Beloved, I am glad to share with you today the above theme from Rev 8:1 and following. Indeed, it’s only now that the seventh seal finally comes. It is important to notice this, so as not to be carried away by the idea that the sixth seal goes to the end, as many among the ancients and moderns have thought. This is incorrect; for the seventh seal necessarily comes after the sixth, just as the others follow each other, and it is clearly seen that it introduces the seven trumpets, which announce a new succession of judgments. We have the description in chapters 8 and following. Then we are presented with a remarkable fact: we see an angel of a particularly august character, who is in front of the altar. “And another angel came and stood before the altar, having a golden censer; he was given so that he might offer them, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar which is before the throne.” It follows from this that, while there are glorified saints above, there are also some on earth who, in their great trials, are sustained by the high priest, however faint their lights may be. So here we have the clearest evidence that there will be at this time glorified saints in heaven, and at the same time, saints recognized as such in their natural bodies here on earth.
Another trait catches our attention. Everywhere, under the trumpets, we see the angels; the Lord Jesus Himself takes on this character during this period. It is no longer a question of him as the Lamb. As such, he had opened the seals, but here, when it is the angels who sound trumpets to announce God’s judgments, the Angel of the covenant (who is the second person of the Trinity, as she is usually called), again appears in this form so familiar to the Old Testament. It is not that he is stripping himself of his humanity; it cannot be and would be contrary to all truth to imagine it. The Son of God, since his incarnation, always remains the man Christ Jesus; but he will not separate himself from this humanity to which he has united his glorious person. But this does not prevent him from taking such appearance, that in prophecy he deems suitable for the given circumstances. This is precisely what we find in trumpets. It is easy to notice how the language used is increasingly figurative: All objects, in this series of visions, are seen in greater distance, and Christ himself appears more vaguely, that is, not distinctly in his real humanity, but under the guise of an angel.
We then read that “the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar; and he threw fire on the earth; and there were voices and thunders and lightning and an earthquake.” Thus, in this new septenary, we are to expect to see Judgments of God more striking than the previous ones; indeed, if, in chapter 4, there were lightning, voices and thunders coming out of the throne, we find here, moreover, an earthquake. The effect produced among men therefore becomes more intense.
“And the first sounded the trumpet: and there was hail and fire, mixed with blood, and they were cast on the earth; and one-third of the earth was burned; and a third of the trees were burned, and all green grass was burned.” The first part of this verse seems to be the violent manifestation of God’s displeasure; that is what hail entails. Fire, as we know, is the symbol that constantly designates God’s consuming judgment. Fire is mixed with blood, either to mark the destruction of life from the physical point of view, or to indicate dissolution in any special relation. Let us also note, in most of these divine visitations announced by the trumpets, the expression “the third”. What is the meaning of this in prophecy? It seems to correspond to what is indicated in chapter 12, that is, to the Western Roman Empire. Let’s confine ourselves to stating this thought, without developing here the reasons on which it is based. For we undoubtedly have, under the first trumpets at least, judgments that fall on the Roman power in the West.
“And a third of the trees were burned, and all green grass was burned.” There is a contrast in these words. On the one hand, those who, in the sphere of the Western empire, occupy an eminent position, are under judgment; and on the other hand, the universal prosperity of men here on earth is attained. “And the second angel sounded the trumpet: and like a great mountain all on fire was thrown into the sea; and one third of the sea became blood, and one third of the creatures which were in the sea and which had life died, and one third of the ships were destroyed.” Here the symbol represents a great earthly power which, like a divine judgment, falls into the midst of the popular masses in a state of revolution, and acts for their destruction. What we see here, is not as in the previous case, a part of the world under a stable government, but in disorder and agitation. A mortal blow seems, by the same cause, to be dealt to trafficking and commerce. “And the third angel sounded the trumpet: and a great star fell from the sky, burning like a torch; and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the fountains of the waters.” The great star that falls from the sky, designates someone who occupies a high position of authority, a great dignitary, whose fall, under the effect of judgment, exerts its pernicious and poisonous action on the sources from which all the influences that act on men proceed, as well as on the channels or means through which these influences spread and communicate.
At the sound of the trumpet of the fourth angel, a third of the sun, moon and stars were struck: that is, the powers that govern, the supreme authority, those that derive from it and those that are subordinate, all come under the judgment of God, within the limits of the Western empire. “And I saw: and I heard an eagle flying through the middle of heaven, saying aloud: Woe, woe, woe, woe, to those who dwell on earth, because of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels who are going to sound the trumpet!” What a striking image of how quickly the judgments that follow will strike! This is what the word “eagle” expresses.
The following verses have been compiled for your edification and grouped together for your better understanding.
The seventh seal and the golden censer, the first six trumpets:
- Seven, the number of perfection
Ex 25:37 Thou shalt make his seven lamps, which shall be placed on them, so as to illuminate in front. Isa 4:1 And seven women will seize on this day one man, and say: We shall eat our bread, and we shall clothe ourselves in our clothes; Just make us bear your name! Take away our opprobrium! Mk 16:9 Jesus, having risen on the morning of the first day of the week, first appeared to Mary Magdalene, from whom he had cast out seven demons. Rev 1:12 I turned around to find out what voice was speaking to me. And, after turning around, I saw seven golden candlesticks, Rev 5:6, and I saw, in the midst of the throne and the four living beings and in the midst of the old men, a lamb who was there as if slain. He had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent by all the earth. Rev 8:2 And I saw the seven angels standing before God, and seven trumpets were given to them. Rev 10:3 and he cried out in a loud voice, as a lion roared. When he shouted, the seven thunders made their voices heard.
- Earthquakes
Ex 19:18 The mountain of Sinai was all in smoke, because the Lord had descended into it in the midst of the fire; this smoke rose like the smoke of a furnace, and the whole mountain trembled with violence. 1 Kings 19:11 Jehovah said, Go out, and stand in the mountain before the Lord! And behold, the Lord passed. And before the Lord, there was a strong and violent wind that tore through the mountains and broke the rocks: the Lord was not in the wind. And after the wind, it was an earthquake: Jehovah was not in the earthquake. Mt 27:51 And behold, the veil of the temple tore in two, from the top to the bottom, the earth trembled, the rocks split, Rev 11:19, and the temple of God in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant appeared in his temple. And there were lightning, voices, thunder, an earthquake, and a strong hail.
- The great sea or Mediterranean Sea
Nb 34.6 Your western limit will be the great sea: it will be your limit to the West. Jos 15:12 The western limit was the great sea. Such were on all sides the limits of the sons of Judah, according to their families. Ez 47:10 Fishermen will stand on its shores; from En Guédi to En Églaïm, the nets will be spread; there will be fish of various species, such as the fish of the great sea, and they will be very numerous. Ez 48.28 On the limit of Gad, on the southern side, in the south, the border will go from Thamar, to the waters of Meriba in Kades, to the torrent towards the great sea.
- Misfortunes
Esa 5:8 Woe to those who add house to house, And who join field to field, Until there is no more space, And that they live alone in the middle of the country! Jer 22:13 Woe to him who builds his house by injustice, and his rooms by iniquity; Who makes his neighbor work without paying him, without giving him his salary; Mt 11:21 Woe to you, Chorazin! woe to you, Bethsaida! for if the miracles that were done in your midst had been done in Tyre and Sidon, they would have repented a long time ago, taking the sack and the ashes. Jude 11 Woe to them! for they followed the path of Cain, they threw themselves for a salary into the wandering of Balaam, they lost themselves by the revolt of Core.
From all the above, we note that the 7th seal opens with a short respite. While angels prepare to execute judgments, another angel (Christ himself) performs the functions of intercessor. In that He Himself suffered, the Lord Jesus is able to sympathize with believers in trial (Hb 2:14-18; Hb 4:14-16). In these apocalyptic times, He will intervene on behalf of the faithful of great distress (those in Hb 7:13-17). And in their turn the saints, already collected in glory after having known themselves on earth of fatigue and sorrow, will take an even greater interest in the circumstances of believers going through this terrible period. They will thus be priests with Christ, presenting to God those golden cups full of perfumes that are the prayers of the saints (Rev. 5:6-10). Preceded by the intercession, each of the seven angels swallows his formidable trumpet. The first gives the signal of a sudden judgment reaching the powerful in the West (the trees) and universal prosperity. The 2nd corresponds to the irruption into the empire of a great anarchic terrestrial power. The 3rd and 4th cause the fall and apostasy of the responsible authorities, plunging men into the deepest moral darkness. The misfortunes that must melt especially on those who dwell on the earth, who have established their abode there, in contrast to the heavenly call, who have been neither awakened nor moved by the judgments of which the earth has been struck but who, in spite of everything, have attached themselves to it as a permanent place. Three times misfortune! The expression”Those who dwell on earth” has already been used in the promise made in Philadelphia and in the prayer of souls under the altar, for the character, either of Philadelphia or of the martyrs, is in contrast to “those who dwell on the earth.” After all that God has just accomplished, they are a distinct class, manifested and designated as such in what is happening on earth. It is against this unbelieving and perverse class that God’s earthly judgments are now directed; the first against the Jews; the second, against the inhabitants of the Roman land; the third, universal. May the Lord Jesus watch over us so that we may avoid sin.
PRAYER OF ACCEPTANCE OF JESUS CHRIST AS LORD AND PERSONAL SAVIOR
I now invite every person who wants to become a new creation by walking in the truth, to pray with me the following prayer:
Lord Jesus, I have long walked in the lusts of the world ignoring your love for humans. I admit to having sinned against you and ask your forgiveness for all my sins, because today I have decided to give you my life by taking you as Lord and personal Savior. I recognize that you died on the cross of Calvary and rose from the dead for me.
I am now saved and born again by the power of the Holy Spirit. Lead me every day to the eternal life that you give to all who obey your Word. Reveal yourself to me and strengthen my heart and faith, so that your light may shine in my life right now.
Thank you, Lord Jesus, for accepting me into your divine family, so that I may also contemplate the wonders of your kingdom.
I will now choose a nearby waterpoint to baptize myself by immersion, in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.
All adoration, power and glory are yours, now and forever and ever. Amen!
I would be happy to react to any questions and comments you may have, before sharing with you tomorrow “the fifth and sixth trumpets: the fifth angel sounded the trumpet. »
May the Lord Jesus Christ bless you abundantly.
David Feze, Servant of the Almighty God.