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b'This passage is rightly seen as an interlude of sorts between the sixth and the seventh seals. An interlude is a short act between two main acts or a short musical piece between two longer pieces. In a play, the interlude allows the audience to catch its breath after particularly engrossing act. In this case, the interlude of chapter seven serves to encourage the readers who are surely overcome by the horror of what they have just read or heard. John sets out to answer the question that lingers on the lips of the \\u201cearth-dwellers\\u201d suffering under God\\u2019s wrath in the terrors of the sixth seal. Like the original audience hearing of the horrific judgment in the previous section, they ask, \\u201cWho can stand?\\u201d That question just hangs in the air, begging for an answer. The expected answer is, \\u201cNo one can stand against God\\u2019s judgment.\\u201d However, in the passage before us, John does not want to unnecessarily terrify his readers or cause them to lose hope. They need to press on and endure until the very end. This answer he provides will give them that hope.'