The Four Angels At The Four Corners Of The Earth
The Four Angels At The Four Corners Of The Earth
The Book of Revelation is a part of the Bible that a lot of Christians find hard to understand, therefore a lot of people avoid the Book of Revelation. There are a total of 66 books in the Bible, but there is only one book that promises some kind of a special blessing for those who attempt to try and read it and keep the words and keep the revelation and knowledge that is contained in it, and that one book is the very last book of the Bible, the Book of Revelation. Revelation 1:3: “Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear it and take to heart what is written in it, because the time is near.” Revelation 7:1: “After these things, I saw four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, on the sea, or on any tree.” There are many things that John had written which are to happen leading up to the second coming of Christ. Even though the Book of Revelation may seem to look like it is hard to understand, with the help of the Holy Spirit, you will be able to understand everything that is written in it. In an effort to explain the Book of Revelation to people, we shouldn’t add to it to suit ourselves or to benefit ourselves. Revelation chapter 22 verses 18 to 19 states: “For I testify to everyone who hears the words of the prophecy of this book: If anyone adds to these things, God will add to him the plagues that are written in this book; and if anyone takes away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall take away his part from the Book of Life, from the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.” We must teach people according to how the word is written, expanding deeply upon the divine patterns laid down from Genesis to Revelation without distorting their original integrity, recognizing that every jot and tittle carries eternal weight and spiritual instruction for the modern believer navigating an increasingly complex and spiritually turbulent world.
One of these things John wrote is the four angels on the four corners of the earth. The word “corner” has brought about different arguments in the science and Christian communities. When John said four angels on the four corners of the earth, he meant four angels surrounding the earth. The four angels surrounding the earth simply means they are standing on the north, south, east, and west, the four cardinal points. If we look at this verse of the Bible, what these angels are is not documented; their names, where they come from, who they are, is not important. What is important is the task that they were given to do, and that is why their task has been stated in Revelation 7:1. What we should ask ourselves is what is the work of these four angels, why are they surrounding the earth, why are they standing at these four points? You see, every angel that appears in the Book of Revelation has their job to do; they have a specific purpose. They are not mentioned for no reason, but they all have specific roles: some are praising God, one was showing John around, some of their blowing trumpets, some are there to bring the earth to its climax. For instance, we see three angels in the Book of Revelation out there preaching the gospel, but what we do know is that every angel that is mentioned has a specific job to do. Examining these heavenly hosts reveals a meticulous divine administration where nothing is left to chance, reminding us that even the invisible spiritual realms operate under strict obedience and heavenly mandates designed to fulfill the ultimate redemption and judgment cycles orchestrated by the Creator.
If we look at the first verse in chapter 7 very closely, these angels are holding the four winds from blowing on the earth. What are these four winds? Let’s look back in the Bible. The four winds represent God’s judgment. We see in the Bible in his pledge to destroy Elam, God said in Jeremiah 49:36: “I will bring upon Elam the four winds from the four quarters of heaven, and I will scatter them to all those winds, and there shall be no nation to which those driven out of Elam shall not come.” Like John, Daniel also saw in a vision the four winds of heaven; he states in Daniel 7:2 that they were stirring up the great sea, which meant the Mediterranean Sea. So we see here in Revelation during the four angels’ delay, there is no wind that would arise to even shake a tree. There will be no wind to arise to even shake a tree because of these four angels. We see in Revelation chapter 5 when the lamb took the scroll with seven seals, and the seals were being opened one after the other, one after the other, one after the other. In chapter 6, we will see the kinds of creatures that came out of the seal as they were opened. After six of these seals were opened, that was when we are introduced to these four angels. If we follow the order of the Bible, another angel came through and told these four angels something that they must do in Revelation 7:2: “Then I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living god, and he cried out with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea.” Here the Bible paints to us a picture where another angel flies from the east to these four angels to tell them something crucial, highlighting how divine intervention frequently intercepts unfolding judgments to preserve a remnant and execute strategic mercy according to eternal timetables.
Now the next logical question for us to ask is what did this angel, what did this fifth angel tell these four angels? Revelation 7:3 answers this: “The fifth angel said, ‘Do not harm the earth, the sea, or the trees till we have sealed the servants of our God on their foreheads.'” There is one thing this angel wants to do; he wants to give some set of people the seal of God. This set of people are the selected 144,000 from the tribes of Israel. Who are these 144,000 people? Why are they selected? What happened to the other people on earth? What about me? What about you? This will all be addressed in my next sermon, yet looking closely at the text reveals profound theological truths regarding divine selection, protection, and the distinct categories of individuals who play pivotal roles during the end-time tribulations. The concept of sealing implies ownership, security, and distinction, setting apart those who bear the testimony of the Creator from those who align themselves with the opposing spiritual forces operating within the fallen world system, thereby illustrating the absolute sovereignty of God over human history and the ultimate destiny of every soul inhabiting the earth.
Now let’s go back to the purpose of this fifth angel that came to address these four angels. The angel has the seal of God in his hands. What is the seal of God? In Revelation 14:1, it states: “Then I looked, and behold, a Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His Father’s name written on their foreheads.” This seal of God has the name of God in it; it is the name of God written clearly on it and nothing else. From Revelation 7:3, we see that where the seal would be placed is on the forehead, which confirms it that the seal is the name of God on the foreheads of the 144,000 selected people. After reading these verses of the Bible about the four angels and what they were there to do and the reason why they were standing at the different four points that they were standing, I deviated a bit and asked myself if the wind stopped blowing, what would happen if the air that moves the high current on the earth going to and from a different point to another stops moving, what will happen to the earth? According to National Geographic, the energy that drives the wind originates with the sun, which heats the earth unevenly, creating warm spots and cool spots. Wind over the sea occurs when inland areas heat up on sunny afternoons; this warms the air, causing it to rise, and cool air rushes from the ocean to take its place, and that in its simple sense is how wind is born.
The immediate ceasing of all wind on earth would cause untold devastation. We rely on the wind for mild temperatures, seed dispersal, pollination, and long-awaited rain in dry regions. The absence of wind to circulate both warm and cold weather around the world would result in a land of extremes. Land far away from large bodies of water would become deserts. Mass migration would be an inevitable result of this, as people would try to escape extreme weathers, and famine and food shortages would spread around the world rapidly. The wind is an important thing on the earth, but when the Bible mentions the wind, it means something else; it symbolizes destruction. For instance, my early example of the judgment of Elam in Jeremiah 49:36, the wind might be a good thing, but when God decides to use the wind, sometimes it is for destruction. We see this even in mother nature: have you ever seen how terrifying a tornado is? It has the capability to destroy absolutely everything in its path. So yes, the wind is a wonderful thing, but it can also be used for destruction, mirroring how divine forces operate in the spiritual realm where natural phenomena serve as physical metaphors for profound spiritual realities and imminent judgment upon unrepentant societies.
This is what the four angels will do. These four angels were stopped because of God’s elect. As we see in Matthew 24:31, the tribulation that was to befall the earth was on hold because of God’s elect. The revelation about the four angels should not be new to us if we were reading the Book of Revelation, because Jesus had already talked about this in Matthew 24:31: “And He will send His angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Jesus did not just talk about the winds, but He talked about saving the elected ones from this incident of the wind that is about to happen. In the Book of Revelation, the four angels will allow wind to blow on earth, and it will cause the tribulation of the earth to be delayed, but Jesus said the elected ones would be saved. After pondering this, I realized that it doesn’t matter the evil that will happen in the world, it doesn’t matter the wreck that the devil might want to cause in this world, if you are a child of God, it will be put on hold because of you. These angels could have started to do their work and stopped the wind on the earth, but the fifth angel came and told them they cannot stop the wind until the 144,000 was sealed. The seal is a stamp that has the name of God on it, signifying ultimate protection against the coming wrath.
This isn’t the first time something like this has happened. When the children of Israel were in the land of Egypt, God ordered Pharaoh to let them go, and Pharaoh refused. That night, the death angel came, and we all know what happened, but interestingly, the death angel passed over the homes of all who put a sign on their doors, hence the name Passover. Now, are you scared anytime you read the Book of Revelation, or is the book getting you prepared for the second coming of the Lord Jesus Christ? Don’t read the Book of Revelation because you want to know what will happen alone, but because you want to constantly remind yourself that you must be part of those that will be caught up in heaven with Christ. You must make sure that you do not miss your steps. The Bible says in 1 Corinthians 10:12: “Therefore let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall.” Keep standing in Christ so that you will not fall and miss out on the second coming of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. For more of my sermons and part two to this sermon, please subscribe to my YouTube channel; the link is in the description, ensuring you stay spiritually grounded, deeply informed, and fully prepared for the unfolding prophetic events of our generation.
