I'm not confused. My interpretation doesn't contradict other scripture like yours does.
comes from not recognizing that trumpets have different calls. The 7th trumpet judgement is not a call to convocation, it's a pronouncement of judgement. The last trump Paul is referring to is a call to convocation. It's a different trumpet blast for an entirely different purpose.
I completely disagree. It's both a pronouncement of judgment AND a call to convocation! Read it again.
Revelation 11:18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged,
and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.
The part I bolded above is the "call to convocation" that you're talking about. You seem to have missed that part.
Realize that Revelation was not written until decades after Paul had been martyred, and Paul was communicating to people decades before Revelation was written. Paul wouldn't rely on people reading a book that wouldn't be written for 40 years to explain his letter to a church.
The Holy Spirit knows all and inspired both Paul and John. How else should we understand the LAST trumpet if it's not actually the LAST prophetic trumpet?
Because it is explained
Revelation 11:3-4
It is a direct reference to Zechariah 4.
So, you are using other scripture to aid your understanding of Revelation 11. You acted as if it was explained clearly in Revelation itself, which it is not. And you know that because you had to refer to Zechariah 4 for more understanding. How is that different than me using other scripture that talks about the temple of God being the church/collective body of Christ to aid my understanding of the temple of God?
So it's two annointed ones who stood by Jesus.
The two annointed ones who stood by Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration were Elijah and Moses.
Revelation 11 continues to say that they have the power to call fire (Elijah) and call down plagues on the earth like turning the water into blood (Moses)
Malachi 4:5 also says Elijah will be sent before the day of the Lord.
now yes, Jesus said John the Baptist came in Elijah's spirit, so there is also that possibility that people will be sent in the spirit of Elijah and Moses rather than physically being Elijah and Moses.
Either way. The two witnesses are Elijah and Moses I'm convinced.
I disagree. It's not two individuals because they are described as "two candlesticks" and "two olive trees" (Rev 11:4). It makes more sense to refer to other New Testament scripture for understanding of what candlesticks and olive trees represent. Read Revelation 1:20 and Romans 11:13-24.
Jesus said that Elijah already came. It's no wonder that Jesus said regarding John the Baptist "And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come" (Matthew 11:14). He knew that some people, like you, would have trouble accepting that because it goes against your tendency to interpret prophecy very literally. But we're talking about Jesus here. We should accept everything He said.
The temple isn't a symbol because it's not explained to be a symbol. it's a temple. a temple that can be measured with a rod.
Yes, it's a temple. But, it does not say if it's physical or not. It's described with figurative language, which you aren't recognizing. Think about it. What would be the point of literally measuring a physical temple? I can't think of any. It's figuratively describing those who are part of the church/temple of God as opposed to those who are outside the temple and not part of the church.
Also, did you miss this verse:
Revelation 11:19 And
the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.
This describes the temple of God as being heavenly. That does not describe a physical temple. You're not using scripture to interpret scripture here. Surely, this temple of God is the same temple of God referenced earlier in the chapter. Unless John was trying to confuse people.
The City, if you want to interpret it literally, is Babylon.
No, I'd rather not interpret it literally since it is referred to as "Mystery Babylon" (Rev 17:5). There's no mystery about it if it was the literal Babylon. The woman/Babylon clearly is meant to be spiritually discerned rather than being spelled out for us.
One thing first. When the symbol of the Beast was given it's not just in reference to a person, but an empire. An empire is treated synonymously with its Emperor. They don't say Ramses II, they just say Pharaoh. They don't just say Tiberius, they say Caesar. There have been well more than 8 gentile kings that have controlled Israel. But there have been 7 world empires that have had direct control over Israel. The Egyptians, Assyrians, Babylonians, Persians, Greeks (the 5 that are fallen by John's time), Rome (the 1 that was current in John's time), and the Islamic Caliphate/Ottoman Empire (the one that was not yet in John's time) (Revelation 17:10). The 8th empire, the Antichrist's Empire is "of the seven", I take it to mean it's going to consist of the same land area as the 7 previous, and could either be a revived Roman Empire or Revived Ottoman Empire, or a combination "of the seven". Erdogan of Turkey certainly has plans to reestablish the Ottoman Empire after the "expiration" of the Treaty of Lausanne in 2023. He's been involved in Libya, Syria, Iraq, places that have been destabilized that could be taken over. Couldn't say Erdogan's the antichrist, but could be a predecessor.
The point is that it's not clearly explained in the text itself. You are making guesses here based on what it does say, but it's not just spelled out for us. The same is true regarding the temple of God in Revelation 11.
But the angel explains that the 7 heads are 7 mountains and the woman is a city. A city that sits on seven mountains. It's not some mystery where you have to wonder what the heads represent. The angel says 7 mountains. There's a city famous for 7 mountains.
I just choose not to spell it out because there's a denomination that gets very upset about that.
Mountains can represent kingdoms in scripture. You already said you see the seven heads as being seven world empires. Did you change your mind and now see them as 7 literal mountains instead?
You said "the woman is a city". Well, who can argue with that? Yet, you can't tell me what city it is. And why would you assume it's referring to an earthly city? Can't it be the spiritual opposite of the heavenly new Jerusalem instead?
Sometimes you just have to believe the bible means what it says, rather than analyzing everything to mean something else.
That's a lame argument. We're talking about a highly symbolic book here (Revelation), not something to take all literally like the beatitudes of Matthew 5.
In Zechariah it said that Messiah would be sold for 30 pieces of silver, cast at the potter. In the Gospel of Matthew we learn Judas betrayed Jesus for 30 pieces of silver, and when he killed himself those 30 pieces of silver were used to buy the plot of land from a potter. They were cast at the potter.
You don't have to spiritually analyze what the 30 pieces of silver meant or who the potter represented or anything like... because of literal fulfillment.
Congratulations on proving something that all of us here already believe. Did you think I didn't believe any Bible prophecy had a literal fulfillment? Of course some of it does. And some of it is written in figurative language. We have to figure out which is which. I happen to believe that you're not very good at at that sometimes, but that's my opinion.