Little is taught by Bible prophecy teachers about the role of the two witnesses of Revelation 17. They arrive on the scene sometime after the Rapture and they witnesses from Jerusalem for 1260 days.
Bible prophecy teachers correctly point out that the last seven years starts with Israel signing a covenant but they seem to overlook the fact that the ministry of these two prophets also marks the beginning of the last seven years. The great tribulation is the result of the world’s rebellion against the message that His anointed prophets bring. Had the world repented and received their message they would have received God’s kingdom.
During the first half of Daniel’s 70th week of years these two prophets of God become the central focus of the entire world. The message they give and the world’s rejection of it is the very reason the lawless Beast/Antichrist rises to power. He will oppose the Lord’s kingdom.
Rev 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.
The passage implies that the world will not like what the prophets are proclaiming and they will seek to kill them. After they finished their 1260 day testimony the Beast Son of Perdition is allowed to come up from out of the underworld and he kills them. The world then throws a great party because God’s prophets have been killed. Have you pondered about what these prophets said and did to make the world respond in such a manner? By the way, the viewing of their dead bodies by the nations of the world could only occur in our generation.
The Revelation passage says these prophets are the two olive trees standing before God. Zechariah 4:14 also mentions the same two olive trees standing with God. These two men walked with God but they had not yet died because we are told that the Beast kills them. Only Enoch and Elijah were taken alive to heaven. Some think one is Moses but Moses died and God told Moses they he would not be allowed to set foot on the promised land while in his natural body. These natural men give their message from Jerusalem.
They were in the presence of the Creator so they will be telling the world the truth about Jesus and the plan of God for Israel. The world will reject their message. Revelation makes it clear that the whole world will be told the truth before the end of the age. The plan of God will be told by His prophets and later by the angels. The people of the world can accept or reject their message but rejecting it reaps eternal consequences.
The two prophets obviously will be telling the world that Jesus is the Messiah and that the world needs to repent because the time for the Lord’s kingdom on earth has come. I suppose they will be saying something like what John the Baptist preached, “repent for the Kingdom of God is at hand”. They also will make it very clear that when Jesus returns the Jews will receive their promised kingdom and the Jews will rule the earth from Jerusalem. The Jew hating world will not welcome that message. They will seek to kill them.
I also think they will be telling the world that the Kingdom of the Jews ruled by Jesus will require all to repent of their sins, make Jesus Lord, and keep His commandments. Today we see people in the world celebrating their sins in their lawless rebellion against God’s order. They will refuse to submit to the God of heaven. They instead will exalt the Antichrist and reap the consequences.
The message of the two prophets will be rejected by the world early in their ministry but the world will be powerless to stop them until the 1260 days of their testimony are completed. Anyone that tries to harm them brings swift supernatural judgment on themselves.
The Temple will either have just been rebuilt or it will be under construction during their ministry. The outer court will be trampled down by Gentiles for 42 months (Rev 11:2). Therefore, it looks to me like the Temple grounds will be under the administration of Rome for the first half of the last seven years.
The two prophets have a great deal of control over the earth in the days of their ministry. They can turn water into blood, prevent it from raining and they will have the power to call down plagues and judgments on the earth as often as they wish.
These prophets know that calling down judgments is got going to get people to repent so there must be some other reason for the judgments. Perhaps they are telling the nations of the world to send their Jews back to Israel and the nations are refusing to comply? The nations will fear that complying would lead to the Jewish kingdom that they so oppose.
When Israel was delivered from Egypt we saw two such anointed figures. Moses and Arron where telling Pharaoh to let the Hebrews people go. Pharaoh’s continued refusals brought increasing judgments on Egypt. Pharaoh eventually let the Hebrews depart but he then came after them to kill them all. It seems that something similar is happening here. What happen in Egypt may be a foreshadow of what will happen on a world scale in these last days. No wonder the world fears and hates the two prophets and rejoices when they are killed.
After the two prophets lead out the Jews from the nations, Satan’s Beast rises out of the Abyss, kills the two prophets and deceives all the nation to come against Israel to kill all the Jews. The nations of the world will agree to send their armies to kill all the Jews because they do not want the prophecies of the two witnesses to be fulfilled. The great tribulation in the second half of the last seven years is that rebellion against God’s plans for Israel playing out.
The world wants to kill all the Jews but God will judge the nations based on how they treat Israel. The world did not love the truth that the two witnesses gave, so they will receive the lie (Beast/Antichrist). Babylon the Great set up by the Antichrist is nothing less than a lawless counterfeit substitute kingdom of God. It is a replacement for the Jewish kingdom from Jerusalem that God plans.
People and nations that will not repent will bring destruction on their own head when the Beast leads them to oppose God’s kingdom plan. Even those surviving the great tribulation will be judged by how they treated the 144,000 from the twelve tribes of Israel preaching the gospel of the coming kingdom. None that opposed the Jewish kingdom will be allowed to enter the kingdom. That is what Matthew 25: 31-46 is all about.
The message the world should hear is that when God sends two prophets that validate themselves by calling down judgments they should heed them and not oppose them. The God of creation is not going to change His mind and He cannot be defeated. The Jewish Messiah will come to Jerusalem and rule the world from Jerusalem. The great tribulation with the destruction it brings comes as a result of the world rejecting God’s message delivered through the prophets. The world will replace truth with the lies of the Antichrist.
God sends His prophets before judgment. The two prophets of Revelation are key in understanding last day events. The world could have repented and received Jesus and His kingdom but they will refuse to do that. The great tribulation judgements carried out by angels comes as a result of man’s rebellion against the oracles of God.
Good blog Don, thanks. Most of us kind of blow past the real significance of the two witnesses. I hope to be gone in the Rapture prior to their appearance and thus have not been especially concerned about them. That said, their significance will be HUGE to those left behind. You are correct in that. I suspect that, in addition to getting the Jews back to Israel, their testimony will go a long way to reach the vast numbers of people that God saves during this time. The return of the Jews to Israel is a big fulfillment of prophecy too, but as a non Jew, the salvation of those post Rapture is a big deal. Just a question, since you brought up the witnesses getting the Jews back to Israel, what will make the Jews want to leave North America? Persecution seems to have been the driving force so far for Europe and N. Africa, but the US will have to be changed a lot for serious persecutions to start (I hope it is post Rapture so I don’t have to see it).
Hi Phil,
If nations deport the Jews to escape the threatened judgments, the Jews will have no choice. God is no respecter of democratic choice when it comes to His chosen people. I don’t read where Moses ever asked each Hebrew if they wanted to depart from Egypt or not.
Don, thanks. You are right. Ezekiel 37, one example, says God will “bring them back”. It does not say that they wanted to come.
Like it Don… a more than probable scenario.
Many people confuse “Judah” with “Israel,” though Genesis 48 & 49 (and elsewhere in the OT) clearly seperates the two progeny of Jacob. The 144,000 will come out of the lost Northern tribes of Ephraim (Israel) and will be regathered with Judah in the promised land as per Ezekiel 37:16-17. The Jews are already regathering in the promised land, Ephraim must be identified and regathered too. I do not know how that will be accomplished all these years later with a lack of genealogy? Perhaps the 2 witnesses will play a role in this too? Or perhaps this new fad of genetic testing as with Ancester(dot)com will be used somehow as worldwide data bases are filled with genetic information. Should be interesting.
Don,
Great post that brings some detailed attention to the Two Witnesses I hadn’t realized.
I have a project I’m working on for unsaved loved ones. I’m putting together customized Rapture Letters and some individual prophecy pages, then will slide them into Dr. Chuck Missler’s booklet: The Rapture, then will mail the packet to them.
They have heard this all from me before but I believe time is short.
I will print this down and add it to the packet…I will add some other pages from your work as well. (Thanks)
I thought not waiting and sending them a pre-rapture letter (besides also leaving it) is a added articulate witness far past my capabilities. Also thinking about adding a witness statement to my Will just in case I go home before the Snatch!
I’m getting long in the tooth, but the path the world is hurtling on (compared to prophecy) leaves me looking up for a hole in the sky rather then one in the ground!
David ,
None of the 144,000 are lost , God knows who and where everyone is . There are many references to Israel and Judah as being seperate , no problem for God.
Don, yes sir – that was a part of my point. To us they are lost… it will be interesting to see how God reveals them and in-gathers them. My larger point was the inconsistent use of the term Jews vs Israel, above. The promised land is called “Israel” today, and that causes a lot of confusion to those who don’t understand the scepter and birthright promises. Prophetically, it makes a very big difference as to what is coming and what Jesus will do to combine the whole household of Jacob again as was under Solomon, before the kingdom broke and was dispersed.
You might be surprised how many people believe that the Jews are the only chosen people of God… leaving out the larger multitude of birth right (and 10 total tribes) that is Ephraim.
David,
The Jews are the chosen people. You seem to be buying into British Israel conjectures not taught in scripture.
I think all Hebrews became known as Jews because many decades after the northern kingdom fell those in Judea were exiled to Babylon. There also were many from other tribes that moved to Judea because the Temple religion was there. When Jesus taught people in Israel the natives were identified as Jews. Not all were from the tribe of Judah. For example the 12 apostles came from 12 different tribes.
The New Testament makes it clear that there are now only Jews, Gentiles and the House of God. We know Paul was from the tribe of Benjamin but he identified with the Jews as did others.
Throughout Gentile history since the cross all from Israel were called Jews. Even all Israelite’s today call themselves Jews. There are many different tribes in many nations but people from those nations are usually called by a specific name. Israel identity now is Jews.
Having said that, God will make a distinction between the tribes for His millennial kingdom. The 144,000 from the twelve tribes are the fruit fruits of the kingdom. The twelve apostles will rule over the 12 tribes of Israel.
Don, respectfully… all I’m doing is referencing scripture, particularly Genesis 48 and 49 which tie in to Moses’ later blessing of birthright in Deut 33. I’m not familiar with any British Israel theories… they could literally be anywhere/everywhere in the world these thousands of years later. Though the adoption of Joseph’s boys (Ephraim and Manasseh) by Jacob and the specific blessings he places upon them certainly should not be overlooked as Ephraim inherited Joseph’s promise and Manasseh took Levi’s position to maintain the 12 houses of Jacob, called Israel. (Revelation 7)
After Solomon, the Northern 10 Tribes (called Israel or Ephraim in scripture) were led by Jeroboam of the Tribe of Ephraim (1 Kings 11:26), this is not a coincidence. Ephraim, Joseph’s son, the son adopted and blessed by Jacob with the birthright promise became King of the Northern 10 tribes.
While the Southern Kingdom (Judah, Benjamin and Levi) was led by a Rehoboam of the house of Judah who received the scepter promise of the kingship.
The Northern tribe of Israel/Ephraim was taken by the Assyrians after their abominations, and there is no evidence that they substantively returned, to the contrary, scripture tells us the area was populated by Babylonians, Cutha, Avva, Hammath and Sepharvaim. (2 Kings 17:24-27)
The Southern tribe of Judah was taken to Babylon and then were sent back by Cyrus to build the 2nd temple. The Tribes of Judah (and Benjamin and Levi) returned. I’m not familiar with the scriptural evidence for tribes other than the Kingdom of Judah having returned from the dispersion.
I’d also never heard or read in scripture any of the apostles were from particular tribes, aside from Paul of course who was from Benjamin (also the Kingdom of Judah). If you have any good study sources on that I’d be interested. In scripture there is no point where all 12 tribes have become crammed into the term “Jews”… this is my point, it is not scriptural. Curious, are you familiar with any “Jew” claiming to descend from Dan, Asher, Naphtali, Simeon, Rueben, Gad, etc? Most self identifying Jews I’ve heard believe they are descendants of Judah. Intriguing topic, I’m genuinely curious for contrary observations?
The New Testament does indicate that there are Jews, and also that there are the lost sheep of Israel, and that there are of course the gentiles. The lost sheep of Israel are the 10 tribes that did not return from Assyria.
Scripturally the nation of Israel (not just Judah) is the Olive Tree (Jeremiah 11:16) and when Paul (Romans 11) discusses the ingrafting of the genitiles into that Olive Tree, it is a scripturally significant metaphor.
Prophetically, when the times of the gentile is fulfilled, likely following the rapture, the prophecy of Ezekiel 37:16-17 and Romans 11:25 will come about, where Judah and Ephraim will be joined together again a full house restored in the hand of Jesus Christ. The 144,000 will be from every tribe of Israel (Rev 7:44), not just those of Judah.
Just saying, it’s legitimate scripture, it’s clear for anyone who cares to look at it and it’s not just one Tribe of the 12 that sprung from Jacob (plus God’s own Tribe of Levi).
All of Israel will be restored… Ezekiel promises it. Chapter 37, verse 16 and 17; an as of yet incomplete prophecy. The 144,000 will come from all the sons of Jacob (except Dan?), not just Judah, and at least 9 of those tribes were scattered among the nations (Deut 28), where they wait today to be rejoined in with their brothers who rightfully rule (the scepter promise…) a portion of the promised land today. It is of note though, it is prior to the Millennial Kingdom that the 144,000 are sealed. They seem to play a large part in evangelizing during the tribulation.
Judah the rightful king is in the promised land. Israel is not, they are still dispersed. And as you say regarding the coming approach of Jesus, the time of the gentile in-grafting seems to be coming to an end. All I’m saying is that scripturally, there are a lot of descendants of Jacob (about 144,000 of them) that will be sealed and busy during the tribulation and I don’t see Ezekiel 37:16-17 as a coincidence. Will this be something the Church will be on earth for? Probably not. That’s my take on it, scripturally.
David,
I am not going to argue that all here or recreate the wheel. I think this short article explains the orthodox Christian position about these tribes.
https://www.gotquestions.org/lost-tribes-Israel.html
This explains why Israelite’s are known as Jews.
https://georgesjournal.net/2013/01/04/when-did-the-hebrews-or-israelites-become-known-as-jews/
Israelite’s were identified as Jews because they practiced Judaism not because they were descendants of Judah. Jesus would not have told His apostles that they would rule over the twelve tribes of Israel if they did not represent the tribes. Not all in present day Israel are descendants of the southern tribes.
People may agree or disagree but this rabbit trail is really not what this post is about.
Hi,
Don – Maybe you can shed some light on this question(s)…
What is the relationship between the two prophets and the 144,000 (I am presuming that the two prophets and the 144,000 sealed witnesses are conducting their ministries about the same time period)?
Thanks, blessings.
Hi Craig,
While the two prophets are giving their testimony on an international platform I think the 144.000 are proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom at a local level. They will bring the greater fulfillment of the commission Jesus gave in Mathew chapter 10. I explain why in my Revelation commentary.
http://www.thepropheticyears.com/The%20book%20of%20Revelation/Revelation%20chap%207.HTM