As
John the apostle continued to share about the “tribulation” that
was to come upon the earth, he shared concerning the first six seals
Jesus removed from the “scroll” in God's right hand. He began to
write about what happened when Jesus,
“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 … And the seven angels
which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound. The first
angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood,
and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was
burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. And the second angel
sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast
into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; And
the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life,
died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed. And the third
angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it
were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon
the fountains of waters;”
In
chapter eight and verse eleven John saw how “the
name of the start is called Wormwood” where
we read:
And
the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the
waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they
were made bitter.
The
verse reads, “
And
the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the
waters became wormwood;”
John
began with the words, “and
the name of the star”
which means “the burning star from heaven as was reckoned and
known” “is
called” or
“is affirmed, maintained and mentioned as” “Wormwood”
which
means “bitterness”: “and
the third part”
or “and on third” “of
the waters”
which means “of the rivers and springs” “became”
or “began to be, happened and appeared as” “wormwood”
which means “bitterness”. John heard the “burning
star”
from heaven named “bitterness”, and it's effect was that the
“waters” became “bitter”.
The
verse goes on to say, “and
many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.”
John
continued with the words, “and
many men”
which means “and a large amount of people both male and female”
“died”
or “perished and were slain” “of
the waters”
which means “from the rivers and springs”, “because”
or “since” “they
were made bitter”
which means “the rivers and springs were made exasperated,
indignant, irritated and grievous”. John saw how the “bitter”
waters caused people to “die”.
When
we meditate upon John's words in this verse, we see the effect of the
“burning star” called “Wormwood”. People began
to “die” because of the poison that was within the “waters”,
and once again, judgment from God has fallen upon the earth and it's
inhabitants. God wants to keep people from this time of “great
trouble and tribulation”, and He invites everyone have a
relationship with Him through His Son Jesus. Jesus died on the cross
for the sins of the world, and He is willing to “forgive” and
“cleanse” anyone who receives Him as “Savior and Lord”.
However, should a person reject Jesus' offer, judgment like
“Wormwood” shall not only come upon the earth, but also in
that person's very soul.
Next
time
John shares what happened when “the
fourth angel sounded”,
so read ahead, and we shall join together then.
Until
tomorrow…there is more…
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
Look for the daily devotional book “Equipped for Battle – From Generation to Generation”, the marriage book “So, You Want to Be Married”, “One Year in the Sermon on the Mount” and the new poetry book "Random Mushrooms" in all major bookstore sites, http://www.amazon.com ; http://www.barnesandnobles.com ; download to e-books, and find it locally at www.mrzlc.com/bookstore.
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