Monday, February 21, 2022

Larry Moench Davis (LDS) on the Woman in Revelation 12

  

What did John see in heaven?

 

John now beholds a woman, and upon her head is a crown of twelve stars. This woman represents the Church of Jesus Christ, as signified by the twelve stars. These stars denote the twelve apostles who are the foundation of the Church. The woman is also pregnant with child and is ready to deliver. The child represents the Kingdom of Heaven, which is God’s earthly system of government. “And he said unto them. When ye pray say, Our Father which art in heaven, Hallowed be thy name. Thy kingdom come. Thy will be done, as in heaven, so in earth.”

 

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:
2 And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered
.

 

Who was the red dragon?

 

In the heavenly vision, John observes a red dragon having seven heads and ten horns, with seven crowns upon the heads. The red dragon is Satan. The identification of the seven heads, ten horns, and seven crowns upon their heads shall be given later in chapter 13.

 

3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

 

Who are the stars of heaven?

 

The stars of heaven are the spirit children of God. What John sees is Satan being cast out of heaven to earth thereby drawing a third part of the spirit children of God along with him (6). Satan now stans ready to devour the child as soon as it is born.

 

4 And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did not cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it was born.

 

What happened to the man child?

 

As previously explained, the man child represents the Kingdom of Heaven, which is God’s earthly system of government. Eventually, the child is caught up unto God. This occurred when Jesus Christ and His apostles were martyred, and the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven were taken from the earth.

 

5. And she brought forth a man child, who was to rule all nations with a rod of iron: and her child was caught up unto God, and to his throne.

 

Why did the woman flee into the wilderness?

 

The angel explains to John that the woman (Church) shall flee into the wilderness (place of protection) until the time is right when she can be restored to the world. According to the Greek Dictionary of the New Testament the word days, as shown below, can be interpreted as years.

 

6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days. (Larry Moench Davis, Reconciling the Book of Revelation with Mormon Prophecies: A Guide to Overcoming the Hour of Temptation That Shall Come Upon All The World [New York: Legends Library, 2013], 76-78)