Revelation Chapter 15

VERSE 8 “The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power, and no one was able to enter the temple till the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.”

AND THE TEMPLE WAS FILLED WITH SMOKE FROM THE GLORY OF GOD AND FROM HIS POWER:

This verse, among other things, gives a date. This is vital in the interpretation of this chapter. There are several steps needed in determining this date:

(1) It was Brother Russell’s position that this event marked the completion of the Church. This poses great problems in that it places all of the plagues subsequent to the completion of the Church — a sequence NOT held by any brethren and in direct conflict with Brother Russell’s own Fourth Volume explanation of the sixth plague. Therefore, this verse must be re-interpreted.

(2) 1 Kings 8:6, 10, 11 sets the stage typically for Rev 15:8. The bringing of the Ark into the Most Holy represents the entry of the Church into glory. (This was Brother Russell’s thought also, although he thought it to be the WHOLE Church.) Therefore, the question is,

When does the Ark (Church) go beyond the veil?

Only two possibilities seem to exist:

(a) A.D.1878, when this work BEGAN, or

(b) AT the COMPLETION of the Church.

The second choice seems impossible, leaving only the first. This is consistent with the context which has been focused on A.D.1878 as the time of (Verses 2-4) the sleeping saints, being raised and (Verse 6) the resurrection of the angels (messengers) who would do the plaguing — the seventh being an exception since he was still blowing his Trumpet and could not precede those who had fallen asleep (1 Thess. 4:15).

(3) Ezek 9:3 and 10:2-6 corroborate this picture. It has the filling of the temple with the cloud (of smoke) equated with the man with the writer’s ink-horn scattering coals on the city. This prophecy begins with the pronouncement against Babylon (A.D.1878) to be followed by its plaguing (coals).

(4) Ezek 43:2-6 also confirms the picture. Ezekiel himself (Verse 3) relates this chapter to Chapters 9 and 10 of his own prophecy. Note that Verse 2 says “the earth shown with his glory.” Compare this to Rev 18:1, 2 which we always date as A.D.1878.

(5) The connection with Egyptian plagues also helps. The seven LAST plagues occurred AFTER the separation of the Israelite’s (i.e., AFTER the A.D.1878 “come out of her” pronouncement), but BEFORE the deliverance of the Israelite’s due to the death of the firstborn plague.

Antitypically this puts the plagues after A.D.1878 (when the temple is filled with smoke) but before the glorification of the completed Church.

AND NO ONE WAS ABLE TO ENTER THE TEMPLE:

No one was able to enter the New Covenant arrangement — the very purpose for the temple in its antitypical sense —

UNTIL THE SEVEN PLAGUES OF THE SEVEN ANGELS WERE FINISHED:

Viz., until God’s wrath is past and the Time of Trouble over. Until the old order disintegrates, men will not be ready for the new one.

Thus Chapter 15 puts the New Covenant arrangement in place by the raising of its mediator (remember The Mediator is composed of both its Head, Christ Jesus our Lord and the Church, his body), and by having the covenant understood.

Before it can function, however, two things must transpire: (1) The completion of the Church and (2) the destruction of the old order by a series of events (bowls).

That series of events is shown in Chapter 16.

We will take a look at Verses 7 and 8 as explained by Brother Shallieu in our next post.