“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.”
My Notes
What Does Revelation 11:8 Mean?
The bodies of the two witnesses lie in the street of "the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified." Three names for one place: it's called Sodom (sexual depravity), Egypt (slavery and idolatry), and the place where Jesus was crucified (Jerusalem). The city that killed Jesus will kill His witnesses.
The triple identification is John's way of saying that Jerusalem has become everything it was supposed to oppose. Sodom was the city God destroyed for its wickedness. Egypt was the empire God delivered Israel from. And now Jerusalem — the holy city, the city of God — is spiritually equivalent to both. The sacred has become profane.
"Where also our Lord was crucified" is the detail that makes the identification unmistakable: this is Jerusalem. But by calling it Sodom and Egypt, John is saying that the city's spiritual condition has degenerated to the level of Israel's worst enemies. The holy city has become the unholy city.
Reflection Questions
- 1.Does the triple naming (Sodom, Egypt, Jerusalem) challenge how you view religious institutions and cities?
- 2.How does a 'holy city' become spiritually equivalent to the worst cities in history?
- 3.Is your community at risk of the same degeneration — carrying a holy name while losing the spiritual reality?
- 4.What does 'where our Lord was crucified' as a spiritual identifier (not just geography) tell you about how God views His own chosen places?
Devotional
Sodom. Egypt. And the place where Jesus was crucified. Three names for the same city. The holy city has become everything it was supposed to stand against.
John identifies the city where the witnesses' bodies lie using its spiritual names, not its geographic name. He doesn't say Jerusalem. He says Sodom — the city of sexual depravity that God destroyed with fire. Egypt — the empire of slavery and idolatry that God judged with plagues. And the place where our Lord was crucified — which can only be Jerusalem.
The triple naming is devastating. Jerusalem — the city of the temple, the city of David, the city God chose to put His name — is now spiritually equivalent to the worst cities in Israel's memory. It's become Sodom. It's become Egypt. The city that was supposed to be a light to the nations has become the darkness it was supposed to dispel.
This happens. Sacred cities become profane. Holy institutions become corrupt. The places God chose for His presence become the places that reject His presence most violently. Jerusalem killed the prophets. Jerusalem crucified Jesus. And Jerusalem will kill the witnesses.
The pattern isn't unique to Jerusalem. Any community that once carried God's name can become a Sodom or an Egypt if it abandons its calling. The spiritual name doesn't protect you. The identity that was given can be forfeited through spiritual degeneration.
What's the spiritual name of your community? Is it still the holy city — or has it become something the original name wouldn't recognize?
Commentary
Trusted original commentary from respected historical Bible scholars and theologians.
And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city,.... Not Jerusalem, which was destroyed when John had…
And their dead bodies shall lie in the street - Prof. Stuart, “Shall be in the street.” The words “shall lie” are…
The great city - Some say Rome, which may be spiritually called Sodom for its abominations, Egypt for its tyrannous…
In this time of treading down, God has reserved to himself his faithful witnesses, who will not fail to attest the truth…
the street For the sing. cf. Rev 21:21; Rev 22:2. The word in fact means a broadstreet, such as theprincipal street of a…
Cross References
Related passages throughout Scripture