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Revelation 12:4
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4 And [kai] his [autos] tail [oura] drew [suro] the third part [tritos] of the stars [aster] of heaven, [ouranos] and [kai] did cast [ballo] them [autos] to [eis] the earth: [ge] and [kai] the dragon [drakon] stood [histemi] before [enopion] the woman [gune] which [ho] was ready [mello] to be delivered, [tikto] for [hina] to devour [katesthio] her [autos] child [teknon] as soon as [hotan] it was born. [tikto] KJV-Interlinear
4 And his tail swept away a third of the stars of heaven, and threw them to the earth. And the dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, so that when she gave birth he might devour her child. NASB
And why was there even a need for salvation or a plan for salvation?
Because in prehistoric history, even before man was created on this earth, Lucifer, now called Satan, rebelled against God, and took along with him, one-third of the angelic population.
Of this rebellion, we know very little, but only that all of the angels were tempted to follow Satan, at some point during that rebellion, and that two-thirds returned to God, while one-third of their population, did not.
The term for stars in our verse is a reference to angels, Job 1:6; 2:1; 38:7; Ps 29:1; 89:6, Gen 6:1-4.
Their primary residence was originally in heaven, but after the rebellion and presumably after their refusal to rejoin God, then their choice to leave heaven (for the world), was made permanent and they were cast out of heaven and down to earth.
As we have already studied, there are demons, a general term used to describe those fallen angels who rebelled and refused to rejoin God. Anyway, there are demons who are locked up in the Abyss. There are demons who are confined in Tartarus. There are demons who have been allowed to roam around the world. And Satan was given permission to travel to and from heaven for a time, or until he is permanently removed from heaven by Michael, at the mid-point in the Tribulation.
From the time of Adam, to Cain and Abel, to Pharaoh, to the period of the Judges, to the dividing of the nation after Solomon, to the birth of the person of Jesus, Satan tried and kept on trying to destroy humanity, the human line of Christ, and Jesus Himself.
Initially, the target was the human race in general. But when the line of Christ became more focalized through Abraham and Jacob and David, then Satan’s target was more concentrated toward the Israelites.
After the Cross, the target again became more general but toward the Jewish race specifically, as it is in the many promises of God toward the Jews, that Satan was and is trying to prevent.
This is a brief summary of history, which spans eons of time beginning prior to the creation of humanity up to and including the birth of Christ.
Satan tried to destroy the birth of Christ. Satan tried to destroy the line of Christ. Satan tried to destroy the one component, humanity, that God created to solve and settle the angelic conflict.
But, as you can see around you, it is obvious that we are here, and that thus far, Satan has failed at every attempt to destroy Gods plan.
And even during the Tribulation, which is still future from our point of view, when the restraint of sin is removed from the world, and evil runs rampant without restraint, God will still protect Israel from total destruction. But I am getting a little ahead of myself here.
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