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1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying
to the seven angels, "Go, pour out the seven bowls of God's
wrath on the earth."
2 The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and
ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark
of the beast and worshiped his image.
3 The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned
into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the
sea died.
4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs
of water, and they became blood.
5 Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: "You
are just in these judgments, you who are and who were, the Holy
One, because you have so judged;
6 for they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and
you have given them blood to drink as they deserve."
7 And I heard the altar respond: "Yes, Lord God Almighty, true
and just are your judgments."
8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was
given power to scorch people with fire.
Revelation 16:1-8
Explanation:
The bowl judgments are God's final and complete judgments on the
earth. The end has come. There are many similarities between the
bowl judgments and the trumpet judgments (8:6--11:19), but there
are three main differences: (1) these judgments are complete whereas
the trumpet judgments are partial; (2) the trumpet judgments still
give unbelievers the opportunity to repent, but the bowl judgments
do not; and (3) mankind is indirectly affected by several of the
trumpet judgments but directly attacked by all the bowl judgments.
The significance of the altar itself responding is that everyone
and everything will be praising God, acknowledging his righteousness
and perfect justice.
9 They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name
of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to
repent and glorify him.
10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast,
and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. Men gnawed their tongues
in agony
11 and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their
sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.
12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates,
and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from
the East.
13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs; they came
out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and
out of the mouth of the false prophet.
14 They are spirits of demons performing miraculous signs, and they
go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle
on the great day of God Almighty.
15 "Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake
and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and
be shamefully exposed."
Revelation 16:9-15
Explanation:
We know that the people realize that these judgments come from God
because they curse him for sending them. But they still refuse to
recognize God's authority and repent of their sins. Christians should
not be surprised at the hostility and hardness of heart of unbelievers.
Even when the power of God is fully and completely revealed, many
will still refuse to repent. If you find yourself ignoring God more
and more, turn back to him now before your heart becomes too hard
to repent (see the note on 9:20,21 for more on hard hearts). The
Euphrates River was a natural protective boundary against the empires
to the east ( Babylon, Assyria, Persia). If it dried up, nothing
could hold back invading armies. The armies from the east symbolize
unhindered judgment. These spirits of demons performing miraculous
signs who come out of the mouths of the unholy trinity unite the
rulers of the world for battle against God. The imagery of the demons
coming out of the mouths of the three evil rulers signifies the
verbal enticements and propaganda that will draw many people to
their evil cause. For more about demons, see the note on 9:3. Christ
will return unexpectedly ( 1 Thessalonians 5:1-6), so we must be
ready when he returns. We can prepare ourselves by standing firm
in temptation and by being committed to God's moral standards. In
what ways does your life show either your readiness or your lack
of preparation for Christ's return?
16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew
is called Armageddon.
17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of
the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is
done!"
18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder
and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred
since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake.
19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the
nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her
the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath.
20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found.
21 From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell
upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail,
because the plague was so terrible.
Revelation 16:16-21
Explanation:
This battlefield called Armageddon is near the city of Megiddo (southeast
of the modern port of Haifa), which guarded a large plain in northern
Israel. It is a strategic location near a prominent international
highway leading north from Egypt through Israel, along the coast,
and on to Babylon. Megiddo overlooked the entire plain southward
toward Galilee and westward toward the mountains of Gilboa. Sinful
people will unite to fight against God in a final display of rebellion.
Many are already united against Christ and his people--those who
stand for truth, peace, justice, and morality. Your personal battle
with evil foreshadows the great battle pictured here, where God
will meet evil and destroy it once and for all. Be strong and courageous
as you battle against sin and evil: you are fighting on the winning
side. For more information on Babylon and what it represents in
Revelation, see the note on 14:8. The city's division into three
sections is a symbol of its complete destruction.
