Rev. 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."

Who is it that worships in God’s temple? It is the people of God. The instruction is to measure His people. Jesus is preparing to come and receive us unto Himself (John 14:1-3), but He wishes us to measure up into the full stature of Christ. He wishes to complete the good work He has begun in us. (Ephesians 4:13; Philippians 1:6) If he were to take us to heaven when we don’t measure up here on earth, He would only be transferring these earthly problems to heaven.

God is measuring His people. This work is going on in heaven now. That should guide us as we set our priorities, how we improve or waste our time. God does not wish us to live in a state of anxiety (Phil. 4:4-7), but He is indicating that it is time to be serious in our preparation for life in heaven (Read Rom. 13:11, 12). He is saying, "Christian man and woman, as you go about your daily business transactions, are you fair and honest in all your dealings? If you’re an employer, are you fair and honest with the wages you pay? If you’re an employee, are you fair and honest with the time you render? If you’re a housewife, going about the drudgery of never-ending duties, are you cheerful and helpful to your family?" God wants us to measure up.

The instruction to "rise and measure the temple of God…and them that worship therein" indicates that this measuring will only consider the names of those who have professed to be followers of Jesus. It says to only "measure" those who worship in "the temple" (vs.1). When this measuring or judgment is completed Jesus will return.

Verse 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."

John is told not to measure "the Gentiles", (those who do not know Christ). They will be considered in a phase of judgment brought to view in Revelation 20:12,13. Those who have never professed to accept Christ are judged at that time.

The phrase, "…and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months" is referring specifically to those motivated by the little horn power to persecute God’s people during the Dark Ages (42 months times 30 days to a month equals 1260 days). This text parallels Dan. 7:25, which says that God’s saints "shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time (3 ½ years or 42 months)." In Bible prophecy each day represents a literal year (Ezekiel 4:6, Numbers 14:34). Each instance this time period appears in prophecy, the Bible is identifying the time of papal supremacy from AD 538 to AD 1798.

The angel, Gabriel applies "thy holy city" to God’s people and to Jerusalem in Old Testament times (Dan. 9:16, 24). Each prophecy in Daniel is repeated in Revelation with its New Testament application. Here "the holy city" refers to God’s people (the church) and foretells the same period of persecution.

Verse 3, 4: "And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophecy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth."

In the face of bitter opposition, God promises "power" from heaven to strengthen and preserve His faithful witnesses. Whoever these "two witnesses" are, this much is certain, they were active on earth "during" the 1260 years foretold by Daniel the prophet. The fierce battle between Christ and Satan was centered around them. (This time period is identical with the "42 months" in verse 2.)

Zechariah 4:1-6 identifies the two candlesticks and the two olive trees as the "Word of the Lord." Ps. 119:105 portrays God’s Word as a "lamp unto my path." The two witnesses represented by the two olive trees and candlesticks are symbols for the Word of God found in the Old and New Testaments. In John 5:39 Jesus said, "search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me." In a court of law a witness is asked to testify, just as these two witnesses "testify" of Jesus. One may think of the two witnesses as the complete written Word, the Old and New Testaments. The two olive trees represent the perpetual supply of oil which is the Holy Spirit as it is imparted though God’s Word (Zech. 4:6, 11-14). "These are the two anointed ones" (Zech. 4:14).

Throughout history Satan has made many attempts to destroy God’s Word. He has not been able to do so because God gives special power to His two witnesses. (1 Peter 1:25)

Throughout Scripture sackcloth is used to represent extreme mourning. These two witnesses prophesied "…a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth" as Satan made bitter war upon the Scriptures. Why would they prophesy in sackcloth? During the Dark Ages the Bibles were literally chained to church walls and kept from the common people. The priest read only those portions he wanted the people to hear and in a language they often didn’t understand. Martin Luther noted that his fingers trembled with excitement when he first read, "The just shall live by faith" (Rom. 1:17, Gal. 3:11, Heb.10: 38). It was an awful time. The Dark Ages were truly dark without the light of God’s Word.

Verse 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."

One may hurt God’s Word by opposing Bible teachings. Jesus said of some in His day, "But in vain they do worship Me, teaching for doctrines the commandments of men." (Matt. 15:9) Both the Old and the New Testaments foretell the end of all that oppose God’s revealed will (See 2 Kings 1:1-18). Malachi 4:1-3 speaks of the wicked being reduced to nonexistence when the world is purified by fire. According to Rev. 20:15, the end of all that oppose God’s Word will be destruction by fire. May we never be in opposition to God’s Word.

Verse 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."

It was by invoking the power of God’s Word that Elijah shut heaven and no rain fell for the space of three and one half years. (1 Kings 17:1) With a, "thus saith the Lord," water was turned into blood in the time of Moses. (Ex. 7:17) This has led some to believe that Moses and Elijah are these two witnesses, but Moses and Elijah did not walk on the earth clothed in sackcloth during the 1260 years of papal supremacy.

The phrase "and to smite the earth with all plagues" tells us that all plagues that have already occurred, and all plagues not yet fulfilled, take place because of the power of God’s Word.

When we consider the two witnesses of verse 3 to be the Old and New Testaments, the following verses harmonize with and clarify that definition.

Verse 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."

In verse 3, the two witnesses prophesied "clothed in sackcloth" for 1260 days, but verse 7 foretells an event that would take place "when they shall have finished their testimony." When did they finish their testimony clothed in sackcloth? (In 1798) A key point of this prophecy is to establish this date. We have established that the 1260 days, or years of papal supremacy, began in 538 and continued until 1798.

• AD 538 - The date the Ostrogoths were eliminated as the final opposition to the little horn power of Daniel 7.
• AD 1798 - The date the little horn power was broken. (At that time atheistic Napoleon ordered French General Berthier to the city of Rome and removed the pope from his throne, thereby breaking the church’s connection with civil power.)

The period when the two witnesses were to prophesy clothed in sackcloth ended in 1798. As they were finishing their testimony, "the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit" would "make war against them, overcome them, and kill them." Who was this beast going to make war against? The Old and the New Testaments, the witnesses who prophesied in sackcloth for 1260 days (years). We can see now that these verses are not referring to Moses and Elijah.

Immediately preceding AD 1798, a power arose that made open war upon the Scriptures. The power that surfaced during the French Revolution (AD 1789 – AD 1801) was a tremendous backlash against the fierce persecution of the 1260 years. Satan works through huge tidal waves of human opinion spanning hundreds of years to prepare the world for his deceptions. Imagine that you were living during the 1260 years when, in the name of religion, the most barbaric persecutions the world has ever known occurred. Although no accurate records have survived, historians conservatively estimate that 50 million of God’s saints were put to death during that dreadful time. People weren’t killed because they were traitors to their government or because they were dangerous to society; they were killed because they stood firm to God’s Word and dared to oppose the Church of Rome. After more than 1000 years of bloodshed, it is not surprising that there was a huge backlash against religion in general, and against the Church of Rome in particular.

The outcry was enormous and it was decided to eliminate that which was thought to be the problem, religion. The French Assembly, on Nov. 10, 1793, voted to remove God and religion from society intending not only to pull down earthly monarchs, but God, Himself, if possible. It was decided that religion would no longer be tolerated, and would be replaced by human reasoning. A young and beautiful prostitute was enthroned as the "Goddess of Reason." Priests and bishops were removed from the churches and executed in the most scornful ways. Bibles were torn from their chains on church walls and thrown into the streets to be burned. To show further contempt, a Bible was tied onto the tail of a donkey and dragged through the muddy streets of the city. No scorn was thought to be too great to heap upon God’s Word, which was perceived to be the source of centuries of bloodshed.

This turn of events played perfectly into the plan of Satan to introduce a power that would finish the work that the papacy had been carrying on for more than 1000 years. We find that to be the case, when the wave of opinion turned against a "thus saith the Lord" and was replaced by human reasoning and godlessness.

In Revelation 12, Satan is identified with seven consecutive world powers. These powers correspond with seven universal attempts to control the world and span from ancient Babylon to the end of time. Revelation 11:7 depicts one of these attempts as "the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit" that arose on the scene at the close of the 1260 days (years). A "beast" in Bible prophecy represents a world controlling power. Note that this "beast" came from a "bottomless pit." The beasts in Daniel 7 came from the "sea." There are also two beast powers in Revelation 13, one coming from the "sea" the other coming from the "earth." The earth and the sea are tangible places. A "bottomless pit" has no foundation. How can one describe a bottomless pit? It’s nebulous; it’s a philosophy, or theory. In 1798, the world was expanding. The entire Western Hemisphere was opening to population and development. No longer could a centralized government be used to control the inhabitants of the earth. Satan now introduces, instead, a "philosophy" that would engulf the world.

Verse 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."

These references are obviously symbolic because the text says the "great city" was "spiritually" called "Sodom and Egypt." Also in 1798 Sodom was nonexistent. All that remains of that once proud and wicked city are hundreds of thousands of tons of ash at the south end of the Dead Sea where the conflagration occurred when God destroyed that wicked city. This verse is referring to a power that would be characteristic of Sodom. Sodom represents the depths of moral wickedness and degradation of mankind (Gen. 19:4-11). Likewise, an extremely wicked power would come from the "bottomless pit" (verse 7). This power would not only have characteristics of Sodom, but it would also have characteristics of Egypt.

Over the centuries Egypt has ever been a symbol of atheism and rebellion against God. No earthly monarch has stood in more open rebellion against the God of heaven than did Pharaoh when Moses asked him in the name of Jehovah, to let His people go. Pharaoh answered "Who is the LORD that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go." (Exodus 5:2) The power that arose in France would, likewise, deny the existence of God.

The "beast from the bottomless pit" was a power representing extreme wickedness (Sodom), and extreme godlessness (Egypt). Today this period is recognized as the birth of modern atheism.

"Shortly after the Revolution, atheistic leaders began to arise whose thought patterns extended well beyond the boundaries of France. Yet most of those leaders looked back to the French Revolution as the source of their new ideas." Russell Burrill, The New World Order, p. 90 - 91

• George Hegel - Father of modern atheism in philosophy and religion.
• Charles Darwin - Father of evolution
• Carl Marx - Father of godless communism (Removed God from society.) Communism in the East - Secular humanism in the West
• Sigmond Freud – Father of the sexual revolution

As we enter the 21^st century, the ideas first fostered during the French Revolution have found worldwide acceptance. God has been effectively removed from nearly every aspect of society. It will be seen that human opinion, shaped and conditioned through 200 years of moral decay, has once again set the stage for Satan’s final attack on God’s Word and His people. In an effort to restore lost morality, misguided laws will be made in an attempt to force mankind to once again bow to state enforced religion.

Just as "Sodom and Egypt" are symbols and characteristics of this new manifestation of satanic power, likewise the phrase, "where…our Lord was crucified" is not a reference to Jerusalem. "Our Lord" is crucified (symbolically) in the form of His persecuted saints and His abused and misused Word. Jesus identified Himself with His suffering saints when He said, "Inasmuch as ye have done it unto one of the least of these my bretheren, ye have done it unto me" (Matt. 25:40).

Verse 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."

Unburied bodies lying around is the most indignant scene one can imagine. The two witnesses would have their dead bodies open to the scoffing eyes of the people for "three days and an half." The scenes portrayed in this prophecy are symbolic and prophetic, therefore, three days and a half equals 3½ literal years. In France those years were called "The Reign of Terror." One needs only to study the French Revolution to learn the plight of a country should God be removed from it. France was nearly destroyed. There was no longer any prevalent law and order. People who had considered themselves to be safe found, instead, they were being loaded onto carts to be hauled off and executed. Friend was afraid to speak of religion to friend, neighbor to neighbor, or relative to relative for fear of being reported and killed. France was in utter chaos and finally the people could stand it no longer.

Verse 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."

The convicting testimony of the two witnesses was seen as the source of man’s torment. To abolish these, it was supposed, would be cause to "rejoice" and "make merry." A guilty conscience is among the greatest of torments. However, it was actually the atrocities done in the NAME of religion that had been the source of anguish. Ultimately it will be seen that in God’s Word alone are found the answers which bring peace of mind to human beings long tormented by Satan.

Vs. 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.

It was on November 10, 1793 that the decrees which abolished religion and set aside the Bible were passed by the French Assembly. Three and one half years later, on June 17, 1797, a resolution rescinding these decrees was adopted by the same body. Truly this was a most striking example of the accuracy of God’s Word. "And after three days and an half the Spirit of Life from God entered unto them." France recognized the necessity of God’s law as the foundation of virtue and morality.

Daniel 12:4 declares that at the close of the 1260 years there would be an increase in knowledge. In God’s perfect timing there came about an enormous explosion of technology known as the Industrial Revolution. Johann Gutenberg’s printing press began to replace hand-printed texts. Bibles began to be printed by the millions. The British and Foreign Bible Society was established in 1804, and the American Bible Society in 1816. "The Spirit of life from God entered into them (Old and New Testaments)." Men and women, led by the Holy Spirit and now having free access to God’s Word, began to study earnestly the prophetic books of Daniel and Revelation. The prophecies of Daniel, sealed for centuries, were now understood. It was a time of tremendous increase in technology as well as an understanding of God’s Word.

Verse 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."

God breathes new life into His two witnesses and they are suddenly resurrected and called "up into heaven." With their "enemies" watching, they are completely vindicated of all the evil that has been heaped upon them. To the amazement of all, the two witnesses are then exalted as high as the heavens. Since the French Revolution the Scriptures have enjoyed worldwide circulation and have been translated into more than 1500 languages! Today the Holy Bible is the most published Book on the planet.

Verse 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."

The great political upheaval, which convulsed France, is here graphically portrayed as an "earthquake." At the breakup of the Roman Empire, Rome fragmented into ten parts. France was one of those ten. Here it says that one of the parts, "the tenth part," of "the city fell," and that "seven thousand" were slain. Seven thousand is a significant number, but does not represent complete destruction. France, a most ardent supporter of the Church of Rome for more than one thousand years no longer lends the support of her civil power and actively participates in the church’s fall. Thus, "the tenth part…fell." (Compare Rev. 16:19.)

Many of those who witnessed the frightful scenes of the French Revolution were thankful to be alive, and "were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven." We all should come to the conclusion that true freedom can be found only as we follow God’s Word.

In 1798 a new form of satanic power, "the beast from the bottomless pit" was emerging. It first made open avowed war upon the Word of God during the French Revolution. In the aftermath of the Revolution, its seeds spread throughout the world as it manifested itself in the form of secularism and humanism. As a world power, it found a home in the atheistic superpower of modern times, Soviet communism. The backbone of atheism, as a world power, was broken with the downfall of the Soviet Union in 1991 (See Daniel 11 study). However, the beast was not communism. "The beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit" was atheism.