Revelation 11:19

ESV Then God 's temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.

NIV Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and within his temple was seen the ark of his covenant. And there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a severe hailstorm.

NASB And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder, and an earthquake, and a great hailstorm.

CSB Then the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant appeared in his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder, an earthquake, and severe hail.

NLT Then, in heaven, the Temple of God was opened and the Ark of his covenant could be seen inside the Temple. Lightning flashed, thunder crashed and roared, and there was an earthquake and a terrible hailstorm.

KJV And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.

NKJV Then the temple of God was opened in heaven, and the ark of His covenant was seen in His temple. And there were lightnings, noises, thunderings, an earthquake, and great hail.

What does Revelation 11:19 mean?

John reports in this verse that the temple in heaven opened, and he saw the ark of the covenant in the temple. In Old Testament times the ark symbolized God's presence. It contained the tablets of the law, an urn of manna, and Aaron's rod that budded (Hebrews 9:4). The ark disappeared during the Exile, but it never lost its significance. The appearance of the ark in heaven indicates that's God's presence and protection continue for His people. Wars and earthly calamities cannot destroy the ark's significance. Similarly, no power on earth can rob believers of the presence and protection of their Lord. Hebrews 13:5 holds Jesus' promise: "I will never leave you nor forsake you." Because of His promise, the writer of Hebrews writes in verse 6: "So we can confidently say, 'The Lord is my helper; I will not fear; what can man do to me?'"

At the end of the trumpet judgments, powerful phenomena accompanied what John heard and saw in heaven. These same phenomena occurred at the end of the seal judgments (Revelation 8:5). It seems all nature gave its "amen" to what God was doing.

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