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Revelation Segment 10

All scripture is from the King James Version unless otherwise noted. Before beginning this study, I suggest you pray and ask God to guide you through this study. I also suggest that you do you own study of this material in order to ensure its accuracy.
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Daniel saw a mighty angel: Dan 10:5-6 "Then I lifted up mine eyes, and looked, and behold a certain man clothed in linen, whose loins were girded with fine gold of Uphaz: {6} His body also was like the beryl, and his face as the appearance of lightning, and his eyes as lamps of fire, and his arms and his feet like in colour to polished brass, and the voice of his words like the voice of a multitude." Not only are these angels similar in appearance, they bore a similar message. The angel that appeared to Daniel told him about the coming of antichrist and his ultimate demise.(Daniel 10-12). This angel (in Daniel) is the Angel of the LORD. That is, He is a physical manifestation of God almighty, known as the Memra in Aramaic or the Word in English.

The angel here in Revelation Ten is arrayed like Christ, but he is not Christ, but just an angel, for Christ is not shown as an angel in the Revelation, but as Lord over all the nations and all the earth. Verse one speaks of this angel as another angel. If he were the Christ, he would not be another angel, but the Angel of the LORD. This angel is not Christ, but he symbolizes Christ.

(I know that many think the angel is Christ and may be annoyed at me, but I just cannot accept that Christ would be manifested as an angel unless it was the Angel of the LORD, which this angel is not).

Note that John has had a change of venue. He is now back on the earth. The book is a small scroll. It is unlikely to be vellum because scrolls were much more common. What is the purpose of the angel having one foot on earth and one in the sea? It shows that he had charge over the entire globe. The scroll has something to do with the entire world. There is a famous painting showing John on Patmos looking at the angel who is standing on the beach with one foot on the water and one on the beach. He is pointing toward heaven with his right hand and has a small book in his left. The angel in that painting is tall, but not a giant.

The angel has a similar appearance to Christ. He symbolizes Christ who will return to earth at the last trump. That he has one foot on the sea and one on the earth is symbolic of Christ who is Lord over the nations (the seas) as well as Lord over the entire earth. (See Zec 14:9 and Rev 15:4)

The voice of the angel was as loud as a lion's roar. It was answered by the sound of thunder. Thunder symbolizes the voice of God. So the voice of the angel is like a lion's roar and the voice of God is like the sound of thunder.

When the LORD roars, or calls out mightily, it is usually as a war cry. In Isaiah chapter five there are six woes against Israel and Judah. The LORD then beckons the nations to attack Israel. When they attack, they roar and their roaring cannot be stopped. This indicated that they will have the upper hand throughout the battle and will be the victors. The angel is roaring here. He is indeed uttering a war cry, for the Day of the LORD is at hand.

According to Psalm 29:3, the voice of the LORD is on many waters and his voice is thunder (The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters). The word translated voice is qowl (Strong's 6963), which also means thunder (According to Bullinger). Strong and Vines also say the word can mean thunder. Young says it means a voice or a sound. We know from the Revelation and other books that the voice of God is like thunder. For example, when God spoke to Moses on the Mountain, it sounded like thunder (Exodus 19:16).

In Psalm 29, we are given seven different characteristics of the voice of God. The psalm gives us the seven "thunders" or voices of God. Psalms 29:3-9:
{3}The voice of the LORD is upon the waters: the God of glory thundereth: the LORD is upon many waters
{4} The voice of the LORD is powerful; the voice of the LORD is full of majesty
{5} The voice of the LORD breaketh the cedars; yea, the LORD breaketh the cedars of Lebanon
{7} The voice of the LORD divideth the flames of fire.
{8} The voice of the LORD shaketh the wilderness; the LORD shaketh the wilderness of Kadesh.
{9} The voice of the LORD maketh the hinds to calve, and discovereth the forests:

As for what the seven thunders spoke, we are told at this juncture that John was not to write what they said:

In 1:11 John is told to write all that he sees in a book. He is preparing to do just that but is stopped. God told him not to write what the seven voices of God spoke.

We don't know what the thunders spoke; we only know that John was commanded not to record what they said. Bible commentaries give us several possible reasons why. One possibility (according to commentators) is that there is no further warning of impending judgment to be given. Another is that the knowledge given is too sacred to disclose to mortal men. Compare this with Paul's visit to the third heaven in 2 Cor 12:4. He saw things there that were inexpressible. A third is that God was detailing additional judgments but they were canceled. It could have been one of these three or something else. I opt for reason number two, that the voices uttered things that were not to be divulged to mankind. It is my opinion and is not necessarily correct.

He swore by God Almighty. It is better not to swear by God than to swear by Him and not keep your oath. That is breaking the third commandment, "Thou shalt not take the name of the LORD thy God in vain; for the LORD will not hold him guiltless that taketh his name in vain." This angel was speaking the truth. The fact that he swore before God proves that this is the truth and will happen as stated. He essentially said that there would be no more delay...

...no more delay, that is, after the seventh angel sounds his trumpet. When the seventh trump sounds, it is over. The present age will be at an end and time will cease for the age and the mystery of God will be finished. That mystery was that He would send His only Son to become a man and to die a guilty man's death (even though He was not guilty) and to rise again on the third day, providing atonement for the sins of mankind once for all. The mystery is the gospel. The gospel was hidden until revealed at the first advent of the Christ. That mystery, the gospel, is fulfilled at the sounding of the seventh trump. Never again will men be saved by faith in the unseen, for Christ will be revealed in His glory to all. The prophets heralded this (Isa 7:14, Micah 5:2, Joel 2:32, etc.). Note that in this verse this is not the sounding of the seventh and last trump. That occurs in 11:15. This is just a herald of that event.

Note that the book is open, that is, unsealed and available to all. God commanded and John reacted:

There is a parallel to this in Ezekiel 3:1-14: "Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. {2} So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. {3} And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. {4} And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them. {5} For thou art not sent to a people of a strange speech and of an hard language, but to the house of Israel; {6} Not to many people of a strange speech and of an hard language, whose words thou canst not understand. Surely, had I sent thee to them, they would have hearkened unto thee. {7} But the house of Israel will not hearken unto thee; for they will not hearken unto me: for all the house of Israel are impudent and hardhearted. {8} Behold, I have made thy face strong against their faces, and thy forehead strong against their foreheads. {9} As an adamant harder than flint have I made thy forehead: fear them not, neither be dismayed at their looks, though they be a rebellious house. {10} Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears. {11} And go, get thee to them of the captivity, unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear. {12} Then the spirit took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place. {13} I heard also the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of a great rushing. {14} So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me."

The scroll given to Ezekiel contained lamentations, mourning, and woe. He was to speak the words of this scroll to the House of Israel. When they would not listen to Ezekiel, he was taken away by the cherubim. He went in bitterness. The words of the LORD were sweet to him, but the fact that no one would hear them was bitter to him. This is similar what happened to John:

Where Ezekiel was to speak only to the House of Israel, John was to speak to many different people with different nationalities and different languages as well as to kings. Where the scroll that Ezekiel consumed contained bad news, the book here contained good news. John had already spoken to many peoples. This got him banished to Patmos. In his Book of Martyrs, Foxe says John was boiled in oil (obviously as a torture only; it did not kill him) before he was banished.

The Gospel is sweet as honey to the one who believes, but becomes bitter when rejected by the world. Though the Gospel is sweet to you, it is bitter to the world. That is the homily of this passage about the little book. The book contains the Gospel or the Mystery and it is sweet to John but bitter to "many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings." This applies not only to the Gospel, but to the entire Word of God. It is sweet to those who believe but bitter to those who do not.

This chapter is essentially about the two witnesses. There is also a temple in this chapter. What temple is it? Is it the third temple to be built in Jerusalem? Or is it the temple in heaven? The Greek is naos, which means the sanctuary of the temple containing the Holy Place and the Most Holy Place. The temple precincts, or the entire temple area is hieron in the Greek. John is to measure just the sanctuary.

That this temple is in Jerusalem is evident because of verse 2. The temple precincts are now occupied by two Muslim mosques, the Dome of the Rock and the Mosque Al-Asqa. The place where the Most Holy Place stood is probably under the Dome of the Rock but may have been in the area of the Cupola (the Dome of the Tablets) that stands on the pavement on the temple mount. It is said that this marks the true spot of the Holy of Holies where the tablets of Moses containing the Ten Commandments were stored in the Ark of the Covenant.

I have stated in my answer to a question about the temple that I did not believe that a third temple would be built in Jerusalem. After studying the possibility and reading what experts have said, and taking into consideration the New Testament references to a third temple (Mat 24:15, Mark 13:14, 2 Thes 2:1-4, and this passage in Revelation), I now am of the opinion that a third temple must be built. How that will come about is in question, but it will come about. The Mosque Al-Asqa is built precariously on fill, pillars, and vaults, making for a shaky foundation. It is susceptible to earthquakes. The area is riddled underneath with tunnels and old rooms and arches from a Byzantine church that is dated from the time of Justinian (c. 1700 AD). It is possible that an earthquake will destroy the mosque or that it may even fall in on its own shaky foundation. This could give impetus to the rebuilding of the temple on that spot. It is unlikely that the Dome of the Rock will fall down. But if Dr. Asher Kaufman (Professor of Geophysics at the Hebrew University in Jerusalem) is correct, the true site of the original temple is at the Dome of the Tablets (AKA the Dome of Spirits), to the north of the Dome of the Rock. But that is located very closely to the Dome of the Rock, and a temple on that spot would not be appreciated by Muslims. It is difficult to speculate how and when the temple will be built or even who will build it. Of course, the antichrist himself may rebuild it.

John is to measure the naos (sanctuary) of the temple at Jerusalem during the time of the two witnesses, which happens in the future. The reed he is given with which to measure it is likened to a cudgel or a club, or even a scepter. A reed could also be a writing instrument, a pen that is dipped in ink and used to write on papyrus or vellum, or even paper for that matter. The fact is the reed is a plant stalk and is used like a surveyor's rod to measure the naos (sanctuary).

The holy city is Jeursalem:

Nehemiah 11:1 "And the rulers of the people dwelt at Jerusalem: the rest of the people also cast lots, to bring one of ten to dwell in Jerusalem the holy city, and nine parts to dwell in other cities."
Isaiah 52:1 "Awake, awake; put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments, O Jerusalem, the holy city: for henceforth there shall no more come into thee the uncircumcised and the unclean."

Gentiles is the translation of ethnos, which means nations. John is not to measure the outer courts because they are under the control of the nations. When the Gentiles (nations) tread upon the area, they are in control of it. In fact, today, the area is controlled by the Muslims. The city of Jerusalem itself is holy to Christians Jews, Israelites, and Muslims. The city is an international city controlled by the nations. The US, the Palestinians, The Syrians, Israel, the UN, and many others are vying for control of or influence over Jerusalem. The temple mount is indeed under the control of "Gentiles" even today. It may be that, when the temple is built, only the naos (sanctuary) will be built and will coexist with the mosques. Then the hieron or precincts will be controlled by Gentiles while the sanctuary will be built and under the control of Israel. In fact, in today's world of political correctness and international cooperation, that could very possibly happen. Then this passage will be fulfilled. Israelites will control the sanctuary, Gentiles will control the precincts. That would explain why John was told to measure the sanctuary and not the precincts. There would be no point in measuring an area that was tread under by the Gentiles and out of the control of the Israelites.

The part that John measured, that is, the sanctuary, and the altar, and the people worshipping at the altar, represent those set apart to God-His people, the saints. Remember the 144,000 who were sealed. They are the people of God. They are sealed and set apart. They will be protected from the tribulation. John measured only the part of the temple where those set apart to God could gather and worship, the Most Holy Place. While God's people are protected, the remainder of the nations will suffer His Wrath.

The forty two months refers us to the last 31/2 years in Daniel when the "prince that shall come" (Dan 9:26-28) will no longer allow the temple, with its sacrifice and oblation, to operate. It is at this point, the second half of the seven year tribulation period (which is shortened according to Christ) that the two witnesses arrive. They prophesy for 31/2 years and are then killed. They arise after 31/2 days and are called into heaven and then the age will end and the next age begin.

When the temple is rebuilt and the "prince that shall come" (the antichrist) comes, he will allow the temple to operate just like it did before 70 AD, with all the religious rituals attached to it. But, at the 31/2 year point, he will stop all that activity and the Gentiles or nations will control it until the deaths of the two witnesses. It is likely that the temple will be rebuilt under the auspices of a consortium of nations dedicated to keeping "peace" in Israel. There will have to be an agreement with the Muslims who control the temple mount hence there will probably be many restrictions to its use. When antichrist comes he will make a covenant with The Israelites and end the restrictions for seven years. At the mid point, he will go back on his word and persecute them. That is when the two witnesses arrive.

Who are these two witnesses? We will find out. Let's look at the verses and find out their characteristics.

What can we glean about the witnesses from verses 3-6? Let us list their characteristics:

• They are clothed in sackcloth
• They are called olive trees
• They are called candlesticks
• They stand before the God of the earth
• They destroy their enemies with fire
• They have the power to shut heaven and stop the rain
• They can turn waters into blood
• They can smite the earth with plagues

To tell you the truth, these two sound mighty similar to two Bible characters we know well. One is Elijah and the other is Moses. Before telling about these two, we need to read the parallel passage in Zechariah:

Zechariah 4:11-14 "Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof? {12} And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves? {13} And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord. {14} Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth." 

Another word for candlestick is menorah. The Hebrew for candlestick in Zechariah is menowrah (Strong's 4501). There is no doubt that these two olive branches (the same two are called olive trees in Zech 4:3) are the two witnesses of Revelation Eleven. Zechariah and John both refer to them as olive trees standing by the God or Lord of the earth. Zechariah says that the oil flows through them, which makes them a part of the menorah. John simply says they are two candlesticks or branches of the menorah. Zechariah calls them the two pipes emanating from the center lampstand ending in lamps (in other words branches of the candlestick). The oil flows through them. They are not only olive trees, they are also lamps or candlesticks or branches of the menorah through which the anointing oil flows. They are anointed. The Holy Spirit flows through them. One can positively identify that the olive trees in Zechariah are also those in Revelation . They are one and the same.

They can also be identified with Moses and Elijah:

Some other similarities Moses and Elijah shared: Both Moses and Elijah were on Mt. Sinai for forty days and nights with no food (Exodus 24:18, 1 Kings 19:8). Both Moses and Elijah parted waters and crossed on dry ground (Exodus 14:21-22,2 Kings 2:8). Both Moses and Elijah had servants who took over their ministries upon their deaths (Joshua, Deuteronomy 31:23 and Elisha, 2 Kings 2:15). Both Moses and Elijah appeared at the Mount of Transfiguration (Matthew 17:3).

This is enough to tell us that the two witnesses are none other than Moses and Elijah. Some opine that they are Elijah and Enoch because both of them were translated by God and did not die a natural death. But that is only one similarity. Some say that the two witnesses are symbolic of a small number of witnesses, and some say they are not men at all, but a symbol of God's power. I say that they are indeed two individuals. The fact that Moses and Elijah both fill the major attributes of the two witnesses and that they have so many similarities between them shows them to be the best candidates for the two witnesses. Because of this, from here on out this study will assume the two witnesses to be Moses and Elijah.

The Heraldry of the Coat of Arms of modern Israel is based on the passage in Zechariah. Note the lampstand or candlestick (KJV) or Menorah in the center with the two Olive Branches on the left and right of the Menorah. The Hebrew Inscription is "Israel" (Yisrael, ישׂראל). The meaning is "Peace over Israel" (Shalom al Israel, שׁלום עלישׂראל). The depiction of the Menorah in the shield is based on the relief on the Arch of Titus in Rome. When Titus destroyed Jerusalem in 70 AD, He carried away the Menorah to Rome. There the Arch of Titus was built in honor of Titus' victory over Jerusalem.

The Official Israeli Government Site explains that this is indeed from Zechariah and the two olive branches are indeed the two anointed ones. But instead of Moses and Elijah, the site says the two anointed ones are "religion" and "state". Of course, one could say that Moses, who gave the law, represents the state, and Elijah the prophet represents religion.

Their testimony includes fire proceeding out of their mouths that devours their enemies, shutting heaven, so that it does not rain during the days of their prophecy, changing the waters to blood, and smiting the earth with all plagues, as often as they wish.

Symbolically, fire coming from their mouths and devouring their enemies means to speak the truth that torments those who hear it. They do not like it. Stopping the rain is to prevent God's message from being heard. Blood and plagues represent illness and death and a lack of peace. There will be no peace for unbelievers as long as the witnesses testify on earth. The people who do not have the seal of God will become very angry and filled with hate towards these witnesses.

The beast here in this verse is from a word meaning a dangerous and venomous wild animal. The word beast in other passages in Revelation means living thing. Here it is a wild animal. The beast or wild, venomous animal of the abyss is Apollyon or Abbadon, who is none other than Satan himself. He will kill the witnesses.

The bodies of Moses and Elijah will lie in the open in a square in Jerusalem. The word translated street is actually an open square like Trafalgar Square in London or La Piazza San Marcos in Venice. There are numerous markets, squares, and open areas in Jerusalem today that would fill the bill here. Another possible place for this scene is the Temple mount or the Temple precincts. The bodies will be out in the open for all to see. It is a good guess that the major TV news organizations of the world will be there with world-wide coverage. (I am saying nothing derogatory here about the news media. Where there is news like this, the media will be on hand).

We already know from verse 2 that this is Jerusalem. Here she is compared to Sodom, where great iniquity abounded, and to Egypt the uncircumcised, undependable, and two faced ally. Both Samaria and Judah made arms pacts with Egypt to keep the Babylonians and Assyrians at bay. But when they were attacked, Egypt did not keep its end of the bargain, but allowed its allies to face their enemies alone. They put their trust in Egypt instead of in God. (1 Kings 18, etc.) Egypt was also the uncircumcised heathen neighbor of Israel. Samaria and Judah played the harlot with Egypt, worshipping her gods (Eze 23). Basically, Egypt was a land of idolatry and the Israelites liked to dabble with them and their religion.

John is stating that Jerusalem is of the same ilk as both Egypt the uncircumcised heathen and Sodom the city of great iniquity. And worse yet, Jesus was crucified in Jerusalem where He should have been worshipped as Messiah. Because of all these things, this city was to receive the cup of God's wrath.

Jerusalem is an international city with many different nationalities in residence there. There are many tongues spoken there. When Peter preached on Pentecost in c. AD 33, there were then many different nationalities and tongues present in the city. The more things change... I believe we can add the peoples of the world tuned in on satellite TV to this number. I believe this will be a world-wide event.

When a dignitary dies, the body is reverently taken and prepared for burial and then lies in state for several days in a noble place. Many times people from other countries will come and pay their respects either for personal reasons or for the political good will of such an action. The latest example I know of was the death of King Hussein in Jordan. Our president was there along with many other dignitaries. The King was prepared for burial by the best in that field and lay in state in the Mosque while the dignitaries attended his funeral. It was a grand state funeral topped by few. King Hussein was a beloved man, both in his country and in the world.

These two witnesses, men of God placed there by God will be given just the opposite treatment. They will receive no burial, no state funeral, and no funerary preparations. They will be left in the street to decompose before the whole world. The world will want to gloat, and they will not want any respect to be shown these men. There are ample examples throughout history in which the bodies of the despised are left to rot in public. This is done as a source of humiliation for the despised and as a deterrent to others from doing the same things as the despised.

It is very unpopular to advocate God in the world today. The worship of the One True God, Yehovah, is unacceptable to the world. To say that there is only one way to salvation is considered to be bigotry. In fact, it is so unpopular that in many countries it is illegal to say so. In the one world government of the future, it will probably once again be unlawful to be a Christian or to say that Jesus is the only way to salvation. It is even possible that this could happen right here in America.

I believe that there is a coming persecution of Christians unparalleled in history. I think all the nations of the world will be involve in this persecution, including this one. If you will just look around you, you can see that things are headed that way even now. In this country there are precedents that point us in that direction. God has been removed from schools and courtrooms across the country. Prayer has been taken away from school sports activities. Christian churches have been attacked while the police stood by and did nothing (this happened in San Francisco). Christian teachers have been forced not to have a bible on or in their desks. Evolution is taught in schools as though it were a proven fact (even as evolutionary scientists are moving away from evolution in droves). Christians have been arrested for simply praying in public near abortion mills.

Since when does the Constitution allow for zones where free speech is not allowed? Since when does it allow for zones where freedom of religion is not allowed? Did you know that the same amendment to the Constitution that allows for freedom of the press also allows for free speech, freedom of religion, freedom to assemble, and freedom to petition for redress? Here it is:

Amendment I (adopted June 15, 1790)

Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.

If a court somewhere were to set up a "no press zone" near an abortion mill what do you think would happen? There would be Hades to pay. The press would put up such a commotion that the order would be quickly rescinded. But when freedom of speech or of religion from the same amendment is curtailed against the Christian community, that is OK. The press actually seems to like that.

Christians are already a hated group by many in America. In the name of "Separation of Church and State" (which is NOT in the Constitution) there are many groups ready to go to court to stop any and all public display of Christianity. Groups like the ACLU, The PAW, and Citizens United for the Separation of Church and State, the NOW, Planned Parenthood, etc., are more than willing to go to court try to stop Christian activities they deem to be a violation of such "Separation of Church and State".

You might want to note that the furor that goes on around the country at Christmas time when many of these groups try to keep Christian and Jewish religious displays out of the eyes of the public is only directed at Christian and Jewish groups. Other religious groups like Wiccans, Witches, Buddhists, Muslims, Shamanists, Vodooists, etc., are allowed to pursue their public displays year round because they are considered by the elite to be cultural displays.

The courts are in a concerted effort to stop Christian organizations from having their freedom. The words "separation of church and state" were penned by Thomas Jefferson in an effort to convince a particular church that there would be a wall of separation that would keep the state out of the church's business. The Supreme Court made the "Separation of Church and State" the law of the land in the Everson v. Board of Education decision of 1947. Justice Black, writing for the majority, wrote these words in this decision, "In the words of Jefferson, the clause against establishment of religion by law was intended to erect 'a wall of separation between Church and State". That effectively encoded, by judicial fiat, and not by elected representation, the "Separation of Church" into our law. The courts are gradually turning this around to mean that the state is separated from the church but the church is not separated from the state. Let me clarify this. While the church may not have any activities in government areas, the government wants the right to step in and force churches to come under its grasp. For example, in the name of homosexual rights, the courts are attempting to inject affirmative action into churches. They want to force churches to have homosexuals on their staffs even though it violates their moral values. They would like to take that a step further to force churches to hire pastors, teachers, deacons, and elders who are not only not Christians, but are from groups that are patently anti-Christian, all in the name of the euphemism called affirmative action.

I think it is certain that the persecution of Christians is on the upswing right here in this country. The killing of the two witnesses will be the culmination of all of this anti-Christian activity. The two witnesses, who are real people, are also symbols showing that many of God's people will be persecuted for their belief, and some will be killed for that belief. But this narrative of the two witnesses also shows that even though their bodies are killed, they will be raised to everlasting life. Those who kill them and do not repent and turn to God will be cast into the lake of fire. Do not fear death, fear God. For, as Jesus said:

Matthew 10:28 "And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell."

Luke 12:4-5 "And I say unto you my friends, Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do. {5} But I will forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him."

They celebrate the deaths of their enemies by giving gifts much like is done on Christmas. But there are only three days to select, purchase and give the gifts. The witnesses must have been very abrasive to the consciences of the inhabitants of the earth. The word rendered tormented here is the same word that was used by Jesus to describe the torment of the Neves when he was in Hades:

Luke 16:22-24 "And it came to pass, that the beggar died, and was carried by the angels into Abraham's bosom: the rich man also died, and was buried; {23} And in hell he lift up his eyes, being in torments, and seeth Abraham afar off, and Lazarus in his bosom. {24} And he cried and said, Father Abraham, have mercy on me, and send Lazarus, that he may dip the tip of his finger in water, and cool my tongue; for I am tormented in this flame."

Their souls were tormented as though they were in Hell. They did not want their consciences to be reminded of their sins. The more we quench our consciences the less they trouble us. Deep in the psyche everyone has an awareness of God. We are all seeking to find God. You may not believe this to be true, but that doesn't change the fact of its truth. It is true. This awareness is what makes humans seekers. We are all seekers. It is in our make-up. We are seeking to find God. Many do not know that they are seeking God so they go about seeking riches, fame, power, things, etc. They are unknowingly trying to find God so they seek out those things. Besides seeking, many try to fill up this awareness with good works such as humanitarian benevolence or environmentalism or preservation of antiquaries or some other good cause. By these things, people are able to put God out of their lives. Our most basic instinct is to pursue the things we like or think we like. We are more willing to pursue our own interests that to put our trust and our lives into the hands of God, thereby giving up our own self determinations.

The people involved in this experience are like most of us. They have been successful in shutting God out of their lives and their consciences. The witnesses remind them of this fact producing much pain in them. They resent this torment and are only too happy to see the witnesses silenced.

This scenario has played throughout history. This is the reason for the persecution of Christians. Even those who wanted the Christians to forsake Christ and bow down to Caesar or to another god or gods were interested in pursuing their own desires. They did not want a god like Yehovah to tell them when they were sinning. The scenario will continue to play out for the remainder of history culminating in the deaths of the two witnesses. The torment will be so bad that the people will rejoice at the deaths of the witnesses and have gala celebrations.

Again, the narrative of the two witnesses symbolizes that even though we may suffer the death of the body, as long as we are God's own we will be raised again to eternal life. In today's literal world with its scientific bent and its technology and its materialism, it is difficult for many to realize that there is a supernatural realm or a spirit world, if you will. Many will be absolutely taken aback to realize that the supernatural is reality. They will be sorely frightened when they realize they have turned their back on what they thought was a myth only to find out at this moment that that the myth of God is actually true. There will be great fear throughout the world. It will amaze those who are familiar with this passage of Revelation to find out the that passage is really true.

This is NOT the rapture!! It seems that many will strain a gnat to prove the rapture theory. The reason they do so is that there are no passages that really go along with the current teaching on the pre-trib rapture theory. While there are passages that talk about our being changed and going to meet Jesus in the air, there are no passages that prove when our gathering back to the Savior will take place. There is a good passage telling us when that gathering to Christ will NOT take place and that is 2 Thessalonians 2:1-5. Read it. It says that we will not be gathered back to Christ until after the coming of the antichrist. The only ones to ascend into heaven in this verse are the two witnesses. This will occur on global satellite television in front of the entire world. This resurrection and ascent will make people to know that it is a supernatural event. After this, the world will be looking for further events. They won't need to look for long... ________________________________________________

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