The two prophets.....Two witnesses
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The two witnesses ......''These have power to shut heaven, so that no rain falls in the days of their prophecy;and they have power over waters to
turn them to blood, and to strike the earth with all plagues,as often as they desire''(Revelation 11:6)
Conversion of the Jews......
Enoch and Elias(Elijah) will preach in Jerusalem, the Holy city,for three and half years.As a result of their powerful witness, many Jews will turn to
their true Messiah at last.'''Behold, I will send you [Jews]Elijah the prophet before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord. And he
will turn the hearts of the fathers to the children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers.'''(Malachi 4:5,6)
'''And it shall come to pass in that day that the remnant of Israel.....will depend on the Lord, the Holy One of Israel,in truth'''(Isaiah
10:20)
'''Isaiah also cries out concerning Israel:'Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea,the remnant will be
saved''(Romans 9:27 )
The two witnesses clearly speak with prophetic voices -- and the prophets were characterized primarily by their zeal in proclaiming the presence and
expectations of God in the midst of those who often rejected such realities.
As we read in Rev 11:9,10 the world, rebelling against God, rejoiced in the death of the prophets, just as we find in the Old Testament as the
prophets were persecuted because their words and actions threatened their rebellious listeners.
As we continue to read we find that the prophets are raised with the "breath of life" and taken up into heaven in view of their tormenters, causing
great fear among them......
The two witnesses are spoken of in Rev 11:1-14. . -- that the two witnesses represent Elijah and Enoch -- seems to be the commonly held opinion of
many Church Fathers.
The connection here is found in the Old Testament accounts of their being taken up into heaven.
In other places there is found that the two witnesses represent Elijah and Moses, perhaps on the basis of a tradition which states that Moses was
also taken up into heaven or because, in the account of the Transfiguration of Our Lord..... Moses appears with Elijah.
If we take literally the time indicated by Holy Scripture regarding the rule of the beast, the activity of the Antichrist will last for about 3 1/2
years.
It will end with the Second Coming of Christ, the General Resurrection of the Dead, and the Last Judgment (Daniel 7:25; Rev. 11:2-3, 12:13, 13:5).
The Revelation of St. John mentions the appearance of two witnesses, who will proclaim the truth, perform miracles, and, upon completion of their
witness, be killed by the Antichrist.
These witnesses have been foreseen by some Fathers of the Church to be the two righteous of the Old Testament period � the patriarch Enoch (Gen.
5:23) and the prophet Elijah (2 Kings 2:11) � because only these two men did not die but were taken alive to Heaven.
Presumably they will have to return to earth to complete their earthly mission, to suffer for the Word of God and to die as all mortals should.
The Savior warned His disciples: "Take heed to yourselves, lest your hearts be weighed down with carousing, drunkenness, and cares of this life, and
that Day come on you unexpectedly.
For it will come as a snare on all those who dwell on the face of the whole earth" (Lk. 21:34-36).
According to Saint Paul, this will be the time "when people will not endure sound doctrine, but according to their own desires they will choose
teachers who will tell them just what they want to hear.
They will turn their ears away from the truth and go after fables" (2 Tim. 4:3-4).
In other words, close to the end of the world people will become very cynical about Divinely revealed truths and absolute moral values. They will
only listen to what sounds interesting or pleasing. This attitude will promote.....
c) The appearance of many false prophets and false messiahs. These deceiving teachers will entice people to join all kinds of sects and wild cults
catering to the low moral standards of the crowd.
The Lord warns us about the danger of false teachings, saying:
"Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in my name, saying I am Christ; and shall deceive many. Do not follow them. For false christs
and false prophets will rise and show great signs and wonders to deceive, if possible, even the elect. See, I have told you beforehand" (Mt. 24:5,
24; Mrk. 13:6).
The book of Revelation describes some of the striking miracles of the last and ultimate false prophet and promoter of the Antichrist. The Apostle Paul
explains to the Thessalonians that these will be not actual miracles but mere illusions and deceptions of the evil spirits (Rev. 13:13-15, 2 Thes.
2:9).
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