This article presents a brief study of Revelation 10, showing the connections with Pentecost and the time of the early rain. Just as Jesus had his two witnesses at that time (John 15:26-27; Acts 1:8; Acts 5:32), so he will have his two witnesses in the time of the latter rain.

hen I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven. He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face was like the sun, and his legs were like fiery pillars. He was holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke. And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write, but I heard a voice from heaven say, "Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and do not write it down."

Then the angel I had seen standing on the sea and on the land raised his right hand to heaven. And he swore by him who lives for ever and ever, who created the heavens and all that is in them, the earth and all that is in it, and the sea and all that is in it, and said, "There will be no more delay! But in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets." (Revelation 10:1-7).

This angel is Michael, whom John knew as his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. The identity of this angel is indicated by a number of characteristics: his face was like the sun (cf. Revelation 1:16), his legs were like fiery pillars (cf. Revelation 1:15), and he had a rainbow above his head (cf. Ezekiel 1:25-28; Revelation 4:3). Further, his shout was like the roar of a lion (cf. Hosea 11:10-11; Revelation 5:5), and his coming down from heaven robed in a cloud certainly reminded John of Jesus' ascension:

He [Jesus] said to them: "You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth."

After he said this, he was taken up before their very eyes, and a cloud hid him from their sight.

They were looking intently up into the sky as he was going, when suddenly two men dressed in white stood beside them. "Men of Galilee," they said, "why do you stand here looking into the sky? This same Jesus, who has been taken from you into heaven, will come back in the same way you have seen him go into heaven" (Acts 1:8-11)

Now, in vision, John sees Jesus come back in the same way he had many years previously seen him go into heaven. This is important, because it sets the tone for the rest of the passage in Revelation 10 and 11 until the seventh angel sounds his trumpet. (While the angel's words may have referred specifically to Jesus' second coming, John's vision of Jesus descending in a cloud certainly reminded him of his ascension and the experiences that followed.)

Let us review, for a moment, the time just before and including Pentecost. After the apostles watched Jesus ascend to heaven, they returned to Jerusalem and spent time in prayer and preparation for the gift the Father had promised. Ellen White describes this time in Acts of the Apostles, pages 35-37.

"These days of preparation were days of deep heart searching. The disciples felt their spiritual need and cried to the Lord for the holy unction that was to fit them for the work of soul saving. They did not ask for a blessing for themselves merely. They were weighted with the burden of the salvation of souls They realized that the gospel was to be carried to the world, and they claimed the power that Christ had promised." (Acts of the Apostles 37:2)

In Revelation 8:3-4, John saw an angel offering incense with these prayers before the throne.

Acts 2 continues: When the day of Pentecost came, they were all together in one place. Suddenly a sound like the blowing of a violent wind came from heaven and filled the whole house where they were sitting. They saw what seemed to be tongues of fire that separated and came to rest on each of them. All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them" (Acts 2:1-4).

Pentecost was the Feast of Weeks, which is described Leviticus 23. By the Lord’s command, this day fell on the Sunday seven weeks after the presentation of the firstfruits of the harvest (Leviticus 23:15-16).

The outpouring of the Holy Spirit at Pentecost and the harvest of souls that was reaped was what the Feast of Weeks had pointed to. In the same way, there is to be an outpouring of the Holy Spirit, the harvest of which is represented by the Feast of Tabernacles later in the year:

The Lord said to Moses, "Say to the Israelites: ‘On the 15th day of the seventh month the Lord’s Feast of Tabernacles begins, and it lasts for seven days… So beginning with the 15th day of the seventh month, after you have gathered the crops of the land, celebrate the festival to the Lord for seven days; the first day is a day of rest, and the eighth day also is a day of rest" (Leviticus 23:33, 39).

Speaking of these times, Ellen White wrote, "Under the figure of the early and the latter rain, that falls in Eastern lands at seedtime and harvest, the Hebrew prophets foretold the bestowal of spiritual grace in extraordinary measure upon God’s church. The outpouring of the Spirit in the days of the apostles was the beginning of the early, or former, rain, and glorious was the result. To the end of time the presence of the Spirit is to abide with the true church. But near the close of earth’s harvest, a special bestowal of spiritual grace is promised to prepare the church for the coming of the Son of man. This outpouring of the Spirit is likened to the falling of the latter rain; and it is for this added power that Christians are to send their petitions to the Lord of the harvest "in the time of the latter rain." (Acts of the Apostles 54-55).

The appearance of the angel Michael in Revelation 10 is a reminder of Pentecost, the time of the early rain. The passage in Revelation 10 and 11 that takes us to the time of the seventh trumpet is a prophecy of the latter rain.

Then, Michael raised his right hand to heaven and swore by the eternal Creator, "There will be no more delay, but in the days when the seventh angel is about to sound his trumpet, the mystery of God will be accomplished, just as he announced to his servants the prophets" (Revelation 10:6-7).

What is the mystery of God? Paul answers the question succinctly in Ephesians 3:

This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus. (Ephesians 3:6).

The mystery of God is accomplished by taking the gospel to the Gentiles, who will be the fruits of the final harvest; and the rest of this passage in Revelation describes how that is to happen.

Then the voice that I had heard from heaven spoke to me once more: "Go, take the scroll that lies open in the hand of the angel who is standing on the sea and on the land."

So I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, "Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey" (Revelation 10:8-9).

John’s experience parallels an experience Ezekiel had, recorded in Ezekiel 1-3. Ezekiel, too, was visited by the Son of God and was given a scroll to eat. Here is a comparison of their experiences:

Ezekiel	John
He said to me, "Son of man, eat this scroll I am giving you and fill your stomach with it." So I ate it, and it tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth (Ezekiel 3:3). The Spirit then lifted me up and took me away, and I went in bitterness and in the anger of my spirit, with the strong hand of the Lord upon me (Ezekiel 3:14).	I went to the angel and asked him to give me the little scroll. He said to me, "Take it and eat it. It will turn your stomach sour, but in your mouth it will be as sweet as honey. I took the little scroll from the angel’s hand and ate it. It tasted as sweet as honey in my mouth, but when I had eaten it, my stomach turned sour (Revelation 10:9-10).

In Ezekiel’s case, the scroll contained a message to the house of Israel, calling for repentance. I believe the same to be true in John’s case. Before Israel can take the gospel to the Gentiles, Israel must be purified. The Bible refers to this as a time of shaking:

"I will give the command, and I will shake the house of Israel among all the nations as grain is shaken in a sieve, and not a pebble will reach the ground. All the sinners among my people will die by the sword, all those who say, ‘Disaster will not overtake or meet us.’

"In that day I will restore David’s fallen tent. I will repair its broken places, restore its ruins, and build it as it used to be, so that they may possess the remnant of Edom, and all the nations that bear my name," declares the Lord, who will do these things. (Amos 9:9-12).

This passage is quoted in the New Testament as follows: "After this I will return and rebuild David’s fallen tent. Its ruins I will rebuild, and I will restore it, that the remnant of men may seek the Lord, and all the Gentiles who bear my name, says the Lord, who does these things" (Acts 15:16-17).

The sequence described in Amos 9:9-12 is

1. The house of Israel is shaken to purge it of sin
2. David’s fallen tent (the house of Israel) is rebuilt and restored,
3. The Gentiles turn and seek the Lord.

This is essentially what came out of our study on the seven trumpets in light of the story of Jericho.

Ellen White comments on the testing of God's people in order that they can bear faithfully the testimony of Jesus:

Amos ix, 9, 10, was presented before me. "For, lo, I will command, and I will sift the house of Israel among all nations, like as corn is sifted in a sieve, yet shall not the least grain fall upon the earth. All the sinners of my people shall die by the sword, which say, The evil shall not overtake nor prevent us."

God's people will be tested and proved. The plain and pointed testimony must act a prominent part in this work. In these days of darkness and peril who is able to stand and speak the whole truth? Multitudes of teachers prophesy smooth things. They see no special cause of alarm in the present condition of the professed people of God. The people are asleep, and the teachers are asleep. They cry, Peace, peace, and the multitude that hear believe their report and are at ease. This makes the necessity greater for faithful teachers to bear the pointed, faithful testimony. The present is a time of scouring and purifying, a time of warfare and trial. The house of Israel is being sifted, even as corn is sifted in a sieve. The chaff must be removed, and it will require close work to separate the chaff from the kernels of grain. God's discerning eye will detect the smallest particle of chaff, and yet he will not cause to fall upon the ground the least kernel of grain. (Testimony To The Church, Second Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, November 26, 1861, paragraphs 12-13)