The Great Battle in Heaven
A Paradigm Out of Order
By
Patrick Cooke

         The concept that biblical prophecy confirms Satan will battle Jesus in the sky at his return is almost as widely accepted as the return itself. It is the foundation of most theories that some, if not all, UFOs are satanic in origin. The logic follows that Satan will fake the second coming of the Christ, by flying in with his craft and have everybody convinced that he is the Savior, until Michael defeats him in the sky. And, Michael will do that in the battle described in Revelation.
It is actually there, in the book of "end-times prophecies" given directly to John, by Jesus himself:
         "And 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." (Revelation 12:7-9).
         The Revelation speaks about this battle happening when Satan is defeated and imprisoned, at the return of Jesus, and it is the final event in Satan's career. The only thing true in that last statement is that it is described in the book called the Revelation and it does speak of a battle in the sky.
The verses immediately before, and following, the description of this sky battle clearly contradict the accepted chronology of this event, in many ways. They show that this battle does not happen in the future, and that this battle was only the beginning of Satan's direct assault on the world, not the very end.

The Reason for the Battle
         The entire 12th chapter of the Revelation is dedicated to this one event and the results it wrought. It begins describing an obviously very important woman, wearing a crown with 12 stars: "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:" (Rev. 12:1)
         She is about to give birth: "And she being with child cried, travailing in birth, and pained to be delivered." (Rev. 12:2)
         With the woman there is a dragon with many heads, horns, and crowns: "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."" (Rev. 12:3)
         This dragon, later identified as Satan, in verse 9, is there to kill the child the woman is about to bring into the world: "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." (Rev. 12:4)

The Child is Identified
         The child Satan is trying to kill is described as destined to "rule all nations with a rod of iron": "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." (Rev. 12:5)
         Here, the truth is revealed; this child is Jesus and the woman is Mary. The description of the one who fits this role appears again in the Revelation 19: "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God." (Revelation 19:11-15)
         The time period of this event is at the birth of Jesus, and Satan is trying to kill him.

The Woman Escapes
         The woman is taken to safety: "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." (Rev. 12:6)
         Joseph is instructed to flee to Egypt with Mary and Jesus immediately after the child's birth, where they stay in safety for 3 1/2 years: "And when they were departed, behold, the angel of the Lord appeareth to Joseph in a dream, saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and flee into Egypt, and be thou there until I bring thee word: for Herod will seek the young child to destroy him. When he arose, he took the young child and his mother by night, and departed into Egypt" (Matthew 2:13-14)
         After the danger is past, Joseph is told to bring Mary and Jesus back: "But when Herod was dead, behold, an angel of the Lord appeareth in a dream to Joseph in Egypt, Saying, Arise, and take the young child and his mother, and go into the land of Israel: for they are dead which sought the young child's life." (Matthew 2:19-20)

Satan and His Forces Attacked
         As soon as Mary and the child are safe, Michael retaliates against Satan for his failed murder plot: "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels," (Rev. 12:7)
         Satan is defeated, and along with his angels, is exiled to the Earth and permanently grounded: “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." (Rev. 12:8-9)

The Birth of Jesus and Defeat of Satan is Announced
         "And I heard a loud voice saying in heaven, Now is come salvation, and strength, and the kingdom of our God, and the power of his Christ: for the accuser of our brethren is cast down, which accused them before our God day and night. And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death." (Rev. 12:10-11)

The Earth is Warned of Satan's Threatening Presence
         While God's forces are rejoicing his exile, the planet is warned that Satan is now on Earth, and dangerously angry with the human race and all other life on the planet: "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time." (Rev. 12:12)

Satan Hits the Ground Running
         As soon as he is banished to Earth, he goes after the woman and child on the ground, but she escapes, again: "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." (Rev. 12:13-16)
         The "time, and times, and half a time" is a year and two years, plus a half-year, 1260 days, or 3 1/2 years, as described in verse 6, above. This kept Jesus safe as Herod committed infanticide by slaughtering every child under 2 years old in the kingdom: "Then Herod, when he saw that he was mocked of the wise men, was exceeding wroth, and sent forth, and slew all the children that were in Bethlehem, and in all the coasts thereof, from two years old and under, according to the time which he had diligently enquired of the wise men." (Matthew 2:16)

Satan Then Begins the Persecution of the Followers of Jesus; the Church
         The final verse describes the persecution of the followers of Jesus, as history clearly records: "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." (Rev. 12:17)

The Battle, In Context
         As amazing it seems, there it is; a clear contradiction of this great "war in heaven" occurring at the return of Jesus. Satan was about to kill Jesus, God takes Mary to safety, and Michael blows Satan right out of the sky. And, equally clear, is the fact that Satan is not imprisoned, as will happen to him at the return of Jesus. Rather, it states that after he is defeated, he goes after Mary and the infant Jesus, and the world is warned of the danger he now poses to all living things. This is not a description of Satan operating out of prison, but a prediction and description of the havoc he has been wreaking on Earth since he was grounded, about 4 BC, or just over 2000 years ago.

But Wait! What About.......
         The twelfth chapter of Revelation could not be more concise about when this occurred, which shows that the accepted doctrine on this issue is, in fact, false. But, this would seem to fly in the face of some other, very well-known biblical "facts", such as, Isaiah specifically saying he saw Satan / Lucifer fall in his day, almost 8 centuries before the birth of Jesus. What about Ezekiel's declaration that he saw Satan fall about 6 centuries before Jesus' birth? And, there is the well-known fact that the Revelation is a book of future predictions and not historical realities.
         The same people, who will tell you the "war in heaven" is an end-times event and the three points just presented are true, will also tell you that the Bible does not contradict itself. Therefore, since we have proven that the "war in heaven" did not occur until just over 2000 years ago, either the last three concepts presented are as false as the concept of an end-times sky battle, or the Bible is contradicting itself.

A Chain of False Doctrine
         One of the basic pulpit-supported traditions is that Satan's fall took place, either in the gap between Genesis 1:1 and 1:2, in the gap between Genesis chapter 2 and Genesis chapter 3, or even before that. This, even though Satan still had access to God's throne after he tempted Eve, which is evidenced by his appearances before God with the other angels in Job 1:6-12 and 2:1-7.
         Another traditional belief is that Satan's fall was described in Isaiah 14:12-17, where he is called "Lucifer". A very basic study of the word "Lucifer" will show that it was never in the original Hebrew text of the Book of Isaiah. And, a simple reading of the entire 14th chapter of Isaiah will show that the passage clearly applies to the king of Babylon. Modern theological scholarship accepts that this is the king of Babylon that Isaiah is describing, and not Satan.
         The same reality also applies to the concept that Ezekiel 28:11-19 is describing the fall of Satan. Again, a simple reading of the entire text will show that Ezekiel is giving a prophecy against the king of Tyre, who is specifically identified in verses 2 and 12. Many will admit the prophecies of both Isaiah and Ezekiel are directed at kings, but try to claim that they are actually giving prophecies against the "power behind the throne", and not the kings themselves. This may be an argument of convenience, but is not a valid concept which is accepted in theological erudition.
         And, to add weight to the concept that Satan's fall did not occur until after the birth of Jesus, we have direct testimony from the victim of Satan's failed murder plot. "And he said unto them, I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven." (Luke 10:18).
         The Revelation to John is often believed to be exclusively concerned with end-times prophecy, but according to the original instructions given to John, it was about things already known, as well as, things to come: "Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter;" (Revelation 1:19)
         This is also evidenced by the fact that both the second and third chapters of the Revelation are written to, and about, churches that existed in John's own time.

The Last Deception
         The concept of a great battle in the sky as the finale to the return of Jesus is of critical importance to the vast majority of end-times prophecy theorists. Everyone, from the authors of the "Left Behind" series to the satanic UFO internet crowd, accepts most, if not all, of the following events about the return of Jesus and the future evil reign of the "Antichrist" as the "gospel" truth.
♦ The "Antichrist", AKA, the Beast, who is the central figure of the end times, will establish a world government, bring peace to the world, he will stand in a rebuilt temple at Jerusalem and either declare himself as the Messiah, or be declared the Messiah, by a new world church, which he has established.
♦ This "Antichrist" will force all people to be marked with a symbol, generally believed to be the number 666 or something representing that number, as an identifying sign of loyalty to the "Antichrist".
♦ The "Antichrist" will be charismatic and popular, and even convince the Jews to accept Jesus as the Messiah before he returns.
♦ Many, who believe this concept, will be "raptured" just before this all occurs, and all the "non-believers" will be "left behind" to suffer the devastation described in the Revelation.
♦ These events will lead to a great battle in the sky against Satan, just before he is imprisoned in chains, and the world is destroyed by fire.
         Neither the word "Antichrist" or any description of such an individual, a world government and religion, a rebuilt temple, a symbol of loyalty to the "Antichrist", the conversion of the Jews, a rapture of the modern church, a great battle against Satan at the return of Jesus, nor the destruction of the world is found anywhere in the Revelation to John.
Many end-times theorists use the "dual prophecy" theory; a method of taking Old Testament prophecies, which have already been fulfilled and are used out of context, and claim they have a dual meaning for end-times prophecies. Of course, not all previously fulfilled Old Testament prophecies have a dual meaning for the mainstream end-times theories; only those for which they can find no backing in the New Testament and, particularly, the Revelation.
         We have no way of knowing where the standard script for the mainstream scenario of the end times began. That being the one with all the accepted elements; the popular antichrist, ruling a temporarily peaceful world government and religion, a rebuilt temple, a mark of loyalty, a rapture of church believers, and an end-times sky war with Satan. We can trace it back as far as the early "fathers" of the Universal / Catholic Church, between 300 and 400 years after the ministry of Jesus.
         It has endured as the traditional belief, ever since having been reinforced in billions of minds through constant pulpit conditioning. But, no matter where it is found, or what form it is presented, no scriptural backing for those elements is ever presented, except, as was previously stated, the use of out-of-context, Old Testament scripture, with the claim that such scriptures have "dual" or, in some cases, "triple" meaning relevant to the last days.

In Conclusion
         As with every other issue that disagrees with mainstream concepts that the satanic UFO proponents so strongly depend upon, this one will also be ignored, or the accusation of being spiritually blind to biblical truth will be charged. But, no matter what tactic is used to rebut the facts presented in this article, one truth is self-evident. Every point made has been presented directly from scripture. To deny these solidly-backed realities is to deny the validity of scripture.
          We know that Satan once had his own craft to travel the cosmos, but we also know that he was grounded and the power of God is strong enough to keep him bound to Earth. Claiming otherwise is nothing short of denying, not only scriptural reality, but questioning the very power of God to restrain Satan.
         At least, when the reader encounters the concept that Satan is engaged in a sky battle against the forces of the returning Christ, this research will give them reason to pause and question its validity. Scripture is certain to trump theory and conjecture.