When the seventh seal breaks, appropriately there is silence (8:1). The eschatological hour and a half denotes a limited period of time before divine judgment can commence (Dan. 7:25; 9:27; Hab. 2:20), but here, as part of the liturgy, the silence is also a moment of reverent awe. Heaven is telling us, Be still and know the Godness of God (cf. Ps. 46:10). Taken as a whole, the seven seals give a partial answer to the problem of theodicy (i.e., why a good and powerful God does not act immediately to end human suffering). They demonstrate that the origin of suffering and evil is complex. There are several degrees of separation from God, who once held the scroll (4:1); to the s…