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Revelation 12:3

And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.

KJV

καὶ ὤφθη ἄλλο σημεῖον ἐν τῷ οὐρανῷ, καὶ ἰδοὺ δράκων πυρρός μέγας, ἔχων κεφαλὰς ἑπτὰ καὶ κέρατα δέκα καὶ ἐπὶ τὰς κεφαλὰς αὐτοῦ ἑπτὰ διαδήματα,

Greek NT

Et visum est aliud signum in cælo : et ecce draco magnus rufus habens capita septem, et cornua decem : et in capitibus ejus diademata septem,

Vulgate

And there was seen another sign in heaven: and behold, a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his heads seven diadems.

ASV

And there was seen another sign in heaven. And behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns and on his heads seven diadems.

Douay-Rheims

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In this verse

Symbols Dragon

In the original Greek

18 distinct Greek words appear in this verse.

αὐτός
autos
pronoun · 5564×
δέκα
deka
adjective · 25×
διάδημα
diadema
noun · 3×
δράκων
drakon
noun · 13×
κέρας
keras
noun · 11×
καί
kai
conjunction · 8973×
κεφαλή
kephale
noun · 75×
μέγας
megas
adjective · 244×
οὐρανός
ouranos
noun · 274×
πυῤῥός
purros
noun · 3×
σημεῖον
semeion
noun · 77×
ἄλλος
allos
adjective · 154×
ἐν
en
preposition · 2743×
ἐπί
epi
preposition · 888×
ἑπτά
epta
adjective · 88×
ἔχω
echo
verb · 707×
o
article · 19778×
ὁράω
orao
verb · 682×

Intertextual echoes

This verse quotes or alludes to 1 earlier text.

  • Isa 27:1 · echo
    "In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea."
    Isaiah: Leviathan the dragon — the great red dragon

Textual variants

1 variant unit attested by manuscript witnesses and modern critical editions.

trivial
SBLGNT: μέγας πυρρός | WH/NIV: μέγας πυρρός
  • μέγας πυρρόςSBLGNT
  • μέγας πυρρόςWestcott-Hort, Reader's GNT (NA27)
source: sblgnt-apparatus

Themes

Prophecy

Theophany

Historic Christian voices

4 passages from patristic writers, Reformers, and church catechisms citing this verse.

He recalls the beginning of his youth, i.e. the thirty-first year of his age, in which very grave errors as to the nature of God and the origin of evil being distinguished, and the Sacred Books more accurately known, he at length arrives at a clear knowledge of God, not yet rightly apprehending Jesus Christ. Chapter 1. He Regarded Not God Indeed Under the Form of a Human Body, …

Cross-references

  • Dan 7:7 — After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue w
  • Dan 7:7 — After this I saw in the night visions, and behold a fourth beast, dreadful and terrible, and strong exceedingly; and it had great iron teeth: it devoured and brake in pieces, and stamped the residue w
  • Dan 7:20 — And of the ten horns that were in his head, and of the other which came up, and before whom three fell; even of that horn that had eyes, and a mouth that spake very great things, whose look was more s
  • Dan 7:21 — I beheld, and the same horn made war with the saints, and prevailed against them;
  • Dan 7:24 — And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.
  • Dan 7:24 — And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings.
  • Ezek 29:3 — Speak, and say, Thus saith the Lord GOD; Behold, I am against thee, Pharaoh king of Egypt, the great dragon that lieth in the midst of his rivers, which hath said, My river is mine own, and I have mad
  • Isa 27:1 — In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.
  • Isa 27:1 — In that day the LORD with his sore and great and strong sword shall punish leviathan the piercing serpent, even leviathan that crooked serpent; and he shall slay the dragon that is in the sea.
  • Isa 51:9 — Awake, awake, put on strength, O arm of the LORD; awake, as in the ancient days, in the generations of old. Art thou not it that hath cut Rahab, and wounded the dragon?
  • Rev 12:1 — And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:
  • Rev 12:1 — And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars:
  • Rev 12:4 — And his tail drew the third part of the stars of heaven, and did cast them to the earth: and the dragon stood before the woman which was ready to be delivered, for to devour her child as soon as it wa
  • Rev 12:7 — And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels,
  • Rev 12:9 — And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
  • Rev 12:9 — And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.
  • Rev 12:13 — And when the dragon saw that he was cast unto the earth, he persecuted the woman which brought forth the man child.
  • Rev 12:17 — And the dragon was wroth with the woman, and went to make war with the remnant of her seed, which keep the commandments of God, and have the testimony of Jesus Christ.
  • Rev 13:1 — And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.
  • Rev 13:2 — And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as the feet of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority.
  • Rev 13:4 — And they worshipped the dragon which gave power unto the beast: and they worshipped the beast, saying, Who is like unto the beast? who is able to make war with him?
  • Rev 13:11 — And I beheld another beast coming up out of the earth; and he had two horns like a lamb, and he spake as a dragon.
  • Rev 16:13 — And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
  • Rev 16:13 — And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
  • Rev 17:3 — So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
  • Rev 17:3 — So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
  • Rev 17:7 — And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou marvel? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and ten horns.
  • Rev 17:9 — And here is the mind which hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth.
  • Rev 17:12 — And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
  • Rev 17:12 — And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings, which have received no kingdom as yet; but receive power as kings one hour with the beast.
  • Rev 17:16 — And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
  • Rev 19:12 — His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
  • Rev 19:12 — His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.
  • Rev 20:2 — And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years,