Click or Tap Icons to Share! Thank you!

Authored By  :
Published On :
Last Updated :



As I concluded in part two, Jesus called John the Baptist the greatest of all Prophets. Let me share that verse with you one more time to refresh your memory:

"For I say unto you, Among those that are born of women there is not a greater prophet than John the Baptist: but he that is least in the kingdom of God is greater than he."


Exactly what may be implied by the fact that John carried the same spiritual anointing as the Prophet Elijah, is fully explained in my series "Great Cloud of Witnesses: God's Holy Ghosts?". As you can see by the verses I shared with you in part two, the Law and the Prophets were, and continue to be, very instrumental in bringing the Jewish people to faith in Jesus Christ as their only Lord and Savior. Not only do the writings of Moses and the Old Testament Prophets speak of the coming of Jesus Christ, but they also tell how He would fulfill everything which had been written concerning Him.

As I point out in other articles, this included the fact that He would likewise abolish dependence upon the Law for one's Salvation -- in which a person would vainly strive to acquire their own righteousness, and thus supposedly merit Salvation -- so that Forgiveness, Redemption and Salvation can now be obtained through faith in Jesus' Sacrifice alone. The fact that Moses prophesied the following, makes it very fitting that he should join Jesus on the summit of the Mount of Transfiguration, apparently in his spirit form:

"The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken . . . I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him."


Not only did Jesus say that He was indeed the Prophet which had been spoken of by Moses, but in the Book of Acts, Peter and Stephen confirmed this as well. In addition, many of the common people also believed that Jesus was a Prophet, such as the blind man, and the Samaritan woman at the well. But, some of them may not have realized at that time, that Jesus was indeed the Prophet of which Moses had spoken. In fact, while King Herod assumed that Jesus was John the Baptist risen from the dead, some of the common people erroneously assumed that He was Elijah risen from the dead, apparently because of His boldness, and the fiery Spirit with which He consumed His adversaries.

So again, we see a very clear link between Moses, Elijah and Jesus. In addition to this, while both Moses and Elijah were given a measure of the Spirit, as we saw in part one, Jesus was given of the very same Spirit by His Father without measure. It was limitless. Consider the following verses:

"He that receiveth you receiveth me, and he that receiveth me receiveth him that sent me. He that receiveth a prophet in the name of a prophet shall receive a prophet's reward; and he that receiveth a righteous man in the name of a righteous man shall receive a righteous man's reward."


"And they were offended in him. But Jesus said unto them, A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house."


"And when the chief priests and Pharisees had heard his parables, they perceived that he spake of them. But when they sought to lay hands on him, they feared the multitude, because they took him for a prophet."


"And king Herod heard of him; (for his name was spread abroad:) and he said, That John the Baptist was risen from the dead, and therefore mighty works do shew forth themselves in him. Others said, That it is Elias. And others said, That it is a prophet, or as one of the prophets."


"Nevertheless I must walk to day, and to morrow, and the day following: for it cannot be that a prophet perish out of Jerusalem."


"And he said unto them, What things? And they said unto him, Concerning Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people:"


"The woman saith unto him, Sir, I perceive that thou art a prophet."


"They say unto the blind man again, What sayest thou of him, that he hath opened thine eyes? He said, He is a prophet."


"For Moses truly said unto the fathers, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear in all things whatsoever he shall say unto you."


"This is that Moses, which said unto the children of Israel, A prophet shall the Lord your God raise up unto you of your brethren, like unto me; him shall ye hear."


Despite all of the Scriptural evidence which clearly points to the fact that Jesus Christ is who He says He is, many of the Jewish elders did not accept His claim of being both a Prophet and the Son of God. As far as they were concerned, He was a blasphemer, a liar, a false prophet, a gluttonous man and a wine bibber, a companion of harlots and sinners, and filled with the devil. Furthermore, they did everything possible to deny and conceal who He truly is. Consider the following group of verses:

"The Son of man came eating and drinking, and they say, Behold a man gluttonous, and a winebibber, a friend of publicans and sinners. But wisdom is justified of her children."


"But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, This fellow doth not cast out devils, but by Beelzebub the prince of the devils."


"Now when the Pharisee which had bidden him saw it, he spake within himself, saying, This man, if he were a prophet, would have known who and what manner of woman this is that toucheth him: for she is a sinner."


Exactly how did Jesus react to their accusations against Him? In addition to exposing their lack of love and mercy, their proud, self-righteous spirit, and their legalistic, rigid interpretation of the Law, which they used to oppress the common people, He pointed them right back to the Law of Moses, and to the writings of the Old Testament Prophets. The Lord basically said, "Look; you have the written record; so why don't you believe it?" Consider this group of verses:

"Do not think that I will accuse you to the Father: there is one that accuseth you, even Moses, in whom ye trust. For had ye believed Moses, ye would have believed me: for he wrote of me. But if ye believe not his writings, how shall ye believe my words?"


"Then he said, I pray thee therefore, father, that thou wouldest send him to my father's house: For I have five brethren; that he may testify unto them, lest they also come into this place of torment. Abraham saith unto him, They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them. And he said, Nay, father Abraham: but if one went unto them from the dead, they will repent. And he said unto him, If they hear not Moses and the prophets, neither will they be persuaded, though one rose from the dead."


How true indeed! Even though Jesus rose from the dead, some of them STILL did not believe. They had the written record. They had the prophecies. They knew what they said, and yet they denied every single bit of it when it was fulfilled before their very own eyes! What callousness and spiritual blindness! In fact, as I point out in other articles, they were in such denial, that those rebellious, unbelieving Jews purposely tried to conceal the Lord's wonderful Resurrection from the dead, as we see by the following verses which are found at the end of the Gospel of Matthew:

"Now when they were going, behold, some of the watch came into the city, and shewed unto the chief priests all the things that were done. And when they were assembled with the elders, and had taken counsel, they gave large money unto the soldiers, Saying, Say ye, His disciples came by night, and stole him away while we slept. And if this come to the governor's ears, we will persuade him, and secure you. So they took the money, and did as they were taught: and this saying is commonly reported among the Jews until this day."


In light of all of the things I have discussed thus far, it is easy to understand why God the Father would send Moses and Elijah to counsel with Jesus on the summit of the Mount of Transfiguration, before these final prophetic events were to be fulfilled a short time later in Jerusalem. You may recall that this is precisely what they came to talk to Him about in the first place. This is verified by the following two verses which we find in the Gospel of Luke:

"And, behold, there talked with him two men, which were Moses and Elias: Who appeared in glory, and spake of his decease which he should accomplish at Jerusalem."


As I mentioned in part one of this series, and explain even more thoroughly in the article "Famous Forties: One of God's Special Numbers?", the Holy Scriptures contain quite a few numerical mysteries, only a few of which I have personally discovered to date. There are apparently certain numbers in the Bible which have special significance for the Lord. One of these is no doubt the number forty. This number creates a an interesting association between Moses, Elijah and Jesus.

More specifically, just as Moses performed a complete fast during two forty-day periods when he received the Lord's Commandments twice on the top of Mount Horeb -- a.k.a. Sinai -- the Prophet Elijah also fasted for a period of forty days and nights when he went to Mount Horeb as well. It was there that the Lord spoke to him in a still, small voice. Not only that, but in the Gospels, we are likewise told that Jesus fasted for a period of forty days and forty nights in the wilderness, prior to revealing Himself to Israel. Consider the following verses as proof of these points:

"And Moses went into the midst of the cloud, and gat him up into the mount: and Moses was in the mount forty days and forty nights."


"When I was gone up into the mount to receive the tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant which the LORD made with you, then I abode in the mount forty days and forty nights, I neither did eat bread nor drink water:...And it came to pass at the end of forty days and forty nights, that the LORD gave me the two tables of stone, even the tables of the covenant...And I fell down before the LORD, as at the first, forty days and forty nights: I did neither eat bread, nor drink water, because of all your sins which ye sinned, in doing wickedly in the sight of the LORD, to provoke him to anger...Thus I fell down before the LORD forty days and forty nights, as I fell down at the first; because the LORD had said he would destroy you...And I stayed in the mount, according to the first time, forty days and forty nights; and the LORD hearkened unto me at that time also, and the LORD would not destroy thee."


"And as he lay and slept under a juniper tree, behold, then an angel touched him, and said unto him, Arise and eat. And he looked, and, behold, there was a cake baken on the coals, and a cruse of water at his head. And he did eat and drink, and laid him down again. And the angel of the LORD came again the second time, and touched him, and said, Arise and eat; because the journey is too great for thee. And he arose, and did eat and drink, and went in the strength of that meat forty days and forty nights unto Horeb the mount of God."


"Then was Jesus led up of the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted of the devil. And when he had fasted forty days and forty nights, he was afterward an hungred."


"And immediately the Spirit driveth him into the wilderness. And he was there in the wilderness forty days, tempted of Satan; and was with the wild beasts; and the angels ministered unto him."


"And Jesus being full of the Holy Ghost returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness, Being forty days tempted of the devil. And in those days he did eat nothing: and when they were ended, he afterward hungered."


That last set of verses presents us with a very interesting possibility. While up until now, I have always assumed that Jesus' fast occurred while He wandered in the Jordan River valley after having been baptized by John, that may not have necessarily been the case. Notice that Luke tells us that Jesus "returned from Jordan, and was led by the Spirit into the wilderness". It sounds to me as if perhaps the Lord may have gone in a direction opposite to the Jordan River. Is it possible that He may have travelled south to Mount Horeb, that is, to Sinai? This would certainly follow the pattern of Moses and Elijah more perfectly. Of course, this is merely speculation on my part, and I cannot prove this point beyond a shadow of a doubt, so please don't take it as solid doctrine.

What I also find rather interesting is that in the previous verses, we see that just as Elijah was provided with food by the Angel prior to beginning his forty-day fast, Jesus was also ministered to by Angels when His fast and temptation by Satan had ended. This in itself was a fulfillment of yet another prophecy which had been spoken by King David in his Psalms, as we see by the following set of verses:

"Then the devil leaveth him, and, behold, angels came and ministered unto him."


"There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For he shall give his angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways. They shall bear thee up in their hands, lest thou dash thy foot against a stone."


You will recall that this was one of the very temptations which Satan used against Jesus. That vile serpent twisted the meaning of God's Word -- as he has done for millennia -- in order to try to get Jesus to tempt His very own Father. Consider the following group of verses:

"Then the devil taketh him up into the holy city, and setteth him on a pinnacle of the temple, And saith unto him, If thou be the Son of God, cast thyself down: for it is written, He shall give his angels charge concerning thee: and in their hands they shall bear thee up, lest at any time thou dash thy foot against a stone. Jesus said unto him, It is written again, Thou shalt not tempt the Lord thy God."


Clearly then, there are some very close Scriptural links between Moses, Elijah and Jesus which make the occurrence on the Mount of Transfiguration quite fitting to God's overall plan. This event is very similar to the description of the Two Sackcloth Witnesses in another way as well. You may recall that before Moses and Elijah took their leave from Jesus, the three Disciples witnessed a bright cloud, and also the Voice of the Father from Heaven. The minute they experienced these things, we are told that they dove to the ground in fear. When they got back up again, the Voice was gone, the bright cloud was gone, and Moses and Elijah were gone as well. It appears that God's Celestial Ship took them back to the World Beyond. Allow me to refresh your memory:

"While he yet spake, behold, a bright cloud overshadowed them: and behold a voice out of the cloud, which said, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him. And when the disciples heard it, they fell on their face, and were sore afraid. And Jesus came and touched them, and said, Arise, and be not afraid. And when they had lifted up their eyes, they saw no man, save Jesus only."


While some narrow-minded Christians may find that hard to believe, because they have been so conditioned by the world to view all UFOs as either being the invention of mentally unstable people, outright hoaxes, or as being physical craft which are being controlled by evil aliens from Outer Space, that is what the Bible states. Furthermore, this is NOT the only place in the Scriptures where such events are described. Allow me to again refer you to the article "Under the Cloud: UFOs and the Bible" where I discuss this controversial topic more at length. You may choose to agree or disagree with me. All I know for certain is that the Bible does describe some rather strange Celestial Crafts within its pages. Exactly what they are, or what they look like, I don't know for sure.

Another possibility -- which I suggest in "Great Cloud of Witnesses: God's Holy Ghosts?" -- is that the cloud which was seen by Peter, James and John on the summit of the Mount of Transfiguration, and the cloud which is mentioned in the eleventh chapter of the Book of Revelation, might not be referring to an actual Celestial Craft of some sort, but rather to a spiritual cloud of some of the Heavenly Host. Again, who is to say for certain at this point.

In the case of the Two Sackcloth Witnesses, we are told that after they have completed their mission on Earth during the final three and a half years known as the Great Tribulation, they are killed by the forces of the Beast, just like every true Prophet of God has been killed since the days of the Old Testament. Consider the following verse which confirms this point:

"And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them."


What is so amazing about this event, is that the people of the world have become so wicked, and so corrupt by the time of this event, that we are told that they have a celebration when the Two Sackcloth Witnesses are killed in Jerusalem. They are simply glad that they have shut up the Mouth of God through His Two Witnesses, just as the unbelieving Jews have always gloated at the demise of the Lord's true messengers. Consider the following set of verses:

"And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth."


That has to be the epitome of evil. They don't even bother to bury the bodies of the Lord's Two Witnesses. They leave their corpses to stink and rot in the street where they lay, as a strong testimony against those evildoers. That is how wicked the unbelieving Jews really are in their hearts. I am reminded of the ungodly Jews who also covered their ears when Stephen blasted them with the truth in Acts chapter seven, just before they rushed on him and silenced him by stoning him to death, as we see by the following two verses:

"Then they cried out with a loud voice, and stopped their ears, and ran upon him with one accord, And cast him out of the city, and stoned him: and the witnesses laid down their clothes at a young man's feet, whose name was Saul."


Of course, as we continue to read in the Book of Revelation chapter eleven, we discover that the joke is actually on those callous fools who murder the Two Sackcloth Witnesses, because as John tells us, only three and a half days later, something wonderful and totally unexpected happens. Please notice exactly how this event occurs:

"And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them."


Do you see the similarity to the account in Matthew chapter seventeen? Just like on the Mount of Transfiguration, there is a mysterious cloud, a Voice from Heaven, and great fear upon the observers. This is another reason why some people believe that the Two Sackcloth Witnesses may be the Prophets Moses and Elijah. But is there actually any truth to this belief? Please keep reading, and I will soon share with you my personal thoughts regarding the matter.

Based upon my study of the Scriptures, I believe that the resurrection of these Two Witnesses coincides with the final Trump. That is to say, with the Seventh Trumpet of God, in which all of the dead and living Saints are resurrected, transformed, and raptured to Heaven. Please remember that these events occur at the very end of the Great Tribulation, which is when the Rapture of the Saints is due to occur as well. Notice that just as the Two Sackcloth Witnesses are called up to Heaven with a Voice, the Rapture of the Saints is described in the very same manner in these verses:

"For the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord. Wherefore comfort one another with these words."


"But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets."


As I explain in "Have You Been Slain in the Spirit?', God turns the apparent defeat of the Two Sackcloth Witnesses into great victory, and the scoffers and reprobates who have killed them are left totally breathless! Just when the Beast and his evil followers believe they have sunk the last nail into the coffin, God shows them how wrong they really are! Along with the Two Sackcloth Witnesses, all Saints, both the living and the dead, spring up to new life, as had been so promised since the world began! They overcome death by the Blood of the Lamb! Consider the following group of verses:

"These things I have spoken unto you, that in me ye might have peace. In the world ye shall have tribulation: but be of good cheer; I have overcome the world."


"I write unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I write unto you, young men, because ye have overcome the wicked one. I write unto you, little children, because ye have known the Father. I have written unto you, fathers, because ye have known him that is from the beginning. I have written unto you, young men, because ye are strong, and the word of God abideth in you, and ye have overcome the wicked one."


"Ye are of God, little children, and have overcome them: because greater is he that is in you, than he that is in the world."


"To him that overcometh will I grant to sit with me in my throne, even as I also overcame, and am set down with my Father in his throne."


"And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death."


"These shall make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them: for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings: and they that are with him are called, and chosen, and faithful."


As we learned in part two of this series, the ministry of the Two Sackcloth Witnesses spans a time period of exactly one thousand two hundred and sixty days. This is equivalent to forty-two Jewish months of thirty days each, for a total of three and a half years. Let me share those verses with you again to refresh your memory:

"And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth."


In other words, as I point out in the in-depth series "The Great Tribulation and the Rapture", they prophesy during the full length of the troublesome period which many Christians refer to as the Great Tribulation, or Jacob's Trouble. It is during this same time that the Beast persecutes the Saints of God, as per the following group of verses:

"And he shall speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws: and they shall be given into his hand until a time and times and the dividing of time."


"And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the holy people, all these things shall be finished."


"But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months. And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth."


"And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred and threescore days."


"And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty and two months. And he opened his mouth in blasphemy against God, to blaspheme his name, and his tabernacle, and them that dwell in heaven. And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations."


Please go to part four for the continuation of this series.

⇒ Go To The Next Part . . .

Click or Tap Icons to Share! Thank you!

---

---

Please avail yourself of other areas of the Bill's Bible Basics website. There are many treasures for you to discover.