REVELATION CHAPTER 1 - THE INTRODUCTION
Jesus tells John to "Write the things which thou hast seen; and the things which are; and the things which shall [G3195 mellei] come to be [G1996 genesthai] after this [G3326 meta G3777 tauta]." (Revelation 1:19).
"After this [G3326 meta G3777 tauta] I looked, and, behold, a door was opened in heaven: and the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said, Come up hither, and I will shew thee things which must come to be [G1996 genesthai] after this [G3326 meta G3777 tauta]." (Revelation 4:1).
THE BOOK (THE SCROLL)
Revelation 5:1-2
And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book (scroll) written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, Who is worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof?
Revelation 5:5-6
And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof. And I beheld, and, lo, in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts, and in the midst of the elders, stood a Lamb as it had been slain, having seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven Spirits of God sent forth into all the earth.
No one seals a blank scroll. The Apocalypse was written in the scroll, then sealed with seven seals. Once all seven seals have been loosened, the scroll unrolls.
777 | JUDGMENT
The seventh time the Israelites marched around the city of Jericho on the seventh day they marched around the city (after they had marched around the city once for six days), at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the people gave a great shout, and the walls of Jericho fell (Joshua Chapter 6).
In the Revelation:
- seen when the 7th bowl of wrath is being poured out: lightnings, thunderings.
- seen when the 7th trumpet is blown: lightnings, thunderings, and the Ark of the Testament.
- seen when the 7th seal has been loosened (Revelation 8:5): lightnings, thunderings.
KEY SYMBOL: Lightnings and thunderings:
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And it came to pass on the third day in the morning, that there were thunders and lightnings, and a thick cloud upon the mount, and the voice of the trumpet exceeding loud; so that all the people that was in the camp trembled. -- Exodus 19:16.
And all the people saw the thunderings, and the lightnings, and the noise of the trumpet, and the mountain smoking: and when the people saw it, they removed, and stood far off. -- Exodus 20:18.
And the LORD said unto Moses, Thus you shall say unto the children of Israel, All of you have seen that I have talked with you from heaven. -- Exodus 20:22.
The LORD thundered from heaven, and the most High uttered his voice. And he sent out arrows, and scattered them; lightning, and humiliated them. -- 2 Samuel 22:14-15.
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The loosening of the 7th seal opens the book (causes the scroll to unroll).
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666 | Armageddon |
6th TRUMPET - THE SECOND "WOE" KEY SYMBOLS:
1. EUPHRATES - THE TIMING: I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.
(Timing): And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year. (Revelation 9:13-15).
2. FIRE, SMOKE, AND BRIMSTONE: And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions;
3. MOUTHS: and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.
By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued OUT OF THEIR MOUTHS. For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt. (Revelation 9:17-19).
6TH BOWL OF WRATH (Chapter 16) KEY SYMBOLS:
1. EUPHRATES: And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
2. MOUTHS: And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
Compare Jesus's interjection in the middle of the 6th bowl of wrath with the loosening of the 6th seal:
--- Behold, I come as a thief.
Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments,
lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. ---
And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon." (Revelation 16:13-16).
6th SEAL:
"And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath has come; and who shall be able to stand?" *
* Many churches and many Christians refer to the wrath of God as "great tribulation" - but the New Testament makes a very clear distinction between "tribulation"; "great tribulation"; and wrath.
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The way the Revelation is written,
- The 6th seal is followed by the 7th seal (and the unrolling of the scroll).
- The 6th bowl is followed by the 7th bowl (wrath).
- The 6th trumpet is followed by the 7th trumpet.
- The 5th seal sees the souls of those who have been martyred being told that they should rest a short while longer until the full number of martyrs is come in (in such a way as to imply that the full number is about to come in).
- The 5th trumpet is the first "woe" - in the book where it's written, it sees the opening of the bottomless pit/abyss.
- The 5th bowl is poured on the throne of the beast.
Looking for themes (instead of looking for chronology) in the book of Revelation causes the chronology to fall into place by itself.
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