Revelation Chapter 12
Verse 4 “His tail drew [the] third of the stars of heaven, and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born.”
This particular verse from what I have gathered thus far appears to have been a stumbling block for many of the brethren (that is in respects to the specific time and sequence of the events specified) this evidenced by the various interpretations of the text I have read. I will however not go into all these here, but instead will present what I believe appears to be the most satisfactory view based on a composite of the thoughts of several brethren. It has always been my thought that we should follow the Lord’s advice and consider all the facts (all the various opinions of the brethren) before arriving at any definite conclusions. “In the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Prov 11:14)
The typical view of this verse is that this “tail” of the dragon “which drew a third of the stars” is in reference to Constantine the last of the “seven heads”, the last reigning emperor of Pagan Rome, viz. the following,
“Constantine, now embracing Christianity, and being chief religious ruler of the empire (Pontifex Maximus), called the Council of Nicaea which drew to it one third of all the bishops (stars, teachers) of heaven (the Christian religious ruler-ship). It is almost at this point that Babylon is born. The bishops are “cast to the earth” -- they now become primarily embroiled in earthly power-grabs and political maneuvering. Their spirituality is lost. The dragon, wishing to use newly-born Babylon (the Wheat-Tare mixture) to strengthen Rome, is ready to devour (to consume, to appropriate) this “new” religion for political reasons (political opportunism).”
However upon further investigation we believe that this may not be exactly what is implied here in this particular texts. Understand we are not arguing over whether or not these events took place, but over the time and sequence of these events.
“The inherent thought of the expression the tail “drew” (Greek suro, Strong’s # 4951 to draw or drag) these stars is that the dragon apprehended and dragged them preparatory to their being cast to the earth (that is prior to their being cast to earth). This verse signifies punitive action being taken against true light-bearers considered to be in opposition to the dragon, Satan’s organization.
It should be carefully observed that the seizure and casting down of the stars occurred before the birth of the man-child (Verse 5) in A.D. 314, and therefore DID NOT specifically relate to the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Rather, the casting down parallels the prediction in the message to the Church of Smyrna:
“Behold, the devil [another name for the dragon or the serpent] shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried (tested); and ye shall have tribulation [deep labor pains] ten days” (Rev 2:10).
In other words, the casting down of the stars to the earth and the casting of some into prison are synonymous in their application; both refer to the closing decade of the Smyrna period, A.D. 303–313, prior to Constantine’s accession to the throne.”
The sequence of events is this 1) the stars are first apprehended and dragged, then 2) they are cast to earth, meanwhile that is to say during this same time period when these first two events are taking place the dragon is standing before the woman in anticipation of devouring her child. The important thought here is that these events take place before the birth of the child, before A.D. 314, before Constantine’s conversion to Christianity in A.D. 313, before his accession to the throne in A.D. 312, and most importantly before the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325.
We will examine another brother’s view which collaborates the foregoing in our next post.
Verse 4 “His tail drew [the] third of the stars of heaven, and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was ready to give birth, to devour her Child as soon as it was born.”
This particular verse from what I have gathered thus far appears to have been a stumbling block for many of the brethren (that is in respects to the specific time and sequence of the events specified) this evidenced by the various interpretations of the text I have read. I will however not go into all these here, but instead will present what I believe appears to be the most satisfactory view based on a composite of the thoughts of several brethren. It has always been my thought that we should follow the Lord’s advice and consider all the facts (all the various opinions of the brethren) before arriving at any definite conclusions. “In the multitude of counselors there is safety” (Prov 11:14)
The typical view of this verse is that this “tail” of the dragon “which drew a third of the stars” is in reference to Constantine the last of the “seven heads”, the last reigning emperor of Pagan Rome, viz. the following,
“Constantine, now embracing Christianity, and being chief religious ruler of the empire (Pontifex Maximus), called the Council of Nicaea which drew to it one third of all the bishops (stars, teachers) of heaven (the Christian religious ruler-ship). It is almost at this point that Babylon is born. The bishops are “cast to the earth” -- they now become primarily embroiled in earthly power-grabs and political maneuvering. Their spirituality is lost. The dragon, wishing to use newly-born Babylon (the Wheat-Tare mixture) to strengthen Rome, is ready to devour (to consume, to appropriate) this “new” religion for political reasons (political opportunism).”
However upon further investigation we believe that this may not be exactly what is implied here in this particular texts. Understand we are not arguing over whether or not these events took place, but over the time and sequence of these events.
“The inherent thought of the expression the tail “drew” (Greek suro, Strong’s # 4951 to draw or drag) these stars is that the dragon apprehended and dragged them preparatory to their being cast to the earth (that is prior to their being cast to earth). This verse signifies punitive action being taken against true light-bearers considered to be in opposition to the dragon, Satan’s organization.
It should be carefully observed that the seizure and casting down of the stars occurred before the birth of the man-child (Verse 5) in A.D. 314, and therefore DID NOT specifically relate to the Council of Nicaea, A.D. 325. Rather, the casting down parallels the prediction in the message to the Church of Smyrna:
“Behold, the devil [another name for the dragon or the serpent] shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried (tested); and ye shall have tribulation [deep labor pains] ten days” (Rev 2:10).
In other words, the casting down of the stars to the earth and the casting of some into prison are synonymous in their application; both refer to the closing decade of the Smyrna period, A.D. 303–313, prior to Constantine’s accession to the throne.”
The sequence of events is this 1) the stars are first apprehended and dragged, then 2) they are cast to earth, meanwhile that is to say during this same time period when these first two events are taking place the dragon is standing before the woman in anticipation of devouring her child. The important thought here is that these events take place before the birth of the child, before A.D. 314, before Constantine’s conversion to Christianity in A.D. 313, before his accession to the throne in A.D. 312, and most importantly before the Council of Nicaea in A.D. 325.
We will examine another brother’s view which collaborates the foregoing in our next post.
