Timing of the 7th Trumpet

As we get into the timing of the seventh trumpet you may be inclined to think that this is nothing more than a bunch of prophecy geeks quibbling over unimportant details of end-time prophecy mumbo-jumbo. In some cases that may be called for, but not here! This is one element of Bible prophecy that we need to get right. The timing of a whole line-up of other important events depends on us pinpointing the exact timing of the blowing of the seventh trumpet.

Let’s begin by taking a look at where some well-known prophecy teachers place the timing of the seventh trumpet.

John Walvoord, considered by many to be the world’s foremost interpreter of biblical prophecy, places the seventh trumpet just before the second coming of Christ to the earth.

Chronologically, the seventh trumpet is close to the time of the second coming of Christ as the contents of the seventh trumpet, the bowls of wrath of Revelation 15-16, lead immediately to the time of the second coming of Christ. – John Walvoord, The Prophecy Knowledge Handbook, pg.575.

Hilton Sutton also places the seventh trumpet just prior to the second coming.

The sounding of the seventh trumpet sets in motion the remaining series of events which end the tribulation. . .  Jesus takes over the world’s kingdoms. He returns to earth . . . – Hilton Sutton, The Book of Revelation Revealed, pgs.137-139.

David Reagan is yet another on a long list of contemporary prophecy teachers who place the seventh trumpet at the end of the tribulation, just before the second coming.

. . . the passage in Revelation 11 that portrays the sounding of the seventh trumpet is a “flash forward” to the end of the Tribulation . . . The point is that the seventh trumpet of Revelation relates to the end of the Tribulation and not the middle. – David Reagan, Lamplighter Vol.XXVI March/April 2005 pg. 4

There have been pervasive viewpoints held by these and other ministers who retain somewhat of a monopoly over prophetic interpretation given the successful marketing campaigns of their books. My intentions are not to discredit the sincerity of these men, just to point out that their interpretation of the seventh trumpet occurring at the end of the tribulation is incorrect. Not only is it incorrect, but their treatment of the timing of this event alters the timing of other important events which ultimately distorts the Revelation of Jesus Christ as a whole. Here is the text of the blowing of the seventh trumpet including the succeeding events contained therein.

15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.

16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,

17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.

18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged, and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.

19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail. (Rev. 11:15-18)

The blowing of the seventh trumpet is such a momentous event that it warrants our full attention and diligent examination. At the time when the angel blows the seventh trumpet there is an announcement that changes the course of human history forever. Never again will things be as they were. This old world will undergo a transfer of authority; a shifting of untold magnitude. Satan, who for the past six-thousand years has been in control over the kingdoms of this world, with all his wicked and deceitful attacks on the human race, will finally be cast down from that place of authority. That authority is the same authority that he flaunted when he tempted Jesus in the wilderness.

The Devil having brought him up to an high mountain, shewed to him all the kingdoms of the world in a moment of time, and the Devil said to him, ‘To thee I will give all this authority, and their glory, because to me it hath been delivered, and to whomsoever I will, I do give it.” (Luke 4:5-6, YNG)

But now, at the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the transfer happens and the announcement resounds throughout the heavens.

The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ . . . (Rev. 11:15)

The inevitability of this event should have a profound affect upon all those who are called by His name. Since we are identified with Him in His death, burial, and resurrection, we shall also identify with Him in His triumph and restitution at the end of the age. At the proclamation of His reign over the kingdoms of this world, by His own admonition it is said, we also “shall reign WITH Him for 1000 years.” (Rev. 20:6)

In regards to Walvoord, Sutton, Reagan and the others who position the blowing of the seventh trumpet and the inception of Christ’s reign at the end of the tribulation, they have failed to rightly divide the Word, and in so doing they have disjointed other critical elements relevant to our understanding of the Revelation of Jesus Christ. The eventuality of Christ’s reign over the kingdoms of this world can only commence at the removal of the one who now temporarily holds legal claim to that place of authority. Satan’s removal is then unavoidably intertwined into the events of the seventh trumpet (the inception of Christ’s reign), and in fact, must necessarily precede it.

Looking further, the announcement of the inception of Christ’s reign is echoed one chapter later in Revelation 12 when it says,

And I heard a great voice in heaven, saying, Now is come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ . . . (Rev. 12:10a, ASV)

There is no question that the basis on which Christ’s reign is initiated is stated in this verse without any ambiguity.

Now is come the salvation, and the power, and the kingdom of our God, and the authority of his Christ:  for (because) the accuser of our brethren (Satan) is cast down (Rev. 12:10, ASV)

The inception of Christ’s reign begins the very moment Satan is cast down. The war in the heavens between Michael and his angels and Satan and his angels is what precipitates this eventual transfer of authority. Furthmore, the casting down of Satan to the earth also marks the beginning of the remaining forty-two months on earth before the second coming of Christ.

And, when the dragon saw that he was cast to the earth, he pursued the woman . . . and there were given unto the woman the two wings of the great eagle, that she might fly into the desert, into her place,—where she is nourished, a season and seasons and half a season (42 months or 3 1/2 years),  from the face of the serpent. (Rev.12:13-14, Rotherham)

Jesus Christ acquires His authority over the kingdoms of the world three and one half years prior to His physical return to earth. That being the case, the timing of the blowing of the seventh trumpet is not near the end of the tribulation period as others have expressed, but in the middle of the last seven years. As I stated before, placing the timing of the seventh trumpet in the wrong place will ultimately distort the timing of The Revelation of Jesus Christ.

In upcoming posts, I will be fleshing out the other events mentioned under the seventh trumpet and how they validate the same end. Ultimately, all are pointing to an even greater understanding of the day when Jesus Christ will be revealed to this whole world. That day is the day of His Revelation, the theme of all end-time prophecy.

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