Gods Two Witnesses

Revelation Chapter 11

Part 1

“And I will give power unto my two witnesses…” Revelation 11:8    

God’s Two Witnesses are probably the most enigmatic of His prophets, perhaps because they have yet to testify. They are also perhaps the least understood. There are however, many clues as to their character, the time of their appearance, and the place from which they will emerge, which are overlooked by most bible prophecy teachers.

This essay deals with those issues that have been obscured by the preconceived notions we have inherited from our predecessors, and to understand the character of the prophets, their testimony, and their last day ministry, which the world will attempt without success to ignore.

This essay will use the scriptures to show, among other things, that The Two Witnesses will begin their ministry in the Month of July, that they are to be chosen from God’s people and not from the prophets that came before as many bible teachers assert, and that they will arise from America/Babylon shortly after the destruction of this nation.

We will also show that their 1260 days of prophetic ministry will in many ways, parallel that of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ, ending just before the Pagan Holiday celebrated the world over under the name of Christmas.

We will begin, as might seem obvious, in the 11th chapter of the book of Revelation.

In the first verse we are told by the apostle John:  

The first thing that is interesting to note, is that he is given a reed. A reed is most certainly an instrument of measurement, as we can in the context of this verse and elsewhere in scripture, as in the Old Testament book of Ezekiel, chapters 40 and 42. We also see in the 21st chapter of the book of Revelation that a reed is used to measure the city of New Jerusalem, which comes down from Heaven after the world is destroyed, and that in this case, the reed is made of Gold, which is befitting, as this is the city of God. 

But what does that have to do with the two witnesses? It seems to be out of context to the rest of the chapter doesn’t it?  Although this seems to be out of context, I have learned that whenever any scripture seems to be out of context, it actually sets the context for what either precedes it or comes after. It only seems to be out of context because what we assume to be the context of that scripture, is actually in error. Once we discover the true context of the verse, the rest of the scripture comes into focus. 

In this case we must ask the question: What is actually being measured? We are, of course given the answer in the same verse. Although God’s word often seems to be a mystery, the keys to understanding are always contained therein. Let us examine further. 

John is told to measure three things, the temple, the altar, and them that worship therein.  

Now what could this refer to? This book was written while John was in exile on the tiny island of Patmos, in the Aegean Sea, far from Jerusalem. If that were not enough to make measuring of the temple difficult, the Roman General Titus had already destroyed the temple more than 20 years before John was given this vision. These facts have led (or misled if you prefer) many bible teachers to believe that there will be a third temple built in Jerusalem, compounding the difficulty of understanding end time events as they relate to this prophecy.  

Although, considering the many tertiary fulfillments of bible prophecy seen throughout the scriptures, we cannot rule out a third temple being built on the temple mount, I believe the final fulfillment of a third temple was already accomplished in the person of Jesus Christ, and I believe he will stand in that very spot, in victory over the spirit of the age, which will have already placed a “temple” of the man we call Antichrist, which will be the building, which will house the third and final seat of world government, the new United Nations Organization (or whatever they choose to call it).  

This “temple” of World Government, will be that which was spoken of by the prophet, in the book of Daniel, chapter 12, and referred to by Jesus Christ as “the abomination of desolation”. I also believe, that this is the site where the 2 witnesses will end their 1260 days of prophecy. 

Now to continue, it is interesting to note that the word used in this scripture, and translated into English as the word temple, is the very same word that our Lord used to describe the “temple” of his body, in the 2nd chapter of the gospel of John. It is also the same word chosen in the 6th chapter of the book of 1st Corinthians to describe the “temple” of the Holy Spirit, which we are told is our body. That word  (#3485 in the Strong’s concordance of the bible) is the word pronounced “Nah’-os”, literally, a dwelling place. 

Seen in this context, it isn’t difficult to understand that God is referring to the Body of Christ, the True Church.  

This context also sheds additional light as to the alter described in this verse. As we can see throughout the Old Testament, the alter is where the sacrifice takes place. But does arise, if there is no literal temple being referred to here, what could the term altar be meant to describe? After all, without a literal temple building for it to occupy, where could this altar be? 

The answer can be found in many places in scripture, but nowhere is it clearer than in the book of Romans, chapter 12. In the first verse we are told:  

Simply put, that altar, that place of sacrifice is our lives. By this, God will ascertain if we are true to him and his commandments in our lives, and quantify our faith as believers. And the term “them that worship therein” refers to the individual believers, as opposed to the collective body of Christ, which is to say, those who are in Christ. 

So we see in the first verse of this chapter, the measuring of the body of Christ, the individual believers, and our lives, which sets the tone for that which is to come in this chapter. 

The second interesting thing we see in this verse, is that this reed “ is like unto a rod”.  A rod as most of us might recognize, is an instrument of correction and discipline, which is ordinarily used to smite the wayward sheep, and often symbolizes the authority of the shepherd. Moses for example, was given “the Rod of God”, and it symbolized the authority God had given Moses over the sheep of Israel.  

Although it is often difficult for believers to understand the fact that this is a good thing, especially when the rod falls upon us or those whom we love, this reproof from our Father is actually proof that he loves us and cares for us. Many believers in this present day seem to believe just the opposite, and perhaps because of that perception some of us have inherited from our “roots” in the organized Church, it does sometimes seem as though this correction is a bad thing.  

However, we should find great encouragement in this, as we are told in Proverbs 3:11-12:

We also have the verse Hebrews 12:6, which tells us:  

In this context, it seems as though there is a certain amount of correction referred to in the first verse. We are indeed being tried right now, that we may be made white, readied for the Day of Judgment, which must begin first at the house of God, before it continues in the world. Since America (in my estimation) is to be judged before the rest of the world, the American “church” must be judged first.  Indeed, recent events suggest to me that the rod of correction is being used to measure the body of Christ today, and we have every reason to believe that this measuring will only become more severe as we approach the incidents described in this chapter. 

But what does this measuring with the rod of correction have to do with the two witnesses?  

God is going to measure his people with the rod of correction (not only to measure their response to his correcting them, but also how they behave towards the brethren upon whom it falls as well!) to find the last two believers who will be found worthy to bear witness of him before the world, to give planet earth and those who dwell therein their last rights, fulfilling God’s legal requirements that by the mouth of two or more witnesses is a thing established (Reference Deuteronomy 17:6, Deuteronomy 19:15, Matthew 18:16, 2nd Corinthians 13:1, 1st Timothy 5:19 et. al.). I believe we can already see the measuring of God’s people in recent events, with many already being found wanting. 

We also have scripture (as we will explore later in this study) which indicates that these two witnesses will come from present day Babylon, The United States of America. The word which has been translated reed in this passage is also interesting, because the same word (Strong’s # 2562, pronounced KAL’-AH-MOS) is also used for the English word “pen”, a writing instrument. Perhaps this refers to the written word of God, which is the standard by which his people are measured. Perhaps it might even refer to the “book of remembrance” referred to in Malachi 3:16, although that is far from certain. 

This period of tribulation by which we are about to be measured, is a result of our less than perfect walk with Christ today. The coming time of trouble will purify us, making us what God has desired, a bride without spot or blemish. 

God will “narrow down the field” to just two, and the rest of us will either be killed after we are no longer able to bear the test, or fall away into the apostasies (so called remnant or otherwise) which will either be called “Christian” or are in fact, so called today.  

There is scripture, (Which also seems to some to be out of context to the rest of the chapter) which supports this conclusion, found in the Gospel of Luke, Chapter 18. In this portion of the Word, our Savoir is teaching that men should pray without ceasing, and faint not. In the 8th verse we have the words of Christ “…Nevertheless, when the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?” This was not spoken as a mere rhetorical question, but to give us some idea of the trial of our faith we can expect in the last days, which will cause many to faint.  

The Christian Church is undergoing a purification today which will provide an opportunity for God's people to be proved. Our God is a God of proof who searches and tries the hearts of men (Psalms 7:9 Revelation 2:23) As the end time events begin to unfold, the pressure which God's people are subject to will intensify, separating the sheep from the goats. There will be many who will be weighed in the balance in the days to come, and be found wanting. There will be a precious willing few, who will be called upon to give their lives for the sake of their testimony. And there will be two of that number that God will spare for another 3 1/2 years to make that sacrifice before an unrepentant world, as witnesses to the saving power of Jesus Christ, and against the whole of mankind. 

We will examine Revelation 11 verses 2-3 in our next installment of this series.

©2001-2004 Craig Portwood