Revelation 12
“War in Heaven”
Where did you come from before you were born on earth? How could knowing this affect your life? While describing his vision of “things which must be hereafter” (Revelation 4:1) regarding the last days and the Second Coming of Jesus Christ, John also shared details of our premortal existence, including a “war in heaven” (Revelation 12:7) and Satan’s opposition to followers of Jesus Christ in mortality. This lesson is intended to help increase your commitment to follow Jesus Christ by helping you understand your premortal choice to follow the Savior and reject Satan.
Giving students time to ponder. Provide opportunities for students to ponder what they know and believe and how they feel about what they are learning. Doing this can increase their likelihood of being taught by the Spirit. It can help them recognize their current spiritual progression and what they may need to do to change and grow.
Student preparation: A few days before this lesson, invite students to pay attention to ways they see Satan fighting against Jesus Christ and His followers. Encourage them to prepare to share specific examples of what they noticed.
Possible Learning Activities
What difference would it make?
In a worldwide devotional for youth, Sister Wendy W. Nelson, wife of President Russell M. Nelson, shared the following statement. Try to imagine what she is inviting you to visualize and feel. You may want to watch “Hope of Israel” (1:01:34), available at ChurchofJesusChrist.org, from time code 20:52–21:37, or read the following statement.
Consider sharing the following paragraphs one at a time and allowing students to discuss Sister Nelson’s statement. They can ponder what our premortal life might have looked like and what it might feel like to have the experience Sister Nelson talks about.
How I wish you could watch a 10-minute video of your premortal life on YouTube.
The Prophet Joseph Smith taught that if you could gaze into heaven for five minutes, you would know more on a topic than if you studied it all of your life. So just imagine if you could gaze for 10 minutes at your premortal life!
Of course we realize that the Lord has wisely drawn a veil over those memories. But, just for a moment, imagine the effect on your life right now if you were permitted to watch 10 minutes of your premortal life.
(Wendy W. Nelson, “Hope of Israel” [worldwide youth devotional, June 3, 2018], supplement to the New Era and Ensign, 4–5, ChurchofJesusChrist.org)
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If you could see yourself in the premortal existence, what specific things would you hope to see, learn, feel, or understand from having that experience?
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What difference do you think this would make in your life?
In Revelation 12, John wrote about the premortal War in Heaven. As you study, look for details about your premortal relationship with Jesus Christ. Think about how understanding this relationship could affect your ability to follow Him and overcome Satan in your life now.
The premortal War in Heaven
The following content is intended to help students understand the symbols and imagery from John’s vision so that they can understand the War in Heaven later on in the lesson. Manage the time students spend on these verses to allow sufficient time for the activities later in the lesson.
To help you prepare to study John’s teachings about the War in Heaven, it may be helpful for you to study Revelation 12:1–5 and then look at the image below depicting some of the symbols in these verses. Use the following chart to help you understand what these symbols represent.
Consider displaying the following information for students.
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Symbol |
What is represented |
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Symbol A woman (Revelation 12:1) | What is represented “The church of God” (see Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 12:7 [in the Bible appendix]) |
Symbol The woman’s child (Revelation 12:2) | What is represented “The kingdom of our God and his Christ” (see Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 12:7 [in the Bible appendix]) |
Symbol A dragon (Revelation 12:3) | What is represented Satan (see Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 12:8 [in the Bible appendix]) |
To learn about the War in Heaven, make a chart like the following in your study journal. Read the Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 12:7–11 (in the Bible appendix). Note that “Michael and his angels” (Revelation 12:7) are Adam and other righteous spirit children of God.
Consider creating the following chart on the board for students to draw in their study journal. In addition to completing the chart in their study journal, students could write responses that are not too personal on small sheets of paper and post them on the board next to the appropriate prompt.
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The War in Heaven Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 12:7–11 (in the Bible appendix) | |
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I learned that Satan … | |
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I learned that Jesus Christ … | |
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I learned that I … | |
Reflect on what you have read and what you have written in your chart.
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What stands out to you? What questions do you have?
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What does verse 11 help you understand about what you were like in the premortal existence? What role did the Savior have in helping you overcome Satan?
In teaching about the premortal life and our actions there, President Dallin H. Oaks of the First Presidency emphasized the following:
In the Council in Heaven, all the spirit children of God were introduced to the Father’s plan, including its mortal consequences and trials, its heavenly helps, and its glorious destiny. We saw the end from the beginning. All of the myriads of mortals who have been born on this earth chose the Father’s plan and fought for it in the heavenly contest that followed.
(Dallin H. Oaks, “The Great Plan,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2020, 93)
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What are you learning that could build your faith in Jesus Christ and help you follow Him?
One truth you may be learning from your study is that you overcame Satan in the premortal life through Jesus Christ’s Atonement and by remaining true to your testimony.
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How could understanding this truth influence the way you see yourself and others?
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What does this truth help you understand about the power of the Savior and His Atonement?
Recall that after Satan’s rebellion, he and his followers were “cast out into the earth” (Revelation 12:9). Read Revelation 12:12, 17, looking for whom Satan went to war against after he was cast out of heaven. Consider adding your insights to the chart you created.
Before asking the next question, remind students of the invitation from the student preparation activity.
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How do you see the war Satan started against the followers of Christ continuing today?
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How can knowing the truths you learned about the premortal War in Heaven help you in this war against Satan today?
Review what you have listed in your study journal, and consider silently pondering and praying about your personal belief in your premortal existence and the realities of the war between Satan and those who follow Jesus Christ. Consider how what you have learned today can help you to better understand your premortal trust in and reliance upon Jesus Christ. How can you more fully trust and rely on Him here in mortality? Record your thoughts and impressions in your study journal.
Commentary and Background Information
How did I overcome Satan in the premortal War in Heaven?
President Henry B. Eyring of the First Presidency shared the following:
Think back to what we know of the spirit world before we were born. Our Heavenly Father presented a plan for His children. We were there. … Lucifer, our spirit brother, opposed the plan that would allow us freedom to choose. Jehovah, the Beloved Son of Heavenly Father, sustained the plan. Lucifer led a rebellion. Jehovah’s sustaining voice prevailed, and He volunteered to be our Savior.
The fact that you are in mortality now assures us that you sustained the Father and the Savior. It took faith in Jesus Christ to sustain the plan of happiness and Jesus Christ’s place in it when you knew so little of the challenges that you would face in mortality.
(Henry B. Eyring, “The Power of Sustaining Faith,” Ensign or Liahona, May 2019, 58)
Brother Ahmad S. Corbitt, First Counselor in the Young Men General Presidency, shared the following:
When Jesus Christ promised [in the premortal world that] He would come into mortality and give His life to gather and save us, you did not simply believe Him. You “noble spirits” had such “exceedingly great faith” that you saw His promise as sure [Russell M. Nelson and Wendy W. Nelson, “Hope of Israel,” 8; Alma 13:3]. He could not lie, so you saw Him as if He had already shed His blood for you, long before He was born. …
… Before you noble spirits were born, you learned to see Christ’s promises in this sure way, and you tasted of His salvation. Your great faith is like muscles that get stronger and bigger the more you exercise them, but they are already inside you.
(Ahmad S. Corbitt, “You Can Gather Israel!,” Liahona, May 2021, 62)
Where can I learn more about our premortal life?
Consider studying some of the following resources:
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Gospel Topics, “War in Heaven,” topics.ChurchofJesusChrist.org
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Guide to the Scriptures, “ War in Heaven,” scriptures.ChurchofJesusChrist.org
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Kevin W. Pearson, “What You Knew in Premortal Life,” New Era, Sept. 2015, 36–38
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“Where Did We Come From?” (video, 3:23), ChurchofJesusChrist.org
What kind of a war was the War in Heaven?
Elder Bruce R. McConkie (1915–1985) of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles described the conflict that occurred in heaven.
What kind of war? The same kind that prevails on earth; the only kind Satan and spirit beings can wage—a war of words, a tumult of opinions, a conflict of ideologies; a war between truth and error, between light and darkness. … And the battle lines are still drawn. It is now on earth as it was then in heaven; every man must choose which general he will follow.
(Bruce R. McConkie, Doctrinal New Testament Commentary [1973], 3:518)
Supplemental Learning Activities
Alternative ways to begin the lesson
As an alternative to what is suggested at the beginning of the lesson, students may benefit by discussing their experiences of living in a time when wars rage throughout the world. They could discuss some of the most impactful or current wars and the effects of those wars before discussing spiritual battles, or wars, and their effects. Additionally, students could be asked to briefly review, sketch, or share what they know about the plan of salvation and then to think about the premortal life. They can discuss what they know, believe, or would like to know about this part of the plan.
The woman in the wilderness
Remind the students that the “woman” mentioned in Revelation 12 represents “the church of God” (Joseph Smith Translation, Revelation 12:7 [in the Bible appendix]). After reading about the War in Heaven in Revelation 12:7–11, it may be beneficial to read Revelation 12:8–17, looking for what Satan wants to do to the Savior’s Church. To help the students understand John’s symbolic teachings in these verses, consider asking questions like the following: “What do you think the woman flying into the wilderness after being persecuted by the dragon could represent?” (See Revelation 12:13–14; see also Doctrine and Covenants 86:1–3.)