Revelation 11:1-13 Lesson 482

Revelation 11:1-13
Lesson 482

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

Measuring the Temple (11:1-2).
God's two witnesses (11:3-6).
The beast kills God's witnesses (11:7-9).
A worldwide holiday (11:10).
The witnesses are resurrected (11:11-13).

Study Tip:

It ties the Bible together when you go back and review past lessons.

The Revelation of Saint John the Divine

The King James Bible

Revelation 11:1-13
Witnesses resurrected

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.

Margin notes:

"There was given me a reed unto a rod." (11:1) - "I was given a reed to use as a measuring stick." Measuring reeds were 10.5 feet long (Ezekiel 40:3; 40:5).

"Measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein." (11:1) - "Measure God's Temple, the altar, and count the number of worshipers there."

"The court which is without the temple leave out." (11:2) - "Don't count the people in the courtyard outside the temple." Because those are false believers. See "Today's Question" below.

"Forty and two months." (11:2) - "Three and a half years."

"Two witnesses." (11:3) - Many scholars believe the two witnesses are devout believers. However, some Christians believe they are Moses and Elijah. Others say they are the prophets, Elias and Enoch. There is even a school of thought that claims the witnesses are two churches. Whoever they are, they will preach during the tribulation. Why does God choose two witnesses? According to Mosaic Law, at least two witnesses are required to establish a truth (Deuteronomy 19:15; John 8:17). However, some say the two witnesses are merely symbolic and represent the (1) true church and (2) the Word of God.

"They shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days." (11:3) - "They will preach for 1,260 days." We will see the number 1,260 again (12:6).

"Sackcloth." (11:3) - Sackcloth was a simple clothing made from the coarse cloth used to make sacks. It was usually worn during a time of mourning or repentance (Joel 1:13; Jonah 3:4-6; Matthew 11:20-21). Are the witnesses mourning or repenting?

"They shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days." (11:3) - "They will preach (about Jesus Christ) for 1,260 days (three and a half years)."

"These are the two olive trees." (11:4) - This verse refers to Zechariah 4:1-14, which described Zerubbabel and Joshua, selected by God to teach His Word, as two olive trees.

"Fire proceedeth out of their mouth." (11:5) - Some believe there will be actual fire flaming from the two witnesses. Others feel the fire is a metaphor for the truth and power of God's word (Jeremiah 5:14).

"These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not." (11:6) - The two witnesses will have extraordinary powers. Remember, in the Old Testament, the prophet Elijah was also given the power to create droughts (1 Kings 17:1).

"Have the power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues." (11:6) - During the struggle to free the Israelites from Egyptian bondage, God gave Moses the power to turn water into blood (Exodus 7:20-21) and to create all sorts of plagues (Exodus 8:1-4; 8:20-24). Elijah and Moses appeared with Jesus during the Transfiguration (Matthew 17:1-7; Mark 9:2-13; Luke 9:28-36).

"The beast." (11:7) - Futurists believe this is the antichrist, the enemy of God and all humanity. Some say the beast is Satan himself or one of his powerful demons. However, Preterists believe the beast has already come and gone. They say he was one of the Roman emperors (possibly Nero) who initiated an era of Christian persecution during the church's early years.

"Which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt." (11:8) - "Which figuratively is called Sodom (because of its sinful nature) and Egypt (because it was repressive).

"Where also our Lord was crucified." (11:8) - Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem.

"Shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves." (11:9) - "Will not allow the dead (two witnesses) to be buried."

"They that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them." (11:10) - "Unbelievers will rejoice over their deaths."

"These two prophets tormented them." (11:10) - God's two witnesses tormented unbelievers with the truth and their need to repent.

"The remnant were affrighted." (11:13) - "The rest were afraid."

New Living Translation

Revelation 11:1-13
The Two Witnesses

1 Then I was given a measuring stick, and I was told, "Go and measure the Temple of God and the altar, and count the number of worshipers.

2 But do not measure the outer courtyard, for it has been turned over to the nations. They will trample the holy city for 42 months.

3 And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will be clothed in burlap and will prophesy during those 1,260 days."

4 These two prophets are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of all the earth.

5 If anyone tries to harm them, fire flashes from their mouths and consumes their enemies. This is how anyone who tries to harm them must die.

6 They have power to shut the sky so that no rain will fall for as long as they prophesy. And they have the power to turn the rivers and oceans into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they wish.

7 When they complete their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the bottomless pit will declare war against them, and he will conquer them and kill them.

8 And their bodies will lie in the main street of Jerusalem, the city that is figuratively called "Sodom" and "Egypt," the city where their Lord was crucified.

9 And for three and a half days, all peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will stare at their bodies. No one will be allowed to bury them.

10 All the people who belong to this world will gloat over them and give presents to each other to celebrate the death of the two prophets who had tormented them.

11 But after three and a half days, God breathed life into them, and they stood up! Terror struck all who were staring at them.

12 Then a loud voice from heaven called to the two prophets, "Come up here!" And they rose to heaven in a cloud as their enemies watched.

13 At the same time there was a terrible earthquake that destroyed a tenth of the city. Seven thousand people died in that earthquake, and everyone else was terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word-for-word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's question:

1. Why measure the Temple and count the believers but exclude the courtyard (11:1-2)?

Let me know if your email address is changing.

Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. This seems to tell us there is a difference between the faithful inner church and the hollow outer church. God will protect the true church. The superficial church will be corrupted and manipulated by the unbelieving world.

Application thought for the day:

What does this chapter tell us about Jews and Gentiles in the last days?
How can you take what you've learned about rejecting Christ and apply it to your life?

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course, the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
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