Bob Josey: The Two Witnesses (Part 3) and The 144,000 (Part 1)

Post date: Oct 13, 2019 10:52:23 PM

A. Their Resurrection and Ascension (Revelation 11:11-12)

11:11-12 – The rejoicing and celebration over the death of the two witnesses will abruptly come to an end after 3½ days. As God poured breath into Adam and Eve and into Lazareth, God now is pouring breath into the two witnesses. Pouring breath into someone represents giving them life. When life returned to them, they stood on their feet. Many in the world probably continued to observe the dead men in the street of Jerusalem several times a day to remind them of the great victory over them just as individuals would continue to watch a great performance of some kind or a sporting event. Many in the world will watch the corpses as they come back to life. They probably will call their friends and relatives to make sure they are watching as well. The result of these resurrection miracles of the two witnesses will bring great fear upon those who will watch them come back to life. They will be frightened to their core.

To add to the fear and freight, the two men will be summoned to heaven by a loud

voice from heaven that not only the two witnesses will hear but everyone who will

be watching. Who is the voice? Probably Jesus! 1 Thess. 4: 16 says, “ For the Lord

Himself will descend from heaven with a shout…” when the church is raptured.

Jesus ascended in a cloud in Acts 1:9 Their ascension will also be similar to that of

Elijah in 2 Kings 2:11.

11:13 – The judgement of God on the wicked city of Jerusalem will come in the form of a great earthquake. The Greek words for great earthquake are megas seismos. Approximately ten percent of the people in Jerusalem will die as a result of the earthquake. As we find many times in Scripture, number are rounded off. This is probably the case in this verse as well. In any case, approximately seven thousand out of seventy thousand will die because of the earthquake.

The remaining approximate 63,000 people who will experience this great earthquake and not die will be terrified. They will be so startled and in a state of fear from what they will observe and experience, that they will give glory to God. Will this be a real change of heart or will it be just words they will say because they were freighted and had a response that most men and women have after an earthquake? We cannot be sure from the context but there may be some clues elsewhere in Scripture.

Probably all of us at one time of another have been in a state of fear or great anxiety and as a result we made promises to the Lord that if He would get us out of the mess that we were in that we would give more, go the church more, help people more, etc. After the situation the fear and anxiety disappeared, we went back to our old lifestyle and did not keep out promises to the Lord.

Let’s look at some of the clues in Scripture to see if we can make a determination if this will be truly referential fear concerning God that will lead to true repentance and salvation or will it be just man’s fear after an earthquake. In Revelation 14:6-7 John wrote, “And I saw another angel flying in midheaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth, and to every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, "Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters." Later in Revelation 16:9 when the fourth vile will be poured out on the earth John wrote. “Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.” In our Passage in Revelation 11 there is a positive declaration from John that the remnant gave glory to God. It may just be that their word will be a true expression of the heart and true repentance that will be acceptable to God.

Application for Today

  • Even though believers are protected spiritually, we are still vulnerable to persecution and death.

  • Believers are called to be active and passive witness and ambassadors for the Lord.

  • Unbelievers will often react with hostility to a believer’s beliefs, witness, and lifestyle.

  • God promises to raise believers one day from the dead, reversing their temporary defeat at the hands of death at the Rapture.

  • Believers possesses tremendous power and authority from the Lord to carry out the mission He has given to each us.

The ministry of the two witnesses can be summed up this way for us today: God calls His’ people to be faithful witnesses, at times leading to hostility from the world but will ultimately result in vindication by God.

Selah!

6. The Role of the 144,000 During the Tribulation (Revelation 7:4-8; 14:1-4)

Introduction

We have just completed the study of the role of the two witnesses and prophets during the first half of the Tribulation period found in Revelation 11. They ministered for the Lord for 1260 days without harm as the Lord promised. After 1260 days their ministry was complete. Then the Lord allowed the Antichrist to attack them, defeat them, and kill them. Their bodies laid on one of the streets in Jerusalem for 3½ days as the world mocked them, gloated over them, and celebrated their deaths. After 3½ days the Lord resurrected them and called them to heaven. Then Lord sent a great earthquake that killed approximately 7,000 people out to 70,000 people in Jerusalem. The approximate 63,000 people who survived were terrified and as a result gave glory to God. It appears that they became true believes in the Lord.

144,000 Sealed Jewish Men (7:4-8; 14:1-4)

A. Their Selection (Revelation 7:4-8)

7:4-8 – The two men in Revelation 11 will be chosen by the Lord to be His’ witnesses upon the earth during the first half of Tribulation period. The 144,000 Jewish men will also be chosen by the Lord during the entire seven years of the Tribulation period. We know that they are men because many of the Greek words describing or modifying them are masculine. Also, in Revelation 14:4 John revealed that they were not defiled by women.

The 144,000 men will be chosen from the 12 tribes of the sons of Israel. As a matter of fact, twelve thousand men will be chosen from each tribe. Being selected from the twelve tribes is significant for several reasons. One, it shows that they are Jewish and that God is now dealing with national Israel again. Israel in the Old Testament was to be a light to the world and was supposed to be His’ witness to the Gentile nations. (Isaiah 42:6; 43:10) But they did not fulfill their task. After rejecting the Messiah, the Lord sent them into the diaspora for 1900 years and raised up the church to what Israel did not do – to be God’s witnesses and His’ representatives on the earth. Two, the fact that God is dealing with national Israel again by raising them us as His’ bond-servants in place of the church indicates another reason why the church is no longer on the earth. The twelve tribes demonstrate the completeness and the unity as the nation on which the Lord is focusing.

The church and Israel are two distinct and mutually exclusive entities in God’s plan for the ages. Israel is made up of Jews and Gentiles who convert to Judaism. One is either born a Jew or either converts. The church on the other hand is made up of made up of only people who have trusted in Jesus as their Savior resulting in becoming part of the Body of Christ. The church is not a building but saved individuals who meet in a building. On many of the Church of Christ marquees and signs it says, “The Church of Christ meets here.” Ephesians 2 distinguishes the church from Israel saying that the church is a new entity in God’s plan and that Jew and Gentile are equal in the body of Christ. This was not the case for the nation for Israel in the Old Testament. Therefore, nowhere in Scripture is the church called Israel or Israel the church. J.A Seiss, a biblical scholar of the 19th century, made an accurate and profound statement in his’ book on Revelation called The Apocalypse. He said that there is no error “which so beclouds (to confused or muddle) the Scriptures, and so unsettles the faith of men, as this constant attempt to read Church for Israel, and Christian peoples for Jewish tribes.” This nonsense continues today. The terms Israel and the church are not synonymous and cannot be exchanged for one another. The church is not spiritual Israel.

The 144,00 Jewish men will be sealed for some type of ministry. In verses 1-3 in this same chapter we find that five angels will seal them. What does it mean to be sealed? The word sealing has several different meanings. One use of the word is when a seal is put on documents such as wills, deeds, bills of sale, etc. to serve as a signature. An impression was made in clay or wax with a signet ring. Another use of the word means to seal up something such as a cave with a large stone or a box with its lid. The meaning that happens to be relevant to our study today about the 144,000 being sealed is when an owner puts a brand or mark on an animal or a slave to help protect his’ property against theft. It is a seal of ownership and promised protection.

The seal or mark will be imprinted on the foreheads of the 144,000. In verse 4 it is called “the seal of the living God.” It means that the 144,000 belong to God and they will be protected and spared from the judgements in the Tribulation period. John tells us further in Revelation 14:1 that what is imprinted on the foreheads of the 144,000 is Jesus’ name and the Father’s name. This special mark will distinguish the 144,000 believers from the unbelievers who will take the mark of the Beast, the Antichrist, on their right hands or foreheads. The question will have to answer is, “For what reason are these 144,000 Jewish men sealed?” I will try to answer that question a little later.