Is the Seventh Trumpet Last?

• The Seventh Angel’s Trumpet – The seventh angel sounded his trumpet, and there were loud voices in heaven, which said: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.” (Revelation 11:15, NIV 1984).

My Musings – As it relates to end times, there are three primary references to trumpets that may or may not be this seventh trumpet.

• A Loud Trumpet Call – At that time the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and all the nations of the earth will mourn. They will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds of the sky, with power and great glory. And he will send his angels with a loud trumpet call, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other (Matthew 24:30-31, NIV 1984). The trumpet here clearly signals a visible (“they will see”) appearing of Christ (the parousia) seen by both those who are saved and the lost.  It also signals the gathering of the elect.  Some would claim this would indicate that the rapture and the parousia occur simultaneously.  Of course, the elect mentioned here could be a reference to only those who are saved during the tribulation years and not to the Church, which may have been raptured earlier (pretribulation or midtribulation).

• At the Last Trumpet – Listen, I tell you a mystery: We will not all sleep, but we will all be changed – in a flash, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, the dead will be raised imperishable, and we will be changed (1 Corinthians 15:51-52, NIV 1984). This trumpet appears to be distinguishable from the trumpet in Matthew 24:30-31, since there is no specific reference to a visible return by Christ.  Pretribulationists would distinguish it from the trumpet in Revelation 11:15-19, since that trumpet occurs after some of the events that occur during the tribulation. Midtribulationists would equate this trumpet with the one in Revelation 11:15-19, signaling both the rapture of the Church and the beginning of the second half of the tribulation (the great tribulation).  Posttribulationists would equate this trumpet with the one in Revelation 11:15-19, since it is called the last trumpet.  The invisible rapture is immediately followed by the visible return of Christ accompanied by those just raptured.

• The Trumpet Call of God – We believe that Jesus died and rose again and so we believe that God will bring with Jesus those who have fallen asleep in him.  According to the Lord’s own word, we tell you that we who are still alive, who are left till the coming of the Lord, will certainly not precede those who have fallen asleep.  For the Lord himself will come down from heaven, with a loud command, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet call of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first.  After that, we who are still alive and are left will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. And so, we will be with the Lord forever. (1 Thessalonians 4:14-16, NIV 1984). This text is viewed similarly to 1 Corinthians 15:51-52, with all three rapture (pre, mid, posttribulation) viewpoints weighing in. 

Contextually, the seventh trumpet appears to be followed by the seven bowls judgments, which are more severe than the trumpet judgments.  Many believe that the seventh trumpet divides the first half of the seven-year period (tribulation) from the last half (the great tribulation). Those holding to a mid-tribulation rapture would equate the seventh trumpet here with the last trumpet signaling the rapture of the Church.  John brings us to the point of Jesus’ return, but he is not yet ready to describe the actual coming of the King of kings and Lord of lords. Sadly, there is more to relate regarding “the beast that comes up from the Abyss” to make war with the two witnesses and the people of God. It begins an awful forty-two-month period of persecution (the great tribulation) that John must now describe.

But in apocalyptic literature, things are not always related chronologically. And since the kingdom of God is discussed immediately following the seventh trumpet, others see this as ushering in the termination of the kingdoms of the world, with the establishment of God’s millennial Kingdom following the judgment of the world’s final kingdoms.  Under this view, the following chapters of Revelation are viewed as doubling back to retrace the same ground covered in earlier chapters, but from a different perspective.

My Advice – Whichever viewpoint one favors; all should agree that this trumpet is of great importance. But whether it is the last trumpet or not, believers are reassured that “the kingdom of the world [will] become the kingdom of our Lord and of his Christ, and he will reign for ever and ever.” Kingdoms of the world eventually fall, regularly disappoint and often oppress. But not so this coming Kingdom. But if you are not a believer, you are not a citizen and cannot enter in. But by simply believing and receiving Christ, the gates will be opened for you. This is something you should do now.

Resources:

Barry, J. D., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Mangum, D., & Whitehead, M. M. (2012). Faithlife Study Bible (Re 11:15). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.

Cabal, T., Brand, C. O., Clendenen, E. R., Copan, P., Moreland, J. P., & Powell, D. (2007). The Apologetics Study Bible: Real Questions, Straight Answers, Stronger Faith (p. 1902). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.

Walvoord, John F. (1985). Revelation. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, pp. 956–957). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.

Dockery, D. S., Butler, T. C., Church, C. L., Scott, L. L., Ellis Smith, M. A., White, J. E., & Holman Bible Publishers (Nashville, T. . (1992). Holman Bible Handbook (p. 799). Nashville, TN: Holman Bible Publishers.