Revelation 8:1: When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour...
Why silence in heaven for half hour? And why 1/2 hour? Is the timing is important? Thanks...
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Sign up to join this communityRevelation 8:1: When the Lamb opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour...
Why silence in heaven for half hour? And why 1/2 hour? Is the timing is important? Thanks...
The seventh seal introduces the seven trumpet judgments of God. The judgments that lead up to the close of the tribulation are so severe that a solemn silence falls upon all of heaven. For heaven to fall silent, to cease the constant praises of God, is dramatic indeed. Silence is a powerful instrument and suggests a need to stop, think and reflect upon what is about to transpire.
Seven angels are then handed seven trumpets ready to sound (verse 2). An eighth angel takes a censer and burns “much incense” in it, representing the prayers of God’s people (verses 3–4). The angel then fills the censer, “with fire from the altar” then hurls it on the earth, followed by “peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake” (verse 5).
My NLT Study Bible makes this comment about Revelation 8:1 in the notes:
“The opening of the seventh seal concludes the first act and dramatically initiates silence, which suggests the mystery of God in his dealings with the world (see Revelation 10:4; 1 Kings 19:11-12). Perhaps the mysterious silence here is analogous to God’s rest on the seventh day of creation (Genesis 2:1-3). This brief hush precedes the unfolding of the second act of divine judgment when God will answer the prayers of his people.”
My ESV Study Bible says this:
“The silence in heaven that ensues when the Lamb breaks the seventh seal further sustains the suspense... The brief period of silence – about half an hour – displaces ceaseless praises by living creatures, elders, angels, and the church triumphant. Silence is appropriate in anticipation of the Lord’s coming judgment (Zephaniah 1:7-10; Zechariah 2:13).”
“About half an hour” may not have any significance, given the astonishing events the Apostle John saw. The element of time, linear and familiar to humans, may be inadequate to express properly what was being revealed in heaven. It is possible that in the revelation only a short period of time elapsed while the angels prepared themselves for what was to come. Whatever the reason for the silence, and its duration, it precedes earth-shattering events, and that should be sufficient to warn us of the terrible nature of the events that accompany the seven trumpets.