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The Two Witnesses represent
two olive trees, which stand before the Lord of the earth. What does this
mean? The answer lies in the fixtures placed in the temple. The two witnesses
are the two olive trees, one on the right and one on the left side of the
candlestick (Zech. 4:11, Rev. 11:4). Solomon had made two cherubims from olive
trees (I Kings 6:23) and stood them in front of the ark and the holy of
holies, the throne. Two doors were made of olive tree wood and carved
with images of two cherubims on them. Revelation speaks about
measuring the temple (11:1, about its alter 7:9) and the outer court, and
about measuring the city (21:15), We assume this is a new, spiritual temple
that would remain long after the second temple was destroyed in 70 AD. Revelation speaks of the
Garden of Eden and the Trees of Life. The metaphor of “the Two Witnesses” was
from the beginning. Cherubims were placed at the “entrance of Eden” (Gen.
3:24). Limbs grafted onto the Tree of Life will never die. Others whither,
die and are burned. At the end time, the angels “roll the stone away” for
those who hunger and thirst for what is just behind and beyond the veil (John
20:11-12; Rev. 22:17). When Abraham negotiated with
the Lord of the earth (of all the lands) to spare some of Sodom, two angels
bore witnesses of their agreement and traveled to Sodom and Gomorrah to call
fire down from heaven. In 520 BC, two witnesses in
Zecheriah were assigned to inspire the rebuilding of the physical temple
(Zech. 4:9-11). This appears to foreshadow the temple and two witnesses of
Revelation 11 in dealing with “measuring the temple” (and possibly inspiring
the formation of the church, the third temple). They have power to call down
fire from heaven. There is still debate over
who the Two Witnesses in Revelation are who were to die for 3˝ days. There is
a lot of speculation about them that is myth. For those who think they know
when the end will be, they must feel very proud knowing something that even
Christ and the angels don’t know. James and John, “sons of thunder”, did not
die for 3˝ days and come back to life as stated in Revelation 11. If the two
witnesses are the archangels, Michael and Gabriel, can angels die? Evidently, Christ could call
fire down from heaven. He witnessed to the Jews for 3˝ years and was risen
after three days (Rev 11:11). He and his father were one. Christ could do
nothing of himself, but later he said he had the power to give his life and
the power to take it back. There was an earthquake that split the temple veil
and some of the dead were raised, but the earthquake did not kill 7,000 (Rev
11:13). Therefore, this supports the
idea that the Bible was written in such a way that each person would expect
the end during his or her own lifetime, have white garments and have oil in
their lamps. Evidently, the Plan was not meant for just one generation to
receive. A generation, or just one day, is like a thousand years and a
thousand years like a day (Psa. 90:4; II Pet. 3:8). We have recently witnessed
such leaders serving their deadly Kool Aid at Jones Town and Waco. The
apostle Barnabas thought he was living at the end of 6,000 years, the time of
the end according to the Greek Septuagint version of the Bible (The Epistle
of Barnabus 8:3-5). When
Things are Metaphors According to Webster, a
metaphor is a “figure of speech”, perhaps using a concrete, tangible object
or idea to represent something that is abstract or intangible. Revelation is a riddle
wrapped within an enigma when the book of Revelation is not viewed in its proper
first-century context. Is chapter 11 speaking of measuring a physical temple
still in existence or is it speaking of a spiritual temple being built? The
Two Witnesses are likened to the two sources of oil used by the two
candlesticks in the temple. In other words, they are responsible for
providing oil for the seven candles, the seven churches. These both die for
3˝ three days. Some people will have “oil in their lamps” at Christ’s
return, and some won’t. These two witnesses, like Moses and
Aaron, like Zechariah and Haggai, like John the Baptist and Christ, inspire ushering in
a “new world” with a “new temple”. Like the two “olive trees” an
angel goes forth with the everlasting gospel (14:6). King David supplied Solomon
with funding and the plans for his temple. This included two cherubims made
of olive trees. “And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree,
each ten cubits high” (I Kings 6:23). |
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