seekeroftruth
Well-Known Member
Revelation 8:6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.
7 The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.
8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, 9 a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.
10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water— 11 the name of the star is Wormwood. A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.
12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night.
13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!”
Here's a link to the commentary I read with these verses.
Now we can listen for the sound of the rest of the trumpets. They are in chapter 9.
All these attacks are from the sky... where Heaven is. First, there's fire and blood. That reminds me of a volcanic eruption... pyroclastic fire flying in Iceland, Alaska, Mexico City, and down the western side of South America. According to one official looking site, there have been 46 active volcanoes since March 2nd. I read one article that revealed a plate at the bottom of the sea has flipped completely over. I guess that is the one that caused one heck of a tsunami.
The loss of a third of the aquatic life would be a real blow to John's family and friends. They were fisherman. If a huge mountain looking thing fell from the sky and took out a third of the fleet as well as a third of the harvest, it would devastate the economy as well as costing lives.
Next, there is something like a blazing torch, could that be meteorites burning through the atmosphere and hitting earth while still on fire? Where could that hit, so as to take out a third of the earth's trees and all the grass? A blazing torch, could that be a bolt of lightning? Lightning starts a lot of fires in Arizona.
Now on to Wormwood. I've heard a lot of preaching about wormwood. I know it's probably important to some of the more educated Christians. They talk about it a lot. So.... I went to the "got questions" site.
A third of the waters became wormwood, and many people died from the water, because it had been made bitter.” Wormwood is a woody shrub used in making medicine and is known for its bitter taste. “Bitter as wormwood” was a common metaphor because everyone knew how unpleasant it tasted. Wormwood is also used to describe bitterness of soul and experience. In the end-times judgment, the “bitter” water must also be poisonous because people die from drinking it.
In verse 12 the sun is struck. Is the sun struck or has the earth tilted on its axis? I know there are places where the sun doesn't shine every day. In Alaska it gets dark and stays dark for a couple months. If the earth shifts on its axis, Israel, could grow dark. Without sunlight... a lot of humans will go bonkers... let alone the devastation to the crop cycles, making food scarce too. Flipping the earth on its axis would also change the tides. The earth and the moon interact through gravitational pull... and that would be all messed up. If it affects the moon... I'm surprised John didn't mention women going mad.And now the eagle. In both the Revelation studies I attended, the eagle was a source of intrigue. Both studies want it to be the United States, or the president himself. The eagle is supposed to represent the United States a "the" world power. Apparently the KJV says it's an angel who flies over the earth and exclaims "woe, woe, woe". In the NIV it's an eagle. I doubt John knew anything about the Americas. I doubt the eagle has anything to do with the United States. I think it's about the horror of the devastation the first four trumpets have "celebrated".
I bet American readers like the eagle rendition.... while everyone else would understand the angel rendition. At any rate... I don't think it's as important who did the flying as the exclamation of horror the entity is crying. A third of everything John enjoyed about the earth... a shady spot under the trees, sitting in the grass, enjoying a cool drink, eating a good meal.... has been destroyed.
Well.... the first four trumpets have caused extensive damage. There are three more to go.
The trumpet was a call to war back in the days of early Israel.
The first four trumpets inflicted a lot of damage.
Three more to go...
