Hello again and thank you for joining us on sermonaudio.com. This is Paul Scharf for Whitcomb Ministries. I'm here today with Dr. John Whitcomb and we're making a special recording entitled, Background to the Two Witnesses of Revelation. Dr. Whitcomb will be speaking in December of 2007 at the meeting of the Pre-Trib Study Group and his topic will be the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11. We want to come to you by way of sermon audio today to give you some additional information and some additional insights from Scripture that Dr. Whitcomb has which will form a background and a foundation to his message. For those of you who are attending the pre-trib conference, you may be listening to this message after the conference is over with his notes in hand and you will have some even more foundation, as I said, here for the message that you heard him give on the two witnesses. Others can listen to this message just simply from scratch, but gain a lot of knowledge about what the Bible says about the intermediate state, as theologians call it, Dr. Whitcomb, how Old Testament saints where they went after they died and how that relates to and compares to what happens with New Testament saints when they die and what will happen in the future with all those and how all that ties together with the two witnesses. So, Dr. Whitcomb, I know you have some unique perspective on some of these things and you're anxiously looking forward to your address at the pre-trib meeting. And so I want to give you the chance to talk about all this today. So please help us understand how these two witnesses fit in the whole character of biblical revelation. Thank you so much, Paul. And friends, I greet you in the name of Christ our Lord and our Savior and our coming King. As we open the book of Revelation, friends, we are immediately confronted with some very awesome and infinitely authoritative statements from God. This isn't just the revelation of St. John the Divine or some mere human, however great. It's the revelation of Jesus Christ which God gave him to show to his bondservants the things which must shortly take place. In other words, these things are imminent. We don't have any predicted time block for the duration of the church age. And he sent and communicated it by his angel to his bondservant John, John the Apostle, the last survivor of the twelve apostles. John, who bore witness to the Word of God, notice the authority of all of this, and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. Now, this third verse, I think, is highly significant for our study of the two witnesses of Revelation 11. Blessed is he who reads, and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it, for the time is near. In other words, be ready. May these words prepare us for His soon appearing, where we will be confronted by the Lord and give account to Him for all that we've done. Now friends, I emphasize this because the book of Revelation is quite frustrating, even to some of our greatest theologians in the world today. Frustrating because it does have signs in it, and symbolism, But the signs and the symbols aren't intended to be a closed door to keep the light out. They're to be a window, an open door to let the light in. In other words, they are comparisons that help us to understand realities. Actual, literal things that will take place on this earth. And thus the book of Revelation is a capstone underneath which are 65 other books of the Bible all the way back from Job and Genesis onward. And the thing that's difficult about the book of Revelation, someone has said it, it is the least original book of the Bible. In other words, it presupposes, builds on top of, and is dependent upon, all previous Revelation. It's almost like God is saying to us, now you have mastered the first 65 books of the Bible, haven't you, dear child? Now, this is the capstone, not to repeat everything that's been said before, but to build on it. And I say, thank you, Lord, for that reminder. Help me to be careful. Like a Berean Christian, I need to receive this with all readiness of mind and do what? Search the scriptures daily to see if these things are so. Now, with that introduction, we turn to this chapter 11, which many theologians consider one of the most difficult chapters in the entire Apocalypse, or Book of Revelation. It's about the two witnesses in Jerusalem. Revelation 11.1. And it was given me a measuring rod, like a staff. And someone said, rise and measure the temple of God and the altar and those who worship in it. In other words, John the apostle now becomes active in implementing God's revelation. In other words, John, I want you to make it clear that that is the temple of God and it's functioning again and there's an actual altar in it. And there are people who are worshiping in it. Now, of course, this presupposes a literal understanding of the Abrahamic covenant, doesn't it, that God gave initially in Genesis 12 to Abraham, that through him his descendants would come the seed, Christ, through whom all nations would be told of a Savior and provided for through the Savior. And the focus of the Abrahamic Covenant, as you move through the book of Genesis, chapters 15, chapter 22, and so on, is that there's not only a seed, the Messiah, but a land, yes, the Holy Land, and, of course, the blessing. The blessing that only God, the God of Israel, can bring to people all over the world. And the Lord Jesus Christ, of course, was of the seed of David. And he is the fulfillment of all those messianic prophecies in the Old Testament. And he has done for his church, his brightest body, since the day of Pentecost, infinitely marvelous things. But the church is not the only program God has. The church does not replace Israel. No. Israel has a distinctive future, the literal outworking of the Abrahamic covenant, the new covenant, application of the Abrahamic covenant. That's clear from Romans chapter 11. All Israel will be saved. And that can't be the church, it's the distinctive people of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and so on. Now friends, when you come therefore to chapter 11, we're reminded again there will be a temple in Jerusalem that God will honor and where worshippers will gather to honor Him and offer sacrifices on an altar. What does this mean? It means that there's actually going to be in Jerusalem a re-institution of animal sacrifices, legitimate ones. Keep reading, watch how it develops here. Verse 2, And leave out the court which is outside the temple, and do not measure it, for it has been given to the nations, the Gentiles, the Goyim, And they will tread underfoot the holy city for 42 months. That's exactly what Jesus said in Luke 21-24. Jerusalem will be trodden underfoot of the Gentiles. for three and a half years, the last half of the 70th and final week of Daniel's prophecy in Daniel chapter 9. Now this 42 months, friends, is when the Antichrist, who will be introduced to us down here in verse 7, takes over the world, including Jerusalem, yes, the Holy City. So God is saying, I'm going to protect, I'm going to honor, I'm going to claim that temple and that altar as mine. It'll be desecrated, yes. There will be an abomination of desolations, as Jesus said, yes. But it's still God's property. He is not going to abandon Israel just because of opposition from the Antichrist any more than he did when Antiochus Epiphanes, 160 years before Christ, desecrated the temple in his day. according to Daniel chapters 9 and 11. Now friends, at this point we ask a question. What is going to happen to the Holy City, Jerusalem? Well, the third verse introduces an amazing team that God will raise up to vindicate to honor, to implement, yes, to bring into actual legitimate function the altar in the temple in Jerusalem again. Now, what is this team? Look at verse 3. And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days clothed in sackcloth. They have a very awesome and tragic ministry to perform. Just, you know, like John the Baptist, who was very uncouth looking, you know, living on the honey, yes, and the rough lifestyle, living in a wilderness like he did. He had a very heavy message, didn't he? You remember when the Pharisees came to him, he said, you generation of vipers who has warned you to escape the damnation of hell. And how long will these two witnesses function? For 1260 days. Now friends, let's stop right there for a moment. The Holy City is trampled underfoot for 42 months. That's equivalent, of course, exactly to 1260 days, 30-day months. That is time times half a time. That's three and a half years. In the book of Daniel and the book of Revelation, which of course Daniel is the foundation for Revelation, Revelation presupposes our mastery of the book of Daniel, we have a precise period of time here, three and one-half years. Now the two witnesses must function in the first three and a half years of the last seven years for reasons that we will discuss in a moment. But you see, it's given a different form of chronology, isn't it? If they are functioning the same time that the city is trampled underfoot, you would just say, well, that's their part of the 42 months. But God says, no, they have 1260 days. Now stop there just a moment, please. In the book of Revelation, many are tempted to say, well, these numbers are all symbolic of something else. No, friend. A year means a year, a month means a month, a day means a day. 1260 days doesn't mean 1105 days. It means 1260 days. And all through the book of Revelation, God expects us to take literally, naturally, in the normal understanding of words. These time units, okay? So, the first three and a half years, they're functioning. Why? Well, first of all, let's look at verse four. These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the Earth. Thank you, Lord. Now we see the connection. These are what? latter-day eschatological counterparts to the two witnesses that God raised up after the Babylonian captivity. When 50,000 Jews came back from Babylon to re-establish the worship center in Jerusalem on the ruins of Solomon's Temple, immediately, according to the Book of Ezra, the altar was established right on the ruins. and sacrifices were made. And I say, well, Lord, that's amazing. They didn't have to have the temple rebuilt, although they finally did, to offer legitimate God-honoring animal sacrifices on an altar. And those two witnesses were Joshua the high priest and Zerubbabel the governor. And in the book of Zechariah, God greatly honored those men, didn't He? Zechariah chapters 3 and 4. So God again presupposes that we understand the Old Testament background here, doesn't he? Yes. Now, those were two olive trees in the sense that they were instruments of the Holy Spirit to bring vitality and life and commitment and obedience and love for the Lord to that remnant that had become and would become very discouraged with the opposition they faced. So yes, Those two witnesses were so greatly opposed by the Samaritans and other enemies that they actually gave up for about 15 years trying to rebuild their temple until God sent the two witnesses, that is the two prophets, to the two witnesses, namely Zechariah and Haggai. Now friends, here is the connection. At the beginning of the 73rd Daniel, there must be a reestablishment of the sacrifices on the altar. And these two men, these two olive trees, as they're described here, and two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth, are going to be God's means to reestablish the worship. You say, how do you know, sir, there's going to be worship on the altar in the temple in Jerusalem? Because Daniel 9 says that that there's going to be a firm covenant made between the prince who is to come, that's the little horn, the Antichrist, the beast, and a majority of Israelis. He'll make a firm covenant with the many for one Shavuach, one Heptad, one unit of seven years. But, and here's the point, in the midst of that seven-year period, he will break the covenant and cause the sacrifices and the oblations, that covers all Old Testament type sacrifices, to cease. How can he cause them to cease if they haven't started? And obviously those sacrifices are objects of his wrath and hatred and he's got to compromise his convictions because the two witnesses, as we'll see here, have enormous power to defend that worship system against him. Now, as you read a little bit further here, you find out more or less what kind of witness these two witnesses of Revelation 11 will have. It says in verses 5 and 6, if anyone desires to harm them, and of course the Antichrist is the one who wants to harm them, In fact, the whole world will hate them, I'm sure, as we'll see, because they are Jews and they are setting up animal sacrifices. And you can think of a billion Muslims, of course, immediately would be enraged at this operation. Wouldn't you imagine that? And if anyone desires to harm them, fire proceeds out of their mouth and devours their enemies. And if anyone desire to harm them in this manner, he must be killed. Second, these have the power to shut up the sky in order that the rain might not falter in the days of their prophesying for three and a half years of drought, supernaturally imposed drought. Number three, they have power over the waters to turn them into blood. Number four, and smite the earth with every plague as often as they desire. Now, my understanding, friend, is that this is God's way of saying to the reader, dear reader, Remember the basic structure of the Book of Revelation. It presupposes Old Testament revelation. It presupposes New Testament revelation. The first 26 books of the 27th of the New Testament. And if that's true, then we have a key to unlock the mystery of the identity of these two witnesses that are yet to come. Number one, it's obvious that the first witness must be Elijah, because the things he's going to do are exactly what Elijah did in the Old Testament. You remember how he was threatened by Ahaziah, the wicked son of Ahab and Jezebel, who sent two small armies to capture him, and he brought fire from heaven and devoured them. Amazing. Just like on Mount Carmel, brought fire from heaven to devour that sacrifice on the altar. Now the fire, of course, this is figuratively speaking, didn't come out of his mouth, but his mouth spoke the words that brought the fire from God. That's the point. And secondly, that three and a half year drought, that's exactly what Elijah did, isn't it? Yes, we read about that in various places in the Bible. And we say, well, Lord, I can see now some amazing similarities here between what this witness will do and what Elijah did okay now look at the numbers three and four changing water to blood and smiting the earth with every plague who did those kinds of things well that was Moses you remember in Egypt and Elijah was God's special one-man army to attack Baal worshipers and the whole godless idolatrous system in the time of Ahab and Jezebel And 700 years before him was Moses, who was empowered by God, with Aaron, of course, to destroy the false worship system of Egypt. And all their gods were humiliated by the different plagues that God brought through Moses and Aaron. So you say, well now really, could these be actually Elijah and Moses? Well now here of course is where we take a stand. All kinds of strange interpretations have been given, ideas of who these two witnesses really are. I won't elaborate on all of that. All the commentaries that have ever been written on the book of Revelation give you a vast spectrum of opinions. But you see, I start with what Jesus said about this. After he told the disciples, you remember, Some of you standing here, this is the end of Matthew chapter 16, some of you standing here will not taste a death until you see the Son of Man coming in glory. And six days later, He took three of those men, Peter, James, and John, to a high mountain and was transfigured before them, and guess who else appeared? Moses and Elijah. Of course, the apostles, especially Peter, were overwhelmed by the appearance of these two famous men in the Old Testament. Talk about fame, friends. Elijah is mentioned many times in the New Testament. I mean, when Jesus died, he cried out on the cross, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani, in Aramaic. And they thought he was calling for whom? Elijah to rescue him. The Jews were obsessed with the idea that Elijah has to come first before Messiah comes. Okay? And in fact, some thought Jesus was Elijah. As Jesus questioned the disciples, who unto men say that I the Son of Man? Some of you think you're Elijah. Now friends, Moses is mentioned even more times in the New Testament. I mean, talk about prominent figures from the Old Testament. You just can't get bigger than Moses and Elijah. And so when they saw Moses and Elijah on the mount, when they came down from the mount, they said to Jesus, why did the scribes say that Elijah must come first? They were just, well, obsessed with this question, just like the scribes. And, of course, Jesus had bad things to say about scribes, Pharisees, and hypocrites many times, didn't he? But not everything they taught and believed was wrong. They knew where the Messiah would be born, remember, Bethlehem of Judea. But now listen to what Jesus says in Matthew 17, 10. His disciples asked him, saying, Why then do the scribes say that Elijah must come first? And he answered and said, Elijah is coming and will restore all things. And to me, that settles the matter, dear friend. If Jesus said, Elijah is coming and will restore all things, I would like to suggest that what that probably means is, are you ready? That Elijah is coming and will restore all things. In other words, when all else fails, take Jesus precisely at his word. You say, but sir, the next couple of verses contradict that. Because Jesus said, but I say unto you that Elijah already came. And they did not recognize him, but did to him whatsoever they wished. So also the Son of Man is going to suffer at their hands. And then the disciples understood that he had spoken to them about John the Baptist." Well, of course, Jesus is talking about a contingency here, isn't he? If they had received the message of John the Baptist, he would have been Elijah. But since they did not receive him, he was not Elijah. In fact, his parents were told that he wouldn't be Elijah. He would come in the spirit and power of Elijah. And in John 1, verse 21, the Jews asked him, Are you Elijah? And he said, No. I suggest, friends, that that settles the fact he was not Elijah. And yet, nevertheless, we see here something significant. The Jews were held responsible by God for rejecting for rejecting John the Baptist. They could not say legitimately, well you're not Elijah. You said you weren't and therefore we don't have to repent. No, no, no, no. That is not an option because in Matthew 11, When Jesus told John the Baptist through two of his disciples that he sent to question Jesus, are you he that is to come, the expected one, or should we look for someone else? He said, I have performed these spectacular miracles, you tell John. The blind, the lame, the deaf, the lepers, the dead, and so forth. Blessed is he who keeps from stumbling over me. And when those disciples went back to John, in other words, that was the kiss of death. Goodbye, John. See you in the next world. He said to the multitudes, A reed shaken by a wind, is that what you went out to see in the wilderness? A man dressed in soft clothing, is that why you went to the wilderness? Why did you go out? To see a prophet? Yes, and I say to you, one more than a prophet. Now listen to this amazing tribute to John the Baptist. This is the one about whom it is written, Behold, I send my messenger before your face, who will prepare your way before you. That's a quote from Malachi 3.1. That's where John the Baptist is predicted, just as he was in Isaiah 40, as the voice of one crying in the wilderness. Now watch verse 11. We're in Matthew 11.11. Truly I say to you, among those born of women, there has not arisen anyone greater than John the Baptist. Yet, he who is least in the kingdom of heaven is greater than he. I think Jesus is anticipating the body and bride of Christ, the church, where we are all positionally higher than John, who was of the older dispensation. But here's the question. If he was that great, why was he rejected? Look at verse 14. If you care to accept it, he himself is Elijah who was to come. Again, he is so great that if you had accepted his message, the kingdom would have come. You remember what John preached and the twelve apostles and, of course, Jesus himself and the seventy, the thirty-five gospel teams of two men each? Repent, they said to Israel, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand. And they could not legitimately say, well, we don't believe you. We don't have to repent. We don't need to. We're fine, because we're not going to repent until Elijah actually comes. No, no. No matter what preacher, friend, or teacher, evangelist, soul winner, missionary may cross your path, you don't say, well, I don't like you. I don't like your personality, your educational background, or your world and life views. I reject your message. No, no. We are accountable to the Spirit of God who speaks. The word by faith comes by hearing, and hearing by what? The Word of God. And that is exactly what John the Baptist preached. So you see, friends, John the Baptist may have been very unattractive in appearance, very rough-looking, yes. And they excused themselves from repenting by calling him a what? A demoniac. You see, Matthew 11, 18, John came neither eating nor drinking. He was an ascetic. And they say, he has a demon. And the Son of Man came eating and drinking, and they say, behold, a gluttonous man and a drunkard, a friend of tax gatherers and sinners. You see, friends, if we hate God and hate His Word, any excuse that comes to mind is adequate to dismiss the work of the Holy Spirit and the Word of God to bring us conviction. Now, as you think further about Elijah, you check at the Old Testament, the last statement of the whole Old Testament, that reverberated for centuries in the memories, the conscience of the Jews. Listen to these words. Malachi 4.4, last verses of the Old Testament. Remember the law of Moses, my servant, even the statutes and ordinances which I commanded him in Horeb for all Israel. Then listen. Behold, I am sending you Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And He will do what? He will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse, kherem, the last word in the Hebrew Old Testament. And I say, Lord, that is amazing. The last two people that Israel was to listen to were Moses and Elijah. Moses and Elijah. Now, of course, friends, We read here something that is significant in the light of that question we asked of what part of the 70th week of Daniel will Elijah function? It says here, he will come when? Before the coming of the great and terrible day of the Lord. He will come before the last three and a half years. In other words, God will send him to bring what? Revival and restoration to Israel. That's the statement upon which Jesus is depending for Old Testament verification and foundation when he said, Elijah must come first and restore all things. Starting where? Well, he will restore the hearts of fathers to their children, hearts of children to their fathers. In other words, there's going to be a genuine revival and a participation in the new covenant provision of the Abrahamic covenant. They're going to have a new heart by the Holy Spirit. They're going to be born again. Yes, starting with families and homes and reaching out to the entire circumference of Israel after the church has been raptured and removed from the world. Now, friends, we do see here, therefore, some very powerful statements. I mean, Malachi said, Elijah is coming. Jesus said, Elijah is coming. And I'd like to offer the suggestion that that probably means that Elijah is coming. You say, well, sir, he can't come. because he's already been glorified. And the two witnesses of Revelation 11, as you continue reading that chapter, will actually die for their testimony. So how can Elijah, who is glorified, come back to the earth and die again? And of course, we are immediately confronted with a serious problem here, are we not? This is, I think, one of the major reasons why many literalists, dispensational theologians who treat the Book of Revelation very carefully, literally, have a serious problem. Because I think what we have forgotten in our discussion of Elijah's situation after he disappeared is the statement Jesus made about him. Listen to John 3.13. We're all familiar with John 3.16, aren't we? But listen to John 3.13. And no one has ascended into heaven, but he who descended from heaven, even the Son of Man. Now, let me state that again. No one has ascended into heaven. You say, well, sir, but Elisha looked up and saw Elijah going into heaven. Not really. Not really. Careful here, friend. He was last seen heading toward heaven. He was never seen dying or dead, but he must have had his body gently separated from his soul spirit after he disappeared and deposited in Abraham's bosom because, friends, he could not have gone bodily into heaven without his body being glorified, you see. and therefore he must have died later. Now that is a surprise, I'm sure, to many who think of Elijah as in heaven with a glorified body. And I dare to say the same thing is true of Enoch, who before the flood, you remember, according to 2 Peter and Jude, he did not see death. I mean, he just was not, for God took him. But the point there is, I think, on the analogy of Elijah, no one saw him die. He didn't experience death on this earth as people experience death. You know, I mean, their bodies drop down and they're lifeless. Lifeless bodies have to be buried. And I say, well, now, wait a minute, Lord. What then happened to Enoch? I would say the same thing that happened to Elijah. After he disappeared, God gently separated his body from his soul spirit and deposited him in Upper Sheol, Hades, that is, Paradise, where all the righteous dead from the beginning of the world, from righteous Abel onward, have been residing. And remember, Samuel was brought up from that realm to confront Saul, and he wasn't resurrected. And Moses and Elijah were brought up from that realm to confront, of course, to talk to Jesus. And the New Testament says in the Gospel of Luke that they were talking to him about his exodus, that is, his death, that he would die. They were not yet fully, officially redeemed. Now, of course, they were redeemed in the mind of God. I mean, Romans 3.25 says that Jesus died and paid for the sins committed beforehand, and therefore they had been saved on credit, as it were. God knew, of course, that Jesus would pay the price, but they had not actually experienced it. And therefore they were fascinated, can I say obsessed, with this question, Elijah and Moses, when they talked to Jesus on the Mount. Tell us, sir, about the death you are going to die, the exodus you're going to experience here in Jerusalem. Now, that helps me to understand that Elijah then and Moses had never been glorified. Their redemption, I mean, just like the Bible says our salvation is nearer than when we first believe, that is our ultimate glorification. Salvation comes in three tenses, doesn't it? Justification, saved by faith. Sanctification, the process of growing in grace and the knowledge of the Lord through his word. And finally, what? Glorification, where all sin is finally removed and we have a glorified body and we shall see him when we see him will be like him when we see him as he is. So my proposition, friends, is that Elijah and Moses are still dead and therefore they are capable of being brought back from the dead to experience the things described in Revelation chapter 11. Now, you say, well, now wait a minute, sir. I thought the Bible says it is appointed unto men once to die. If they died once, how can they die again? Well, the answer is that that is a generalization for which there are many biblical exceptions. I mean, some people have died twice. Lazarus did. Everybody that, I mean, the people that Elijah and Elisha raised from the dead died again. People that Jesus raised from the dead during his public ministry died again. And therefore, that is a general rule for which there are exceptions. I'll give you another general rule. All have sinned and come short of the glory of God. No, all haven't. I'll name one. Jesus. He's the exception. Now, furthermore, we know that the Bible says it's appointed unto men to die once. There's an exception. Praise God to that, too, for you and me. If we experience the rapture of the church, we will never die. And I say the same thing about the righteous who enter the millennial kingdom. They will never die. And so we have exceptions to generalizations. I feel that those objections, therefore, are not valid. Now, that's why the early church fathers almost unanimously insisted that the two witnesses will be the literal Elijah and who else? Enoch. The reasoning? Because those men never died and therefore have to come back to die. That is not valid. Especially we have to realize Enoch is not an appropriate teammate for Elijah in the Great Tribulation because those witnesses are witnessing to Israel. And through those two witnesses, and there are no two witnesses more spectacular to Israelites, Israelis, than Moses and Elijah, not Enoch. So we see something here beginning to emerge. from the obscurity and the controversies that afflict us when we come to that 11th, that difficult 11th chapter of Revelation. I would suggest, dear friends, then, that the literal Moses and the literal Elijah will return. Now, of course, we know from the rest of chapter 11 that they're going to be killed by the Antichrist, the beast that comes up out of the abyss. and their dead bodies will lie unburied in the city of Jerusalem for three and a half days. They'll be disgraced in this horrible way. The whole world will see this and make merry. But remember now another point here. If they have their complete 1260 days of witness, then you've got to add three and a half more days. That makes what? 1263 and a half days. But at the end of 1260 days you have the second coming, an Armageddon. So how can you have the whole world rejoicing for three and a half days after the 1260 days have ended if this is the last half of the 70th week of Daniel? That's another reason why I think this is the first half. Yes, during the first three and a half years, what will Moses and Elijah do? They'll walk right onto the temple platform, set up a legitimate Jewish worship center, an altar of sacrifice, to the enragement of guess who? Oh yes, the Muslim world, call it the European Union, the United Nations, the whole world will be shocked and deeply offended and enraged, in fact, at this defiance, you see, of religious pluralism and so forth. But God will use them for those three and a half years to win the nation back to himself, just like Jesus said, Elijah must come first and restore all things. Now I'm assuming, and I admit this is an assumption, that God is never without a witness on this earth. So when the church is gone, there are no believers left. That is why very quickly I think, I believe, He will send Moses and Elijah to Jerusalem to represent Himself. They will preach powerfully about Jesus Christ. They'll have the whole New Testament, of course, in their hand and heart. They'll explain who Jesus, the Messiah, really is. thousands, hundreds of thousands, millions of Israel, not every single one we shall see from Exodus 20, there'll still be some rebels at the time of the second coming among the Jews, but the vast majority of the nation, friends, will be what? grafted back into the olive tree of divine blessing, Romans 11. All Israel will be saved, Romans 11. God cannot break His covenant, you see. His promises are irrevocable, Romans 11. And therefore He must, He must for His own integrity and truthfulness, restore Israel again. We're not talking about the church here. We're talking about ethnic Israel. Yes, millions of Israelis will come to the Messiah. However, when the two witnesses then are killed by the Antichrist, the Jews who have believed in the Messiah through their witness will flee to the wilderness where God will hide them for the remaining three and a half years. That's Revelation chapter 12. And during that time of hiding, that's the way Isaiah describes it too. You remember at the end of Isaiah 26 and the beginning of 27, Hide yourselves, my people, for a little season." And so God is going to fulfill an amazing promise He gave 2,700 years ago through Isaiah. He's going to protect that nation from the Antichrist, the beast, yes, that comes up out of the sea. And He will protect them from the wrath of Satan. But there's another group of believers. They're the 144,000. 12,000 from every tribe. By then, when the two witnesses appear, they will be able to reveal to Israel which Jew belongs to which tribe. Of course, those records were all destroyed in AD 70, and no Jew really knows what tribe he belongs to. And I say, well, Lord, that's amazing, because there will be 72,000 gospel teams, kingdom gospel teams, two men each, total 144,000, who will be what? who be sealed so they can't die, this is Revelation 7, of course, until their work is done. And Jesus predicted this, didn't he? He said in Matthew 24, this gospel of the kingdom, and he's not talking about the church now, friends, this gospel of the kingdom must be preached to all the nations before the end comes. And where the church, the Bride of Christ, has failed to reach all nations, even though he told us to, in the Great Commission in Matthew 28. Make disciples of all nations, he said to us, teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you. An impossible command except for that provision. Lo, I am with you. I am with you, even to the end of the age. But we have not succeeded. Half of the six thousand languages of the world, dear friends, have not even received one verse of the Bible. But where we have failed, God, through the two witnesses, in Jerusalem, and their converts, their disciples, the 144,000 witnesses, will encompass the entire planet Earth and reach every nation with the saving message of Messiah Christ. Yes, the light will spread, but so will the darkness, as Satan, of course, demands everyone to worship him and his image. Revelation 13 sets up the abomination of desolations in the temple, in Jerusalem. Now you remember what Jesus said in Matthew 24 to those Jews? He said, when you see that abomination of desolation standing in the holy place, that's Matthew 24, 15, let those who are in Jerusalem flee. Get out of the city. Because then, then will be a time of tribulation such as never was, nor ever shall be. So you can see how all these things dovetail together, fit together. Yes, those first three and a half years, the two witnesses will be hated from the whole world, but more and more Israelis, Jews, will believe their messianic message and will be saved and will be sealed. The 144,000 sealed so they can't be killed until their work is done all over planet Earth to the whole human race. And I say, well, Lord, help me to begin to see some of the outlines here, the parameters by which I can come to some kind of a valid conclusion. And friends, it is relatively rare that a theologian who writes on the book of Revelation would come to the conclusion that Jesus meant what he said. Elijah indeed will come first and will restore all things and will take literally the passage on which he bases that statement namely Malachi chapter 4. Behold I send you Elijah the prophet before the great and dreadful day of the Lord and he will convert the nation. And I say well Lord help me to match what Jesus said in the light of what you told Malachi to write and come to a conclusion the book of Revelation assumes that we know Malachi And we know the Matthew statement there in chapter 17. Malachi and Matthew are the basis for what? Our understanding of the identity of the two witnesses of Revelation 11 and when they will prophesy, namely the first half of the 70th week. So friends, if this is a valid explanation, interpretation of God's Word, then what are we waiting for? What are we looking for? First, The dead in Christ will rise. This is 1 Thessalonians 4. The dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the air and the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so shall we ever be with the Lord. And then what? Then, friends, two witnesses appear in Jerusalem. Then what? Well, Jesus said, all of a sudden, at the same time, an evil person will appear in Jerusalem. The only time he ever specifically described Antichrist was in John chapter 5. He said, I have come in my father's name and you receive me not. But one is coming in his own name, and him you will receive." So the Antichrist, a brilliant, clever, but blasphemous person, will persuade a deeply frustrated nation of Israelis. I will lead you. I will give you administrative credibility. I will put you on the map. I will give you spectacular fame in the world. Just sign here. I will give you leadership, you give me your military, your money, yes, your total support, your heart, and we will work together to take over the world. And of course, immediately you have a tremendous conflict, right? In Jerusalem, here's the Antichrist that has the majority of Israelis on his side, and at the same time, the two witnesses appear, re-establishing Jewish worship, and step by step, day by day, month by month, winning hundreds, thousands, Yes, millions of Israelis to the true God, to the absolute enragement of the Antichrist. We may be sure of that. And we say, well, Lord, that does seem to fit. That pattern does seem to be consistent and biblical. Help me to think through this and to believe that you meant what you said and you say what you mean. May the study of these two witnesses of Revelation 11, friends, encourage us greatly to be faithful as the two witnesses will be, yes, even unto death. knowing that we have a hidden enemy. We wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, powers, and rulers of the darkness of this age. That's Ephesians chapter 6. Yes, and if our gospel is hidden to people, if they don't want it, there's a reason. It is hidden to them who are lost and whose minds God has blinded. Satan has blinded the minds of them that believe not, lest the light of Christ, the glory of God, should shine unto them. We have an invisible enemy who will almost become visible in that 70th week in the person of the Antichrist and his false prophet who will make the world worship him at the cost of their own lives. Billions of people, friends, will die during that seven-year period. And I say, Lord, help me to be faithful now. Help me to be a witness to the Lord Jesus standing on the authority of all 66 books of this uniquely inerrant inspired, infallible book, the Bible, the Word of the Living God. Thank you, Dr. Whitcomb, and I want to encourage our listeners, if you want even more information from Dr. Whitcomb on this subject, please just type in keywords such as two witnesses or prophecy or revelation or various things related to some of these topics, Elijah, Moses, Enoch, and you will find statements. In sermons, you will find messages. Keywords will lead you to messages where he has addressed all these subjects. in even greater detail and so there's just a wealth of information here for you to glean from on sermonaudio.com slash Whitcomb. We thank you for joining us today for this special presentation from Dr. Whitcomb as he's giving you lots of things to think about, lots of good, solid information and biblical reasoning about these coming-to-witnesses of Revelation 11. So until we meet you again next time, thank you for listening in and please come back soon. Thank you for joining us here on sermonaudio.com.