1I saw a mighty angel coming down out of the sky, clothed with a cloud. A rainbow was on his head. His face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire. 2He had in his hand a little open book. He set his right foot on the sea, and his left on the land. 3He cried with a loud voice, as a lion roars. When he cried, the seven thunders uttered their voices. 4When the seven thunders sounded, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from the sky saying, “Seal up the things which the seven thunders said, and don’t write them.”
5The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his right hand to the sky 6and swore by him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things that are in it, the earth and the things that are in it, and the sea and the things that are in it, that there will no longer be delay, 7but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as he declared to his servants the prophets.
8The voice which I heard from heaven, again speaking with me, said, “Go, take the book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the land.”
9I went to the angel, telling him to give me the little book.
He said to me, “Take it and eat it. It will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey.”
10I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it. It was as sweet as honey in my mouth. When I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter. 11They told me, “You must prophesy again over many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.”
Like much of the content of the Book of Revelation, the identity of the Two Witnesses is a matter of conjecture. Whoever they might be, they are a matter of great intrigue. These two witnesses, filled with the Holy Spirit, will have supernatural powers. When anyone approaches them to kill them, fire will come out of their mouths and consume all enemies. This should get a “wow” out of anyone who reads this. There are all sorts of guesses concerning who the witnesses might be. Some think they include John the Baptist himself, a figure much like Elijah. Others believe it could be Enoch because he did not die. Others have thought that it might be Moses because he appeared with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration. It’s really anybody’s guess. I sort of feel like one of them might be Moses. When Jesus was asked by the lawyer which was the greatest commandment, he quoted the Torah passage that mandates loving God with all our hearts and loving our neighbors as ourselves. He said that on these two commandments hang ALL THE LAW AND THE PROPHETS. When we think of the Law, we think of Moses as the lawgiver. When we think of the prophets, we think of Elijah as the super prophet. These two would be the ultimate coming of the Law and the Prophets. Perhaps those commandments predict the identity of at least one of the witnesses.
Others believe it could be Zechariah, and others believe it could be John, the beloved disciple himself, because in the last verse of Chapter 10, Jesus says, “You will prophesy again.” The bottom line is that we do not know. We’re told that the two witnesses are sort of untouchable. I think of them sort of like Jedi Knights from Star Wars with supernatural ways about them. We think of Elijah calling down fire to consume the enemies of God during his battle with the Prophets of Baal. When I was a little boy, my mother would read me stories of things that Elijah did, and in my mind, he was sort of like a superhero. Later in life, I’ve wondered if some of what she told me was just stories that she had made up. There is a story in which Elijah recovers an axe head that was floating on the river. “4 So he went with them. And when they came to the Jordan, they cut down trees. 5 But as one was cutting down a tree, the iron ax head fell into the water; and he cried out and said, “Alas, master! For it was borrowed.” 6 So the man of God said, “Where did it fall?” And he showed him the place. So he cut off a stick, and threw it in there; and he made the iron float. 7 Therefore he said, “Pick it up for yourself.” So he reached out his hand and took it.” (2 Kings 6:4-7, NKJV). My mother wove many tales around that one short account mentioned in the Bible, so I suppose I want Elijah to be one of the two witnesses, and I think that he will be.
These two will have the power to shut off the rain. Elijah did the same thing. Moses had the power to turn the waters to blood. That is one of the plagues of Egypt. They will have other powers like Moses to bring plagues upon the land. Regardless of who they are, they remind us that God is still in the business of doing supernatural works, and they will be on great display at the end of time. We live in an age in which we wonder why God doesn’t just come down and perform mighty deeds like those of old. I’m talking about waters parting, walls falling, armies falling dead, and demons fleeing. The fact is, there are still miracles happening around us. We fall asleep, then, by His grace, most of us wake up. Our bodies are intricately and wonderfully made. The sun, moon, and stars continue in motion, defying all explanation. The plants on the earth continue to generate their own food from sunlight. We’ve just grown accustomed to the miracles of God around us. Reader, there are miracles in your own life. Observe them and give thanks for them. God can do whatever He wants, whenever He wants. Miracles still happen, but that is not what keeps us faithful. We are people of faith because God’s word tells us who God is and what He can and will do. The miracles can always be explained away, but God’s word is true, and He is faithful. He can still part the troubled waters of our lives. He still knocks down the walls that entrap us. Recommit to Him today and rest in Him and His word. Miracles are happening. He is faithful.