Revelation 8:7

 

Revelation 8:7

(KJV) The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

(1611 KJB) The first Angel sounded, and there followed haile, and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast vpon the earth, and the third part of trees was burnt vp, and all greene grasse was burnt vp.

(1587 Geneva Bible) So the first Angell blewe the trumpet, and there was haile & fire, mingled with blood, and they were cast into the earth, and the thirde part of trees was burnt, and all greene grasse was burnt.

(1526 Tyndale) The fyrst angell blewe and there was made hayle and fyre which were myngled with bloud and they were caste into ye erth: and the thryd parte of trees was burnt and all grene grasse was brent.

 

Counterfeit Versions

(1881 RV) And the first sounded, and there followed hail and fire, mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of the earth was burnt up, and the third part of the trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

(1901 ASV) And the first sounded, and there followed hail and fire, mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of the earth was burnt up, and the third part of the trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

(CSB) The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire, mixed with blood, were hurled to the earth. So a third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

(NIV 2011) The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

(NASV) The first sounded, and there came hail and fire, mixed with blood, and they were thrown to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

(AMP) At the first trumpet blast, hail and fire mixed with blood were dumped on earth. A third of the earth was scorched, a third of the trees, and every blade of green grass—burned to a crisp.

(NLT) The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. One-third of the earth was set on fire, one-third of the trees were burned, and all the green grass was burned.

(ESV) The first angel blew his trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mixed with blood, and these were thrown upon the earth. And a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.

(CEV) When the first angel blew his trumpet, hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. A third of the earth, a third of the trees, and a third of all green plants were burned.

(NCV) The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were poured down on the earth. And a third of the earth, and all the green grass, and a third of the trees were burned up.

(CEB) The first angel blew his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood appeared, and was thrown down to the earth. A third of the earth was burned up. A third of the trees were burned up. All the green grass was burned up.

(HCSB) The first [angel] blew his trumpet, and hail and fire, mixed with blood, were hurled to the earth. So a third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.

(NIRV) The first angel blew his trumpet. Hail and fire mixed with blood were thrown down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up. A third of the trees were burned up. All the green grass was burned up.

(Douay-Rheims 1899 - Roman Catholic) And the first angel sounded the trumpet, and there followed hail and fire, mingled with blood, and it was cast on the earth, and the third part of the earth was burnt up, and the third part of the trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.

(NWT-Jehovah’s Witnesses) And the first one blew his trumpet. And there occurred a hail and fire mingled with blood, and it was hurled to the earth; and a third of the earth was burned up, and a third of the trees was burned up, and all the green vegetation was burned up.

 

Textus Receptus - Traditional Text

και ο πρωτος αγγελος εσαλπισεν και εγενετο χαλαζα και πυρ μεμιγμενα αιματι και εβληθη εις την γην και το τριτον των δενδρων κατεκαη και πας χορτος χλωρος κατεκαη

 

Hort-Westcott - Critical Text

και ο πρωτος εσαλπισεν και εγενετο χαλαζα και πυρ μεμιγμενα εν αιματι και εβληθη εις την γην και το τριτον της γης κατεκαη και το τριτον των δενδρων κατεκαη και πας χορτος χλωρος κατεκαη

 

Corrupted Manuscripts

This verse is corrupted in the following manuscripts:

Aleph 01 - Sinaiticus - Nineteenth Century Counterfeit
A 02 - Alexandrinus - Fifth century

P 025 - Ninth century

 

In this week’s verse, five words were added to the Greek Text which is translated in English as “the third part of the earth.” These words are not in the Textus Receptus but were added to the text because they were changed in the three manuscripts above. So instead of leaving the verse as is, they were inserted into the Greek text by person’s unknown and were then included in the English translations. (Rev 22:18 KJV) For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book: Here is an example of adding to the word of God in violation of Revelation 22:18.

 

Published Critical Greek Texts with Corruptions

Add "and the third part of the earth was burnt up" after "earth"

Greisbach, Johann - 1805

Lachmann, Karl - 1842

Tischendorf, Constantine - 1869

Tregelles, Samuel - 1857

Alford, Henry - 1849 revised in 1871

Wordsworth, Christopher - 1856 revised in 1870

Westcott and Hort - 1881

Nestle - 1927 as revised in seventeenth edition in 1941

Nestle-Aland - 1979 - Twenty Sixth Edition

Nestle-Aland - 1993 - Twenty Seventh Edition

Hodges and Farstad - Majority Text

United Bible Societies - 1983 - Fourth Edition

 

Affected Teaching

If you look closely at the Trumpet Judgments in Revelation 8, you will see they are strategic judgments and nowhere do we find that one third of the earth was burned up. God is making specific judgments not a general one at this point. Below is a little commentary on Revelation 8:7 so we can gain a better understanding concerning the specific judgments in view.

 

The first trumpet judgment is patterned after Exodus 9:22-25 which was the plague of hail and fire. The mixing with blood is taken from Joel 2:31.

(Exo 9:22-25 KJV) And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt. {23} And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. {24} So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. {25} And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field.

(Joel 2:31 KJV) The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.

In the plague on Egypt, we read that this judgment had devastated all the vegetation in the land of Egypt except the wheat and rye were not smitten (Ex. 9:32). In the Revelation verse we read that one third of the trees were burnt up and all the green grass were burnt up by reason of the prayers of the Saints being answered by God in the judgments which are coming upon the unsaved world. The second set of judgments is showing more intensity than the previous seal judgments. The seal judgments spoke of one fourth of the earth being affected.

(Jer 17:2 KJV) Whilst their children remember their altars and their groves by the green trees upon the high hills.

This first trumpet judgment is aimed primarily at the trees and the green grass as we see that one third of all the trees were burned up plus all the green grass. In the book of Jeremiah, God was also warning Judah about their idolatry. The trees were associated with the groves where Baal and other false religions were practiced by both Judah and Israel. In the judgments of the seven trumpets, there is mentioned that those on earth who were not killed had not repented of their sorceries and idolatries. While the first trumpet judgment may have a physical effect upon a limited part of the earth, we are also seeing that God will be sending judgment upon all those who are idolatrous and who are involved in false religions. In our times we are seeing the prostitution of true Christianity as it is increasingly turned into a social religion by having the sting of the Gospel removed and the teachings of salvation reinterpreted. The Lord Jesus Christ has been removed from the majority of churches but there is still a remnant of faithful churches which have not embraced false gospels. As God judged Judah and Israel for their idolatrous ways, the churches which have embraced false gospels in our day will begin to feel the judging hand of God upon them.

(Jer 14:5-6 KJV) Yea, the hind also calved in the field, and forsook it, because there was no grass. {6} And the wild asses did stand in the high places, they snuffed up the wind like dragons; their eyes did fail, because there was no grass.

In Jeremiah 14, God is telling us that Judah had suffered because of a great dearth. The fact that there was no grass for the animals to feed on had caused great damage to the livestock population. In Revelation, when God burns up all the green grass, He is telling us that the true Gospel, which feeds the believers will become increasingly difficult to find. In Psalm 23, we are told that we will be beside green pastures. However, as God removes those pastures and burns them up in judgment, the true believer will also have a hard time in this world because of the scarcity or absence of the true gospel. (Amos 8:11 KJV) Behold, the days come, saith the Lord GOD, that I will send a famine in the land, not a famine of bread, nor a thirst for water, but of hearing the words of the LORD:

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