Shabbat Shalom kol beit Yisra'el and Mishpachah and welcome to Part 45 of our study of the Book of Revelation.

For the past two weeks we have started to open up the text of the revelations of the Third Interlude at the end of the Seven Shofar Judgments found in Revelation 12:1-6 by digging deep into the symbolism of the Woman and the Dragon. We saw how all the attempts of Satan to prevent the Messianic Seed being born were a failure, Yahweh often interceding at the very last minute to prevent the whole Plan of Salvation coming to fruition. Having failed to prevent the Saviour's birth, the Dragon then set about trying to destroy Him several times while He was mortal and believed he had succeeded at Calvary only to be defeated again by the resurrection and ascension. Knowing his doom was sealed, he instead turned his fury on the Messianic Community (Church) and that is what we are going to look at over the next two weeks. Unable to touch Yah'shua (Jesus), the Enemy, depicted as a 7-headed fire-spitting red dragon, has turned (from his point-of-view) on the next best thing - the Messiah's beloved Bride, the true believers. We therefore face a very determined Adversary who, though powerful in terms of his angelic endowments, is helpless before the mighty Lion-Lamb who dwells in regenerated believers.

Let's then take a look at today's and next week's text, beginning at verse 7 and ending with the first half of verse 1 of the next chapter which I am going to call verse 18 as it is so (correctly, in my view) labelled in most modern translations (e.g. NRSV, RNAB, KNT, NEB, CJB, OJB):

"7 And war broke out in heaven (the shamayim): Michael and his malakim (angels) fought with the dragon; and the dragon and his malakim (angels) fought, 8 but they did not prevail ('could not win' - KNT), nor was a place found for them in heaven (the shamayim) any longer. 9 So the great ('primaeval' - JB) dragon was cast out, that ['head' - HRV] serpent of old, called 'Akel Kartza (HRV, RSTNE) (Gk. diabolos, the Devil (= Slanderer, Misrepresenter, False Accuser) and haSatan ([the] Satan = Adversary) (Jn.8:44), who deceives the whole world; he was cast ['out' - HRV) ('thrown down' - KNT) (Ezek.28:16; Is.14:9; Lk.10:18) to the earth (olam = world, finite time and space), and his malakim (angels) were cast out with him. 10 Then I heard a loud voice saying in heaven (the shamayim), 'Now salvation ('deliverance' - HRV), and strength, and the kingdom of our Elohim (God), and the power (malkut' - RSTNE) of His Messiah (Christ) have come, for the accuser (haSatan) of our brethren, who accused them before our Elohim (God) day and night, has been cast ('brought' - JB) down ('cast out' - HRV). 11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb and by the davar (word) of their testimony, and they did not love their lives ('nefeshot' - HRV) to the death ('in the face of death they would not cling to life' - JB). 12 Therefore rejoice, O heavens, and you who dwell in them ('live there' - KNT)! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth and the sea! For the devil has come down to you, having great wrath, because he knows that he has a short time ('his days are numbered' - JB).'

"13 Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to ('out upon' - HRV) (Ezek.28:16; Is.14:19; Lk.10:18) the earth, he persecuted (alt. 'persued') the woman who gave birth to the male Child ('baby boy' - KNT) (Is.66:7)). 14 But the woman was given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness to her place, where she is nourished for a time and times and half a time (3½ years - Dan.7:25; 9:27; 12:7; Rev.11:3), from the presence of the serpent. 15 So the serpent spewed ('vomited' - JB, 'spat' - KNT) water out of his mouth like a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away by the flood ('with the force of the water' - KNT). 16 But the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed up the flood which the dragon had spewed out of his mouth. 17 And the dragon was enraged with the woman, and he went to make war with the rest of her offspring ('children' - KNT), who keep the mitzvot (commandments) of Elohim (God) and have the testimony of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ). 18/3:1a Then I (alt. 'he' = 'the dragon') stood on the sand of ('beside the' - KNT) the sea" (Rev.12:7-18/13:1a, NKJV).

I think before we do anything else - because he is the main subject of today's text - that we should spent a little time making a thorough examination and exposé of who this 'Dragon', with his many titles and names, actually is. The Greek translator(s) of the Aramaic New Testament, whose text forms the basis of nearly all our English Bibles, have done a pretty good job but inevitably certain nuances get lost in any translation from one language to another. For a start, 'Devil' and ' Satan' are not proper names but titles. Most understand that 'devil' is not a proper name which is why we commonly use the definite article, 'the' with it, and refer to the Dragon as 'the Devil'.

This should have been done with the word satan too which in Hebrew is always preceded by the definite article, 'the' in English, 'ha' in Hebrew, as the compound haSatan meaning 'the satan'; this is in exactly the same way we refer to 'devil' as 'the devil'. Both these are titles and not proper names. But through the force of a bad habit adopted centuries ago, we now just tend to refer to him as 'Satan' ('the Adversary' or 'he Opponent'). So when Yah'shua (Jesus), speaking of someone you have a dispute with says, "settle matters quickly with your adversary who is taking you to court" (Matt.5:25, NIV), He is in fact saying, "settle matters quickly with your satan who is taking you to court"; and when King David says that "Yahweh my Elohim (God) has given me rest on every side, and there is no adversary or disaster" (1 Kings 5:4, NIV), he is in fact saying, "Yahweh my Elohim (God) has given me rest on every side, and there is no satan or disaster". As such, then 'satan' can just as easily apply to human adversaries as to angelic and the Dragon himself.

We often make the same linguistic mistake when addressing or speaking of the Lamb of Elohim (God) when in English we call Him 'Jesus Christ' as if 'Christ' were His surname like the 'Smith' part of 'John Smith'. Christ, meaning 'anointed one', is not a name but a title, so properly speaking our Messiah should be called 'Jesus the Christ' or 'Jesus the Anointed One' which doesn't appear anywhere in most modern translations but does at least appear once in the King James Version (KJV) (Mt.16:20), twice in the New King James Version (NKJV) (Mt.16:20; Ac.9:34), and once in the New American Standard Bible (NASB) (Ac.3:20). If the Saviour had the equivalent of what we call a surname today it would have been 'ben Josef' or 'son of Joseph', not 'Christ'. Those, rather, are titles which, like 'satan', are also used of men when described as 'deliverers (saviours)'. Obadiah 21 is a perfect example of this when it speaks of human 'saviours' or 'deliverers' on Mount Zion.

This is not a problem in Hebrew or Aramaic where Mashiach (translated 'Messiah') corresponds to 'Christ' and always appears with the definite article (the), ha (the Greek eqivalent is ho). Thus in Hebrew the Saviour's Name is 'Yah'shua haMashiach' or 'Jesus the Messiah'. Properly transliterated into English this would be 'Jesus the Christ'. What then of the 'Devil' or 'Adversary' both of wich are used several times in the Book of Revelation? If these are titles, and if 'Dragon' is simply a title or symbolic representation of a spirit-being (we'll take a look at that word too in a minute), then does our Enemy have a proper name in the Bible? Many believe it to be 'Lucifer' which appears only once in Isaiah 11:12 in some translations:

"How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations!" (Isa.14:12, KJV).

Lucifer is a proper name but it is the Latin translation of the Hebrew Heylel which is the Dragon's proper name and means 'brightness' or 'bringer of light' as once he was when prior to the Fall he was in right relationship with his Creator, Yahweh. However, were I to speak to you of the famous Italian composer 'John Green'it would probably take you a while to figure out I was talking about Guiseppi Verdi. Heylel is also taken by some translations to mean the 'morning star', hence the phrase 'Lucifer, son of the morning [star]'. Thus the American Standard Version (ASV) does not use 'Lucifer' but 'day-star', the New International Version (NIV) uses 'morning star', the New American Standard Bible (NASB) 'star of the morning', the New Living Translation (NLT), 'shining star', and so on. This connection is made because of what Yah'shua (Jesus) declared:

"I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven" (Luke 10:18, NIV)

Likewise, in chapter 11 of the Book of Revelation which we recently studied, John says:

"I saw a star fallen from heaven to the earth. To him was given the key to the very deep ('bottomless') pit" (Rev.9:1, NKJV).

Stars are symbols of heavenly and earthly rulers, powers or authorities in the same way that the Hebrew word elohim is which we unfortunately translate as 'God'...'Power' or 'Authority' would be better. So linking Lucifer with a 'bright' or 'shining' star is not wrong. Neither is it wrong to associate him with 'dawn' or 'early morning'. The problem is that 'Morning Star' is a also title of the Saviour which has led some to twist the scriptures to mean that these references are to him too (Satanists certainly do). For it is written of Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus the Christ):

"And we have the davar nevi'im (word of the prophets) made more certain, and you will do well to pay attention to it, as to a light shining in a dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts" (2 Peter 1:19, NIV).

"I, Yah'shua (Jesus), have sent my malak (angel, messenger) to give you this testimony for the messianic assemblies (churches). I am the Root and the Offspring of David, and the bright Morning Star" (Rev.22:16, NIV).

Not only that, but as we saw early on in Revelation chapter 2, a promise is made to the spiritual overcomers:

"I will also give him (the overcomer) the morning star" (Rev.2:28-29, NIV).

What this means is that Heylel, Lucifer, the Devil, the Accuser, the Dragon, Satan or whatever he is called in Scripture, once had something that was known as the 'morning star' (with a small 'm' amd small 's'). And it also means that Christ is the perpetual 'Morning Star' (with a capital 'M' and a capital 'S') who also 'gives' the 'morning star' to His faithful, overcoming, trustworthy, Torah-obedient talmidim (disciples). In other words, the 'morning star' as a bright light in the sky is a picture of 'great glory' - it's what the faithful receive at the dawn of the new Resurrection Æon or Age. Whether the 'morning star' is also the planet Venus, which is most often observed at dawn, is hard to say though none of these passages is obviously literal in that sense. Satan once had the title that is Yah'shua's (Jesus') by birth or by divine right in the same way the Messiah has the title as Elohim (God) - in words, the Messiah has always been 'Elohim' and always been the 'Morning Star' but not so angels or humans. Heylel received this title at the beginning by assignment only, as Heaven's plenipotentiary or authorised representative as the one-time chief malak (angel) of heaven, a right and title that he has since forfeited, but a power which he still possesses in a corrupted and therefore inferior or counterfeit form. His always was a representative glory, it is not something he generated himself. Only Elohim (God) possess such 'Morning Star' Glory as an uncreated characteristic of His Personhood.

Raw power Satan may still have, but not the original Morning Star Glory, for the Glory spoken of here is the divine presence or Shekinah which confers heavenly splendour, honour, praise and fame, bringing with it to the bearer a shem tov or 'good name' such as belonged to the representative polygamous man of Isaiah 4:1 that we spoke of in the last Rosh Chodesh sermon. Satan "masquerades as a malak (angel) of light" (2 Cor.11:14, NIV), pretending to have the orignal Glory given to him but which he has long since lost through rebellion and sin; his 'light' is now, in reality, darkess - an illusion. The light always translates into what we do - how we appear is not nearly as important because appearances can be deceptive. Thus Yah'shua (Jesus) told His talmidim (disciples):

"Let your light shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven" (Matt.5:16, NIV).

'The Satan' does no good deeds, only evil ones that perfectly reflect his corrupted character, which is why the 'shining of light' of itself is not a reliable guage of truth. Anyone can put a spotlight on themselves in a bid to seek self-glory or falsely be identified as benevolent, but the true Divine Glory is imparted by Yah'shua (Jesus) to those who have crucified the fleshy nature, love and follow Him. All light manifesting in the world, then, must be tested to see what it actually is and the best test of any man's light is the life which he leads. Yah'shua (Jesus) lived His life without flaw or sin as incarnated Divinity. His was the spotless Torah-lifestyle. It always has been so and always will be so.

The possession of secret knowledge or mystical esoterica is not evidence of this blessedness in itself because such may either be genuine light or false light concealing darkness. This why the observed lifestyle of the qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones) is always the 'main thing' because the life-lived testifies of the kind of life within, whatever fancy label may be applied to it. Is the life of your soul transformed and imaging Messiah or does it reflect back the sinful carnal, fleshy nature for the world to see? Is it Torah-compliant or lawless? Doing the Davar (Word) is always more important than merely saying it, a reason why the 'name it, and claim it' fad of charismatics is such a fraud, because the fruits are bad; it reflects an impertinence and presumptiveness on the part of the one vainly trying to be a 'godlet' in 'decreeing' this or that. They may feel good doing so but it is not necessarily real. We must 'walk the walk' and not simply 'talk the talk'. The Dragon demonstrated who he is, and the kind of 'light' he operates in, by what he is and does, as we are seeing in his murderous hostility to the Woman and her Seed. The spirit of murder is what governs the kind of life he lives for. Those driven by a spirit of destruction reveal their satanic spirit.

This is why it is both helpful - and at times necessary - to go back to the Aramaic text of the Book of Revelation (and indeed to the whole New Testament). In verse 9 the Dragon is called the 'devil' in our English translation of the Greek word diabolos (from which we get the English word 'diabolical') but in the Aramaic it reads Akel Kartza. Remember that - Akel Kartza. This is an Aramaic title of the Dragon - which is a compound of two words: akel (meaning 'to devour' or 'consume') and kartza meaning 'thick piece of bread'. Picture someone gorging a verh large chunk of bread like a wild animal tearing off a large piece of flesh from its victim. In other words, the Dragon, who is the Akel Kartzaidentify him and see him as to who he really is; this also helps us to identify those human beings whose bodies he occupies or possesses by right of their sinning. The Dragon, his fallen malakim (angels) or demons as well as his demonised human followers may all therefore correctly be called 'devils' or 'slanderers' and all may likewise be correctly called 'satans' or 'adversaries' of the Messiah and His followers. All beings - whether Heylel, his fallen malakim (angels) or rebellious human beings - are in rebellion against a Cosmic Law forbidding us all from being slanderers or devils (Lev.19:16). Indeed, the tenor of the whole Bible is against the misuse of the human tongue (2 Sam.19:27; Ps.15:3; 101:5; Prov.11:13; 20:19; 30:10; Jer.6:28; 9:4) which includes speaking nonense, unintelligible gibberish and misusing the tongue Yahweh gave us that utlimately is the misusing of the Name of our Elohim (God) too:

"You shall not misuse the name of Yahweh your Elohim (God), for Yahweh will not hold anyone guiltless who misuses His name" (Ex.20:7, NIV).

In particular I want you to carefully note that the Greek word diabolos or 'devil' describes any supernatural entity or human being who 'carps' or 'pulls to pieces' with his tongue or by other means. So it should not surprise you to learn, then, that there is a demon - or group of demons - who specialise in promoting this evil behaviour in humans. In fact, I spoke to you about him/them over 10 years ago as it is an entity which we have encountered in deliverance ministry; he goes by the name CARPO, the fault-finding demon. I will leave you a link to a teaching on this filty entity so you can follow up on the message today because this demon provokes a very common and easily identifiable form of sinful behaviour, namely that of being querulous, bragging, fault-finding, critical and slanderous.

We see this devil manifested today as in no other time in the modern 'woke' culture whose speciality is taking offense, criticisng, condemning and 'canceling' without any shame and with no hint of forgiveness or intent toward reconciliation. Carpo is born of a self-entitlement mentality that pursues real or imagined victimhood to an extreme, that 'demands' compensation. Our British 'Prince Harry', called by many the 'Prince of Woke', is a perfect example of the this demon run amok...and, of course, of haSatan or 'the Satan', Heylel (Lucifer) himself. It's purpose is not to build up people, as Christians are commanded to do, but tear down. Taking offense, as Scripture plainy teaches and as John Bevere so billiantly expounds in his book and video series, The Bait of Satan, is the way the Enemy traps us into serious sinning that progressively transforms us into images of his own dark satanic character. I highly recommend you read or watch that series. It is a mandatory instruction in our Schools of Israel in NCAY.

This, then, is the Dragon, Akel Kartza, and it is linked in verse 9 to the word haSatan or 'the-satan' or 'Satan', which means 'accuser', one who disparages, uses biting words and causes 'current' or 'present destruction'. In other words, it causes destructive behaviour, ruins the character of the one being a satan and destroys relationships. It tramples goodness, sweettness, kindness, gentleness and innocence. Thus Akel Kartza-Satan - literally, the 'Slanderer-Accuser' - uses biting words and accusation to consume, devour and destroy his victims. He is a slanderous backbiter. Have no fellowship with such people. Rather, expose and rebuke them for their destructive behaviour and call them to repentance.

We are warned in Scripture that in the last days Satan will wage a relentless war against the Remnant, a group of faithful believers who keep the mitzvot (commandments) of Yahweh and have the testimony of Yah'shua (Jesus) (Rev.12:17). Notice again the two go hand-in-hand. Those who advocate Yah'shua (Jesus) as Messiah (Christ) and observe the Torah are therefore special targets of Akel Kartza or slanderous accusations from both lawless believers and those unbelievers who hate Messiah, a reason we are strictly warned never to engage in gossipping, tale-bearing, slander or evil-speaking, which are collectively known as Lashon Hara or 'the evil tongue' [1].

What some of you may not realise that the Torah teaches that a person who falsely accuses someone of something he did not do becomes guilty of the crime he falsely accuses the other of and shall receive the punishment for that crime himself even though he did not actually commit it. That is how seriously Yahweh regards lashon hara or evil-speaking and by this law shows how much he hates it and demands its immediate removal from His community of qodeshim (saints, set-apart ones). It has to go because it is such an evil contaminant. So if you falsely accuse someone of murder, for instance, you yourself become guilty of murder and must pay the penalty for it. And the penalty for murder is death - your evil intent it will cost you your life. Yah'shua (Jesus) uses the same principle in warning against lusting after a married woman for though the act of adultery may not have been committed, the intent is no less evil to which we are held to account by Heaven (Mt.5:27-28). Scary? I hope so because that is the only way purity of soul can be maintained. Repentance is required of both evil intent and deed.

After all, think about it, if you had succeeded in getting an innocent person condemned to death for murder, then the innocent one would have been executed - forfeited his life - would he not? and that would make you an actual murderer albeit by using the public executioner as your proxy. If you falsely accuse someone of being a thief, you become a thief yourself; or if you falsely accuse someone of being an adulterer, you become an adulterer in the eyes of Yahweh and deserve to be stoned to death - that goes for any one of the 25 crimes where Scripture calls for capital punishment,e irrespective of what your country's law may be. Did not the Pharisees falsely accuse Yah'shua (Jesus) of being possessed by a demon? And did not Yah'shua (Jesus) tell them that they belonged to their father the devil? (Jn.8:42ff.) I shudder to think what that made them guilty of. They also accused John the Baptist of having a demon (Lk.7:33), the greatest navi (prophet) of them save save for Yah'shua (Jesus) Himself. If nothing else this should make us seriously hesitate before accusing anyone of anything we aren't absoklutely sure of because it can so easily become a deadly matter. If Yahweh takes it seriously, you'd better believe that you must too.

Now the good news and grace of the New Covenant as compared to the Old is that Torah-penalties such as these may be abrogated, cancelled or pardoned provided there is genuine repentance and a sincere attempt at making a full restitution to the one you have wronged, as far as that is possible. Yah'shua (Jesus) demonstrated this grace in the account of the woman caught in adultery - He forgave her on condition she did not repeat this wickedness again! (Jn.8:3-11). Restoring their reputation or shem tov (good name) by saying or doing all you can in their behalf is the priority of the one guilty of lashon hara and to keep doing so until everyone who has been negatively impacted by the lies you told is informed, as far as that is humanly possible. You will find some statements on the main website made by those who once spoke lies about me. Occasionally people come to me to answer rumours they have heard about me and I can then point them to these statements. No one may partake of the Master's (Lord's) Supper, Communion or Eucharist who is guilty of this wickedness. At the beginning of our liturgy mention is made of the need to be clean in this respect before partaking of the bread and wine.

So if there is any back-biting or false accusation going on anywhere in any Christian church or Messianic assembly - if offense is being given or taken - they aren't going to make any forward progress until they have expunged this sin from their midst. Moreover they would be eating and drinking condemnation to their souls by partaking of the sacrament of the Master's Supper unworthily, as Paul warns (1 Cor.11:27-30). And the modern culture doesn't help, a reason we have to be even more separate from it now than ever before. That is why Yahweh makes it perfectly clear that the Way is strict and why the casual, lax and careless way of lawless Christians is such an abomination to Him!

Thus the apostle Peter warned most soberly:

"Be of sober spirit, be on the alert. Your adversary, the devil, prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour" (1 Peter 5:8, NASU).

All of this gives substance and context to today's passage. Now we can better understand what this devouring spirit, that seeks to kill the Woman and her Child, actually is, and why we must be very careful not to inadvertantly pick it up ourselves because it is like a contagious virus.

Now you may well be wondering why the word "dragon" is used at all here yet the Greek word drakon is used 13 times in Scripture but only in the Book of Revelation. Now I don't want to get into the very interesting subject of whether fire-breathing lizards called dragons have ever existed or not, or whether any still exist today. It is no accident that in today's movies and story-telling children in particular, but also adults who were not so brainwashed when they were younger, are encouraged to view dragons - or at least some dragons - as something positive, almost pet-like. But make no mistake, the Bible has nothing positive to say about them. Indeed, they are reserved exclusively as depictions of Satan.

So I make no apologies to the Welsh or Bhutanese (who have a dragons on their respective flags) or to the Chinese (who used to have a dragon on their flag but which still remains a positive symbol in their culture) or to those who like the Arthurian legends about the sorcerer Merlin and his 'good' dragon, or who are enamoured with modern TV series like Game of Thrones. Like it or not - and in spite of the subtle programming of this, frankly, satanic culture - dragons represent evil. Period. The lion may be a dual symbol representing either good (Christ) or evil (Satan) but not so the dragon. There are no 'good' and 'evil' dragons any more than there are 'good' and 'evil' snakes or serpents in the Bible. Those symbols represent one thing only. There may be 'good-cop' dragons and snakes pretending to be 'good' (like the so-called 'white' occult or 'white magic' of Wicca) but the good- and the bad-cops are, in reality, on the same side. White magic and black magic are the two sides of the same coin of wickedness. All 'occult' is bad. It is therefore unfortunate that one of the most prestigious preparatory schools in Oxford where I lived was, and still is, called The Dragon School. I know because a friend of mine was schooled there.

Remember, remember, that the Dragon, like the Devil and the Adversary (haSatan), is the sworn Enemy of the Man-Child, Yah'shua the Messiah (Jesus Christ) and of His people - us. Dragons represent the devouring spirit. This same Dragon, also known as the Serpent or Snake, was cast out of heaven and down to the earth, drawing with him a third of the heavenly host, to become our greatest enemy. This debased monster persecutes and murders the Remnant; and as we shall shortly see it is this same Dragon who forces the whole earth, apart from the Remnant who resist him, to worship him instead of our Heavenly Father, Yahweh, in the final act of Universal Apostacy. Many nations like my own have, as their 'patron saint', St.George slaying a dragon, though sadly it seems that this same dragon is now slaying my nation. Russia also has this emblem and its leader is doing some dragon-slaying right now. As we will encounter this Dragon again later on in the Book of Revelation, I will reserve further comment until then. However, it was right that I equip you with this information for the sake of increasing your discernment. We have to know our Enemy - every military leader will tell you as much and the army, as most of you know, was part of my upbringing.

Let's return to the text as I want to speak about the 'good guys' now:

"Then war broke out in heaven, with Michael and his malakim (angels) fighting against the dragon, and the dragon and his malakim (angels) fighting back. But they could not win, and there was no longer any place for them in heaven. So the great dragon was thrown down to the earth - the ancient serpent (snake) who is called the devil and the satan, who deceives the whole world. His malakim (angels) were thrown down with him" (Rev.12:7-9, KNT).

Perhaps for a good reason, the names and identities of malakim (angels) are kept to a minimum in the Bible, maybe because of all the resultant idolatry that has historically followed admiration of them by unspiritual believers. Given half a chance, careless humans will worship anything and everything...except the true Elohim (God) of Heaven. Even Yahweh's servants sometimes make that mistake because of their glory. Angel worship has become quite a big fad in our modern apostate time. It was Talmudic Judaism which invented the whole system of Hebrew 'angelology' that saturates Jewish occultism. Just read the Zohar or any kabbalistic text or the internally contradictory and disjunctive mishmash called the 'Book of Enoch' and you'll find dozens of them named, most of them of human invention but no doubt some genuine ones of distant folk memory. The names of only two malakim (angels) are mentioned in the Davar Elohim (Word of God), and they are ruling malakim or 'archangels' of which one, Mikha'el or 'Michael' in English, is named here (1 Thes.4:16; Jude 9; Lk.1:19). No malak (angel) I have personally encountered has ever volunteered his name and I knew better than to ask him for it. My wife once asked a malak (angel) during a very intense encounter if she could have his sword and was told firmly, No!

To better understand who Yahweh's supernatural messengers are, let's go all the way back to the navi (prophet) Daniel in chapter 10 for some orientation, a chapter we've had occasion to consult before in this course. We'll begin at verse 10:

"Suddenly, a hand touched me, which made me tremble on my knees and on the palms of my hands. And he said to me, 'O Daniel, man greatly beloved, understand the words that I speak to you, and stand upright, for I have now been sent to you.' While he was speaking this word to me, I stood trembling. Then he said to me, 'Do not fear, Daniel, for from the first day that you set your heart to understand, and to humble yourself before your Elohim (God), your words were heard; and I have come because of your words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia (a demon) withstood me twenty-one days; and behold, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me, for I had been left alone there with the kings of Persia. Now I have come to make you understand what will happen to your people in the latter days, for the vision refers to many days yet to come" (Dan.10:10-14, NKJV).

Later in verse 21, Gabriel (who was speaking in this text) goes on to tell Daniel about Michael who is described as "your prince" (Dan.10:21, NKJV), the 'your' being in the plural. In other words, Michael was, and is, the prince or 'guardian angel' of the nation of Judah (at that time in exile) and by extension all the twelve Tribes of Israel. Michael fights alongside Gabriel against the fallen malakim (angels) or demons that are the territorial spirits ruling pagan Persia and Greece who had certain rights there both because of an original pre-angel revolt appointment by Yahweh as well as rights afforded them by virtue of idolatry and sinning generally in these lands. A couple of chapters later, speaking of the 'End of Days' or end-times, we read a passage that is alluded to in Matthew 24:21:

"'At that time Michael shall stand up,
The great prince who stands watch over the sons of your people;
And there shall be a time of trouble,
Such as never was since there was a nation,
Even to that time.
And at that time your people shall be delivered,
Every one who is found written in the book.
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake,
Some to æonian ('everlasting') life,
Some to shame and æonian (age-long) contempt.
Those who are wise shall shine
Like the brightness of the firmament,
And those who turn many to righteousness
Like the stars forever and ever.'

"But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end; many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase" (Dan 12:1-4, NKJV).

Like I said, no other malakim (angels) are named in the Bible so take great care should you wander into the land of semi-myth and fables in the apocryphal Book of Enoch that names Rafa'el and 'Aza'zel. Unfortunately, this book was very popular in New Testament times, as it is today amongst 'end-time watchers' and if you know anything about Judaism's Talmud [2] the claim is made that Gabriel and Michael are two of the four Living Creatures surrounding Yahweh's Throne whom we came across earlier in the Book of Revelation; but where they got that from I have no idea. The Talmud even claims that Michael is greater than Gabriel [3] and I have no wish to speculate on that matter either. The same Talmud claims that it was Michael who told Abraham not to sacrifice his son Isaac [4] (Gen.21:12) and that it was Michael who smote Sennacherib and the Assyrian army in 2 Kings 19:35; the text also claims that both Michael and Samma'el, whom they identify with Satan, both stand before the Shekinah glory while Satan accuses and Michael points out Israel's virtues, with Michael silencing Satan when he wants to speak again [5].

Frankly I am highly sceptical because of the way these texts frequently try to exonerate Israel of her sins as their authors do their own sins. So it comes as no surprise to me personally to find the Talmud making the claim that it was Michael who defended the Jews against each of Haman's accusations [6] as this is certain to be an apocryphal text [7]. Needless to day, because they are mostly uninspired, the Midrash Rabbah, which wasn't completed until the 4th century AD, failed to recognise that Yah'shua (Jesus) was the 'navi (prophet) like Moses' who had already arisen in Israel (Ac.3:22-23). Worse, the Jewish occult kabbalistic texts exalt Michael even further, associating him with another likely made-up angel called 'Metratron' who is sometimes equated by them with the Messiah, a grievous mistake by the Jehovah's Witnesses who equate Michael with the pre-incarnate Son of Elohim (God). The Jehovah's Witness 'Jesus' was Michael in their understanding. Indeed, the fact they think the two are one and the same shows the kabbalistic influence on that cult. The kabbalists go one step further by blasphemously giving Michael a rôle in redemption and make him a personification of grace, in much the same way Catholics give to Mary, blasphemously making her a co-redemptrix or co-saviour with Yah'shua (Jesus).

So back to the motif of the dragon once again. Does the use of this designation, as liberal 'Christians' and unbelievers accuse, signify that the New Testament is just a warmed-up version of Greek mythology? Absolutely not because the text goes on to clearly identify this monster with:

• 1. 'The Ancient Serpent' (Gk. ophis) of Genesis 3 (LXX) which is the equivalent of the Hebrew nachash;
• 2. 'The Devil' (Gk. diabolos = slanderer, accuser), which is the Septuagint's (LXX's) version of Satan, and this is exacly his rôle in Job 1-2;
• 3. 'The Satan' or accuser;
• 4. 'The deceiver of the whole world'; and
• 5. 'The accuser of the brethren'.

Besides, isn't the Tanakh (Old Testament) full of such 'monster language'? There's:

• 1. Rahab (or Rahav) symbolising Satan's lurking power beneath Egypt (Is.51:9; Ps.39:10; Job 26:13);
• 2. Leviathan (Livytan the 'sea monster' which Job makes clear in his context is no natural sea creature like a marine dinosar (e.e. pleisosaur), though it might well be pictured on such an extinct animal ((Is.27:1; Ps.74:L14; 104:26; Job 40:25-41:26);
• 3. Behomoth (Behemot, often wrongly translated 'hippopotamus', but again almost certainly was an actual dinosaur-like creature like Brontosaurus (hippopotamus's don't have amssive tails) used as a picture for a supernatural entity in Job 40:15-24;
• 4. Tanin (a 'dragon' or 'crocodile...the meaning isn't certain - Is-51:9; Ps.74:13; Job 7:12); and
• 5. Nachash ('fiery serpent' - Gen.3:1-19; Is.27:1; Amos 9:3; Job 26:13).

Please note that the Septuagint (LXX), the authorised Greek translation of the Tanakh (Old Testament) renders three of these Hebrew words (tanin, nachash and livytan) as drakon or 'dragon', so there can be no doubt as to what John originally meant when the Greek translator used the word 'dragon'.

Finally, I should point out that the Dragon here in Revelation 12 is also identified with the 'fourth beast' of Daniel 7:7 which reads:

"After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast - terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns..." (Dan.7:7, NIV).

Next week we'll tackle the second part of the segment that speaks of an important cosmic battle that once took place in the heavenlies. Those of you who like Star Wars and Star Trek will appreciate this study because of the vastness of its scope. We need to spend time with that because a wrong interpretation of the timing of this event, which at its conclusion was followed by Satan being cast out of heaven to the earth, has resulted in some serious distortions of theology. Is this something that occurred a very long time ago, will it only happen right towards the end, or has it been going on the whole time over the millennia? As ever, may I remind you that you will only take away from this systematic study, in terms of understanding and enlightenment, in proportion to the amount of time and effort you spend preparing for them? There's a lot to take in. The effort will be worth it because the Book of Revelation is key to spiritual discernment and an understanding of the rôle the last generation is to play! Especially important, as we're seeing, is timing. Only two or three days ago I came across another group claiming to be the 'Last Exodus' who clearly have little or no clue what they're doing. I fear both for the physical safety of its followers and for the disappointment and disillusionment they will feel when they discover they have been acting presumptuously. There can be no Final Gathering without the authority and spiritual empowerment to accomplish it.

One of the things our Enemy does, in the words of the navi (prophet) Daniel, is "wear out the qadoshim (holy ones, saints, set-apart ones) of Elyon (the Most High)" (Dan.7:25b, NRSV). So be strong, and recall the words of the apostle James:

"Indeed we count them blessed who endure. You have heard of the perseverance of Job and seen the end intended by Yahweh -- that Yahweh is very compassionate and merciful" (James 5:11, NKJV).

Endnotes

[1] Restoration Scriptures True Name Edition (RSTNE), 3rd edition (2004), fn4, p.1059
[2] Pesikta Rabbati 46:3
[3] B'rakot 4b
[4] Midrash Va-Yosha in A.Jellinek, Beit-haMidrash
[5] Exodus Rabbah 18:5
[6] Esther Rabbah 7:12
[7] See the materials on Purim and why we do not believe Esther to be an authentic book - it was nowhere to be found in the Dead Sea Scrolls Tanakh (Old Testament) and is a piece of Pharisaic propaganda like the legends of Hanukkah even if it may contain some true principles.

Acknowledgements

[1] Tom Wright, Revelation for Everyone - The New Testament for Everyone Commentary Series, Vol.19 (SPCK, London: 2011)
[2] E.W.Bullinger*, Commentary on Revelation (Kregel Classics, Grand Rapids, Michihan: 1984)
[3] David H. Stern, Jewish New Testament Commentary (JNT Publications, Clarksville, Maryland: 1992)
[4] ESV Study Bible (Crossway, Wheaton, Illinois: 2011)
[5] The NIV Study Bible (Zondervan, Grand Rapids, Michigan: 1995)
[6] Ed. J.R.Dummelow, A Commentary on the Holy Bible (MacMillan, London: 1909)

*E.W.Bullinger was a brilliant Anglican clergyman and scholar whose works merit careful study by serious students of the Bible. He was, however, seriously in error in at least three main areas, namely, (1) he believed the 'Church' has been raptured before the Book of Revelation opens, (2) he believed that the 7 churches in Revelation 2-3 are 7, literal Jewish churches or assemblies yet to come, and (3) he believed in a pre-tribulation, pre-millennial rapture.

• 1. White horse - military aggression
• 2. Red horse - bloodshed
• 3. Black horse - famine
• 4. Pale Green/Blanched/Pallid/Sickly-looking horse - disease, epidemics

  ---

• 5. Persecution & prayer
• 6. Tremour & terror

  ---

  INTERLUDE I (Ch.7)
  (The 144,000 Redeemed)

  ---

• 7. Silence in heaven, listening to prayers which are then answered in a final catastrophe: a severe earthquake I

• 1. Scorched earth
• 2. Polluted sea
• 3. Contaminated water
• 4. Reduced sunlight

  ---

• 5. Insects and plague (for five months) (1st Woe)
• 6. Oriental invasion (200 million army) (2nd Woe)

  ---

  INTERLUDE II (Ch.10-11)
  (The Malak with the Little Scroll)
  (The Two Witnesses)

  ---

• 7. The Kingdom comes, the world is taken over by Yahweh & Yah'shua (Jesus) after a severe earthquake II (3rd Woe)

  ---

  INTERLUDE III (Ch.13-14)
  (The First & Second Beasts)
  (The Lamb & the 144,000)
  (The Messages of the Three Malakim)

  ---

• 1. Boils on the skin
• 2. Blood in the sea
• 3. Blood from the springs
• 4. Burning by the sun

  ---

• 5. Darkness
• 6. Armageddon

  ---

• 7. Hailstorm (OB 368:11-12) and severe earthquake III, leading to international collapse