Jon Paulien

Rev 8:1-- Mueller argues that interpretation of the seventh seal must be established on two data points, the concept of silence and the context in which the seventh seal is found (7:15-17).

Rev 8:1-- Tonstad reads 8:1 in light of the previous verse, Revelation 7:17, and Isaiah 52:13-15. The silence of Revelation 8:1 is the silence of contemplating the Lamb in the midst of the throne (Rev 7:17) at the very close of the cosmic conflict.

A chiasm in Rev 8:2-6: Seven angels with seven trumpets (2) Angel, altar, censer (3a) Incense, prayers of the saints (3b) Altar before the throne (3c) Incense, prayers of the saints (4) Angel, censer, altar (5) Seven angels with seven trumpets (6)

Rev 8 (Introduction)-- The first four trumpets all focus primarily on the natural world, the fifth and sixth fall primarily upon human beings. The first four are connected closely together, the last three are detached from each other.

Rev 7:17 (Conclusion)-- The time leading up to the End is a time of restraint (7:1-3). Like 2 Peter 3:9, it expresses delay on account of God’s patience, not willing anyone to be lost but all to come to repentance.

Rev 7:17-- Whereas living springs are a positive image of happiness, the wiping-away of tears is a negative image of happiness. Eternal life will be a mixture of joyous things that are added to human existence and unhappy things that will be removed.

Rev 7:17-- In Revelation 5:5-6 the Lion is the Lamb, here the Lamb is the Shepherd.

Rev 7:17-- The Lamb at the center of the throne is in the same place as previous (Rev 5:6-7). He is not “around the throne,” like the elders and the angels (4:4; 5:11), he is not “in front of the throne,” like the Great Multitude (7:9, 15), He is in the midst of the throne

Rev 7:16-- The one thing missing in this series of negatives (compared to Rev 21:4) is the absence of death. This makes the most sense if it takes place during the Millennium rather than eternity (cf. Rev 20:14).

Rev 7:15-- While the daily Tamid sacrifices occur two times a day, morning and evening, they were considered continuous, these two sacrifices representing divine intercession that applied to Israel continuously throughout the day and night.

Rev 7:15-- In Rev 6:16 the “earth dwellers” are afraid of the one sitting on the throne. But the Great Multitude is directly in front of the throne without fear. Fear is a consequence of sin, not of the character of God.

Rev 7:15-17-- This section combines sanctuary language with the language of the countryside and its care for domestic animals. These texts also echo some of the most beautiful eschatological promises in the OT (Isa 4:5-6; 25:4-9; 41:17; 49:9-10; Ezek 34:23; Psa 121:6).

Rev 7:14- Daniel 11:35 states that in the run up to the Time of the End, the “wise ones” will be "cleansed", but there is not a single verbal parallel between Revelation 7:14 and Daniel 11:35, so at best this would be a possible allusion.

Rev 7:14-- The sealing comes before the tribulation ignited by the releasing of the four winds. The Great Multitude is seen coming out of the Great Tribulation. The two groups represent the end-time people of God, at two different stages of the end-time crisis.

Rev 7:14-- The kind of question and answer format in verses 13 and 14 is typical of extra-biblical Jewish and Christian apocalypses at the time.

Rev 7:13-- In the two times (in Revelation) when one of the elders is directly involved in an explanation, it is because that explanation is of particular importance for the church (see also Revelation 5:5-6).

Rev 7:13-14-- The reference to white robes points back to the white robes of the great multitude in verse nine rather than the 144,000, which are never seen. So the elder in this passage is offering an explanation of the great multitude.

Rev 7:12-- The word “amen” strongly affirms the truth of something that has been said previously. So in this verse the angelic host begins their song by affirming the truth of the song of the great multitude in verse ten.

Rev 7:11-- There is an ancient Jewish tradition that angels cannot sit down because they have no knees (based on Ezekiel 1:7). So in situations like this, they can either stand or prostrate themselves.

Rev 7:10-- The “crying out” of the great multitude is in the present tense, which indicates that this is not just a single event, but an ongoing activity. They are continually focused on the God who has delivered them and placed them in a new state of blessedness.