Transcript

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.

Simply repeat after me, Come Holy Spirit.

Come Holy Spirit.

Come Holy Spirit.

Come Holy Spirit.

Holy Spirit come.

Holy Spirit come.

In the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.

Okay, so we're gonna pick back up with clue number four, uh, that suggests the s- uh, the theme of judgment on Jerusalem with the blowing of the seven trumpets.

Now, in clue one through three we simply looked at various parallels between the plagues and the blowing of the trumpets in Egypt, and the plagues and Jericho, et cetera.

Now what I wanna do is just simply go back through those trumpets and highlight certain details that suggest judgment and judgment on Jerusalem.

So we start off with the blowing of the second trumpet.

In Revelation 8:8 we read about a great mountain that was thrown into the sea.

So you have the image of mountain being engulfed by the sea.

Now, I'm going to suggest to you that that imagery signifies judgment on Jerusalem by a foreign nation.

Why?

Well, first of all, the mountain, the image of the mountain would call to mind Jerusalem because Jerusalem is set on Mount Zion.

Uh, the base mountain is Mount Moriah, but then Zion is one of the smaller hills in the Morian range.

But the idea or the imagery of the mountain, the mountain of God for the Old Testament was Sinai, but for the New Testament, for the new covenant, Zion Did I say Sinai or Zion a while ago?

Zion.

I said Zion?

Yeah.

For Jerusalem?

Yes.

Okay.

Sometimes I can kinda mix those up.

But yeah, so Jerusalem is on Mount Zion, so the mountain of God would call to mind Jerusalem, right?

Mm-hmm.

Now, remember, what did we say about the sea?

What does the sea represent?

Gentile-

Gentile nations.

Once again, remember Daniel 7, the whole chapter, the four beasts coming from the sea symbolizing Gentile nations.

Psalm 65, uh, the roaring of the seas associated with the tumults of the nations.

So the sea symbolizes Gentile nations.

So you have sea engulfing a mountain, i.e.

Gentile nation engulfing Jerusalem.

That is, a Gentile nation destroying Jerusalem, which would indeed take place in 70 A.D.

when Rome, a Gentile nation, destroys Jerusalem.

So we see this imagery of the mountain being swallowed up by the sea paralleling Rome destroying Jerusalem.

Now, when we look at a particular detail from the second trumpet and the fifth trumpet put together, it calls to mind a prophecy of Jeremiah.

In Revelation 8:8 with the blowing of the second trumpet, we read about the mountain that's being engulfed by the sea burning on fire, right?

So a mountain burning with fire.

But in the blowing of the fifth trumpet in Revelation 9:7, we read that the locusts were like horses arrayed for battle, okay?

So when we put these two images together, mountain on fire, locusts like horses arrayed for battle, we find these two images together in Jeremiah 51 when he is prophesying about the ensuing destruction that would come on Babylon.

Remember that enemy of God that took the southern Israelites into captivity?

Well, Jeremiah would prophesy that Babylon would eventually be destroyed because it was the em- enemy of God, uh, incurring judgment upon itself.

Okay, so here's what Jeremiah says about the destruction of Babylon.

Thus says the Lord, 'Behold, I will stir up the spirit of a destroyer against Babylon.' That sets the context.

'I will stretch out my hand against you and make you a burnt mountain.

Blow the trumpet among the nations.' So there you have the blowing of trumpets.

'Prepare the nation for war against her, bring up horses like bristling locusts.' So in Jeremiah's prophecy about the destruction of Babylon you have a burning mountain, you have trumpets being blown, and you have locusts looking like horses.

What does John see in the blowing of the second trumpet and the fifth trumpet?

A mountain that's on fire in the midst of trumpets being blown and locusts looking like horses.

And so the interpretive application obviously is that Jerusalem is the new Babylon and will be destroyed like the Babylon of old.

So, so far we've seen Jerusalem once again as a new Sodom, a new Egypt, a new Jericho, and now a new Babylon.

It has become an enemy of God, thus incurring judgment upon itself.

The- in the third, the blowing of the third trumpet, in Revelation 8:11, uh, we discover something very interesting which unfortunately I don't know very much about.

But here we go.

The third angel blew his trumpet and a great star fell from heaven blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the fountains of water.

The name of the star is Wormwood.

A third of the waters became wormwood and many men died of the water because it was made bitter.

Now, I don't know in detail the origin of this term wormwood, et cetera, but I do know this, the same phrase or word wormwood is used in Jeremiah 9 in reference to the prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem that would come about in 587 B.C.

Here's what Jeremiah said.

Jeremiah 9:1-2 we read the following.

'Therefore, thus says the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, 'Behold, I will feed this people.' And it's talking about the tribes of Benjamin and Judah, the southern Israelites, the southern kingdom.

And so God says, 'I will feed this people with wormwood and give them poisonous water to drink.' So apparently it has something to do with poison, right?

Making waters bitter.

Verse 16.

'I will scatter them among the nations whom neither they nor their fathers have known, and I will send the sword after them until I have consumed them.'So, John has a vision of the store being named Wormwood.

The waters became Wormwood and many men died from drinking the water, so Wormwood having to do with some sort of poison and making the water bitter.

Jeremiah, in prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem, has a vision about the water becoming wormwood, right?

And becoming poisonous and bitter to drink.

And so John, like in the With the prophet Ezekiel, like Daniel, once again, John is having a vision that parallels Jeremiah's vision about the destruction of Jerusalem.

So, I would suggest to you once again that John's vision .

Hopefully you're not getting tired of this same motif over and over and over again, right?

Like a broken record or something.

Um, but these are what the details suggest.

So once again, John's getting a vision of the destruction of Jerusalem.

We come to the fourth trumpet.

Now, there are a couple of details in the fourth trumpet when read in light of the Old Testament that call to mind judgment on Jerusalem.

The first detail in the blowing of the fourth trumpet is the, uh, the imagery of the eagle that cries with a loud voice flying in mid-heaven, or the mid-air in Revelation 8:13.

Now, there's an Old Testament backdrop to g- to this.

Possibly it calls to mind Hosea's prophecy, okay?

The image of a big carrion bird, right?

Like a big vulture or a big eagle, just a big bird, used Was Is used in Hosea's prophecy in reference to the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel.

Remember we spoke about the northern kingdom being destroyed by whom?

Babylon or Assyria?

Assyria.

Assyria in 722 B.C.

Well, Hosea was a prophet to the northern tribes.

And Hosea, like the southern prophets prophesying about the destruction of Jerusalem, Hosea prophesies about the destruction of the northern kingdom of Israel.

And what is the image he uses about, in reference to that destruction?

The imagery of this large carrion bird, right?

Here's what Hosea says.

In Hosea 8:1, 8-9.

Quote, Set the trumpet to your lips.

Interesting.

Once again, we have a prophecy about the destruction.

About destruction, what do we have?

A trumpet.

So, not only does trumpet call to mind liturgy, it calls to mind judgment and destruction, right?

So, Set the trumpet to your lips for a vulture is over the house of the Lord.

Vulture calling to mind just a big carrion bird that feeds upon dead flesh, right?

So, The vulture is over the house of the Lord because they have broken my covenant and transgressed my law.

Israel is swallowed up.

Israel referring to the northern kingdom.

Um, Already they were among the nations as a useless vessel, for they have gone up to Assyria.

Yeah.

So, Hosea associates the image of a big carrion bird that feeds upon flesh in relation to the northern kingdom being destroyed, taken into captivity by a foreign nation, right?

And so we come to John's vision.

What does John see?

He sees this big carrion bird flying with crying out with a loud voice, flying in the mid-air.

So, the interpretive application is that Jerusalem is about to experience in the south what the northern kingdom experienced in the north.

What happened to the northern kingdom, Israel, taken into captivity by a foreign nation, right?

Will eventually take place in 70 A.D.

once again for Jerusalem, okay?

All right.

Detail number two, we have the woes pronounced.

In Revelation 8:13, Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth at the blast of the other trumpets which the three angels are about to blow.

So, we have this proclamation of woes.

What would this call to mind?

Well, it doesn't necessarily call to mind something from the Old Testament, but it does call to mind Jesus's ministry and his preaching, and his prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem in Matthew 23, which would go on into verse 20, into chapter 24.

We find a seven-fold We find a series of seven-fold woes on the Pharisees prior to his foretelling about the destruction of Jerusalem, right?

So, in Matthew 23 you have this seven-fold woes following the narrative.

Jesus prophesied about the destruction of the temple in Matthew 24:1-2 saying how not a stone will be left standing.

Then later in chapter 24 he's talking about the sun being dark and the moon losing its light, the stars falling from the sky, which we know already signifies that the time is up for a particular world order.

It signifies destruction and judgment coming upon a particular kingdom.

In that case, it would be Jerusalem, okay?

So, the interpretive application once again, John's prophecy is the same as Jesus's prophecy, the destruction of Jerusalem.

You see?

As I said last In our last lesson with John write Uh, what Jesus prophesies about in just a chapter and a half or two chapters, John writes a whole book about, you see?

So, John's vision is pretty much like a commentary on Jesus's teaching and prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem within a generation.

Remember Jesus said that.

Okay, now we come to the blowing of the fifth trumpet.

Uh, there are a few details here that are significant.

And what we find is that the description of the locusts Remember the fifth trumpet is blown, John sees locusts are read for battle like horses, right?

So, John sees the locusts.

Now, the way John describes the locusts seems to parallel Joel's prophecy about the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C., okay?

So, let's look at some of these parallels between John's vision of the fifth trumpet being blown and the locusts, and Joel's prophecy and the Old Testament about the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C.

First parallel, Revelation 9:7, They were like horses arrayed for battle.

What does Joel say in Joel 2:4?

The locusts' appearance is like the appearance of horses, and like warhorses they run.

Okay?

An accident?

I don't think so.

Revelation 9:8, The locusts' teeth were like lions' teeth.

How does Joel describe the locusts in Joel 1:6?

Its teeth are lion's teeth and it has the fangs of a lioness.And Revelation 9:9, They had scales like iron breastplates, and the noise of their wings was like the noise of many chariots with horses rushing into battle.

Joel 2 verses 5 and 7, As with the rumbling of chariots, they leap on tops of mountains like a powerful army drawn up for battle.

Like warriors they charge, like soldiers they scale the wall.

Similar description here.

So once again, the interpretive application is that God's judgment will come upon Jerusalem by a foreign nation like it did for Jerusalem in 587 B.C., okay?

So yet another prophet that we see that we must read John in light of.

We must read John's vision in light of Ezekiel's prophecies, John's vision in light of Daniel's prophecies, John's vision in light of Jeremiah's prophecies, John's vision in light of Joel's prophecies.

This is prophetical literature, you see?

And so you have to read it within the same tradition that the prophecies come evoked.

The blowing of the sixth trumpet, couple of details here.

Uh, the first detail I'd like to highlight in the blowing of the sixth trumpet is, uh, in Revelation chapter 9 verse 20, we read about idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, right?

Uh, we read, The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot either see or hear or walk, okay?

That's in Revelation 9:20.

Now, the Old Testament backdrop for this possibly is Daniel's prophecy about the destruction of Babylon, okay?

Now, remember we said Jeremiah prophesied about the destruction of Babylon, so does Daniel.

Here's what we find in Daniel 5:23, You have praised the gods of silver and gold, of bronze, iron, wood and stone, which do not see or hear or know, but the god in whose hand is your wrath and whose are all your ways you have not honored.

Close quote.

So when In Revelation 9:20, John describes the idols in the very same way that Daniel described the idols in Daniel 5, a- in- in prelude to the destruction of Babylon that would take place in the, um, sixth century B.C.

So the application to John's vision obviously is that once again, Jerusalem is a new Babylon, right, and will be destroyed as such for its idolatry.

Well, what was the idolatry of the first century Jews?

Their idolatry was What would What, what might you call to mind when you think of gold and silver and wood?

The temple.

The temple, that's right.

They put the temple before the true temple, God made flesh, Jesus Christ.

And consequently, they're found guilty of idolatry.

And like the Babylon of old, they will indeed incur judgment upon themself.

Listen to what one scholar writes.

Uh, let's see if I have it on the PowerPoint here.

No, I do not.

Listen to this.

In the same way, Jerusalem, the new Babylon, is about to be destroyed.

In the Old Testament, the Babylonians came and destroyed the temple in Jerusalem.

The corrupt leaders of Jerusalem, um The corrupt leaders of Jerusalem and the new Babylon destroyed the body of Christ, the true temple.

They preferred an earthly temple made of silver, gold, bronze, iron, wood and stone to the true temple, Christ.

Close quote.

You see that?

So, interesting that the first century, uh, Jewish community is identified as being guilty of idolatry because putting Choosing the earthly temple over and above and before the true temple, Jesus Christ.

The second detail with the sixth trumpet is the eating of the scroll.

In Revelation 10:9, uh, the angel told John, um, he says, uh, uh, let's see.

So I went to the angel and told him to give me the little scroll and he said to me, 'Take it and eat.

It will be bitter to your stomach, but sweet as honey in your mouth,' right?

So John is given this instruction to eat the scroll.

Well, this obviously directly parallels Ezekiel's eating of the scroll in Ezekiel chapter 3 verses 1 through 3 and verse 14.

And Ezekiel has to eat the scroll, so to speak, prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 B.C.

Here's what we read, 'Son of man, eat what is offered to you.

Eat this scroll.

Go, speak to the house of Israel, for they are a rebellious house.' Then I ate it and it was in my mouth as sweet as honey.

That's Ezekiel, in Ezekiel 3. And John receives the same command and says it tastes exactly like it tastes for Ezekiel, it's as sweet as honey.

And so you just fill in the blank.

Ezekiel receives the command to eat the scroll as sweet as honey prior to the destruction of Jerusalem.

John receives the command to eat the scroll as sweet as honey prior to the destruction of Jerusalem, okay?

All right.

And then finally, uh, the fifth clue that suggests judgment on Jerusalem is that what John sees in the blowing of the trumpets seem to parallel exactly what happened on in it on in the historical context of the Jewish-Roman War, as described by the Jewish historian Josephus.

So John's vision parallels an eyewitness account of the destruction of Jerusalem.

So let's look at, uh, details from three trumpets.

First trumpet, in Revelation 8:7 we have the destruction of the land, trees and grass, right?

And it was on fire.

Remember, call to mind, it was, you know, the burning censer being cast down, the mi- the mountain on fire burning everything up.

Here's what Josephus, the Jewish historian accounts in The Wars of the Jews.

Truly the very view itself of the country was a melancholy thing, for those places which were before adorned with trees and pleasant gardens were now become a desolate country in every way and its trees were all cut down.

You see that?

So John's vision is all about the destruction of land, trees and grass, right?

Josephus accounts that trees, land, gardens were all cut down, destroyed.

And Revelation 8:8, in the second trumpet we have the blazing mountain.

Listen to what Josephus writes in reference to the destruction of Jerusalem .

because the hill was high Now, what hill would he be talking about?

Mount Zion, the hill upon which the city of Jerusalem is built.

Because this hill was high, and the works at the temple were very great, one would have thought the whole city had been on fire.

For one would have thought that the hill itself on which the temple stood was seething hot, as full of fire on every part of it that the blood was larger in quantity than the fire.

Close quote.

So, Josephus, in his eyewitness account, is like, The mountain was on fire, the whole mountain.

And what does John see in the heavenly vision?

A mountain on fire, thus signifying once again John's vision is about the destruction of Jerusalem.

And finally, the sixth trumpet.

In Revelation 9:14, we read, Saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, 'Release the four angels who were bound at the great river Euphrates.' So, in John's vision you have the releasing of the angels from the great river Euphrates.

The River Euphrates seems to play an important role in this vision.

Well, this seems to par- This parallels with Josephus' accounts.

Um, according to the scholar Michael Barber in his book, Coming Soon, which is a commentary on the Book of Revelation, he writes the following.

The Roman legions came down from the north through the Euphrates on their way to Jerusalem.

And then he goes on further to explain that according to Josephus, the 10th legion which helped end the destruction of the city was stationed just beyond the Euphrates.

So, in the historical playing out of things, the River Euphrates was an essential component in that drama of history.

Roman legions coming down from the north through the Euphrates, the 10th legion being stationed right beyond the Euphrates, and this is exactly what John sees in his vision.

The angels being released, the angels of destruction being released from the River Euphrates.

So, my dear friends, there we have, uh, this major motif in Revelation chapters eight through nine of the seven trumpets being blown and judgment on Jerusalem.

So, there we have our pattern, right?

Liturgy, then judgment, as we've seen last week.

Now, I'd like to spend just a brief moment on the explicit prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D, which is found in Revelation 11:1-9.

But here are just, uh, a few excerpts that I've highlighted here.

Recall, uh, John tells us, They will trample over the holy city for 42 months.

The beast that ascends from the bottomless pit will make war upon them and conquer them and kill them.

And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city, which is allegorically called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified.

Right?

Now, obviously there we have it, Where their Lord was crucified.

That's Jerusalem, okay?

But what are the details that signify an explicit prophecy of its destruction?

Well, first of all, the 42 months, right?

Uh, let me re- Let me back up and say an explicit prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem by the Roman Empire in 70 A.D., okay?

And our first clue is the 42 months.

Why?

Because according to the historical narrative of things, we know from history that the Jewish-Roman war lasted 42 months, three and a half years.

Started in 66 A.D, mid-66 A.D., and would culminate in 70 A.D.

with the actual burning of the temple and the city.

You see?

So, the war would start in 66 A.D., culminate and climax in 70 A.D.

So, there you have three and a half years, 42 months.

Second clue, the unburied dead bodies that we read about in Revelation 11:8, remember, Their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city.

Now, what's interesting is that this imagery of unburied bodies seems to call to mind Psalms 79, which actually is a psalm that describes the ruins of Jerusalem, uh, w- when it was destroyed with, uh, unburied bodies.

Now, it's describing the destruction of Jerusalem in the Old Testament, right?

In 587 B.C.

Remember that?

Okay.

This psalm is describing the ruins of Jerusalem, and with th- The image that's associated with it is unburied bodies.

So, here we go.

O God, the heathen have come into thy inheritance.

They have defiled thy holy temple.

Right?

What it's referring to?

The destruction of the temple in 587 B.C.

They have defiled thy holy temple.

They have laid Jerusalem in ruins.

They have given the bodies of thy servants to the birds of the air for food, the flesh of thy saints to the beasts of the earth.

They have poured out their blood like water round about Jerusalem, and there was none to bury them.

Close quote.

So, in describing the ruins of Jerusalem, the psalmist in Psalms 79 says how the bodies of the holy ones of God, the bodies of the Israelites, of God's people, they, they were left unburied for the dogs to eat, for the birds to, to feed upon.

Unburied bodies associated with the ruins of Jerusalem in 587 B.C.

John has a vision with the destruction of this great city where our Lord was crucified, and bodies were unburied lying in the streets.

Hint, hint.

Jerus- Jerusalem's gonna be destroyed like it was in 587 B.C.

Finally, the third clue is that the city shall be called allegorically Sodom, right?

In Revelation 11:8.

Well, guess what?

When Isaiah is prophesying about the destruction of Jerusalem that would eventually take place in 587 B.C., Isaiah calls the rulers of Jerusalem the rulers of Sodom.

In Isaiah 1:10, Hear the word of the Lord, you rulers of Sodom.

Give ear to the teaching of our God, you people of Gomorrah.So, Isaiah implicitly implies, right, Jerusalem to be referred to as Sodom in his prophecy.

John refers to this great city where our Lord was crucified, Jerusalem, as Sodom.

So, this vision of John is to be seen in the same tradition as the prophecy of Isaiah.

Jerusalem will eventually be destroyed.

Amen?

Amen.

Okay.

So, we see once again, an explicit prophecy that Jerusalem is about to be destroyed by a foreign nation, which parallels the historical narrative of Jerusalem being destroyed by Rome in 70 A.D.

Now, we come to the great woman of Revelation Chapter 12, right?

Now we're gonna have some fun here, okay?

There are five details that I wanna highlight about this woman in Revelation 12.

The first detail, first and foremost, is that this woman is Mary.

Now, the common Catholic interpretation of the woman is that the woman on a first level of interpretation is Mary.

However, there is an objection that is often proposed to us as Catholics from other Christians from other denominations, and it goes as follows.

The woman doesn't refer to Mary.

The woman refers to the people of Israel, or, The woman refers to the church.

The woman's just a symbol of the people of Israel.

The woman is just a symbol of the church.

That's the common objection that's proposed to us as Catholics when we say the woman is Mary.

So, how do we respond to that objection, uh, to this interpretation and offer some evidence, some supporting evidence for the Catholic view that the woman is indeed, on a first level, Mary?

Now, as an aside, we're gonna see in a minute, we don't deny the fact that the woman symbolizes Israel and even the church.

But to say that the woman is not Mary is what we do not accept, because what we're gonna see is that the first level of interpretation is that the woman is Mary, but Mary herself actually symbolizes the whole people of Israel and the church, the Israel of God for the Old Covenant, the Israel of God for the New Covenant.

Mary herself is an icon of God's people for both the Old and the New.

And we're gonna see that.

So, first of all, how do we know that this woman is Mary?

I'm gonna give you five reasons for this.

Number one, John's consistent reference to Mary as the woman, right?

All throughout John's Gospel, we find Mary being referred to as woman.

Remember John Chapter Two, Verse Four, the Wedding Feast of Cana, what does Jesus call her?

Woman.

John Chapter 19, Verse 26, what does Jesus call her?

Woman.

F- Coming from the cross, right?

On the cross he says, Woman, behold your son.

And then finally here in Revelation 12, which remember we said it's the same John the Apostle who wrote the Gospel John that wrote the Book of Revelation.

And here he's describing the woman.

And so just in light of John's writings already, it seems to indicate that he's talking about Mary.

Second reason, the other figures in the context of John's vision are not identified as merely symbols of collective groups of people.

Right?

'Cause remember, remember the objection said the woman symbolizes the people of Israel.

The woman symbolizes the church, right?

Well, the other characters in the context aren't interpreted as symbolizing collective groups of people.

Think of the dragon.

The dragon on the first level of interpretation is who?

Satan.

Satan, right?

John tells us himself, John says, This is the serpent of old.

Okay?

What about the male child ruling with a rod of iron who's born of the woman?

Does that male child symbolize a collective group of people?

No.

No.

The male child symbolizes It not symbolizes, but it is Jesus, okay?

So, if the dragon is an individual person, Satan, if the male child is an individual person, Jesus, well then the woman must be an individual person, which in context would seem to point toward Mary.

You see?

So, in light of the context, I think w- we have supporting evidence of the Catholic interpretation that the woman is indeed Mary on a first level of interpretation, in its literal historical context and what John actually sees.

Third reason, and this is profound.

John refers to the woman as a great sign, right?

A great sign or a portent in the sky.

Okay?

Now, what you see on the PowerPoint there is what I'm about to get to in Isaiah's prophecy.

But just camp out right here for just a second.

In Revelation 12, John has his vision, and he describes her, I saw a great sign, or, I saw a great portent.

And the Greek word there for sign or portent in Revelation Chapter 12, Verse One is semeion.

Okay?

Now, that calls to mind Isaiah's prophecy about the virgin giving birth to the child.

Because remember in Isaiah Chapter Seven, Isaiah's talking to King Ahaz, I think it is, and Is- Isaiah is going to confirm for Ahaz that the Davidic line will continue, because he's being threatened by a foreign enemy.

And we, Isaiah, in Isaiah Chapter Seven we read, Therefore, the Lord Himself will give you a sign.

In the Greek version of Isaiah 7, the Greek word is semeion.

Behold, a virgin shall conceive and bear a son, and shall call his name Emmanuel.

Right?

Now, Matthew, in the Christian tradition in Matthew Chapter One, Verse 23, St. Matthew identifies that woman of Isaiah 7:14 in whom?

Mary.

Mary, right?

So, in the Christian tradition, Mary is the virgin woman prophesied about in Isaiah 7:14.

Okay?

Now we come back to John's vision.

John sees the woman, right?

And he says it's a great, she's a great sign, semeion, which immediately calls to mind the virgin mother of Isaiah 7:14.

Which from the Christian tradition we know to be whom?

Mary.

Mary.

So John, like Matthew, is applying Isaiah's prophecy of the virgin mother to the woman whom we know to be Mary.

You see?

So, it's kinda like this.

Follow this, bottom line.

John sees the woman, she's a great semion, sign.

That calls to mind Isaiah's prophecy of the virgin mother, which is a semion, a sign, right?

Who is that virgin mother in the Christian tradition?

Mary.

So, who is John referring to?

Mary.

Did you follow that logic there?

Okay.

.

All right, we move forward.

Reason number four, why this great woman in heaven is Mary.

Because the woman is described as the Davidic Queen Mother.

Note how The Davidic Queen Mother, okay?

The Davidic Queen Mother.

Note how John describes the woman.

She has a crown of twelve stars, right?

She's crowned, which would call to mind the queen mother in David's kingdom.

Because you see, in the Old Testament backdrop, for the Old Testament backdrop, the queen, the queen in David's kingdom was the mother.

Remember?

Queen Bathsheba, in First Kings chapter In First Kings chapter one, she was the wife of King David, okay?

But we find that when David dies, his son Solomon begins to reign and then she's the mother of the king now.

When First Kings chapter two, King- Queen Bathsheba comes into the presence of King Solomon, and he prostrates himself.

He bows in her presence to honor her and he has a throne set up at his right hand for his queen mother.

And throughout tradition, and even in the Bible elsewhere, we find that the queen mother, the mother was the queen and the queen mother ruled the kingdom with the king.

You see?

And here, John describes this woman crowned with 12 stars.

So, she's a queen, right?

Well, who does she give birth to?

The m- Jesus, the male child, right?

And John tells us that that male child will rule with a rod of iron, right?

That's is That's directly from Psalm 2, which is a Messianic text about the son of David who would rule with a rod of iron.

So, this woman of Revelation 12 is the mother of the Messianic king.

That Messianic king is Jesus, right?

Well, we know who the mama of King Jesus is.

It's Mary.

And so, Mary is the queen mother for the new covenant kingdom of God.

The church.

And John describes this woman as that Davidic queen mother for the new covenant.

And who is that new covenant Davidic queen mother?

It's Mary.

And so, this woman of Revelation 12 is indeed Mary.

Finally, the fifth reason why this woman is Mary.

It's just unreasonable for it not to be Mary.

I mean, think about it.

Why would you describe a woman giving birth to the Messianic king who all Christians know to be Jesus, and this woman not be Mary, and you do not intend for the woman to be Mary?

I mean, that just would not make sense, right?

I mean, anybody who knows that Jesus is the Davidic king, and you read about this woman giving birth to the king, well then that would signify it being Mary, okay?

All right, so there we have, I think, some pretty substantial reasons, uh, to support the Catholic interpretation that this woman is Mary.

Now, why, why is it so important that the woman is Mary?

Well, there's several reasons.

And as we begin to go to this Our second detail, we see one, at least one important reason why we know this is Mary.

And that is, Mary is revealed to be the new Ark of the Covenant.

In Revelation chapter 11, verse 19, this is our first clue that Mary is the new Ark.

In Revelation 11:19, John sees the Ark in the Heavenly temple.

He says, Therein, the temple was opened, and therein I saw the Ark of the Covenant, right?

And then he immediately begins to describe the woman when he should be describing the Ark.

I mean, guys, the Ark had been lost for over 600 years.

Prior to the destruction of Jerusalem in 587 BC, Jeremiah took the Ark and he hid it, according to Second Maccabees chapter two.

We'll get there in a minute.

But Jeremiah hid the Ark and it hadn't been seen.

Nobody knew or knows even today where it was at.

So, think about it.

Put yourself in the shoes of the Jewish people, right?

The very centerpiece of your religion, the very sign of God's presence in the midst of your people was taken away from you and was hidden.

And nobody knows where it's at.

It's been lost for over 600 years.

And John tells us he saw it, right?

Come on, John, tell us about it.

What does it look like?

Right?

You know, Tell us about the Ark, John.

He starts talking about a woman.

.

Why is he describing a woman when he should be describing the Ark?

Precisely because the woman is the Ark.

What did the old Ark contain within itself?

The Ten Commandments, the manna, the Aaron's high priestly rod, the staff, right?

The word of God on stone, the bread of Heaven, and the high priesthood.

Who is this male child within the woman that John is describing?

It's Jesus, the Word of God, not on stone, but the Word of God made flesh.

The bread of Heaven, not come down from Heaven in the Old Testament that the fathers ate, but the true bread that comes down from Heaven, the flesh of Jesus Christ.

Not the Old Testament high priest, Aaron, but the New Testament high priest, Jesus.

You see?

So, the male child in the womb of the woman, Mary, is the fulfillment of the three items in the Old Testament Ark.

So, this woman in Revelation 12, Mary, is the new Ark of the Covenant.

And then we can spend a whole, uh, lot more time talking about why Mary would be without sin .

in light of the fact that she is the new Ark of the Covenant, because just as sin could not touch the old ark, lest a man die Check out 2 Samuel 6, when you find a man named Uzzah touching that ark, and guess what?

He drops dead.

So just as sin could not touch the holy ark of old, so too sin, my dear friends, cannot touch the holy ark of new.

You see?

Now, that's a whole nother talk, but let's move forward.

Clue two that Mary is the new Ark of the Covenant: the description of Mary being clothed with the sun, which she is according to Isaiah 60:1-3, the Shekinah, the glory of the Lord.

Okay, so John sees the woman, she's clothed with the sun.

In the Jewish tradition, to be clothed with the sun and a bright light signifies the glory of the Lord.

Remember the Shekinah, the glory of the Lord in the Old Testament, the pillar of cloud by day, the pillar of fire by night, right?

Signifying God's presence, the glory of God, right?

When the Jewish tradition, bright light, sun, s- is associated with that glory of the Lord, that Shekinah.

Now, the Old Testament backdrop that, against which John has this vision of the woman clothed in the sun, the glory of the Lord, is 2 Maccabees 5-8, which remember, is in one, one other of those seven books that we have as Catholics, but our Protestant brothers and sisters do not.

But we find something very interesting in 2 Maccabees 2:5-8.

This is the account of Jeremiah hiding the ark, and he tells us when the ark will be found.

Listen, what, what, what we read here.

And Jeremiah came and found a cave, and he brought there a t- the tent and the ark and the altar of incense, and he sealed up the entrance.

Verse six.

Some of those who followed him came up to mark the way, but could not find it.

When Jeremiah learned of it, he rebuked them and declared, 'The place shall be unknown until God gathers His people together again and shows His mercy.' So notice, the place is gonna be unknown until God's gonna reunite his people, reconstitute the Israel of God, right?

Verse eight.

'And then the Lord will disclose these things, and the glory of the Lord and the cloud will appear.' So in other words, Jeremiah's saying the ark will not be disclosed until God reconstitutes the Israel of God and the Shekinah reappears.

Because remember, the glory of the Lord was absent.

When Jeremiah takes the ark out of the temple prior to the destruction of the temple in 587 B.C., the Shekinah is no longer there, right?

Because once you, once you don't have the ark, you don't have the Shekinah, you don't have the glory of the Lord.

And even when those southern Israelites who were exiled into Babylon in captivity, when they came back to Jerusalem under Nehemiah and Ezra and rebuilt the city and rebuilt the second temple, was the Shekinah there?

No.

Why?

'Cause there was no ark.

But Jeremiah said that the ark would be disclosed when the glory of the Lord would reappear.

And what does John see in his vision?

The glory of the Lord.

The clothing of the sun.

The bright light engulfing this woman.

Why?

Because the woman is the ark.

The ark has reappeared.

You see, we're no longer interested in that Old Testament wooden box overlaid with gold, because it is no, it is void of its power.

Now, would it be a cool finding?

Indeed.

Yeah.

But it no longer has its power.

Why?

Because it has been replaced by the new ark of the new covenant, namely the woman clothed with the sun, i.e.

the mother of the Davidic king, Mary.

And so we see that she is the new Ark of the Covenant.

Detail number three about this woman in the heavenly vision: Mary is the personification of Israel.

Remember what I said a while ago.

First level of interpretation, it's Mary, but Mary is an icon of God's people, both for the old and in the new covenant.

Here we go.

First image that signifies Mary as the personification of the people of Israel: the labor imagery.

Okay, r- recall how in Revelation 12, John describes the woman, uh, with birth pains, all right?

Now you might be thinking to yourself, Well, wait a minute.

If the Catholic Church says Mary was free from original sin, and birth pains is a consequence of original sin, well, then that would mean Mary was free from original sin, and that would mean Mary was free from birth pains, right?

But John says this woman, whom you say is Mary, had birth pains.

How do you reconcile that?

You see?

That's a very good question, huh?

We'll get back to it in a minute, okay?

But this is, this is one way of possibly responding, that the imagery is symbolic to signify Mary is the personification of Israel, and I'll come back to this in a few moments.

But anyway, in Isaiah 26:17, uh, Isaiah is describing Israel during its exile within the context of the restoration of Israel, and he says this.

Like a woman with child, who writhes and cries out in her pangs when she is near her time, so were we because of thee, O Lord.

So he's talking about the Israelites being in captivity within the context of saying how they would eventually return and be restored, and the imagery that's used is a woman crying out in child labor with pain to signify the grief and the sorrow of the Israelites in their exile, but yet hope that would come, or a, a reward that would come, right?

And that is they would return back to their land.

Just as a woman in her pains during birth has hope because of the blessing of the child and the reward that will come, so too the Israelites in their pain, there's reward to look forward to.

That is returning to their land.

Now, the second image that signifies Mary as the personification of Israel is the queenship imagery.

Remember, Saint John describes Mary crowned with a crown of twelve stars.

There's queenship imagery here.

Well, in the Old Testament, Israel, during the Messianic Age is described with such imagery.

For example, in Isaiah 62:3, You shall be a crown of beauty in the hand of the Lord, and a royal diadem in the hand of your God.

So, notice this queenship imagery being associated with Israel in the Messianic Age.

Isaiah 60:1-3, Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you.

His glory will be seen upon you, and nations shall come to your light and kings to the brightness of your rising, close quote.

So, in Isaiah chapter 62, Isaiah is describing Israel in the Messianic Age with queenship imagery.

In Isaiah chapter 60, Isaiah is describing Israel in the- in the Messianic Age as shining with bright light.

And what does John see in regard to the woman?

She's shining with bright light and she's clothed with queenship imagery.

You can see images.

And so, thus signifying Mary personifies the people of Israel, okay?

Uh, the third imagery, the mother imagery.

In Revelation chapter 12 verse 17, did you know that Saint John tells us that this woman, whom we say to be Mary, has other offspring?

Has offspring, it says.

And those offspring of the woman are those who keep the commandments of the Lord.

So, those who keep the commandments of the Lord within the context are the Christian people, right?

So therefore, this woman in heaven, Mary, is the mother of all Christians.

And so, our Protestant brothers and sisters, you know, other christians in other denominations, Mary is their mother too.

They might not know it, but she is their spiritual mother.

Because to any Protestant brother or sister, friend of mine, we can simply ask them, right, Do you keep the commandments of the Lord?

Indeed they do, because they love the Lord with a greater degree of love than many of us Catholics warming up the pew every Sunday.

Amen?

Amen.

And they love the Lord.

And so according to Revelation 12:17, Saint John says that this woman, Mary, is the mother of all Christians.

And so this is a truth that I think we can share with our brothers and sisters.

Now, granted, once again, is- is Mary this divine goddess or something?

No.

We don't worship Mary, we simply honor her.

Why?

Because she's our spiritual mother, right?

It's a motherhood that is not physical, but spiritual, in the order of grace.

And so consequently, we honor her because of her spiritual motherhood, as revealed by Saint John in Revelation chapter 12 verse 17.

Now, how does that signify the personification of Israel?

Well, Israel, Jerusalem actually, Jerusalem is described as m- as a mother in Isaiah 66 verses 8 and 13.

In the days of the Messiah and the Messianic Age we read this, For as soon as Zion was in labor, she brought forth her sons.

As one whom is his mother comforts, so I will comfort you.

You shall be comforted in Jerusalem.

So, Zion, right?

With Zion and Jerusalem, two essential, uh, s- synonymous terms there in this context.

So, Zion is like a mother, right?

So, Mary is described as a mother.

She personifies Zion.

She pers- personifies Israel.

And finally, um, the last detail about Mary that signifies her personification of Israel is the fleeing imagery, okay?

Uh, we read in Revelation chapter 12 verse 6 that, uh, she actually flies into the wilderness, right?

So, there's this imagery of her fleeing into the wilderness.

Now, think about it, what would that call to mind?

Flight into Egypt.

Yeah, yeah, that's right.

The- the going into the wilderness, the wilderness wanderings, right?

When Well, actually, uh, the flight into Egypt you would be thinking about Mary actually going into Egypt, and that's- that's a pretty cool detail.

But for the Old Testament's sake, it would call to mind Israel, 'cause we're trying to see the personification of Israel here, right?

Israel going into the wilderness, right?

So, John sees the woman flying into the wilderness, going into the wilderness, which would call to mind the Israelites fleeing from Egypt, which Pharaoh was a symbol of the devil.

Well, not a symbol, direct symbol, but he represents the devil in a metaphorical way.

So, the Israelites are fleeing from the devil's grasp, right, into the wilderness.

So, we see this fleeing imagery of the woman, Mary, fleeing into the wilderness symbolizing that she personifies the people of Israel.

Secondly, uh, we have the wings of an engle- of an eagle imagery.

The woman flees into the wilderness with wings of an eagle, okay?

Well, this once again calls to mind Exodus chapter 19 verse four.

Let me see.

Let me find the PowerPoint here.

Exodus 19:4, You have seen what I did to the Egyptians and how I bore you on eagle's wings and brought you to myself.

So, that's a direct parallel there, I think.

That's a direct allusion, to see the woman flying or fleeing into the wilderness on eagle's wings directly calls to mind Israel who flees out of Egypt into the wilderness on eagle's wings.

So, Mary is an icon of God's people.

Now, think about that, folks.

That's deep, spiritual, profound truth there, because we find our identity as disciples of Christ, as members of God's people in the new covenant, we find our identity in Mary.

Yeah.

Mary is the icon for true discipleship.

So, we look to Mary as a disciple of Christ, we look to Mary as a member of God's people to see how we must authentically live our vocation as members of the new covenantal people of God.

This is where Mary fits into the divine drama of salvation.So, she is the example par excellence of the Christian and true Christian discipleship.

Now, a few more things about the woman.

Remember I said five details?

We're on detail number four, and then I'll get you out of here.

Detail number four, the M- Mary, the woman is the prophetic woman of Genesis 3:15.

Remember Genesis 3:15?

After Eve sins.

After Eve sins in Genesis 3:15, God says to the serpent, I will set enmity between you and the woman, between your seed and her seed.

Right?

So, in Genesis 3:15, you have these characters.

You have, um, the woman.

You have the male child that she's gonna give birth to.

You have the serpent, right, or the dragon.

Okay.

Now, how do we know that John's vision of the woman is calling to mind the woman of Genesis 3:15?

Well, here we go.

John actually is echoing the creation story, right?

What did John see?

The woman.

Okay?

You just simply have the woman, okay?

Now, what else do we have?

We have the dragon, which John tells us is the serpent of old, right?

Then you have the male child, right?

Okay.

Remember?

God spoke about the child being born of the woman.

Then you have In John's vision, the dragon is seeking to devour the child.

Note the motif of combat or conflict.

What did God speak of in Genesis 3:15?

He said that the male child would crush the head of the serpent, but the serpent would bruise his heel, right?

So, you have the theme of conflict in John's vision in Revelation 12 as well as Genesis 3:15.

And finally, in Revelation 12, the woman flees the dragon.

She's not touched by the dragon.

And what did God say in Genesis 3:15?

I will set enmity, total opposition, between you, serpent devil, and the woman.

The woman, as prophesied by God in Genesis 3:15, will not be touched by the devil, by the serpent.

And in Revelation 12, this woman, who is who?

Mary.

Will not be touched by the serpent.

Another clue or hint to Mary being without sin.

Not touched by the stain of the devil.

And so Amazing.

So, here we go.

We make our connections.

In Revelation 12 you have the dragon.

Genesis 3, you have the serpent.

And by the way Okay.

In the Greek In Revelation 12, the Greek word for the dragon there is ophis.

In the Greek version of the creation story of Genesis 3, the Greek word for the serpent is ophis.

Okay?

It's the same Greek word that is in the Greek Septuagint of the Old Testament.

So, you have ophis, dragon, in Revelation 12.

You have ophis, the serpent or dragon, in Genesis 3. Who is that?

That's Satan.

In Revelation 12, you have the male child, right?

In Genesis 3, you have the seed of the woman, and that's obviously Jesus.

And in Revelation 12, you have the woman.

In Genesis 3, you have the woman.

And who is that woman?

It's Mary.

You see?

Okay.

So, this is Uh, John is echoing the protoevangelium of the creation story.

Now, I leave you this one last thought about the woman, b- about Mary being the woman of Genesis 3:15.

Unlike the old woman, the first woman, Eve, the new woman, Mary, prevails over the dragon, right?

The first woman, who would later be called Eve after she sinned, the first woman was seduced by the nahash in Hebrew, the ophis in Greek, namely the serpent, the devil.

But this new woman, as John sees in Revelation 12, the new woman, unlike the first woman, is not seduced by the serpent or the dragon, the ophis.

She flees the dragon.

Amen?

Amen.

So thus, once again, another hint to Mary being without sin because she is the new woman prophesied about in Genesis 3:15.

Finally, we come to the last detail about the woman, and that is the labor pains, right?

I just had a friend of mine who's looking at the Catholic Church, he's in the RCIA process, the other night.

He brought up this, uh, this to me about Mary being immaculately conceived, right?

The, the, the, the question goes as follows.

Well, if the Catholic Church teaches that Mary was immaculately conceived, which means that she was conceived without the stain of original sin, and original sin entails labor pains, well then that would logically follow that Mary didn't have labor pains according to the Catholic tradition, right?

Right.

And we respond, Yes.

Okay?

So, the nativity story that came out a couple of years ago when it shows Mary having some pains during her birth, they kinda got it theologically wrong according to the Catholic tradition.

But the argument goes as follows.

Well, if that's the Catholic position, how do you reconcile that with the labor pains that the woman whom you say to be Mary experiences in Revelation 12:1-5?

Very good question.

So, let's try and give a very good answer.

Now, there are three possible interpretations here, okay?

First, it could signify Mary's spiritual suffering, okay?

Now remember, we're in the Book of Revelation.

A lot of symbolic imagery going on here, right?

A lot of metaphorical stuff being used.

So, it is possible that the labor pains can be taken as Mary's spiritual suffering in reference to the suffering she would have undergone in giving birth to the Messiah.

Because remember, Mary's a good Jewish girl .

and she would have known the prophecies of old about the suffering Messiah.

There was various Jewish groups and Jewish traditions that the Messiah to come would not only be the Davidic King to set God's people free from Israel, but also there were traditions that understood the prophets to refer to the Messiah to be a suffering Messiah.

I mean, just think of Isaiah 53, right?

The suffering servant of Yahweh being led to slaughter like our lamb, we will be healed by his, uh He will be bruised for our iniquities and by his stripes we will be healed, right?

Psalm 22 is a messianic text about the son of David who will, My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

Right?

Will be persecuted.

His cheeks, his beard will be plucked.

He will be beaten.

He will be spit upon.

But yet it prophesizes about victory that would be given to this son of David.

So there is enough evidence in the Jewish tradition that the Messiah would be a suffering Messiah.

And so Mary accepting the plan of the Father to bear the son of David and give birth to the son of David, and the mes- messianic king, right?

The Messiah.

That would have been knowledge, a joyful mystery indeed, but yet also a sorrowful mystery.

The shadow of the cross right there from the beginning at the annunciation mystery.

And so these, these labor pains could be seen as symbolic of Mary's spiritual suffering, and this seems to be supported in the Christian tradition because we find in two places where labor pains are associated with suffering.

In John 16:20, Jesus uses the imagery of a woman suffering in labor pains in reference to the apostles, how they're gonna get killed, and their martyrdom, right?

'Kay.

And in Galatians 4:19, St. Paul writes in the King James Version, and the King James Version actually gets it right here.

My little children of whom I travail in birth again until Christ be formed in you.

Notice how Paul associates labor pains, uses it as a metaphor for the suffering that he endures for the people in Galatia.

So in the Chritian- in the Christian tradition, labor pains are used as a metaphor for suffering, for spiritual suffering.

So we take that Christian knowledge into John's vision of the woman, Mary, having labor pains signifying her spiritual suffering in even giving birth to Jesus Christ.

Does that make sense?

That's a pretty reasonable interpretation, no?

Secondly, John describes Mary with such imagery to signify the restoration of Israel, which is what I mentioned a while ago.

In the Old Testament, we looked at an Old Testament text awhile ago, and that was Oh, where, where was it?

I can't quite remember.

Uh, I think it was Yeah, Isaiah 26:17.

In Isaiah 26:17, the restoration of Israel is described as a woman with birth pains, right?

But check out this other Old Testament text.

In Micah 5:3, Micah describes actually the mother of the Messiah with the same imagery within the context of the prophecy of the restoration of Israel.

Quote, Therefore, he shall give them up until the time when she who is in travail has brought forth.

Then the rest of his brethren shall return to the people of Israel.

So in the prophecy of Micah about the messianic age and supposedly the mother of the messianic king will bring forth in this time in travail.

And so in order for John's vision of Mary, the woman, giving birth to the messianic king in travail simply calling to mind the M- Micah prophecy, that this woman is the mother of the Messiah, the male child is the messianic king, thus the prophecy is fulfilled.

Finally, the third interpretation.

The third possible interpretation, now granted this is not definitive, okay?

So we can, we can take it or leave it, but I think it's a plausible interpretation.

And that is what John sees from a heavenly perspective is not Bethlehem, but Calvary.

Mm-hmm.

That John is actually having a vision of Calvary, and therefore the birth pains, the imagery of the birth pains would be her pains and her spiritual suffering at the foot of the cross, all right?

Now, what are the clues that would signify or suggest this?

Well, the first clue is that once again birthing, the birthing imagery or the birth pains, right, as we've already suggested, signifies, can be used in the Christian tradition as s- for suffering and for death.

And we've seen that already in John 16:20, m'kay?

In Galatians 4:19.

Now, the second clue.

This birthing imagery is within the context of the male child being caught up to the throne of God.

Well, when is Jesus caught up to the throne of God to sit at the right hand of the Father?

Jesus.

At his ascension.

So the, the context of the birth seems, i- that, you know, you have the birthing imagery and then all of a sudden the male child is caught up to God, which would signify the ascension.

And then the third clue is the cosmic battle between good and evil, right?

Mm-hmm.

Which would indeed Which is what took place while Jesus was on the cross, where Jesus is battling the dragon, where you have a whole heavenly host in battle against the demonic forces while Jesus is there on the cross.

And so the interpretive application as some scholars will suggest is that what John saw with his physical eyes while on Calvary at the foot of the cross, he now sees from an heavenly perspective.

He sees it as the angels s- saw it.

That is the cosmic battle between the devil and the heavenly host, the cosmic battle between the male child, Jesus, and the devil.

And then the victory is brought because he is caught up to the throne of God, you see?

He ascends into the heavenly sanctuary in victory, bearing the wounds of the cross, right?

Bearing the wounds of the battle to signify the victory he won for God's people.

And so this is very interesting because when we go further in the Book of Revelation and we get to the wedding supper of the lamb in Revelation chapter 19, I'm gonna show you how the wedding supper of the lamb, it's actually the last supper seen from a heavenly perspective.

It's actually the last supper made present.

So when we get there what we're gonna find is this.

What John experienced with his physical eyes and physical senses in the upper room at the last supper, John experiences it from a heavenly perspective.

And so that seems to fit with this, that what John saw with his physical eyes and sensed with his physical senses on Calvary at the foot of the cross, John is experiencing it from a heavenly perspective, and describing the woman with birth pains because what?

She's suffering at the foot of the cross giving birth to the Messianic King, but not in Bethlehem, but spiritually giving birth in a sense to the fullness of grace who is Jesus Christ, right?

Because Jesus wins for us that grace, so there's a sense of Mary birthing Christ giving Christ to the world through the cross.

And He will be resurrected and win for us that new life, you see?

So this is a possible interpretation.

So bottom line is, do the birth pains of the woman whom we know to be Mary negate the Catholic understanding that Mary is without original sin?

No.

The birth pains are to be taken symbolically as referencing spiritual suffering that Mary is experiencing whether it be at Bethlehem or at the foot of the cross.

Amen?

Amen.

So my dear friends that concludes our study of Revelation chapters 7-12.

I hope you learned a thing or three to help you give you a framework so that you can go back through it, and now you have, uh, something to work with.

Amen?

Well, uh, next week we'll be looking, I think, at Revelation chapters 13-17, if I'm not mistaken.

But hopefully you can join us next week and we'll have some more fun.

Let's close with a prayer in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, amen.

And so as those Christians that St. John refers to in Revelation 12:17, those Christians who obey the commandments of the Lord, we who attempt and try by the grace of God to obey the commandments of the Lord, primarily the commandments of love of God and love of neighbor.

We know according to St. John's revelation that we have a spiritual mother, and that mother is the Davidic Queen Mother, the mother of King Jesus, our mother Mary.

And so we come to our queen mother as her spiritual children, and as Adonijah did in 1 Kings 2 to Queen Bathsheba, the queen mother, we come to Queen Mother Mary.

And we ask Mary to please take us by the hand and lead us to her divine son, Jesus, as she always does.

And that we be consecrated to the sacred heart of Jesus, and that our Queen Mother Mary will teach us how to love Jesus, how to fall more intimately head over heels in love with Jesus, how to be a faithful disciple of Jesus.

And ultimately Jesus who gives us access to the throne of the Ancient of Days, He will take us to the throne of the Father and the Father will hill our pr- hear our prayers and grant it to us a special outpouring of His Holy Spirit.

And so let us pray the biblical prayer as we pray Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee.

Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Blessed art thou among women and blessed is the fruit of thy womb, Jesus.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners now and at the hour of our death.

Amen.

Once again, Our Lady of Fátima, pray for us.

In the name of the Father and of the Son and the Holy Spirit, amen.