Revelation 12:7; There Was War in Heaven

Revelation 12:7 And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, 

The Conflict in Heaven

The story now turns to the scene of heaven. Michael was especially by God to be the guardian of Israel.

Daniel 12:1 And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book. 

The war is waged between Michael and his angels and Satan and his angels.

There has been war in heaven since the fall of Satan (Isa. 14:12–14; Ezek. 28:11–18).

Isaiah 14:12-14 How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! howart thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! For thou hast said in thine heart, I will ascend into heaven, I will exalt my throne above the stars of God: I will sit also upon the mount of the congregation, in the sides of the north: I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High. 

Ezekiel 28:11-18 Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, take up a lamentation upon the king of Tyrus, and say unto him, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone wasthy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created. Thou artthe anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. Thou wastperfect in thy ways from the day that thou wast created, till iniquity was found in thee. By the multitude of thy merchandise they have filled the midst of thee with violence, and thou hast sinned: therefore I will cast thee as profane out of the mountain of God: and I will destroy thee, O covering cherub, from the midst of the stones of fire. Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee. Thou hast defiled thy sanctuaries by the multitude of thine iniquities, by the iniquity of thy traffick; therefore will I bring forth a fire from the midst of thee, it shall devour thee, and I will bring thee to ashes upon the earth in the sight of all them that behold thee. 

Though at present he still has access to God’s presence in heaven (v. 10; cf. Job 1, 2), Satan’s domain is the earth and the air around the earth. That is why the Bible describes him as the “god of this world” (2 Cor. 4:4) and the “prince of the power of the air” (Eph. 2:2) and his demon hosts as “spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).

Job 1:1-2 There was a man in the land of Uz, whose name wasJob; and that man was perfect and upright, and one that feared God, and eschewed evil. And there were born unto him seven sons and three daughters. 

2 Corinthians 4:4 In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them. 

Ephesians 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience: 

Ephesians 6:12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 

Satan (along with the evil angels) has actively opposed both the holy angels and God’s people since his fall. In the Old Testament, demons sought to hinder the ministry of the holy angels to Israel (cf. Dan. 10:12–13).

Daniel 10:12-13 Then said he unto me, Fear not, Daniel: for from the first day that thou didst set thine heart to understand, and to chasten thyself before thy God, thy words were heard, and I am come for thy words. But the prince of the kingdom of Persia withstood me one and twenty days: but, lo, Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help me; and I remained there with the kings of Persia. 

The war raging between supernatural beings in the heavenly sphere will reach its peak during the Tribulation. That future conflict will find Michael and his angels waging war with the dragon. The grammatical construction of that phrase in the Greek text indicates that Satan (the dragon) will start this battle. It could be translated “Michael and his angels had to fight the dragon.” The Bible does not reveal how angels fight, nor does our limited knowledge of the heavenly realm permit us to speculate. Henry Morris wrote:

With what weapons and by what tactics this heavenly warfare will be waged is beyond our understanding. Angels cannot be injured or slain with earthly weapons, and such physical forces as we know about are not able to move spiritual beings. But these beings do operate in a physical universe, so there must exist powerful physico-spiritual energies of which we yet can have only vague intimations, energies which can propel angelic bodies at superluminary velocities through space and which can move mountains and change planetary orbits. It is with such energies and powers that this heavenly battle will be waged and the spectators in heaven (including John) will watch in awe. When Michael finally prevails, and Satan is forced forever out of the heavens, a tremendous cry of thanksgiving will resound through the heavens. (The Revelation Record [Wheaton, Ill: Tyndale, 1983], 224)

Michael and the dragon (Satan) have known each other since they were created, and the battle during the Tribulation will not be the first time they have opposed each other. Michael is always seen in Scripture as the defender of God’s people against satanic destruction. In Daniel chapter 10 the inspired prophet gives an Old Testament example of him in action. A holy angel, dispatched with an answer to Daniel’s prayer (Dan. 10:12), was delayed for three weeks by a powerful demon who was in control of the Persian Empire (Dan. 10:13; cf. v. 20).

It was not until “Michael, one of the chief princes, came to help” him (v13) that he was able to prevail. Daniel 12:1 also speaks of Michael’s defense of God’s people: “And at that time [the Tribulation; cf. v. 7] Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.”

 MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2000). Revelation 12–22 (pp. 16–17). Chicago: Moody Press.

Amen.