The Dragon's War

Satan attacks the Church constantly, and his efforts will culminate in one last attempt to destroy the saints of Jesus Christ.  The Book of Revelation uses language from the seventh chapter of Daniel to describe Satan’s “war” against the Church. This war manifests in the daily lives of the churches as Christians face challenges from deception, economic loss, persecution, and even martyrdom. The language of war is metaphorical in Revelation.

Revelation is not a record of future wars waged between nations, whether conventional or nuclear. The Beast does not unleash its military forces against other nations or the modern State of Israel, but against the Church.

[Photo by Ryan Moulton on Unsplash]

The attacks on the saints are part of the continuing cosmic war between the Dragon and the Lamb. The conclusion of this war will affect the entire Universe. Following the final victory, life will be changed forever throughout the Universe. Death and evil will cease, and the existing order will be replaced by the new creation:

• “And I saw A NEW HEAVEN AND A NEW EARTH, for the first heaven and the first earth are passed away; and the sea is no more” – (Revelation 21:1. Note the allusion to Isaiah 65:17. Compare 2 Peter 3:10-13).

The source of this language and imagery is the Book of Daniel, the vision in which the Little Horn wages war on the saints:

• “I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints and prevailed against them until the Ancient of Days came, and judgment was given for the saints of the Most-High, and the season came that the saints possessed the kingdom” – (Daniel 7:21-22).

The term “war” is in the singular number in each relevant passage of the Book of Revelation, whether it is a noun or verb. In the Greek text, the noun is accompanied by the definite article or “the.” It is “the war,” not one war among many others. Both the noun and the verb are applied to the same event.

After the two witnesses complete their testimony in Chapter 11, for example, the Beast that ascends from the Abyss “WAGED WAR WITH THEM AND OVERCAME THEM and killed them.” The witnesses are identified as “lampstands,” and elsewhere in the Book, lampstands represent churches. This vision portrays an attack against the Church – (Revelation 1:20, 11:4-7).

In Chapter 12, John saw war raging in the Heavens. The Dragon was defeated, expelled from heaven, and exiled to earth. He then set out to destroy the Woman clothed with the sun, but his plan was thwarted. And so, he launched his war against the Woman’s offspring instead:

• “The Dragon was enraged with the woman and departed TO MAKE WAR with the rest of her seed, those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus” – (Revelation 12:17).

In this passage, the followers of Jesus are the targets of Satan’s war. This vision concludes with the Dragon standing on the seashore as he summons his seed to execute his war, the Beast from the Sea and the Beast from the Earth, the latter also called the ‘False Prophet’ - (Revelation 13:1-11, 16:13, 19:20, 20:10).

Chapter 12 instructs us on how to resist and overcome the Dragon. The victory of the Lamb and his saints must not be accomplished by political action or violent revolution. Instead, the Church conquers its enemies in the same manner as Jesus, “the Faithful Witness,” by remaining faithful in its witness despite suffering and persecution:

• “And they overcame the Dragon by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and because they loved not their life unto death” – (Revelation 12:11).

• “And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw UNDERNEATH THE ALTAR the souls of those men who had been slain for the word of God, and because of the testimony they held” – (Revelation 5:9. Compare Leviticus 4:7).

• “He that overcomes, I will give to him to sit with me on my throne, as I also overcame, and sat with my Father on his throne” – (Revelation 3:21).

The Beast summoned from the sea by Satan has the political authority and the character of the Dragon, which it now uses to attack the saints:

• “And it was given to him TO MAKE WAR WITH THE SAINTS AND TO OVERCOME THEM. <…> If any man has an ear, let him hear. If any man is for captivity, into captivity he goes. If any man is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he must be killed. This is the patience and the faith of the saints” - (Revelation 13:7-10. Compare Daniel 7:21, “And the same horn made war with the saints and prevailed against them”).

• “Here is the patience of the saints, those men who keep the commandments of God, and have the faith of Jesus” - (Revelation 14:12).

THE SEVEN CHURCHES

Chapters 2 and 3 of Revelation provide a localized view of Satan’s attacks on the Church in the letters of Jesus to each of the churches of Asia. These seven congregations, their struggles and victories, are connected directly to the later visions of the Book.

Several churches have been infiltrated by false teachers who encourage Christians “to eat meat offered to idols” and otherwise compromise their testimony. This includes the false apostles, the Nicolaitans, the doctrine of Balaam, and the prophetess, Jezebel. True believers overcome these attacks by holding tightly to the apostolic teachings – (Revelation 2:2, 2:6, 2:14-15, 2:20):

• “Nevertheless, cling to that which you have until I come. And he who overcomes and keeps my works unto the end, to him I WILL GIVE AUTHORITY OVER THE NATIONS, AND HE WILL SHEPHERD THEM WITH A ROD OF IRON, AS THE VESSELS OF THE POTTER ARE SHATTERED; as I also have received of my Father” – (Revelation 2:25-27. Note the verbal allusion to Psalm 2:8-9. See also Revelation 3:21, 12:5, 19:15).

Two churches are under pressure from the surrounding community, specifically false Jews of “the synagogue of Satan” who slander church members to governing authorities - (Revelation 2:9, 3:9).

• “And there was given to him a mouth speaking great things and slanders. And there was given to him authority to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth to slander God, to slander his name and his tabernacle, even those who tabernacle in the heavens” - (Revelation 13:5-6).

The churches of Smyrna and Pergamos have suffered persecution by the government, resulting in economic hardship, the imprisonment of some Christians, and the martyrdom of at least one saint, Antipas. They refused to swear fealty to the Beast even though doing so meant impoverishment, imprisonment, or death – (Revelation 2:9, 2:13):

• “And he causes all, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free and the slave, that there be given them a mark on their right hand or upon their forehead, and that no man should be able to buy or to sell, except the man who has the mark, the name of the beast, or the number of his name” – (Revelation 13:16-17).

• “And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God, and for the testimony that they held” – (Revelation 6:9).

The moment the churches begin to bear witness is the same moment when the Dragon launches his attacks on the saints. However, it is by maintaining their testimony and remaining faithful to the Gospel in the face of every assault that the saints of the Lamb overcome the Devil and his agents.

THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON

The final war is depicted when an angel empties the sixth bowl of wrath on the great river, Euphrates. The riverbed is rendered dry so the kings of the east and their invading armies may cross it. The target of their assault is not identified. The passage does indicate their intention is to confront God – (Revelation 16:12-16. Compare Jeremiah 50:38-40).

Demons are released from the mouths of the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet, who orchestrate the gathering of the kings of the earth for “the war of the Great Day of God, the Almighty.”

In Revelation 17:9-14, the ten horns of the Beast represent ten kings or kingdoms that give their allegiance and authority to the Beast, empowering it “to wage war against the Lamb.”

However, Jesus overcomes the Beast and its allies, for he possesses all power and authority. The description of his victory includes an ironic rephrasing of Daniel 7:21 (“and the Lamb will overcome them”).

In both Revelation 17:14 and 19:11-14, the saints participate with the Lamb in his victory over his opponents. The declaration of Revelation 17:14 anticipates the victory of the rider who sits on a white horse described in Chapter 19. On his thigh is written the title: King of kings and Lord of lords, the same title attributed to Jesus in Revelation 17:14. Thus, the rider described in Chapter 19 is Christ:

• “These will war against the Lamb, AND THE LAMB WILL OVERCOME THEM, for HE IS LORD OF LORDS AND KING OF KINGS. And they also will overcome, those who are with him, called and chosen and faithful” – (Revelation 17:14. Compare Revelation 1:5. Note the allusion to the words of King Nebuchadnezzar in Daniel 2:47 [“Of a truth, your God is the God of gods and the Lord of kings”]).

• “And I saw the heaven opened; and behold, a white horse, and he that sat on it, who is called Faithful and True, and IN RIGHTEOUSNESS HE JUDGES AND MAKES WAR. <…> And the armies that are in heaven followed him upon white horses, CLOTHED IN FINE LINEN, white and pure” – (Revelation 19:11-14. Compare Revelation 7:9. Note the verbal allusions to Leviticus 16:32, Isaiah 11:3-4).

The linen robes that adorn the members of this army identify these men as saints, those who “washed their robes and made them white in the blood of the Lamb,” and as priests, members of Christ’s “kingdom of priests” - (See Revelation 1:4-7, 5:9-10, 7:14, 20:4-6).

The battle described in Chapter 19 uses language from the Book of Ezekiel, which originally applied to the army of Gog and Magog. Just as the kings of the earth were gathered to Armageddon for the great battle, so the Beast, the False Prophet, and the kings of the earth and their armies are gathered to the war with the Rider who sits on the White Horse. The battle described in Chapter 19 is the same as that of Revelation 16:12-16 – (Revelation 19:10-21. Compare Ezekiel 39:17-20 and Revelation 20:7-10).

The words of Revelation 19:10-21 do not describe the actual battle, only its aftermath. The Beast and the False Prophet are thrown alive into the lake of fire, and the rest of their army is destroyed by the sword of him who sits upon the white horse.

Finally, Satan is released from the Abyss, as described in Revelation 20:1-10. This parallels the earlier ascent of the Beast from the Abyss and from the Sea. Satan gathers the nations “from the four corners of the earth to the war, Gog and Magog.” The link to Ezekiel’s vision of Gog and Magog is explicit - (Revelation 20:1-10).

Chapter 20 describes the same battle as that described in Chapter 19. Satan’s army is seen “ascending over the face of the Earth to surround the camp of the Saints.” The geographical scope is global. This is Satan’s last attempt to destroy the Church. As before, no description of the actual battle is provided. It states simply that “fire descended out of heaven and devoured them.” The destruction of the attacking force is total, and this is followed by the judgment of all men before the Great White Throne - (Revelation 20:11-15).

The verbal parallels with the earlier passages are clear. This is the same attack against the followers of Jesus as the one in Chapters 16 and 19. But here, the intended victims are identified as “saints,” the same group persecuted by the Beast and the False Prophet in Chapter 13 – (Revelation 13:7).

Before the end of the age, the Devil will launch his final attack against the Church. Satan can only wage war with Jesus by attacking his people. And this Satan does even now as he assaults the saints through deception, compromise and persecution. However, Satan’s ongoing efforts will culminate in one great final effort to annihilate the churches of Jesus Christ once and for all.

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[Citations of Old Testament passages in this article are based on the ancient Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the Septuagint (see the links here and here). Text printed in ALL CAPITAL LETTERS represents quotations and verbal allusions from the Old Testament. The Septuagint is represented by the Roman numeral for ‘seventy’ or LXX based on the Latin name of the translation, ‘Interpretatio septuaginta virorum’]

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SEE ALSO:

• Christ or Christendom? - (‘Christendom’ is an idolatrous term used often to invoke Divine support of national and political institutions, agendas, and ideologies)

• The True Emperor - (Messianic promises from the Psalms are applied to the present reign of Jesus, who possesses all authority in Heaven and on Earth)

• True Power - (The power of God is revealed in the proclamation of a Messiah who was crucified by the world on Calvary)

• La Guerre du Dragon - (Satan attaque constamment l'Église, et ses efforts culmineront dans une dernière tentative de détruire les saints de Jésus-Christ)