Revelation 11:4

Context

This verse is part of the vision given to the apostle John in Revelation 11. In the preceding verse (11:3), God says that he will give power to his "two witnesses," who will prophesy for 1,260 days clothed in sackcloth. This verse explains symbolically who the two witnesses are: "These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth" (Revelation 11:4). The verses that follow describe the two witnesses as having power to devour their enemies with fire, to shut heaven so that it does not rain, and to turn the waters into blood. Afterward the two witnesses are killed by the beast, but after three and a half days they come to life again and ascend to heaven.

The traditional Korean term for "olive tree" in this verse is an older word, and some recent Korean translations use the more familiar modern term instead. The "candlestick" is a lampstand on which lamps were set. The imagery comes from the vision in Zechariah 4, where two olive trees stand on either side of a golden lampstand and are explained as "the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth" (Zechariah 4:14). In the historical context of Zechariah, they are generally understood to refer to the governor Zerubbabel and the high priest Joshua, who led the rebuilding of the temple.

Interpretations

• Symbolic reading: This reading is followed by many commentators in the Reformed tradition. It understands the two witnesses as the whole church bearing witness to the gospel until the end of the age. Its proponents point to Revelation 1:20, where the candlesticks signify churches, and to the requirement in the law that testimony be established by two witnesses (Deuteronomy 19:15). Some also connect Zechariah's royal and priestly symbolism with the church's status as kings and priests (Revelation 1:6).
• Futurist reading: This reading is held by futurist interpreters, including those in dispensationalism. It understands the two witnesses as two individuals who will actually appear at the end of the age. Because the power to shut heaven recalls Elijah and the power to turn water into blood recalls Moses, many identify the witnesses with these two figures. Others identify them as Enoch and Elijah, who were taken to heaven without dying; this view is traditionally traced to some of the early church fathers.
• Readings linked to historical events: Some interpretations connect the passage to the situation in first-century Jerusalem or to particular persons or movements in church history. These readings, however, are not accepted as mainstream views.

Controversies and Issues

This verse has often been used as grounds for applying the titles "two witnesses" or "olive tree" to particular individuals. Park Tae-sun, founder of Cheonbugyo, is widely known to have claimed that he himself was the "olive tree," and the major Korean denominations have declared him a heretic. Shincheonji likewise interprets Revelation as the "reality" fulfilled in the history of its own organization and is known to match figures in Revelation, such as the two witnesses, with specific individuals. These groups claim that their interpretations represent the fulfillment of prophecy. The major denominations and anti-heresy counseling organizations, by contrast, criticize such readings for detaching symbols from their context in order to establish the authority of particular individuals. The development of these judgments is discussed in the article Designation of Heresy.

Related Passages

• Zechariah 4:11-14
• Revelation 11:3
• Revelation 1:20
• Deuteronomy 19:15