Revelation Chapters 10-11

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Revelation 10 Fill-In-The-Blank Flashback The Mighty Angel and the Scroll of Prophecy Chapter 10 is a flash back of what happened in Chapter 1. These two chapters dovetail one another. This is more about Jesus s visit to John. He is a Key player in both the Seal s and the Trumpet s timelines, so He gets His own confirming Chapter. The Mighty Angel is Christ. Revelation 10:1 (Amp. Greek) (1) And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was shining like the sun, and his feet were as flames rising like pillars. Confirming scriptures: Revelation 1:1 (Amp. Greek) (1) The Revelation by visions, which consisted of future things relating to the consummation of the divine Kingdom and of Jesus Christ the Messiah, was given to Jesus by God to present to John, and he in turn to the prophets, whose services God employed in executing His purposes. The vision showed those things which must shortly come to pass. God accomplished this through a messenger angel (Jesus) to whom He had made the vision known. The angel (Jesus) then showed the vision to his servant John the apostle. Revelation 1:12-15 (Amp. Greek) (12) And I turned to see the voice which spoke with me. And when I turned I saw seven golden candlesticks, which symbolically were these seven more obvious churches in Asia. (13) And in the midst of the seven churches stood Christ [God s messenger Angel]. He was clothed in a garment, which reached his ankles, and emblematically around his chest was a golden girdle, which symbolized His Holy priesthood. (14) His head of hair was white like wool, as white as the snow, and his eyes were like a flame of fire. (15) And his feet like a brilliant white metal, like gold or even more precious than gold, as if they glowed in a furnace. And his voice was like the sound of the waves of the sea. Revelation 1:16b (Amp. Greek) Out of His mouth went a sharp two-edged sword; and the countenance of His face was shining like the sun declaring His power and ability. Revelation 10:2-3 (Amp. Greek) (2) And he had in his hand a little open book (scroll), and he placed his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth. (3) He cried with a loud voice as when a lion roars, and when he did, seven thunders (heavenly messengers) spoke their own particular messages, which I understood. ~ (These are the seven angels of the churches) In Chapter 5, Christ took the sealed scroll. Revelation 5:7 (Amp. Greek) And He came and took the scroll out of the right hand of God. (Christ is the only one worthy to OPEN it!) When Jesus comes to John, to reveal God s plans and purposes, the scroll is open. It wasn t mentioned in Chapter 1, but it is in Chapter 10. Notice the seven angels of the churches are with him, and they spoke their particular messages to John concerning the seven churches. That was Chapters 2 and 3. This is a fill-in-the-blank flashback chapter.

Revelation 10:4-6 (Amp. Greek) (4) And when the seven thunders were finished speaking their separate messages, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from an unseen source in Heaven say to me, Keep silent and conceal those things which the seven thunders said, and don t write them down. (5) And the angel, which I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to Heaven, (6) and swore by God as his witness, who created the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the things which are within them, that there should be no more delay. John was told not to write anything down until after all the information had been received. Here is a confirming scripture. Revelation 1:19 (Amp. Greek) Write these things which were presented so far in the vision, and the things which are, and those things which are destined to come to pass by fixed necessity or by divine appointment, AFTER this information has been received. Do you see how these chapters are dovetailing? Revelation 10:7-9 (Amp. Greek) (7) For when the time comes and you see the words of the seventh angel occurring, when he sounds the last trumpet, the mystery of God, which is the completion of His purposes, and Christ s last act of testifying will be accomplished. The mystery is complete when Christ returns from Heaven, just as He declared to His servants, the prophets. (8) And the voice, which I heard from Heaven, spoke to me again and said, Go, take the little open book (scroll), which is in the hand of the angel (Jesus), who is standing on the sea and on the land. (9) And I went up to the angel (Jesus) and said, Give me the little scroll, which reveals God s purposes and plans of action concerning the world. He replied, Eagerly take its entire contents into your innermost soul. It will make your soul very sorrowful, but it will be sweet as honey in your mouth. Confirming scripture that this little scroll is the same one we saw in God s right hand. Revelation 5:5 (Amp.Greek) (5) And one of the twenty four elders of the heavenly court, who was seated in one of the thrones around the throne of God said to me, Don t cry, behold, the brave and mighty hero; the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David has so conquered His foes and come off victorious, He has the right and the power to open the scroll containing the revelations of God s purposes and divine plans for the world and He can remove the seven seals. Revelation 10:10-11 (Amp. Greek) (10) And I took the little scroll out of the angel's hand, and ate it up. As He said, it was sweet as honey in my mouth, but as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. (11) And He said unto me, You must prophesy again and tell these future events pertaining to the Kingdom of God to kings and people of every nation, race and language. This command to prophecy again assured John he would get off the island of Patmos, which he did. So, that was one fill-in-the-blank chapter and it was all about Christ. Chapter 11 is another fill-in-the-blank chapter where John will expound on a few more key players whom we haven t met yet. They are very instrumental in the Trumpet s Timeline, and they will usher in the 7 th Trumpet.

Revelation 11 Fill-In-The-Blank Flashback The Two Witnesses The 7 th Trumpet / 3 rd Woe Revealed In Chapter 10, John took the scroll into his innermost being. Jesus then told him that he would prophecy again of this information, which encouraged John he would not die on the island. Revelation 11:1-2 (Amp.Greek) (1) He gave me a measuring rod, like a walking stick, and he stood and said to me, Go and measure the temple of God, consisting of the Holy of Holies and the Holy place. Also measure the altar of the whole burnt offerings, which stood in the court of the priests, and all who worship there. (2) But the courts outside of the Temple of God don t measure; leave it out. For those will be given to the Gentile nations. For the holy city of Jerusalem will be desecrated by devastation and outrage for 42 months. (3 ½ years). Here is more confirmation that the Tribulation will originate in Jerusalem, not the USA. However, this is the first mention that the Great Tribulation will last 3 ½ years, not seven. Here we are given a puzzle piece, which has caused much controversy. I will do my best to explain it with scripture. John is told to measure a few things; the Holy of Holies, the Holy place, the altar inside the Court of Priests, and all who worship there. The problem is this. Prince Titus and the Romans destroyed the temple in 70AD. There is no temple to measure in 95AD when John is visited by Jesus on the Isle of Patmos, so what does this mean? We must remember, John is seeing into the future. This is a spiritual revelation revealing things which will one day exist. Like the location of the battle of Armageddon and the imaginary creatures in the sixth Trumpet, the Temple will exist in the future on that day. Preterists, who believe the events of the Tribulation have already happened in 70AD, believe John was on the Isle of Patmos in the late 60 sad. They believe Nero put him there based on The Syriac Version of the Bible. Therefore, when John was told to measure the temple in Jerusalem, it was still there. The dates of his imprisonment are debated, but many scholars believe Domitian imprisoned John, not Nero. I decided to wait until the end to see if the Bible pinpointed one, and it did. It leans towards 95AD, but Preterists will not agree. They can t agree, or their whole theology is shot. I will address their theory in more detail in Chapter 12. Here again, the important thing is that we are all saved. The timing of John s visit is a secondary issue. John is getting a glimpse into the three parts of the future Temple, which will one day be rebuilt. The Holy of Holies, the Holy Place and the altar inside the Court of the Priests will exist in the future. Then he is told not to measure the Outer Court, because it will be given to the Gentiles and the holy city of Jerusalem will be desecrated by devastation and outrage for 42 months. This could mean two things. The Outer Court will not be rebuilt, so don t measure it, or it will be rebuilt, but don t measure it.

Revelation 11:3-5 (Amp. Greek) (3) And I will give power and permission to my two witnesses, who are faithful interpreters of my plan of action and purposes, and they will foretell the future events pertaining to the Kingdom of God for 1,260 days (three and a half years) while wearing sackcloth, reminiscent of the Old Testament prophets, who led a strictly disciplined life. (4) These men are two olive trees and two candlesticks. They are the two distinguished prophets who will come before Christ s return from Heaven, who are standing before the God of the earth. (5) And if anyone should harm them, fire will break forth out of their mouths and totally consume and destroy those who are hostile to them. If anybody tries to hurt these two, they will be killed in this manner by fire. John has just introduced two new players into the Trumpet s Timeline, and with them, lots of puzzle pieces. 1. The two witnesses will show up as the Tribulation begins and they will be in Jerusalem for 1,260 days doing their thing. [Confirming the 3 ½ - year Tribulation will be in Jerusalem, and they will only be there during the bad part]. 2. They are God s special messengers sent from Heaven, who are faithful interpreters of His plan of action and purposes. [Confirming they know what s in the scroll] 3. They are un-killable for the 1,260 days [Confirming God sent them and they are supernatural beings]. 4. They are reminiscent of Old Testament prophets dressed in sackcloth [Possibly confirming what many scholars believe. They are either Elijah and Moses, or Elijah and Enoch]. 5. They come before Christ s return [Confirming a Post-Tribulation / Pre-Wrath Rapture] 6. They can breathe fire to protect themselves [Confirming God gives them power]. The Thayer s Lexicon agrees they are either Elijah and Enoch, or Elijah and Moses, who have been brought to earth. This would explain their attire of the Old Testament prophets and why they are supernatural beings. If it is appointed unto a man once to die and then the judgment, Elijah and Enoch would be the more likely candidates, as they both ascended into Heaven having never tasted death. But more scholars believe it will be Elijah and Moses. Everything at this point is speculation. However, they are important players in the Trumpet s Timeline. I thought it strange they weren t revealed in the Seal s Timeline, but when I saw what they did, I understood why they were revealed during the Trumpet s Timeline. They are responsible for calling down the Trumpet Judgments during the 3 ½ years of Great Tribulation in Jerusalem. They are God s special instruments. Revelation 11:6-10 (Amp. Greek) (6) These two have the power to shut up the heavens so it won t rain during the entire 1,260 days they are prophesying of the coming events relating to Christ s Kingdom and its speedy triumph. Together they will offer comforting words during everyone s time of affliction and give earnest rebukes, cautionary advice and many warnings which pertain to their futures. They have the power to send the punishment of God upon

mankind. They can control the atmosphere. (4 th Trumpet. Sun, moon and 1/3 of the stars are darkened for 1/3 of time.) They can turn the water of any of the earth s repositories into blood, (2 nd Trumpet. 1/3 of sea becomes blood, 1/3 of sea life dies, and 1/3 of ships are destroyed). They can smite the earth with public calamity (1 st Trumpet. Hail, fire, and blood from the sky, burns up trees and grass). They can bring on heavy affliction, which will torment (5 th Trumpet. Demonic locusts torment men for five months, but don t kill them) and they can destroy humans (3 rd Trumpet. Star named Wormwood poisons the water and kills many & 6 th Trumpet. Fire-breathing creatures kill 1/3 of hostile men). They can do this as often as they want. (7) And when they have finished their duty of testifying for 1,260 days, concerning the future events, the Antichrist, who ascended out of the bottomless pit, will make war against them and overcome them by force and kill them. (8) And their dead bodies will lie in the street of Jerusalem, which in a spiritual sense is called Sodom, for its idolatry and sexual sin, and Egypt, for its hostility to the true God and His people. This great city of Jerusalem is also where Jesus was crucified. (9) And the people from that nation of all the various languages saw their dead bodies for three and a half days and wouldn t permit anyone to bury them. (10) And everyone on earth will be exceedingly joyful about their deaths. They will rejoice and send gifts to each other, because these two illustrious prophets, who publicly appeared shortly before the return of Christ from Heaven, tormented them with grievous mental pains and bodily afflictions. This is why the wicked people in Jerusalem will be rejoicing and sending each other gifts. These prophets afflicted them for 3 ½ years by calling down the judgments of God on them. They were trying to get them to repent, but the wicked and unbelieving [Seal #6 players] never will. After 1,260 days, when the Antichrist is finally allowed to kill them, the wicked and unbelieving will be happy. They will feel safe for the first time in 3 ½ years. Confirming scriptures: 1 Thessalonians 5:2-3 NKJV - (2) For you yourselves know perfectly that the day of the Lord so comes as a thief in the night. (3) For when they say, "Peace and safety!" then sudden destruction comes upon them, as labor pains upon a pregnant woman. And they shall not escape. [Seal #6- The wicked and unbelieving] Just when they think it is safe, God has other plans. Let s look back at their seal. Revelation 6:12-17 (Amp.Greek) (12) I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood. (13) And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its unripe figs when it is shaken violently by a mighty wind. (14) Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place. (15) And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the military commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves

and in the rocks of the mountains, (16) and said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us and hide us from the view of God. Rescue us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and is enraged, and from the judgment of Christ. (17) For the last day of this present age, when Christ will return from Heaven, raise the dead, hold the final judgment and perfect His Kingdom, the day when the wrath of God will be made manifest in the punishment of the wicked is coming soon. Who will be able to have the power, whether by virtue of one s own ability and resources, or of a state of mind, or through favorable circumstances, or by permission of law, who will escape in safety? Once these two witnesses are killed, the return of Christ will be close at hand. Revelation 11:11-14 (Amp. Greek) (11) And after three and a half days, the breath of life from God entered into their nostrils and remained in them, and they stood up on their feet and great fear seized everyone who saw them. (12) And they heard a great voice from Heaven saying unto these two witnesses, Come up here to this place. And they ascended up to Heaven in a cloud; and their enemies watched them in awe. (13) And in the same hour, there was an enormous earthquake, and one tenth of the city of Jerusalem was destroyed, and in the earthquake, 7,000 certain men were killed, and the rest, who were not in that group, were terrified and gave glory to God and praised His name. (14) The second woe is past. Behold, the third woe cometh quickly. Did you catch the timing of the earthquake in the sixth trumpet to the one in the sixth seal? We are at the same point in the two Timelines. In verse 13 it tells as that within the hour of the two witnesses ascension, there will be an enormous earthquake and 7,000 men will be killed. I believe those killed were the wicked and unbelieving, [the 6 th Seal players], who were hiding in the caves wishing that the mountains and rocks would fall on them to hide them from the view of God and rescue them from the judgment of Christ. It looks like they got their wish. It also appears God protected the righteous, because those not killed gave glory to God. We are ready for the return of Christ and the 3 rd. Woe. The 144,000 have finished witnessing and they are all in the Throne Room. The Two Witnesses have finished testifying and they have returned as well. The stage is set. The Throne Room is ready. Everyone there is gearing up for the big event. Christ is about to snatch His bride away (the 7 th Trumpet) and reign down His wrath on the wicked (The 3 rd. Woe). The 7 th Trumpet / 3 rd Woe Revelation 11:15-17 (Amp. Greek) (15) And the seventh angel sounded and there were great declarations from Heaven, though no speaker was seen, saying, The kingdoms of this earth are soon to become the property of Jesus our Lord and our Messiah and He shall reign in power forever and ever. (16) And the twenty four elders, who sat on thrones before God, fell upon their faces, and worshipped Him saying, (17) We give you thanks, O Lord God, who rules over all things, who was, and is, and is to come, because you took your great kingly power as God; your royal power, and have come to reign as King over all. It is amazing to me that there will still be people in Jerusalem with hard hearts. But the wicked and unbelieving will not repent, no matter what God does to get their attention. They will be

ticked off because the two witnesses, which caused them nothing but grief, were resurrected from the dead and an earthquake just killed 7,000 of their kind. Revelation 11:18 (Amp. Greek) (18) And the nations were angry that the retribution, wrath and punishment of God on the wicked was soon coming, and the time appointed for the dead to be recalled to life and judged by Christ, to decide whether they were righteous or unrighteous, was close at hand. They were angry that Christ was going to give rewards for good deeds and endeavors to the prophets, whose services God employed to execute His divine purposes, to the saints, and to those who showed reverential obedience, both young and old, and that He was going to kill the wicked who corrupted the minds and morals of men who inhabited the earth. The return of Christ is imminent at this point, and Heaven is buzzing with activity. Revelation 11:19 (Amp.Greek) (19) And the heavenly temple of the New Jerusalem of God was opened in Heaven, and there was seen in His temple, the Ark of the Covenant with the tables of the law inside, and there was lightning and voices and thunderings and an earthquake and great hail, of mighty violence and force. The angels with the Bowls of Wrath are in position. Let s jump ahead to catch a glimpse of that. The End of Chapter 11 dovetails with the beginning of Chapter 15. Revelation 15:1 (Amp. Greek) And I saw another sign foretelling remarkable events which were soon to happen. They were marvelously amazing, but filled with terror. Seven angels, who have the last of the seven plagues, will follow after the final trumpet. For after the seventh trumpet, none other will blow. In the last seven calamities and afflictions, sent by God as punishment to kill the wicked, His WRATH will be finished. It will have reached its completion. Remember, the Tribulation is not the wrath of God. The Bowls of Wrath are the wrath of God and Christians aren t appointed unto wrath. Revelation 15:5-8 (Amp. Greek) (5) After that I looked and beheld the innermost part of the Temple of the New Jerusalem, in which the testimony of the rights of God was opened. (6) And the seven angels came out of the temple. They were dressed in pure, white linen and their chests were encircled with golden belts. (7) One of the four beasts gave to each of the seven angels a golden vial, like a shallow bowl, which was filled with the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. (8) The Temple of the New Jerusalem in Heaven was filled with smoke, which originated from the Shekinah glory of God, by which He made manifest to men His presence and His power, and no one was able to enter into the temple until the time that the seven calamities and afflictions of the seven angels, were finished. Before the 7 th Trumpet sounds, angels come out of the Holy of Holies in Heaven. They are preparing to pour out the Bowls of Wrath. When the 7 th Trumpet sounds and the 7 th Seal opens, there will be silence in Heaven for ½ hour as the Shekinah glory of God fills the Temple and everyone leaves with Christ to rapture the bride in the clouds. The bride will be safely removed and then the Bowls of Wrath will be poured out on the wicked and unbelieving.

Christ (the Mighty Angel in Chapters 1 & 10) and the two witnesses of Chapter 11 are key players in the Trumpet s Timeline. Nobody can harm the witnesses until they have testified of Christ s last act. Then God will allow them to be killed and He will bring them back to life after 3 ½ days and they will ascend into Heaven to re-join the 144,000 martyrs on the Sea of Glass around the throne of God. Christ will then return for His bride, raise the dead, hold the final judgment, and perfect His Kingdom. Remember, Chapters, 10 & 11 are fill-in-the-blank flashback chapters. They reveal events which surround Christ and the Two Witnesses. If the witnesses have 1,260 days (3 ½ years) and Jerusalem will be devastated for 42 months (3 ½ years), it appears the Great Tribulation will be 3 ½ years long. Where is that mysterious 7-year peace treaty and 3 ½ years of peace? If the Preterists were correct, and these events already took place, I would like to know why these two supernatural people, who could breathe fire out of their mouths, who were supposedly on the streets of Jerusalem for 3 ½ years in sackcloth before the Temple was destroyed in 70AD, weren t mentioned by Josephus. After all, he was the leading historian of the Jewish- Roman war. Also, if the Lord returned to rapture the Christians after these two witnesses were taken back up to heaven, wouldn t John have been raptured in 70AD? Why is he still around years after the destruction of Jerusalem? If Christ sets up His throne in Jerusalem at some point after the Tribulation for the Millennial Kingdom, wouldn t He be there by now? I have asked Preterists these and more questions, because I want to understand why they believe the events surrounding the return of Christ have already happened. However, their answers can be refuted with scripture and history itself. Here is what I can give them. There are many similarities to the events of the Jewish-Roman war of 70AD and the destruction which will take place during the Tribulation of the End Times. There are even a few scriptures which make it sound like these two events are the same. But just because the events are similar and the scriptures sound similar, doesn t make them the same event. Even identical twins are different people. There are many places in the Bible where history seems to repeat itself with similar events, and we will discuss the similarities, which cause the confusion, in great detail in Chapter 12. I pray it gives clarity to my Preterist friends. But, before we go into Chapter 12, I am going to do a sub-teaching called, The Dead-In-Christ Are Revealed. Just who are the dead Christians who are rising from their graves at His return? If we aren t the Great Cloud of Witness, then why do people teach we can look down on our loved ones after we pass? If we go up when we die, why doesn t John see Christians in Heaven when he visits in Revelation 4 & 5? If to be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord, and the Lord is in the Throne Room with God, where is the church? Do you want the answers?