The Abomination of Desolation - St. Marys Coptic Orthodox Church

SIGNS OF HIS COMING II 43
head a crown of twelve stars,” refer to the twelve apostles by whom the
Church was founded. And those, “she, being with child, cries, travailing
in birth, and pained to be delivered,” mean that the Church will not
cease to bear from her heart the Word that is persecuted by the
unbelieving in the world. “And she brought forth,” he says, “a
man-child, who is to rule all the nations;” by which is meant that the
Church, always bringing forth Christ, the perfect man-child of God, who
is declared to be God and man, becomes the instructor of all the
nations. And the words, “her child was caught up unto God and to His
throne,” signify that he who is always born of her is a heavenly king, and
not an earthly; even as David also declared of old when he said, “The
Lord said unto my Lord, Sit Thou at my right hand, until I make Thine
enemies Thy footstool.” 1
The “red dragon” is defined for us in verse 9 as “that old serpent, called
the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world.” In verse 4, we
are told that the dragon’s tail “drew the third part of the stars of
heaven, and did cast them to the earth.” This is understood as referring
to the fact that, “of the angels that were subject to him, since he was
still a prince when he descended from his estate, he seduced the third
part.” 2
In verse 7, we are told about a battle that takes place in heaven,
where Michael and his angels fight against Satan (the dragon) and his
angels. Michael wins, and as a result, Satan and his angels are driven
out of heaven and into the earth. Satan can no more stand before God
to accuse His children, as he did with Job (Job 1:9-11) and Joshua the
high priest, (Zech 3:1-3) and as he still does to all of us. Satan means
the “accuser.” He is the prosecutor of God’s children. That is why the
inhabitants of heaven rejoice, “for the accuser of our brethren is cast
down, which accused them before our God day and night.” But, in the
same time, they pity the inhabitants of the earth, “for the devil is come
down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath
but a short time.”
The coming down of Satan into earth after being banished from
heaven marks the beginning of the reign of Antichrist, which is also
1 Discourse on Christ and Antichrist
2 Discourse on Christ and Antichrist