Study in Revelation #55

The sermon presents a careful, theologically grounded examination of Revelation 11:1–2, focusing on the interpretive tension between historicist and preterist views of the temple, altar, and holy city. It argues that the temple, altar, and worshipers represent the faithful church symbolically, not literally, drawing parallels with Ezekiel's vision of a temple that existed only in prophecy despite the actual temple's destruction. The preterist claim that the literal Jerusalem temple was still standing at the time of Revelation's writing is challenged by the fact that prophetic measuring does not require physical existence, as seen in Ezekiel. The sermon critiques the preterist approach for inconsistently mixing literal and symbolic interpretations, particularly in claiming the outer court and city were literally trampled while the temple was preserved. Instead, it affirms the historicist view that these elements are spiritual symbols of the church's preservation amid persecution, with the 42 months representing a period of spiritual desolation under apostasy. The preacher concludes with a call for humility, acknowledging the difficulty of interpreting Revelation and the need for prayerful discernment, recognizing that no interpretive position is without weakness.