End Times Prophecy 6 (a)

Some Review and Leftovers

Four Points of View on Revelation

The problem of hermeneutics—how we interpret Scripture

Preterist

Historicist

Idealist

Futurist

‌Preterists believe that Christ returned symbolically at the destruction of the temple, 70 AD; believe the earlier date for writing Revelation (54-68); ignore the visibility of the 2nd coming as laid out in other passages; can’t answer why the church is still her if the Rapture already occurred

‌Historicistsbelieve that some prophecies from Revelation have already been fulfilled and/or are being fulfilled now; was the predominant view through the mid-20th century; still the most vocal of the belief systems; historicists are generally knowledgeable about world events and history; valid question is “under whose authority can they claim prophecy has been fulfilled?

‌Idealists believe the events are just a metaphor, a good poetic story; it ties to theological liberalism; if applied here, the other books of Bible are marginalized

‌Futurists believe that all the events after chapter 4 are still in the future—presents of the problem that at some point they become historicists

Leftovers: Regarding the sealing of God’s people, similarities to

Ezekiel 9:4 (ESV)

And the Lord said to him, “Pass through the city, through Jerusalem, and put a mark on the foreheads of the men who sigh and groan over all the abominations that are committed in it.”

Relates to some writings of the Qumran community:

John’s Gospel, Hebrews–Revelation (2. The First Six Trumpets (8:6–9:21))

“As happened in the age of the first visitation [of destruction], as he [God] said by the hand of Ezekiel: blank ‘{…} To mark with a tau the foreheads of those who sigh and groan’ (Ezek. 9:4). But those who remained were delivered up to the sword, which carries out the vengeance of the covenant. Thus will be the judgment of all those entering his covenant, who do not remain steadfast in these precepts; they shall be visited for destruction at the hand of Belial.

From Craig Evans’ Commentary

We also get some echos of Ezek 10 2 in v. 5 of chap. 8

Ezekiel 10:2 ESV

And he said to the man clothed in linen, “Go in among the whirling wheels underneath the cherubim. Fill your hands with burning coals from between the cherubim, and scatter them over the city.” And he went in before my eyes.

We must note that some current scholars put all the actions within the opening of all the seals within the church age (Wilcock)

This will fit historic pre-mil (post-trib) best…possibly A-mil as well…kinda sorta...

Others (pre-trib) see most or all of the events after the church age

Additionally, what John knew from OT, tradition, and non-canonical writings may have influence how he interpreted, and wrote, about what he saw

Before we dive in....

There are 7 seals; the 7th unleashes the 7 trumpets; the 7th unleashes the 7 bowls

Chapter 8:1-5

The Lamb now opens the 7th seal…and there is silence in Heaven

Does worship cease? Seems to be a link between silence and God’s action Zech 2 13

Zechariah 2:13 ESV

Be silent, all flesh, before the Lord, for he has roused himself from his holy dwelling.

Could be that even the praise of the creatures in 4:8 stops?

Seven angels—many non-canonical books understand 7 angels tending the throne

Consider the history of trumpets: making announcements, calls to war; now we have 7 specific trumpets!

Things start to get worse; the scene on earth gets really ugly

Revelation 8:5 ESV

Then the angel took the censer and filled it with fire from the altar and threw it on the earth, and there were peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake.

…and all we know about hell starts to break out upon the earth

Historic Perspectives

One old thought traces back to c. 300 AD; first 4 trumpets have sounded by 607; the fifth relates to Mohammed,

Another has the first trumpet/bowl as the destruction of Jerusalem in 70; the second to Constantine; the third to the burning of Rome in 561; the fourth to the coronation of Charlemagne in 806; the fifth to Zadok of the Turks in 1051; sixth to Osman in 1296; and finally #7 to the Reformation !

According to the Geneva Bible, the seventh seal and what follows it represent the corruption of doctrine and the ‘sects & heresies’ which are brought into the church as a result. This ecclesiastical interpretation has many echoes in texts of the sixteenth century.

Occasionally, these images are linked with more specific figures or movements. The fourth angel’s trumpet blast (8:12) with the blocking of a third part of the sun signifies that because Christ is the sun of justice, those who ‘boast of their works and merits obscure Christ and tread his death under foot’ (Geneva Bible). I

n similar vein, Luther interprets the hail and fire with blood of the first trumpet as a judgement on the doctrine of works-righteousness, which ‘had to be the first doctrine in opposition to the gospel, and it also remains the last’. In his introductory notes on the Apocalypse, Luther interprets the third angel who caused the great star to fall (8:10–11) as Origen, the falling star ‘who embittered and corrupted the Scriptures with the philosophy of reason

Most of these would fit an A-mil or a post-mil perspective; all taking a historic perspective