Znaczenie pustyni w 12 rozdziale Apokalipsy

Abstract

The article attem pts to take a new look at the significance of the desert in the vision of Rv. 12. The contents of the verses 6 and 14 and the analysis of the elements of the vision that are related to the woman’s escape into the desert point unequivocally to a connection between the events of Rv. 12 and those of Israel’s journey through the desert in the Old Testament. The events of Exodus are brought to mind by the vision of ,,a huge pair of eagle’s wings” that, carried the woman into the desert. The account of manna sent down by God to His pilgrim people is contained in the image of the woman being fed. Ju st as the Lord had prepared a place for the chosen people in the desert, so is the desert a place of safety made ready by Him for the woman. The serpent of the Apocalypse, from whom the woman escapes into the desert, is analogous to the serpents appearing in the desert of Exodus, whose bites were lethal. Just as formerly the bronze image of a serpent afforded protection against serpent bites, now the desert itself, a place chosen by God, provides protection against the serpent’s assault. Also the symbol of the water th at was to sweep away the woman points to a connection with Exodus; it is an antithetic parallel to the waters of the Red Sea overwhelming the Pharaoh’s army. This reminder of the events of the chosen people’s journey through the desert was meant as an illustration of the history of Christ’s Church, for the woman is symbolic of both the old people of God and the faithful of the Church. The faithful of Christ’s Church, like the chosen people, are not free from persecutions and ordeals sent down by the Lord, but at the same time they enjoy His continuous protection. The chosen people’s life in the desert, to which the author of the Apocalypse alludes, would thus be a type of the life of the Church, whose fates are wat ched over by the Lord and which, in its struggle with Satan, enjoys the Lord’s special protection.