NT Text: Revelation 11:6
OT Source(s):
Source: Beale & Carson (eds.), Commentary on the New Testament Use of the Old Testament (2007); Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Typology (Providential Type, Backward-Looking) + Longitudinal Theme
Significance: The second power of the two witnesses — "to turn the waters into blood and to strike the earth with every kind of plague" — recalls Moses' role in the Egyptian plagues, beginning with turning the Nile to blood (Exod 7:17-25). The phrase "every kind of plague" (pasē plēgē) echoes the comprehensive nature of Moses' plague ministry against Pharaoh. By combining Elijah's drought power with Moses' plague power in a single pair of witnesses, John creates a composite figure embodying Israel's two greatest prophetic traditions: Moses the lawgiver and Elijah the reformer. These are the same two who appeared with Christ at the Transfiguration (Matt 17:3), representing the Law and the Prophets. The eschatological witnesses thus carry forward the dual testimony of Torah and Prophets, now bearing witness to Christ in the final confrontation between God's kingdom and the world's rebellion.