New International Version
Revelation 12:9
9The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him.
Revelation 12:9 in other versions
- King James Version (KJV)And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
- English Standard Version (ESV)And the great dragon was thrown down, that ancient serpent, who is called the devil and Satan, the deceiver of the whole world—he was thrown down to the earth, and his angels were thrown down with him.
- New King James Version (NKJV)So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
- New Living Translation (NLT)This great dragon—the ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, the one deceiving the whole world—was thrown down to the earth with all his angels.
Context of Revelation 12:9
7Then war broke out in heaven. Michael and his angels fought against the dragon, and the dragon and his angels fought back. 8But he was not strong enough, and they lost their place in heaven. The great dragon was hurled down—that ancient serpent called the devil, or Satan, who leads the whole world astray. He was hurled to the earth, and his angels with him. 10Then I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Messiah. For the accuser of our brothers and sisters, who accuses them before our God day and night, has been hurled down. 11They triumphed over him by the blood of the Lamb and by the word of their testimony; they did not love their lives so much as to shrink from death.
Read all of Revelation 12Revelation 12:9 word by word
καὶ ἐβλήθη ὁ δράκων ὁ μέγας, ὁ ὄφις ὁ ἀρχαῖος, ὁ καλούμενος διάβολος καὶ ὁ Σατανᾶς ὁ πλανῶν τὴν οἰκουμένην ὅλην, ἐβλήθη εἰς τὴν γῆν, καὶ οἱ ἄγγελοι αὐτοῦ μετ᾽ αὐτοῦ ἐβλήθησαν.Read the interlinear
Words taken from the KJV.
- Andκαίkai · andG2532
- the greatὁho hē to · the/this/whoG3588
- the greatμέγαςmegas · greatG3173
- dragonδράκωνdrakōn · dragonG1404
- was cast outβάλλωballō · to throw: throwG906
- that oldἀρχαῖοςarchaios · ancientG744
- serpentὄφιςophis · snakeG3789
- calledκαλέωkaleō · to call: callG2564
- the Devilδιάβολοςdiabolos · devilish/the DevilG1228
- SatanΣατανᾶςSatanas · SatanG4567
- which deceivethπλανάωplanaō · to lead astrayG4105
- the wholeὅλοςholos · allG3650
- worldοἰκουμένηoikoumenē · worldG3625
- intoεἰςeis · towardG1519
- the earthγῆgē · earth: planetG1093
- hisαὐτόςautos · it/s/heG846
- angelsἄγγελοςaggelos · angelG32
- withμετάmeta · with/afterG3326
Cross-references for Revelation 12:9
- Revelation 12:3Then another sign appeared in heaven: an enormous red dragon with seven heads and ten horns and seven crowns on its heads.
- Luke 10:18He replied, “I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven.
- John 12:31Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.
- Revelation 12:14The woman was given the two wings of a great eagle, so that she might fly to the place prepared for her in the wilderness, where she would be taken care of for a time, times and half a time, out of the serpent’s reach.
- Revelation 20:2He seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil, or Satan, and bound him for a thousand years.
- Genesis 3:1Now the serpent was more crafty than any of the wild animals the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God really say, ‘You must not eat from any tree in the garden’?”
- Isaiah 27:1In that day, the Lord will punish with his sword— his fierce, great and powerful sword— Leviathan the gliding serpent, Leviathan the coiling serpent; he will slay the monster of the sea.
- Isaiah 65:25The wolf and the lamb will feed together, and the lion will eat straw like the ox, and dust will be the serpent’s food. They will neither harm nor destroy on all my holy mountain,” says the Lord.
- Revelation 9:20The rest of mankind who were not killed by these plagues still did not repent of the work of their hands; they did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood—idols that cannot see or hear or walk.
- Revelation 16:14They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.
- Revelation 18:2With a mighty voice he shouted: “ ‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a haunt for every impure spirit, a haunt for every unclean bird, a haunt for every unclean and detestable animal.
- Matthew 4:1Then Jesus was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.
- Matthew 13:39and the enemy who sows them is the devil. The harvest is the end of the age, and the harvesters are angels.
- Luke 8:12Those along the path are the ones who hear, and then the devil comes and takes away the word from their hearts, so that they may not believe and be saved.
- John 8:44You belong to your father, the devil, and you want to carry out your father’s desires. He was a murderer from the beginning, not holding to the truth, for there is no truth in him. When he lies, he speaks his native language, for he is a liar and the father of lies.
- 1 Timothy 3:6He must not be a recent convert, or he may become conceited and fall under the same judgment as the devil.
Commentaries on Revelation 12:9
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary · v. 9Revelation 12:9; per Adam Clarke That old serpent - The rabbins speak much of this being, sometimes under the notion of הרע יצר yetser hara, the evil principle, and sometimes Samael. He was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him - This is very like a saying in the book Bahir, in Sohar Gen., fol. 27, col. 107: "And God cast out Samael and his troops from the place of their holiness." Revelation 12:9; per John Edward Clarke And the…Read the comment
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible · v. 9And the great dragon was cast out - See the notes on Revelation 12:3. That there may be an allusion in the language here to what actually occurred in some far distant period of the past, when Satan was ejected from heaven, there can be no reason to doubt. Our Saviour seems to refer to such an event in the language which he uses when he says Luke 10:18, “I beheld Satan as lightning fall from heaven”; and Jude, perhaps Revelation 12:6, may refer to the same…Read the comment
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary · v. 7-11Verses 7-11 The attempts of the dragon proved unsuccessful against the church, and fatal to his own interests. The seat of this war was in heaven; in the church of Christ, the kingdom of heaven on earth. The parties were Christ, the great Angel of the covenant, and his faithful followers; and Satan and his instruments. The strength of the church is in having the Lord Jesus for the Captain of their salvation. Pagan idolatry, which was the worship of…Read the comment
- Tyndale Open Study Notes · v. 7-9This scene reveals the dragon’s identity and power. God sends Michael, the warrior archangel (see Daniel 12:1; Jude 1:9), to face the dragon and his angels. God does not need to fight the battle himself (see Matthew 26:53), and Satan is defeated.Read the comment
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary · v. 99. that old serpent--alluding to Ge 3:1, 4. Devil--the Greek, for "accuser," or "slanderer." Satan--the Hebrew for "adversary," especially in a court of justice. The twofold designation, Greek and Hebrew, marks the twofold objects of his accusations and temptations, the elect Gentiles and the elect Jews. world--Greek, "habitable world."Read the comment
Topics related to Revelation 12:9
In the dictionaries
Commentaries on Revelation 12
- Adam Clarke Bible Commentary
- Barnes’ Notes on the Bible
- Matthew Henry Concise Commentary
- Tyndale Open Study Notes
- Jamieson–Fausset–Brown Commentary
- John Wesley’s Notes
- Illustrated New Testament
- Burkitt’s Expository Notes
- Darby Translation Notes
- Family Bible Notes
- Geneva Bible Translation Notes
- Kingcomments
- Matthew Henry’s Complete Commentary
- Matthew Henry’s Modern English Commentary
- The People’s New Testament
- Robertson’s Word Pictures
- Scofield Reference Notes, 1917 Edition
- Seventh-day Adventist Bible Commentary
- EGW Writings
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