REVELATION
SIMPLIFIED
CHAPTER 11.7
Gleanings
from the Book of Revelation:
A
Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series
The
REVELATION
TO JOHN
(The Apocalypse)
Chapter
Eleven
The
Great Tribulation
(Parenthesis)
Two Witnesses (Continued)
Preface
Bearing the semblance of a science
fiction movie, two characters having supernatural powers appear on the pages of
Scripture clothed in sackcloth. Fire emits from their mouths as they preach
imminent global judgment. Acting as the lights for the Lord, they will lead a
national movement of repentance for Israel and reconciliation with the true
Messiah, Jesus Christ.
Keeping His promise to Abraham, Isaac,
and Jacob, God will surely remember His remnant during Tribulation:
Leviticus
26:44 - And yet for all that, when they
(Israel) be in the land of their enemies, I will not cast them away,
neither will I abhor them, to destroy them
utterly, and
to break My
covenant with them: for I am the
LORD their God.
No one, no power, no military might
harm them until God gives permission. (See Job 1:12; 2:6). And as such, they become
a terrible thwart and annoyance to Antichrist's program. And so, the two
witnesses remain immortal until their ministry has been accomplished.
(Verse 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.
Please note one of the most profound,
but overlooked, statements in the Bible:
And when they shall have finished their testimony
Do you realize that a child of God,
living in the will of God, and being chosen by God for ministry is indestructible
until his work is finished? But this does not mean there will be no obstacles
to overcome. For example, David, giving edifying advice to his son Solomon
said:
1
Chronicles 28:20 - …Be strong and of good courage, and do it: fear not, nor be dismayed: for the LORD God, even my God, will be with thee; He will not fail thee, nor forsake thee, until thou hast finished all the work for the service of the
house of the LORD.
The Beast
The word for a beast in Greek is thērion (Strong's G2342), meaning a dangerous venomous wild animal. There are thirty-six references to
this creature in Revelation (this being the first), and they all refer to
Antichrist.
In this passage, once the witnesses
have finished their testimony, God will divinely permit the release of a beast
from the Bottomless Pit (the deepest abyss of Hades). He will thus take on the
form of a man and be a world ruler (Antichrist), empowered by Satan to make war
with them, and the only one authorized to kill them. As the text continues, the
result will be to God's glory.
(Verse 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.
Once
the two witnesses are killed, their dead bodies (a corpse; singular in Greek, signifying the body of Christ) will be put on public display in the
streets. This action is a violation according to Jewish law:
Deuteronomy 21:22-23 - And if a man have
committed a sin worthy of death, and he be to be
put to death, and thou hang him on a tree: His body shall not remain all night upon the tree, but
thou shalt in any wise bury him that day;
(for he that is hanged is
accursed of God;) that thy land be not
defiled, which the LORD thy God giveth thee for an inheritance.
Death
by Beheading
The
form of their death is not stated. Even though hanging and crucifixion were common
in the era of persecution, most likely they were beheaded, since beheading was
traditionally prevalent because of its sadistic crude barbarism. Others at the
time of John's writing met the same fate:
1. John the Baptist – King
Herod had his head presented to Herodias' daughter, Salome by honoring an oath:
Mark 6:26-28 - And the king (Herod) was exceeding sorry; yet for his oath's sake…And immediately the
king sent an executioner, and commanded his
head to be brought: and he went and beheaded
him in the prison, And brought his head in a
charger, and gave it to the damsel (Salome): and the damsel gave it to her mother
(Herodias).
2. James the son of Zebedee –
During the reign of Tiberius, Herod Agrippa I., grandson of Herod the Great,
ordered James' death in this fashion:
Acts 12:1-2 - At that time King Herod caused terrible
suffering for some members of the church. He ordered
soldiers to cut off the head of James, the
brother of John. (CEV)
3. The Apostle Paul –
Although uncertainty remains, historian Eusebius and tradition suggest Paul's
beheading by the Romans under Emperor Nero about 68 A.D. Subsequently, Paul's
focus is sincerely expressed in his letter to Timothy:
2 Timothy 4:18 - And the
Lord shall deliver me from every evil work, and will preserve me
unto His heavenly Kingdom: to Whom be glory for ever and ever. Amen.
Additionally,
Revelation 20 speaks of the souls of beheaded martyrs: Revelation 20:4 - And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment
was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were
beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and the
Word of God, and which had not worshipped
the beast, neither his image, neither had received his
mark upon their foreheads or in their hands;
and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
The
Great City
Many
references in the Bible of the great city are to Babylon. However, this great
city is citing the literal city of Jerusalem, but spiritually Jerusalem will be
representative of the world because of its rebellion against God. The passage
equates the great city to be no better than Sodom and Egypt. Sodom, once
destroyed by fire, epitomizes gross immorality. Whereas Egypt, destroyed by
plagues, typifies idolatry, and political oppression of its people. Thus, Sodom
represents wickedness, and Egypt, worldliness.
In
effect, Jerusalem will become similarly polluted and rebellious as once was
Sodom and Egypt. Significantly, the two witnesses will be killed in the same
city Christ was crucified. Furthermore, it will also be the seat of the Antichrist's rule:
2 Thessalonians 2:3-4 - Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there
come a falling away first, and that man of
sin be revealed, the son of perdition; Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is worshipped; so that he as
God sitteth in the Temple of God, shewing
himself that he is God.
(Verse 8)
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
(allow) their dead bodies to be put in graves.
Demonstrating the tremendous impact of
Tribulation, all people (unbelievers) dwelling on earth at this time will not
only be overwhelmingly satisfied with their deaths, but they will gloat viewing
their bodies for eighty-four hours – 3 ½ days, forbidding interment. Some have
even suggested to these senses the probability of diverting another empty tomb.
Jewish Belief
Normally, Jews buried bodies on the day
of death. In Jewish thought, it was considered a terrible thing for a body not
to be buried. For instance:
1. Without any remorse or conscience,
comparing their bodies to food for beasts, and their blood to the value of
water, the Psalmist laments:
Psalm
79:3 - The dead bodies of thy
servants have they given to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of
thy saints unto the beasts of the earth. Their blood has they shed like water round about Jerusalem, and there was none to bury them.
2. Jews also believed the spirit of the
dead hovered over a body for three days. In the following example, Lazarus had
been dead for four days before Jesus called Lazarus forth.
John
11:17, 43-44 - Then when Jesus came, He found that he had lain
in the grave four days already…And when He
thus had spoken, He cried with a loud
voice, Lazarus, come forth. And he that was dead
came forth, bound hand and foot
with graveclothes: and his face was bound about with a napkin. Jesus saith unto
them, Loose him and let him go.
3. Jesus
rose on the third day:
1 Corinthians 15:4 - And that He was buried, and
that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures.
And
so, interestingly this brief time --- 3 ½ days they lay dead --- is congruent
to the same length of time they prophesied and is also contrasted to the 3 ½
years of Tribulation.
(Verse 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.
This passage marks the only mention of
sinners rejoicing on earth. The Greek word for rejoice here is chairō. Unlike joyous exaltation or exceeding great joy, chairō is defined as being a joyful farewell greeting.
Hence, celebrating what the Antichrist
has accomplished, an international happy holiday is inaugurated. Similar to the
United States celebration of Mardi Gras and Rio De Janeiro's Carnival, but
reserved as a symbol of victory, the holiday symbolizes the silencing of the
prophets who denounced those who refused to believe in God.
Some have named this celebratory event
"Happy Dead Prophets Day." Part of the celebration even involves exchanging
gifts with one another. But be assured, one gift will not include a red-letter
edition of the King James Bible. No, it will be more like bacchanalia clothed with
hallucinogens.
Remembering wise King Solomon's words: "There's nothing new under the sun" (cf. Ecclesiastes 1:9).
Isaiah
22:13 - And behold joy and gladness, slaying oxen, and killing sheep, eating flesh, and drinking wine: let us eat and drink [and
be merry]; for
to morrow we shall die.
However,
while the whole world is partying hard, something very extraordinary happens –
Another supernatural event. This will be exhorted in the following study.
QUESTIONS:
1. Why are the two witnesses contrary to Antichrist's
program?
2. What happens when they finish their testimony?
3. Describe the beast from the Bottomless Pit.
4. How do they die?
5. What happens to their bodies?
6. What does the great City represent?
7. How is their death honored?
If this study was a blessing to you, make it a blessing to others.
SAVE
AND FORWARD THIS LINK
http://breadoflifeministriesassoc.blogspot.com/
