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Revelation 11

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th1b.taylor

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Revelation 11:1:
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.
Revelation 11:2:
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.


This is the half way mark, 11 of 22 chapters, and we find that our LORD is instructing on the Great Tribulation, a.k.a. The day of the LORD. From my studies in the Major and the Minor Prophets I make it that at this point the Church has been raptured and the Man of Satan is in control, via the One World Government. (This will be explained when we begin chapter 13.)


In this passage we find that the Temple has been rebuilt. Some will say this is the temple in Heaven and I reject that idea based on the text. The text clearly speaks of the Gentiles (Lost Men) and they shall never be turned loose in Heaven and further it speaks of the first forty-two months of the Tribulation period.


In my sight the Dome on the Rock (The Golden Shrine built on top of the Temple Location) has been removed by what-ever means and has been replaced with the third, and in perspective, final, Temple for the name of Yahweh is built there.


Revelation 11:3:
And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
Revelation 11:4:
These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
Revelation 11:5:
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.
Revelation 11:6:
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.


There has been and still is a great deal of conjecture and concern over the identity of these two witnesses and I believe they are Enoch, who walked with God and was no more or Elijah and Moses. Most of the teachers I´ve studied with lean towards Elijah and Moses and I, like them, refuse to be dogmatic on this identity matter. These will be the two God has already appointed and nothing I say or do will change that! The most relevant matters here are that they are, not will be, God´s Witnesses and they are going to trouble the World for three and a half years.


Revelation 11:7:
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.
Revelation 11:8:
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.
Revelation 11:9:
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.
Revelation 11:10:
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.
Revelation 11:11:
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.
Revelation 11:12:
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.


We will not be here to see this (the Saved Men and Women) but the joy and the celebration of their deaths will end abruptly and fear will grip the hearts of every lost person alive at this time. These men have defended themselves with fire out of their mouths. It is difficult, sometimes, to determine what is literal and what is symbolic I this book.


The Holy Spirit has convinced me that all the writings here about the Two Witnesses is to be taken literally. It as been suggested to me by more than a couple of people that these men might have a Flame Thrower of some fashion but knowing what I do of God I can never embrace such a plain ad simple idea. When working our way through any prophetic passage we must remember we serve a truly Awesome God with limitless power and ability. God does not do things our way!


Revelation 11:13:
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.
Revelation 11:14:
The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.


I believe that it is very important to remember that the timing of events in Israel must be considered as our Time-Piece. When I look at the scriptures the closest thing I find that may be relative to the United States is the prophecy in Obadiah and references in other places of Edom. This just infuriates people, particularly my fellow citizens but like Edom and the second Edom, Ancient Rome, in the grand scheme of events, the U.S. is not important in Spiritual Matters.


So, here, we see that a tenth of the Holy City, in Jerusalem, is destroyed and seven thousand men are killed. Watch me here because this is important for understanding. When we see a head count in the Bible, women and children are not counted, putting the count for the dead to total no less than twenty-one thousand and much more likely, well over thirty thousand. This will be no small event.


Revelation 11:15:
And the seventh angel sounded; and 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 for ever and ever.
Revelation 11:16:
And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,
Revelation 11:17:
Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.
Revelation 11:18:
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.


Here we find what some have used for evidence of the Mid-Tribulation Rapture position. For myself, with all other scripture being used to consider my position, I cannot go there. That and the truth that the Holy Spirit as never sought to instruct me otherwise leaves me to consider that I have either drawn the right conclusion or this matter, not being a matter of Salvation, is not of critical consideration. I have taken the position that if a body disagrees with me here that I can agree to disagree and let my LORD settle the matter in and at His timing.


Revelation 11:19:
And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.


And this chapter ends in such a grand display of God´s power.
 
Based on the text, what tells you the temple has been destroyed?


Edit; I refer to the text of Revelation from this point back to the beginning.
 
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oh sir, you know,
I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple. (Rev.21:22)

Jesus Predicts the Destruction of the Temple

1 Then Jesus went out and departed from the temple, and His disciples came up to show Him the buildings of the temple. 2 And Jesus said to them, “Do you not see all these things? Assuredly, I say to you, not one stone shall be left here upon another, that shall not be thrown down.” (Matt.24:1-2)


19 Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail. (Rev.11:19)

The thunderings & hail, etc. are symbolic- It means you listen, God just did something big.

It this case- the "temple" of the Old Testament went from material to spiritual in the New Testament.
 
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.

Roman siege of Jerusalem, anyone? Bueller? Bueller?
 
Most of the teachers I´ve studied with lean towards Elijah and Moses and I, like them, refuse to be dogmatic on this identity matter.

{11}
"Truly I say to you, among those born of women there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist! Yet the one who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. {12} "From the days of John the Baptist until now the kingdom of heaven suffers violence, and violent men take it by force. {13} "For all the prophets and the Law prophesied until John. {14} "And if you are willing to accept it, John himself is Elijah who was to come. {15} "He who has ears to hear, let him hear. Matthew 11:11-15 (NASB)

Guess it pays to read other parts of the New Testament, eh? :thumbsup

We can eliminate Elijah as one of the witnesses.
 
And the seventh angel sounded; and 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 for ever and ever.
This is an obvious allusion to what John wrote here:
{7} but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as He preached to His servants the prophets. Revelation 10:7 (NASB)
What is this “mystery of God?”
{6} Yet we do speak wisdom among those who are mature; a wisdom, however, not of this age nor of the rulers of this age, who are passing away; {7} but we speak God's wisdom in a mystery, the hidden wisdom which God predestined before the ages to our glory; {8} the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory; 1 Corinthians 2:6-8 (NASB)
The “mystery of God” is Christ Jesus Himself, as Paul writes here:
{1} For this reason I, Paul, the prisoner of Christ Jesus for the sake of you Gentiles— {2} if indeed you have heard of the stewardship of God's grace which was given to me for you; {3} that by revelation there was made known to me the mystery, as I wrote before in brief. {4} By referring to this, when you read you can understand my insight into the mystery of Christ, {5} which in other generations was not made known to the sons of men, as it has now been revealed to His holy apostles and prophets in the Spirit; {6} to be specific, that the Gentiles are fellow heirs and fellow members of the body, and fellow partakers of the promise in Christ Jesus through the gospel, {7} of which I was made a minister, according to the gift of God's grace which was given to me according to the working of His power.

{8} To me, the very least of all saints, this grace was given, to preach to the Gentiles the unfathomable riches of Christ, {9} and to bring to light what is the administration of the mystery which for ages has been hidden in God who created all things; {10} so that the manifold wisdom of God might now be made known through the church to the rulers and the authorities in the heavenly places. {11} This was in accordance with the eternal purpose which He carried out in Christ Jesus our Lord, {12} in whom we have boldness and confident access through faith in Him. Ephesians 3:1-12 (NASB)
And here:
{25} Of this church I was made a minister according to the stewardship from God bestowed on me for your benefit, so that I might fully carry out the preaching of the word of God, {26} that is, the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, {27} to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. Colossians 1:25-27 (NASB)
The “mystery”, which was hidden from the Jews in Christ’s parables, was revealed to His disciples and later preached by them: that Gentiles would be joint heirs with Christ in the promises God had made to Abraham through the covenant of faith.

One of the critical points people need to know about Revelation is that it’s a book of transition from the kingdom of God under Israel, ruled by its priesthood, to the kingdom of God ruled by Christ wherein we are all now priests. The text of Revelation 11:15 (quoted above) even makes this clear!

I offer this to anyone else wishing to undertake a serious study of Revelation: don't read it by itself. All of the allusions John makes in it can be found and understood in the context of the gospels, Paul's epistles, and especially the Old Testament.

If you don't have a concordance, follow the link in my signature, get the free Bible software offered there, and use its search feature to find out what the symbolism of Revelation means by using the rest of the Bible to interpret it for you.
 
Concerning the two witnesses.

It is exceedingly popular to believe these refer to Moses and Elijah or some other notable Old Testament prophet; they certainly are not.

A close reading of God's Word reveals exactly who they are:

Zerubbabel the son of Shealtiel, governor of Judah, and Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest

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.

For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of YHVH, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?

And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?

And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.

Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth. Zechariah 4:12-14

compare

And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth -Revelation 11:4

In that day, saith the LORD of hosts, will I take thee, O Zerubbabel, my servant, the son of Shealtiel, saith the LORD, and will make thee as a signet: for I have chosen thee, saith the LORD of hosts. -Haggai 2:23

For behold the stone that I have laid before Joshua; upon one stone shall be seven eyes: behold, I will engrave the graving thereof, saith the LORD of hosts, and I will remove the iniquity of that land in one day.

And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth. -Revelation 5:6

The stone (which the builder refused) has seven eyes and removes iniquity in one day?

Then take silver and gold, and make crowns, and set them upon the head of Joshua the son of Josedech, the high priest; And speak unto him, saying, Thus speaketh the LORD of hosts, saying, Behold the man whose name is The BRANCH; and he shall grow up out of his place, and he shall build the temple of the LORD: Even he shall build the temple of the LORD; and he shall bear the glory, and shall sit and rule upon his throne; and he shall be a priest upon his throne: and the counsel of peace shall be between them both. -Zechariah 6:11-13

I find this one difficult to grasp. Its almost like saying this Joshua is a pre-incarnation of Christ, whose name actually is Yeshua/Yehoshua which is rendered Joshua or Jesus and is also the high priest of us today. I'm NOT saying this verse is saying that. Only it seems to and I haven't looked into this enough to say.
 
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the BRANCH is the messiah.

I knew the BRANCH is the Messiah but the reason I was astonished is because I read the whole thing wrong.
The Scripture is not saying OF Joshua, son of Josedech "Behold the BRANCH"--it's saying say unto HIM (Joshua) Behold the BRANCH.

That was the only thing I was confused about. Otherwise, it seems clear enough to me who the two witnesses are now.
 
I knew the BRANCH is the Messiah but the reason I was astonished is because I read the whole thing wrong.
The Scripture is not saying OF Joshua, son of Josedech "Behold the BRANCH"--it's saying say unto HIM (Joshua) Behold the BRANCH.

That was the only thing I was confused about. Otherwise, it seems clear enough to me who the two witnesses are now.
pm me theres some jewish things that you may know about that being "a jew" myself could and would appreciate. ie the tanakh and channukah. and the oral traditions
 
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