Revelation 11

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.