I will grant my two witnesses power to prophesy: the Greek text says “I will give to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy.” Some translations say “give authority” (Translator’s New Testament, Revised English Bible, New Revised Standard Version); New American Bible, Revised has “I will commission (my two witnesses)”; others have “I will send” (Good News Translation, Biblia Dios Habla Hoy, Bible en français courant, Nova Tradução na Linguagem de Hoje, New Jerusalem Bible). Any of these is a satisfactory translation of the text. To prophesy means to proclaim God’s message. Since God is the speaker, here the translation can say “to proclaim my message.” So this clause may also be translated as “I will send two witnesses to proclaim my message” or “I will give my two witnesses the authority to proclaim my message.”

My two witnesses: this can be translated “the two who will speak the truth about me.” Since they are the same as the prophets in verse 10, it is possible to translate “the two men who will proclaim my message.”

For one thousand two hundred and sixty days: see verse 2. Bible en français courant translates “during those one thousand two hundred and sixty days,” to identify the time span with the forty-two months of the preceding verse. In many societies a figure expressed in words rather than numbers will be preferable. See the alternative translation model below.

Clothed in sackcloth: see 6.12. The sackcloth was coarse cloth, usually made of goat’s hair, which was worn as a sign of mourning, and which shows that the message of the two witnesses, or prophets, is to be one of doom and destruction, and a call for people to repent while there is still time. In cultures where sackcloth is unknown, it will be more natural to say “They wore clothes that showed that they were mourning (or, distressed).”

An alternative translation model for this verse is:

• I will send my two men who will proclaim my true message. They will wear mourning clothes and will proclaim my message during those one thousand two hundred and sixty days.”

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 .