THE AWAKENING OF EPHRAIM
PART 19 — THE TWO WITNESSES AND THE FINAL TESTIMONY
The King Never Sends Judgment Without First Sending a Witness
One of the most debated prophetic subjects in all of Scripture is the identity of the Two Witnesses found in Revelation 11.
Entire books have been written about them.
Countless theories have been proposed.
Some say the Two Witnesses are symbolic.
Others insist they are literal.
Some claim they are Moses and Elijah.
Others claim they are Enoch and Elijah.
Some teach they represent the Old Testament and New Testament.
Others teach they represent the Law and the Prophets.
Still others claim they represent Israel and the Church.
The reality is that much of the debate comes from trying to force Scripture into a single layer of interpretation when Scripture often operates on multiple layers simultaneously.
One of the greatest mistakes we can make is assuming a prophecy must be either symbolic or literal.
Scripture repeatedly demonstrates that prophetic patterns often have both physical and spiritual dimensions.
The Exodus was physical.
The Exodus was also prophetic.
The Temple was physical.
The Temple was also prophetic.
Jerusalem is physical.
Jerusalem is also prophetic.
Babylon was physical.
Babylon is also prophetic.
The same principle appears throughout Scripture.
This is why the discussion surrounding the Two Witnesses should begin with a different question.
Before asking who they are, perhaps we should ask why they exist.
The answer to that question is much clearer.
The King never sends judgment without first sending a witness.
This pattern appears throughout the entire Bible.
Before the Flood came Noah.
Before judgment came a witness.
Before Sodom was destroyed came a witness.
Before Egypt was judged came Moses and Aaron.
Before Israel was judged came the prophets.
Before Judah was judged came the prophets.
Before Nineveh was judged came Jonah.
Before Jerusalem was destroyed came Jeremiah.
Before the first coming of Messiah came John the Immerser.
Before the Day of Yahuah comes a witness.
Again and again the pattern remains consistent.
Warning precedes judgment.
Witness precedes judgment.
Mercy precedes judgment.
The Two Witnesses therefore fit an established biblical pattern.
They are not an anomaly.
They are the continuation of a pattern established from the beginning.
Yahuah always provides testimony before accountability.
He always provides warning before judgment.
He always provides opportunity for repentance before consequences arrive.
This is why the concept of two witnesses is so important throughout Scripture.
Torah repeatedly establishes that a matter is confirmed by two or three witnesses.
A single witness is insufficient.
A matter is established through testimony.
The principle appears repeatedly throughout Torah.
Repeatedly throughout the Prophets.
Repeatedly throughout the Apostolic Witnesses.
Even Yahusha speaks of witnesses.
Even Paul speaks of witnesses.
Even Revelation speaks of witnesses.
The Kingdom itself operates upon witness and testimony.
This is where many people immediately focus on the final literal fulfillment.
And rightly so.
Revelation describes two specific witnesses who prophesy during the final period before judgment falls.
The text is very clear.
These witnesses possess authority.
These witnesses proclaim truth.
These witnesses confront rebellion.
These witnesses stand in opposition to the kingdoms of men.
These witnesses stand in opposition to the systems of Babylon.
These witnesses stand in opposition to the spirit of the age.
Eventually they are killed.
Eventually they are vindicated.
Eventually they are raised.
Eventually they become a testimony to the nations.
The text clearly points toward a literal fulfillment.
Yet that does not mean the symbolism should be ignored.
Scripture itself often layers prophetic meaning.
The Two Witnesses are called olive trees.
The Two Witnesses are called lampstands.
Both images carry enormous prophetic significance.
The olive tree appears throughout Scripture as a symbol of covenant life.
The lampstand appears throughout Scripture as a symbol of testimony.
Witness.
Light.
Truth.
Proclamation.
These themes are inseparable from the mission of the Kingdom.
This is where Zechariah becomes critically important.
Revelation 11 does not exist in a vacuum.
The imagery comes directly from Zechariah 4.
There we find the two olive trees.
There we find the lampstand.
There we find the oil flowing continuously.
There we find the testimony of Elohim operating through those He has appointed.
The prophet asks what these things mean.
The answer points toward those standing before Yahuah and serving His purpose.
Revelation reaches back into Zechariah and brings that prophetic imagery forward into the final days.
This is why the olive trees and lampstands cannot be dismissed as decorative language.
They carry prophetic meaning.
They carry covenant meaning.
They carry Kingdom meaning.
The olive tree speaks of covenant life.
The lampstand speaks of covenant witness.
The oil speaks of the Ruach.
The light speaks of truth.
The testimony speaks of the Kingdom.
All of these elements come together in the mission of the Two Witnesses.
This is also why many students of prophecy see connections reaching beyond two individuals.
Not replacing the literal fulfillment.
Expanding our understanding of the prophetic picture.
The House of Judah has carried witness.
The House of Israel has carried witness.
Though divided, both houses remain part of the covenant story.
Though scattered, both houses remain part of the prophetic story.
Though broken, both houses remain part of the restoration story.
Ezekiel saw two sticks.
Judah.
Ephraim.
Two becoming one.
The restoration of both houses becomes a testimony to the faithfulness of Elohim.
The regathering becomes a testimony.
The awakening becomes a testimony.
The restoration becomes a testimony.
The Kingdom itself becomes a testimony.
This is one reason many see a broader witness function connected to the restoration of Israel.
The scattered carry testimony.
The remnant carries testimony.
The watchmen carry testimony.
The covenant people carry testimony.
The Gospel of the Kingdom is itself a testimony.
The awakening of Ephraim is a testimony.
The restoration of Judah is a testimony.
The regathering of Israel is a testimony.
All of it points toward the King.
All of it points toward the Kingdom.
All of it points toward restoration.
One of the things often overlooked is that Yahuah intentionally scattered His people among the nations.
The scattering was not accidental.
The scattering was not a failure of prophecy.
The scattering was prophecy.
The same Elohim who scattered them promised He would gather them.
The same Elohim who dispersed them promised He would restore them.
The same Elohim who hid them among the nations promised He would call them forth again.
Why scatter witnesses throughout the earth?
Because the Gospel of the Kingdom must go to the ends of the earth.
The scattered carried fragments of covenant knowledge into the nations.
The scattered carried testimony into the nations.
The scattered became positioned among the nations.
Then, in the appointed time, the awakening began.
The dry bones began to move.
The scattered began to hear.
The remnant began to awaken.
The Gospel of the Kingdom began spreading through the same lands where the scattered had been hidden.
What once appeared to be judgment becomes part of restoration.
What once appeared to be exile becomes part of proclamation.
What once appeared to be loss becomes part of Kingdom purpose.
This is why the witness theme runs throughout the entire restoration story.
Witness precedes restoration.
Witness precedes judgment.
Witness precedes the Kingdom.
Witness precedes the return of the King.
This also connects directly to the Greater Exodus.
Before Israel left Egypt there was a witness.
Before Pharaoh was judged there was a witness.
Before the plagues fell there was a witness.
Before deliverance came there was a witness.
The pattern remains unchanged.
The second and greater Exodus will follow the same pattern.
The call to come out must be proclaimed.
The warning must be proclaimed.
The Gospel of the Kingdom must be proclaimed.
The remnant must be called.
The scattered must be awakened.
The nations must hear.
The witness comes before the deliverance.
The witness comes before the gathering.
The witness comes before the Kingdom.
This is why the Two Witnesses cannot be separated from the Gospel of the Kingdom.
Their message is not random.
Their message is not merely prediction.
Their message is not entertainment.
Their message is repentance.
Their message is covenant.
Their message is warning.
Their message is preparation.
Their message is restoration.
Their message is the Kingdom.
Every true prophet ultimately points people back to Yahuah.
Every true witness ultimately points people back to covenant.
Every true messenger ultimately points people back to obedience.
Every true witness ultimately points people back to the King.
This is exactly what we see throughout Scripture.
The prophets pointed back to covenant.
John pointed back to repentance.
Yahusha pointed to the Kingdom.
The apostles pointed to Messiah.
The watchmen point toward preparation.
The witnesses point toward the coming King.
The message never changes.
The methods may change.
The messengers may change.
The circumstances may change.
The message remains the same.
Repent.
Return.
Prepare.
The King is coming.
One of the most important lessons we learn from the Two Witnesses is that truth is not measured by popularity.
The witnesses stand virtually alone.
The prophets often stood virtually alone.
Noah stood virtually alone.
Jeremiah stood virtually alone.
Micaiah stood virtually alone.
John stood virtually alone.
Yahusha stood against the religious establishment of His day.
The apostles stood against the systems of their day.
Truth has never depended upon majority opinion.
Truth depends upon the Word of Elohim.
This becomes increasingly important as we approach the end of the age.
Deception increases.
Lawlessness increases.
Compromise increases.
Yet the witness remains.
The testimony remains.
The truth remains.
The Gospel remains.
The Kingdom remains.
This is why the final witness is so important.
Before the Day of Yahuah comes testimony.
Before judgment comes warning.
Before wrath comes mercy.
Before accountability comes opportunity.
The Two Witnesses stand as one final demonstration of the patience of Elohim.
One final call.
One final warning.
One final invitation.
One final testimony before the nations.
Yet their message is not isolated from everything that came before.
Their message stands upon Torah.
Their message stands upon the Prophets.
Their message stands upon the Writings.
Their message stands upon the Apostolic Witnesses.
Their message stands upon the Gospel of the Kingdom.
Their message stands upon the restoration of Israel.
Their message stands upon the promises of Elohim.
The Two Witnesses therefore represent more than an end-time event.
They represent the culmination of a pattern that has existed from the beginning.
The King always sends a witness.
The King always sends a warning.
The King always sends a testimony.
The King always calls people to repentance before judgment falls.
And in the final days before the Kingdom is fully established, the testimony will once again go forth.
The warning will once again go forth.
The Gospel of the Kingdom will once again go forth.
The nations will once again hear.
The remnant will once again respond.
The watchmen will once again sound the alarm.
The scattered will continue awakening.
The gathering will continue advancing.
The restoration will continue unfolding.
The greater Exodus will continue approaching.
And the final witness will prepare the world for the return of the King.
Greg Witter | Ephraim’s Cry Hebraic Mindset Study Series
Study • Learn • Apply • Grow • Share • Repeat
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