Revelation 11 the two witnesses

Revelation 11 Explained

By Bill Weather – Main Page – Prophecy Base

This will be a verse by verse study. One must understand that Revelation is highly metaphorical, to hide its meaning so only those who are taught by him, and who seek deep for the treasures of his word, will find them. A pre programmed mind of Futurism will not be teachable to understand these metaphors because usually, they are trying to justify shoving everything into a final 7 year junk drawer, by their own understandings.

11 Then I was given a reed like a measuring rod. And the angel stood, saying, “Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. 2 But leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will tread the holy city underfoot for forty-two months.

This 42 months is mentioned in Rev 13 as the time of the beast’s reign. We know this as a day equals a year in prophecy, which is 42 x 30 days per month = 1260 day/years, which is the time given here in verse 3.

Here we see it is a spiritual temple. It is saying to measure the church and its spiritual progress. We are the holy city. It is not a physical city, like Jerusalem who was destroyed in 70 AD. This all has to do with the 538-1798 era of the dark age Papal rule.

3 And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.” 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the God of the earth.

It says the two witnesses are the two olive trees and the two lampstands. Revelation 1:20 tells us the 7 churches are the 7 lampstands. Therefore, since scripture defines a lampstand as a church, then the 2 witnesses are 2 of the 7 churches, baring witness during that dark age era. They are prophesying against the harlot church during that 1260 year era.

5 And if anyone wants to harm them, fire proceeds from their mouth and devours their enemies. And if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this manner.

This was metaphor for being protected for a time.

6 These have power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls in the days of their prophesying; and they have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire.

This was the protest of the saints continually prophesying against the Papal Beast, the Abigenses, the Waldenses, the Bohemians, the Lollards, the Hussites and others, prophesying judgment upon the Papal beast for its evil.

7 When they finish their testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit will make war against them, overcome them, and kill them. 8 And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

Our Lord was crucified in Jerusalem, but this is “spiritually called Sodom and Egypt”… We call believers the body of Christ and the body of Christ during this 1260 year era was being crucified by the Roman/Latin beast. Rome and it’s allegiances is that city. As much as you’ve done it to the least of these my brethren, you’ve done it unto me says the Lord. So Christ was being crucified thru Rome in this era.

9 Then those from the peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations will see their dead bodies three-and-a-half days, and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves.

The Papacy had a decree to not burry the bodies of heretics. They lie dead in the street of the great city for 3.5 days. In May 1514, at the Fifth Lateran Council, it was declared that all Christendom was under Papal authority and there were no witnesses against them. The word of truth was completely dead. They had so killed every witness against them.

10 And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them, make merry, and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.

Upon the 5^th Lateran Council declaration, the Papacy funded great fan fair throughout the empire in support of their complete control over Christendom.

11 Now after the three-and-a-half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they ascended to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies saw them.

At exactly 3.5 years later, to the very day, Martin Luther nailed his 95 thesis to the Church door which brought the word of truth back to life. The witness to the truth was raised from the dead. From May 5^th 1514 Lateran Council declaration where the word of truth died, to October 31, 1517, when Luther nailed his 95 thesis, the word of truth came back to life, equals exactly 3.5 years (360 day years).
When they ascended into the cloud, it foretold judgment is coming upon those who were involved with this murderous beast/church. Almost every time you see a cloud in scripture, it marks a coming judgment> Jer 4:13,14>EZ 1:2>Nahum 1:3>Matt 24:30.

13 In the same hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. In the earthquake seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were afraid and gave glory to the God of heaven.

A tenth of the city fell. This was England, one of the ten horns (a 10^th) who broke from the Papal rule and became protestant in 1534.

In the earthquake, of political upheaval, 7000 people were killed, meaning the 7 chiliads = provinces. In 1579, the Roman Catholic church lost the 7 provinces of Holland, Zealand, Ultrecht, Freiseland, Groningen,Overryssel, Guilderland to the reformation.

14 The second woe is past. Behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

Notice there is now a separation here, between the second and third woe. The two witnesses are now in the past, and are unrelated to the third woe.

15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The [f]kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”

The greek lexicon tells us the word egeneto "have become" , is "used with great latitude", meaning the word is very flexible. Based on our timeline here, it could be translated "the kingdoms of this world are becoming the kingdoms of our Lord and of his Christ..."

This is metaphor for the word of God now beginning to reign in the hearts of the people, when formerly it was kept from them, bound up in the dead Latin tongue only the RCC priests could understand. This cannot be literal, because it says in verse 14 a 3rd woe is coming quickly. Once Christ's literal reigns comes, there will be no more woes, more proving this is metaphor for his word beginning to reign in and through the reformation era, not his literal 1000 year millennial time yet presently reigning here.

This is metaphor for the word of God now beginning to reign in the hearts of the people, when formerly it was kept from them, bound up in the dead Latin tongue only the RCC priests could understand.

16 And the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying:

“We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
The One who is and who was [g]and who is to come,
Because You have taken Your great power and reigned.
18 The nations were angry, and Your wrath has come,
And the time of the dead, that they should be judged,
And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints, And those who fear Your name, small and great,
And should destroy those who destroy the earth.”

This is prophesying of God's kingdom now metaphorically, beginning to reign in the earth because finally, after a long grievous dark age, the word of God was now reigning and beginning to judge the hearts of men, as the little book, the Bible began to run big from the newly invented printing press.

Christians think "your wrath has come" is always referring to the final wrath of God at the very end. That is a mistake. The wrath of God has been judging empires and kingdoms for thousands of years.

Yes, it is also prophesying of the future time as well, for when his literal 1000 year reign will begin, but it had not yet begun here because of the third woe that was still to come, along with the many other events in Revelation 12 through 19.

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.

Now the ark of the covenant was seen, meaning his new covenant word was seen and is now going forth in this Reformation era, but in the midst of that, were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail, judgment upheavals still to come. When Christ's 1000 year reign comes, there will be no more prophetic lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail, so this is not the time, here in Revelation 11, of his millennial reign.

Previously, the ark of the covenant was not seen, from the Catholic dark age religion binding up the faith in the dead Latin language. Profession of church membership, instead of repentance and a new heart, was falsely all that was needed to satisfy God in those days. Now the reformation was correcting that and now the kingdom could begin to reign in the hearts of men once again.

This second half of Revelation 11 is probably the most tricky to set a chronology to, but we must remember, there was a third woe yet to come (v14) and that the nations were angry (v18). Because of that, it's not possible that his millennial reign would begin here in the chronology. When Christ begins to reign, there will be no more woes and there will be no more nations angry. They will be eliminated and or overthrown completely and utterly because we the saints, will be reigning as kings and priests. No nation will be angry because the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ will be reigning in righteousness, peace and joy for 1000 years.

All 5 timelines given in Revelation have been incredibly fulfilled. The 10 events of the start and finish of those 5 timelines are an incredible testimony to the glory of our God, and his Son, Jesus Christ. I can't see how anyone can truly understand Revelation chronology without those 5 timelines as a guide, unless they just carelessly, throw it all into a last seven year tribulation junk drawer. Again, we Historicists do not believe God was that careless with history.

Link List

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