The End of the World as We Know It 5
Every time we approach our study of the book of Revelation, I am going to emphasize that to understand the book, it must be approached in the chronological order of events, i.e., in proper sequence. So far, we’ve seen Christ set the goals that we must pursue to reflect the glory of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit – and how to increase our efficacy in evangelism.
Then we were able to see the Jehovah’s throne room, the inhabitants within – including the Holy Spirit, elders, angels, Jesus in His glory, and we watched His opening of the ‘7 seals’, which is an overview of coming events within the ‘tribulation period’: (see Part 1; 2; 3; and 4).
What happens next, is the sounding of the ‘7 trumpets’, which herald the coming of the wrath of God, in the form of partial disasters, (as Jehovah is still trying to draw as many people as possible to come to repentance for salvation), each more cataclysmic than the one before.
It begins, where we left off last time, (see Rv. 8:2, 3.), where incense was mixed with the prayers of the saints and offered before God:
Then the angel filled the incense burner with fire from the altar and threw it down upon the earth; and thunder crashed, lightning flashed, and there was a terrible earthquake. Rv. 8:5 NLT
This first trumpet was filled with God’s judgment, to avenge martyred saints during the tribulations. The result was destruction of 1/3 of the earth’s trees, grasses, and vegetation by a deluge of heavenly hail, fire, and blood – exacerbating the famine brought by the apocalyptic horseman on the black horse.
(Note that these events somewhat parallel the plagues God put upon the Egyptians, that precipitated the freeing of the Hebrews from their taskmasters (see Ex. 9:17-26.)
The second trumpet sounds:
Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. One-third of the water in the sea became blood, one-third of all things living in the sea died, and one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed. Rv. 8:8, 9. NLT
More famine, and mercantile deaths – disastrous for the food-chain supply. (This trumpet has been thought to symbolize extreme volcanic activity.
And the third:
The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from heaven. It fell on a third of the rivers and springs of water. The name of the star is Wormwood, and a third of the waters became wormwood. So, many of the people died from the waters because they had been made bitter. Rv. 8:10, 11. CSB (see also Ex. 7:20 – 25).
(The Greek apsinthos is translated as ‘absinthe’. It produces a bitter oil that is poisonous to the nervous system. Also called ‘wormwood’ because the oil was used to kill intestinal worms.)
This disaster is thought to be caused by a meteor strike.
Then the fourth trumpet sounds:
Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet, and one-third of the sun was struck, and one-third of the moon, and one-third of the stars, and they became dark. And one-third of the day was dark, and also one-third of the night. Rv. 8:12 NLT (see also Ex. 10:21 – 29.)
The fifth trumpet sounds of things demonic. The apostle John shares his vision:
Then I looked, and I heard a single eagle crying loudly as it flew through the air, “Terror, terror, terror to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.” (The 5th trumpet unleashes the ‘first terror’.)
Then the fifth angel blew his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen to the earth from the sky, and he was given the key to the shaft of the bottomless pit. When he opened it, smoke poured out as though from a huge furnace, and the sunlight and air turned dark from the smoke.
Then locusts came from the smoke and descended on the earth, and they were given the power to sting like scorpions. They were told not to harm the grass or plants or trees, but only the people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
They were told not to kill them but to torture them for five months…In those days people will seek death but will not find it. They will long to die, but death will flee from them!
The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. They had what looked like crowns on their heads and their faces looked like human faces…and teeth like a lion. They wore armor, and their wings roared like an army of chariots rushing into battle…Their king is the angel from the bottomless pit; His name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon – the Destroyer. Rv. 8:13 – 9:9 & 11. NLT
(These demons are proscribed from harming any plant life. So even though this fifth judgment is commencing, the first one must not be totally fulfilled yet.)
[The ‘eagle’ is thought to an angel, as is the ‘star’ that falls to earth, this angel being wicked – allowed to release ‘locusts’ (demons) against humans who did not accept Christ. Ruled by Apollyon/ Abaddon, God is using the demons to torment the rebellious.
The sixth trumpet brings death (the ‘second terror’):
Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice speaking from the four horns of the gold altar that stands in the presence of God. And the voice said to the sixth angel who held the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great Euphrates River.”
Then the four angels…were turned loose to kill one-third of the people on earth. I heard the size of their army, which was 200 million mounted troops…The riders wore armor…The horses had heads like lions, and fire and smoke and burning sulfur billowed from their mouths…their tails had heads like snakes, with the power to injure people. Rv. 9:13 – 17 & 19. NLT
But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols…And they did not repent of their murders or their witchcraft or their sexual immorality or their thefts. Rv. 9:20, 21. NLT
This army is from the ‘east’, (some scholars believe from Asia), making it separate from the ‘army of the north’ that attempted to invade Israel, but was decimated by God. This larger army is on the march to Israel for the battle of Armageddon, killing one-third of humankind on its way.
***The sixth trumpet is humankind’s last warning. There will be no salvation available to anyone once the seventh trumpet is sounded. Still, as you can see from the last Scripture above, there will remain hardened hearts who persist in their rebellion.***
The Second Interlude:
In this section, God is adding more detail to what has taken place thus far. Just as with the ‘seventh seal’, there is an interlude in heaven just before the seventh trumpet sounds. John’s vision shifts earthward:
Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven, surrounded by a cloud, with a rainbow over his head. His face shone like the sun, and his feet were like pillars of fire. And in his hand was a small scroll that had been opened.
He stood with his right foot on the sea and the left foot on the land. And he gave a great shout like the roar of a lion. And when he shouted, the seven thunders (God) answered. When the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write. But I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Keep secret what the seven thunders said, and do not write it down.” Rv. 10:1 – 4. NLT
(Some believe the angel to be Christ.) John had readied himself to write down what the angel was going to say, but the angel forbade him. Instead, John was to keep it to himself – some mystery he was privy to, that we do not know…
Then the angel I saw…raised his right hand toward heaven. He swore an oath in the name of the one who lives forever and ever, who created the heavens and everything in them, the earth and everything in it, and the sea and everything in it.
He said, “There will be no more delay. When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God’s mysterious plan will be fulfilled.” …Then the voice from heaven spoke to me again. “Go and take the open scroll from the hand of the angel…” Rv. 10:5 – 8. NLT
Thus, the culmination of everything that God has been revealing throughout history, will begin to manifest at the sounding of the seventh trumpet.
So I went to the angel and told him to give me the small scroll. “Yes, take it and eat it,” he said. “It will be sweet as honey in your mouth, but it will turn sour in your stomach!” Rv. 10:9 NLT
The scroll represents the Gospel – sweet to those who embrace it, and bitter to those who refuse it.
Then I was told, “You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, languages, and kings.” Rv. 10:11 NLT
Some biblical scholars believe that the apostle John never left the island of Patmos, and that he is receiving instructions to finish recording his vision of Revelation. Others believe he died of old age in Ephesus – in which case, he would be receiving a directive to preach and teach anew.
The angel then gives the apostle a new task:
Then I was given a measuring stick, and I was told, “Go and measure the Temple of God and the altar, and count the number of worshipers. But do not measure the outer courtyard, for it has been turned over to the nations. They will trample the holy city for 42 months. Rv. 11:1, 2. NLT
Forty-two months (3.5 years according to the 30-day months that comprise the Jewish calendar), represents the second half of the tribulation period. The measuring rod is generally interpreted to symbolize God’s protection.
The Temple of God is seen by some to represent the body of Christ; and the ‘trampling of the holy city’ represents the persecutions set against that body during the tribulations.
Others interpret this Scripture to refer to a literal ‘new temple’ that will be built in Jerusalem during the first half of the tribulations – after God delivers Israel from the ‘army of the north’, and after Israel accepts Christ as the Messiah.
Continuing with John’s vision of the ‘second interlude’, (still focused earthward), we listen in on a new revelation from Jesus:
“And I will give power to my two witnesses, and they will be clothed in burlap and will prophesy during those 1,260 days.”
These two prophets are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of all the earth. If anyone tries to harm them, fire flashes from their mouths and consumes their enemies…They have the power to shut the sky so that no rain will fall for as long as they prophesy.
And they have the power to turn the rivers and oceans into blood, and to strike the earth with every kind of plague as often as they wish. Rv. 11:3 – 6. NLT
The wearing of burlap by the two witnesses signifies a ‘last call’ to the unbelievers to repent. Others see the ‘witnesses’ as symbolizing the ‘witnessing church’ – either in present time, or in the last half of the tribulations.
Other interpreters see them to be literal prophets of great power, [also citing that the Bible states that two witnesses are required to corroborate truth (see Dt. 19:15)], and have likened them to Elijah and Enoch, or Moses and John – but they can’t be identified with any certainty.
Jesus continues:
When they complete their testimony, the beast that comes out of the bottomless pit will declare war against them, and he will conquer them and kill them. And their bodies will lie in the main street of Jerusalem, the city that is figuratively called “Sodom” and “Egypt”, the city where their Lord was crucified. Rv. 11:7, 8. NLT
We see then that the two witnesses have been preaching is Jerusalem, a city that at that time resembled other cities infamous for their moral degradation. And they are killed by ‘Satan’s beast’. Look too, at the shameful denizens of that city:
Those from the peoples and tribes and languages and nations look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not allow their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb. And those [non-believers] who live on the earth will gloat over them and rejoice; and they will send gifts [in celebration] to one another, because these two prophets tormented and troubled those who live on the earth. Rv. 11:9, 10. AMP
So, people from all over the world throw a party because these meddlesome prophets had been putting a damper on their immoral and pagan frenzy. However, God is going to have the last word!
But after three and a half days, God breathed life into them, and they stood up! Terror struck all those who were staring at them. Then a loud voice from heaven called to the two prophets, “Come up here!” And they rose to heaven in a cloud as their enemies watched.
At the same time, there was a terrible earthquake that destroyed a tenth of the city. Seven thousand people died in that earthquake, and everyone else was terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
The second terror is past, but look, the third terror is coming quickly. Rv. 11:11 – 14. NLT
The resurrection of the two witnesses marks the end of the tribulations. The time for repentance and salvation for unbelievers has gone down the commode.
Those interpreters who see the two witnesses as a symbol of the church, see this resurrection as a symbol of a post-tribulation ‘rapture’ of the martyred church.
This juncture marks the end of the second interlude. Next time, the seventh trumpet sounds!
Goodnight and God bless.
The End of the World as We Know It – 4
To fully understand the book of Revelation, you must start at the beginning, to be able to tie all the events together (see part 1, 2, and 3). In part 3, we saw the apostle John taken up, (in the spirit), to the throne room of Jehovah God Himself.
Once there, John had a Holy Spirit-induced vision that is both heavenward in place, and future-ward in time – where he sees God on the throne, accompanied by the Holy Spirit, 24 ‘elders’ seated around God’s throne, worshiping Him, and 4 angels worshiping Him as well.
We also saw that God possessed a scroll with seven seals, containing His plan for the redemption of humankind, but that it appeared that no one in heaven was worthy to open the seals, so that the plan may commence.
Finally, we examined varying biblical scholastic cases for the concept of a ‘rapture’ of the church.
In the first 3 parts of our examination of the book of Revelation, we have witnessed the ‘setting of the stage’ for the evolution of events that will comprise the timeline leading up to the end of the world as we know it. Now, we are ready for action…
Last time, we left off with the apostle John weeping, because no one was worthy to set free the scroll with the 7 seals. Today, we will investigate who is, and the meanings behind those seals. Let’s continue:
…one of the twenty-four elders said to me, “Stop weeping! Look, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the heir to David’s throne has won the victory. He is worthy to open the scroll and its seven seals.”
Then I saw a Lamb that looked as if it had been slaughtered, but it was now standing between the throne and the four living beings and among the twenty-four elders. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which represent the sevenfold Spirit of God that is sent out into every part of the earth. Rv. 5:5, 6. NLT
The ‘Lamb’ is none other that Jesus Christ. ‘He has won the victory,’ i.e., He overcame the forces of Satan, He emerged as the only sinless person in history, and defied death by His resurrection. In so doing, He became the guarantee for the salvation of humankind. The Son of God is the only one who is worthy to open the scroll.
The ‘Lion of Judah’ indicates that Jesus is the mightiest Warrior of one of the mightiest of the 12 tribes of Israel, also indicating His Jewish ancestry (see Gn. 49:9, 10). The ‘heir to David’s throne’ points to His fulfillment of becoming the Messiah (see 2 Sam. 7:12 – 16.).
The ‘slaughtered Lamb’ represents Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross. However, now, the seven horns symbolize His Herculean power, while the ‘seven eyes’ characterizes Christ’s amalgamation with the Holy Spirit – resulting in His complete omniscience regarding all things, including the very depths of all human souls.
Jesus acts:
He stepped forward and took the scroll from the right hand of the one sitting on the throne. And when he took the scroll, the four living beings and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb. Each one had a harp, and they held gold bowls filled with incense, which are the prayers of God’s people. And they sang a new song…
“You are worthy to take the scroll and break its seal and open it. For you were slaughtered, and your blood has ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. And you have caused them to become a Kingdom of priests for our God. And they will reign on the earth.” Rv. 5:7 – 10. NLT
The angels and ‘every living thing’ worshiped Him as well – foretelling of Jesus’ return, when all people (even those who rejected Him) will pay Christ homage. The song itself reaffirms Jesus’ worthiness.
Now, one of the angels calls John to witness Christ’s opening of the seals, which constitute part of an ‘overview’ of a seven-year period, referred to as the ‘tribulations’ (adversities, tragedies, suffering):
As I watched, the Lamb broke the first of the seven seals on the scroll. Then I heard one of the living beings say with a voice like thunder, “Come!” Rv. 6:1 NLT
Jesus opens the first four seals, which reveals the symbolic ‘four horsemen of the apocalypse.’
The first rider is astride a white horse – interpreted by some as the Antichrist, (counterfeit christ, man of lawlessness), who is loosed upon the earth in the beginning of the tribulations.
Apostle Paul also received a Holy Spirit-inspired vision regarding this day:
…that day will not come until there is a great rebellion against God and the man of lawlessness is revealed – the one who brings destruction. He will exalt himself and defy everything that people call god and every object of worship. He will even sit in the temple of God, claiming that he himself is God. 2 Thess. 2, 3. NLT
‘That day’ is the day of God’s wrath.
[Some interpreters see this first rider as Christ Himself, but that is problematic. One: the rider is pictured with a bow; two: he is riding out to conquer; and three: he is nothing like the real Christ, who is later depicted in chapter 9.
Jesus has never been depicted in Scripture with a bow, but with a sword. Also, He does not need to go out to conquer. He has already conquered death and holds the keys to Hades (see Rv. 1:18)].
The second horseman is riding a red horse:
Its rider was given a mighty sword and the authority to take peace from the earth. And there was war and slaughter everywhere. Rv. 6:4 NLT
(Some interpret him to be a personification of a coalition of a great army ‘from the north’ – from countries said to comprise the old Soviet Union and those populated by Islamic radicals).
The third rides a black horse, bringing with it famine, starvation, and disastrous inflation.
Finally, the fourth represents ‘death’:
…a horse whose color was pale green. Its rider was named Death, and his companion was the Grave. These two were given authority over one-fourth of the earth, to kill with the sword and famine and disease and wild animals. Rv. 6:8 NLT
Jesus opens the 5th seal, which is unlike the others, which consist of judgment. Instead it is a cry out for vengeance against those who have killed the saints:
When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I (John) saw under the altar the souls of all who had been martyred for the word of God and for being faithful in their testimony.
They shouted to the Lord and said, “O Sovereign Lord, holy and true, how long before you judge the people who belong to this world and avenge our blood for what they have done to us?”
Then a white robe was given to each of them. And they were told to rest a little longer until the full number of their brothers and sisters – their fellow servants of Jesus who were to be martyred – had joined them. Rv. 6:9 – 11. NLT
Our merciful God gives the world a little more time, to save any of those who may yet make the decision to become His children.
The sixth seal is opened, and it reveals huge cosmological events:
…there was a great earthquake. The sun became dark as black cloth, the moon became as red as blood. Then the stars fell to the earth like green figs falling from a tree shaken by a strong wind. The sky was rolled up like a scroll, and all of the mountains and islands were moved from their places.
Then everyone – the kings of the earth, the rulers, the generals, the wealthy, the powerful, and every slave and free person – all hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. And they cried to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of the one who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb. For the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to survive?” Rv. 6:12 – 17. NLT (See also Joel 2:30, 31; and Is. 2:19 – 21.)
Before Jesus opens the 7th seal, there is an ‘interlude’ in heaven, within the timeline of the unfolding of God’s judgments upon the unrepentant rebellious. This is the first of three interludes within the book of Revelation – where we get to witness the disposition of the saints during the various phases of John’s visions:
After this I saw four angels stationed at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth so that no wind would blow on the earth or on the sea or any tree. Rv. 7:1 NLT
No wind? That would indeed require major climactic and cosmological changes.
And I saw another angel coming up from the east, carrying the seal of the living God. And he shouted to those four angels, who had been given power to harm land and sea, “Wait! Don’t harm the land or the sea or the trees until we have placed the seal of God on the foreheads of his servants.” Rv. 7:2, 3. NLT
Next in John’s vision of the interlude, he describes 144,000 Jewish followers of Christ, (12,000 from each of the 12 cited tribes of Israel) – sealed for salvation.
John continues:
After this I saw a vast crowd, too great to count, from every nation and tribe and people and language, standing in front of the throne and before the Lamb. They were clothed in white robes…shouting with a great roar,
“Salvation comes from our God who sits on the throne and from the Lamb!” Rv. 7:9, 10. NLT
Then one of the twenty-four elders turns to John in his vision and asks:
“Who are these clothed in white? Where did they come from?” Rv. 7:13 NLT
John replies:
“Sir, you are the one who knows.” Then he said to me, “These are the ones who died in the great tribulation. They have washed their robes in the blood of the Lamb and made them white. That is why they stand in front of God’s throne and serve him day and night in his Temple.
And he who sits on the throne will give them shelter. They will never again be hungry or thirsty; they will never be scorched by the heat of the sun. For the Lamb on the throne will be their Shepherd. He will lead them to springs of life-giving water. And God will wipe every tear from their eyes.” Rv. 7:14 – 17. NLT
This multitude of people are interpreted by some to be all the Gentiles around the globe who have witnessed the rapture of the church, God’s defeat of Israel’s enemies, and the salvation of the Jews by Christ. Thus, they are convinced that Jesus is truly the Messiah. (See Zech. 8:23). This interpretation would require either an additional and / or mid-tribulation only ‘rapture.’
John’s vision shifts its focus back to the God’s throne room as Jesus opens the last of the seven seals:
When He (the Lamb) broke open, the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour [in awe of God’s impending judgment]. Rv. 8:1 AMP
I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and they were given seven trumpets. Then another angel with a gold incense burner came and stood at the altar. And a great amount of incense was given to him to mix with the prayers of God’s people as an offering on the gold alter before the throne. Rv. 8:2, 3. NLT
We see that the seventh seal is not associated with God’s judgment. What it does is serve as a preamble to God’s ‘judgments of the trumpets,’ which heralds the coming of cataclysmic events during the tribulations. Next time…
Goodnight and God bless.