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Verse Takeaways
1
God's Unlikely Helpers
Commentators widely agree that the "earth" helping the woman symbolizes God using worldly or non-spiritual means to protect His church. Scholars like Spurgeon and Gill point to political powers acting in their own self-interest, which providentially shields believers from their enemies. This reveals God's sovereign ability to use any instrument for His purposes, even those not aligned with Him.
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Revelation
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Commentaries
7
Albert Barnes
On Revelation 12:16
18th Century
Theologian
And the earth helped the woman. The earth seemed to sympathize with the woman in her persecutions and to interpose to save her. The meanin…
AT Robertson
On Revelation 12:16
Helped the woman (εβοηθησεν τη γυναικ). First aorist active indicative of βοηθεω, old verb with the dative as in Heb 2:18, which s…
Charles Ellicott
On Revelation 12:16
19th Century
Bishop
And the earth . . .—The translation is: And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and drank up the river…
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Charles Spurgeon
On Revelation 12:16
19th Century
Preacher
It is poor help that the earth can give, and yet God has overruled to make it useful. The kings and the powers of this world have for their own rea…
Expositor's Bible Commentary
On Revelation 12:16
The serpent spews a floodlike river of water out of his mouth to engulf and drown the woman. The water imagery symbolizes destruction by an enemy (…
John Gill
On Revelation 12:16
17th Century
Pastor
And the earth helped the woman
By opening itself, and taking in what the serpent cast out, so that it could not reac…
Matthew Henry
On Revelation 12:12–17
17th Century
Minister
The church and all her friends could rightly be called to praise God for deliverance from pagan persecution, even though other troubles awaited her…