REVELATION 8: THE LATTER RAIN AND THE FINAL WARNING
In the historical interpretation of prophecy, it is generally understood that these seven trumpets, like the messages to the seven churches and the seven seals, began in the early days of the church and carries us forward in time to the last days prior to the second coming. It is generally believed that the first trumpet sounded in a.d. 70 with the fall of Jerusalem.
The second trumpet concerns judgments against Rome, the great iron kingdom of Daniel 2, also called the fourth beast of Daniel 7. The third and fourth trumpets concern the rise and effects of the medieval church that warred against biblical Christianity through man-made doctrines and religion. The fifth and sixth trumpets depict the rise of Islam. During the time of the seventh trumpet, the work of redemption is completed, and Christ prepares Himself to come as King of kings. At the end of the sounding of the seventh trumpet, God reveals to the world the ark of the testimony in heaven, containing His law, the great standard of judgment. The seventh trumpet culminates in the earthquake and hail of the seventh plague.
A long-held view in the historical understanding of prophecy is that the first four trumpets deal with the judgments against the Roman Empire, which, by a.d. 476, had largely collapsed.
Using Scripture to unlock the symbols before us, we learn biblical lessons. We see that the blowing of the trumpets by these angel messengers is a signal to the world to prepare for the day of judgment and coming peril, even as in Old Testament times the Feast of Trumpets heralded the Day of Atonement. Just as trumpets in the Old Testament were often used to signal events of importance, so the four trumpets of Revelation 8 describe events corresponding to the acceptance or rejection of God’s last message of warning found in Revelation 14:6–12 and culminating in Revelation 18:1–4.
Revelation 8:2
And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets.
“To them were given seven trumpets”
Speak unto the children of Israel, saying, In the seventh month, in the first day of the month, shall ye have a sabbath, a memorial of blowing of trumpets, an holy convocation. Ye shall do no servile [ordinary, laborious] work therein: but ye shall offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord. And the Lord spake unto Moses, saying, Also on the tenth day of this seventh month there shall be a day of atonement: it shall be an holy convocation unto you; and ye shall afflict your souls, and offer an offering made by fire unto the Lord. And ye shall do no work in that same day: for it is a day of atonement, to make an atonement for you before the Lord your God. (Leviticus 23:24–28. The feast of trumpets was a preparation for the Day of Atonement.)
And thou shalt number seven sabbaths of years unto thee, seven times seven years; and the space of the seven sabbaths of years shall be unto thee forty and nine years. Then shalt thou cause the trumpet of the jubilee to sound on the tenth day of the seventh month, in the day of atonement shall ye make the trumpet sound throughout all your land. And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout all the land unto all the inhabitants thereof: it shall be a jubilee unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family. (Leviticus 25:8–10. The blowing of a trumpet announces the Jubilee, when servants were set free and property was to be restored to its owners.)
Again the word of the Lord came unto me, saying, Son of man, speak to the children of thy people, and say unto them, When I bring the sword upon a land, if the people of the land take a man of their coasts, and set him for their watchman: if when he seeth the sword come upon the land, he blow the trumpet, and warn the people; then whosoever heareth the sound of the trumpet, and taketh not warning; if the sword come, and take him away, his blood shall be upon his own head. He heard the sound of the trumpet, and took not warning; his blood shall be upon him. But he that taketh warning shall deliver his soul. (Ezekiel 33:1–5. Trumpets give warning of coming peril.)
Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and shew my people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins. (Isaiah 58:1. A trumpet-like message warns the people of their sins.)
Blow ye the trumpet in Zion, and sound an alarm in my holy mountain: let all the inhabitants of the land tremble: for the day of the Lord cometh, for it is nigh at hand. (Joel 2:1. Trumpets give an alarm and a call to repentance before the day of the Lord.)
The seven angels are messengers. They blow trumpets that signal a time of judgments and warning.
Revelation 8:3
And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.
Another angel (messenger), different from the seven angels, is seen here in the office of priest, offering up incense at the altar of incense in the sanctuary above. This is the Angel of the covenant— Jesus Christ. This verse represents the prayers of the saints mingled with the sweet incense of the righteousness and mercy of the blood of Christ. Much incense is needed; much prayer shall be offered, for this is the final work of Christ.
“Having a golden censer”
And he shall take a censer full of burning coals of fire from off the altar before the Lord, and his hands full of sweet incense beaten small, and bring it within the veill: and he shall put the incense upon the fire before the Lord, that the cloud of the incense may cover the mercy seat that is upon the testimony, that he die not. (Leviticus 16:12–13)
And Moses said unto Aaron, Take a censer, and put fire therein from off the altar, and put on incense, and go quickly unto the congregation, and make an atonement for them: for there is wrath gone out from the Lord; the plague is begun. (Numbers 16:46)
And after the second veil, the tabernacle which is called the Holiest of all; which had the golden censer, and the ark of the covenant overlaid round about with gold, wherein was the golden pot that had manna, and Aaron’s rod that budded, and the tables of the covenant; and over it the cherubims of glory shadowing the mercy seat; of which we cannot now speak particularly. (Hebrews 9:3–5. The golden censer was used in the Most Holy place ministry of the high priest.)
In Revelation’s use of symbols taken from the Old Testament sanctuary, we find a picture of the work of the priest offering up incense before the throne or mercy seat. This angel is none other than the messenger of God to man, our High Priest, Jesus.
Christ as our High Priest and Intercessor offers up to God the incense from the golden censer, representing His own spotless merits combined with the prayers, confessions, and thanksgiving of His people. Mixed with the fragrance of His righteousness, these ascend to God before the throne as sweet incense. Despite our unworthiness, we are to accept by faith that there is One who can take away our sin and save us to the uttermost, for “Christ loved us and gave His life for us as a sweetsmelling offering and sacrifice that pleases God” (Ephesians 5:2 TEV).
Revelation 8:4
And the smoke of the incense, which came with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel’s hand.
“The incense, which came with the prayers of the saints”
Let my prayer be set forth before thee as incense; and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice. (Psalm 141:2)
Revelation 8:5
And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake.
“Fire of the altar”
Then flew one of the seraphims unto me, having a live coal in his hand, which he had taken with the tongs from off the altar: and he laid it upon my mouth, and said, Lo, this hath touched thy lips; and thine iniquity is taken away, and thy sin purged. Also I heard the voice of the Lord, saying, Whom shall I send, and who will go for us? Then said I, Here am I; send me. (Isaiah 6:6–8. The coal from the altar prepares Isaiah to preach with the power of the Spirit.)
Then I looked, and, behold, in the firmament that was above the head of the cherubims there appeared over them as it were a sapphire stone, as the appearance of the likeness of a throne. And he spake unto the man clothed with linen, and said, Go in between the wheels, even under the cherub, and fill thine hand with coals of fire from between the cherubims, and scatter them over the city. And he went in in my sight. (Ezekiel 10:1–2. The sealing angel, the man in linen, takes from the midst of the throne and from the midst of the cherubim coals and scatters them across the city. Ezekiel 11:8–10, 16–17, and 19–20 describe judgment mixed with mercy, the judgments coming apparently as a result of scattering the coals.)
The Historical Fulfillment
In the historical understanding of prophecy it is generally understood that the message to the seven churches, the seven seals, and the seven trumpets largely deal with the same period of time, beginning in John’s day and bringing us up to the nearness of Christ’s coming, or, as in the case of the seals, right up to the second coming. It is also understood that the message to the seven churches describes the general spiritual condition of the church from the time of the apostles until just before Christ shall come. The seven seals, particularly the four horseman, deal with religious history outlining the great apostasy. The seven trumpets describe the military events and judgments by which the church of Christ was affected in her witness.
In the historical understanding of the trumpets, the intercession of Christ and the prayers of the saints take in the whole of the gospel era, as Christ is depicted as our High Priest and Mediator. This is a message of hope to the children of God that Christ “ever liveth to make intercession for” us (Hebrews 7:25) and that, at the end of the age, the coming of Christ will take place. The throwing down of the censer represents the closing of the door of mercy prior to the coming of Christ.
Revelation 8:3–5 is consider parenthetical, meaning these verses are inserted after the introduction of the seven angels but before they commence their work. This is to encourage the children of God that Christ is there for them, and He will come when the trumpets have finished sounding.
Present Application
The throwing down of the censer parallels the work of the angel described in Revelation 18:1–4, when another angel comes to lighten the earth with his glory. The throwing down of the censer commences God’s final warning. The pouring out of the fire represents the Holy Spirit, also depicted as the latter rain. The word of truth is cast to this earth with power in response to the prayers of the righteous. This is heaven’s counterpoint to the apostate powers of hell and the Babylonian confederacy of Revelation 17. (See Acts 2:3–4; Jeremiah 23:29; 5:14.)
The vision just cited, of the cherubim and the wheel in Ezekiel 10:1–2, represents God’s throne. From the midst of that throne, between the covering cherubs, coals of fire are taken up by the man in linen. The next event is in Ezekiel 11, when judgment falls upon those who continue in their wickedness, and mercy and restoration are granted to the repentant who have received a new heart to love and obey the Lord. (See Ezekiel 11:19–21.) Though not an exact representation of what is found in Revelation 8, the effects are similar. Coals of fire are taken from the altar before the throne, then follows judgments upon the wicked and healing and salvation for those who repent. This is the purpose of the censer filled with the coals of fire cast upon the earth.
Revelation 8 depicts the last hour of earth’s history, a time when the coals of fire shall, as with Isaiah’s experience (see Isaiah 6:6–8), purify and empower a people to be God’s messengers. It is also a time of trumpet judgments and warning. Mercy and judgment are mixed, as salvation goes forth “thereof as a lamp that burneth” (Isaiah 62:1), and the inhabitants of the world make their final choices for eternity.
This angel of Revelation 8:3, as we have already noted, is Christ, the messenger of the covenant. He is depicted here as our High Priest, offering incense and intercession before the throne of God. When He throws down the censer, He is still in the sanctuary.
In Revelation 14:14–20 we see Christ depicted as sitting upon a cloud and wearing a golden crown, showing that His priestly work is ended and that He is preparing to come as a conquering king. (See also Revelation 19:11–12.) One angel comes out from the temple and tells Christ to reap the grain, which represents the righteous saints who have come to maturity and are ready for the harvest. Another angel comes out from the altar and says to another angel to reap the wicked, who are depicted as grapes of the vine.
Another biblical clue that this event of Revelation 8:5 does not represent the final close of the door of mercy is that, in Revelation 14, when the door of mercy has shut, the angel is seen coming out from the throne and out from the altar, while Christ, the angel or messenger of the covenant, is in the sanctuary in Revelation 8, when He in symbol casts the censer filled with coals of fire to the earth.
John typically uses the term “I saw” or “after this” or “after these things” to indicate a change in the vision or a new event. But in Revelation 8:3, having seen the seven angels receive seven trumpets, without a break in the prophetic vision, he sees another angel, representing Christ, standing before the altar, offering incense. Then the seven angels prepare themselves to sound.
Seven angels are given seven trumpets. Then an angel (or Christ depicted as our High Priest) offers the incense of the prayers and praise of His people. He next takes from the altar of incense coals of fire. He casts the censer to the earth. Then the trumpets sound.
Another clue as to the time of this “angel” casting down His censer is the use of the expression “voices, thundering, and lightnings.” We find this expression in Revelation 4:5; 8:5; 11:19; 16:18. Each time this expression is used, a new development or event in the work of God or the plan of salvation commences.
In Revelation 4:5 John sees the throne of God, where the twenty-four elders are seated, paralleling the twenty-four courses of priests who ministered in the sanctuary. Chapters 4 and 5 speak of the throne of God and of Christ as our sacrifice and Mediator and as the only one who can open the sealed book. In Revelation 11:19, voices, thundering, and lightnings occur when the law of God is fully revealed to the world, the temple is opened, and the ark of His testimony is revealed, which occurs just before the second coming. The last time this phrase is used is when the seventh plague is poured out, shortly before the coming of the Lord. The use of this phrase extends from the priestly ministry of Christ to the last plague and the second coming. Its recurring usage is consistent, indicating that Revelation 8:5 is not only speaking of the closing of the door of mercy to mankind in its historical interpretation, but also indicating the last message of God coming to the earth in the power of fire representing the latter rain of the Holy Spirit.
“Thunderings”
Thou coveredst it with the deep as with a garment: the waters stood above the mountains. At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away. (Psalm 104:6–7. At the thunderous voice of God, the waters go to their place.)
Father, glorify thy name. Then came there a voice from heaven, saying, I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again. The people therefore, that stood by, and heard it, said that it thundered: others said, An angel spake to him. (John 12:28–29)
And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood afar off. (Exodus 20:18)
And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. (Revelation 19:6)
Thunder often represents the voice or presence of God and is a representation of God’s power and work.
“Lightnings”
And they went every one straight forward: whither the spirit was to go, they went; and they turned not when they went. As for the likeness of the living creatures, their appearance was like burning coals of fire, and like the appearance of lamps: it went up and down among the living creatures; and the fire was bright, and out of the fire went forth lightning. And the living creatures ran and returned as the appearance of a flash of lightning. (Ezekiel 1:12–14. In these verses lightning is how the prophet saw the moving of the living creatures.)
Cast forth lightning, and scatter them: shoot out thine arrows, and destroy them. (Psalm 144:6)
His lightnings enlightened the world: the earth saw, and trembled. (Psalm 97:4)
And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. (Exodus 19:16)
We see God’s lightning going forth as an instrument of judgment. Lightning is also used to represent the power and presence of God.
“And an earthquake”
Thou shalt be visited of the Lord of hosts with thunder, and with earthquake, and great noise, with storm and tempest, and the flame of devouring fire. (Isaiah 29:6)
Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done, they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God. (Matthew 27:54)
And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven. (Revelation 11:13)
The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. (Joel 2:10)
Earthquakes represent the presence and work of angels and of God and are also used as judgments. In Revelation 8 the additional mention of an earthquake with voices, thundering, and lightnings represents the earth-shaking nature of the last message described in Revelation 8. Revelation 11 and 16 describe the cataclysmic earthquake of the last plague.
The Historical Fulfillment
The voices, thunders and lightening, and earthquake represent the signal that the door of mercy has shut, and time will be no more. This scene in Revelation 8:3–5 is inserted before the trumpets, showing that the long night of this earth’s sinful history will come to an end. This is intended to be an encouragement to the people of God, despite the trumpet judgments that represent events to transpire over the centuries and millenniums leading to the coming of the Lord.
Present Application
Earthquakes announce the deliverance of God or are used as a signal when He is at work. Jesus Himself gave earthquakes as a sign of the end times, declaring, “Great earthquakes shall be in divers places” (Luke 21:11). The earthquakes of Revelation are signals of God’s work. The last earthquake of the seventh plague in Revelation 16 is a signal of the end of this world’s system and of the soon-coming King. The term earthquake is also used of upheaval. It is indicative of the power of God and the seriousness of what is transpiring in the midst of the “thunderings, lightnings and voices.” The earthquake of Revelation 8 signals the commencement of the trumpet judgments from the time of the latter rain, symbolized by the censer being cast down to the earth.
Revelation 8:6–7
And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
The First Trumpet
“There followed hail”
At the brightness that was before him his thick clouds passed, hail stones and coals of fire. The Lord also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire. (Psalm 18:12–13)
And it came to pass, as they fled from before Israel, and were in the going down to Bethhoron, that the Lord cast down great stones from heaven upon them unto Azekah, and they died: they were more which died with hailstones than they whom the children of Israel slew with the sword. (Joshua 10:11)
Because, even because they have seduced my people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered morter: say unto them which daub it with untempered morter, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great hailstones, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it. Lo, when the wall is fallen, shall it not be said unto you, Where is the daubing wherewith ye have daubed it?
Therefore thus saith the Lord God; I will even rend it with a stormy wind in my fury; and there shall be an overflowing shower in mine anger, and great hailstones in my fury to consume it. So will I break down the wall that ye have daubed with untempered morter, and bring it down to the ground, so that the foundation thereof shall be discovered, and it shall fall, and ye shall be consumed in the midst thereof: and ye shall know that I am the Lord. (Ezekiel 13:10–14. Hailstones are symbolic of God’s fury and judgment that sweep away the falsehoods the people had trusted in.)
Judgment also will I lay to the line, and righteousness to the plummet: and the hail shall sweep away the refuge of lies, and the waters shall overflow the hiding place. (Isaiah 28:17)
Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower, which are on the head of the fat valleys of them that are overcome with wine! Behold, the Lord hath a mighty and strong one, which as a tempest of hail and a destroying storm, as a flood of mighty waters overflowing, shall cast down to the earth with the hand. The crown of pride, the drunkards of Ephraim, shall be trodden under feet. (Isaiah 28:1–3. Judgment from the Assyrian armies comes as hail against the pride of the wicked. See also Isaiah 10:5.)
And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great. (Revelation 16:21)
Hail, when used in the Bible, can be literal or symbolic, representing the judgment of God against the prideful and wicked.
“And fire”
Then I said, I will not make mention of him, nor speak any more in his name. But his word was in mine heart as a burning fire shut up in my bones, and I was weary with forbearing, and I could not stay. (Jeremiah 20:9. The conviction to share God’s Word and message is like a fire in the heart of a man.)
Is not my word like as a fire? saith the Lord; and like a hammer that breaketh the rock in pieces? (Jeremiah 23:29)
Who maketh his angels spirits; his ministers a flaming fire. (Psalm 104:4. God’s messengers go forth like fire.)
For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ. Now if any man build upon this foundation gold, silver, precious stones, wood, hay, stubble; Every man’s work shall be made manifest: for the day shall declare it, because it shall be revealed by fire; and the fire shall try every man’s work of what sort it is. (1 Corinthians 3:11–13. The fire will test and critically appraise the character and worth of the work each person has done.)
When the Lord shall have washed away the filth of the daughters of Zion, and shall have purged the blood of Jerusalem from the midst thereof by the spirit of judgment, and by the spirit of burning. (Isaiah 4:4)
Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the Lord of hosts. But who may abide the day of his coming? and who shall stand when he appeareth? for he is like a refiner’s fire, and like fullers’ soap: and he shall sit as a refiner and purifier of silver: and he shall purify the sons of Levi, and purge them as gold and silver, that they may offer unto the Lord an offering in righteousness. (Malachi 3:1–4)
And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the Lord sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the Lord rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. (Exodus 9:23–24)
Present Application
Fire is a symbol of the work of God through men who are under the control of the Spirit and bear His word. Fire also represents the Word of God and the Holy Spirit. Fire, when used literally or figuratively in Scripture, purifies or destroys. The fire brought about by the Word of God through His messengers and the convicting work of the Holy Spirit will cleanse and purify and save those who accept this offer of salvation. To those who reject it, it exposes the darkness of men’s hearts, as men turn away from and reject salvation. (See John 3:19–20.) Thus, the final message develops two classes of people whose eternal destiny is forever decided.
The word fire can also be used literally, as when God rained fire and brimstone on Sodom, or with the plagues in Egypt, where fire was a representation of the lightning that struck the ground during the plague of hail. However, the word fire in Revelation 8 seems to be used symbolically rather than literally.
“Mingled with blood”
And from Jesus Christ, who is the faithful witness, and the first begotten of the dead, and the prince of the kings of the earth. Unto him that loved us, and washed us from our sins in his own blood. (Revelation 1:5. We are washed from sin by the blood of Christ.)
And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation. (Revelation 5:9. Blood represents the intercession and atonement of Christ.)
But if we walk in the light, as he is in the light, we have fellowship one with another, and the blood of Jesus Christ his Son cleanseth us from all sin. (1 John 1:7. The blood of Jesus cleanses us from sin.)
There were present at that season some that told him of the Galilaeans, whose blood Pilate had mingled with their sacrifices. (Luke 13:1)
The Historical Fulfillment
The expression mingled with blood, in the historical setting of prophecy, represents the bloodshed and loss of life brought about by war through the judgments of hail and fire. This is the destruction brought upon ancient Jerusalem when the Roman armies destroyed it in a.d. 70.
Present Application
All the judgments upon men, prior to the door of mercy being shut, are mingled with mercy. The blood of Christ shields the sinner from receiving the full measure of his guilt. That is why the judgment of hail and fire is mingled with the blood, showing that mercy yet pleads for the sinner. Thus, as the prophet pleaded in ages past, so it is with these initial trumpet judgments: “in wrath remember mercy” (Habakkuk 3:2).
“Third part of trees were burnt up”
Blessed is the man that walketh not in the counsel of the ungodly, nor standeth in the way of sinners, nor sitteth in the seat of the scornful. But his delight is in the law of the Lord; and in his law doth he meditate day and night. And he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of water, that bringeth forth his fruit in his season; his leaf also shall not wither; and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper. (Psalm 1:1–3)
But I am like a green olive tree in the house of God: I trust in the mercy of God for ever and ever. (Psalm 52:8)
The trees went forth on a time to anoint a king over them; and they said unto the olive tree, Reign thou over us. But the olive tree said unto them, Should I leave my fatness, wherewith by me they honour God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees? And the trees said to the fig tree, Come thou, and reign over us. But the fig tree said unto them, Should I forsake my sweetness, and my good fruit, and go to be promoted over the trees? Then said the trees unto the vine, Come thou, and reign over us. And the vine said unto them, Should I leave my wine, which cheereth God and man, and go to be promoted over the trees?
Then said all the trees unto the bramble, Come thou, and reign over us. And the bramble said unto the trees, If in truth ye anoint me king over you, then come and put your trust in my shadow: and if not, let fire come out of the bramble, and devour the cedars of Lebanon. (Judges 9:8–15. This parable describes how the people rejected the house of Gideon, the olive tree, and chose a wicked and perverse man, Abimelech the bramble, to reign over them. Thus the trees in general here represent the false-hearted and perverse of Israel.)
These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots. (Jude 1:12. These fruitless trees are the false-hearted and wicked in the church.)
The lofty looks of man shall be humbled, and the haughtiness of men shall be bowed down, and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. For the day of the Lord of hosts shall be upon every one that is proud and lofty, and upon every one that is lifted up; and he shall be brought low: And upon all the cedars of Lebanon, that are high and lifted up, and upon all the oaks of Bashan, and the loftiness of man shall be bowed down, and the haughtiness of men shall be made low: and the Lord alone shall be exalted in that day. (Isaiah 2:11–13, 17. The proud are represented as the great trees that are brought low.)
Thus saith the Lord; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the Lord. For he shall be like the heath in the desert, and shall not see when good cometh; but shall inhabit the parched places in the wilderness, in a salt land and not inhabited. Blessed is the man that trusteth in the Lord, and whose hope the Lord is. For he shall be as a tree planted by the waters, and that spreadeth out her roots by the river, and shall not see when heat cometh, but her leaf shall be green; and shall not be careful in the year of drought, neither shall cease from yielding fruit. (Jeremiah 17:5–8. The wicked are like a blasted tree or bush; the righteous are as a well-watered tree.)
To appoint unto them that mourn in Zion, to give unto them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; that they might be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he might be glorified. (Isaiah 61:3. Those who are restored and saved by God’s mercy are to be trees of righteousness.)
Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. And the light of Israel shall be for a fire, and his Holy One for a flame: and it shall burn and devour his thorns and his briers in one day; and shall consume the glory of his forest, and of his fruitful field, both soul and body: and they shall be as when a standardbearer fainteth. And the rest of the trees of his forest shall be few, that a child may write them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the remnant of Israel, and such as are escaped of the house of Jacob, shall no more again stay upon him that smote them; but shall stay upon the Lord, the Holy One of Israel, in truth. The remnant shall return, even the remnant of Jacob, unto the mighty God. (Isaiah 10:16–21)
“All green grass”
Fret not thyself because of evildoers, neither be thou envious against the workers of iniquity. For they shall soon be cut down like the grass, and wither as the green herb. (Psalm 37:1–2. The wicked are cut down like grass.)
Like as a father pitieth his children, so the Lord pitieth them that fear him. For he knoweth our frame; he remembereth that we are dust. As for man, his days are as grass: as a flower of the field, so he flourisheth. For the wind passeth over it, and it is gone; and the place thereof shall know it no more. (Psalm 103:13–16. Man’s days are like the temporary grass that withers away.)
When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish; it is that they shall be destroyed for ever. (Psalm 92:7)
The voice said, Cry. And he said, What shall I cry? All flesh is grass, and all the goodliness thereof is as the flower of the field: the grass withereth, the flower fadeth: because the spirit of the Lord bloweth upon it: surely the people is grass. The grass withereth, the flower fadeth: but the word of our God shall stand for ever. (Isaiah 40:6–8. The grass withers as God’s Spirit blows upon it.)
For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away. (1 Peter 1:24)
“Was burnt up”
And when he [Samson] had set the brands on fire, he let them go into the standing corn of the Philistines, and burnt up both the shocks, and also the standing corn, with the vineyards and olives. (Judges 15:5)
Behold, there came fire down from heaven, and burnt up the two captains of the former fifties with their fifties: therefore let my life now be precious in thy sight. (2 Kings 1:14)
Oh that my head were waters, and mine eyes a fountain of tears, that I might weep day and night for the slain of the daughter of my people! Oh that I had in the wilderness a lodging place of wayfaring men; that I might leave my people, and go from them! for they be all adulterers, an assembly of treacherous men. And they bend their tongues like their bow for lies: but they are not valiant for the truth upon the earth; for they proceed from evil to evil, and they know not me, saith the Lord. Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, Behold, I will melt them, and try them; for how shall I do for the daughter of my people? For the mountains will I take up a weeping and wailing, and for the habitations of the wilderness a lamentation, because they are burned up, so that none can pass through them; neither can men hear the voice of the cattle; both the fowl of the heavens and the beast are fled; they are gone. And I will make Jerusalem heaps, and a den of dragons; and I will make the cities of Judah desolate, without an inhabitant. Who is the wise man, that may understand this? and who is he to whom the mouth of the Lord hath spoken, that he may declare it, for what the land perisheth and is burned up like a wilderness, that none passeth through? (Jeremiah 9:1–3, 7, 10–12. Because of wickedness and sin, the land is afflicted and the men upon it are punished.)
And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say, It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God. (Zechariah 13:8–9)
The Historical Fulfillment
Though Christ is still in the sanctuary ministering His grace, love and mercy, He must maintain justice and accountability, and rebellion must be punished. Thus the words of Jesus were to finally meet their fulfillment. (See Luke 23:28–31; Matthew 24:1–2; 23:34–38.) Upon the Jewish nation was to fall the hail and fire of judgment with bloodshed and loss of life, yet mixed with mercy. In earlier catastrophes and scatterings, God had said, “I will not make a full end of thee, but correct thee in measure; yet will I not leave thee wholly unpunished” (Jeremiah 46:28). This is why the Jewish nation, though scattered, remained a distinct people. Though cut off as God’s representatives because of constant rebellion and unbelief, God still desires the salvation of individuals. A third of the trees and grass—the false professor and the careless sinner, both leaders and people—was burnt up, indicating a great loss of life, yet not total destruction.
And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh. Then let them which are in Judea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles, until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. (Luke 21:20–24).
The first trumpet judgment accomplished its purpose and stands as a warning to all who will give heed to its lessons that sin and sinners must be held accountable and that love and light rejected will ultimately meet a terrible fate. In Jerusalem we see the eventual fate of a world that has rejected the love and mercy and truth of God, for sin eventually leads to woe and lamentation and loss.
Another view of the first trumpet judgment is seen in the blows inflicted against the Roman Empire by Aleric, leader of the Visigoths. Aleric had once been an officer in the Roman army. He united the Germanic tribes, and after the death of Theodosius, emperor of Rome in a.d. 395, he began his attacks against the Roman Empire. He plundered the city of Rome in a.d. 410. The trumpet judgment of Aleric and the Goths is represented as hail because of their northern origin, and is represented as fire because of the destruction by fire upon town and countryside. The blood represented the terrible slaughter he inflicted.
Present Application
Christ, in the last days of His ministry in the sanctuary, casts down the censer filled with fire as the Holy Spirit moves in power upon the hearts of mankind. God’s servants will respond to this work and take up the message and experience of Revelation 18:1–4. The first four trumpets are the story of that work and its effects. The fire of God’s Holy Spirit and the fire and power of His Word go forth on their ministry. Hail and fire, representing the judgments of God, yet mixed with mercy, do their appointed work. Just as in Ezekiel’s day, God intends that these judgments and messages will bring forth a remnant who will serve Him and while the wicked and false professor cut themselves off from the light and life of God.
The fire mingled with blood—God’s final message to this planet (Revelation 18:1–4)—will both condemn and purify. The choice lies with us as to which it will be, as it is based upon our response to the work of God. For the trees representing the false-hearted and hypocritical professor of religion as well as the proud and lofty of this world, including those counted among the trees of the Lord, this will be a time when they are tested and found wanting and will turn away from truth.
At this time a large class in the world, the “grass,” will reject the Holy Spirit’s outpouring and God’s final message of mercy. The remnant that has built upon the foundation of Christ gold, silver, and precious stones will be saved and sealed. Those who had built upon their religion or life on a foundation of wood, hay, and stubble, but who finally accept the last message of warning and receive the cleansing work of God’s Spirit, shall be saved as by fire. (See 1 Corinthians 3:11–15.) The false-hearted and perverse sinners of the earth, having been convicted by the Holy Spirit, but loving darkness rather than light, shall then be judged, reserved for the fires of the last day. For the true and faithful, this time of mercy and judgment will be trying, but they shall come forth from the fire as gold. “He knoweth the way that I take: when He hath tried me, I shall come forth as gold. My foot hath held His steps, His way have I kept, and not declined. Neither have I gone back from the commandment of His lips; I have esteemed the words of His mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:10–12).
When this testing time shall come, those who have made God’s Word the rule of life will be revealed. In summer there is no difference seen between evergreens and other trees; but when winter comes, the evergreens remain unchanged, while other trees lose their foliage. So it will be during the time of the first trumpet. Currently the false-hearted professor of religion cannot always be distinguished from the real Christian. But the time is coming when, as the first trumpet begins the process of the harvest, the difference will become apparent.
When God’s last message of warning goes forth like a trumpet, as a result of the rejection of that message, opposition will arise, and persecution will be kindled against the faithful and true. The halfhearted, lukewarm, and hypocritical will waver and yield the faith. Yet the true Christian and those who repent and turn unto the Lord will stand firm as a rock. By the rejection of the Spirit’s convicting power and the power of the Word of truth, many Christians and many in the world will reject God’s warning. Yet there is still mercy in the midst of judgment. Further trumpets of warning are to be sounded for all the world to hear and make their decisions for life or death.
The Second Trumpet
Revelation 8:8
And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood.
“A great mountain”
And I will render unto Babylon and to all the inhabitants of Chaldea all their evil that they have done in Zion in your sight, saith the Lord. Behold, I am against thee, O destroying mountain, saith the Lord, which destroyest all the earth: and I will stretch out mine hand upon thee, and roll thee down from the rocks, and will make thee a burnt mountain. (Jeremiah 51:24–25. Babylon was a great and destroying mountain or kingdom.)
Thou art the anointed cherub that covereth; and I have set thee so: thou wast upon the holy mountain of God; thou hast walked up and down in the midst of the stones of fire. (Ezekiel 28:14)
Then was the iron, the clay, the brass, the silver, and the gold, broken to pieces together, and became like the chaff of the summer threshingfloors; and the wind carried them away, that no place was found for them: and the stone that smote the image became a great mountain, and filled the whole earth. (Daniel 2:35)
Thy righteousness is like the great mountains; thy judgments are a great deep: O Lord, thou preservest man and beast. (Psalm 36:6)
“Burning with fire”
And the fire upon the altar shall be burning in it; it shall not be put out: and the priest shall burn wood on it every morning, and lay the burnt offering in order upon it; and he shall burn thereon the fat of the peace offerings. The fire shall ever be burning upon the altar; it shall never go out. (Leviticus 6:12–13)
An ungodly man diggeth up evil: and in his lips there is as a burning fire. (Proverbs 16:27)
Therefore shall the Lord, the Lord of hosts, send among his fat ones [the Assyrian’s] leanness; and under his glory he shall kindle a burning like the burning of a fire. (Isaiah 10:16)
I beheld till the thrones were cast down, and the Ancient of days did sit, whose garment was white as snow, and the hair of his head like the pure wool: his throne was like the fiery flame, and his wheels as burning fire. (Daniel 7:9)
“Fire”
And he doeth great wonders, so that he maketh fire come down from heaven on the earth in the sight of men, and deceiveth them that dwell on the earth by the means of those miracles which he had power to do in the sight of the beast; saying to them that dwell on the earth, that they should make an image to the beast, which had the wound by a sword, and did live. (Revelation 13:13–14. The fire is used to deceive.)
“Third part of the sea”
But let him ask in faith, nothing wavering. For he that wavereth is like a wave of the sea driven with the wind and tossed. (James 1:6. The doubting and hesitant in faith are like the turbulent waves of the sea.)
For there are certain men crept in unawares, who were before of old ordained to this condemnation, ungodly men, turning the grace of our God into lasciviousness, and denying the only Lord God, and our Lord Jesus Christ. Woe unto them! for they have gone in the way of Cain, and ran greedily after the error of Balaam for reward, and perished in the gainsaying of Core. These are spots in your feasts of charity, when they feast with you, feeding themselves without fear: clouds they are without water, carried about of winds; trees whose fruit withereth, without fruit, twice dead, plucked up by the roots; raging waves of the sea, foaming out their own shame; wandering stars, to whom is reserved the blackness of darkness for ever. (Jude 1:4, 11–13. False professors and leaders who follow the lust of the flesh rather than controlled by grace, are like raging waves of the sea.)
But the wicked are like the troubled sea, when it cannot rest, whose waters cast up mire and dirt. There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. (Isaiah 57:20–21)
How is Sheshach taken! and how is the praise of the whole earth surprised! how is Babylon become an astonishment among the nations! The sea is come up upon Babylon: she is covered with the multitude of the waves thereof. Her cities are a desolation, a dry land, and a wilderness, a land wherein no man dwelleth, neither doth any son of man pass thereby. (Jeremiah 51:41–43. Media-Persia comes with judgment upon Babylon like tidal waves of the sea.)
“Became blood”
And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. (Revelation 16:4)
Thus saith the Lord, In this thou shalt know that I am the Lord: behold, I will smite with the rod that is in mine hand upon the waters which are in the river, and they shall be turned to blood. And the Lord spake unto Moses, Say unto Aaron, Take thy rod, and stretch out thine hand upon the waters of Egypt, upon their streams, upon their rivers, and upon their ponds, and upon all their pools of water, that they may become blood; and that there may be blood throughout all the land of Egypt, both in vessels of wood, and in vessels of stone. (Exodus 7:17, 19)
And also for the innocent blood that he [King Manasseh] shed: for he filled Jerusalem with innocent blood; which the Lord would not pardon. (2 Kings 24:4)
And they brought forth the he goats for the sin offering before the king and the congregation; and they laid their hands upon them: and the priests killed them, and they made reconciliation with their blood upon the altar, to make an atonement for all Israel: for the king commanded that the burnt offering and the sin offering should be made for all Israel. (2 Chronicles 29:23–24)
In whom we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of sins, according to the riches of his grace. (Ephesians 1:7)
The word blood is used as a descriptive term for the bloodshed brought about by war and murder. It is a symbol of life, and a symbol of the atonement and forgiveness of sins gained for us by Christ. In the plagues of Egypt, the waters literally became as blood. So it will be in the future seven last plagues. In the historical interpretation, Revelation 8:8 is indicative of war and bloodshed, largely the result of naval assaults and battles.
Revelation 8:9
And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
“Creatures which were in the sea”
For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision availeth any thing, nor uncircumcision, but a new creature. (Galatians 6:15)
Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new. (2 Corinthians 5:17)
Of his own will begat he us with the word of truth, that we should be a kind of firstfruits of his creatures. (James 1:18)
“Third part of the ships were destroyed”
For the king’s ships went to Tarshish with the servants of Huram: every three years once came the ships of Tarshish bringing gold, and silver, ivory, and apes, and peacocks. (2 Chronicles 9:21)
She [a virtuous woman] is like the merchants’ ships; she bringeth her food from afar. (Proverbs 31:14)
They that go down to the sea in ships, that do business in great waters. (Psalm 107:23)
For in one hour so great riches is come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar off, and they cast dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate. (Revelation 18:17, 19)
The Historical Fulfillment
The phrase “a third part” is used repeatedly in Revelation chapters 8 and 9, an indicates a substantial part of the Roman empire that was feeling the scourge of the trumpet judgments.
The sounding of the second trumpet relates to the invasion and conquest of northern Africa, and eventually Rome itself, by Genseric, the leader of the Vandals. His conquests were largely naval and his triumphs against the Roman Empire seemed to be “as it were a great mountain burning with fire, cast into the sea.” Unlike other nations that were conquered by a united rival power, Rome fell over decades of onslaughts from what have been termed “barbarous tribes.”
Here in the second trumpet is the description of Genseric and the Vandals, who engaged in maritime war and piracy against the Roman Empire along the Mediterranean Sea coasts. In a.d. 455, Genseric sailed into the mouth of the Tiber and pillaged Rome for two weeks, seizing everything of value. He and his army took thousands of prisoners as slaves. Though greatly outnumbered by the navies of Rome, he moved ships in under cover of night, filled with combustible materials. This led to the decimation of the Roman fleet as more than a thousand ships, or “the third part of ships” were destroyed. There was much loss of life inflicted by the vandalism of the hordes of Genseric. This is pictured in prophecy as “the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life died.”
With this triumph, Genseric was the tyrant of the sea as the coasts of Italy, Greece, and Asia Minor were exposed to his onslaughts. Genseric was to be an instrument in the trumpet judgments that led to the demise of the Western Roman Empire.
Present Application
This great mountain is the counterfeit system of Babylon, supposedly coming in the name of the Lord, burning with the fire of deception through false teachings and prophesying with miracles, signs, and wonders, threatening judgment and deceiving the world, leading them to worship the beast. (See Revelation 13:13–14.)
We see here a representation of a third (or a significant part) of the sea of humanity being deceived by this apostate system. Having rejected truth and loving a lie, they take pleasure in unrighteousness. Thus, they are given over to strong delusion. Their guilt remains upon them, unforgiven and unrepented of.
The phrase third part represents those who are deceived rather than a literal number. Those creatures who had life represent God’s professed people, as many of them will wax cold and will be taken in the snare of deception. As the economic boycott spreads against those who refuse to worship the beast and receive his mark, many ships of commerce will be destroyed. However, as in the boycotts of today, other merchantmen will step in and enjoy the temporary prosperity of this Babylonian system.
The judgments described in the trumpets are said to come upon only one-third of the earth, one-third of the sea, one-third of the fresh waters, one-third of the sun. The term one-third is clearly symbolic. It shows restraint or limitation; in other words, judgments are still held back from their full force by mercy. In contrast, there is no such limitation mentioned when the seven last plagues are poured out. The seven last plagues will bring destruction without mercy. The time of the trumpet judgments will be a fearful time, but Christ’s blood will still be mingled with the trumpet judgments.
Third Trumpet
Revelation 8:10
And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters.
“Fell a great star from heaven”
How art thou fallen from heaven, O Lucifer, son of the morning! how art thou cut down to the ground, which didst weaken the nations! (Isaiah 14:12. Lucifer is the counterfeit morning star, fallen from heaven.)
I shall see him, but not now: I shall behold him, but not nigh: there shall come a Star out of Jacob, and a Sceptre shall rise out of Israel, and shall smite the corners of Moab, and destroy all the children of Sheth. (Numbers 24:17. The star out of Jacob is a symbol of Christ.)
I Jesus have sent mine angel to testify unto you these things in the churches. I am the root and the offspring of David, and the bright and morning star. (Revelation 22:16)
We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts. (2 Peter 1:19. Christ is the truth and day star of the word of prophecy.)
And they that be wise shall shine as the brightness of the firmament; and they that turn many to righteousness as the stars for ever and ever. (Daniel 12:3. God’s righteous messengers shine like stars.)
The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches. (Revelation 1:20. The stars are the leaders of the churches.)
Satan is the fallen star who represents himself as the god of this world. He will appear just prior to the second coming, claming that he is Christ. To prepare the way he sends fallen stars, or counterfeit messengers, to deceive the people.
“Burning as it were a lamp”
Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path. (Psalm 119:105)
And it came to pass, that, when the sun went down, and it was dark, behold a smoking furnace, and a burning lamp that passed between those pieces. (Genesis 15:17. The divine presence is represented by a burning lamp.)
For the commandment is a lamp; and the law is light; and reproofs of instruction are the way of life. (Proverbs 6:23)
For Zion’s sake will I not hold my peace, and for Jerusalem’s sake I will not rest, until the righteousness thereof go forth as brightness, and the salvation thereof as a lamp that burneth. (Isaiah 62:1)
For thou art my lamp, O Lord: and the Lord will lighten my darkness. (2 Samuel 22:29)
Satan and his agents appear to the inhabitants of the world to be teaching the truth from the Word of God, claiming to be representing God and showing the way of salvation; however, it is a counterfeit lamp.
“Third part of the rivers”
And say, Ye mountains of Israel, hear the word of the Lord God; Thus saith the Lord God to the mountains, and to the hills, to the rivers, and to the valleys; Behold, I, even I, will bring a sword upon you, and I will destroy your high places. (Ezekiel 6:3. The rivers, valleys, etc. represent the people to be afflicted and punished, for when these things of nature are afflicted the people suffer as well.)
Now therefore, behold, the Lord bringeth up upon them the waters of the river, strong and many, even the king of Assyria, and all his glory: and he shall come up over all his channels, and go over all his banks. (Isaiah 8:7)
Overflow your land like [the overflow of] the Nile River, O Daughter of Tarshish; there is no girdle of restraint [on you] any more [to make you pay tribute or customs or duties to Tyre]. (Isaiah 23:10 AMP)
“Fountains of waters”
O Lord, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the earth, because they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living waters. (Jeremiah 17:13)
But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life. (John 4:14)
And he said unto me, It is done. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. I will give unto him that is athirst of the fountain of the water of life freely. (Revelation 21:6)
The law of the wise is a fountain of life, to depart from the snares of death. (Proverbs 13:14)
Revelation 8:11
And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.
“The name of the star is called Wormwood”
And the Lord saith, Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein; but have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them: Therefore thus saith the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink. (Jeremiah 9:13–15. The people have forsaken the law. They walk after their own imagination and after the spirit of Baalim. They are therefore given wormwood in the form of judgments to drink.)
Beware lest there should be among you a man or woman, or family or tribe, whose [mind and] heart turns away this day from the Lord our God to go and serve the gods of these nations; lest there should be among you a [poisonous] root that bears gall and wormwood. (Deuteronomy 29:18 AMP)
He hath filled me with bitterness, he hath made me drunken with wormwood. And thou hast removed my soul far off from peace: I forgot prosperity. And I said, My strength and my hope is perished from the Lord: remembering mine affliction and my misery, the wormwood and the gall. (Lamentations 3:15, 17–19. The bitterness and affliction of being separated from God are like wormwood.)
The Historical Fulfillment
The third trumpet judgment depicts the work of Attila, the king of the Huns, and his desolating work against the Roman Empire. He and his armies are depicted as a blazing meteor, whose coming appeared suddenly and which was to disappear into the waters. Attila came with the speed of a falling star upon the empire. He devoted himself to Mars, the god of war, and dressed in brilliant clothing. His attacks were upon those portions of the Empire that abounded with rivers and waters. Therefore, his principle areas of attack were in the regions of the Alps, the source of the springs of waters, and upon those parts of Italy from whence the springs flowed forth. Wormwood denotes the consequences of his onslaughts and the terror he inflicted as the self-proclaimed “scourge of God.”
As the Roman Empire began its slow collapse, the steady building of a new empire began on its ruins. In many respects it was to be but the continuation of the old in a new form. Thus began the rise of the great Roman church—not just a church but a political entity as well. It appeared as a great star, claiming to be a representative of Christ burning with the lamp of truth, claiming to bring the water and fountain of life from Christ. The prophecy tells us that this star was to have the affect of wormwood, or bitterness. Its false teachings would become like bitterness to the soul, having no life or saving truth in it. Thus a third (or large and significant) part of the people of Europe died a spiritual death, void of the true gospel. They died facing an eternal loss because of the deceptive lies of the wormwood star that supposedly came in the name of the Lord.
Present Application
As God’s work goes forth under the empowerment of the Holy Spirit, the devil and his agents are represented as the great star fallen from heaven, a counterfeit of the work of God. Apparently bearing a lamp or the Word and truth of God, he falls upon a third (or significant portion) of the rivers (or people), distorting and perverting the true source of the fountain of life. With his false churches, teachers, and prophets he works like wormwood to poison the minds of the people with falsehood, which in the end will only bring bitterness of soul. A third (or significant part) of the waters of mankind is turned away from the truth of God by Satan and his agents of deception, who come burning with the lamp of error. As a result many will be left spiritually dead, dead in trespasses and sin. What is claimed by Satan and his agents to be the water of life eventually becomes like wormwood as people turn from the truth to believe a lie. Thus the devil and his agents work “with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie: that they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness” (2 Thessalonians 2:10–12).
Fourth Trumpet
Revelation 8:12
And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.
“Third part of the sun was smitten … and the third part of the moon … and third part of the stars was darkened”
The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. (Joel 2:10. The judgments upon Israel at the hands of Babylon were a type of the judgments that will occur in the day of the Lord, affecting sun, moon, and stars.)
And when I shall put thee out, I will cover the heaven, and make the stars thereof dark; I will cover the sun with a cloud, and the moon shall not give her light. All the bright lights of heaven will I make dark over thee, and set darkness upon thy land, saith the Lord God. (Ezekiel 32:7. The prophet is describing the judgments upon Pharaoh king of Egypt.)
And there appeared a great wonder in heaven; a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars. (Revelation 12:1. This is a symbol of the church, with the light of the Son and the New Testament, the moon of the old covenant and the Old Testament, the stars the apostles and messengers.)
And his [Joseph’s] brethren said to him, Shalt thou indeed reign over us? or shalt thou indeed have dominion over us? And they hated him yet the more for his dreams, and for his words. And he dreamed yet another dream, and told it his brethren, and said, Behold, I have dreamed a dream more; and, behold, the sun and the moon and the eleven stars made obeisance to me. (Genesis 37:8–9. Joseph dreams that his father, mother, and kindred, representing the people of God, likened to the sun, moon, and stars, would be in subservience to him.)
For the Lord God is a sun and shield: the Lord will give grace and glory: no good thing will he withhold from them that walk uprightly. (Psalm 84:11)
The Historical Fulfillment
In the historical interpretation of prophecy, the fourth trumpet represents the eclipsing of the power of Rome. By a.d. 476 the glory of the Western Empire had gone out, while the last remnants of light flickered of what remained of the government. It too would go out. The great Roman Empire of prophecy, like ancient Babylon, was humbled. Italy was now under the control of Odoacer, one of the ten horns or kingdoms that Daniel 7 had foretold would come out of the fourth beast, or the Roman Empire. But even Odoacer of the Heruli was in time to be plucked up, as Daniel 7 foretold, for there would arise a little horn that would pluck up three horns or kingdoms in its rise to power. Thus the sun, moon, and stars—representing the Roman government, made up of the emperor, senate, and consuls—were progressively smitten or darkened until their power ceased. This opened the way for the gradual and steady rise of a new Roman power, a power that would last until the end of time.
Under the fourth trumpet the darkness of the papal night envelops the world. In Revelation 12:1, the church of Christ is symbolized by “a woman clothed with the sun, and the moon under her feet, and upon her head a crown of twelve stars.” In Daniel 12:3, the people of God are like stars that shine in heaven. As far back as Genesis we have God’s people symbolized by the sun, the moon, and the stars. Thus the darkening of these heavenly bodies represents the darkness of error that so long prevailed and which, to a large degree, eclipsed the light of Jesus as our great priest and mediator, and the truth of His gospel and Word as well.
Present Application
By the time of the fourth trumpet, the world will have come to love darkness more than light, having accepted the bitterness of wormwood, choosing the ways of unrighteousness and the pleasures of the delusive lie of salvation in sin. Thus the truth of God, the voice of His witnesses, and the light they brought to the world are rejected. All that remains is the execution of judgment upon Babylon. With the worldwide rejection of truth, and the light of the gospel fading into the sunset, yet with a faint ray of light still lingering, it may be that literal, physical signs in the sun, moon, and stars will be seen as harbingers of doom and as God’s last warning and invitation of grace. These events will be similar in purpose to the miracle of the animals coming to the ark in Noah’s day, a supernatural sign just before the door of mercy closes, but one that is largely ignored. When the door of mercy shuts, the people of God still experience the light of God’s love and presence, but for the world at large it is a light and love rejected. Thus follows the mournful cry of woes upon the earth described in Revelation 8:13.
An historical overview of the first four trumpets
The first trumpet describes the destruction of Jerusalem. Alternatively, it is the work of destruction upon the Roman Empire by the Visigoths under their leader Alaric.
The second trumpet describes the Vandals, who pillaged the coastal states of the Roman Empire along the Mediterranean Sea.
The third trumpet describes the work of the Huns, led by Attila.
The fourth trumpet describes the eclipsing of the Roman government as the emperors, senators, and consuls represented by the “sun, moon, and stars,” came to an end.
An overview of the present application of the first four trumpets
The first trumpet begins with the pouring out of the latter rain and describes the consequent effect it has on the wicked, false professors, and the people of God.
The second trumpet describes the setting up of the great mountain and system of “Mystery Babylon” and the wicked coming under her delusion, with even some of God’s professed people being deceived. Economic boycotts are put in place to enforce the new system.
The third trumpet describes the wormwood of false teaching that destroys many and prepares the way for the great star, Satan, to deceive the world.
The fourth trumpet describes how the Son of Righteousness and His ministers of truth, who shine like the stars, and His faithful people, who, like the moon, reflect the glory of their Lord, have their witness silenced because of the world’s rejection of truth. The world will stand condemned, for “light is come into the world, and men loved darkness rather than light, because their deeds were evil” (John 3:19).
Because of the darkness of error that has led to the rejection of truth, an angel is seen as a harbinger of doom, flying through the heavens, declaring woes upon the earth.
Revelation 8:13
And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!
“Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth”
Woe unto thee, Chorazin! woe unto thee, Bethsaida! for if the mighty works had been done in Tyre and Sidon, which have been done in you, they had a great while ago repented, sitting in sackcloth and ashes. (Luke 10:13. A woe is pronounced for being unrepentant.)
Woe unto them that decree unrighteous decrees, and that write grievousness which they have prescribed; to turn aside the needy from judgment, and to take away the right from the poor of my people, that widows may be their prey, and that they may rob the fatherless! And what will ye do in the day of visitation, and in the desolation which shall come from far? to whom will ye flee for help? and where will ye leave your glory? (Isaiah 10:1–3)
Woe unto them that call evil good, and good evil; that put darkness for light, and light for darkness; that put bitter for sweet, and sweet for bitter! Woe unto them that are wise in their own eyes, and prudent in their own sight! Woe unto them that are mighty to drink wine, and men of strength to mingle strong drink: which justify the wicked for reward, and take away the righteousness of the righteous from him! Therefore as the fire devoureth the stubble, and the flame consumeth the chaff, so their root shall be as rottenness, and their blossom shall go up as dust: because they have cast away the law of the Lord of hosts, and despised the word of the Holy One of Israel. (Isaiah 5:20–24. Woe to the rebellious who substitute sin for righteousness.)
As for Ephraim, their glory shall fly away like a bird, from the birth, and from the womb, and from the conception. Though they bring up their children, yet will I bereave them, that there shall not be a man left: yea, woe also to them when I depart from them! (Hosea 9:11–12. Woe when God departs.)
Woe unto them that seek deep to hide their counsel from the Lord, and their works are in the dark, and they say, Who seeth us? and who knoweth us? (Isaiah 29:15. There is a woe upon those who seek to conceal their sin.)
Woe to the rebellious children, saith the Lord, that take counsel, but not of me; and that cover with a covering, but not of my spirit, that they may add sin to sin. (Isaiah 30:1)
Woe to them that go down to Egypt for help; and stay on horses, and trust in chariots, because they are many; and in horsemen, because they are very strong; but they look not unto the Holy One of Israel, neither seek the Lord! (Isaiah 31:1)
A Summation of the Three Woes
The angel messenger seen in Revelation 8:13 is different from the trumpet angels and is depicted as flying in the midst of heaven, proclaiming woes upon the earth. This term is an expression of grief and sorrow and is often the result of calamity and affliction due to the sinful heart of man and his rebellion against God. This angel declares three woes for each of the three trumpet judgments yet to come, for each trumpet is a woe that affects the inhabitants of the earth. Some commentators state that this angel is better translated an eagle, whose appearance indicates death and destruction. (See Matthew 24:28; Hosea 8:1.)
These woes, in the historical understanding of prophecy, are a symbol of the Islamic invasion under the fifth and sixth trumpets. The seventh trumpet begins at the end of the 2,300-day/year prophecy, when Christ declares (in Revelation 10) that the prophetic time is no longer. It culminates at the end of time, just before Christ comes. This interpretation indicates we are living now in the days of the seventh trumpet. We are on the edge of eternity, and only the long-suffering of God allows time to continue.
In our understanding of these trumpets in a present application, the fifth and sixth trumpets depict the events and state of the earth after the door of mercy has shut, signaled by the woes announced by the angel. God’s Spirit is grieved, represented symbolically by the eclipsing of the sun, moon, and stars, possibly accompanied by literal signs in the heavens. The seventh trumpet depicts scenes from the time when Christ lays off His robes of priestly ministry and intercession and receives the kingdom in preparation to come as King of kings and Lord of lords. The seventh trumpet closes with a demonstration by God of the unchanging character and standard of His law, which condemns a guilty world that has accepted the beast and received his mark instead of following the Lamb and receiving His seal. But alas it is too late to repent then, for the hail of the seventh plague falls soon after this demonstration.
In light of the trumpet judgments past and yet to come, there is only one right thing to do:
“Seek ye the Lord while He may be found, call ye upon Him while He is near: let the wicked forsake his way, and the unrighteous man his thoughts: and let him return unto the Lord, and He will have mercy upon him; and to our God, for He will abundantly pardon. Behold, now is the accepted time; behold, now is the day of salvation” (Isaiah 55:6–7; 2 Corinthians 6:2).
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