and their effect on earth and nature. He mentions God's horsemen and chariots going forth for the salvation of His people in a time when the nature was going crazy. Habakkuk said that these judgments were made quite naked (clear) in the Word of God which He calls God's bow that came through the 12 tribes - that is the Old Testament prophets (Hab 3:9). Hab 3:9 9 Thy bow was made quite naked, according to the oaths of the tribes, even thy word.
Rev 14:6-10 The word 'angel' denotes not only angelic beings but the office of a messenger - that is - one who gives a message. This is how it is used here in Rev 14 as in many places in scripture such as Rev 7:20, Rev 19:9,10 6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. 8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. 9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God.	Earth's View Results of preaching from heaven - worlds greatest revival on earth producing the tribulation martyrs as told by Peter in Acts 2:16-24 17 And it shall come to pass in the last days, saith God, I will pour out of my Spirit upon all flesh: and your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, and your young men shall see visions, and your old men shall dream dreams: 18 And on my servants and on my handmaidens I will pour out in those days of my Spirit; and they shall prophesy: 19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke: Peter in quoting Joel 2:28-31 is talking about the effects of the first seal opened when the raptured Christians preaching and prophesying from heaven as fulfilling part of the great signs in heaven. The results of the 2nd horsemen fulfill Joel's words that upon the earth will be blood, fire, and pillars of smoke (see second seal).).	Rev 12. 13 and 14 show earth's view during the 3 1/2 year great tribulation (see page 1, page 2)   and what happens to those left behind after the rapture. Rev 14:6-10 tells us what the people on the earth see when the 1st seal is opened in heaven. They will see the raptured Christians symbolized by the white horse   preaching the gospel from the air (Bow) going forth as conquerors and to conquer souls for Christ. They are warning those who receive the mark of the beast in their forehead or hand or worship the beast they will drink the full wrath of God in the Day of the Lord when also Babylon that great city will be destroyed (see fall of Babylon) and to get out now!

  The great commission to preach the gospel was given to the church and not to the angels. When Revelations uses the word angels it denotes many times the 'office' of what an angel does not necessarily an angel itself. The word angel means 'messenger' and during the tribulation period God is going to send messengers from heaven all over the earth to preach the gospel and warn of the judgments that follow the 3 1/2 years Christian tribulation period known as the 'Day of the Lord - timeframe 5' (see charts above). These messengers are warning as they visibly fly over the earth not to receive the mark of the beast or worship the beast. These are  part of the great signs in heaven Peter (Acts 2 quoted above) and Joel 2:28-32 (quoted above) were talking about that would happen during the Christian tribulation period in which God is also pouring out His Sprit . This is how the church left behind during the tribulation is fed and nourished for 3 1/2 years. They (church left behind) will be fed the word of God from heaven by the raptured church who now have the advantage over Satan and his angels.

Revelations 14:6-11
6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people,
7 Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.
8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand,
10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:
11 And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
16 And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

  We read in Rev 12:15, 16 that Satan cast out a flood of persecution that would seemingly drown the woman (church left behind) and kill her but the earth helped the woman and swallowed the flood. The earth helped the woman because of great geological changes taking place besides the world wars, faminies, pestilences, earthquakes. All hindering Antichrist in his relentless persecution of the woman. During the Christian tribulation period many events are happening in heaven and on earth. For a full study of events after the rapture see Revelations that explains chart below.

         See Revelations for full study 

  In heaven where Christ and the raptured saints are the first 6 seals of Revelations are opened during the 3 1/2 year Christian tribulation period. These can be found in Rev 6 (see page 3) and affect the whole world.

                       

6 seals of Revelations 6 opened during the 3 1/2 Christian tribulation period (click on images)

 
  The result of these 6 seals is worldwide preaching of the gospel from heaven, divine control of wars, famines, pestilence, great earthquakes in many places and finally the 6th seal where the sun is darkened and the moon becomes as blood (Acts 2:19-21). The signs of the sixth seal are the same signs Peter quoted on the day of Pentecost (see earlier comments above) that would precede the terrible Day of the Lord.

Acts 2:19-21
19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke:
20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come:
21 And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be saved.

Jesus also groups all these same events and signs as part of the tribulation period including the persecution of the tribulation Christians matching the fifth seal while the gospel is being preached throughout the whole world matching the first seal.

Matt 14:7-14:
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilence's, and earthquakes, in diver's places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
9 Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted, and shall kill you: and ye shall be hated of all nations for my name's sake.
10 And then shall many be offended, and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another.
11 And many false prophets shall rise, and shall deceive many.
12 And because iniquity shall abound, the love of many shall wax cold.
13 But he that shall endure unto the end, the same shall be saved.
14 And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come.

  With all these events happening on the earth during this 3 1/2 year tribulation period Satan is hindered somewhat in his fierce persecution. In other words, the results of the 6 seals and nature seemingly out of control help to swallow up the flood of persecution that Satan pours out on the tribulation church left behind (Rev 12:16 above). The church manages to stay alive for 3 1/2 years and out of her will come a great number of tribulation martyrs from every tongue, nation, kindred and tribe. They get resurrected at the end of the 3 1/2 year Christian tribulation period as part of the first resurrection and they complete the church in heaven (see martyrs raised and charts above). Whem Jesus says 'and then the end shall come' Jesus means the end of the Church age (see also charts above).

17 And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

  Here again is a confirmation that Satan is after the remnant within the woman (professing church left behind) that turn to Christ during the great 3 1/2 year Christian tribulation. This remnant is the seed that will repent and be saved after the rapture that will keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.