13-14 And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. 15-16 The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with a flood. But the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river that the dragon had poured from his mouth. 

17 Then the dragon became furious with the woman and went off to make war on the rest of her offspring, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. And he stood on the sand of the sea.

13 vs 1 And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with ten horns and seven heads, with ten diadems on its horns and blasphemous names on its heads. (Revelation 12:13-13:1 English Standard Version.)

Our last reading in Revelation showed that Satan has already been defeated and is no longer able to enter God's presence in heaven to accuse us of our sins (as he did with the Old Testament saint named Job). God's people have been delivered from Satan's accusations because Jesus Christ paid the price their sins deserved. So Satan turned his attention to hurting God's people living on earth. (vs 13-14) He didn't only attack the Jewish nation (as those verses suggest) but also those who had become Christians. (vs 17).

The meaning of vs 13-17 has been explained in different ways by Christians, but the common thread is that while Satan tries to destroy God's followers, God rescues them from the devil's onslaughts even through unexpected means. One can think perhaps of people like Corrie Ten Boom, and many others, who hid Jewish people from the Nazi persecution in World War 2. One could also think of how Christians fled from England and France to escape persecution and found refuge in far away countries such as America and South Africa.

Does vs 17 explain why Christians often faced fierce opposition in the past, and why this opposition seems to be growing more hostile and widespread even in Western countries today?

Could it be that God's commandments fly in the face of the lusts and lifestyles of sinful men and women? God said the He is to be first in our affections, and things like stealing, and lying and adultery are wrong. God instituted the relationship we call marriage to be between a man and a woman – but the world is increasingly embracing homosexuality and other perversions. God said we must not murder, but many people use violence as a means of getting their way, and multitudes abort live children in the womb. God said we must not covet the possessions of others – but life in our generation seems to be all about materialism. So one can see why so many people want to get rid of Christianity.

The other reason for Satan and the world's hatred is the man called Jesus Christ. His life and teachings challenged even the religious people of his generation, and his teachings still challenge the pride and arrogance of people today. His truth convicts the conscience and his blameless life confronts our sinful ways. So the world hates those who hold to the testimony of Jesus.

How has it been with our life? Have we experienced any hostility since we became a Christian? We don't look for that, and we hope we will never have to face the ultimate test of choosing between confessing Christ or being tortured and executed. But we should expect that if our testimony is clear and strong, we will meet opposition along the way. But if that happens let’s take Isaiah 40:31 to heart: “Those who trust in the Lord will find new strength. They will soar high on wings like eagles. They will run and not grow weary. They will walk and not faint.”