Now after John was taken into custody, Jesus came into Galilee, preaching the gospel of God, and saying, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.” - Mark 1:14-15
Thank you for joining us this morning as we continue our study through the Revelation of Jesus Christ. This is the first time I’ve ever seriously and meticulously examined this book, chapter by chapter and verse by verse. To be honest, up to this point I’ve been somewhat intimidated by it and felt unqualified to teach it. As we work our way through it together, my prayer is that God will enable me to present Revelation correctly, clearly, and rationally. How would you say that I’m doing so far?
I. VOICES IN HEAVEN (Revelation 11:15)
Starting back in chapter 10, John’s vision temporarily transported him to the earth where he took the little scroll from the mighty angel’s hand and ate it (10:8-11) and then measured the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (11:1). Now, as he returns his attention to the series of trumpet judgments, John again finds himself in the heavenly throne room of God. He watched as the 7th and final angel standing in line before the throne of God blew their trumpet.
When the trumpet sounded, John heard loud voices in heaven saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.” Scripture does not specifically identify who was speaking. That said, it could be the 4 living creatures, or some angels and/or archangels, or perhaps even the Tribulation saints. I personally do not believe it was raptured Christians (the Church), as they are represented by the 24 elders who speak next.
According to their statement, by this point the worldly kingdom had given way to the kingdom of God. Jesus, the King of kings, had begun His never-ending reign. This seemingly refers to the Millennial reign of Christ, which I believe will precede the eternal state. With this in mind, the overwhelming majority of Bible experts place these events after the Great Tribulation ends.
The timing of 7th Trumpet provides strong evidence that these individual scenes are not always written in chronological order. While most of them are, some - like this one - clearly aren’t. The fall of the world system and the beginning of Christ’s reign over the kingdom of God clearly occur at the end of the tribulation. If the events of John’s vision were written in precise chronological order, this would take place in the final chapters of Revelation, not in the middle! As stated earlier, I believe that John recorded the things he saw in the order that they were presented to him, which is not necessarily the same order in which they will occur.
II. THE 24 ELDERS SPEAK (Revelation 11:16-18)
After the unidentified voices finished, John then heard the 24 elders speak. Many noted Bible commentators believe that these elders represent redeemed Christians. They fell on their faces before God, worshiping Him and saying, “We give You thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”
Their statement contains several important parts. First, they expressed thanks to God because He had demonstrated His great power and had begun to reign. Second, they stated that the nations were enraged and that God’s wrath came. Putting these 2 ideas together, we see that the nations of the world railed against God, He poured out His judgment upon them with great power during the tribulation, and then set up His kingdom after defeating them. This statement basically echoes that of the unidentified “loud voices” in verse 15.
The words of the 24 elders also provide insight into certain events that take place after the tribulation ends. They said that the time had come for the dead to be judged, for the LORD’s servants to be rewarded, and for God to destroy those who destroyed the earth. I personally believe that all 3 of these things will take place between the Second Coming of Christ and the beginning of His Millennial reign on earth. We will discuss each of these events in much more detail later in this series.
III. THE HEAVENLY TEMPLE (Revelation 11:19)
Having heard the loud voices in heaven followed by those of the 24 elders, John then saw the temple in heaven being opened. He was able to see the “ark of His covenant”, suggesting that even the veil shielding the Holy of Holies was removed. All of the contents of the heavenly temple were exposed. As he watched, there were peals of lighting and rumbles of thunder, along with an earthquake and a great hailstorm.
The Bible repeatedly speaks of a temple in heaven, where the LORD dwells (Psalm 11:4). God instructed Moses to construct the earthly tabernacle after the model of or in the pattern of the heavenly temple (Exodus 25:9,40; Hebrews 8:5). After His death on the cross, Jesus entered this temple as our great High Priest once and for all time to obtain redemption for believers (Hebrews 9:11-12). Some scholars suggest that the temple of God in heaven refers to all of heaven (the LORD’s dwelling place), while others argue that it is a specific building or sanctuary in heaven - one not made by human hands. I do not have a strong opinion on this either way.
Like most of Revelation, there are various interpretations surrounding the meaning of this passage. I tend to think that it refers to the return of Christ. The earthquake, lightning, thunder, and hail are reminiscent of other passages that describe the Second Coming. Perhaps the heavenly temple is “opened” to show that Jesus has come out of it. If so, we can combine this portion of the vision with the voices cited in the preceding verses to conclude that at the sounding of the 7th trumpet Jesus will leave the heavenly temple, return to earth, and begin His reign there.
CONCLUSION
With the sounding of the 7th blast, the trumpet judgments come to an end. Remember, the final 3 trumpets are sometimes called the “3 woes”. Woe to the earth, for a horde of demonic locusts will come to terrorize people for 5 months (5th Trumpet). Woe to the earth, for an army of 200,000,000 will rise up and kill ¼ of the population (6th Trumpet). Woe to the earth, for God’s kingdom is coming, sinners will be judged, and His enemies will be utterly and completely destroyed (7th Trumpet).
Following the 7 trumpets, there is a final series of 7 bowl judgments. However, these are not mentioned until chapter 15. For the next few weeks, as we work our way through chapters 12-14, we will discuss several scenes from John’s vision that are not connected to any prescribed series of judgments. That said, they will provide us with greater details and a further understanding of end time events.
In closing, the Lord is coming again. He will establish His Kingdom. Jesus will reign eternally. His enemies will be defeated, sinners will be judged, and the righteous will be rewarded. It is going to happen. So, are you ready?
Thank you for joining us this morning as we continue our study through the Revelation of Jesus Christ. This is the first time I’ve ever seriously and meticulously examined this book, chapter by chapter and verse by verse. To be honest, up to this point I’ve been somewhat intimidated by it and felt unqualified to teach it. As we work our way through it together, my prayer is that God will enable me to present Revelation correctly, clearly, and rationally. How would you say that I’m doing so far?
I. VOICES IN HEAVEN (Revelation 11:15)
Starting back in chapter 10, John’s vision temporarily transported him to the earth where he took the little scroll from the mighty angel’s hand and ate it (10:8-11) and then measured the Jewish temple in Jerusalem (11:1). Now, as he returns his attention to the series of trumpet judgments, John again finds himself in the heavenly throne room of God. He watched as the 7th and final angel standing in line before the throne of God blew their trumpet.
When the trumpet sounded, John heard loud voices in heaven saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever.” Scripture does not specifically identify who was speaking. That said, it could be the 4 living creatures, or some angels and/or archangels, or perhaps even the Tribulation saints. I personally do not believe it was raptured Christians (the Church), as they are represented by the 24 elders who speak next.
According to their statement, by this point the worldly kingdom had given way to the kingdom of God. Jesus, the King of kings, had begun His never-ending reign. This seemingly refers to the Millennial reign of Christ, which I believe will precede the eternal state. With this in mind, the overwhelming majority of Bible experts place these events after the Great Tribulation ends.
The timing of 7th Trumpet provides strong evidence that these individual scenes are not always written in chronological order. While most of them are, some - like this one - clearly aren’t. The fall of the world system and the beginning of Christ’s reign over the kingdom of God clearly occur at the end of the tribulation. If the events of John’s vision were written in precise chronological order, this would take place in the final chapters of Revelation, not in the middle! As stated earlier, I believe that John recorded the things he saw in the order that they were presented to him, which is not necessarily the same order in which they will occur.
II. THE 24 ELDERS SPEAK (Revelation 11:16-18)
After the unidentified voices finished, John then heard the 24 elders speak. Many noted Bible commentators believe that these elders represent redeemed Christians. They fell on their faces before God, worshiping Him and saying, “We give You thanks, Lord God, the Almighty, the One who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. And the nations were enraged, and Your wrath came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and the time to reward Your bond-servants the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.”
Their statement contains several important parts. First, they expressed thanks to God because He had demonstrated His great power and had begun to reign. Second, they stated that the nations were enraged and that God’s wrath came. Putting these 2 ideas together, we see that the nations of the world railed against God, He poured out His judgment upon them with great power during the tribulation, and then set up His kingdom after defeating them. This statement basically echoes that of the unidentified “loud voices” in verse 15.
The words of the 24 elders also provide insight into certain events that take place after the tribulation ends. They said that the time had come for the dead to be judged, for the LORD’s servants to be rewarded, and for God to destroy those who destroyed the earth. I personally believe that all 3 of these things will take place between the Second Coming of Christ and the beginning of His Millennial reign on earth. We will discuss each of these events in much more detail later in this series.
III. THE HEAVENLY TEMPLE (Revelation 11:19)
Having heard the loud voices in heaven followed by those of the 24 elders, John then saw the temple in heaven being opened. He was able to see the “ark of His covenant”, suggesting that even the veil shielding the Holy of Holies was removed. All of the contents of the heavenly temple were exposed. As he watched, there were peals of lighting and rumbles of thunder, along with an earthquake and a great hailstorm.
The Bible repeatedly speaks of a temple in heaven, where the LORD dwells (Psalm 11:4). God instructed Moses to construct the earthly tabernacle after the model of or in the pattern of the heavenly temple (Exodus 25:9,40; Hebrews 8:5). After His death on the cross, Jesus entered this temple as our great High Priest once and for all time to obtain redemption for believers (Hebrews 9:11-12). Some scholars suggest that the temple of God in heaven refers to all of heaven (the LORD’s dwelling place), while others argue that it is a specific building or sanctuary in heaven - one not made by human hands. I do not have a strong opinion on this either way.
Like most of Revelation, there are various interpretations surrounding the meaning of this passage. I tend to think that it refers to the return of Christ. The earthquake, lightning, thunder, and hail are reminiscent of other passages that describe the Second Coming. Perhaps the heavenly temple is “opened” to show that Jesus has come out of it. If so, we can combine this portion of the vision with the voices cited in the preceding verses to conclude that at the sounding of the 7th trumpet Jesus will leave the heavenly temple, return to earth, and begin His reign there.
CONCLUSION
With the sounding of the 7th blast, the trumpet judgments come to an end. Remember, the final 3 trumpets are sometimes called the “3 woes”. Woe to the earth, for a horde of demonic locusts will come to terrorize people for 5 months (5th Trumpet). Woe to the earth, for an army of 200,000,000 will rise up and kill ¼ of the population (6th Trumpet). Woe to the earth, for God’s kingdom is coming, sinners will be judged, and His enemies will be utterly and completely destroyed (7th Trumpet).
Following the 7 trumpets, there is a final series of 7 bowl judgments. However, these are not mentioned until chapter 15. For the next few weeks, as we work our way through chapters 12-14, we will discuss several scenes from John’s vision that are not connected to any prescribed series of judgments. That said, they will provide us with greater details and a further understanding of end time events.
In closing, the Lord is coming again. He will establish His Kingdom. Jesus will reign eternally. His enemies will be defeated, sinners will be judged, and the righteous will be rewarded. It is going to happen. So, are you ready?