Thursday, February 21
Revelation 12:17 marks a shift in Satan’s strategy as he tries to win the people of the world and even seeks to deceive Christ’s faithful followers. Throughout Christian history, Satan has opposed God’s work of salvation, primarily by means of subtle compromise within the church and through coercion and persecution from without. History shows that, while successful for many centuries, this strategy was counteracted by the Reformation and the gradual rediscovery of Bible truth by God’s people. However, as Satan realizes that his time is running out, he intensifies his efforts and goes “to wage war” against God’s end-time remnant (Revelation 12:17, MEV). His attacks on the remnant will include a large element of deception. Demons working miracles and spiritualistic manifestations will be introduced (Revelation 16:14). This shift in Satan’s strategy corresponds to the transition from a historical to an end-time focus (Matthew 24:24).
It is significant that the word “deceive” is used regularly in Revelation 12-20 to describe Satan’s end-time activities. The word “deceive” begins (Revelation 12:9) and concludes (Revelation 20:7-10) the description of Satan’s end-time activities in Revelation.
Read 2 Thessalonians 2:8-12 along with Revelation 13:13-14 and Revelation 19:20. What is the nature of Satan’s end-time deception?
Revelation 12-20 portrays Satan, endeavoring to deceive the world (see Revelation 12:9, Revelation 13:14, Revelation 18:23, Revelation 19:20, Revelation 20:8). He uses, in turn, political and religious powers to do his work: pagan Rome, symbolized by the dragon (Revelation 12:4-5); followed by a power symbolized by the sea beast (Revelation 12:6-15; Revelation 13:1-8); and finally, a power symbolized by the earth beast (Revelation 13:11). Throughout the rest of the book, the members of this satanic triad - paganism/spiritualism as symbolized by the dragon; Roman Catholicism, symbolized by the sea beast; and apostate Protestantism, symbolized by the lamblike, or earth beast - are inseparably united in opposing God’s activities in the world. They work together to deceive people, in order to turn them away from God and to get them to side with Satan in the “battle of that great day of God Almighty” (Revelation 16:13-14, NKJV). These false religious systems will be destroyed at the Second Coming (Revelation 19:20), while the dragon, symbolizing the devil, who worked through these earthly powers (Revelation 12:9), will be destroyed at the end of the thousand years (Revelation 20:10). Revelation shows that the end-time deception will be so great that most people will be led to choose the way of destruction (Matthew 7:13).
Twice in Revelation a call is made for wisdom and spiritual discernment in order to perceive and withstand the deceptive nature of Satan’s end-time activities (Revelation 13:18, Revelation 17:9). What kind of wisdom is in view here? According to James 1:5, how can we obtain that wisdom?
