The Seven Thunders
The Book of Revelation, chapter ten, brings us one of the most frustrating passages in the history of Christendom. Frustrating because it is the opposite of a spoiler, and not really a cliff-hanger because there will be no next episode or sequel to scripture that will play out the mystery that is The Seven Thunders.
In short, in a sort of interlude between the Sixth Trumpet and the Seventh, John is carried away in a vision to a shore where he encounters a mighty angel. We know this is an angel and not, as some think, Jesus, because of John's use of the word 'alos' in the Greek concerning "another" angel. 'Alos' meaning, "another of the same kind." Another like the angels he had already been seeing. Had this one been different, John would have used the word for 'heteros,' "another of a different kind."
This mighty angel calls out with a loud voice like a lion roaring and in reply seven thunders reply from heaven. Apparently John is in a waking vision because he is about to write down what the seven thunders “have said,” but told, “do not write it down,” resulting in one of the more confounding mysteries ever. Clearly, the thunders were proclamations of a sort from heaven, seven of them, because the wording in the text is that the seven thunders “said.”
Mind if I interject something right here? I mean, I never noticed before (not in this context) but it seems to me that later, after all the context, visions and experiences of John, he was, at the end of the book, granted permission to not seal the book. Take a look at Revelation 22:10
10 And he said to me, “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand."
I just think that's interesting. Does that include the thunders? Might the content of the thunders be exposed within the following chapters after all? If we are to believe what "the prophets" have said who spoke before, I humbly submit it is possible. Let's take a look.
We have precedence that the Seven Thunders were something that was “said” elsewhere in scripture. Often thunder is associated with the voice of God in association with judgement (see 1 Samuel 2:10; 2 Samuel 22:14). In Psalm 18:13 “The Lord thundered from heaven; the voice of the Most High resounded.” In Exodus 19:19 God answered Moses in thunder. Job 37:4-5 tells us God thunders with His majestic voice, while in 40:9 the question is posed, “…can you thunder with a voice like His?”
Jesus, in John 12:28-31 we read,
“Father, glorify your name.” Then a voice came from heaven: “I have glorified it, and I will glorify it again.” 29 The crowd that stood there and heard it said that it had thundered. Others said, “An angel has spoken to him.” 30 Jesus answered, “This voice has come for your sake, not mine. 31 Now is the judgment of this world; now will the ruler of this world be cast out.”
And then also within this same Book of Revelation 6:1; 14:2 and 19:6 we also read the voice of God as mighty peals of thunder.
This is what John experiences in Revelation 10. And we do not get to find out? That certainly is the conclusion of virtually every great scholar, commentary, preacher and Bible teacher for the last nearly 2,000 years.
But not so fast!
Do we have any hint; the faintest clue at all in the text? In my humble opinion we just may. Let’s take a look. First, this sealing up and not writing appears to be temporary. Look at Revelation 22:10 where we read:
And he said to me, “Do not seal the words of the prophecy of this book, for the time is at hand.
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