8 When he opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.

silence in heaven for about half an hour. The roman hour was divided into twelve segments, so he is speaking of six.

2 And I saw the seven angels who stand before God, and to them were given seven trumpets.

seven trumpets. A reference to Joshua taking the city of Jericho by blowing seven trumpets (Jos 6:8). They had to be silent for six days (see v 1). John uses the account of Joshua taking the city and shows how the Church can take the world.

3 Another angel, who had a golden censer, came and stood at the altar. He was given much incense to offer, with the prayers of all the saints, on the golden altar before the throne.

prayers of all the saints. Prayer is the key to winning the world.

4 The smoke of the incense, together with the prayers of the saints, went up before God from the angel's hand.

5 Then the angel took the censer, filled it with fire from the altar, and hurled it on the earth; and there came peals of thunder, rumblings, flashes of lightning and an earthquake.

6 Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them.

The following plagues are like the plagues of Egypt.

prepared to sound them. The trumpets, like the voice of Moses, is the gospel being proclaimed.

7 The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

Man’s economic support is burned up.

8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the sea turned into blood,

Political systems are thrown out.

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

10 The third angel sounded his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell from the sky on a third of the rivers and on the springs of water—

11 the name of the star is Wormwood. a A third of the waters turned bitter, and many people died from the waters that had become bitter.

waters turned bitter. Only the tree of Calvary (the cross) can turn the poisonous philosophies of the world into something sweet. (Ex 15:25)

12 The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night.

without light. Rejecting the gospel will keep men in darkness.

13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: "Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!"

other three angels. The next three trumpet blasts are actually the most important and the book deals more at length with these.