Charles Ellicott Commentary Revelation 11:19

"And there was opened the temple of God that is in heaven; and there was seen in his temple the ark of his covenant; and there followed lightnings, and voices, and thunders, and an earthquake, and great hail." — Revelation 11:19 (ASV)

And the temple of God . . .—Translate, And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunders, and an earthquake, and a great hail. At the beginning of the chapter we noticed the distinction between the two words (naos and hieron) applied to the Temple; the Temple building proper (the naos) was measured off.

Now this (naos) Temple is opened—indeed, to its very innermost recesses. For not only is the holy place disclosed, but also the holiest of all, the shrine of shrines, into which the high priest alone entered (and he only once a year). This most holy place is opened as if the veil of the Temple had been torn in two again, and there the ark of the covenant of God is seen.

The meaning of this, when read in the light of the measuring of the Temple, seems to be that now the secret dwelling place of the safeguarded children of God was revealed.

In times of apostasy and worldliness, the faithful had found their strength and protection in the shadow of the Almighty. They were regarded by God as His true living Temple, and He dwelt in them, just as they also found their defense in Him.

But now that the end has come, there is no need for these to be hidden anymore. The children of God, who are the Temple of God, are made manifest. At the same time, the secret place of their shelter in days of trouble is made plain. In it is seen the token of that everlasting covenant, which was the mainstay of their hopes in their day of trouble (Hebrews 6:19).

The ark of God’s covenant is seen; the ark that contained the tablets of the law, Aaron’s rod, and the manna is unveiled. Now it is known from where they derived that hidden manna, that bread of heaven which strengthened their hearts in days of temptation. Now it is known how Christ’s rod of power flourished and blossomed despite often-repeated rejection. Now, too, those high and holy principles by which the lives of the saints of God were ruled are known—namely, the law that the divine Spirit had written in their hearts (Hebrews 10:16, and 2 Corinthians 3:2).

Then, too, along with the ark of God’s covenant, the mercy seat is brought into view—that throne of grace to which the weary and heavy-laden children of God had so often gone, and where they had never failed to receive grace to help in every time of need (Hebrews 4:16). The Temple of God was opened, and the secret springs of power that sustained the patience and faith of the saints are found to be in God.

And out of the opened Temple, or around it, as around the sacred peak of Sinai, lightnings are seen, and voices and thunders are heard. The tokens of that holy law, which the power of the world had defied, are made manifest.

For God’s righteousness has not lost its strength; and what is a power of help to those who seek their shelter in God becomes a power of destruction to those who turn from Him. The dwelling place of God is an open sanctuary to faith; it is a clouded and lightning-crowned Sinai to faithlessness .

The spirit of evil, of selfishness, of self-indulgence, of profanity, which rejects its birthright (namely, better thoughts and holy things), leads to the mount that burned with fire, and unto blackness and darkness and tempest, and the sound of a trumpet, and the voice of words; whereas the Spirit of God leads to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and Church of the firstborn which are written in heaven.