“I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1260 days, clothed in sackcloth……” Revelation 11:3
My friends and I have been getting together each week, enjoying lunch and studying the End Times. This week our topic was the “Two Witnesses of Revelation” and we speculated on who they might be. During the seven year tribulation period, two mighty witnesses will rise to testify with great power of the true God. The Bible describes them in Revelation 11:3-6.
“I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for 1,260 days (3 ½ years), clothes in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone would harm them, fire pours from their mouth and consumes their foes. If anyone would harm them, this is how he is doomed to be killed. They have the power to shut the sky, that no rain may fall during the days of their prophesying, and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague, as often as they desire.” They sound like super-heroes dressed in sackcloth! They are indestructible until God allows them to be killed, then brings them to life again!
Many Bible teachers believe the two men will actually be Moses and Elijah and their reasoning is as follows:
- The tribulation is a period when God deals with the Jewish nation. Moses who represents the Law and Elijah who represents the prophets are the most influential figures in Jewish history.
- Moses and Elijah appeared on the mount of transfiguration with Jesus. Was this a “staff meeting” for future events? Luke 9:30-31
- The miracles portrayed in Revelation 11 are similar to those performed by Moses and Elijah in the Old Testament. Moses turned water to blood and struck the earth with plagues, Exodus 7-8. Elijah called down fire from heaven and had the power to shut up the sky! 1 Kings 17:1, 1 Kings 18:37-39.
Many Bible scholars believe the Two Witnesses do their work in the first 3 ½ years of the tribulation. The Antichrist’s execution of them best fits the events that transpire during the middle of the tribulation. The Third Temple has been re-built and the Antichrist sets himself up in the temple to be worshiped. When the witnesses finish their testimony, the “beast” rises from the bottomless pit; makes war on them and destroys them. Their dead bodies lie in the streets of Jerusalem for three days. The people who live on the earth celebrate, make merry and exchange gifts. Then, God breathes His breath into the two men and they stand on their feet. Great fear falls on those around and some come to faith in Christ. God calls the witnesses up to heaven in a cloud and their enemies watch them go. These two witnesses will be the Lord’s prophets on the earth and will eventually cause the Antichrist to become enraged. Revelation 11:1-14.
I have a friend who is a Jewish Christian. She told me every year when celebrating the Passover, her family would leave a chair for Elijah. The children would search for him! The Jewish people live in expectation of Elijah coming back, so it isn’t a stretch for them to accept an “Elijah.” Many will turn to the Lord through his testimony. “Behold, I will send you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And He will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and strike the earth with a curse.” Malachi 4:5-6.
We know Jesus is coming back, and for me, I think it will be soon! The earth is ready for a leader who will unite the world, an antichrist, a man of “peace.” Many people will be deceived, but some will turn to Christ and recognize their Messiah! For us, the admonition is: “Watch therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour in which the Son of Man is coming.” Matthew 25:13.
Your friend, Jean