"And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.
And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.
And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.
And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.
And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.
And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them."
Revelation 11:7-12
This reminds me of Abinadi in the Book of Mormon who wasn't allowed to be killed until he finished his testimony as well... and then he was. And of course not that death is awesome or anything, but I think stories like this help us to understand that it isn't a permanent thing either... and that like everything else, it is under God's control.
I love the part where God tells them to "come up hither" and they do... impressive, and definitely a show for the unbelieving, illustrating to them the power of God even over death.
Maybe what we get out of the whole thing is a good lesson in perspective. God is always in control... we don't have to fear death. If it comes, it is part of the plan, and it is temporary. Not that it isn't sad of course, or that we shouldn't try to avoid it. ... There are a lot of things to accomplish in our lives. :) But it also isn't something that we need to compromise our principles over, or avoid at the cost of other lives. Easy to say, I know.
Today, let's try to catch a glimpse of God's perspective, and know that this scripture to Joseph Smith applies to all of us as well, as we stay on God's path: "Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever" (D&C 122:9).
And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.
And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.
And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.
And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.
And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them."
Revelation 11:7-12
This reminds me of Abinadi in the Book of Mormon who wasn't allowed to be killed until he finished his testimony as well... and then he was. And of course not that death is awesome or anything, but I think stories like this help us to understand that it isn't a permanent thing either... and that like everything else, it is under God's control.
I love the part where God tells them to "come up hither" and they do... impressive, and definitely a show for the unbelieving, illustrating to them the power of God even over death.
Maybe what we get out of the whole thing is a good lesson in perspective. God is always in control... we don't have to fear death. If it comes, it is part of the plan, and it is temporary. Not that it isn't sad of course, or that we shouldn't try to avoid it. ... There are a lot of things to accomplish in our lives. :) But it also isn't something that we need to compromise our principles over, or avoid at the cost of other lives. Easy to say, I know.
Today, let's try to catch a glimpse of God's perspective, and know that this scripture to Joseph Smith applies to all of us as well, as we stay on God's path: "Thy days are known, and thy years shall not be numbered less; therefore, fear not what man can do, for God shall be with you forever and ever" (D&C 122:9).
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