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Rev 10:7 KJV - 7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

Is the singular "mystery of God" referring to the OT (IE: Psalm 25:14) or the gospels ("gospel of the kingdom")? Or to Paul's "new creation"? Or are they all the same mystery?

Also, what does it mean that the mystery of God is "finished"?

Note:

A look at the Greek of the passage:

http://dailydoseofgreek.com/scripture-passage/revelation-10-7/

6 Answers 6

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Revelation 10:5-7 (DRB) And the angel, whom I saw standing upon the sea and upon the earth, lifted up his hand to heaven, 6 And he swore by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things which are therein; and the earth, and the things which are in it; and the sea, and the things which are therein: That time shall be no longer. 7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound the trumpet, the mystery of God shall be finished, as he hath declared by his servants the prophets.

What is spoken of as being heralded by the seventh trumpet appears to refer to the universal or general judgement, and the consummation of all things.

A few lines later we read what apparently confirms such:

Revelation 11:15-18: (DRB) And the seventh angel sounded the trumpet: and there were great voices in heaven, saying: The kingdom of this world is become our Lord's and his Christ's, and he shall reign for ever and ever. Amen. 16 And the four and twenty ancients, who sit on their seats in the sight of God, fell on their faces and adored God, saying: 17 We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, who art, and who wast, and who art to come: because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and thou 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 render reward to thy servants the prophets and the saints, and to them that fear thy name, little and great, and shouldest destroy them who have corrupted the earth.

It must refer to the Redemption in general as looked at as the whole story of human history, and as complete—"finished"—at its end.

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  • Thanks and +1. Why might it be called a "secret"? Is that referring to a particular secret? The judgment may have secret aspects but it wasn't really a secret, was it?
    – Ruminator
    Feb 18, 2019 at 20:48
  • Mysterion doesn't only mean secret, but can mean, of course, mystery (so Eph 5:32, e.g.). The Redemption as a whole is a doubtless a mystery, as well as all its particulars, including and especially the Incarnation and Passion/Atonement. Note that ετελεσθη is the future tense of Jesus' past perfect τετελεσται: "it is finished" (or better, "[It has been] accomplished!"). Cf. 1 Tim. 3:16: "great is the mystery [μυστηριον] of godliness, .. manifest in the flesh, justified in the spirit, appeared unto angels, preached unto the Gentiles, believed in the world, taken up in glory."/Rev 12:5. Feb 18, 2019 at 21:14
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    Revelation is a mysterious Book :] Feb 18, 2019 at 21:15
  • What makes something a "mystery" other than being secret?
    – Ruminator
    Feb 18, 2019 at 21:30
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    @Ruminator Yes, the 2nd definition is more to the point. Basically, it's a mystery because for different reasons, he wants it to be. He has to orchestrate everything the way he has planned it to without human interference. Nov 11, 2021 at 1:12
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Colossians makes reference to this:

Colossians 1:24-27

I now rejoice in my sufferings for you, and fill up in my flesh what is lacking in the afflictions of Christ, for the sake of His body, which is the church, of which I became a minister according to the stewardship from God which was given to me for you, to fulfill the word of God, the mystery which has been hidden from ages and from generations, but now has been revealed to His saints. To them God willed to make known what are the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles: which is Christ in you, the hope of glory.

There is a competing mystery referenced in scripture also, which is called the mystery of iniquity, or the mystery of lawlessness, which is in reference to the "sinful kingdom" of the Antichrist power. (See 2 Thessalonians 2:7 and Revelation 17:5)

The Bible presents us with two competing spiritual kingdoms or paths.

Romans 6:16

Do you not know that to whom you present yourselves slaves to obey, you are that one’s slaves whom you obey, whether of sin leading to death, or of obedience leading to righteousness?

Both of these are also likewise represented as leaven which pervades the being and influences the entire person.

Thus, the mystery of lawlessness is the principle of sin in the heart, and the mystery of God is the antithesis to this: namely, the leaven of the Spirit which produces righteousness in the heart.

And so, when the seventh trumpet sounds, the leaven is finished working, and it's time to take the bread out of the oven. The spreading and multiplying of righteousness has finished, and there is nothing more to be done.

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The trumpets judgment happens at the end of the millennium, That is why the Mystery of God which is Christ will be complete, when all kingdom, power, and authority will be subjected to Him, then Christ will be subject to God so that God will be all in all in the New Heaven and New Earth.

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  • Welcome. See the other answers, they have taken time to show support for their points. This is important as we must be sure to use the bible as our foundation to anchor what we understand. This is what is recognised and rewarded more than simply giving an opinion - which is what you have just provided.
    – Steve
    May 30, 2021 at 11:58
  • Welcome to Bible Hermeneutics SE and thank you for your contribution. When you get a chance, please take the tour to understand how the site works and how it is different than others.
    – agarza
    May 30, 2021 at 12:59
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Revelation 10:7 '...the mystery of God should be finished' means that the MYSTERY OF WHO GOD IS becomes apparent. Conversely the MYSTERY OF WHO IS AN IMPOSTER GOD becomes apparent also in this process. This is a question of identity. YHWH is no longer confused with other gods. How this is achieved is not quite clear. It may relate to the two witnesses of chapter 11 bearing in mind that the ministry of the first coming of Jesus was heralded by John the baptist. History repeats itself so it is reasonable to assume that the second coming of Jesus will also be prepared by the two witnesses.

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[Revelation 10:7 NLT] (7) When the seventh angel blows his trumpet, God's mysterious plan will be fulfilled. It will happen just as he announced it to his servants the prophets."

The blowing of the seventh trumpet is spoken about as the arrival of "the Kingdom of our LORD and of his Christ" in the next chapter:

[Revelation 11:15 NASB20] (15) Then the seventh angel sounded; and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, "The kingdom of the world has become [the kingdom] of our Lord and of His Christ; and He will reign forever and ever."

It is a secret with many sub-secrets:

[Matthew 13:11 NASB20] (11) And Jesus answered them, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been granted.

[Luke 8:10 NASB20] (10) And He said, "To you it has been granted to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest [they are told] in parables, so that while seeing they may not see, and while hearing they may not understand.

[1 Corinthians 4:1 NASB20] (1) This is the way [any] person is to regard us: as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.

It is said by Jesus to be so secret/mysterious that one must be born of God in order to recognize it:

[John 3:3-5 NASB20] (3) Jesus responded and said to him, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God." (4) Nicodemus said to Him, "How can a person be born when he is old? He cannot enter his mother's womb a second time and be born, can he?" (5) Jesus answered, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless someone is born of water and [the] Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.

It is so mysterious that although it arrived 2000 years ago, most Christians, though apparently converted, still think of it as some future thing, that will not come about until some future return of Christ.

But Jesus made it plain that the time of the arrival was in the first century, not the 21st!:

[Mark 1:15 NASB20] (15) and saying, "The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel."

But it arrived invisibly:

[Luke 17:20-21 NASB20] (20) Now He was questioned by the Pharisees as to when the kingdom of God was coming, and He answered them and said, "The kingdom of God is not coming with signs that can be observed; (21) nor will they say, 'Look, here [it is!]' or, 'There [it is!]' For behold, the kingdom of God is in your midst."

The sign of Jesus' coming and the arrival of the Kingdom of God was linked by Jesus over and over with the judgment/destruction of the Temple, Jerusalem and the Jerusalem Temple Sinai covenant based Jewish theocracy:

[Luke 17:23-30 NASB20] (23) "And they will say to you, 'Look there,' or, 'Look here!' Do not leave, and do not run after [them.] (24) "For just like the lightning, when it flashes out of one part of the sky, shines to the other part of the sky, so will the Son of Man be in His day. (25) "But first He must suffer many things and be rejected by this generation. (26) "And just as it happened in the days of Noah, so will it also be in the days of the Son of Man: (27) [people] were eating, they were drinking, they were marrying, [and] they were being given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and the flood came and destroyed them all. (28) "It was the same as happened in the days of Lot: they were eating, they were drinking, they were buying, they were selling, they were planting, [and] they were building; (29) but on the day that Lot left Sodom, it rained fire and brimstone from heaven and destroyed them all. (30) "It will be just the same on the day that the Son of Man is revealed.

[Luke 21:20-22 NKJV] (20) "But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. (21) "Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. (22) "For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.

[Matthew 21:41-45 NKJV] (41) They said to Him, "He will destroy those wicked men miserably, and lease [his] vineyard to other vinedressers who will render to him the fruits in their seasons." (42) Jesus said to them, "Have you never read in the Scriptures: 'The stone which the builders rejected Has become the chief cornerstone. This was the LORD's doing, And it is marvelous in our eyes' ? (43) "Therefore I say to you, the kingdom of God will be taken from you and given to a nation bearing the fruits of it. (44) "And whoever falls on this stone will be broken; but on whomever it falls, it will grind him to powder." (45) Now when the chief priests and Pharisees heard His parables, they perceived that He was speaking of them.

So what is the Kingdom of God? It is Christ and God's People fused together in a New Covenant. In the NT it is variously described as:

  • the True Vine and its branches
  • the Good Shepherd and his Sheep
  • the New Jerusalem
  • the Christ and his Bride
  • the Head and the Body
  • the City on a Hill
  • the Temple Made Without Hands, comprised of Living Stones
  • the House of Prayer for All Nations
  • the Dwelling Place of God
  • the Father God and his Sons
  • the Israel of God

Etc., etc., etc...

If you can "see" this then you are in on the Secret of God:

[Matthew 13:11 NKJV] (11) He answered and said to them, "Because it has been given to you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it has not been given.

[Luke 8:10 NKJV] (10) And He said, "To you it has been given to know the mysteries of the kingdom of God, but to the rest [it is given] in parables, that 'Seeing they may not see, And hearing they may not understand.'

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Revelation 10:7 KJV

But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

It is obvious that by this time the mystery of God is a secret ONLY to those who have not received Him, those who don't have His Spirit living in them, in other words, the skeptics. The secular world and science give all religions the same value because satan inspires them, they look into their scientific discoveries as the tool to find God, what surfaces at the end of the age is the victorious God who will be manifested to all by His judgments. This is the point in time where the mystery of Jesus reaches the Omega point.

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  • Welcome to the site Jair. On this site reasons need to be detailed for claims made. So, when you claim, “by this time the mystery of God is a secret ONLY to those who have not received Him”, you need to show what leads to that claim. And reference to ‘scientific discoveries’ would need to be shown to be relevant to the question, and not just an opinion. If you could enlarge on why ‘the Omega point’ of the mystery of Jesus has been reached, that would be appropriate. Answers on this site usually require a lot of time to formulate as hermeneutics involve research and digging!
    – Anne
    Nov 10 at 13:39
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    Nov 10 at 15:06

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