6Then the seven angels with the seven trumpets prepared to blow their mighty blasts. 7The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. One-third of the earth was set on fire, one-third of the trees were burned, and all the green grass was burned.
8Then the second angel blew his trumpet, and a great mountain of fire was thrown into the sea. One-third of the water in the sea became blood, 9one-third of all things living in the sea died, and one-third of all the ships on the sea were destroyed.
10Then the third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star fell from the sky, burning like a torch. It fell on one-third of the rivers and on the springs of water. 11The name of the star was Bitterness. It made one-third of the water bitter, and many people died from drinking the bitter water.
12Then the fourth angel blew his trumpet, and one-third of the sun was struck, and one-third of the moon, and one-third of the stars, and they became dark. And one-third of the day was dark, and also one-third of the night.
13Then I looked, and I heard a single eagle crying loudly as it flew through the air, “Terror, terror, terror to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.”
Revelation 8:6-13
The last verse of Chapter 8 is perfectly placed to reinforce the pattern of the introductions to these judgements. Firstly, an initial grouping of four judgements are presented with repetitive structure before the last three are introduced. Before the last judgement there is a pause in the narrative form of the text and there are other elements inserted before the revelation of the final judgement in each series [Seals, Trumpets and Bowls]. It is almost as if we are being prepared by the measured nature of the words and delays before the 5th and 6th and an even longer delay before the 7th, the ultimate or summary judgement in each series.
The fifth and sixth judgements under the seals are anticipatory and close with leading questions. The questions are not the judgements but the pending doom that is expected. The note of anticipation of worse judgements is repeated again in 9:12 with the one-line statement:
The first terror is past, but look, two more {terrors} are coming!
Revelation 9:12
This short statement adds to the impact of the closing verse of chapter 8. It is like the whole block of text is designed to ramp up our anticipation of the pending doom. I liken it to those serial programmes we see on TV which build anticipation toward the end of each serial episode. We can tell, can’t we, when the end of this episode is approaching? It is almost the same feeling here with these short one-liners.
- What will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets?
- The first terror is past, but look, two more terrors are coming!
I looked and I heard. John both sees and hears the single [aetos]. He sees the bird gliding but he hears its cry, ‘raawk raawk’, a high pitched screech. The Greek word [aetos] can be used for both the eagle and the vulture. Both carrion birds of prey which is a remarkably appropriate sound with death and dying all around. This eagle or vulture’s proclamation is not part of the fourth trumpets’ judgement message. Rather it is an interlude between the transition point between the first four trumpets and what follows with the fifth and following trumpets. That is clear by the fact that we have John’s marker for a new segment – “I looked and I heard . . .”
This bird of prey is flying in mid-heaven [mes-ouranēma]. What does that mean exactly?
Technically the ‘meridian’ line is a line which bisects the midpoint of a high curved space. In the case of the air-space above the earth, we are talking about either:
- The line marking the midpoint of the sun’s zenith at noon.
- The highest point of heaven that the sun occupies at its peak.
- The mid-air space where the bird can be seen by all.
The eagle or the vulture is crying out loudly as it flew through the air, the mid portion of the air. It’s crying loudly in order to be heard. And what is its message?
[Ouai! Ouai! Ouai!] { Alas! Alas! Alas! ; Catastrophe! Catastrophe! Catastrophe! ; Disaster! Disaster! Disaster! ; Doom! Doom! Doom! ; Terror! Terror! Terror! ; Trouble! Trouble! Trouble! ; Woe! Woe! Woe! } to all who belong to this world because of what will happen when the last three angels blow their trumpets.”In short, the message is clear isn’t it? Well, it is after I connect one more aspect of the message for you. Note the relative phrase “to all who belong to this world”. Do you remember us dealing with that wording before? I addressed that phraseology in Gem 2256 and again in 2268. It is a term used in Revelation for those who are non-aligned with God and who prefer to follow the ways of the world. Those who as yet do not have God’s mark to indicate that they now belong to the God who gave them the life He intended them to live.
They say: It ain’t over till the ___ lady sings. (Originally a reference to an opera ending with a long solo sung by a singer with large lung capacity.)
Anonymous
It ain’t actually over till God says it’s over and only He knows when it’s over. The empty grave is proof of that.
Zach Williams
The trouble or woe is not actually over until the last outpouring of judgement from the seventh bowl. And even then there is still some mopping up to do.
Ian
That the POTTER should die for His CLAY is a stupendous miracle.
Lynn Landrum