Observation: The seventh seal is broken, and immediately ... nothing. Heaven goes silent. It has been a place filled with action, commotion, continual praise, shouts of celebration, appeals from martyrs, but now it goes completely silent. What happens next is the seven trumpet blasts. Even before they start, disaster is hurled at the earth from the alter of God, and then each blast brings successive destruction and death. So this silent interlude must be significant.
Application: I wonder ... did God just sigh in exasperation? Was this pause a moment where he finally grew weary of human behavior, and just sighed, shook his head, and decided now was the time for the end?
In verses 3-4, an angel adds incense to the alter that is wafting with the smoke of prayers rising to God. Did the prayers grow so weak, so faint, that incense was needed to keep the aroma appealing and ascending?
This would be consistent. The first six seals are broken, and brought issues and challenges to the world. The world has responded with ... attacks on Christians, open rejection of faith in Jesus, and a resulting diminishing in the amount of prayer to the point that the alter is no longer producing an appealing aroma to the Lord.
Yahweh knows the time has come to move the historical narrative to the next phase, so he closes his eyes and takes one last, big breath. He ponders the aroma of the prayers of the faithful. It is too faint. He slowly exhales, gently shakes his head, and opens his eyes to see ... all of heaven in silent trepidation for what they know is to come next. He gently calls for incense, and for seven trumpets to be given to the seven appointed angels, and all of heaven prepares for that which earth cannot prepare for.
Prayer: Lord, I know mankind exasperates you. We must. You love us all so much, and on our best days we mess up. Your faithful believers disobey your laws, commit sins, and lash out at our own brothers and sisters in pride and jealousy and impatience. Those who don't believe slip further into active rebellion and even hatred of you and your ways and of Jesus. Of course there must come a time when you sigh in pain, frustration, anger. Yet we know that sigh also represents the pain of your broken heart, for you desire all to come to you. I feel you are about to inhale. I am sorry for our failure, but I also thank you for your patience and your love and your blessings, and mostly for your promised salvation. We await Jesus' return. Amen.
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