Lesson 11 The Six Trumpet Judgements of God (Rev 8:1-9:21)

Lesson 11: The Six Trumpet Judgements of God (Rev 8:1-9-21)

Revelation chapter 7 is a parenthesis or interlude that gives interpretive or explanatory keys to the trumpet judgements

• the 144,000 Jewish evangelists who are sealed by God,
• the martyred multitude
• the 24 elders who asked about the multitude.

The seventh seal opens the six trumpet judgements. The seventh trumpet opens the seven bowls judgements.

When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for half an hour.

• Seven angels who stand before God were given seven trumpets
• Another angel stood at the golden altar with a golden censer before the throne. He was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints. The smoke of the incense and the prayers of the saints rose before God. Then the angel took the incense and filled it with the fire of the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

1^st trumpet: Hail and fire, mixed with blood was thrown on the earth. 1/3 of the earth and trees were burned up. All green grass was burned up.

2^nd trumpet: Something like a great mountain was thrown into the sea. 1/3 of the sea became blood, 1/3 of the living sea creatures died, 1/3 of the ships were destroyed.

3^rd trumpet: A great star, called Wormwood, blazing like torch, fell from heaven. 1/3 of the rivers and spring waters. 1/3 of the waters became wormwood. Many people died because of the bitter water. (Wormwood is a symbol of bitterness in Jeremiah 9:15, Amos 5:7). In Revelation, it symbolizes divine judgement for those who reject spiritual “living water” that Jesus offers (Rev 22:17).

4^th trumpet: 1/3 of the sun, moon and stars were struck so that 1/3 of the light was darkened, 1/3 of the day and night was dark.

An eagle flew directly overhead and cry out with a loud voice to all who dwell on the earth, “Woe! Woe! Woe!”

The 5^th, 6^th and 7^th trumpets are also called woe judgements.

The 1^st woe

5^th trumpet: A star (angel) fallen from heaven to earth opened the shaft of the abyss or bottomless pit. Smoke like a great furnace rose from the shaft darkening the sun and the air. A first horde pf demons with power of locusts came from the smoke. A king called Abaddon (Hebrew) and Apollyon (Greek) leads them. They harm only the people without the seal of God. They tormented them like scorpions for five months without killing them. People seek death but failed. The demons are not human beings (Revelation 9:7-11).

This is the 3rd blackout.

The 1st blackout was before the great and awesome Day of the LORD (Joel 2:31; Acts 2:20).

The Day of the LORD includes the Tribulation period and the millennium reign of Christ on earth.

The 2nd blackout was at the 6th seal (Rev 6:12)

The 2^nd woe

6^th trumpet: A voice from behind the four horns of the golden altar says to the angel with the 6^th trumpet, “Release the four angels bound at the great river Euphrates. They were released to kill a third of mankind. 200 million troops wore breastplates the color of fire and sapphire and sulphur. Their horses were like lions’ heads. The plagues and fire, smoke and sulphur that came out of their mouths killed a third of mankind.  These second horde of demons are also not human beings.

The rest of mankind who survived did not

• repent of their works
• give up worshipping demons and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood
• repent of their murders, sorceries, sexual immorality, thefts

Revelation chapters 10 and 11 are parentheses or interludes which give explanations from God’s perspectives of the events before the 3^rd woe judgement.

The angel and the little scroll are described in Revelation 10.

The two witnesses’ ministry in the first half of the Tribulation is described in Revelation 11:1-13 (cf Zechariah 4).

Revelation 11:14 closes the end of the 6^th trumpet judgement which ends around the middle of the Tribulation.

^“The second woe has passed; behold, the third woe is soon to come. Then the seventh angel blew his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he shall reign forever and ever” (Rev 11:14-15).