Yesterday I thought about the moon mentioned in Revelation 6:12 and some potential ways that the moon can become “as blood” besides a lunar eclipse, which I do not believe is the event that is going to make the moon become “as blood” after the sixth seal is opened.
After reflecting on the subject yesterday, I would caution people to not underestimate the atmosphere’s ability to alter the moon’s appearance so it resembles the moon described in Revelation 6:12.
Before I begin with the main part of the article, I want to make it clear that I am not claiming to know exactly how the moon is going to become "as blood". I am just trying to give people something to consider. Now to the main part of the article...
Notice that Revelation 6:12 mentioned a great earthquake occurring before the sun turns black as sackcloth and the moon becomes as blood.
- Rev 6:12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;
Keep this detail in mind....
Joel 2:30-31 and Acts 2:19-20 tell us that a lot of smoke-“pillars of smoke”-will be present during the time before the start of the Day of the Lord.
| Joe 2:30 And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. Joe 2:31 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come. | Act 2:19 And I will shew wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapour of smoke: Act 2:20 The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before that great and notable day of the Lord come: |
Given that there is going to be a lot of smoke present, it is possible that the smoke in the atmosphere could play a role in influencing the appearance of the moon to those on Earth at that time.
- Universe Today, a major astronomy website, has an article focused on answering why the moon sometimes turns red. The article mentions that the moon can turn red during a lunar eclipse. The article also mentions that the moon can turn red after a volcanic eruption emits a lot of particulate matter (ash, smoke, etc) into the atmosphere. The particulate matter in the air scatters blue and green colors away and enables the color red to pass through easier.
- The great earthquake following the opening of the sixth seal is indicative of tremendous geological instability. Therefore, it is possible that there could be so much geological instability at that time that there are also massive volcanic eruptions that send massive amounts of smoke into the atmosphere (recall, Joel 2:30 and Acts 2:19 mentioned the presence of a lot of smoke at that time).
A couple of months ago people around the world witnessed the largest moon in nearly 20 years in the night time sky. During that time many people took the opportunity to take photos of the moon and to publish them online.
I did not pay too much attention to the event because I cannot really tell whether the moon is larger than normal or not. However, I did view a few photos of the larger moon out of curiosity. One photo caught my attention because it showed a reddish/orange moon in the sky. The reddish/orange moon appears (in my opinion) to have been created by particulate matter present in the air. The following photo showed the reddish/orange moon in the sky: Link
- If you are not convinced that particulate matter was responsible for altering the moon’s appearance in the above photo, here is an example of how particulate matter can impact the appearance of the moon from the year 2007: Link The photographer who took this photo wrote: “The smoke and particulates in the sky over San Diego cause the moon to glow with a diffused tint of red...”
These photos of the moon are examples of how atmospheric conditions can alter the moon's appearance. Imagine how prevalent the "red moon" phenomenon could be worldwide if the entire planet is covered in smoke...
This article is just one of perhaps several explanations/theories that could potentially account for how the moon can become “as blood” after the opening of the sixth seal besides a lunar eclipse. More importantly, this article is just a reminder to people to not underestimate the possibility that the atmospheric conditions at that time could play a significant role in altering the moon’s appearance.
