The two olive trees: the way in which this is stated makes it clear that it refers to Zech 4.1-14, where the two olive trees, on either side of the lampstand, are the two men chosen and anointed by God to serve him, the Lord of the whole earth. Where olive trees are unknown, some decision must be made about how to represent olive trees, olives, and olive oil, all of which appear frequently in the Bible. Because of the importance of the olive tree in the Palestinian cultures, it will be well for translators in cultures where these trees are unknown to say something like “tree named olive” and introduce a picture, and also have a description in a glossary item.

The two lampstands: see 1.12. Translators should use the same word as was employed in 1.12, and not imitate Good News Translation‘s translation “lamp” in this verse.

Which stand: in the Greek the gender of the participle “standing” is masculine, so that it refers not to the olive trees or the lampstands, but to the two witnesses themselves. So the translation should be “who stand” or “and they stand.” In order to convey this idea in many languages, one must say, for example, “The two witnesses stand before the Lord of the earth, and they are the two olive trees and the two lampstands,” or “The two witnesses are the two olive trees and two lampstands. These two men stand before the Lord of the earth.”

Before the Lord of the earth: this means “in the presence of God, the Lord of the whole world.” The verb stand shows that they are God’s servants, ready to do what God commands. The phrase the Lord of the earth may also be expressed as “the one who rules over the whole world.”

An alternative translation model for this verse is:

• The two men who proclaim God’s message stand in the presence of the Lord who rules over the whole world. They are those two olive trees and the two lampstands.

Quoted with permission from Bratcher, Robert G. and Hatton, Howard A. A Handbook on The Revelation to John. (UBS Handbook Series). New York: UBS, 1993. For this and other handbooks for translators see here .