PONDERING... Are You Secure? (Revelation 11:1-13)

Are You Secure?

(WARNING: Difficult Passage :D--Mostly Outlined. You have been warned :P)

GIST: As God’s people, we are guaranteed earthly persecution and eternal security. But only one of those is eternal…

SCRIPTURE: Revelation 11: 1-14

There is a lot here, so let me open with two quick disclaimers, then we’ll jump in.

1. This is one of the more frequently debated passages of Revelation. You might not agree with all the nuances of how I’ll break this down. That’s ok. This is no hill to die on. The details of how this will play out pale in comparison to the truth of what this is saying--which is something every legitimate interpretative view will embrace.
2. I was asked to preach for Mother’s Day the same week I was preparing to teach this lesson. I will make no excuses, but admit my time management/time locating skills are not what they should be. Therefore, rather than provide extensive background on the interpretations here (not that I’m ever incredibly extensive), I’m going to focus on the truths being taught (mostly in an outlined form), and link some really helpful resources for further study at the bottom.

1. GOD’S PEOPLE ARE SECURED AND TRAMPLED

1 Then I was given a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, 2 but do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.

• Ezekiel: Most of the imagery from this particular passage is taken from portions of Ezekiel’s prophecy (see links at the bottom)
• Temple and Holy City=Church: Both the Temple and the Holy City are symbols for the people of God, the Church. Ezekiel prophesied about the new temple; John can actually see it. But this is not a physical building, but the temple of God is now His people. Likewise, the Holy City is synonymous with “where His people dwell”.
• Measuring the temple parallels “the sealed” from chapter 7: If you remember several weeks ago, we looked at chapter 7. It was an interlude between the sixth and seventh seals and pointed to the security of believers in Heaven. Like I noted last week, chapters 10-11 are the same kind of interlude between the sixth and seventh trumpet. In chapter 7th, the saved were sealed, marked as God’s. Here, the temple is measured, cataloged as His possession.
• No outer court because the gentiles are now in: Before, Gentiles were only allowed to worship in the outer court. This is not counted, because “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.”- Galatians 3:28
• Secured in the temple and trampled in City: Here we have a paradox with which we should be pretty familiar. The Church is secured, but also trampled. We are God’s, and will be forever under His provision and eternally in His arms. Yet, the world will despise and persecute us.
• 42 Months, 1, 260 days, time, times, and half and time=Same: Check out the resources on this to see the OT parallels. But these all allude to 3 ½ years, which is representative of “a time of tribulation”. Again, this is not a literal time, but an emphasis on the nature of the time. The switch between 42 Months and 1,260 days here is to signify a switch in perspective. During persecution, 42 months, the emphasis is on the big picture time frame--this can be endured. During witness, 1,260 days, the emphasis is on the individual days--much will be accomplished.

2. THE CHURCH WILL WITNESS WITH AUTHORITY

3 And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth.”... 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. 5 And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. 6 They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.

• Who are the two witnesses? Ok, we’ll have to look at a few points here.
• You probably immediately picked up are references here to Moses and Elijah (No rain: Elijah; Blood water: Moses). For the first century audience steeped in the OT, this would have rang “Law and the Prophets”, which was the shorthand way of referring to the message of the entire Scripture.
• There are two because this was the number required to verify a testimony. So we have a picture of the scripture speaking and being verified amongst its hearers. Again, this is a picture of the whole church throughout time! Remember at the end of chapter 10, John is told he is going to share the truth of the little scroll. Here we see this in action. This is the Church sharing Jesus throughout time.
• They are further portrayed as two olive tree and two lampstands. This is also from Ezekiel (see notes). But even from our study of Revelation so far, we can remember that lampstands represent the church. Olive trees next to the lamps would have meant a renewable supply of oil for the lamp. Thus, the Church, in its ministry, is continuously provided for.
• Fire Breathers? This is symbolic of God’s judgment. The fire will come from our mouths (God’s Word) which will point them to His truth. If they reject Him, the result is Hell, the lake of fire.
• Power? Both Elijah and Moses were able to accomplish these through pray. God wants to use us, and will.

3. THEY WILL SEEM TO BE DEFEATED BY SATAN, BUT NOT UNTIL GOD IS FINISHED WITH THEM, AND THIS WON’T BE A REAL LOSS. (Yeah, so that’s a super wordy point :P)

7 And when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, 8 and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically is called Sodom and Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. 9 For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and exchange presents, because these two prophets had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11 But after the three and a half days a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on 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, and their enemies watched them. 13 And at that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.

• They will seem to be defeated by Satan. I’m not sure I need to break this down any further. Satan will attack God’s people, and seem to overcome them. Look around. Don’t you see this?
• But not until God is finished with them. This. Is. Huge. “when they have finished their testimony, the beast that rises from the bottomless pit will make war on them and conquer them and kill them,” There is not some cosmic battle between equally powerful goods (God) and evils (Satan). God is infinitely more powerful than Satan--who cannot act until allowed.
• And this is no defeat. The end of this passage is the end. Literally, the seventh trumpet is sounded immediately afterwards. We have earthquakes and destruction. But we also have God’s people being revealed as God’s people and scoffers being saved.

FINAL TAKEAWAYS

I know we’ve talked about this before. But it’s one of the central themes of the passage, and let’s face it, we cannot hear this enough.

1. As God’s people, we are guaranteed earthly persecution
2. Yet there is power in prayer, and effectiveness in our ministry--That is, HE WILL WORK IN OUR LIVES ‘TIL HE’S DONE!
3. And as God’s people, we are guaranteed eternal security.
4. On the flipside, however, the lost are not.

Need Extra Resources on This Passage?

There is a ton to chew on here, and I probably left much to be desired. Here are some digital resources I found helpful:

Sam Storms: Part 1, Part 2

Kevin DeYoung: Audio Sermon

Sinclair Ferguson: Audio Sermon