The Sound of Trumpets
Revelation 8:1-3
Here is Revelation chapter 8 the opening of seventh seal starts a series of judgments by the sounding of seven trumpets.
The sound of trumpets are literal; no “as it were” here at all.
See: Revelation 8:1-2
1. The Silence
“Silence in heaven”
Up until this point in our study there have been anything but silence in heaven.
Chapter 4-5, 7 We have the four beasts (angels) and the four and twenty elders around the throne of the Lord giving glory, honour and thanks to Him.
The reason for this silence we are not told except it was for 30 minutes (1/2 hour).
Perhaps it is related to what traumatic event that will happen next. I personally remember when my brother was killed in a car accident and we all stood there in complete silence because of what we had just witnessed.
I believe this silence is in direct result of what those in heaven know what is going to happen on earth.
See: Zephaniah 1:7, 14-18
2. The Supplication
See: Vs.3-6 The golden censers with the prayers of the saints upon the golden altar
See: Psalms 141:2 David said let my prayers be set forth before thee as incense
See: Luke 1:9-10 It is customary under Jewish law for prayer to be done at the time of the burning of incense.
Vs.4 There prayers we are told are ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand
Perhaps this is the prayers of those under the altar in Revelation 6:9-10
See: Rev. 5:8 Here it indicates the prayers of all saints
What we do see here is how much God cares about the prayers of the saints.
Vs.5 The censer casted into the earth and then there was voices, and thunderings, and lightings, and an earthquake.
Ref. Exodus 19:16-18 The voices, thundering, and lightings and an earthquake coincide with the speaking of God.
Vs.6 The seven angels prepares to sound the seven trumpets
3. The Sounding of Trumpets
See: Vs.8-12 The third of all affected
Vs.7 the hail and fire mingled with blood is similar to one of the plagues God used Moses to being upon Egypt in Exodus 9:23-24.
The land mass of the earth is 57,491,000 square mile which is 36,794,240,000 acres
Point: 12,264,747,000 acres will be destroyed
In the Chicago fire of 1871: 200 acres were destroyed and 3,000 people in about 27 hours
Vs.8-11 By what appears to be a meteorite is cast into the sea
With 1/3 of sea turned into blood and causing 1/3 of sea life to die and 1/3 of the ships were destroyed.
Not only the seas but rivers and the fountains of waters are affected a star called Wormwood. In essence all of the bodies of water are affected by these events.
Wormwood: Is poison
See: Jeremiah 9:15
Vs.11 “And many men died of the water”
Vs.12 A third part of the sun, moon and star affected which has an impact on day and night as we know it.
See: Vs.13 Woe, woe, woe to the inhibiters of the earth. Each woe I believe represents the last three trumpets. It also reminds me of the warning given in Rev. chapter 12 later.
Point: These woes say the worst is yet to come or you have not seen anything yet. May God use us to warn this world of the judgment to come!
