Revelation
Chapter
8
{Chapters
8-14: 7 Trumpet Judgments of the Seventh Seal -
God Directly Judges Mankind}
{Chapter
8: the First 4 Trumpet Judgments - God Affects Nature}
{Verses
1-2: Transition from Seals to the Trumpet Judgments}
{Details
of Historical Trends in the Tribulation}
1~~Then
when He {Jesus Christ}
had
opened the seventh seal {release of the Trumpet Judgments},
there
was silence in heaven
for
about half an hour.
{Note: This half hour is 'dramatic silence'. Everything will change based on the shock of the severity of the judgments to hit mankind in the Tribulation.}
2~~
Then I {John} saw seven angels {seven pursuivant
messenger angels from the angelic college of heralds}
who
stand before God.
And
seven trumpets were given to them.
{Note: The following is the Order of Battle for Angels (Revised from Chapter 7 also):
College of Heralds
a) Angel of the Lord - a Theophany of the Lord Jesus Christ
b) Seraphim Angel - with 6 wings. Next to the Lord, the Highest rank/order of Angels (Isaiah 6:2)
1) Powerful angel of Revelation 5:2 (rank of King or Officer of Arms)
2) 4 Angelic Heralds of Revelation 4:6-8
c) Cherubim - Pursuivant Officers (the 'English College of Heralds')-
1) Cherub - the high officer class with 4 wings (making them lower than Seraphim)
(SideNote: Satan was a Cherub so he was NOT the highest ranking of angels)
(SideNote: Cherubs also guard the gates to the Garden of Eden - Genesis 3:24)
d) Pursuivant Messenger Angels - officers with no wings. These are still officers.
1) Angelic Messenger with Lot in Sodom - Genesis 19:13 and following
2) Destroying Angel of II Samuel 24:16
3) Destroying Angels of Psalm 78:49
4) Executioners of the city of Jerusalem in Ezekiel 9:1
5) Man clothed in Linen - acts as Chariot of Fire in Ezekiel 10:6
6) Weather Angels - 4 - each restraining the wind cells of the 4 hemispheres - Revelation 7:1
7) Angels with the 7 Trumpets Revelation 8:6}
{Verses
3-6: Answer to Prayer of Tribulational Saints}
3~~Then
another angel {a pursuivant officer}
came
and took his place before the altar
{this
angel is in command - he has Cherub rank},
and
he had an incense shovel made of gold;
consequently
much incense was given to him
in
order that he might offer it with the prayers
of
all the saints {Tribulational believers}
on
the golden altar which was before the throne.
{Note: RBT says 'incense' is used here for Intercessory Prayer.}
4~~Then
the smoke of the incenses {plural - 4 types}
along
with the {imprecatory} prayers of the saints,
went
up before God from the hand
of
the angel {a pursuivant officer}.
{Note: The incense indicates the prayers will be answered. The Seven Trumpet Judgments are in answer to these prayers. They will be supernatural judgments.}
{Verses
5-6: Answer of the Prayers of Tribulational Martyrs Begins}
5~~Then
he {the angel} took {lambano}
the
{golden incense} shovel
and
filled it with the fire from the altar
and
hurled it to the earth.
And
there followed peels of thunder . . .
loud
noises
{like the sound of a coming tornado - audible warning system},
and
flashings of lightnings . . .
also
there followed an earthquake
{4 warning of a coming disaster - Grace before judgment}.
{Note: Lambano does mean to take. It is in the 'dramatic perfect' to emphasize the ease with which the angel serves the Lord. He did this easily - as it should be for all who perform the will of God.}
6~~Then
the seven angels {the pursuivant messengers}
who
had the seven trumpets
prepared
themselves
for
the purpose that they might give the sound/signal
with
the trumpets {the command for judgment}.
{Note: All of this gives the unbelievers on earth time to change their minds! Grace! Another principal in this verse is that all work on behalf of God takes preparation.}
{Verses
7-13: The First 4 Trumpet Judgments; 1st Judgment - Against Land of Earth}
7~~And,
then the first one {of the seven angels}
sounded
his trumpet {gave the signal to start the judgments}
and
there followed/began
a
terrible {supernatural} thunder storm . . .
hail
and fire {possibly lightning}
which
had been mixed with blood
{of the Tribulational Martyrs - Rev. 6:9-10}.
And
it {the supernatural thunderstorm}
was
hurled to the earth
{the phenomenon known as wind-shear or down-burst}
with
the result that one third of the land surface
was
destroyed by fire . . .
both
a third of the trees was burned up
plus
all the green grasses was burned up {implied
'of the one third of the land surface' - not 'all grass on earth'}.
{Note: The 144,000 evangelists apparently now have been 'sealed'. So, the mandate of Revelation 7:3 is now rescinded and the judgments begin.}
{2nd
Judgment - Against Salt Water Seas of Earth}
8-9~~Then
the second angel
sounded
his trumpet {gave the signal for 2nd judgment},
and
like a great mountain of burning fire
and
it was hurled into the sea,
and
a third of the seas/oceans became blood
{see
this Judgment also in Exodus 17:20; Psalm 105:29}. 9~~
Then
a third of the creatures in the sea, having life, died;
also
a third of the shipping was destroyed.
{Note: The blood is a reminder that unbelievers have rejected the blood of Christ and still can be saved while they are alive in time.}
{3rd
Judgment - Against Fresh Water Lakes and Rivers of Earth}
10-11~~Then
the third angel
sounded
his trumpet {gave the signal for 3rd judgment},
a
giant meteor {aster} - incandescent like a lamp -
fell
from the sky,
and
it fell on the third of the rivers and the lakes. 11~~
And
the name of the giant meteor
is
called Wormwood/Absinthe {apsinthos}
{description of divine judgment follows}
now
one third of the {fresh} waters became polluted/bitter/poisoned
because of the meteor called Wormwood;
in
fact, many of the human race {unbelievers} died . . .
because
they {1/3 of all fresh water supplies}
were
polluted/poisoned.
{Note: Aster is the Greek word used for star, meteor, or even an angel in Revelation. It has also been used for planets in the New Testament. However, a meteor is defined as a transient celestial body and that is in view here.}
{Note: Apsinthos was transliterated into absinthe in the French. It is a the name of a form of wine. Apsinthos today is a grain alcohol liquor containing oil of Wormwood and anise. It can be deadly and/or cause delusional visions. So here we are talking about a liquid mixed with oil of Wormwood that is deadly to many people. See Jeremiah 9:15. Wormwood connotes the vehicle of applying divine judgment on unbelievers. It can mean individual or collective judgment in the bible. Also see Jeremiah 23:15 for wormwood and pollution.}
{Light,
Solar Wind, and Radiation Cut Down by 1/3 at the Source}
12~~
And the fourth angel {the pursuivant messenger}
sounded
his trumpet {gave the signal for 4th judgment},
then
a third of the sun,
a
third of the moon,
and
a third of the planets/stars {aster}
were
struck/'lost their light' {plesso},
so
that a third of them might be darkened,
and
the day 'might not give light/'might not shine' for a third of it,
and
the night likewise/'in the same way'.
{Note: When used of celestial bodies, 'plesso' means to lose - at least one third of their radiation; loss of light. Light is needed for photosynthesis and other things. So this also will be disastrous to the earth instead of merely inconvenient!}
{Note: RBT says aster - which we just saw means stars, meteors, or plants - means the planets. So here 1/3 of the light provided by planets (their reflection of the sun's light) was reduced in kind.}
13~~Then
I {John} observed and heard
one
eagle {4th angelic herald of Revelation 4:7}
flying
in mid heaven
{the second heaven -realm of angelic activity - see Acts 7:22}, and
he said/proclaimed with a loud voice,
Woe
{reference to the fifth trumpet - Revelation 9:1-12 -
first demon assault army},
Woe
{sixth trumpet - Revelation 9:13-21 -
second demon assault army},
Woe
{seventh trumpet - Revelation 11:15 - 12:17
Satan leads a third army to destroy all Jews},
to
the inhabitants of the earth . . .
because
of the remaining blasts of the trumpet
from
the three angels
who
are about to sound off!
{Note: This is the angel of Revelation 4:7 carrying 1/4 of the coat of arms of Jesus Christ.}
{Note: The first demon attack will torture men for 5 months. It is led by Satan's second in command -Abaddon/Apollyon. The second demon attack is by a killer army.}
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