God's Kingdom Is Born!

The sacred secret of God has been unlocked. (Revelation 10:7) Jehovah's Kingdom by his Messiah is now a dynamic reality. It rules! Its presence spells doom for Satan and his seed and glorious victory for the Seed of God's heavenly organization. The seventh angel has not finished blowing on his trumpet, however, for he has much more to reveal to us about the third woe. (Revelation 11:14) The signs described in Revelation chapters 12to14 will help us to broaden our appreciation of all that is involved in that woe and in bringing God's sacred secret to a finish.

John now sees a great sign-one of outstanding interest for God's people. It introduces a thrilling prophetic vision, the meaning of which was first published in the March 1, 1925, issue of The Watchtower in an article entitled "Birth of the Nation" and then again in 1926 in the book Deliverance. This brilliant flash of the Bible understanding became a historic marker in the advancement of Jehovah's work. So let John describe the drama as it starts to unfold: "And a great sign was seen in heaven, a woman arrayed with the sun, and the moon was beneath here feet, and on her head was a crown of twelve stars, and she was pregnant. And she cries out in her pains and in her agony to give birth." -Revelation 12:1, 2.

For the first time, John beholds a woman in heaven. She is, of course, not a literal woman. Rather, she is a sign, or a symbol. (Revelation 1;1) What does she symbolize? In the inspired prophecies, women at times represent organizations "married" to outstanding personalities. In the Hebrew Scriptures, Israel was spoken of as a wife of Jehovah God. (Jeremiah 3:14) In the Greek Scriptures, the congregation of anointed Christians is spoken of as Christ's bride. (Revelation 21:9-14) The woman John here sees is also married to someone, and she is about to give birth. Who is her husband? Well, later her child is "caught away to God and to his throne." (Revelation 12:5) Jehovah thus claims the child as his own. Therefore, the woman that John sees must be Jehovah's symbolic wife.

Next time: Continue with God's Kingdom Is Born!