Τhe Chronology Of The Two Witnesses In Revelation 11

By John A. McLean

[John A. McLean is President, Manthano Christian College, Westland, Michigan.]

Αmong dispensational expositors the chronological and sequential timing of the two witnesses in Revelation 11 has been one of the most puzzling and debated issues in the book. Although much has been written about the identity of the two witnesses, relatively little has been written about when they will appear. Some writers believe the two witnesses will minister in the first half of the Tribulation,[1] and others believe the witnesses will be in the second half.[2] The purpose of this article is to evaluate whether the two witnesses will minister during the first half of Daniel’s seventieth week (the Tribulation)[3] or the second half. Several arguments for the first half are presented here, and in each case a rejoinder is given in support of the view that the two witnesses will appear in the second half.

The Use Of Time Indicators

Whitcomb comments, “There seems to be an intentional distinction between the time of the Gentile occupation of the Temple’s outer court and the city, and the time of the two witnesses, by means of the different time-units used: 42 months for the Gentile domination and 1,260 days for the two witnesses. If the same time period is intended for both groups, why is not the 42-month time-block sufficient to cover both?”[4]

However, the Bible does not distinguish by means of names the time period of three and a half years in the Tribulation. If Whitcomb’s interpretive principle were applied to Revelation 11-12, it would lead to an obvious misunderstanding of the text. The woman, Israel, will be protected by God from the dragon for 1,260 days (12:6). This is exactly the same phrase as in 11:3 regarding the time of the two witnesses. The woman will be “nourished for a time and times and half a time from the presence of the serpent” (12:14), and the serpent/dragon is given authority to act for forty-two months (13:5). Are these phrases referring to three different time periods? No, because there is no intentional distinction between the phrases; they are used interchangeably. Actually four phrases are used in Scripture for this same time period: (a) “time, times, and half a time” (Dan. 7:25; 12:7; Rev. 12:14); (b) half a week (Dan. 9:27); (c) forty-two months (Rev. 11:2; 13:5); and (d) 1,260 days (Rev. 11:3; 12:6). These terms should be understood as synonymous, all referring to the same time period, namely, the second half of the Tribulation.

As Thiessen writes, “If a ‘week’ is seven years, and this seventieth week is the future Tribulation, then the period is one of seven years’ duration. This agrees with the other time references to this period. Dan. 9:27 represents the last week as divided into two equal parts. The latter half, sometimes called the ‘great’ tribulation, is referred to elsewhere as a time, times, and a half a time (Dan. 7:25; 12:7; Rev. 12:14), meaning three and a half years. It is also referred to as forty-two months (Rev. 11:2; 13:5), and as 1,260 days (Rev. 11:3; 12:6; cf. Dan. 12:11, 12).”[5] Thus it seems inappropriate to say one half of the Tribulation is designated by one phrase and the other by a different phrase, thus placing the two witnesses, as Whitcomb does, in the first half of the Tribulation.

The Witnesses And Malachi 4:5-6

Newell says that the two witnesses are the fulfillment of Malachi 4:5-6, which predicts the coming of Elijah “before the great and terrible day of the Lord.” Newell says the witnesses will call on people to repent during the first half of the Tribulation.[6]

To say that the two witnesses fulfill the ministry of Elijah as predicted in Malachi is an assumption, however, since Revelation 11 says nothing about this. The ministry of Elijah could have been fulfilled by John the Baptist (Matt. 11:14) or will be fulfilled in another way in or even before the Tribulation. The Day of the Lord is also broader than just the last half of the Tribulation so that if Elijah were to come before the Day of the Lord, he may have to appear before or at least at the beginning of the first half. Though many expositors believe one of the two witnesses is Elijah, the Bible does not identify either witness.[7] Great numbers of people will become saints during both halves of the Tribulation (Rev. 6:9-11; 7:9-17). Preaching of the gospel will be prolific throughout the Tribulation.[8]

The Witnesses And The 144,000

Hoyt argues, “The importance of their testimony cannot be overestimated (Rev. 11:4). . . . By their testimony, it is my opinion, they bring about the conversion of the 144,000 who will become witnesses during the final half of the tribulation period.”[9]

However, the Bible does not state that the two witnesses will evangelize the 144,000 (Rev. 7:1-8).[10] The 144,000 will be sealed by God about the midpoint of the Tribulation, that is, between the sixth and seventh seals.[11] They will be sealed for their protection before the execution of the seventh seal, which contains the seven trumpets (7:1-3). The sealing of the 144,000 will protect them from the trumpet judgments, including the demonic assault from the abyss (9:4-5). Obviously the sealing of the 144,000 will take place before Revelation 9 as the first four trumpets must be executed before the Beast arises out of the abyss. (The chapters in Revelation flow in a chronological sequence.)[12] It is difficult to understand how the two witnesses could evangelize the 144,000, if the latter are being martyred by the beast from the abyss. It is better to see the 144,000 and the two witnesses as distinct but complementary in their ministries during the second half.

Nothing in Revelation 11 suggests that the two witnesses evangelize anyone. As prophets (vv. 3, 6), they, like witnesses required by the Mosaic Law (Deut. 17:6), offer testimony of coming judgment. Even if the two witnesses are evangelists, why could they not have evangelized the great multitude of martyrs who will come out of the second half, which is the Great Tribulation (Rev. 7:9-12)?

The Witnesses And Famines In The First Half

Stevens observes that the two witnesses will have power to shut up the sky so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying, which will result in a drought in Israel (Rev. 11:6).[13] The argument is that this relates directly to the third and fourth seals of Revelation 6:5-8, which suggests that a drought will cause a shortage of food.

Famine will occur in several geographical regions throughout the seven years of the Tribulation. The third seal indicates that food staples will be sold at inflationary prices, which may be the result of war or famine (6:5-6). The fourth seal mentions famine in the context of war and pestilence rather than drought (6:7-8). Revelation does not indicate whether rain will or will not occur in the first half of the Tribulation. The covenant that Israel will make with “the prince who is to come” (the Antichrist) will bring peace and prosperity during the first half rather than judgment and troubles (Dan. 9:27).

Famines will also occur in the second half of the Tribulation (Rev. 18:8). Drought fits better in the context of the second half, which will be a time of judgment. The two witnesses will be able to turn “the waters . . . into blood” and “to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire” (11:5-6). These acts of judgment are more characteristic of second-half events. The only “rain” that will fall from heaven during the second half will be various judgments of hail, fire, blood, and stars (8:13; 16:1-21).

The Beast And The Witnesses

Knowles comments, “The two witnesses are represented as ‘confirming the covenant’ for half of the week through their activity of preaching. . . . The appearance of Antichrist in the middle of the week is the explanation for the cessation of the sacrifice and the oblation which the nations have been making to God. The Antichrist also causes the two witnesses to be put to death and introduces the abomination of desolation, which consists of his making war on the saints for the last three and a half weeks.”[14]

Hitchcock agrees. “The two witnesses will witness and [then] be martyred when the temple is desecrated. . . . [They] will eventually be overcome and killed by the beast, but their bodies will be resurrected after three and a half days (Rev. 11:7-11). The desecration of the temple and the murder of the two witnesses form a unit and function as catalysts that bring the hand of God in judgment on His enemies (vv. 13-14).”[15] Also Ryrie believes that “the coming of the beast onto the scene in power [will] terminate their witness.”[16]

The rise of the Antichrist to power at the midpoint of the Tribulation does not, however, mean that he will kill the witnesses when he takes control of the temple mount. There may be a misunderstanding of the grammar of verse 7. The description of the beast out of the abyss incorporates an adjectival participle that is descriptive of his identity (“the beast that comes up out of the abyss”), not a circumstantial participle as a temporal indicator. The point is that the verse is not stating that when the beast will arise out of the abyss he will murder the witnesses, but rather when the two witnesses have completed their testimony, the beast, “the one who arises out of the abyss,” will murder them. The beast who begins his reign of terror and deception (Rev. 13) will make war against the two witnesses for three and a half years, ultimately conquer them, and martyr them at the close of their ministry. This time frame is at the end of the second half of the Tribulation and just before the second coming of Jesus Christ.

Thomas comments, “Τὸ ἀναβαῖνον ἐκ τῆς ἀβύσσου (To anabainon ek tēs abyssou, ‘Who ascends from the abyss’) tells the permanent cast of the beast’s character (cf. 17:8). The abyss is the haunt of demons (cf. Luke 8:31), so his demonic orientation is no surprise (Mounce). This passage gives no time frame for his ascent from the abyss (Lenski, Caird), but later discussion will suggest it coincides with his ascent from the sea in 13:1.”[17]

The beast will arise at the midpoint of the Tribulation (13:5), and then he will lead his demonic horde out of the abyss (9:1-2, 11). The demons will not be allowed to kill anyone for five months (9:4-6), but they will torment those who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads (vv. 5-10). On the other hand those who are sealed by God—which probably includes the 144,000 other saints, and the two witnesses—will be protected during this period.[18] Therefore the witnesses cannot be killed by the beast when he arises at the midpoint because of the five-month moratorium on death (9:6).

The two witnesses will be protected from the power of the beast (11:5-6). As Walvoord argues, “That the two witnesses pour out divine judgments upon the earth and need divine protection lest they be killed . . . implies that they are in the latter half of the seven years when awful persecution will afflict the people of God, as this protection would not be necessary in the first three and one-half years. The punishment and judgments the witnesses inflict on the world also seem to fit better in the great tribulation period.”[19]

The Antichrist And The Temple Mount

Whitcomb writes,

Putting the two witnesses into the last half of the Week compromises the totality of Antichrist’s dominion during that same period. How can he bring fire from heaven upon his enemies (through the False Prophet, Rev. 13:13) if the two witnesses are simultaneously bringing fire from heaven upon their enemies (Rev. 11:5)? We are clearly dealing with two different time periods: the first half of the Week with the overwhelming power of the two witnesses, and the last half of the Week with the overwhelming power of the Beast and the False Prophet. When the world asks the rhetorical question, “Who is able to make war with [the Beast]?” (Rev. 13:4), it seems obvious that no one can answer, “The two witnesses are able to make war with him,” for their 1,260 days of ministry will have ended, and they will be gone.[20]

However, the Antichrist will have dominion over the world but not in “totality” over all people. Great numbers of Tribulation saints will not accept the mark of the beast. Many will be martyred, but many will live to the end. The bowl judgments will afflict the Antichrist and his kingdom (Rev. 16), even though he will have control over the world. The two witnesses will not necessarily be making war against the beast or their enemies. Instead they will employ their powers in a defensive mode when someone tries to harm them (11:5). The fact that people will ask, “Who is able to wage war against the beast?” (13:4), does not mean that no one will make war with the beast. The beast will face opposition throughout the Tribulation for he will seek to supplant kings and kingdoms during the Tribulation.

During the ministry of the two witnesses the outer court of the temple will be trampled by the Gentiles for forty-two months (11:2), but the inner court of the temple mount will be protected by God (11:1). The Antichrist will be in control, but God will preserve the inner portion of the temple as a place for the two witnesses to minister and prophesy. As Walvoord reasons, “The act of measuring [in v. 1] seems to signify that the area belongs to God in some special way. It is an evaluation of His property. . . . Since the Gentiles are said to tread the holy city underfoot only forty-two months, this ill treatment better fits the latter half of the week. If the former half were mentioned, Jerusalem would be trodden underfoot for the entire seven-year period rather than only forty-two months.”[21]

Celebration Of The Death Of The Two Witnesses

Cohen argues that the celebration over the death of the witnesses cannot be reconciled with the events at the second coming of Jesus Christ. “At the end of the second 3 ½ year period the Beast’s followers are lamenting over Babylon and the vials, gathered for the great battle of Armageddon, and finally slain by Christ whose coming is surrounded with the powers of the heavens being shaken (Rev. 16-18; 19:11-21; Matt. 24:29-30). This picture does not harmonize well with the 3 ½ days of rejoicing and gift giving in which the earth dwellers participate following the murder of the witnesses (Rev. 11:10).”[22]

Daniel 12:7-13 states that a transitional period of thirty to seventy-five days will occur between the end of the Tribulation and the beginning of the millennium. The death of the witnesses could possibly take place in that transitional period. The Second Coming could occur then a few days after the celebration of the death of the witnesses. A transitional time is possible since there is no definitive statement in Daniel 9:27 that Jesus will return immediately at the close of the seventieth week.[23]

The Ascension Of The Two Witnesses

Newell argues that if the ascension of the two witnesses (Rev. 11:12) were to occur in the second half of the Tribulation, this would conflict with the second coming of Jesus Christ. It would mean that when they are ascending to heaven they will meet Christ in the clouds and return with Him to the earth.[24]

However, since, as noted above, there will be some transitional time between the end of Daniel’s seventieth week and the beginning of the millennial kingdom, there is sufficient time for the witnesses to be resurrected and ascend to heaven before Jesus Christ returns to the earth and defeats His enemies in the battle of Armageddon (Rev. 19). As the two witnesses are raised to heaven, their enemies on earth will observe them returning from heaven with the Lord Jesus to bring judgment (11:12). Thomas writes,

The progressive sequence of the seals, trumpets, and bowls does not rule out some measure of recapitulation in sections of intercalation, however. In particular, the interlude in 11:1-13 regarding the two witnesses, that in Revelation 12-14 between the sounding of the seventh trumpet (11:15) and the description of the seven bowls (chaps. 15-16), and that in Revelation 17-18 between the announcement of the seventh bowl (16:17) and the personal intervention of the Warrior-King (19:11-16) are partially recapitulatory.

The passage about the two witnesses (11:1-13) presumably gives another perspective on the same period covered by the first six trumpets that precede it in the sequence of visions. That observation presupposes that the six trumpets carry to the time of the end described in the seven last plagues that compose the seventh trumpet.[25]

The Judgment Of An Earthquake

Cohen suggests that the two witnesses will minister in the first half, since the judgment by an earthquake, which will follow their ministry (Rev. 11:13, 19), would have little significance or impact in comparison with cataclysmic earthquakes that will take place at the end of the Tribulation.[26] The earthquake in Revelation 11, which will result in the death of seven thousand people, must therefore occur in the first half of the Tribulation, if it is to have any significance.

The fact that there will be major judgments on the harlot of Babylon and the kingdom of the Antichrist (Rev. 17-18), however, does not nullify the significance of a judgment that will fall on Jerusalem (11:13). Earthquakes will take place throughout the Tribulation as a sign of God’s judgment (6:12; 8:5; 11:13, 19; 16:18). The Greek phrase in 11:13 translated “people” is literally “names of men” (ὀνόματα ἀνθρώπων). This may indicate that the seven thousand people who will die will be prominent people within the political and/or religious realm of the Antichrist. An earthquake in which seven thousand prominent people die would certainly be an attention-getter. The fact that there will be cataclysmic judgments in Babylon (16:18-19) does not negate the impact of a significant earthquake in Jerusalem. Both could take place just before the coming of Jesus Christ.

The Repentant Attitude Of The People

When seven thousand people in Jerusalem will die from an earthquake, the survivors will be terrified and give glory to God (11:13). Hodges argues that this does not harmonize with the unrepentant and hostile attitude that will prevail at the second coming of Christ (Rev. 19:11-19).[27]

Although most people will not repent under God’s judgment (16:11), a remnant will repent and accept the Messiah before His second coming (7:9; 14:6). These people will help populate the millennial kingdom. They will be saved and give glory to God (Zech. 12:10-14). Others in Jerusalem will be terrified because of the death of the seven thousand.[28] This terror may be heightened by recognition of the deaths of the prominent people.

To “give glory to God” is a technical phrase in Revelation for those who put faith in God for their salvation (4:9; 14:7; 16:9; cf. Rom. 4:20). The resurrection and ascension of the two witnesses will cause many people of Jerusalem to reflect on the gospel of Jesus Christ, and the Jerusalem earthquake will cause many to turn to Christ. Revelation 14:7 commands the people, “Fear God, and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.”

The Obedience Of The Witnesses

Whitcomb writes,

The Lord Jesus issued this command to Jews of the tribulation period: “when you see the ‘abomination of desolation,’ spoken of by Daniel the prophet, standing in the holy place . . . then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains. . . . For then there will be great tribulation such as has not been since the beginning of the world until this time, no, nor ever shall be” (Matt. 24:15-21). Here an obvious question arises: Would the two Jewish witnesses remain in Jerusalem during the 42 months of Antichrist’s dominion if the Lord Jesus, their Messiah, told them to flee to the mountains?[29]

McKinley responds to this argument this way: “It should be clear that the statement of Matthew 24:22 does not apply to the escaped remnant divinely protected in the wilderness, but rather to the remainder of the Jews who are exposed to the wrath of the Beast. Therefore, the fact that the elect flee Jerusalem when the image is set up in the temple, in no way affects the view that the two prophets minister in the last half of the week, for they witness to this exposed remnant.”[30]

Thomas states, “The alleged problems of having a witness in Jerusalem during this period, a period following the flight of the woman in 12:6, 14 (Smith), is not serious. The absence of the bulk of Israelites does not exclude a concurrent witness to the city by the two witnesses. In fact, a witness facing stern opposition is what 11:3-13 describes. So the period is a literal forty-two months just before Christ returns in power (19:11-21).”[31]

The two witnesses will have a special ministry that will override the general warning to the people of Jerusalem. Like the 144,000, they will have a particular ministry that they must fulfill during the Tribulation.

An Additional Argument For The Second-Half View

The witnesses will “have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they [will] have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire” (Rev. 11:6). The word “plague” does not occur in connection with any of the events in the first half of the Tribulation. Every reference to a plague is in the context of second-half events (9:18, 20; 11:6; 15:1, 6, 8; 16:9, 21; 18:4, 8; 21:9). The bowl judgments are particularly identified as plagues (15:1, 6, 8). It is conceivable that the witnesses will be involved in carrying out God’s final judgments. They will turn water into blood (11:6), which parallels the first two trumpet judgments (8:7-8) and the second and third bowl judgments (16:3-4), and these are clearly events in the second half.

Conclusion

The view that the two witnesses will minister in the first half of the Tribulation is weak because most of the support is based on arguments from silence, perceived sequential conflicts, or erroneous assumptions. The strength of the arguments for the second-half view lie primarily in the understanding of the overall chronological and sequential structure of Revelation, and the consistent use of the four terms for the three and a half years, all of which refer to the second half of the Tribulation.

The immediate context (Rev. 11:1-16) provides time indicators for the second half of the Tribulation (forty-two months, v. 2; and 1,260 days, v. 3). The secondary context (chaps. 10-15) is about events that focus on the second half of the Tribulation (10:7; 11:2-3, 14; 12:6, 14; 13:5; 14:7, 15; 15:1, 7). Revelation 11 is part of a larger interlude that gives detailed information about major characters and events of the second half of the Tribulation. The little book relates to nations and kings from second-half events (chap. 10). The Gentiles will trample the temple mount for forty-two months during the second half (11:1-2). The woman, Israel, will be protected for 1,260 days, which is the second half (12:10-16). Satan, the dragon will be cast out of heaven and will persecute the saints for time, times, and half a time, the second half of the Tribulation (12:13-17). The beast out of the sea will carry out the will of Satan, the dragon, for forty-two months (13:5), and that will be during the second half. The throne of God will prepare to send the seven angels with the seven bowl judgments to finish the wrath of God that will fall during the second half of the Tribulation (15:1, 5-8; 16:1-21). Thus the context strongly argues that the two witnesses will minister in the second half of the Tribulation.

Notes

1. For example Gary Cohen, Understanding Revelation (Chicago: Moody, 1978), 134; H. A. Ironside, Lectures on the Book of Revelation (New York: Loizeaux, 1919), 191-92; Alan F. Johnson, “Revelation,” in The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, rev. ed., vol. 13 (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2006), 684; Tim LaHaye, Revelation Unveiled (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1999), 187; William R. Newell, The Book of Revelation (Chicago: Grace, 1935; reprint, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1994), 151-52, 158-59; Charles C. Ryrie, Revelation (Chicago: Moody, 1968), 22; and J. B. Smith, A Revelation of Jesus Christ (Scottdale, PA: Herald, 1961), 170-71.
2. For example Grant R. Osborne, Revelation, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2002), 414; Walter Scott, Exposition of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, 4th ed. (London: Pickering & Inglis, n.d.), 230-31; Henry Barclay Swete, Commentary on Revelation (London: Macmillan, 1911; reprint, Grand Rapids: Kregel, 1977), 134; Robert L. Thomas, Revelation 8-22: An Exegetical Commentary (Chicago: Moody, 1995), 85; and John F. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ (Chicago: Moody, 1966), 178.
3. For the meaning of “week” as a literal, seven-year period, see John A. McLean, The Seventieth Week of Daniel 9:27 as a Literary Key for Understanding the Structure of the Apocalypse of John (Lewiston, NY: Mellen, 1995), 58-64.
4. John Whitcomb, “The Two Witnesses,” in Dispensationalism Tomorrow & Beyond, ed. Christopher Cove (Fort Worth, TX: Tyndale Seminary Press, 2008), 359.
5. Henry C. Thiessen, “Will the Church Pass through the Tribulation? Part 1,” Bibliotheca Sacra 92 (January–March 1935): 50.
6. Newell, The Book of Revelation, 151-52, 158-59.
7. On the question of whether John the Baptist fulfilled Malachi’s prediction about Elijah see Craig A. Blaising, “Malachi,” in The Bible Knowledge Commentary, Old Testament, ed. John F. Walvoord and Roy B. Zuck (Wheaton, IL: Victor, 1985; reprint, Colorado Springs: Cook, 1996), 587-88.
8. See Daniel K. Wong, “The Two Witnesses in Revelation 11,” Bibliotheca Sacra 154 (July–September 2002): 344-54, for an extensive discussion on the ambiguity of the identification of the two witnesses.
9. Herman Hoyt, Studies in Revelation (Winona Lake, IN: BMH, 1977), 74. See also Alva J. McClain, The Greatness of the Kingdom (Winona Lake, IN: BMH, 1977), 74.
10. See Kenneth F. McKinley, “The Chronology of the Revelation” (Th.D. diss., Dallas Theological Seminary, May, 1957), 162-64, for a detailed rebuttal of the view that the 144,000 will be evangelized by the two witnesses.
11. See John A. McLean, “The Chronological and Sequential Structure of Revelation,” www.pretrib.org, for arguments that the midpoint of the Tribulation will begin with the sixth seal judgment in Revelation 6:12-17.
12. McLean, The Seventieth Week of Daniel 9:27, 187-258.
13. William C. Stevens, Revelation—The Crown-Jewel of Biblical Prophecy (Harrisburg, PA: Christian Alliance, 1928), 181.
14. Louis E. Knowles, “The Interpretation of the Seventy Weeks of Daniel in the Early Fathers,” Westminster Theological Journal 7 (1944): 142. See also Herman A. Hoyt, “The New Testament Doctrine concerning the Antichrist,” Grace Journal 4 (1963): 32.
15. Mark L. Hitchcock, “A Critique of the Preterist View of the Temple in Revelation 11:1-2,” Bibliotheca Sacra 164 (April–June 2007): 227.
16. Ryrie, Revelation, 72.
17. Thomas, Revelation 8-22: An Exegetical Commentary, 92.
18. G. K. Beale, The Book of Revelation: A Commentary on the Greek Text (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1999), 409-11. See Robert L. Thomas, Revelation 1-7: An Exegetical Commentary (Chicago: Moody, 1995), 469-71, for an excellent discussion on the sealing of the saints.
19. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, 178.
20. Whitcomb, “The Two Witnesses,” 361 (italics his).
21. Walvoord, The Revelation of Jesus Christ, 176-77.
22. Cohen, Understanding Revelation, 134.
23. See McKinley, “The Chronology of the Revelation,” 167-69, for further discussion.
24. Newell, The Book of Revelation, 158.
25. Robert L. Thomas, “The Structure of the Apocalypse: Recapitulation or Progression?” Master’s Seminary Journal 4 (1993): 63 (italics his).
26. Gary Cohen, “The Chronology of the Book of Revelation” (Th.D. diss., Grace Theological Seminary, May, 1966), 254.
27. Zane Hodges, Power to Make War (Dallas: Redencion Viva, 1995), 48-49.
28. The word ἔμφοβος (“terror”) is an intensive form of φόβος (“fear”).
29. Whitcomb, “The Two Witnessses,” 360.
30. McKinley, “The Chronology of the Revelation,” 173.
31. Thomas, Revelation 8-22: An Exegetical Commentary, 85.