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The Bible foretells the arrival of two special servants just before the outset of the Great
Tribulation. They will wield tremendous—and unprecedented—power. And they will contend
with the Beast and False Prophet, while surrounded by hostile forces. In direct contact with
Jesus Christ, these final prophets will issue God’s last warning to a deceived world.
The subject of the Two Witnesses is not as difficult as many think. This broadcast reveals
the truth about these two end-time servants of God. You are about to learn what almost
no one understands!
The World to Come. The Restored Church of God presents David C. Pack. Author of 80 books
and booklets. Editor-in-chief of The Real Truth magazine. Read by countless and growing
numbers in every nation and territory of the world. In a violent age full of bad news.
Answering life’s greatest questions straight from the Bible, and announcing the wonderful
good news of the World to Come. And now, David C. Pack.
One-third of the Bible is prophecy—history written in advance. Four-fifths of this future
history is yet to be fulfilled. Tragically, most Bible readers are completely unaware
of awesome, impending world events, soon to involve all nations. They have no idea what
the future holds—what is coming. Many have opinions, but few know how to find answers.
Others think they already understand prophecy, but remain ignorant of vital knowledge.
Jesus and a number of New Testament writers spoke and warned often of false prophets corrupting
true understanding. But there are two final true prophets described in the Bible. This
broadcast strips away the mystery and confusion about who and what they are—what they do—what
is their commission—and what it is they witness.
The Two Witnesses are a subject of great speculation. But ridiculous theories about them have brought
much confusion. Such unending commentary about these little-understood figures comes from
people who haven’t a clue what they are talking about. With the passing of time, interest
will only increase as their arrival becomes more imminent. Very few, however, understand
what they do and where they will come from. Here is the briefest summary of human interpretations
about the Two Witnesses. We will come to see why they are so silly.
The leader of one big denomination wrote perhaps the silliest: “The two witnesses represent
the Scriptures of the Old and the New Testament. Both are important testimonies to the origin
and perpetuity of the law of God. Both are witnesses also to the plan of salvation.”
Just knowing the Two Witnesses lie dead in Jerusalem before being resurrected makes this
idea ridiculous! Books don’t do this. Yet it came from a supposed “prophetess” who
is venerated by millions of people. An 18th century theologian wrote, “No two
individual persons can be meant, since these witnesses were to prophesy 1,260 days, that
is, so many years, but [which is instead] a succession of ministers and churches…”
A modern theologian agreed, “They represent the churches fulfilling their vocation to
bear witness to Christ in the final time of tribulation.”
Now this: “The vision [of the Two witnesses] seems to be an interruption in the sequence
of [Revelation] trumpet blasts, and the reason for this never has been clear. Accordingly,
this chapter has been difficult for Christian interpreters [but we will see it shouldn’t
be!].” One reason involves the greatest rule of Bible study—that this Book interprets
itself! Continuing the same source, “Henry Alford,
Dean of Canterbury, once wrote: ‘No solution has ever been given to this portion of prophecy.’
Another leading scholar writes [still the same source here]: ‘This paragraph, 11:1-13
[in Revelation], the second part of the interlude (between the sixth and seventh trumpet blasts)
contains a vision to which it is confessedly difficult to assign a meaning and place appropriate
in our book’…The difficulties are both in interpreting symbols and in identifying
the characters… The author continues, “Two prophet-witnesses
are introduced…The witnesses are characteristic of Old-Testament prophets…as they are in
the Book of Revelation, we know they appear after the ministry of Christ…Who are these
two witnesses? They are Muhammad and ‘Ali, his son-in-law and legitimate successor…Muhammad
and ‘Ali are both witnesses and olive trees who produce the sacred oil.” Breathtaking
ignorance! Others claim they are Moses and Elijah—or
Enoch and Elijah—Peter and Paul—the house of Israel and house of Judah—Jewish and
Gentile believers—the Pope and Great Monarch—a Jewish ruler and a Jewish High Priest—or
Zerubbabel and Jeshua. But there are many more theories.
Worse, hundreds or even thousands of people today claim to be the Two Witnesses. I have
known many such people, in fact dozens of them. Simple math reveals somebody’s wrong!
Invariably, these are misguided kooks who have nothing more than a feeling. We hear
from them all the time. It is easy for us to see through them—but many cannot.
No one knows the truth! Yet when just the few relevant Bible verses are combined, the
picture is very clear. But before examining the unprecedented commission given to the
Two Witnesses, questions about their origin must be answered.
Where will the Two Witnesses come from? Many have the idea that these prophets will suddenly
appear “out of nowhere”—without warning—and this will almost occur overnight. Or that
they will have been hiding somewhere, waiting to be revealed! Popular prophecy writers have
simply been unable to unravel the puzzle of their origin.
The first clue of where these men will come from is in the office they hold. First notice
Revelation 11:3: “I will give power unto My two witnesses, and they shall prophesy
a thousand two hundred and threescore [1,260] days, clothed in sackcloth.” In verse 10,
they are referred to as “these two prophets.” Clearly, these men hold the office of prophet.
But “witness” in the Greek comes from the word “martus,” meaning “to witness,
literally, judicially, or figuratively,” [and to be a] “martyr.”
This is important. Everyone knows what a witness is in a courtroom. He is one who testifies
to the truth about past events, generally involving a crime, civil offense or disputed
contract. The Two Witnesses are no different, except they testify to future events, and
martyrdom is tied to the meaning of witness in the Greek. There’s a reason for this.
We will now go step-by-step—and verse-by-verse—so the subject of the Two Witnesses becomes impossible
to misunderstand. In Matthew 16 Jesus said, “I will build
My Church,” which the apostle Paul made clear is also called the Body of Christ. Notice:
“[Jesus] is the Head of the Body, the Church,” and “[God] gave Him [Jesus] to be the Head
over all things to the Church, which is His Body.” This much is clear.
Next, the form of government that Jesus installed into His Church consists of various offices.
I Corinthians 12 and Ephesians 4, among other places, describe this government. Obviously,
the unified, organized Church that Jesus built is the only place His government can be found.
This becomes the only place Jesus gives offices. Paul made plain that Christ’s Body is not
divided. (Read I Corinthians 1:10 and 13). He also recorded, “God has set some in the
Church, first apostles, secondarily prophets, thirdly teachers,” as well as “[Christ]
gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers.”
Why? “For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying
of the Body of Christ.” The rank of prophet—seen to be the second-highest
New Testament office—is occasionally given within the Body of Christ, the Church. This
means the Two Witnesses will be given their office by Jesus Christ within His one Church!
Jesus would not—and does not ever—work any other way—in any other place!—or He
would work against Himself. Verses you saw make clear that such men will not—actually
cannot!—be given their offices from outside the Body of Christ! This would fight Scripture.
These men will have to appear well before the Tribulation, and everyone within Christ’s
Body—God’s one Church—will have no doubt about their arrival. Without understanding
this point, the viewer will never be able to correctly discern the only possible origin
of the Two Witnesses—that these are two men given the office of prophet within the
Body of Christ. Recognition of what is Christ’s Church and what is His Body makes understanding
their origin easy. To those who know the location of God’s Church, no discernment will be
involved—or needed. It becomes vital then to identify the true Church. (My book Where
Is the True Church? -- and Its Incredible History! carefully tells you exactly how to
find it.) General background would be helpful regarding
what is a prophet. First, let’s understand the Greek word translated “prophet.” Similar
to its English equivalent, it is prophētēs, and means “a foreteller [prophet], by analogy
an inspired [preacher].” The Hebrew equivalent is virtually identical—”a prophet or (generally)
inspired man.” Evangelist is found only two times in the
New Testament, and pastor just once. Yet the word “prophet” is found 160 times—in
the New Testament. This is primarily because New Testament Scripture quotes Old Testament
prophets so often. In fact, the apostles wrote in a way that could be described as intermingled
with the office and writings of the early prophets. Prophets in the first century received
messages or prophecies from God and brought them to the apostles.
Let’s read how this always worked: “For the prophecy came not in old time by the will
of man: but holy men of God [prophets] spoke as they were moved by the Holy Spirit.”
Prophecy comes from God. He inspires His servants to record His words.
So a prophet is an inspired man—a tool of God, not acting on his own—but he is also
one who foretells, meaning he reveals things yet to come. Prophets foretell events before
they happen. This summarizes their two chief duties.
The World to Come will continue after this brief message. Discover more from David C.
Pack! Visit our website worldtocome.org. See The World to Come broadcasts, read and order
books, booklets and articles, all free of charge. To continue learning about the topics
covered in this broadcast, visit worldtocome.org today! Now back to David C. Pack.
The Bible reveals that at a point the final Work of God will end—”the night comes,
when no man can work.” World conditions will become so bad that God “shuts the door”
of His Work, ending it (read Revelation 3:7 and 8). The Church will have come to be so
persecuted and hindered by this time that miracles—perhaps many—may be needed just
for God’s Work to be completed. The Church must at this point be taken to a place of
safety for its survival. This is where the Two Witnesses enter. Finishing
God’s Work must also at this point be handed to them. They are imbued with special, miraculous
power not seen in any other servants of God except perhaps the prophet Elijah. Themselves
under terrible persecution, this will be the only way they can carry out their task.
As they appear on the world scene, just before the Tribulation, they will deliver a final
warning to government leaders, but also to all nations of the world—whose eyes will
be riveted on them. Rev 11:6 describes “the days of their prophecy,”
while verse 7 references “when they shall have finished their testimony.” Again, witnesses
testify to matters that are in doubt. Realize that everything having to do with end-time
prophecy are all matters that the Two Witnesses must clarify with finality. Based in Jerusalem,
they will represent God—for a period of 42 months (verse 2)—by addressing and warning
nations of the coming Day of the Lord. Numerous verses show that the Tribulation and Day of
the Lord together last 1,260 days, or three and a half years before Christ’s Return.
How great is their power? Verses 5 and 6 in Revelation 11 leave no doubt: “If any man
will hurt them, fire proceeds out of their mouth, and devours their enemies: and if any
man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. These have power to shut heaven,
that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to
blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.”
Grasp this! If anyone tries to harm these men and stop their commission, fire will destroy
him! And, to get the attention of the world—to highlight the terrifying, then-soon-coming
Day of the Lord—to bring certain punishment—and to hold enemies temporarily at bay—they
will be able to stop the rain, turn rivers and lakes to blood and unleash horrific plagues—and
all of these as often and for however long they choose! Does this sound like people you
should understand—and recognize? What about knowing which side you will be on?
The power that Jesus Christ gives them is so great they cannot be killed by anyone or
anything for their three-and-a-half-year ministry. This makes them unique among all previous
prophets. Again, this compares to power Elijah received.
Let’s see: “The king sent unto [Elijah] a captain of 50 with his 50…And he spoke
unto him, You man of God, the king has said, Come down. And Elijah answered…If I be a
man of God, then let fire come down from heaven, and consume you and your 50. And there came
down fire from heaven, and consumed [them].” These prophets will also be empowered to bring
drought and famine on Earth. Now more about Elijah: “Elijah…said unto Ahab, As the
Lord God of Israel lives…there shall not be dew nor rain these years, but according
to my word…and it came to pass after a while, that the brook dried up, because there had
been no rain in the land.” Jesus confirms this: “I tell you of a truth [He said in
Luke], many widows were in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the heaven was shut up three
years and six months, when great famine was throughout all the land.” This was spoken
by the same Jesus Christ whom you will see stands with the Two Witnesses.
Revelation 11 reveals more: “These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks
standing before the God of the earth.” What does all this mean? Let’s watch the Bible
interpret itself. The prophet Zechariah calls the Witnesses
“two olive branches,” which “empty…golden oil out of themselves.” Two verses later
he states that “these are the two anointed ones.” What is this “golden oil” and
its connection to the two “anointed ones”? The answer is tied to their awesome power.
Jesus’ parable of the 10 virgins brings understanding. The five foolish virgins are
seen to lack oil for their lamps. Having lost God’s Holy Spirit—symbolized by oil—they
are “shut out” of the kingdom of God (read Matthew 25:10)! I John 2:27 shows all true
Christians are “anointed” with God’s Spirit, as would normally occur with oil.
II Timothy 1:7 refers to the Holy Spirit as the spirit of “power, love, and a sound
mind.” And Paul admonished every Christian to “Be strong in the Lord, and in the power
of His might,” as well as, “I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me.”
These deeply converted men obviously must be anointed with a much-more-than-usual measure
of God’s Spirit—the source of their extraordinary power.
Another crucial point. With such enormous control over world conditions, the Two Witnesses
must be men of tremendous spiritual depth and understanding. The living Jesus Christ
would never select one to receive such power and authority if he were not humble, obedient
to God, faithful in all matters, and doctrinally sound—strong in the truth!
When understood, this alone means that these prophets must come from the only Church on
the face of the earth that understands all the doctrines of God. They will be men who
speak the truth of God—and the truth alone!—and who will have built the courage to do this
under extreme pressure during prior training. They will be men of great strength and conviction,
able to stand completely alone in a hostile world that wants them dead!
Politicians, weaklings, menpleasers and the self-appointed would never work!
These two servants will be men of judgment, wisdom and understanding—who know exactly
when and when not to use their awesome power. They must know to issue the right message
in different situations to the nations and leaders whom they confront. Of course, these
men will have to fully understand the scope and magnitude of their own office.
A point of emphasis. All of this is another central reason the Two Witnesses must arise
from within the Body of Christ. They will be men who understand where Christ is the
“Head” (recall Ephesians 1:22 and 23 and Col 1:18) because they will need to constantly
tap Christ’s own power on a daily basis. They will be men who have submitted to His
government, and who will have been doing this for a long time!
Offices in Christ’s ministry are never given to untrained or inexperienced men. God has
never worked this way, especially with the highest offices in His Church. The God of
the Bible does not hand out great power and authority willy-nilly. The Two Witnesses will
have been faithfully serving in God’s Church, almost certainly first in one or more lower
offices, before they are ready to be given the higher office of prophet—one that history
records has not been assigned by Christ for almost 2,000 years. And realize these men
would not receive office just before their ministry begins. There will be prior evidence
they have been given the office of prophet, no doubt including an obvious ability to perform
great miracles. Notice again Revelation 11. Christ calls these
prophets “My two witnesses.” And Zechariah 4 mentions these men “stand by the Lord
of the whole earth.” The latter reveals a special, direct relationship and proximity
to Christ Himself. All three stand together. It is obvious the Witnesses report to Christ
in carrying out their duty. God always worked directly with Old Testament
prophets. Jesus Christ, who is the God of the Old Testament (I Corinthians 10:4), often
worked face-to-face with those whom He was using. Sometimes He appeared as Melchizedek,
as when He was speaking to the patriarchs. You will notice a pattern throughout the books
of the prophets. Each starts with phrases like, “The Word of the Lord came expressly
unto Ezekiel…” or “The words of Jeremiah…To whom the Word of the Lord came…” or “The
Word of the Lord that came to Micah…” and so forth.
When considering the role these men play, it should be even clearer why they work so
closely with Christ. Again, just think of fire coming out of their mouths to kill enemies.
Jerusalem, where the Two Witnesses carry out their commission, is the most fought over,
and coveted, city on Earth—and all through history. This becomes a big reason the final
Beast and False Prophet will want to rule from there. (They would know the Bible foretells
Christ will rule from this city for 1,000 years.)
The False Prophet and Beast will want all competition eliminated—competing voices
stopped. This will eventually lead to a supernatural showdown, one where God will evidence the
greatness of His power over Satan and his servants once and for all. God will protect
His witnesses until His Work is done. After three and a half years, God will permit
the Beast system to kill these men. Let’s see: “When they shall have finished their
testimony, the beast that ascends out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them,
and shall overcome them, and kill them. And their dead bodies shall lie in the street
of the great city, which spiritually is called *** and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified.”
Now notice: “They of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations [the whole world]
shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies
to be put in graves.” In the modern age of globalization, people
worldwide will witness this via television, cellphones and computers. Many will feel vindicated
at what they perceive as just punishment due to drought, fire and terrible plagues these
“evil men brought.” All nations will enjoy their death, excited that such “intolerant
judges” against man’s way of life—man’s massive sin!—are finally gone. Life can
now return to normal. Instead of worldwide repentance at their testimony,
proving nothing has changed for thousands of years with God’s prophets, the world
relishes their death: “They that dwell upon the earth [it says] shall rejoice over them,
and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented
them that dwelt on the earth.” The next three verses show these martyrs are resurrected,
while an earthquake kills 7,000 people in Jerusalem to emphasize who they were.
Verses 12 and13: “They [the nations] heard a great voice from heaven saying to them [the
Witnesses], Come up here. And they ascended…in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them. And
the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the 10th part of the city [Jerusalem]
fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men 7,000: and the remnant were affrighted,
and gave glory to…God.” This earthquake is God punctuating the world’s
failure to permanently destroy these extraordinary servants. Obviously mainly in Jerusalem, it
could still be worldwide in scope. This earthquake precedes and announces the most pivotal event
in human history—Jesus Christ’s Return! Other broadcasts go deep into and all the
way through the book of Revelation. But you will want to read this eye-opening booklet,
Revelation Explained at Last! The Two Witnesses have not yet appeared. Neither
will they arrive in the way popular opinion suggests. Christendom thinks it will embrace
these men. How wrong is this view! I repeat, many people today claim to be the Two Witnesses.
Now think. More—and very powerful—demon-sent and inspired counterfeits will arise. Remember,
the Witnesses are foretold to perform powerful miracles. But Jesus warned of false prophets
just before His Return, who would in many cases perform false miracles. Surely one or
more well-known—higher profile—counterfeits of the Two Witnesses—who would of course
claim to be two prophets—will appear, and probably soon.
It is easy to see how today’s disagreement and confusion is paving the way to their acceptance.
Think how easy it will be to fool the masses whom we have seen are so ignorant of the who,
what, from where and when regarding these final great prophets.
The Bible indicates most will likely believe the Two Witnesses are the Beast and miracle-working
False Prophet, whom an adoring world will worship. And the Beast and False Prophet may
in fact be received by millions as the Two Witnesses! Such will be the power of the devil’s
final deceit. Springing from today’s confusion over the Two Witnesses’ origin, II Thessalonians
2:10 and 11 shows the entire Christian world—and in fact the whole world—is being set up
for mass delusion! But you have been warned, and now know the
truth. Jesus warned, “Watch and pray always that you may be accounted worthy to escape
all these things.” You now also know better what to watch for!
What will you do with this knowledge? Until next time, this is David C. Pack saying,
“Goodbye, friends.”
This program was made available by Restored Church of God members and donors from around
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