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The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer
8 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.
The Seven Trumpets
Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them.
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.
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.
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.
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!”
(ESV)
Revelation 8 Commentary
by Brad Boyles
Continuing on the theme from Chapter 7, John either heard or saw something with every seal that was opened. Here in Revelation 8, the seventh seal is broken and he hears and sees nothing for 30 minutes. A half an hour of time is not long at all, but when it’s complete silence, it seems like an eternity. What is the reason for the silence? As with most of Revelation, there are many views. I lean toward this being a dramatic pause before the outpouring of our Holy God.
“But the LORD is in His holy temple. Let all the earth be silent before Him.”
Habakkuk 2:20 NASB
Be silent before the Lord GOD! For the day of the LORD is near, For the LORD has prepared a sacrifice, He has consecrated His guests.
Zephaniah 1:7 NASB
“Be silent, all flesh, before the LORD; for He is aroused from His holy habitation.”
Zechariah 2:13 NASB
We can’t ignore the parallels between prayers and judgment. In Chapter 6, it’s the prayers of the martyrs that trigger the opening of the sixth deal. Here, it is the prayers from all (living and dead) believers that literally ignites the altar of incense before the throne of God. It’s fascinating the consider that God places His desires upon us and as we respond faithfully in prayer, He then uses those prayers to ignite His righteous judgments on the penetrating evil that has plagued humanity since the beginning. The smoke then creeps up into God’s holy nostrils as He prepares to unleash His wrath.
The altar, which has always symbolized God’s mercy, becomes the source of His judgment. The sounding of the trumpets, common in the OT, is a declaration of war. The severity of the trumpets seems far more volatile than the seals were. Although the seals were more symbolic in their description, the trumpets give vivid details as to what is actually taking place on Earth.
The first four trumpets seem to indicate a reversal of the creation process. Trees, grass, the sea, sea creatures, ships, rivers, springs, the sun, the moon, and stars are all affected by the first four trumpets. Wormwood is a plant from the middle east which is extremely bitter. Here, it indicates that the water source will be severely damaged sending the world into crisis. The three ‘woes’ at the end of the chapter may very well foreshadow the next three trumpets set to be blown.
Why Judgment?
All that is wrong in our world will never be made right again until judgment comes. This is reflected in our prayers every day. We pray for evil to be eradicated. We pray for peace. We pray for unity. We pray for closeness to God. And the list goes on and on. Think about all that you pray for on a daily basis and then consider, can all those prayers be answered without God’s judgment coming? Most likely, many of your prayers are based around God finally destroying all evil and suffering.
Here, in Revelation 8, we find that our prayers go up and God’s judgment comes down. This is why the assurance of our faith in Jesus is so important. If we are not assured that we are found in Him, we would never pray for judgment because that would be like praying God’s wrath upon ourselves. But for those found in Jesus, we should welcome God’s judgment upon this sin-filled earth knowing that we will receive strength to endure from Jesus Himself. The genuine prayers of God’s people will hasten the end times.
The following verses describe a time when God will finally respond to all those prayers.
Now the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to blow them. 7 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.
8 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.
Revelation 8:6-9 ESV
These events are not natural disasters. This is not a meteor shower or a nuclear bomb. Certainly, God can use those things, but everyone on earth will recognize this judgment as coming from God.
What is the result of the first two trumpets? Ecological ruin. Notice that it is not directed at people. It is the trees, the grass, and the sea. Let look at what Jesus said regarding these events…
“And there will be signs in sun and moon and stars, and on the earth distress of nations in perplexity because of the roaring of the sea and the waves, 26 people fainting with fear and with foreboding of what is coming on the world. For the powers of the heavens will be shaken.
Luke 21:25-26 ESV
On some levels, this is simply a warning of what is to come. People should look around at the ecological destruction and turn to God in repentance. However, we read later in Revelation, people will prefer to die rather than repent.
Although humanity is not the direct target, they will be affected greatly by these initial trumpet blasts. There is a hard line being drawn at this point which will force people to double down in their effort to rebel against God or turn to Him in repentance. For some, this may be the only way they will turn. For others, it will only antagonize them. But either way, this is a real judgment. There will be real destruction and pandemonium. The widespread damage is a prelude to Jesus’ return and, as hard as it may seem, should give believers hope that His Second Coming is only moments away.