Revelation 8:1-6 (NKJV) When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. 2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. 3 Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 4 And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand. 5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake.
6 So the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
Ryrie Study Bible Notes The Seven Trumpets of Revelation 8:7-9:21: “1. A third of vegetation burned 2. A third of the sea judged 3. A third of fresh water judged 4. A third of the luminaries darkened 5. Increased demonic activity 6. A third of mankind killed 7. Announcement of Bowls”
The 7th of the series opens up the next 7.
We can repent and believe in Jesus alone for salvation or be judged. Throughout these judgments one is reminded of Romans 2:5 (MSB) “But because of your hard and unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of wrath, when God’s righteous judgment will be revealed.”
Warren W. Wiersbe writes:
Note also that the trumpet and the bowl judgments touch on the same areas, as the following summary illustrates:
The Trumpets The Judgment The Bowls
Rev 8:1-7 The earth Rev 16:1-2
Rev 8:8-9 The sea Rev 16:3
Rev 8:10-11 The rivers Rev 16:4-7
Rev 8:12-13 The heavens Rev 16:8-9
Rev 9:1-2 Mankind-torment Rev 16:10-11
Rev 9:13-21 An army Rev 16:12-16
Rev 11:15-19 Angry nations Rev 16:17-21
V1 “When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” Why the silence? It is not stated. Some opinions are a time of awe, a time of quiet praise, a time for repentance of the unbelievers, etc. This is a literal silence.
Comments:
Revelation 8:1 (Walvoord Prophecy Commentary) “In recognition of the seventh seal’s importance, John says its opening is followed by a half hour of silence in heaven. Though thirty minutes is not ordinarily considered a long time, in this case it indicates that something tremendous is about to take place. It may be compared to the silence before the foreman of a jury reports a verdict; for a moment there is perfect silence and everyone awaits that which will follow.”
Revelation 8:1 (Holman Commentary) “What happened next is best described as a “dramatic pause”—silence in heaven for about half an hour. This surely mesmerized John. The living creatures, the elders, and all the angels—who had without ceasing praised God from the beginning of their creation—now fall silent, perhaps for the first time. Something major is about to happen. This is the eerie calm before the storms of judgment blow.
“John will not describe his vision in terms of the Judgment Scroll because the heavenly scene shifts from this point on. What he sees and hears is better described as angels blowing trumpets rather than as reading the contents of a scroll. Another way to think about this is that the seven trumpet judgments (and seven bowl judgments of chapter 16) are what is written on the scroll. After the seventh seal is broken, the scroll unrolls to reveal its contents.”
V2 “And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets.” Who these particular angels are we do not know, but we know they have a special post to do the Lord’s bidding when requested. The 7 trumpets are to make an announcement, to get people’s attention.
V3 “Then another angel, having a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense, that he should offer it with the prayers of all the saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne.” This Temple is the heavenly temple from which all earthly ones are patterned after. Some believe this is a high ranking angel (my view). Others believe that since this is a priestly function, it refers to the Lord Jesus. Since it states it is an angel, I take this view. Regarding prayers as incense, compare Psalm 141:2, Hebrews 4:14-16, and Exodus 40:26-27. This altar is not in the Most Holy place but in the area in front of it called the Holy place. It is an altar that the priests cared for and ministered from daily (Hebrews 9:3-4). Our prayers are an offering to God.
V4 “And the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, ascended before God from the angel’s hand.”
V5 “Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and threw it to the earth. And there were noises, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake.” After the offering, the angel took more coals of fire to fill the censer. Our prayers for God to punishment of unbelievers who caused death, rape, churches burned, tortured, etc. It is time for God to avenge. Compare 2 Thessalonians 1:4-10, 2 Thessalonians 2:11-12, Revelation 6:10, and Revelation 18:20. The “noises” could be screams because of judgment, blasphemies from those experiencing these judgments, or other sounds. There definitely are atmospheric and seismic effects because of the judgments.
V6 “So the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.” The next event is the angels place their trumpet to their lips and are ready to sound when God signals them to do so.
We learn:
- Judgment is awful
- Judgment is deserved
- Judgment is brought against those who did not place faith in Jesus
- God avenges the believers for what they have suffered