Albert Barnes Commentary Revelation 11:7

"And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that cometh up out of the abyss shall make war with them, and overcome them, and kill them." — Revelation 11:7 (ASV)

And when they shall have finished their testimony. Professor Stuart renders this, "And whenever they shall have finished their testimony." The reference is undoubtedly to a period when they will have faithfully borne the testimony they were appointed to bear. The word here translated "shall have finished"—telesōsi, from teleō—properly means to end, to finish, to complete, to accomplish.

It is used, in this respect, in two senses: either in regard to time, or in regard to the end or object in view, in the sense of perfecting it, or accomplishing it. In the first sense, it is used in passages such as these: Revelation 20:3, "Till the thousand years should be fulfilled;"Matthew 10:23, "You shall not have gone over the cities of Israel [Greek: you shall not have finished the cities of Israel] till the Son of Man has come"—that is, you shall not have finished passing through them; Matthew 11:1, "When Jesus had made an end [Greek: finished] of commanding His twelve disciples;" 2 Timothy 4:7, "I have finished my course." In these passages, it clearly refers to time.

In the other sense, it is used in places like these: Romans 2:27, "And shall not uncircumcision which is by nature, if it fulfill the law;" that is, if it accomplish, or come up to the demands of the law; James 2:8, "If you fulfill the royal law according to the Scriptures." The word, then, may here refer not to time—meaning that these events would occur at the end of the one thousand two hundred and sixty days—but to the fact that what is stated here would occur when they had completed their testimony, in the sense of having testified all that they were appointed to testify. This means when they had borne full witness for God and fully uttered His truth.

Thus understood, the meaning here may be that the event referred to would take place, not at the end of the 1260 years, but at that period during the 1260 years when it could be said with propriety that they had accomplished their testimony in the world, or that they had borne full and ample witness on the points entrusted to them.

The beast. This is the first time in the Book of Revelation that what is here called 'the beast' is mentioned, which has such an important role in the events that, it is said, would occur. It is repeatedly mentioned in the course of the book, always with similar characteristics, and as referring to the same object. Here it is mentioned as "ascending out of the bottomless pit;" in Revelation 13:1, as "rising up out of the sea;" in Revelation 13:11, as "coming up out of the earth." It is also mentioned with characteristics appropriate to such an origin in Revelation 13:2-4 (twice), Revelation 13:11–12 (twice), Revelation 13:14 (twice), Revelation 13:15 (twice), Revelation 13:17–18; Revelation 14:9, 11; Revelation 15:2; Revelation 16:2, 10, 13; Revelation 17:3, 7-8 (twice), Revelation 17:11–13, 16-17; Revelation 19:19–20 (twice); Revelation 20:4, 10. The word used here—thērion—properly means a beast, a wild beast (Mark 1:13; Acts 10:12; Acts 11:6; Acts 28:4–5; Hebrews 12:20; James 3:7; Revelation 6:8).

It is once used topically of brutal or savage men (Titus 1:12). Elsewhere, in the passages referred to above in the Apocalypse, it is used symbolically. As used in the Book of Revelation, the characteristics of the 'beast' are strongly marked.

1. It has its origin from beneath—in the bottomless pit, the sea, or the earth (Revelation 11:7; Revelation 13:1, 11).
2. It has great power (Revelation 13:4, 12; Revelation 17:12–13).
3. It claims and receives worship (Revelation 13:3, 12, 14-15; Revelation 14:9, 11).
4. It has a certain 'seat' or throne from where its power proceeds (Revelation 16:10).
5. It is scarlet-colored (Revelation 17:3).
6. It receives power conferred upon it by the kings of the earth (Revelation 17:13).
7. It has a mark by which it is known (Revelation 13:17; Revelation 19:20).
8. It has a certain 'number;' that is, there are certain mystical letters or figures that so express its name that it may be known (Revelation 13:17–18).

These things serve to characterize the 'beast' as distinguished from all other things. They are so numerous and definite that it would seem to have been intended to make it easy to understand what was meant when the power referred to should appear.

Regarding the origin of the imagery here, there can be no reasonable doubt that it is to be traced to Daniel, and that the writer here means to describe the same 'beast' that Daniel refers to in Daniel 7:7. The evidence of this must be clear to anyone who compares the description in Daniel (chapter 8) with the minute details in the Book of Revelation. No one, I think, can doubt that John means to carry forward the description in Daniel, and to apply it to new manifestations of the same great and terrific power—the power of the fourth monarchy—on the earth. For full evidence that the representation in Daniel refers to the Roman power, prolonged and perpetuated in the Papal dominion, I must refer the reader to Barnes on Daniel 7:25.

It may be assumed here that the opinion there defended is correct, and consequently it may be assumed that the 'beast' of this book refers to the Papal power.

That ascends out of the bottomless pit. (See Barnes on Revelation 9:1). This would properly mean that its origin is the lower world, or that it will have characteristics that will show it was from beneath. The meaning clearly is that what was symbolized by the beast would have such characteristics as to show that it was not of Divine origin but had its source in the world of darkness, sin, and death. This, of course, could not represent the true church or any civil government that is founded on principles that God approves. But if it represents a community pretending to be a church, it is an apostate church; if a civil community, it is a community whose characteristics are that it is controlled by the spirit that rules over the world beneath. For reasons that we will see in abundance when applying the descriptions that occur of the 'beast,' I regard this as referring to that great apostate power that occupies so much of the prophetic descriptions—the Papacy.

Shall make war against them. It will endeavor to exterminate them by force. This clearly is not intended to be a general statement that they would be persecuted but is to refer to the particular manner in which the opposition would be conducted. It would be in the form of 'war;' that is, there would be an effort to destroy them by arms.

And shall overcome them. It will gain the victory over them, conquer them—nikēsei autous. That is, there will be some signal victory in which those represented by the two witnesses will be subdued.

And kill them. That is, an effect would be produced as if they were put to death. They would be overcome; would be silenced; would be apparently dead. Any event that would cause them to cease to bear testimony, as if they were dead, would be properly represented by this. It would not be necessary to suppose that there would be literally death in the case, but that there would be some event which would be well represented by death—such as an entire suspension of their prophesying in consequence of force.