Testimony, Terror, and Triumph- Revelation 11:7-14

What does it mean to live on mission for God? What might we expect if, in our mission, we are made to face trials and tribulation? What happens if we are made to pay the ultimate price in fulfilling God’s calling in our lives? What if, instead of coming right out and answering these questions straightforwardly, the Bible illustrates the answers to these inquiries by means of faithful characters? (What if the greatest among these was celebrated last week during Easter?) Thankfully, as we return to our Revelation series we are provided with a compelling illustration of what it means to live on mission for God, what to expect if, in one’s mission, one is made to face trials and tribulation, and what happens if he/she is made to pay the ultimate price in the process. This is found in John’s description of two stages of the ministry of the two witnesses in Revelation 11:7-14. In this text, the future fulfillment of the witnesses’ ministry provides a hopeful and inspiring example for the church to follow when/if they face worldly pressures today.

1) STAGE #1: Their Earthly Fate-11:7-10

Having already been introduced to these two witnesses in Revelation 11:1-6 and having made the case that these two witnesses probably consist of Moses and Elijah (representing the Law and the Prophets that testify to Jesus Christ) John moves to disclose two stages of the end of their ministry. The first of these is their earthly fate (revealed in verses 7-10). Understanding the timing of the earthly fate of these two witnesses is crucial. John reveals that their earthly fate will be realized “when they finished their testimony” (11:7) and not a moment sooner. In other words, nothing will stand in the way of these two or silence their message until God decides their ministry of testifying to the things of Christ is complete. Before then, they are virtually untouchable. Remember what John said in verse 3 of chapter 11—“And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way.”

The parallels between these two witnesses and Jesus’ own earthly fate are pervasive. Jesus was also untouchable before the time had come to give up his own life. Premature attempts on his life were met with frustration (Jn. 7:6, 30; 8:20) and nothing happened until God’s predetermined time was reached (Matt. 26:45-46; Mark 14:41-42). The same will be the case for these two witnesses. Nothing will be able to inhibit their ministry until the time God determines. Once again, this reveals God’s sovereignty over the happenings in the apocalypse.

At the time that God has determined and as soon as the special ministry of testifying to Jesus Christ is complete, “the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them” (11:7b). This new character—the beast—has not yet appeared in the book. However, the presence of the definite article (“the”) suggests that John’s readers would have understood who this creature was intended to represent –the Antichrist (Osborne, Revelation, 424). That this is the correct identity of the beast is made clear in Revelation 13:1ff. However, how would the readers have known this was the Antichrist prior to reading ahead to Revelation 13? The answer lies in the ancient text of Daniel 7:7-8-“After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, dreadful and terrifying and extremely strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth uttering great boasts.” This beast, like the beast of Revelation, ascends from a mysterious place (see the use of the word anabainw in Daniel 7:3 in the LXX and in Revelation 11:7b) and is also said to “make war” against God’s people (much like this beast is shown to here).

What the beast is shown to do to the two witnesses in Revelation 11:7 is also reminiscent of what the beast does in Daniel 7—“will make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them,…” (11:7). This language is also repeated later in Revelation 13:7 “where we are told that when the beast “wages war” and “conquers” [in that context] the saints, he does so only because God allows it (also drawing on Dan. 7:21, 25)” (Osborne, Revelation, 425). God remains in control and yet, in this episode of the unfolding saga, the beast’s attack against the two witnesses results in their physical death.

Following their earthly demise, John reveals that “their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified” (11:8). Throughout the ancient world, refusing to bury the dead (sometimes a punishment reserved for the worst criminals) was considered the greatest cruelty one could offer. The Jews, who believed that proximity to dead animals and/or people placed one at risk for being ceremonially unclean, would find this especially appalling. Leaving these dead bodies lying in the streets of Jerusalem (their holy city) would have made this even worse! However, the bodies of these two witnesses lying the streets of Jerusalem is illustrative of the state of Jerusalem at this point in the tribulation period. The spiritual darkness that has replaced the promises of peace and prosperity at this point in the unfolding tribulation period is highlighted by references to two pagan historical regions that are invoked to describe God’s holy land—Sodom and Egypt. Comparing Jerusalem to these wicked territories is not new. The Old Testament prophets often compared Jerusalem or Israel with Sodom when God’s people behaved wickedly (Isa. 1:9-10; Jer. 23:14) (Keener, IVP BBC, 750). Also, as Egypt had oppressed Israel, it is not a big stretch to see how Jerusalem in this future period looks more like Pharaoh’s Egypt (under a new maniacal world leader—the Antichrist) than it does David’s kingdom.

John draws another parallel between these two witnesses and Jesus when he says, “where also their Lord was crucified” (11:8b). In both their message (that was all about Christ) and in their death (executed in the same location as Jesus’ crucifixion) these two witnesses in word and deed draw the world’s attention to the person and work of the only one who provides salvation (even in the midst of great tribulation).

During this grotesque wake of sorts on the  streets of Jerusalem, “those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb” (11:9). This macabre spectacle will linger during a time that is parallel to the length of their ministry—3.5 days is complimentary to the 3.5 years they spend testifying. 3 and a half days is also close to the number of days (as understood in the ancient Jewish world) that Jesus laid in the tomb.

If the situation couldn’t get any more disrespectful toward these two witnesses, John reveals “And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because they will send gifts to one another,…” (11:10a). The killing of these two witnesses of God is celebrated almost as though a new and exciting holiday has been introduced—presents are even exchanged! The death of these two representatives of God is like Christmas morning to the wicked world. Why? “Because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth” (11:10b). This probably refers to the plagues and other defensive measure the witnesses used to preserve their own lives and judge opponents during their ministry (see Rev. 11:6). Perceived by the world as torture, the supernatural powers of these two witnesses has been removed from the earth, no longing providing the nuisance to the evil world powers centralized in this part of the world. For this reason, the people of the world rejoice.

Thus concludes John’s presentation of the earthly fate of these two witnesses. However, much like good Friday celebrated a week ago, Revelation 11:7-10 is not the end of the story.  

2) STAGE #2: Their Ultimate Triumph-11:11-14

John continues with the second and final stage of the witnesses’ ministry. Stage 2 stands in stark contrast to the first—“BUT after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; (11:11). The means by which God brings these witnesses back to life appears to be borrowed from Ezekiel 37:5. Appearing in a context that speaks of God’s restoration of Israel out of Babylonian exile (complete with its own parallels to what is taking place in Revelation), this verse reads, “Thus says the Lord God to these bones, ‘behold, I will cause breath to enter you that you may come to life…’” (See Beale, Revelation, 596). In Ezekiel 37, the nation of Israel is compared to a corpse of which only dry bones remain. As these witnesses lie dead in the streets of Jerusalem in Revelation, so too was Israel viewed in the world’s eyes as slain during the Old Testament exile. However, God is said to be able to breath life back into that which is dead and this he does before the world here in Revelation. The contrast of the witnesses’ death and their newfound life is accentuated by the words “laid” in verse 6 and “stood” here in verse 11. These two positions demonstrate the transformation from death to life brought about by the breath of God.

The immediate reaction to this is expected “and great fear fell upon those who were watching them,…” (11:11). The fact that the world is “watching them” suggests that perhaps the death and decay of these two witnesses is plastered everywhere during the end of the tribulation (maybe on the news, streaming live online, etc.) and viewable to all in the known world. Maybe their death, their wake, and now their new life will being covered wall to wall by all of the news outlets of that day.

The fear gripping those watching around the world increases as, I imagine, the viewers at home turn up the volume on their sets and restaurant patrons demand that a manager unmute the big screens as this new development unfolds before their eyes. With the volume now on, “they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them [to two witnesses now risen] ‘Come up here,’ Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them” (11:12). Their being taken up into heaven is similar to Jesus’ own ascension several week’s following his own resurrection. Conspicuous, powerful, and weighty, this demonstrates the lengths to which God will go to call up those who are faithful to him, even/especially if their lives are required.

As dread continues to overwhelm the recent celebrations of the world following the death of these two witnesses, things become even more precarious for those who commemorated the killing of God’s representatives with a new holiday. John continues, “and in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell” (11:13a). There are many earthquakes in Revelation (6:12; 8:5; 11:13, 19; 16:18) that demonstrate the awesome power of God and the acuity of his judgment. Here, the earthquake seems to be localized to Jerusalem proper—the immediate context in which these witnesses ministered, were killed, and were raised. Even in this judgment against the city that killed his representatives, God shows restraint as only a tenth of the city fell.

Though this is a small fraction, John reveals “seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake…” (11:13b). Just imagine all of this playing out on your favorite 24hr news channel. A dramatic execution, live streaming of the rotting corpses, a couple of resurrections, loud voices from heaven, and a large earthquake with many casualties. It is no wonder that the response of many is recorded as follows: “and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God in heaven” (11:13b). The veracity of the response of the survivors of this earthquake recorded here is dubious, especially since many other earth-dwellers later fail to glorify God (see Rev. 16:9). In fact, this is the only passage in Revelation that even hints at a large-scale conversion of those living in and by the world system before Jesus returns in Revelation 19. Every other text is pessimistic concerning the willingness of those in the world’s system  to repent in the face of divine judgment (see Rev. 9:21) (not the 144,000 or great multitude of Revelation 7). That said, at least here, many survivors of the earthquake give lip service to God and acknowledge his lordship temporarily (see Nebuchadnezzar's claims in Daniel 1-3) (after all, how could they deny it?) (Wilson, Revelation in ZIBBC vol. 4, 316).

So What?

In the two stages of ministry outlined in this passage we witness several things that are important to remember as we await the Lord’s return. First, God’s people will come under attack by those who in the world seek to undermine the testimony of Jesus Christ. John reveals that this will be true of the two witnesses one day in a future tribulation and we know that this is true of many believers in our world today. Second, the fate of God's witnesses is not determined by men, but by the Lord’s sovereign hand. This means that they are invincible until the Father so decides that their ministry is finished. This will be the case for the two witnesses (as nothing harmed them until “they had finished their testimony”) and is the case for those who are on mission for the Lord today. Third, even in death, those who are called of God are granted life. This is seen in the breath of life given to the two witnesses in Revelation and this is also promised to those who are in Christ even now. As Jesus says, “I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in Me will live even if he dies,” (John 11:25).

The anticipated example of the two witnesses revealed in the book of Revelation acts as an inspiring model for believers everywhere to follow. However, their example is only inspiring insofar as it parallels the greatest example of all—Jesus Christ. Even he faced pressure while doing the Lord’s work, paid the ultimate price for his mission, and was raised to life in victory thereafter. If this was the destiny of our Lord and Savior and we are his followers, why should we expect anything different?  As Jesus says elsewhere “If the world hates you, you know that it has hated Me before it hated you. If you were of the world, the world would love its own; but because you are not of the world, but I chose you out of the world, because of this the world hates you. Remember the word that I said to you, ‘A slave is not greater than his master.’ If they persecuted Me, they will also persecute you; if they kept My word, they will keep yours also.” (John 15:18ff). However, this same Jesus who provides a realistic description of what we can expect says this: “These things I have spoken to you, so that in Me you may have peace. In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world.” (John 16:33). Jesus overcame the world in his resurrection from the dead and promises that same resurrection life to anyone who repents of their former ways and follows him in faith.