The contents of any scroll was written long before the scroll was sealed with seals. Only when all the seals have been loosened can it be seen what was written in the scroll, which is why in the Revelation what had already been written in the scroll only began to be seen once the scroll unraveled when the seventh seal was loosened.
Many Christians have the seals as the events written about in the scroll, instead of symbols helping us to understand what the events that are written in the scroll are about, so they have the cart before the horse because they think the cart is the horse and the horse is the cart.
"But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he will begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as He has declared to His servants the prophets." (Revelation 10:7).
In the process of ignoring the fact that the events in the scroll have been sealed by the seals, many have ignored the rest of what John sees when the 7th seal is opened, and have instead emphasized only what the 7th seal says about the "half an hour" and the trumpets, naively believing that the trumpets come "after" the seals (as though the scroll had not already been written before it was sealed).
The Revelation of Jesus Christ, "which God gave to Him to declare to His servants things which must shortly come to pass" (Rev.1:1), is saturated with types and anti-types so that His saints, i.e those who have ears to hear what He is saying, will understand. So let's look at the biblical type of the 7th seal: Joshua 6:1-20
There were seven priests blowing seven trumpets when the walls of Jericho fell, and they fell when the 7th trumpet sounded, the 7th time the Israelite tribes marched around the city, on the 7th of 7 days. So this is why we see the seven angels with seven trumpets when the seventh seal has been opened, and "the cities of the nations fell" when the seventh of seven angels poured out his bowl of wrath.
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"And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.". (Revelation 8:6).
The seven angels have been appointed to carry out God's judgment.
"Voices, thunderings, Lightnings, and an earthquake"
The door that had been opened in heaven for John immediately before he was made aware of the scroll's existence, allowed John to be able to see the throne of God, so that he could be shown the scroll (which was still sealed with seven seals), and John saw "lightnings and thunderings and voices" coming out from the throne (Revelation 4:5).
We read of "voices, thunderings, lightnings, and an earthquake" when God speaks: We see it in Exodus 20:18, we see it used in poetic form by David in 2 Samuel 22:14-15, and we see it again in the seventh seal, the seventh trumpet, and the seventh plague or bowl of wrath:
Each seal unveils a part of the things that were already written in the scroll before the scroll was sealed with seven seals. The 7th seal unveils the entire scroll. The hour of temptation a.k.a the hour of trial that Jesus told His church is coming, ends with (is completed with) the 7th trumpet and 7th bowl, part of the knowledge of which is still sealed until Jesus unveils it/loosens the seal.
The 6th seal will unveil what is happening when the events written about in 6th trumpet and 6th bowl - 6-6-6 - Armageddon - are taking place. This is why Jesus is quoted in the midst of John's record of the visions he was seeing regarding the 6th judgement:
"Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is the one who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame." Revelation 16:15.
Revelation ch. 10 appears as a parenthetical chapter in-between the 6th and 7th trumpets, and verse 7 of Revelation ch. 10 states:
"But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he will begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as He has declared to His servants the prophets.".
Many Christians have misunderstood. Many have assumed that God's people will be delivered from Egypt the world before the first six of the final seven judgments (coming in the form of the first six of the seven last plagues upon Egypt those who worshiped the beast and received his mark), and they have assumed that God's people will be delivered even before the seven last plagues begin to come upon Pharaoh's the beast's kingdom, but the Revelation of Jesus Christ, "which God gave to Him to declare to His servants things which must shortly come to pass" (Rev.1:1), is saturated with types and anti-types so that His saints, i.e those who have ears to hear what He is saying, will understand. So let's look at the biblical types of the 6th seal, 6th trumpet and sixth plague/bowl of wrath:
THE SONG OF MOSES AND IT SIGNIFICANCE
In Revelation 15:2-4 we see "those who had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name" singing the song of Moses.
The Song of Moses was sung after God's people had crossed the Red Sea, after they had been delivered from great tribulation at the hand of Pharaoh, and after the judgment of the beast and his armies Pharaoh and his armies coincided with their redemption.
Jesus promised to guard over [τηρησω tēréō: guard from loss or injury by keeping their eye upon and preserving] His people, just as He guarded over His people during their trial under Pharaoh the beast.
"Because you have kept the word of My patience, I also will keep [τηρησω tēréō: guard from loss or injury by keeping their eye upon and preserving] you from the hour of temptation which will come upon all the world, to try those who dwell upon the earth." Revelation 3:10.
The Revelation does not tell us how long the hour of trial is (Revelation 3:10), but we are however told that Babylon the great will be destroyed in 1 hour, and that the ten kings that destroy Babylon the great will reign with the beast ascended from the abyss for 1 hour, and that the beast will be given authority to continue for 42 months.
The 7th seal also tells us that heaven will be silent for "half an hour". If the above is the hour of trial, we nevertheless have not been told whether or not the "half an hour" during which "heaven will be silent" (the 7th seal) will occur during the hour of trial, and if so, whether it be during the first half of the hour of trial, or the latter half.
In His 7th message (to the 7th church) Jesus warns about keeping our garments and not being caught naked. That's the last time He is quoted as speaking directly to His people (those who have ears to hear Him) until Revelation 16:15:
"Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is the one who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame."
The final bowl of the wrath of God will come upon Pharaoh the beast with the 7th and final plague/bowl of wrath - in the same hour the saints will be delivered through the sea resurrected/caught up.
The great tribulation is the tribulation of God's people at the hands of Pharaoh the beast.
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