"And when the dragon saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he pursued the woman who had given birth to the male child. But the woman was given the two wings of the great eagle so that she might fly from the serpent into the wilderness, to the place where she is to be nourished for a time, and times, and half a time."
(Revelation 12:13-14)
In verse 13, John returns to describing the battle which rages on the earth between Satan and the woman, this time as the battle takes shape after Satan is cast down from heaven.
The apocalyptic symbols John uses draw upon Old Testament images of the Exodus. In Exodus 19:4, the Lord says to Israel, “You yourselves have seen what I did to Egypt, and how I carried you on eagles’ wings and brought you to myself.” As YHWH had done for Israel, so now he does for the woman, preserving her in the wilderness for the now familiar period of three and a half years, this time spoken of as “a time, a times and half a time.”
(Kim Riddlebarger)
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