12, 13. The Church is called upon to rejoice over the defeat of the dragon and the glorious martyrdom of her children; but woe to the earth and the sea, all man kind. Realizing that the time of his power is short, Satan will now loose upon earth all his rage and fury in a last effort against the Church. His attempt to destroy her from within having failed, he will now seek to crush her by hatred and persecution from without.
14. In this new danger the Church shall receive the wings of an eagle to defend her and carry her to the place of refuge which God has prepared. [1] The wings are probably two armies sent in defense of the Church by some nation that remains faithful. This interpretation seems justified by verse 16.
In a spiritual sense the two wings are faith and prayer. In the faith and prayer of her children, and especially in the contemplative life of religious orders the Church shall find a refuge of consolation which Satan cannot violate. The desolation of those three and one-half years may be compared to that of the three days following our Lord's death on the Cross. The faith and prayers of Mary, of the holy women, and of the Apostles afforded the only consolation in those days of anguish.
This chapter indicates that the Church shall find refuge for three and one-half years on two different occasions; the one during the internal warfare against the Church and the other after the dragon has been cast
- ↑ See above, v. 6.
