The Trumpets of Judgement
Notes
Transcript
Handout
Rev. 8:1.
1 When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
The seventh seal is broken. The scroll is now open.
Zechariah 2.
13 Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.
The power of silence in life.
Heaven is silent - the four living creatures are silent, the angels are silent, the saints are silent. All of heaven is silent before Yaweh. The seals are broken; the scroll is open. Yaweh and the Lamb are ready for action.
Habakkuk 2:19-20.
19 Woe to him who says to a wooden thing, Awake;
to a silent stone, Arise!
Can this teach?
Behold, it is overlaid with gold and silver,
and there is no breath at all in it.
20 But the Lord is in his holy temple;
let all the earth keep silence before him.”
Do we take time to be silent before God, listening to what he has to say?
Psalm 62.
To the choirmaster: according to Jeduthun. A Psalm of David.
1 For God alone my soul waits in silence;
from him comes my salvation.
2 He alone is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be greatly shaken.
3 How long will all of you attack a man
to batter him,
like a leaning wall, a tottering fence?
4 They only plan to thrust him down from his high position.
They take pleasure in falsehood.
They bless with their mouths,
but inwardly they curse. Selah
5 For God alone, O my soul, wait in silence,
for my hope is from him.
6 He only is my rock and my salvation,
my fortress; I shall not be shaken.
7 On God rests my salvation and my glory;
my mighty rock, my refuge is God.
8 Trust in him at all times, O people;
pour out your heart before him;
God is a refuge for us. Selah
9 Those of low estate are but a breath;
those of high estate are a delusion;
in the balances they go up;
they are together lighter than a breath.
10 Put no trust in extortion;
set no vain hopes on robbery;
if riches increase, set not your heart on them.
11 Once God has spoken;
twice have I heard this:
that power belongs to God,
12 and that to you, O Lord, belongs steadfast love.
For you will render to a man
according to his work.
We need to come to a point of silence before the Throne of Grace, knowing that Yahweh will give us his steadfast love through the work of Jesus. Our work is to believe in Jesus, whom Yaweh has sent John 6:25-40.
Revelation 8:2.
2 Then I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.
Who are these seven angels?
They are the seven angels who will blow their trumpets of judgement.
To first century Christians, they are the seven archangels of Jewish apocalyptic writings, Suru’el, Raphael, Raguel, Micheal, Saraqa’el, and Gabriel. (Tobit 12:15; 1 Enoch 20:1-7).
15 I am Raphael, one of the seven holy angels, which present the prayers of the saints, and go in before the glory of the Holy One.
The Old Testament Pseudepigrapha, Volume 1 (Chapter 20)
20 1 And these are names of the holy angels who watch: 2 Suruʾel, one of the holy angels—for (he is) of eternity and of trembling. 3 Raphael, one of the holy angels, for (he is) of the spirits of man. 4 Raguel, one of the holy angels who take vengeance for the world and for the luminaries. 5 Michael, one of the holy angels, for (he is) obedient in his benevolence over the people and the nations. 6 Saraqaʾel, one of the holy angels who are (set) over the spirits of mankind who sin in the spirit. 7 Gabriel, one of the holy angels who oversee the garden of Eden, and the serpents, and the cherubim.
They could also be the seven angels of the seven churches (Revelation 2-3).
Without a doubt, they are the seven angels who will bring the trumpet judgments (Revelation 8:6).
Revelation 8:3-4.
3 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, 4 and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.
Psalm 141.
A Psalm of David.
1 O Lord, I call upon you; hasten to me!
Give ear to my voice when I call to you!
2 Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,
and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!
3 Set a guard, O Lord, over my mouth;
keep watch over the door of my lips!
4 Do not let my heart incline to any evil,
to busy myself with wicked deeds
in company with men who work iniquity,
and let me not eat of their delicacies!
5 Let a righteous man strike me—it is a kindness;
let him rebuke me—it is oil for my head;
let my head not refuse it.
Yet my prayer is continually against their evil deeds.
6 When their judges are thrown over the cliff,
then they shall hear my words, for they are pleasant.
7 As when one plows and breaks up the earth,
so shall our bones be scattered at the mouth of Sheol.
8 But my eyes are toward you, O God, my Lord;
in you I seek refuge; leave me not defenseless!
9 Keep me from the trap that they have laid for me
and from the snares of evildoers!
10 Let the wicked fall into their own nets,
while I pass by safely.
Leviticus 2:1-2.
1 “When anyone brings a grain offering as an offering to the Lord, his offering shall be of fine flour. He shall pour oil on it and put frankincense on it 2 and bring it to Aaron’s sons the priests. And he shall take from it a handful of the fine flour and oil, with all of its frankincense, and the priest shall burn this as its memorial portion on the altar, a food offering with a pleasing aroma to the Lord. 3 But the rest of the grain offering shall be for Aaron and his sons; it is a most holy part of the Lord’s food offerings.
Our prayers, the prayers of the saints, are rising as a pleasing aroma before Yahweh.
God wants us to talk to him (to lament ) until we are silent before his majesty, before his righteous judgments. Why? So we can live in a silent peace and trust.
Revelation 8:5.
5 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.
Our prayers, as they rise as a pleasing aroma before Yaweh, affect what transpires here on earth.
Revelation (1) The First Four Trumpets (8:2–13)
Prayer is the God-ordained conduit through which he has determined to channel his sovereign power and response to the concerns of the saints. This effectiveness of prayer becomes apparent in the judgment that follows.
Do you pray?
If no, then begin to talk to your Father in heaven.
If yes, then how often to do you pray?
What is the content of your prayers?
Do your prayers contain lament?
Lament is the tool that is used to process our emotions and life’s injustices.
It is a four-step process:
We turn to God.
We pour out our heart to God.
We plead our request to God.
We trust and praise him for who he is.
Lament is the path to silence before his majesty, before his righteous judgments. May we live in a silent peace and trust of his righteous judgement.
Revelation 8:6-7
6 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.
Exodus 9:23.
23 Then Moses stretched out his staff toward heaven, and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and fire ran down to the earth. And the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt.
May we live in a silent peace and trust of Yahweh’s righteous judgement.
Revelation 8:8-9.
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.
May we live in a silent peace and trust of Yahweh’s righteous judgement.
Revelation 8:10-11.
10 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. 11 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.
Exodus 7:20-21.
20 Moses and Aaron did as the Lord commanded. In the sight of Pharaoh and in the sight of his servants he lifted up the staff and struck the water in the Nile, and all the water in the Nile turned into blood. 21 And the fish in the Nile died, and the Nile stank, so that the Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile. There was blood throughout all the land of Egypt.
May we live in a silent peace and trust of Yahweh’s righteous judgement.
Revelation 8:12.
12 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.
Exodus 10:21-23.
21 Then the Lord said to Moses, “Stretch out your hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness to be felt.” 22 So Moses stretched out his hand toward heaven, and there was pitch darkness in all the land of Egypt three days. 23 They did not see one another, nor did anyone rise from his place for three days, but all the people of Israel had light where they lived.
Yahweh’s judgments are true and right. He is going to judge the whole world as he judged Egypt. Today is the day of salvation. Today is the day to believe in Jesus who Yahweh has sent. Today is the day to pour out our hearts in lament, so that we can have peace and trust in his righteous judgments.
May we live in a silent peace and trust of Yahweh’s righteous judgement.