Musings of Maurice D. Perry

The two witnesses in Revelation are symbolically Moses and Elijah… these two were seen by John, James and Peter at the Mount of Transfiguration. They represent, prophetically, the apostolic (Moses) and prophetic (Elijah) servants of God throughout the history of Israel. Revelation 11 was one of John’s prophetic pictures depicting the imminent persecution to come upon the apostles and prophets (servants of God), at the hands of the pharisees, which would take place right before the coming of the Lord.

The Lord “came on clouds” in 70 AD. The terminology “coming on clouds”, or “riding on clouds” is Jewish idiomatic language which denotes the Lord’s judgments and wrath being released, as well as His salvation and deliverance. Take note of similar language in Isaiah 19:1 and Nahum 1:3:

Isaiah 19
1The burden of Egypt. Behold, the LORD rideth upon a swift cloud, and shall come into Egypt: and the idols of Egypt shall be moved at his presence, and the heart of Egypt shall melt in the midst of it.

Nahum 1:3
3The LORD is slow to anger, and great in power, and will not at all acquit the wicked: the LORD hath his way in the whirlwind and in the storm, and the clouds are the dust of his feet.

Did the Lord literally “ride upon a swift cloud”, or were the clouds literally “the dust of His feet”, as if the Lord was literally surfing on the clouds, “hanging ten”?

No. This was idiomatic, prophetic and poetic terminology used to describe the coming judgment upon a land or people group. We have to interpret scriptures mentioning Jesus riding/coming on clouds in the gospels in the same manner.

But, getting back to the two witnesses, they symbolized who Jesus told the pharisees they would be guilty of killing.

Matt. 23
34Wherefore, behold, I send unto you PROPHETS, and WISE MEN, and scribes: and some of them ye shall kill and crucify; and some of them shall ye scourge in your synagogues, and persecute them from city to city:
35That upon you may come all the righteous blood shed upon the earth, from the blood of righteous Abel unto the blood of Zacharias son of Barachias, whom ye slew between the temple and the altar.
36Verily I say unto you, All these things shall come upon THIS GENERATION.

“Wise men” are the sent ones (Apostles)… they lay foundations…

1 Corinthians 3:10
According to the grace of God which is given unto me, as A WISE MASTERBUILDER, I have laid the foundation, and another buildeth thereon. But let every man take heed how he buildeth thereupon.

The thing to keep in mind when reading Revelation is that it was a letter full of signs and symbols. If you take the signs and symbols literally, you will misinterpret the entire letter, and will miss the true meaning and purpose of the letter. The first four verses of Revelation 1 sets the context for the entire letter (chaps. 1 thru 22)…

Rev. 1:1-4
1The Revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave unto him, to shew unto his servants things which must SHORTLY COME TO PASS; and he sent and SIGNIFIED it by his angel unto his servant John:
2Who bare record of the word of God, and of the testimony of Jesus Christ, and of all things that he saw.
3Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for THE TIME IS AT HAND.
4John to the SEVEN CHURCHES WHICH ARE IN ASIA: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

Four things to consider:

1. “Shortly come to pass” demonstrates the immanency
2. “Signified” demonstrates that the letter is full of signs and symbols (apocalyptic language) and not plain speech
3. “The time is at hand” once again shows immanency
4. “Seven churches which are in Asia” shows who the letter was addressed to… seven literal churches during the time that it was written

Nothing in Revelation can be removed from this context, including Revelation 11, and the two witnesses. To say that they are in the future would be to pluck them out of the 1st century context. To verify that the 1st century was the correct timing of the two witnesses, as well as the coming of the Lord, we see the words of the Lord, Himself, and Him telling John to NOT seal up the words of the prophecy, because the time was at hand.

Revelation 22:10
10And he saith unto me, Seal not the sayings of the prophecy of this book: for the time is at hand.

In other words, the Lord was saying, “the time is now, in which all that I’ve just revealed to you is about to take place.”

If Jesus told John that “the time is now”, why do many people today disagree with His words and say ‘the time is in the future’?

This is a very serious matter, and we must really re-examine what we believe about “Coming of the Lord” because we may be found guilty of the following:

Revelation 22:18-19
18For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
19And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

Why would Jesus be so adamant about not adding to, or taking away from the prophecy of the book?

I believe that He knew that if we misconstrued the overall message of Revelation, the coming of the Lord (parousia), as well as the KINGDOM THAT CAME in the 1st century, it would hinder the progression and influence of the church / kingdom of God. Fast-forward 2000 years into the future to today, and we see the fruit of the confusion. When atheists can read the Olivet Discourse (Matt. 24-25, Mark 13, Luke 21) and understand that Jesus said he would return within one generation, but assume that He did not fulfill this promise, and thus, are unbelievers, or don’t believe in God, and BELIEVERS read those same passages and project them to be yet future without keeping them in historical context, we have a serious problem. This is what I believe Jesus was alluding to – the danger of misinterpreting the prophecies. Instead of showing atheists and unbelievers exactly what happened historically, in regards to Jesus’ “coming on clouds” in judgment and wrath against those that killed the apostles and prophets, and instead of showing them that this judgment was symbolized by the destruction of the temple in 70 AD (refer to Matt. 24:1-3), we have exchanged truth for a lie. We, in a way, have forfeited our right to call ourselves “salt and light” because this truth (in regards to the coming of the Lord) is not in us.

Lord, help us to see and understand the truth of your word, the truth of your fulfilling of every jot and tittle of your word, and the truth that You indeed have finished everything that the Father had set out for you to do. I pray for our eyes to be opened and a sobriety to come upon us so that we can see, understand, and walk in the fullness that you have ordained us to walk in. In Jesus name, Amen.