Revelation - Chapter 8

 

All through Revelation we have this theme where Jesus tells us about the redeemed and how they are sealed, settled in the truth so they cannot be moved, they are back in harmony with the Law of God, saved by the Blood of the Lamb, and He gives us this beautiful picture before He gives us the bad news, it's a theme in the book of Revelation, we never have to be afraid because He is the victor and the King of Kings.

In chapter 8 we have the Seven Trumpets, these are God's Judgements and how they are poured out upon the earth. As we look at the 7 trumpets we are looking at God's dealing with those who did not receive the Seal of God.

Verse 1 of this chapter clearly belongs to the opening of the seven seals, namely the seventh, and thus rightly belongs to chapter 6, as we saw in the last study we had an interlude, looking at the 144,000 and the sealing of God's people. We saw that we are living in the 6th seal at the time just before Jesus comes, we read about this in Revelation 6:14-16, chapter 7 was an interlude to show us who the sealed would be and how we can become part of them.

We are now looking at chapter 8 and we are opening the last seal; we will then be into the sounding of the trumpets and those who did not receive the seal of God.

Revelation 8:1 "And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour."

There was silence in heaven - Why is there silence in heaven? Chapter 7 tells us who will be able to stand when He comes, but does not give an account of His personal appearing the second time. But now we find here, in the seventh seal, the second coming of Christ.

In chapters 4, 5, and 6, there is continual praise in heaven and therefore no silence. The reason why there is silence at this time is that Jesus and all the angels are on their way to earth to redeem Gods people.

Matthew 25:31 "When the Son of man shall come in his glory, and all the holy angels with him, then shall he sit upon the throne of his glory:"

Matthew 16:27 "For the Son of man shall come in the glory of his Father with his angels; and then he shall reward every man according to his works."

Mark 3:38 "Whosoever therefore shall be ashamed of me and of my words in this adulterous and sinful generation; of him also shall the Son of man be ashamed, when he cometh in the glory of his Father with the holy angels."

The entire angelic host accompanies Christ to this earth and thus there is silence in heaven.

About the space of half an hour - In prophecy, symbols extend to the second coming of Christ. This would mean that the year-day principle is still in operation and thus a day still equals a year. So how long would half an hour be?

There are 24 hours in a day, so half an hour would be 1/48 of a day. There are 360 days in a Biblical year and thus 24 hours/1 day = 360 days/1 year. Thus 1 hour = 15 days (360 ÷ 24), and ½ hour = 7½ days (15 ÷ 2). So the length of time for the silence in heaven is 7½ days. What a grand climax to the seven seals, Christ comes to receive His own. No more tears, no more pain and suffering, neither hunger or thirst.

So the sixth seal ends with the wicked aware that Jesus is returning to earth to rescue His people, and crying for the rocks and mountains to fall on them. They, who have fought against God's truth, would rather be buried alive than see the face of the One who died to save them, the One who they refused to obey and whose followers they killed and tormented.

Revelation 6:14-17 "14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?"

The word-picture in these verses takes place as the people see Jesus coming in the clouds. What a sad situation! Jesus loves us all so much that He came and died for us, to make a way for us to be saved. Heaven has done everything possible to help people get ready to go home with Jesus, but most people won't be ready. Why? Because they wanted their own way and continued in their own sinful habits and pleasures and refused to obey God's law. Now as they see He is really coming and He is going to put a stop to all their cruel, selfish deeds, they want to be buried alive rather than see the face of the One who loved them so much.

Many of these rulers and dictators just a short while before were getting ready to kill all of God's true people that were left. Then they were proud and boasting, making fun of those dear people who refused to disobey God, telling them how they were going to all be killed. Now these bullies are seen screaming to be buried alive - what a change.

We have looked at what the 7 seals mean, but there is more information under the 6th seal. This period goes from the late 1700s right to the time of the coming of Jesus, so it covers the very time we are living in today. When you read prophecies like Daniel and Revelation, you have to remember that they do not run in a straight-line like a story, but instead they are made up of separate word pictures, almost like pieces of a puzzle and by studying carefully we learn how the pieces go together. Each piece gives us more information about the big picture and each piece helps us to understand other pieces. We always have to remember to let the Bible show us how they go together and not guess ourselves or we can get mixed up, and we must always pray and ask Jesus to send His Holy Spirit for our guidance as we study.

And now we move into the Seven Trumpets, we are briefly introduced to the seven angels with the seven trumpets; but then it quickly moves to another part of the story.

Revelation 8:2 "And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets."

Trumpets - We find in Jeremiah and Ezekiel that a trumpet is associated with, and is a symbol of, war.

Numbers 10:9 "And if ye go to war in your land against the enemy that oppresseth you, then ye shall blow an alarm with the trumpets; and ye shall be remembered before the LORD your God, and ye shall be saved from your enemies."

Jeremiah 4:19-21 "19 My bowels, my bowels! I am pained at my very heart; my heart maketh a noise in me; I cannot hold my peace, because thou hast heard, O my soul, the sound of the trumpet, the alarm of war. 20 Destruction upon destruction is cried; for the whole land is spoiled: suddenly are my tents spoiled, and my curtains in a moment. 21 How long shall I see the standard, and hear the sound of the trumpet?"

Ezekiel 33:3-4 "3 If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; 4 Then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head."

1 Corinthians 4:8 "For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who shall prepare himself to the battle."

So the trumpets are used for a sounding of war, preparing for war and also as a warning, people were to take heed. The trumpet blowing will also announce the coming of our Lord. as we find in Joel.

Joel 2:1 "Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the LORD cometh, for it is nigh at hand;"

These trumpets are an answer to the prayers of the souls under the alter in Revelation 6:10. The people that have been slain for the word of God.

Now as previously stated the 7 trumpets are the most difficult to understand. Basically there are three different views of prophecy:

The preterist view takes all the prophecies and puts them in the past and says they have all been fulfilled and have no meaning to you and I whatsoever.

The futurist view that says all the prophecies in the book of Revelation from the 4th chapter to the end are in the future, after the righteous have been taken from the earth and they have no effect on us whatsoever.

Reformers like Luther and Knox, Zwingli were preaching that the system of the Catholic Church (not the people in the system) was the antichrist. The Pope needed to try to stop this, so he called in two men who were priests, by the name of Ribera and Altazar, he said I don't care what you do but get the focus off of us. These two priests then developed two different views of prophecy.

The Jesuit Luis del Alcázar devoted himself to bring into prominence the preterist method of interpretation, and thus endeavored to show that the prophecies of Antichrist were fulfilled before the popes ever ruled in Rome, and therefore could not apply to the Papacy.

On the other hand, the Jesuit Francisco Ribera tried to set aside the application of these prophecies to the papal power by producing the futurist view, which asserts that these prophecies refer properly, not to the career of the Papacy, but to some future supernatural individual, who is yet to appear, and is to continue in power for three and a half years.

Then there is a view that's in-between these two views, called the historical view, which says that many of the prophecies in scripture have been fulfilled and some (a few) are yet to be fulfilled, and this is where we stand.

Revelation 8:3 "And another angel came and stood at 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."

So we are in the first compartment, the Holy Place, of the sanctuary (for more information see our video study on The Sanctury). We know that the alter talked of here is not the alter of sacrifice that was found in the courtyard of the earthly temple because Jesus was our ultimate sacrifice and so we do not find the alter of sacrifice in Heaven but only the alter of incense.

Here in verse 3 we see another angel that came and stood before the altar - This angel is not one of the angels that have the seven trumpets, this Angel stands before the altar of incense in the holy place of the heavenly sanctuary, the altar of incense that was made of gold.

Exodus 30:1-3 "1 You shall make an altar to burn incense on; you shall make it of acacia wood. 2 A cubit shall be its length and a cubit its width-it shall be square-and two cubits shall be its height. Its horns shall be of one piece with it. 3 And you shall overlay its top, its sides all around, and its horns with pure gold; and you shall make for it a molding of gold all around."

Now, who is this angel? To find out who this angel is we need to look at what he is doing and also look back to the other prophesies.

In the last two prophecies, dealing with the seven churches and seals, we found Jesus in amongst the Candlesticks and then we found Him opening the Seals, and here again we find that it is Jesus that has come to stand at the alter, which thus gives us our time frame of each prophecy.

The altar - Compare Exodus 30:1-10.

The Censer - Compare Leviticus 10:1.

Incense - Compare Exodus 30:34-36.

Much incense - This angel was given much incense to offer upon the altar of incense with the prayers of the saints. It was the high priest alone that was to offer the incense upon the golden altar.

Exodus 30:7-8 "7 And Aaron shall burn thereon sweet incense every morning: when he dresseth the lamps, he shall burn incense upon it. 8 And when Aaron lighteth the lamps at even, he shall burn incense upon it, a perpetual incense before the LORD throughout your generations."

Exodus 30:34-38 "34 And the Lord said to Moses: 'Take sweet spices, stacte and onycha and galbanum, and pure frankincense with these sweet spices; there shall be equal amounts of each. 35 You shall make of these an incense, a compound according to the art of the perfumer, salted, pure, and holy. 36 And you shall beat some of it very fine, and put some of it before the Testimony in the tabernacle of meeting where I will meet with you. It shall be most holy to you. 37 But as for the incense which you shall make, you shall not make any for yourselves, according to its composition. It shall be to you holy for the Lord. 38 Whoever makes any like it, to smell it, he shall be cut off from his people.'"

We have one high priest in heaven, and that is Jesus Christ.

Hebrews 4:14 "Seeing then that we have a great high priest, that is passed into the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold fast our profession."

Often in Scripture Jesus is spoken of as an Angel or the Angel of the Lord. When Jacob blessed Joseph and his sons in Genesis.

Genesis 48:15-16 "15 And he blessed Joseph, and said, God, before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac did walk, the God which fed me all my life long unto this day, 16 The Angel which redeemed me from all evil, bless the lads; and let my name be named on them, and the name of my fathers Abraham and Isaac; and let them grow into a multitude in the midst of the earth."

At the burning bush the Angel of the Lord appeared to Moses.

Exodus 3:2 "2 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him in a flame of fire out of the midst of a bush: and he looked, and, behold, the bush burned with fire, and the bush was not consumed."

God called to him out of the bush.

Exodus 3:4 "And when the LORD saw that he turned aside to see, God called unto him out of the midst of the bush, and said, Moses, Moses. And he said, Here am I."

The Angel of the Lord, the Messenger, was Jesus.

Acts 7:30-34 "30 And when forty years were expired, there appeared to him in the wilderness of mount Sina an angel of the Lord in a flame of fire in a bush. 31 When Moses saw it, he wondered at the sight: and as he drew near to behold it, the voice of the LORD came unto him, 32 Saying, I am the God of thy fathers, the God of Abraham, and the God of Isaac, and the God of Jacob. Then Moses trembled, and durst not behold. 33 Then said the Lord to him, Put off thy shoes from thy feet: for the place where thou standest is holy ground. 34 I have seen, I have seen the affliction of my people which is in Egypt, and I have heard their groaning, and am come down to deliver them. And now come, I will send thee into Egypt."

It was Christ who accompanied the Israelites in their wilderness wanderings, dwelling in the pillar of cloud by day and the pillar of fire by night.

1 Corinthians 10:4 "And did all drink the same spiritual drink: for they drank of that spiritual Rock that followed them: and that Rock was Christ."

He is also spoken of in the Old Testament as the Angel of God.

Exodus 14:19 "And the angel of God, which went before the camp of Israel, removed and went behind them; and the pillar of the cloud went from before their face, and stood behind them:"

Exodus 23:20-24 "20 Behold, I send an Angel before thee, to keep thee in the way, and to bring thee into the place which I have prepared. 21 Beware of him, and obey his voice, provoke him not; for he will not pardon your transgressions: for my name is in him. 22 But if thou shalt indeed obey his voice, and do all that I speak; then I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries. 23 For mine Angel shall go before thee, and bring thee in unto the Amorites, and the Hittites, and the Perizzites, and the Canaanites, the Hivites, and the Jebusites: and I will cut them off. 24 Thou shalt not bow down to their gods, nor serve them, nor do after their works: but thou shalt utterly overthrow them, and quite break down their images."

The Angel of the Lord spoke to the people as recorded in Judges.

Judges 2:1 "And an angel of the LORD came up from Gilgal to Bochim, and said, I made you to go up out of Egypt, and have brought you unto the land which I sware unto your fathers; and I said, I will never break my covenant with you."

This was the Lord Himself. Also the Angel of the Lord appeared to Gideon.

Judges 6:11-24 "11 And there came an angel of the LORD, and sat under an oak which was in Ophrah, that pertained unto Joash the Abiezrite: and his son Gideon threshed wheat by the winepress, to hide it from the Midianites. 12 And the angel of the LORD appeared unto him, and said unto him, The LORD is with thee, thou mighty man of valour. 13 And Gideon said unto him, Oh my Lord, if the LORD be with us, why then is all this befallen us? and where be all his miracles which our fathers told us of, saying, Did not the LORD bring us up from Egypt? but now the LORD hath forsaken us, and delivered us into the hands of the Midianites. 14 And the LORD looked upon him, and said, Go in this thy might, and thou shalt save Israel from the hand of the Midianites: have not I sent thee? 15 And he said unto him, Oh my Lord, wherewith shall I save Israel? behold, my family is poor in Manasseh, and I am the least in my father's house. 16 And the LORD said unto him, Surely I will be with thee, and thou shalt smite the Midianites as one man. 17 And he said unto him, If now I have found grace in thy sight, then shew me a sign that thou talkest with me. 18 Depart not hence, I pray thee, until I come unto thee, and bring forth my present, and set it before thee. And he said, I will tarry until thou come again. 19 And Gideon went in, and made ready a kid, and unleavened cakes of an ephah of flour: the flesh he put in a basket, and he put the broth in a pot, and brought it out unto him under the oak, and presented it. 20 And the angel of God said unto him, Take the flesh and the unleavened cakes, and lay them upon this rock, and pour out the broth. And he did so. 21 Then the angel of the LORD put forth the end of the staff that was in his hand, and touched the flesh and the unleavened cakes; and there rose up fire out of the rock, and consumed the flesh and the unleavened cakes. Then the angel of the LORD departed out of his sight. 22 And when Gideon perceived that he was an angel of the LORD, Gideon said, Alas, O LORD God! for because I have seen an angel of the LORD face to face. 23 And the LORD said unto him, Peace be unto thee; fear not: thou shalt not die. 24 Then Gideon built an altar there unto the LORD, and called it Jehovahshalom: unto this day it is yet in Ophrah of the Abiezrites."

So we clearly see that the Angel offering incense, as mentioned here in verse 3 and 4 is Christ. (Only the High Priest was allowed to offer incense and act as intercessor so we clearly see that this can only be Jesus.) This in no way implies that He is a created being like heavens Angels, for in Him the whole fullness of deity dwells bodily.

Colossians 2:9 "For in him dwelleth all the fulness of the Godhead bodily."

He is the I AM who appeared to Moses.

John 8:58 "Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Before Abraham was, I am."

Jesus is the commander of the Heavenly Host.

The English word "angel" comes from the Greek "angelos", which means "messenger". In the Old Testament, with two exceptions, the Hebrew word for "angel" is "malak", also meaning "messenger".

Christ acts on behalf of His Father; He is the messenger of God, and our intercessor between us and His Father.

John 6:38 "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me."

So we clearly see that Christ is our Intercessor. The prayers that are placed in the golden censor of the Savior's merit are accepted by the Father. Perfumed with the fragrance of His righteousness, the incense ascends to GOD as a sweet savour.

Rvelation 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."

We are about to start hearing about the Seven Trumpets, which is another set of word-pictures showing the events of history from another angle-this time from the main wars and battles that had some effect on God's people. It seems also that these seven trumpets all talk about forces that attacked Rome; the first four - Pagan Rome, as it was breaking up, and the last three - Papal Rome, especially as it persecuted God's people.

But first we are shown something from near the end of the 6th seal. It is put in here to give encouragement to God's dear children. Incense is special herbs or spices, that when burned make a sweet smelling perfume in the smoke. This 'angel' here shown offering incense with the prayers before God, is actually Jesus, our Saviour as we just saw and He is pleading the sweetness of His perfect life and His spilt blood before His Father. This is the 'incense' that makes our prayers able to be heard and answered by our Heavenly Father. It is only through Jesus' sacrifice that we can even ask for forgiveness or help. We are told this so that we can have courage that Jesus IS there pleading for us and offering the precious incense. As we confess our sins and plead the merits of Christ's atoning blood, our prayers ascend to heaven, fragrant with the merits of our Saviour's character. Notwithstanding our unworthiness, we are to remember that there is One who can take away sin, and who is willing and anxious to save the sinner. With His own blood He paid the penalty for all wrongdoers.

Every sin acknowledged before God with a contrite heart, He will remove. We are shown this scene from the 6th seal as encouragement, because the Seven Trumpets about to start are going to show terrible scenes of war and strife. God wants us to know that our Redeemer is on the job and we can have our prayers offered up by Him and receive help. Remember though, that the incense is only offered with our prayers, if we don't ask for what we need and want, we will not receive it. We need to take all our needs and problems to the Father through Jesus. Especially should we pray about the sin problems that we see in our lives. God does not come and snatch bad habits or sins out of our lives without our permission, but His Holy Spirit will work with us to get rid of all the sin and selfishness from our lives if we pray to the Heavenly Father, claiming only the sacrifice of Jesus for us, and asking for His Holy Spirit and the Holy angels to do this work in our lives. It is a partnership - we choose and ask, the Heavenly Powers enable us to make it happen.

There is power for each one of us to overcome all bad habits and sins in our lives. Not only to find forgivness when they happen, but to change our hearts so they stop happening.

John 16:24 "Hitherto have ye asked nothing in my name: ask, and ye shall receive, that your joy may be full."

Notice the angel was to offer the incense with the prayers of the saints before God. This is known as the intercessory work of the high priest, for it was the altar of incense that dealt with the mediatory work of the high priest. He was to intercede for the people. Christ is our mediator.

1 Timothy 2:5 "For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus;"

The incense is His own righteousness that He mingles with our prayers before presenting them to the Father.

With the prayers - The picture is that of the angel adding incense to the prayers of the saints as these prayers ascend to the throne of God. The scene portrayed may be understood as symbolic of the ministration of Christ for His people.

Romans 8:34 "Who is he that condemneth? It is Christ that died, yea rather, that is risen again, who is even at the right hand of God, who also maketh intercession for us."

1 John 2:1 "My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:"

Christ, as intercessor, mingles His merits with the prayers of the saints, which are thereby made acceptable with God.

So we see that people are praying, there is still mediation going on, this is not after the close of probation right at the end of time. History is following the same process as the Churches and the Seals, this is a pattern in Bible prophecy; The book of Daniel does the same, Daniel chapter 2 goes through the history of mankind, Daniel chapter 7 repeats it in another format, Daniel chapter 8 repeats it in another format, and so you have different views coming to light, repeat and enlarge. It is the same with the book of Revelation, you go through the Seven Churches, this is the position of the Church, you go through the Seven Seals this is the position of the Gospel Herald, and now we come to the Trumpets which are judgements.

In chapter 7 we saw a numbering of God's people, we had the 144,000, and the great multitude that no man could number; at the end of time you are either found wanting or you are found righteous. Now here in chapter 8 we have judgement's being poured out, but even whilst all this is going on we see that Jesus does not neglect the prayers of the saints, it is through His mediation that they are made acceptable in the eyes of God. So the incense is a symbol of the merit of Jesus added to the saints, making them acceptable in the eyes of God, a wonderful image, everything in Revelation has so much meaning. Now we see the censer being filled with fire.

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 a very important glimpse of an event yet future but which gets closer every day. Soon, no one knows how soon, the intercessory ministry of our High Priest in heaven, Jesus Christ, will come to its close. There is a time pointed out in various parts of the Bible when the work of Jesus is finished, He has done all that can be done to ransom the lost race. This is when He makes His solemn announcement:

Revelation 22:11 "He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still."

Just before this time there will be a lot happening on earth - the 'voices, thundering's, and earthquakes' mentioned here indicate messages being sounded, upheavals and wars, terrible troubles as mankind makes their final decisions. The faithful will still be under the care of Jesus and the heavenly angels and although they will experience distress, they will not be left to the rule of the powers of darkness.

Now the scene turns to the first of the seven trumpets. "Incense" represents the mercy of God, fire symbolizes His justice.

Judgements come upon the earth, and after the final judgment, just as Jesus died on the cross and said it is finished, so time will be finished here on earth, the numbering will be over and it will be done, you will either be with the sheep or you are with the goats, depending on your decision.

Filled with fire from the altar and cast to the earth - If fire is being added to the censer, it shows that there is no more incense being offered and thus that intercession has ceased. Here we are carried forward to the end of time, it is evident from this act of the angel in filling the censer with fire and casting it to the earth, that mercy has ceased and probation is closed. This symbolic act can only refer to the time when the ministration of Christ in the Heavenly Sanctuary on behalf of mankind has ceased forever. For the righteous these are words of hope and comfort to us if we have accepted Christ, because we know that soon all evil will end and Christ will come to redeem His people.

We can see that this verse is talking about a future time on the earth, for Christ is still ministering in the holy place of the heavenly sanctuary when we look at the sixth trumpet of Revelation 9.

Revelation 9:13 "And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God."

Voices, thunderings - Activity around the throne of God.

Revelation 4:5 "And out of the throne proceeded lightnings and thunderings and voices: and there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven Spirits of God."

Ezekiel 1:14 "And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning."

Ezekiel 1:24 "And when they went, I heard the noise of their wings, like the noise of great waters, as the voice of the Almighty, the voice of speech, as the noise of an host: when they stood, they let down their wings."

Ezekiel 10:5 "And the sound of the cherubims' wings was heard even to the outer court, as the voice of the Almighty God when he speaketh."

Revelation 8:6 "And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound."

What do we know for sure about the trumpets?

1. There are seven, and each one heralds something that happens here on earth.
2. Six take place before probation closes because men are still given the opportunity to repent.
3. They are a divine warning that the time for repentance is running out/a wakeup call.
4. The seven trumpets cover chapters 8, 9, and 11.
5. The first four trumpets are judgement trumpets; and the first two of the last three woes are demonic woes with the third the destruction of the wicked at Christ' second coming.

There are many interpretations of prophecy, especially in Revelation, but we believe the Bible is consistent. In Daniel you have the pattern of repeat and enlarge, you start with Daniel 2 - Daniel 7 adds more information and Daniel 8 adds more information again. The same is true in Revelation with the 7 Churches, the 7 Seals and the 7 Trumpets.

We can also see that there is a parallel between what happens at the blowing of the trumpets and the 7 last plagues (see the chart below). The 7 Trumpets are blown before the Day of Atonement, and the 7 Last Plagues take place after the Day of Atonement. In other words, when Christ comes out of the Most Holy Place in the Sanctuary then the 7 last plagues will fall. Today we are still in the anti-typical day of Atonement (for more information see our video study on The Laws & The Feasts).

Now if we take a look at the trumpets we find that the following are affected: The earth (8:7), the Sea (8:8-9), Rivers and Fountains (8:10-11), the Sun, Moon and Stars (8:12), Darkness, the Bottomless Pit, Locusts (9:13-21), the River Euphrates (9:13-21), Loud voices, the Kingdom of Christ.

We have gone through a process, and every time 1/3 is affected. Now if we look at The 7 Last Plagues we see a parallel: The First one is the earth (16:2), the Second one is the Sea (16:3), the Third one Rivers and Fountains (16:4); just like the 7 Trumpets. Then the Sun (16:8-9), then there is the darkness on the Throne of the Beast (16:10-11), then there's the River Euphrates, and then you have a Loud Voice: "it is done" (16:17-21).

On the chart above you will see that the left hand column is what happens before the close of probation as a wakeup call and the right hand column is what happens after the close of probation as the judgments are poured out on the wicked and there is no long time for repentance.

Now when it said 1/3, it is a portion that is affected, there is room for repentance, it is in the mediation time when Christ is serving in the Heavenly sanctuary in the first compartment, the Holy Place. These are very important issues, because today there is a tendency to take the Trumpets and to make them the same period, or just prior to the 7 Last Plagues.

However, as always Jesus is in control. We saw the numbering and sealing of God's people in chapter seven, in chapter six the souls of the martyred cried from under that alter How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And now here in chapter 8 we see the trumpets passing judgment on the oppressors of Gods people, Rome, this pagan apostate system.

Now when we are dealing with the trumpets like with all prophecy there are many different ways that people interpret them, but all will fit into one of these three categories: you are either a preterist, a futurist or an historicist, as we have discussed; but the Bible follows a pattern and if we follow this then we will be on the right path, interpreting the scriptures from the scriptures.

Joel 2:15-17 "15 Blow the trumpet in Zion, sanctify a fast, call a solemn assembly: 16 Gather the people, sanctify the congregation, assemble the elders, gather the children, and those that suck the breasts: let the bridegroom go forth of his chamber, and the bride out of her closet. 17 Let the priests, the ministers of the LORD, weep between the porch and the altar, and let them say, Spare thy people, O LORD, and give not thine heritage to reproach, that the heathen should rule over them: wherefore should they say among the people, Where is their God?"

Here is a situation where the trumpet is being blown under circumstances where God's people have obviously gone astray.

Ezekiel 33:3 "If when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people;"

The trumpet here is to warn the people of impending danger.

Now some say that the Judgments retrace the periods of Christian history covered in the seven churches and the seven seals, and they say these judgments started against Jerusalem in AD 30 because Jews rejected Jesus and nailed Him to the cross, they did not listen to Him and rejected the Word of God therefore, there judgements would come upon the people. However, God still gave them a space of time, until 70 AD and then Jerusalem was destroyed - this was the judgement of God (Matthew 24).

Others say, and we would agree, that the judgements start against Rome, just as the judgments also came upon Babylon and the Pagan nations that came after them. The dividing of the 10 toes of the statue came about as a result of the first four trumpets being blown (for more information see our video studies on Daniel and Revelation).

We have seen that a Trumpet is a symbol of warning and war. These Seven Trumpets all talk about forces that affected the area of the Roman Empire, first Pagan Rome, followed by Papal Rome.

1. The Seven Churches represent the spiritual conditions of the church, not only for that time but also down through the ages (we today are now the final Laodicea Church).

2. The Seven Seals show those who remained faithful to God who were His witnesses and who suffered terrible persecution.

3. The Seven Trumpets are the judgments upon the Pagan and Papal Roman system who have and will persecute Gods true people.

4. The Seven Last Plagues are Gods judgments on the entire wicked population, these fall just prior to Christ second coming.

The time covered by this first prophecy is from 395 to 419 AD. It is the time when the Barbarians began to come from the North and attack areas of the Roman Empire. "Hail" in this prophecy represents that they came from the cold lands of the North. Just as hail destroys the gardens, so these warriors destroyed everything in their path.

So the trumpets deal with judgements over this time period, and it is now time for Rome to be overthrown and for the divisions of the toes, as Daniel in the Bible prophesied.

So now let's take a look at each of the first four trumpets, with each one heralding something that happens here on earth.

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."

Here begins the word pictures Jesus uses to describe certain wars and events that happen from John's time to the coming of Jesus. It is important to remember that these things are symbols and so they mean something more than what they seem to say.

A trumpet we saw is a symbol of warning and war. These Seven Trumpets all talk about forces that affected the area of the Roman Empire, first Pagan Rome and then Papal Rome.

You will notice that these word-pictures keep saying one-third of this and that; these judgments that fall on the oppressors of Gods people also give an opportunity for God's people to wake up and for the wicked to repent. It is also because there were three main parts to the Roman Empire after Constantine left his throne divided among his three sons. The Goths, under their leader Alaric, who called himself "the scourge of God," attacked the failing pagan Roman Empire in the West. The 'fire and blood' talked about here refers to the terrible slaughter that these savage hordes brought upon the areas they ravaged. They burned whole towns and destroyed good farming areas and left them desolate. Finally Alaric was conquered in 403 AD. But more hordes of barbarians poured down from the north to attack the Roman empire under the haughty Rhodogast, who came with his armies almost to the gates of the city of Rome itself. After this, Alaric again returned, invaded Italy in 408, and in 410 he besieged, took, and sacked Rome, and died the same year. In 412 the Goths voluntarily left Italy. The angel's trumpet message was a very clear picture of what happened, on the other hand the fall of Jerusalem is a very powerful judgement. After a long time of probation where they had rejected the Messiah these are the consequences, God removes His protection, He allows those winds to blow, and only the righteous escaped, the wicked who had turned from God remained and were destroyed.

Revelation 8:8-9 "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; 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."

The second Angel sounds: A mountain burning with fire, what does this represent? Well a mountain represents a nation in the Bible:

Isaiah 21:2-3 "2 And it shall come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the LORD's house shall be established in the top of the mountains, and shall be exalted above the hills; and all nations shall flow unto it. 3 And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the LORD, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the LORD from Jerusalem."

Isaiah 11:9 "They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea."

Also Isaiah 41:15; Daniel 2:35,44-45; Ezekiel 35:2, 7-8; Zechariah 4:7. All of these have this picture of a mountain. Let's look at a verse in Jeremiah that also brings this picture to the fore:

Jeremiah 51:24 "Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountain, (speaking about Babylon) 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.Here is a symbol of a mountain that is being destroyed."

So the second Angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea. So in other words a nation was scattered amongst the nations, and a third part of the sea became blood. We find the symbol of water in Revelation 17.

Revelation 17:15 "And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues."

So bloodshed among the nations. 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. Ships in the Bible are economic symbols.

Revelation 18:17-19 "17 For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, 18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! 19 And they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate."

Now we see the Vandal incursion under Genseric (our word "vandalism" is derived from the Vandals). They pirated ships and pillaged Rome, and this is the one we would favour as it keeps in continuity the division of the Roman Empire as foretold in Daniel.

We see here more attacks on a 'third-part' of the Roman Empire. The period covered by this Trumpet is from 428 to 476; and the prophecy was fulfilled in the terrible Genseric, King of the Vandals, and "Monarch of the Sea" whose ravages gave us in human language the term "Vandalism;" meaning willful, wanton, and ignorant destruction. This time the force came from the south-from Africa, and so the prophecy says a 'burning mountain' cast into the sea. He formed a great navy with many war-ships and raided and took away slaves and treasure from the areas of the Roman Empire. In 455, just at the time the people of Rome had risen against the Emperor Maximus, and stoned him and thrown his body into the river, Genseric arrived with his warships. He came into the city and ravaged it, taking away all the wealth he could find, including the things from the Temple at Jerusalem that had been brought there by Titus when Jerusalem was destroyed in AD 70. Finally the emperor of Rome decided to make himself a large navy to try and defeat Genseric's war ships.

Money was gathered with difficulty and a huge navy was built. They sailed down to Carthage, where Genseric's fleet was located, and could have conquered it, but the clever Genseric said he would surrender and asked for 5 days to 'make terms'. All he did was gather his forces and attack the Emperor's fleet. During the battle, Genseric would take large barges full of burnable material and towing them close to the Roman ships, would set them on fire and let them sail into the other ships setting them on fire also. How true the idea of a 'mountain of fire being thrown into the sea' really was. Genseric destroyed the Roman fleet and before his death saw the western part of the Roman Empire totally ruined. When you study history in the light of the Bible prophecies, you see that those who do wicked, cruel actions, have wicked, cruel happenings come back on them sooner or later.

These judgments are now coming upon the heathen and marry up with Daniel chapter 2.

Now the Third Trumpet...

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."

This is the invasion of the Roman Empire by the Huns under the leadership of Attila, in the 5th century. Bible prophecy is consistent the judgement of the wicked oppressors of Gods people continue as do the divisions of Rome.

So now another terrible force is seen coming against the dying Empire of Rome. Some people get confused as this says the 'star' came from heaven, and they say this was Lucifer, but we have to remember that these word-pictures are all symbols to describe the forces who attacked Rome and brought about the prophecy that it would be divided, and would make place for the strange 'Little Horn' kingdom, the papacy, to be set up (Daniel 7). The prophecy points out that this 'scourge would be brief but dramatic, like a blazing meteorite in the sky it soon vanishes. The period covered by this trumpet was as brief as "a burning star", 451-453. By this prophecy we are directed to that dreadful scourge, the haughty Attila with his frightful Huns, who, during his reign, became the "terror of the world." Attila actually called himself the "Scourge of God", "Grandson of Nimrod, nurtured in Engedi, by the grace of God, King of the Huns, Goths, Danes, and Medes, the terror of the world." And "It is a saying worthy of the ferocious pride of Attila that the grass never grew on the spot where his horse had trod." He "alternately insulted and invaded the East and the West, and urged the rapid downfall of the Roman Empire." The 'fountains of waters' refers to the area that he mostly attacked, which was where most of the rivers started, in the regions of the Alps, and on the portions of the empire where the rivers flow to most of Europe in all directions. It was really the area of the "fountains of waters".

Wormwood is a very bitter tasting herb. Attila was horribly cruel. Finally he demanded Honoria, the daughter of the Emperor, to be his bride. At first this was refused, but finally as his ferocious attacks came again, she was given to him. There was a huge drunken feast at the wedding and the next day when Attila did not appear from his room, his men left him alone for a while, thinking he didn't want to be disturbed. Finally when he did not answer their loud cries, they went to see what was wrong. He was found dead, as the result of an artery in his throat having burst, drowning him in his own blood. This is what alcohol can do. Remember the other conqueror that died as a result of a drunken feast? It was Alexander the Great.

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."

We continue with the divisions of the Roman Empire and the time which heralds in the little horn power as predicted in scripture (Daniel 7), wwe continue with the judgements on Rome.

This trumpet shows the blotting out of the Pagan Roman government. Sun, moon, and stars are here used as symbols of the ruling powers in the government - its emperor, consuls, and senators, AD 476 or 479. The 'sun' is a good symbol for the Roman Emperor as some of them had claimed to represent the sun god on earth. The Emperorship was gone from Rome and an Ostragoth king, ruled there, but some power remained in the Eastern part, Constantinople, where the imperial symbols had been taken and an Emperor still reigned. The imperial Roman power, of which either Rome or Constantinople had been the seat, whether in the West or the East, was no longer recognized in Italy, and the third part of the sun was smitten, till it emitted no longer the faintest rays. The power of the Caesars was unknown in Italy, and a Gothic king reigned over Rome. But though the third part of the sun was smitten, and the Roman imperial power was at an end in the city of the Caesars, yet the moon and the stars still shone, or glimmered, for a little longer in the western part. The consulship and the senate ['the moon and the stars'] were not abolished by king Theodoric.

Then the general of the emperor of the East, Belisarius attacked and defeated the Goths (552 AD). In the order given in the prophecy, the consulate ended and finally the senate was no more. Justinian transferred the power in Rome to the Bishop of Rome, and worked to promote the growing power of the Papacy. This fulfilled a prophecy we will study later:

Revelation 13:2 "... and the Dragon (here meaning Pagan Rome) gave him (the Papacy) his power, and his seat (the city of Rome) and great authority."

It is amazing how long and complicated history events are told in a few words in the prophecies.

Daniel 7:24 "And the ten horns out of this kingdom are ten kings that shall arise: and another shall rise after them; and he shall be diverse from the first, and he shall subdue three kings."

Just a quick look at how Daniel dove-tails in with Revelation - they are really one prophetic whole - although they are written centuries apart. The prophecy said that Rome would be divided into ten parts. It was not going to be conquered by another world kingdom, and that is just what happened.

But at first when the Roman Empire began to collapse, there were more than 10 'kings' attacking it, there were in fact eighteen. But during the time of the first 3 Trumpets, some disappeared, moved away, joined with other nations, or were wiped out, until only ten remained. From the northern to the southern limits of the Western Empire, these ten, as they stood in 476 AD at the extinction of the Empire, were as follows:

1. The Angles and Saxons in Britain.
2. The Franks in all Gaul (France).
3. The Alemanni in North Switzerland.
4. The Burgundians in west Switzerland and southeast Gaul.
5. The Visigoths in southwest Gaul and Spain.
6. The Suevi in that part of Spain which is now Portugal.
7. The Ostrogoths in what is now Austria.
8. The Lombards in Noricum.
9. The Heruli in Italy.
10. The Vandals in North Africa, with their capital at Carthage.

Now before Papal Rome could fully get its power, three of these nations had to be 'plucked up by the roots'. The three that were removed were the Vandals, the Ostrogoths and the Heruli, these were destroyed by 538 AD and the Papacy then ruled where the Caesars had ruled before. Bible prophecy always comes true - and fits exactly as Daniel predicted.

We have now gone through the first four trumpets and are now about to start looking at the Woes which are in chapters 9 and 11.

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!"

This could read; Woe, woe, woe, to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.

In the original greek, Angel is better translated as vulture or eagle. Now that;s important as we look at these three woes because a vulture or eagle in scripture means that there's an impending judgment or disaster that's coming.

Hosea 8:1 "Set the trumpet to thy mouth. He shall come as an eagle against the house of the LORD, because they have transgressed my covenant, and trespassed against my law."

So here we have an impending disaster of judgment that is coming and the imagery is that of an eagle. Also:

Habakkuk 1:8 "Their horses also are swifter than the leopards, and are more fierce than the evening wolves: and their horsemen shall spread themselves, and their horsemen shall come from far; they shall fly as the eagle that hasteth to eat."

Jesus relates to this as well and it can again be translated as eagle or vulture.

Matthew 24:28 "For wheresoever the carcase is, there will the eagles be gathered together."

We don't want to be where the eagles and vultures are gathering together, this is impending disaster. So you can see why this would be better translated vulture or eagle in the context of these three woes.

A woe is pain, calamity suffering and sorrow. Isaiah gives us an example of this.

Isaiah 3:11 "Woe unto the wicked! it shall be ill with him: for the reward of his hands shall be given him."

And also Jeremiah, warning of the Babylonian army that was about to come upon them.

Jeremiah 4:13 "Behold, he shall come up as clouds, and his chariots shall be as a whirlwind: his horses are swifter than eagles. Woe unto us! for we are spoiled."

Jesus uses this expression numerous times in the New Testament here He is warning the Scribes and Pharisees that if they continue as they are great judgments will come upon them.

Matthew 23:13-16 "13 But woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye shut up the kingdom of heaven against men: for ye neither go in yourselves, neither suffer ye them that are entering to go in. 14 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye devour widows' houses, and for a pretence make long prayer: therefore ye shall receive the greater damnation. 15 Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte, and when he is made, ye make him twofold more the child of hell than yourselves. 16 Woe unto you, ye blind guides, which say, Whosoever shall swear by the temple, it is nothing; but whosoever shall swear by the gold of the temple, he is a debtor!"

And regarding the destruction of Jerusalem.

Matthew 24:19 "And woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck in those days!"

Revelation 12:12 "Therefore rejoice, ye heavens, and ye that dwell in them. Woe to the inhabiters of the earth and of the sea! for the devil is come down unto you, having great wrath, because he knoweth that he hath but a short time."

A Woe is something that hits mankind and has dire consequences. The woe is repeated three times because of the three judgments yet to come at the blowing of the three remaining trumpets. Each of these is designated a "woe".

So now we come to the 5th Trumpet which is the first of the Woes. You will note that as time progresses, the severity in each set of seven 'final' end-time judgments keeps escalating. We will see that a woe is something that hits mankind and has dire consequences. Some people like to apply the woes to God's people, but we will see clearly as we go into chapter 9 that this is not the case the woes apply to the people that are being lost, not the saved.

We know what the last woe is for sure because the last Woe is the coming of Christ and the destruction of the wicked. This is judgement on those that have either been deceived or allowed themselves to be deceived because they rejected the light, or, just rejected God directly. So three woes are going to hit the inhabitants of the earth and the woes deprive them of Salvation.

Now you don't find an expression of the 2nd woe being passed until you get towards the end of Revelation 11:14. Here we find the end of the 2nd woe...behold the 3rd woe is coming quickly and there is no expression of the 3rd woe being passed because the 3rd woe is the 2nd coming of Jesus and there is no more time after the 2nd coming. The sealing of the door, the leading out of Lot and his family, the getting out of Jerusalem and that's it finished. So the same in Revelation, the third woe at Christ's Second coming, all the wicked die, with no second chance.

So these next three woes associated with the next three trumpets imply in an unprecedented increase in the demonic attack on truth. Nevertheless, God is in control. So during these next Three Trumpets God is going to give us a glimpse of what is to happen here on this earth.

So this last verse in Revelation 8:13 is letting us know that however bad the first four trumpet-scourges were, the last three are going to be much worse.

 

Revelation - Chapter 9

 

� Copyright 2016  www.unlocking-revelation.info