The Two Witnesses

11 Then I was given (A)a reed like a measuring rod. [a]And the angel stood, saying, (B)“Rise and measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship there. But leave out (C)the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, (D)for it has been given to the Gentiles. And they will (E)tread the holy city underfoot for (F)forty-two months. And I will give power to my two (G)witnesses, (H)and they will prophesy (I)one thousand two hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth.”

These are the (J)two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the [b]God of the earth. And if anyone wants to harm them, (K)fire proceeds from their mouth and devours their enemies. (L)And if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this manner. These (M)have power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy; and they have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues, as often as they desire.

The Witnesses Killed

When they (N)finish their testimony, (O)the beast that ascends (P)out of the bottomless pit (Q)will make war against them, overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies will lie in the street of (R)the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, (S)where also [c]our Lord was crucified. (T)Then those from the peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations [d]will see their dead bodies three-and-a-half days, (U)and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves. 10 (V)And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them, make merry, (W)and send gifts to one another, (X)because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.

The Witnesses Resurrected

11 (Y)Now after the three-and-a-half days (Z)the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 And [e]they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” (AA)And they ascended to heaven (AB)in a cloud, (AC)and their enemies saw them. 13 In the same hour (AD)there was a great earthquake, (AE)and a tenth of the city fell. In the earthquake seven thousand people were killed, and the rest were afraid (AF)and gave glory to the God of heaven.

14 (AG)The second woe is past. Behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

Seventh Trumpet: The Kingdom Proclaimed

15 Then (AH)the seventh angel sounded: (AI)And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, (AJ)“The [f]kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ, (AK)and He shall reign forever and ever!” 16 And (AL)the twenty-four elders who sat before God on their thrones fell on their faces and (AM)worshiped God, 17 saying:

“We give You thanks, O Lord God Almighty,
The One (AN)who is and who was [g]and who is to come,
Because You have taken Your great power (AO)and reigned.
18 The nations were (AP)angry, and Your [h]wrath has come,
And the time of the (AQ)dead, that they should be judged,
And that You should reward Your servants the prophets and the saints,
And those who fear Your name, small and great,
And should destroy those who destroy the earth.”

19 Then (AR)the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of [i]His covenant was seen in His temple. And (AS)there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, (AT)and great hail.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 11:1 NU, M omit And the angel stood
  2. Revelation 11:4 NU, M Lord
  3. Revelation 11:8 NU, M their
  4. Revelation 11:9 NU, M see . . . and will not allow
  5. Revelation 11:12 M I
  6. Revelation 11:15 NU, M kingdom . . . has become the kingdom
  7. Revelation 11:17 NU, M omit and who is to come
  8. Revelation 11:18 anger
  9. Revelation 11:19 M the covenant of the Lord

The Two Witnesses

11 Then I was given (A)a measuring rod like a staff, and I was told, “Rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship there, but do not measure (B)the court outside the temple; leave that out, for (C)it is given over to the nations, and they will trample the holy city for (D)forty-two months. And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for (E)1,260 days, (F)clothed in sackcloth.”

These are (G)the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone would harm them, (H)fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, (I)this is how he is doomed to be killed. They have the power (J)to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and (K)to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire. And when they have finished their testimony, (L)the beast that rises from (M)the bottomless pit[a] (N)will make war on them and conquer them and kill them, and their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city that symbolically[b] is called (O)Sodom and (P)Egypt, where their Lord was crucified. For three and a half days some from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations will gaze at their dead bodies and (Q)refuse to let them be placed in a tomb, 10 and (R)those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry and (S)exchange presents, because these two prophets (T)had been a torment to those who dwell on the earth. 11 But after the three and a half days (U)a breath of life from God entered them, and they stood up on their feet, and great fear fell on those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, (V)“Come up here!” And (W)they went up to heaven (X)in a cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And at that hour there was (Y)a great earthquake, and (Z)a tenth of the city fell. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and (AA)gave glory to (AB)the God of heaven.

14 (AC)The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.

The Seventh Trumpet

15 Then (AD)the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and (AE)there were loud voices in heaven, saying, (AF)“The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of (AG)his Christ, and (AH)he shall reign forever and ever.” 16 And the twenty-four elders (AI)who sit on their thrones before God (AJ)fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying,

“We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty,
    (AK)who is and who was,
for you have taken your great power
    and (AL)begun to reign.
18 The nations raged,
    but (AM)your wrath came,
    and (AN)the time for the dead to be judged,
and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints,
    and (AO)those who fear your name,
    both small and great,
and (AP)for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”

19 Then (AQ)God's temple in heaven was opened, and (AR)the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings,[c] peals of thunder, an earthquake, and (AS)heavy hail.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 11:7 Or the abyss
  2. Revelation 11:8 Greek spiritually
  3. Revelation 11:19 Or voices, or sounds

The Two Witnesses

11 Then there was given to me a [a](A)measuring rod like a staff; [b]and (B)someone said, “Get up and measure the [c]temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it. [d]Leave out the (C)courtyard which is outside the [e]temple and do not measure it, because (D)it has been given to the nations; and they will (E)trample (F)the holy city for (G)forty-two months. And I will grant authority to my two (H)witnesses, and they will prophesy for (I)1,260 days, clothed in (J)sackcloth.” These are the (K)two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone wants to harm them, (L)fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; and so if anyone wants to harm them, (M)he must be killed in this way. These have the power to (N)shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during (O)the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to (P)turn them into blood, and (Q)to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.

When they have finished their testimony, (R)the beast that comes up out of the (S)abyss will (T)make war with them, and overcome them and kill them. And their dead bodies will lie on the street of the (U)great city which [f]spiritually is called (V)Sodom and (W)Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified. Those from (X)the peoples, tribes, languages, and nations will look at their dead [g]bodies for three and a half days, and [h](Y)will not allow their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. 10 And (Z)those who live on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will (AA)send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented (AB)those who live on the earth.

11 And after the three and a half days, (AC)the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them. 12 And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “(AD)Come up here.” And they (AE)went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them. 13 And [i]at that time there was a great (AF)earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; [j]seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and (AG)gave glory to the (AH)God of heaven.

14 The second (AI)woe has passed; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.

The Seventh Trumpet: Christ’s Reign Foreseen

15 Then the (AJ)seventh angel sounded; and there were (AK)loud voices in heaven, saying,

(AL)The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of (AM)His [k]Christ; and (AN)He will reign forever and ever.” 16 And the twenty-four elders, who (AO)sit on their thrones before God, (AP)fell on their faces and worshiped God, 17 saying,

“We give You thanks, (AQ)Lord God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to (AR)reign. 18 And (AS)the nations were enraged, and (AT)Your wrath came, and (AU)the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to [l]reward Your (AV)bond-servants the prophets and the [m]saints and those who fear Your name, (AW)the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”

19 And (AX)the [n]temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and (AY)the ark of His covenant appeared in His [o]temple, and there were flashes of (AZ)lightning and sounds and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a (BA)great [p]hailstorm.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 11:1 Lit reed
  2. Revelation 11:1 Lit saying
  3. Revelation 11:1 Or sanctuary
  4. Revelation 11:2 Lit Throw out
  5. Revelation 11:2 Or sanctuary
  6. Revelation 11:8 I.e., from the viewpoint of the Holy Spirit
  7. Revelation 11:9 Lit body
  8. Revelation 11:9 Lit do not permit
  9. Revelation 11:13 Or in that hour
  10. Revelation 11:13 Lit names of people, seven thousand
  11. Revelation 11:15 I.e., Messiah
  12. Revelation 11:18 Lit give the reward to
  13. Revelation 11:18 Lit holy ones; i.e., God’s people
  14. Revelation 11:19 Or sanctuary
  15. Revelation 11:19 Or sanctuary
  16. Revelation 11:19 Lit hail

God's two servants

11 Someone gave me a stick, like the sticks that people use to measure things. He told me, ‘Go and measure the size of the temple and the altar. Also count the number of people who worship God there. But do not measure the yard that is outside God's house. Do not measure it, because God has given that yard to Gentiles who do not believe in him. They will stamp all over God's own city for 42 months and they will destroy it.

I will give authority to my two servants who speak my message clearly. They will tell people my messages for 1,260 days. They will wear rough clothes made from goats' hair.’[a]

These servants are the two olive trees and the two lampstands.[b] They stand in front of God who is the Lord of the earth. If anyone tries to hurt them, fire comes out of the servants' mouths. This fire destroys their enemies. Anyone who wants to hurt the two servants must die in this way. These servants of God have authority to shut up the sky. Then there will be no rain during the time that they tell their messages from God. They also have authority to cause the water on earth to become blood. They can cause many different kinds of trouble to happen on the earth. They can do this as often as they want to.

When these two servants of God have finished speaking God's messages, a wild animal will attack them. This is the animal that lives in the deep hole.[c] It will come up out of the hole. It will be stronger than the two servants and it will kill them. Their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city where people killed their Lord on a cross.[d] This city should be called Sodom or Egypt, because it is as bad as those places.[e]

People from everywhere in the world will look at the servants' dead bodies for three and a half days. Those are people from every nation, from every tribe and from every language. They will not agree to bury the bodies. 10 The people who live on the earth will be very happy because the two servants of God are now dead. They will send gifts to each other because they are so happy. These two prophets of God had caused bad trouble for them, but now they have died.

11 But after three and a half days, God breathed life into those dead bodies. They stood up. The people who saw them were very afraid. 12 Then God's two servants heard a loud voice that came from heaven. The voice said, ‘Come up here.’ They went up to heaven in a cloud, while their enemies watched them.[f]

13 At the same time the ground shook with a strong earthquake. One in every ten buildings in the city fell down. 7,000 people died because of the earthquake. The people who were still alive became very afraid. They praised the God of heaven and said that he is very powerful.

14 That is the second great trouble and it has now finished. But the third great trouble will come soon.

The seventh trumpet

15 The seventh angel made a sound with his trumpet. Then there was the sound of loud voices in heaven. They shouted:

‘Our Lord God and his Messiah now have all authority!
The whole world has become their kingdom.
God will rule as King for ever!’

16 The 24 leaders were sitting on their thrones in front of God. Now they threw themselves down on their faces and they worshipped God. 17 They said:

‘We thank you, Lord God, because you have all authority!
You are alive now and you have always been alive.
You have great power and now you have begun to rule the whole world!
18 The nations of the world were very angry.
But now it is time for you to be angry with them.
Now you will judge all the people who have died.
You will give good things to your servants, the prophets,
and to all your people.
You will bless everyone who respects and obeys you,
whether they are important people or not.
But you will destroy all those people who destroy the earth.
The time has now come for all this to happen.’

19 Then the door of the temple in heaven became open. Inside it, I saw God's Covenant Box.[g] There was a great storm with bright lightning and the loud noise of thunder. There was an earthquake and strong rain with stones of ice fell from the sky.

Footnotes

  1. 11:3 Jews wore rough cloth (sackcloth) to show that they were very upset or very sad.
  2. 11:4 God showed his prophet Zechariah two olive trees and a gold lampstand. See Zechariah 4.
  3. 11:7 We read about this deep hole in Revelation 9:1,2.
  4. 11:8 People killed Jesus Christ on a cross outside the city of Jerusalem in Israel. The leaders of Israel's people caused Jesus to die there. They refused to recognize him as Lord.
  5. 11:8 Sodom and Egypt were also places where the people did not obey God. See Genesis 18:20-21; 19:13,24-25 and Exodus 1:13-14.
  6. 11:12 The two servants speak God's messages to the people who are living on the earth. They may be two special people who will come one day. Or they may be like a picture of Christians all over the earth. The number two is important. Among God's people long ago, there had to be two or more people to agree that something was true. Then they could say that it had really happened. See Deuteronomy 19:15.
  7. 11:19 Many years ago, God told Israel's people to make a special box. He told them to keep the box in God's house. See Exodus 25:10-22. The box helped them remember God. They remembered that God had promised to live among them. He had agreed to be their God if they would obey him.

The Two Witnesses

11 I was given a reed like a measuring rod(A) and was told, “Go and measure the temple of God and the altar, with its worshipers. But exclude the outer court;(B) do not measure it, because it has been given to the Gentiles.(C) They will trample on the holy city(D) for 42 months.(E) And I will appoint my two witnesses,(F) and they will prophesy for 1,260 days,(G) clothed in sackcloth.”(H) They are “the two olive trees”(I) and the two lampstands, and “they stand before the Lord of the earth.”[a](J) If anyone tries to harm them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies.(K) This is how anyone who wants to harm them must die.(L) They have power to shut up the heavens(M) so that it will not rain during the time they are prophesying;(N) and they have power to turn the waters into blood(O) and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they want.

Now when they have finished their testimony, the beast(P) that comes up from the Abyss(Q) will attack them,(R) and overpower and kill them. Their bodies will lie in the public square of the great city(S)—which is figuratively called Sodom(T) and Egypt—where also their Lord was crucified.(U) For three and a half days some from every people, tribe, language and nation(V) will gaze on their bodies and refuse them burial.(W) 10 The inhabitants of the earth(X) will gloat over them and will celebrate by sending each other gifts,(Y) because these two prophets had tormented those who live on the earth.

11 But after the three and a half days(Z) the breath[b] of life from God entered them,(AA) and they stood on their feet, and terror struck those who saw them. 12 Then they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.”(AB) And they went up to heaven in a cloud,(AC) while their enemies looked on.

13 At that very hour there was a severe earthquake(AD) and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the survivors were terrified and gave glory(AE) to the God of heaven.(AF)

14 The second woe has passed; the third woe is coming soon.(AG)

The Seventh Trumpet

15 The seventh angel sounded his trumpet,(AH) and there were loud voices(AI) in heaven, which said:

“The kingdom of the world has become
    the kingdom of our Lord and of his Messiah,(AJ)
    and he will reign for ever and ever.”(AK)

16 And the twenty-four elders,(AL) who were seated on their thrones before God, fell on their faces(AM) and worshiped God, 17 saying:

“We give thanks(AN) to you, Lord God Almighty,(AO)
    the One who is and who was,(AP)
because you have taken your great power
    and have begun to reign.(AQ)
18 The nations were angry,(AR)
    and your wrath has come.
The time has come for judging the dead,(AS)
    and for rewarding your servants the prophets(AT)
and your people who revere your name,
    both great and small(AU)
and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”

19 Then God’s temple(AV) in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant.(AW) And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder,(AX) an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.(AY)

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 11:4 See Zech. 4:3,11,14.
  2. Revelation 11:11 Or Spirit (see Ezek. 37:5,14)