He opened the seventh seal
It is the
Lamb
who continues opening the seals
(Rev. 6:1).
Now that the 144,000 of
Chapter 7
have been sealed, the final seal is opened.
The seventh seal contains the seven trumpets and the seventh trumpet
contains the seven bowls.
See the lesson where we discussed the
Literary Structure
of the book.
silence in heaven
The silence is associated with the offering of incense and reflects the
anticipation of the grim reality of the judgments about to pour forth. It
is the
calm before the storm.
8:2 - seven angels
seven angels who stand before God
These are specific angels who "stand in God's presence." Gabriel told Zecharias that he "stands in the presence of God" (Luke 1:19). Some see these as angels as those which are mentioned in the pseudepigraphal book
of
Enoch
or the apocryphal book of
Tobit,
but inspired Scripture only identifies three mighty angels by name:
Lucifer
(Isa. 14:12),
Gabriel
(Dan. 8:16;
Dan. 9:21;
Luke 1:19),
and Michael
(Dan. 10:13;
12:1;
Jude 9;
Rev. 12:7).
to them were given seven trumpets
The judgments, as always, are subject to divine permission. The judgments
grow in severity as they progress. At the second trumpet,
one-third
of the seas
are affected. At the second bowl, all the seas are affected.
The first four
trumpet judgments affect the
natural systems.
The last three target
men .
8:3 - prayers as incense
another angel
Because of the intercessory service of the angel,
some see him as Jesus Christ. This seems unlikely since He is
presently holding the scroll and has just opened the seventh seal.
offer it with the prayers of the saints
Previously, the twenty-four elders held "golden bowls of incense, which are the prayers of the saints" (Rev. 5:8).
The prayers are intercessory and include petitions for justice
(Rev. 6:10).
They are offered on the altar of incense before the throne in heaven.
8:4 - prayers ascend to God
prayers of the saints ascended
The psalm writer recognized that the prayers of the saints were like
incense before God
(Ps. 141:2).
Prayer comes "up to His holy dwelling place to heaven" (2Chr. 30:27).
8:5 - fire from the altar
threw it to the earth
The fire speaks of judgment, just as when the man in Ezekiel's vision of
the marked servants scattered coals over Jerusalem
(Eze. 10:2).
This act prefigures the angels with the seven bowls of wrath. Here, the
judgments are connected to the petitions of the saints. The resulting
noises and flashing indicate impending judgment.
8:6 - prepared to sound
sounding trumpets
Sounding a trumpet denotes:
1)
An alarm.
2)
A fanfare to announce royalty.
3)
A summons to battle.
The first or third purposes are probably in view here.
8:7 - first trumpet
hail and fire mingled with blood
The description here is to be understood
literally,
like the plagues of Egypt
(Ex. 9:22-23).
Joel predicted "wonders in the heavens and in the earth: blood and fire and pillars of smoke."
thrown to the earth
The earth dwellers worship the
creature
rather than the
Creator
so God begins to judge their idol.
The 144,000 were sealed for protection from these natural judgments
(Rev. 7:1-3).
Fruit and grain production is destroyed intensifying the famine conditions
from the third seal
(Rev. 6:5).
8:8 - second trumpet
something like a great mountain
Not a mountain, but
something like
one. Possibly a meteor or other astronomical body burning on entry to the
earth's atmosphere. Or something entirely supernatural.
a third of the sea became blood
As in the plagues of Egypt, the water becomes blood
(Ex. 7:19;
Ps. 78:44).
In the judgment of the second bowl, all the sea will become blood "as a dead man" (Rev. 16:3).
This will cause a tremendous disruption to the food chain supporting life
on earth.
living creatures in the sea died
Literally, one-third of
the creatures in the sea, the ones having life
are destroyed. The mass of dead creatures will further pollute the ocean,
similarly to red tide.
a third of the ships were destroyed
The impact will generate huge tsunamis (tidal waves) which will destroy
one-third of the world's ships.
Isaiah prophesied that ships would be among the prideful things of man that
were to be taken down by God
(Isa. 2:16).
a great star... burning like a torch
"Star" is
aste'r
-- the same root as the "stars of heaven" which fell to earth in the opening of the sixth seal
(Rev. 6:13). "Torch" is
lampa's
which was used in ancient times to describe meteors and comets.
springs of waters
"Springs" is
pega's
which is elsewhere translated as
fountain
or
well .
The emphasis is on water as a life-giving source.
God is systematically crippling the natural systems upon which life depends
to cause men to recognized their dependence upon Him.
the name of the star is Wormwood
"Wormwood" is
a'psinthos,
derived from
absinthe,
a bitter, dark green oil made from strong-smelling plants.
God describes idolatry as "a root bearing bitterness of wormwood" (Deu. 29:17-18)
so here he gives the earth dwellers
wormwood
to drink!
Many men die from poisoning, but many more will die due to the loss of
water supplies.
8:12 - fourth trumpet
a third of the sun... moon... stars were struck
Isaiah prophesied of the darkening of the stars, sun, and moon during the day
of the Lord
(Isa. 13:9-10).
Joel also foresaw the darkening of these bodies in association with the
advance of God's army
(Joel 2:10-11).
During the plagues of Egypt, God brought complete darkness during the day
(Ex. 10:21-23).
a third of the day did not shine
Here, the phrase implies that the light from the stars, sun, and moon will
be completely unavailable for one third of the
time.
If so, we have no real clue how this might happen (just like the sea
becoming blood).
8:13 - woe, woe, woe
I heard an angel
The majority text and critical text have "eagle" rather than angel.
One of the "living creatures" was said to resemble "a flying eagle" (Rev. 4:7).
Later, it is an
angel
(all texts)
which files through the midst of heaven having the everlasting gospel to
preach
(Rev. 14:6).
woe, woe, woe
The remaining three trumpet judgments are especially severe and target
men
rather than natural systems.
5)
Release of demonic locusts
(Rev. 9:1).
6)
Release of demonic army
(Rev. 9:13-21).
7)
Seven bowls of God's wrath, the completion of all judgments.
to the inhabitants of the earth
Katoikou'ntas, "the ones presently dwelling on the earth." These are the
earth dwellers
who steadfastly refuse God's mercy during the "hour of trial which shall come upon the whole world to test those who dwell on the earth" (Rev. 3:10).
For additional information on this topic, see the commentary.