And the seventh angel sounded the trumpet: and there were great voices in heaven, saying: The kingdom of this world is become our Lord's and his Christ's, and he shall reign for ever and ever. Amen.
και ο εβδομος αγγελος εσαλπισεν και εγενοντο φωναι μεγαλαι εν τω ουρανω λεγουσαι εγενετο η βασιλεια του κοσμου του κυριου ημων και του χριστου αυτου και βασιλευσει εις τους αιωνας των αιωνων
4 Church Fathers comment on this verse
Verses 15-18a. The holy angels and those who lived in an angelic manner give thanks to God. For our sake, as Man, He deigned to receive the Kingdom that He possessed as God from the beginning. After long-suffering patience, He finally sent punishment upon the unbelieving nations, who were angered by this new and strange teaching. Therefore he also says further:
By way of digression, the vision has narrated the assault upon the two witnesses, or prophets, and examined the episode concerning them from every side. It now returns to what it had left before.
It had departed from the future recompense of the saints, from the fact that the Gentiles surpassed the Israelites in number, and from the fact that those glorified in the New Testament are more numerous than those in the Old.
It is said that when the seventh angel sounded, voices were heard in heaven saying: “The kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ.” God reigns eternally. He neither begins nor ceases to govern heaven and earth, and all visible and spiritual creatures. Without beginning and without end, He is Master and Lord of all.
When the earthly kingdom of men is removed at the end of the present age, God alone will reign. Therefore it is said that the kingdom of the world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, when those who reign on earth and the demons who exercise dominion are removed and cease to reign.
The seventh trumpet is the day of judgment, on which the Lord will reward His faithful and cast out those who dishonored the earth. The six preceding trumpets, corresponding to the six periods of the present age, announced the beginning of the Church's various battles. But the seventh, announcing the beginning of the eternal Sabbath, proclaims only the victory and reign of the true Master.
Having conquered Hades and death, our Lord Jesus Christ laid a firm foundation for His kingdom on earth. But the subjects of the Heavenly King met frenzied opponents in the Jews and Gentiles stirred up by Satan. They armed themselves against them as the most vicious enemies.
The warfare of Christ’s soldiers against their opponents continues to this day. For many centuries the enemies of God have shed innocent Christian blood.
The holy martyrs, passing from earth to heaven, cried out to God: “How long, O Holy and True Master, until Thou dost judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” (Rev 6:10).
Therefore the heavens are filled with expectation. But when the trumpet of the seventh Angel sounded, announcing the end of the enemy’s dominion, loud voices of the heavenly inhabitants rang out in heaven. And the heavenly elders fell down before God with thanksgiving, because He had begun to reign.
Passages read together with this verse.
Greek text, 32 words with lemma, transliteration and Strong’s number. Tap to expand.
THEOSIS