DRAGON

From the Greek draʹkon, depicting a terrifying monster, a serpentlike devourer. It occurs thirteen times in the Bible but only in the highly symbolic book of Revelation, and represents Satan the Devil. He is the “great fiery-colored dragon, with seven heads and ten horns,” having a tail that draws “a third of the stars of heaven” after him. (Rev. 12:3, 4) Together with these demons, Satan the Dragon is cast out of heaven down to the earth. “So down the great dragon was hurled, the original serpent, the one called Devil and Satan.” (Rev. 12:7-9) In this debased state he persecutes the remnant of God’s “woman,” those having “the work of bearing witness.”—Rev. 12:13-17.

Dragon-like Satan is also the one that gives power and great authority to the symbolic wild beast having seven heads and ten horns, and, in turn, he is worshiped by the peoples of “all the earth.” (Rev. 13:2-4) John in vision also sees that the croaking froglike “expressions inspired by demons,” which go out to “the kings of the entire inhabited earth,” come from the Dragon or Satan’s mouth as well as out of the mouths of the “wild beast” and the “false prophet.” The effect this has is to gather these rulers and their supporters “to the war of the great day of God the Almighty . . . to the place that is called in Hebrew Har–Magedon [Armageddon].” (Rev. 16:13-16) Following this greatest of all wars the “angel” that comes down from heaven will seize “the dragon, the original serpent, who is the Devil and Satan,” and will bind him and abyss him for a thousand years.—Rev. 20:1-3; see SATAN.