TABLE OF CONTENTS |
Part I
Prelude to the Trumpets |
Part II
The 1st Trumpet
The 2nd Trumpet
The 3rd Trumpet
The 4th Trumpet
The 5th Trumpet
The 6th Trumpet
The 7th Trumpet
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The Seventh Trumpet
and Last Woe—
CE 1878 to the End of the Harvest
"And the seventh angel
[messenger, Bro. Russell] sounded; and
there were great voices [proclamations] in heaven [the spiritual realm of
earth], saying, The kingdom of this world is become the
kingdom of our Lord [Jehovah],
and of his Christ; and he [Jehovah] shall reign for ever and ever [kingdom
(both instances) should be singular according to Sinaitic and Alexandrine]."
Revelation 11:15
The content of the message given by the seventh
messenger was great indeed. We are privileged to know this last "trumpet
message" in considerable detail because we have a complete written record of it. We
are also privileged to continue preaching it.
The seventh "trumpet" announces in
"heaven" (the spiritual realm) that "the kingdom of this world is become
the kingdom of our Lord, and his Christ." It does not mention the "air," as
does the seventh "plague." There may be some similarity, but clearly the
seventh "trumpet" is an announcement that the "king" and his kingdom
have arrived.
This is good or bad news depending on the view one has of the
"kingdom." The seventh "plague" is poured on the "air" and
is exposing the fact that Satan and the demons really control the nominal Christian
churches, causing them to oppose the incoming kingdom of Christ (Revelation 16:17).
Waldo, Wycliff and Luther each brought some light in
their time and place. Their biggest contributions were in beginning the process of making
the Bible available to the people. Even when done on a small scale, the Word of God proved
threatening to papal interests.
Luther Translating the Bible
into German |
Tyndale Translating the
New Testament into English |
The end of Luther’s period, concluding in the late nineteenth
century brought a flood of Bibles, translations and concordances, etc. Bibles were
everywhere, but one thing was lacking: the ability to tie the Bible’s testimony into
one harmonious message which would reveal the Divine plan.
The distribution of Bibles that few could understand was disconcerting
to the religious authorities. Having God’s plan revealed to the Christian world, left
the religious authorities gnawing their tongues in pain. They could not successfully
defend their misguided theology.
The truths of the seventh message proved a bitter pill and exposed them
for running a counterfeit kingdom. The church leaders were angry and frustrated, but they
had no ready answer to justify their heavy involvement in the kingdoms of this world. They
succeeded only in being angry and guilty of profaning the guiltless.
Leaders heard the message that in 1914 the kingdoms of
this world would crumble. When 1914 came and the great World War I broke out, they were
half prepared to go down in defeat. While the Old World order and its ruling houses of
church and state did collapse, to everyone’s surprise the church and state survived
in a battered world and began to rebuild their fortunes.
However, as the years passed they found themselves beginning to prosper
and their influence in the world increased. Yes, they thought, they could successfully
prevent the kingdom of this world from becoming the kingdom of God. This they are hoping
to do now as they marshal their forces.
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The most significant feature of this seventh "trumpet" is the announcement that:
"The kingdom of this world is become the kingdom of our Lord, and of his
Christ."
The "kingdom of our Lord" overshadows the messenger.
The Lord’s Christ has returned with the "kingdom" and
nothing that stands in the way of this "kingdom" can hope to succeed.
Once he understood the truth of Christ’s return to set up his
kingdom, the seventh messenger made this a centerpiece of his ministry.
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"Behold, I stand at the door and knock: If any man hear my voice, and open
the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me."
Revelation
3:20
|
The Lord spoke to Jeremiah, saying:
"For
thou shalt go to all that I shall send thee, and whatsoever I command thee thou shalt
speak." |
"Be
not afraid of their faces: for I am with thee to deliver thee, saith the Lord.
"Then the Lord put forth his hand, and touched my mouth.
"And the Lord said unto me, Behold I have put my
words in thy mouth.
"See, I have this day set thee over the nations and
over the kingdoms, to root out, and to pull down, and to destroy, and to throw down, to
build, and to plant."
Jeremiah 1:7-10 |
Just as with Jeremiah, so with the seventh messenger.
Yes, the seventh message would bring down the kingdoms of this world—not by any power of
the messenger. The message was from God, whoever the mouthpiece. God’s purpose would
stand. It is in this period of the church that we shall realize fully the collapse of the
nominal systems that are united with the kingdoms of this world. It is in this period of
the church that victory will crown the ascendancy of His kingdom and of God’s truth.
Hallelujah!
"And the Nations Were Angry,
and Thy Wrath Is Come"
Revelation 11:18
How strange that this should be. For nearly two
thousand years Christians have prayed "Thy kingdom come" only to be filled with
anger and frustration when this prayer is finally realized. Nothing brings on anger more
than to have one’s plans frustrated or defeated.
Just when the churches hoped to reel in the kingdom of this world into
their control, Christ announces his kingdom as separate and distinct from Christendom. It
was much the same at the first advent.
When the kingdom of God was among them in the person of
Christ, they crucified him. At his Second Advent, however, the days of his humiliation are
past. He comes in power and great glory to vanquish "the kingdom of this world,"
which is a mix of church and state.
Theoretically, the churches should have been the first
to welcome back the King. As Christ did not fit the mold of the religious
world at his First Advent, they had to conspire to secure his death. The same condition
applies at his Second Advent. However, this time it is they who shall finally collapse
under the power of the "King of Kings and Lord of Lords."
The Lord’s wrath was visited upon the Jewish
nation for their rejection of His son. The nation paid a very high price for rejecting
God’s prophets and especially for rejecting His son.
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Destruction of Jerusalem
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The destruction of Jerusalem witnessed
God’s awesome judgment against that nation. The nation suffered from internal dissent
and oppression of one another. Finally, the Romans conquered Jerusalem and terrible was
the overthrow.
Starvation was rampant in the siege. Stories of cannibalism are
told. Those who defected to the Romans were crucified outside the city. When the walls
were finally breached, the temple was burned and the Jews suffered a terrible fate.
If only the leaders of Israel had known "the things that belong
unto thy peace" in their day (Luke 19:42). If only Christendom would realize that as
long as they seek to be joined to the "kingdom of this world" they are bringing
upon themselves God’s judgment and the complete collapse of their structured
religious empire.
"And the Time of the Dead,
That They Should Be Judged"
Revelation 11:18
The purpose of Christ’s kingdom is for judging the
world in a trial and decision based on their works when the judgments of the Lord are
abroad in the earth. The "dead" are all those in Adam, whether actually dead and
sleeping until they are called from the "grave," or whether they are alive with
the sentence of death upon them. They are all dead in Adam. As Jesus said, "Let the
dead bury their dead" (Matthew 8:22).
Paul spoke of this judgment day in Acts 17:31:
"Because he hath appointed a day in the which he will judge the world in
righteousness by that man whom he hath ordained; whereof he hath given assurance unto all
men, in that he hath raised him from the dead."
"That Thou Shouldest Give
Reward
unto Thy Servants the Prophets"
Revelation 11:18
The Lord cannot reward his servants the prophets while
they are sleeping in the grave. They must rise from the dead to receive their reward.
Their reward must await the glorification of the true church of God, for Paul says in
Hebrews 11:40: "That they without us should not be made perfect."
It is not until the saints of this Gospel age are glorified that the
Ancient Worthies shall arise. Then Daniel who has been resting, shall stand in his
"lot at the end of the days" (Daniel 12:13). The Ancient Worthies will be
rewarded as they arise to a "better resurrection" as "princes in all the
earth." It will then be seen that those who served the Lord did not do so in vain.
"And to the Saints"
Revelation 11:18
With great anticipation the Heavenly Father will
receive the saints into the joys of the Lord. The resurrection of the "sleeping
saints" which began in 1878 will be consummated surely in the early part of the
twenty-first century. Not until then will the "righteous shine forth as the sun in
the kingdom of their Father" (Matthew 13:43).
The saints are standing on the threshold of victory. They must yet
overcome the "beast" and
"his image." (Revelation 15:2) This victorious class will
then be privileged to represent the entire Christ in executing the judgments written
(Revelation 16).
Studies in the Scriptures,
a Topical Bible Study |
It has been the privilege of the saints in this last period of the church's experience to
assist the seventh messenger in delivering his trumpet message.
While Bro. Russell finished his course in 1916, his writings and
concepts are still being broadcast into the Christian world.
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The power of the written word is greater
than the spoken word. Spoken words are soon forgotten and easily distorted and
misunderstood. The written word is powerful enough to accomplish all that God intended in
this time frame. Because the seventh message was a true reading of God’s Word, it
cannot be defeated. The saints who appreciate the seventh message need to persevere with
it until they share in the victory of the truth.
"And Them That Fear Thy Name,
Small and Great"
Revelation 11:18
The above-quoted reference pertains to the world of
mankind. In the general restitution process, the world of mankind will come back from the
dead. Because truth will then be so pervasive and every erroneous teaching will be
silenced, people will come to "fear" or reverence the Lord.
The powers of darkness will not be permitted to sow "light for
darkness" and "darkness for light." Truth will be heard everywhere all the
time. Nations will then "learn righteousness." Deception will be a lost art
until the end of the Millennium when Satan is "loosed" out of his prison and
goes forth to deceive the nations.
"And Shouldest Destroy Them
Which Destroy [Corrupt] the Earth"
Revelation 11:18
Our story ends with a complete victory for the forces
of righteousness. Those who refuse to learn righteousness in the highest meaning of that
word will find themselves very vulnerable to Satan’s deception when he is
"loosed" out of his prison.
There is a big difference between what may sound right and what is
actually right. Only those who love righteousness and hate iniquity will see through
Satan’s deceptions. Eve was deceived once, but we doubt if she will hearken to the
"serpent" the second time.
Experience with sin in this evil world will serve as a remarkable
restraint. The second time around, the "forbidden" fruit will not be so tempting
to those who learned well the "exceeding sinfulness of sin"
(Romans 7:13). Yet, there will be
some who will join Satan in endeavoring to "corrupt" the world the second time.
The word "destroy" also means to "corrupt"—the
root word here means to "rot thoroughly"—Strong’s #1311. This is when
Satan and his "seed" will have their "Waterloo." Affliction will not
arise the second time (Nahum 1:9). The triumph of righteousness over evil will be complete.
"And there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that
defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are
written in the Lamb’s book of life." Revelation 21:27
