Revelation

Chapter 11

1 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.

2 But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.

3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

7 And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

11 And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.

12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them.

13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.

The second woe is past

14 The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.

15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,

17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.

18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

1 This pertains to the reality of a rebuilt temple in Jerusalem in the future at the time of the Great Tribulation (Zechariah 2:1-5;Daniel 9:27;12:11;Matthew 24:15;2 Thessalonians 2:4).

2 A clear distinction is shown between what is permitted for Jews and Gentiles. The latter remain in the outer court. In past history Gentiles have persecuted God's chosen people, the Jews (2 Kings 25:8-10;Psalm 79:1;Isaiah 63:18;Lamentations 1:10). This verse points to the second half of the Tribulation period lasting three-and-a-half-years when Gentiles will once again persecute Jews.

3 There will be two prophets with supernatural powers (vv 5, 6) during this three-and-a-half year period who will be enabled to preach an effective gospel of redemption and judgment.

4 Since oil from olive trees was used as fuel for lamps, it could be interpreted that the characters of the two prophets are identified as two specific witnesses who will stand before God to give knowledge of His light. Zechariah uses similar imagery of a lamp stand and two olive trees in chapters 3 and 4. Zechariah 4:14 refers to two anointed ones, who would have been seen as Zerubbabel and Joshua who were servants of 'the Lord of the whole earth', a term pointing to the millennial kingdom.

5, 6 God will divinely protect the two prophets enabling them to kill their adversaries by fire (2 Kings 1:10). Some students of the Bible believe the two prophets will be Moses (Deuteronomy 18:15-18) and Elijah (Malachi 4:5,6). Both of them have returned to the earth before, as witnessed by Peter, James and John (Matthew 17:2-9). Moses has previously turned water into blood (Exodus 7:15-20) and Elijah has brought about a three-and-a-half-year drought (James 5:17).

7 The beast can be identified as the Antichrist (Chapter 13). He will be given power to kill the two prophets at the end of the Tribulation period (13:7).

8, 9 The city is Jerusalem. Ignominiously, the bodies of the two prophets will be left to rot in the street.

10 Unbelievers throughout the world will be exceedingly pleased, because the two prophets will no longer have power to convict sinners of their evil desires and hatred of God and their wilful rebellion towards Him. Conversely, there will be a time of rejoicing in heaven (12:12).

11 God will show His sovereign power by raising the two prophets from death (Ezekiel 37:5,9,10,14), thus bringing fear (v 13) to the unregenerate.

12 No doubt these prophetic events will be seen and heard by the whole world through the use of modern communication media.

13 Yet another earthquake (6:12) will occur, but this time killing 7,000 in Jerusalem, bringing fear and causing people to give glory to God. Those who will give glory to God will be those saved who put their faith in Him (Zechariah 12:10; 13:1;Luke 17:18,19)

14 See notes on 8:13. The commencement of the Millennial Kingdom is being heralded.

15 This seventh trumpet judgment (10:7) revealed in chapter 16 will tell of seven bowl judgments and events culminating in the establishment of the Millennial Kingdom (Chapter 20).

16, 17 In response, the twenty-four elders worship and praise God because they know all He promised will be accomplished. In their praise and adoration they recognize the eternal nature of God.

18 All unrepentant humanity finally recognize their just condemnation (Matthew 25:31-46; John 5:25-29) and foolishly become defiant after their initial fear (6:15,17), but it is also a time for reward to three categories of those who have placed their faith in God: Old Testament saints (Daniel 12:1-3; Revelation 22:12; 1 Corinthians 3:8;4:5); the raptured church (1 Corinthians 15:51,52;1 Thessalonians 4:13-18); and the Tribulation saints (20:4)

19 John had previously seen the throne (4:5) and the altar (6:9). The earthly ark of the covenant (Exodus 25:10-22) housed both in the OT tabernacle and the Jerusalem temple symbolized God's mercy and atonement. In this verse 'lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail' were shown to John, all indicative of the final judgments in the seventh bowl of 16:17-21.

 Once again, thank you for sharing these important teachings of John.

May our studies be for the glory of God, His worship, adoration and the extension of His kingdom.

My prayer, if you do not know Him, is that the Holy Spirit will enliven your soul to everlasting life, to the praise and glory of His Name.

If you have any questions or comments, please do not hesitate to get in touch by E-mail to me, Bill Serjeant, at: w.serjeant@btinternet.com