Revelation 12:13
ESV
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.
NIV
When the dragon saw that he had been hurled to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.
NASB
And when the dragon saw that he was thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child.
CSB
When the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he persecuted the woman who had given birth to the male child.
NLT
When the dragon realized that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child.
KJV
And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
NKJV
Now when the dragon saw that he had been cast to the earth, he persecuted the woman who gave birth to the male Child.
What does Revelation 12:13 mean?
Angered by his expulsion from heaven, the Devil pours out his wrath on the woman who gave birth to the male child. In other words, he relentlessly persecutes Israel. He hates Israel because Israel was instrumental in bringing Jesus, the Messiah, into the world. Micah prophesied that the "ruler in Israel" would be born in Bethlehem Ephrathah in Judah (Micah 5:2), and Luke 2:1–7 reports His birth in that designated village. Matthew 2:2 refers to Him as king of the Jews.The enmity between the Devil and Jesus began in the garden of Eden. When our first parents succumbed to the Devil's temptation to disobey God, God told him, "I will put enmity between you and the woman, and between your offspring and her offspring; he [Jesus the Messiah] shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel" (Genesis 3:15). Multiple assaults on the Jewish people throughout history attest to the fact that the Devil hates Israel. He also hates Jesus, the Messiah who came out of Israel, and whom he tried to destroy.
This verse also references the male child described earlier. Later verses will describe the other offspring of the woman, making them the fifth of seven important characters described in this part of Revelation.
