Revelation 8:1-5

The Seventh Seal and the Golden Censer
1When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.
2And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets.
3Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne. 4The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel's hand. 5Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.



8:1-2 - This fourth section of the book (chpts. 8-14) deals with the sanctions of the covenant, that is, the blessings and curses. Deuteronomy 28 is the most detailed blessing and curse section in the entire Bible. The Jewish War by Jewish historian Josephus nearly reads like a commentary on Deuteronomy 28 as it describes the great tribulation and the destruction of Jerusalem in 70 A.D. This section will detail the curses of Deuteronomy 28 that are about to be poured out on Israel.

The seventh seal is finally opened, revealing the seven trumpets. Just as the blast of the seven trumpets signaled the fall of Jericho (Josh. 6:4-5), these seven trumpets signal the destruction of Jerusalem. As the seal is opened, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour. Milton Terry suggests that the imagery from the silence comes from 2 Chron. 29:28-29 when King Hezekiah and those around him bowed in reverent worship as the singers and trumpets stopped playing. The half hour may come from verses 3 and 4 in this passage, which would be the time necessary for the priest to enter the temple and offer incense and return. Following the silence, the seven trumpets are given to the seven angels. It appears from the language that John assumes the reader knows who the seven angels are. We have met them before; they represent the angels from the seven churches. Just as as worship is patterned after heavenly worship (Heb. 8:5; 9:23-24), so is the government of the Church (Matt. 16:19; 18:18; John 20:23). Thus, the structure of the earthly church corresponds to the heavenly, angelic structure, just as our earthly worship corresponds to the worship conducted around the heavenly throne.

8:3-5 - John sees another angel, holding a golden censer, who comes forward to stand at the altar. The angel is given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints (Rev. 5:8), on the golden altar before the throne. The incense is added to the prayer of the saints, and then they both went up before God from the angel’s hand. The next action is quite surprising. The angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and throws it down to earth as a judgment. Peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lighting, and an earthquake, the now familiar phenomenon that follow the presence of God in the glory cloud, especially when He comes in judgment (Ex. 19:16, 18).

In the Old Testament, the fire on the altar of burnt offering originated in heaven, and came down upon the altar when the Tabernacle and Temple were readied (Lev. 9:24; 2 Chron. 7:1). This heavenly fire was kept burning by the priests and moved from place to place (Lev. 16:12-13; Numb. 16:46-50), similar to the way the Olympic flame is kept burning on torches. When the Israelites were commanded to destroy apostate city, they were to do so as a burnt offering to the Lord (Deut. 13:16; Jud. 20:40). The only acceptable way to do this was to burn the city as a whole burnt sacrifice, using God’s fire (Deut. 13:12-18). In a sadly ironic turn, God’s fire was now being cast down on Jerusalem, herself, who had become an apostate city in the sight of the Lord.

God’s judgment here is seen in direct response to the prayer of the saints. They have petitioned for God’s judgment, and now it is at hand. God acts in history in response to the corporate worship (liturgy) of the saints. Official prayer and worship of the community of Christ is significant in history. When the Church assembly calls upon the Lord of the Covenant, the world will experience His judgments. History is directed from the altar of incense, where the prayers of the Church have been lain (Read Psalm 18:6-15 to see this concept in action).

There are at least five significant areas of symbolism evident in the use of trumpets in this passage. First, they were used in the O.T. For ceremonial processions (Josh. 6; 1 Chron. 15:24; Neh. 12:41). Second, they were blown to proclaim the rule of a new king (1 King 1:34, 39; Ps. 47:5). Third, they sounded an alarm warning Israel of approaching judgment and calling to national repentance (Isa. 58:1; Jer. 4:5-8; 6:1, 17; Ezek. 33:1-6; Joel 2:1, 15). Fourth, they were used to call the people to worship and warfare (Num. 10:1-9). Finally, they were blown at the feast and on the first day of the month (Num. 10:10). All of these are in sight in this section.