What is the 4th Trumpet?
The fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun was struck, a third of the moon, and a third of the stars, so that a third of them turned dark. A third of the day was without light, and also a third of the night. (Revelation 8: 12)
The 4th trumpet announces a major change upon the earth: it will not receive as much sunlight and starlight within a 24 hour period as it had in the past. There will be a reduction in visible light and solar radiation reaching the earth. There will be a third less light in the day and a third less light in the night.
Global Dimming
For more than 50 years, people around the globe have been measuring solar radiation by monitoring how fast water evaporates from pans (aka “pan evaporation”). In the 1980s a scientist, Gerry Stanhill, discovered that there was a 22 percent reduction in sunlight reaching Israel. The phenomenon was named “global dimming.”
By the 1990s, scientists announced that the rate of evaporation in almost every area of the world was falling.[i] This revelation shocked the so-called experts that have been proclaiming “global warming.” They were faced with a paradox: if temperatures were rising, then the pans should be evaporating faster but the evaporation rate was actually slower.
The assumption had been that the “pan evaporation rate” (per) was impacted primarily by temperature. After further study, they determined that the pan evaporation rate is impacted primarily by sunlight. The pan evaporation rate confirmed that surface of the earth was receiving less sunlight (aka global dimming).
The world is experiencing global dimming: it is receiving less sunlight. The world not warming: it is cooling.
Global Cooling
For the past 30 years, the so-called experts have been claiming that the weather is becoming warmer. The “global warming” theory is based on the belief that humans are destroying the earth due to air pollution.
Environmental advocacy groups tend to view human beings as a parasitic infestation upon the earth. Since they believe that humans are destroying the earth, they believe that humans must be controlled. The environmental agenda has been skillfully used to reduce the rights of individuals in order to promote socialistic agendas.
Powerful political activists have used the environmental agenda as a tool for coercing sovereign nations toward a global government. There even exists an international plan for the forced relocation of people to urban areas in order to reduce the “carbon footprint” on the earth that is caused by the infestation of humans and animals (see Agenda 21).
According to “Pacific Decadal Oscillation” (PDO) and the “Atlantic Multidecadal Oscillation” (AMO), the earth goes through cycles. These cycles focus on monitoring the temperature changes in the oceans. Another example of cycles include the “Medieval Warming Period” which peaked in the 1200s and dramatically cooled until the “Little ice age” peaked in the 1600s.
The increase in global temperatures (global warming) stopped about 15 years ago even though global CO2 emissions continued to increase since that time. From 2000 to 2010, the world added about 100 billion metric tons of carbon to the atmosphere. That represents about one quarter of all the CO2 released into the atmosphere since 1750. Yet, during 2000 to 2010 the earth was experiencing a period of cooling instead of warming. This scientific data confirms that the CO2 greenhouse effect actually has very little impact on global temperature changes.[ii]
Global temperature changes are obviously impacted by things bigger than CO2 emissions. Despite humanity’s egocentric and grandiose beliefs in its own importance and power, humans are not really responsible for global changes in temperature.
In recent years, scientists have finally considered the possibility that the sun may be involved in global temperatures. According to NASA, our sun may be headed toward a “mini-Maunder” event due to evidence of what appears to be a long-term weakening trend in the magnetic field strength of sunspots. It reports that the current solar cycle (#24) is the weakest in more than 50 years and the next solar cycle (#25) is expected to be even weaker.[iii]
Since the scientific data actually supports “global cooling” and not “global warming” environmentalists quietly and unapologetically changed the name from “global warming” to “climate change.” No one seemed to notice or question the change in semantics.
Despite scientific evidence to the contrary, environmentalists didn’t miss a beat in continuing to blame humans for the climate change. They continue to passionately demand that human freedoms be removed in order to protect the planet. They believe that humans must be controlled. They blindly walk hand-in-hand with socialistic and dictatorial political agendas.
To those caring individuals who have been worried about reports that the polar bear population has been declining due to “global warming” please take heart: the overall number of polar bears have actually increased since 1989 and any occasional declines were determined to be due to human-caused removals[iv].
According to the scriptures, the world will receive a third less sunlight during the end times. When the earth receives less sunlight (global dimming), it is likely to become cooler (global cooling). Contrary to the environmentalists’ claims of “global warming,” it appears that the world will experience “global cooling” during the end times. Many scientists believe that the world is actually heading into another “little ice age.”
To those individuals who steadfastly defend the idea of global warming: there will come a time in which the people of the world will be scorched by the sun… but that isn’t until the time of God’s wrath shortly before the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16: 8-9).
Global Quickening
People frequently comment about not having enough time to get everything done. Is that simply because we try to do too much? Or, is there actually less time in 24 hours than there used to be?
If the 4th Trumpet vision was intended to be a visual description of time being shortened by a third, how might that have been presented? Seeing a third less sunlight in the day and a third less starlight at night? Is it possible that God was showing the Apostle John that there would be less “time” in the day and night?
Matthew 24: 21-22 says that during the end times, the days would be shortened because if the days were not shortened, no one would survive the great tribulation. When considered together with Revelation 8, it appears that the days and nights will be shortened by a third.
Since this event is related to time, it is likely to take place over a period of time. The result will be that people won’t be able to get as much done within a 24 hour period. If time went faster, the change would be indiscernible to humans because time is relative.
When the 4th Trumpet is sounded, it may simply announce the beginning of that prophesy. Since the prophesy appears to be about time, it is likely that the full measure of that prophesy will be completed over a period of time rather than suddenly. It is also possible that the speed at which time is shortened will be increased as the end times draw closer.
While the use of advancing technology (e.g. computers) may make it less noticeable, people won’t be able to accomplish the same amount within a 24 hour period as they did prior to the 4th Trumpet. With a third less time, 8 hours of sleep or work will be the equivalent of less than 6 hours. Instead of a full 24 hours in a day/night, it will be the equivalent of 16 hours. When God shortens the days and nights, time will be moving faster than it did decades ago.
Aside from not being able to accomplish as much within a 24 hour period, there might be another way to determine whether or not time has sped up: try counting seconds the way they used to many years ago and see if speaking the seconds is different from watching the second hand on the clock. Slowly say: “one one-thousand, two one-thousand, …” or you can say “one Mississippi, two Mississippi, …”
If you are old enough, consider what you used to be able to accomplish in a day 25 years ago. Compare it to present day. Is there a noticeable difference?
If time was actually speeding up, it would explain recent “global dimming” and “global cooling.” There would be less sunlight reaching the earth within a 24 hour period because it would be reduced by up to a third less time (e.g. 16 hours of sunlight).
The 3 Woes
13 As I watched, I heard an eagle that was flying in midair call out in a loud voice: “Woe! Woe! Woe to the inhabitants of the earth, because of the trumpet blasts about to be sounded by the other three angels!” (Revelation 8: 13)
The next three Trumpets will herald things that are much worse than the first 4 Trumpets. They are so severe that they are called “woes.” These next Trumpets will cause much distress to the inhabitants of the earth.
The Trumpets are warnings: the end times are drawing near and there is very little time left. God is calling the people to turn away from their sins and turn to Him.
References:
[i] Pan Evaporation. Wikipedia. Retrieved 5/23/15.
[ii] To the Horror of Global Warming Alarmists, Global Cooling is Here. Forbes.com. Retrieved 5/23/15.
[iii] Solar Variability and Terrestrial Climate. Science.NASA.gov. Retrieved 5/23/15.
[iv] Summary of Polar Bear Population Status per 2014. IUCN/SSC Polar Bear Specialist Group. Retrieved 5/3/2015. http://pbsg.npolar.no/en/status/status-table.html
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