Originally published on Friday, April 4, 2014, 6:25 am in German at www.letztercountdown.org

We have been in the last 624 days before the closing of the door of mercy for mankind since February 1, 2014, and now the time is quickly approaching when the Captain of the Lord’s hosts [Jesus] will stand at the forefront of the battle of Armageddon, as it is called in the Bible. With narrow thinking, many Adventists consider the battle of Armageddon in Revelation 16:16 as the last great battle, which appears to take place in the seventh plague and is also described in more detail in Revelation 19, when Jesus will come again with all the angels. But is that really the last decisive battle, or will the final decision for the universe and for Divinity Themself be made before that? We will explore this issue and find surprises which will bring our attention to this very present moment in history.

Ellen G. White and the Trumpets and Plagues

Every form of evil is to spring into intense activity. Evil angels unite their powers with evil men, and as they have been in constant conflict and attained an experience in the best modes of deception and battle, and have been strengthening for centuries, they will not yield the last great final contest without a desperate struggle. All the world will be on one side or the other of the question. The battle of Armageddon will be fought, and that day must find none of us sleeping. Wide awake we must be, as wise virgins having oil in our vessels with our lamps....

The power of the Holy Ghost must be upon us, and the Captain of the Lord’s host will stand at the head of the angels of heaven to direct the battle. Solemn events before us are yet to transpire. Trumpet after trumpet is to be sounded, vial after vial poured out one after another upon the inhabitants of the earth. Scenes of stupendous interest are right upon us (Letter 112, 1890). {7BC 982.6–7}

In the last paragraph of this amazing statement by Ellen G. White in her letter to W.C. White, J.E. White and his wife on December 22, 1890, she says what events must take place before the battle of Armageddon on one hand, and on the other hand she says that those events were still future as of 1890. Although Jesus could have come back in 1890 as we learned in the study of The Vessel of Time, those events did not happen earlier because the light of the fourth angel had already been rejected by the Church in 1888, and thus another long wilderness wandering had to precede the events of the last two septuplets (seven-series) of Revelation.

The events Ellen G. White described as “solemn and of stupendous interest” that would culminate in the battle of Armageddon, she clearly identified... they are the trumpets and plagues of the Apocalypse.

Why So Many Interpretations of the Trumpets?

All interpreters who set the trumpets in whole or in part in the distant past should pay particular attention now. Often these interpreters start the first trumpet with the destruction of Jerusalem in AD 70 or they transfer it to the first centuries after Christ and connect it with the decline of the Roman Empire. I already explained in my January 31, 2014 sermon that there are many possible interpretations of the trumpets because the example of Jericho clearly tells us that the seven priests always blew seven trumpets on their marches around Jericho. These represent different eras of mankind since the resurrection of Christ. The first six days of Jericho stand for the classical trumpet interpretations, which generally begin after Christ’s resurrection, but there are still nevertheless seven marches on the last day. That means seven different interpretations of the seven trumpets are still possible for the Great Day of Atonement, which began on October 22, 1844 and extends to the closing of the door of mercy in 2015.

I mentioned one of them on slide 176 of the Orion presentation as follows:

For those who have not noticed it yet: We also had four trumpets (wars) in the four time periods of the first four seals. 1861 - the American Civil War, 1914 - First World War, 1939 - Second World War and since 1980, two Gulf Wars and since 2001 the war against terrorism.

Thus my eschatological interpretation of the trumpets began in 1861 with the Civil War and spanned the remainder of the judgment. The fact is, only one of these many possible interpretations can be consistent with the statement of Ellen G. White above, and it even had to be yet-future as late as 1890. That means it would have to take place after the 120-year wilderness wandering of the Adventist church. Only then could the last two septuplets of Revelation find their most clear and literal fulfillment, and in that timeframe the remnant would be imbued with the power of the Holy Spirit and grace, which could only be the case during the time of the latter rain.

The Trumpets of the Seventh March of the Seventh Day around Jericho

When we studied the shadows of the sacrifices of Ezekiel’s ideal temple, we found two phases of the latter rain period. There we found 1260 days of special rations of the Holy Spirit for the 3.5 years of the judgment of the living. Those in turn are split into periods: a 636-day “early” latter rain time, and then a really intense latter rain phase of 624 days. Logically, the latter rain ends when it will have ripened the fruit of the 144,000. That will happen on the day when Jesus finishes the intercessory service in the Most Holy, and then the last 372 rations of the Holy Spirit are poured out for the 144,000 for the time of plagues in which they must stand without sin (see Shadows of the Sacrifices - Part II). At that point, every single one of the 144,000 will be sealed for his/her last great work.

Figure 1 – Phases of the Judgment of the Living

The trumpets are always interpreted as warnings mingled with grace for the unbelievers and for the apostate part of the church. What could be better than to assume that they should sound in precisely these last 624 days of the “hot” phase of the latter rain? It would at least meet all of the criteria in the above statement of Ellen G. White...

1. The power of the Holy Spirit accompanies the remnant [the latter rain],
2. The trumpets come only after 1890, and
3. They come before the plagues, because Ellen G. White also specified the exact order of events in her statement.

Are there any other clues that might help us to confirm this view?

Four mighty angels hold back the powers of this earth till the servants of God are sealed in their foreheads. The nations of the world are eager for conflict, but they are held in check by the angels. When this restraining power is removed there will come a time of trouble and anguish. Deadly instruments of warfare will be invented. Vessels with their living cargo will be entombed in the great deep. All who have not the spirit of truth will unite under the leadership of Satanic agencies, but they are to be kept under control till the time shall come for the great battle of Armageddon.—The S.D.A. Bible Commentary 7:967 (1900). {LDE 238.3}

The Spirit of Prophecy helps us to arrange the events.

First our attention is drawn to a time of holding the four winds, and we are told that this is the sealing time for the 144,000. This corresponds to the following Bible verses:

And after these things I saw four angels standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor on any tree. And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. (Revelation 7:1-3)

Reconsidering the “Silence in Heaven”

The process of sealing the 144,000 is described in Chapter 7 of Revelation, and continues in Revelation 8:1 with the opening of the classical seventh seal.

And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. (Revelation 8:1)

Now, however, we have to distinguish the classical interpretation of the seventh seal from our interpretation which is greatly extended by the knowledge of the Orion clock. The classical seventh seal is the last seal of the sequence that began with the pure gospel of the early Christian church like a white horse. The classical interpretation takes this time frame of “about half an hour” as prophetic time, which after conversion comes to about 7 days (one prophetic hour being 15 days). Therefore, many interpreters put this seal at the end and believe that it is talking about the 7 days of Jesus’ travel with all His heavenly hosts at His second coming, because heaven would be “empty” or “silent” at that time.

However, they’ve overlooked a statement of Ellen G. White that explains an important principle for the interpretation of prophecy:

December 16, 1848, the Lord gave me a view of the shaking of the powers of the heavens. I saw that when the Lord said “heaven,” in giving the signs recorded by Matthew, Mark, and Luke, He meant heaven, and when He said “earth” He meant earth. The powers of heaven are the sun, moon, and stars. They rule in the heavens. The powers of earth are those that rule on the earth. The powers of heaven will be shaken at the voice of God. Then the sun, moon, and stars will be moved out of their places. They will not pass away, but be shaken by the voice of God. {EW 41.1}

If you think this statement only applies to the Gospels that she named, read on...

Dark, heavy clouds came up and clashed against each other. The atmosphere parted and rolled back; then we could look up through the open space in Orion, whence came the voice of God. The Holy City will come down through that open space. I saw that the powers of earth are now being shaken and that events come in order. War, and rumors of war, sword, famine, and pestilence are first to shake the powers of earth, then the voice of God will shake the sun, moon, and stars, and this earth also. I saw that the shaking of the powers in Europe is not, as some teach, the shaking of the powers of heaven, but it is the shaking of the angry nations. {EW 41.2}

The reference to Orion and the Holy City coming down points us to the book of Revelation, and even more specifically to the latter rain time when the significance of Orion was revealed through the Holy Spirit.

Therefore, we need to ask ourselves the following questions:

1. Why is the opening of the seventh seal placed between the description of the sealing time of the 144,000 (Revelation 7) and the seven trumpets (Revelation 8)?
2. If the silence takes place in heaven, and “when God says heaven He means heaven,” then what does a half hour of heavenly time mean on earth?

First, let’s answer the second question. We know from the Orion study that a heavenly hour corresponds to exactly 7 earthly years. It is the time on the clock face between two hour marks, which are symbolized by the thrones of the 24 elders, and at the same time it corresponds to God’s “heartbeat” of Sabbatical years as described in Leviticus 25. Consequently, half of a heavenly hour is 7 ÷ 2 = 3.5 years = 1260 days = a time, times and a half from the oath of Daniel 12.

This time calculation clarifies why the seventh seal is positioned precisely between the sealing time of the 144,000 and the trumpets... On one hand, it’s the time frame of the judgment of the living with the latter rain, during which the sealing of the 144,000 is taking place. But beyond that, the silence in heaven also well describes the tension that all the creatures of the universe and God Himself must feel in this last decisive battle for the 144,000 witnesses for the Father. We have described the fatal consequences of losing this battle in the article Our High Calling. Anyone who understands this will be silent too, with baited breath, because they can see how close everything will be.

The Orion Clock and its Cycles

As we saw in Figure 1, the sealing time is divided into two timeframes. The second part of the 624 days is explained in more detail beginning at Revelation 8.2... the sounding of the seven trumpets. God intended for the seventh seal to be centrally located between the sealing time of the 144,000 and the trumpets so that we might one day recognize which of these two timeframes belongs to the trumpets.

And now it also becomes clear to us how we have to understand the above quote of Ellen G. White...

Four mighty angels hold back the powers of this earth till the servants of God are sealed in their foreheads. [There will be no Third World War in the sealing time up to the 6th trumpet.] The nations of the world are eager for conflict [Third World War], but they are held in check by the angels. When this restraining power is removed there will come a time of trouble and anguish [the great tribulation]. Deadly instruments of warfare will be invented [atomic bombs, HAARP]. [And now comes a hint to the second trumpet] Vessels with their living cargo will be entombed in the great deep […and the third part of the ships were destroyed, Rev. 8:9]. All who have not the spirit of truth [who have not received the latter rain] will unite under the leadership of Satanic agencies, [Is this really before the plagues? Yes, here she says it again:] but they are to be kept under control till the time shall come for the great battle of Armageddon.—The S.D.A. Bible Commentary 7:967 (1900). {LDE 238.3}

Again, it fits perfectly... The trumpets fall in the second half of the heavenly-half-hour sealing time of the 144,000 as a final warning before the plagues begin, for the “virgins” to finally prepare by filling their lamps with oil. So when will the final decisive battle for the 144,000 take place, when everyone will choose their side? In these last 624 days of trumpets, because we all know that no one will change sides during the plagues (see Revelation 22:11).

To recognize an Orion cycle, you always need a start date and an end date or the exact duration of the cycle. These dates are all known for the trumpet cycle and had already been determined through our preliminary studies of the time lines of the 636 days. My brother Robert will describe that in his articles.

The first of the 624 days was February 1, 2014. So we already knew the start date and the length of the trumpet cycle without recognizing that these key dates specified a new Orion cycle. God had just given me the light about the trumpet and plague cycles on the night of January 31, 2014, and I only had a short time to prepare for my sermon that same evening. But we already knew months earlier (and discussed it in our forum) that on the eve of February 1, the fourth angel would actually come down from Heaven to Earth as in Revelation 18. We wondered what that meant. When I got the light on the two last Orion cycles, I realized that this was the rest—the complete gift—of the light of the fourth angel which would really brighten the earth.

We knew all of the key dates for the plague cycle too. For a long time, we knew from the Shadows of the Sacrifices study that the plagues would take 365 (+ 7 days of Noah = 372 days) and that the first plague vial would be poured out on October 25, 2015. We could even tell the nature of this plague from the Bible and thus wrote a three-part series about The Wrath of God. Since the seventh plague clearly describes the destruction of the New World Order, I could immediately read the date of the last plague from the previously deciphered timelines of Daniel...

September 24, 2016 would be the last day of the 1290 days since the election of Pope Francis and also the last day of the 1260 days of the time of trouble. On the next day, September 25, 2016, the New World Order will be destroyed exactly 30 days before the return of Jesus.

And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts [the threefold alliance of the dragon, the beast and the false prophet breaks again], and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God [Babylon the Great is the New World Order headed by Rome], to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great. (Revelation 16:17-21)

The time of plagues is about another battle. It is about the perseverance of the 144,000 who must stand without sinning, without an intercessor, for 372 days. That is a different battle which we will learn more details about with its own Orion clock cycle. The third and last time-related battle will then be led by Jesus as the Commander of the Lord’s hosts at His second coming (see Revelation 19).

The Orion clock has four cycles:

1. The Great Orion Cycle of 4032 years from the creation of the first Adam (4037 BC) until the birth of the second Adam, Jesus Christ (5 BC).
2. The Judgment Cycle of the Seven Seals for 168 years from the autumn of 1846 (the restoration of the pure church through the Sabbath truth) until autumn 2014 (the 5th Seal pitting the Sunday law against the Sabbath truth).
3. The Trumpet Cycle of the seven apocalyptic trumpets of 624 days from February 1, 2014 (the beginning of the first trumpet) to October 18, 2015 (seventh trumpet = end of the time of grace).
4. The Plague Cycle of the seven last plagues of 336 days from October 25, 2015 (first plague = gamma-ray burst of Betelgeuse) until September 24, 2016 (seventh plague = destruction of the “New World Order”)

The Christian era is not displayed on the Orion clock, but has always corresponded to the part of the scroll that was written on the outside and corresponds to the classical interpretation of the seven churches and seven seals:

And I saw in the right hand of him that sat on the throne a book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals. (Revelation 5:1)

The same “book” was shown to the prophet Ezekiel, and he had to eat it too. However, it does not turn bitter in the stomach of the prophet Ezekiel, in contrast to Miller’s book with the interpretation of Daniel 8 which John had to eat in Revelation 10. The book is sweet and remains so. This means that there will be no further disappointment as there was in 1844 (see also Ezekiel 12:25-28).

And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein; And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe. (Ezekiel 2:9-10)

Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel. So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll. And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness. (Ezekiel 3:1-3)

Now I ask the reader to look at the end of verse 2:10 again: “and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.”

The book which Ezekiel received has three parts, because the three synonyms stand for three Orion cycles: lamentations, mourning and woe. If we do a word study of the original Greek text with Strong's, we can easily determine that the “lamentation severity or intensity” increases with each descriptive word, and this corresponds exactly to the subjects of the cycles.

1. Lamentations: Jesus laments over the transgressions and apostasy in His church in the judgment cycle.
2. Mourning: In the trumpet cycle, only those who sighed and cried about the abominations done in the church (see Ezekiel 9:4) and who have received the seal will remain and be protected from the trumpet judgments. Many will sigh because these are the last warnings with grace.
3. Woe: The plagues are the last vials of wrath poured out as the great woes upon mankind... the punishments of God without mercy.

The first great Orion cycle was not shown to Ezekiel because he was supposed to prophesy for the future and not for his own running cycle. In his time, the last prophecies were already taking place as the then-running great Orion cycle was nearing its end. It is fascinating how God was able to bring so much light and truth through so few words, without it having been revealed for centuries or millennia. Thus we see the truth again in what Jesus Himself said about the work of the Holy Spirit, and we have to mark this last part of the verse in red especially for today’s Adventists because they always quote Him half-way and leave out the end because it doesn’t fit their ecumenical anti-time-setting mentality:

Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. (John 16:13)

Why is There Even a Plagues Cycle?

We can immediately understand that the trumpet cycle consists of the last warnings with grace given to humanity, and that the exact dates for the trumpets have been given so the 144,000 can see—even to the last moment—that God really is behind the fourth angel’s message which we are giving. Consequently, they will accept the right teachings from their Lord Jesus. But the question arises as to why God still gives a plague cycle for a time in which no one is going to change.

He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. (Revelation 22:11)

It isn’t actually necessary for the unbelievers who will no longer repent (e.g. see Revelation 16:11) to see the date of each vial of wrath confirmed in the time of plagues. Some might think that it could be to strengthen the 144,000 themselves, but that would be precluded by the fact that most of them won’t be able to stay informed by the press or media about the disasters in the world.

I saw the saints leaving the cities and villages, and associating together in companies, and living in the most solitary places. Angels provided them food and water, while the wicked were suffering from hunger and thirst. {EW 282.2}

As the decree issued by the various rulers of Christendom against commandment keepers shall withdraw the protection of government and abandon them to those who desire their destruction, the people of God will flee from the cities and villages and associate together in companies, dwelling in the most desolate and solitary places. Many will find refuge in the strongholds of the mountains. Like the Christians of the Piedmont valleys, they will make the high places of the earth their sanctuaries and will thank God for “the munitions of rocks.” Isaiah 33:16. But many of all nations and of all classes, high and low, rich and poor, black and white, will be cast into the most unjust and cruel bondage. The beloved of God pass weary days, bound in chains, shut in by prison bars, sentenced to be slain, some apparently left to die of starvation in dark and loathsome dungeons. No human ear is open to hear their moans; no human hand is ready to lend them help. {GC 626.1}

There must be some other reason for the gift of the plague cycle, which has to do with neither the 144,000 nor the rest of humanity. There must be a reason why God has also given light on the plague cycle, and why right now along with the dates for the trumpet warnings. And that reason must have to do with God Himself.

Again and again we ask ourselves in this movement whether the 144,000 really know God already. The knowledge of God’s character is the basic requirement for salvation in Jesus and sanctification in the truth, without which no man shall see the kingdom of heaven.

Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord: (Hebrews 12:14)

Whoever doesn’t know God will one day hear the following response:

Many will say to me in that day, Lord, Lord, have we not prophesied in thy name? and in thy name have cast out devils? and in thy name done many wonderful works? And then will I profess unto them, I never knew you: depart from me, ye that work iniquity. (Matthew 7:22-23)

And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not. (Matthew 25:10-12)

In all our studies, we have repeatedly shown that it is a fundamental character trait of God that He does not do anything without telling His followers:

Surely the Lord GOD will do nothing, but he revealeth his secret unto his servants the prophets. (Amos 3:7)

Would God put this character trait of His aside at the end of time? No, because that would contradict one of God’s other character traits...

For I am the LORD, I change not... (Malachi 3:6)

Attentive readers of the fourth angel’s message shouldn’t have missed the fact that we’ve received a lot of truth about time through the Holy Spirit, and He taught us things to come (see John 16:13). He has revealed to us all of His time secrets and since this is inseparable from His character, He cannot (and will not) stop just because it might not seem to make sense to reveal one last plague cycle when no one will change anymore. God shows us with the plague cycle that all of the principles of His character remain unchanged even until the last breath of the last person on the earth, and beyond that to the new earth and for all eternity.

Ellen G. White, with all her anti-time-setting arguments, nevertheless experienced in vision that one day this truth about time would seal the 144,000 in the latter rain.

When God spoke the time, He poured upon us the Holy Ghost, and our faces began to light up and shine with the glory of God, as Moses’ did when he came down from Mount Sinai. The 144,000 were all sealed and perfectly united. On their foreheads was written, God, New Jerusalem, and a glorious star containing Jesus’ new name. {EW 14.1}

How contradictory this sounds in contrast to this infamous statement of hers?

…the Lord had been pleased to show me that there would be no definite time in the message given of God since 1844… {2SM 73.3}

I want to ask a few questions to those dear readers who want to be among the 144,000! Whom should you really get to know: Ellen G. White, or God? What does the Bible tell you when you read and study God’s prophecies? Has He ever done anything without informing His servants? Does He change who He is just because the end has come, right when we need to know what hour the clock has struck more urgently than ever? Does He stick out His tongue at us and leave us in the dark? Can you take the Bible verses where it says that the apostles of that time were not allowed to know the day and hour and bring them into harmony with the statement of Jesus in Revelation 3.3?

Remember therefore how thou hast received and heard, and hold fast, and repent. If therefore thou shalt not watch, I will come on thee as a thief, and thou shalt not know what hour I will come upon thee. (Revelation 3:3)

We solved these arguments and apparent contradictions long ago and wrote a whole series of articles about it. God doesn’t change, but there was a time when the knowledge of time would have been counterproductive, and all that counsel of the Spirit of Prophecy was for that self-inflicted 120-year period of the wilderness wandering of the Advent people from 1890 to 2010. But the Bible says in Revelation 10... Thou must prophesy again...

God now gives one last chance to get to know Him by revealing the truth about time to the yet-to-be-sealed remnant of the 144,000. He shows you in the trumpet cycle that the time prophecies are accurate to the day, and He shows you with the not-actually-necessary plague cycle that the Clock, which symbolizes Jesus Himself, will be with us to the end of the world, like our Lord promised.

…and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. (Matthew 28:20)

The four Orion cycles show another trait of God’s character—a special trait that is inseparable from the principle of progressive revelation of time and is connected with the principle of His unchanging character which we already detailed in the article The Power of the Father.

The four Orion cycles perfectly reflect God’s principle of progressive revelation. The timeframes become shorter from one cycle to another, and therefore the frequency of events increases with each new cycle. In the first great Orion cycle, we have 6 dates spanning 4032 years which corresponds to an average of one prophecy every 672 years. In the judgment cycle, we find 7 dates (or 9 by distinguishing the throne lines) which mark the years. On average, that is one year value every 24 years (168 ÷ 7, which also corresponds to the resolution of the year triplets in the HSL). In the trumpet cycle we find 7 (or 9) specific dates within a span of 624 days, which corresponds to a prophesied date approximately every 3 months (624 ÷ 7 ≈ 89 days). And with the plague cycle, the Lord completes this principle with 7 (or 9) dates in 336 days. That’s an average of one prophecy every 48 days for the time of plagues.

The closer we get to the end, the more we learn about God’s plan and the shorter the time intervals become for the revealed dates of events. Again God shows clearly to everyone that He proclaims the time, and determines it. Could there be perhaps even more in these findings than the reader can see at first glance?

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