Revelation 11

Revelation 11  •  16 min. read  •  grade level: 10
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The Two Witnesses
In the next place there was given to John “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. 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” (vss. 1-2). Everything betokens here that we are now transferred to Jerusalem; for we read of the temple of God, the altar, the court, and the holy city. The mention too of the Gentiles, the nations in contrast with the Jews, points to the same conclusion, as well as the fact of their domination over the holy city. (Compare Luke 21:2424And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (Luke 21:24).) The object of it is to show the state of that temple (where God’s heart and eyes were perpetually to be) and of that city which He had chosen on the eve of the final judgment, and of the Lord’s return to it in glory. (See Matt. 23:37-3937O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, thou that killest the prophets, and stonest them which are sent unto thee, how often would I have gathered thy children together, even as a hen gathereth her chickens under her wings, and ye would not! 38Behold, your house is left unto you desolate. 39For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. (Matthew 23:37‑39).)
But John is commanded to measure, with the reed given to him, the temple, the altar and them that worship therein. Inasmuch as the events of this chapter concern the period after the church is gone and before the Lord’s appearing, the temple must be that which will be built by the Jews while in unbelief after their return to their own land. We find, nevertheless, that there is a true remnant in the midst of the corrupt nation; and measuring the temple, the altar and the worshippers will signify that they are owned of and, it may be, appropriated or claimed by God. The word “temple” is that pertaining to the house itself, including the holy place and the holiest; not the word sometimes employed which indicates the whole of the sacred buildings, together with the court, etc. As a matter of fact, the worshippers had no access into the holy place; but we are taught here that God regarded them as belonging to it, even though they could not enter, and that thus the remnant are really invested before Him with a priestly character. How precious in the eyes of God are this believing residue, who, resisting all the seductions and temptations by which they are surrounded, and incurring thereby the hostility and persecution of the Gentile power which will be at this time supreme in Jerusalem, cleave in all fidelity to the God of their fathers, and, though in the deepest distress, wait only upon God for deliverance.
The court without the temple was to be left out— rejected; that is, the mass of the nation whatever their profession (for they will have, in the last days, fallen again into idolatry) are refused. Another will have come in his own name, whom they will have received (John 5:4343I am come in my Father's name, and ye receive me not: if another shall come in his own name, him ye will receive. (John 5:43)). They will have accepted the Antichrist in the place of their own Messiah, who had been crucified by their fathers on Calvary. On this account the court—a figure of the unbelieving nation, for it will be the place of their worship—is given unto the Gentiles; and they will also tread the holy city under foot forty and two months. Later on we shall see the meaning of this period—but the reader will do well to remember it, as it forms the key to the concluding prophetic events of Scripture.
The following paragraph, from verse 3 to 13, concerns the remarkable apparition of the two witnesses. We must inquire, first of all, what is exactly indicated by the two witnesses. It must be remembered that we move in this book in the midst of symbols; and it might be, on this account, two companies of witnesses, if they are not two individuals. The point however to be seized lies, doubtless, in the number, two being ever the number of adequate testimony. (This is strikingly seen in the Gospel of Matthew, where we have two demoniacs (Matt. 8), two blind men (Matt. 9), because in this gospel it is a question of sufficient or adequate testimony to Israel.) There will always be then, during this time of Satan’s greatest display of power before the eyes of God’s professing people (the Jews), an adequate testimony for God and His claims.
The next thing to be noted is the duration of their prophetic testimony. It will be a thousand two hundred and sixty days. In the previous verse we read of a period of forty-two months during which the holy city will be trodden under foot of the Gentiles. The two periods coincide, both being exactly three years and a half. (As before pointed out, and as may be easily proved from Scripture, there is no foundation whatever for the year-day theory; that is, for taking the 1260 days to mean so many years.) It will suffice here to say, as the subject must be more fully gone into when Revelation 138And all that dwell upon the earth shall worship him, whose names are not written in the book of life of the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world. (Revelation 13:8) is reached, that this three years and a half are the last half of Daniel’s seventieth week (Dan. 9:25-2725Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. 26And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. 27And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. (Daniel 9:25‑27)), the period of the Antichrist’s frightful sway in Jerusalem with the support and shelter of all the power of the last head of the Roman empire; the period at the close of which Christ will come in glory, and consume that wicked one with the spirit of His mouth and destroy him with the brightness of His coming (2 Thess. 2:88And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming: (2 Thessalonians 2:8)). Throughout this period of unequaled sorrow the two witnesses will courageously raise their voices and be clothed in sackcloth, expressive of the sorrowful nature of their work owing to the character of the times in which they are found. Apart from all around, mourning over the fearful apostasy of the beloved nation and rejected by all, sackcloth is but a fitting emblem of their testimony.
We are now told what they are: “These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God [The more generally accepted reading is “Lord.”] of the earth” (vs. 4). The connection between this description and that given in Zechariah 4 is apparent and will afford the clue to the interpretation. As another has said, “They bear witness to the order and blessing of the Jewish state when Messiah shall reign; but they are not in that state. Not a candlestick with two olive trees (as in Zechariah), but two candlesticks and two olive trees. But they are before the God of the earth” (Collected Writings of J. N. Darby, Vol. 2, Expository). They are anointed ones for they are olive trees; and they thus testify in the power of the Holy Spirit. They are the two candlesticks; their testimony therefore is the light from God amid the darkness of that day. And standing before the Lord of the earth shows that the subject of their testimony is the claims of the coming Messiah as the rightful Lord of the earth. (Compare Josh. 3:1111Behold, the ark of the covenant of the Lord of all the earth passeth over before you into Jordan. (Joshua 3:11).) Moreover, they are two anointed ones; and this also points, in addition to the power of their testimony, to the fact that it is as King and Priest—a Priest upon His throne, Melchisedec—that Christ will come and take possession. (If any desire to enter more fully into this subject, they may read “Zechariah the Prophet,” chapter 4.)
What follows is easily apprehended. If anyone hurts them, fire will proceed out of their mouth and devour him. (Compare 2 Kings 1.) As Elijah of old, they will have power to shut up heaven that it shall not rain. Like Moses, they will have power to turn the waters into blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues as often as they will (vss. 5-6). After their testimony is finished, not before, the beast that ascendeth out of the abyss—the last head of the Roman empire—will be permitted to kill them (vs. 7). Then their dead bodies will lie in the street of Jerusalem (now, alas! spiritually Sodom and Egypt) “where also our Lord was crucified,” (vs. 8) and where they will be a spectacle to peoples, and kindreds, and tongues, and nations for three days and a half. They also that dwell upon the earth (the reader will remember the moral force of this expression) will, in their folly and imaginary triumph, make every demonstration of joy over the death of those who had tormented them (vss. 7-10).
God now steps into the scene and raises His dead witnesses. “And they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. 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” (Rev. 11:11-1211And 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. 12And 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. (Revelation 11:11‑12)). What a revolution! And how short-lived the triumph of these foolish worldlings! Nor is this all; for judgment descends “the same hour” upon that poor guilty city, and “the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand” (Rev. 11:1313And 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. (Revelation 11:13)). The remnant are affrighted, and give glory, not to the Lord of the earth, but to the God of heaven. They still refuse the testimony of the witnesses. The proclamation is now made, “The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly” (Rev. 11:1414The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly. (Revelation 11:14)).
The Third Woe
We find the significance of the seventh trumpet in Revelation 10, where we read, “In the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as He hath declared to His servants the prophets.” (Ch. 10:2) Accordingly here, immediately on the sounding of the seventh angel, “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 forever and ever” (Ch. 11:15). (This has been more accurately rendered, “The kingdom of the world of our Lord and His Christ is come.” The Revised Version gives it, “The kingdom of the world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of His Christ.”) That is to say, the end is now in a general way reached, and the announcement is made in heaven that Christ has at length interposed and assumed His sovereignty over the earth. There are many details and fuller instruction yet to be given, but the time of which prophets had prophesied and saints of past ages had longed for and anticipated has now come. The very appellations used—our Lord and His Christ—mark the period indicated. It is that of the second Psalm, wherein, in face of the rage of the heathen, and the vain imagination of the people, when “the kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the Lord, and against His anointed [His Christ], saying, Let us break their bands asunder, and cast away their cords from us,” (Psa. 2: 2-3) the Lord, “laughing” at their vain impotence, will “speak unto them in His wrath, and vex them in His sore displeasure.” (Psa. 2:55Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure. (Psalm 2:5)) He will, at the same, announce, “Yet have I set My King upon My holy hill of Zion.” (Psa. 2:66Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion. (Psalm 2:6))
Such is the event proclaimed in heaven on the sounding of the seventh angel; for Zion will be the seat of the government of the Lord’s Christ; from thence Jehovah will send out the rod of His strength, and, ruling in the midst of His enemies, He will reign forever and ever, until He hath put all foes under His feet. (See Psa. 110; Luke 2:30-3330For mine eyes have seen thy salvation, 31Which thou hast prepared before the face of all people; 32A light to lighten the Gentiles, and the glory of thy people Israel. 33And Joseph and his mother marvelled at those things which were spoken of him. (Luke 2:30‑33).)
But why, the question may be asked, should the setting up of the kingdom of Christ in this world be termed a “woe”? The class for whom it will be a “woe” is specified in Revelation 8:1313And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound! (Revelation 8:13); it is for “the inhabiters of the earth,” not exactly, as has been more than once explained, for the inhabitants of the earth, but for those whose desires and affections are bounded by this world, those who make their home in it, who are therefore morally dwellers upon earth, and who, as such, are enemies of God and His Christ. Truly speaking, every unconverted soul belongs to this class now, and so will it be when the Lord returns to earth and takes His kingdom—all the unconverted will form the inhabiters of the earth. And for them the reign of Christ will bring unmitigated woe, for a scepter of righteousness will be the scepter of His kingdom; and thus it is that His arrows will be sharp in the heart of the King’s enemies, and the peoples will fall under Him. Can anything be sadder than the thought that the event which will inaugurate an era of peace and blessing for this poor world will constitute nothing but woe for the dwellers upon earth?
This, however, will explain to us the contrariety between heaven and earth that follows. The moment the declaration is made that Christ has established His world-sovereignty, “the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats [thrones], fell upon their faces, and worshipped God, saying, We give Thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; [This clause “art to come” should be omitted.] because thou hast taken to Thee Thy great power, and hast reigned” (vss. 16-17). What a contrast! That which causes joy in heaven produces anger upon earth. The nations are angry; for they have usurped the power belonging to God, thrown off His yoke, and now will be made to know that they are amenable to the authority of Him who will smite through kings in the day of His wrath, who will judge among the heathen, fill the places with the dead bodies, and wound the heads over many countries. The elders, on the other hand, have the mind of God; they have had His patience in the presence of Satan’s power and of the evils which have corrupted the earth; they had known what it was to have fellowship with a rejected Christ and now they rejoice with full hearts that God has stepped in, asserted His rights and vested the sovereignty of the earth in the hands of His Christ. The Lamb that was in the midst of the throne is now the exalted One on the earth; and all kings must fall down before Him, and all nations must serve Him; and the hearts of the elders, charged to overflowing with heaven’s joy, express their gladness in thanksgivings and worship before God.
A few points in connection with the elders may be noticed. We are again reminded that they sat on their thrones before God. It is not so much that they were sitting there at this moment, although they were doing so, as that their place in the presence of God is thus indicated. It is characteristic; the elders occupied thrones before God. What a view is in this way afforded of the exaltation of the glorified saints! Grouped around the Eternal Presence, and seated themselves on thrones—for they are kings as well as priests—they are spectators, adoring spectators, of God’s ways in the government of the earth. It will also be observed that they worship God as revealed in the Old Testament; namely as Lord God Almighty (Jehovah Elohim Shaddai), and for the reason that it is now the question of God’s kingdom on earth “because thou hast taken to Thee Thy great power, and hast reigned.” (vs. 17) The words “and art to come,” as already said, are to be omitted and this is significant. No doubt the eternity of God is expressed in the threefold phrase “which art, and wast, and art to come”—present, past, and future. But when used in reference, as here, to the earth and the kingdom, the future is, so to speak, merged in with the present, for He has come and taken to Himself His great power. (Compare Rev. 1:88I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the ending, saith the Lord, which is, and which was, and which is to come, the Almighty. (Revelation 1:8).)
The effect of the assumption of the sovereignty of the world by the Christ of God is then given by the elders: “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” (vs. 18). It is a general, and only a general, statement of the consequences of the establishment of the kingdom in power, and thus reaches down even to its close, inasmuch as it is not until then that the dead will be judged. (See Rev. 20.) There are three things specified. First, the anger of the nations, and this may include the gathering together of the kings of the earth, with their armies, under the leadership of the beast (Rev. 19:1919And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. (Revelation 19:19)) to make war against Christ as He comes from heaven with His army, and the nations from the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, gathered together by Satan at the close of the thousand years (Rev. 20:7-97And when the thousand years are expired, Satan shall be loosed out of his prison, 8And shall go out to deceive the nations which are in the four quarters of the earth, Gog and Magog, to gather them together to battle: the number of whom is as the sand of the sea. 9And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and compassed the camp of the saints about, and the beloved city: and fire came down from God out of heaven, and devoured them. (Revelation 20:7‑9)). Secondly, the wrath of God, as seen in judging the dead, and in destroying them which destroyed the earth. Lastly, blessing in giving reward to His servants the prophets, and to the saints, and to them that fear His name, both small and great. This is not the heavenly blessing of the church, of the saints of this dispensation. In this scene they are already on high, and they, with all indeed who share in the first resurrection, will come forth with Christ when He takes His kingdom; but the reward here spoken of is for the kingdom, for the saints on earth in the kingdom. That there are special rewards also for other saints in the kingdom is quite true, only the specification here of prophets, saints, and those that fear thy name would seem rather to mark out earthly and not heavenly saints.
The third woe has now been inflicted. The first was characterized by Satan’s power, and its subjects were apostate Jews; the second was human in its instrumentality, and this was visited upon the Roman empire; the last is emphatically God’s woe, and it falls upon the nations in general, inasmuch as it is connected with the setting up of the Messiah’s kingdom.
It may aid the reader to point out that this last woe, the end of the forty-two months, or the 1260 days (Rev. 11:2-32But 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. 3And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. (Revelation 11:2‑3)), is the prophetic half week of this book; the conclusion of the seventy weeks of Daniel’s prophecy (Dan. 9:25-2725Know therefore and understand, that from the going forth of the commandment to restore and to build Jerusalem unto the Messiah the Prince shall be seven weeks, and threescore and two weeks: the street shall be built again, and the wall, even in troublous times. 26And after threescore and two weeks shall Messiah be cut off, but not for himself: and the people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary; and the end thereof shall be with a flood, and unto the end of the war desolations are determined. 27And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate. (Daniel 9:25‑27)) has been reached; and that thus, as to time, it coincides with Revelation 19:11-1611And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 12His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 13And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 14And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean. 15And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. (Revelation 19:11‑16). The succeeding chapters must not therefore be read as following consecutively in the history; for, as pointed out, we have now arrived at the terminus, the kingdom of Christ established. Details are afterward given, fuller developments, specific instruction as to many events, the infliction of still severer judgments, and above all, the direct connection of heaven with what transpires on earth, together with the divine interest expressed and manifested towards those who keep the commandments of God and have the testimony of Jesus Christ, those who, amid general apostasy, are found faithful, not loving their lives unto the death.