Revelation 11
11
The two witnesses
1An angel gave me a measuring stick and said:#Ez 40.3; Zec 2.1,2.
Measure around God's temple. Be sure to include the altar and everyone worshipping there. 2But don't measure the courtyard outside the temple building. Leave it out. It has been given to those people who don't know God, and they will trample all over the holy city for forty-two months.#Lk 21.24. 3My two witnesses will wear sackcloth,#11.3 sackcloth: See the note at 6.12. while I let them preach for one thousand two hundred and sixty days.
4These two witnesses are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand in the presence of the Lord who rules the earth.#Zec 4.3,11-14. 5Any enemy who tries to harm them will be destroyed by the fire that comes out of their mouths. 6They have the power to lock up the sky and to keep rain from falling while they are prophesying. And whenever they want to, they can turn water to blood and cause all kinds of terrible troubles on earth.#1 K 17.1; Ex 7.17-19; 1 S 4.8.
7After the two witnesses have finished preaching God's message, the beast that lives in the deep pit will come up and fight against them. It will win the battle and kill them.#Dn 7.7; Rev 13.5-7; 17.8; Dn 7.21. 8Their bodies will be left lying in the streets of the same great city where their Lord was nailed to a cross. And that city is spiritually like the city of Sodom or the country of Egypt.#Is 1.9,10.
9For three and a half days the people of every nation, tribe, language, and race will stare at the bodies of these two witnesses and refuse to let them be buried. 10Everyone on earth will celebrate and be happy. They will give gifts to each other, because of what happened to the two prophets who caused them so much trouble. 11But three and a half days later, God will breathe life into their bodies. They will stand up, and everyone who sees them will be terrified.#Ez 37.10.
12The witnesses then heard a loud voice from heaven, saying, “Come up here.” And while their enemies were watching, they were taken up to heaven in a cloud.#2 K 2.11. 13At that same moment there was a terrible earthquake that destroyed a tenth of the city. Seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were frightened and praised the God who rules in heaven.#Rev 6.12; 16.18.
14The second horrible thing has now happened! But the third one will be here soon.
The seventh trumpet
15At the sound of the seventh trumpet, loud voices were heard in heaven. They said,#Ex 15.18; Dn 2.44; 7.14,27.
“Now the kingdom
of this world
belongs to our Lord
and to his Chosen One!
And he will rule
for ever and ever!”
16Then the twenty-four elders, who were seated on thrones in God's presence, knelt down and worshipped him. 17They said,
“Lord God All-Powerful,
you are and you were,
and we thank you.
You used your great power
and started ruling.
18When the nations got angry,#Ps 2.5; 110.5; Ps 115.13.
you became angry too!
Now the time has come
for the dead
to be judged.
It is time for you to reward
your servants the prophets
and all your people
who honour your name,
no matter who they are.
It is time to destroy everyone
who has destroyed
the earth.”
19The door to God's temple in heaven was then opened, and the sacred chest#11.19 sacred chest: In Old Testament times the sacred chest was kept in the tent used for worship. It was the symbol of God's presence with his people and also of his agreement with them. could be seen inside the temple. I saw lightning and heard roars of thunder. The earth trembled and huge hailstones fell to the ground.#Rev 8.5; 16.18; Rev 16.21.
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© British and Foreign Bible Society 2012
Revelation 11
11
The Two Witnesses
1I was given a long stick that looked like a measuring rod. I was told, “Go and measure the temple of God. And measure the altar where the people are worshiping. 2But do not measure the outer courtyard. That’s because it has been given to the Gentiles. They will take over the holy city for 42 months. 3I will appoint my two witnesses. And they will prophesy for 1,260 days. They will be dressed in the rough clothes people wear when they’re sad.” 4The witnesses are “the two olive trees” and the two lampstands. And “they stand in front of the Lord of the earth.” (Zechariah 4:3,11,14) 5If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and eats up their enemies. This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die. 6These witnesses have power to close up the sky. Then it will not rain while they are prophesying. They also have power to turn the waters into blood. And they can strike the earth with every kind of plague. They can do this as often as they want to.
7When they have finished speaking, the beast that comes up from the Abyss will attack them. He will overpower them and kill them. 8Their bodies will lie in the main street of the great city. It is also the city where their Lord was nailed to a cross. The city is sometimes compared to Sodom or Egypt. 9For three and a half days, people will stare at their bodies. These people will be from every tribe and nation, no matter what language they speak. They will refuse to bury them. 10Those who live on the earth will be happy about this. That’s because those two prophets had made them suffer. The people will celebrate by sending one another gifts.
11But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered the witnesses. They both stood up. Terror struck those who saw them. 12Then the two witnesses heard a loud voice from heaven. It said to them, “Come up here.” They went up to heaven in a cloud. Their enemies watched it happen.
13At that same time there was a powerful earthquake. A tenth of the city crumbled and fell. In the earthquake, 7,000 people were killed. Those who lived through it were terrified. They gave glory to the God of heaven.
14The second terrible judgment has passed. The third is coming soon.
The Seventh Trumpet
15The seventh angel blew his trumpet. There were loud voices in heaven. They said,
“The kingdom of the world has become
the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah.
He will rule for ever and ever.”
16The 24 elders were sitting on their thrones in front of God. They fell on their faces and worshiped God. 17They said,
“Lord God who rules over all, we give thanks to you.
You are the God who is and who was.
We give you thanks.
That’s because you have begun to rule with your great power.
18The nations were angry,
and the time for your anger has come.
The time has come to judge the dead.
It is time to reward your servants the prophets
and your people who honor you.
There is a reward for all your people,
both great and small.
It is time to destroy those who destroy the earth.”
19Then God’s temple in heaven was opened. Inside it the wooden chest called the ark of his covenant could be seen. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings and thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.
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