Cont...7 Trumpets of Revelation (Day 17)

Revelation 8:12-13 ⁽¹²⁾The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, 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 turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night. ⁽¹³⁾As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!” (NIV)

The Fourth Trumpet

 

          John saw the fourth angel sound his trumpet and a third of the sun, moon and stars turned dark. A third of the day and night was without any light. In 1991, prior to the overthrow of Saddam Hussein, the Iraqi military set hundreds of oil wells on fire. This caused a mass of smoke for days where the daytime was dark and the night didn’t have much light. The sun was described as having the look of a pale moon and at night, the moon appeared to have a pale orange glow. This seems to fit the description in John’s vision. 

          Darkness was one of the plagues that God allowed to come over Egypt as well due to Pharaoh’s hardened heart. Exodus 10:21-23 ⁽²¹⁾Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward the sky so that darkness spreads over Egypt—darkness that can be felt.” ⁽²²⁾So Moses stretched out his hand toward the sky, and total darkness covered all Egypt for three days. ⁽²³⁾No one could see anyone else or move about for three days. Yet all the Israelites had light in the places where they lived. (NIV) Whenever there’s a darkness that covers the land, in the form of a judgment, that means that there is a separation between God and man due to sin. As with the plagues in Egypt, the Egyptians were the only ones who suffered from the days of darkness, while the Israelites had plenty of light where they lived. God is a constant light for those who serve Him.

 

 

An eagle shouted, “Woe, woe, woe,” to the world because of the judgments to come. This meant that even though the previous judgments were bad, the judgments that had already taken place seemed mild in comparison of what was to come. The word “woe” in the Bible never seemed to represent anything good when used to start a sentence. It was a sign of something negative to follow. Jesus used it when rebuking the religious leaders.

 

 

 

 

Matthew 23:13 "Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You shut the door of the kingdom of heaven in people's faces. You yourselves do not enter, nor will you let those enter who are trying to. (NIV)

 

 

Revelation 9:1-12 ⁽¹⁾The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. ⁽²⁾When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss. ⁽³⁾And out of the smoke locusts came down on the earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. ⁽⁴⁾They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads. ⁽⁵⁾They were not allowed to kill them but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes. ⁽⁶⁾During those days people will seek death but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them. ⁽⁷⁾The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. ⁽⁸⁾Their hair was like women’s hair, and their teeth were like lions’ teeth. ⁽⁹⁾They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle. ⁽¹⁰⁾They had tails with stingers, like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months. ⁽¹¹⁾They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon and in Greek is Apollyon (that is, Destroyer). ⁽¹²⁾The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.

 

 

 

The Fifth Trumpet

 

John saw the fifth angel blow his trumpet and a series of thing took place. Due to the length of the verses and events that took place during the sound of the fifth trumpet being blown, we will break down the verses, so that we can have a better understanding into the meaning.

 

A.) John saw a star that had fallen to earth and was given the key to the Abyss (bottomless pit). It seems that this fallen star represents Satan who was once Lucifer and called morning star. He had fallen from Heaven in the beginning and is ready to increase the havoc with extreme force that he has already caused on man because he knows that his time is short. Isaiah 14:12-15 ⁽¹²⁾How you have fallen from heaven, morning star, son of the dawn! You have been cast down to the earth, you who once laid low the nations! ⁽¹³⁾You said in your heart, “I will ascend to the heavens; I will raise my throne above the stars of God; I will sit enthroned on the mount of assembly, on the utmost heights of Mount Zaphon. Zaphon was the most sacred mountain of the Canaanites. ⁽¹⁴⁾I will ascend above the tops of the clouds; I will make myself like the Most High.” ⁽¹⁵⁾But you are brought down to the realm of the dead, to the depths of the pit. (NIV) Many things that have not taken place on the earth has only been a result of God holding the devil at bay. However, just as he released his full force on Job with the exception of taking his life, he wants to do the same thing with all mankind.

 

 

B.) When he opened the Abyss, smoke came out and darkened the sun and sky. Some may view this as a literal translation that the sun will be dark, which will cause the entire sky to not have light. Others may hold to the beliefs that this is symbolic of dark times that will be coming on the face of the earth. For the sake of understanding the text, both views seem to be accurate. Joel 2:31 The sun will be tuned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the LORD. (NIV)

 

The prophet Joel spoke of the sun being darkened prior to the return of Jesus and so did Jesus. Matthew 24:29 

"Immediately after the distress of those days "'the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.” (NIV) The sun being darkened in the Bible was a sign of judgment upon the land. Prior to Jesus’ return darkness will fall just as it did in Egypt when Pharaoh was being warned. Darkness can also mean the experience that will be present in the hearts and minds of man due to the events that will be taking place. The wicked will suffer as a result of their evil deeds and their hearts will be black as an unlit sky.

 

 

C.) John described locusts coming out of the smoke onto the earth and were given the power of scorpions. They were not allowed to harm vegetation, but only those individuals who did not have God’s seal on their foreheads. There are going to be plagues that take place on the earth where there will be no cure. God will not allow the people who are sealed to get these plagues. Only those who do not have the seal of God will receive them. We can learn from the Children of Israel when they were protected from the death angel due to having blood on their doorposts. Exodus 12:7

 

Then they are to take some of the blood and put it on the sides and tops of the doorframes of the houses where they eat the lambs. (NIV) God did not allow His people to suffer the judgments that were put on the Egyptians. The same thing will happen in the end. This does not mean that the saints will not have to endure persecution, but we can be comforted in knowing that the wrath of God does not doom us to the same destination as those who are not saved. A scorpion’s sting can cause symptoms from mild to severe. We will dig into why this may cause many to wish for death in the next verse.

 

 

 

D.) The scorpions were allowed to torture the people who were not sealed with the mark of God. The people would long to die, but God would not let them and this would be for a total of 5 months. The sting of a scorpion can produce many symptoms. Now, many symbols in Revelation is symbolic of something to come. However, this seems to represent a plague or event such as war that will cause many to wish that they were dead. Let’s break down the symptoms of a scorpion’s bite according to the Mayo’s

 

Clinic website at  http://www.mayoclinic.org.

 

Mild signs and symptoms might include:

 

·         Pain, which can be intense

 

·         Numbness and tingling in the area around the sting

 

·         Slight swelling in the area around the sting

 

More-severe signs and symptoms might include:

 

·         Muscle twitching or thrashing

 

·         Unusual head, neck and eye movements

 

·         Drooling

 

·         Sweating

 

·         Vomiting

 

·         High blood pressure (hypertension) or low blood pressure (hypotension)

 

 

 ·         Accelerated heart rate (tachycardia) or irregular heart beat (arrhythmia)

 

·         Restlessness or excitability or inconsolable crying (in children)

 

          These symptoms can make an individual wish for death if magnified to an extreme level. These plagues would indeed be without mercy for those who are unsealed with the mark of God. This is not to say that the scorpions that John saw in his vision will be the actual plague, but even if symbolic in nature, it would mean that there would be extreme suffering and physical pain. Locusts were one of the creatures that God allowed for eating during the times of Moses. John the Baptist had them as part of his diet along with wild honey. Therefore, they can be a blessing to those under God’s protection and a curse to those without.

 

            The prophet Joel spoke of locusts being a destroyer as an act of judgment. Joel 1:4-7 ⁽⁴⁾What the locust swarm has left the great locusts have eaten; what the great locusts have left the young locusts have eaten; what the young locusts have left other locusts have eaten. ⁽⁵⁾Wake up, you drunkards, and weep! Wail, all you drinkers of wine; wail because of the new wine, for it has been snatched from your lips. ⁽⁶⁾A nation has invaded my land, a mighty army without number; it has the teeth of a lion, the fangs of a lioness. ⁽⁷⁾It has laid waste my vines and ruined my fig trees. It has stripped off their bark and thrown it away, leaving their branches white. (NIV) Again, this plague could very well be that of locusts, or it could be a plague even brought on by that of war such as the after effects of nuclear weapons. Many try to debate what it will be, but one thing that should be made clear, this will be a plague that will have people begging for death.

 

 

 

E.) John described the locusts as looking like they were prepared for battle. They looked like gold crowns were on their heads and had the face of a human. They had women’s like hair and lion’s teeth. They wore armor made of iron and had wings that sounded like chariots. They had tails that stung like scorpions that tortured people for five months. What is John describing here? Some have described this as military gear and planes used in war. Due to the description of crowns and human faces, this could represent governmental leaders coming against each other.

 

          The woman’s hair and the lion’s teeth would be the appearance of peace and calm only to cover up the true intentions of calamity and war. The armor of iron with wings could be helicopters made of iron and the propellers that sounded like chariots. The tails that stung could be the bombs and missiles that come down causing harm to the people. Could this be a five month battle? Could this be people are in pain from the after affects for five months? The Bible tells that there will be wars in the last days. Zechariah 14:12 This is the plague with which the Lord will strike all the nations that fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh will rot while they are still standing on their feet, their eyes will rot in their sockets, and their tongues will rot in their mouths. (NIV) The description of this plague in Zechariah seems to describe nuclear war. One can only pray God’s mercy on those who have been rebellious and will suffer this judgment.

 

F.) Their king is the angel that unlocked the bottomless pit. His name is Abaddon in Hebrew and Apollyon in Greek, which means the Destroyer. The devil is called the destroyer of all mankind. 1 Peter 5:8 Be alert and of sober mind. Your enemy the devil prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. (NIV)

 

G.) The first woe (harsh judgment) was complete, but two more woes (harsh judgments) were to come.

 

 

 We will continue our study in the book of Revelation on Tomorrow. These lessons, "Revelation: Removing the Prophetic Veil Bible Lessons 1-11," are available on Amazon.com.