The war in heaven (Revelation 12:7-12) looks like an even contest. On the one side stand Michael and his angels and on the other the dragon and his angels (v. 7). But the text is organized to show that the two sides are not as symmetrical as they initially seem:
A. Michael
B. his angels
C. wage war
D. Dragon
D’. Dragon
C’. his angels
B’. wage war
A’. ???
The chiasm is incomplete. There is nothing on the devil’s side corresponding to Michael. Michael tips the balance.
Which makes sense, because Michael’s very name stresses his incomparability: Michael means “Who is like God?” The text elicits the question, Who in heaven is like Michael? And the answer is (despite Revelation 13:4), No one.
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