Rev 8:8 -9 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; 9 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.
Good morning, dear Reader! As I write this post, it’s a beautiful morning and the sun is just rising! We had a horrible thunderstorm yesterday but you would never know it today. It’s amazing how we can experience an alarming event and then have a beautiful day the next. But as we shall see in today’s Scripture passage, this will not be the case at this point of the Tribulation.
As we see with this second trumpet, one third of the sea becomes blood, a third of sea life is killed and a third of the ships on the sea are destroyed. What seas? We have no way of knowing which ones will experience destruction of one third of its waters. But whichever seas/oceans receive this judgment, you can believe that it will impact the entire globe in one way or another. The Tribulation is centered around Israel so the judgments will draw them back to God. However, its effects will impact the rest of mankind as well.
The Scriptures refer to the “great mountain burning with fire.” Can you put yourself in John’s shoes as he sees this prophecy? He may be referring to an asteroid hitting the earth. I can see where its entrance into the atmosphere and explosion as it hits the sea would appear to be a great mountain burning with fire. An asteroid which would produce this kind of destruction has to be of great size. Just to give you a glimpse of the enormity of its effects, scientists have found an asteroid named 1950DA which they predict will have a 1 in 300 chance of hitting earth on March 16the in the year 2880. This asteroid is greater than half a mile wide and the impact would be equivalent to one million tons of TNT! Granted, 2880 is 860 years away but I am simply using this simply as an example of what could happen during this second trumpet. An impact of that magnitude would definitely be obvious in today’s social media and internet capabilities, wouldn’t you agree?
It could also possibly be an enormous underwater volcano which has occurred many times. This judgment mentions only that the seas (and what lies on it and in it) will be affected so it appears that the effects will be only to water, fish and ships, at this point. The blood could refer to the contamination of the waters from the actual destruction of sea life decaying as a result. Can you imagine the smell coming from the sea? The biggest providers of oxygen to our planet are actually not trees and plants, but plankton from the oceans. They provide 50-80% of the earth’s oxygen!! Imagine taking a deep breath but not fully being able to feel the effects of oxygen (or the lack of it) filling your lungs.
Let’s think about the one third of the sea creatures that will die. In 2011, food from the oceans and seas provided 143.8 million tons of food per year. That means that only 96.3 million tons of seafood will be available. Not only that, but think of the economic impact this will have when there are not enough jobs for the fishermen. As if that’s not enough, there are approximately 50,000 merchant ships at any given time on our oceans and seas and a third of them will be destroyed, leaving 33,500 ships to move shipments! There will be less food going to market and less means to deliver that food to those markets. Also, ships cannot be built overnight. They take months to build and, therefore, whatever food can be taken from the seas will be limited to the number of ships that can provide delivery of the product.
This one trumpet alone is going to have a tremendous impact on life here on earth. Starvation, joblessness, bare grocery shelves, and lack of air, will have a tremendous effect on the quality of life. Oh how I pray that people will read this and get saved before it’s eternally too late! Are you reading this today and you’re not 100% certain that you would be raptured? Is there the slightest possibility that you will go through the Tribulation? Your prideful stubbornness and sin is what stands between you and salvation. Pride keeps a person from admitting he/she has done wrong. Stubbornness is what keeps a person from going in a new direction, preferring the pleasures of sin in his/her life.
But what makes the biggest impression upon you? Is it the enjoyment of sin or the fear of being one of those who will live through the Tribulation? For me, it was the fear of going through the Tribulation. The thought of it pricked my heart and at that point, I realized that I deserved the punishment. The Holy Spirit of God worked in my heart and I understood that my “good works” would not gain me entrance into Heaven. Quite the contrary, I deserved Hell. Just as Adam and Eve’s one sin of disobedience resulted in banishment from the perfect Garden of Eden, all the more reason for my hundreds of sins in my short life of 25 years (at the time) would keep me out of Heaven. Dear Reader, if there’s even the slightest possibility of where you will spend eternity, settle the matter now. What you decide today will impact where you will spend those seven years of Tribulation: (1) raptured and in Heaven with the Lord, or (2) suffering through the worst events in history ever to occur on earth.
Friend, it is no coincidence that God has placed you here for such a time as this so that you may be saved if you are not already. Please click here and the link will open up in a separate tab to You Can Be Born Again and Know It!
