Sermon Tone Analysis

Humanity is predisposed toward hating God (7-10).

Exegesis

Point 2

When they finish their testimony, 

God will not allow the witnesses to die until they have completed the task he gave them.

Their deaths do not mean that the beast from the pit has defeated God’s purpose.

the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit 

Whether this beast is the angel from the bottomless pit mentioned in chapter nine or the beast (Antichrist) in chapter thirteen doesn’t seem to matter.

What matters is that whoever this is behaves like a beast toward the two witnesses.

Thērion is a word for a beast of prey, one with a ravenous appetite, a carnivore, like a lion or a panther, it connotes a cunning of unreasoning violence that acts according to its own cruel nature.

It differs from zōon, a living creature which usually refers to animals also but lacks the rapacious connotations.”

Thērion is a word for a beast of prey, one with a ravenous appetite, a carnivore, like a lion or a panther, it connotes a cunning of unreasoning violence that acts according to its own cruel nature.

It differs from zōon, a living creature which usually refers to animals also but lacks the rapacious connotations.”

Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed.

E. Ray Clendenen, vol.

39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 246.

Paige Patterson, Revelation, ed.

E. Ray Clendenen, vol.

39, The New American Commentary (Nashville, TN: B&H, 2012), 246.

will make war against them, overcome them, and kill them.

Multiple commentaries argue that this must mean that the two witnesses are figurative.

Who would “make war” with just two people?

This position does not acknowledge the unique threat these two witnesses pose.

They call down fire, stop the rain, turn water to blood, and strike the earth with various plagues as often as they wish.

“Making war” would seem to be the level of combat these opponents would require.

Since these witnesses carry out their ministry in public, the war-making, overcoming, and killing must also be public.

And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.

Identifying this “great city” would be difficult if John only told us its “spiritual” name: Sodom and Egypt.

But he also told us Jesus was crucified in this city.

That can only be one city: Jerusalem.

This makes sense when we consider that the Jews will have rebuilt the temple there and the witnesses will have been carrying out their mission in the city for three and a half years.

But why does John call it Sodom and Egypt?

John’s angelic guide called it “the holy city” as recently as verse two of this same chapter.

Interpretation

Consider the history of those two locations: particularly two incidents in their history.

Consider the history of those two locations: particularly two incidents in their history.

Sodom:

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6 So Lot went out to them through the doorway, shut the door behind him, 7 and said, “Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly!

6 So Lot went out to them through the doorway, shut the door behind him, 7 and said, “Please, my brethren, do not do so wickedly!

Lot begged the men of the city not to do wickedly, but at his pleading they only intensified their wickedness.

Now consider Egypt:

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), .

The New King James Version (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1982), .

9 And they said, “Stand back!” Then they said, “This one came in to stay here, and he keeps acting as a judge; now we will deal worse with you than with them.”

So they pressed hard against the man Lot, and came near to break down the door.

Egypt:

;

Afterward Moses and Aaron went in and told Pharaoh, “Thus says the LORD God of Israel: ‘Let My people go, that they may hold a feast to Me in the wilderness.’

”

2 And Pharaoh said, “Who is the LORD, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go?

I do not know the LORD, nor will I let Israel go.”

6 So the same day Pharaoh commanded the taskmasters of the people and their officers, saying, 7 “You shall no longer give the people straw to make brick as before.

Let them go and gather straw for themselves.

8 And you shall lay on them the quota of bricks which they made before.

You shall not reduce it.

For they are idle; therefore they cry out, saying, ‘Let us go and sacrifice to our God.’ 9 Let more work be laid on the men, that they may labor in it, and let them not regard false words.”

In both Sodom and Egypt, God’s man pleaded with the people to listen to him and all they did was increase their violence and hatred.

What about Jesus and Jerusalem?

37 “O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!

Jerusalem’s rejection of Jesus was the crucifixion—the epitome of hatred and violence.

Then those from the peoples, tribes, tongues, and nations will see their dead bodies three-and-a-half days, and not allow their dead bodies to be put into graves.

We don’t have to question how the whole world can see something in the year 2019.

Between television and the internet, anyone in the world can see something anywhere else through the camera on a cell phone.

Social media allows anyone who uses it to have an audience as large as can be mustered.

The real question in verse nine is how humanity has degenerated to a point where dead bodies laying in the street qualify as global entertainment.

10 And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them, make merry, and send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.

The world doesn’t just watch dead bodies as entertainment for three and a half days; the death of the witnesses is viewed as a global holiday.

The vicious murder of two men of God constitutes gift-giving in every tribe, tongue, people, and nation.

Why?

Because the witness’ message tormented the whole world.

This is a future event showing where humanity is headed: a desensitized, cold, brutish race that can’t bring itself to do anything other than click the “like” button and send gifts when prophets of God lay dead on international television for days at a time.

A demonic warlord will slay God’s messengers of grace and the recipients of their message will cheer.

Application

Humanity is not basically good.

We are predisposed toward evil—the greatest evil.

We are predisposed toward hatred of God.

9 “Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and kill you, and you will be hated by all nations for My name’s sake.

10 And then many will be offended, will betray one another, and will hate one another.

11 Then many false prophets will rise up and deceive many.

12 And because lawlessness will abound, the love of many will grow cold.

13 But he who endures to the end shall be saved.

14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come.

This hatred of God tends to extends to those who bear his image—other people, and especially other people who bring God’s word to bear in our lives when we’d rather not hear it.

Are you able to feel good about your anger?

Do you bond with others over common hatred?

Do you enjoy watching someone else suffer?

There’s not a thing in the world we can do to stop humanity at large from going down this road.

As much as we’d like to do so, that trajectory was set when we left the Garden of Eden.

What we can do is live in such a way that we make a compelling case that listening to God’s word is better than ignoring it and hating his messengers—even if we end up like God’s two witnesses.

Christian, don’t give up.

Lean on the Holy Spirit when your faith offends.

Don’t bear a grudge when you’re betrayed.

Don’t spew hate at someone just because they hate you.

Be passionately committed to the truth of the Gospel, and bear no shame for your devotion to Jesus.

As lawlessness abounds, in the power of the Spirit, love harder and be different.

God will not allow that hatred to continue forever (11-14).

Point 3

Exegesis

Now after the three and a half days the breath of life from God entered them, and they stood on their feet, and a great fear fell on those who saw them.

And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.”

And they ascended to heaven in a cloud, and their enemies saw them.

This is fairly straightforward.