Revelation 11:14-19 The Seventh Trumpet

Revelation 11:14-19 The Seventh Trumpet

Ronda

20 Nov, 2023

Principles of Interpretation: There are patterns to Revelation which should be considered when trying to understand it. One pattern is that each new section is introduced by a scene from the temple. There is significance to these introductions. Do not ignore them. They are a key to understanding the section. Another pattern is that the book is written in symbolic language. The King James Version translates verse 1 as “he sent and signified it by his angel unto his servant John:” To signify is to show in signs, i.e., symbols. Those symbols are based in the rest of the Bible, both Old and New Testament. As such, look to the rest of the Bible to interpret Revelation rather than using Revelation to interpret the rest of the Bible. This also means that you need to let the Bible interpret itself rather than attempting to have it fit into today’s headlines. In short, do not treat Revelation as separate from the rest of the Bible. Instead, expect that the events described in Revelation have been presented in other parts of the Bible. A third pattern in Revelation is the idea of judgement. There are courtroom scenes and wrath and complaints about God not bringing justice. In fact, humans are not the only ones under judgment. God Himself is on trial, and the repeated verdict is that God is just, holy, and worthy. From the beginning claim that this is the Revelation of Jesus to the promise in the last chapter that we shall see God’s face, Revelation is an examination of who our Creator is and whether He is worthy of our loyalty.

Disclaimer: There are four basic methodologies used to interpret the book of Revelation in modern society: futurism, historicism, idealism, and preterism. Many modern churches have embraced the idea of the secret rapture, which is a form of futurism. On the other hand, some churches say that Revelation deals solely with events that were happening in the apostolic era. This is called preterism. Other churches teach that Revelation does not describe any specific time period. Instead, the symbols are philosophical and/or spiritual ideas. The series of studies that I am posting is based on historicism, which says that the Bible teaches that Revelation begins with the time of John and describes the interactions of the church with a hostile world throughout history culminating in the final future eradication of sin from the universe. This view denies a secret rapture. I do not want you to be in confusion about the basic premises of this series of lessons. If you disagree with the historicist viewpoint, please study for yourself to be certain that the interpretations that you have been told by others and simply accepted make sense with the whole Bible. As you study, first ask for guidance from the Holy Spirit; then study the verses, and let the Bible interpret itself. Even if you disagree with my comments, you may find the verses and background information that I provide useful. Finally, I want to emphasize that I myself am still studying Revelation and my understanding is deepening each time I open the book and read. Revelation is a distillation of the whole Bible; as such, the limited space of this blog and my limited understanding means that these lessons are not nearly as in-depth as they could (and maybe should) be.

References: See the end of this post for sources and references.

Revelation 11:14

(14)  The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come.

  • There is a danger that when we study something in detail, we can forget how it fits in the big picture, i.e. when we examine the tree closely, we forget that it is part of a forest.  Revelation 11:14 is a reminder that measuring the temple and the earthquake in the great city are just a part of the larger tapestry of the seven trumpets. Let’s do a quick review:  We are in the 7 Trumpets.  There were four trumpets from Revelation 8:6 to the end of chapter 8.  Then we find the first mention of the woes.
    • Revelation 8:13  (13)  Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”
  • The first woe was the fifth trumpet.  The fifth trumpet goes from Revelation 9:1 to 9:11 and then we have this verse:  Revelation 9:12  (12)  The first woe has passed; behold, two woes are still to come.
  • The second woe was the 6th trumpet.  The 6th trumpet goes from Revelation 9:13 to the end of chapter 9. 
  • At that point, there is an interlude in chapters 10 and 11.  In chapter 10, the angel that we identified as Jesus swore that in the days of the seventh trumpet, the mystery of God would be fulfilled.  Next, John ate the scroll held by the angel, and it was sweet in his mouth but bitter in his stomach.  He was told to prophesy again. 
  • Then in chapter 11, we read about the 2 witnesses that gave their message for 1260 years in sackcloth and ashes.  We identified them as God’s word, and chapter 11 told of how they would be suppressed and finally killed by the enemies of God, but they would be resurrected again. 
  • Summary of Revelation 9, 10, and 11—Chapter 10 brought us to the 1844 message and chapter 11 took us back to the times of John and brought us forward to the present and future.  Basically, the French Revolution/atheism killed God’s word, but then His word was resurrected to go to the whole world.  Part of that process was the Great Disappointment and the resulting rediscovery of Bible truths. 
  • If the first woe was the fifth trumpet and the second woe was the sixth trumpet, what will be the third woe?  It stands to reason that the third woe would be the seventh trumpet; however, that might seem strange at first since the seventh trumpet is good news for God’s people.

Revelation 11:15-17

(15)  Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, 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 shall reign forever and ever.”  (16)  And the twenty-four elders who sit on their thrones before God fell on their faces and worshiped God, (17)  saying, “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.

WOES

  • Revelation 11:15-17 does not sound like a woe, does it?  It sounds more like a party full of excited participants.  There has to be more to the seventh trumpet than the rejoicing of God’s people.  We will examine these verses more closely in a minute, but first, we need to look at the idea of woes more closely.  Part of understanding the woes has to do with the change of locations in heaven itself. 
  • Let’s look at where the vision was taking place in the sixth trumpet.  Revelation 9:13  (13)  Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God,
    • Where in heaven is the sixth trumpet happening?  The golden altar before God.  This is still in the Holy Place, which means that there was still intercession happening.  In other words, there was still a chance for the conversion of sinners.  The mark of the beast was not yet firmly in place on those who were rebelling against God. 
  • Now, let’s look at the heavenly location of the 7th trumpet.  Revelation 11:18-19  (18)  The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.”  (19)  Then God’s temple in heaven was opened, and the ark of his covenant was seen within his temple. There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail.
    • Where in heaven are they now?  We can see the ark of the covenant in the temple, so there is no longer any separation between the holy place and the most holy place.  When this happens, probation has closed.  Everyone has made their final choices.
    • What will happen to the destroyers of the earth?  They will be destroyed.  The last woe is for those who have rejected God. 
  • This idea is reinforced by the fact that the next step before Jesus actually comes is the seven last plagues.
    • “The content of the seventh trumpet is unfolded in the seven bowls of God’s final judgment (chaps. 15-16). This is implied in the explicit numbering of the last three trumpets as the three ‘woes’ on the earth dwellers (8:13). The fifth and sixth trumpets are characterized as the first and the second ‘woe’ (9:12; 11:14), with the announcement that “the third woe is coming soon” (11:14). However, the seventh trumpet does not include any woe, except the declaration, ‘The time has come for judging the dead and for rewarding your servants . . . and for destroying those who destroy the earth’ (11:18). Some interpreters have concluded the seventh trumpet, therefore, lacks the third woe altogether. But others rightly point to John’s further revelation that the seven plagues will be the ‘last woe,’ because with them ‘God’s wrath is completed’ (15:1). Isbon T. Beckwith comments: ‘The recognition of the bowl-plagues as the third woe has important bearing on the question of the composition of the Apocalypse.’  The series of the trumpets is interwoven inextricably with the seven last plagues through John’s device of the three woes. As a result, the major portion of Revelation, chapters 8-19, constitutes a unit that unfolds a successive order of God’s judgments.”  (The Trumpets in Their Contexts by Hans K. LaRondelle, Adventist Theological Society)
  • The seventh trumpet truly is the third woe for the earth.  I would love to go deeper in examining the Holy and Most Holy Places in Revelation, but I would never get through with chapter 11, so I’ll save that for another day.

THE SEVENTH TRUMPET

  • The announcement of this verse is that the earth is now officially and totally God’s forever and ever.  In other words, the war has been won.  We are the battle ground.  As long as there was still a place to fight for territory, the battle kept going, but when all the people who could be won are won, God will end the war with this pronouncement. 
  • This verse promises that this world will be part of the kingdom of heaven forever.  Sin will never reign over us again.
  • I want to step back and look at the process of the world’s redemption as a whole. 
    • Matthew 4:16-17  (16)  the people dwelling in darkness have seen a great light, and for those dwelling in the region and shadow of death, on them a light has dawned.”  (17)  From that time Jesus began to preach, saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.”  In these verses, we see the beginning of the entrance of the kingdom of heaven into this world.  Jesus was about to take it back from Satan, and He was announcing it, but it was a process.  First, He had to earn the right to be our representative.  Then He had to retake His kingdom, heart-by-heart.
    • Mark 3:27  (27)  But no one can enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man. Then indeed he may plunder his house.  At the cross, Jesus bound Satan and for the last 2,000 years, he has been plundering us from Satan’s grasp.  Revelation 11:15 lets us see the end result of that plundering.  Earth becomes the kingdom of heaven forever and always.

Revelation 11:17-18

(17)  saying, “We give thanks to you, Lord God Almighty, who is and who was, for you have taken your great power and begun to reign.  (18)  The nations raged, but your wrath came, and the time for the dead to be judged, and for rewarding your servants, the prophets and saints, and those who fear your name, both small and great, and for destroying the destroyers of the earth.” 

  • What time has come?  The Judgment.  This is a time for rewarding the servants of God and destroying those who have made the earth desolate by their sinful desires.
  • Other verses in the Bible can help us understand Revelation 11 better.  Matthew 25:31-46  (31)  “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne.  (32)  Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.  (33)  And he will place the sheep on his right, but the goats on the left.  (34)  Then the King will say to those on his right, ‘Come, you who are blessed by my Father, inherit the kingdom prepared for you from the foundation of the world.  (35)  For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, (36)  I was naked and you clothed me, I was sick and you visited me, I was in prison and you came to me.’  (37)  Then the righteous will answer him, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you drink?  (38)  And when did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe you?  (39)  And when did we see you sick or in prison and visit you?’  (40)  And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.’  (41)  “Then he will say to those on his left, ‘Depart from me, you cursed, into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels.  (42)  For I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, (43)  I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me, sick and in prison and you did not visit me.’  (44)  Then they also will answer, saying, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry or thirsty or a stranger or naked or sick or in prison, and did not minister to you?’  (45)  Then he will answer them, saying, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did not do it to one of the least of these, you did not do it to me.’  (46)  And these will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.”
    • Here we see the same judgment as Revelation 11:17-18.  Based on Matthew 25, what does it mean when it says the destroyers of the earth?  Those who did not treat others with compassion.  Unthinking selfish cruelty.
    • Who is part of the kingdom of heaven?  Those who have compassion on others.
  • Daniel 7 and the 7th trumpet are speaking about the same events.  Daniel 7:13-14  (13)  “I saw in the night visions, and behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him.  (14)  And to him was given dominion and glory and a kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed.
    • Here we see the same idea as Revelation 11:15.  (15)  Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, 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 shall reign forever and ever.”
  • Daniel 7:25-27  (25)  He shall speak words against the Most High, and shall wear out the saints of the Most High, and shall think to change the times and the law; and they shall be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time.  (26)  But the court shall sit in judgment, and his dominion shall be taken away, to be consumed and destroyed to the end.  (27)  And the kingdom and the dominion and the greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven shall be given to the people of the saints of the Most High; his kingdom shall be an everlasting kingdom, and all dominions shall serve and obey him.’
    • This passage contains the 1260 years of Revelation 11:3 and the judgment and reward of Revelation 11:18.
  • “The seventh trumpet (Rev. 11:15–18) signals the conclusion of this earth’s history. The time has come for God to reveal His power and to reign. This rebellious planet, which has been under the dominion of Satan for thousands of years, is about to come back under God’s dominion and rule. It was after Christ’s death on the cross and His ascension to heaven that Christ was proclaimed to be the legitimate ruler of the earth (Rev. 12:10, 11). Satan continues to wreak all the havoc he can, knowing that his time is short (Rev. 12:12). The seventh trumpet heralds that the usurping powers have been dealt with and that this world finally has come under Christ’s rightful rule.”  (I forgot to write down my reference for this quote.  As soon as I find it, I will include it.)
  • “The seventh trumpet outlines the content of the remainder of the book: (1) The nations were angry: Revelation 12–14 describes Satan as filled with anger (Rev. 12:17), who with his two allies—the sea beast and the earth beast—prepares the nations of the world to fight against God’s people. (2) Your wrath has come: God’s answer to the anger of the nations is the seven last plagues, which are referred to as God’s wrath (see Rev. 15:1). (3) The time for the dead to be judged is described in Revelation 20:11–15. (4) And to reward God’s servants is portrayed in Revelation 21 and 22. (5) To destroy those who destroy the earth: Revelation 19:2 states that end-time Babylon is judged because it destroyed the earth. The destruction of Satan, his hosts, and his two allies is the final act in the drama of the great controversy (Rev. 19:11–20:15).”  (I forgot to write down my reference for this quote.  As soon as I find it, I will include it.)

SUMMARY OF THE SEVENTH TRUMPET

In one way, we have finished the trumpets.  In another way, we are going to be continuing with them in the next few chapters of Revelation.  I want to end by reviewing the purpose and message of the trumpets for us today.  1 Corinthians 14:6-8  (6)  Now, brothers, if I come to you speaking in tongues, how will I benefit you unless I bring you some revelation or knowledge or prophecy or teaching?  (7)  If even lifeless instruments, such as the flute or the harp, do not give distinct notes, how will anyone know what is played?  (8)  And if the bugle gives an indistinct sound, who will get ready for battle?

  • The trumpets get us ready for battle.  Our fight is to deliver the message to the whole earth that Jesus is our only means of salvation, and obedience to His commands is the only road that leads to eternal life.  All other roads lead to death and woe.  We are living in the time between the sixth and seventh trumpets.  Many people today refuse to “repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts” (Revelation 9:21), but the sixth trumpet is still sounding.  The message is still being given to the world to repent.  There are still people deciding whether they will obey God or sink into the miasma of sin that covers this world.  It is our job to spread the news of salvation so that the last person will make his or her decision, and Jesus will return to lay claim to the earth.

References:

  • Andrews Study Bible–In some lessons, I refer to study comments from this Bible.
  • God Cares: The Message of Revelation for You and Your Family-A book by C. Mervyn Maxwell that examines how the prophecies of Revelation relate to an individual’s life.
  • Plain Revelation–A book by Ranko Stefanovic that summarizes the meaning of various sections of Revelation
  • Revelation of Jesus Christ–A book by Ranko Stefonovic that comments on each verse of Revelation.
  • Salvation in Signs and Symbols–a series of shows where two pastors and two others study through the books of Revelation and Daniel. These programs can be accessed at 3abnplus.tv . Scroll down to 3ABN Dare to Dream Network and choose Salvation in Signs and Symbols from the list there.
  • Seventh-Day Adventist Bible Commentary (Volume 7) (Copywrite 1957)–This is the old green set of commentaries, not the new commentary series that is in the process of being published and should be released after 2022. (Boy, I would love to get my hands on that set when it comes out!)
  • Table Talk–A series of shows where four pastors discuss various topics. These programs can be accessed at tabletalk.online . Season 4 focuses on Revelation.
  • Unlocking Revelation–A series of pamphlets that can be downloaded for free from lightbearers.org and clicking on Resources