Well, we are up to the fifth seal. No more horsemen of the apocolypse.
Rev 6:9; When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained;
Rev 6:10; and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"
Rev 6:11; And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also.
It would seem these are all the martyrs of the faith since the beginning. I believe those mentioned in Rev 20 are the ones "until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also." I believe those beheaded during the tribulation will be the last martyrs.
Rev 20:4; Then I saw thrones, and they sat on them, and judgment was given to them. And I saw the souls of those who had been beheaded because of their testimony of Jesus and because of the word of God, and those who had not worshiped the beast or his image, and had not received the mark on their forehead and on their hand; and they came to life and reigned with Christ for a thousand years.
Rev 6:12; I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood;
Rev 6:13; and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind.
Rev 6:14; The sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
Rev 6:15; Then the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains;
Rev 6:16; and they *said to the mountains and to the rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb;
Rev 6:17; for the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?"
Up here in Washington state a rather famous mountain blew it's top on May 18th, 1980. There was dust and ash in the air for hundreds of miles.
For people near Mount St. Helens the earth shook. The sky was black hundreds of miles away. For many who could see through the dust, the moon
appeared blood red. A popular local legend says many churches in this state were full of people (it was a Thursday) who expected to see Jesus appear
at any moment.
I've never been near a fig tree during a great wind, but the thought of stars falling to the earth could mean several things.
Possibly meteors falling to the earth. Could anything be much more frightening than every mountain and island on the entire earth being moved?
It seems that many people will come to realize the power of God on that day. There will be no place to hide from God. (there isn't now, but
it will be evident on that day).
We have to skip over Rev chapter 7. It doesn't have much to do with the seals. It's about the 144,000 and the great multitude before the throne.
Chapter 8 gets back to the seventh seal.
Rev 8:1; When the Lamb broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
Rev 8:2; And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and seven trumpets were given to them.
Rev 8:3; Another angel came and stood at the altar, holding a golden censer; and much incense was given to him, so that he might add it to the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar which was before the throne.
Rev 8:4; And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, went up before God out of the angel's hand.
Rev 8:5; Then the angel took the censer and filled it with the fire of the altar, and threw it to the earth; and there followed peals of thunder and sounds and flashes of lightning and an earthquake.
Part of the seventh seal is the 7 angels each being given a trumpet. The seven trumpet judgments are coming up next since this is the last seal judgment.
The golden censor which is "filled with the fire from the altar" may have multiple meanings. The most obvious would be the fire on the old testament altar
for sacrifices. (Exod 29:18; Exod 29:25; Exod 30:20; Lev 1:7-9; etc... (actually mentioned in 30 verses in the old testament). This is thrown to earth and then there
is thunder, lightning and an earthquake. The extent of this particular earthquake is not mentioned.
Next the seven trumpet judgments.
The first trumpet.
Rev 8:6; And the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound them.
Rev 8:7; The first sounded, and there came hail and fire, mixed with blood, and they were thrown to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.
There have been a lot of natural disasters over the centuries, but nothing on this scale. A third of the earth is burned up! Wow!
A third of the trees and a third of the grass. Hail mixed with blood and fire. This could be symbolic or it is often taken literally.
If it is symbolic, what could it be that burns up a third of the earth?
Rev 8:8; 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,
Rev 8:9; and a third of the creatures which were in the sea and had life, died; and a third of the ships were destroyed.
Something like a great mountain? burning with fire? thrown into the sea? Possibly a large meteor? Whatever it is, it causes a third of the sea to become blood. A third of all the creatures in the sea die. A third of all the ships are destroyed.
This is another one of those things that has never happened since recorded history of mankind.
The third trumpet
Rev 8:10; 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 waters.
Rev 8:11; The name of the star is called Wormwood; and a third of the waters became wormwood, and many men died from the waters, because they were made bitter.
It's interesting that this bitter (poison?) only affects fresh water sources like rivers and springs. Again, one-third of them.
But we can't live on sea-water in the oceans (you would eventually die of dehydration). Again this is something failing from the sky.
A nuclear weapon? A meteorite? Whatever it is, it causes "many men" to die.
Rev 8:12; The fourth angel sounded, and a third of the sun and a third of the moon and a third of the stars were struck, so that a third of them would be darkened and the day would not shine for a third of it, and the night in the same way.
Rev 8:13; Then I looked, and I heard an eagle flying in midheaven, saying with a loud voice, "Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, because of the remaining blasts of the trumpet of the three angels who are about to sound!"
The fourth trumpet talks about the sun and moon and stars. The sun is darkened for a third of the day, and the moon and stars are darkened for a third of the night.
This is taken many different ways, but I personally assume a day will still last 24 hours, it will simply be pitch dark part of that time.
This is often taken in conjunction with Mark 13:20;
Mar 13:19; "For those days will be a time of tribulation such as has not occurred since the beginning of the creation which God created until now, and never will.
Mar 13:20; "Unless the Lord had shortened those days, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect, whom He chose, He shortened the days.
Are the days themselves shorter, or is the daylight simply shorter? I guess we will find out when the time comes. Again, this is something that
has never happened before since the history of mankind. (Although the opposite happened in Joshua)
Josh 10:13; So the sun stood still, and the moon stopped, Until the nation avenged themselves of their enemies. Is it not written in the book of Jashar? And the sun stopped in the middle of the sky and did not hasten to go down for about a whole day.
After the fourth trumpet we are warned of the remaining three trumpets which are also called the three woes. What is a woe?
woe
wō/
nounhumorous
noun: woe; plural noun: woes
great sorrow or distress.
"they had a complicated tale of woe"
synonyms: misery, sorrow, distress, wretchedness, sadness, unhappiness, heartache, heartbreak, despondency, despair, depression, regret, gloom, melancholy; More
adversity, misfortune, disaster, suffering, hardship;
literarydolor
"a tale of woe"
antonyms: joy, happiness
things that cause sorrow or distress; troubles.
"to add to his woes, customers have been spending less"
synonyms: trouble, difficulty, problem, trial, tribulation, misfortune, setback, reverse
"financial woes"
It seems that a woe isn't a fun situation.
The first woe. (the 5th trumpet)
Rev 9:1; Then the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star from heaven which had fallen to the earth; and the key of the bottomless pit was given to him.
Rev 9:2; He opened the bottomless pit, and smoke went up out of the pit, like the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke of the pit.
Rev 9:3; Then out of the smoke came locusts upon the earth, and power was given them, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
Rev 9:4; They were told not to hurt the grass of the earth, nor any green thing, nor any tree, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
Rev 9:5; And they were not permitted to kill anyone, but to torment for five months; and their torment was like the torment of a scorpion when it stings a man.
Rev 9:6; And in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them.
Rev 9:7; The appearance of the locusts was like horses prepared for battle; and on their heads appeared to be crowns like gold, and their faces were like the faces of men.
Rev 9:8; They had hair like the hair of women, and their teeth were like the teeth of lions.
Rev 9:9; They had breastplates like breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was like the sound of chariots, of many horses rushing to battle.
Rev 9:10; They have tails like scorpions, and stings; and in their tails is their power to hurt men for five months.
Rev 9:11; They have as king over them, the angel of the abyss; his name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in the Greek he has the name Apollyon.
Rev 9:12; The first woe is past; behold, two woes are still coming after these things.
This has been one of the most studied passages of scripture. Like other parts of Revelation, it is often taken several different ways.
Is this symbolic language? Are these mechanical/robotic drones of some sort? Are is this literal language and there will actually be flying scorpions?
Whatever these things are, they have the power to "sting" people who don't have the "seal of God" on their foreheads. This sting torments people
for five months. This isn't just those who have taken the mark of the beast, this is anyone who doesn't have the mark of God. It also seems these
do not harm any plant life.
"in those days men will seek death and will not find it; they will long to die, and death flees from them."
How bad will things be for men to seek death? Worse, they will not be able to find it.
The sixth trumpet (second woe)
Rev 9:13; Then the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
Rev 9:14; one saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, "Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates."
Rev 9:15; And the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour and day and month and year, were released, so that they would kill a third of mankind.
Rev 9:16; The number of the armies of the horsemen was two hundred million; I heard the number of them.
Rev 9:17; And this is how I saw in the vision the horses and those who sat on them: the riders had breastplates the color of fire and of hyacinth and of brimstone; and the heads of the horses are like the heads of lions; and out of their mouths proceed fire and smoke and brimstone.
Rev 9:18; A third of mankind was killed by these three plagues, by the fire and the smoke and the brimstone which proceeded out of their mouths.
Rev 9:19; For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails are like serpents and have heads, and with them they do harm.
Rev 9:20; The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands, so as not to worship demons, and the idols of gold and of silver and of brass and of stone and of wood, which can neither see nor hear nor walk;
Rev 9:21; and they did not repent of their murders nor of their sorceries nor of their immorality nor of their thefts.
It seems there are four angels.. bound... "at the river Euphrates. The Euphrates river still exists today and is prominent in modern day Iraq, Syria and Turkey.
These four angels kill a third of mankind.
Have you noticed a theme here? Everytime a new disaster happens, it kills a third of mankind. It seems that we are down to two/thirds, of two/thirds, of two/thirds.
The population of the earth will shrink rapidly at this time.
There is also an army of 200 million horsemen. Depending on whether you tend to take these verses symbolically or literally this could be a real army of
jeeps and tanks, or it could actually be supernatural horsemen roaming around the earth. 250 million is a lot. If it is a "real" earthly army, only a couple
of countries could field an army this size. China and India. The US could not do it, neither could Russia.
The thing many people miss about this army, it isn't Satan's army or the army of the beast, in fact this army is killing those "who did not repent" of worshiping
demons and idols. If anything, it's God's army.
We have been talking about the seven seals and seven trumpets, so I will briefly mention the "seven peals of thunder". It seems this
is between the sixth and seventh trumpet.
Rev 10:3; and he cried out with a loud voice, as when a lion roars; and when he had cried out, the seven peals of thunder uttered their voices.
Rev 10:4; When the seven peals of thunder had spoken, I was about to write; and I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Seal up the things which the seven peals of thunder have spoken and do not write them."
Whatever happens during the seven peals of thunder, we don't know. John was forbidden to write about it.
Rev 10:7; but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as He preached to His servants the prophets.
We still have the seventh trumpet (third woe) coming up.
Also... for whatever reason, (maybe chronologically?) the two witnesses are talked about between the sixth and seventh trumpets as well. ( Rev 11:1-14; )
The two witnesses, I was tempted to leave this out because it's easy to get side-tracked, but it seems they are part of the second woe.
Rev 11:1; Then there was given me a measuring rod like a staff; and someone said, "Get up and measure the temple of God and the altar, and those who worship in it.
Rev 11:2; "Leave out the court which is outside the temple and do not measure it, for it has been given to the nations; and they will tread under foot the holy city for forty-two months.
Rev 11:3; "And I will grant authority to my two witnesses, and they will prophesy for twelve hundred and sixty days, clothed in sackcloth."
Rev 11:4; These are the two olive trees and the two lampstands that stand before the Lord of the earth.
Rev 11:5; And if anyone wants to harm them, fire flows out of their mouth and devours their enemies; so if anyone wants to harm them, he must be killed in this way.
Rev 11:6; These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.
Rev 11:7; When they have finished their testimony, the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them, and overcome them and kill them.
Rev 11:8; And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which mystically is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.
Rev 11:9; Those from the peoples and tribes and tongues and nations will look at their dead bodies for three and a half days, and will not permit their dead bodies to be laid in a tomb.
Rev 11:10; And those who dwell on the earth will rejoice over them and celebrate; and they will send gifts to one another, because these two prophets tormented those who dwell on the earth.
Rev 11:11; But after the three and a half days, the breath of life from God came into them, and they stood on their feet; and great fear fell upon those who were watching them.
Rev 11:12; And they heard a loud voice from heaven saying to them, "Come up here." Then they went up into heaven in the cloud, and their enemies watched them.
Rev 11:13; And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city fell; seven thousand people were killed in the earthquake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God of heaven.
Rev 11:14; The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly
Therer has been a lot of speculation about who these two are. It has been debated here on TJ several times.
Maybe Moses, maybe Elisha, or maybe someone else. Two favorites are Enoch and Elijah because they never "died" a natural death like everyone else.
Some believe they have already came and went, but this cannot be so for several reasons.
If anyone else besides Jesus was dead for three days, and then came to life, everyone would have heard about it.
These two witnesses "prophesy" for 42 months, or 1,260 days or 3 1/2 years however you look at it. We would have heard about this also if it happened.
Some symbolists says the two witnesses are the Holy Spirit and the Bible... but if so, they only have power for 3 1/2 years, and then they die.
Also if anyone tries to kill them or even harm them, fire comes out of their mouths and kills this person. It also says they will be clothed in sackcloth.
A common practice of prophets of the old testament.
"These have the power to shut up the sky, so that rain will not fall during the days of their prophesying; and they have power over the waters to turn them into blood, and to strike the earth with every plague, as often as they desire.
The city where they are testifying is "mystically" called Sodom and Gomorrah. But it is where the Lord was crucified. That would make this city Jerusalem.
It seems they have the powers of the plagues of Moses (when he was opposing Pharaoh in Egypt) and also stop the rain like Elijah.
After the two witnesses are "resurrected". There is a great earthquake in the city, causing a tenth of it to fall. Seven thousand people will be killed.
We would have also heard if this ever happened in Jerusalem. But it hasn't happened yet.
That's the end of the second woe.
The seventh trumpet, third woe. Also known as "the culmination of the age".
Rev 11:15; Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever."
Rev 11:16; And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God,
Rev 11:17; saying, "We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who are and who were, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.
Rev 11:18; "And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth."
Rev 11:19; And the temple of God which is in heaven was opened; and the ark of His covenant appeared in His temple, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm.
The kingdom of the earth is finally completely taken over by Jesus/God. Jesus already has authority over the earth now, but the "prince of the powers of the air" still lurks around. Jesus isn't exactly reigning with a rod of iron yet. ( Psa 2:9; Rev 2:27; Rev 12:5; and Rev 19:15; ) there are still plenty of non-believers, dissenters, and followers
of other religions running around. There is still pain, sorrow and death. No one has had to take the mark of the beast yet. But on "that" day, every knee will bow, and every tongue will confess that Jesus is Lord. (Even if they don't want to during this life).
The final judgment happens here. For the bond-servants and saints, but also the unsaved, those who to destroy the earth.
I'm going to skip over chapters 12, 13, and 14 for now. This is about the 144,000, the harlot on the beast, the greater beast and the lesser beast. We will likely get
back to those eventually.
But coming up next are the seven angels with the seven plagues. Also know as the seven bowl judgments.
Rev 15:1; Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished.
Rev 15:2; And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God.
Rev 15:3; And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, "Great and marvelous are Your works, O Lord God, the Almighty; Righteous and true are Your ways, King of the nations!
Rev 15:4; "Who will not fear, O Lord, and glorify Your name? For You alone are holy; For ALL THE NATIONS WILL COME AND WORSHIP BEFORE YOU, FOR YOUR RIGHTEOUS ACTS HAVE BEEN REVEALED."
Rev 15:5; After these things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened,
Rev 15:6; and the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in linen, clean and bright, and girded around their chests with golden sashes.
Rev 15:7; Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.
Rev 15:8; And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power; and no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
The seven bowl judgments are the last ones. "because in them the wrath of God is finished".
The first bowl.
Rev 16:1; Then I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, "Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God."
Rev 16:2; So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth; and it became a loathsome and malignant sore on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.
Loathsome, painful, malignant sores on everyone who takes the mark of the beast and worships his image. It doesn't get much plainer than that.
I'm not exactly sure this could be symbolized or spiritualized.
Up until now, most of the judgment have only affected a "third" of things like the fish in the sea for example. But now things get a little more serious.
Rev 16:3; The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man; and every living thing in the sea died.
Everything in the sea dies at this point. No more sushi and lobster. The sea itself becomes red like blood.
The third bowl
Rev 16:4; Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters; and they became blood.
Rev 16:5; And I heard the angel of the waters saying, "Righteous are You, who are and who were, O Holy One, because You judged these things;
Again, it's not just a "third" of the river and springs ( like Rev 8:10; ). Now it's all the rivers and springs. The eliminates most of the fresh water
on the earth. A lot of people think God forgives because He is righteous... but they have the wrong idea about what righteousness is.
In the old testament, the law said.. an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth. Someone had to die for sin. In the new testament someone still
has to die for sin. The good news is... it doesn't have to be us. Jesus died for your sins. Because of Jesus you don't get what you "deserve".
Now these people who have continued to reject Jesus are getting what they rightfully deserve. Some of these people have killed Christians
for their beliefs. Justice comes here.
Rev 16:6; for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. They deserve it."
According to a few articles on the internet, less than one percent of all the water on the earth is fresh spring and river water.
About 2 percent is frozen in ice at the north and south poles. The other 97 percent is all undrinkable salt water. But the sea has already
been turned to blood by this time ( Rev 16:3; )
The fourth bowl.
Rev 16:8; The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire.
Rev 16:9; Men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.
I don't think this just a bad sun-burn. You would need some SPF 10,000 for this sun-burn. You would think with all of these obvious things that are mentioned
in the Bible, people would repent. But no, they just blaspheme God. Even though they know He is the one who has the power over these plagues.
The fifth bowl
Rev 16:10; Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain,
Rev 16:11; and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.
The sixth bowl.
Rev 16:12; The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.
Rev 16:13; And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs;
Rev 16:14; for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty.
Rev 16:15; ("Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.")
Rev 16:16; And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.
One of the mightiest rivers in the world will dry up. There is actually something about this in the news this week. Some countries want
to start damming the river for hydro-power. Other's want to start using using it to irrigate previously un-irrigated farm land.
Who are these kings of the east? Why do they need to cross the Euphrates? It seems these armies will be gathered together at Armageddon. ( Har-Magedon ).
This will be the bloodiest war of all time. There is more said about it later.
It seems these three frog-demon spirits will have power to perform "signs" (possibly miracles) and deceive "the kings of the whole world" (presidents, chancellors,
czars, etc... ) to gather them together "for the war". What happens at this war? It tells us a little later.
Will these kings be willing to follow the beast? Revelation tells us the answer to that also.
The seventh bowl
Rev 16:17; Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, "It is done."
Rev 16:18; And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty.
Rev 16:19; The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.
Rev 16:20; And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Rev 16:21; And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, *came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague *was extremely severe.
This is another hotly disputed area of scripture.
Lightning, thunder and a great earthquake.. in fact the greatest earthquake of all time.
The greatest earthquake of modern times was 1960 in Validivia Chile. It' was estimated to be about a 9.5 scale earthquake.
It's unknown exactly how many people were killed by this, but it left 2 million people homeless, and tsumani's from this went as far as Asia,
even people in the Philippines were killed by this. But even that won't be as large as this earthquake.
It seems the great city could be several. Some say Rome, some say Jerusalem, other's say somewhere in the US, possibly Washington DC or New York.
The last "great city" mentioned in the context here was Jerusalem, but that was two chapters ago. It also mentions Babylon the great here.
Babylon is no longer a nation, but Babylon was a kingdom in ancient Mesopotamia (Modern day Iraq). Much of the terrorism from ISIS originates here.
Could it literally be the ancient nation of Babylon? Babylon was already long gone when Jesus was on the earth.
Every island disappears... every mountain disappears. This has never happened before, along with many of the other things that have been mentioned in these
passages. Huge hailstones, 100 pounds each. No record of this in history either. In South Dakota in the US in 2010, there were hailstones that weighed
almost 2 lbs. That is considered pretty large, but it is a long way from 100 pounds!
Well, we've covered the seven seals, the seven trumpets, the seven peals, and the seven bowls.
Not to mention the two witnesses and the three woes.
How about the seven churches of Asia? John writes an intro of sorts to these churches.
Rev 1:4; John to the seven churches that are in Asia: Grace to you and peace, from Him who is and who was and who is to come, and from the seven Spirits who are before His throne,
Rev 1:5; and from Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead, and the ruler of the kings of the earth. To Him who loves us and released us from our sins by His blood—
Rev 1:6; and He has made us to be a kingdom, priests to His God and Father—to Him be the glory and the dominion forever and ever. Amen.
Rev 1:7; BEHOLD, HE IS COMING WITH THE CLOUDS, and every eye will see Him, even those who pierced Him; and all the tribes of the earth will mourn over Him. So it is to be. Amen.
Rev 1:8; "I am the Alpha and the Omega," says the Lord God, "who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty."
As we will see, most of these churches were in modern day Turkey. From "Him who is... and who was... and who is to come." This is of course Jesus.
We see another seven here, who are the seven spirits? There are usually several interpretations of this.
1. Some believe "seven" is the number of perfection, the number of God. They take this to mean it's the "perfect" Spirit or simply a reference to the Holy Spirit.
2. Some believe it is the seven angels. Who possibly blow the seven trumpets and pour out the seven bowls.
3. Yet others believe this is a reference to Isaiah 11.
Isa 11:2; The Spirit of the LORD will rest on Him, The spirit of wisdom and understanding, The spirit of counsel and strength, The spirit of knowledge and the fear of the LORD.
We then see sort of a list of who Jesus is.... the faithful witness, the firstborn of the dead... the ruler of the kings of the earth.
..and of course.. he released us from ours sins by His blood.
Then we see a smaller list of who we are ( to be ). He made us to be a kingdom. Jesus was what you would call a "kingdom teacher".
Almost all of His parables and teachings make reference to a kingdom. The other thing He has made us to be.. "priests" to His God and Father.
This verse is taken along with 1 Peter 2:9; ...
1 Pet 2:9; But you are A CHOSEN RACE, A royal PRIESTHOOD, A HOLY NATION, A PEOPLE FOR God's OWN POSSESSION, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light;
... to support something called the "priesthood of believers". This is a major doctrine of the protestant church. It's one of the things that separates
protestants from Roman Catholics and other eastern religions. As well as some cult religions like Mormonism.
We are all priests. There is no longer an office of priesthood needed. The main purpose of priests in the old testament was to perform sacrifices.
The ultimate sacrifice has been made, there is no need for anymore sacrifices. So there is no need for priests anymore.
Verse 7 is usually taken as a reference to the second coming. This is similar language to Matt 24:30; Matt 26:64; Mark 13:26; and 1 Thes 4:17;
It says here... "every" eye will see Him. Even those who pierced Him. When Jesus comes back, the whole world will see Him, the whole world will know.
Finally we see Jesus calling Himself the Alpha and Omega, the first and last so to speak. There is another reference about this we will see again shortly.
There are some things here we don't have to guess about. Jesus tells us exactly what they are.
Rev 1:20; "As for the mystery of the seven stars which you saw in My right hand, and the seven golden lampstands: the seven stars are the angels of the seven churches, and the seven lampstands are the seven churches.
