Revelation 11

The Two Witnesses

1-3 John is given a measuring rod with which he is to measure the temple of God, the altar, and the worshipers, excluding the outer court, which is for the nations, who will trample the holy city for 42 months. Two witnesses in sackcloth will prophesy for 1260 days. Only those within God’s sanctuary, or the church, are protected by God’s standard of truth. Nevertheless, they will be persecuted for 1260 days (42 months; 3-1/2 years; time, times, and half a time, as in 12:6, 12:14, Daniel 7:25 and 12:7) – which signify an indefinite period of time of unrest. Two witnesses could signify the necessity of two witnesses in a court of law or the combined witness of the Holy Spirit and the apostles – or maybe even the two testaments, the Old and the New.

4-6 The two witnesses are olive trees and lampstands that stand before the Lord. Anyone who wants to harm them will be destroyed by fire. The witnesses can cause a drought, turn water into blood, and strike the earth with plagues. These are plagues from the past: Jeremiah 5:14 (Fire is the word of God); 1 Kings 17:1; 18:1-45 (Elijah); and Exodus 9:14 (Plagues against Egypt).

7-10 When the witnesses finish their testimony, the beast comes from the bottomless pit and kills them. Their dead bodies lie in the streets in a city prophetically called Sodom and Egypt, where the Lord was crucified. For 3-1/2 days, nations view the bodies, refusing to let them be buried, gloating and exchanging gifts because the two prophets had tormented them. The beast represents the opposition of Satan. Sodom – depravity; Egypt – bondage; Jerusalem – rejection of God’s Son. Darkness cannot tolerate light.

11-14 After 3-1/2 days, the two stand up, terrifying those who witness their resurrection. A voice from heaven calls for them, and they ascend while enemies watch. At that moment, an earthquake destroys a tenth of the city – 7,000 people. Terrified, those who survive glorify God. As symbols of God’s Word, the witnesses can never be destroyed completely. The earthquake, a symbol of God’s wrath (Isaiah 24:18-20), is reminiscent of Proverbs 1:24-30, the response from God to blatant disobedience.

The Seventh Trumpet

15-18 The seventh angel blows his trumpet, and loud voices in heaven proclaim the Lord as King forever. The 24 elders fall down and worship God. The opening of the seventh seal, which began in silence (8:1), ends in songs of triumph.

19 God’s temple in heaven opens, revealing the ark of his covenant, with flashes of lightning, thunder, earthquake, and hail. The section opened in 4:1 with the revelation of the throne. The veil of the temple has been torn, and because of Christ, the holy of holies is open to us (Hebrews 10:20).