Day 174

^“5 Then the angel whom I saw standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven, ⁶ and swore by Him who lives forever and ever, who created heaven and the things in it, and the earth and the things in it, and the sea and the things in it, that there will no longer be a delay, ⁷ but in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he is about to sound, then the mystery of God is finished, as He announced to His servants the prophets.” Rev 10:5-7.(NASB)

One of the clearest allusions to the Old Testament in all of Revelation is found here. Vs 5-6 and Dan 12:7 have 8 major words in common. Both passages have heavenly figures standing above bodies of water. In both cases, the heavenly figure raises his hand to heaven and swears by the One who lives forever. The connection between the “time, times, and half a time” of Daniel 12:7 and the “time no longer” of Rev 10:6 indicates that the angel of Revelation 10 is announcing the close of Daniel’s time prophecies in the context of the 6th trumpet. This would signal that the world has entered the final “timeless” period that the Bible refers to as “the time of the end” (Dan 12:4). Daniel’s time prophecies, which are numerous, were all completed by 1844. The reference in Dan 8:14 to the “cleansing of the sanctuary” is a reference to the judgement. This fits the symbolism here of the 7 trumpets heralding judgement.

The other significant Old Testament reference in this passage is v6 which uses the language of Exodus 20:11 as it quotes from the fourth commandment (the Sabbath). The Mighty Messenger(V:1) is swearing by the creator God (v6) – as if that might be an issue in the “time of the end.” The mystery of God is to be revealed in this end-time proclamation. See Eph 3:9-12 – The Mystery of God who created all things; that through the church the manifold wisdom of God might be made known to the principalities and powers in the heavens…” 

The books of Daniel and Revelation work together like a hand in a glove. One compliments the other. The prophecies in one are repeated in the other. The little book that is open in the angel’s hand in V2 is the one that was sealed in Daniel 12:4. The “time of the end” began with opening of the book at the end of the 1260 years. The scripture refers to the time period from 1798 until Jesus’ Second Coming as “the time of the end.” We will further establish this point when we look and Revelation 11. This mighty angel is announcing that after the end of the 1260 years in 1798, there will be no more time prophecies!

Mankind has reached the point where last day events will wrap up the cosmic controversy, and Christ will return. John emphasises this time frame by referring to the 7th angel and blowing the 7th trumpet in Revelation 11:15-19. Without question, this is talking about the coming of the Lord. It is then that the mystery of God, which is the plan of salvation, will be complete.