Day 363 Reading Schedule: Revelation 9-12

Revelation 9Trumpet Plagues (II) 

[Summary]

When the fifth trumpet was blown, locusts came out and harmed only people (verses 1-12). When the sixth trumpet was blown, an army of 20,000,000 people was described as causing a great war at the Euphrates River (verses 13-21).

This chapter records the situation after the fifth and sixth trumpets of the seven trumpets were blown. The structure of '7' in Revelation is characterized by the combination of '4' and '3'. If the former is a judgment on the natural world, the latter is a tribulation on the spiritual world or the human world. The seven trumpets are structured in exactly the same way. Therefore, the tribulation dealt with in this chapter refers to a direct disaster brought upon the human world by Satan.

Revelation 10: A Vision of the Little Book 

[Summary]

A mighty angel came holding a little book and declared that the secret of God would be fulfilled (verses 1-7). Then the angel gave the little book to John and told him to eat it. When John ate it, it was sweet as honey in his mouth, but his stomach became bitter (verses 8-11).

This chapter can be seen as an inserted scene between the sixth and seventh trumpets, and as a transitional period toward the seventh trumpet. The scene continues from this chapter to chapter 11, with the vision of a mighty angel and the little book in this chapter and the vision of the two witnesses in the next chapter.

Revelation 11: Vision of the Two Witnesses 

[Summary]

John is commanded by God to measure the temple, the altar, and the worshipers. The outer court of the temple will be trampled by the Gentiles for forty-two months (vv. 1-2). The two witnesses will prophesy for 1,260 days. When the two witnesses finish their testimony, the beast will come up from the abyss and kill them. The two witnesses will not be buried for three and a half days, and those who live on the earth will see it and rejoice (vv. 3-10). However, the two witnesses will come to life from God and will ascend to heaven on a cloud, and many will be judged and die (vv. 11-13). When the seventh angel blows the seventh trumpet, a hymn is heard from heaven and the twenty-four elders worship God (vv. 14-19).

This chapter also records the scene of John being given a measuring tape to measure the width of the temple and the story of the two witnesses of God as a prophecy about the scene before the seventh trumpet sounded following the battle. It also records the events that occurred after the seventh trumpet sounded.

Revelation 12: Vision of Spiritual Warfare 

[Overview]

A woman became pregnant and was about to give birth, but there was a red dragon in the sky, ready to devour the child that was born. The woman fled into the wilderness and escaped for 1,260 days (verses 1-6). Michael and the great dragon fought in the sky, and the great dragon was defeated and cast out. Then a song of victory was sung in the sky (verses 7-12). Now the dragon was cast out to the earth and persecuted the woman who had given birth. However, the woman received the wings of a great eagle and escaped into the wilderness. The dragon tried many methods to harm the woman, but with God’s help, the woman was protected. The dragon finally decided to fight against the woman’s offspring (verses 13-17).

This chapter and chapter 13 describe the scene between the seven trumpets and the seven bowls, and are very important because they deal with the fierce battle between the church and Satan. In particular, the birth of the Christian church, described as a woman, and its struggle with Satan are described in this chapte