THE SECOND TRUMPET

Revelation Chapter 8

VERSE 8 “Then the second angel sounded: And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood.”

There were two trends working in the Smyrna Trumpet’s period: (1) There was terrible persecution because Christianity threatened paganism, and (2), Apostate Christians were working feverishly to gain favor by compromises. Remembering these trends helps to understand the Trumpet.

THEN THE SECOND ANGEL SOUNDED: John, who provided Revelation and provided anti-Gnostic reasoning’s in his epistles.

AND SOMETHING LIKE A GREAT MOUNTAIN:

The great mountain is pagan Rome which met its demise by the time this period ends. Rome itself is not destroyed – only pagan Rome. The difference is important and is probably implied in the wording: “something like a great mountain . . .” (NAS). This is the equivalent of Rev 12:7 and 8 when pagan Rome loses its place in heaven.

It is also the fulfillment of 2 Thess. 2:7, 8 where it was foretold that he who restrains (i.e., pagan Rome) the mystery of lawlessness (the incipient Roman Church), will continue to restrain its development until he is taken out of the way. The burning of the great mountain takes it away.

BURNING WITH FIRE: Jer. 51:24-26 (speaking of Babylon) shows the meaning of a burning mountain.

WAS THROWN INTO THE SEA:

The restless masses of Roman humanity were the cause of the downfall of pagan Rome and the establishment of the apostate church. Rev 13:1 makes it clear that the beast which represents the Roman Church comes up out of this sea into which its predecessor falls. The people’s taking hold of “Christianity” in such large numbers eventually helped to persuade Constantine to convert and make Christianity the religion of the empire; if you can’t fight it, join it.

AND A THIRD OF THE SEA BECAME BLOOD:

The sea (which is the origin of the “beast” – see Rev 13:1 – and the origin of the true saints – see Rev 5:9) which represents the restless pagan masses of Rome, BECAME BLOOD – it died. One of the three groups which constituted the existing religious forces of the day, DISAPPEARS. Clearly, the apostate church does not disappear; neither does the true Church. But the THIRD part, paganism, does disappear.

VERSE 9 “And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.”

AND A THIRD OF THE CREATURES WHICH WERE IN THE SEA AND HAD LIFE DIED:

The KEY to understanding this phrase are the two words “HAD LIFE.” Clearly, paganism never had life in the Lord’s eyes. It was destroyed in the preceding sentence anyway. Only three groups in the sea (the symbol of Christians was the FISH) HAD LIFE (justification):

(1) The true saints:

(2) The Great Company;

(3) The second-death class – those who lose their lives by apostasy.

It is a sad tale, but apparently many lives were lost in Smyrna – they lost their justification and, hence their eternal existence.

AND A THIRD OF THE SHIPS WERE DESTROYED:

Ships represent commerce. Again, it is not too difficult to find the three channels of commerce of the day. Chapter 18 shows us that some ships served Babylon. Commerce with the emerging apostate church power had its beginnings here in Smyrna. This commerce lasts until the age ends. (The true Church was never a source for the profit of commerce and is not here pictured.) The empire (civil Rome) did not have its commerce interrupted or threatened by the events of the Smyrna period. So, the THIRD of the ships which were destroyed represents those who profited from commerce with the pagan religion of Rome. THEIR ships sank (Greek., Concordant Version, = DECAY).

Thus the events are portrayed in the world once the second angel sounds. They are accurate to a fault even though they happened after the angel sounded.

We move on to the Third Church and its angel in our next post.