Significant Pattern in the Prophetic Section of the Revelation
While
lightning is spectacular and draws us to wonder at the great power of God in
the heavens, the ground shaking, ear splitting effect of thunder also is a real
attention getter, as the power of a fierce and furious thunderstorm passes by,
when the majestic might of God Himself seems to fill the landscape. So it was,
as indicated in the book of Job 36:26-37:5 the first book written in the Bible,
and will be again when He unveils
His
end times program at the end of this age as recorded in the book of The
Revelation of Jesus Christ.
The Revelation of Jesus Christ chapter
four opens a door into heaven for the Apostle John to experience The Thundering
Throne-room of God, as all of heavens glory is brought before him:
‘And immediately I was in the Spirit;
and, behold, a throne was set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. And He that
sat was to look upon like a jasper and a sardine stone: and there was a rainbow
round about the throne, in sight like unto and emerald. And round about the
throne were four and twenty seats; and upon the seats I saw four and twenty
elders sitting, clothed in white raiment; and they had on their heads crowns of
gold. And out of the throne proceeded
lightnings and thunderings and voices’ (Revelation 4:2-5a).
This is the first time this pattern is
seen in the book of the Revelation. The Scripture continues for the remainder
of chapter four describing the heavenly Throne-room scene including those who
are present worshiping God in this grand and glorious opening chapter of ‘the things which must be hereafter’.
However, the focus of this message is the
underlined phrase above which is found three other times in the book of the
Revelation forming a significant pattern, and indicating the progressive and
chronological nature of this final book of Scripture!
This pattern will also serve to show the
increasing activity of God and His Day of the Lord Wrath/Judgment upon the
entire world in order that He might purify His people, the Jews, and punish the
rest of those who have openly rebelled against Him and continually refuse to
repent!
In chapters five, six and seven much has
taken place in the unfolding drama of end time events. Chapter five is coupled
to chapter four continuing the Throne-room Scene emphasizing the Coronation of
the King of kings, and the worthiness of the Lamb of God, our Lord Jesus
Christ, to take the book which contains God’s Day of the Lord Wrath/Judgment,
and to open the seals which are on the outside of the book/scroll.
The Seven Seals are opened sequentially
conditioning the earth for God’s Wrath with the last three seals focusing on
His Wrath when the martyrs in Seal Five Inquire of His Wrath, and the signs
given in Seal Six Indicate His Wrath is about to occur, with Seal Seven
Initiating His Wrath after silence overwhelms heaven for thirty minutes… And
then, the first Trumpet Judgment occurs, but not before the sequence we are
studying is mentioned.
The
Passing of the Torch of the Testimony of Jesus Christ also takes place when the
saints are raptured and the One Hundred Forty Four Thousand Jews are sealed
between the sixth and seventh seal, but, the key point in all of that has
transpired in chapters 4-7 to this point in time is what is ALLOWED by God vs.
what is AUTHORED by God! What is the Wrath of Satan and just what is the Wrath
of God?
The Wrath of God has just been given a
hefty introduction through the Fifth and Sixth Seal with the question of the
martyrs: ‘How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost Thou not judge and avenge our
blood on them that dwell on the earth?’ This inquiry asking when God’s judgment
will come, shows that the Day of the Lord has not yet begun.
Then the sign of His Impending Wrath also
known as the Day of the Lord is given:
‘And I beheld when He had opened the
sixth seal, and lo, there was a great earthquake; and sun became black as
sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell
unto the earth, even as a fig tree casts her untimely figs, when she is shaken
of a mighty wind.’ (Revelation 6:12,13)
Then in (6:17): ‘For the great day of His Wrath is come’ indicates that we are on
the threshold of the most prophesied event in Scripture, the Day of the Lord,
the Wrath of God at this point in history is just about to occur! After the
Passing of the Torch from the saints to the One Hundred and Forty Four Thousand
Jews, the time has come for God to do His strange work of judgment!
We are now ready to continue the focus of
this study which shows that the source of lightnings and thunderings and voices
(lit. sounds) is the throne of God, and at this point in time, nothing has been
done by God to effectively bring His Wrath/Judgment upon the earth. But, the
next occurrence of this significant pattern found in (8:5) shows a major
addition.
The preceding verses in chapter eight
indicate that we are still in the Throne-room of God and at this point He is
about to intervene with His Wrath/Judgment upon the earth through the agency of
His angel:
‘And the angel took the censer, and
filled it with fire of the altar, and cast it into the earth; And there were voices and thunderings,
and lightnings, and an EARTHQUAKE.’
(8:5)
At this point in God’s program of end time
events His Wrath/Judgment is begun. Not only does this pattern of events appear
in heaven but now the effect is experienced on earth by the addition of an
earthquake. This Throne-room sequence marks the beginning of The Seven Trumpet
Judgments which is the Initiation of God’s Wrath/Judgment on earth.
The next time this pattern appears is in
chapter eleven at the end of The Seven Trumpet Judgments but there is an
additional effect upon the earth as the progressive nature of God’s Judgment is
seen:
‘And the temple of God was opened in
heaven, and there was seen in His temple the ark of His testament: And there were lightnings, and voices,
and thunderings, and an EARTHQUAKE, AND GREAT HAIL.’ (11:19)
Multiple major events have taken place as
described in verses fifteen through eighteen. While this is an important point
in God’s program bringing to pass a number of major events, the emphasis in
this message is to show this chronological pattern from the Throne-room as it increases
in intensity each time it occurs, and how it underlines the progressive nature
of God’s Preparation of Earth for His Wrath/Judgment with His Seven Seals.
Then, the same sequence is utilized to
mark the beginning and the ending of Gods Wrath/Judgments as the earth receives
the judgments of earthquake and hail which falls upon mankind by punctuating
the beginning and end of The Trumpet Judgments.
And, as we will see in the next sequence,
the beginning and ending of The Vial Judgments are also highlighted, for out of
the Seventh Trumpet Judgment proceeds the First Vial Judgment. Therefore, the
above pattern (11:19) not only marks the end of the first series of judgments
but it also punctuates the beginning of the last series of judgments, the Seven
Vials
The last time this pattern is recorded the
Bible says:
‘And the seventh angel poured out his
vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven,
from the throne, saying, It is done. ‘And
there were voices, and thunderings, and
lightnings; and there was a GREAT
EARTHQUAKE, SUCH AS WAS NOT SINCE MEN WERE UPON THE EARTH, SO MIGHTY AN
EARTHQUAKE, AND SO GREAT…AND THERE FELL UPON MEN A GREAT HAIL OUT OF HEAVEN, EVERY STONE ABOUT THE
WEIGHT OF A TALENT’ (16:17,18,21)
And so, the Global Wrath/Judgment of God ‘is
done’ and the grand finale as it were is this amazing progressive
and punctuating pattern of events authored by God, executed by His angels, and
experienced by all mankind, with all of it proceeding from The Thundering
Throne-room of God!
