The Days of the Seventh Trumpet - Revelation 11:15-19
INTRODUCTION:
Last Sunday my message ended with verse 14 of Revelation 11 which says, “The second woe is past; behold, the third woe is coming quickly.” (Revelation 11:14, NASB95)[1] John informed us that the horrible days of the second woe or the sixth trumpet judgment were over, but the third woe or seventh trumpet judgment is coming quickly, and it will be the worst yet for those who dwell on the earth. The mighty angel in chapter 10 spoke of the days of the seventh trumpet, not a one-time event, but prolonged waves of judgment on those who dwell on the earth, the ungodly, rebellious sinners who throng to the Antichrist. The seventh trumpet not only announces the destructive judgment on unbelievers, but also the coronation of the King of kings, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Without waiting any longer, let’s pray and get into God’s Word this morning and the long anticipated seventh trumpet judgment.
--LET’S PRAY--
SCRIPTURE:
Turn in your Bibles again this morning to Revelation 11, our third Sunday in this chapter, but this morning we will finish it up. This morning we will be looking at verses 15-19, please stand if you are able in honor of the reading of God’s precious, holy Word. Follow along as I read.
Revelation 11:15-19,
“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.’ And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, 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. 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.’ 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.” (Revelation 11:15–19, NASB95)[2]
LOUD VOICES (Revelation 11:15)
John informed us in verse 14 that the seventh trumpet judgment was coming quickly, but here in the very next verse we are told that the seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and though the effects of this trumpet blast are delayed on earth, we do not read of the judgments until we reach chapter 15, there is an immediate response in heaven. John said that there were loud voices in heaven, these can only be the voices of the thousands upon thousands of angels surrounding the throne, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders. John records what these loud voices are saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15b, NASB95)[3] This loud declaration must be connected to the effects of the seventh trumpet, not only does it announce God’s final judgment on the earth, but it also heralds the coronation of the King who will reign forever and ever.
That the power of Satan will be forever broken, and that Jesus Christ will reign supreme causes unspeakable joy in heaven. The setting up of Jesus Christ’s long-awaited kingdom is the climax of redemptive history.
Notice that the voices say that “the kingdom of the world,” not “the kingdoms of the world.” This phrase introduces an important truth. All the world’s nations and groups, and kingdoms are in reality one kingdom under one king. This king is known in Scripture by many different names, most often he is known as Satan or the devil. It is true that God is the One who ultimately chooses those who will be in human governments for the well being of man. Paul wrote in Romans 13:1, “Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God.” (Romans 13:1, NASB95)[4] These same world governments do not acknowledge God’s sovereignty and refuse to submit to His authority. Because they refuse God, they are a part of Satan’s kingdom.
Even though Satan is a usurper and not the rightful king, Jesus three times in John’s Gospel refers to Satan as “the ruler of this world.” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11) As he did at Babel, uniting the people so that they refused to obey God’s command to spread out across the face of the earth, Satan will rule in the future over a united fallen humanity in one visible kingdom under the Antichrist’s leadership.
These loud voices proclaim that this kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. The tense of the Greek verb translated “has become” describes a future event as if it has already taken place, it is an event that without a doubt will happen and therefore is described as if it already has happened. The kingdom of our Lord and His Christ had already arrived, but there is some time that must elapse before the actual kingdom is seen on earth, but heaven already sees it as a done deal. Although Lord most often refers to Jesus Christ in the New Testament, in Revelation it often refers to God the Father which just shows us the equality that they share in their nature.
It should be stated as well, that the kingdom is given to us in the broadest sense, not referring only to the millennial kingdom when Christ will rule for a thousand years over this creation, but also extending into His rule over the new creation. No distinction is made here by John between the earthly millennial kingdom and the eternal kingdom. The two will merge and Christ will reign forever and ever.
The anticipation of this long-awaited event cannot be contained by the hosts of heaven as they burst forth in praise to One that they have faithfully served since the creation of all things. There praise answers the prayers of the saints through the ages, “Your kingdom come, Your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.”
THE TWENTY-FOUR ELDERS (Revelation 11:16-17)
The twenty-four elders, whom you remember represent the church raptured and in heaven are those who have prayed through the ages of church history for God’s kingdom to come, they have eagerly anticipated the day when Jesus Christ would take back the earth from Satan. We read that the elders fell down on their faces before God and worshiped Him. Their worship is a joyous cry of praise and is filled with gratitude that their prayers have been answered. “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.” (Revelation 11:17, NASB95)[5] Within this refrain of praise the elders focused on three of God’s attributes. First, they called Him “the Almighty” which focuses on God’s sovereign omnipotent power. John MacArthur says of this name, “the Almighty,” “It has the sense of God exercising His all-encompassing will by means of His irresistible power.”[6]
Next, the elders proclaim the that God is eternal by the phrase “who are and who were.” Notice that they have omitted, “who is to come” because that time has come, there is no longer any waiting, no anticipation because God has come and now is the God who existed in eternity past, and the God who exists in eternity present. The God who has no beginning and will have no end.
Third, the elders praise God for His sovereignty, proclaiming to God, “You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.” The verb translated “have taken” is a Greek verb that signifies the permanence of God’s sovereign rule, one that will never end. And again, the tense of the verb translated “have begun to reign” describes a future event that is so certain that it can be spoken of as if it has already taken place, even though the event has not yet occurred on the earth. It is so certain that it is spoken of as already having begun.
This passage teaches the universal reign of the Lord Jesus Christ over the whole earth, a prophecy predicted by the Old Testament prophets and an event prayed for by the New Testament saints.
THE RESULTS OF THE SEVENTH TRUMPET (Revelation 11:18)
The twenty-four elders continue to worship and their worship is a summary statement of what else will happen in the days of the seventh trumpet, five results leading up to Jesus Christ reigning on the throne of David in Jerusalem, reigning over the whole earth.
The first result, “And the nations were enraged…” (Revelation 11:18a, NASB95)[7] The seventh trumpet reveals to us that the nations were enraged at the idea of Christ’s kingdom being established over the whole earth. Our Scripture reading from Psalm 2 this morning spoke of the nations being in an uproar and the taking counsel together against the Lord and His Anointed, Jesus Christ. The hatred of fallen, sinful man against divine control began with Cain, though he murdered his brother, he hated God’s interference and it continued down through the history of the earth up until this present day with men still dying at the hands of rebellious man for daring to claim rights for God and His Son in this world. William Newell writes, “Today men will tolerate a preacher if he lets them alone. They will even patronize a preacher who does not touch their wills. Religion is decent, but surrender to God is intolerable to the nations of this world.”[8] This anger and hatred will continue until the armies of the earth converge on the valley of Megiddo to fight against God and they will utterly fail, and Jesus Christ will reign victoriously.
The second result, “…and Your wrath came…” (Revelation 11:18b, NASB95)[9] God’s wrath that He has withheld for so long, being patient, not wanting any to perish, but all to come to repentance. So long has it been withheld that man has begun to believe that God is incapable of anger and wrath. It is true that God is love, but God is also light, and light exposes the deeds of darkness. God hates sin and the day of grace is coming to an end for man who refuses to repent and continues to rebel against God. The sounding of the seventh trumpet heralds in the terrible wrath of God. Man may be enraged, but his wrath will never equal the wrath of the Lamb. In the book of Revelation there are two Greek words used for anger or wrath, both are used of God’s wrath. One on them means “rage, passionate anger” and the other one which is used here means “indignation, a settled attitude of wrath.” Warren Wiersbe writes concerning God’s wrath, “God’s anger is not an outburst of temper; it is holy indignation against sin… God’s anger is not dispassionate, for He hates sin and loves righteousness and justice; but neither is it temperamental and unpredictable.”[10] God’s wrath is indeed waiting in this day of grace, but the wrath is so certain that it is spoken as if it is already here, “Your wrath came.”
The third result of the days of the seventh trumpet, “…and the time came for the dead to be judged…” (Revelation 11:18c, NASB95)[11] The Greek word translate “time” means “a season, an era, an occasion or an event.” The judgment spoken of here is best seen as a general reference to all future judgments. No attempt is made here to separate the different phases of judgment as they are separated in the closing chapters of Revelation. They are simply referred to as if they were one event. This is just a summary of what is coming.
Fourth, the days of the seventh trumpet will be “…the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great…” (Revelation 11:18d, NASB95)[12] The seventh trumpet also heralds the rewards for the prophets which includes all who have proclaimed God’s truth throughout redemptive history, from Enoch to the two witnesses. All those faithful men and women who stood for God in hard, sinful days and faced fierce opposition will find their work rewarded. But not only these bond-servants, but also the saints, those that fear Your name. This is a biblical description of all those redeemed in both the Old and New Testament. All of God’s saints, both small and great will receive rewards.
Fifth, the days of the seventh trumpet are “…to destroy those who destroy the earth.” (Revelation 11:18e, NASB95)[13] Those who destroy the earth does not refer to those who pollute the environment, but those who pollute the earth with their sin. This includes all unbelievers, their day of destruction is coming as God’s terrible wrath is poured out on sinful, rebellious mankind and they are destroyed for destroying the earth. Those who survive the bowl judgments will be wiped from the earth at the battle of Armageddon. The seventh trumpet judgment has begun, the Great Tribulation begins, the day of God’s wrath is unleashed.
THE HOLY OF HOLIES (Revelation 11:19)
Finally, we come to verse 19, John writes, “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.” (Revelation 11:19, NASB95)[14] John sees the literal, real temple in heaven. The one on earth was a pattern of the things in heaven. The Holy of holies is thrown open and John sees the real ark of the covenant, the symbol of God’s purposes and His faithfulness, the mercy seat. Remember the pattern of the ark was given to Israel, not the church. The Church is the bride of Christ and is not connected and does not have any part with earthly temple worship, nor with the governmental affairs of the nation of Israel by which they are bound by covenant to God. The earthly ark disappeared, but when God begins again to deal with Israel and those governmental affairs with which Israel is bound up, the real ark of the covenant will appear. The ark of the covenant of earth was the place of God’s dwelling in the Holy of Holies with His people. Here we see the ark putting forth judgment, the lightning, and thunder, the earthquake and the hailstorm speak of God’s majesty and of His judgment.
The ark of the covenant appearing will remind God’s people, the Jewish remnant of the covenant that they have with God and that God will be faithful to keep that covenant, but first, there must be a terrible time of judgment that will involve all the earth. In the end all of Israel’s enemies, which are God’s enemies will be destroyed. God acts in judgment from His temple in heaven, He does so because of the covenant promises of restoring the Kingdom to Israel. But the judgment is so severe that it will be a bitter vision that the apostle John will have to witness, he will see the pain and anguish that his nation must suffer to be restored.
CONCLUSION:
The seventh and final trumpet of judgment has sounded. We must not confuse the sounding of the seventh trumpet of judgment with the last trumpet in 1 Corinthians 15 where Paul talks about the resurrection and the rapture. In 1 Corinthians 15:51-52 Paul writes, “Behold, I tell you a mystery; we will not all sleep, but we will all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed.” (1 Corinthians 15:51–52, NASB95)[15] Paul writes that at the sounding of this last trumpet everything will happen in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye. The sounding of the seventh trumpet of the Revelation will not happen so quickly. The mighty angel of chapter 10 said, “but in the days [plural] of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound...” (Revelation 10:7a, NASB95)[16] The seventh trumpet of Revelation will cover a period of time, it will not be over in a moment. This morning we have only seen the introduction of the seventh trumpet judgment which foresees the end of its blast when Jesus Christ will reign over all the earth. The Greek language uses a tense that sees it as already accomplished. This should be a comfort to us that what God has promised to do will be done. He is faithful to His promises, just as the appearance of the ark of the covenant reminded the apostle John of God’s presence with His people and of the covenant promises that will be fulfilled, the Kingdom will be restored to Israel, but it will come with bitter suffering and judgment.
[1]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[2]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[3]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[4]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[5]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[6]MacArthur, John, Because the Time is Near. Chicago, IL : Moody Publishers, 2007
[7]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[8]Newell, William R., The Book of the Revelation. Chicago, IL : Moody Press, © 1935, Reprinted 1978
[9]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[10]Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 601). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
[11]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[12]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[13]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[14]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[15]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995
[16]New American Standard Bible : 1995 Update. La Habra, CA : The Lockman Foundation, 1995