The Rahab Dragon
Egypt, the Sea Monster Leviathan
and
The Final Battle
Rahab, is a poetic name for Egypt as a dragon or sea monster. It is a byname, emblematic for Pharaoh of Egypt, and not to be confused with the Rahab from Jericho.
Hebrew, רַהַב
“Rahab” meant “storm”, and was a sea monster (Strongs 7293).
As a verb, Rahab means to storm, to confuse, or to act arrogantly. (Strongs 7292).
Rahab represents Pharaoh, or perhaps even King Herod. As a sea monster or dragon, Rahab is associated with the Leviathan or the serpent, ie: Satan. It may be found in the Nile, or in the Red sea, and was defeated at the time of the exodus.
References to Rahab as the Egyptian sea monster or dragon:
Isaiah 30v7, 51v9-10,
Psalm 87v4, 89v10,
Job 9v13 and 26v12.
(All these are quoted below).
Jesus escaped a dragon as an infant, as described in Revelation 12 relating to King Herod, and again symbolically when God said, “Out of Egypt I called my son.” — Mat 2v15.
Isaiah 30v7
“Even Egypt, whose help is vain and empty. Therefore, I have called her “Rahab who has been exterminated.” - NASB
(other translations: Rahab who just sits still, or Rahab the do-nothing).
Isaiah 51v9-10,
“Awake, awake! Clothe yourself with strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in days gone by, as in generations of old. Was it not you who cut Rahab to pieces, who pierced that monster through? Was it not you who dried up the sea, the waters of the great deep, who made a road in the depths of the sea so that the redeemed might cross over?”
Psalm 87v4 (v3-6)
3 Glorious things are said of you,
city of God:
4 “I will record Rahab and Babylon
among those who acknowledge me—
Philistia too, and Tyre, along with Cush—
and will say, ‘This one was born in Zion.’”
5 Indeed, of Zion it will be said,
“This one and that one were born in her,
and the Most High himself will establish her.”
6 The Lord will write in the register of the peoples:
“This one was born in Zion.”
(Footnote to Psalm 87:4 Rahab: A poetic name for Egypt)
Psalm 89v10 (v8b-12a)
You, Lord, are mighty, and your faithfulness surrounds you.
9 You rule over the surging sea;
when its waves mount up, you still them.
10 You crushed Rahab like one of the slain;
with your strong arm you scattered your enemies.
11 The heavens are yours, and yours also the earth;
you founded the world and all that is in it.
12 You created the north and the south;
Job 9v13 (v5-13)
5 He moves mountains without their knowing it
and overturns them in his anger.
6 He shakes the earth from its place
and makes its pillars tremble.
7 He speaks to the sun and it does not shine;
he seals off the light of the stars.
8 He alone stretches out the heavens
and treads on the waves of the sea.
9 He is the Maker of the Bear[a] and Orion,
the Pleiades and the constellations of the south.
10 He performs wonders that cannot be fathomed,
miracles that cannot be counted.
11 When he passes me, I cannot see him;
when he goes by, I cannot perceive him.
12 If he snatches away, who can stop him?
Who can say to him, ‘What are you doing?’
13 God does not restrain his anger;
even the cohorts of Rahab cowered at his feet
Job 26v12 (v9-14a)
9 He covers the face of the full moon,
spreading his clouds over it.
10 He marks out the horizon on the face of the waters
for a boundary between light and darkness.
11 The pillars of the heavens quake,
aghast at his rebuke.
12 By his power he churned up the sea;
by his wisdom he cut Rahab to pieces.
13 By his breath the skies became fair;
his hand pierced the gliding serpent.
14 And these are but the outer fringe of his works;
Rahab rhymes with the Hebrew “Radaph” which means “to pursue, chase, persecute” (Strongs 7291).
The beast of Revelation at the time of the end will be a sea monster, like Rahab, (Rev 13v1). The beast comes up out of the sea, and the sea represents the peoples of the world who are in rebellion against God, Rev 17v15, Isaiah 5v30, 17v12-13) The beast acts with the power of the dragon, who is Satan.
John saw a harlot riding this beast in Revelation 17. The beast from the sea is that ancient Rahab or Egypt. She had been destroyed but she will come back. She is coming in the form of a great city (Rev 17v18). Her name is “Babylon the Great.”
We already see this beast today, but not in it’s final form. The current system is about to receive a fatal wound (Rev 13v3). We are coming to nuclear war as indicated by the signs of birth.
The war will begin as described in Daniel 11v36-45. (The key prophetic message). After the war he will “pitch his royal tents between the seas at the beautiful holy mountain.” Dan 11v45.
God’s people escape the dragon at the time of birth, as pictured in Revelation 12. This is an act of repentance, and is very much like Jesus’ escape from King Herod.
God also said, ‘Out of Egypt I called my son.” — Mat 2v15.
Jesus made an exodus from Egypt as a small child.
Consider the symbolic repentance of Jesus and the final generation.
Like Jesus, we are called out of Egypt, to be a seperate people, holy to the LORD.
When we put faith into action through repentance we escaped the power of the Rahab dragon of sin and death. Now we live fruitfully, but we continue training for battle because the journey has only just begun.
The final Pharaoh at the time of the Israelite Exodus from Egypt foreshadows the final Antichrist. Pharaoh is a representative type of the enemy who foreshadows the final beast to come in the last days. Both Pharaoh and the final beast of Revelation are described as great sea monsters who deceive, (clouding the water), coming up and leading all the peoples astray, all the “fish” to destruction.
Ezekiel 29v3,
“I am against you, Pharaoh king of Egypt, you great monster lying among your streams. You say, “The Nile is mine; I made it for myself.” But I will put hooks in your jaws and make the fish of your streams stick to your scales. I will pull you out from among your streams with all the fish sticking to your scales. I will leave you in the desert, you and all the fish of your streams. You will fall on the open field and not be gathered or picked up. I will give you as food to the beasts of the earth and the birds of the air.” (See also Eze 32v2-8)
Ezekiel 32v2 - 8
“Son of man, take up a lament concerning Pharaoh king of Egypt and say to him:
“You are like a lion among the nations; you are like a monster in the seas thrashing about in your streams, churning the water with your feet and muddying the streams...
When I snuff you out, I will cover the heavens and darken their stars; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon will not give its light. All the shining lights in the heavens I will darken over you; I will bring darkness over your land, declares the Sovereign LORD.”
Don’t be ignorant about what is coming. While Satan is being restrained for a long time, and we now live victoriously in Christ, the dragon is yet to be destroyed. He will be set free once more, just for a short time at the end of the testimony. (Rev 20).
The testimony of Jesus is he spirit of prophecy:
Escape Rahab as a newborn
Live in the freedom of Christ while training for war
Defeat Rahab on the great day of battle
When the great and terrible day of the Lord comes we will be victorious in battle with Jesus, and Rahab will be forever destroyed (Rev 19). This will be the battle of Armageddon, the war of Gog and Magog.
Jesus fought the Gog Magog battle at the cross, and he calls us to follow him because we will all have an end time moment when things will get sorted out. The first will be last and the last will be first. If we share in his sufferings we will share in his glory when that day comes.
What an awesome concept! We who believe and who follow him are all being transformed into the likeness of Christ, and the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Rev 19v10). Praise God.
Lets think that through once more.
Here it is for “those who hold to the testimony of Jesus” (Rev 12v17):
New born Christian babies in the faith are given a miraculous escape from the Rahab dragon, saved by grace alone, through faith alone. Then we are given a full lifespan to prepare for the ultimate battle, because Rahab needs to be destroyed. Those who persevere to the end of the journey and who train well for battle will be victorious on the great and glorious Day of the Lord, when he comes.
“Just as man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgement, so Christ was sacrificed once to take away the sins of many people; and he will appear a second time, not to bear sin, but to bring salvation to those who are waiting for him.” — Hebrews 9v27-28
Lets build each other up in Christ. Learn how to control the tongue and turn the other cheek. Lets put on love, faith and hope. Lets help each other to train for battle so that we may all be victorious in Christ alone on the great day of battle when Rahab and all her minions are destroyed on the mountains of Israel.
It will happen according to Scripture alone, to the glory of God alone.
