Apocalipse 10

Apocalipse 10

MacArthur explains "indicates that the judgment of the seventh trumpet is about to come and that it is not a single event, but covers days—indicating a period of time. This period includes the seven bowl judgments (Rev 16:1–21), which would appear to require some weeks or months to unfold. So the sounding of the seventh trumpet brings the final judgment depicted in the bowls of fury poured out on the earth. The time of God’s patience is seen as having ended; the time for the final acts of judgment is seen as being at hand. The time anticipated in the disciples’ questions recorded in Matthew 24:3 and Acts 1:6 has come. The prayers of all the saints of all the ages for the consummation of God’s kingdom are about to be answered (cf. Mt 6:9–11+). When the seventh angel sounds, “The kingdom of the world [will] become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever” (Rev 11:15+)." MacArthur goes on to explain that the mystery of God "is the consummation of God’s plan in bringing His glorious kingdom in Christ to fulfillment. It involves the salvation of the elect and their place in His glorious kingdom and all that goes with that. It includes the judgment of men and demons." (Revelation Commentary) Henry Morris agrees with MacArthur that "The seventh trumpet will echo for three and a half years....That this final trumpeting is to be prolonged is suggested by the reference to “the days” of the voice [Greek phone, meaning “sound”] of the seventh angel.” (BORROW The Revelation Record) Henry Morris on the mystery of God - Although there are a number of mysteries referred to in the New Testament, the context here seems strongly to indicate that this mystery of God refers to the whole purpose and plan of God. Why has a holy God allowed evil to thrive for so long? Why do the righteous suffer? What is God’s ultimate purpose for Israel, for the Gentiles, for the Church? These and many other such questions pertaining to the ultimate reconciliation and accomplishment of God’s many purposes in creation will someday all be answered, and it is perhaps the combination of all these that is called here “the mystery of God.” In any case, all such mysteries of God’s dealing with men will finally be resolved and understood during these days of the sounding of the final trumpet. The prophets had, indeed, received such promises long ago. To Daniel had been promised that “all these things shall be finished” (Daniel 12:7+). To Zechariah had been promised: “In that day shall there be one Lord, and his name one” (Zechariah 14:9+). (BORROW The Revelation Record) (Italics and bolding added) Robert Thomas on the mystery of God says of the word "mystery" that "In the present passage it speaks of the great purpose of God in the evolution of human history.....It is preferable to refer the expression to God’s purpose in bringing His kingdom to its fruition. This is a purpose that has been hidden from the world, at least insofar as its detailed outworking is concerned. It will finally attain its full realization with the complete salvation of the saints in the perfected kingdom (Beckwith, Moffatt). The fact that He preached it to “his slaves the prophets” shows that the unfolding of the mystery was at least in part in the OT descriptions of the establishment of the kingdom (Walvoord). This meaning coincides with the thanksgiving after the blowing of the seventh trumpet (cf. Rev 11:15 ff.) (Alford) and with the mention of the kingdom in the heavenly song accompanying the seventh trumpet (cf. Rev 11:15) (Mounce). The mystery of God consists of the heretofore unrevealed details unfolded in the chapters from here to the end, chapters that tell of the institution of God’s kingdom on earth and eventually in the new heavens and new earth." (See Revelation Exegetical Commentary) (ED: These "heretofore unrevealed details" are nicely summarized in Rev 11:15-19+). J L Adamson - When the mystery of God is finished, His ways will appear at once marvellous and right. Click youtube video The Mystery of God is Finished for question-answer discussion of this topic. the voice which I heard from heaven The same voice which instructed John not to write what the seven thunders uttered (Rev. 10:4+). The divine authority of this voice is seen in its command which countermanded God’s earlier instructions that John was to record what he saw. Here, the divine authority is seen again in that John boldly approaches a mighty angel and tells him to turn over the book. open in the hand See commentary on Revelation 10:2. who stands on the sea and on the earth See commentary on Revelation 10:2. Give me One would typically expect an imperative mood verb here—as when commanding: you give. Here it is an infinitive, δοῦναι μοι [dounai moi], to give to me, probably reflecting John’s tentativeness to tell such a mighty angel what to do. Even though John’s authority and instruction is from heaven, it is no small thing to approach this mighty angel and tell him anything! John could only approach the mighty angel knowing he had received divine command to do so: The soul who is obedient—who yields unquestioning submission to the expressed will of God—is for the time omnipotent. He walks and acts in the strength of the Creator—the maker of heaven and earth. Fear? he knows it not. The invisible God, seen by faith, makes him invincible in the path of obedience—“immortal till his work is done.”44 Take and eat λάβε καὶ κατάφαγε [labe kai kataphage], two verbs in the imperative mood: You take and you eat! The response of the mighty angel to John indicates his superior power and is intended to overcome John’s reluctance to touch, much less take, this important book held in the hands of such a mighty being.Eat is from κατεσθίω [katesthiō] meaning: “Consume, devour, swallow.”45 The emphasis is upon John completely consuming what he is given to eat. Eating God’s Word is a frequent theme of Scripture and indicates the acceptance, digesting of, meditating upon, and sustenance derived from that which is eaten (Jer. 15:16). Job declared, “I have not departed from the commandment of His lips; I have treasured the words of His mouth more than my necessary food” (Job 23:12). Jesus, the Word of God, referred to Himself as the Bread of Life (Job 23:12; John 6:27-35, 48). In the same way that God made Israel dependent upon manna, so too are His servants to be dependent upon his Word.46John was told to eat prophetic revelation much like that of Ezekiel. See commentary on Revelation 10:11. it will make your stomach bitter Bitter is πικρανεῖ [pikranei], used “Of honey when wormwood is mixed.”47 How well this describes God’s prophetic Word! It is honey for the obedient, but mixed with wormwood (Rev. 8:11+) in the face of disobedience. This is the very essence of the Word of God. For those who follow it, it is the Word of Life. For those who reject it, it is the Word of Death. This dual nature of God’s Word was understood by Paul: Now thanks be to God who always leads us in triumph in Christ, and through us diffuses the fragrance of His knowledge in every place. For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is sufficient for these things? (2Cor. 2:14-16) The bitterness would develop after John had tasted its sweetness, when its contents were fully digested. “There was sweetness in the assurance that the prayers of God’s Israel, who had ‘cried day and night unto Him,’ were about to be answered.”48 But the mature student of God’s prophetic Word will come to appreciate its bitterness. The new believer, excited by the prospect of God’s intervention into history, readily exults in God’s prophetic program, but often fails to appreciate the alternate aspect of the fulfillment of God’s promises—the eternal damnation of those who have not yet trusted in Christ. The bitterness which John will experience is an appreciation of God’s grace and mercy and the realization that in the completion of the mystery of God, judgment will have overcome the current age of mercy resulting in the eternal loss of countless persons who continue in their rejection of God. For undoubtedly the book contains “lamentations and mourning and woe” (Eze. 2:10). it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth See commentary on Revelation 10:10. ate it κατέφαγον [katephagon], John totally consumed or devoured it (cf. Mat. 13:4; 23:14; John 2:17). St. John Swallows the Little Book 49 sweet as honey in my mouth. But . . . my stomach became bitter Although the initial taste was sweet, the result was bitterness. “ ‘Turn your stomach,’ or ‘be hard on your stomach’ is a better translation than ‘bitter’ in Rev. 10:9+, for we have no sense of taste in our stomachs.”50All of God’s Holy Word is sweet (Ps. 19:10; 119:103), but especially the initial exposure to prophetic passages. Often, those who “eat” prophetic Scripture “sit on the edge of their seat” and focus on its quick fulfillment. Like a perpetual “sugar high,” it provides an initial surge of energy and motivation, but will never sustain like a balanced meal of God’s Word. The continual chasing after the latest prophetic conference, while superficially treating prophetic passages and never grasping important aspects of God’s character—His heart for the lost and His ultimate interest in restoration over judgment—is sure to lead to disillusionment and will shipwreck the faith of some. Critics of the Rapture rightfully point to those who continually overemphasize prophetic passages within a shallow framework of Scriptural understanding and are forever watching for Antichrist rather than Christ. To almost all people, prophecy is sweet. Prophetic conferences draw larger audiences than virtually any other kind of conference. The voluminous sale of the more sensational prophecy books is another evidence of how “sweet” BIble prophecy has become to so many people. But if “sweetness” is all there is, then it is worth little. Every student of prophecy should have the second experience that John had: bitterness in the stomach. A knowledge of things to come should give every believer a burden for people. For the way of escape from these things is the Rapture, and the requirement to qualify for the Rapture is the acceptance of Messiah now. A true student of prophecy will not simply stop with the knowledge of things to come. Rather this knowledge will create the strong burden to preach the gospel to others and thereby give them a way of escape.51 The healthy saint is not sustained by hype, be it prophetic or charismatic, but seeks to know Christ through His Word and to make Him known with compassion and sensitivity—as Jesus walked in the gospels. The balanced study of God’s Word brings a burden for the lost and a growing realization of the destiny of those who fail to respond to God’s gracious offer. The desire to see God quickly judge is mitigated by a desire to see His grace prevail. Amos responded to those who desired the Day of the Lord: Woe to you who desire the day of the LORD! For what good is the day of the LORD to you? It will be darkness, and not light. It will be as though a man fled from a lion, and a bear met him! Or as though he went into the house, leaned his hand on the wall, and a serpent bit him! Is not the day of the LORD darkness, and not light? Is it not very dark, with no brightness in it? (Amos 5:18-20) he said The TR text has the singular form, he said whereas the MT and NU texts have the plural form, they said. If the former, then the mighty angel was speaking. If the latter, then perhaps both the voice from heaven and the mighty angel or several angels spoke in unison.52 You must prophesy again You must is δεῖ σε [dei se] which indicates necessity, often to attain a certain intended result.53 John is told to prophesy again. That which he has been relating up to now is prophetic, not some veiled political document in an apocalyptic genre. See The Genre of the book of Revelation. See Audience and Purpose.Victorinus, who wrote the first commentary on Revelation, understood this phrase to indicate John’s subsequent release from Patmos for how could John deliver what he must prophesy if he were to remain on Patmos? Victorinus [d. c. A.D. 304], who wrote the first commentary on Revelation . . . at Revelation 10:11+ notes: “He says this, because when John said these things he was in the island of Patmos, condemned to labor of the mines by Caesar Domitian. There, therefore, he saw the Apocalypse; and when grown old, he thought that he should at length receive his quittance by suffering, Domitian being killed, all his judgments were discharged. And John being dismissed from the mines, thus subsequently delivered the same Apocalypse which he had received from God.”54 about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings The fourfold designation: peoples, nations, tongues, kings, indicates the global scope of the message John is prophesying. See Four: the Entire World, the Earth.Both Ezekiel’s scroll and John’s book are closely related. (See commentary on Revelation 10:2.) Both contain prophecy. However, a significant difference occurs between what Ezekiel and John ingest: Ezekiel eats a message intended for Israel, but John eats a message for all nations. Ezekiel is told to prophesy to the “house of Israel, not to many people of unfamiliar speech” (Eze. 3:6), whereas John “must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings” (Rev. 10:11+). The message of Revelation is about a multinational, multiethnic population. It is global in nature and cannot be restricted to the events of the A.D. 70 destruction of Jerusalem by Rome as preterists contend. “It is no one Empire or Emperor that is concerned in the prophecies of the second half of the Apocalypse; not merely Rome or Nero or Domitian, but a multitude of races, kingdoms, and crowned heads.”55 See commentary on Revelation 1:7.The group John is to prophecy about includes those who “dwell on the earth,” who view the bodies of slain witnesses (Rev. 11:9+). This is the same group which an angel preaches the everlasting gospel to (Rev. 14:6+). These are the ones upon which the harlot, Babylon, sits (Rev. 17:15+). About is ἐπι [epi] which can also be translated against (Luke 12:52-53). For much of what John relates is both about and against the earth dwellers around the globe. Notes 1John MacArthur, Revelation 1-11 : The MacArthur New Testament Commentary (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1999), Rev. 10:1. 2Thomas suggests that the sixth trumpet is closed at the end of chapter 9. “Some prefer to include Rev. 10:1+-11:13+ as part of the sixth trumpet judgment because of the declaration of 11:14+ that at that point the second woe has passed. This conclusion is uncalled for, however, in light of the clear indication of 9:20-21+ that the sixth trumpet has ended there.”—Robert L. Thomas, Revelation 8-22 (Chicago, IL: Moody Press, 1995), Rev. 10:1. But Rev. 9:20-21+ says nothing specifically about the sixth trumpet being ended. All that can be said is that it indicates a definite lull in the action which immediately followed the sounding of the sixth trumpet. 3J. A. Seiss, The Apocalypse: Lectures on the Book of Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1966), 223. 4This can be established from the lack of any detailed, proof-positive identification found in the text. Yet there is much discussion concerning whether this angel is Christ or simply a powerful angel. 5Thomas, Revelation 8-22, Rev. 10:1. 6“non sequitur 1. An inference or conclusion that does not follow from the premises or evidence.”—American Heritage Online Dictionary, Ver. 3.0A, 3rd ed (Houghton Mifflin, 1993). 7Henry Morris, The Revelation Record (Wheaton, IL: Tyndale House Publishers, 1983), 181. 8Those commentators who understand the vision of Daniel 10:5-9 as being a theophany—a vision of God—usually see the messenger of the subsequent verses (10-21) as a different individual, possibly Gabriel. This allows the first vision to be that of Christ while allowing the second individual to be an angel who seeks assistance from Michael (Dan. 10:13, 21). A problem with this view is the unity of the text which argues that the same individual is in view in both sections of the passage. The arguments for and against seeing one versus two heavenly individuals in Daniel 10 are beyond the scope of our treatment here other than to recognize that the similarities between Revelation 10+ and Daniel 10 are insufficient to unambiguously establish the divinity of the angel of Revelation 10+. 9Another mighty angel, who requires Michael’s assistance and is therefore not divine (Dan. 10:20), swears by God (Dan. 12:7 cf. Dan. 10:5). 10It should be noted that these were preincarnate appearances of Jesus. John’s vision is seen after the incarnation. Concerning the Angel of the Lord: Gen. 16:7-11; 22:11, 15; Ex. 3:2; 14:19; 23:20-23; 32:34; Num. 22:22-35; Jdg. 2:1, 4; 5:23; 6:11-22; 13:3-21; 2S. 24:16; 1K. 19:7; 2K. 1:3, 15; 19:35; 1Chr. 21:12-30; Ps. 34:7; 35:5-6; Isa. 37:36; 63:9; Hos. 12:4; Zec. 1:11-12; 3:1-6; 12:8; cf. Acts 7:30-31, 35, 37-38. 11Although, as we have observed, Christ is referred to as an angel or messenger in His OT appearances as the Angel of Jehovah, we are now speaking of the incarnate glorified Christ. “While the preincarnate Christ appeared in the Old Testament as the Angel of the Lord, the New Testament nowhere refers to Him as an angel.”—MacArthur, Revelation 1-11 : The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Rev. 10:1. 12Ibid. 13“Some interpret the rainbow as the natural result of light from the angel’s face refracted by the cloud in which he was arrayed.”—Robert H. Mounce, The Book of Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: William B. Eerdmans Publishing Co., 1977), Rev. 10:1. 14A. R. Fausset, “The Revelation of St. John the Divine,” in Robert Jamieson, A. R. Fausset, and David Brown, A Commentary, Critical and Explanatory, on the Old and New Testaments (Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc., 1997, 1877), Rev. 10:1. 15Mounce, The Book of Revelation, Rev. 10:1. 16Although the same book is later designated as a βιβλίον [biblion] (Rev. 10:8+). 17E. W. Bullinger, Commentary On Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1984, 1935), Rev. 10:2. 18Timothy Friberg, Barbara Friberg, and Neva F. Miller, Analytical Lexicon of the Greek New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Baker Books, 2000), 4:182. 19“Since God was the ultimate owner of the land of Israel, since He had given tenant possession of the land to the people of Israel forever (Gen. 13:15; 2Chr. 10:7), and since the Israelites were only the tenant administrators of God’s land, they were forbidden to sell the land forever [Lev. 25:23]. . . If . . . an Israelite became so poverty-stricken that he was forced to sell the portion of land that was his tenant possession, he did not sell the ownership of the land. Instead, he sold the tenant possession or administration of the portion of the land for a temporary period of time (Lev. 25:16, 25-27). . . . God required that a sold tenant possession be returned to the original tenant or his heir in the year of jubilee (Lev. 25:10, 13, 28; 27:24).”—Renald E. Showers, Maranatha, Our Lord Come (Bellmawr, NJ: The Friends of Israel Gospel Ministry, 1995), 78-79. 20M. R. Vincent, Vincent’s Word Studies (Escondido, CA: Ephesians Four Group, 2002), Rev. 10:3. 21“We have already seen who it is that is called ‘the Lion from the tribe of Judah.’ ”—Seiss, The Apocalypse: Lectures on the Book of Revelation, Rev. 10:3. 22James Strong, The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible (Ontario: Woodside Bible Fellowship, 1996), H3092. 23This does not refer to the believers in general for nowhere are believers called the children of Israel. This uniquely designates the physical seed of Jacob. Believers are the spiritual seed of Abraham (Rom. 4:11-18; Gal. 3:7-8, 29). “ ‘Abraham’s seed,’ therefore, is not necessarily equivalent of a Jew or a member of the people of Israel. God’s promise to Abraham encompassed both ‘a great nation’ and ‘all peoples on earth’ (Gen. 12:2-3). Both of these groups, therefore, share the fulfillment of that promise in the salvation of God without being merged into each other. It is significant that when the fulfillment of the Abrahamic promise is related to the Gentiles, it is specifically this statement about ‘all nations,’ not any reference to the ‘great nation’ or Israel, that the apostle uses as OT support (Gal. 3:8). Again, there is sharing, but not identity.”—Robert L. Saucy, “Israel and the Church: A Case for Discontinuity,” in John S. Feinberg, ed., Continuity And Discontinuity (Westchester, IL: Crossway Books, 1988), 254. 24Thomas, Revelation 8-22, 76. 25Bullinger, Commentary On Revelation, Rev. 10:4. 26“As usual, interpretation has run wild as to the seven thunders. As a few illustrations may be cited: Vitringa, the seven crusades; Daubuz, the seven kingdoms which received the Reformation; Elliott, the bull fulminated against Luther from the seven-hilled city, etc.”—Vincent, Vincent’s Word Studies, Rev. 10:3. “Some would have use believe that these seven thunders are the Papal Bulls issued against Luther and the Reformation [Elliott, vol. ii., p. 100, etc.]. If this be so, then God sealed the book in vain for all know what those thunders uttered.”—Bullinger, Commentary On Revelation, Rev. 10:4. 27Morris, The Revelation Record, Rev. 10:3. 28Donald Grey Barnhouse, Revelation (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1971), 183. 29This is not the only portion of the divine record which is not recorded: John 20:30; 21:25. 30Alan F. Johnson, Revelation: The Expositor’s Bible Commentary (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House, 1966), Rev. 5:4. 31Fausset, The Revelation of St. John the Divine, Rev. 10:4. 32Jerome Smith, The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge (Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 1992), Rev. 10:6. 33Seiss, The Apocalypse: Lectures on the Book of Revelation, Rev. 10:6. 34Smith, The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, Rom. 16:25. 35Arnold G. Fruchtenbaum, The Footsteps of Messiah, rev ed (Tustin, CA: Ariel Ministries, 2003), 702. 36William R. Newell, Revelation: Chapter by Chapter (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Publications, 1994,c1935), Rev. 10:7. 37“An author sometimes uses the aorist for the future to stress the certainty of the event. It involves a ‘rhetorical transfer’ of a future event as though it were past.”—Daniel B. Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics - Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House and Galaxie Software, 1999, 2002), 564. 38MacArthur, Revelation 1-11 : The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, Rev. 10:1. 39Seiss, The Apocalypse: Lectures on the Book of Revelation, Rev. 10:7. 40Thomas, Revelation 8-22, Rev. 10:7. 41MacArthur, Revelation 1-11 : The MacArthur New Testament Commentary, 10:7. 42It is not our purpose here to treat the reliability of the Scriptures in great detail. For those who call Jesus “Lord,” the most revealing study which can be done is to survey the NT for passages where Jesus refers to the Scriptures (sometimes referred to as the Law and the Prophets). The unbiased reader will readily appreciate that Jesus held the generation of his day responsible for their understanding and response to God solely upon the contents of the written Scriptures. He constantly and unfailingly points to the “Scriptures.” He never recognizes a personal existential encounter with God, but identifies the ultimate truth about God as being the objective written record. What Scripture records are the very words of God: Ex. 24:4; 34:27; Num. 33:2; Deu. 31:9, 24; 31:26; 1Chr. 28:19; Isa. 8:1; Isa. 30:8; Jer. 1:9; 30:2; 36:2, 28, 32; Dan. 12:4; 1Cor. 2:13; 14:37; 1Th. 4:2, 15; Rev. 1:19+; 10:4+. 43Smith, The New Treasury of Scripture Knowledge, Rev. 10:7. 44Walter Scott, Exposition of The Revelation (London, England: Pickering & Inglis, n.d.), Rev. 10:9. 45Frederick William Danker and Walter Bauer, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature (Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press, 2000), 442. 46Interestingly, each man was to daily collect the manna for his own household. How different would our country be if each father approached bible study this way—rather than ignoring the Word or relying upon a professional clergy to gather manna for him once a week? 47Ibid., 657. 48Bullinger, Commentary On Revelation, Rev. 10:11. 49 Albrecht Durer (1471 - 1528). Image courtesy of the Connecticut College Wetmore Print Collection. 50Monty S. Mills, Revelations: An Exegetical Study of the Revelation to John (Dallas, TX: 3E Ministries, 1987), Rev. 10:9. 51Fruchtenbaum, The Footsteps of Messiah, 243. 52“‘They,’ who told John he must prophesy, we may surmise were heavenly ‘watchers’ (as in Daniel 4:13, 17): for the mind of God as to earthly judgments and prophetic programs is well known by those dwelling in the light of heaven (compare Revelation 7:13+, 14+; 11:15+, 21:1+; 22:9+).”—Newell, Revelation: Chapter by Chapter, Rev. 10:11. 53Danker, A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament and Other Early Christian Literature, 172. 54Mark Hitchcock, “The Stake in the Heart—The A.D. 95 Date of Revelation,” in Tim LaHaye and Thomas Ice, eds., The End Times Controversy (Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 2003), 133. 55Henry Barclay Swete, The Apocalypse of St. John (Eugene, OR: Wipf and Stock Publishers, 1998, 1906), Rev. 10:11. Copyright © 2004-2020 by Tony Garland (Content generated on Thu Apr 30 16:37:47 2020) [email protected]