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Composite title graphic for the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11, showing the globe of planet Earth on the parched, broken ground of a field and stormy skies on the left side and wide rays of light orange light on the other.

Chapter Four of this Commentary. Part 6.

The Sixth Trumpet of Revelation
Also called "the second woe."

Chapters 9, 10, and 11
of the Book of Revelation

Scene 12 of the Sixth Trumpet           Revelation 11:11-14 

The Earthly Representatives of the Two Witnesses Are Resurrected and Are Caught Up to Heaven, while Their Homicidal Enemies Observe Them, Terrified.

A graphic in vivid colors representing the resurrection of the representatives on earth of the Two Witnesses after they had been dead for three and a half days.

Also, Last Events of the Second Woe

VII. The resurrection on the earth of the representatives of the Two Witnesses. Revelation 11:11-12

“And after the three days and a half the breath of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them that beheld them. 

And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they went up into heaven in the cloud; and their enemies beheld them.”

A. "...the breath of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet..."  That is, God resurrected them physically!

1. They were resurrected like Lazarus was resurrected (John 11:38-44), as the daughter of Jairo was resurrected (Matthew 9:18-26) as was resurrected the son of the widow of Nain (Luke 7:11-17), and as Dorcas was resurrected. Acts 9:36-43

“…the breath of life… entered into…” their mortal bodies, thus recovering these bodies their material, physical life. The use of this expression in other Bible texts sustains this affirmation. For example:

“And I, behold, I do bring the flood of waters upon the earth, to destroy all flesh, wherein is the breath of life, from under heaven; everything that is in the earth shall die.” Genesis 6:17; 7:15 y 22. So then, every animal that breaths and lives physically possesses “the breath of life.” Including the carnal, physical body of every human being.

“Ishmael lived a hundred and thirty-seven years. He breathed his last and died, and he was gathered to his people.” Genesis 25:17 NIV. Most versions read “breathed his last.”

The representatives on the earth of the Two Witnesses are killed physically, exhaling their last breath of life from their corporal bodies. When God made “the breath of life” enter their dead physical bodies, they were corporally, visibly resurrected! Literally, “…they stood upon their feet.” Upon their feet of flesh and bone. They were resurrected neither spiritually nor metaphorically but materially, physically. Their “…enemies beheld them.” They saw them with their own physical eyes.

2. Very definitely, they are not transformed from an “animal body” to a “spiritual body” (1 Corinthians 15:43-52), at the moment “the breath of life from God enters them” but are resurrected corporally on the earth.

B. "… and great fear fell upon them that beheld them."

1. When Jesus Christ resurrected the son of the widow of Nain, "fear took hold on all; and they glorified God." Lucas 7:16

An abstract creation interpreted as the forces of the “breath of life,” represented in white, returning and overpowering the forces of death, in red, producing the physical resurrection on earth of the faithful representatives of the Two Witnesses.

2. The diabolical jubilee of the unbelieving, unnatural, and depraved who kill the messengers of God, Christ, and the Holy Spirit at the end of the “1,260 days” is briskly and terrifically interrupted when, all of a sudden, the dead bodies of those who had been killed recover physical life and "stand upon their feet!" 

This abstract creation is interpreted as the forces of the “breath of life,” represented in white, returning and overpowering the forces of death, in red, producing the physical resurrection on earth of the faithful representatives of the Two Witnesses.

This spectacular manifestation of divine power fills the homicidal enemies of the Two Witnesses with "great fear" at the very hour they were celebrating their “triumph” over the faithful and valiant earthly representatives of Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit prematurely, thinking they had finished them off once and for all time.

They had rejected God, also repudiating his “anointed one,” Jesus Christ, as well as the Holy Spirit, fighting viciously against their followers on earth in Harmagedon, thinking they had surely won an enormous, final, absolute victory. But how tremendous is their surprise and astonishment, when, incredibly, those loyal earthly representatives rise up, corporally, on their feet!!

A back view image of shadowy human figures in startled stances, looking toward a scene with zigzagging lightning above an event interpreted as the physical, visible resurrection of the earthly representatives, who had been dead for three and a half days, of the Two Witnesses.

In an instant, body-shaking, heart-stopping impressions and alarming, terrifying deductions fly back and forth in the minds and spirits of those persecuting, murderous enemies of the Beings of Light, Truth, and Love in Heaven and of the Torch Bearers on planet Earth of those same great, beautiful Powers. Like many brilliant, wide, flashing, zigzagging lightning bolts striking through the dark shadows, mists, and swirling clouds that fill the brains and spirits of humans bereft of spiritual knowledge and understanding.

In this street scene of a great city, shadowy human figures in startled stances look toward a strange, hair-raising event, highlighted by unusual zigzagging lightning, interpreted as the physical, visible resurrection of the earthly representatives, dead for three and a half days, of the Two Witnesses.

“Resurrected! Impossible! They are alive again! They have overcome death itself! Woe unto us! We are lost! Totally undone! They will surely quickly liquidate us! For we persecuted them mercilessly and killed some of them, rejoicing at not having to listen to them or see them anymore. But there they are! Alive again! Resurrected! How is that possible? It cannot be!

“We hated them, making fun of them and ridiculing their messages. They certainly will avenge themselves on us without delay. Woe, woe, woe unto us now! What they preached and prophesied was the truth, and we vehemently rejected it. And now, what will happen to us? Not even the devil himself can save us!”

Their perverted, hard hearts are filled with "great fear" as they have every reason to be.

3. But let it be clear: their "great fear" and all their lamentations will not save them now! For them, it is altogether too late to reach out for salvation. The Two Witnesses finished their “testimony.”  These scoffing, depraved unbelievers continually rejected that “testimony,” feeling tormented by it. Now, the end of all things material and fleshly, even of material time itself, is upon them! The War of Harmagedon that they themselves initiated now enters its second and final stage. They won the first encounter. But their satanic celebration now suddenly turns to sorrowing and terror when God resurrects his ministers that they had killed.

In this image, on the wide avenue of a great city, people, back view, run toward the scene of the physical resurrection of the representatives of the Two Witnesses, who then suddenly begin to visibly ascend to heaven in response to the heavenly voice which says: “Come up here.”

There is now no remedy for them. 2 Chronicles 36:15-16. Definitely, their painful, lamentable destiny is forever sealed.

4. "…beheld them." 

Reiterating: their enemies can see them materially, because their physical bodies that had been killed “stood upon their feet.” They see the material, physical bodies in which “the breath of life from God” entered.

This “breath of life” does not enter the souls of the martyrs, but rather their physical bodies. Let us keep in mind that the soul of not a one of them had been killed; what died was the physical body.

The above image is interpreted in the following way. On the wide avenue of a great city, people run toward the scene of the physical resurrection of the representatives of the Two Witnesses, who then suddenly, before their incredulous eyes, begin to visibly ascend to heaven in response to the heavenly voice which says: “Come up here.”

C. "...And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they went up into heaven in the cloud; and their enemies beheld them.” Revelation 11:12

1. "...And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they went up into heaven in the cloud...” 

a) "...Come up hither. And they went up...” 

A graphic in vivid colors representing the resurrection of the representatives on earth of the Two Witnesses after they had been dead for three and a half days.

That is to say, they were transformed and taken up to heaven! Their mortal bodies were resurrected, however, not to die physically again, but rather to be quickly transformed. In this aspect, their resurrection differs from that of Lazarus, the daughter of Jairo, the son of the widow of Nain, and Dorcas, for these, after being corporally resurrected, continued their life on earth, it is to be supposed, until the hour of once again departing from terrestrial regions for Paradise, from which they would never again return to planet Earth

b) The expression “And they went up into heaven in the cloud..." is very similar to the language of Acts 1:9 where Luke relates the ascension, and, by inference, the “changing” or “transformation” of Christ. “And when he had said these things, as they were looking, he was taken up; and a cloud received him out of their sight.” And also harmonizes perfectly with the words of 1 Thessalonians 4:17 where we are taught: “…then we that are alive, that are left, shall together with them be caught up in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord.”

This image of a woman and an man, back view, with arms and hands extended before them, as if in overpowering astonishment and fear, behold the sudden, astounding ascension of the resurrected representatives of the Two Witnesses.

2. "…and their enemies beheld them."

a) They behold them when they are physically resurrected. Verse 11. Then, in Verse 12, they also behold them when they ascend into heaven. They actually and literally behold them ascend just as the apostles actually and literally saw Jesus Christ when he ascended. Acts 1:9-11

b) They behold them, but they cannot accompany them! At some point in their life’s journey on planet Earth, each chose

the way of incredulity and did not repent of that decision. On the contrary, all people in this category tenaciously defend that decision and live by it until it brings them collectively, suddenly, and horrendously, to its most tragic consequences, both physically and spiritually. Now, each must pay the heavy price of his/her enormous sins, and that price is a violent physical death of the carnal body followed by eternal death, called “the second death.” Romans 6:23; Revelation 20:14

The Last Events of the Second Woe

 Revelation 11:13-14

VIII. The last events that immediately precede the end of the material universe and material time.

“And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell; and there were killed in the earthquake seven thousand persons: and the rest were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven.” Revelation 11:13

A. "…in that hour…" This is the same "hour" of the resurrection and transformation of the earthly representatives of the Two Witnesses.

B. "…there was a great earthquake…" Detailed information on the great earthquakes of Revelation is provided in Chapter Two of this Commentary.

C. "…and the tenth part of the city fell…"

1. "…the city…" is "the great city" mentioned in Revelation 11:8, which, I understand, symbolizes, “spiritually,” as the text specifically says, all the great corrupt cities of the earth.

2. "…the tenth part…"  would also be symbolical of that portion of all the corrupt cities of the world that are impacted by the "great earthquake." “…the tenth part…,” and not the 40th, the 60th, or the 90th part.

D. "…there were killed in the earthquake seven thousand persons…"  Not 70,000, nor 700,000, nor 7,000,000, nor 7,000,000,000, but “seven thousand persons.”

"Seven,", in prophetical biblical language, is the symbolic number that indicates “completeness.” So then, in this text, the number “seven thousand” would include, I assume, all the unbelievers, unnaturals, and depraved of earth that lose their physical lives as a result of the “great earthquake,” especially those living in the great cities, whatever their number may be eventually.

E. "…and the rest were affrighted and gave glory to the God of heaven."

1. A notable similarity is observed between this scene and that of the Sixth Seal presented in Revelation 6:15-17.

In this photograph, men and women, back view, of different ages and races flee, terrified, as fast as they can from the totally incredible scene of the physical resurrection and visible ascension to heaven of the representatives on earth of the Two Witnesses.

“And the kings of the earth, and the princes, and the chief captains, and the rich, and the strong, and every bondman and freeman, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains; and they say to the mountains and to the rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: for the great day of their wrath is come; and who is able to stand?” That is, forced by the catastrophes coming upon them and planet Earth, they recognize the existence and overwhelming power of the Creator God, as well as the existence and power of his Son, “the Lamb,” but it is altogether too late for their sudden understanding to save them.

2. They were “affrighted,” indeed, they were terrified, and give glory to God but it is too late for them. Very "quickly" (Revelation 11:14) they will hear the voice of the Seventh Trumpet which signifies that time, earthly time and the material universe itself, will be no more. Revelation 10:6.7

IX. "The second Woe is past: behold, the third Woe comes quickly." Revelation 11:14

A. These words highlight the sequence in terms of time that unite the three Woes. It goes without saying that always keeping in mind this sequence is of vital importance for the correct interpretation of the prophecies revealed by them. One Woe naturally follows the other on the timeline. The "second Woe is past;” the “third Woe comes quickly.” Changing the sequence of the three Woes results in erroneous interpretations of the prophecies.

B. "… the third Woe comes quickly." This indicates that a brief lapse of time comes between the second Woe and the third Woe. Perhaps, very brief indeed.

C. As soon as the Seventh Angel begins to sound the Seventh Trumpet, time will be no more. Revelation 10:6-7. Once again, we emphasize that this truth signifies that the events of the second Woe immediately precede the end of material time.

The events of the third Woe are studied in Chapter Two of this Commentary, the subject of which is the Seven Series of Prophecies and Visions in Revelation that take the reader to the End of the Material World and Material Time.

Text and Document Composition by the author Homer Dewayne Shappley. All rights reserved. The only restrictions on the use of this document are the sale of it in any format and proper identification of its origin.

Category. Revelation: Its 21st Century and Fulfillment. 21st Century Commentary.

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