SUBJECT:  The Two Witnesses

QUESTION:  What do we know about the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11?

ANSWER:

All that is know about the two witnesses is what we read in Revelation:

Revelation 11:3-11

3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.

4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.

7 And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them.

8 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.

9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves.

10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth.

11 And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them.

This is a passage of prophecy and as we know, the purpose of prophecy is to give us understanding and wisdom AS THE PROPHECY OR PROPHECIES TAKE PLACE.

No names are given.

No addresses or locations where they come from.

Nothing as to their personalities.

Nothing as to what they will say or where they will travel.

Nothing as to how they will finance themselves.

Nothing as to who they will speak to.

Nothing as to which people they will kill or who will attempt to kill them.

Nothing as to which countries will receive their curses and plagues.

Nothing as to what plagues they will issue other than the stated stopping of rain and turning waters to blood.

Nothing specific as to how they will die.

However, we will know them when they begin their work.

We know that when they die, the return of Jesus Christ is imminent.

Some interesting questions: 

When do the two witnesses know that they are, in fact, the two witnesses?  Do angels appear?  Does Jesus speak to them?  Is there a vision?  Will they come from the Body of Christ? Are they presently some evangelist or minister in the Work of God?  Will they travel together or go on separate journeys?

Again, we do not know but it will all make perfect sense to Body of Christ members as it happens.  Following are the typical questions people ask about the two witnesses:

1) Who are they?  No one knows though people like to speculate and hundreds have come forth to declare that they are one of the two witnesses.  It clearly does not matter what their names are at this point.  Surely, we will know who they are when they begin their work.  They will do great miracles (see verses 5 and 6).  It would be strange for us to know who they are now before they begin their work. 

The Work right now of the church is to spread the gospel of the Kingdom of God.  There will come a time when their work is done.....a famine of the Word.  It will be at this time that the two witnesses will begin their work.  God will bring them forth just as He has always brought forth His servants to do the work.

2) What city do we know they visit?  Jerusalem.  Verse 8 is clear on this; the city where Jesus was crucified.

3) Are the days literal?  Yes, 1,260 days or 3.5 years.

4) Has this occurred, if not when?  No, it has not happened yet.  The events will take place in this order:

There are 7 Seals spoken of in Revelation and alluded to in Matthew and Daniel.

1st Seal -- White Horse (false prophets)  Matthew 24:4-5 and Rev 6:1-2  This is already happening.

2nd Seal -- Red Horse (wars)  Matthew 24:6-8 and Revelation 6:3-4  This is already happening.

3rd Seal -- Black Horse (famine)  Matthew 24:7-8 and Revelation 6:5-6 This is already happening.

4th Seal -- Pale Horse (Pestilence) Matthew 24:7-8 and Revelation 6:7-8  This is already happening

Note: Check out our web site at http://www.garnertedarmstrong.org/  and the two sections, "Are We in the End Time?" and in the news section, "End time News".  Both of these accessible from the home page.

Before the 5th Seal will be the first 4 of 7 trumpets.  These 4 trumpets are described in Rev 8:7 through 8:12.  One- third of the trees and all grass burned.  One-third of the sea becomes blood and one-third of sea creatures die.  One third of rivers become wormwood (unusable for any purpose) and one-third of sun, moon and stars become darkened.

5th Seal & 5th Trumpet -- The Great Tribulation--National Captivity  Matthew 24:9, 21-22; Luke 21: 23-24 and Revelation 6:9-11

The Fifth trumpet is the beginning of the Great Tribulation and is also represented by the fifth seal.  The fifth trumpet, the fifth seal and the Great Tribulation are the First Woe.  The Second Woe occurs during the Great Tribulation, heralded by the 6th trumpet and ends with the resurrection of the two witnesses (Revelation 9:1, 12; 6:9-11; 11:11-14).

The two witnesses do their work for 1,260 days which is the length of the Great Tribulation.  There is a 30 day period after these 1,260 days which is the period for the gathering of the great multitude spoken of in Daniel 12:11; Revelation 7:9, 14.

6th Seal and 7th trumpet is 45 days long and is the period of the 7 last plagues.  These 7 last plagues are also known as the Last Woe.   This time of the 7 last plagues is also known as the Day of the Lord.

The 7th Seal represents all of the 7 trumpets and begins after the first 4 Seals (false prophets, wars, famines and pestilence) and ends with the Day of the Lord. See Revelation 8:1-2, 6

Thus, we see great events leading up to the time of the two witnesses.  This is why we must watch and be spiritually ready.

5)  What is the reference made to Moses and Aaron being like the two witnesses? 

Moses and Aaron are a "type" of what the work of the two witnesses will be like.  They will speak before presidents and kings proclaiming the gospel and telling the countries of their sins.

The important thing for all in the Body of Christ is to continue in the Salvation process and to be ready at the return of Jesus Christ

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