Prophecy

Revelation

The Seventh Seal

The Fall of Rome

The Seven Trumpets

Circa AD 395 –

And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given seven trumpets…
Revelation 8:1-6

Read the whole passage

The last and greatest of the Seals, encompassing the fall of pagan and papal Rome in the visions of the Seven Trumpets, and the Seven Vials.

The Seventh Seal vision concerns the fall of Rome. Since this is the climax of the Seven Seals, which have dealt with Rome’s glory and decline in the previous six Seals, it is expanded upon in more detail. The prophecy accomplishes this by making the Seventh Seal a vision of seven angels sounding Seven Trumpets. As each Trumpet is sounded a new vision is revealed.

Since the prophecies of Daniel indicated that Rome would have two phases (a united iron phase, and a divided or mingled iron-and-clay phase), the Seven Trumpets deal with both. The first, or imperial, fall of Rome’s dominion is particularly outlined in the first six Trumpets. With its fall, the Sixth Trumpet in its second vision changes focus to the beginning of the fall of Papal Rome. The Seventh Trumpet, like the Seventh Seal, is a vision of seven angels, but this time pouring out Seven Vials of God’s wrath. Each of these Vials again reveals a further vision, again expanding the detail of the last Trumpet. The Seven Vials describe the final fall of the papal phase of Rome’s dominion.

Seven Trumpets and Seven Vials of Rome's fall

The opening of the Seventh Seal introduces seven angels who are to sound with seven trumpets. These trumpets, sounded in succession, introduce a new series of visions. These are called the Seven Trumpet visions. The winds of war, which the four angels of the Sixth Seal have been holding back, are about to be released.

The threat posed by the Goths had been held back until the time of Theodosius, but shortly after his death, the Goths began to move. Theodosius died on January 17th, in the winter of 395, and Gibbon writes, “before the end of the winter of the same year, the Gothic nation was in arms”.

The first six Seals have described the height of Rome’s imperial glory and then its subsequent decline. The Seventh Seal deals with the fall of Rome. This important subject is broken up into a series of sub-visions.

The seven sub-visions of the Seventh Seal are the visions of the Seven Trumpets. They form, as it were, sub-headings under the main heading.

A similar arrangement takes place with the sounding of the Seventh Trumpet. The Seventh Trumpet is a vision of seven angels pouring out Seven Vials of God's wrath in succession. Each Vial introduces another vision. The Seven Trumpets and Seven Vials visions deal primarily with the fall of Imperial Rome and Papal Rome, and so expand the subject of the Seventh Seal.

As the seven angels are given the Seven Trumpets, another angel offers up the prayers of the true saints upon the heavenly altar of incense. This is in contrast to the corrupted worship of prayers to the idols, icons, relics, dead saints and to Mary that has defiled nominal Christianity and pagan Rome.

The angel then takes the fire of the altar and casts it into the earth, and the voices, thunderings, lightnings, and earthquake that follow represent the great upheaval and judgments upon Rome that are about to unfold.