The Two Witnesses

No one knows for sure how the Rapture, the Tribulation and the events in Revelations will play out; Pan Trib.
Who are the Two Witnesses from Rev 11:3-14? Are they literally two people or are they symbolic of something else?

Rev 11:3,4  And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy one thousand two hundred and sixty days, (3 ½ years) clothed in sackcloth." 4 These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands standing before the God of the earth. 

Some scholars say Elijah, Moses, or Enoch. The footnotes in my Spirit Filled Life NKJ Bible says: “The two witnesses, identified as the two olive trees and the two lampstands are symbols of the witnessing church militant (Zech 4:1-4, 6, 10, 14), proclaiming the gospel accompanied by signs and wonders. They are purposefully not identified as individuals, although they are reminiscent of Zerubbabel and Joshua (Zech 3:1 – 4:14), as well as Elijah (1Kin. 17:1, 2King 1:10) and Moses (Ex 7-12).” The Church Militant are the ones standing in boldness, releasing God’s authority into our government, schools and culture. They stand against the Marxist-Luciferian system called the Babylonian Deep State.

Symbolism of the Lampstands
Rev 1:20  The mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands which you saw are the seven churches. 

A lampstand is symbolic of a church, not an individual person. Other places in the Bible, it is a literal lampstand. It has to be understood in context of the surrounding Scripture. A lampstand gives off light. Just as Jesus is the light of the world, we as Christians are a light to the world. When Jesus said this, He was not referring to one person, but His disciples (church).

Mat 5:14-16  "You are the light of the world. A city that is set on a hill cannot be hidden. 15  Nor do they light a lamp and put it under a basket, but on a lampstand, and it gives light to all who are in the house. 16  Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good works and glorify your Father in heaven. America is “A city set on a hill” and all of the world is watching!

Symbolism of the Olive Tree
Israel and God’s People: Olive trees frequently represent Israel or God’s chosen people. In Jeremiah 11:16, Israel is called a “green olive tree,” though warned of potential judgment. Romans 11:17-24 uses the olive tree to illustrate the grafting of Gentiles into God’s covenant with Israel. -Grok
Light and Illumination: Olive oil fueled lamps, symbolizing God’s guidance and truth. The golden lampstand in the Tabernacle, fueled by olive oil (Exodus 27:20), points to divine light and wisdom. -Grok
Jesus said in Rev 2:5 to the Church of Ephesus; “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works, or else I will come to you quickly and remove your lampstand from its place unless you repent.” The Church of Ephesus lost their love for God and one another.

A church without a lampstand is a blind church. A lampstand without oil from the olive tree, is only for show. The oil from the olive tree is the fuel for the lampstand. Together they represent God’s power/anointing working in this earth. The olive tree is symbolic of God’s Hebrew children in the Old Testament. They were under law, the Ten Commandments. God is the God of law and order, not chaos. The Ten Commandments have not been done away with, they are now written in our hearts.

The lampstand is the New Testament Church that was “grafted in” to the olive tree, needing it’s “oil-anointing” who is (and always has been) Jesus Christ the Anointed One. The lampstand through the Holy Spirit is the Kingdom of Light, but it needs the oil of the olive tree to shine. We as today’s Church need our Hebrew-olive-tree-roots. Jesus is The Branch of
Righteousness. The government of Jesus Christ flows through the throne of David (Isa 9:6,7). Remove our Hebrew roots and you will remove our foundational cornerstone and authority. Bloodlines are very important in God’s government.
Jer 33:14  'Behold, the days are coming,' says the LORD, 'that I will perform that good thing which I have promised to the house of Israel and to the house of Judah: 15  'In those days and at that time I will cause to grow up to David A Branch of righteousness; He shall execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. 16  In those days Judah will be saved, And Jerusalem will dwell safely. And this is the name by which she will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.' 17  "For thus says the LORD: 'David shall never lack a man to sit on the throne of the house of Israel; 18  nor shall the priests, the Levites, lack a man to offer burnt offerings before Me, to kindle grain offerings, and to sacrifice continually.' " 

God’s Righteous Government: Kings, Priests and Prophets
Throne of David: civil-governmental authority
Levites: spiritual-priestly authority
Jeremiah: the prophet’s authority in the Word of God

The Vision of the Lampstand and Olive Trees the Angel gave to Zechariah
Zec 4:1-14  Now the angel who talked with me came back and wakened me, as a man who is wakened out of his sleep. 
2  And he said to me, "What do you see?" So I said, "I am looking, and there is a lampstand of solid gold with a bowl on top of it, and on the stand seven lamps with seven pipes to the seven lamps. 3  Two olive trees are by it, one at the right of the bowl and the other at its left." 7 is considered God’s number of spiritual perfection.

4  So I answered and spoke to the angel who talked with me, saying, "What are these, my lord?" 5  Then the angel who talked with me answered and said to me, "Do you not know what these are?" And I said, "No, my lord." 6  So he answered and said to me: "This is the word of the LORD to Zerubbabel: 'Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit,' Says the LORD of hosts. 

When Zechariah asked what are the two olive trees, the angel answered; “Not by might, nor by power, but by My Spirit Says the Lord of hosts.” The angel is saying the two olive trees are vessels of the Spirit of God with the backing of the “Lord of hosts,” which is the commander of all the armies in Heaven and on Earth. The two olive trees are Zerubbabel the Governor and Joshua the High Priest.

Zechariah asks again; “What are these two olive trees at the right of the lampstand and at its left?” and in verse 14 the angel said; “These are the two anointed ones, who stand beside the Lord of the whole earth.” Oil is symbolic of the Holy Spirit, so here again we see the Holy Spirit, the power of God upon Zerubbabel and Joshua.

Footnotes SFLB for 4:14 The two anointed ones (“the two olive trees”), are Joshua, representing the religious authority and Zerubbabel, representing the civil authority. They are archetypes of the two witnesses mentioned in Rev 11:3,4.

When the civil authority (Governor Zerubbabel) walks with the religious authority (High Priest Joshua) led by the Holy Spirit (Prophet Zechariah) God releases His power/anointing that breaks every yoke of bondage to deliver His people and establish His Kingdom.

Rebellion Against Moses and Aaron
Numbers Chapters 16, 17 and 18 teach us about the rebellion of Korah, Dathan and Abiram against Moses and Aaron. They rebelled against Moses’s civil authority and Aaron’s priestly authority. By doing this, they were not just going against Moses and Aaron, but they rejected the Lord (Nu 16:30). The ground opened up and swallowed those with Korah, and fire came down and consumed the men who were offering incense, the ones who came against Aaron’s priesthood. Footnotes in SFLB: “These three chapters narrate the events that reaffirmed the divinely appointed structure of Moses as political leader and Aaron (and his descendants) as the worship leader.”

The Transfiguration on the Mount
In Matt 17:1-13, Jesus was on the Mount and His face shined like the Sun, and His clothes were as white as light. Moses and Elijah appeared with Him, and they had a conversation. According to my footnotes, Moses and Elijah represented the Law and the Prophets. The Law is the civil government structure and the Prophets is the spiritual-religious.
Jesus is Lord of everything or He is not Lord at all. There is no in-between. All in, or not in at all. Choose this day.