Close-up :
The Two Witnesses (11:3-14)
Prophets of God (11:3-12). Has the world then recently come to a measure of peace in the first half of Daniel’s seven years? Has the conquering prince of the first seal brought, along with his destruction, some measure of hope by his conquests, and subsequent deal with Israel? Does a stable Middle East seem possible at last? If so, this is only half of the truth, and for only half of the “week”. The rest of the story is recorded in the chapters before us. Evil. War. And during this three and one half years, called here 42 months, the Truth is being preached also, by some very unpopular preachers. It is Zechariah who first sees these two witnesses. Let’s not let the imagination run too wild with them. They are two men, brought back to earth. They are probably men who never died to begin with, as Enoch and Elijah. They have been standing before the Lord these many eons of time (11:4, and Zechariah 4:14), waiting to do this one job, then die, then be caught up to the Lord again. In the midst of a world gone mad with pleasure on one hand, having succumbed to the antichrist’s security package, and then mad with chaos as his rule continues, these two men tell the truth as it is about the “beast”, about God, and the plan of salvation .
They prophesy during the entire tribulation period (11:3), working great miracles alongside the false prophet’s signs and wonders (11:5,6). John connects them solidly to Zechariah’s prophecy (11:4). They are indestructible for as long as they need to be (11:5). But eventually even these great saints are killed by antichrist (11:7), and left to die (11:8).
Note in passing the name given to the city where their death will be dramatized: Sodom and Egypt (11:8)! Now that’s rather shocking in the light of God’s future plans for Israel and Jerusalem. First, we know it is Jerusalem of which John speaks because that is where “our Lord was crucified” (11:8). It is a great city by any measure, since it has been around for thousands of years and still thrives. Taken by David over 3000 years ago from the Jebusites, it has been the hope of every true Jew from the time of its being made the capital of Judah and then of all Israel. To this day, using Zechariah’s terms (Zechariah 12:1-3) , it is a “burdensome stone” to the world, yet a city incredible in its religious and political importance. Three major religions claim it. Nations love it and hate it with a passion. Oh, a great city!
But spiritually, says John, it is called Sodom and Egypt! If these are spiritual titles, they must be given by the Spirit. It is God Who sees fallen and Christ-rejecting Jerusalem as worthy, like Sodom and Egypt , of destruction. Yes, it was Ezekiel, filled with that Spirit of God, who compared the wicked Jerusalem of his day to wicked Sodom of a former day (Ezekiel 16:46-47). His conclusion: Jerusalem was worse! The same prophet, chapter 23, speaks of the harlotry of Judah while in her younger days in Egypt. She who should have known the most, loved God the least, and is therefore worthy of these great judgments she shall incur.
So utterly rejected will the prophets be by the men of this world, including the Jews of Jerusalem, that upon their death TV cameras will capture their dead bodies around the clock for three and one half days (11:9). The world will be utterly delighted, even throwing parties over the fact that these men are now dead (11:10). Interesting that there is such revelry in the midst of tribulation days. The hardness of men’s hearts knows no bounds. They actually love and serve antichrist to the bitter end, regardless of the mess he is causing in the world.
Then the prophets are resurrected, as was their Lord (11:11). It seems that this too is televised (“their enemies saw them”), and is followed by a killer earthquake (11:12-13). There is actually some repenting going on after this wild series of events, all of which seem to be a part of the second woe or 6th trumpet (11:14).
There follows quickly trumpet seven, aka woe three (11:15-19). In 10:7, after John receives a revelation he cannot share , an angel makes it clear that the sounding of the seventh trumpet will be the end of the mysteries of God. After that, revelation will flow freely between God and man. No more secrets to be dug into.
The seventh trumpet, or third woe, is closely related to the sixth seal, and the seventh bowl. It is important to continue to see the interrelatedness of these manifestations. There is constant repetition, constant intensification. All seven trumpets are in the latter stages of the six seals. So we are actually ending the story again as in chapter 6. Note the similarities between seals, trumpets, and bowls at this juncture, alongside Matthew 24:
More details of the “very end”:
(11:15), The announcement. The world belongs to Jesus. He must reign now. Then (I Corinthians 15:24) He delivers the Kingdom to the Father, reigning with Him forever.
(11:16-17), The response in Heaven is from, among others, the 24 elders. They are seen in a similar situation in 19:4 as the same announcement is made couched in marital terminology. The event is one: Jesus is coming. The response on earth (11:18) is a bit different as the nations are absolutely enraged . Chapter 19 speaks of this human factor also. Then there is the response under the earth. This is the time of the dead , that is, it is finally the time for saints to rise and be with Jesus, as also in chapter 19.
(11:19), The temple of God, discussed at length in Part Five, is “opened” in Heaven. But significantly, it stays there. 1000 years later (21:5) the Dwelling Place of the Father will actually come to the new earth.
Close-up :
The Woman, Her Children, the Dragon
(12:1-17)
So. Jerusalem has a Jewish temple and a Gentile population. God has a witness represented well by two Elijah-like prophets. What else is going on for these “one thousand two hundred and sixty days”? Chapter 12 is given to show us just that.
Review. I believe we have seen this “woman” picture before, in chapter 7 (see there). More details are given here, but the overall pattern is the same. First there is something very Jewish that appears. The woman that is clothed with the sun, moon , and stars (12:1) must be the same as what Joseph saw and related to his family way back in Genesis 37:9-10. This is Israel. In chapter 7 Israelites from every tribe are sealed. Later in both chapters is seen “another” group, the “rest of her offspring” who keep the commands of God (12:17) , have the testimony of Jesus (12:17), and who washed their robes white in the blood of the Lamb (7:14). That other child certainly matches every description of the church available to us. Here in chapter 12 we see more of the church’s washing process, and how they come out of the great Tribulation through untold suffering.
Here is the first introduction to the source of all the Jewish and Christian trouble: a “fiery red dragon” with seven heads and ten horns. We know that neither the woman or the dragon here are to be taken as literal, but every piece of information given is valuable. The seven heads and ten horns will be fully explained in chapter 17, and will be seen again as a part of the “beast” known as antichrist in chapter 13. But the identity of this chapter’s monster is spelled out in verse 9: This is Satan.
Though one is tempted to see Jesus and Mary in the beginning of this passage, the imagery will not work for the latter portion of the chapter. The woman, after giving birth (12:2), flees into the wilderness (12:6), and is seen later as the mother of others , who follow Jesus (12:17). This does not fit the reality of Mary’s life, but does describe Israel, who first brought Jesus into the world, then an elect people. The continued hatred of Satan for Israel through the centuries is documented history.
So Satan tries to devour Jesus, through King Herod (12:3-4, Matthew 2:16-18). But the King to be is born anyway (12:5). That same Satan tries, during the Tribulation, to devour the Elect (12:15). The suffering church of verses 7-12 overcomes this assault by being faithful until the death. No rapture is hinted at here.
Basic to the understanding of the chapter is the fall of Satan. It is mentioned in verse 4. One third of the angelic host is thrown to the earth. This is further explained in 12:7-9. There is a heavenly battle between the good and evil angels. The evil ones lose and are cast out of the heavenly realm. This is what Jesus saw predictively (Luke 10:18). This is also what Daniel saw in his prophecy (Daniel 8:9-10). In that vision, the little horn, aka the man of sin, grows up to “the host of heaven” , and is able to bring stars (Biblical symbol for angels) to the ground.
So, war in heaven, conflict on earth. The man of sin is released from his place in the pit (chapter 13 and 17) and Satan, cast to the ground, uses him to rise to power here (12:10-12), having lost it in heaven. Israel is protected (12:16), experiencing Christ for the first time. Saints are scattered , defeated (Daniel 7:25 and Revelation 12:11), because they are ready to go and be with Jesus.
In the telling of the story, behind-the-scenes truths come out:
12:10, The accuser: Satan and his accomplices, we are told , use the mechanism of accusation against us daily. We see this working itself out in the life of Job, and know that it has a reality we must also confront. He accuses us because he himself is guilty. So when he comes to earth, his desire to hurt the people of God is foremost on his mind.
12:11, The defense of the believer: What Jesus did for us, and our constant talking about it, and our seeking first His Kingdom until the day we die, that is the victory!
12:12, Such hatred, stored up for such quantities of time, is lethal. Satan has more than Christians to overcome in his short time. He has to unravel the predetermined will of God in three and one half short years. He knows God has never been wrong about anything He has predicted, but in his great pride he will hope for one exception to the rule.
12:13, 14, His first task is to go after Israel, the apple of God’s eye, the heart of his plans for humanity. The special 144,000, as noted in chapter 7, are lured away to the wilderness, loved by Jesus, and protected by Him. They are taken to a place seemingly by airlift where they cannot be touched by Satan’s rage. How long? Three and one half years, the entire length of the Great Tribulation.
12:15-16, Desperate, frustrated, the enemy takes measures to flood, literally, the hiding place of the Jews. This could well be what is going on in Turkey, Iraq, and Syria, with the control of water for the Tigris-Euphrates, or some such vast water supply. But by an earthquake or another natural phenomenon supernaturally timed, water meant to flood the wilderness retreat will be diverted.
12:17, Description of the believer : Just like the Antiochus of ancient history, an angry frustrated God-hater will find someone else upon whom to vent his fury: The Church. Like the true Jew, we are those who “keep God’s commandments”, as John loved to point out in his epistle (eg I John 1:3). We are also those who have the testimony of Jesus Christ. This is no end-time faction called “tribulation saint”. This is me. This is you. This is the church of God.
