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Just as Revelation 7 has answered the question 'Who shall be able to stand?' at the end of chapter 6, so the seven trumpets give John his first view of what is the meaning of the 'wrath' of the Lamb.

In Revelation 7 John has seen four angels holding back the winds of strife. Now he sees seven angels with the trumpets of war. As Jesus no longer intercedes for unrepentant sinners, His wrath is seen as He allows evil to begin to beat itself death. The order of creation is replaced by the chaos of devolution and John's only comfort must have been that those whom he has seen sealed in Revelation 7 are held safe by God in Revelation 9. A parenthesis then occurs before the seventh trumpet sounds in Revelation 11.

Can there be peace in the midst of such troubled world conditions as seen during the trumpets? Jesus has promised that in Him His people will have peace. John 16:33

What approach would you take if you had to inform a friend of trouble ahead?

What have others said?

If you were producing a pantomime what characterizations would you use to depict good and evil?

What have others said?

"8:1) When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.	After all of the noise of pandemonium on earth and praise in heaven the silence is dramatic.
"2) And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets. "3) Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all saints, on the golden altar before the throne. 4) The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel's hand."	Now, before John views the tragedy of the first six trumpets, he again sees the prayers of God's people, mingled with incense in heaven. Cross Reference: How has Jesus made possible the entry of your prayers into heaven as a beautiful fragrance? Ephesians 5:2 What have others said? Can you be a saint? See Mini-Study 1.
"5) Then 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."	When the censer is thrown down humanity's probation is closed. The chance for change is finished. What would you do differently now if you knew the censer would be thrown down in 24 hours? What have others said?
"The Trumpets "6) Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them. "7) The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up."	Can you see any indications of chemical, biological, or nuclear warfare in the symbolism of the first four trumpets? What have others said?
"8) The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood, 9) a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed." "10) The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water --	Cross Reference: What did the ancient prophet Isaiah tell about a falling star? Isaiah 14:12-15
11) the name of the star is Wormwood.	"Wormwood" means bitterness. Have you had an experience when a "bright star" in your life turned to "wormwood?" What have others said?
"A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter."	How do you imagine the unsaved will react when they find nothing to sweeten the waters anymore? What have others said?
"12) The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night. "13) As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: 'Woe! Woe! Woe! to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels." "9:1) The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the shaft of the Abyss. 2) When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the smoke from the Abyss."	As the fifth trumpet sounds the fallen star is seen again, this time as the angel of the abyss. "Abyss" is mentioned eight times in Revelation and represents the earth in spiritual, moral, or physical chaos. Cross Reference: What is your only way out of the "pit" of sin and evil? Psalm 40:1-5 What have others said?
"5) They were not given power to kill them, but only to torture them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of a scorpion when it strikes a man. 6) During those days men will seek death, but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will elude them.	Cross Reference: What does Jesus say he will do the the time of trouble for the sake of His people? Matthew 24:21, 22 What have others said?
"7) The locust looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled human faces. 8) Their hair was like women's hair, and their teeth were like lions' teeth. 9) They had breastplates like breastplates of iron, and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and chariots rushing into battle."	How have the problems that have come to you seemed like locusts with teeth of iron? What have others said?
"10) They had tails and stings like scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five months."	What gives you the strength to carry on even under the stinging of the evil one? What have others said?
"11) They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon."	"Abaddon" or "Apollyon," means destruction or destroyer and is a title of Satan that reveals him in contrast to Jesus your Savior.
"12) The first woe is past; two other woes are yet to come.	Throughout the six trumpets how many terrible actions of Satan the destroyer can you see in contrast to the love of Jesus the Savior? What have others said?
"13) The sixth angel sounded his trumpet, and I heard a voice coming from the horns of the golden altar that is before God. 14) It said to the sixth angel who had the trumpet, 'Release the four angels who are bound at the great river Euphrates.' 15) And the four angels who had been kept ready for this very hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind."	The horns of the golden alter of incense were where the blood of sacrifice was sometimes placed. Euphrates, the river of Babylon, symbolizes the life support of false religion. This river will be studied in Revelation 16.
"16) The number of the mounted troops was two hundred million. I heard their number. "17) The horses and riders I saw in my vision looked like this: Their breastplates were fiery red, dark blue, and yellow as sulfur. The heads of the horses resembled the heads of lions, and out of their mouths came fire, smoke and sulfur. 18) A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke and sulfur that came out of their mouths. 19) The power of the horses was in their mouths and in their tails; for their tails were like snakes, having heads with which they inflict injury.	After the varying forms of human destruction, John sees a vast military action. But notice the strange symbolism that follows. Some have seen this as a symbolic picture of helicopter gunboats with all armaments blazing. How would you describe a vision of modern military equipment without using any nineteenth or twentieth century terminology? What have others said?
"20) The rest of mankind that were not killed by these plagues will did not repent of the work of their hands; They did not stop worshiping demons, and idols of gold, silver, bronze, stone and wood -- idols that cannot see or hear or walk. 21) Nor did they repent of their murders, their magic arts, their sexual immorality or their thefts.	Probation has closed and John emphasizes twice that the unsaved choose not to repent. The time of repentance is over. How many of these listed sins do you see in our society today? What have others said? This is in contrast to the beautiful promises to the overcomers in Revelation 2 and 3

Once again, in this Snapshots of Revelation study guide, there will be continued emphasis on God's special message of Love for you today. It is, nevertheless, imperative to survey, as we have done before, the very graphic symbolic prophecy before us and examine some of the methods of interpretation.

The seven trumpets present the third grouping of seven messages that John sees. The seven churchs reveal God's view of good and bad in the church, while the seven seals uncover the expansive progress of truth and evil, with truth coming to fruition in the scenes of Revelation 7. Evil ripens for the harvest in the seven trumpets as God's 'wrath' allows the unrepentant world, motivated by the forces of evil, to punish itself.

As with the churches and seals, the seven trumpets can be viewed historically. Able Bible scholars have seen, in the first four, trumpets, a remarkable fulfillment of prophecy in the successive judgments on the Western part of the Roman empire, with graphic illusions to such vicious characters as Attilla the Hun. The next two trumpets have been explained as God's judgments on the Eastern Roman empire with violent attacks on Christian strongholds spearheaded by Mohammedans, Turks, and Saracens. Within this sweep of history, time prophecies appear to be fulfilled with remarkable accuracy, confirming the faith of many in the Bible.

Some Modern interpreters have suggested that the plagues are literal with real locusts and scorpions attacking during the time of tribulation. The literal river Euphrates dries up as unrepentant sinners are molested by a vast army on horses. All of this is seen as taking place after God's true followers have left the Earth. It does seem out of keeping, though, with Revelation's symbolic nature to suddenly turn to highly literalistic terminology.

It does appear possible, however, that just as John has been given a vision of the joy of the saved and the glories of heaven in Revelation 7, he is now given a preview of the events surrounding the seven last plagues in which "God's wrath is completed." (Revelation 15:1)

While marauding armies have attacked Christians down through the ages, it is comforting to know that the day is approaching when God's true followers will be protected from all evil by the angels of the Lord. A key to understanding Revelation 8 and 9 is the reference to the seal of God during the time of the fifth trumpet, paralleling the reference to the mark of the beast during the seven last plagues. John identifies those who will survive the final crisis as the people who do not have the mark of the beast but do have the seal of God as is given by the angel in Revelation 7.

Although you may not understand every intricate detail of symbolic ,prophecy, it is not difficult to catch the great vision God has for you in Revelation -- no matter how vicious evil may become, if you have given your life to Jesus and in His strength are living according to His commandments, you will be sheltered safely in Him.

Why would your prayers, even for forgiveness or financial help, seem as incense to God?
What have others said?

Would the "goodness of God" or the fear of fire motivate you most strongly to repentance?

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While external peace is highly desirable, why is Jesus' peace in this world primarily a peace of heart and mind?

What have others said?

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Saints are mentioned more than eighty times in the Bible and at least twelve time in Revelation. The word simply means 'Holy Ones.' Although this term is sometimes used in reference to angels, it is most commonly applied to the humble followers of God.

Is your belief in Sainthood based primarily on faith or feeling? Why?

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Matthew 12:31, 32.
If people resist the conviction of the Holy Spirit and will no longer confess and forsake sin, can they be forgiven?

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So if you can still hear God's Spirit speaking to your conscience, repece and victory is possible.