The Revelation of Saint John the Divine
The King James Bible
Revelation 11:1-13 Witnesses resurrected 1And 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. 2But 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. 4These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth. 5And 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. 6These 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. 7And 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. 8And 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. 9And 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. 10And 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. 11And 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. 13And 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 yardstick." Reeds were used for measuring (Ezekiel 40:3; 40:5). "Measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein." (11:1) - "Measure God's temple and count the number of believers." "The court which is without the temple leave out." (11:2) - "Don't count those in the courtyard outside the temple." These are false believers. "And the holy city shall they tread under foot." (11:2) - As prophesied in Daniel 8:13 700 hundred years before John wrote these words. "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. There is even a school of thought that feels the reference is to 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). "Sackcloth." (11:3) - Simple clothing, made from the type of coarse cloth used to make sacks, 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)." "Two olive trees." (11:4) - This verse is reminiscent of Zechariah 4:1-14, which described two religious leaders, Zerubbabel and Joshua, selected by God to teach. "Fire proceedeth out of their mouth." (11:5) - Some scholars believe this is literal fire while others feel it is a metaphor for the truth and power of the two witnesses' words (Jeremiah 5:14). "These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not." (11:6) - The two witnesses will have strong 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). Both 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 it is Satan himself or one of his demons. However, Preterist's believe the beast was one of the Roman emperor's (possibly Nero) who initiated an era of Christian persecution during the early years of the church. "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) - A reference to Jerusalem. "Shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves." (11:9) - "Will not allow the dead (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) - They 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."
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Application thought for the day:
What does this chapter teach 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?
What does this chapter teach 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 Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
© 2021 evolke
© 2021 evolke