Revelation 8 describes seven trumpets that were blown by seven angels as part of the judgment of earth’s inhabitants. What were trumpets like in the 1st century AD, and how would John’s audience have envisioned his description? During the time of the Hebrew Bible, the typical “trumpet” (Heb. shofar) was a hollowed out animal horn, often from a sheep or goat. The shofar is still used by Jews today in some contexts. However, this is not the kind of trumpet with which most of John’s audience would have been familiar. Instead, the......