The apocalypse and the sound of trumpets.

In the next few posts we are going to discuss the book of Revelation, chapters 8 and 9. Most scholars know this text as: “the cycle of the seven trumpets”. We know this text is about the final judgment of God. Does it tell us something about the end of time? Is it about the apocalypse? If so, how much time?

Core verse:

I noticed that the seven angels who stood before God were each given a trumpet. (Revelation 8:2 CEV)

The core verse describes a scene in front of the throne of God. In this verse we find a description about the beings and items that are going to play a vital role in the next few scenes as the “other angel” comes into play.

We read that there is going to be SEVEN angels and SEVEN trumpets. Some people regard the number seven as a lucky number; perhaps you have even seen the number seven in the slot machines of casinos. “777” is usually a winning number. But the number seven is also one of the holy numbers of God and in this case it indicates that the angels and trumpets are from God and that seven things are going to happen (discussed in later posts).

The angels in this case are referring to messengers in heaven. Their purpose is to serve God and, in this case, to blow on the trumpets as the trumpets are given to them. Some Christians have even given names to these seven angels. I, for one, don’t think that they should be named as there are many angels! (Perhaps one of them was Michael.)

But why trumpets? Throughout the Bible trumpets have been used for many reasons. A few texts come to mind:

·         Then at the sound of the trumpets, you will come together to worship and to offer sacrifices on the altar. (Leviticus 23:24 CEV)

·         Give a signal on a trumpet when it is time to break camp. (Numbers 10:5 CEV)

·         A loud trumpet will be heard. Then the people of Israel who were dragged away to Assyria and Egypt will return to worship the LORD on his holy mountain in Jerusalem. (Isaiah 27:13 CEV)

·         At the sound of a loud trumpet, he will send his angels to bring his chosen ones together from all over the earth. (Matthew 24:31 CEV)

So we know it’s something to do with a signal, perhaps sacrifices and definitely that the people of God will be brought together. This might very well be describing the end of times!

Which signal do you think God is going to use at the end of times?

Till next time!

Revelation 7:1-8 One hundred forty-four thousand

Core verses:

"Don't harm the earth or the sea or any tree! Wait until I have marked the foreheads of the servants of our God." Then I heard how many people had been marked on the forehead. There were one hundred forty-four thousand, and they came from every tribe of Israel. (Revelation 7:4 CEV)

The core verses of this post are Revelation 7:3-4. This is an obscure verse. In fact it is so obscure that there are different understandings of the 144000. Some churches and Christians define their religions differently if they read this verse. How should we understand the verse? And are you or I, on Gods list to be saved? And who can make it on Gods list?

Basically there are two (2) ways to understand the 144000. The first is literally and the second is figuratively or symbolic! I am briefly going to attempt to explain these viewpoints:

1.       The literal way states that the writer actually heard this number and that God is only going to save 144000 people during the apocalypse. But the Bible is not saying when God is going to save the 144000! In other words there is no timeframe connected to the number. Perhaps the writer ment during life on Earth. In other words 144000 people in total is going to be saved by grace and going heaven.

2.       The figurative way states that if only 144000 people are going to be saved Jesus Christ would have told the disciples while He was on Earth. Jesus said nothing of the sort, not specifying any number in any timeframe. Therefore the figurative way states that there is a deeper meaning connected to the number 144000. Can we unlock the secret behind this number?

In the bigger picture (Rev 7:1-8) the writer states two other numbers. That is the number of Israelite tribes- which is 12; and the number that is going to be saved of each tribe- which is 12000. Multiply that and you get 144000 (12*12000). Thus the Bible states that only Jewish tribal people can be saved right- wrong! The apostle Paul wrote: “No matter if that person is a Jew or a Gentile. There is only one Lord, and he is generous to everyone who asks for his help”. (Romans 10:12 CEV). The purpose of the 144000 could not be connected to the tribes. It must then be a metaphor- this is the secret to unlock this number.

The numbers 12 and 1000 is both complete numbers in the Bible! The number 144000 can then be seen as a symbol which contains a series of complete numbers and representing the fullness of God. Thus the figurative way states that all the servants of God are going to be saved, not limited to 144000.

It is up to you to decide what to believe. If you take the 144000 literally- well I hope you have a printout of that list, otherwise, how are you going to know if you are going to heaven for example? Please join our discussion and give your opinion.

Till next time!