“The Two Witnesses” Revelation 11:1-14 May 2, 2021 This Particular

Screen 1

Screen 2 “The Two Witnesses” Revelation 11:1-14 May 2, 2021

This particular vision has long been one of the most difficult passages (if not the most complicated in the whole book) in the Revelation. There are at minimum five different broad interpretations of these views. Nevertheless, the possibility for a satisfactory interpretation of the section is not hopeless.

PRAY for understanding and application.

Revelation 11:1 “Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, Screen 3 ‘Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there.’”

The measuring rod in Ezekiel 40:5 was about ten feet long. The “temple” always refers to the literal temple in Jerusalem in all of the gospels and John’s writings except in John 2:19-21 where it refers to the body of Jesus.

As a good Baptist, raised/taught the premillennial dispensationalist view of the Revelation, I am always going to lean in the direction of the literal – in all of Scriptures and in the Apocalypse, too. Chapters 10 and 11 of Revelation are to be taken together as a unit, describing the fate of the 144,000 sealed believers (a.k.a. the church) on earth during the Great Tribulation period of time just before Christ’s return (second coming). Here, in Chapter 11, John’s role of a passive spectator has given way to active involvement in his own vision (just as in Chapter 10 from last week). Here, he is given a “measuring rod” – the measuring of the temple (in Jerusalem, again, one day) is a way of declaring its preservation.

Habakkuk 3:6 “He stood and measured the earth; he looked and shook the nations; then the eternal mountains were scattered; the everlasting hills sank low. His were the everlasting ways.

Metzger writes, “Measuring is done in order to build and repair, and John is given a measuring rod so he can restore and receive the church.” Ford lists four Screen 4 explanations of the measuring rod here:

1. Rebuilding and restoring 2. Destruction 3. Preservation from physical harm 4. Preservation from spiritual harm

The background is probably (Ezekiel 40 - 42) where the prophet in a vision watches every part of the temple being measured with painstaking care.

Ezekiel 2:1-5 “1 And he said to me, “Son of man, stand on your feet, and I will speak with you.” 2 And as he spoke to me, the Spirit entered into me and set me on my feet, and I heard him speaking to me. 3 And he said to me, “Son of man, I send you to the people of Israel, to nations of rebels, who have rebelled against me. They and their fathers have transgressed against me to this very day. 4 The descendants also are impudent and stubborn: I send you to them, and you shall say to them, ‘Thus says the Lord God.’ 5 And whether they hear or refuse to hear (for they are a rebellious house) they will know that a prophet has been among them..”

Some see Leviticus 16 as a likely background for this passage. Some see this temple as figurative – “the Christian community who worship God” – i.e. the

2 church, the people of God. While I see the temple as pointing to/representing the church, that does not mean it is not literal. Throughout Scripture literal things represent spiritual things/truths, all throughout! (I see this as the/a literal temple in Jerusalem rebuilt by a friendly antichrist in the first three and a half years of the Tribulation – the one who signs a peace agreement with Israel at first and then turns on Israel half way through that seven year period (Daniel 9:27; 11:31; 12:11 and see also 2 Thessalonians 2:3-4). By measuring the temple, John is teaching/showing that God will give spiritual sanctuary to the faithful believers (a.k.a. the 144,000 plus the people who come to Christ through their witness) against the demonic asault of the antichrist. The protection of these believers is not against physical suffering and death but against spiritual danger. The “altar” – the holy peace/the altar of incense (Revelation 8:3).

Revelation 11:2 “but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave thatScreen 5 out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty- two months.”

(Rome did this to Jerusalem in A.D. 70.) The outer court of the temple was called the court of the Gentiles. Solomon’s temple had two courts (1 Kings 6:36) but Herod’s temple was divided into three courts (the court of the women, the court of the Israelites, and the court of the priests). Separating these three from the court of Gentiles was a barrier with inscriptions threatening death to any Gentile who would pass beyond:

Ephesians 2:14 For he himself is our peace, who has made us both one and has broken down in his flesh the dividing wall of hostility.

Opinions are divided as to what the outer court – “Court outside the temple” stands for. Others see this as the Dome of the Rock today. Some say this points toward those who although outwardly belong to the church are not true believers. In other words, the part of the professing church that is still “of the world.” Others say that this points to the true church viewed from a different perspective. It is to be given over to persecution in the last days. The distinction between the sanctuary and the outer court is a way of pointing out the limitations placed upon pagan hostility – “inwardly the community is preserved from Satanic attack . . . outwardly it is given over to the violence of the Gentiles.” The unbelieving world may physically decimate the witnessing church, but it cannot touch its real source of life. The Christian church will be sheltered (spiritually) yet trampled physically. (Does away with the health and wealth preaching today). The background for this is the prophecy concerning Antiochus Epiphanes in Daniel 8:9-14. There, the temple is to be trampled underfoot by the “little horn” for 2,300 days – then it is to be reconsecrated. Likewise, the church is to be profaned but it will not be destroyed.

Matthew 16:18 And I tell you, you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.

“42 months” – is also given in Revelation 11:2; 13:5 and here. It is also given as 1,260 days in Revelation 11:3; 12:6 and “a time, times and half a time” in Revelation 12:14. Its primary reference is given to the period of Jewish suffering under the Syria despot Antiochus Epiphanes in 167-164 B.C. The drought of Elijah lasted three and a half years, too (Luke 4:25; James 5:17). Three and a half years became a standard symbol for that limited time period during which evil would be

4 allowed free rise. It is “the conventional period in apocalyptic literature for the temporary triumph of evil before the end of the age” (Luke 21:24 – “the times of the Gentiles”).

Final witnesses, divine protection and pagan antagonism are simultaneous. Literal temple? Today, you can visit the Temple Institute in the Jewish Quarter of the old city in Jerusalem. There is a group of Jews totally dedicated to rebuilding the Temple and educating the public for this possibility. See Faithful of the Temple Mount – google it!!! The Jews will once again rebuild a temple and for three and a half years sacrifices of animals will take place. But three and a half years into this time period the Antichrist will set up an image of himself (we will discuss this later!).

Now, the two witness. (Optional – pray here for clarity and understanding.)

Revelation 11:3 " And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will Screen 6 prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth."

Pages 216-217 Mounce’s book, NICNT Commentary here.

Pages 572-573 in Beale’s book, NGTC Commentary here.

Whether Moses and Elijah, Elijah/Enoch/etc. or simply two unnamed prophets with ministries like the prophets of old – they have “authority” – i.e. they speak for God. They are clothes in “sackcloth” just like prophets of old (Old Testament). In spite of all the disasters that will happen on the planet earth, the antagonism against the church of God by the whole unbelieving world – God has his remnant/faithful witnesses!

Revelation 11:4 “These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that Screen 7 stand before the Lord of the earth.”

>In Revelation 11:4, olive trees piped oil right into lamps so they would burn continuously.>

“two olive trees and the two lampstands” – Zechariah’s vision given in Zechariah 4. There is a single golden lampstand (Israel?) that supports a bowl with seven lamps (“the eyes of the Lord” – verse 10) and is flanked by two olive trees (Joshua, the high priest, and Zerubbabel, the Jewish governor under the Persian King Darius) that supply it with “golden oil’ (verse 12). The angelic interpretation is, “’Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the Lord Almighty.” in verse 6. As God’s Spirit works through his chosen leaders, despite all their apparent weaknesses, the temple will be brought to its completion. These two are the bearers of divine light:

Matthew 5:15-16 “15 Nor do people light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a stand, and it gives light to all in the house. 16 In the same way, let your light shine before others, so that they may see your good works and give glory to your Father who is in heaven.”

. . . empowered by the Holy Spirit – “the oil of the Spirit.” Especially during times of persecution, the power and authority of effective witness lies in the Spirit of God!

Revelation 11:5 “And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth Screen 8 and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed.”

The protection of the two individuals is spoken about first before an explanation is given of what they will do. God will keep His people safe from physical harm until their witness has been completed. These two will be protected suernaturally for the period of their prophetic activity.

“fire pours from their mouth” – this recalls Elijah’s encounter with King Ahaziah (2 Kings 1). These two are “Fire-breathing Prophets” – really cool (like dragons – play here - ).

Jeremiah 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city set on a hill cannot be hidden.”

Revelation 11:6 “They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall Screen 9 during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.”

“power to shut the sky” – Like the drought in Elijah’s day:

1 Kings 17:1 Now Elijah the Tishbite, of Tishbe in Gilead, said to Ahab, “As the Lord, the God of Israel, lives, before whom I stand, there shall be neither dew nor rain these years, except by my word.”

(The drought lasted three and a half years - Luke 4:25; James 5:17.) These two can “turn waters into blood” – like Moses in:

Exodus 7:20 Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood.

They can also “strike the earth with every kind of plague” – just like Moses again (Exodus 8:12).

Revelation 11:7 “And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that Screen 10 rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them,”

“The beast” was first introduced in:

Revelation 9:11 They have as king over them the angel of the bottomless pit. His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek he is called Apollyon.[

“the beast” – from the “bottomless pit” (Revelation 9:1). Here, we meet the major antagonist of the church in the last days. In contrast to the Lamb who bears marks of slaughter, he is the beast (different from previous “beasts” in Revelation) -literally a “wild animal.” He is demonic in origin and this passage references the beast of Daniel 7:7 ff and has become the familiar representative of Antichrist. (The detailed representation of the Antichrist comes in Revelation 13 and 17.)

“conquer them and kill them” – Faithfulness does not deliver the witnesses from death but causes it. In John’s context martyrdom is inherent in the prophetic role itself. Faithfulness unto death is always the ultimate measure of the disciple’s faithfulness to God. “The Antichrist/beast” will execute the witnesses.

Revelation 11:8 “and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city Screen 11 that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified.”

“their dead bodies will lie in the street” – from the Eastern point of view, to be deprived of burial was an act of great indignity (in the West, too).

“the great city” – Jerusalem, though there are seven references of the great city as Babylon or Rome in Revelation (Revelation 17:18; 18:10, 16, 18, 19, 21).

“symbolically” – Greek for spiritually [here, obviously the Revelation is speaking in symbolic terms – literally].

“Sodom” – (immorality) see Jerusalem alluded to/referred to as this in Isaiah 1:9- 10; Ezekiel 16:46-49.

“Egypt” – (slavery and oppression) God sees cities spritually. I wonder what his name for Atlanta is? Conyers?

“where their Lord was cricified” – obviously, Jerusalem – perhaps including both the great city as Babylon or Rome and other places or Jerusalem in Revelation this reimphasized the fact that Jesus died for both Jews and Gentiles (Billy Moss).

Revelation 11:9 “For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and Screen 12 languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb.”

For three and a half days the bodies lie in the street to be viewed by the “familiar four” (peoples, tribes, languages, nations). The three and a half days correspond to the 1,260 days (3 ½ years) they prophesied in verse 3. Video cam of Western Wall today is Jerusalem, or any other sites makes this so easy today, technologically. The world has nothing but contempt toward these two witnesses

9 that called them to repentance. Remember, John wrote in Revelation 2:10 (to the church at Smyrna) “Be faithful until death, and I will give you the crown of life.”

Revelation 11:10 “and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and Screen 13 make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth.”

“those who dwell on earth” – This phrase is used again and again in the book of the Revelation. There are two words in Greek for “dwell.” One means “a temporary dwelling,” the other means “settled down on earth, a permanent dwelling” – this, here, is the second one. These are “earth-dwellers” – they are satisfied with the earth and they do not want the God of Heaven! (Jessse Hendley) Personally, I am not satisfied with the earth – are you? (The world is not my/our home, beloved! Not the way that it is now.) They had been a “torment to those who dwell on the earth” – the world hates the Church. We are an anomaly on this earth – “aliens”/”sojourners.” Heaven is our home! Screen 14

• Ahab, the wicked king, called Elijah that troubler of Israel (1 Kings 18:17) • Herod feared John the Baptist yet herd him gladly (Mark 6:20)

If the world is perfectly at peace with any church, then that church must be corrupted according to Scripture!

“make merry and exchange presents” – this is a perverse counterpart to the Jewish feast of Purim – “a day of joy and feasting, a day for giving presents to each other. . . and gifts to the poor” (Esther 9:19, 22).

Revelation 11:11 “But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God Screen 15 entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them.”

This sounds just like Ezekiel 37 – “the valley of the dry bones.” A miracle of the Resurection. [Ladd (scholar) believes this is the miracle that will turn Israel toward Christ.] God still possesses the untimate authority over life and death!

Revelation 11:12 “Then they heard a loud voice from Heaven saying to them, Screen 16 ‘Come up here!’ And they went up to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies watched them.”

“loud voice from Heaven” – just like the previous loud voices in Revelation that we have been discussing all year.

“they went up to Heaven in a cloud” – the world was not worthy of them

2 Kings 2:11 And as they still went on and talked, behold, chariots of fire and horses of fire separated the two of them. And Elijah went up by a whirlwind into heaven.

(Jewish tradition says Moses was taken up into Heaven by a cloud - Josephas, Antiquities 4.8.48).

This is no secret rapture (Matthew 24:27; 1 Thessalonians 4:17).

Revelation 11:13 “And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of Screen 17 the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.”

Ezekiel 38:19-20 predicts a great earthquake that would precede the end of the world (as we know it).

Zechariah 14:4 On that day his feet shall stand on the Mount of Olives that lies before Jerusalem on the east, and the Mount of Olives shall be split in two from east to west by a very wide valley, so that one half of the Mount shall move northward, and the other half southward.

(Personal thought: there are simply too many specific ….. for all of this to be mere symbolic.)

“the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.” – Some think this is true repentance that takes place. BUT IT IS NOT! The death of these martyrs does not bring about universal repentance and salvation to the rest of the unbelieving world. The judgments of the previous chapters of Revelation do not succeed in bringing the world to repentance and salvation and neither does the death and resurrection of the two witnesses. Revelation 13:3-4 says that the whole world was “astonished/marveled” and “followed the beast.” They worship the dragon – there is not indication of revival salvation here. Later, in Chapter 13, evil is deified (they actually worship the beast/Satan. This verse is not too different from:

Revelation 6:15-17 15 Then the kings of the earth and the great ones and the generals and the rich and the powerful, and everyone, slave and free, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains, 16 calling to the mountains and rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who is seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 for the great day of their wrath has come, and who can stand?”

These two scenes are parrellel. These people may give “glory to God” but that is a far cry from repentance and faith.

Revelation 11:14 “The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to Screen 18 come.” 18

The seventh trumpet blast comes next week!

A literal temple is being prepared for in Jerusalem today. Persecution of the church is growing at an alarming rate (today) worldwide (Voice of the Martyrs). Time is ticking down (today), no more delay my friends. Repent of your sins and confess Jesus as Lord NOW (today)! THEN, stand firm until the end – even if it costs you your very life (today) – Jesus is worth it! Don’t call this world (as it is) your home anymore – seek that city of God in Heaven (today).

INVITATION: Screen 19 • Salvation Prayer • Standing firm just as the two witnesses will one day do (Just as Moses and Elijah have already done . . . and all the saints of old in the Bible. . .)