Tagged: Trumpets

February 3, 2012

Another angel … from the east — Revelation 7:1-8

Previously: The sealed of Israel (Rev. 7:1-8)

The scripture

Rev. 7:1 – After this I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, restraining the four winds of the earth so that no wind could blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. ²Then I saw another angel rise up from the east, who had the seal of the living God. He cried out in a loud voice to the four angels who were empowered to harm the earth and the sea: ³“Don’t harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we seal the slaves of our God on their foreheads.” ⁴And I heard the number of those who were sealed: 144,000 sealed from every tribe of the sons of Israel: ⁵12,000 sealed from the tribe of Judah, 12,000 from the tribe of Reuben, 12,000 from the tribe of Gad, ⁶12,000 from the tribe of Asher, 12,000 from the tribe of Naphtali, 12,000 from the tribe of Manasseh, ⁷12,000 from the tribe of Simeon, 12,000 from the tribe of Levi, 12,000 from the tribe of Issachar, ⁸12,000 from the tribe of Zebulun, 12,000 from the tribe of Joseph, 12,000 sealed from the tribe of Benjamin. (HCSB)

Another angel … from the east

In verse 2 John sees “another angel” rise up from the east. He carries “the seal of the living God” and cries out to the four angels, “Don’t harm the earth or the sea or the trees until we seal the slaves of our God on their foreheads” (v. 3). This angel is unique in that he comes to seal God’s slaves, while the four others are sent to restrain the four winds. Angels are messengers of God and serve Him in different capacities. Some, like Gabriel, bring messages. Others, like Michael, stand for Israel. Others bring protection, deliverance or judgment. They do not seem to prefer one task over another; they simply obey God when He sends them to earth, and this particular angel is sent to halt the advance of the other four until God’s special mark is upon His slaves.

This angel comes from the east. The direction is significant. The tabernacle in the wilderness faces east (Num. 3:38). The temple in Jerusalem faces east (2 Chron. 5:11-12). It is at the eastern gate of the temple – “the temple gate called Beautiful,” Acts 3:2 – where Peter and John heal the lame man. Perhaps most important, when Jesus returns, He will come from the east: “For as the lightning comes from the east and flashes as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man” (Matt. 24:27; see also Ezek. 43:1-7). So this angel comes from the east, the direction of the sunrise, to do a great work on the Lord’s behalf, sealing His slaves.

Sealed on their foreheads

The seal of God is placed upon the foreheads of His chosen servants. There seems to be a parallel between this portion of Revelation and what Jesus describes in Matt. 24:30-31. At the end of Revelation 6, the wicked of the earth seek to hide from the wrath of the Lamb, consistent with what Jesus says in Matt. 24:30, “Then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the peoples of the earth will mourn; and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.”

Then, at the start of Revelation 7, angels are sent to restrain the four winds until God’s chosen ones are sealed. This seems to fit with Matt. 24:31, “He [the Son of Man] will send out His angels with a loud trumpet, and they will gather His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.” If Jesus’ words in Matthew 24 and John’s record in Revelation 7 are describing the same events, then God is about to pour out His wrath on the earth. But first He spares the righteous. This could fit a preterist view, in which Jews who heed Jesus’ warnings flee Jerusalem before its destruction in 70 A.D. It could also fit a futurist view, in which a large number of Jewish believers are spared the horrors of the Tribulation. In any case, it appears God delivers a number of His elect before His judgment falls.

Seals in scripture

There are about 60 references to seals in the Bible. Generally speaking, seals are spoken of in two ways. First, a seal is an object – often a small, semiprecious stone with writing cut into its surface, making an impression in clay or wax. Second, a seal signifies the impression itself. In this context, the angel from the east seals the 144,000 – placing God’s mark of ownership on them. At the same time, the 144,000 are sealed, or receive and bear the mark of God.

The seal, John says, is placed on their foreheads. It’s possible the seal is visible, for while John only hears the number of those sealed in Revelation 7, he sees the 144,000 on Mt. Zion in Revelation 14. Also, the Antichrist, the great imposter, requires his followers to receive a mark on their foreheads, perhaps indicating a visible sign. But it may make more sense to see God’s seal as the mark of the Holy Spirit, who seals the believer (Eph. 4:30). If the futurist view is true and the Holy Spirit is removed from the earth at this time, it would take a special act of God to send His Spirit to mark out the 144,000 as His own.

The use of seals in scripture might shed some light on this passage. Harper’s Bible Dictionary points out that seals often render something secure against tampering (Jer. 32:10; Matt. 27:66), to demonstrate authority (1 Kings 21:8; John 6:27), to seal a letter (1 Kings 21:8; 1 Cor. 9:2), to seal a covenant (Neh. 9:38), to delegate authority (Esther 8:8; John 6:27), and to seal documents (Isa. 8:16; Jer. 32:10; Rev. 5:1). The 144,000 are indeed secure from the tampering of the wicked; they are under the authority of the King; they are messengers; they are partakers of the divine covenant, and so on. More important, if this seal is in fact the Holy Spirit, they have the indwelling presence of God and are empowered by Him to carry out His will.

Next: I heard the number … (Rev. 7:1-8)

September 25, 2008

Jesus in the Feasts of Israel — Download Free Bible Study

Download this free Bible study in PDF format.

The feasts of Israel are religious celebrations remembering God’s great acts of salvation in the history of His people. The term “feasts” in Hebrew literally means “appointed times” and in Scripture the feasts often are called “holy convocations.” They are times God has appointed for holy purposes – times in which the Lord meets with men and women.

While there are many religious celebrations in Jewish history and custom, seven are most significant: Passover, Unleavened Bread, Firstfruits, Pentecost, Trumpets, Day of Atonement, and Tabernacles. God established the timing and sequence of these feasts to reveal to us a special story – most significantly, the work of the Messiah in the redemption of mankind and the establishment of His Kingdom on earth.

Why seven feasts? The number seven is significant in Scripture. It is tied to completeness or fullness. For example, God rested on the seventh day after creation, not because He was tired but because His work was complete and He was fully satisfied in it. The cycle of the seven-day week provided the basis for much of Israel’s worship. In addition, the seventh month features four of the seven feasts; the seventh year and the 50^th year (the year of Jubilee, following seven cycles of seven years) also are significant.

There are several key truths to keep in mind as we study the feasts:

► The Lord established the feasts and gave them to Israel.

► The feasts were based on the Jewish lunar calendar (12 months of 29 or 30 days per month).

► The feasts relate to Israel’s spring and fall agricultural seasons; Israel was and still is, to a great extent, an agricultural nation.

► They picture the timing, sequence and significance of the Messiah’s redemptive work.

► Though the feasts were given to Israel, every person is invited to meet with God and receive His gracious blessings through a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

► There is a binding relationship between Israel and the church even though they are distinct entities with distinct promises. God’s unconditional covenant with Abraham promised, “In thy (Abraham’s) seed shall all nations be blessed” (Gen. 22:18). “Every blessing which the true Church now enjoys and every hope she anticipates come out of the Abrahamic, Davidic, and New Covenants which God made with Israel” (The Feasts of the Lord by Kevin Howard and Marvin Rosenthal, p. 14).

► The number of feasts – seven – relates to the Biblical number for completion. The full work and revelation of Messiah/Christ is pictured in the seven feasts.

► All seven feasts are found in Leviticus 23; additional passages in the Old and New Testaments also address the feasts.

“To summarize, these seven feasts of the Lord are God’s appointed times during which He will meet with men for holy purposes. When completed, these seven special holidays will triumphantly bring an end to this age and usher in a glorious ‘Golden Age'” (www.christcenteredmall.com).

Why study the feasts? There are several good reasons to study the feasts: 1) to remember God’s goodness; 2) to understand more fully His divine revelation through “types;” 3) to increase our knowledge of God’s plan through the work of His eternal Son; 4) to more fully appreciate the work of Jesus Christ on our behalf; and 5) to joyfully anticipate the days in which Jesus will return and establish His Kingdom on earth.

Why do so many Jewish people observe the feasts but fail to see Jesus in them? The destruction of the Temple in Jerusalem in 70 A.D. led to significant changes in the location, emphasis and practice of the feasts. It must be remembered that the destruction of the Temple itself, and the scattering of the Jewish people, was God’s judgment upon the nation for its rejection of Jesus as Messiah. The hardening of the Jewish heart, however, has provided opportunity for Gentile believers to be grafted into the true church, made up of those “from every nation, tribe, people, and language” who worship Jesus as Lord (Rev. 7:9; see also Rom. 11:11-12). All Christians should love the Jewish people. God does, and He is not finished with them yet. The fall feasts in particular point to the coming days when a remnant of believing Jews will “look on Me whom they have pierced” (Zech. 12:10), mourn over their unbelief, and turn to Jesus as King of Kings and Lord of Lords.

September 18, 2008

Answering Your Questions about the Feasts of Israel

A dreidel, used in Hanukkah

Your text on Yom Kippur says the Ark of the Covenant was never recovered after the captivity. Is there any record that it was taken into captivity or destroyed?

According to the Jewish Virtual Library (www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org), what happened to the ark after the captivity is unknown and has been debated for centuries. It is unlikely the Babylonians took it because the detailed lists of what they took make no mention of the Ark. “According to some sources, Josiah, one of the final kings to reign in the First Temple period, learned of the impending invasion of the Babylonians and hid the Ark. Where he hid it is also questionable – according to one midrash, he dug a hole under the wood storehouse on the Temple Mount and buried it there (Yoma 53b). Another account says that Solomon foresaw the eventual destruction of the Temple, and set aside a cave near the Dead Sea, in which Josiah eventually hid the Ark (Maimonides, Laws of the Temple, 4:1).”

Some Ethiopian Christians claim they have the Ark today. In Axum, Ethiopia, it is widely believed that the Ark is being held in the Church of Saint Mary of Zion, guarded by a monk known as the “Keeper of the Ark.” According to the Axum Christian community, they acquired the Ark during the reign of Solomon, when his son Menelik, whose mother was the Queen of Sheba, stole the Ark after a visit to Jerusalem. The claim has been impossible to verify, for no one but the monk is allowed into his tent.

A more plausible claim is that of archaeologist Leen Ritmeyer, who has conducted research on the Temple Mount and inside the Dome of the Rock. He claims to have found the spot on the Mount where the Holy of Holies was located during the First Temple period. In the center of that spot is a section of bedrock cut out in dimensions that may match those of the Ark as reported in Exodus. Based on his findings, Ritmeyer has postulated that the Ark may be buried deep inside the Temple Mount. However, it is unlikely that excavation will be allowed on the Mount any time soon by the Muslim or Israeli authorities.

All the feasts are mandated in the Pentateuch, supposedly written by Moses. What is your view concerning the historicity of Moses and the Fathers (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob), and more generally the first part of the Old Testament?

While there are some who believe the Bible should be read as literature rather than Scripture, and some scholars who deny the historical truth of Gen. 1-11, it may be best for us to look at how Jesus felt about the Fathers and the Old Testament. For example:

Jesus referred to Moses as the author of the Pentateuch (Luke 24:27, 44; John 5:46; 7:19 and others). Also, Moses appeared on the Mount of Transfiguration with Elijah and Jesus (Matt. 17:3).
Throughout the Gospels, Jesus quoted richly from the Old Testament, especially in regard to the Messianic prophecies.
He spoke of Adam and Eve as real persons (Matt. 19:3-6)
He talked about the worldwide flood in the days of Noah as a historical fact (Matt. 24:37-38).
He compared His physical resurrection to the reality of Jonah’s three-day experience in the belly of the great fish (Matt. 12:38-40).
He made numerous references to Abraham as a real person (Matt. 8:11; 22:32; Luke 3:8; 13:28; 16:19-31; John 8:58).
His disciples staked His claim of being Messiah, in part, to His lineage, which included Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Matt. 1:1-17; Luke 3:23-38).

What life application should we take into our lives from the feasts? Understanding that they point to the return of Christ, and that some churches even celebrate these with the Jewish people, how can or do the feasts or the knowledge of them fit into our worship practices today?

It seems to me that the Western church has largely lost the “Jewishness” of the Scriptures. A systematic teaching of the feasts would strengthen the faith of believers as they see God’s hand in human history, and they may serve to convince unbelievers of the amazing prophetic truths of Scripture.

In addition, worship services and sermons devoted to the feasts in the spring and fall may help all of us reconnect with the fact that God’s Anointed One came to us through God’s chosen people, the Jews. One great opportunity that exists now is the Lord’s Supper, which was instituted during the Passover. What a great opportunity to teach Jesus as the Lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world. Also, baptism gives us the opportunity to talk about Passover, Unleavened Bread, and First Fruits.

On a personal level, I know I have become much more aware of the imminent return of Christ in the fall, and I watch with anticipation for Trumpets, when the dead in Christ shall rise first, and then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air (1 Thess. 4:13-18).

There are other Jewish feasts besides the seven we have studied. What can you tell us about Purim and Hanukkah, for example?

Purim commemorates a time when the Jewish people living in Persia were saved from extermination, thanks to the heroic acts of Esther, a Jewish woman chosen as Persia’s queen. Her story is told in the book of Esther. Purim is celebrated on the 14th day of Adar, which usually falls in March. The word “Purim” means “lots” and refers to the lottery that the evil Persian leader Haman used to choose a date for the massacre of all Jews. Haman’s sinister plot against the Jews was thwarted when Queen Esther, at the urging of her cousin Mordecai, risked death by revealing the plot to King Ahasuerus. The Jewish people were saved, and Haman was put to death. Purim is a joyous celebration preceded by a fast, which commemorates Esther’s three days of fasting in preparation for her meeting with the king. Observant Jews read the book of Esther, enjoy food and drink, and make gifts to charity.

Hanukkah (also spelled Hanukka, Chanuka and Chanukah) is one of the most joyous times of the Jewish year. The people remember the miraculous military victory of the small, ill-equipped Jewish army over the ruling Greek Syrians, who had banned the Jewish religion and desecrated the Temple. In addition, they celebrate the miracle of the small cruse of consecrated oil that burned for eight days in the Temple’s menorah. As a result, Hanukkah is an eight-day festival beginning on the 25th day of Kislev, which normally falls in December. It also is known as the festival of lights. Hanukkah is celebrated by lighting a menorah for eight nights; eating foods fried in oil, especially potato pancakes and jelly doughnuts; and playing with a dreidel, a four-sided top. Many non-Jews – and even some Jews – equate this holiday with Christmas, adopting many of the Christmas customs such as gift-giving and adorning the house in festive decorations.

Neither Purim nor Hanukkah are “appointed times” or “holy convocations” in Scripture. Nevertheless, they play important roles in Jewish history and modern custom.