They Are Not Playing Our Song Series

Revelation 8: 1 – 13

They Are Not Playing Our Song

1 When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. 3 Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake. 6 So the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. 7 The first angel sounded: And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth. And a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up. 8 Then the second angel sounded: And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. 9 And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed. 10 Then the third angel sounded: And a great star fell from heaven, burning like a torch, and it fell on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11 The name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the water, because it was made bitter. 12 Then the fourth angel sounded: And a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them were darkened. A third of the day did not shine, and likewise the night. 13 And I looked, and I heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, “Woe, woe, woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!”

Certain things that occur in our lives are cherished. To help us reflect on that special time we accumulate certain items, such as

. Your first baseball glove

. The first valentine given to you

. Your first picture in the newspaper

. An item from your first love

. Pictures of love ones

. Your first bible

Another item which we might keep is a copy of a song that brings back sweet memories. Do you have such a song? Well, in today’s study we are going to go over some songs we do not want to hear. The Lord’s selected musicians are going to play some scary music.

1 When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

The seventh seal is the last of the seven seals which keeps the content of the scroll hidden. Now the content of this scroll can be known. In addition, the seventh seal is of the nature of the last three seals where the ‘Wrath of God is in focus. The fifth seal requests the pouring out of the Wrath of God. The sixth seal announces the imminent outbreak of the Wrath of God. Now the seventh and final seal depicts the actual beginning of God’s Wrath in the form of seven trumpet judgments.

The seventh seal is chronologically parallel to the occurrences in the first six seals (as we have noted the sixth seal ends with the second coming and the final judgment. The seventh seal could not follow that). Its content thus occurs at the same time as the events in the first six seals, at the same time as the four horsemen are riding. It helps to explain the meaning of the apocalyptic language in seal 6.

Here in Revelation we are seeing present history from heaven’s point of view. Dreadful things have happened throughout history and we now discover their source. While they are the result of man’s sinfulness, they are also the result of heavenly activity

Each seal represents different aspects of the activities of men and of the judgments of God. They are opened one after another simply because there is no other way of opening them in a deliberate way, but what is in the seven-sealed book is an overall record of future history from the time of John onwards, seen as a whole, but leading up to the end. Thus most of what is presented occurs in parallel. The events are to a certain extent overlapping each other.