14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent.
The present account is a repetition of what has already been said. He does not say that after the serpent saw that he had been thrown down to the earth, he immediately pursued the woman, but since the serpent saw the troubles in which he was immersed, and that he had fallen out of the angelic rank, he became exceedingly bitter against human beings, and pursued the woman who had borne the savior of humankind, in order to destroy her. He pursued the woman, since he knew that the one who was born of her was too powerful to be captured. He was moved with envy against human beings because of their salvation by the Lord. He could not bear such a great reversal, by which he himself had been thrown out of heaven, and human beings by their virtue had gone up from earth to heaven.
He says, But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, that she might fly into the desert, to her own place, where she is to be sheltered for a time, and times, and half a time, from the presence of the snake. He says that the woman was not handed over to Satan, but fled into the desert. This is Egypt, as was said earlier.
So it was that the prophet sought “wings like those of a dove,” to “fly away and be at rest in the desert.” But more powerful wings of the great eagle were given to the all-holy Virgin. He means by the wings of the eagle the intervention of the divine angel, who exhorted Joseph to take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. By this intervention it was as though they reached Egypt on the wings of an eagle. So the serpent, failing in this plot, which he had arranged through Herod, devises another plot against the Virgin, the destruction of her son, and so accordingly he goes on to describe the Lord’s cross and death.
He says, The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with the flood: the divine Scripture means allegorically by the river temptation or trial, saying somewhere through Jonah, “You cast me into the depths of the heart of the sea, and the rivers surrounded me,” and again in the words of the Lord, “the rain fell, and the rivers rose up, and the winds came, but they did not throw down the house which had been founded upon the rock.” Therefore, he calls her trial over the passion of the Lord a river, so that through this, he says, he might drown the Virgin. And truly, by what happened to the Lord and the intensity of her sorrow, the serpent had the power to fulfill his purpose. What does Simeon say to her? “And a sword will pierce your own soul, too, so that the thoughts of many hearts may be laid bare.”
But, he says, the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river which the serpent had poured from his mouth onto the woman. That the earth swallowed the river indicates that the earth had accepted the trial, that is, the killing of the Lord. But the earth’s help did not consist in this, but in restoring the Lord again; for he came to life again after three days, trampling upon death, since it was impossible for him to be held by it, since he was “the author of life,” according to blessed Peter. To construe it in this way, one must read a full stop after the earth came to the help of the woman. Then, as though in answer to the question, “in what manner did it help?” it swallowed up the river, that is, it received in itself the Lord after the plot against him, and again restored him, and this is how it gave its help.
Since, therefore, the serpent also failed to achieve his second plan, what more is there for him to do? He pursued those called sons and brothers of the Lord—that is, the faithful—for these, he says, are the offspring of the woman; for the faithful are the sons and brothers of the Lord according to Scripture: “I will proclaim your name to my brothers,” and again, “Here am I, and the children God has given me.” So then they also belong to his mother’s family; and the Devil made war on them, pursuing them and plotting against them, putting them to death through the tyrants and rulers of the earth, since they were testifying that the Virgin-born was God.
But they are altogether full of deceit of every kind, apostate inspiration, demoniacal working, and the phantasms of idolatry, and are in reality the predecessors of that dragon
The church, then, coming into this wilderness, a place barren of evils, is nourished, flying on the heavenward wings of virginity, which the Word called the “wings of the great eagle,” having conquered the serpent and driven away from her full moon the wintry clouds. It is for the sake of these things, meanwhile, that all these discourses are held, teaching us, O fair virgins, to imitate according to our strength our mother and not to be troubled by the pains and changes and afflictions of life.… Do not, therefore, lose courage on account of the schemes and slanders of the beast, but bravely prepare for the battle, armed with the helmet of salvation, your breastplate and your leg armor. For you will bring on him an immense consternation when you attack him with great advantage and courage; nor will he at all resist, seeing his adversaries set in array by One more powerful. But the many-headed and many-faced beast will immediately allow you to carry off the spoils of the seven contests.… Therefore, with a virile and sober mind, take up your arms against the swollen beast and do not at all give way, nor be troubled because of his fury. For you will have endless glory if you overcome him, and take away his seven diadems, on account of which we have to struggle and wrestle, according to our teacher Paul. For she who having first overcome the devil and destroyed his seven heads gains the seven diadems of virtue, having gone through the seven great struggles of chastity. For one head of the dragon is incontinence and luxury, and whoever crushes this is wreathed with the diadem of temperance. Another head is cowardice and weakness; and whoever tramples this carries off the diadem of martyrdom. Another head is unbelief and folly and other similar fruits of wickedness; and whoever has overcome these and destroyed them carries off the honors connected with them, the power of the dragon being in many ways uprooted.
When the Savior was on the cross, the Lord turned, as the Gospel according to John tells us, “and saw the disciple whom he loved, and said to him of Mary, ‘Behold thy mother.’ And to her he said, ‘Behold thy son.’ ” If Mary had children and her husband was alive, why did he entrust Mary to John and John to Mary? Why not rather entrust her to Peter? Why not to Andrew, Matthew and Bartholomew? But it is plain that he entrusted her to John because of virginity. For he says, “Behold thy mother,” even though physically she was not John’s mother; he says this to show that as the originator of virginity she was his mother, since the life began with her.… For if she had not truly been the mother who bore him, he would not have taken care to entrust the Ever-virgin to John—his mother because of the incarnation, but in his honor undefiled and the wondrous vessel. But the Gospel says, “And from that day he took her unto his own home.” But if she had a husband, a home, children, she would return to her own home and not to someone else’s.… Indeed, when this had been done and John had taken her to himself, she did not yet live with him. If any think I am mistaken, moreover, let them search through the Scriptures and neither find Mary’s death, nor whether or not she died, nor whether or not she was buried—even though John surely traveled throughout Asia. And yet, nowhere does he say that he took the holy Virgin with him. Scripture simply kept silence because of the overwhelming wonder, not to throw people’s minds into consternation. For I dare not say—though I have my suspicions, I keep silent. Perhaps, just as her death is not to be found, so I may have found some traces of the holy and blessed Virgin. In one passage Simeon says of her, “And a sword shall pierce through your own soul also, that the thoughts of many hearts may be revealed.” And elsewhere the Revelation of John says, “And the dragon hastened after the woman who had born the man child, and she was given the wings of an eagle and was taken to the wilderness, that the dragon might not seize her.” Perhaps this can be applied to her; I cannot decide for certain, and [I] am not saying that she remained immortal. But neither am I affirming that she died. For Scripture went beyond human understanding and left it in suspense with regard to the precious and choice vessel, so that no one would suspect carnal behavior of her. Whether she died, I don’t know; and even if she was buried, she never had carnal relations, perish the thought!
As though they were wings, the church uses the two Testaments, for taught by them and instructed in their precepts, she strives to avoid the snares of the enemy, and being fashioned to followed their examples, she overcomes. Moreover, [the church] is guided by the twofold love of God and the neighbor. The place of solitude is this place of our earthly sojourn, for “while we are in the body, we are away from the Lord.” And this is especially true of the heart that does not go away from the world by way of place but by way of affection, as the prophet says, “Behold, I fled afar off and remained in solitude; I awaited him who might save me.” It is proper that here he used the image of the eagle, for it can fly to greater distances than can other birds, yet when it sees its prey from afar, moved by its natural needs, it immediately swoops to low levels. Such is the church also, for although in her spiritual members she seeks and ponders in her mind that which is above, yet burdened by the weakness of the body, she submits to the requirements of bodily needs. Because of this, “she groans in travail until now, for the creation is subjected to futility, not of its own will but on account of him who subjected her in hope.” And again, “For either we are beside ourselves for God, or in our right mind for you.” The period of three years and six months signifies that time up to the end of world during which the church increases and flees the worship of idols and every error of the serpent.
From the beginning love for God and for the neighbor and a mind receptive of him who was crucified for us was given to [the church], as were the two Testaments. All of these things are symbolized by the wings of the eagle, and they were given to [the church] so that taking flight by them into the desert, that is, into a citizenship devoid of every desire, she might be nourished. To be sure, this occurs always, but it will especially be so at the coming of the antichrist, who will rule everywhere, it is written, for the designated time of three and a half years. It may be that during that time even those who have hid themselves in the mountains and caves of the literal, physical desert will flee him.
And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, etc. The Church, supported by the two Testaments, avoiding the turbulent poisons of the world, daily seeks the solitude of a quiet and modest spirit with the affection of the mind, joyfully singing: Lo, I have fled far away and have dwelt in the wilderness (Psalm LIV). It is not inconsistent that there she seeks the dove, while here she receives the wings of an eagle. Just as the former represents the gift of the Holy Spirit, so the latter represents the high flight and keen sight with which the Church, with a pure heart, sees God. Her youth will be renewed like the eagle's.
Where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time. This represents the entire time of the Church, as previously encompassed in the number of days. For a time signifies a year, times signify two years, and half a time signifies six months.
[AD 990] Oecumenius on Revelation 12:13-17
He says, But the two wings of the great eagle were given to the woman, that she might fly into the desert, to her own place, where she is to be sheltered for a time, and times, and half a time, from the presence of the snake. He says that the woman was not handed over to Satan, but fled into the desert. This is Egypt, as was said earlier.
So it was that the prophet sought “wings like those of a dove,” to “fly away and be at rest in the desert.” But more powerful wings of the great eagle were given to the all-holy Virgin. He means by the wings of the eagle the intervention of the divine angel, who exhorted Joseph to take the child and his mother and escape to Egypt. By this intervention it was as though they reached Egypt on the wings of an eagle. So the serpent, failing in this plot, which he had arranged through Herod, devises another plot against the Virgin, the destruction of her son, and so accordingly he goes on to describe the Lord’s cross and death.
He says, The serpent poured water like a river out of his mouth after the woman, to sweep her away with the flood: the divine Scripture means allegorically by the river temptation or trial, saying somewhere through Jonah, “You cast me into the depths of the heart of the sea, and the rivers surrounded me,” and again in the words of the Lord, “the rain fell, and the rivers rose up, and the winds came, but they did not throw down the house which had been founded upon the rock.” Therefore, he calls her trial over the passion of the Lord a river, so that through this, he says, he might drown the Virgin. And truly, by what happened to the Lord and the intensity of her sorrow, the serpent had the power to fulfill his purpose. What does Simeon say to her? “And a sword will pierce your own soul, too, so that the thoughts of many hearts may be laid bare.”
But, he says, the earth came to the help of the woman, and the earth opened its mouth and swallowed the river which the serpent had poured from his mouth onto the woman. That the earth swallowed the river indicates that the earth had accepted the trial, that is, the killing of the Lord. But the earth’s help did not consist in this, but in restoring the Lord again; for he came to life again after three days, trampling upon death, since it was impossible for him to be held by it, since he was “the author of life,” according to blessed Peter. To construe it in this way, one must read a full stop after the earth came to the help of the woman. Then, as though in answer to the question, “in what manner did it help?” it swallowed up the river, that is, it received in itself the Lord after the plot against him, and again restored him, and this is how it gave its help.
Since, therefore, the serpent also failed to achieve his second plan, what more is there for him to do? He pursued those called sons and brothers of the Lord—that is, the faithful—for these, he says, are the offspring of the woman; for the faithful are the sons and brothers of the Lord according to Scripture: “I will proclaim your name to my brothers,” and again, “Here am I, and the children God has given me.” So then they also belong to his mother’s family; and the Devil made war on them, pursuing them and plotting against them, putting them to death through the tyrants and rulers of the earth, since they were testifying that the Virgin-born was God.