Audio Download

Rev 11:4, Part 2 – The Two Olive Trees

[Study Aired Oct 18, 2024]

Rev 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

The apostle John is referring to “the two olive trees” of Zechariah 4:

Zec 4:1  And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep,
Zec 4:2  And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:
Zec 4:3  And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
Zec 4:4  So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
Zec 4:5  Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.
Zec 4:7  Who art thou, O great mountain? before Zerubbabel thou shalt become a plain: and he shall bring forth the headstone thereof with shoutings, crying, Grace, grace unto it.
Zec 4:8  Moreover the word of the LORD came unto me, saying,
Zec 4:9  The hands of Zerubbabel have laid the foundation of this house; his hands shall also finish it; and thou shalt know that the LORD of hosts hath sent me unto you.
Zec 4:10  For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

5) It is through the spirit and the Word of the Lord, typified and signified by the pouring out of oil of these two olive trees and into the seven golden candlesticks, that the mountain, which is this world in us, becomes a plain. This is the very same mountain which the “faith of a grain of mustard seed” can destroy and cast into the sea. Christ, in His saints, signified by Zerubbabel, will finish the building of His temple, “which temple we are”.

Mat 21:21  Jesus answered and said unto them, Verily I say unto you, If ye have faith, and doubt not, ye shall not only do this which is done to the fig tree, but also if ye shall say unto this mountain, Be thou removed, and be thou cast into the sea; it shall be done.

1Co 3:16  Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?
1Co 3:17  If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

Let’s just believe what we are told and accept the fact that these two olive trees are “the Word of The Lord”, a type of Christ including Christ in His body, through which He builds His church. That is the very meaning of “This is the Word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel…”, coming from these two olive trees.

6) This Temple of Zerubbabel seems small and insignificant when compared to the first temple, just as the things of the spirit are always vastly undervalued when compared to the things of this world. These are “the days of small things”, but these “small things” will become a mountain that will fill the whole earth:

Zec 4:10  For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

Dan 2:34  Thou sawest till that a stone was cut out without hands, which smote the image upon his feet that were of iron and clay, and brake them to pieces.
Dan 2:35  Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth.

These are “the days of small things” because it is the precious “few chosen and faithful”, who will be used to redeem and save the many called. “Who has despised the day of small things”? It is “Those seven, [the seven golden candlesticks which are the seven churches, and the two olive trees and the two candlesticks], they are the eyes of the Lord, which run to and fro through the whole earth.” What is the earth? It is God’s own people who have turned their backs to their own spiritual husband. It is you and me at our own appointed time.

Jer 22:29  O earth, earth, earth, hear the word of the LORD.

“Line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little” (Isa 28:9-13), we are learning that Christ also has a Christ whom He has sent to do what His Father sent Him to do.

Joh 20:21  Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you.

Christ is not being negligent or passing the buck. He is rather, revealing that we, His body, are “Jesus of Nazareth”.

Act 22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

This knowledge requires a rude awakening, and the gift of eyes that see and ears that hear things that cannot be received by carnal babes in Christ. It is not revealed all in one verse or even all in one chapter or in one book of God’s Word. This is “hidden wisdom” given only to those who have been given to understand that they are ‘the man’ who killed Christ, and took His wife (as David killed Uriah, a type of Christ and took Bathsheba), and it is revealed only to those who are given to know that “the chief of sinners… Saul of Tarsus”, signifies  the man they we see in the mirror every morning.

Isa 28:9  Whom shall he teach knowledge? and whom shall he make to understand doctrine? them that are weaned from the milk, and drawn from the breasts.
Isa 28:10  For precept must be upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little:
Isa 28:11  For with stammering lips and another tongue will he speak to this people.
Isa 28:12  To whom he said, This is the rest wherewith ye may cause the weary to rest; and this is the refreshing: yet they would not hear.
Isa 28:13  But the word of the LORD was unto them precept upon precept, precept upon precept; line upon line, line upon line; here a little, and there a little; that they might go, and fall backward, and be broken, and snared, and taken.

It is Christ in His repentant saints who are “the eyes of the Lord which run to and fro through the whole earth”, and those eyes are “eyes of fire” which are finding and destroying every sin and weight within which so easily besets us, and who see the “line upon line, precept upon precept, here a little and there a little” design of the hidden wisdom of the word of God.

1Co 2:6  Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect [Greek, ‘being perfected’]: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought:
1Co 2:7  But we speak the wisdom of God in a mystery [Greek, ‘a secret’], even the hidden wisdom, which God ordained before the world unto our glory:

Rev 1:14  His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire;

Rev 2:18  And unto the angel of the church in Thyatira write; These things saith the Son of God, who hath his eyes like unto a flame of fire, and his feet are like fine brass;

Rev 19:12  His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.

Rev 4:8  And the four beasts had each of them six wings about him; and they were full of eyes within: and they rest not day and night, saying, Holy, holy, holy, Lord God Almighty, which was, and is, and is to come.

These are inward eyes, and this is their function:

2Co 13:5  Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

2Pe 1:10  Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall:

Heb 12:1  Wherefore seeing we also are compassed about with so great a cloud of witnesses, let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which doth so easily beset us, and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,

It is here in Zec 4 that we learn that the seven candlesticks, which are the seven churches, are also “the eyes of the Lord”, and “the seven spirits of God” in the heavens, “which run to and fro through our whole earth”.

Zec 4:10  For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven lamps [golden candlesticks]; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

Rev 1:4  John to the seven churches which are in Asia: Grace be unto you, and peace, from him which is, and which was, and which is to come; and from the seven Spirits which are before his throne;

Rev 4:5  And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God.

What else are these seven candlesticks? They are those who comprise the seven churches.

Rev 5:6  And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.

Where else do we see “two… olive trees” in scripture? Could these two olive trees also be the symbols of this very same body of Christ?

1Ki 6:23  And within the oracle he made two cherubims of olive tree, each ten cubits high.

Who are these cherubims? As we saw in our study of Revelation four, these cherubims are just another symbol of those who have “the word of God to Zerubbabel”. They are the same as the two olive trees that empty the golden oil out of themselves and into the golden pipes that take that golden oil to the seven candlesticks which symbolize the seven churches!

Without completely rehearsing our study of Revelation chapter four, we should remember that these cherubims, like all of the secrets of God’s Word, are revealed to us line upon line and precept upon precept, here a little and there a little. The cherubims are first introduced to us as the cherubims who “guard the way of the tree of life with a flaming sword”.

Gen 3:24  So he drove out the man; and he placed at the east of the garden of Eden Cherubims, and a flaming sword which turned every way, to keep the way of the tree of life.

The next time we see them is in the book of Exodus as two cherubims which cover the mercy seat above the ark of the covenant. That is followed by this description here in 1Ki 6 of the two cherubims “within the oracle”, meaning within the holy of holies, at the west end of the temple. It is here that we discover that these two cherubims are “made of olive trees”.

But the revelation of what these cherubims symbolize is still not complete. The next time we read of the cherubims is in Ezekiel 1 and ten, where we are informed that they are actually surrounding the throne of God, and they each have four faces; the face of a man, the face of a lion, the face of an ox and the face of an eagle. But the final revelation of who these cherubims symbolize is found here in the book of Revelation, in chapter five, where they themselves tell us who they symbolize, and who it is that must “keep the way of the tree of life.”

Rev 5:8  And when he had taken the book, the four beasts and four and twenty elders fell down before the Lamb, having every one of them harps, and golden vials full of odours, which are the prayers of saints.
Rev 5:9  And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;
Rev 5:10  And hast made us unto our God kings and priests: and we shall reign on the earth.

So the two cherubims are now four cherubims and instead of having four faces each, they now each have individual faces. But the four individuals have the same four faces that we saw on each cherub in chapters one and ten of Ezekiel. Here in Revelation five, one cherub has the face of a man, one cherub has the face of an ox, one has the face of a lion and another has the face of an eagle.

Now we learn that these two cherubs which cover the mercy seat are but an earlier symbol of those who have the word of God. These two cherubs are made of olive trees, and as “covering cherubs”, they also “stand before the God of the earth.”

Rev 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

But there is more about to be noted regarding the two olives trees, right here is this same 6th chapter of  1 Kings.  We see that the two doors to the holy of holies are also made of olive trees, and they even have the cherubims carved  upon them, to let us know for certain that “the dream is one”.

1Ki 6:31  And for the entering of the oracle [the holy of holies] he made doors of olive tree: the lintel and side posts were a fifth part of the wall.
1Ki 6:32  The two doors also were of olive tree; and he carved upon them carvings of cherubims and palm trees and open flowers, and overlaid them with gold, and spread gold upon the cherubims, and upon the palm trees.

This tells us that the only way into the holy of holies is to go through the two doors of olive tree. Do two olive trees have any place in the doors that lead into the holy place which is before the holy of holies? Let’s see what the scriptures teach.

1Ki 6:33  So also made he for the door of the temple posts of olive tree, a fourth part of the wall.
1Ki 6:34  And the two doors were of fir tree: the two leaves of the one door were folding, and the two leaves of the other door [were] folding.
1Ki 6:35  And he carved thereon cherubims and palm trees and open flowers: and covered [them] with gold fitted upon the carved work.

In the tabernacle of Moses there was but one candlestick with seven lamps, “all one beaten work of pure gold”:

Exo 25:34  And in the candlestick shall be four bowls made like unto almonds, with their knops and their flowers.
Exo 25:35  And there shall be a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, and a knop under two branches of the same, according to the six branches that proceed out of the candlestick.
Exo 25:36  Their knops and their branches shall be of the same: all it shall be one beaten work of pure gold. [‘Beaten’, signifying the trials of “the Lord and His Christ”, Act 4:26; Rev 11:15]
Exo 25:37  And thou shalt make the seven lamps thereof: and they shall light the lamps thereof, that they may give light over against it.
Exo 25:38  And the tongs thereof, and the snuffdishes thereof, shall be of pure gold.
Exo 25:39  Of a talent of pure gold shall he make it, with all these vessels.
Exo 25:40  And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount. [That ‘pattern’ is Christ, 1Pe 2:21]

In Solomon’s temple, two more candlesticks with five candles each were added, one on either side of the candlestick with seven candles:

1Ki 7:49  And the candlesticks of pure gold, five on the right side, and five on the left, before the oracle, with the flowers, and the lamps, and the tongs of gold,

“Five on the right side, and five on the left” refers to either side of the seven branches of the original Mosaic candlestick, which is not mentioned here in the construction of Solomon’s temple because it had already been made by Moses. “Before the oracle” is where the seven-branched Mosaic candlestick was also located. It is on the south side of the tabernacle… “before the oracle”:

Exo 26:35  And thou shalt set the table without the vail, and the candlestick over against the table on the side of the tabernacle toward the south: and thou shalt put the table [of shewbread] on the north side.

2Ch 4:19  And Solomon made all the vessels that were for the house of God, the golden altar also, and the tables whereon the shewbread was set; [“on the north side”, Exo 26:35]

2Ch 4:20  Moreover the candlesticks with their lamps, that they should burn after the manner before the oracle, of pure gold; [“on the south side”, Exo 26:35]

It appears that the two five-branched candlesticks, signifying grace through faith, on either side of the seven-branched candlestick, are “the two candlesticks” mentioned in:

Rev 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

“What are these two olive trees?”

For the second time, Zechariah asks the angel that has awakened him, “What are these two olive trees?”

Zec 4:11  Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?
Zec 4:12  And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?
Zec 4:13  And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Zec 4:14  Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand by the Lord of the whole earth.

The purpose of this entire chapter is to make clear that these two olive trees “are the two anointed ones, that stand by the [Word of] the Lord of the whole earth”. ‘Two’ signifies witness, and ‘candlesticks’ signify the churches. ‘The two witnesses’ therefore signify the witness of the churches in this dark world.

Summary

What now have we learned about these two olive trees which are also called ‘the two candlesticks’, here in Rev 11? What we have learned is that the seven horns and seven eyes on the slain Lamb are the seven spirits of God which, we are told in this fourth chapter of Zechariah, are the same as the seven golden candlesticks, which candlesticks we are told in Revelation one, are the seven churches. But it is here in this same fourth chapter of Zechariah that we discover that these seven golden candlesticks are also the seven spirits of God sent forth into all the earth in “the day of small things.”

Zec 4:10  For who hath despised the day of small things? for they shall rejoice, and shall see the plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel with those seven [golden candlesticks]; they are the eyes of the LORD, which run to and fro through the whole earth.

We have also learned in Zechariah four that these two olive trees and two candlesticks are “the word of the Lord to Zerubbabel”, and the word of the Lord according to Joh 6:63, is spirit.

Joh 6:63  It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life.

So in the final analysis, the “plummet in the hand of Zerubbabel” and the “reed like unto a rod” which is given to John, and the seven candlesticks and the seven horns and seven eyes and the seven spirits of God and the seven churches and the two candlesticks and the two olive trees and the two witnesses and the fire that proceeds out of their mouths and the eyes like fire, are all one and the same. They are “the Word of the Lord unto Zerubbabel” by which we measure and plumb and judge ourselves to see and to know whether Christ really is living His life in us.

1Co 11:31  For if we would judge ourselves, we should not be judged.
1Co 11:32  But when we are judged, we are chastened of the Lord, that we should not be condemned with the world.

2Co 13:5  Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

If Christ really is living within our hearts and minds, then the eyes with which we examine and judge ourselves will be “eyes… as a flame of fire” doing what fire does.

1Co 3:13  Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is.
1Co 3:14  If any man’s work abide which he hath built thereupon, he shall receive a reward.
1Co 3:15  If any man’s work shall be burned, he shall suffer loss: but he himself shall be saved; yet so as by fire.

So who are these two olive trees and two candlesticks and two witnesses? They are “the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations”. They are “Christ in you the hope of glory” (Col 1:27). The two olive trees, and the two candlesticks and the two witnesses are all the same thing. They are all of God’s anointed witnesses who have lived and faithfully witnessed to the Truth which is His word, since the death and resurrection of our Lord. These two olive trees and two candlesticks and two witnesses are Christ living His life in His “few” and His “rejected” and His “small things” Christ. These two olive trees and these two witnesses are all those who are given to “lie dead in the streets of that great city where our Lord was crucified” and who are “filling up in their own bodies what is behind of the afflictions of the Christ, for His bodies sake which is the church”.

Col 1:24  Who now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up that which is behind of the afflictions of [Greek, ‘the’] Christ in my flesh for his body’s sake, which is the church:
Col 1:25  Whereof I am made a minister, according to the dispensation of God which is given to me for you, to fulfil the word of God;
Col 1:26  Even the mystery which hath been hid from ages and from generations, but now is made manifest to his saints:
Col 1:27  To whom God would make known what [is] the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles; which is Christ in you, the hope of glory:

In our next study, Lord willing, we will cover verses five and six, which tell us of the power given to those who are given to be the witnesses of Christ. Here are verses five and six:

Rev 11:5  And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.
Rev 11:6  These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will.