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Revelation 8: The Seventh Seal, The First 4 Trumpets

 

When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.  Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.  And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.  Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

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Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.

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The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

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The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. 9 A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.  The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.

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The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.

Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”

 

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Chapters 4 to 19 are about The Great Tribulation.  We are on chapter 8.  Chapter 4 and 5 show us what is going on in heaven on a daily basis and then God holds out a book with 7 seals on it.  Only the Lamb is worthy to take the book and open the seals, thus taking possession of his inheritance.  In chapter 6, six seals are opened and they are devastating.  The 6th seal seems to be so catastrophic it would nearly decimate the earth.  But wait!  Chapter 7 says that God has a plan.  Before the earth is harmed, God is going to seal 144,000 servants to spread the gospel.  As a result a multitude so large that it cannot be numbered will be saved.  Now we get to chapter 8 and it is time to open the 7th seal. 

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Verse 1

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“When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.”

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This is very different from what we have seen so far.  The living creatures stop their praises.  The elders stop singing their praise, and they stop throwing their crowns in front of the throne.  The myriads of myriads of angels stop singing their praise.  The lightning on the throne with the peals of thunder ceases.  It does not tell us why there is silence in heaven for half an hour.

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Why do you think there was silence in heaven for half an hour?

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(Conjecture – they were in suspense as to what is going to happen next.)

(Conjecture – they are all busy preparing for more judgments.)

(Conjecture – they are all in awe for the next set of judgments.)

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Verse 2:

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“Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.”

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So what are the 7 angels going to do with their 7 trumpets?

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Are they going to announce the final end of this revelation?  Are they going to announce more judgments?

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Verses 3 to 5:

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“And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.  Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.”

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This is another “wait a minute” moment.  We have to remember the prayers of the saints.  Another angel comes and he is given much incense to offer along with the prayers of the saints.  Notice that the angel does not have to offer the prayers of the saints to God.  The prayers of the saints are already going to meet their destination to God’s ears.  The incense is being offered to remind all those that are looking on that prayers are going up to God, and God is going to do something about those prayers.  The idea of God’s judgment is highlighted by the angel when he fills the censer with fire from the altar and throws it on the earth.  As Christians, we never need to worry whether God hears our prayers or not.  He always hears us.  This is a reminder that God will ultimately do something about our prayers.  We do not need to be consumed with anger, rage, or retaliation when we are wronged.  God will ultimately judge the wrongdoer.  Some people go through life giving a knee-jerk reaction to everything that happens to them.  God has a better plan for when we face adversity.

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  1. Pray.

  2. Seek wisdom.

  3. Look around at what you do have.

  4. Take appropriate action.

  5. Leave the rest up to God.

 

Here is a story from a woman named Jeri Hill:

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“A decade ago, adversity struck our family in a moment when we least expected it. My normal routine flipped upside down when I received a call from my husband as he was on a ministry trip. He calmly yet firmly told me the doctors received the results from his biopsy. He had cancer. My husband, a dad, a Pastor, an evangelist, a man of God, my best friend, had cancer. Not just any cancer, but metastasized melanoma. The kind of cancer that has no cure and spreads rapidly in the bloodstream. In that moment, I was faced with those two choices. I chose to do what I had done for years and trust in God that His position has and will always be higher than any adversities we face in life.”

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“My husband battled six years of horrific clinical trials and treatments until there was nothing left for the doctors to do. We stayed steadfast when there was no hope in the future. We prayed. When others told me to have a drink or take medication to calm the nerves, I chose to cling to Holy Spirit and listened to His voice for direction.”

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“My husband passed away on March 9, 2014. Seven months later, I received the news that our only son had passed away from an overdose in his apartment. Can you imagine my agony as a wife and mother? The pain I experienced after losing the love of my life AND my son? I literally could not stop crying, I used my tears to cry out to God and asked Him to take my tears of loss and turn them into tears for the lost. I wanted to see His plan in all this and He was so faithful to let me know He wasn’t out to hurt me, but wanted to use what I had been through to touch others.”

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“As I was reading the Word, a story in 2 Kings, chapter 4 became alive to me. It’s the story about a widow and what was left in her house after her husband died. She began to tell Elisha that she had nothing left since her husband was gone, but what she didn’t realize was there was something in the house. There was oil. I came to a point in my grief when I cried out to the Lord and said, “I have nothing left!” But He quickly reminded me that I was full of oil of the Holy Spirit. God gave me two beautiful daughters and two son-in-laws full of oil of the Holy Spirit. He left me with the ministry that Steve and I began together years ago. He left me with people who loved us. I had oil in my home and that’s what would help me overcome these tragic, life-altering events.”

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So, when faced with adversity:

  1. Pray.

  2. Seek wisdom.

  3. Look around at what you do have.

  4. Take appropriate action.

  5. Leave the rest up to God.

 

There is a saying, “Those who leave everything in God’s Hands will eventually see God’s Hands in everything.”

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Remember when Peter went fishing and he didn’t catch anything all night? (John 21)  It took a miracle for him to not catch anything in the Sea of Galilee.  Then he ended up with a big catch.  Even those that see no results for their prayers in this life will end up with a crown for holding fast. (Revelation 3:11)

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Now, everything that the angel with the censer does, only provides a highlight to what God is doing.  He fills the censer with fire from the altar before God and throws it to the earth.  There is thunder, rumblings, and an earthquake.  It does not say that what the effects of these are.  It just brings attention to what God is about to do. 

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Back to the trumpets. Verse 6:

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“Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.”

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Now for the first trumpet:

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“The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.”

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Hail, fire and blood rain are all possible from a meteor that disintegrates in the atmosphere.

Further studies have also found that algae spores can be lifted up into clouds and literally grow in the clouds.  The spores are red.

The result of this judgment is that a third of all the vegetation on earth is burned up. 

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Now for the second trumpet:

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“The second angel blew his trumpet, and something like a great mountain, burning with fire, was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.  A third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.”

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Okay, so now, we have something like a mountain burning with fire being thrown into the sea.  This could be a comet.  The result of this is that a third of all ships are destroyed as well as a third of all sea creatures.  We seem to be having things being destroyed in thirds here.  It must all be very catastrophic to the economy and the ability to feed the population of the earth.

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Now for the third trumpet:

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“The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from heaven, blazing like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water.  The name of the star is Wormwood.  A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.”

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In John’s time, people considered that everything that gave light in the night sky was a star.  Here we have what is described as a great star from heaven blazing like a torch.  This could be a comet.  This falls on a third of the rivers and springs.  This one will be called Wormwood because it makes the water bitter and many people die from the water.  Again another natural resource has a third taken away by God’s judgments.  

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There is something similar between the judgments in Revelation and the judgments in the Exodus.  In both cases those that are judged did not listen to God.  In both cases, God disrupts their natural resources.  God reminds them that these resources come from him and he is in control of them. 

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Plague

Egypt

Tribulation

#1 - Water becomes blood.

Ex. Ex. 7:20; Ps. Ps. 105:29

Rev. Rev. 8:8-9+; Rev. 11:6+; Rev. 16:3-6+

#2 - Frogs

Ex. Ex. 8:6; Ps. Ps. 105:30

Rev. Rev. 16:13+3

#3 - Lice

Ex. Ex. 8:24; Ps. Ps. 105:31

Rev. Rev. 11:6+?4

#4 - Flies

Ex. Ex. 9:6

Rev. Rev. 11:6+?5

#5 - Food source (livestock) destroyed

Ex. Ex. 9:6

Rev. Rev. 8:9+6

#6 - Boils

Ex. Ex. 9:10

Rev. Rev. 16:2+

#7 - Hail

Ex. Ex. 9:23; Ps. Ps. 105:32

Rev. Rev. 8:7+; Rev. 16:21+

#8 - Locusts

Ex. Ex. 10:13; Ps. Ps. 105:34

Rev. Rev. 9:3+

#9 - Darkness

Ex. Ex. 10:22; Ps. Ps. 105:32

Rev. Rev. 8:12+; Rev. 9:2+; Rev. 16:10+

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Even though the plagues do not turn out exactly the same way, all the elements of the plagues in Exodus are also in the plagues of Revelation.  In Exodus you have the death of the firstborn of those that do not listen to God.  In the tribulation, you have the death of all those that refuse to listen to God.  At the end of the Exodus, you have a new kingdom, the kingdom of Israel.  At the end of the tribulation, you have a new kingdom, the worldwide kingdom of Jesus Christ.

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Now for the 4th trumpet:

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Verse 12:

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“The fourth angel blew his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, and a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of their light might be darkened, and a third of the day might be kept from shining, and likewise a third of the night.”

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So, a third of the world’s light will be blocked out.  This kind of a thing is entirely possible through natural occurrences.  Sun spots can grow.  An asteroid or comet could explode near the earth and the resulting dust could block out enough of the sun, moon and stars to block out a third of all of our light sources.  I imagine that after letting a couple asteroids hit earth, those that are left might decide to use a nuclear bomb to blow up the next near earth object on a crash course with earth.  This could fill the space over the earth with so much debris that it blocks the sun, moon and stars or a portion of it.  By the way, the asteroid Apophis, which is 1.1 Miles wide is predicted to enter earth’s atmosphere in 2029.  A six mile wide asteroid would kill all life on earth, so Apophis would destroy much. 

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What next eh?

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Verse 13:

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“Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”

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You thought the last four trumpets were bad?  Wait till we get to the next three trumpets.  They are so bad that they had to add a woe to each one. 

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Why is God doing these judgments?  Does he merely want to kill people off?  The first time that I read the book of Revelation, this is what I thought at this point.  We will find out why in the next chapter. 

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There has been a popular saying that some people say.  It goes like this”

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“Not my president.”

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Well, he’s your president whether you like it or not.  So was Ford, Carter, Bush and Obama.  Like ‘em or not, you still get them for your president.

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Sometimes when we tell people about our God they say:

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“He’s not my God.”

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Well, he’s their God too, whether they like it or not.  Here are some verses to a song that are usually left out when people sing it:

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When He rolls up His sleeves He ain't just puttin' on the ritz..

There is thunder in His footsteps

And lightning in His fist

Well, the Lord wasn't joking when He kicked 'em out of Eden

It wasn't for no reason that He shed his blood

His return is very close and so you better be believing that our God is an awesome God.

And when the sky was starless in the void of the night

He spoke into the darkness and created the light

Judgment and wrath he poured out on Sodom

Mercy and grace He gave us at the cross

I hope that we have not too quickly forgotten that our God is an awesome God.

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Yes, He’s everyone’s God if they like it or not.  If God didn’t have Judgments, there would not be motivation for some people to turn to him.  God gives the judgments and punishments to bring people to himself.   Even His Judgments are rooted in love.

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Song: Our God is an Awesome God by Michael W. Smith

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