Revelation 11:8 Meaning: The City Called Sodom and Egypt

Three words from the original Greek pull the reader deeper. The word for “dead bodies” is ptōma, which means a fallen corpse. It is the same word used for a carcass or a person who has fallen in battle. The witnesses are not just dead; they have fallen, and their bodies are left exposed, with no burial, which in the ancient world was the deepest disgrace. The word for “street” is plateias, a broad, public way, the main street where everyone passes. Their humiliation is not hidden but displayed for all to see. And then there is the adverb pneumatikōs, translated “spiritually” or “figuratively.” This word signals that the names Sodom and Egypt are not literal geography. They are a spiritual reading of the city’s character: a place of rebellion like Sodom, of cruel oppression like Egypt, and of rejection of God’s Messiah as Jerusalem was. The verse is telling us that God sees the true nature of the powers that oppose Him, no matter what name they go by.

Christians have long debated which city John means. Many Protestant commentators, like Wesley and the Cambridge Bible, identify it as Jerusalem, pointing to the clause “where their Lord was crucified.” They note that Isaiah called Jerusalem Sodom, and that the city had become like Egypt in its oppression of God’s people. Others, such as Gill and Barnes, argue for Rome or Babylon, since Revelation often calls Babylon “the great city.” Jamieson-Fausset-Brown wrestles with both views, suggesting the text points both to Jerusalem and to the broader spirit of anti-Christian power. Some Catholic and Orthodox readers have seen a layered meaning: the literal city of Jerusalem, but also any earthly city that persecutes the Church. The image of unburied bodies also echoes ancient practices of dishonoring enemies. Across traditions, most agree the verse describes a place of profound hostility to God’s witnesses, a hostility that is ultimately answered by resurrection.

Some readers assume that because the city is called Sodom and Egypt, John is describing a literal destination, a place where people will go to see the bodies. They take “spiritually” to mean it will be a literal city named after those ancient places. In fact, “spiritually” (pneumatikōs) tells us John is using these names symbolically to reveal the city’s moral character. The point is not geography but moral and spiritual corruption. The city could be anywhere that opposes God and persecutes His people.

This week, you might find yourself in a place that feels hostile to your faith, a workplace that mocks your beliefs, a family that dismisses your convictions, a public square where Christian witness is treated as foolish or dangerous. The two witnesses in this verse know what that feels like. They are publicly shamed, left without honor, and celebrated by their enemies. But this verse is not the end of their story. The very city that executes them is the same city where their Lord was crucified, and He rose. When you face public opposition, remember that God sees the spiritual reality behind the hostility. He knows the names of the powers that oppose Him. And He is the one who raises the dead.