"Regarding the four and twenty elders: The Master, in a Tablet, stated that
they were the Báb, the eighteen Letters of the Living, and five others who
would be known in the future. So far we do not know who these five others are."
-- Shoghi Effendi, Directives from the Guardian, p. 22

4:4   And round about the throne were four and twenty seats: and upon
       the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment;
       and they had on their heads crowns of gold.
-- Bible: Revelation.

In the passage above, the twenty four elders are identified as "the Báb, the
eighteen Letters of the Living, and five others who would be known in the future."
The following sequence from the Book of Revelation verses 11:3 to 11:17
fortells the coming of Muhammad (First woe) and Imam Ali, followed by The Bab
(Second woe) and Quddus, followed by Baha'u'llah (Third woe) and the 24 elders.
Based on this sequence of these events (woes), the 24 elders cannot include the
Bab and the 18 Letters of the Living because they appear in the time period of
the second woe (the era of the Bab), and the Bab and Quddus (who was also one
of the Letters of the Living) are martyred in that time period as explained below
by Abdu'l-Baha.

11:3  And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy
         a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
-- Bible: Revelation

And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a
thousand two hundred and three-score days, clothed in sackcloth." These two
witnesses are Muhammad the Messenger of God, and `Alí, son of Abú Tálib.

In the Qur'án it is said that God addressed Muhammad, the Messenger of God,
saying: "We made You a Witness, a Herald of good news, and a Warner"--that
is to say, We have established Thee as the witness, the giver of good
tidings, and as One bringing the wrath of God. The meaning of "a witness"
is one by whose testimony things may be verified. The commands of these two
witnesses were to be performed for twelve hundred and sixty days, each day
signifying a year. Now, Muhammad was the root, and `Alí the branch, like
Moses and Joshua.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 48

11:11 And after three days and an half the spirit of life from God entered
       into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon
       them which saw them.
-- Bible: Revelation

"And after three days and a half the spirit of life from God entered into
them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them that
saw them."  Three days and a half, as we before explained, is twelve hundred
and sixty years. Those two persons whose bodies were lying spiritless are the
teachings and the law that Muhammad established and `Alí promoted, from
which, however, the reality had departed and only the form remained. The
spirit came again into them means that those foundations and teachings were
again established. In other words, the spirituality of the Religion of God had
been changed into materiality, and virtues into vices; the love of God had been
changed into hatred, enlightenment into darkness, divine qualities into satanic
ones, justice into tyranny, mercy into enmity, sincerity into hypocrisy, guidance
into error, and purity into sensuality. Then after three days and a half, which
by the terminology of the Holy Books is twelve hundred and sixty years, these
divine teachings, heavenly virtues, perfections and spiritual bounties were again
renewed by the appearance of the Báb and the devotion of Jináb-i-Quddús.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 54

11:12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up
       hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies
       beheld them.
-- Bible: Revelation

"And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither.
And they ascended up to heaven," meaning that from the invisible heaven they
heard the voice of God, saying: You have performed all that was proper and
fitting in delivering the teachings and glad tidings; you have given My message
to the people and raised the call of God, and have accomplished your duty.
Now, like Christ, you must sacrifice your life for the Well-Beloved, and be
martyrs. And that Sun of Reality, and that Moon of Guidance, both, like
Christ, set on the horizon of the greatest martyrdom and ascended to the
Kingdom of God.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 55

11:14 The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly.
-- Bible: Revelation

"The second woe is past; and, behold, the third woe cometh quickly."  The
first woe is the appearance of the Prophet, Muhammad, the son of `Abdu'lláh--
peace be upon Him! The second woe is that of the Báb--to Him be glory and
praise! The third woe is the great day of the manifestation of the Lord of Hosts
and the radiance of the Beauty of the Promised One. The explanation of this
subject, woe, is mentioned in the thirtieth chapter of Ezekiel, where it is said:
"The word of the Lord came again unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy and
say, Thus saith the Lord God; Howl ye, Woe worth the day! For the day is
near, even the day of the Lord is near."

Therefore, it is certain that the day of woe is the day of the Lord; for in that
day woe is for the neglectful, woe is for the sinners, woe is for the ignorant.
That is why it is said, "The second woe is past; behold the third woe cometh
quickly!" This third woe is the day of the manifestation of Bahá'u'lláh, the
day of God; and it is near to the day of the appearance of the Báb.
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 56

11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven,
       saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord,
       and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

The seventh angel is a man qualified with heavenly attributes, who will arise
with heavenly qualities and character. Voices will be raised, so that the
appearance of the Divine Manifestation will be proclaimed and diffused. In
the day of the manifestation of the Lord of Hosts, and at the epoch of the
divine cycle of the Omnipotent which is promised and mentioned in all the
books and writings of the Prophets--in that day of God, the Spiritual and
Divine Kingdom will be established, and the world will be renewed;
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 56

11:16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats,
       fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,

11:17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O LORD God Almighty, which art, and
       wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power,
       and hast reigned.
-- Bible: Revelation

Such is the day of God. For all the days which have come and gone were the
days of Abraham, Moses and Christ, or of the other Prophets; but this day is
the day of God, for the Sun of Reality will arise in it with the utmost warmth
and splendor.

"And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell
upon their faces, and worshipped God.

"Saying, We give Thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, Which art, and wast, and
art to come; because Thou hast taken to Thee Thy great power, and hast
reigned." In each cycle the guardians and holy souls have been twelve. So
Jacob had twelve sons; in the time of Moses there were twelve heads or chiefs
of the tribes; in the time of Christ there were twelve Apostles; and in the
time of Muhammad there were twelve Imáms. But in this glorious manifestation
there are twenty-four, double the number of all the others, for the greatness
of this manifestation requires it. These holy souls are in the presence of
God seated on their own thrones , meaning that they reign eternally.

These twenty-four great persons, though they are seated on the thrones
of everlasting rule, yet are worshipers of the appearance of the
Universal Manifestation,..
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Some Answered Questions, p. 56-58.

Based on the explanation above, the 24 elders are holy souls with stations
equivalent to the 12 Imams of Muhammad, 12 Apostles of Christ, and so on.
The Letters of the Living would be precluded from the 24 holy sould because
they appear in an earlier time period (the Second woe -- the era of the Bab).
Also, the Bab was an Independent Prophet with with Quddus as his Moon (as
mentioned above), and the rest of the Letters of the Living were followers of
the Bab. Except for Quddus, their stations are not equivalent to the holy
souls and messengers who are the 12 Imams, 12 Apostles, and so on. The
passages below appear to be references to the 24 holy souls (in the era of
Baha'u'llah) -- "the Maids of Heaven", "the Brides of inner meaning",
"holy beings", "His [God's] chosen ones".
 

O My servants! Through the might of God and His power, and out of the
treasury of His knowledge and wisdom, I have brought forth and revealed
unto you the pearls that lay concealed in the depths of His everlasting
ocean. I have summoned the Maids of Heaven to emerge from behind the
veil of concealment, and have clothed them with these words of Mine--words
of consummate power and wisdom. I have, moreover, with the hand of divine
power, unsealed the choice wine of My Revelation, and have wafted its holy,
its hidden, and musk-laden fragrance upon all created things. Who else but
yourselves is to be blamed if ye choose to remain unendowed with so great
an outpouring of God's transcendent and all-encompassing grace, with so
bright a revelation of His resplendent mercy?...
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 327
 

By God! This Bird of Heaven, now dwelling upon the dust, can, besides these
melodies, utter a myriad songs, and is able, apart from these utterances, to
unfold innumerable mysteries. Every single note of its unpronounced
utterances is immeasurably exalted above all that hath already been revealed,
and immensely glorified beyond that which hath streamed from this Pen. Let
the future disclose the hour when the Brides of inner meaning will, as
decreed by the Will of God, hasten forth, unveiled, out of their mystic
mansions, and manifest themselves in the ancient realm of being. Nothing
whatsoever is possible without His permission; no power can endure save
through His power, and there is none other God but He. His is the world of
creation, and His the Cause of God. All proclaim His Revelation, and all
unfold the mysteries of His Spirit.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, The Kitab-i-Iqan, p. 175
 

204. O phoenix of that immortal flame kindled in the sacred Tree!
Bahá'u'lláh--may my life, my soul, my spirit be offered up as a sacrifice
unto His lowly servants--hath, during His last days on earth, given the
most emphatic promise that, through the outpourings of the grace of God
and the aid and assistance vouchsafed from His Kingdom on high, souls will
arise and holy beings appear who, as stars, would adorn the firmament of
divine guidance; illumine the dayspring of loving-kindness and bounty;
manifest the signs of the unity of God; shine with the light of sanctity
and purity; receive their full measure of divine inspiration; raise high
the sacred torch of faith; stand firm as the rock and immoveable as the
mountain; and grow to become luminaries in the heavens of His Revelation,
mighty channels of His grace, means for the bestowal of God's bountiful
care, heralds calling forth the name of the One true God, and establishers
of the world's supreme foundation...

I am waiting, eagerly waiting for these holy ones to appear; and yet, how long
will they delay their coming? My prayer and ardent supplication, at eventide
and at dawn, is that these shining stars may soon shed their radiance upon the
world, that their sacred countenances may be unveiled to mortal eyes, that the
hosts of divine assistance may achieve their victory, and the billows of grace,
rising from His oceans above, may flow upon all mankind. Pray ye also and
supplicate unto Him that through the bountiful aid of the Ancient Beauty these
souls may be unveiled to the eyes of the world...
-- `Abdu'l-Bahá, Selections from the Writings of Abdu'l-Baha, p.252
 

There lay concealed within the Holy Veil , and prepared for the service of God,
a company of His chosen ones who shall be manifested unto men, who shall
aid His Cause, who shall be afraid of no one, though the entire human race
rise up and war against them. These are the ones who, before the gaze of
the dwellers on earth and the denizens of heaven, shall arise and, shouting
aloud, acclaim the name of the Almighty, and summon the children of men to
the path of God, the All-Glorious, the All-Praised. Walk thou in their way, and
let no one dismay thee. Be of them whom the tumult of the world, however
much it may agitate them in the path of their Creator, can never sadden, whose
purpose the blame of the blamer will never defeat.

Go forth with the Tablet of God and His signs, and rejoin them that have
believed in Me, and announce unto them tidings of Our most holy Paradise.
Warn, then, those that have joined partners with Him. Say: I am come to
you, O people, from the Throne of glory , and bear you an announcement from
God, the Most Powerful, the Most Exalted, the Most Great. In mine hand I
carry the testimony of God, your Lord and the Lord of your sires of old.
Weigh it with the just Balance that ye possess, the Balance of the testimony
of the Prophets and Messengers of God. If ye find it to be established in
truth, if ye believe it to be of God, beware, then, lest ye cavil at it, and render
your works vain, and be numbered with the infidels. It is indeed the sign of
God that hath been sent down through the power of truth, through which the
validity of His Cause hath been demonstrated unto His creatures, and the
ensigns of purity lifted up betwixt earth and heaven.
-- Bahá'u'lláh, Gleanings from the Writings of Baha'u'llah, p. 280
 

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