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Pt. 16 TWO ANOINTED WITNESSES: Arrival in Jerusalem to
Restrain Antichrist's Abominable Act
The prophet Malachi declared, “I will send My
messenger [Elijah], who will prepare the way before Me [for 1,260 days]. Then
suddenly [just after the 1,260 days are completed] the LORD you are seeking will
come to His Temple area [in Jerusalem]; the Messenger [Archangel Michael,
Jehovah Sabaoth] of the Covenant [Ten Commandments at Mt. Sinai], whom you
desire, will come [bringing with Him the wrath of God and the Great
Tribulation],” says the LORD Almighty. But who can endure the day of His coming?
Who can stand when He appears? So I will come near to you for judgment. I will
be quick,” (3:1-2, 5).
Malachi 4:5 clarifies, “I will send you the prophet
Elijah before the great and dreadful Day of the LORD comes.” It is evident that
Elijah’s ministry of warning immediately precedes the Day of the LORD.
Once his ministry is completed, the Day of the LORD will come suddenly when
Messiah ben David will descend to Jerusalem and cleanse it of the abomination,
which will have just been set up.
In Paul’s day, there was a misconception in the
church at Thessalonica that the “Day of the LORD” had “already come,” (2
Thessalonians 2:1-10). Paul clarified the Day of the LORD will not come “until
the rebellion occurs and the man of lawlessness [Antichrist] is revealed [in the
Temple], the man doomed to destruction. He will oppose and will exalt himself
over everything that is called God or is worshiped, and even sets himself up in
God’s Temple [in Jerusalem], proclaiming himself to be God.”
The modern misconception that the Day of the LORD
comes at the beginning of a seven year tribulation flies in the face of this
clear statement. Not until Antichrist is found in the Temple in Jerusalem can
or will the Day of the LORD begin. Furthermore, the entrance of Antichrist into
the Jerusalem Temple is the prophetic sign that warns the Day of the
LORD is at hand, when Messiah will descend promptly in His righteous anger
to clear out the Temple just as He did 2,000 years ago when the Temple was being
desecrated by the money changers.
The members at the Thessalonica church were privy to
Paul’s views surrounding the Day of the LORD, and he clearly believed they were
living in the last days. He wrote, “Now you know [although the modern student
speculates] what is holding him [Antichrist] back, so that he may be revealed at
the proper time. For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work
[although Antichrist would not be revealed for nearly 2,000 years]; but the one
[Spirit through His anointed witness] who now holds it back will continue to do
so till he [the anointed one] is taken out of the way [killed; eliminated—Point
17]. And then the lawless one will be revealed [in the Temple], whom the LORD
Jesus will [quickly] overthrow with the breath of His mouth and destroy by the
splendor of His coming,” (2 Thessalonians 2:6-8).
Many who are not following the Word will be deceived
by Antichrist, while others abandon the faith. Paul warned in his letter to
Timothy concerning the apostasy that will come: “The Spirit clearly says that in
later times some will abandon the faith and follow deceiving spirits [demonic
apparitions; false visions] and things taught by demons. Such teachings come
through hypocritical liars, whose consciences have been seared as with a hot
iron,” (1 Timothy 4:1-2).
God’s plan for the end of the ages has been
revealed, over the course of time, by the written words of His prophets. In the
prophecies of Malachi (3:1-2; 4:5-6), Heaven promises to send Elijah to warn.
In the book of Revelation, a second voice is added, giving two voices of warning
just before the Day of the LORD comes,
for “a matter must be established by the testimony of two or three witnesses,”
(Deuteronomy 19:15). “I will give power unto my two witnesses [Moses and
Elijah], and they will prophesy for 1,260 days, clothed in sackcloth. These are
the two olive trees and the two lampstands [the “two anointed ones, that stand
by the LORD of the whole earth,” Zechariah 4:2-14]. If anyone tries to harm
them, fire comes from their mouths and devours their enemies [for they will, of
necessity, be invincible until their ministry is completed],” (Revelation
11:3-4).
The final week (7 days) that comprise the 490 day
prophecy comes into focus in our study, leading to the eighth day (Yom Kippur)
and God’s eternal rule. “Know and understand this: From the issuing of the
decree to restore and rebuild Jerusalem (Point 13) until the Anointed One
[literally, “an anointed one”—Elijah], the ruler [powerful ruler over enemies
and nature—Revelation 11:3-6], comes [to Jerusalem] (Point 16), there will be
seven ‘sevens [49 days]’” and sixty-two ‘sevens [434 days]’” (Daniel 9:25). At
this point the final seven (7) days commence. For the three and one-half (3 ½)
days that remain of his life, Elijah (with Moses) will hold back Antichrist’s
abominable act, even against worldwide public opinion. The testimony of Jesus
Christ and His written Word will be pointed to as evidence of Jerusalem’s
folly. However, their final warning to Jerusalem and world leaders will be
disregarded, even hated. The witnesses will at last pay the price with their
very lives (Point 17), to the delight of faithless Jews, Christians and Muslims
alike, and the many peoples, races and religions of the world. Yet, their
celebration will be short-lived.
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