St Michael the Archangel Defeats the Rebel Angels

Gregorio de Ferrari (c. 1647–1726) was an Italian Baroque painter of the Genoese School. Initially he painted in the style of Giovanni Andrea de Ferrari and Giovanni Battista Casone but later abandoned the monumental style in favor of a more characteristic, lyrical style. He became known for graceful elongations and vertical spiral movements of  figures, which  suggests he was influenced by the sculptors Filippo Parodi and Bernardo Schiaffino. 

Within the New Testament, the War in Heaven provides basis for the concept of the fallen angels and for Satan's banishment to Hell. The War is frequently featured in works of Christian art, such as John Milton's epic poem Paradise Lost, which describes it as occurring over the course of three days as a result of God the Father announcing Jesus Christ as His Son.

The War in Heaven is a mythical conflict between supernatural forces in traditional Christian cosmology, attested in the Book of Revelation alongside proposed parallels in the Hebrew Bible and the Dead Sea Scrolls. It is described as the result of the Archangel Satan rebelling against God and leading to a war between his followers and those still loyal to God, led by the Archangel Michael.

St. Michael the Archangel, whose name means “Who is like God?”, is depicted in Scripture as the commander of the heavenly armies and chief opponent of Satan. According to Christian tradition, when Lucifer rebelled against God, it was Michael who led the faithful angels in the battle that cast Satan and his followers out of heaven. In the Book of Daniel, he is described as the special protector of Israel, and in the Book of Revelation, he leads God’s armies in the final battle against evil. Unlike other saints who were human beings canonized after death, Michael is a pure spirit who has been venerated since ancient times. He is traditionally assigned four main roles: fighting against Satan, rescuing souls from evil, protecting God’s people (particularly the Church), and escorting the souls of the deceased to heaven.