The Mighty Angel (10:1-4)

Chapter 10 presents a fascinating scene with a mighty angel coming down from heaven, and John sees this angel in great heavenly splendor. He is surrounded by a cloud, a rainbow over his head, his face is like the sun, and his legs are like fiery pillars. These images simply show the power of this angel. The angel is truly a mighty angel. We see the great power and authority this angel has by him putting one foot on the sea and one foot on the land. In this mighty angel’s hand is a little scroll. The angel cries out with a loud voice like a roaring lion, demanding the attention of all. When the angel cries out, the seven thunders spoke with their voices. John is about to write down the words of the thunders, but a voice from heaven tells John not to write these things, but to seal them up. Therefore, the words of the seven thunders are not revealed to us. But John records these events to let us know that God has more in store. There is more to come in the judgments of God, but we are not allowed to know what these things are. This event makes us mindful of what Moses said in Deuteronomy 29:29, “The secret things belong to the LORD our God, but those things which are revealed belong to us and to our children forever, that we may do all the words of this law.” There are many things that God has chosen not to reveal to man.

There Will No Longer Be Delay (10:5-7)

Now the angel swears by an oath that there will no longer be delay with the things that have been revealed. The saints of the fifth seal were told to wait previously, but now they will no longer have to wait. The angels have been unleashed, as we have seen, and there will not be any thing that will hold them back from the judgment they have. Judgment is inevitable. When will the judgment come? We are told in verse 7 that judgment will be in the days of the sounding of the seventh angel, when he blows his trumpet. That is when the judgment will come in full force.Therefore, this is the marker we are looking for in the book of Revelation. When we read the seventh trumpet sounding, we will know that God’s hidden plan of judgment will be revealed and unleashed. This matches what Jesus said in Luke 21:20-22 concerning the destruction of Jerusalem by the surrounding Roman armies, “But when you see Jerusalem surrounded by armies, then know that its desolation is near. Then let those who are in Judea flee to the mountains, let those who are in the midst of her depart, and let not those who are in the country enter her. For these are the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled.” The things that the prophets wrote will now be fulfilled at that time.

Notice that this angel with the little scroll in Revelation 10 is the same angel in Daniel 12:7-9. “And I heard the man clothed in linen, who was above the waters of the stream; he raised his right hand and his left hand toward heaven and swore by him who lives forever that it would be for a time, times, and half a time, and that when the shattering of the power of the holy people comes to an end all these things would be finished. I heard, but I did not understand. Then I said, “O my lord, what shall be the outcome of these things?â€? He said, “Go your way, Daniel, for the words are shut up and sealed until the time of the end.” We see the angel in Daniel 12 raising his hands toward heaven and declaring that it would be a time, times, and half a time before the shattering of the holy people came to an end. In Revelation 10, we are reading the fulfillment of that judgment contained in the little scroll. No longer will there be delay. Now the power of the holy people, Jerusalem and Jews, will be shattered.

Take and Eat The Scroll (10:8-11)

John is told to take the scroll and eat it. When he eats the scroll he finds that the scroll is sweet to the mouth, but bitter to the stomach. This is not an unusual occurrence, for Ezekiel was told to do the same thing. When you read Ezekiel 2:8-3:14, you will find Ezekiel ate the scroll and it was like honey in his mouth in sweetness (Ezekiel 3:3). But later, after receiving the words from God about what he must do, Ezekiel goes in bitterness from the message he received (Ezekiel 3:14). The honey and bitterness are symbolic of the contents of the message of the scroll and the prophesy that John must preach. How sweet the words of God are to man. Psalm 19:10, “More to be desired are they than gold, yea, than much fine gold; sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.” Psalm 119:103, “How sweet are Your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth!” But God’s judgments are not always pleasant. Ezekiel found the words of God good to the taste, but the bitterness came from the message depicted judgment against the Jews and Jerusalem. In the same way, John also delights in the taste of the words of God, but the message is bitter: judgment against the Jews and Jerusalem.

John is also told that he must prophesy “about many peoples, nations, tongues, and kings.” Though the prophecy thus far has been against Israel, there are more judgments against other nations and peoples that are still to come.