The 2 Witnesses

If you spend some time on the Christian Post website and search the “World” section, you will find a disturbing trend of Christian persecution across the globe. For example:

We should not be surprised by any of this, however, as Jesus basically promised that it would get much worse before He returned. And this is exactly what we’re seeing across our world today. Persecution is becoming more and more prevalent in the west, too, and will undoubtedly increase in scale and intensity. Count on it.

This brings us back to Revelation 11 and the “Two Witnesses” described in the early verses. The second main section of Revelation 11 concerns the two mysterious witnesses for God. As before, many wonder if these are real men or not. Are they literal and historical figures from the Scriptures, such as Moses and Elijah? Or are they meant to be symbolic representations of something else, such as the persecuted church? While John tells us they are “the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth” (11:4), little more is said to help us solve the riddle.

Who Are The 2 Witnesses?

There are several main theories about the identities of these two witnesses.

  • Some Bible scholars believe these two men are literally Elijah and Moses brought back to earth for this specific purpose because fire and drought, blood and plagues should remind the reader of Elijah and Moses, respectively. If so, their appearance here is very similar to their presence on the Mount of Transfiguration in Matthew 17:1-8. If you remember, John was present that day and might be seeing two familiar faces in his Revelation vision.
  • Others speculate these two men are Enoch (Genesis 5:24) and Elijah (2 Kings 2:11), the only two men we know of who were taken up into heaven without dying.
  • A third position believes they are Zerubbabel and Joshua, from the days of Ezra and the first wave of exiles to return to Jerusalem. This theory holds they were predicted back in Zechariah 4 with Zerubbabel representing the king and Joshua representing the priest.
  • Some scholars hold they are not real men at all, but rather symbolic of the church’s role in witnessing to the world during the church age. 
  • Finally, still others believe they may symbolically represent two groups of Christ-followers during the future tribulation: Gentile Christians and Jewish Christians. One version of this holds that these two “super” evangelists will prophesy for 3½ years from the most strategic place on earth: the center of Jerusalem. They have a job to do, and God will give them supernatural powers and protection to do it!

Regardless of what perspective you hold, the Bible does not tell us specifically who they are (or what they are). Therefore, I caution the reader to hold an open mind and be willing to look at this from another angle. Perhaps we are not meant to know their identity and should focus on what they do and what they represent instead. At the very least, they are faithful Christian witnesses who are martyred for their belief in Jesus Christ. This is a clear warning about what will happen when Christians live faithfully for Jesus in a world that rejects Christ and the gospel.

From a symbolic perspective, then, the temple and the two witnesses in Rev 11 both represent the witnessing church, while the outer court and city mentioned in verse 2 represent the world. These verses are telling us that God is selectively identifying and protecting his church and the proclamation of the gospel from Satanic oppression during a period of intense persecution.

If we skip ahead to 11:7 we see that only when their job is done will the beast be able to kill the two witnesses. This is another nod to the recurring theme in Revelation that God is in total control of everything, while Satan is powerless to change God’s plan. This is also the first mention of the “beast” in John’s revelation, but certainly not the last. We will see the beast mentioned many more times before it’s over. As for now, the beast cannot stop the two witnesses until God determines their ministry is complete. Then and only then will the beast prevail (at least temporarily) over God’s witnesses.

Those who argue against a chronological and literal view of Revelation point to the fact that the beast is not officially introduced until chapter 13. Therefore, how could he be active in killing the witnesses in chapter 11? The order does not seem to fit unless one puts aside a chronological view and sees these events as fluid and overlapping, and symbolic of a greater spiritual battle against God’s people.

Fortunately, in Rev. 11, God has another plan in mind. His witnesses will not stay dead for long as He will breathe life into them again and invite them up into heaven while the world watches (sound familiar?). In the end, regardless of how you view the temple or the two witnesses, the outcome is the same. Satan and his minions may kill God’s people, but their deaths will not be in vain, nor will they be permanent!

Conclusion:

Although things look grim at times, the persecuted church is still strong and unrelenting, growing and thriving in places where Satan is desperately trying to silence and destroy it. Thankfully, he will never succeed! The Scriptures make it clear that the gates of hell will not prevail against the church, and when God is for us, nothing can stop us (Romans 8:31). Therefore, take comfort in knowing that God is Sovereign and His plan and purposes will prevail.

Homework:

Finally, I want to challenge you to identify one country from the “Ten Most Dangerous Places for Christians” website (https://www.opendoorsus.org/en-US/stories/10-most-dangerous-places-Christians/) and commit to pray for persecuted believers in that country (as well as God’s hand upon their government). There is power in prayer!

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