The Little Book that John Ate"
Chapter 13
Open
the Seven Seals and Sound the
First
Four Trumpets
Revelation is the
disclosure of something that was not previously known.
Prophecy clearly belongs under the heading of revelation.
The book of Revelation is mostly composed of prophecy.
This revelation of
Jesus came to John while he was a prisoner on the isle of Patmos.
In the first chapter, Jesus is declared the first begotten of the dead
and the Alpha and Omega, the first and the last.
He has the keys of hell and death.
Jesus commanded John
to write the letters to the seven churches, calling them to repentance in the
days before his return, in chapters 2 and 3. After John wrote all things the Holy Spirit said unto
the churches, the scene in the vision continues:
Revelation
4:1-2
1)
“After this I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first
voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said,
Come up hither, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter.
2)
And immediately I was in the spirit; and, behold, a throne was set in heaven,
and one sat on the throne.”
Revelation
5:1-2
1)
“And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written
within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.
2)
And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open
the book, and to loose the seals thereof?”
And there was no man
in heaven or earth that was able to open the book or look on it.
John wept much.
Revelation
5:5, 7
5)
“And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe
of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the
seven seals thereof.
7)
And he came and took the book out of the right hand of him that sat upon the
throne.”
This ‘Lion of the Tribe of Juda’ is Jesus.
This Lamb of God was the end of the tribe of Juda, as genealogies were
finished. There are prophecies that
speak of the two tribes becoming one. Israel
and Juda shall become one and they shall have one shepherd.
We know where Israel is today. Where
is the tribe of Juda? The Lord
revealed some information on this.
We are grafted into
Him. He is living in us. We belong
to Jesus, this Lion of the tribe of Juda. We
are in fact, through Him, members of that tribe of Juda.
Praise God, we surely shall all be united under our one shepherd.
The chapters
describing scenes in heaven are exiting! Much
of the details are given for the first time.
These details are a rewarding study alone.
However, we will begin with the Lamb of God opening the seals.
Revelation
6:1-4
1)
“And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it
were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.
2)
And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a
crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
3)
And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and
see.
4)
And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that
sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another:
and there was given unto him a great sword.”
As we read of these
four seals, note the striking duplications that occur in our generation.
Almost for the beginning of this century, conquerors have been going
forth conquering and to conquer. There
has not been real peace on this earth. How
many have died under the weapons of war in these years?
Revelation
6:5-6
5)
“And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and
see. And I beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of
balances in his hand.
6)
And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A measure of wheat for
a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil
and the wine.”
Trade among nations,
which began several hundred years ago and have grown into one of the basic
economic foundations in each country. In
these last years, the supply and demand methods of carrying on trade have been
exchanged for another method. There
is economic war. Economic war
culminates in the anti-christ beastly head of government in Revelation
13:17, causing a mark to
be in the hand or in the forehead. Without
this mark no man may buy or sell. This includes food for one’s family. Oil and other food products (wine) has become an important
trading commodity over the past 30-40 years.
Revelation
6:7-8
7)
“And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast
say, ‘Come and see.’
8)
And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death,
and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part
of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the
beasts of the earth.”
With the opening of
the first four seals, the countdown of the last days began.
Death was unsealed and Hell followed with him.
Jesus spoke of wars and rumors of wars, famine, pestilence and
earthquakes. None of these events
should be a surprise. Jesus told us not to be frightened. We should hold fast to his Holy Spirit. God gave us the wonderful gift of His Holy Spirit to
strengthen us to meet the need in these last days.
So when we see the scriptures fulfilled in the newspaper headlines, we
shall be able to stand.
Recall also that
satan was chained in order that he could not deceive nations.
A seal was set on him too (Revelation
20:3).
It was as if he were put in jail. Only
Jesus could release the enemy because Jesus has the keys of Death and Hell (Revelation
1:8).
The Apostle Paul
wrote in 2
Thessalonians 2:1-2 about the last days when satan is unleashed on the world.
1)
“Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by
our gathering together unto him,
2
That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by
word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand.”
2
Thessalonians 2:3-4
3)
“Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except
there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of
perdition;
4)
Who opposeth and exalteth himself above all that is called God, or that is
worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, showing himself that
he is God.”
Once the seal was
taken off satan he began to work toward his goal as stated above.
Remember that Jesus said that he would come:
Matthew
24:15
15)
”When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by
Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,”
This is due to the
fact that the ‘little horn’, satan’s personification will have built
enough power in the world to ‘take away the daily sacrifice’ so that he can
install himself as God.
At this point only
four seals are open. The grand
finale of satanic power is not yet seen. But
once these things have been released on the earth, they continue on, so that at
the end of time, all evil things are going on concurrently.
A scene in heave
again is revealed as the fifth seal is opened.
John saw souls under the altar who were martyrs of God.
They ask when their blood will be avenged.
They were given white robes and told to wait until their brethren should
also be killed.
Revelation
6:9-11
9)
“And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of
them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held:
10)
And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost
thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?
11)
And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them,
that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also
and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.”
The sixth seal is
opened and the scene is back on the earth and is a trigger for several events.
With the great earthquake, every mountain and island was moved out of its
places.
Revelation
6:12-17
12)
“And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great
earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became
as blood;
13)
And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her
untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.
14)
And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every
mountain and island were moved out of their places.
15)
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief
captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid
themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
16)
And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of
him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
17)
For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
An earthquake
resembling this magnitude occurred on Good Friday, in the spring of 1964.
The heaviest immediate damage was sustained in Anchorage, Alaska.
Washington DC was reported to have moved up and down about an inch. Reports came from all over the world of earth shifting and
moving. Tidal waves were also
reported.
A report came out of
Russia several weeks later that a dam had been formed as a result of this
earthquake, and when it filled with floodwater and later burst, a town was
destroyed.
When the Lord first
led me into this part of the prophecies, I asked what He meant, “And the
heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together.” Later while seeing pictures of an atomic bomb explosion, He
quickened this to me. The sky did
indeed roll together like a scroll. The
formation of the mushroom cloud as it rolled together underneath, certainly did
resemble a scroll when is recoils into itself.
During the summer of
1964 an observation point in Arizona stated ruby red spots were seen on the
moon. These were also observed from
other locations. They did not
appear at a later prescribed date. Other
phenomena have occurred which represent the event prophesied, or are the
forerunners of the actual event. These
include a meteorite shower and a total eclipse of the sun.
In the light of prophecy, bomb shelters and fall shelters represent
‘dens and caves’.
There is one more
point to share about the sixth seal. It
is something the Lord has made very plain to me in the summer of 1963.
If I had fully understood the significance I would have noted the exact
date. He said this:
“The sixth seal is next.” It
is not my purpose to make anything fit together.
My obligation is to say this. Either
it fits together or it doesn’t.
The progression of
the seals and then on into the sounding of the angels with the trumpets denotes
a count down in time. It is not
measurable by years or days. It is
a definite sequence in time and it coincides with part of the last seven years.
Now to continue, note the following event:
Revelation
8:1-2
1)
“And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven
about the space of half an hour.
2)
And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven
trumpets.”
Nothing happens as a
direct result of the seventh seal being opened. There is only silence in heaven.
The next thing is the seven angels were given seven trumpets.
The seventh seal is like a link in a chain joining the seals to the
trumpets. Thus, the continuity and
understanding is assured. After
this sequence is established, the action stated as follows:
Revelation
8:5
5) “…and
there were voices, and thunderings, and lightenings, and an earthquake.”
During the silence
in heaven, after the seven angels appear, there are on earth remarkable changes
in weather patterns and an earthquake. At
the end of that tine, the seven angels prepare to sound the seven trumpets.
Trumpets are used to sound warning and to herald great events.
Revelation
8:7-9
7)
“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.
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;
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.”
As the first angel
blows on the trumpet, there is a bloody death.
The earth undergoes a great defoliation of as much of one third of its
trees and grass. This defoliation
is by fire, drought or both.
As the second angel
sounds, we see a great mountain erupting into the sea, leaving in its wake
bloody water, dead fish and sea creatures.
Many ships are destroyed. Any
time an atomic or hydrogen bomb is set off in the ocean there are dead fish.
In recent years there have been sightings from scattered parts of the
earth of many tons of dead fish. Only God can count these numbers.
When ships sink we should be able to track this number.
Revelation
8:10-11
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;
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.”
In January 1974 many
were watching the comet Kahuatek to see if it would prove to be Wormwood.
It did appear to be a lamp or torch as it raced toward the earth.
When this ‘great star from
heaven’
does hit the earth, the poisoning effect on the water may not show its full
effect instantly. For man has
already polluted his water supply himself.
When this event does occur, poisoning will be traceable.
Revelation
8:12
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.
The force of the
impact of the star, Wormwood, striking the earth would be enough to delay the
arrival of daylight by one third of the day.
It would also delay the appearance of night. For this reason it seems that the third and fourth trumpets
occur close together in time. A
very similar picture is also given:
Isaiah
24:20
20)
“The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed
like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it
shall fall, and not rise again.”
As this scripture
was opened the picture in my mind’s eye was as that of a spinning top after it
touches another object. It wobbles
as it goes into its final spins.
The last seven
years, Daniel’s seventieth week and the trumpets definitely converge at one
discernable point ahead. The actual
countdown in the scriptures in Revelation does not begin where one would expect.
As the Lord unfolds the scriptures to us, He reveals His magnificent
orderly plan. He will fulfill His
promise to return and call out His own. I
can only pray for those who read the next chapters that the Holy Spirit will
bless each on with the same joy He has given me in this!
Praise the Lord!
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