8/04/18 Revelation 8:1-13 “The judgment of the wicked via
the first four trumpets”
Revelation 8:1 – And when
he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of
half an hour.
Already we have had the first 6 seals (Ch.6) which probably cover a timeline from the start of the 7-year period until this point at least. While each judgment appears to be somewhat chronological in order, they do not necessarily end in the same order. The four horsemen of the apocalypse (first 4 seals) appear to announce the start of this 7-year period, yet the judgments they bring could be seen to continue concurrently for much, perhaps all, of the tribulation, but at least until the trumpet judgments commence. The 6th seal, though, appears to be more of an event that happens as a consequence of the four horsemen, yet probably when it is completed, the four horsemen judgments continue.
But the half hour of silence does seem to indicate that a notable change is about to happen in the train of events. It is said that a pause in a speech may add great emphasis to a particular point. If that’s so, then this is going to be a very big point indeed!
Things are going to go from bad to worse. Instead of just bad times (wars, death, famine, with a ¼ of the earth’s population being killed) we now move to the trumpet judgments, the first 4 of which are often called the judgment of thirds – a third of all trees destroyed, yet all the grass destroyed (Vs 7), a third of sea-life and of vessels on the sea destroyed (Vs 9), a third of the world’s fresh water supplies made bitter and poisonous (Vs 10 & 11), and a third of the light from heavenly bodies (sun, moon, stars) destroyed (Vs 12).
The 6th trumpet (= 2nd woe) will see the death of a third of all mankind (Revelation 9:15).
I would suggest that the first half of the tribulation will be very bad, but the second half will make the first half look like a Sunday School picnic! And what seems to make the change from first half to second half is that which will happen at the midpoint – the abomination as spoken by Daniel in Daniel 9:27, and reinforced by what Jesus said in Matthew 24:15.
The 7th trumpet (= 3rd woe), which introduces the 7 bowls of wrath (which in turn will make the 7 trumpets pale into insignificance) in probably just 30 days, is clearly the final build-up to Armageddon and the reaping of the harvest of God’s anger in the winepress, and the second coming of Jesus the Messiah. So I would place the 7 trumpet judgments in the 3½ years following the abomination in the temple halfway through the 7 year period.
Revelation 8:2 – And I saw
the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
Trumpets were used
to summon people to worship, to festivals, and to war. Trumpets announced that
someone was about to arrive or that something was about to happen. They even
had a festival of the trumpets as noted in
Numbers 29:1-2 – 1 And in the seventh month, on the first [day] of
the month, ye shall have an holy convocation; ye shall
do no servile work: it is a day of blowing the trumpets unto you. 2 And
ye shall offer a burnt offering for a sweet savour unto the Lord; one young
bullock, one ram, [and] seven lambs of the first year without blemish:
Here the trumpets
may be seen as announcing the judgments that are to occur, but also the leadup
to the coming of the Messiah at the end of this 7-year period.
Revelation 8:3 – And
another angel came and stood at (literally “on”, “over” or “against”) the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much
incense, that he should offer [it] with the prayers of all saints upon
the golden altar which was before the throne.
While some teach
that this angel is actually Christ in His role as high priest of His people, it
is clear that this is an angel (“another angel”) who has been required
to do what he has been told to do, and that is to receive the incense and then
to (mingle it with) the prayers of the saints upon the golden altar before the
throne of God.
The high priest was
to burn sweet incense upon the altar (Exodus 30:1-10). This angel is to do something
similar, apparently adding it to or mingling it with the prayers of the saints.
According to Hebrews, Christ is now our high priest after the order of
Melchizedek, and thus would be responsible for the offering of the prayers of
the saints to the Father. In Revelation 5:8 the prayers of the saints are
offered as incense, whereas here the angel adds incense to mingle with the
prayers of the saints so that both might rise before God (Vs 4). It is also
clear that this angel is not Christ but merely a created being who is carrying
out a task appointed to him by God.
In Luke 1:10,
Zachariah was offering incense while the people prayed outside; apparently both
the offering of incense and praying of God’s people occurred at the same time.
Luke 1:10 – And the whole multitude of the people were praying
without at the time of incense.
Concerning the
golden censer and altar, as far as I know, gold is the only metal that may be
mined from the ground in its pure state.
Incense symbolised
the prayers of God’s people rising to Him.
Psalm 141:2 – Let my prayer be set forth before thee [as] incense;
[and] the lifting up of my hands [as] the evening sacrifice.
Revelation 8:4 – And the
smoke of the incense, [which came] with the prayers of the saints,
ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.
Or rather, the
smoke of the incense ascended up before God with the prayers of the saints,
from the hand of the angel. Both the incense and the prayers of the saints
together come before God, and both are here said to have come from the angel’s
hand. This is clearly a mighty angel to be entrusted with such an important
task.
The prayers of the
saints are supposed to have real power according to God’s will.
John 15:7 – If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye
shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.
Also note the right
of God’s people to come before Him in prayer in Hebrews
4:16 – Let us therefore come boldly
unto the throne of grace, that we may obtain mercy, and find grace to help in
time of need.
Revelation 8:5 – And the
angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast [it] into
the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings,
and lightnings, and an earthquake.
This is clearly the
same angel who offered the incense and the saints’ prayers. Now he takes fire
(or hot ashes, or hot coals) from the fire on the altar and casts (throws;
scatters; pours) it into (toward) the earth. There were voices (phone –
sounds; tones; voices; speech; languages) and thunderings
and lightnings and an earthquake (seismos – a
shaking; commotion; tempest; earthquake).
The angel has already
offered the prayers of the saints which would have included dealing with the
problem at hand at that time: the persecutions of the tribulation. Note Revelation 6:9-11 – 9 And when he had opened the
fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the
word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 10 And
they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost
thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 11
And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said
unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be
killed as they [were], should be fulfilled.
These prayers have
ascended with the incense to the throne of God, and now, it appears, the
consequences are about to be unleashed, via the 7 trumpet judgments. That is,
the 7 trumpets are clearly the consequence of the pleading of the saints for
God’s judgment to fall upon their oppressors (Revelation 6:10). The saints have
asked for it to happen, and God is going to deliver it for them.
Revelation 8:6 – And the
seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
The censor of fire
(or hot coals) has already been poured down upon the earth; the judgments have
already been initiated. But they apparently won’t happen (or commence) all at
once; the trumpet numbers signify the order in which these judgments will
occur. There is no indication that each judgment finishes before the next one
commences, though, and possibly the first 4 trumpets may occur almost
immediately after one another, or there may be some time between each. The
final 3 trumpets are also called the 3 woes, probably because of their greater
level of judgment than the previous four trumpets. Woes No. 1 & 2 (Revelation
Ch.9) may occur as the second half of the tribulation progresses, in
preparation for the final woe which leads up to Armageddon and the consequent
judgement. Woe No. 3 is described in Revelation Ch.16.
Revelation 8:7 – The first
angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they
were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all
green grass was burnt up.
Note the 7th
plague of Egypt in Exodus 9:24-25 – 24 So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail,
very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it
became a nation. 25 And the hail smote throughout all the
land of Egypt all that [was] in the field, both man and beast; and the
hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every
tree of the field.
Note also the
end-times prophecy of Joel 2:30 – And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the
earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke.
Some of this may
relate to God’s two witnesses in the streets of Jerusalem in the 2nd
half of the tribulation.
Revelation 11:3-6 – 3 And I will give [power] unto my two
witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred [and] threescore
days (3½ years) , clothed in sackcloth. 4
These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing
before the God of the earth. 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. 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.
Is it warfare or an
act of God? We are not told what causes this destruction, yet God can use
worldly powers to do His will, or He can merely cause great physical changes
such as the parting of the Red Sea. It remains the judgment of God regardless
of how it happens.
Revelation 8:8 – And the
second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was
cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
Note the connection
with the 1st Egyptian plague.
The many references
to Babylon in Revelation strongly suggest that the fall of Babylon will be
toward the end of the tribulation period, apparently as part of the 7th
and final bowl of wrath (Revelation 16:19). However, the following two
references do suggest similarities between Revelation 8:8 and the fall of
Babylon.
Revelation 18:21 – And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great
millstone, and cast [it] into the sea, saying, Thus
with violence shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found
no more at all.
Jeremiah 51:24-25 – 24 And I will render unto Babylon and to all the
inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your
sight, saith the Lord. 25 Behold, I [am] against thee,
O destroying mountain, saith the Lord, which destroyest
all the earth: and I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, and roll thee down
from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain.
A mountain
symbolised strength and might. Daniel 2:35, 44-45 depicts the millennial reign
of Christ as a huge mountain that fills the whole earth. The removal of a great
mountain could then symbolise the destruction of a great power, nation or
kingdom; note again the similarity with the predictions concerning Babylon.
Revelation 8:9 – And the
third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the
third part of the ships were destroyed.
Many commentaries
teach much of Revelation as symbolic, and this verse is no exception. Barnes
goes to great length to explain. The following is but a part of his commentary
on this verse: If the first trumpet had
reference to the invasion of Alaric and the Goths, then in this we naturally
look for the next succeeding act of invasion which shook the Roman empire, and contributed to its fall.
And Gill, that
“great” calvinist “exegete” (at least the “calvinist” part is true!) says: And the third part of the
creatures which were in the sea,.... The fishes; by
whom men are meant, the inhabitants of the Roman empire; see Ezekiel 29:4,
where by fish the Targum understands mighty princes and governors: and had life, died; were put to death by these
savage and barbarous people, who killed all they met with, men, women, and
children, young and old, rich and poor, high and low: and the third part of the
ships were destroyed; by which may be designed either the cities and towns
within such a part of the Roman jurisdiction, which were burnt or plundered by
them; or their goods and effects, which they pillaged, and carried off the
wealth and riches of the people, even all their substance
Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
says: The
symbolical interpreters take the ships here to be churches. For the Greek here
for ships is not the common one, but that used in the Gospels of the apostolic
vessel in which Christ taught: and the first churches were in the shape of an
inverted ship: and the Greek for destroyed is also used of heretical corruptings (1Ti 6:5).
Matthew Poole dates
these events between 410 and 455 AD.
Matthew Henry says
(in part): By
this mountain some understand leaders of the persecutions; others, Rome sacked by
the Goths and Vandals, with great slaughter and cruelty.
However, a literal
explanation is most logical, and should not be dismissed unless reason dictates
otherwise. A third part of living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the
ships on the sea (either number or size) were destroyed.
Revelation 8:10-11 – 10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven,
burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and
upon the fountains of waters; 11 And
the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters
became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made
bitter.
Matthew Henry says:
The third angel
sounded, and there fell a star from heaven. Some take this to be an eminent
governor; others take it to be some person in power who corrupted the churches
of Christ.
It could be
possible for this star to be a being falling from on high, or
falling from grace. Revelation 12:4 appears to describe fallen angels as stars,
though we’ll get to this later on. But the second half of this verse, together
with Vs 11 does not easily support a symbolic explanation. It appears to
describe an actual event.
Something falls
from heaven, either a miracle event from God or a man-made source such as a
warhead from a satellite. Whatever falls from heaven burns like a fiery torch
(possibly with the appearance of fiery trail), and somehow this affects a third
of all the rivers (probably lakes also) on earth, yet
affects all springs or water sources. They become bitter and many people
die because of the contamination.
Wormwood is the
word apsinthos (Artemisia absinthium, or Mugwort, also known as absinthe wormwood). A highly alcoholic beverage, absinthe can
be used as an ingredient in making bitters (flavouring in spirits and wines).
The star falling
from heaven could very logically be atomic warfare delivered from space; such
warheads would fall from space at great speed, probably with heat shields
burning in the atmosphere as they descend. Radiation poisoning can be deadly
and can affect rain (as “black rain”) and water supplies. After oxygen, water
is the most necessary basic need for life, thus making contaminated water a
common source of radioactive poisoning.
Note the nuclear
disaster of Chernobyl which caused radioactive poisoning over a wide area, and
still dangerous today.
The
Ukrainian language word for "wormwood"
is чорнобиль
or "chornobyl", the Ukrainian name of the
town of Chernobyl. (Wikipedia)
The word translated
“wormwood” in the Old Testament (Eg Deuteronomy 29:18;
Jeremiah 9:15) symbolises bitterness, but can also be
translated as hemlock in Amos 6:12.
Revelation 8:12 – And the
fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third
part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so
as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part
of it, and the night likewise.
Cf the Egyptian plague of darkness. Here a
third of all heavenly light available to the earth is removed, apparently both
in quantity and in duration. It is possible for this to represent the
consequences of a massive atomic exchange, though we can never discount that
God is able to make this happen without the help of anything of mankind. The
effect of all this darkness would be catastrophic for the growth of anything on
earth, especially vegetation. Imagine a world perpetually cast into winter
darkness, with reduced heat as well. And the 1st trumpet also
destroyed a third of all trees (and probably plants; note: reduced fruit and
vegetables) with all grass (including grains such as wheat, no doubt)
destroyed. The 2nd trumpet reduced fish supplies and imports will be
hampered by a third of ships being destroyed.
The 3rd
trumpet had already made much of the freshwater supplies undrinkable, thus
effectively producing massive drought world-wide. Now what’s left is going to
struggle because of the reduced sunlight. It would take a miracle for the earth
to even survive this!
Revelation 8:13 – And I
beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a
loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the
earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which
are yet to sound!
Some say that it’s
a single eagle, and not an angel, even though the Greek word used is aggelos – it’s hard to see how this becomes “eagle”
(= aetos) unless they’re looking at different
manuscripts! The point is not whether it’s an angel, though, but on the message
the angel carries. The last 3 trumpets are renamed as the 3 woes, with the
third woe becoming the final 7 bowls of wrath. That is, if they thought it
couldn’t get any worse, then they are greatly mistaken. The destruction is
about to become more or less total!
Most commentaries
on Revelation are fairly useless in their explanations of what is happening.
Most of those are also calvinist or at the very least influenced by calvinist
thinking, which means that they do not acknowledge the reality of a literal
millennial reign of the Messiah. Traditionally calvinists have been (and still
are) amillennialist. Amillennialists
believe that Christ commenced His reign seated at the right hand of the Father
at Pentecost (or following His ascension). For these people, Christ’s kingdom
is not in the physical realm, and His kingdom began when He began His ministry
among man. They take the 1,000 years as symbolic, not a literal 1,000 years.
They teach that satan has already been bound, and that he cannot deceive the
nations because of the spread of the gospel. Christ has already won the victory
and one day that victory will be consummated. They refer to the entire
era between Christ’s first and second comings as the last days. Thus we are already in the millennium now. Many amillennialists also believe that the tribulation period
began with the catholic church and its activities over the centuries, including
persecution of genuine believers.
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