Expositor's Bible Commentary Commentary Revelation 11:1

"And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and one said, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein." — Revelation 11:1 (ASV)

John is given a “reed” (GK 2812), long and straight like a “rod” and thus suitable for measuring a large building or area (cf. Ezekiel 40:5). Its purpose is to “measure the temple of God and the altar.” Most agree that the principal OT passage in John’s mind was Ezekiel’s lengthy description of the measuring of the future kingdom temple (Ezekiel 40:3–48:35). Since interpreters are confused about what Ezekiel’s vision means, the ambiguity extends also to John’s description. Measuring with a reed or line may have various metaphorical meanings. It may refer to the promise of restoration and rebuilding, with emphasis on extension or enlargement (Jeremiah 31:39; Zechariah 1:16). It may also be done to mark out something for destruction (2 Samuel 8:2; 2 Kings 21:13; Isaiah 28:17; Lamentations 2:8; Amos 7:7–9). In Eze 40:2ff., this latter sense would be inappropriate. But what does John’s measuring mean?

Since John is told in v.2 not to measure the outer court but to leave it for the nations to overrun, it seems that here in ch. 11 the measuring means that the temple of God, the altar, and the worshipers are to be secured for blessing and preserved from spiritual harm or defilement. In 21:15–17, John similarly depicts the angel’s measuring of the heavenly city (with a golden rod), apparently to mark off the city and its inhabitants from harm and defilement (21:24, 27). As a parallel to the sealing of 7:1–8, the measuring does not symbolize preservation from physical harm but the prophetic guarantee that none of the faithful worshipers of Jesus as the Messiah will perish, even though they suffer physical destruction at the hand of the beast (13:7).

In Eze 43:10, the prophet is told to “describe the temple to the people of Israel, that they may be ashamed of their sins.” The purpose of the elaborate description and temple measurement there is to indicate the glory and holiness of God in Israel’s midst and convict them of their defilement of his sanctuary (43:12). Likewise, John’s prophetic ministry calls for a clear separation between those who are holy and those who have defiled themselves with the idolatry of the beast.

John is to measure “the temple of God.” There are two Greek words used in the NT for temple. Hieron (GK 2639) is a broad term that refers to the whole structure of Herod’s temple, including courts, colonnades, etc. (e.g., Matthew 4:5). Naos (GK 3724) is narrower and refers to the sanctuary or inner house where only the priests were allowed (Matthew 23:35; Matthew 27:51; always in Revelation). While the distinction between the two words is not always maintained, in this context (11:1) it may be appropriate since the next verse mentions the outer precinct as a separate entity.

Does John mean here the heavenly temple often mentioned in Revelation (cf. 11:19; 15:5, 8; 16:17), or does he refer to the Christian community, as in 3:12: “Him who overcomes I will make a pillar in the temple of my God”? Naos always refers to the Jerusalem temple in the Gospels with the single exception of John’s Gospel, where it refers to Jesus’ own body (cf. Revelation 21:22). Outside the Gospels it refers either to pagan shrines (Acts 17:24; Acts 19:24) or, in Paul’s letters, metaphorically to the physical bodies of Christians or to the church of God (1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 6:19; 2 Corinthians 6:16; Ephesians 2:21; most likely also 2 Thessalonians 2:4). Since John refers to the “outer court” in v.2, it is likely that he has in mind not the heavenly temple of God but an earthly one, and likely also, symbolically, the covenant people. To take the temple in this verse as representing the church in the Great Tribulation is not without problems, but this seems the best view.

The “altar” (GK 2603) would then refer to the huge stone altar of sacrifice in the court of the priests, and the expression “the worshipers” would most naturally indicate the priests and others in the three inner courts (the court of the priests, the court of Israel, the court of the women). These represent symbolically the true servants of God and the measuring symbolizes their recognition and acceptance by God in the same manner as the numbering in ch. 7. The writer of Hebrews likewise speaks of an “altar” that Christians eat from, but that Jewish priests who serve in the temple are not qualified to eat from (Hebrews 13:10). By this language he speaks of the once-for-all sacrifice of Christ on the cross utilizing the background of the temple images, as does John.