"And I saw another strong Angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a
God abhors two kinds of sins: (1) worshipping idols and (2) worshipping demons. (According to Mr. Panton's research, in London alone, there were more than forty such cases. Examples were: the beseeching of spirits in a garden, the worshipping of the serpent in a Sunday School, and so forth.) To worship demons is to worship what God has created, while to worship idols is to worship what man has made. Revelation 9:20 says that there are three things the idols cannot do, but it does not say that they cannot speak. This is because in Revelation 13:15 the idol can speak. All sins stem from a failure to know God. Romans 1:24-32 is the footnote to this.
VII. VISIONS INSERTED BETWEEN THE SIXTH AND SEVENTH TRUMPETS A. A Strong Angel (Revelation 10:1-7) 1. Revelation 10:1 "And I saw another strong Angel coming down out of heaven, clothed with a cloud; and the rainbow was upon His head, and His face was like the sun, and His feet like pillars of fire." This strong Angel refers to the Lord, because: (1) The Lord is manifested here as the Angel, the position He takes in the Old Testament. (2) He is in the midst of a cloud, or clothed with a cloud; He is not riding on top of it (Matt. 24:30). Since the Lord sets Himself in the clouds, this is still the time of mystery, for He has not yet manifested His glory. (3) In Revelation 4:3, a rainbow surrounds the throne. In 10:1 a rainbow is upon the Lord's head. Since the Lord is clothed with a cloud, the rainbow is certainly in the cloud also. Although the rainbow signifies that the Lord remembers grace and mercy, the fact that He is in the cloud means that such remembrance is still a mystery and is not yet manifested. (4) "His face was like the sun." This manifests His glory, though at this time He is still in the cloud. (5) "His feet like pillars of fire." This indicate steadfastness (Gal. 2:9; Jer. 1:18). "Fire" signifies the holiness and righteousness of God (Exo. 19:18; Heb. 12:29). 2. Revelation 10:2 "And He had in His hand a little opened scroll. And He placed His right foot on the sea and the left on the land."