1. This prophecy falls under the sounding of the sixth trumpet.
2. John is given a measuring device and told to "measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers."
   _{Revelation 11:1}
3. But he is told to exclude the outer courtyard "because it has been given to the Gentiles."_{Revelation 11:2}
4. The reason given for this exclusion is that the Gentiles "will trample on the holy city for 42 months." _{Revelation 11:2}
5. The temple John is told to measure is the earthly temple, not the one in heaven.
6. The proof of that is given by the text that states the outer courtyard and the holy city (Jerusalem) is occupied by the Gentiles.
7. The main purpose of this prophecy is to introduce the work of the two witnesses during this period of time.
8. They are described as two olive trees and two lampstands that will prophecy for 1260 days clothed in sackloth.
9. This is the same period of time the Gentiles occupy the holy city. 42 months and 1260 days equates to three and one half years of literal time.
10. The wearing of sackcloth is a sign of mourning, submission, grief and self-humiliation.
11. They have the power to harm their enemies with fire and drought, to turn water into blood and strike the earth with plague.
12. When their prophesying is completed, the beast that comes up out of the Abyss attacks and destroys them.
13. Their bodies were left unburied, exposed publicly in the great city for three and a half days.
14. The people of earth gazed upon them with disdain on account of the discomfort their prophesying brought upon them.
15. After the three and a half days God breathed into them the breath of life. They stood up and ascended to heaven to the amazement of their enemies.
16. At that moment a terrible earthquake occurred. A tenth of the city was destroyed and thousands of people were killed.
17. This terrified those who witnessed it and gave thanks to the God of heaven for their survival.

"Then have them [the Israelites] make a sanctuary for me, and I will dwell among them. Make this tabernacle and all its furnishings exactly like the pattern I will show you." _{Exodus 25:8-9}

1. The Courtyard (100 * 50 cubits): Exodus 27:9-19
   • The Altar of Burnt Offering: Exodus 27:1-8
   • The Bronze Laver: Exodus 30:17-21
2. The Tabernacle (30 * 10 * 10 cubits): Exodus 26:1-37
   • Holy Place:
     1. The Table of Showbread: Exodus 25:23-30
     2. The Lampstand: Exodus 25:31-40
     3. The Altar of Incense: Exodus 30:1-10
   • Most Holy Place:
     1. The Ark of the Covenant: Exodus 25:10-22

1. The priest offered daily burnt offerings and grain offerings on the altar of burnt offerings.
2. The priest burned incense at the altar of incense twice a day when he tended the lamps.
3. The Day of Atonement occurs annually corresponding to a date in late September or early October. It was the only day the priest was allowed to enter the Most Holy Place.
4. On that day the priest sacrificed a bull, a ram and one goat as a sin offering to make antonement for himself, the sins of israel and to cleanse the tabernacle.
5. A second goat is chosen as the scapegoat and sent away into the wilderness carrying with it the sins of Israel.

1. The structure Moses was commanded to build was composed of a covered tent called the tabernacle inside a outer courtyard walled by linen curtains.
2. This structure was moved about to different locations during the time the Israelites occupied the promised land until king Solomon.
3. Solomon built a more permanant temple of the Lord sometime in the 10th century BC.
4. Solomon's temple was destroyed in 586 BC when Jerusalem was conquered by Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon.
5. Cyrus II of Persia issued an order allowing exiled Jews to return to Jerusalem and rebuild the Temple about 538 BC.
6. This second temple underwent significant reconstruction under Herod the Great, king of Judea, which was under Roman control at the time.
7. Herod's temple included the Court of the Gentiles, the outermost courtyard open to non-Jews as a place of worship and prayer and a meeting place for people from different cultures.
8. Herod's temple was destroyed in 70 AD by Roman legions as a result of the Jewish rebellion and has never been rebuilt.
9. The Al-Aqsa mosque, commonly called the Dome of the Rock, was built 691 AD on the site of Herod's Temple. It is one of Islam's holiest sites.

1. It is unclear from the text which temple John was instructed to measure: The Mosaic sanctuary, Solomon's temple or Herod's reconstructed second temple.
2. At the time of the writing of this prophecy, Herod's temple lay in ruin having been destroyed by Roman legions some twenty years earlier.
3. John would have been quite familiar with Herod's temple and the existense of the Court of the Gentiles. But is this the outer courtyard mentioned in the text?
4. Whatever it may be is most likely secondary to the main theme of this prophecy:
   • There is a distinction made between the 'worshipers' in the temple proper and the Gentiles who were not allowed there.
   • The exclusion of the Gentiles coincides with them trampling on the holy city, Jerusalem, for a period of 42 months. In actual fact, Jerusalem has been frequently trampled on (i.e. occupied by a foreign nation) for much longer periods of time.
   • The two witnesses are now introduced and their mission is to prophesy for 1260 days which is the same period of time as the 42 months given earlier.
5. The two witnesses are called the two olive trees and two lampstands. Olive oil was used as fuel for lamps so it can be said they are givers of light and truth.
6. I like to think of the two witnesses as a metaphor or summation of all the true prophets of God found in both the Old and New Testaments. The powers they have are also unmistakably rooted in scripture.
7. Prophets were frequently not well received by the Israelite people and quite often were hated because they warned their sinful ways would bring them trouble.
8. When their alotted time is completed they are attacked by the beast that ascends from the Abyss and destroyed. What is this beast and where else is it mentioned?
9. "The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction." _{Revelation 17:8}  This is the scarlet beast that, in union with the ten kings, reappears in the end time to "wage war against the Lamb."
10. The bodies of the two witnesses lay openly for three and one half days in the public square of the great city figuratively called Sodom and Egypt "where also their Lord was crucified."
11. Sodom was known for its immorality and great wickedness. And when the Pharaoh of Egypt is told "to let my people go" he answers, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey him and let Israel go?" This sums up the spiritual state on earth during this time in which wickedness abounds along with a denial in the existence of God.
12. Jesus was charged with blasphemy because he claimed to be the son of God, a claim the Jewish Sanhedrin rejected. They could not have brought this charge to Pilate so instead they said he claimed to be the King of the Jews.
13. There can be only one conclusion: The scarlet beast is the antichrist that will wage war on scriptural truth and seemingly succeed to the approval and enjoyment of the unrepentant of earth.
14. But just when the enemies of truth and righteousness think they have won, the two witnesses come alive, receive greater honor symbolized by their ascent to heaven and the earth is rocked by an earthquake.
15. This is when the saying becomes true: "The Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings - and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers." _{Revelation 17:14}