Objective in Studying this Chapter:
1) To examine the first vision in the interlude between the sounding of the sixth and seventh trumpets
2) To offer an explanation concerning the significance of this vision
A Brief Introduction
In Revelation, chapter 8, verse 13, we saw that an angel (or an “eagle,” depending on your translation) flying through the midst of heaven declaring, “Woe, woe, woe,” three “woes,” three trials/tribulations, three terrible things, which were about to be revealed as the three remaining trumpets will sound.
In chapter 9, we have looked at the fifth and the sixth trumpets as they sounded, two of those three “woes” being revealed with the sounding of those two trumpets. The first “woe” in the sounding of the fifth trumpet was the smoke coming up from the bottomless pit, which was opened, and those creatures, called “locusts,” but with the tails of scorpions, permitted to torture, to torment mankind.
Then, the sixth trumpet sounds and those two hundred million horsemen come forth, men of battle on these steeds of battle. The picturesque language speaks of their fierceness, their hostility and all those kinds of things. As we saw, those represent the evil forces of this world and their involvement in this world. No, they are not given authority over the world itself. No, they don’t have the carte blanche [full authority] ability to overtake all of mankind, but, rather, they are here. They were there in John’s day; they’re still here today. We are dealing with the forces of evil.
In chapter 9, verse 21, we see that man, in spite of these terrible things which come upon mankind and are permitted to come upon mankind, does not repent (speaking, now, in the aggregate, the whole) [meaning that, perhaps, a few will repent, but most of mankind will not repent].
We begin with chapter 10. We see that, similar to the vision, the interlude that John saw in chapter 7 between the opening of the sixth and seventh seals, so here in this vision in chapter 10 and the first part of chapter 11 occurs something of an interlude. There’s something else that is going on here related, of course, to the context—not completely separate—but something of an interlude. This interlude occurs between the sounding of the sixth trumpet and the sounding of the seventh trumpet. And John will have another vision that is going to be different from, perhaps, what he has seen before.
In the 10th chapter and the first part of the 11th chapter, the certainty of “the end” is affirmed. Indeed, “the end” is at hand, “the end” is near. That doesn’t mean that we have some revelation about when “the end” will occur. We are in the last days; we have been in the last days for more than 2,000 years. But “the end” is affirmed as we look at this 10th chapter.
In chapter 10, John is further commissioned to testify, to prophesy, concerning the things that he will see, particularly reassuring the church that a time of judgment is going to come. This time of the evil forces of the world being allowed to prey upon, to torment, the church—those who are part of the family of God—will come to an end. God never, in ALL of Revelation, leaves very far away the question of the care of His church.
THE MIGHTY ANGEL WITH THE LITTLE BOOK (VERSES 1-7)
A Reading of Revelation 10:1-7
“I saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud. And a rainbow was on his head, his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire. 2 He had a little book open in his hand. And he set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, 3 and cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roars. When he cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices. 4 Now when the seven thunders uttered their voices, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, ‘Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and do not write them.’
5 The angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised up his hand to heaven [some translations say, “raised his right hand to heaven”] 6 and swore by Him Who lives forever and ever, Who created heaven and the things that are in it, the earth and the things that are in it, and the sea and the things that are in it, that there should be delay no longer, 7 but in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, the mystery of God would be finished, as He declared to His servants the prophets.”
The Angel, the Book, and the Seven Thunders (verses 1-4)
The scene here opens up with John going back, or being back, upon the earth. Although he doesn’t speak of that transition, it is apparent in what he expresses here in his vision. He “saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven,” similar, perhaps, to the mighty angel that is mentioned in chapter 5 and verse 2, who was calling out, who was uttering throughout the entire world, throughout the entire universe, seeking one who was worthy to open the seals of the scroll, which was closed [“Then I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice, ‘Who is worthy to open the scroll and to loose its seals?’” Revelation 5:2].
This mighty angel that John sees here is distinctive in several ways, none the least of these would be his size, and we’ll mention that in just a moment. This angel is clothed in a cloud and had a rainbow over his head [“I saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud. And a rainbow was on his head…,” verse 1a]. The rainbow is suggestive of a specific connection, a direct connection, with God Himself, with the One Who sits on the throne. You recall back in chapter 4 and verse 3 the description that John gave us of the throne room of heaven. We saw there that among all of the things John saw, he saw a rainbow there over the throne [“Immediately I was in the Spirit; and behold, a throne set in heaven, and One sat on the throne. And He Who sat there was like a jasper and a sardius stone in appearance; and there was a rainbow around the throne, in appearance like an emerald,” Revelation 4:2-3]. This gives indication of where this angel has come from, the authority that he has, and so on.
The mighty angel’s face, John says, shone like the sun; his feet were like flaming pillars of fire [“…his face was like the sun, and his feet like pillars of fire,” verse 1b].
Who was this angel? Well, we don’t know. Some understand and would suggest that, perhaps, it is Christ Himself, but that would hardly be consistent with what we see in the rest of the New Testament, because Christ is nowhere in the rest of the New Testament referred to as an “angel.” Angels are created beings of a particular spiritual rank, while Christ is the Son of God; He is not a created being, and He shares the full nature of the God-Head, and He is eternal. Surely, it would be inappropriate to refer to Jesus Christ, to the Son of God, to a member of the God-Head, as “another mighty angel.”
However, I don’t think, and don’t believe, that this is Christ. It is, nonetheless, an angel—a messenger (that is what the word “messenger” means) a messenger, who is from God, thus closely associated with the presence of God and of Christ. Therefore, what he has to say and the actions that he takes are tremendously important and of great significance.
Sometimes when we read Revelation, they can just be “words on a page.” In a writing like this, in this apocalyptic language, which is maybe a little bit difficult to understand and follow, we read the words, but the meaning isn’t there for us. But always keep in mind that we are seeing through the eyes of John what he saw on that occasion. Think about that. It’s as if we were there! We have “a bird’s eye view”; we have an eye-witness account. So, what John saw, we are seeing as well.
In the hand of this angel is a little book; and this book is opened [“He had a little book open in his hand,” verse 2a]. This is in contrast to the scroll in chapter 5, which was sealed with the seven seals. No, this book is not closed; this book is open, which indicates that it will show, that it will reveal, that it will demonstrate, a part of God’s great purposes. Because it is “a little book,” the suggestion is, the indication is, perhaps, that it will not contain ALL of the divine purposes of the universe. There is more to come. This is not an all-inclusive document, and we’ll see, when we get to the end of this chapter, that, indeed, there is more to be revealed; there is more to be written; there is more to be said.
The picture, the vision, is of this angel planting his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the earth [“And he set his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land…,” verse 2b]. He stands astride the world. Obviously, clearly, we are looking at something that is figurative. We know that as we read through all of the things that we are encountering here; but clearly, because of this great size, this would have to be figurative. Not that an angel couldn’t be that size, but could John possibly see if it were in actuality?
The angel is standing there, one foot on the sea, one foot on the earth, and he’s standing astride the world; and his great voice utters forth like the roaring of a lion and he cries out to all the universe [“…and cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roars,” verse 3a]. In Joel, chapter 3 and verse 16, there is a reference there that is similar to this: “The LORD also will roar from Zion, And utter His voice from Jerusalem; The heavens and earth will shake; But the LORD will be a shelter for His people, And the strength of the children of Israel.” The idea of this loud, roaring voice is not something that is entirely unique. Then there is the idea that the lion’s roar is a symbol of God’s Message; that idea is portrayed in the Old Testament. Amos, chapter 3 and verse 8 is an example: “A lion has roared! Who will not fear? The Lord GOD has spoken! Who can but prophesy?” Again, imagine this image, this idea, of this mighty voice coming forth like a roar, and even like the roar of a lion. Indeed, the Message that this angel has is coming down from on high, coming from the heavenly places, representing a revelation from God Himself.
Accompanying the loud roar of this angel are “seven thunders,” which are heard. These thunders were, apparently, not just the unintelligible rumbling of thunder that we are familiar with. There was a Message contained in the roaring, in the rumbling, of these seven thunders [“When he (the mighty angel) cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices,” verse 3b]. Whether it was something that was specifically audible, or whether it was simply something that John understood, being in the spirit, we don’t know.
Nevertheless, there was something that the thunders had to say, if you will. What did they say? Wouldn’t we like to know?!? We don’t know, and there’s no need in speculating about what the Message might have been. John will say, “I was ready to write this down.” Remember, that was John’s job; that was John’s function in all of this. Go back to the very beginning of the book of Revelation, and John’s instruction is, “Write down the things that you will see,” [Revelation 1:10-11, 19: “I was in the Spirit on the Lord's Day, and I heard behind me a loud voice, as of a trumpet, 11 saying, ‘I am the Alpha and the Omega, the First and the Last,’ and, ‘What you see, write in a book and send it to the seven churches which are in Asia: to Ephesus, to Smyrna, to Pergamos, to Thyatira, to Sardis, to Philadelphia, and to Laodicea.’…Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this.”].
And HERE, John heard something; he was going to record it; he was going to write it down, but he was forbidden. A voice from heaven forbid him to write down what the seven thunders uttered [“Now when the seven thunders uttered their voices, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven saying to me, ‘Seal up the things which the seven thunders uttered, and do not write them,’” verse 4]. “Sealing” is the equivalent of not writing. Some commentators suggest that there may be an allusion here to Daniel, chapter 12 [verse 4a: “But you, Daniel, shut up the words, and seal the book until the time of the end….”].
Sometimes, a revelation is given that is not possible to pass on to mankind. You remember that in 2 Corinthians, chapter 12, Paul conveys an experience—he speaks of it in the third person as though it were someone else, but most scholars believe that Paul was speaking of himself. He was “caught up into the third heaven,” or “caught up into paradise,” depending on your translation. He saw things there, and he heard words, he said, that were not lawful for a man to utter, and Paul did not reveal those words [2 Corinthians 12:2-4: “I know a man in Christ who fourteen years ago — whether in the body I do not know, or whether out of the body I do not know, God knows — such a one was caught up to the third heaven. 3 And I know such a man — whether in the body or out of the body I do not know, God knows — 4 how he was caught up into Paradise and heard inexpressible words, which it is not lawful for a man to utter.”].
Perhaps what Paul saw, mankind could not comprehend. Perhaps what those “seven thunders” uttered, man could not receive.
The Angel and His Oath (verses 5-7)
Now, the prophet (that is John) sees the angel lift his hand—some translations say, “right hand,” and that’s a good translation. John sees the angel raise his right hand in the sign of an oath and he “…swore by Him Who lives forever and ever, Who created heaven and the things that are in it, the earth and the things that are in it, and the sea and the things that are in it, that there should be delay no longer, but in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, the mystery of God would be finished, as He declared to His servants the prophets,” [verses 5 through 7].
Once again, there are some variations in the translation. They are all fundamentally correct. But the Message there is that God will end things at some time, whether your translation says, “there will be no more time,” or, “there will be no more delay.” In fact, let me just read one translation that I think is extremely clear. This is from Dr. Hugo McCord’s translation of the New Testament, which I like very much. Let me read that section of Scripture as he translates it: Revelation 10:5-7: “Then the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and the earth raised his right hand toward heaven and swore by Him Who lives forever and ever, Who created heaven and the things in it, the earth and all things in it, and the sea and the things in it, there will be no more delay, in the days when the seventh angel sounds, the mystery of God will be complete according to the Gospel, which He had proclaimed to His Own slaves the prophets.”
Time is growing short; the end is in sight. This will be, from the standpoint of what John will experience, when that seventh trumpet sounds. John will see and share with us the end of things.
As one writer said, “The whole scene is intended to affirm the fact that God will complete His purpose.” The promise is, that in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, and when he is about to sound “the mystery of God,” it will be finished.
The word “mystery” is frequently seen in the New Testament. Its meaning is not so much like a mystery that we cannot understand, or that we can’t comprehend, or that is not revealed to us; but, rather, the word, as it’s used in the New Testament as it concerns God’s purpose, indicates something that is hidden, or, something that is only partially revealed. But the mystery of God will be fully and completely revealed one day. The mystery here is connected with the Good Tidings that God has declared to His servants, the prophets. Certainly the prophets of old are included here. God declared Good News to them. You remember that everything that transpired, everything that took place, everything that was written, that we now call the “Old Testament,” points toward the coming of Jesus Christ. And the things that are revealed, then, in the New Testament can be considered prophecy. We don’t often refer to them as such, but those who wrote the New Testament—men like Paul and Peter, and so on—were, in fact, prophets, in a manner of speaking. So, God has declared His Glad Tidings, His Good News, His Gospel, to His servants, the prophets.
Because God has revealed, or given, His revelation to His prophets, they have conveyed this to the church. The church—those who are part of the family of God, those who have had their sins forgiven, those who have the hope of eternal life—can, thus, walk in that hope and in the light of the revelation of God’s Will. God is faithful, and He can be relied upon to carry out what He has purposed and what He has promised. This served, I’m confident, as great encouragement and great consolation to Christians of the 1st Century and into the 2nd and 3rd Centuries. It should, as well, be of comfort and consolation to us today. God can be relied upon to follow through, to carry out, what He has purposed and what He has promised.
JOHN EATS THE LITTLE BOOK (VERSES 8-11)
“Then the voice which I heard from heaven spoke to me again and said, ‘Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the earth.’
9 So I went to the angel and said to him, ‘Give me the little book.’
And he said to me, ‘Take and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth.’
10 Then I took the little book out of the angel's hand and ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth. But when I had eaten it, my stomach became bitter. 11 And he said to me, ‘You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.’”
John is Instructed to Eat the “Little Book” (verses 8-9)
It would seem that the same voice that had forbidden him to write down the utterances of the seven thunders (verse 4) now commands John to approach this angel and to “Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel,” [verse 8]. The verb that is translated “go” really has the force of intensifying the command. Just as we might say, “GO and do this! GO and do that! GO accomplish this purpose!” There is a force there in what John is being told what to do. [Verse 8: “Then the voice which I heard from heaven spoke to me again and said, ‘Go, take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel who stands on the sea and on the earth.’”]
Once again, this is clearly symbolic; it’s clearly figurative since John would be utterly and completely dwarfed in size before the enormous figure of this “mighty angel” astride both the sea and the land. And what is being referred to as a “little book” in the hand of an angel of this size would, probably, hardly be able to be seen! And if it were able to be seen, John would have difficulty eating it all, wouldn’t he? Obviously, this is figurative—symbolic.
John did as he was directed, as he was commanded to do, asking that the angel give him the little book [“So I went to the angel and said to him, ‘Give me the little book,’” verse 9].
The angel, then, has something to say to John. The angel tells John—commands John—to take the book and to eat it up [“And he said to me, ‘Take and eat it…,’” verse 9]. Literally, the Greek phrase means “to eat it down,” indicating that John was to eat it, consume it, swallow it, that it should go into his stomach. That’s the implication. Of course, our idiom is “eat it up”; but in the Greek language, it was “eat it down.” By this is meant that he is to take it fully, take it completely, understand it, to spiritually assimilate it. Some commentators see in this statement the significance that, God never forces His revelation upon anyone, even upon His messengers, even upon His prophets. The prophet, the messenger, must be willing to take that which is put before him.
John is told by this angel that in eating this little book, he will find it to be sweet in his mouth, but it will become bitter in his stomach [“And he said to me ‘Take and eat it; and it will make your stomach bitter, but it will be as sweet as honey in your mouth,’” verse 9]. It will be bittersweet. There IS a mixture of sweet and bitter in what he will say. What could this possibly mean? Well, perhaps this: God’s Word, in a manner of speaking, is bittersweet. God’s promises and His judgments are not two different things; they are not exclusive; but God’s promises—His judgments [His Words of promise as compared to His judgment—being judged by His Word and found lacking]—are very sweet [Psalm 19:9-10: “The fear of the LORD is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the LORD are true and righteous altogether. 10 More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb,” and Psalm 119:103: “How sweet are Your Words to my taste, Sweeter than honey to my mouth!”]. There the Psalmist speaks of the sweetness of God’s Word, of God’s promises, or His righteous judgments.
But God’s judgment is bitter—bitter to those who will be judged by His Word and found to be lacking. So, we see here that this is a Message from God. It is a part of God’s purpose, and, apparently, it contains God’s promises—His judgments [the sweet], as well as God’s judgment, His judgment of the wicked who do not love and obey His Word [the bitter].
John Eats the “Little Book” (verses 10-11)
John takes the little book and he eats it. As the angel had said, it was sweet in his mouth, but became bitter in his stomach [verse 10: “Then I took the little book out of the angel's hand and ate it, and it was as sweet as honey in my mouth. But when I had eaten it, my stomach became bitter.”]. John is to take in God’s sweet promises and bitter judgments. He is to consume God’s Word; he is to assimilate it, AND, in effect, he is to master it. He needs to be able to understand it, but he also needs to be able to put it into practice, to demonstrate it, to show it, if you will, before others.
In verse 11, we see that John’s work is not finished. “And he said to me, ‘You must prophesy again about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.’” There is yet remaining one more trumpet to be sounded. We’ll see, beginning in chapter 12 and following, that John will have many more things to write, many more things to prophesy, concerning “peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.”