There’s something more that needs to be addressed here. When we read Revelation 6:12-17, it seems like it’s a snap shot of the end of the world at a quick glance. We see here in Scripture, the sun be darkened, a great earthquake occurs, the sky is removed, mountains and islands moved out of their places. Those left behind in the rapture, are suddenly fearful. Even the rich and the mightiest of men hid in caves and in the rocks of the mountains from the wrath of God; seeking to die mercifully (meaning quickly).
But this is not the end at this point yet! And the reason why the end is not yet is because the “Seal Judgments” are what the Lord calls, “The Beginning of Sorrows.” They are only the beginning of God’s judgments. All because Revelation 6 concur with what Jesus Christ already ministered in Matthew 24:4-13 & 29-31. And what did He specifically say when we see these things come to pass? He absolutely assures us today in,
Matthew 24:4-8 And Jesus answered and said unto them, Take heed that no man deceive you. For many shall come in My name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many. And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows.
Again, He is reassuring us right now that Revelation 6 are just the last signs of the rapture of the church age, and the beginning of God’s global judgments. And He calls these day right now, “The beginning of sorrows, until the seventh seal is opened. It only the beginning of worse things to come for those who will be left behind.
And the reason why the Lord calls these days, ‘The beginning of sorrows,’ is simply because, ‘what once was, can never be again. For things are progressively getting worse.’ The peace, joy, security and happiness that once was can never be again! The days when life made sense. When families were close and stuck together. When their was a future to plan for. And retirement was the plan. Those days are gone, and many mourn and sorrow over the fact of the “good ’ol days’ will never be again.
Judgments To Come
And when we read on to V:13, This sums up all the Six Seals of Revelation 6. The Seal Judgments are the first set of the judgments of God that happens globally. From here… there are still 2 more sets of judgments or “woes” to come upon the whole world after this, starting with the opening of the Seventh Seal in Revelation 8:1.
And the Seventh Seal is the beginning of the Great Tribulation Period which will occur for about 7 years. And on that day, you have the judgments of God announced by the sounding of trumpets. And then the last set of global judgments are the Vial Judgments. And these sets of Judgment total are in chronological order:
- The Seal Judgments (Revelation 6)
- Judgments of Trumpets (Revelation 8-10)
- The Vial Judgments (Revelation 15-16)
How do we know these judgments of God are in this specific order of events? Besides each judgment being “coincidentally” in chronological order by chapters? If you only read the Scriptures pertaining to these three sets of judgments, you can see clearly that from the opening of the Seals, Trumpets to the Vial judgments are an escalation of events that gets worse and worse as you read on from chapters 6-16.
Also, at the end of the last vial poured out into the air, God who sits on the throne in the temple of Heaven speaks these most powerful words, “It is done!” And the judgment proceeds after, of a great physically disastrous earthquake that falls cities of all nations, destroys islands and flattens mountains.
He doesn’t say that after the seal judgments are complete!He doesn’t say, “It is done!” after the seventh trumpet blast! But He does declare the completion of His judgments at the seventh vial poured out, meaning He will put no further global judgments upon all the earth for they are complete according to Revelation 16:17.
And as we read Revelation 6 and compare to all that is going on all around us today, God has given us observable evidence that we are living in the Seal Judgments now; waiting for the Sixth Seal to occur. We have not heard trumpet blasts coming from Heaven that would’ve resounded throughout all the universe and the earth yet!
We have not seen any observable evidence of the vial judgments come to pass yet either. For much of the Vial Judgments of God has to do with the antichrist, people who received the mark of the beast and the kingdom of satan.
The antichrist has not yet been revealed!No one’s been forced to receive the mark of the beast yet! The sea’s has not been miraculously turned into blood where every sea creature dies all at one time yet. No one is drinking blood out of rivers and wells, nor is there any observable evidence that Armageddon is about to happen any time soon. This is how we know these judgments are written in this specific chronological order!
And still after all that, the end is not yet! For after the Great Tribulation Period ends when Babylon is destroyed (Revelation 17-18); The Second Advent of Christ has to happen next where the antichrist (the beast) and the false prophet thrown into the lake of fire (Revelation 19). satan is thrown into a bottomless pit for a thousand years. And then the Millennial reign of Christ occurs (Revelation 20:1-4).
At the end of the thousand reign of Jesus Christ, satan is released from the bottomless pit and will deceive people one last short time and gather nations to battle against Jesus Christ. And right before anything else begins to happen, Fire comes out of God and destroys Heaven itself, all the universe and all the earth (Revelation 20:7-10). And that is how the end of the world will come!
So therefore, Revelation 6:12-17 are not describing the end of the world. Rather, it is revealing the end of the church age, before the Great Tribulation Period begins. And the end of the church age begins with a great earthquake,
A Great Shaking
Revelation 6:12-14 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.
A great earthquake is the next sign, and it shakes all the earth at one time as the rapture is about to happen. After this, there will be several shakings not only the earth but the heavens also, that will occur throughout the Great Tribulation. Do not mistaken these shakings to be earthquakes Jesus Christ mentions in Matthew 24:7. For these kinds of quakes mentioned here are a completely different kind.
Normally when an earthquake occur they happen in various places when plate tectonics shifts and moves causing friction and stress. And when the stored energy is released, it travels through the earth’s crust sending the effects of a shaking from the affected area in various magnitudes.
But the great earthquake mentioned here at the opening of the Sixth Seal shakes the whole entire earth itself at one time, literally on a global scale, and with that the sun be darkened and the moon will not give her light and the heavens (universe) also shakes, as Jesus Christ describes in,
Matthew 24:29 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken:
When the heavens shake it will cause the stars to fall unto the earth as is written, “And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.” So as the heavens and the earth are shaking it will cause the sky (the firmament which is according Genesis 1:6-8 makes up the form or shape of the globe of earth) to roll up like a scroll and every mountain and Island moved out of their places.
That’s some serious shaking, which no one can ignore and all will be awaken to…That’s observable evidence… And nowhere in recorded history has this ever occurred on earth on a global scale as we know of yet. (Except for a time that was mentioned in Revelation 16:18, eluding to a violent shaking that occurred before recorded history).
And the rapture is the start of these great shakings on throughout the Great Tribulation period. Because according to the Holy Bible, there will be several shakings that will happen in the last days of both heaven and earth after this:
- At the beginning of the Great Tribulation period (Revelation 8:1-5)
- After the two witnesses are martyred in Jerusalem (Revelation 11:13)
- At the sound of the 7th trumpet blast (Revelation 11:19)
- After the 7th vial is poured out (Revelation 16:17-21)
- At the 2nd advent of Christ/The battle of Armageddon (Joel 2:10/Revelation 19:11)
Revelation 6:15-17 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
Revelation 6 is just the beginning of things to come. The rapture is the mark of the end of the church age. And things from then on will get progressively worse for those who (missed the rapture), rejected Jesus Christ as Lord. Rejects to draw close to God now. Rebelled against the Holy Spirit.The work of the cross, the hearing of the gospel message of Jesus Christ.
But all is not lost yet! After the rapture of the church age, there still is hope of salvation. For God promises, His love is everlasting, His mercy endureth forever and no matter what happens, His arms is still extended to a stiff-necked, obstinate people! Not just for the Hebrews only, but for Gentiles as well. The Holy Spirit of God will still be poured out upon all flesh up to second advent of Christ (Joel 2:28-32/Acts 2:17-21). And the rest of the Book of Revelation shows that very fact and will be proven by observable evidence in those days! FOR THE END IS NOT YET!
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