When He opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. (Revelation 8:1)

 

The LORD is in his holy Temple; let everyone on earth be silent in his presence. (Habakkuk 2:20)

 

Last time, we associated silence in heaven with our experience of “Shock and Awe” that God would win the cosmic conflict not by power or coercive force, but rather by condescending to become a human being, eventually surrendering his own life. There is perhaps one other dimension to this silence in heaven.

 

When we compare the seven seals, trumpets and bowls, there is a significant overlap. In particular, the seventh seal, trumpet, and bowl of wrath all involve a spectacular scene of the heavenly sanctuary. The seventh seal ends with “the golden altar of incense” and with “rumblings and peals of thunder, flashes of lightning, and an earthquake” (Revelation 8:3,5).  Similarly, the seventh trumpet ends with a scene of “the Covenant Box” and with “flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder, an earthquake, and heavy hail” (Revelation 11:19).  And finally, the seventh plague ends with “a loud voice from the throne in the temple” and with “flashes of lightning, rumblings and peals of thunder, and a terrible earthquake” (Revelation 16:17-18).

 

In other words, the completion of each series of sevens describes two things: temple imagery and a scene of overwhelming power. Paul tells us that the temple refers to God’s people (Ephesians 2:21, 1 Peter 2:4-7, 1 Corinthians 3:17, 6:19, 2 Corinthians 6:16, Hebrews 3:6). The “flashes of lightening” imagery is used many times in the bible to refer to the immediate presence of God (Revelation 4:5, Exodus 19:6-8, Psalms 18:12, Ezekiel 1:4). It seems that what is being described at the conclusion of each series of sevens is the intimate union of God (symbolized by “flashes of lightening”) with his people (the temple).

 

John tells us, “when the seventh angel blows his trumpet, then God will accomplish his secret plan, as he announced to his servants, the prophets” (Revelation 10:7). What is this “secret plan?”  Paul referred to it as “the secret he hid through all past ages from all human beings but has now revealed to his people. God’s plan is to make known his secret to his people, this rich and glorious secret which he has for all peoples. And the secret is that Christ is in you, which means that you will share in the glory of God” (Colossians 1:25-27).

 

The Message Bible puts it this way:

 

This mystery has been kept in the dark for a long time, but now it’s out in the open. God wanted everyone, not just Jews, to know this rich and glorious secret inside and out, regardless of their background, regardless of their religious standing. The mystery in a nutshell is just this: Christ is in you, therefore you can look forward to sharing in God’s glory. (Colossians 1:26-27)

 

To “share in the glory of God” is to experience healing and to reflect the character of God who is love personified. To be healed is the natural consequence of being reunited with God.  John directly associates God’s “secret plan” and the seventh trumpet with healing and intimacy with God, Similarly, Paul tells us:

 

Listen to this secret truth: we shall not all die, but when the last trumpet sounds, we shall all be changed in an instant. (1 Corinthians 15:51)

 

God’s “secret plan” is to marry his bride and to become one with her.  

 

The “silence in heaven” may not only refer to our “Shock and Awe” experience when we realize the humility of our Creator, but also to the resulting unity between God and His people who have witnessed  God’s supreme kindness and love. When God enters into His temple (his people on earth), there is a symbolic “silence in heaven,” because God has reached His ultimate goal in this conflict – a face to face relationship between God and his people.

 

The LORD is in his holy Temple; let everyone on earth be silent in his presence. (Habakkuk 2:20)

 

Once we understand that God is just like Jesus Christ in character, the slaughtered Lamb, we will be moved to experience intimate union with God. “Everyone be silent in the presence of the LORD. He is waking up and setting out from his holy dwelling place.” (Zechariah 2:13)

 

The book of Revelation concludes with this single greatest promise and hope in the entire bible – to live face to face with God:

 

And I saw the holy city, the new Jerusalem, coming down from God out of heaven like a bride beautifully dressed for her husband. I heard a loud shout from the throne, saying, ‘Look, God's home is now among His people! He will live with them, and they will be His people. God Himself will be with them…And they will see His face.’ (Revelation 21:2-3, 22:4)

 

 

 

 

 

When the United States military invaded Iraq several years ago, much was made of the overwhelming military force that was to have the effect of “Shock and Awe.” The seventh seal describes a “Shock and Awe” that is a polar opposite of this:

“When the Lamb broke open the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” (Revelation 8:1)

30 minutes of celestial silence? What in the world is this referring to?

Thus far we have considered the invitation to the seven churches (which includes us) to come through the open door with John (4:1) and to gain understanding about the war in heaven and God’s plan to restore peace once again. In this scene, God is depicted in all of his glory, might and power, receiving praise from four living creatures and twenty four elders. Surprisingly, as none other than the Almighty God holds a scroll in his hand “no one in earth or heaven was found worthy to open the scroll” (5:3). We recognized that only in Jesus is God’s character fully understood and vindicated. When God became a “slaughtered Lamb,” praise in the book of Revelation escalated from merely “four” and “twenty four” to “thousands and millions.” God became a human being and subjected himself to the fate of a common criminal. In Jesus, we understand for the first time that God is not only all-powerful but also infinitely humble and forgiving – a God who can be trusted with infinite power. The breaking of the seventh seal brings us full circle back to this most critical understanding.

As the Lamb breaks each successive seal, Satan, who initially masqueraded as an angel of light, is gradually exposed until his reign is seen to result in nothing more than suffering and death. The cry of complaint in the fifth seal describes this suffering: “God, how can you allow this to go on? Where are you? Why don’t you use your power to stop this?”

“Even Satan can disguise himself to look like an angel of light!” (2 Corinthians 11:14) and last time we considered the reality that Satan, “the prince of this world” (John 12:31) has been allowed to establish his kingdom on earth. As we said, for the deceiver to be unmasked, he must be allowed to bring his foolish plans to their natural result and that is what we see as the four seals are opened. With the second seal we see that “Its rider was given the power to take peace away from the earth and to make people slaughter one another. So he was given a large sword.” (Revelation 6:4) The third seal reveals worsening human suffering and by the time we arrive at the fourth seal, Satan’s kingdom which initially seemed more appealing than God’s kingdom to a large angelic population, is revealed to be a failure and a fraud: “Its rider was named Death, and Hades followed close behind. They were given authority over one fourth of the earth, to kill by means of war, famine, disease, and wild animals.” (Revelation 6:8) War, disease, famine and death were the results of Satan’s rebellion against God. While God’s character was vindicated in the Person of Jesus Christ, the history of planet earth also reveals Satan’s violent kingdom as a sham – a complete and utter failure. In other words, not only did God need to vindicate his trustworthy character, but Satan also needed to be exposed.

The problem is that people don’t turn on the news and say, “What a terrible decision it was for Adam and Eve to hand over the keys to planet earth to Satan!” At least, I have never heard people phrase it that way. Rather, people subtly imply that it is God’s fault. These are the questions typically asked in the face of human suffering:

The breaking of the first seal reveals “…a white horse. Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown. He rode out as conqueror to conquer.” (Revelation 6:2). A rider on a white horse must be good, right? In chapter 19 there is another rider on a white horse, but this time he is given the title “Faithful and True” and the rider is clearly Jesus Christ.

If we are going to positively identify the rider in chapter six we need to establish a number of important anchor points. (For the hundredth time, Sigve Tonstad’s book, “Saving God’s Reputation” was so helpful to me in understanding this – read it!)

1. The book of Revelation is the story of the cosmic conflict between Christ and Satan.

Every previous article has reinforced this point. To recap: Revelation revolves around chapters 12-14 which tell the story of a “war in heaven” that began before the creation of our world. Last time we discussed the throne room scene in chapters four and five and that this should be understood in the context of a throne that has been challenged by a rival (Isaiah 14:13) who has subtly questioned God’s worthiness and right to rule. What is revealed by the seven seals, trumpets and bowls of wrath are the ongoing events in the struggle between Christ and Satan and with planet earth (whether we like it or not) and all the angels of heaven actively engaged.

2. It is important that we view the seven seals, trumpets and bowls of wrath as intimately related to each other. They reveal both repetition as well as a progression.

This concept is very important since the seven seals cannot be fully understood unless we have also incorporated the meaning of the seven trumpets and bowls of wrath back to the seals and vice versa.

“It appears more persuasive to hold that the author’s technique combines recapitulation and progression, and that the repetition also indicates gradation.” (1) For example, “The trumpets are worse than the seals, the bowls are worse than the trumpets.” (2)Elizabeth Fiorenza would refer to this as a “dramatic motion picture [analogy] whose individual scenes portray the same person or action each time from a different angle or perspective, while simultaneously adding some new insight to the whole.” (3)

In the previous articles, I’ve tried to make the case for understanding the book of Revelation as revolving around chapter 12 and the “war in heaven” motif. This world is a mess! The book of Revelation explains how the sin problem began in the first place, it clarifies for the reader what the real issues are in the great controversy, and finally it outlines God’s plan for winning the war and healing his children in the process.

Last time we discussed God’s invitation to the seven churches (which includes us!) to come through the open door with John (4:1) and to get the inside scoop. Remarkably, what we discovered is that God won the great controversy in the hearts and minds of his children by becoming a slaughtered Lamb. As we described last time, the evidence about a God of humility and kindness who would lay down his life for others triggered a chain reaction of amplified praise. Prior to the slaughtered Lamb in chapter four, we witnessed the praise only of four living creatures and twenty four elders. After the evidence revealed about God by the slaughtered Lamb in chapter five, however, this praise crescendos to now countless “millions and millions.” In this article I’d like to reinforce this idea by including some quotes of others on this subject. I will also expand a bit more on the importance of the throne scene imagery.

When the book of Revelation is read as a whole and with the “war in heaven” theme as the common thread that is woven through the entire book we see that God is faced with the challenge of defeating a devious enemy. The descriptive terms used in the bible for Satan’s method of operation are “deceiver”, “subtle”, “crafty”, “cunning”, “father of lies” and so on. How do you defeat an opponent who lies and conceals his objectives? This point is so critical to our understanding of the seven seals, trumpets, and plagues:

When George Bush Sr. was President (1988-92), the late Phil Hartman used to do a hilarious impression of his wife Barbara Bush on Saturday Night Live. During one of these skits, “Barbara Bush” was asked this question by an interviewer: “So tell me Barbara, you must be very proud of your son?” Barbara winced and of course the audience burst into laughter. She responded, “George is my husband, not my son.” The interviewer was unapologetic, however. She turned to the camera and said, “Well, I hardly think this is my faux pas! After all, she looks so much older than he does, don’t you think?”

On the surface, it would seem that an angel in the passage we are about to read, asks an equally embarrassing question.

Last time we considered the incredible invitation that is offered to the seven churches – the opportunity to come with John through the open door and to understand something of eternal significance. Let’s imagine that just now we are actually going to take this journey through the open door:

“Then I looked, and, oh!--a door open into Heaven. The trumpet-voice, the first voice in my vision, called out, ‘Ascend and enter. I’ll show you what happens next.’” (Revelation 4:1)

The imagery that follows should remind us of Ezekiel’s vision. Try to take in this incredible scene:

I was fortunate enough to be asked to give a series of neurology lectures for a cruise that has traveled from Copenhagen to Estonia, St. Petersburg, Helsinki, today Stockholm, and eventually on to northern Germany, Oslo and Amsterdam. Thus far our city tours have revealed a dramatic contrast between the “haves and the have not’s” in earth’s history. For example, our tour guide in St. Petersburg was describing the poverty and financial hardships in the history of Russia just as we arrived at Catherine’s palace which was perhaps the most decadent place I have ever seen. One gold covered room after another and another! I was amazed at first, but eventually reached a point where I was numb and could no longer generate much enthusiasm at the site of gold, fountains, and spectacular architecture. It was easy to judge and condemn Catherine…but then the reality hit that just because someone of extreme wealth did not help the poor and suffering does not excuse my own deficiencies in this area. By the way, the picture attached to this article is Catherine’s Palace. It does not begin to capture the wealth of this place!

Thus far in our study on the book of Revelation we’ve spent a long time discussing the centrality of chapter 12 and the “war in heaven” motif that forms the underlying theme for the entire book. We have considered that this war is ultimately over God’s trustworthy character and I’ve made the claim that the book of Revelation reveals how Jesus vindicated God’s character, defeated Satan, won the cosmic conflict, and ultimately heals his children in the process. In addition, we’ve noted the frequent sanctuary symbolism used in Revelation, that we are to be priests and that this function involves the very specific task of revealing God’s love, character, and kingdom to everyone around us. Our workplace as priests is the temple, which represents the mind, and we are to invite everyone to come through all the veils of lies and distortions about God and to enter into his immediate presence where they will experience a joyful marriage relationship Him.

Now, let’s consider the seven churches. In his words to the seven churches Jesus is described as standing in the Holy Place among the 7 lampstands, which represent the church. In my opinion, this description of the seven churches does not encourage us to try and pin down dates or a specific 2,000 year chronology of church history. Jesus’ words are rather a timeless representation of positive and negative attributes of all God’s friends (“the church”) since the Cross. For example, while many consider today’s church to represent Laodicea (the last of the seven churches described in Revelation), has the church never seen an individual with a Laodicean attitude prior to the last few generations? I would rather see the seven churches as representative of all God’s friends on earth – warts and all. Each friend of God needs a tailored message to fit their circumstance and specific needs. Some receive praise, most also hear some painful words that call for reformation, and all receive encouragement and hope for the future.

For just a brief moment, close your eyes and imagine the three compartments of the sanctuary and reflect on this question: If you had to spend a day in the sanctuary, where would you like to be? Would you choose to be near the Shekinah glory in the Most Holy Place or would you rather be in the outer court, shielded from God’s presence by as many veils as possible?

Many people have agreed with the words of Elihu who told Job, “I won’t ask to speak with God; why should I give him a chance to destroy me?” “God’s power is so great that we cannot come near him.” (Job 37:20,23) Sanctuary symbolism is often used to suggest that we need as many things as possible between us and God. For example, the function of priests has been described as necessary because we need someone “better” to put in a good word with God for us; the blood is sometimes depicted as shielding us from God’s wrath; and words like “propitiation” are used in association with the lid over the ark of the covenant (Romans 3:25).

On the other hand, it would seem that the whole point of setting up the tabernacle in the first place was because God wanted to come closer: “The people must make a sacred Tent for me, so that I may live among them” (Exodus 25:8). And, there have been individuals like Moses who “Spoke face to face with God as a man speaks to a friend” (Exodus 33:11).

But most convincingly, if we can just wrap our minds around the fact that Jesus was God in human form, in Jesus we see a God very much trying to come close. Remarkably, Jesus even came close to people that society perceives as outcasts – tax collectors, prostitutes, fisherman, and lepers. And Jesus many times said that friendship and intimacy is what God really wants, “I don’t want to call you servants any longer…I would rather call you friends.” (John 15:15)

The sanctuary system is designed in a way that beautifully invites us to better understand how we are to enter into this closer friendship with God. I suggested last time that the 3 main compartments represent individuals at three different stages in relationship to God. The brazen altar in the outer court represents the unconverted mind, the altar of incense in the Holy Place represents the converted mind, and the Ark of the Covenant in the Most Holy Place represents the “sealed” mind of an individual who is fully “at-one” with God and experiencing a joyful relationship with God (represented by the Shekinah glory). I’d like to explore this in a bit more detail in this article.

The first major section of the book of Revelation is a description of seven churches. Leading up to this, John first “saw seven gold lampstands, and among them there was what looked like a human being…The seven lampstands are the seven churches.” (Revelation 1:12,20). Of course, this individual is Jesus, symbolically described as dwelling in the Holy Place with his church.

We are spending quite a bit of time on the sanctuary symbolism since this forms an important foundation for understanding much of the book of Revelation. As we move into a description of the seven churches, we will see that what Jesus is trying to accomplish with his “church” (i.e. – his friends) is to bring them into a closer relationship and intimacy and in the process to transform them from within.

We have said that our job as priests (Revelation 1:6; 5:10) is to copy what we see our High Priest doing. Just as Jesus’ mission on earth and now as our High Priest was/is to reveal the truth about God’s character, our mission as priests is precisely the same.

As a child, my picture of what the priests actually did in Old Testament times seemed pretty dreary – and messy. Killing animals and sprinkling blood on various pieces of furniture day after day never sounded like a desirable job description! For a time I remember thinking, “Oh well, at least that whole bloody system is irrelevant now, for Christ was the end of the sacrificial system.” But the “it’s done away with so let’s not worry about it” line of thought doesn’t hold up very well since the book of Revelation (and other New Testament writings like Hebrews) have frequent and unavoidable references to the sanctuary system.

First, let’s deal with the subject of blood and then next time the furniture in the sanctuary. This discussion will absolutely help us to understand several important points later on in the book of Revelation.

Back to the book of Revelation…sort of. Last time we discussed our mission as priests (Revelation 1:6; 5:10) and that this task involves a very specific purpose: “It is the duty of priests to teach the true knowledge of God” (Malachi 2:7). As priests we are to display the beautiful character of God as revealed by Jesus Christ. Our workplace is the sanctuary (or temple) which represents the mind. When priests diffuse a true knowledge of God the result is to cleanse the temple as people change their mind about who God is and begin to see him as the same in character as Jesus.

In a previous article on the book of Revelation, I made the claim that “The book of Revelation should be seen as a message of healing, not a message of destruction.” (1) Very much in parallel with this, the sanctuary system is also a message about healing and a restored relationship (at-one-ment) with God. So let’s spend a little more time on the subject of healing and then next time on the meaning of the furniture and blood in the sanctuary system. All of this will be helpful as we continue through the book of Revelation.

Last week Dorothee and I watched (again) the movie “Les Miserables” an adaptation of the 1862 novel by Victor Hugo. The first 10 minutes is the perhaps the clearest illustration on film of what the Kingdom of God looks like. The story line is about Jean Valjean, a convict who spent 19 years in chains for stealing a loaf of bread. He was about to spend his first night out of prison on the streets when a kind bishop took him in for the night and gave him a warm meal. During the middle of the night, however, Valjean stole the bishop’s silverware and then clubbed the bishop over the head in his rush to escape. The next day Valjean was caught by the police who brought him back to the bishop’s home in chains, silverware in hand. It would seem that his life was over – either doomed to life in prison or death.

But then, in an action that defies any worldly wisdom, the bishop told the police that he actually gave Valjean the silverware and then proceeded to scold Valjean for “forgetting” to also take the silver candlesticks – “I’m very disappointed in you Valjean, you could have fetched a good price for those.” The police were stunned, but not as much as Valjean. Never had he been treated with kindness before, especially in the face of such treacherous behavior toward the bishop. This incredibly gracious act turned Valjean’s entire life around and, as the story unfolds, Valjean became a very successful man using Kingdom of God methods (returning evil with good), but yet he was in constant fear that people would discover his past life. [Click the “read more” button below]