In this next part of the Revelation of Jesus Christ (Rev. 8:1-6), we see a new part of the vision. We are going to see Jesus break the seals on the trumpet judgments, which are now going to come upon the humanity.
The Seventh Sea: The Trumpets
v.1, “And when He broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour”:
· This chapter opens with the announcement that the seventh seal is opened:
o Remember, its only Christ who is worthy to open these seals.
· The phrase “and when he broke the seventh seal” indicates a continuation of seal judgments from chapter 6:12:
o Remember, in the last two articles, we’ve looked at a vision between sixth and seventh seal.
· Contained within the seventh seal are the later developments leading to the second coming of Christ, including the seven trumpet judgments and the seven bowl judgments of the wrath of God.
· The breaking of this final seal brings an unexpected result, "there came a silence in heaven for about a half an hour":
o Though 30 minutes is not ordinarily considered a long time, when it’s a time of absolute silence, foreshadowing such ominous events ahead, it’s an indication that something awful is about to take place.
· This half an hour is a dramatic pause to symbolize both the awe and dread with which the heavenly hosts await the events that are about happen.
· It's a silent expectancy that makes the judgments that are about to begin all the more impressive.
· We see this kind of silence in the Old Testament in combination with reverence for God and awesome expectation of His judgment.
· The silence is preparation for what’s coming in v.2, the terrible consequences of the seven trumpet judgments that will begin shortly.
· This first trumpet will happen early during last half of Great Tribulation.
v.2, “And I saw the seven angels who stand before God; and seven trumpets were given to them”:
· This part of the vision comes after the half-hour of silence and includes some preparations for the trumpet judgments and the sounding of the first four trumpets in 8:7-12.
· John saw "the seven angels who stand before God [that is, in the presence of God].”
· Who are these seven angels?
· Let me start by explaining:
o In Jewish literature, written between the Old and New Testaments, Gabriel is described as one of “the angels of the presence” who stand before God’s throne praising Him and interceding for men (Apocrypha: Tobit 12:15).
o This book is part of the “Apocrypha” which means hidden or secret:
Ø The books of the Apocrypha are considered non-canonical because the authors are unknown.
· So here’s what some believe:
o First, because of the definite article "the" angels, and because of a supposed connection with seven archangel's in Jewish tradition, some have identified these angels as a special group consisting of:
Ø Uriel = God is my light.
Ø Raphael = angel of healing
Ø Reuel = friend of God
Ø Michael = who is like God
Ø Sariel = God has fought or Prince of God
Ø Gabriel = strength of God
Ø Remiel = mercy of God or God's mercy
Ø These names come from a book known as 1 Enoch 20, a Pseudapigraphal book, a false writing (we don’t know who the author was, therefore it was rejected from Canon of Scripture)
o Second, some believe that the word “stand” indicates that they were in front of God and have been there for some time. Therefore, they must be a special class of angels.
· Here are the arguments against either of these identifications:
o First, the seven angles are not mentioned among the heavenly company described in Revelation 4-5.
o Second, Jewish “literature” is not Scripture. These reasons are traditions taken from books, whose authors are unknown and, therefore, do not make it factual.
o Third, in 8:2-5, it’s an angel, distinct from this group, who offers the prayers of the saints:
Ø One would think that if this were such a special group, certainly one of them would have been assigned this task.
· Perhaps the best explanation is that these angels, whoever they are, do have a place of prominence, in heaven:
o There’s just not much more we know about them except they will sound the trumpets of judgment.
· John saw the seven angels receive seven trumpets, “seven trumpets were given to them”:
o Trumpets played a major part in the national life is Israel:
Ø In ceremonial processions.
Ø For assembling people for war, journeys, and special feasts.
Ø For warning of the coming Day of the Lord.
Ø For announcing the New Year.
o As a signal for war.
o These trumpets find a natural association with judgment.
o Here, they are precursors of Divine judgment and the “Day of the Lord.”
· Before the trumpets sound, however, there’s a pause. Notice verse three.
v.3, “And another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne”:
· As John watched, “another angel” with the golden censer came into the picture and stood before the altar.
· Some have tried to identify this angel as Christ mainly because of the theological consideration that only Christ, as high priest, can answer the prayers of the saints.
· However, a basic rule for interpretation is that we must never move away from the plain meaning of the words.
· Careful observation of what the angel does reveals that this angel doesn’t act as a mediator by making the prayers acceptable:
o He only delivers the prayers.
o Jesus is the only Mediator between God and man.
o He, alone, makes our prayers acceptable.
· A better identification of this angel would be that he’s another created being, not Christ:
o Again, this is an angel of the same kind (allos, in the Greek, of the same kind) as those in 8:2.
o He does not pray or attempt to intercede on behalf of the humans.
o He simply takes the incense and adds it to the prayers of the saints.
· The identity of the altars, two of them, in v.3 and v.5, has been a subject of much debate:
o In the context of Revelation, its best to see these “altars” as one and the same.
· The attention in this passage is on the incense. This, along with later references to the altar of incense (9:13; 14:18; 16:7), pretty much excludes the possibility of this being the altar for offering.
· Not only that, but only the altar of incense was made of gold:
o The golden altar of incense (Exod. 30:1–10) stood just before the veil inside the tabernacle that separated the most holy place from the rest of the worship area (Exod. 40:26–27).
o The “golden censer,” sometimes referred to as a “fire pan,” was used in the temple of Solomon.
o Priests burned incense on this altar every day so it’s sweet smell would fill the tabernacle.
· Notice, John tells us “and much incense was given to him.”
o The angel receives “much incense” from God to offer on the altar along with the prayers of the saints.
· Where the incense came from isn’t clear, but the customary usage of “edothe,” is the Greek word meaning “was given” throughout Revelation, indicates that it was from God.
· Incense had a prominent place in Old Testament worship and serves as a reminder that intercessory prayer is like sweet perfume before the Lord.
· In the temple rituals, the priest poured the saucer of incense over the burning coals on the altar of incense:
o At the same time, the Israelites bowed in prayer as the fragrant cloud of smoke ascended heavenward.
o A similar connection between incense and the prayers of the saints occurs in Revelation 5:8, except there, the incense and prayers are one and the same.
o Here, the incense is added to the prayers of the persecuted and the martyrs.
· One of the reasons for the trumpet judgments is that God is answering the prayers of the saints:
o This is a beautiful picture of the prayers of the saints as seen from heaven.
· Incense was symbolic of worship and prayer and a reminder that intercession of the Lord has the character of sweet incense.
· So, the actions of the angel don’t make the angel a mediator between God and man:
o The text is simply saying that the angel adds much incense to the prayers of the saints.
o And he does that at the golden altar, which is before the throne.
· In the whole context of the Revelation, the prayers are the cries of the saints for judgment against their persecutors:
o Remember, these are not the prayers of all the saints of all time.
o The martyrs in heaven will perhaps cry the loudest, but the number of the future saints will not be limited to just them.
· The prayers are going to the golden altar before God’s throne:
o Which is a place of power.
o And the source of the trumpet judgments, which are about to begin.
v.4, “And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel’s hand”:
· Leaving the angel’s hand, the smoke rises upward arriving in the very presence of God:
o Picture this scene in your mind.
· The timing here is on the verge of God’s “trumpet” judgments:
o This represents the acceptability of the prayers.
· These prayers, which have been unanswered until now, are welcome and receive a direct reply (as we’ll soon see).
· Notice: the smoke produced by the burning incense rises “with the prayers of the saints”:
o We will soon see God’s acceptance of these prayers for vengeance and He will act.
v.5, “And the angel took the censer; and he filled it with the fire of the altar and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake”:
· This is the next scene in this pause just before the trumpet judgments bring the earth’s inhabitants into the picture.
· The angel takes the censer, fills it with coals from the fire on the altar and then he hurls it towards the earth:
o This signifies that judgment is about to be imposed in answer to the prayers of the saints for vengeance.
o God’s answer to these prayers of these saints, for vengeance, is symbolized by the prayers being hurled at the earth.
o The connection between the Divine wrath about to fall upon the earth and the prayers of God's people is not a coincidence.
· The censer was normally used for offering incense. But now it has become a symbol of judgment in response to prayer.
· Fire is frequently used in Scripture as a symbol for God’s judgment of the wicked.
· The hurling of the censer to the earth reminds us of the saints’ question back in 6:10, "How long O Lord?"
o It also signals that an answer to those prayers is on the way.
· The interaction between the sovereignty of God and the prayers of His people is part of the mystery of the Christian life:
o The how and why prayer is intertwined with moving of the hand of God is something we may never understand the side of glory.
o These saints pray for justice and their prayers play a part, but it’s God's business to determine the time and nature of the actions against their persecutors.
· The thunder, lightening, and the earthquake are all a huge contrast with the silence of v.1:
o They are the physical expression of God's anger against the unrepentant world.
· The inhabitants of the earth will see in the coming trumpet judgments as what God set out to do in "the hour of testing that is about to come upon the whole earth, to test those who dwell upon the earth" (3:10).
· As we'll soon see, by the time the seven trumpets have run their course, God’s purging of this creation will almost be complete.
v.6, “And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them”:
· To close the quiet before the storm, the seven angels prepare themselves.
· Perhaps their preparation is a deliberate arranging of themselves in a certain order:
o Maybe it includes the raising of their trumpets in readiness to sound, which would heighten the sense of expectancy even more.
· The signal for the angels to prepare was the hurling of censer to the earth.
· As we’ll see later, just like the pattern of the seal judgments, the first four trumpets are different from the last three:
o The first four set in motion the forces of nature to complete their destructive effects on the earth and mankind.
o God uses the natural forces to punish mankind.
o In the last three trumpets, sustaining human life in the face of demonic onslaught becomes the major concern, especially among the rebellious inhabitants of the earth.
· Next time, we’ll see that, like the bowl judgments to follow, the trumpet judgments have a recollection of the Old Testament plagues against Egypt:
o You’ll have to come back next month to see the similarities.
Lessons Learned from Chapter 8:1-6:
· There was silence in heaven for half an hour. With all the activity, this dramatic pause must have seemed to last for an eternity. During this time, the only activity was the prayers of the saints. We must seek God in times of silence. How proper for us to be quiet and honor God for His power and might. Take time each day to be silent and exalt God.
· Silence before God conveys trust and confidence. We can trust God that He will give us strength and provide the justice against our oppressors.
· The angel threw the censer to the earth. This symbolizes the judgment of God released on earth. It was in answer to the prayers of the saints for justice for those who had opposed and killed them.
· This shows that justice, vindication, and revenge are in God's hands, not ours.
· No matter how strong the desire to exact revenge and retaliate against our enemies, our work is to pray for our enemies and wait for His justice in His timing.
May the Lord bless you as you continue to grow in the grace and knowledge of our God.
By His Grace,
Gary T. Dromi, Ph.D., D.Min.
