Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?” (Song of Solomon 6:10).

Under the inspiration of the Holy Spirit, Solomon wrote the book that received his name, Song of Solomon. This literary work portrays the happy allegory of a loving relationship between God - and more specifically Jesus Christ - and His church. This romantic poem is about the life of a young royal couple.

As the future king, the prince goes around the world in his conquests, but his mind is constantly on the young princess that he has married, and he will soon live in the royal palace with her. He loves her deeply and in poetic language expresses his praises and admiration for her. She, in turn, is completely captivated by his love and this is evident by the texts throughout the whole book (1:15; 2:2, 3, 10-14; 5:8). Verse 16 of chapter 2 says: “My beloved is mine, and I am his.” No less emotional is verse 7 of chapter 8: “Many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it: if a man would give all the substance of his house for love, it would utterly be contemned.”

The Song of Solomonis the story of a happy marriage with truest love that lasts forever. This book was not introduced into the sacred canon by mistake or as a pastime story. It shows the exact and appropriate expressions of the love existing between God and His people, between Jesus Christ and His church. All the symbols and expressions used in the book have their corresponding application if comparison is made verse by verse in the same book or in any other book of the Bible. For example: “Thou art fairer than the children of men: grace is poured into thy lips: therefore God hath blessed thee for ever.” “His mouth is most sweet: yea, he is altogether lovely. This is my beloved, and this is my friend, O daughters of Jerusalem” (Psalm 45:2; Song of Solomon 5:16, emphasis supplied.)

Many times a unique symbol in the Bible illustrates various truths or objects that are opposites in themselves. A case in point is the serpent. This creature is used by God as a symbol to represent Satan (Revelation 12:9). On another occasion, God told Moses to lift up on a pole a bronze serpent so that all the Israelites who were bitten by poisonous serpents would look to it and be saved. It was a representation of Christ being lifted up between heaven and earth (John 3:14, 15). Another example is the leaven. In the sacred ritual of the Old Testament, leaven was a symbol of sin. In the New Testament it represents the work of the Holy Spirit in the human heart and its power in converting a soul to the truth. (Deuteronomy 16:4; Matthew 13:33.) Another instance: The Lion of the tribe of Judah represents Jesus Christ, but the roaring lion walking around our souls seeking whom it may devour is the opposite of Christ. (Revelation 5:5; 1 Peter 5:8.)

Another example is the allegory of Solomon; Christ is the “husband,” “the beloved,” and His church is the “wife,” “the beloved.”

In the prophetic allegory of Revelation 12, the church of Christ is represented by a pure woman, and Jesus is the Son. In this application He is not the Husband. Daniel chapter 2 portrays Nebuchadnezzar’s dream. The 10 toes of the statue represent the 10 horns of the dragon of Revelation 12. They are one and the same thing: the 10 principal European countries are the remaining parts of the division of the old Roman empire.

We know that in God’s book, when He speaks prophetically about His church, among other symbols, the figure of a pure woman is used. The apostate church called the synagogue of Satan is represented by a licentious, promiscuous woman. The first is always faithful, from her engagement to her death, “My beloved is mine, and I am his” (Song of Solomon 2:16). The promiscuous woman goes after many “lovers” (Revelation 17:3, 4). As with all human beings, in the allegory the woman gets old and dies. In reality, the church of Christ is always faithful to Him and without any blemish enters into His glory (Ephesians 5:27).

Let us consider the description that the apostle John gives about the history of God’s church. Please note that all is presented in symbols, and the prophet surely does not use fantasies. If he is the prophet of the Lord, his own ideas cannot prevail. As other prophecies, the declarations of Revelation 12 are divine words (2 Peter 1:19-21), and John was only the instrument used by God to write this marvelous story. In this short chapter, John describes the history of more than 2,000 years. How did it begin, how did it develop, and how did it all end?

“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: and she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered. 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. 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. 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. 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” (Revelation 12:1-6).

There is no doubt about the identity of this woman’s Son. It was said that He will rule the nations with a scepter of iron, and would be taken up by God to His throne. Only to the Lord Jesus is this right ascribed. He is the only one taken up to the throne of God, and the only one who will judge all nations, ruling them with a rod of iron. He is God from eternal ages, and trillions of millennia are insufficient to measure His existence. There is no time measurement that could be applied to find out the age of our dear Saviour; consequently, He has no beginning and no end. How sublime is this thought! What an assurance is offered to us for having such a powerful and eternal Redeemer! (Isaiah 63:1.)

In the allegory of Revelation chapter 12, the man child who was to be born was the target of the great red dragon as he stood before the woman that was ready to deliver the baby. This monster with seven heads, ten horns, and a crown in each head was anxiously awaiting the birth of her son so he could devour the baby.

Would any person disagree that this text points directly to the pagan Roman empire in the execution of this diabolic act? Rome in the personage of Herod tried to devour the Son of God right after His birth; however, he did not succeed because Jesus escaped to Egypt and there found refuge during the first three years of His life. In his rage, the wicked king commanded all the little boys in Bethlehem to be killed. That was the first attack of the dragon against the woman in the Christian era. He also destroyed other children of the woman, the remnant of Bethlehem. One day God will do justice to this woman and will return alive to her all the sons that were assassinated. Their blood will fall on Herod’s head, and they will be dressed in white in the eternal glory. They were the first martyrs of the Christian era. How many were there? Probably a few hundred. Their names? God has indelibly engraved them in His “books.”

A word of explanation: Mary the mother of Jesus is not the woman in John’s figure. She was not in the wilderness for 1,200 years. The dragon did not wage war against her. She was not clothed with the sun, neither was the moon under her feet, or a crown in her head with twelve stars. Mary was the human mother of our Lord Jesus, the noble woman that God chose to care for the Child of Bethlehem and to teach Him the writings of the Word of God.

“There was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, and prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. 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. . . . And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child. 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. 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. 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. 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” (Revelation 12:7-9, 13-17).

Another aspect of this drama is introduced here. The same symbol - the dragon - now represents Satan (verse 9). The similarity between Satan and the pagan Roman empire is such that the figure of a dragon is the most appropriate to represent both of them. The dragon was wroth against the woman and made war from the beginning of her existence, even from the days of Eden. He tried to kill all the faithful believers - the children of the woman. He was unable to kill Enoch and Elijah because God translated them to heaven while they were still alive. But against these two the war was as fierce as against the other children of the church throughout the ages. The dragon’s wrath against the woman had reached a climax when the earth opened up her mouth and swallowed the river flowing from the dragon’s mouth (a figure of the Reformation of the 16^th century). Not being able to drown the woman, the dragon went to make war with the remnant of her seed, those that keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus. God always defended His faithful people, even though many were allowed to pass through torture and martyrdom. Are not these the exact words that the woman typified in the Song of Solomon, which says: “I am sick of love”? These martyrs confirmed the saying, “many waters cannot quench love, neither can the floods drown it” (Song of Solomon 8:7).

Approximately 4,000 years after these words were penned by the wise man, the history of the Christian church began as described in Revelation 12:7, 8. Is anyone able to describe a period when the dragon was in hibernation even for a short time? Was there ever a time, before the birth of Christ that the church (woman) could rest in tranquility because the dragon stopped making war against her? The children of God never knew a time when they did not have to meet with difficulties. The wrath of the dragon and the war against the woman is millennial in nature and will not end until he is bound for a thousand years. An angel empowered by God will handcuff Satan when Christ returns to the earth. Only then will the war against the woman come to an end, even though Satan shall continue to live for a long time after that. The woman will be taken up to God and will be with Him for all eternity, free, forever free, nevermore to be tormented by war. Her children will experience only joy and happiness, no more sighing or sorrow, for God will wipe away all tears from their eyes (Revelation 21:4; Isaiah 35:10).

The woman was protected in the wilderness for a period of 1,260 years (538-1798 a.d.). The dragon made war against her during centuries, and near 100 million of her children were assassinated by the inquisition. Since that time there has been no open persecution from Rome, but the enemy of our souls has changed his tactics against the woman, adopting other subtle and terrible ways. Daily her children are perishing from the attacks of the dragon whether by physical death or by spiritual death. The second loss is the most painful one to the woman.

Prophecy makes reference to the remnant of her seed as being those that keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ (Revelation 12:17). Christians who truly love God and His law, and abandon the world and its lusts, customs, habits, and practices, are included among the true children of the woman typified in Revelation 12. She will be victorious because John saw her dressed like the sun, and the Sun of righteousness coming to the earth to take her to Himself. Feeble and defective though His church may have been in the past, now she reaches perfection after many heavy trials, and she is ready for translation.

In Solomon’s allegory, she comes from the wilderness, leaning upon her beloved (Song of Solomon 8:5). Jesus Christ says of her: “Thou art all fair, my love: there is no spot in thee. . . . Thou hast ravished my heart, my sister, my spouse; thou hast ravished my heart with one of thine eyes, with one chain of thy neck. How fair is thy love, my sister, my spouse!” (Chapter 4:7, 9, 10, emphasis supplied). The happy bride declares about her beloved: “I am a wall, . . . then was I in his eyes as one that found favour.” “I am my beloved’s, and his desire is toward me” (Chapters 8:10; 7:10). The Lord Jesus desires to have us, and He misses us as His children. He made Himself a brother and Redeemer for us. He will return to take His bride to His royal palace in the heavenly mansions (John 14:1-3).

“Who is she that looketh forth as the morning, fair as the moon, clear as the sun, and terrible as an army with banners?” (Song of Solomon 6:10). I would like to be part of this army that will march triumphantly on the sea of glass, go to the tree of life and to the throne of God, the Father!

The blood-stained banner of Prince Emmanuel is a pledge that each soldier makes in joining the formidable army of the Lord. All soldiers struggle to lift up the banner, and it only falls to the ground when the bearer dies in battle. Another soldier immediately picks it up and lifts it as he keeps on fighting. This war will continue because it is foretold that Satan will fully unleash his wrath against the woman and her remnant children, and against those whom he was unable to destroy in the past.

“The trying experiences that came to God’s people in the days of Esther were not peculiar to that age alone. The revelator, looking down the ages to the close of time, has declared, ‘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’ (Revelation 12:17). Some who today are living on the earth will see these words fulfilled. The same spirit that in ages past led men to persecute the true church, will in the future lead to the pursuance of a similar course toward those who maintain their loyalty to God. Even now preparations are being made for this last great conflict.”1

“We are plainly shown that two parties will exist at the appearing of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. In which party do we wish to be found? ‘Behold, I come quickly,’ Christ says, ‘and My reward is with Me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end, the first and the last. Blessed are they that do His commandments, that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter in through the gates into the city’ (Revelation 22:12-14). This is the destination of commandment keepers. Should we not all wish to be among that number who have right to the tree of life, and who enter through the gates into the city?”2

Revelation 12 is a love story. It shows the deep and true affection between God and His faithful people. The war mentioned in that chapter ends with a full victory of the church. The woman is dressed with the sun (gospel dispensation), crowned with 12 stars (the 12 apostles of Christ), and has the moon under her feet (the Old Testament prophecies). The dragon is defeated, because she “cometh up from the wilderness, leaning upon her Beloved.” Christ never goes arm-in-arm with an apostate church. “Then was I in his eyes as one that found favour,” one that is worthy of the love and trust of her Beloved (Song of Solomon 8:10, emphasis supplied).