Rev 11:7-10 | JFB | STEP | 7. finished their testimony —The same verb is used of Paul's ending his ministry by a violent death. the beast that ascended out of the bottomless pit — Greek, "the wild beast . . . the abyss." This beast was not mentioned before, yet he is introduced as " the beast," because he had already been described by Daniel ( ), and he is fully so in the subsequent part of the Apocalypse, namely, . Thus, John at once appropriates the Old Testament prophecies; and also, viewing his whole subject at a glance, mentions as familiar things (though not yet so to the reader) objects to be described hereafter by himself. It is a proof of the unity that pervades all Scripture. make war against them —alluding to , where the same is said of the little horn that sprang up among the ten horns on the fourth beast.

Revelation of John 11:7-10

7. finished their testimony—The same verb is used of Paul's ending his ministry by a violent death.

the beast that ascended out of the bottomless pit—Greek, "the wild beast . . . the abyss." This beast was not mentioned before, yet he is introduced as "the beast," because he had already been described by Daniel (Da 7:3, 11), and he is fully so in the subsequent part of the Apocalypse, namely, Re 13:1; 17:8. Thus, John at once appropriates the Old Testament prophecies; and also, viewing his whole subject at a glance, mentions as familiar things (though not yet so to the reader) objects to be described hereafter by himself. It is a proof of the unity that pervades all Scripture.

make war against them—alluding to Da 7:21, where the same is said of the little horn that sprang up among the ten horns on the fourth beast.

8. dead bodies—So Vulgate, Syriac, and ANDREAS. But A, B, C, the oldest manuscripts, and Coptic read the singular, "dead body." The two fallen in one cause are considered as one.

the great city—eight times in the Revelation elsewhere used of BABYLON (Re 14:8; 16:19; 17:18; 18:10, 16, 18, 19, 21). In Re 21:10 (English Version as to the new Jerusalem), the oldest manuscripts omit "the great" before city, so that it forms no exception. It must, therefore, have an anticipatory reference to the mystical Babylon.

which—Greek, "the which," namely, "the city which."

spiritually—in a spiritual sense.

Sodom—The very term applied by Isa 1:10 to apostate Jerusalem (compare Eze 16:48).

Egypt—the nation which the Jews' besetting sin was to lean upon.

where . . . Lord was crucified—This identifies the city as Jerusalem, though the Lord was crucified outside of the city. EUSEBIUS mentions that the scene of Christ's crucifixion was enclosed within the city by Constantine; so it will be probably at the time of the slaying of the witnesses. "The beast [for example, Napoleon and France's efforts] has been long struggling for a footing in Palestine; after his ascent from the bottomless pit he struggles much more" [BENGEL]. Some one of the Napoleonic dynasty may obtain that footing, and even be regarded as Messiah by the Jews, in virtue of his restoring them to their own land; and so may prove to be the last Antichrist. The difficulty is, how can Jerusalem be called "the great city," that is, Babylon? By her becoming the world's capital of idolatrous apostasy, such as Babylon originally was, and then Rome has been; just as she is here called also "Sodom and Egypt."

also our—A, B, C, ORIGEN, ANDREAS, and others read, "also their." Where their Lord, also, as well as they, was slain. Compare Re 18:24, where the blood of ALL slain on earth is said to be found IN BABYLON, just as in Mt 23:35, Jesus saith that, "upon the Jews and JERUSALEM" (Compare Mt 23:37, 38) shall "come ALL the righteous blood shed upon earth"; whence it follows Jerusalem shall be the last capital of the world apostasy, and so receive the last and worst visitation of all the judgments ever inflicted on the apostate world, the earnest of which was given in the Roman destruction of Jerusalem. In the wider sense, in the Church-historical period, the Church being the sanctuary, all outside of it is the world, the great city, wherein all the martyrdoms of saints have taken place. Babylon marks its idolatry, Egypt its tyranny, Sodom its desperate corruption, Jerusalem its pretensions to sanctity on the ground of spiritual privileges, while all the while it is the murderer of Christ in the person of His members. All which is true of Rome. So VITRINGA. But in the more definite sense, Jerusalem is regarded, even in Hebrews (Heb 13:12-14), as the world city which believers were then to go forth from, in order to "seek one to come."

9. they—rather, "(some) of the peoples."

people—Greek, "peoples."

kindreds—Greek, "tribes"; all save the elect (whence it is not said, The peoples . . . but [some] of the peoples . . . , or, some of the peoples . . . may refer to those of the nations . . ., who at the time shall hold possession of Palestine and Jerusalem).

shall see—So Vulgate, Syriac, and Coptic. But A, B, C, and ANDREAS, the present, "see," or rather (Greek, "blepousin"), "look upon." The prophetic present.

dead bodies—So Vulgate, Syriac, and ANDREAS. But A, B, C, and Coptic, singular, as in Re 11:8, "dead body." Three and a half days answer to the three and a half years (see on Re 11:2, 3), the half of seven, the full and perfect number.

shall not suffer—so B, Syriac, Coptic, and ANDREAS. But A, C, and Vulgate read, "do not suffer."

in graves—so Vulgate and PRIMASIUS. But B, C, Syriac, Coptic, and ANDREAS, singular; translate, "into a sepulchre," literally, "a monument." Accordingly, in righteous retribution in kind, the flesh of the Antichristian hosts is not buried, but given to all the fowls in mid-heaven to eat (Re 19:17, 18, 21).

10. they that dwell upon . . . earth—those who belong to the earth, as its citizens, not to heaven (Re 3:10; 8:13; 12:12; 13:8).

shall—so Vulgate, Syriac, and Coptic. But A, B, and C read the present tense; compare Note, see on Re 11:9, on "shall not suffer."

rejoice over them—The Antichristianity of the last days shall probably be under the name of philosophical enlightenment and civilization, but really man's deification of himself. Fanaticism shall lead Antichrist's followers to exult in having at last seemingly silenced in death their Christian rebukers. Like her Lord, the Church will have her dark passion week followed by the bright resurrection morn. It is a curious historical coincidence that, at the fifth Lateran Council, May 5, 1514, no witness (not even the Moravians who were summoned) testified for the truth, as HUSS and JEROME did at Constance; an orator ascended the tribunal before the representatives of papal Christendom, and said, "There is no reclaimant, no opponent." LUTHER, on October 31, 1517, exactly three and a half years afterwards, posted up his famous theses on the church at Wittenberg. The objection is, the years are years of three hundred sixty-five, not three hundred sixty, days, and so two and a half days are deficient; but still the coincidence is curious; and if this prophecy be allowed other fulfilments, besides the final and literal one under the last Antichrist, this may reasonably be regarded as one.

send gifts one to another—as was usual at a joyous festival.

tormented them—namely, with the plagues which they had power to inflict (Re 11:5, 6); also, by their testimony against the earthly.