Study of Revelation and End Times wk 24
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The Interlude of a Mighty Angel and a Small Scroll
The Interlude of a Mighty Angel and a Small Scroll
Two weeks ago we finished chapter 9, and the world has gone crazy.
We looked at the purpose factor, the perversity factor, and the pride factor.
With that we seen how harsh the judgment will get with the sixth trumpet as it will release what we called the filthy four, the four angels from the great Euphrates River.
Tonight we are going to look at chapter 10 of Revelation as we look at an interlude between the sixth and the seventh trumpet.
God’s intention is to encourage and comfort His people in the midst of the fury and to remind them that He is still sovereign, that He remembers His people, and that they will ultimately be victorious.
In this interlude we will see a Mighty Angel and a Small Scroll, and how they come into play to fulfill God’s plan.
In chapter ten tonight we will see seven things that happen during this interlude with this Mighty Angel and Small Scroll.
There is only eleven verses in chapter 10, but these verses can be confusing if we are not careful, therefore, if anyone at any time has a question stop me, and we will work it out.
Let’s look at the entire chapter, then go back and dig through the text.
Revelation 10:1-11.
Again this chapter is an interlude between the sixth trumpet and the seventh trumpet which the interlude actually caries over into chapter eleven also.
I. Mighty Angel
I. Mighty Angel
1 I saw another strong angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud; and the rainbow was upon his head, and his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire;
This was not just some ordinary angel found roaming around in heaven.
This was a Mighty Angel, this was not one of the seven angels responsible for sounding the seven trumpets, this was one of the highest ranking angels in heaven.
This angel had a very important job here, it was assigned an important job.
This angel is wrapped in a cloud - when Jesus ascended to heaven in Acts 1:9
9 And after He had said these things, He was lifted up while they were looking on, and a cloud received Him out of their sight.
There we see Jesus ascend and a cloud took him out of their sight, we are also told that we will be caught up in the clouds with the Lord in 1 Thessalonians 4:17
17 Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord.
We see that this angel being wrapped in a cloud is not just some kind of fairy tale but if you go back to 1 Thessalonians 4:16
16 For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.
We see there that Jesus will come with an archangel, maybe here in our text it is an archangel that is wrapped in a cloud coming down, but the angel is not just wrapped in a cloud, but has a rainbow over its head.
This angel is also bringing with it more than just the scroll but some symbolism, the rainbow stands for something.
God mad a covenant between Himself and all living creatures, and the sign is the rainbow which we see in Genesis 9:12-17
12 God said, “This is the sign of the covenant which I am making between Me and you and every living creature that is with you, for all successive generations;
13 I set My bow in the cloud, and it shall be for a sign of a covenant between Me and the earth.
14 “It shall come about, when I bring a cloud over the earth, that the bow will be seen in the cloud,
15 and I will remember My covenant, which is between Me and you and every living creature of all flesh; and never again shall the water become a flood to destroy all flesh.
16 “When the bow is in the cloud, then I will look upon it, to remember the everlasting covenant between God and every living creature of all flesh that is on the earth.”
17 And God said to Noah, “This is the sign of the covenant which I have established between Me and all flesh that is on the earth.”
In our text of Revelation, God is reminding us of His promise to us, I believe first, with the cloud, that He will end the judgment for those that are enduring it and have turned to Him.
Second with the rainbow, that He never forgets His promises and since the time of Noah, He has never destroyed the entire earth with water, with flood, and will never again destroy the entire earth with water, flood.
The text continues with His face was like the sun, this radiance of the face denotes, like the revelation of God, both grace and judgment.
Along with the sun-like radiance of the face the legs are like pillars of fire which is showing the greatness of his majesty along with judgment.
II. Small Scroll
II. Small Scroll
2 and he had in his hand a little book which was open. He placed his right foot on the sea and his left on the land;
Here we are not told what is written in this scroll, but we may assume that it is more prophecy of events that will transpire in the tribulation period.
The angel is a messenger of Jesus Christ, the angel has been sent by God to come to earth, and has been sent with this scroll, we are told that this scroll is opened.
The angel put his right foot in the sea, and his left foot on the land, in Biblical times when a conqueror overthrew a nation that had a shoreline he would put one foot in the water and the other foot on the land and raise his hand in victory.
This was a sign that he had conquered the area and was claiming the area, just as God had told Joshua to do in Joshua 1:3
3 “Every place on which the sole of your foot treads, I have given it to you, just as I spoke to Moses.
In our text the angel is standing one foot in the sea and one foot on land, with the scroll opened in hand, some say that the scroll is symbolic as the deed to the earth, and the angel’s stance is a sign in preparation of taking the earth back from Satan.
We must remember that the earth was created by Jesus and for Jesus as we are told in Colossians 1:16
16 For by Him all things were created, both in the heavens and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities—all things have been created through Him and for Him.
When Adam sinned the deed to the earth was turned over to Satan, but Satan will be returned to were he belongs in the lake of fire for eternity.
III. Seven Thunders
III. Seven Thunders
3 and he cried out with a loud voice, as when a lion roars; and when he had cried out, the seven peals of thunder uttered their voices.
4 When the seven peals of thunder had spoken, I was about to write; and I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Seal up the things which the seven peals of thunder have spoken and do not write them.”
He cried out with a loud voice, that is the angel cried out with a loud voice like a roaring lion.
The lion is considered the king of the jungle, Jesus is called the Lion of Judah, the roar of a lion will get everyone’s attention that is in the sound of that roar.
8 A lion has roared! Who will not fear?
The Lord God has spoken! Who can but prophesy?
The angel of God here is preparing the people for what is about to be delivered.
16 The Lord roars from Zion
And utters His voice from Jerusalem,
And the heavens and the earth tremble.
But the Lord is a refuge for His people
And a stronghold to the sons of Israel.
Heaven and earth will shake because of the delivery of the news of judgment to come, but the people of God will be able to take refuge in the Lord because they will be safe in the Lord.
The text continues that when he cried out the seven thunders raised their voices, there is some differences of interpretation of what this could be but the majority of theologians and scholars believe this is - the seven Spirits of God that are preparing to pour out seven different judgments on the earth.
Seven is the number of completion in Scripture.
The sound of thunder has also been a reference to the voice of God speaking, one example of this is found in John 12:28-29
28 “Father, glorify Your name.” Then a voice came out of heaven: “I have both glorified it, and will glorify it again.”
29 So the crowd of people who stood by and heard it were saying that it had thundered; others were saying, “An angel has spoken to Him.”
Therefore, the angel has the small scroll in his hand, the scroll is opened, the seven Spirits of God, or we may say that God speaks completely of what is written on the scroll, and as John is about to write down what he is witnessing, what he just heard from God, he is told to seal up what the seven thunders said, and do not write it down.
Up to this point John has been instructed to write everything down, but know he is told to not write it down.
The mysteries of God are too wonderful for explanations, and some things are too terrible for description.
Some things are like God told Daniel in Daniel 12:8-9
8 As for me, I heard but could not understand; so I said, “My lord, what will be the outcome of these events?”
9 He said, “Go your way, Daniel, for these words are concealed and sealed up until the end time.
There are certain things in God’s Word that we will never be able to explain, and there are certain things in God’s Word that He just never meant for us to know.
As Dr. Adrian Rogers once said, “if God wanted us to know certain things, which He was talking about the number of wisemen, He would have told us.
But He did not tell us therefore, God did not find it important or necessary for us to know or He did not want us to know; therefore, He did not add it into Scripture.
Here we have what was written on the scroll, God tells John to seal it up and do not write it down.
Therefore, we must understand God had a reason for us not to know what the seven thunders, the seven Spirits of God, that is what God Himself said.
IV. No More Delay
IV. No More Delay
5 Then the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land lifted up his right hand to heaven,
6 and swore by Him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, that there will be delay no longer,
The angel that John had seen standing with one foot in the sea and one on the land raises his right hand to heaven, just as a person would do in a court proceeding before taking an oath.
The angel raises his right hand and swore by God that there will no longer be a delay.
See there is one more trumpet to come; then the mystery of God could be revealed.
With the rapid pace at which the description of judgment has proceeded thus far.
It may seem surprising that God’s messenger would say there has been a delay!
Yet what has been delayed to this point is the full and final outpouring of God’s wrath.
Through the judgment of the seven seals and the first six trumpets, God has been restraining his final judgment to allow continued opportunities for repentance.
Peter explained the delay is not slowness but patience in 2 Peter 3:9
9 The Lord is not slow about His promise, as some count slowness, but is patient toward you, not wishing for any to perish but for all to come to repentance.
This initiates the last plagues of the Day of the Lord, indicating that the time the disciples anticipated has come.
This will be the time when the prayers of the saints will be answered, the prayers mentioned in Revelation 6:9-10.
V. A Rush to End
V. A Rush to End
7 but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as He preached to His servants the prophets.
Verse seven begins - with but - this signifies a change from the delay referenced in verse six and the announcement of the angel blowing the seventh trumpet.
We will see the seventh trumpet be blown in chapter 11:15, it will mark a shift to the end of the tribulation, when the seven bowls of God’s wrath will be poured out on the earth.
We will see the seven bowls 16.
At that point, the narrative truly will begin rushing forward toward the return of Jesus to set up His earthly throne.
It might seem puzzling that John would announce a rush to the second coming when there are still twelve chapter remaining, however, some of those chapters will rehash from a different perspective events already described.
This far, God has revealed events to come.
Begin in chapter 11, He will focus on personalities involved in those events, these include the two witnesses, the Antichrist, and the false prophet.
VI. Take and Eat
VI. Take and Eat
8 Then the voice which I heard from heaven, I heard again speaking with me, and saying, “Go, take the book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the land.”
9 So I went to the angel, telling him to give me the little book. And he said to me, “Take it and eat it; it will make your stomach bitter, but in your mouth it will be sweet as honey.”
10 I took the little book out of the angel’s hand and ate it, and in my mouth it was sweet as honey; and when I had eaten it, my stomach was made bitter.
John has been told by God, do not write this down, the angel takes this oath if you will and states that the delay is over, everything is going to rush forward now, toward the time of Jesus’ second coming.
Now God speaks to John again, and tells him to go and get the scroll from the angel, John has been in a trance or a vision in heaven since Revelation 4:2
2 Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne was standing in heaven, and One sitting on the throne.
He was taken in the spirit into heaven, and has been writing from heaven since that point, but now this angel with one foot in the sea and one foot on the land, John says, I heard the voice from heaven say to me, go take the scroll; therefore, John is back on earth.
John goes to the angel and asks for the scroll, the angel tells him to take and eat it.
Now if you asked me for my Bible and I said, here take and eat it, you would surely look at me like I was crazy.
Because if we think about t, and in those days, a Bible would have been a scroll or in that format.
The angel says take and eat it, and it will be bitter in your stomach but sweet as honey in your mouth.
We can all understand what sweet like honey but the bitter in the stomach could be that it leaves a bad after taste, or heart burn, or indigestion.
Now why would anyone want to eat something that is going to purposefully leave a bad taste or give them heart burn or indigestion.
But John went got the scroll, took it and eat it, and just like the angel said it was sweet like honey in the mouth, but when it got to his stomach it was bitter.
A very similar situation happened in the Old Testament to the prophet Ezekiel in Ezekiel 3:1-3
1 Then He said to me, “Son of man, eat what you find; eat this scroll, and go, speak to the house of Israel.”
2 So I opened my mouth, and He fed me this scroll.
3 He said to me, “Son of man, feed your stomach and fill your body with this scroll which I am giving you.” Then I ate it, and it was sweet as honey in my mouth.
The hard word of prophecy is pleasant to receive because it is after all, the very Word of God.
Processing the prophecy internally, however, is a different matter that can prove difficult and even unpleasant.
John’s physical reaction demonstrates what every believer’s proper response to God’s judgment should be - sweet anticipation of God’s glory and our victory, and at the same time, the bitterness of seeing God’s wrath poured out on those who reject His Son.
As John truly digested what the seals, trumpets, and bowl judgments hold in store for the sinner, he becomes nauseated.
But still God’s final victory and vindication are sweet realities to the believer.
VII. You Must Prophesy
VII. You Must Prophesy
11 And they said to me, “You must prophesy again concerning many peoples and nations and tongues and kings.”
Equipped with this harsh word from God, John is instructed by the angel and God - the voice from heaven to prophesy to many people, nations, languages, and kings.
Even when the message is difficult, John must continue to proclaim it.
John had taken in the Word of God, he had eaten the scroll and digested it, this was a picture of a literal eating of something, but John was to take in the words of the scroll, what was going to take place and he was to prophesy about it, that is he was to warn people about it.
We are to take in the Word of God, eat it spiritually, write it on our hearts and on our minds, digest it, that means learn it, understand it to the best of our ability, in order that we may go forth and proclaim it.
We as Christians are all to go out and share the message of God’s Word, and everyone things it is just that God is love, but it is also that God is just, and if you reject His love, if your reject His Son and the sacrifice that His Son has made for you then you will be sent to the lake of fire, hell’s damnation for eternity.
See we have to proclaim God’s love, but we must also proclaim God’s wrath also, we have to share the gospel message that Jesus died on the cross for all sin, but that rejecting the free gift of salvation, leads to God’s wrath which is eternity in hell’s torment.
People need to know the truth, they deserve to know the truth.
It is our job as Christians to share the truth.