10 Then I saw another mighty angel coming down from heaven. He was robed in a cloud, with a rainbow above his head; his face was like the sun, and his legs were like fiery pillars. He was holding a little scroll, which lay open in his hand. He planted his right foot on the sea and his left foot on the land, and he gave a loud shout like the roar of a lion. When he shouted, the voices of the seven thunders spoke. And when the seven thunders spoke, I was about to write; but I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said and do not write it down.”
First
and foremost the imagery in this set of verses is profoundly beautiful.
And angel robed in a cloud with a rainbow above his head and legs like
fiery pillars; it takes my breath away to think about
seeing something as beautiful as that. Then the angel plants his feet, which are under legs of fiery pillars, one on the
land and one on the sea and gives a roar like a lion.
I had never heard the term 'seven thunders' before. The author at gotquestions.org suggests that from references in earlier versions in Revelation it can be inferred that the seven thunders are the very voice of God Himself.
This article from a Catholic website gives some commentary on just why it may be that God does not want the information imparted by the voice of the seven thunders to be shared. I'm neutral about the characterization of curiosity here but I do understand, from life experience, what God meant when He says in Isaiah 55, "For my thoughts are not your thoughts, and my ways are not your ways."
It's somewhat anti-climactic that after this amazing imagery of the arrival of the angel and his roar we find out that the contents of his speech are not available to us. But conversely it does actually make the impact of the visual imagery that much more profound to linger on; this may be my favorite image in all of Revelation so far.
In commentary on biblehub.com Matthew Henry infers that this imagery describes Christ Himself, previously referred to as the Lamb, who is the only one worthy to open the seven seals. link
I found another intriguing commentary on the same site (written by Albert Barnes in 1834), that says in the sixth paragraph that the seven thunders represent the Catholic Church and that the words not being written down by John, due to a command from the angel, represent the Reformation and that God is implying the papacy has no authority over God's word or the earth in general. This seems a stretch to me but it's important to consider this kind of theorizing just to underscore that these verses and the images in them are so powerful and profound that they've been interpreted in many different ways over time.
I love reading these old commentaries compiled on biblehub, and there is also a link on the page of each verse on biblehub dedicated to the many sermons about these verses as well.
If you want to accept Salvation from Christ here are some resources:
A Prayer for Salvation from Christ:
Lord
Jesus, I confess my sins and ask for your forgiveness. Please come into
my heart as my Lord and Savior. Take complete control of my life and
help me to walk in Your footsteps daily by the power of the Holy Spirit.
Thank you Lord for saving me and for answering my prayer.
A more detailed step by step process:
https://www.wikihow.com/Accept-Jesus-Into-Your-Life
