The Two Witnesses and the Land Beast in the Book of Revelation

Abstract

The two witnesses of Rev 11:3-7 and the land beast of Rev 13:11-15 are perplexing passages with potent symbols that John enlists in communicating his visions to the members of the seven congregations in Asia Minor. This article proposes a literary and theological relationship between the two witnesses and the land beast. While this proposal is not new, the article aims to develop more fully the relationship between the land beast and the two witnesses in the following manner: (1) by examining the Old Testament background of especially the land beast; (2) by strengthening the relationship between these two passages on the basis of verbal and thematic parallels; (3) by articulating a freshly nuanced position on the identity of the land beast in contradistinction to other scholarly views; (4) and by demonstrating an aspect of the cosmic conflict between the two witnesses and the land beast.