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Revelation 11
6 These have the power to shut up the sky, that it may not rain during the days of their prophecy. They have power over the waters, to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.
to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire
I saw another great and marvelous sign in the sky: seven angels having the seven last plagues, for in them God's wrath is finished. (Revelation 15:1)
Therefore in one day her plagues will come: death, mourning, and famine; and she will be utterly burned with fire; for the Lord God who has judged her is strong. (Revelation 18:8)
So the people sent to Shiloh; and they brought from there the ark of the covenant of Yahweh of Armies, who sits above the cherubim: and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were there with the ark of the covenant of God. When the ark of the covenant of Yahweh came into the camp, all Israel shouted with a great shout, so that the earth rang again. When the Philistines heard the noise of the shout, they said, What means the noise of this great shout in the camp of the Hebrews? They understood that the ark of Yahweh was come into the camp. The Philistines were afraid, for they said, God is come into the camp. They said, Woe to us! for there has not been such a thing heretofore. Woe to us! who shall deliver us out of the hand of these mighty gods? these are the gods that struck the Egyptians with all manner of plagues in the wilderness. Be strong, and behave yourselves like men, O you Philistines, that you not be servants to the Hebrews, as they have been to you: quit yourselves like men, and fight. The Philistines fought, and Israel was struck, and they fled every man to his tent: and there was a very great slaughter; for there fell of Israel thirty thousand footmen. The ark of God was taken; and the two sons of Eli, Hophni and Phinehas, were slain. (1 Samuel 4:4-11)
There is an eerie resemblance here to the two witnesses being killed in the next verse. Note that the ark of God, though powerful to intimidate the enemies of God's people, did not save them from defeat as they had presumed. This is a strong warning to us today to pay attention to what we are trusting to save us from our enemies. We can easily fall into the same trap of putting our trust in the symbols and forms of religion while failing to plant our roots deep in the heart of God's secure love. It is not enough to be the called and chosen people of God. The two witnesses here might in some ways parallel these sons of Eli the high priest, but that close relationship did not make them qualified as priests to represent properly the God of Israel.
Behold, the day, behold, it comes: your doom is gone forth; the rod has blossomed, pride has budded. Violence is risen up into a rod of wickedness; none of them shall remain, nor of their multitude, nor of their wealth: neither shall there be eminency among them. The time is come, the day draws near: don't let the buyer rejoice, nor the seller mourn; for wrath is on all the multitude of it. For the seller shall not return to that which is sold, although they be yet alive: for the vision is touching the whole multitude of it, none shall return; neither shall any strengthen himself in the iniquity of his life. They have blown the trumpet, and have made all ready; but none goes to the battle; for my wrath is on all the multitude of it. The sword is outside, and the pestilence and the famine within: he who is in the field shall die with the sword: and he who is in the city, famine and pestilence shall devour him. But those of those who escape shall escape, and shall be on the mountains like doves of the valleys, all of them moaning, every one in his iniquity. All hands shall be feeble, and all knees shall be weak as water. They shall also gird themselves with sackcloth, and horror shall cover them; and shame shall be on all faces, and baldness on all their heads. They shall cast their silver in the streets, and their gold shall be as an unclean thing; their silver and their gold shall not be able to deliver them in the day of the wrath of Yahweh: they shall not satisfy their souls, neither fill their bowels; because it has been the stumbling block of their iniquity.
Mischief shall come on mischief, and rumor shall be on rumor; and they shall seek a vision of the prophet; but the law shall perish from the priest, and counsel from the elders. (Ezekiel 7:10-19, 26)
as often as they desire
Moses answered, "But, behold, they will not believe me, nor listen to my voice; for they will say, 'Yahweh has not appeared to you.'" Yahweh said to him, "What is that in your hand?" He said, "A rod." He said, "Throw it on the ground." He threw it on the ground, and it became a snake; and Moses ran away from it. Yahweh said to Moses, "Put forth your hand, and take it by the tail." He put forth his hand, and laid hold of it, and it became a rod in his hand. "That they may believe that Yahweh, the God of their fathers, the God of Abraham, the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob, has appeared to you." (Exodus 4:1-5)
Now therefore go, and I will be with your mouth, and teach you what you shall speak." He said, "Oh, Lord, please send someone else." The anger of Yahweh was kindled against Moses, and he said, "What about Aaron, your brother, the Levite? I know that he can speak well. Also, behold, he comes forth to meet you. When he sees you, he will be glad in his heart. You shall speak to him, and put the words in his mouth. I will be with your mouth, and with his mouth, and will teach you what you shall do. He will be your spokesman to the people; and it will happen, that he will be to you a mouth, and you will be to him as God. You shall take this rod in your hand, with which you shall do the signs." (Exodus 4:12-17)
Moses took his wife and his sons, and set them on a donkey, and he returned to the land of Egypt. Moses took God's rod in his hand. Yahweh said to Moses, "When you go back into Egypt, see that you do before Pharaoh all the wonders which I have put in your hand, but I will harden his heart and he will not let the people go. (Exodus 4:20-21)
There has not arisen a prophet since in Israel like Moses, whom Yahweh knew face to face, in all the signs and the wonders, which Yahweh sent him to do in the land of Egypt, to Pharaoh, and to all his servants, and to all his land, and in all the mighty hand, and in all the great terror, which Moses worked in the sight of all Israel. (Deuteronomy 34:10-12)
Again he sent the captain of a third fifty with his fifty. The third captain of fifty went up, and came and fell on his knees before Elijah, and begged him, and said to him, man of God, please let my life, and the life of these fifty your servants, be precious in your sight. Behold, fire came down from the sky, and consumed the two former captains of fifty with their fifties; but now let my life be precious in your sight. (2 Kings 1:13-14)
Moses carried with him what came to be known as the rod of God by which he worked mighty miracles and inflicted terrible plagues on Egypt. Elijah was gifted with powers over fire which he used both to prove that God was on his side as well as to incinerate soldiers sent to arrest him. But it is a mistake to assume that because men called and gifted by God throughout history used their God-given gifts in various ways, they their example is what we must believe was an accurate expression of God's ways, methods and motives. Gifting is not the same as accuracy of testimony. This is very difficult for many to accept, yet it is vital that we come to appreciate this distinction, particularly in these last days when the closing events of history begin to unfold dramatically.
He called to himself his twelve disciples, and gave them authority over unclean spirits, to cast them out, and to heal every disease and every sickness.
Heal the sick, cleanse the lepers, and cast out demons. Freely you received, so freely give.
Whoever doesn't receive you, nor hear your words, as you go out of that house or that city, shake off the dust from your feet. Most certainly I tell you, it will be more tolerable for the land of Sodom and Gomorrah in the day of judgment than for that city. (Matthew 10:1,8,14-15)
From the days of John the Baptizer until now, the Kingdom of Heaven suffers violence, and the violent take it by force. For all the prophets and the law prophesied until John. If you are willing to receive it, this is Elijah, who is to come. He who has ears to hear, let him hear. (Matthew 11:12-15)
I will give to you the keys of the Kingdom of Heaven, and whatever you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven; and whatever you release on earth will have been released in heaven.
(Matthew 16:19)
Most certainly I tell you, whatever things you bind on earth will have been bound in heaven, and whatever things you release on earth will have been released in heaven. (Matthew 18:18)
The disciples of Jesus were prone, like Moses and Elijah, to misconstrue the purpose of authority and gifted powers. Note carefully the warning of Jesus upon their return from one of these missions.
The seventy returned with joy, saying, "Lord, even the demons are subject to us in your name!" He said to them, "I saw Satan having fallen like lightning from heaven. Behold, I give you authority to tread on serpents and scorpions, and over all the power of the enemy. Nothing will in any way hurt you. Nevertheless, don't rejoice in this, that the spirits are subject to you, but rejoice that your names are written in heaven." (Luke 10:17-20)
What I find emerging from all of these passages is a contrast between the dark views of God we inherited from the enemy in sharp contrast with the true view brought to light by the only reliable witness, the one and only Son of God who became also the Son of Man. By identifying fully with us in our dilemma brought on by lies that lead us into distrust of God's heart, the counteracting truth brought to light by Jesus sets us free from the power of sin and death, because Jesus absorbed all the power of the enemy and neutralized it by His death. Jesus took all our sin and buried it with Him in the grave, leaving it there forever when He raised us up in Him with a new identity in Christ by which we have direct access to the Father of lights where death loses all its power over us.
The compelling evidence provided for this new reality is the literal blood of Jesus, mentioned only twice in Scripture. In both instances that blood proves the same message, that Jesus absorbed the full impact of sin in every human being, taking full ownership and responsibility for every one of us so that we might choose to embrace the reality that we are now in Christ. Our part is to allow His Spirit to transform us into the same image and likeness that He perfected as a human mirror of God's heart.
The witness of the Spirit, the water and the blood of Christ are all in perfect agreement. And this witness is all about God's disposition and feelings towards each one of us. Our problem that is resolved by the death of Christ must never be mistaken to be a legal conundrum that requires a legal expiation as the enemy of truth has made it out to be. God is not the ultimate law-enforcer of the universe but rather the ultimate lover who can never be seduced or antagonized into lessening His love towards us in the slightest. His mercy endures forever and there is no stopping it. Likewise His forgiveness is too.
The testimony of these two witnesses falls far short of this stunning revelation of God's heart towards sinners. Their view of relating to God is along the lines of the reward punishment system that so permeates our thinking all throughout history. But Jesus comes to expose that this system is woefully inadequate to salvage the human heart and restore it fully to trust and rest in the love of God. So He gives a new commandment to replace the original command to love our neighbor as we love ourselves, for that failed to happen because we could not love ourselves properly. Until we know we are loved it is impossible to love ourselves. And until we love ourselves according to the measure of love by which we are loved by God, it will be impossible to love those around us. Thus Jesus gives a new command, a new orientation, a new angle by which our human mirrors of the soul may find freedom in love.
If you keep my commandments, you will remain in my love; even as I have kept my Father's commandments, and remain in his love. I have spoken these things to you, that my joy may remain in you, and that your joy may be made full. This is my commandment, that you love one another, even as I have loved you. (John 15:10-12)
We love Him, because he first loved us. (1 John 4:19)
No amount of threatened or inflicted punishments can ever accomplish what receiving and resting in God's love for us will produce. These witnesses exhaust the old ways of relating to God as they use violence, force and plagues to try to defend themselves and achieve what they believe is God's will for the world. But that old system of thinking about God must come to an end and be put to death. And this is just what happens in the symbols of these two witnesses as we shall soon see.
