(*All Bible verses are from the NIV unless otherwise noted)
Chapter 11
7 Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them.
8 Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.
9 For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.
10 The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.
11 But after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them.
12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud while their enemies looked on.
Rev 11:7
Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them, and overpower and kill them:
This is the first mention of “the beast” in the revelation. Compare this to the four beasts that come out of the sea in Daniel 7 and later in Chapter 13 of John’s vision:
Dan 7:3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea. 4 “The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a human being, and the mind of a human was given to it. 5 “And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, ‘Get up and eat your fill of flesh!’ 6 “After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule. 7 “After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
Rev 13:2 The beast I saw resembled a leopard, but had feet like those of a bear and a mouth like that of a lion. The dragon gave the beast his power and his throne and great authority.
In Chapter 13, we will see that the beast represents the evil that arises to confront believers anytime they courageously stand in testimony of Christ. In Chapter 20, the dragon is identified as the devil or Satan, the destroyer, a murderer and father of lies (John 8:44), and the source of the beast’s power.
Some scholars suggest that Daniel’s “beasts” symbolize the Babylonian, Medo-Persian, Greek, and Roman Empires that would subjugate rebellious Israel. This is an excellent example of the eternal nature of prophecy. While Daniel’s beasts may symbolize the four empires conquering Israel, the broader sense is that the beast, the lies and powers of Satan, enslaves those who disobey God.
The picture of devouring beasts was used by the prophets in much the same way:
Isa 56:9 Come, all you beasts of the field, come and devour, all you beasts of the forest! 10 Israel’s watchmen are blind, they all lack knowledge; they are all mute dogs, they cannot bark; they lie around and dream, they love to sleep. 11 They are dogs with mighty appetites; they never have enough.They are shepherds who lack understanding; they all turn to their own way, they seek their own gain.
Jer 15:3 “I will send four kinds of destroyers against them,” declares the LORD, “the sword to kill and the dogs to drag away and the birds and the wild animals to devour and destroy.
Ezek 5:17 I will send famine and wild beasts against you, and they will leave you childless. Plague and bloodshed will sweep through you, and I will bring the sword against you. I the LORD have spoken.”
For a time, the beast (Satan) will attack the witnesses (believers), and overpower and kill them. Jesus lamented the fact that those who oppose God will persecute those who testify of Him, just as in ancient Israel:
Matt 5:12 Rejoice and be glad, because great is your reward in heaven, for in the same way they persecuted the prophets who were before you.
Matt 23:37 “Jerusalem, Jerusalem, you who kill the prophets and stone those sent to you, how often I have longed to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, and you were not willing.
1 Chron 24:20 Then the Spirit of God came on Zechariah son of Jehoiada the priest. He stood before the people and said, “This is what God says: ‘Why do you disobey the LORD’s commands? You will not prosper. Because you have forsaken the LORD, he has forsaken you.’ ” 21 But they plotted against him, and by order of the king they stoned him to death in the courtyard of the LORD’s temple.
Jer 2:30 “In vain I punished your people; they did not respond to correction. Your sword has devoured your prophetslike a ravenous lion.
1 Thes 2:14-15 For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of God’s churches in Judea, which are in Christ Jesus: You suffered from your own people the same things those churches suffered from the Jews 15 who killed the Lord Jesus and the prophets and also drove us out. They displease God and are hostile to everyone
Rev 11:8
Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city—which is figuratively called Sodom and Egypt – where also their Lord was crucified:
The religious leaders in Jerusalem were jealous of Jesus and, later, of his Apostles because of the crowds that were drawn to them. Why weren’t the people responding to them as they did to these country preachers? They were so blinded by their pride that they couldn’t even rejoice in the words of peace and salvation and the healings that took place right before their eyes1!
Jesus warned these leaders that they were doing exactly what their ancestors had done – rebelling against God’s word instead of embracing it!
Matt 23:30 And you say, ‘If we had lived in the days of our ancestors, we would not have taken part with them in shedding the blood of the prophets.’ 31 So you testify against yourselves that you are the descendants of those who murdered the prophets! 32 Go ahead, then, and complete what your ancestors started! 33 “You snakes! You brood of vipers! How will you escape being condemned to hell?
34 Therefore I am sending you prophets and sages and teachers. Some of them you will kill and crucify; others you will flog in your synagogues and pursue from town to town. 35 And so upon you will come all the righteous blood that has been shed on earth, from the blood of righteous Abel to the blood of Zechariah son of Berekiah, whom you murdered between the temple and the altar. 36 Truly I tell you, all this will come on this generation.
The persecution of Christian witnesses has never been a secret hidden from the world. “The great city where also their Lord was crucified” would seem to be Jerusalem, but the vision identifies this phrase in the greater symbolic sense as, “Figuratively, Sodom and Egypt.”
The people of Sodom and Gomorrah (Gen 19) had spiraled down into degenerate and immoral behavior. The Israelites were slaves to Egypt for generations (Exod 1:8-14). Assyria and Babylon conquered Israel and Judah, holding them captive and dispersing them all over the world (2 Kings 15, 24-25). Christians were first persecuted, imprisoned, and killed in Jerusalem (Acts 7). Considering Bible history, what do Sodom, Egypt, Babylon, and Jerusalem figuratively represent?
Rev 11:9
For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial:
Once again, we see the broken seven—three and a half—a period of sadness and oppression. Note the parallels between the scene that John is witnessing and how the prophets, including Jesus, have been treated by unbelieving people.
Psa 79:1-4 1 O God, the nations have invaded your inheritance; they have defiled your holy temple, they have reduced Jerusalem to rubble. 2 They have left the dead bodies of your servants as food for the birds of the sky, the flesh of your own people for the animals of the wild. 3 They have poured out blood like water all around Jerusalem, and there is no one to bury the dead. 4 We are objects of contempt to our neighbors, scorn, and derision to those around us.
Luke 22:63 The men who were guarding Jesus began mocking and beating him. 64 They blindfolded him and demanded, “Prophesy! Who hit you?” 65 And they said many other insulting things to him.
Matt 27:39 Those who passed by hurled insults at him, shaking their heads 40 and saying, “You who are going to destroy the temple and build it in three days, save yourself! Come down from the cross, if you are the Son of God!” 41 In the same way the chief priests, the teachers of the law and the elders mocked him. 42 “ He saved others,” they said, “but he can’t save himself! He’s the king of Israel! Let him come down now from the cross, and we will believe in him. 43 He trusts in God. Let God rescue him now if he wants him, for he said, ‘I am the Son of God.’ ” 44 In the same way the rebels who were crucified with him also heaped insults on him.
Acts 7:59 While they were stoning him, Stephen prayed, “Lord Jesus, receive my spirit.”
Some may speculate that the phrase “Some from every people, tribe, language, and nation will gaze on their bodies” suggests the presence of modern media. But what can be known for sure is that the persecution of believers has never been hidden from the world—it’s an ever-present reality. Every uncompromising witness of God’s Word can expect this reality!
Rev 11:10
The inhabitants of the earth will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts, because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.
John 16:20 Very truly I tell you, you will weep and mourn while the world rejoices. You will grieve, but your grief will turn to joy.
In many ways, our modern culture considers Christianity to be old-fashioned, foolish, and out of date with the world’s concept of reality. Science and technology are kings, not God! The Christian community is increasingly pressured to accept the world’s concept of “truth” rather than God’s, and the world rejoices over what is considered progressive thinking! The Apostle Paul recognized the dilemma long ago:
1Cor 1:18 For the message of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God.
1Cor 1:23 but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles,
1Cor 2:14 The person without the Spirit does not accept the things that come from the Spirit of God but considers them foolishness, and cannot understand them because they are discerned only through the Spirit.
Rev 11:11
But after three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them:
God breathes newness into all who call on Him – the breath of love, peace, and abundant life!
Gen 2:7 Then the LORD God formed a man from the dust of the ground and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and the man became a living being.
Ezek 37:9 Then he said to me, “Prophesy to the breath; prophesy, son of man, and say to it, ‘This is what the Sovereign LORD says: Come, breath, from the four winds and breathe into these slain, that they may live.’ ”
Job 33:4 The Spirit of God has made me;the breath of the Almighty gives me life.
Despite years of persecution, the Church grew and spread throughout the known world. It began with only a handful of believers and grew to over three thousand during Peter’s ministry. Home churches were established throughout Asia Minor through the apostles’ missionary work.
Eventually, Christ’s teachings became the dominant religion of the Roman world. Jesus’ teachings continue to bring new life into individuals, groups, and organizations throughout the world.
Matt 16:18 And I tell you that you are Peter, and on this rock I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it.
Rev 11:11
They stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them:
In 313 AD, Constantine issued the Edict of Milan, which granted Christianity—as well as most other religions—legal status. On February 27, 380, in Thessaloniki, the Eastern Roman Emperor Theodosius I (347 – 395) and the Western Roman Emperor Valentinian II (371 – 392) signed a decree making Christianity the official religion of the Empire.
During the 380s, Theodosius I enforced the ban on animal sacrifices that was originally established by Constantine the Great. In addition, he made the practice of using animal entrails for divination illegal. Theodosius I was also the first to prosecute magistrates for not enforcing laws against paganism. He dismantled various pagan groups and destroyed their temples. Between 389 and 391, Theodosius issued a set of laws known as “Theodosian decrees”. These decrees effectively banned paganism in the Roman Empire.
People were prohibited from visiting pagan temples, the remaining pagan holidays were abolished, the sacred fire in the Temple of Vesta in the Roman Forum was put out as the Vestal Virgins were disbanded, and committing auspices and witchcraft was declared punishable offenses.
Until this time, virtually all tribes, languages, and peoples were pagan. All customs, laws, celebrations, social norms, songs, literature, and bedtime stories were pagan. In less than four hundred years, Christianity became the official religion of the greatest empire the world had known!
The true attributes of a Christian witness are unrelenting eternal truths: love, charity, honesty, truthfulness, and the saving grace of God through Jesus. Only when believers become “lukewarm” and integrate into the unbelieving society, do these attributes falter.
Rev 11:12
Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies looked on:
John had a similar experience:
Rev 4:1 After this I looked, and there before me was a door standing open in heaven. And the voice I had first heard speaking to me like a trumpet said, “Come up here, and I will show you what must take place after this.”
John was called to heaven to witness God’s plans unfold; like the Apostle, Christ’s witness wouldn’t be permanently removed from the earth. If the two witnesses represent the saints’ testimony of Jesus, the fact that they are being offered sanctuary in God’s presence is significant. The promise of God’s refuge holds true for every faithful child of His.
Zech 4:6 So he said to me, “This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: ‘Not by might nor by power, but by my Spirit,’ says the LORD Almighty.
John 17:3 Now this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.
Luke 18:29 “Truly I tell you,” Jesus said to them, “no one who has left home or wife or brothers or sisters or parents or children for the sake of the kingdom of God
Eph 2:6And God raised us up with Christ and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, 7 in order that in the coming ages he might show the incomparable riches of his grace, expressed in his kindness to us in Christ Jesus.
Rev 11:12
At that very hour there was a severe earthquake:
John’s vision echoes the events of Jesus’ crucifixion. While Matthew records the effects of a physical earthquake at Jesus’ death, the reverberations of that event shook, and continue to shake, nations:
Matt 27:50 And when Jesus had cried out again in a loud voice, he gave up his spirit. At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people. 54 When the centurion and those with him who were guarding Jesus saw the earthquake and all that had happened, they were terrified, and exclaimed, “Surely he was the Son of God!”
Remember that the “city” John is seeing is figurative “Sodom and Egypt” and unfaithful “Jerusalem,” all being powerful symbols of mankind’s rebellion against God. An “earthquake” is often used to symbolize the shaking of nations and peoples as God’s plan unfolds on the earth:
Ezek 3:12 Then the Spirit lifted me up, and I heard behind me a loud rumbling sound as the glory of the LORD rose from the place where it was standing.
Isa 64:2 As when fire sets twigs ablaze and causes water to boil, come down to make your name known to your enemies and cause the nations to quake before you!
Isa 29:6 the LORD Almighty will come with thunder and earthquake and great noise, with windstorm and tempest and flames of a devouring fire.
Ps 60:2 You have shaken the land and torn it open; mend its fractures, for it is quaking.
Nah 1:5 The mountains quake before him and the hills melt away. The earth trembles at his presence, the world and all who live in it.
From the very beginning, the Gospel message rocked the foundations of civilization. Paganism began to collapse in the face of God’s truth. The entire known world was shaken by the actions of Constantine, Theodosius I, and Valentinian II! Christianity went from a detestable cult to the official religion of the Roman Empire!
Eph 1:18 I pray that the eyes of your heart may be enlightened in order that you may know the hope to which he has called you, the riches of his glorious inheritance in his holy people, 19 and his incomparably great power for us who believe. That power is the same as the mighty strength 20 he exerted when he raised Christ from the dead and seated him at his right hand in the heavenly realms, 21 far above all rule and authority, power and dominion, and every name that is invoked, not only in the present age but also in the one to come. 22 And God placed all things under his feet and appointed him to be head over everything for the church, 23 which is his body, the fullness of him who fills everything in every way.
The Gospel shook the very foundations of every village, city, and province as Christianity gained momentum and spread. Literal earthquakes, some great and some small have caused devastation throughout history, and readers can speculate as to which one has or will cause the greatest destruction. But what can be known for sure is that the effect of Jesus’ message has changed the entire history of humankind!
Heb 12:26-28 26 At that time his voice shook the earth, but now he has promised, “Once more I will shake not only the earth but also the heavens.” 27 The words “once more” indicate the removing of what can be shaken—that is, created things—so that what cannot be shaken may remain. 28Therefore, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship God acceptably with reverence and awe,
Ezek 38:19-20 19 In my zeal and fiery wrath I declare that at that time there shall be a great earthquake in the land of Israel. 20 The fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, the beasts of the field, every creature that moves along the ground, and all the people on the face of the earth will tremble at my presence. The mountains will be overturned, the cliffs will crumble and every wall will fall to the ground.
Haggai 2:6 “This is what the LORD Almighty says: ‘In a little while I will once more shake the heavens and the earth, the sea and the dry land.
Matt 27:51-53 51 At that moment the curtain of the temple was torn in two from top to bottom. The earth shook, the rocks split 52 and the tombs broke open. The bodies of many holy people who had died were raised to life. 53 They came out of the tombs after Jesus’ resurrection and went into the holy city and appeared to many people.
As we’ve seen, prophecy can have literal fulfillment as well as eternal ramifications. The siege and fall of Jerusalem in 70 AD and the eventual collapse of the Empire itself were literal fulfillments of John’s prophecy. The Empire faded but the Christian faith endured.
Footnotes
- Mark 3:5. ↩︎
*All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV®. Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.™ Used by permission of Zondervan. All rights reserved worldwide. www.zondervan.comThe “NIV” and “New International Version” are trademarks registered in the United States Patent and Trademark Office by Biblica, Inc.™
