15 WITNESSING TWO TWO ACTS APOSTLES BY IN THE OF THE ther who sent me testifies on my behalf” (John 8,17-18) 26. Both the first evangelist and the Pastoral Letters mention the requirement of two or three witnesses, understood in the juridical sense, to settle quarrels or prove accusations: “... but if you are not listened to, take one or two others along with you, so that every word may be confirmed by the evidence of two or three witnesses” (Matt 18,16) ; “ Never accept any accusation against an elder except on the evidence of two or three witnesses” (1 Tim 5,19). Paul refers to the Deuteronomic law of two or three witnesses, either because he is going to make a third visit to the Church of Corinth (“This is the third time I am coming to you. Any charge must be sustained by the evidence of two or three witnesses” 2 Cor 13,1), or he must defend himself against the charge of financial misconduct 27. The law of two witnesses is also transposed from the juridical sphere to the metaphorical in the Book of Revelation where two anonymous witnesses will prophesy and testify faithfully, even to death: “I will grant my two witnesses authority to prophesy for one thousand two hundred sixty days, wearing sackcloth” (Rev 11,3) 28. Last but not least, Jesus sends “two by two” the twelve apo- stles (hrjato aytoyv apostellein dyo dyo, Mark 6,7) 29 and the ¶ ßùß ¥ ¥ ¥ Seventy, or Seventy two, disciples (apesteilen aytoyv ana dyo, ߥ ß ù ßù ¥ Luke 10,1). It is precisely here that it is possible to identify the reason for the vast number of references in the New Testament writings to the law of two witnesses, and in particular, according to the hypothesis suggested here, for the pairs of witnesses in Acts: Cf. also 1 John 5,7-8 where the witnesses are three as stated, for a testi- 26 mony ad abundantiam, in Deut 17,6 and Deut 19,15. L.L. WELBORN, “ ‘ By the Mouth of Two or Three Witnesses’. Paul’s 27 Invocation of a Deuteronomic Statute”, NT 52 (2010) 207-220: “The three vis- its by Paul do not satisfy the requirements of the text that Paul quotes” (208); “ Paul is defending himself against the charge of financial misconduct” (214). Cf., furthermore, 11Q19 61,6-12 (“A single witness may not stand up 28 against a man for any fault or for any sin which he has committed; by the testi- mony of two witnesses or by the testimony of three witnesses the matter shall be settled etc.”), and then H. VAN VLIET, No Single Testimony. A Study on the Adoption of the Law of Deut. 19,15par into the New Testament (Utrecht 1958); J. JEREMIAS, “Paarweise Sendung im Neuen Testament”, New Testament Essays. FS T.W. Manson, (ed. A.J.B. HIGGINS) (Manchester 1959) 136-143. C.H. TALBERT, Literary Patterns, Theological Themes and the Genre of 29 Luke-Acts (SBLMS 20; Missoula, MT 1974) 67-75.