Seventh Trumpet - Page 3 of 3 (series: Lessons on Revelations)

by John Lowe
(Woodruff, S.C.)

The appearance of the ark announces the speedy fulfillment of all that God has spoken, all that He has promised concerning the earth, the righteous, the wicked, and all creation. There is a lovely passage that speaks of the great anticipation of all creation for God to fulfill His promises, Romans 8:18-23. “Consider that our present sufferings are not worth comparing with the glory that will be revealed in us. For the creation waits in eager expectation for the children of God to be revealed. For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay and brought into the freedom and glory of the children of God. We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time. Not only so, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for our adoption to sonship, the redemption of our bodies” (Romans 8:18-23).

The twenty-four elders are closely associated with the worship which takes place in that heavenly temple. Their praise is directly linked to the opening of the heavenly temple and the subsequent rumblings of judgment heard on earth. Their occupation with the Word, the ways, and the will of God is linked with the onward march of the divine purpose. What a lesson for God’s people in all ages!

“And there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.” The thunder, lightning, and hail are reminiscent of the power of God that was present the first time He revealed His covenant with the children of Israel, at the unveiling of the Ten Commandments on Mount Sinai (Exodus 19-20). The “lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail” all indicate God’s signature on these events. These events occur here, at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, and they also occurred at the opening of the seventh seal (8:5). This will occur again at the pouring out of the seventh bowl (16:18-21).

Whether we have received or rejected Christ will determine our future response to His day of coronation. Will you be filled with rejoicing or regretting? At the sound of the seventh trumpet, there will be no more deciding. The time to decide is now. Have you chosen joy with Christ or woe without Him?



Special Notes:
1 The ark of the covenant was a gold-covered chest containing the original stone tablets on which the Ten Commandments were written, a jar of manna, and Aaron’s staff. The top of the chest served as the “atonement cover” (the altar) on which the blood would be sprinkled by the high priest on the Day of Atonement. The Most Holy Place was the most sacred spot on earth for the Jews. Only the high priest could enter; the other priests and the common people were forbidden to come into the room. Their only access to God was through the high priest who would enter the Most Holy Place once each year with animal blood to atone first for his own sins and then for the people’s sins (see Leviticus 16; Hebrews 10:19).
2 (Revelation 10:6) “And he swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and said, “There will be no more delay!”
3 (Matthew 4:8-9) “Again, the devil took him to a very high mountain and showed him all the kingdoms of the world and their splendor. “All this I will give you,” he said, “if you will bow down and worship me.”
4 (John 12:31) “Now is the time for judgment on this world; now the prince of this world will be driven out.”
5 (Matthew 12:26) “If Satan drives out Satan, he is divided against himself. How then can his kingdom stand?
6 (Luke 1:31-33) “You will conceive and give birth to a son, and you are to call him Jesus. He will be great and will be called the Son of the Most High. The Lord God will give him the throne of his father David, and he will reign over Jacob’s descendants forever; his kingdom will never end.”
7 (Revelation7:11) “All the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures. They fell down on their faces before the throne and worshiped God,”
8 (Revelation 11:17-18) “saying: “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, the One who is and who was, because you have taken your great power and have begun to reign. The nations were angry, and your wrath has come. The time has come for judging the dead, and for rewarding your servants the prophets and your people who revere your name, both great and small—and for destroying those who destroy the earth.”
9 (Revelation 6:15-17) “Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”
10 At the close of John’s vision he says, “I did not see a temple in the city, because the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are its temple” (Revelation 21:22). The city is the New Jerusalem and the whole city is a temple; the Lord God and the Lamb surrounding, filling, and sanctifying all of it. They are more intimately present in every part of it, and with every individual, saint or angel, than had ever been known on earth. It was all temple—nothing but a temple. It was not like Jerusalem, where there was only one structure built expressly for divine worship, and where the inhabitants gathered to praise God; it was all one great temple reared in honor of His name, and where worship ascended from every part of it.