MEASURING THE TEMPLE

REVELATION 11:1-2

At the close of the last chapter, we saw that mighty angel giving the little book to John. The apostle was told to take the book and eat it. The book was to become a part of him. As a result of eating the book, John would prophecy concerning many peoples and nations and tongues and kings (10:11). As we begin chapter 11, the same vision still continues. This is important because we can only understand chapter 11 in the light of the context of chapter 10. There will be in the beginning of this chapter a symbolic representation of John’s preaching to peoples and nations and tongues and kings.

THE COMMAND TO MEASURE THE TEMPLE

Then there was given me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said, “Get up and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it.” (Revelation 11:1).

John has already been given a book to eat. We saw in the last chapter that symbolism came from the book of Ezekiel. Now he is given a rod with which he was so do a work of measuring. This symbolism also comes from Ezekiel in which he is taken in a vision into the land of Israel, placed on a high mountain, and sees a structure like a city (40:2). He is confronted by a bronze-looking man with a line of flax and a measuring rod and together they go through the city, measuring each wall and gate. What is the purpose for this? Is it to give Ezekiel a lesson in ancient architecture? Is it to provide some interesting Bible trivia? No, it is to teach the people of Israel an important practical lesson. After the man has taken Ezekiel through the vision of the rebuilt temple, he hears a voice coming to him from the house of God.

Then I heard one speaking to me from the house, while a man was standing beside me. 7 He said to me, “Son of man, this is the place of My throne and the place of the soles of My feet, where I will dwell among the sons of Israel forever. And the house of Israel will not again defile My holy name, neither they nor their kings, by their harlotry and by the corpses of their kings when they die, 8 by setting their threshold by My threshold and their door post beside My door post, with only the wall between Me and them. And they have defiled My holy name by their abominations which they have committed. So I have consumed them in My anger. 9 Now let them put away their harlotry and the corpses of their kings far from Me; and I will dwell among them forever.” (Ezekiel 43:6_9).

Ezekiel is told the purpose of this vision of the temple. It is that the people of Israel might be encouraged to put their sin away and walk in obedience to the Lord. Here is the principle. If they will turn from their wickedness that led up to the destruction of their city and their temple, then God will grant them a part in His new temple.

The picture John sees is very similar. He is told to measure the temple, the altar, and those who worship in it. Ever since John was confronted by the glorified Jesus in chapter 1, his vision has been in the context of the temple. Jesus was standing in the middle of the lampstands (1:12-13). The souls of the martyred believers were seen under the altar (5:9). An angel stood before the altar of incense (8:3). Before we finish this chapter, we shall see the ark of the covenant in the temple (11:19).

Which temple is this? Is it the temple of God in heaven? Or is it the temple in Jerusalem? In a sense, it is both. The temple that had been in Jerusalem was patterned after the true temple of God in heaven. The difference between the two is that the earthly temple was destroyed by Titus in A.D. 70. It has never been rebuilt. It is for this reason that we can conclude the temple John is told to measure is the one in heaven. This will be made clear in verse 19: And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple (Revelation 11:19a). This temple is in heaven. It is the throne of God. It is a spiritual temple, not one made of wood and stone. It is occupied by the people of God.

Back in Old Testament times, the Lord decreed that His people should build a tabernacle, a place where God would come to meet man. The tabernacle was the center of the Jewish community. It was always located at the center of the camp of Israel. It had a special priesthood who would serve as mediators between God and the people. When they were in the wilderness, the presence of God was seen in the cloud by day and in the pillar of fire by night. As long as the people saw the cloud and the fire, they knew that God was with them.

Many years later, Solomon built a temple for the Lord in Jerusalem. Once again, the presence of God was signified by the coming of a cloud into the temple.

It happened that when the priests came from the holy place, the cloud filled the house of the LORD, 11 so that the priests could not stand to minister because of the cloud, for the glory of the LORD filled the house of the LORD. (1 Kings 8:10-11).

The reason Jerusalem was blessed is because it was the place of the presence of God. It was here that God met man. The reason the destruction of the temple in the days of Nebuchadnezzar was such a tragedy to the Jews was because it meant there was no place on earth where God would meet with man. But then Jesus came on the scene. He is the One who could say, “Before Abraham was, I AM.” He is the Word, the One who communicates God to men. He is the temple. He said that if you destroy this temple, He would raise it up in three days.

Where is Jesus today? He is in heaven. But He is also in men’s hearts. He said, “I am with you always” (Matthew 28:20). God has a new temple. It is the church. We are the temple. Do you not know that you are a temple of God and that the Spirit of God dwells in you? (1 Corinthians 3:16). We are the temple and it is here that God meets men. This is where the Spirit of God resides today.

This means that as John proceeds to measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship in it, this is a picture of what God is doing with His people today. God has measured us out. He has set us apart. He has made us different. We are His selected group of people. We are His temple.

THE OUTER COURT

“Leave out the court which is outside the temple and do not measure it, for it has been given to the nations; and they will tread under foot the holy city for forty-two months.” (Revelation 11:1_2).

The temple and the altar made up only a portion of the entire temple compound in Jerusalem. A much greater area was taken but be the various outer courts. There was the Court of the Men and the Court of the Women and then you would go out beyond the dividing wall to find yourself in the much larger Court of the Gentiles. It was here that the moneychangers had set up their booths. John is told that this area has been given over to the nations. It is not reserved only for the Jewish people; everyone shall enter.

There have been some who wished to take this passage and to interpret it to refer to a literal temple in Jerusalem. But the problem is that it was not only the outer court that was trampled by the Gentiles, but the entire temple was trampled and even destroyed in A.D. 70. Others have sought to make this refer to a future temple, but John does not say this is a rebuilt temple. The following chart summarizes the various views of this temple:

Preterist View	Symbolic View	Futurist View
It refers to the literal first century temple that was destroyed by Titus.	It uses the symbol of the temple to refer to God’s people, the church.	It refers to a literal future temple to be constructed before the Second Coming.
A literal temple	A symbolic temple	A literal temple
The 42 months refer to the time of the Roman War to the fall of Jerusalem.	The 42 months are symbolic of a time of testing.	The 42 months refer to the halfway mark in a future great tribulation.

Both the Preterist view as well as the Futurist view interprets this as a literal, physical temple standing in Jerusalem. The problem with both these views is that every other reference to the temple by John in the book of Revelation has not been of a literal temple.

• John saw the lampstand, an article of temple furniture, and was told that it represented the seven churches.

• Jesus promised in Revelation 3:12 to make the overcomer a pillar in the temple of His God.

• The ones who come out of great tribulation are described as serving the Lord day and night in His heavenly temple (Revelation 7:15).

• At the end of this chapter, the ark of the covenant will be seen in the temple of God which is in heaven (Revelation 11:19). The same language is used in Revelation 14:17 and 15:5.

• When we see the vision of the New Jerusalem, we will read that there is no more temple because the Lord God and the Lamb are its temple (Revelation 21:22).

It can be stated in no uncertain terms that if this reference is to a literal, earthly temple, then it is the only such reference in all of John’s book because every other reference to a temple in this book is to some other sort of temple beyond the physical temple in Jerusalem. Nor is such a usage unique to this particular book, for in his gospel account, John related the prophetic words of Jesus when He said, “Destroy this temple, and in three days I will raise it up” (John 2:19). John is quick to add, let we misunderstand, that He was speaking of the temple of His body (John 2:21).

This gives us the key to understanding the meaning of the symbolism. Jesus is the temple. It is within Him that the fulness of God dwells in bodily form. At the same time, the New Testament writers also described those who are in Christ as also being the temple (1 Corinthians 3:16; 6:19; Ephesians 2:21).

What does it meant by this measuring and what is meant by the giving of the outer court to the Gentiles? If we are indeed to see this vision as a measuring out of the people of God, when what we have in this passage is similar to that which took place with the sealing of God’s people in Revelation 7. It is a sign of God’s protection of his people.

Revelation 7	Revelation 11:1-2
144,000 sealed	Temple measured
The people of God protected	The people of God selected
This group envisioned as 144,000 from the tribes of Israel represented people of every tribe, tongue, and nation.	This group envisioned as the temple represents all of God’s people.

At the same time, we are told that they will tread under foot the holy city for forty_two months.” (Revelation 11:2). The reference to the holy city looks to Jerusalem and the fact that the Gentiles will have free reign over the city. Many year earlier, John would have heard Jesus stand in the Court of the Gentiles in Jerusalem and give a very similar prophecy.

Woe to those who are pregnant and to those who are nursing babies in those days; for there will be great distress upon the land and wrath to this people; 24 and they will fall by the edge of the sword, and will be led captive into all the nations; and Jerusalem will be trampled under foot by the Gentiles until the times of the Gentiles are fulfilled. (Luke 21:23_24).

This prophecy was literally fulfilled in A.D. 70 when the Roman general Titus destroyed Jerusalem and carried the surviving Jews off into captivity. To this very day, Jerusalem is trampled underfoot by Gentiles. It has been argued by some that the Jews are today in possession of the city of Jerusalem, but Orthodox Jews are forbidden to walk upon the Temple Mount for fear they might inadvertently walk upon the site of the Holy of Holies. Who is it that has access to the Temple Mount today? Gentiles!

What is true physically of Jerusalem is also true spiritually of the church. We live in the age of the Gentiles. There was a time when the bulk of God’s people were Jewish. That time is no longer. The church today is made up mostly of Gentiles.

For I do not want you, brethren, to be uninformed of this mystery-- so that you will not be wise in your own estimation-- that a partial hardening has happened to Israel until the fullness of the Gentiles has come in (Romans 11:25).

The hearts of many of the Jewish people have been hardened to the gospel of Christ. It has only been a partial hardening – there are still many Jews who hear the message and believe. This hardening has taken place so that Gentiles might be saved.

Notice the reference in Revelation 11:2 to forty two months. It adds up to three and a half years. This is the first time we have seen a reference to this amount of time in John’s writings, but it will not be the last. The number would have been familiar to John. It is from the Old Testament. Daniel made several references to such a number. In Daniel 7, we read of a vision in which four beasts come up from the sea. Each of these beasts represents an earthly kingdom.

• The first beast was like a lion; it represented the Babylonian empire.

• The second beast was like a bear; it represented the Persian empire.

• The third beast was like a leopard; it represented the Greek empire of Alexander the Great.

The fourth beast was like nothing that Daniel had ever seen. It was different than the first three. It had ten horns and from these ten horns sprung a small horn. Daniel’s attention was drawn to this small horn.

As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak out against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make alterations in times and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time. (Daniel 7:24_25).

This little horn is seen to arise again and again throughout the book of Daniel. He is described as coming to power on the heels of Alexander’s kingdom and he is described as an enemy of the people of God. Notice the time of his power. It is a time, times, and half a time. Most scholars agree that this is merely another way of citing the period that John has described as 42 months. It is a period of three and a half years.

Out of one of them came forth a rather small horn which grew exceedingly great toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land. 10 It grew up to the host of heaven and caused some of the host and some of the stars to fall to the earth, and it trampled them down. 11 It even magnified itself to be equal with the Commander of the host; and it removed the regular sacrifice from Him, and the place of His sanctuary was thrown down. 12 And on account of transgression the host will be given over to the horn along with the regular sacrifice; and it will fling truth to the ground and perform its will and prosper. 13 Then I heard a holy one speaking, and another holy one said to that particular one who was speaking, “How long will the vision about the regular sacrifice apply, while the transgression causes horror, so as to allow both the holy place and the host to be trampled?” 14 He said to me, "For 2,300 evenings and mornings; then the holy place will be properly restored." (Daniel 8:9_14).

Who is this little horn? Is he someone who is yet to come? Is he the future anti-Christ? I do not think so. I would suggest that this prophecy in Daniel describes one who has already come. Notice the details that are given:

• He comes on the heels of Alexander’s kingdom.

• He subdues three kings.

• He speaks out against the Most High.

• He wears down the saints of the Highest One.

• He attempts to make alterations in times and in law.

• He moves toward the south, toward the east, and toward the Beautiful Land.

• He magnifies himself to be equal with the Commander of the host.

• He removes the regular sacrifice.

• He tramples the holy place and the people of God for 2,300 evenings and mornings (a period of a bit less than three and a half years); but after that the holy place will be properly restored.

If you were familiar with Jewish history, you would realize this prophecy has already been fulfilled in a very literal manner. When Alexander the Great lay on his deathbed, his generals gathered around him and asked to whom he was leaving his kingdom. He replied, “To the strongest.” By this answer, he ordained that his kingdom would be broken apart by warfare. Alexander’s empire was initially divided up between eleven of his generals, but as they fell to fighting among themselves, two major powers ultimately emerged: Ptolemy and his descendants retained control of Egypt. Seleucus and his descendants took Mesopotamia and Syria.

Between these two rulers lay the tiny kingdom of Judah. For the next 150 years, the Jews found themselves first under one ruler and then under the next as the realm of power shifted from the Seleucids to the Ptolemies and then back again. Finally, a ruler came to the Seleucid throne known as Antiochus IV.

Antiochus IV was a dynamic ruler. He embarked on an aggressive Hellenistic campaign designed to unite all of his subject peoples. This involves leading them in the worship of the Greek gods. When the Jews revolted, he made it illegal to worship Yahweh or to own a copy of the Scriptures. He moved into the temple in Jerusalem and erected a statue of himself in the Holy of Holies. He stopped the temple sacrifices and he had unclean animals and even humans killed in the temple. He took for himself the title “Epiphanes” – “the manifested one,” but the Jews referred to him as Antiochus Epimenes, “Antiochus the madman.”

The Seleucids were driven out of Jerusalem by the revolt of the Jewish Maccabees. They succeeded in restoring and cleansing the temple and re-instituting the sacrifices after a period of a little over three years.

Do you see the pattern? The Jews recognized Antiochus as the little horn of Daniel. They referred to his pollution of the temple as the Abomination of Desolation. This is why Jesus surprised His disciples when He predicted an abomination of desolation yet to come. He said that Jerusalem would once again be taken by her enemies and once again a pagan would stand in the temple. History repeated itself in A.D. 70 when the Roman general Titus finally took Jerusalem after a campaign of nearly three and a half years.

All of this serves as a backdrop for John’s vision. The truth is that we live in the times of the Gentiles. This world has been handed over to the nations. It is not being run by God’s people. Bad things happen in the Court of the Gentiles. People get stepped on when Gentiles are treading underfoot the holy city. But that is okay because God has measured out His city.

Anyone was permitted to enter the Court of the Gentiles. The moneychangers were there. The sellers of the animals were there. Herod had built up the Court of the Gentiles with row upon row of tremendous colonnades. The Court of the Gentiles had all sorts of religious trappings. There was only one thing it lacked – the presence of God.

Only Jewish people were permitted to pass into the temple. There was a wall around the temple that kept out the Gentiles. It was called the dividing wall. It divided the Jews from the Gentiles. It divided the chosen people from the rest of the people. What this wall represents was broken down by the death of Christ.

But now in Christ Jesus you who formerly were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ. 14 For He Himself is our peace, who made both groups into one and broke down the barrier of the dividing wall, 15 by abolishing in His flesh the enmity, which is the Law of commandments contained in ordinances, so that in Himself He might make the two into one new man, thus establishing peace (Ephesians 2:13-15).

Christ has broken down the barrier of the dividing wall. There is no longer a division between Jews and Gentiles. God knows the people who are His. One day there will be a division again. One day He will return and He shall divide between those who are His people and those who are not His people; between the sheep and the goats, between the wheat and the tares, between the foolish virgins and the wise virgins, and between the tree that bears fruit and the tree that is barren.

In which group are you? Are you one of God’s people. You can be. You can come to Jesus Christ in faith and be adopted into His forever family. You can become one of His chosen people as you enter into the presence of God.

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