Friday, February 14, 2020

The Two Witnesses of Revelation 11: Merely Symbolic or Two Real Future Prophets?


In Rev 11, we read of two prophets who will preach the gospel and be killed in Jerusalem, only to be resurrected as vindication of their message. There are some (mainly proponents of amillennial eschatology) who argue that these are not two literal prophets, but are symbolic merely. For example, Catholic apologist Robert Sungenis wrote:

There is one thing we need to make clear. Because of John’s symbolic context, his use of the designation “my two witnesses” who prophesy for the 1260 days does not refer to two individuals . . . The number “two” is of symbolic import because it represents the preaching of the Gospel in its legal framework. For example, Jesus sent out the seventy disciples “two by two” (Lk 10:1). St. Paul said that he wanted to visit with the Corinthians “three” times because of the Old Testament principle that “every fact is confirmed by two or three witnesses” (2Co 13:1) (see also Dt 17:6, 15, 19; 1Tm 5:19; Hb 6:18; 10:28; 1Co 14:29; Jn 5:37; 8:18). (Robert A. Sungenis, The Apocalypse of St. John [The Catholic Apologetics Study Bible II; Goleta, Calif.: Queenship Publishing, 2007], 207, 208-9)

Responding to the symbolic interpretation, J. Dwight Pentecost wrote:

There are several objections to these views. (1) While it is recognized that Revelation does employ symbols, it seems a mistake to take all that is revealed there as symbolic. The word “signify” in Revelation 1:1 does not primarily mean “to make known by symbols” but rather refers to an historical fact that has some spiritual significance to it. The seven “signs” in John’s Gospel were not mere symbols, but actual historical events to which spiritual significance was attached. The use of “signify” would not give warrant for a non-literal interpretation here. Consistency to the literal method demands that that which is revealed be understood literally unless the text clearly indicates otherwise as it does for instance, in Revelation 12:3, 9. (2) Since the other numbers in this passage are taken literally, this number two must be taken literally also. The forty and two months (11:2), the thousand two hundred and threescore days (11:3), are taken in a literal manner so as to be understood to describe one-half of the seventieth week period. There seems to be no reason not to take the three and one-half (11:9, 11) literally. Thus, since the other numbers are not spiritualized the number two should not be either. (3) The witnesses all perish at one point of time (11:7) so that their testimony ceases. We know that the believing remnant, although decimated by the activities of the Beast, will continue throughout the period unto the coming of the Lord. The continuing witness seems to argue against identifying them with the remnant. (4) As long as a portion of the remnant continues there would be no cause for rejoicing (11:10). The rejoicing comes because this particular witness has terminated. Thus the conclusion is that this does not refer to the believing witnessing remnant, but rather to two literal individuals, who have been specially set apart by God, called “my two witnesses” (11:3). As the two olive trees of Zechariah had reference to Zerubbabel and Joshua, so the two olive trees (11:4) denote two literal individuals. Their miracles, their ministry, their ascension all seem to identify them as individual men. (J. Dwight Pentecost, Things to Come: A Study in Biblical Eschatology [Grand Rapids, Mich.: Eerdmans, 1964], 305)