VERSE 3
And I will give unto my two
witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred sixty days, clothed
in sackcloth. Martyr Victorinus understands the two witnesses to be Elijah and
Jeremiah, for he says that we nowhere read Jeremiah’s death; but others interpret
it better in thinking that they are Elijah and Enoch. Let us for our part
understand a genus in the species; that is, by the two witnesses let us
understand the Church; and a thousand two hundred forty days are not only the
cycle of the time of the Antichrist, but also that of previous times. It is
appropriate for the Church to be represented by two witnesses, because of the
two Testaments, the two peoples, the two commandments of love, and the two
kinds of martyrdom. By sackcloth we understand confession of humility or the
saints’ brightness despised by the wicked.
VERSE 4
There are the two olive trees,
and the two candlesticks, that stand in the sight of the Lord of the earth.
The Church, whether in those two men or in all preachers in general, is
represented by the olive tree because of the unction of the Holy Spirit,
and by candlesticks because of the light of faith and work. While there
is one olive tree and one candlestick made up of two peoples,
they are called two olive trees and two candlesticks because of
the two Testaments. They stand in the sight of the Lord because they
stick to their Creator through inner contemplation. Hence Elijah, whom this is taken
to refer to specifically, says, The Lord liveth in whose sight I stand. [1
Kings 17:1] With another interpretation this may refer to Elijah and Enoch
specifically, who, taken away form human eyes, stick to God in secret. (Alcuin
of York on Revelation: Commentary and the Questions and Answers (English and
Latin) [trans. Sarah Van Der
Pas; Consolamini Commentary Series; West Monroe, La.: Consolamini Publications,
2016], 140-41)
