ACC ~ Revelation 10 v8 - 11 v10

11:1-2 | A Measuring Rod

THE CREED OF THE CHURCH IS THE MEASURE OF FAITH. VICTORINUS OF PETOVIUM: “He received a measuring rod like a staff, that he might measure the temple and the altar and those who worship in it.” In this passage he speaks of that authority that [John] afterward exercised in the churches after his release. For he later also wrote a Gospel. And when Valentinus and Cerinthus and Ebion and other sects of Satan had spread throughout the world, bishops from the neighboring cities gathered to him and persuaded him to write his testimony concerning the Lord. The “measure” of the faith, however, is the commandment of our Lord, namely, that we must confess the Father Almighty, as we have been taught, and his Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, who was spiritually begotten from the Father before the beginning of the world, who was made man, and when he had conquered death was received with his body by the Father into heaven, holy Lord and pledge of immortality; he was foretold by the prophets, he was described by the law, and through the hand of God and the word of the Father Almighty he is also the creator of the whole world. This is the rod and measure of the faith, so that no one worships at the holy altar except him who confesses this, “the Lord and his Christ.” “The court on the inside leave outside.” The court is called an “atrium,” an open area between walls. He commands that such as these are to be thrown out of the church, for they are unnecessary. “It is given over to be trampled by the nations.” This means that such persons are to be trampled either by the nations or with the nations. He mentions then again the destruction and the slaughter of the last times and says, “and they will trample the holy city for forty-two months.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE, 11.1-2.

NOT ALL ATTACHED TO THE CHURCH ARE IN THE CHURCH. TYCONIUS: When he says “Rise,” he arouses the church, for John, who is an image of the church, did not hear these things sitting down but standing up. “Measure,” it says, “the temple and the altar and those who worship there.” He did not command that everyone be measured; rather, he commanded that a portion be prepared unto the end [time], so that what is said in the Gospel might be fulfilled, “Many are called, but few are chosen.” “But do not measure the court outside the temple, leave that out.” The court, which is outside the temple, although it seems to belong to the temple, in fact is not the temple, for it has no relation to the holy of holies. These are those persons who appear to be in the church but are outside of it. … Those persons who are outside the temple are also the nations who have never believed the gospel of the Lord. Both groups will trample his church. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.1-2.

ISRAEL IS IMMEASURABLY INCREASED BY THE GENTILES. OECUMENIUS: The blessed John had earlier seen a vision of the multitude of saints who are with Christ and who behold the throne of God. Among these there were many more Gentiles than there were those from Israel. The present vision now reveals something else to John. It reveals how many were pleasing [to God] at the time of the Old Testament and how many at the time of the New Testament. And note how cleverly this is sketched out for him. He is given a measuring stick that he might measure “the temple of God and the altar” in the temple (clearly the one in Jerusalem) “and those worshiping in it.” And he measured. Those who pleased God during the time of the Old Testament were easily measured because there were so few of them. “But do not measure the court outside the temple; leave that out, for it is given over to the nations.” When he had measured the temple and the altar and those sacrificing within, he heard that it was necessary to place the court on the outside and to widen it, but definitely not to measure it, since it was to attain to greater things than measuring. The court, it says, is given over to the nations, and it is adjacent to and lies outside the temple. Likewise, the New Testament follows immediately upon the Old, for the New fulfills spiritually and in reality that which has but shadow in it. And realities of a different kind arise next to [the Old Testament], as Jeremiah says, “Behold, the days are coming, says the Lord, and I will make a new covenant with the house of Israel and the house of Judah, not like the covenant which I made with their fathers when I took them by the hand to bring them out of the land of Egypt.” For this reason he calls the New Testament the “court of the temple.” And so, the vision indicates in a mystical manner that he who in the New Testament is named “Christ” and “Beginning” was Lord of the Old Testament … and he calls the New Testament the “court” of the Old Testament. For the court is the beginning and entrance to God, but it is not the temple. Therefore, he did not measure the court by which both the [New Testament] and those in it are signified. For both the New Testament and those justified in it are beyond comprehension, these because of their unspeakable magnitude and the New Testament because of its subtlety and the sublimity of its teachings. For it says, “it was given over to the nations.” The blessings of the New Testament were given also to Israel, but since the Gentiles in it are greater in number than those who were pleasing from Israel, it indicates the whole from the greater part, saying that the court was given to the nations. “And they will trample upon the holy city for forty-two months.” It speaks of “the city,” not of the temple, calling the church a “city,” about which it says, “Glorious things are spoken of you, O city of God, the heavenly Jerusalem, the mother of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven.” And what does it mean that the measuring will be for forty-two months? It indicates that there is little time remaining upon the earth for the citizenship given in the New Testament and that afterward the end will come. For the number forty, the sum of four tens, is not complete, nor is the number two. By these numbers the verse shows that the duration of the New Testament does not last long in the present life, and so the Scripture calls the time of the New Testament the “last” hour or the “eleventh” hour, at which time the Only Begotten became man. But he will endure forever in the coming life. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.1-2.

THOSE OF A FALSE FAITH AND A SINFUL LIFE ARE TO BE EXPELLED. PRIMASIUS: He commands that the teaching of a false faith and the contagion of a sinful way of life among the heretics, Jews and Gentiles be expelled, for it is not right that such persons approach the holy of holies. For the apostle says, “What have I to do with judging outsiders? Is it not those inside whom you are to judge?” When all the Jews, heretics, and Gentiles incessantly attack the church by all means available, it is as though they are trampling upon the church. The number of the months signifies not only the time of the last persecution but also the entire time of Christianity. For there are six ages of the world and seven days by which all time moves by passing away and returning. Six times seven makes forty-two, and I believe that the passage refers to both of these [numbers]. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.2.

UNBELIEVING GENTILES AND JEWS. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: We think that the church is called the “temple of the living God,” for in it we offer spiritual sacrifices to God. And I think that the “court outside” is the assembly of the unbelieving Gentiles and Jews, and so by virtue of their impiety they are unworthy to be measured by the angel. “For the Lord knows those who are his,” as it says, but he who knows all things is said not to know the transgressors. That the holy city, whether that be the new Jerusalem or the catholic church, will be trampled by the nations for forty-two months signifies, I believe, that at the appearance of the antichrist those who are faithful and trustworthy will be trampled and persecuted for three and a half years. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.1-2.

WE ARE TO MEASURE OUR SPIRITUAL PROGRESS. BEDE: He said, “Rise,” not because John was sitting when he heard these words, but because by this word the heart of each person is aroused to measure the words and deeds of the Gospel. For there each will discover to what extent he has progressed and to what extent he is in agreement with the divine rule. EXPLANATION OF THE APOCALYPSE 11.1.

THE TWO WITNESSES REVELATION 11:3-10

OVERVIEW: Just as the coming of Christ in humiliation was announced by John the Baptist, so his coming in the glory of the Father will be announced by Elijah and Enoch (OECUMENIUS). It may be, however, that John also will return at the end along with Elijah and Enoch (PSEUDO-HIPPOLYTUs), or that it will be Jeremiah who along with Elijah returns to announce the Lord’s coming (VICTORINUS). The sending of forerunners reveals the Lord’s kindness to humanity and his care for mortal sinners (PSEUDO-HIPPOLYTUS). Through them humankind will be instructed about the deception of the antichrist and the wrath of God (PSEUDO-HIPPOLYTUS, TYCONIUS, OECUMENIUS), and by their example the forerunners will show the way of repentance to sinners (TYCONIUS).

The two witnesses symbolize as well the two Testaments by which God governs and rules his church (TYCONIUS). At the same time, there are two kinds of witness, that which is private and in the heart and that which is public and known to all (PRIMASIUS). The two witnesses are said to be two olive trees and two lampstands, for they represent the one church, which is formed from the two peoples of the Jews and the Gentiles (OECUMENIUS, PRIMASIUS) and is illuminated by the two Testaments which pour the oil of knowledge into the church (TYCONIUS, PRIMASIUS). Were anyone to harm the church, the prayers of the church would consume them, either that they might be corrected or that they might be punished (TYCONIUS, CAESARIUS OF ARLES). All that God has done for the church, he has given to the church. Therefore, the church has the power of binding and loosing so that she can cause the rain of blessing to cease to fall upon the earth (TYCONIUS, PRIMASIUS).

Similarly, at the end of time God will give great power to his two prophets, for they will promote truth and light by signs and wonders, even as the antichrist by false signs advances the cause of deceit and darkness (OECUMENIUS, ANDREW OF CAESAREA). The preaching of the two witnesses will be met with great resistance by the antichrist, who will exalt himself and glorify himself as God (PSEUDO-HIPPOLYTUS). As many texts claim, the antichrist will arise by God’s allowance as a kingdom among kingdoms and from among the Caesars (VICTORINUS). Yet tradition says that the antichrist will arise from the tribe of Dan and hence from the iniquitous hearts of the Jews (TYCONIUS). More likely yet, however, the antichrist will arise from the unstable substance of our sinful human nature. In any case, he will be savage, inhuman and bloodthirsty as is a beast (OECUMENIUS). And so the antichrist will slay those who confess Christ and will slay spiritually those who are deluded by his deceit (TYCONIUS, BEDE). Suitably, he will set up his kingdom in Jerusalem, where the prophets were killed and the Christ was crucified (TYCONIUS, ANDREW OF CAESAREA).

In this way the antichrist imitates David, whose son was the Christ (ANDREW OF CAESAREA). Yet the Jerusalem of the antichrist will be as Sodom and Egypt because it will enslave and abuse the servants of Christ and will be noted for its licentiousness (OECUMENIUS). Moreover, that spiritual Sodom and Egypt will possess neither the light of faith nor the sound of confession (BEDE). Rather, in it the wicked will rejoice over the death of the righteous (OECUMENIUS) as they strive to destroy the church and remove her from the world (PRIMASIUS). May we, therefore, turn to the Lord of our salvation when we are chastened, so that we might escape eternal punishment, unlike those who rejoiced that they were free from the sufferings intended for their correction (ANDREW OF CAESAREA).

11:3 | Power to Prophesy

SENT FOR OUR INSTRUCTION. PSEUDO-HIPPOLYTUS: Through the Scriptures we are instructed in two advents of the Christ and Savior. The first after the flesh was in humiliation, because he was manifested in lowly estate. So then his second advent is declared to be in glory, for he comes from heaven with power and angels and the glory of his Father. His first advent had John the Baptist as its forerunner, and his second, in which he is to come in glory, will exhibit Enoch and Elijah and John the Theologian. Behold, too, the Lord’s kindness to humankind; how even in the last times he shows his care for mortals and pities them. For even then he will not leave us without prophets but will send them to us for our instruction and assurance and to make us give heed to the advent of the adversary, as he intimated also of old in Daniel. For he says, “I shall make a covenant of one week, and in the midst of the week my sacrifice and libation will be removed.” For by one week he indicates the showing forth of the seven years, which shall be in the last times. And the half of the week the two prophets, along with John, will take for the purpose of proclaiming to all the world the advent of antichrist, that is to say, for a “thousand two hundred and sixty days clothed in sackcloth.” ON THE END OF THE WORLD, THE ANTICHRIST AND THE SECOND COMING 21.

JEREMIAH WILL COME WITH ELIJAH AT THE END. VICTORINUS OF PETOVIUM: Many think that either Elisha or Moses was with Elijah. However, both of these died. However, the death of Jeremiah was never discovered. Our ancients have handed over the opinion that [the other witness] was in every respect Jeremiah. For the very word, which was given to him, is witness of this: “Before I formed you in the womb of your mother, I knew you; and I appointed you prophet to the nations.” However, he was never a prophet among the nations, and so, since the two words are divine, it is necessary that what God promised, that he also demonstrate, namely, that he be a prophet among the nations. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.3.

TO PROCLAIM THE WRATH OF GOD. TYCONIUS: He had earlier said that “you must prophesy again.” Now he desires to show this in his two witnesses. In the two witnesses, he wants us to understand the two Testaments by which his church is governed and ruled. For he did not say, “I make witnesses for myself,” as though they did not yet exist. Rather, he said, “I shall give to my witnesses,” who were with me from the beginning and have never at all departed from me. The 1,260 days are not a time of peace but of the last persecution, during which time the devil shall break out against the Christians, namely, when he receives power to test the church. And just as before the flood, when the sins of humankind raised their head to the heavens, there was not absent someone who might proclaim the wrath of God to those who were perishing, so also at that time there will be those who will announce the kingdom of God and the last day and by their own example will show the way of repentance to sinners. [The witnesses] were “clothed in sackcloth,” it says, that is, they were established in confession. As the prophet said, “When they troubled me, I clothed myself in sackcloth.” And Job said, “They have sewed sackcloth upon my skin.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.3.

FORERUNNERS OF THE SECOND COMING. OECUMENIUS: Since the vision outlined for the Evangelist the entire economy of the Lord’s incarnation—his birth, the temptation, his teachings, the beatings, also the cross and resurrection, the second coming and the reward of both the holy and the sinners—it had left unmentioned any information about the forerunners of his second coming. Now, as though by a sharp U-turn, [the vision] teaches him about them. When Malachi said, “Behold, I will send you Elijah the Tishbite before the great and terrible day of the Lord comes, who will turn the heart of a father to the son and the heart of a man to his neighbor, lest I come to trample the land utterly,” the holy Scripture with great clarity foretold that Elijah the Tishbite will come. And in Matthew, the Lord spoke of the Baptist: “And if you are willing to accept it, this is Elijah who is to come.” Concerning other forerunners we have heard nothing with clarity except that Genesis said concerning Enoch that “having pleased God, he was taken,” and the wise apostle said concerning him, “By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death; and he was not found, because God had taken him.” An old, traditional saying is prevalent in the church, that with Elijah the Tishbite also Enoch will come as a forerunner of the second coming of Christ and at the coming of the antichrist. This passage says that they come and proclaim beforehand that the signs performed by [the antichrist] are deceptive and that it is not necessary to believe the sinful one. Using either a figurative number or a literal description of what will be, the vision now reports of these [forerunners] that they will prophesy so many days. They will prophesy “clothed in sackcloth,” for they will lament over the disobedience of those who live at that time. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.3-6.

THE CHURCH’S WITNESS. PRIMASIUS: While he had said that “you must prophesy again,” here it is that “I will grant to my two witnesses and they will prophesy.” As there he spoke of John, here of the two witnesses, that is, of the church that preaches and prophesies on the basis of the two Testaments. There is another interpretation. The Truth proposes that there are two kinds of witness. On the one hand, there is the witness by way of one’s manner and character. This witness occurs in the heart and is known to God alone, also when there is but minimal approval during times of suffering. On the other hand, there is the witness by way of deed, which is accomplished publicly in the view of all when the opportunity of persecution arises. For sometimes witness seems to fail the soul, while at other times the soul in some seems to fail the witness. Therefore, the blessed Cyprian said, “The first title to victory is for him who has fallen at the hands of the Gentiles confessing the Lord; the second step to glory is to make a cautious withdrawal and then to keep himself for God. The one is a public confession; the other private. The former conquers the judge of the world; the latter satisfied with God as his judge guards a conscience pure by integrity of heart.” But the point is also very clearly demonstrated in the two sons of Zebedee. James, who was killed by Herod, is accounted a martyr because of his public confession, while his brother, John the Evangelist, is crowned because of his secret witness [as one who was] with Jesus. Moreover, it is clear that earlier the Lord had said to both, “You will drink my cup.” That is, one would give witness by way of deed, the other by way of his manner and practice. They are clothed in sackcloth. This means that they were both established in confession, for the humility of confession is characteristic to both kinds of witness. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.3.

11:4 | Two Olive Trees and Two Lampstands

THE CHURCH IS PROTECTED BY THE TWO TESTAMENTS. TYCONIUS: “These are those who stand,” it says, not those who shall stand as though they were not able to stand. In the two lampstands he signifies the church, which is fortified by the protection of the two Testaments. For in the seven angels and in the seven lampstands he designated the one church, so that when he spoke of one, he had also spoken of the others. When Zechariah who prophesied of our figure was awakened from sleep that he might behold the light of the church, he saw a single sevenform lampstand in which was declared the mystery of the sevenform church. For the two olive trees are the two Testaments, which pour out the oil of knowledge into the lampstand. And therefore the same prophet said, “He waked me, like a man that is wakened out of his sleep. And he said to me, ‘What do you see?’ I said, ‘Behold, I see a lampstand all out of gold, with torches upon it, and seven lamps on it, with seven lips of light which are upon it, and two olive trees upon it, one on the right of the torch and one on the left.’” And I asked what these might be. And the angel answered and said, these seven lights are seven spirits which are “the seven eyes of the Lord that range through the whole earth.” And when I inquired of the two olive trees, he said to me, “These are the two anointed sons who are with the Lord of the whole earth.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.4.

THE TWO OLIVE BRANCHES. OECUMENIUS: That the two olive branches have been interpreted as the two peoples, that from the Jews and that from the nations, is not unknown to the saints. However, it is also possible that these two of whom the present passage speaks are two prophets. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.3-6.

THE ONE CHURCH. PRIMASIUS: He shows now that he is speaking not of future realities but of present things when he says, “These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.” This refers to the church, which is illuminated and made strong by the light of the two Testaments and is equipped by the two kinds of witness that by divine inspiration is allowed in various of its members. The two lampstands represent the [one] church, but he has spoken of two because of the two Testaments or because [the church] is gathered from the circumcision and uncircumcision and exists in union with the chief cornerstone. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.4.

11:5 | If Any Harm Them, Fire Kills Their Foes

RECEIVING THE SAME HARM. TYCONIUS: This means that should anyone wish to harm the church, as one condemned he is consumed by a fire, which harms in the very same manner as a sort of reciprocal judgment. That is, he receives justly that very thing which he desired to inflict unjustly. Or, in a good sense this means that through the prayers of the church’s mouth one is consumed spiritually by fire so that one might be changed for the better, since when one is turned away from error, error ceases and one is saved. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.5.

THOSE WHO HARM THE CHURCH. CAESARIUS OF ARLES: Should anyone harm the church or wish to harm her, through the prayers of her mouth he shall be consumed by a divine fire either in the present age for his correction or in the future age for his damnation. EXPOSITION ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.5, HOMILY 8.

11:6 | Power to Shut the Sky

THE CHURCH EXERCISES POWER FROM GOD. TYCONIUS: It says, “they have,” not “they will have.” For whoever remains in the faith of the one church of God will in no way be wanting in that power conferred upon him by God. “They have power to turn the waters into blood and to smite the earth with every plague as often as they desire.” We have often said that everything that God is said to have done for the sake of his church is attached to the powers of the church. The Lord gives power to the church so that what is bound on earth is also bound in heaven. Heaven is spiritually closed “that no rain fall,” that is, that no rain of blessing fall upon the dry land. The Lord spoke of this concerning the vineyard of the Jews: “I shall also command the clouds that they rain no rain upon it.” And not only did they suspend the rain but even made useless that rain which had fallen. For the water was changed into blood, even as the very earth was struck with every plague. Nor did these things occur by way of accident or fortuitously. Rather, “as often as they desired,” that is, as often as he desired who conceded to them such power. As the apostle says of the Holy Spirit, “apportioning to each one individually as he wills.” And again, “As God assigns to each one a measure of faith.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.6.

THE TWO FORERUNNERS. OECUMENIUS: Such is [the power] of these very persuasive individuals. For if one of them, Elijah the Tishbite, had such power even before he fulfills the service of Christ, how would he remain unpersuasive as the precursor of Christ? “And they had power,” it says, “over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague as often as they wish.” For since “the coming of the antichrist will be by the activity of Satan with all power and with deceitful signs and wonders,” as Paul says in his second letter to the Thessalonians, these signs will lead to agreement and faith. And for this reason these two prophets who refer to him as a deceiver and a cheat will also make use of various signs, so that they might attract those who hear to faith. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.3-6.

THE CHURCH DISPENSES LIFE AND DEATH. PRIMASIUS: Not only do they suspend the rain, but also they make useless that rain that falls. That is, they turn the waters into blood on account of those who judge in a carnal way those things which the church gives to be discerned in a spiritual manner. Therefore, they deservedly die, being struck by the church with a just condemnation. And so they incur the defect of death from that source which for others brings forth spiritual life. For the apostle says that to think according to the flesh is death. “The good aroma of Christ,” which rises up from the church, is “to some a fragrance of death to death, to others a fragrance of life to life.” And so [the church] is said to strike the earthly with plagues when by the power of binding and loosing that she has she assigns to each a proper penalty for the variety of their merits and sins. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.6.

THE FORERUNNERS CORRECT BY THEIR TEACHING. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: How deep is the divine goodness! For he brings a healing that is commensurate with the wound. For since he has received the full operation of the devil, the antichrist will come with every false sign and wonder and will be more wondrous than every sorcery and enchantment. And so in the power of true signs and wonders, God will equip these saints for the promotion of truth and light, and they will expose the lies and darkness [of the antichrist], and to those who have been deceived they will give correction through the word of their teaching and through chastising scourges (drought, fire, changes in the elements and the like), and they will make an example of the deceiver, while until the completion of their prophesying they will remain uninfluenced either by him or by someone other. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.5-6.

11:7-8 | The Beast Will Make War

THE ANTICHRIST WILL MAKE WAR. PSEUDO-HIPPOLYTUS: When they have proclaimed all these things, they will fall on the sword, cut off by the accuser. And they will fulfill their testimony, as Daniel also says; for he foresaw that the beast that came up out of the abyss would make war with them, namely with Enoch, Elijah and John, and would overcome them and kill them, because of their refusal to give glory to the accuser, that is, the little horn that sprang up. And he, being lifted up in heart, begins in the end to exalt himself and glorify himself as God, persecuting the saints and blaspheming Christ. ON THE END OF THE WORLD, THE ANTICHRIST AND THE SECOND COMING 21.

ATTESTED BY MANY WITNESSES. VICTORINUS OF PETOVIUM: “These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand in the presence of the Lord of the earth,” that is, in paradise. It is necessary that after many plagues have come to the world these be killed by the antichrist, who, it says, is “the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit.” That he will ascend from the pit is attested by many witnesses. For Isaiah says, “Behold, Assyria is a cypress on Mount Lebanon.” “Assyria” is a deeply rooted “cypress,” high and full of branches, that is, [Assyria possesses] a numerous people. It is “on Mount Lebanon,” that is, a kingdom among kingdoms. It is “beautiful in its offshoots,” that is, it is strong in its armies. “Water nourishes it,” it says; that is, there are many thousands of persons who will be submitted to it. “The abyss increased him,” that is, it vomited him forth. Ezekiel often speaks in such words. Paul also gives witness that antichrist is in a kingdom among kingdoms and was among the Caesars. He writes to the Thessalonians, “If only he restrains, who is seen [to be restraining], until he be taken from the way. And then he will appear whose coming is like the activity of Satan with signs and deceptive works.” And that they might know that he who was to come was then emperor, he adds, “he is already working the mystery of wickedness.” That is, he is working in a mysterious way that wickedness which he will do. But he will not be aroused [to this work] by his own strength or by that of his father but by the command of God. And for this reason Paul said, “Therefore, since they did not receive the love of God, God sends upon them a spirit of error, that all of them might be persuaded by delusion, who were not persuaded by the truth.” Isaiah says, “Darkness arose upon them who were awaiting the light.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.4.

ANTICHRIST COMES BEFORE THE LAST PERSECUTION. TYCONIUS: When he says, “when they have finished their witness,” he clearly explains that these things will take place before the last persecution, at least that which they relate until the revelation of the beast who will ascend from the abyss, that is, from the depths of the iniquity of the hearts of the Jews. For, according to tradition, the antichrist will arise from the tribe of Dan. And “he will conquer them,” namely, in those who will have succumbed. However, “he will kill them,” indicating those who for the name of Christ will have been killed by a praiseworthy suffering. “And he will lay their bodies in the middle of that great city which is spiritually called Sodom, where also their Lord was crucified.” Another translation renders it [in the singular] “body.” And so it speaks of one body of the two, while elsewhere in subsequent verses it speaks of the “bodies.” In this way, he preserves the number of the Testaments, while the two witnesses demonstrate the one body of the church. This body—he speaks not only of those killed but also of those who are living—is thrown down, that is, it is despised, as [the psalmist says], “You have cast my words behind you.” [He casts them down] “in the middle,” that is, openly and visibly. This is, to be sure, that “Jerusalem which killed the prophets,” according to the words of the Lord who reproached it, saying, “and stoned those who were sent to you.” Rightly was [Jerusalem] reproved, nor did it deserve to be restored. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.7-8.

SAVAGE AND BLOODTHIRSTY. OECUMENIUS: [The prophets] will testify that the one who is present is not the Christ but a certain rogue, a deceiver and a destroyer. He will in no way come as the Son of God in whom one must believe as Savior and as God and who came for the benefit of humankind both in his appearance long ago and in his present appearing. It speaks of “the beast that ascends from the bottomless pit.” He calls the antichrist a “beast” because of his savagery, his inhumanity and his thirst for blood. He calls the life of people a “bottomless pit,” for it is bitter and distasteful on account of sins and unstable because it is buffeted about by evil spirits. For the sinful one will not arise out of any other substance but out of our own human nature, for he will be a man “whose coming is in the activity of Satan,” as was just now said. This beast, it says, will kill the two witnesses and will cast their dead bodies unburied in the streets of Jerusalem. For in it he will rule as king of the Jews whom he will deceive, and he will come to those who assist and trust him in every thing. As the Lord said in [the Gospel of] John: “I have come in my Father’s name, and you do not receive me; if another comes in his own name, him you will receive.” He calls Jerusalem “Sodom,” not in a literal sense but in a spiritual sense on account of the licentiousness and ill-repute it possessed at that time. And he calls it “Egypt” because it had enslaved and abused the servants of Christ, just as the actual Egypt did to Israel. And it was there “where also their Lord,” that is, [the Lord] of the two witnesses, “was crucified.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.7-10.

ANTICHRIST WILL ESTABLISH HIS KINGDOM IN JERUSALEM. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: After [the two witnesses] have witnessed and urged escape from this deceit, the beast, that is, the antichrist, comes forth from the dark and deep recesses of the earth to which the devil had been condemned. And, with God’s allowance, he will kill them and leave their unburied bodies in Jerusalem itself, no doubt the ancient one which is now in ruins and in which the Lord also suffered. As it seems, he will establish his kingdom in Jerusalem in imitation of David, whose son is Christ, our true God, who is come in the flesh. In this way [the antichrist] intends to prove that he is the Christ who is fulfilling the prophetic word that says, “I will raise up the booth of David that is fallen and rebuild its ruins.” And having been deceived at his coming, the Jews will accept this. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.7-8.

THE CITY OF ANTICHRIST. BEDE: He clearly shows that all this will happen before the final persecution, for he says, “when they have finished their testimony.” At least that will happen which they show until the revelation of the beast who will emerge from the hearts of the wicked. They will strive at that time valiantly to resist the enemy with the same testimony; however, it is believed that at that time the church will be made destitute of the gift of miracles, while the adversary will be openly active with deceptive signs. As the Lord says, “Want will go before his face.” “And he will conquer and kill them.” He will conquer in those who will have succumbed, and he will kill those who by a praiseworthy suffering for the name of Christ will be slain. Or, should he conquer and kill in a spiritual manner, we understand this to refer to a portion of the witnesses, as it says in the Gospel, “They will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to death.” And the Evangelist Luke indicates that this was spoken of a part, saying, “Some of you they will put to death.” “And they will throw their bodies onto the streets of the great city.” “If they persecuted me, they will also persecute you,” it says. Therefore, it is not surprising if the city of the wicked, which did not fear to crucify the Lord, should also hold his servants in derision, even if they are dead. The history of the church relates that such things often occurred. “Which is spiritually called Sodom and Egypt.” “Sodom” and “Egypt” mean “silent” and “dark,” for this city possesses neither the light of faith nor the sound of confession. For “man believes with his heart and so is justified, and he confesses with his lips and so is saved.” As a sign of spiritual punishment, these regions were oppressed with these plagues, that is, [Sodom] by a ravaging fire and [Egypt] by water turned into blood. EXPLANATION OF THE APOCALYPSE 11.7-8.

11:9-10 | People Rejoice over the Witnesses’ Bodies

THE SIGHT OF THE RIGHTEOUS VEXES THE UNRIGHTEOUS. TYCONIUS: Since they do not allow their bodies to be gathered in a suitable place, they prevent a day for their memory to be indicated by a sacred celebration of the living. … It is no wonder that the earthly minded rejoice over the deaths of the righteous. For in addition to the plagues that beset the human race on account of the testaments of God, even the very sight of the righteous oppresses the unrighteous, as it is written, “Even the sight of him is a burden to us.” Not only does it oppress, it also causes him to melt away, and so the psalm says, “The sinner will see and be angry; he will gnash his teeth and melt away.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.9-10.

THE WICKED DELIGHT IN THE DEATH OF GOD’S WITNESSES. OECUMENIUS: And seeing the destruction of the witnesses, those from every nation who have been deceived by the antichrist will rejoice over them, as though their own king had conquered. That they exchange gifts is another indication of their glee and delight. It says, “Because the two prophets had been a torment to those living on the earth.” [The prophets] will not torment them with any physical torment, but spiritually by mocking and reproving them for their sins and by making utterly clear their deceit. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.7-10.

THE IMPIOUS STRIVE TO REMOVE THE CHURCH FROM THE WORLD. PRIMASIUS: The intentions are expressed by which the impious strive to remove the church of Christ from the world, as the psalmist says, “Let the name of Israel be remembered no more!” And although they are unable to fulfill their desire, yet they make their evil intention known. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 11.9.

LET US PRAY THAT GOD REPROVE US. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: Those Jews and Gentiles, who once were overpowered by the false wonders of the antichrist and who had indelibly engrafted that abominable name upon their hearts, prohibited the holy bodies from being buried, and they rejoiced because they were free from the torments that [the prophets] gave for their correction. For they did not acknowledge that “the Lord reproves him whom he loves,” and that “he scourges every son whom he receives” and “by muzzle and bridle he will pull and tug at those who are not near to him.” And God works in this way so that they might turn from necessity into the straight way from which they turned aside when they were deceived. We must make petition of the Lord and pray, “It is good for me that I was afflicted, that I might learn your statutes,” and “Turn us, O God of our salvation, that you do not enter into judgment with your servant.” “When we are judged by you, our beneficent master, we are chastened so that we may not be condemned along with the world” but may rather through a few torments escape an eternal punishment. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE, 11.9-10.