Coffeeville First Baptist Church by Craig Baker 3/6/25

By Marie | March 4, 2025 |

In Revelation 11:1-14, we learn of the Apostle John’s vision of the temple and the two witnesses. In verse 1, John said he was given “a reed like a measuring rod” and told to measure the temple and those who worship there. Wherever we see the word “rod” in the New Testament it is typically associated with chastisement, correction, and judgment. In the Old Testament the act of “measuring” can mean two things. One meaning is to claim something for God. The other meaning is correction, judgment, or destruction. In giving John a rod and telling him to measure the temple and the people in it, God is declaring that He will reclaim what is His and pronouncing judgment on the Antichrist and those who follow the Antichrist. Some question the meaning of John’s vision in chapter 11 because currently no temple exists in Jerusalem, and the place where many believe the temple should stand is occupied by an Islamic shrine called the Dome of the Rock. While the Bible does not tell us exactly when the temple will be rebuilt, we are told the temple will exist during the tribulation. I believe most evidence points to the temple being rebuilt just before the tribulation begins during the time of peace lead by the Antichrist. We know from Matthew 24 that the Great Tribulation is the second half of the tribulation period and will begin with the Abomination of Desolation which refers to the Antichrist setting himself up in the temple as the object of worship, and many people, both Jews and Gentiles, will worship the Antichrist as lord. We are told that during the Great Tribulation, the holy city, Jerusalem, and the temple will be desecrated and destroyed, trampled underfoot, by the Gentiles (unbelievers). While Revelation does not specifically mention the Abomination of Desolation, our timeline of events would put the Abomination of Desolation occurring sometime between Revelation 6 and Revelation 8. This means the things John saw of the temple and the two witnesses in chapter 11 coincide with the events of chapter 8 and continue throughout the 3.5 years of the Great Tribulation. Despite so many turning their hearts to the Antichrist and worshiping him, God still desires that none should perish, so God sends His witnesses to proclaim the gospel during the Great Tribulation. I have shared with you before that I believe the 144,000 of the tribes of Israel were sealed for the purpose of assisting the two witnesses with their ministry. The biggest question people have about these two witnesses is, “Who are they?” The fact is, God did not reveal their identity to John, so we do not know. Whoever these two witnesses are they will spend 3.5 years preaching truth to those who have been deceived by the Antichrist and calling for them to repent and turn to God before His final judgment is poured out over the earth. They will put on sackcloth as an expression of their great sorrow for the wicked, sinful, unbelieving world. Their message will be universally hated, and many will try to kill them. However, God will protect them and give them special powers to defend themselves until their ministry is complete (Revelation 11:3-6). When their ministry is complete, God will allow the Beast (Antichrist) that comes from the Abyss to kill them. Their bodies will lie in the streets of Jerusalem for everyone to see, and the world will rejoice over their deaths. People will give each other gifts in celebration. Such rejoicing will likely result from the world believing God has been defeated and His Word has been silenced once and for all. However, the celebration over the death of the two witnesses will be short lived because after three and one-half days the world will be shaken with fear when the two witnesses stand on their feet and are called to heaven by a great voice saying, “Come up here.” Some wonder why the two witnesses are not permitted to preach after their resurrection, but signs and miracles do not turn people to believe the gospel. Signs and miracles did not cause people to listen to Moses, Elijah, the Apostles, or even Jesus, and miracles are not going to make people believe the two witnesses. The consequences of the treatment these two witnesses endured are immediately brought upon the city of Jerusalem. God sends an earthquake destroying 10% of the city and killing 7,000 inhabitants. With this, it appears many in the city will be saved as they were afraid and gave glory to God (Revelation 11:7-14). The end of the ministry of the two witnesses coincides with the end of the sixth trumpet judgment, the passing of the second woe. The third woe, the judgment of the seventh trumpet, is coming quickly. With the blowing of the seventh trumpet, time is up! The final judgment of God is no longer coming, it is here! He has begun to exercise His reign over all creation, and time has come for the dead to be judged! This is a reference to those who are spiritually dead; those who have rejected the gospel of Jesus despite all God has done to get them to turn to Him (Revelation 11:15-19). With that we have reached the mid-point of Revelation. In his novel, a Tale of Two Cities, Charles Dickens wrote these words to describe the days in France just before the French Revolution. “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way…” Those same words could be used to describe what lies ahead in these final chapters of Revelation. It will be the worst of times for some and the best of times for others.

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