The Woman Clothed with the Sun.

The “woman dressed in the sun” of Apocalypse 12 it's Maria?

Who is the woman of Apocalypse 12 described as clothed in the sun? There are two possibilities regarding the identity of this mysterious woman. They are Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus or Israel. The Catholic Church thinks this woman is Mary. They have pictures and statues of Mary painted or sculpted in her glorious splendor with a crown of twelve stars on her head, as if she were a queen.

E’ this is an accurate interpretation of this chapter of Revelation or a dangerous distortion that has misled Catholics by pushing them to trust Mary for their salvation?

Please read carefully Apocalypse 12 from start to finish:

Then a great sign appeared in the sky: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under his feet and a crown of twelve stars on his head. She was pregnant, and cried out in pains and the labor of childbirth.

Yet another sign appeared in the sky: and behold a great red dragon, who had seven heads and ten horns and seven diadems on his heads. Its tail dragged a third of the stars in the sky and threw them to the earth. The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, to devour his son, as soon as she gave birth. And she gave birth to a male child, who must hold up all the nations with an iron rod; and her son was kidnapped near God and his throne. But the woman fled into the desert, where he has a place prepared by God, for being nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days. And there was a battle in the sky: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought, but they did not win, and there was no more room for them in heaven.

The great dragon, the ancient snake, who is called devil and Satan, the seducer of the whole world, was thrown down; he was thrown to the earth, and his angels were thrown with him. Then I heard a loud voice in the sky, who said: «Now the salvation and the power has come, the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers was thrown down, he who accused them day and night before our God. But they conquered him by the blood of the Lamb, and with the word of their testimony; and they didn't love their life, indeed they exposed her to death.
Therefore rejoice, about the body, and you who dwell in them! Woe to you, the land, a large! Because the devil has come down to you with great fury, knowing you have little time ".

When the dragon saw himself rushed to earth, persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she could fly into the wilderness, in its place, where it is fed for a while, of times and half of a time, away from the presence of the snake. The snake threw water from its mouth, like a river, behind the woman, to make it overwhelmed by the current. But the earth helped the woman: he opened his mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had thrown out of his mouth. Then the dragon was furious against the woman and went to make war on those who remain of her descendants who keep the commandments of God and keep the testimony of Jesus.

in verse 5 we learn that this woman is associated with Jesus, but how? It is a maternal association with Mary or the birth of a people? The only way to know is to carefully consider the other details found in this same chapter (and elsewhere in Scripture).

Among all the details there is the dragon (V.3), who is then identified as the devil (V. 9). The devil is worried about his son and wants to kill him immediately after birth. Instead of winning the devil in this fight, the child is taken back to God and returned to his throne. The devil thus persecutes the woman in the desert after losing her conflict with the archangel Michael:

When the dragon saw himself rushed to earth, persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she could fly into the wilderness, in its place, where it is fed for a while, of times and half of a time, away from the presence of the snake. (You 12:13-14).

Clearly the woman is symbolic for and she was given eagle wings to fly in the desert and to protect herself from the devil. question: When Maria, the mother of Jesus, its wings sprout and fly into the desert for its personal protection? If the Catholic Church literally interprets Apocalypse 12:1-5 enough to take Mary literally as glorious and shining with her crown of twelve stars on her head, as if she were the queen, why does not continue to give the same literal interpretation to what follows, that is, his flight with eagle wings? Perhaps this is why the Catholic Church refers only to the first part of the chapter Apocalypse 12, but not in the end the latter (version 13 e 14) which makes us understand clearly how the woman is symbolic.

On the other hand, instead we consider that the woman is the symbol of Israel, we can associate it with the nation of Israel fleeing the desert for 1.260 days to get away from the devil. The symbolic interpretation of a crown of twelve stars on the head must also be respected, that is the 12 tribe of Israel!

He (Giuseppe) he had yet another dream and told it to his brothers, saying: “I had another dream! The sun, the moon and eleven stars bowed before me ". He told it to his father and brothers; his father scolded him and told him: “What does this dream you have meant? So we will have to, your mother and your brothers come and bow down to the ground before you?»(Gen 37:9-10)

The twelve stars are the twelve tribes of Israel. See also Gen 49:1-28.

Who is the offspring?

The offspring of the woman are those who obey God's commandments and bear the testimony of Jesus, as indicated in Apocalypse 12:17. If Israel is the woman of Apocalypse 12, children are saints described as those who obey God's commandments. This is possible because Christianity has its roots in Judaism, with the Messiah and all the Jewish and Christian apostles, they are all children of the same promise, and are considered descendants of Abraham:

If you are of Christ, you are therefore descendants of Abraham, heirs according to the promise. (Gal 3:29)

I, Jesus, I have sent my angel to testify these things to you in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, the bright morning star ". (You 22:16)

… that is, the Israelites, to which the adoption belongs, the glory, i patti, legislation, sacred service and promises; to which the fathers belong and from whom it comes, according to the meat, the Christ, who is above all things blessed God forever. Amen! But it's not like God's word has fallen to the ground; in fact, not all descendants of Israel are Israel; nor because of being Abraham's offspring, they are all sons of Abraham; rather: «E’ in Isaac that you will be recognized as a descendant ". That is, not children of the flesh are children of God; but the children of the promise are regarded as offspring. (Rm 9:4-8)

In addition to all this, the only time we've actually read about a queen in the book of Revelation is in Apocalypse 18:07:

Give her torment and grief to the same extent that she has glorified herself and lived
auto in luxury. Because he says in his heart: “I am queen, I am not a widow and will never see mourning”.

The context of this verse is Babylon the Great, which is destroyed within an hour! Then, Mary is never shown in the scriptures as the queen of heaven, exalted by Catholicism.

Revelation's interpretation of the woman who symbolizes the people of God, we also have it in Genesis 3:15 (“I will put enmity between thee and the woman”) where the woman is not Mary or Eve, but the church of God, the people of God. The figure of the woman (the church) as the bride of Christ she is present in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. No other logical interpretation can be given to these verses, if you do not want to fall into contradiction with all the rest of Scripture and with God's commandments.

The “woman dressed in the sun” of Apocalypse 12 it's Maria?

Who is the woman of Apocalypse 12 described as clothed in the sun? There are two possibilities regarding the identity of this mysterious woman. They are Mary the mother of the Lord Jesus or Israel. The Catholic Church thinks this woman is Mary. They have pictures and statues of Mary painted or sculpted in her glorious splendor with a crown of twelve stars on her head, as if she were a queen.

E’ this is an accurate interpretation of this chapter of Revelation or a dangerous distortion that has misled Catholics by pushing them to trust Mary for their salvation?

Please read carefully Apocalypse 12 from start to finish:

Then a great sign appeared in the sky: a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under his feet and a crown of twelve stars on his head. She was pregnant, and cried out in pains and the labor of childbirth.

Yet another sign appeared in the sky: and behold a great red dragon, who had seven heads and ten horns and seven diadems on his heads. Its tail dragged a third of the stars in the sky and threw them to the earth. The dragon stood before the woman who was about to give birth, to devour his son, as soon as she gave birth. And she gave birth to a male child, who must hold up all the nations with an iron rod; and her son was kidnapped near God and his throne. But the woman fled into the desert, where he has a place prepared by God, for being nourished for one thousand two hundred and sixty days. And there was a battle in the sky: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon. The dragon and his angels fought, but they did not win, and there was no more room for them in heaven.

The great dragon, the ancient snake, who is called devil and Satan, the seducer of the whole world, was thrown down; he was thrown to the earth, and his angels were thrown with him. Then I heard a loud voice in the sky, who said: «Now the salvation and the power has come, the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers was thrown down, he who accused them day and night before our God. But they conquered him by the blood of the Lamb, and with the word of their testimony; and they didn't love their life, indeed they exposed her to death.
Therefore rejoice, about the body, and you who dwell in them! Woe to you, the land, a large! Because the devil has come down to you with great fury, knowing you have little time ".

When the dragon saw himself rushed to earth, persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she could fly into the wilderness, in its place, where it is fed for a while, of times and half of a time, away from the presence of the snake. The snake threw water from its mouth, like a river, behind the woman, to make it overwhelmed by the current. But the earth helped the woman: he opened his mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had thrown out of his mouth. Then the dragon was furious against the woman and went to make war on those who remain of her descendants who keep the commandments of God and keep the testimony of Jesus.

in verse 5 we learn that this woman is associated with Jesus, but how? It is a maternal association with Mary or the birth of a people? The only way to know is to carefully consider the other details found in this same chapter (and elsewhere in Scripture).

Among all the details there is the dragon (V.3), who is then identified as the devil (V. 9). The devil is worried about his son and wants to kill him immediately after birth. Instead of winning the devil in this fight, the child is taken back to God and returned to his throne. The devil thus persecutes the woman in the desert after losing her conflict with the archangel Michael:

When the dragon saw himself rushed to earth, persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she could fly into the wilderness, in its place, where it is fed for a while, of times and half of a time, away from the presence of the snake. (You 12:13-14).

Clearly the woman is symbolic for and she was given eagle wings to fly in the desert and to protect herself from the devil. question: When Maria, the mother of Jesus, its wings sprout and fly into the desert for its personal protection? If the Catholic Church literally interprets Apocalypse 12:1-5 enough to take Mary literally as glorious and shining with her crown of twelve stars on her head, as if she were the queen, why does not continue to give the same literal interpretation to what follows, that is, his flight with eagle wings? Perhaps this is why the Catholic Church refers only to the first part of the chapter Apocalypse 12, but not in the end the latter (version 13 e 14) which makes us understand clearly how the woman is symbolic.

On the other hand, instead we consider that the woman is the symbol of Israel, we can associate it with the nation of Israel fleeing the desert for 1.260 days to get away from the devil. The symbolic interpretation of a crown of twelve stars on the head must also be respected, that is the 12 tribe of Israel!

He (Giuseppe) he had yet another dream and told it to his brothers, saying: “I had another dream! The sun, the moon and eleven stars bowed before me ". He told it to his father and brothers; his father scolded him and told him: “What does this dream you have meant? So we will have to, your mother and your brothers come and bow down to the ground before you?»(Gen 37:9-10)

The twelve stars are the twelve tribes of Israel. See also Gen 49:1-28.

Who is the offspring?

The offspring of the woman are those who obey God's commandments and bear the testimony of Jesus, as indicated in Apocalypse 12:17. If Israel is the woman of Apocalypse 12, children are saints described as those who obey God's commandments. This is possible because Christianity has its roots in Judaism, with the Messiah and all the Jewish and Christian apostles, they are all children of the same promise, and are considered descendants of Abraham:

If you are of Christ, you are therefore descendants of Abraham, heirs according to the promise. (Gal 3:29)

I, Jesus, I have sent my angel to testify these things to you in the churches. I am the root and offspring of David, the bright morning star ". (You 22:16)

… that is, the Israelites, to which the adoption belongs, the glory, i patti, legislation, sacred service and promises; to which the fathers belong and from whom it comes, according to the meat, the Christ, who is above all things blessed God forever. Amen! But it's not like God's word has fallen to the ground; in fact, not all descendants of Israel are Israel; nor because of being Abraham's offspring, they are all sons of Abraham; rather: «E’ in Isaac that you will be recognized as a descendant ". That is, not children of the flesh are children of God; but the children of the promise are regarded as offspring. (Rm 9:4-8)

In addition to all this, the only time we've actually read about a queen in the book of Revelation is in Apocalypse 18:07:

Give her torment and grief to the same extent that she has glorified herself and lived in luxury. Because he says in his heart: “I am queen, I am not a widow and will never see mourning”.

The context of this verse is Babylon the Great, which is destroyed within an hour! Then, Mary is never shown in the scriptures as the queen of heaven, exalted by Catholicism.

Revelation's interpretation of the woman who symbolizes the people of God, we also have it in Genesis 3:15 (“I will put enmity between thee and the woman”) where the woman is not Mary or Eve, but the church of God, the people of God. The figure of the woman (the church) as the bride of Christ she is present in the Bible from Genesis to Revelation. No other logical interpretation can be given to these verses, if you do not want to fall into contradiction with all the rest of Scripture and with God's commandments.