Revelation 11:1-14 Concludes the ______SECOND Parenthetical Portion

Riverview Baptist Church Wednesday Night Class: A Study in the Book of Revelation – Lesson 11

Revelation 11:1-14 concludes the ______SECOND parenthetical portion. Remember, the three parenthetical portions are Rev. 7:1-17; 10:1- 11:14, and 16:13-16.

Chapter 11:1-14 describes the ministry of the “Two Witnesses.” These two men will be ministering during the Tribulation time. There is some question as to which ______HALF will be the time of their ministry.

Rev. 11:1-2 – The Tribulation Temple

A temple will be constructed so that the Jews will once again be able to perform the ______SACRIFICES of the Law of Moses. This practice stopped when the temple was destroyed in A.D. 70. As part of the peace treaty that the Antichrist will broker (Dan. 9:27), the Jews will once again be able to make their sacrifices.

This practice will continue through the ______FIRST HALF of the seven years. At that time, the Antichrist will ______DESECRATE the temple and set an image of himself up in the Holy of Hollies and demand worship for himself (compare Dan. 9:27; 12:11; 2 Thess. 2:4; Rev. 13:14–15).

John was told to measure the temple, but he was to leave out the outer courtyard. This was because the ______,HOLY CITY Jerusalem will be under Gentile control for ______42 months, which is equal to ______,3 ½ YEARS or ______1,260 days (30 days to a month – the Jewish lunar calendar).

What does this measuring signify? In Ezekiel 40, the ______MILLENNIAL temple was measured (prophetically speaking) and in Rev. 21, the ______NEW Jerusalem is measured. This is an indication of ______.OWNERSHIP God is the owner of His temple. The fact that John is instructed to measure the temple and to count the worshippers is an indication that God will ______JUDGE both.

Rev. 11:3-12 – The Two Witnesses and Their Ministry

Rev. 11:3 – The Time of Their Ministry – 1,260 days!

There is some question as to which half of the Tribulation these two witnesses will be actively involved. There is some indication in 11:2. The time will when the ______GENTILES will be in control of the city of Jerusalem. This would indicate that the ______SECOND half is in view. Why is this so? THE FIRST HALF OF THE TRIBULATION IS UNDER THE PEACE TREATY. Rev. 11:4-6 – The Description of Their Ministry

The two witnesses are described as olive trees and lampstands. The olive tree (and what it produces) is seen in two ways in the Old Testament (Zech. 4:2-14). The olive tree is seen as a symbol of God’s ______.BLESSING Olive oil is often depicted as a symbol of the ______.HOLY SPIRIT Both of these images can be applied to the ministry of the two witnesses. It will be a blessing and it will be empowered by the Holy Spirit. The lampstand is symbolic of the ______LIGHT of the message of God. If these two witnesses minister in the second half of the Tribulation, then they will be shining their light in the ______DARKEST time the earth will ever know.

Notice that these two witnesses are supernaturally gifted for ______PROTECTION and for ______VALIDATION of their message. It should be noted that miraculous ______SIGN gifts are restored for this time frame.

Who are these two witnesses? There may be some clues as to their identity in the supernatural gifts that are bestowed upon them. There are certainly similarities to two Old Testament saints, Moses and Elijah.

Elijah called fire down out of heaven to devour those who were against him in 2 Kings 1. Elijah also was able to restrain the rain from falling in 1 Kings 17-18.

Moses was able to turn water into blood in Exodus 7. He was also able to unleash plagues on Egypt as well. Part of one of the plagues was hail and fire from heaven in Exodus 9:23. In Numbers 11:1-3, the Lord sent fire into the camp of Israel and devoured those who were against Moses.

So, there are certainly similarities in Rev. 11:4-6 to the ministries of both Moses and Elijah. In addition, the body of Moses was ______PROTECTED by Michael, the arch angel (Jude 9). Elijah was ______RAPTURED in a spectacular manner in 2 Kings 2.

Another possible indication is from Matthew 17.

However, in reality we must admit that the text of the passage does not say who the two witnesses are at all.

Rev. 11:7-10 – The Death of the Two Witnesses

According to 11:7, at the ______END of their witness, the Antichrist (or possibly Satan) kills the two witnesses. (See Rev. 6:2; 13:1; 14:9, 11; 15:2; 16:2; 17:3, 13; 19:20; 20:10.) This is only possibly if God ______ALLOWS it. Their dead bodies lie in the streets for 3 ½ days. The text states that they will be in Jerusalem. Rev. 11:8 calls the city Sodom and Egypt, symbolizing apostacy and ______REJECTION of God.

Take note that the entire ______WORLD will know about the witnesses and their deaths. How is this possible? What is the world’s reaction?

Rev. 11:11-14 – The Witnesses are Brought Back to Life

At the end of the 3 ½ days, God put back into them the breath of life. This caused great fear came onto those who were ______WATCHING them. This would include people from around the world. It would be safe to presume that this is a reference to the ______UNSAVED of the world.

When they were viewed alive by the world, a loud voice from heaven spoke to them and commanded that they, “Come up here!” This would be an instance of ______,ASCENSION not rapture. Compare Acts 1.

Immediately following their departure, there was a great earthquake. The resulting damage caused a tenth of Jerusalem to fall and 7,000 people to perish. This caused the people to ______GLORIFY God, but it appears that it was only lip service, because in Rev. 16:11 the people

______BLASPHEMED against God. Proclamation was made that the second woe was finished and the third woe is coming quickly.

Rev. 11:15-19 – The Seventh Trumpet – The End is Near!

The seventh trumpet is sounded! This will open up the ______BOWL judgments that are described in Rev. 15-16. Due to the rapid succession that takes place in the final judgments it is possible for a proclamation of the end result of the judgments of God to be made.

The seventh trumpet is the not the ______END of judgments. However, the timeframe is so short that the inevitability of the end is sure! What is the proclamation referencing?