The Three Woes of the Seventh Seal

Christ's second coming to planet earth is announced by a mighty trumpet blast Matthew 24:31-32.

Two long awaited event take place at His coming: 1) the resurrection of those who are in Christ 2) the time when he will take up His rule as king of kings announcing condemnation upon the governments, cultures, and false religions of humanity.

1 Corinthians 15:52 Paul tells us this trumpet blast is "the final one" indicating there are some other trumpets sounded prior to this final blast.

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The 7th Seal Contains 7 Trumpets

In the prophecies of Revelation we find out that the final trumpet is the last in a sequence of 7 trumpets. These 7 trumpets begin to blow in succession with the opening of the 7th seal Revelation 8:1-2.

We also learn from the prophecies of Revelation that the last 3 of these 7 trumpets form a grouping, or a subset of the 7 trumpets... referred to as "the three woes" Revelation 8:13.

Note: Woe is not a word you hear much anymore... it means a cry of grief, sadness, despair. The sound of the Greek word here is something like oo-ah-ee.

My purpose today is to review the final blast of the 7th trumpet as part of this final grouping of three trumpet blasts. In other words, trumpets 5, 6, and 7.

The First 4 Trumpets

Revelation 8:6-12 [show chart?]

1st trumpet - something is unleashed which destroys 33% of the vegetation on earth.

2nd trumpet - something happens which contaminates 33% of the salt water on earth.

3rd trumpet - a third of the freshwater becomes undrinkable.

4th trumpet - 1/3rd of the light that reaches the earth from the sun, moon, and stars is blocked... possibly through some disturbance in the earth's atmosphere.

Anyone who has looked into the mechanics of life on this planet usually comes to the conclusion that what we have here is the result of a delicate balance of light, gravity, chemical composition and other factors of the material realm.

One theory is that these came to be through some happy accident in space and time. The mathematical odds of such a series of happy accidents happening through random collisions of atoms is so vast you can’t draw enough zeroes to measure it all… yet they say “oh well, somehow it happened”.

Another theory is that some great mind, or deity, or intelligent force caused all these things and established this delicate balance. However, that mind, or deity, or force, is not actively involved in the ongoing maintenance of the universe. 

Another theory [which UCG teaches] is that God, through Christ, has not only created all this... but is actively involved with the ongoing maintenance of the universe and its inhabitants Colossians 1:15-17 [see also Romans 11:36].

The disasters of the 4 trumpets are a demonstration of what would happen if the Creator no longer actively maintains the delicate balance that allows for life on the planet. Notice, that it is not complete disaster... its partial disaster... meant to teach a lesson... and call to repentance Revelation 9:20.

The Next 3 Trumpets

Following these 4 trumpet blasts which all unleash some sort of natural disaster come the "3 Woes". These three will also share a theme. They are not about natural disasters, they are disasters that come about because of the evil within the hearts of human beings.

The angel knows what comes after the first 4 trumpets, and knows its going to be bad. They are designated as "woes" because they are so horrifying... so destructive... only God through His great power will be able to repair the damage these "woes" do to the earth.

The three final trumpets are calls to war and battle, contests for world domination!

· 5th trumpet - the wars of the Beast

· 6th trumpet - the wars of the East

· 7th trumpet - the war with Christ the king of kings

God Has Been Holding Us Back

From the very beginning human beings were designed to have dominion over the earth Genesis 1:28. Our dominion was a commission from God... but meant to be tending and caring for the earth... not exploiting it, destroying it, and fighting one another to be on top Genesis 2:6-7.

Mankind has perverted and twisted our ordained role and turned it into destruction rather than care and nurturing. We probably would have gotten to this point long before if God had not held us back until the appointed time Genesis 11:6-7.

He has continued to hold us back since then. But, at the appointed time God will remove the forces of restraint. The human impulse for domination will create a situation where all life on the planet would be destroyed if God, through Christ, did not intervene to stop it.

The 5th Trumpet -  War of the Beast

God has restrained human beings from our own creative destruction … He has also restrained Satan and the spiritual forces of evil at work among humans.

We sometimes wonder about the evil and suffering in our world... and those of us with knowledge of the bible understand Satan's role in provoking human evil. The evils we have seen in human history are bad enough   … and that’s what happens while Satan is restrained... what will they be like when God no longer restrains the evil one?

The angel knows enough to cry out "woe to humanity"!

 

Revelation 9:1-6 God does not cause this war... with the sounding of the 5th trumpet He stops holding it back... He "opens the abyss". We learn its going to be horrible, we also learn that the people of God will be protected from it. So, there is actually still a certain degree of restraint... God is still "in control of the situation".

2 Thessalonians 2:5-10 the spirit of lawlessness has been at work from the beginning, but it has been held back. A powerful human leader will be empowered by Satan.

Revelation 17:8 the result of what comes out of the abyss is called the beast, a system of human domination powered by Satan

Revelation 13:2-4 no one is able to resist the power of the beast and live.

Revelation 9:7-12 the beast sets out to establish his iron grip on the planet through violence, intimidation, military and police power. At first He consolidates his power over the regions west of the Euphrates river. Finally extending his conquest even over Jerusalem.

This is the 1st of the three woes

The 6th Trumpet - War From the East

Revelation 9:13-21

There has always been a significant portion of humanity east of the Euphrates mostly separate from the influence of the European empires that have sought to resurrect ancient Rome. That area has also largely been separate from the influence of the bible [false teaching and true].

We tend to speak of the Beast as ruling the whole planet... but here we see there is another contender for world domination. Here we are told that some sort of spiritual force which has been holding them back is removed. They move to attack the beast in a gigantic battle for world domination!

…in a place called Jerusalem

Both the 5^th and 6^th trumpet blasts result in something terrible being unleashed. Forces of spiritual delusion and self destructive activity which God has restrained up until that time… the appointed time!

Why Doesn’t God Just Leave Us Alone?

I think humanity's response to God throughout scripture is "just leave us alone". We don't want you telling us what to do, we don't accept you as our king, we don't agree with your judgment and condemnation, why don’t you just let us work all these matters out on our own.

The 1st and 2nd woes are in some ways God's final reply, "you don't realize that, all along, I have been holding you back from destroying yourselves" ... "when I stop restraining you, the wickedness in your own hearts will lead you to brink of annihilation" ... "I'll show you the violence and destruction you are capable of" ... "but I will hold you back from complete annihilation".

Wouldn't We Be OK If Satan Were Not Around?

"Why don't you just get rid of Satan and leave us alone"... "why do we have to suffer for evil Satan instigates"?

There is a time coming when Satan will be permanently removed... and that will be a significant change in the history of the universe. But getting rid of Satan is not "leaving us alone". Actually, it's another example of God intervening, helping and restraining.

Evil is real, and evil is out there.

We either want to deal with the forces at play in the universe on our own [which includes Satan as well as the evil within our own hearts]... or we want the Creator to provide a buffer between us and the evil that is out there [God's intervention and exercise of His authority over created things].

We cannot have it both ways.

The 1st and 2nd woes are just a small taste of what "leaving us alone" leads to.

Revelation 11:14 the 2nd woe is passed. Billions of human beings lay dead on the ground. God did not slay them... He stopped holding them back from destroying one another.

Note: Chpts 10-11 provide information on other events happening at the same time, the 1,260 days. A prophetic declaration that "your time is up".

The 3rd Woe - War With Christ

Revelation 11:15-18 the time has come to deal with those who would destroy the earth, and destroy themselves.

The nations are angry but now instead of fighting one another they form an alliance to fight against Christ. "Leave us alone"! They gather in the valley of Armageddon and then march down to Jerusalem to fight the armies of Christ, Joel 3:9-12, Revelation 19:11-21.

The three woes are huge battles to establish global domination: first the beast, next the multitude from the east, then Christ comes. This final call to assemble for battle is the 7th trumpet, the final trumpet.

God Will Not Leave Us Alone

Matthew 24:21-22 Jesus says "I have to come back to save you from yourselves".

I don't think any of us can fully comprehend how involved the Creator is in human affairs. This applies to nations and empires... it also applies to your own individual life.

Where would I be if God left me totally alone?

What future would I have if God did not intervene?

Without the active involvement of God, the present is meaningless, and the future is nothing.

But, be glad, because God will not leave us alone.