Two prophets, called the Two Olive Trees, appear in chapter eleven of the Book of Revelation. Many have desired to understand these Two Olive Trees and have asked:
Who are the Two Olive Trees?
What is God’s purpose for the Two Olive Trees?
Are the Two Olive Trees on earth today?
Who kills the Two Olive Trees?
What is the world’s reaction to the Two Olive Trees being killed?
Why should this matter to me?
In order to answer these questions we will use the premise that we today are to learn from Israel’s past, as written in Scripture: “Now these things happened to them as an example, and they were written for our instruction, upon whom the ends of the ages have come” (1Corinthians 10:11).
Who are the Two Olive Trees?
The Two Olive Trees are two witnesses who belong to Christ Jesus and who live upon the earth during the last generation of this age. They are only mentioned twice in Scripture. In Revelation 11:4 we are told that they are the two lampstands that stand before Christ Jesus, the Lord of the earth, which is exactly the same description given the Two Olive Trees in Zechariah 4:1-14.
Scripture defines a green olive tree as a member of the house of God who unwaveringly puts his or her trust in God forever and ever: “But as for me, I am like a green olive tree in the house of God; I trust in the lovingkindness of God forever and ever [only those who obey Christ Jesus will live in the house of God forever. Therefore, a green olive tree is anyone, Jew or Gentile, who belongs to Christ Jesus]” (Psalms 52:8). “Listen to My voice [the Word of God] and do all which I command you [which is the same as saying, walk blamelessly before Me (Genesis 17:1-2)]; so you shall be My people and I will be your God, in order to confirm the oath [Genesis 17:1-2, 7-9] which I swore to your forefathers [Abraham and Christ Jesus], to give them a land flowing with milk and honey as it is this day. … The Lord called your name, a green olive tree, beautiful in fruit [righteousness] and form [having the exact nature and character of Christ Jesus]” (Jeremiah 11:4-5, 16). [Brackets contain the author’s emphasis].
Only those belonging to Christ Jesus are empowered to walk blamelessly before Him, for it is written, “Those who belong to Christ have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” (Galatians 5:24). Furthermore, as seen in the Book of Zechariah 4:11-14, the Two Olive Trees “… are the two anointed ones who are standing by the Lord [Christ Jesus] of the whole earth.” Thus, the Two Olive Trees will have crucified their flesh with its passions and desires, enabling them to walk blamelessly and perfectly before God, keeping God’s charge, His commandments, His statutes and His laws, just as did Abraham and Christ Jesus (Genesis 26:5; Hebrews 5:9).
The Two Olive Trees identity will not be known until their appearing in Jerusalem at the beginning of the seven years of Tribulation.
What is God’s purpose for the Two Olive Trees?
The Two Olive Trees shall oversee the building of the holy temple of the Living God!
They will lay the foundation of God’s holy temple and their hands will finish it (Zechariah 4:9). However, this temple of the Lord will not be built of wood and stone, but rather Christ’s divine nature and character will be built in the hearts of all those who belong to Christ Jesus, allowing them to manifest the exact nature of Christ Jesus upon the earth. This will be a living spiritual temple. This temple will be built in the very same time period as the 3rd Jewish Temple of stone and wood is being built in Jerusalem (visit templeinstitute.com). These two temples, one physical and one spiritual, will be built in Jerusalem, one seen and one unseen, one built by the flesh of men and one built by the Spirit of God.
How will the building of the temple of the living God be accomplished?
Scripture testifies that this temple shall be built “not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit, says the Lord of hosts” (Zechariah 4:6), and by “the testimony of Jesus [which] is the Spirit of Prophecy” (Revelation 19:10).
What exactly does that mean?
Scripture testifies that the Holy Spirit is inseparable from God’s Word, for the Spirit is the truth, and the sum of God’s Word is truth (1John 5:7; Psalms 119:160; John 6:63). The Two Olive Trees, who speak forth the testimony of Jesus for 1260 days, unveil with clarity and understanding the entire Word of God. The power of God’s revealed Word is able to completely circumcise (cleanse/sanctify from every sin) the hearts of God’s people, because God’s people will have the mind of Christ (1Corinthians 2:16) and their ways will have become His ways (1Kings 11:38). It is through the power of the Holy Spirit that the temple of the living God will be built (Ephesians 2:20-22). The Spirit of the Living God is the Holy Spirit of Christ Jesus. Therefore, we, His people, are the holy temple of the Living God!
This spiritual temple will be built by the testimony of the Lord Jesus Christ being spoken through the mouths of the Two Olive Trees. This temple shall be built entirely by the Holy Spirit and the teachings of Jesus (John 16:7-14), not by the intelligence and strength of men: “… Thus says the Lord of hosts, `Behold, a man whose name is Branch (Christ Jesus), for He will branch out from where He is; and He will build the temple of the Lord [we are the temple of the living God–2Corinthians 6:16]. Yes, it is He who will build the temple of the Lord, and He will bear the honor and sit and rule on His throne. Thus, He will be a priest on His throne, and the counsel of peace will be between the two offices. And those who are far off [the exiles of the 2nd Exodus] will come and build the temple of the Lord [in the hearts of men]. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent me to you. And it will take place, if you completely obey the Lord your God“ (Zechariah 6:12-13,15). (The exiles of the 2nd Exodus will be discussed in a future article.)
The Two Olive Trees literally represent the mouth of Christ Jesus upon the earth as they prophesy for 1260 days, for “… the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy” (Revelation 19:10). And the spirit of prophesy gives spiritual understanding of the truth; God’s word is the truth (John 17:17). And prophesy speaks for this purpose: “… that they [those who are sanctified] may all be one; even as Thou, Father, art in Me, and I in Thee, that they also may be in Us … And the glory which Thou hast given Me I have given to them [which is God’s purpose for the gospel] … that they may be perfected in unity, that the world may know that Thou didst send Me” (John 17:21-23). Brethren, “God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. And it was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ” (2Thessalonians 2:13-14; Romans 8:28-29). This has been God’s plan from the beginning.
The Two Olive Trees during the days of the prophet Zechariah returned to Jerusalem with other exiles from Babylon to rebuild the temple of the Lord in Jerusalem, the temple that the Babylonians had destroyed in 586 B.C.. That 2nd Temple, like the 1st Temple, was made of wood and stone, the work of the hands of men, which was itself destroyed in 70 A.D. by the Romans, just as Jesus prophesied would happen. Today, there are those who are actively making extensive preparations for the rebuilding of a 3rd Temple in Jerusalem, but it too will simply be another temple made of wood and stone, not like the temple to be built by the Two Olive Trees of Revelation Chapter Eleven. The Two Olive Trees of Revelation will build the temple of the Living God in the hearts of God’s sanctified people, “… for we are the temple of the living God; just as God said, `I will dwell in them and walk among them; and I will be their God, and they shall be My people. Therefore, come out from their midst [away from those that claim to be brethren, but aren’t–Revelation 2:9; 3:9] and be separate,’ says the Lord. `And do not touch what is unclean; and I will welcome you and I will be a father to you, and you shall be sons and daughters to Me,’ Says the Lord Almighty” (2Corinthians 6:16-18). (Also see 1Corinthians 6:15-20).
Are the Two Olive Trees on earth today?
Yes, for we are living at the end of this age (1Corinthians 10:11). The Two Olive Trees will appear in Jerusalem at the beginning of the seven year Tribulation period, which is right at the door, at which time they will be revealed to the whole world.
Who kills the Two Olive Trees?
First, it is important to keep in mind that anyone who tries to kill the Two Olive Trees must himself be killed by fire that proceeds out of the mouths of these two prophets!
“These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth. And if anyone desires to harm them fire proceeds out of their mouth and devours their enemies; and if anyone would desire to harm them, in this manner he must be killed” (Revelation 11:4-5). However, “when they have finished their testimony, the beast [Antichrist] that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them” (Revelation 11: 7).
Well then, how would it be possible to kill these two prophets since God’s Word says that anyone who desires to harm them must themselves be killed?
First, the Antichrist, called the beast coming up out of the sea in Revelation 13:1, attempts to harm the Two OliveTrees, but is himself killed in accordance to Scripture.
Next, the Antichrist descends into the abyss, the bottomless pit.
Then, some days later, the Antichrist is resurrected from the dead (Revelation 13:2-3, 12, 14), and he is renamed in Scripture the beast that comes up out of the abyss (Revelation 17:8; 11:7).
Finally, the Antichrist, now called the beast that comes up out of the abyss, makes a second attempt to harm the Two Olive Trees, and this time he is successful, and the Two Olive Trees are killed according to God’s Living Word (Revelation 11:7-8).
What is the world’s reaction to the Two Olive Trees being killed?
Keep in mind that during the 1260 days that the Two Olive Trees speak forth the testimony of Jesus, the people who dwell upon the earth will be fully aware that the Two Olive Trees also have the “power to shut up the sky, in order that rain may not fall during the [1260] days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to smite the earth with every plague, as often as they desire” (Revelation 11:6).
“And when they [the Two Olive Trees] have finished their testimony [the temple of the Living God has been completed], the beast that comes up out of the abyss [the resurrected Antichrist] will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them [also see Revelation 13:15]. And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt [Jerusalem], where also their Lord was crucified. And those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and make merry; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets [the Two Olive Trees] tormented those who dwell on the earth. And after the three and a half days the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were beholding them. And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, “Come up here.” And they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies beheld them. And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; and seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven” (Revelation 11:7-13).
It is apparent that the world thinks they are on the side of the true God, and that the Two Olive Trees are evil, when they celebrate the deaths of the Two Olive Trees, for they exhibit no fear of God.
Why should this matter to me?
It should matter if you are a follower of Jesus Christ because these are the last days. And His followers will be given understanding in order that they may not be deceived along with the apostate church:
In the last days the church becomes just like the church in the days of Noah. They do not understand God’s purpose until it is too late to repent of unbelief (Matthew 24:32-39).
In the last days the unholy church falls away from the faith (2Thessalonians 2:1-12).
In the last days the unholy church has only a form of godliness (2Timothy 3:1-5).
In the last days misleading doctrines of demons are taught in the church (1Timothy 4:1).
In the last days shepherds lead the church astray (Matthew 23:13, 15, 27-28; 2Peter 2:1-3; Jeremiah 23:20-22; Acts 20:29-32)
But also in the last days, there are a people who cry out to God (Deuteronomy 4:30), who find grace in the wilderness (Jeremiah 30:24; 31:1-9).
In the last days there is a remnant of both Jews and Gentiles who are gathered by the Lord to the land of Israel to be taught the ways of the Lord their God (Isaiah 2:2-3; Romans 11:5; 9:6-8, 27; Jeremiah 23:1-8). (The remnant saved in the 2nd Exodus will be discussed in a future article).
In the last days a sanctified remnant is protected from the flood of words which are now deceiving the apostate church upon the earth (Luke 6:46-49; Revelation 1312:13-17; 1John 5:18-21).
“He who overcomes, I will make him a pillar in the temple of My God, and he will not go out from it anymore and I will write upon him the name of My God, and the name of the city of God, the new Jerusalem, which comes down out of heaven from My God, and My new name. He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches” (Revelation 3:12-13).
The Two Olive Trees are coming to prepare a holy church to become the holy temple of the Living God, a temple in which God shall dwell forever. Scripture testifies that formerly the Gentiles were separate from Christ, excluded from the commonwealth of Israel, and strangers to the covenant of promise, but Christ Jesus has reconciled both groups, Jews and Gentiles, into one body through His cross, making the two into one new man, for through Christ both Jews and Gentiles have access in one Spirit to the Father (Ephesians 2:11-18). “So then you are no longer strangers and aliens, but you are fellow citizens with the saints, and are of God’s household, having been built upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets, Christ Jesus Himself being the corner stone, in whom the whole building, being fitted together is growing into a holy temple in the Lord; in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit” (Ephesians 2:19-22).
Therefore, God’s purpose for the Two Olive Trees and their testimony for 1260 days is for Christ Jesus to build the holy temple of the Living God by His word and His Spirit: “Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘If it is too difficult in the sight of the remnant of this people in those days, will it also be too difficult in My sight?’ declares the Lord of hosts. Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Behold, I am going to save My people from the land of the east and from the land of the west; and I will bring them back, and they will live in the midst of Jerusalem, and they will be My people and I will be their God in truth and righteousness. ‘
Thus says the Lord of hosts, ‘Let your hands be strong, you who are listening in these days to these words from the mouth of the prophets, those who spoke in the day that the foundation of the house of the Lord of hosts was laid, to the end that the temple might be built’” (Zechariah 8:6-9).