God's Trumpets - Part 2 - Devo for 02/10/2009

Reading
Revelation 8:1-9:21

Keys to the Text
Seven Trumpets: In Revelation, trumpets primarily announce impending judgment. The trumpets are of greater intensity than the seals but not as destructive as the final bowl judgments will be (see 16:1-21). They occur during the final three and one-half years, but the time of each is indefinite, except the effects of the fifth trumpet judgment, which will last five months (9:10). The first four trumpets announce the divine destruction of earth's ecology (vv. 6-12), while the final three involve demonic devastation of earth's inhabitants (9:1-21; 11:15-19).

Day of the Lord: This will be a day of wrath, trouble, distress, devastation, desolation, darkness, gloominess, clouds, thick darkness, trumpet, and alarm (Zephaniah 1:15-16, 18). There are nineteen indisputable uses of "the Day of the Lord" in the Old Testament and four uses of it in the New Testament (see Acts 2:20; 2 Thessalonians 2:2; 2 Peter 3:10). The Old Testament prophets used "Day of the Lord" to describe near (current) historical judgments or far (future) eschatological divine judgments. Six times it is referred to as the "day of doom" and four times as the "day of vengeance." The New Testament calls it a day of "wrath," day of "visitation," and the "great day of God Almighty" (Revelation 16:14). These are terrifying judgments from God for the overwhelming sinfulness of the world. The future "Day of the Lord" which unleashes God's wrath falls into two parts: (1) the end of the seven-year Tribulation period (Revelation 19:11-21) and (2) the end of the Millennium. These two events are actually 1,00o years apart, and Peter refers to the end of the 1,000 year period in connection with the final "Day of the Lord" (2 Peter 3:10).

1. List out the seven trumpet judgments.

2. The Old Testament prophet Joel speaks of the "Day of the Lord." What are some of the things he says about this time period?