~ Revelation Twelve ~

The Birth of the Man Child and the Casting of satan from the Heavens

   We will primarily use The Authorized Version as a basis for our scriptural references but will be referring  to other translations wherever necessary.

   jerusalem existed long before any of YAHWEH'S¹ people inhabited it.  At that time it was called jebus (yeb-OOS), which means "a place trodden underfoot" (as a threshing floor) (Joshua 15:8 and Judges 19:10).  This pictures how the True Jerusalem, YAHWEH'S Heavenly Organization, was occupied by foreigners, namely the devil and his demons, before YAHWEH'S Ruling Authority came up and took over with the resurrection of the Heavenly Class.  We will be going over this resurrection and the beginning of YAHWEH'S Heavenly Kingdom, as well as the types that portray the actual event, in detail throughout the study of Revelation Twelve.  There are many symbols and types to be explained in this chapter and the events are not always brought out chronologically, so we hope no one of our readers becomes confused.

   Verse 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.

   This woman is not a literal woman for she has the moon under her feet.

   YAHWEH uses a woman in the Scriptures to picture an organization.  In Revelation Seventeen the devil's organization is depicted as the great whore who sits upon many waters (verse 1), or controls the masses of humanity (verse 15).  In contrast, YAHWEH'S Woman, who is Zion, is likened as a pure and beautiful woman.  Jeremiah 6:2 states:

I have likened the daughter of Zion to a comely and delicate woman.

   A true woman or mother would bear, nourish, and care for her offspring, or followers, just as Zion, our Mother Organization, cares for us by nourishing us with YAHWEH'S life-sustaining truths and instructing us as to the proper course of action.  YAHWEH also likens HIMSELF as Zion's HUSBAND, for what closer bond could there be than that of a husband and wife.  Isaiah 54:5 has this to say:

For thy Maker is thine husband; the LORD [YAHWEH] of hosts is his name; and thy Redeemer the Holy One of Israel; The God of the whole earth shall he be called.

   YAHWEH uses the word husband as a symbol of authority in relation to HIS Woman for the woman was made for man and not man for woman (1 Cor. 11:9).  Also 1 Corinthians 11:3 states that man is the head over the woman.

   Who exactly makes up Zion, YAHWEH'S Woman, or Heavenly Organization?  How do we determine who makes up Zion?  In Isaiah 2:3,  Revised Standard Version (R.S.V.), it states:

For out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of YAHWEH from Jerusalem.

   The Law is what YAHWEH wants all creatures to be submissive to, so this places Zion in a position above all other creatures, for they have the task and authority to bring out this Law.  Yahshua,²  who has been placed, or raised "far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age but also in that which is to come" (Eph. 1:21, R.S.V.), is supreme above all of YAHWEH'S creation.  Just as no one can come between YAHWEH and HIS Wife, Zion, no one can break the bond between YAHWEH and HIS only begotten Son Yahshua.  They are so closely united that in Ezekiel One they are referred to as electrum which is a metal made up of gold and silver.  So the Head of Zion must be no other than the One whom YAHWEH has given this authority.  Isaiah 28:16 as accurately translated from the original Hebrew:

Therefore thus speaks GOD YAHWEH behold I lay in Zion Stone, Stone approved, Corner, precious [a] Foundation Foundation, he who is firm [in his faith] not make haste.

The clarification:

Therefore thus speaks YAHWEH GOD, behold, I will lay in Zion a Stone, an approved Stone, a precious Cornerstone, a Foundation upon which all other Foundations shall be built, he who is firm in his faith will not attempt to speed ahead.

   Yahshua is referred to as the Foundation Foundation. He is the Foundation upon which all other Foundations built by YAHWEH'S People are built (the preaching work, the Community Villages, and so on).  When a large building is constructed, they must first dig down to reach solid rock upon which they can pour the foundation.  This solid rock is a foundation for the foundation, for if you were to lay a foundation on dirt alone, the building would sink.  Yahshua is the solid Foundation Foundation upon which this Spiritual Building is built and the Twelve Apostles are the Foundation.  The cornerstone is the very first stone laid, so it is the beginning of the entire structure; likewise, Yahshua is the beginning of this Spiritual Building.  1 Peter 2:5, R.S.V. :

And like living stones be yourselves built into a spiritual house, to be a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ [Yahshua].

   So Yahshua is the Head, and the rest of the Body, or the remaining Members of this Heavenly Organization are the 144,000, the New Jerusalem, or the Bride of  Yahshua which is the Church.  The bond that exists between YAHWEH and HIS Woman is also present in the bond between Yahshua and His Bride.  See Revelation 21:9-27 which shows the New Jerusalem to be the Bride of  Yahshua.  The New Jerusalem does not include Yahshua, for He is the Bridegroom and she is the Bride.  More will be brought out concerning their union as we go on.

   Now YAHWEH and Yahshua cannot have the same wife so there must be a distinction, and the distinguishing factor is that  Yahshua, whom YAHWEH has made Head over all of HIS creatures, is included with the 144,000 and together they make up Zion, YAHWEH'S Wife, HIS Capital Organization in the heavens.  So getting back to verse 1, we can understand who this Heavenly Woman is.  This Woman is Zion, YAHWEH'S Heavenly Organization, or Wife, made up of  Yahshua and His Church, the New Jerusalem.

   The sun is a celestial body, and Zion being clothed with the sun indicates that She is in the heavens.

   She is pictured as wearing a crown of twelve stars.  Stars are also heavenly bodies, again showing that this Organization is in the heavens.  And being that there are twelve shows it has to do with Israel, as typical israel was composed of twelve tribes.  Likewise, both the Heavenly and Earthly Portions of YAHWEH'S True Israel are symbolically referred to as being taken from the twelve tribes (Rev. 7:4-8).  These stars being in the form of a crown indicates the authority or  rulership possessed by the Heavenly Class, as they will be made Kings and Priests in YAHWEH'S Kingdom (Rev. 5:10, Gspd.³).  Matthew 19:28 states:

And Yahshua said unto them, Verily I say unto you, That ye which have followed me, in the regeneration when the Son of man shall sit in the throne of his glory, ye also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

   Verse 2:

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

   Since this is not a literal woman, this is not a literal child being born.  The child is the beginning of something and not a literal birth.  The Woman is in labor showing that the time has arrived and the resurrection of the Heavenly Class, which is the beginning of the Kingdom, is about to occur.  The pain to be delivered shows the great desire to have YAHWEH'S promise of establishing HIS Holy Organization finally fulfilled.  Isaiah 49:14-16,  The New English Bible (N.E.B.):

14  But Zion says, 'YAHWEH has forsaken me; my God has forgotten me.'
15  Can a woman forget the infant at her breast, or a loving mother the child of her womb?  Even these forget, yet I will not forget you.
16  Your walls are always before my eyes, I have engraved them on the palms of my hands.

Zion, apparently forsaken, is longing for the day of fulfillment.  She asks if She has been forgotten as thousands of years have past without fulfillment.  But YAHWEH is reassuring.  HE would not forget Zion.

   Abraham and Sarah were used in prophecy to picture YAHWEH and Zion.  Abraham, who is known as the father of the faithful (Gal. 3:7) and who was commanded to sacrifice his only begotten son Isaac (Gen. 22), pictures YAHWEH the True FATHER of all the faithful who gave up HIS only begotten Son Yahshua as a sacrifice for the redemption of man.

   YAHWEH'S Wife, Zion, is typified by Sarah, Abraham's wife, who was barren (Gen. 11:30).  The ability to bear children was woman's greatest honor.  They realized in this, complete fulfillment, and it became their greatest ambition.  Sarah's barrenness  went on far beyond her productive years, far beyond all reasonable hope of ever having any possible fulfillment, till finally, in despair, she gave her handmaid, Hagar, over to her husband Abraham that she might have a measure of fulfillment through her.  Even Rachel, Jacob's wife, while yet in her productive years, uttered the words, "Give me children, or else I die" (Gen. 30:1).  Therefore you can imagine Sarah's sheer anguish and desperation, the emptiness within her breast that the dream she had so longingly cherished with all of her womanhood was never to be realized--the feeling of being worthless, a failure, and not a complete woman, for she was far past her productive years and never even bore a single descendant for her household.

   Sarah's barrenness was unique in that it was a double blow, for it also failed to fulfill a promise that had been made to Abraham that he would have children.  Genesis 15:5:

And he brought him [Abraham] forth abroad, and said, Look now toward heaven, and tell the stars, if thou be able to number them:  and he said unto him, So shall thy seed be.

And YAHWEH reassures Abraham in Genesis 17:15-19 that Sarah would produce the offspring for him.  At last, what seemed an impossibility did occur, and Sarah, being ninety years old, gave birth to Isaac, the promised seed.

   A similar promise was made to Zion, that She would have children.  Isaiah 54:1:

Sing, O barren, thou that didst not bear; break forth into singing, and cry aloud, thou that didst not travail with child:  for more are the children of the desolate than the children of the married wife, saith YAHWEH.

   Zion likewise was barren yet promised that She would be blessed with many children.

   As further evidence that Abraham and Sarah were used to picture YAHWEH and Zion, we will quote Isaiah 51:1-3:

1  Hearken to me, ye that follow after righteousness, ye that seek YAHWEH:  look unto the rock whence ye are hewn, and to the hole of the pit whence ye are digged.  
2  Look unto Abraham your father, and unto Sarah that bare you:  for I called him alone, and blessed him, and increased him.
3  For YAHWEH shall comfort Zion:  he will comfort all her waste places; and he will make her wilderness like Eden, and her desert like the garden of YAHWEH; joy and gladness shall be found therein, thanksgiving, and the voice of melody.

   So we see that first it tells the righteous to look to YAHWEH, but continues with telling you to look to Abraham your father and Sarah your mother.  Then in verse 3, it is Zion who is comforted with children.  The types are incorporated with the fulfillment.

   Now as YAHWEH did the seemingly impossible with Sarah, HE has done with Zion.  And here in verse 2 of Revelation Twelve, Zion, after being barren for centuries, realizes the fulfillment of the promised blessings is about to occur.  She cries out with the pain of this desperate longing and Her overwhelming anxiety.

   Verse 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.

   The dragon represents satan and his organization (verse 9).  his color is red representing the tremendous bloodshed that he has caused.  he is a liar and a murderer and nothing good has ever come from him.  The suffering and death of humanity can be attributed to him.

   Seven in Scripture denotes heavenly completeness (seven creation days,  Yahshua said to forgive seventy times seven, Yahshua is pictured as having seven eyes).  The head is the seat of intelligence, denoting wisdom (satan was in the heavens with YAHWEH and did have knowledge of YAHWEH'S Purpose [Ezk. 28:14], but he corrupted himself), and crowns symbolize authority.  Therefore the seven heads and seven crowns represent the devil's claims of complete heavenly wisdom and the heavenly authority possessed by him over his entire organization, for his throne, or office, was, up to this time, still in the heavens.

   The number ten in the Scriptures shows earthly completeness.  (Men have ten fingers and ten toes.  We count in a system of ten.  Also Revelation 2:10 says that we will have tribulation ten days, or all the time that  satan is alive.)  Horns symbolize power in that they are what a beast uses to fight (Ps. 75:10).  Therefore the ten horns are significant of the power that the devil and his demons wield over the earth.  Scriptures state that he is the god of the world (2 Cor. 4:4) and that the whole world is in the power of the "evil one" (1 John 5:19, R.S.V.).

   Conclusively, this is bringing out how at this point  satan and his organization occupied both the heavens and the earth, the heavenly portion having authority over the earthly portion.  But he (satan) would not remain in the heavens much longer for YAHWEH'S Kingdom was at hand.

   Verse 4:

And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did 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.

   A tail represents a prophet or the ability to see the future; in this case it is a false prophet or, actually, the power of deceit (Isa. 9:15).

   A star symbolizes an angel (Rev. 1:20; 9:1).  This shows one third of the angelic host were deceived into supporting satan, the original liar (John 8:44).  The word  deceived is used very loosely here as these angels were not actually deceived.  They knew they were being disobedient.  They knew they were turning on YAHWEH and chose to do so willfully.  They were, more correctly, enticed, or lured, by the visions of grandeur propagated by satan the devil.  Each of these angels are individual characters like you and me.  Everyone was unique in their own special way but for one reason or another they were not satisfied in YAHWEH'S Righteous Organization and they wanted something more regardless of who was made to pay for it.  Their lust for power and self-glorification overwhelmed these wicked angels and they willfully and selfishly rejected what they knew to be just and right in pursuit of a hopeless situation.  These were cast from YAHWEH'S graces and HIS Holy Organization.  These wicked angels were literally cast to the earth.  Listening to satan proved to be their downfall.  They now know that they, like  satan, no longer have a place in heaven and that their authority is restricted to the earth.  So because they have chosen to side with the devil, they will meet with the same judgment as he.  They are first cast to the earth and then finally destroyed forever.  This one third encompasses all of the angels that fall from the time that  satan first rebelled up through the establishment of the abomination when the heavens are cleansed a second time.

   The dragon waiting to devour the child as soon as it was born shows that  satan was ready and zealous to stop the Kingdom, symbolized by the Man Child, before it ever started.  The devil realized the threat that the birth of the Kingdom would present to his domain.  he knew that by YAHWEH exercising this authority it was a major step closer to his doom, yet he was confident of victory.  If he could have prevented this birth, he could prevent his own destruction.  his brazen attitude is brought out beautifully in the accounts rendered in First Chronicles, Chapter Eleven and Second Samuel, Chapter Five which foreshadowed this situation.

   In this scenario, David and  israel, who picture Yahshua and the 144,000, are coming to take over jebus (the former name of  jerusalem) which pictures the demon-infested heavens.  The  jebusites, or satan and his demons, proclaim, "You will not come in here."  Let us take a look at the account in 1 Chronicles 11:1-5.

   1 Chronicles 11:1:

Then all Israel gathered themselves to David unto Hebron, saying, Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh.

   israel mentioned here symbolizes Heavenly Israel because they are all gathered around David who is a type of Yahshua.  David is referred to as a man after YAHWEH'S own heart because he was the only king of israel who was chosen by YAHWEH (Ps. 78:70-72).  This is one reason why he pictures Yahshua.  hebron means "seat of association or union," so being gathered there pictures the place of association where those who are of the Heavenly Portion of the Israel of Promise are united with Yahshua before He is made King in Zion.

   "Behold, we are thy bone and thy flesh."  Here again this vividly demonstrates the close connection between Yahshua and His Bride.  (Supporting scriptures can be found in Ephesians 5:29,30; Romans 12:4,5 and Ephesians 1:22,23 some of which will be quoted later.)

   1 Chronicles 11:2:

And moreover in time past, even when Saul was king, thou [David]  wast he that leddest out and broughtest in Israel:  and YAHWEH thy God said unto thee, Thou shalt feed my people Israel, and thou shalt  be ruler over my people Israel.

   This pictures the Heavenly Class, made up of the True Israel of Promise, accurately identifying their King and only True Leader as Yahshua, who was typified by David.  And, regardless of who is in authority at the time (the rulers of the day--in their case it was Saul), they realize the inadequacy and lack of fulfillment in him and the entire system, for they hear the  groanings of the masses of the people for deliverance.  They themselves groan with an even greater agony, for they know the Truth and the solution, that which will bring security, joy and peace to everyone, and though they see it clearly, it is still just out of reach.  The  groanings within them, words cannot adequately express.  Romans 8:22-26, Gspd., describes it in this manner:

22  We know that all creation has been groaning in agony together until now.
23  More than that, we ourselves, though we have in the Spirit a foretaste of the future, groan to ourselves as we wait to be declared God's sons, through the redemption of our bodies.
24  It was in this hope that we were saved.  But a hope that can be seen is not a hope, for who hopes for what he sees?
25  But when we hope for something that we do not see, we wait persistently for it.
26  In the same way the Spirit helps us in our weakness, for we do not know how to pray as we should, but the Spirit itself pleads for us with inexpressible yearnings.

   Likewise, the Earthly Portion of Israel will experience these same feelings.  We are aware of the same deplorable conditions in the world and are the ones who sigh and cry for the abominations committed herein (Ezk. 9:4).  We see the atrocities committed upon YAHWEH'S creation and hear the suffering masses waiting for deliverance.  And like the Heavenly Class, we have the answers from our Mother Zion and are anxious to see YAHWEH'S Purpose move forward--to see the end of all manner of oppression and the beginning of everlasting joy and blessings.  We truly recognize our Messiah, and never will True Israel be so blasphemous as to utter the words of fleshly  israel: "We have no king but Caesar" (John 19:15).

   1 Chronicles 11:3:

Therefore came all the elders of Israel to the king to Hebron; and David made a covenant with them in Hebron before YAHWEH; and they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of YAHWEH by Samuel.

   The elders picture those selected to represent the entire flock.  The covenant refers to the understanding that David is to be the head and they are to be submissive to him.  This is the same relationship that exists between  Yahshua and His Bride after the number is completed and sealed.  They were chosen because they have the correct understanding of YAHWEH'S Purpose and have proven loyal to it, so they understand their position and relationship with  Yahshua.

   "And they anointed David king over Israel, according to the word of YAHWEH by Samuel."  The 144,000 gathering together in harmonious union in  hebron and submitting to their King (who is Yahshua) is pictured by typical  israel anointing David as king.  The Heavenly Class knows that this is YAHWEH'S Will just as typical israel knew David was YAHWEH'S choice after hearing it from YAHWEH'S Spokesman Samuel.

   1 Chronicles 11:4:

And David and all Israel went to Jerusalem, which is  Jebus; where the Jebusites were, the inhabitants of the land.

   This pictures Yahshua and the 144,000 moving in to take their rightful position in YAHWEH'S Heavenly Organization, which prior to King David's conquest, was fittingly named  jebus, which means "a place trodden underfoot" (as a threshing floor).  This pictures YAHWEH'S beautiful and Holy Organization trodden underfoot by satan and his demons before they were conquered and driven out and the city cleansed (Rev. 11:1).  A threshing floor is covered with straw, ears of grain, separated grain and chaff, with enough dust in the air at times to make even breathing difficult.  This indicates the confusion, and extreme disorder that prevailed for nearly six thousand years in what should have been a righteous, systematic, considerate and Holy Organization if  satan the devil had not rebelled and taken it over for his own selfish purpose.

   1 Chronicles 11:5:

And the inhabitants of  Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come hither.  Nevertheless David took the castle of Zion which is the city of David.

   So we see the devil and his demons are confident of victory.  The account of this event in Second Samuel is even more expressive.  Listen how the  jebusites tauntingly boast in Chapter Five, verse 6 in The James Moffatt Translation:

The king and his men went to Jerusalem against the  Jebusites, the natives of the country.  They told David, "You will never get in here,  blind men and cripples could drive you off!"

This plainly demonstrates the defying confidence of the demonic forces.   satan was not merely going to fight Yahshua and His Heavenly Organization but he was going to destroy them as soon as they appeared.  he knew that the purpose of those gathered together with Yahshua was to drive him out and to take over the rule in his stead, thereby placing Zion in authority, and  satan was determined to stop it.

   Now getting back to Revelation Twelve.

   Verse 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.

   The Woman, which is YAHWEH'S Woman Zion, giving birth to this Man Child refers to the Heavenly Class being resurrected and placed in their respective positions.  This constitutes the birth of the Man Child, for the Body Members are now all sealed and accounted for in preparation to rule over the earth, which will be the birth of YAHWEH'S Kingdom.  This  rulership begins at the end of the six thousand years since Adam's creation and lasts for one thousand years during which time all painful afflictions which beset mankind will be completely terminated although in reality these Body Members will continue to rule over us and guide us throughout eternity.  This One Thousand Year Reign began in April of 1917 which is when the six thousand years are totaled.

   It was Isaac who prefigured the Promised Seed, or the birth of the Man Child.  What does Paul say in Romans 9:6-8 concerning the  israel of the flesh not being the Israel of GOD and that there was an Israel of Promise, but that the True Israel would be called out by  Yahshua, or the True Seed of Promise whom Isaac pictured.  Romans 9:6-8,  R.S.V. :

6  But it is not as though the word of God had failed.  For not all who are descended from Israel belong to Israel,
7  and not all are children of Abraham because they are his descendants; but "Through Isaac shall your descendants be named."
8  This means that it is not the children of the flesh who are the children of God, but the children of the promise are reckoned as descendants.

   So in Yahshua is the true fulfillment.  Proof of this is found in Galatians 3:16:

Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made.  He saith not, And to seeds, as of many; but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ.

Galatians 3:29 ties the Church into this Promised Seed.

   Zion was born in October of A.D. 1913 with the resurrection of the Heavenly Class, called the Church (ecclesia in the Greek, meaning "called out members") over which Yahshua is the Head.  This is also prefigured by Yahshua's literal birth on earth which also occurred in October--October 8 to be precise.

   Scriptures which inform us that Yahshua's Body is actually the Church with Himself being the Head are Ephesians 1:22:

And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church,

and Romans 12:4,5:

4  For as we have many members in one body, and all members have not the same office:
5  So we, being many, are one body in Christ, and everyone members one of another.

These are referred to as Members of His Body because of their close association and could correctly say, "We are thy bone and thy flesh" going back to the reference in 1 Chronicles 11:1.  And in the Greek Scriptures, Ephesians 5:29,30 reiterates:

29  For no man ever yet hated his own flesh; but  nourisheth and cherisheth it, even as the Lord the Church:
30  For we are members of his body, of his flesh, and of his bones.

   These Body Members upon being placed in position, sealed and accounted for, and being united with their Head who is Yahshua represents the birth of the Man Child, which is the fulfillment of the Promised Seed.  (Refer to Revelation 6:9-11.)  Evidence that the birth of the Man Child, or the Promised Seed, who is Yahshua, and His taking His office as King are synchronous events, is found in Psalm 2:6,7:

6  Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.
7  I will declare the decree:  YAHWEH hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee.

Like the Man Child, Yahshua is not considered born, or begotten, until the rest of His Body is united with Him.  And then, when Yahshua is made King over Zion (which He cannot be until there is someone there to be King over--again pointing to the resurrection), YAHWEH tells Him, "You are now my son, this day am I your Father" (The James Moffatt Translation).

   Ruling with a rod of iron means that wickedness will be wiped out in the final war and will not be allowed to rise again, because YAHWEH'S mighty Heavenly Ruler (namely Yahshua, along with His Body Members [Rev. 2:26,27]), will be in command of YAHWEH'S righteous Kingdom.  This rod signifies two things.  First it is a weapon to beat down the heathen, or those who oppose YAHWEH, and secondly it is a symbol of authority as a king bears a scepter showing his ruling capacity.  (Refer to Psalm 2:8,9; Revelation 19:15 and Nahum 1:9 [Rivalry will not rise up a second time].)

   The child being "caught up unto God, and to his throne" means that the Heavenly Class's ruling power was stifled, you might say, or would remain dormant, until six thousand years from the creation of man had expired.

   So after the heavens were cleansed of satan's influence, then Zion could begin to actually exercise Her ruling authority.  But the Child was "caught up unto God, and to his throne," so even though the number of the 144,000 was sealed and accounted for, and the Man Child had symbolically been born (resurrected) in 1913 just prior to world war one, they do not immediately begin to exercise their administration.  Yahshua, who is the Lord of the Sabbath, does not begin His Reign until the beginning of the New Day, the Sabbath Day, which is one thousand years long (see Chronology).  Six thousand years after the creation of Adam brings us to April 1917, which is when  Yahshua comes to His Temple and Zion begins to rule.  Therefore from the time of the Heavenly Class's resurrection, which took place in October 1913, until April 1917, the Kingdom is under YAHWEH'S jurisdiction.  This is symbolized by the Child being caught up to GOD and to HIS Throne.  Further reference to this is in Revelation 11:17, Gspd. :

"We give you thanks, Lord God Almighty, who are and were, because you have assumed your great power and begun to reign."

So this brings out that it is YAHWEH who begins the  rulership of the Kingdom.  (It is interesting that for three and a half years Yahshua prepares the Heavens to begin His Reign.  This is also the same amount of time that He preached when He was on the earth and the same amount of time that Israel will prophesy in the last days.)

   Verse 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.

   Although the Heavenly Class was, for the most part, resurrected in 1913, there was still a Remnant of them left on earth--as only the faithful dead were resurrected when  Yahshua made His Second Presence to gather the Church (1 Thess. 4:16--the dead in Christ rise first).  Also flesh and blood cannot enter the Kingdom of Heaven as 1 Corinthians 15:50 bears out.  So those of the 144,000 who were alive at the time of  Yahshua's Second Coming must necessarily remain faithful unto death and then they would receive their crown of life (Rev. 2:10).  Unlike their predecessors and fellow servants who died prior to Yahshua's return, they would not have to wait in their graves to be resurrected, but would be taken up immediately or "changed, In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye" as brought out in 1 Corinthians 15:51,52.

   Now those who were alive at His coming, who remained on earth, are referred to as the "feet of him" (Isa. 52:7), or the last Members of  Yahshua's Body to be gathered.  They, being in line for a Heavenly calling, are still part of the Woman even though they were on earth.  These fulfill their final years in YAHWEH'S Service on earth until they die and are resurrected into the Heavens.  Verse 6 concerns this Remnant of the Woman.

   In the early years, the Remnant called themselves The International Bible Students and would later be known as Jehovah's Witnesses.  This organization was founded by a very faithful man by the name of Charles Taze Russell.

   Russell was born in pittsburgh, pennsylvania on February 16, 1852.  He was raised as a presbyterian and indoctrinated from the catechism.  About 1868 he became shaken in faith regarding many long-accepted doctrines.  He had first thought he had threatened his very faith in GOD and the Bible when he began to think for himself, but ultimately it was for the good, as only his confidence in human creeds and systems of Bible misinterpretations were destroyed.  He reflected on the subject of religion and, unable to accept it, he was still unwilling to reject it altogether.  He dropped into a hall where he had heard religious services were held to see if those who met there had anything more sensible to offer than the churches.  Though what they said was far from the Truth, it  was sufficient to reestablish his wavering faith in the Divine inspiration of the Bible, and to show that the records of the Apostles and the Prophets are indissolubly linked.⁴

   As a result Russell's interest in the Bible was rekindled and he returned to the study of the Bible "with more zeal and care than ever before." ⁵

   Here are some of Russell's own words:

I soon began to see that we were living somewhere near the close of the Gospel Age, and near the time when the Lord declared that the wise, watching ones of His children should come to a clear knowledge of His Plan.  At this time, myself and a few other Truth seekers in Pittsburgh and Allegheny, formed a class for Bible study; and the period from 1870 to 1875 was a time of constant growth in grace, in knowledge and in love of God and His Word.  We came to see something of God's love, how it had made provision for all mankind, how all must be awakened from the tomb in order that God's loving Plan might be testified to them, and how all who will then exercise faith in Christ's redemptive work and will render obedience in harmony with their knowledge of God's will, might then, through Christ's merit, be brought back into full harmony with God, and be granted everlasting life.⁶

   They came to realize that Yahshua's return would not be in the flesh as expected but as a spirit creature.

   Russell's zeal was tremendous, and he took every effort to publish the Purpose of YAHWEH.  He showed his resourcefulness and determination in many ways.

While still a lad, before he learned the truth concerning God's purpose, he would go out at night to chalk up Bible texts in conspicuous places so that workingmen, passing by, might be warned and be saved from the "torments of hell."  His zeal in teaching God's love was just as strong when he finally saw the error of this blasphemous hell-fire doctrine.  That's why he put everything he had into his life's work.  He is quoted by a later associate as declaring vehemently:  "If the Bible does teach that eternal torture is the fate of all except the saints, it should be preached--yea, thundered from the housetops weekly, daily, hourly; if it does not so teach, the fact should be made known, and the foul stain dishonoring God's holy name removed...."
   In 1877 Pastor Russell called a meeting of all the ministers of Allegheny and Pittsburgh, showed them the Scriptures which indicated our Lord's presence and urged them to investigate and proclaim the message.  All of the ministers of the two cities were present; all of the ministers of the two cities refused to believe.  In the same year he determined to give up secular work and devote his entire time and fortune to the work indicated in the Scriptures...  As a means of determining whether his course was in harmony with the Scriptures, and also as a means of demonstrating his own sincerity, he decided to test the Lord's approval as follows:  (1) Devote his life to the cause; (2) Invest his fortune in the promulgation of the work; (3) Prohibit collections at all meetings; (4) Depend on unsolicited contributions (wholly voluntary) to continue the work after his fortune was exhausted.⁷

   Russell was blessed many times over for his uncompromising stands for the vindication of YAHWEH'S Name.

   Now that we have some background concerning the Remnant, we can return to verse 6 of Revelation Twelve:

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.

   During world war one, the Remnant were greatly persecuted.  Being unpatriotic was one of the main reasons; they were even accused of being spies for  germany.  religionists were also  ringleading much of this persecution.  But when the war was over, things started to settle down.  patriotism and other propaganda of the devil's nations diminished greatly.  This caused the Remnant to no longer be regarded as an enemy.  Thus She (the Woman--the Remnant) would not be molested or harmed.  She would be left alone as though the enemy were not present, which is symbolized by the woman fleeing into the wilderness--or a barren land where no one abode, and therefore no enemy to molest Her.

   Also this change in the world's condition and attitude allowed for  J.F. Rutherford (then president of the Society--Russell's successor) and six others to be released from prison, where they had been put on charges of treason.  And from that time, March 27, 1919, to September 8, 1922, when they held a convention in cedar point, ohio, the Remnant regrouped, dusted themselves off from the terrible beating inflicted upon them by the devil's organization, realized there was a greater work to now perform and received more insight into YAHWEH'S Purpose.  This was their 1,260 days of nourishment where they consumed much-needed Spiritual Food.  During this time they cleansed themselves of many pagan practices and ways of thinking and took a new, firm stand against the devil's organization.  See  Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose, pages 91-93, 100, 103 and 104, from which we will quote a few paragraphs:

   When the Society began to be freed for further preaching work following World War I, they soon realized they had been held in spiritual bondage too in many ways.  There were many false doctrines and practices that had not yet been cleaned out of the organization.  Not all of them were recognized at once, but gradually over the years that followed it became evident to what extent the brothers had been in  Babylonish captivity at that time.  With considerable misunderstanding they had accepted earthly political governments as the "superior authorities" that God had ordained according to Romans 13:1; and as a result the Witnesses had been held in fear of man, particularly the civil rulers.  [Note that they have since adopted this very interpretation!]  Besides, many were putting emphasis on so-called "character development," in the belief that there were certain saving qualities in their self-merit, and there was considerable creature worship in the organization.  Furthermore, such pagan holidays as Christmas were being celebrated, and even the symbol of the cross was used as a sign of Christian devotion.... The changeover in thinking had been so striking in many ways, from the 1870's down to 1918, that these tainted bonds of false conceptions and practices, inherited from the pagan traditions adopted by Christendom, had slipped by unnoticed by the brothers.  
   Little serious opposition was encountered during the period from 1919 to 1922.  In fact, it proved to be a time of recuperation for God's servants following the world war.  Jehovah was protecting His people and preparing them for a tremendous campaign that was due to begin in 1922....
   Not only were the brothers now fortified with strengthening new spiritual food in the restoration of true worship, but they were also energetically occupied in the serious business of Kingdom witnessing....
   "The International Bible Students in convention assembled deem it a duty and privilege to send this message to the nations of the earth....  Relying upon the Word of God and his providential dealings with mankind through Christ Jesus, we as his witnesses hold and testify as follows,  to-wit: ...

   4.  That Satan, long the god of this world, has deceived the statesmen, financiers and the clergy, by inducing them to believe that by international agreement or other combined efforts they can bring the desire of all nations;
   5.  That all of the world's present organization constitutes the visible part of Satan's empire or organization, and that Satan's empire must now fall before the forward march of the King of glory;
   6.  That all international conferences and all agreements or treaties resulting  therefrom, including the League of Nations compact and all like compacts, must fail, because God has decreed it thus;
   7.  That all efforts of the denominational church organizations, their clergy, their leaders and their allies, to save and reestablish the order of things in the earth and to bring peace and prosperity must of necessity fail, because they do not constitute any part of the kingdom of Messiah..."

   Then followed further paragraphs exposing the disloyalty of the clergy for their participation in the war and for their repudiating God's kingdom in boldly announcing to the world that the League of Nations was that Kingdom, or the political expression of that Kingdom.
   These cold, hard truths based squarely on God's Word and the facts that were evident to all persons were like a destructive wrath from God, bringing spiritual death to Satan's entire world.  These truths indicated that the religious, political and commercial elements of earth's ruling population, as well as all the prominent leaders of earth and the fresh new hopes they were holding out to the world, were now desolated or burned up.  It called attention to the spiritual leprosy from which the clergy of Christendom have been dying ever since their adoption of the League of Nations in 1919 and that all who support these leaders will share in the mental and spiritual discomfort to which Satan's world was now submitted.⁸

   See also page 108 which is too lengthy to quote.  More information concerning this 1,260 days will be discussed in verses 14 and 16 of this same chapter.

   Verse 7:

And there was war in heaven:  Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels.

   YAHWEH promised in Genesis 3:15 that there would be enmity between  satan and YAHWEH'S Woman Zion.  Genesis 3:15, The Emphasized Bible, by J.B. Rotherham (E.B.):

And enmity will I put between thee and the woman, and between thy seed and her seed, He shall crush thy head, But thou shalt crush his heel.

Here, in Revelation Twelve, this enmity is being made manifest through  satan trying to stop the birth of the Kingdom, and a heavenly war occurs.

   Michael means "who is like GOD" and is befitting to Yahshua as He has inherited all things and truly is like YAHWEH (John 14:9; Heb. 1:3; Col. 1:15,19).

   The 144,000 being the Body of Yahshua naturally fought this battle with Him, as we saw in the prophecy recorded in 1 Chronicles 11:1-5 that David did not conquer the  jebusites alone.  Nor does Yahshua enter this heavenly battle without the aid of the Heavenly Class.

   Verse 8:

And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven.

   satan and his demons were defeated, of course, and they could no longer remain in the heavens.  Again referring back to the episode in 1 Chronicles 11:5:

And the inhabitants of  Jebus said to David, Thou shalt not come hither.  Nevertheless David took the castle of Zion, which is the city of David.

   Verse 9:

And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world:  he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

   From that point on, satan was no longer allowed to exercise authority in the heavens and to interfere with YAHWEH'S Holy Organization.  The remainder of his domain would now be limited to the earth alone.  And so the scripture in Psalm 110:1 is fulfilled at this time:

YAHWEH said unto my Lord:  Sit thou at my right hand, until I make  thine enemies thy footstool.

And Isaiah 66:1 brings out that the earth is HIS footstool.

   In Revelation 11:1,2 we see that the City could now be measured as it belongs entirely to YAHWEH, having no evil influence.  The court which represents YAHWEH'S Organization on earth, which receives her instruction from the Heavens, is left out as  satan's full fury is unleashed upon the earth and the demonic influence is running rampant.

   Notice it says that  satan has deceived the whole world.  This includes all religions, nations and people in the world except for YAHWEH'S People, Israel (Ps. 147:19,20;  Isa. 49:3).

   Verse 10:

And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ:  for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night.

   Now that the devil has been made Yahshua's footstool, Psalm 110:2 is ready to be fulfilled:

YAHWEH shall send the rod of thy strength out of Zion:  rule thou in the midst of thine enemies.

(A point of interest is that He rules in the midst of His enemies, or while  satan and his demons are still present--on the earth--not after the final war as religion supposes.)

   At this time Yahshua is free to begin His One Thousand Year Reign (which actually does not start until 1917, or the beginning of the Sabbath Day).  Now that  satan is cast from the heavens, there is a new Heavens, a wholly righteous Heavens as promised in 2 Peter 3:13:

Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.

   Now the salvation for, and the gathering of, the Earthly Portion of YAHWEH'S Kingdom can begin.

   Micah 5:3 brings out that  after the Man Child is born, or after the Heavenly Portion of the Kingdom was established,  then the Earthly Portion is gathered:

Therefore will he give them up, until the time that she which  travaileth hath brought forth:  then the remnant of his brethren shall return unto the children of Israel.

Isaiah 46:13 states:

I bring near my righteousness; it shall not be far off, and my salvation shall not tarry:  and I will place salvation in Zion for Israel my glory.

   Verse 11:

And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.

   This shows how the Heavenly Class had the utmost faith in YAHWEH and HIS Son's sacrifice.  Confirmation of their faith is given through their testimony in vindication of YAHWEH'S Name (Matthew 12:34--Out of the abundance of the heart the mouth speaks).

    Loving not their lives unto death means they had no personal interests or desires other than the work outlined for them to do by YAHWEH.  Revelation 2:10 states:

Fear none of those things which thou  shalt suffer:  behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days:  be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.

   Verse 12:

Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them.  Woe to the  inhabiters of the earth and of the sea!  for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time.

   Cleansing the heavens of all wickedness was truly an occasion to rejoice for YAHWEH'S Organization in the heavens.  But the opposite is true with regards to the earth, for the wicked, invisible powers had been cast to the earth and would there begin to wreak havoc.

   The earth represents the visible ruling element of the world (Isa. 65:17,18).  The sea represents the restless masses of humanity (Isa. 57:20).  Both the rulers and the ruled would be affected by the enraged devil being cast down among them.  he is enraged because he knows that his defeat in the heavens means that his time is very short now.

   This casting out of satan onto the earth took place in 1913.  The repercussion of this heavenly war was the outbreak of world war one, when the governments and humanity suffered cataclysmic social upheavals unparalleled in man's history.  Romans 1:20 brings out that the invisible is made known by the visible, so it was evident by these  earthly troubles that something indeed had happened in the heavens.  And world war one was the woe that befell the world which this scripture is referring to.  See Revelation 6:2-8 in reference to this same time period which brings out the horrid condition of warfare and the famine, pestilence, and death that ensued on a world-wide basis.

   Verse 13:

And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.

   Here again, it must be repeated that some of the Members who were to make up this heavenly "Woman" were still on earth and it was these who now became the target of the devil.  This manifested itself in the persecution of the Remnant right after the devil was cast out of heaven.  This persecution took place mainly during world war one and thus was fulfilled the scripture which we had mentioned in Genesis 3:15, E.B.:

He [Yahshua, the Head of Zion] shall crush thy [satan's] head, but thou [satan] shalt crush his heel [which said heel made up the Remnant of His Body on earth].

   The "He" is Yahshua (as the Head of Zion) and crushing "thy head" is referring to the head of that ancient serpent the devil.  The way to literally kill any serpent is to crush his head, and so this method is employed symbolically by Yahshua as He takes the lead in casting  satan out of heaven which is the beginning of his demise.

   "But thou shalt crush his heel" refers to this persecution by the devil of the "feet" of  Yahshua, or the last Members of His Body to be gathered, which are called the Remnant.

   Some of their persecution included:  beatings, getting tarred and feathered, verbal assault, fines, jailing, ransacking of homes, being driven out of town, and even murder.  See  Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose, pages 81-83.  The following are some excerpts:

International Bible students in all parts of the country have suffered persecution for their fidelity to the Lord and their zeal in declaring the blessings that are coming to mankind through his kingdom.  
   At Minerva, Ohio, S.H. Griffin was first jailed and then released to a mob, then lectured fifteen minutes by the minister, then struck repeatedly, cursed, kicked, trodden upon, threatened with hanging and with drowning, driven from town, spit upon, tripped repeatedly, jabbed repeatedly with an umbrella, forbidden to ride, followed five miles to Malvern, Ohio, rearrested, jailed for safety at Carrollton and finally taken home by brave and faithful officials who, after examining his literature, said, in so many words, "We find no fault in this man."... 
   April 17, 1918, at Shawnee, Oklahoma, G. N. Fenn, George M. Brown, L.S. Rogers, W.F. Glass, E.T. Grier and J.T. Tull were jailed.  During the trial the Prosecuting Attorney said, "To hell with your Bible; you ought to be in hell with your back broken; you ought to be hung."  When G.F. Wilson, of Oklahoma City, attempted to act as counsel for the defense he was also arrested.  Each was fined $55 and costs; offense, distributing Protestant literature.  The trial Judge encouraged mob action following the trial, but the mobs were foiled....
   In March 1918, at Shattuck, Oklahoma, J.B. Siebenlist, a native American, was jailed three days without warrant and without food, except three pieces of spoiled cornbread, was taken from jail by the mob, stripped, tarred with hot tar and whipped with a buggywhip having a wire at its end, for the offense of applying at the depot for a package of Protestant literature.  April 22, 1918, at Wynnewood, Oklahoma,  Claud Watson was first jailed and then deliberately released to a mob composed of preachers, business men and a few others that knocked him down, caused a  negro to whip him and, when he had partially recovered, to whip him again. They then poured tar and feathers all over him, rubbing the tar into his hair and scalp.  April 29, 1918, at Walnut Ridge, Arkansas, W.B. Duncan, 61 years of age, Edward French, Charles Franke, a Mr. Griffin and Mrs. D. Van Hoesen were jailed.  The jail was broken into by a mob that used the most vile and obscene language, whipped, tarred,  feathered and drove them from town.  Duncan was compelled to walk twenty-six miles to his home and barely recovered.  Griffin was virtually blinded and died from the assault a few months later.⁹

These are just a few of the instances.

   Verse 14:

And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.

   The Woman is symbolically given a means of escape (wings of an eagle) so she may flee to a place where there is no enemy (wilderness).

   A time is a year and this is the same three and one-half years, or 1,260 days, mentioned in verse 6.  YAHWEH is again making mention of this period of 1,260 literal days (from March 27, 1919, to September 8, 1922) when the Remnant was temporarily relieved of its persecution by the devil's organization.  This is when they began to understand that the actual end of the world was yet to come, that the devil had been thrown down to the earth, that the Kingdom had begun, and that they still had a great work to do.

   Just prior to this (1917-1918) their organization had undergone an internal turbulence and rebellion headed by a man named P.S.L. Johnson, wherein he and a few others tried to gain control and assume authority over the organization.  Their attempt failed although it did result in the falling away of about four thousand members.  This actually cleansed the organization, leaving the faithful ones to be strengthened and purified during this 1,260 days.

   Further reference to this episode is in Malachi 3:1-3.  YAHWEH tells us that just after Yahshua begins His Reign (1917) that some of the organization would lose hold of their faith and devotion, while those who remained faithful would go on to be cleansed and strengthened, so that they would serve YAHWEH in a purer manner through understanding.  Malachi 3:1-3:

1  Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me:  and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in:  behold, he shall come,  saith YAHWEH of hosts.
2  But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth?  for he is like a refiner's fire, and like fullers' soap:
3  And he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver:  and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto YAHWEH an offering in righteousness.

   So the Remnant incurred persecution from within Her own organization as well as from the outside world, and, finally, when the trials were over, She had a chance to recoup and learn from the experience.  And this period of recuperation is what is being spoken of in this verse.

   Verse 15:

And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.

   Different symbols are employed for it, but this verse contains the same understanding as verse 13 wherein the dragon persecuted the Woman.

   The serpent is satan but he uses the rulers of this world as his mouthpiece.

   Water is a life-sustaining fluid, and in the Bible it represents the Truth which brings you everlasting life.  Revelation 22:1:

And he showed me a pure river of water of life, clear as crystal, proceeding out of the throne of God and of the Lamb.

John 4:14:

But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.

(See also Isaiah 55:1 and Revelation 21:6.)

   Could truth be pouring out of satan's mouth!?  No way!  satan is the great deceiver and the father of lies, as brought out in John 8:44:

Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do.  He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him.  When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.

   These are apparent truths, things that the ignorant of the world would consider to be truths.  It was with an abundance of these apparent truths stemming from the devil and delivered through his visible ruling organization that the devil attempted to do away with the Woman, or the Remnant.  Some of these apparent truths were claims that these Bible students were spies for  germany and they were plotting with them against  america.  Also, because they were not patriotic, they were branded as being wicked.

   The Society's officers were arrested and charged that they:

"Unlawfully and feloniously did conspire, combine, confederate and agree together, and with divers other persons to the said Grand Jurors unknown, to commit a certain offense against the United States of America, to wit:  the offense of unlawfully, feloniously and wilfully causing insubordination, disloyalty and refusal of duty in the military and naval forces of the United States of America when the United States was at war...."¹⁰

   Commenting on the severe sentence they received--eighty years imprisonment, twenty years each on four different counts to run concurrently--the New York  Post on June 21, 1918, editorially said:

"After uttering these words, Judge H. B. Howe, of the United States District Court in Brooklyn, sentenced the religious persons before him to twenty years each in prison.  It was necessary, he said, to make an example of those who sincerely taught this religion, which, like that of the Mennonites and the Quakers and many other sects, forbids the taking up of arms.  They were guilty, plainly, of having urged men to follow what they considered the teachings of the Lord, and to apply literally the commandment, "Thou shalt not kill."  So the jury could do nothing less than find them guilty of having violated the statutes of the country, whatever may be the correctness or incorrectness of their attitude toward the moral and religious law.  We trust that teachers of religion everywhere will take notice of this judge's opinion that teaching any religion save that which is absolutely in accord with statute laws is a grave crime which is intensified if, being a minister of the Gospel, you should still happen to be sincere.  There is no doubt that Judge Howe made his sentences severe enough; they are about double those imposed by the Kaiser upon the Socialists who have been trying to upset his wicked regime, and three times longer than many sentences imposed upon would-be regicides."¹¹

The New York Times wrote on June 22, 1918:

   "In the opinion of the court," said Judge Howe, "the religious propaganda which these defendants have vigorously advocated and spread throughout the nation, as well as among our allies, is a greater danger than a division of the German Army.  If they had taken guns and swords and joined the German Army the harm they could have done would have been insignificant compared with the results of their propaganda.  A person preaching religion usually has much influence, and if he is sincere, he is all the more effective.  This aggravates rather than mitigates the wrong they have done.  Therefore, as the only prudent thing to do with such persons, the court has concluded that the punishment should be severe.  The sentence is that the defendants serve a term of twenty years in the Federal penitentiary at Atlanta, Ga., on each of the four counts of the indictment, but that the sentences commence and run concurrently, and that they stand committed until the sentence is complied with." ¹²

   These Witnesses were denied bail and judge Howe said that he could not think of greater harm than to stay the execution of the sentence and admit the men to bail.  He went on to comment, "They are worse than traitors.  You can catch a traitor and know what he is about.  But you cannot catch a man who does what they did under the guise of religion."

   From these statements we can get a glimpse of just how angry the nations will be and just how much of a threat Israel will be in the last days when over 200 million will be in opposition to them.

   Let us take a quick look at what religion was saying and doing at this time.  Here is a quote from The New York Times, of May 9, 1918, concerning the baptists:

   Plans were formed last night for the campaign to raise $1,000,000 for the Baptist Church at a meeting of the Metropolitan Baptist Laymen's Committee at the University Club.  The committee announced that $150,000 of the fund would be devoted to war work in the army training camps.¹³

Here is another from a roman catholic periodical,  The Tablet, of May 11, 1918:

"Kingdom News spread around--some may go to jail."
   Joseph F. Rutherford and some of his colleagues are likely to pass their summer months in a villa where they will be protected from mobs who insult them by asking them to buy liberty bonds....  It is quite interesting to note that Rutherford and all their ilk who take delight in going into convulsions over the [Catholic] Church are always being pursued by government officers.  Anti-Catholicism and anti-Americanism seem to be twins.¹⁴

   Verse 16:

And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.

   Showing a different aspect of it, but again this is referring to the same time period as verses 6 and 14.  The earth pictures the visible ruling element of the devil here on earth.

   So why is the devil's organization coming to the rescue of the Woman (Remnant)?  Well, instilled in all mankind are YAHWEH'S four attributes of love, justice, wisdom and power.  Whether you are wicked or not, you have these attributes created in you--it is just a matter of choosing to use them.  So after world war one, the people, the rulers, the judges, and so on, began to see that they were carrying things a little too far with these Bible students.  Think about it.  Being sentenced to eighty years in jail for no reason other than suspicion is a mild outrage.  Also tarring and feathering, beating, whipping, and even murdering these people for believing in and preaching about the Bible--not to mention many smaller jail sentences, fines, getting dunked in creeks in the middle of the night, pillaging and burning down of their houses.

   So it was at this time, after all the hoopla of world war one, that the authorities and everyone came to their senses (to a degree) and realized the gross, horrible injustice being committed against these people and began to take steps to terminate it.  The release from prison of Rutherford and his associates is a prime example of this.  These men were not only released, but were given written apologies from the authorities involved.  Also at this time, several big newspapers wrote editorials pointing out the injustices that had been done to these Bible students and how this had to stop.  And it was events like this that helped the Remnant to no longer be regarded as the enemy and should therefore not be treated as such.

In remanding the case for retrial, Judge Ward stated in the opinion:
   "The defendants in this case did not have the temperate and impartial trial to which they were entitled, and for that reason the judgment is reversed." ¹⁵

The Brooklyn Eagle, May 15, 1919, reported:

   Russellite verdict reversed by appeal; "Trial was unfair."  Judges Ward, Rogers and Manton of the United States Circuit Court of Appeals for the New York Federal District today reversed the convictions of the leaders of  Russellism, who were found guilty last June before Judge Harlan B. Howe of Vermont, sitting in Brooklyn, of conspiring to obstruct the draft, discourage enlistment and foment insurrection and insubordination among the armed forces of the Nation.
   The decision holds that the attitude of Judge Howe was unfair in his treatment of the [three] Witnesses....  Inasmuch as the decision sustains the legitimacy of the claim of the Russellites that their organization, which forbids members to kill, entitled its members to exemption from active service with the Army, there seems little likelihood that the leaders of the cult will ever again be placed on trial....¹⁶

It goes on to say that the denial of bail was "clearly contrary to a decision of the Supreme Court of the United States...."

   Verse 17:

And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.

   As long as the history of man, the devil has always had YAHWEH'S Servants persecuted.  The scene here is that as soon as  satan has caused trials and tribulations for one portion of YAHWEH'S People (the Remnant), he goes on to attack the next in line of YAHWEH'S Servants--Earthly Israel.  These are the Children of the Woman Zion, these whom She raises up and nourishes.  These are firstly, YAHWEH'S First Witness--Jehovah's Witnesses, or Manasseh, and secondly, The Restored Israel of YAHWEH, the Second Witness, whom YAHWEH has named Ephraim.  Revelation 11:3:

And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

   This persecution on YAHWEH'S Two Witnesses, who are the Children of Zion, began with the second world war.  At this time Jehovah's Witnesses were persecuted perhaps even worse than their predecessors had been during world war one.  There were jailings, beatings, murders, and so on--the whole thing all over again.  Bitter persecution of the Witnesses ensued in  japan, the philippine islands, burma, malaya, straits settlements,  netherlands east indies, fiji, new zealand, india and ceylon.  They were now threatened globally and it appeared as though it might completely blot out the world-wide preaching.  They were persecuted and forced to flee from  poland, germany, austria, belgium and france.  The preaching was banned in korea, italy and greece.  In ireland they had to contend with the i.r.a. and worse yet were the threats of the gestapo and the german s.s. officers.  The absolute horrors experienced by these faithful Israelites in the  german concentration camps would make you shudder.  They were beaten incessantly with a wire whip if they did not renounce the Society.

   They were inducted, quarantined, deloused regularly, and put on a working schedule where they labored strenuously with little food to sustain them.  It makes you sick just reading the accounts of persons who have experienced this horror, let alone actually enduring this hell.

   One Witness tells of his experience and goes on to say that being so often deprived of food and having to do heavy work every day, he often swallowed a handful of sand so that his stomach had something to do.  They did everything possible to stay alive and thus brand  satan and his s.s. men as liars, for they often said:  "Where is your Jehovah?  Let him help you!"  Yet under all this persecution they refused to deny YAHWEH and they remained steadfast in their faith.

   Other evidence of the particular hatred manifested against Jehovah's Witnesses at this time can be seen in this account.  Again quoting from  Jehovah's Witnesses  in the Divine Purpose:

   Of course the camp management punished us for our steadfastness.  Thus for years we were not allowed to buy food although on the letterhead it was stated:  "Everything can be bought in the camp."  What an irony!  Yes, the political prisoners, the professional criminals, the lazy and morally corrupt could buy all that was to be had in the camp:  bread, jam and other things, and were also allowed to read papers.
   The customary correspondence of two letters of four pages each per month was also forbidden to us.  We were only allowed one "letter" of five lines per month, which was provided with a stamp reading as follows:  "The prisoner is now as ever an obstinate Bible Student and refuses to renounce the heresy of the Bible Students.  For this reason he has merely been deprived of the facility of the otherwise permitted exchange of letters."  This stamp, which was also used upon the letters of our sisters, was for us evidence that the writer remained faithful and stuck to the organization.  So we were less interested of the contents of the letter--for what could one say in five lines--but that stamp always caused us joy.¹⁷

   Even the female Witnesses were not immune from the inhuman treatment meted out by the "super men" of the third  reich.  Some of the women's camps were as notorious as the men's.  Some of these women while still alive, being so weak they could not defend themselves, were actually gnawed to death by rats.  This does not mention all the atrocities that befell the LORD'S People, for their sufferings are really too numerous to relate.  Some of these atrocities and yet others committed against them at this time are mentioned in Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose, chapters 22-25.

   This persecution continues (but not as severe) until the Second Witness, The Restored Israel of YAHWEH, or Ephraim, comes on the scene, and the devil now has them as his target.

^{Note:  the names of different portions of satan's organization are not capitalized because we show no respect for satan's doomed system.
1}YAHWEH, the original Hebrew Name of the Living GOD, erroneously written Jehovah. 
²Yahshua, composed of the Names YAH and  Hoshua, signifying YAHWEH-Savior in the Hebrew language, and presently known as Jesus from the corrupted Greek version   Iesous.  
³The Complete Bible, an American Translation by J.M. Powis Smith (Hebrew Scriptures) and Edgar J. Goodspeed (Greek Scriptures)
⁴Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York Inc., Jehovah's Witnesses in the Divine Purpose, (Brooklyn, N.Y. :  Watchtower Bible and Tract Society of New York Inc., International Bible Students Association, 1959), p. 14.
⁵Ibid., pp. 14, 15.
⁶Ibid., p. 15.
⁷Ibid., pp. 17, 18.
⁸Ibid., pp. 91-93, 103, 104.
⁹Ibid., pp. 81, 82.
¹⁰Ibid., p. 79.
¹¹Ibid., p. 88.
¹²"20 Years in Prison for 7 Russellites," The New York Times (June 22, 1918):  p. 18.
¹³"Baptists Want $1,000,0000," The New York Times (March 9, 1918):  p. 3.
¹⁴Watchtower Bible and Tract Society, The Divine Purpose, p. 79.
¹⁵Ibid., p. 86.
¹⁶Ibid.
¹⁷Ibid., p. 168.