The Inauguration of the Kingdom Text: Revelation 11:15-19
Introduction: The Music of Reality
The book of Revelation is not a secret codebook for predicting the headlines. It is not a crystal ball for figuring out who the antichrist is or when the rapture will happen. Such approaches are a profound abuse of this glorious book. They treat it like a puzzle for the clever, when it is in fact a proclamation for the faithful. It is a book of worship, a book of war, and a book of certain victory. It was written to first-century Christians facing the might of pagan Rome and apostate Jerusalem, to assure them that their crucified and risen Lord was, in fact, reigning from Heaven and that His kingdom would crush all other kingdoms.
We come now to the seventh trumpet. In the structure of Revelation, the seventh seal contained the seven trumpets, and as we will see, the seventh trumpet contains the seven bowls of wrath. This is not a linear, chronological sequence, like a string of firecrackers. It is a literary structure called recapitulation. John is shown the same period of history, from Christ's ascension to the final judgment, from seven different angles. He keeps circling back and adding more detail. The seventh trumpet, therefore, is not some far-future event. It is the announcement of a reality that was established when Jesus of Nazareth ascended to the right hand of the Father. It is the formal, heavenly declaration of what is now true on earth.
This passage is the great crescendo. It is the moment that Handel captured so magnificently in his Messiah. When the seventh angel sounds, the heavenly host erupts in a thunderous chorus, declaring the central truth of all history. This is not a description of a future hope; it is the announcement of a present reality. The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord. This is the central claim of the Christian faith, and it is the rock upon which the modern secular project will dash itself to pieces. They believe they are building their own kingdom, their own tower of Babel, but the seventh trumpet declares that their lease has expired and the true King has taken possession.
What we have in this passage is the heavenly perspective on the gospel's advance in history. On earth, it often looks like a series of defeats, cleverly disguised as disasters. But in heaven, the throne room of the universe, it is understood as an unstoppable victory. This passage pulls back the curtain and lets us hear the music of reality.
The Text
Then the seventh angel sounded, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.” And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, “We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign. And the nations were enraged, and Your rage came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and to give reward to Your slaves, the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth.” And the sanctuary of God which is in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His sanctuary, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm.
(Revelation 11:15-19 LSB)
The Royal Proclamation (v. 15)
The sounding of the seventh trumpet is met with an immediate, earth-shattering announcement.
"Then the seventh angel sounded, and there were loud voices in heaven, saying, 'The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He will reign forever and ever.'" (Revelation 11:15)
This is the formal declaration of the establishment of Daniel's fifth kingdom, the stone cut without hands that strikes the great statue and grows into a mountain that fills the whole earth (Dan. 2). This is not saying that one day, in the distant future, this will happen. The verb tense here indicates a settled reality. It has become. The transfer of ownership has occurred. When did this happen? It happened when Christ ascended into the heavenly places and approached the Ancient of Days to receive His universal dominion (Dan. 7:13-14). The world used to belong to the prince of the power of the air, the god of this age. But at the cross, the ruler of this world was cast out (John 12:31). The resurrection and ascension were the public installation of the true King.
The "kingdom of the world" is a singular phrase. It refers to the entire rebellious project of mankind, the world system organized in opposition to God. This entire enterprise has been conquered. It now belongs, by right of conquest and inheritance, to "our Lord and of His Christ." The Father and the Son rule together. This is the fulfillment of Psalm 2, where the Father installs His Son as king on Zion and promises Him the nations as His inheritance. The nations may rage, but the decree has gone forth. The world belongs to Jesus.
And this reign is not temporary. "He will reign forever and ever." This is an everlasting dominion. The postmillennial hope is not that we build the kingdom and then hand the keys over to Jesus when He gets back. The postmillennial hope is that Jesus is reigning now, from heaven, and through the power of His Spirit in the church, He is progressively subduing all His enemies. The kingdom is a present, growing, and unconquerable reality. This proclamation is the foundational truth from which all Christian cultural and political engagement must flow. We are not trying to take the world for Christ; we are announcing that He has already taken it.
The Elders' Worship (v. 16-17)
The heavenly proclamation is immediately followed by worship. This is always the right response to a true vision of God's sovereignty.
"And the twenty-four elders, who sit on their thrones before God, fell on their faces and worshiped God, saying, 'We give You thanks, O Lord God, the Almighty, who is and who was, because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign.'" (Revelation 11:16-17)
The twenty-four elders, as we have seen before, represent the entire people of God from both Old and New Covenants, the twelve tribes and the twelve apostles. They sit on thrones, indicating their royal status as co-heirs with Christ. But before the throne of God, they cast their crowns down and fall on their faces. True authority always bows before the ultimate authority.
Their worship begins with thanks. They are grateful. For what? "Because You have taken Your great power and have begun to reign." Notice the past tense. You have taken. You have begun. This is not a future hope. It is a past and present accomplishment. God has always been sovereign, of course. But here, the elders are celebrating a specific, historical event. God has acted in history to assert His kingly rule in a new way through His Son. The incarnation, death, resurrection, and ascension of Jesus Christ was God "taking" His great power to establish His redemptive kingdom on earth.
Notice also the description of God: "who is and who was." The usual formula includes "and who is to come." Its absence here is significant. In this context, the future aspect is omitted because, in a very real sense, He has come. His kingdom has been inaugurated. The reign has begun. The future has invaded the present.
Rage, Wrath, and Reward (v. 18)
The elders' song continues, describing the consequences of the King taking His throne. It is a tale of two responses: the rage of the nations and the reward of the saints.
"And the nations were enraged, and Your rage came, and the time came for the dead to be judged, and to give reward to Your slaves, the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great, and to destroy those who destroy the earth." (Revelation 11:18)
Here we see a series of divine responses. First, the nations were enraged. This is the constant theme of history since the ascension. The world hates the lordship of Christ. They rage against His law, His people, and His claim on their lives. This is Psalm 2 all over again. But their impotent fury is met with a holy fury. "And Your rage came." The Greek word here is orge, God's settled, judicial wrath against sin and rebellion. The cross was the ultimate expression of this wrath, poured out on the Son. The destruction of Jerusalem in A.D. 70, which is the immediate context for much of Revelation, was a historic outpouring of that same wrath on the apostate covenant nation.
Next, "the time came for the dead to be judged." This is not exclusively the final judgment at the end of history. In the context of Revelation, this refers to the vindication of the martyrs. The souls under the altar had cried out, "How long, O Lord?" (Rev. 6:10). The answer is now. The judgment on their persecutors is their vindication. The destruction of Jerusalem was a judgment that vindicated all the prophets whom that city had killed, from Abel to Zechariah.
And with judgment for the wicked comes reward for the righteous. God will "give reward to Your slaves." This is a comprehensive list of God's people: "the prophets and the saints and those who fear Your name, the small and the great." No one is left out. Every act of faithfulness, every cup of cold water, every word of testimony will be rewarded. This is the bema-seat judgment, where the works of believers are evaluated. Our salvation is by grace alone, but our rewards are according to our works. God is a generous King who delights in honoring the faithfulness of His servants.
Finally, the purpose of this judgment is "to destroy those who destroy the earth." Man, in his rebellion, is a destructive force. He pollutes God's world with sin, idolatry, violence, and injustice. God's final act is one of holy de-construction. He will dismantle the entire rebellious project of man and cleanse His creation. Those who have spent their lives marring and destroying God's good world will themselves be destroyed. This is the terrible and just lex talionis of God.
The Open Sanctuary (v. 19)
The scene concludes with a stunning vision of heaven opened, revealing the heart of God's covenant faithfulness.
"And the sanctuary of God which is in heaven was opened, and the ark of His covenant appeared in His sanctuary, and there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm." (Revelation 11:19)
With the destruction of the earthly temple in Jerusalem, the true temple in heaven is now thrown open. Access to God is no longer restricted by veils and priests and sacrifices. Through the torn flesh of Jesus Christ, the way into the holiest of all has been made available to all who come by faith. The old system is obsolete and has been demolished.
And what is at the center of this open sanctuary? "The ark of His covenant." The ark, which had been lost for centuries, was the symbol of God's presence and His covenant promises. To see it in heaven is to be assured that God has not forgotten His promises. The New Covenant, ratified in Christ's blood, is secure. The mercy seat is no longer hidden away. It is now the very throne of grace to which we are invited to come boldly.
But this open access and covenant faithfulness has two sides. For the people of God, it is comfort, assurance, and grace. For the enemies of God, it is terror and judgment. The vision ends with the classic signs of theophany, of God's powerful, judging presence: "flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder and an earthquake and a great hailstorm." These are the same phenomena seen at Mount Sinai when the Law was given. The God of the covenant is also the God of judgment. The opening of heaven means salvation for His people and destruction for His enemies. The seventh trumpet proclaims both. The kingdom has come, and you are either a citizen by grace or an enemy under judgment. There is no third option.