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Author's Bias | Interpretation: conservative | Inclination: promise | Seminary: none
Of all of the seals, trumpets and bowls, the fifth seal is unique, because the breaking of it does not cause
any wrathful consequence upon the earth, and it is solely concerned with Believers as God's plan of judgment
unfolds.
When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who
had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; and they cried
out with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our
blood on those who dwell on the earth?" And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that
they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were
to be killed even as they had been, would be completed also. (Rev 6:9-11)
When Jesus breaks the fifth seal, the following observations can be made:
The apostle John can see the souls of Believers who were martyred because of their faith in
and testimony of God. Since this was before their resurrection was completed
(Rev 20:4-6), the apostle saw disembodied souls.
Who are these martyrs? They are Messianic Jews and Gentile Believers who died for their faith
during the Great Tribulation (Rev 6:9-11;
7:9-15).
These martyred souls were being released from underneath the altar in the heavenly Temple of
God. To gain a sense of the altar in the heavenly Temple of God, some information may be drawn from the earthly
Temple.
Of the two altars that the earthly Temple had, the Altar of Incense was the one inside the
Temple, in the Holy Place, and outside the Holy of Holies housing the Ark of the Covenant. Because it was
overlaid with gold, it was known as the Golden Altar (Ex 39:38;
40:5; Num 4:11),
and it was shaped in a square with four horns at each corner and considered "most holy to the Lord
(Ex 30:1-10).
The altar in the heavenly Temple of God was described as the four horned golden altar
(Rev 8:3; 9:13).
The incense, made to an exclusive formula (Ex 30:9, 34-38),
was burned after the morning and evening sacrifices. Like animal offerings
(Ex 29:15-18), grain offerings
(Lev 2:1-2, 4-9), and drink offering
(Num 15:1-13) burnt on the altar outside of the Temple
(Ex 20:24-26; 27:1-5),
which produced a soothing and appeasing aroma to the Lord (Gen 8:20-21).
This incense recipe emitted a fragrance that also soothed God's wrath. Functioning in a similar fashion, the
psalmist portrays incense as symbolic of the prayers of Believers (Ps 141:2).
In the heavenly Temple of God, the four living creatures and the twenty four elders are each
holding "golden bowls full of incense, which are the prayers of the saints"
(Rev 5:8). In the context of the heavenly Temple of God, the
saints here refer to saints who died in the Great Tribulation (Rev 6:9-11;
7:13-15). While this suggests that the recipe for the incense
in the heavenly Temple of God is the prayers of the tribulation saints in the heavenly Temple, elsewhere incense
is mentioned as the prayers of the saints (Rev 5:8;
8:3) that suggest it includes the prayers of saints who are
still alive on earth.
It is significant to observe that when the tribulation saints were given their white robes, they were told to
rest "for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be
killed even as they had been, would be completed also" (Rev 6:11).
This suggests that all of the remaining tribulation saints will be killed soon.
In the third interlude just prior to the seventh seal, a "great multitude which no one could
count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues" of tribulation saints are presented before the
throne of God and before Jesus Christ praising both with palm branches
(Rev 7:9-10).
At the end of the sixth trumpet, the apostle John reports that all of the survivors of the
plagues were not repentant (Rev 9:20), which suggests that
before the seventh trumpet is sounded, all Believers are likely dead.
Using a chart to record these observations, the existence of the tribulation saints would look like this:
|
Seal 1 |
Seals 2-4 |
Seal 5 (Rev 6:9-11) |
Third Heaven (location of the Temple of God) |
|
|
Disembodied souls of tribulation saints come from underneath the altar to receive their white robes |
Fate of Believers |
Messianic Jews, Gentile Believers, and new Believers evangelize and continue to be martyred;
but, most will not die for their faith. |
"No individual, no Caesar or Napoleon, has had such a part in the world's history as this book… If only
shards and broken pieces of our civilization should remain, among them would still be found the Bible, whole and
uninjured. The book that outlived the Roman Empire will outlive any destruction that impends."
E. S. Bates (1937)
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