"These have the authority to shut heaven that no rain may fall during the days of
the evil thoughts that arise in people's hearts. They witness with force; thus, they are not preaching the gospel. They perform miracles only to protect themselves and to support the Jews and the remaining Christians during the great tribulation. The miracles are not for saving people. 4. Revelation 11:6 "These have the authority to shut heaven that no rain may fall during the days of their prophecy; and they have authority over the waters to turn them into blood and to smite the earth with every plague as often as they desire." "Rain" signifies God's grace because God sends rain on the just and on the unjust (Matt. 5:45). "No rain" means that God withdraws His grace. 5. Revelation 11:7 "And when they have completed their testimony, the beast who comes up out of the abyss will make war with them and will overcome them and kill them." The beast or the wild beast signifies Antichrist. The word "beast" is mentioned thirty-six times in this book. Thirty-six is six times six, six being the number of man. The very name of the wild beast signifies his personality, work, and all that he has. (The Lamb is mentioned twenty-eight times in this book. Twenty-eight is seven times four. This special name signifies the Lord's personality, work, and perfect relationship with both God and man.) This beast comes up out of the abyss. Revelation 13:1 says that the beast comes up out of the sea. Thus, the abyss is below the sea. The abyss is the dwelling place of the devil. One who comes up out of the abyss must be a resurrected person. According to Revelation 17:8, we know that the beast will have died and resurrected. The authority of the two witnesses enables them to kill people at will, but they cannot kill the beast because he is a resurrected beast. 6. Revelation 11:8 "And their corpses will be on the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified." From the physical point of view, "the great city" is Jerusalem, but according to its spiritual meaning, this is Sodom (the place famous for its sin) and Egypt (the place that opposes God). Historically, it is the place where the Lord was crucified. The manner of the death of these two witnesses may be similar to the crucifixion of the Lord, because verse 8 says, "Where also their Lord was crucified." The word "also" emphasizes that their death was just like the kind of death that the Lord suffered in crucifixion. This corresponds with the crucifixion of the prophets in Matthew 23:34-35.