The Birth of a Nation: Revelation 12 Study Part I

As we get closer to the "Great American Eclipse" in August and the unprecedented "Great Sign" in September, those who are just now looking up will need a crash-course on why many of us believe these signs in the sky herald the Day of the LORD. For others this will be a refresher—hopefully with some additional insight. No need for newcomers to reinvent the wheel or grasp at straws, however. There's a whole host of diligent seekers on the internet who have already done their homework (start here).

Investigate for yourself, and test all things. The 12th chapter of Revelation is the final exam on biblical prophecy, and, sadly, many have failed to distinguish between the future prophecies regarding Israel and the Church and discern the dispensational transition in God's plan for the end of the age.

Specifically, in this two-part post, we'll focus on why so many in the online watching community have concluded that the "Revelation 12 sign" means that, not only is the 7-year Tribulation dead-ahead, but also the pre-tribulation resurrection and rapture of the Church—the miraculous birth of a nation in one day.  Let's dig into the Greek and Hebrew Scriptures, examining the apostle John's intentional link to Isaiah 66. Then we'll bring in Isaiah 26 to further support this early prophetic picture of the birth of the body of Christ—the mystery once hidden but now revealed (c.f. 1 Cor. 15:51-52; Eph. 3:1-12; 5:32; 1 Thess. 4:16-17).


Begin at Revelation 12, Then Turn Left

Some preliminary assumptions are crucial for a correct interpretation of chapter 12:

1. Chapter 12 is future prophecy (if you're stuck in the past, just think to yourself—types and shadows)
2. Chapter 12 is a brief, kaleidoscopic overview of the entire Tribulation period (not strictly linear or chronological as you go line-by-line)
3. Chapter 12 is a stumbling block for both the anti-dispensationalist and anti-Zionist crowd (don't want to distinguish between the Church and Israel? Ok, interpret at your own risk)
4. Chapter 12 is not an isolated text divorced from the rest of Scripture, especially the Old Testament; on the contrary, the author assumes that you know the writings of the other prophets in the Tanakh (Hebrew Bible)

Ok, now then, let's address the male-child of Rev. 12:5 and the implications of his birth. In order to really grasp what's going on in this verse, we gotta go to the Greek. It's in the original languages where you'll often find some serious wordplay and deliberate inner/inter-textual connections. The authors of Scripture do this all the time, and it's humbling to study the skillful literary constructions of these ancient writers and editors.

The inspired authors of Scripture don't merely transcribe what they see and hear like a stenographer would in a courtroom. They carefully arrange God's written word in a creative, even cryptic manner at times. For instance, have you ever noticed that John rarely uses explicit names for people, opting instead for attributes or code names (e.g. the lamb that was slain, the beast, the dragon, Armageddon, 666, etc.)?

In short, we should ask this question: What's the author doing with what he is saying? In the apostle John's case, he purposefully links the grammatically incorrect term arsen (male) with huiov (son), "And she gave birth to a son, a male..." These two words do not agree in gender (one is masculine, the other neuter), which is a huge blunder if this came from the pen of a prophet fresh out of grade school. Not so, as John is a seasoned, wily veteran at this point in his life. He knows Greek. And he knows his Old Testament.

The key to unlocking the mystery of the male-child, his identity and especially the timing of the birth and rapture, is the Greek term arsen in Rev. 12:5. Turn left. We're going to the book of Isaiah.


The Way to Isaiah: Route 66

One of the main arguments offered up by Dr. Michael Svigel in defense of the male-child being identified as the body of Christ is the glaring absence of the death and resurrection of Jesus. The royal heir of Rev. 12:5 is "birthed" and immediately "snatched up" to heaven. If this was referring to Jesus alone, where is His essential substitutionary death and bodily resurrection? These key details of the gospel are curiously absent. But like the supposed "grammatical error" noted above, this is not a rookie mistake, either.

The "birth" and subsequent "rapture" of the male-child has its roots in the Old Testament, and in this context, specifically the Greek translation of Isaiah 66:7-8 (LXX). John uses the term arsen in 12:5 as a subtle clue, indicating to his readers that his own vision of the end is a final unveiling of Isaiah's prophecy written over 700 years prior to Patmos.

As odd as it may sound, the idea of a resurrection is not absent from Rev. 12:5. It's bound up in the birth metaphor. And as we'll see shortly, this "birth" depicts the resurrection and instantaneous glorification of a corporate entity—the birth of a nation (c.f. 1 Pet. 2:9).

Moises Silva has a solid rendering of the Greek text from Isaiah 66:7-8 in the NETS (New English Translation of the Septuagint), which is available online (here).

For convenience, here is his translation of Isaiah 66:7-8 (LXX) with my highlights:

Before she who was in labor gave birth, before the pain of her pangs came, she escaped and gave birth to a male [arsen]. Who has heard of such a thing? And who has seen thus? Did the earth give birth in one day? Was also a nation born all at once? Because Sion was in labor and she gave birth to her children."

The language of the LXX is often pretty clunky at times, but when matched up with the Masoretic Text (MT) of the Hebrew, a clear interpretation can be discerned. It's my understanding after chewing on these texts that the LXX translator got a little confused about this prophecy. Prophecy is like that, though. That's why it often takes further revelation to shed light on the former (e.g. the apostle Paul's remark about being "a steward of the mysteries of God" —1 Cor. 4:1).

My thoughts on this pivotal passage (Isa. 66:7-8):

1) First and foremost, in regard to the timing of the birth of the male, one thing is clear between the Hebrew and the Greek manuscripts. The emphasis in 66:7 is before the woman goes into labor. The following verse (66:8a) reveals that this is unheard of. Miraculous. Stupendous. It's, well, undeserved favor shown toward a certain nation [Greek: ethnos; Hebrew: goy; both singular]. Oh, and in case it's not clear: "Before" means that this birth and snatching away of the male-child (Rev. 12:5) precedes Zion/Israel's labor [a.k.a. Tribulation, or Jacob's trouble]. Don't we have terminology for this eschatological doctrine regarding the Church's rescue and escape that occurs prior to the time of Jacob/Israel's trouble?

2) For a while I was perplexed by the LXX rendering of "...she escaped [Greek: pheugo] and gave birth to a male." It didn't quite jive to have the woman escape and give birth at the same time, because the previous clause stated that she had yet to enter into her time of trial. Thankfully, the light bulb went on today. I realized that the translator/scribe did his best to literally convey the Hebrew term malat, which has a range of meanings depending on the stem of the verb and its surrounding context. According to HALOT (Hebrew Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament), there are several options: to flee, to save, to rescue, and to bear, give birth (pg. 589). The particular stem of this verb used in Isa. 66:7 [Hiphil] is found only here and in Isa. 31:5. Therefore, the context then leads me to go with the sense of "to deliver," or "to bring forth/give birth." It's awkward to translate this as the woman "escaping a child."

3) And so, the verbs "delivered" and "gave birth" in 66:7b are synonymous and describe the same action performed by the woman (most English translations agree). However, as we have discovered in Revelation 12, the woman does indeed escape, but not before she gives birth to the male-child (Rev. 12:6; 13-17; for further study on the two great escapes of chapter 12, see my previous post, "Revelation 12: Escape to a Place Prepared").

4) Observe the helpful parallelism at work in Isa. 66:7-8 (cited from the NKJV):

66:7a:  Before she was in labor,

                   she gave birth;

66:7b:  Before she was in pain,

                   she delivered a male child.

66:8a:  Who has heard such a thing? Who has seen such things?

66:8b:        shall the earth be made to give birth in one day? Or shall a nation be born at once?

66:8c:                 For as soon as Zion was in labor, she gave birth to her children.

Highlighted in red: These interrelated lines regard God doing the impossible—a birth before labor.

Highlighted in blue: These interrelated lines identify the recipient of this miraculous delivery with an additional detail about timing (c.f. 1 Cor. 15:51-52).

Highlighted in orange: This last line denotes a shift in thought as there is a transition: the Church Age concludes and the time of Jacob's trouble begins. After the birth of the male-child (Church), Zion (Israel) goes into Labor (not just general tribulation, but capital "T" tribulation; not just general labor, but capital "L" labor) and then gives birth to more children [in Hebrew, literally "her sons"]. Logically, these "children" are either "the brothers" returning as recorded in Mic. 5:3, or "her seed" fleeing the dragon in Rev. 12:17 [commonly known as Tribulation saints]. See Brad's post at Revelation 12 Daily for an excellent summary of an integral piece of the puzzle found in Micah.

In Bold: The "male-child" and "nation" born suddenly, in one day, are terms referring to the same corporate entity, a group also called the Church, or the body of Christ. Thus, the male-child/nation is delivered swiftly and suddenly as one body, and yet also has many members (c.f. 1 Cor. 12:12-27).

Underlined: The woman is Zion [Israel], and her destiny is intricately tied to the eretz—the earth, the land (c.f. Gen. 15:18-19; Rev. 12:16).

Another Favored Nation Goes First

Some folks may be hesitant to accept what I have relayed above and insist that Isa. 66:8 is a no-brainer fulfillment of the birth (or, rebirth) of the nation of Israel in 1948. That's understandable. I thought it fit nicely, too. But I don't anymore. Therefore, please don't let it become a stumbling block that might prevent you from reevaluating this passage in light of what I have shared with you. This new insight in no way diminishes the significance of the 1947-48 milestone, especially as it pertains to the prophetic countdown begun back in 1897 with the First Zionist Congress (see Gary's post, "Learn the Parable of the Fig Tree").

If you're looking for a prophetic passage related to Israel's rebirth and return to her promised land, then try Ezekiel 37. In one sense Israel has already been born as a nation (Ex. 4:22; Hos. 11:1), but she still awaits her final return and full salvation (c.f. Rom. 11). And so, the nation born in Isa. 66:8 is not Israel, but rather the body of Christ, the "holy nation" spoken of in 1 Pet. 2:9.

Additionally, by the testimony of two authoritative witnesses, John and Paul (George and Ringo not included), we have confirmation that the male-child/nation of Isa. 66:7-8 born in an instant is the Church, the body of Christ. We've already seen what John thinks, but why bring Paul into this?

Well, in a previous post I wrote about an event that would provoke Israel to jealousy based on a prophecy nestled in the Torah, found in Deuteronomy 32—the very portion to be read on September 23, 2017 by devout Jews all over the world (see, "The Salvation of the Church and the Torah Portion for September 23, 2017"). The LORD told the Israelites that He would anger and provoke them to jealousy by means of "a foolish nation" and those who were "not a people."

Take a guess at which verse of Scripture the apostle Paul cites to link the Church with the "foolish nation" of Deuteronomy 32:21? Turn left from Route 66, one chapter over to Isaiah 65:

I was sought by those who did not ask for Me; I was found by those who did not seek Me. I said, 'Here I am, here I am,' to a nation that was not called by My name" (Isa. 65:1, NKJV).

To recap and connect the dots: The foolish nation of Deuteronomy 32:21, whose salvation serves to testify against Israel and her unfaithfulness, is the same nation born in Isaiah 66:7-8, referred to by Paul in Romans 10:19-20 (citing Deut. 32:21 + Isa. 65:1), and finally hinted at by John in Revelation 12:5. Whoa! Is the Bible inspired, or what?

Stay tuned for Part II of this study...

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