The Sixth Trumpet Judgement

The judgements: Leaning heavily upon Schreiner.

Looking at the Seven Trumpets:

• Most likely these are a revisitation of God’s justice that is poured out on the earth, but from a different perspectives

• The trumpets and the bowls have echos of the plagues that got sent upon Egypt in the book of Exodus (Show Slide)

Trumpets are Split into sections, much like the seals:

• Four Trumpets, and interlude, and then 3 more trumpets

Review of Trumpets

First Trumpet: Impacts the Land

Hail and fire (mixed with blood, obviously symbolic)

• Echoes the plague of hail (Exodus 9:23-24)

• Result?

• Affects livestock, vegetation, atmosphere

• Results in Famine

Second Trumpet: Impacts the Sea

• Echoes the first plague of Egypt

• The Nile likely literally turned to blood (narrative)

• John picks up on that language and uses it apocalyptically to describe the effect that God’s judgement will have on the seas.

• Main Point: God’s judgement will impact the oceans and seas

• Food supply will be impacted

• Natural Disasters? Tsunami would ensue

• One third of the seas - probably not literal.

Third Trumpet: Impacts Rivers and Springs

• A star called “Wormwood” falls from heaven and embitters the fresh water supply.

• Rivers and Streams are supposed to be refreshing, but life on earth is polluted because of sin.

Fourth Judgement: Impacts the Sky

• This recalls the plague of darkness upon Egypt

Interlude

Revelation 8:13 (ESV) Then I looked, and I heard an eagle crying with a loud voice as it flew directly overhead, “Woe, woe, woe to those who dwell on the earth, at the blasts of the other trumpets that the three angels are about to blow!”

• This interlude highlights the fact that the last three judgements will be worse than the first four.

• Those who Dwell on Earth = Unbelievers

• Believers and unbelievers alike are impacted by natural disasters

• We need not fear the last three judgements though:

• They only impact unbelievers. Those who have God’s mark will stand!

• Unbelievers should be filled with horror!

Wedding: Difference between believing and unbelieving families. You can tell they are tormented.

Fifth Trumpet

A star fallen from Heaven (an angel) was given keys to the bottomless pit

Angel

Good Angel (because he does God’s bidding)

A Fallen Angel - The falling star could represent an angel’s moral fall

Satan Himself - Harkening back to Isaiah’s prophecy about the fall of Babylon, also attributed to the devil himself.

The Bottomless Pit

Symbolic language; simply means the realm where Satan dwells

The “key” simply means that the angel is granted authority to rule over those in the pit, implying that the angel’s authority is given by God.

*Whereas the first four trumpets depict judgements upon the created world, with the fifth trumpet, demons are commissioned to bring anguish upon those who have rejected God. It seems that those who have rejected God are tormented with spiritual darkness and hopelessness.

There are now two more woes to come.

The Sixth Trumpet

Read Rev. 9:13-20;

Revelation 9:13 (ESV)

Then the sixth angel blew his trumpet, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar before God,

The altar of incense was in the Holy Place of the tabernacle and temple.

In the OT, God was pleased with incense that was offered to Him (Ex. 30)

John heard a voice from the horns of the altar. Horn’s don’t usually speak… this is apocalyptic literature.

It is possible that the voice represents an angel speaking

Psalm 141:1–2 (ESV)

O Lord, I call upon you; hasten to me!

Give ear to my voice when I call to you!

Let my prayer be counted as incense before you,

and the lifting up of my hands as the evening sacrifice!

Revelation 5:8 (ESV)

And when he had taken the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell down before the Lamb, each holding a harp, and golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints.

Revelation 8:3–4 (ESV)

And another angel came and stood at the altar with a golden censer, and he was given much incense to offer with the prayers of all the saints on the golden altar before the throne, and the smoke of the incense, with the prayers of the saints, rose before God from the hand of the angel.

Our prayers are like incense that go up before the Lord. Judgments are answers to the prayers of the saints.

Revelation 9:14 (ESV)

saying to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.”

In 7:1, four angels were holding back the winds of judgement from being poured out upon the earth. Because the angels in this verse are “bound” it is likely that they are demonic beings/fallen angels.

Matthew 12:29 (ESV)

Or how can someone enter a strong man’s house and plunder his goods, unless he first binds the strong man? Then indeed he may plunder his house.

Revelation 20:2 (ESV)

And he seized the dragon, that ancient serpent, who is the devil and Satan, and bound him for a thousand years,

It seems that the sixth trumpet is similar to the abyss. Upon the blowing of the fifth trumpet, demons are released from the abyss, and on the sixth judgement, demons are released from the East.

Revelation 9:15 (ESV)

So the four angels, who had been prepared for the hour, the day, the month, and the year, were released to kill a third of mankind.

The angels, bound at the Euphrates, are now released to kill a third of humanity.

Again, it seems that these could be evil beings (demons), because, one, it fits within the context, and—two— they are released (presumably from being bound, rather than being commissioned.

The hour, day, month, and year… need not mean a specific day, but—more likely—it refers to an “era”. John likely has the “Last Days” in mind, the time between Christ’s resurrection and His return.

Again, remember this is apocalyptic language, so it is likely not that EXACTLY one third of humans are killed, but a great number.

Revelation 9:16–19 (ESV)

The number of mounted troops was twice ten thousand times ten thousand; I heard their number. And this is how I saw the horses in my vision and those who rode them: they wore breastplates the color of fire and of sapphire and of sulfur, and the heads of the horses were like lions’ heads, and fire and smoke and sulfur came out of their mouths. By these three plagues a third of mankind was killed, by the fire and smoke and sulfur coming out of their mouths. For the power of the horses is in their mouths and in their tails, for their tails are like serpents with heads, and by means of them they wound.

John hears the number of the demonic army, (10,000 x 10,000) x 2 = 200, 000, 000

This just represents an innumerable army, and—likely—this is not a human army, but a demonic horde.

He sees the horses and riders which constitute a massive army.

It is clear by the imagery John uses to describe them that this, again, is no human army.

The fire, sapphire, and sulfur coming from their mouths represent three plagues.

The number three, remember, is symbolic, and thus the plagues refer to every kind of disease, virus, and pestilence that take the lives of human beings.

The plagues poured out on Egypt serve as a foreshadow of the judgments recorded here.

Their tails are “like serpents with heads” indicating demonic activity.

rev 9:20-21

Revelation 9:20–21 (ESV)

The rest of mankind, who were not killed by these plagues, did not repent of the works of their hands nor give up worshiping demons and idols of gold and silver and bronze and stone and wood, which cannot see or hear or walk, nor did they repent of their murders or their sorceries or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

“The rest” = unbelievers.

God intended for these judgements to provoke the remaining unbelievers, but, just as Pharoah did not repent, these people refuse to repent.

Here we see that God is just in his punishment.

Consider the works of which they needed to repent:

1) They worshiped demons and idols (false gods)

2) Verse 21 hones in on the particular sins of which they need to repent:

Murder, sorcery, sexual immorality, and stealing.

Response:

1) God is in control, even when chaos fills the earth.

2) Is God Just in Pouring Out Judgment upon those who pursue evil?

3) How do we know that there is a redemptive purpose in God’s Judgement?

4) Why do humans pursue idols and sins such as sexual immorality?

They think they can satisfy their hearts

They think these things bring joy and fulfillment

5) We must not follow the ways of this world. We must abstain from evil and remember—no matter how enticing sin looks—in the end, it will crush those who pursue it.