The Woman Clothed With the Sun

 

I encourage the reader to open their Bibles and read from Revelation 12. For in this chapter, a woman clothed with the sun, a baby child, and a dragon are described. 

It is a forced interpretation, however, to say that the woman clothed with the Sun in Revelation 12 is either the church or ethnic Israel alone. This is especially the case for the church, as the church did not give birth to Christ, whereas Israel preceded the birth of Christ. 

When read literally, Revelation 12 refers to the Virgin Mary as she gave birth to Jesus, our Lord just as the woman in this chapter gives birth to the Savior-child. 

And because I believe the woman clothed with the sun in Revelation 12 is the Virgin Mary, naturally, it follows that I believe Mary bodily ascended to Heaven like Elijah as this is what happens with the woman clothed with the Sun in the chapter. 

Scripture never records Mary having died. The case of Revelation 12, though, is strong for Christians believing that God ascended her into Heaven. 

Ironically, many of the premillennialists who take Revelation 20 literally while claiming that the book should be read all literally, do not take Revelation 12 literally as referring to the Virgin Mary. 

Even if one were to argue that Revelation 12 is referring to Israel, the church, and Mary all at once (as many theologians believe), the chapter reads most literally concerning her person alone. 

It has been suggested, however, that the woman clothed with the sun is Eve, the Virgin Mary, Israel, and the church:

1, Eve because her seed is at war with the dragon. Some see this as referring back to Genesis 3: 15 and Genesis 20: 2. 

2. Mary, because Mary was the Mother of Christ and this is the literal interpretation of the chapter. 

3. Israel because she is associated with the sun, the moon, and the stars, which bow to Joseph in Genesis 37: 9-11. Secondly, the woman is adorned with twelve stars, which seems to speak of the twelve tribes of Israel. 

4. The woman has also traditionally been regarded as the church because in 12: 7, the dragon makes war on her children. 

That said, by agreeing with all four points of the passage above, it still does not take away from the chapter's relationship to the Virgin Mary. The woman clothed with the sun wears a crown, ascends to heaven, etc. It seems logical to say that Revelation 12 is speaking about several topics at once. 

Furthermore, in the Old Testament, a king's mother remained queen until her death. Mary never died in Scripture, however, and yet Jesus is King of the Jews as well as the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords, meaning that His mother is also the queen of creation. 

Finally, Revelation 12: 1 says that the woman clothed with the sun is wearing a crown on her head. This is the Biblical reference for those who refer to Mary as the ''Queen of Heaven.''