REVELATION 16

These vial or bowl judgments are the most intense and horrible judgments. With these judgments, everything starts to die. The seals judgments destroyed a quarter of the earth and the trumpets judgments a third of the earth. The vials/bowls will affect the whole earth. Moreover, while the seals and trumpets affected the people indirectly, the vials/bowls are poured out directly on people.

The warning given in 14:9-10 is now beginning to be brought to pass.

• Re 14:9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, 10 The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation

Jesus Christ Himself prophesied that this period of time would be a time of trouble without precedent.

• Mt 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

1 ¶ And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.

• A careful examination of this chapter reveals that the first four vial/bowl plagues are poured out on the natural realm (16:1-9). The remaining three bowls are poured out on the Beast’s throne or kingdom (16:10-21).
• The seven-sealed scroll has fully unrolled. The seventh trumpet has blown. The final judgments are to fall.
• The word great here in the KJV is translated loud voice, as we see in the NIV & NASB; it is translated mighty in the Amplified. The Greek word is the adjective megas. Megas means “great or large.”
• This word is used eleven times in this chapter in connection with its events: There is a “great” voice (16:1, 17); heat (16:9); river (16:12); day (16:14); earthquake (16:18, twice); city (16:19); Babylon (16:19); hail (16:21); and plague (16:21).
  • The word great here is indicative of the unusual intensity of these final judgments that are going to be poured out upon this Christ rejecting world.
• With all due respect for my dear brothers in Christ who hold to a different interpretation of the Revelation, I do not believe that anything that is described here has ever taken place in the history of mankind. I do not believe that what is written here was fulfilled in 70 AD, and I certainly do not believe that John is simply writing in poetic, apocalyptic language to describe the struggle between light and darkness, culminating with the Second Coming of Jesus Christ any more than Moses was when he was writing about the plaques in Egypt or the flood judgment or Sodom and Gommorah.
• Having said that, I want to be clear on this…..I refuse to allow our differences on eschatology or any other matter of eschatology stand between us and our fellowship in Jesus Christ.
• One last expositional thought here…. In the previous verse, the shekinah glory of God filled the Temple and no one could enter until the plagues were completed (Rev. 15:8+). Thus, this voice can only be that of God Himself. His voice is also heard announcing, “It is done!” at the completion of the pouring forth of the seven bowls (Rev. 16:17+).

2 And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.

• There is a notable contrast between the first vial and the first trumpet, in that the first trumpet (8:7) burns up a third part of the trees and all the green grass. Here the judgment is specifically upon men and is directed to a particular group of men, and as we will see in a moment, namely, the beast worshipers who have received the mark of the beast.

• Noisome and grievous- “loathsome” (evil) and “malignant” (painful) sores. Some have described these sores as an abscessed or ulcerous sore, like the ones that are caused by infection.
• The word translated “sore” (helkos) is the word used in the Greek OT to translate the Hebrew word for boils inflicted on the Egyptians (cf. Exod 9:9-11; Lev 13:18-27; Deut 28:27, 35; 2 Kgs 20:7; Job 2:7)
• Can you imagine if you had a case of canker sores over your entire body? You would be unable to walk, sit, or lie down without pain. Such will be the case during the tribulation for those who experience these sores. The significant difference here is that the world’s population will have to suffer from sores that nothing can cure.
• The Beast worshipers experience a similar condition to that of Job when he was struck with boils by Satan (Job 2:7). The plague which strikes the Beast worshipers is like that which Aaron and Moses caused upon the men and beasts of Egypt (Ex. 9:8-11).
• Who does this vial get poured out upon? It is important to see that these sores break out “on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.” They are the enemies of God during the Tribulation, much as Egypt was the enemy of Israel (and God) during the Exodus.
• This plague and those that follow are not the expression of God’s wrath against sin in general, nor are they punishments for individual wrongdoing. The judgment comes from God because of the world’s allegiance to God’s supreme opponent.
• Since these people received the Antichrist’s mark (13:16-18; 14:9-10), they begin to pay the consequences for their allegiance to his kingdom of darkness. Once again, the price that a person pays to “follow the crowd” is far more than the cost of mortifying your flesh, denying yourself and following The Lord Jesus Christ.

3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.

• This judgment results in the destruction of all sea life. Imagine all the world’s oceans and seas turning to blood “like that of a dead man.” The stench of such a judgment must be beyond anything ever experienced on this earth.
• In the second trumpet judgment, one-third of all sea life perished (Rev 8:8-9). The waters became bitter, like wormwood. The emphasis here is greater with the phrase “every living thing in the sea died.”
• The essential life-supporting mechanisms within the sea, the basis of the food chain, are destroyed. As in Egypt, the animal life within the water dies.

4 And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.

• Not only are the waters of the oceans and seas turned to blood, the rivers and fountains of water are turned to blood as well. This resembles the first Egyptian plague where the Nile River and its tributaries were turned into blood and all the fish died (Exod 7:14-21).
• Oh how We take water for granted. Outside of any storehouses of bottled water, there will be no fresh water to drink on the earth. During this period of judgment, fresh water to drink will be more valuable than oil! It is possible to exist without oil, but man needs a constant supply of water to live.
• John Macarthur writes this: The destruction of what is left of the earth’s fresh water will cause unthinkable hardship and suffering. There will be no water to drink; no clean water to wash the oozing sores caused by the first bowl judgment; no water to bring cooling relief from the scorching heat that the fourth bowl judgment will shortly bring. The scene is so unimaginably horrible that people will wonder how a God of compassion, mercy, and grace could send such a judgment. And so there is a brief interlude in the pouring out of the judgments while an angel speaks in God’s defense

5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous,

6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy (deserve it).

7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.

• Verses 5-7 explain why God turns all the world’s waters to blood. The “angel of the waters” there is verse 5 evidently refers to the angel responsible for the sea and fresh water, the superintendent of God’s water department.
• As I mentioned previously in our study of Scripture, Scripture reveals that angels affect the elemental forces of nature (cf. Ps 104:4; Heb 1:7; Rev 7:1; 14:18).
• Note what this angel declares in the wake of these horrific judgments: O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy (deserve it).
• Psalm 79 is a prophetic Psalm that points to this event:
  • Psa 79:1 ¶ <<A Psalm of Asaph.>> O God, the heathen are come into thine inheritance; thy holy temple have they defiled; they have laid Jerusalem on heaps.2 The dead bodies of thy servants have they given to be meat unto the fowls of the heaven, the flesh of thy saints unto the beasts of the earth.3 Their blood have they shed like water round about Jerusalem; and there was none to bury them.4 We are become a reproach to our neighbours, a scorn and derision to them that are round about us.5 How long, LORD? wilt thou be angry for ever? shall thy jealousy burn like fire?6 ¶ Pour out thy wrath upon the heathen that have not known thee, and upon the kingdoms that have not called upon thy name.7 For they have devoured Jacob, and laid waste his dwelling place. 8 O remember not against us former iniquities: let thy tender mercies speedily prevent us: for we are brought very low. 9 Help us, O God of our salvation, for the glory of thy name: and deliver us, and purge away our sins, for thy name's sake.
  • While Jerusalem has experienced such desolations more than once (under the Babylonians, Greeks, and Romans), I believe that these calamities in their prophetic aspect and unparalleled intensity still point to that final and cataclysmic disaster that is yet to fall upon the city
• This angel affirms that those guilty of slaying the saints (Israel) and prophets (two witnesses) deserve what they get. The tribulation martyrs from under the altar also acknowledge God’s judgments as “true and righteous” (6:9; 15:3-4). Because the earth-dwellers poured out the blood of God’s saints and prophets, they will drink blood. He makes the punishment fit the crime
• A couple of Scriptures come to mind here from both testaments:
  • Isa 49:26 And I will feed them that oppress thee with their own flesh; and they shall be drunken with their own blood, as with sweet wine: and all flesh shall know that I the LORD am thy Saviour and thy Redeemer, the mighty One of Jacob.
  • Gal 6:7 Be not deceived; God is not mocked: for whatsoever a man soweth, that shall he also reap. 8 For he that soweth to his flesh shall of the flesh reap corruption; but he that soweth to the Spirit shall of the Spirit reap life everlasting.
• This angel attributes righteousness and holiness to the eternal God for His judgment. In heaven, The Almighty God of Rev 16 is praised because He has judged men for their sins, while on earth, He is blasphemed (Rev 16.9,11,21).
• Listen carefully people, because the world rejected the blood that brings forth life (Jesus), God poured out blood that brings forth death. To reject the shed blood of Jesus Christ as the only payment for the sin debt that you and I owe to God will result in eternal death and damnation.
• In a world that is full of rebellion and hatred against The Living God, may we never forget that “The LORD is righteous in all His ways, gracious in all His works” (Ps. 145:17). “Righteous are You, O LORD, and upright are Your judgments” (Ps. 119:137).
• Because God is not willing that any should perish, He extends His patience and grace while horrible sin continues to abound on the earth. Because God is righteous, there will come a day when He must act against sin and bring judgment.
• Since the rejection of Messiah Jesus and the going forth of the gospel to the whole world, over 2000 years have transpired and the toll of the shed blood of the saints has escalated dramatically. It has been said in our own century that more have died for the cause of Christ than any previous century. Yet the persecutions of history will pale in comparison with that which befalls the saints in the Tribulation.

8 ¶ And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.

9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.

• The fourth trumpet judgment darkened the sun (8:12), but this judgment increases the sun’s intensity. The Beast-worshippers will be scorched on top of sores (16:2) and there will be no fresh water to drink to give people relief from the heat! The world rejected the S-O-N, now God sends the S-U-N to judge them.
• This alternation in the sun’s normal operation will serve as one of many “signs in the sun, in the moon, and in the stars” during the time of the end (Luke 21:25)
• Instead of repenting and giving God glory, the Beast-worshippers blaspheme God. They recognize His sovereignty, but they refuse to honor Him as sovereign. They have now taken on the character of the god whom they serve (13:5-6).
• This gives us some deep insight into the heart of man. When God does all that He can do get our attention, people do one of two things: repent or blaspheme. Each time they respond in blasphemy, they unwittingly underwrite and testify of the justice of God’s judgment.
• This once again teaches us the sobering doctrine that the human heart is incurably wicked, and for man to be saved, God must sovereignly draw all them to Jesus through the preaching of The Word of God. .
• Repentance of sin gives glory to God; denial of my sinful condition blasphemes God. You may say to me, but I pray, I go to church, I read the Bible, I do good deeds….you may indeed do all of those things. But so did the apostle Paul and so did Nicodemus. They were both Phariasees, they both believed in God and prayed and went to the temple and did good works…but listen to what Paul wrote about his spiritual condition before knowing Christ as we saw last week.
  • 1Tim 1:12 ¶ And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;13 Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious.
• Listen to what Jesus said to religious Nicodemus:
  • John 3:3 Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:6 That which is born of the flesh is flesh; and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. 7 Marvel not that I said unto thee, Ye must be born again.

10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,

11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.

• The darkening of the Anti-christ’s throne (i.e., government) causes great pain. From a scorching sun to debilitating darkness! The kingdom of the Beast is struck with a plague reminiscent of that which struck Pharaoh at the hand of Moses there in Ex 10-.21-23.:
• By the way, that is the last reference to their unwillingness to repent. What that tells us is that these first five plagues were sent by God to bring them to...what?...repentance. They didn't repent. Those who reject Christ will spend eternity in darkness. But this ultimate fate is unnecessary. Hell was not prepared for humans. It was prepared for the Devil and his angels (Matt 25:41).
• There was another time when there was darkness on the earth (Matt 27:45). Jesus endured three hours of darkness on the cross to take away our sin. God couldn’t look upon the face of His dear Son, as every despicable sin known to mankind was placed upon Jesus. God hid the face of Jesus in darkness so we could have the “light of life.” Here, the world rejects the Light so God gives them darkness.
• Those in anguish, mental and bodily, bite their lips and tongues. The people who suffer these plagues bit their tongues, chew them, gnaw them, as their best diversion from their misery. Their tongues have spoken blasphemies, and they themselves thus punish them. JRB & Steiss (commentary on Revelation

A sobering truth that we learned in our study this morning is that although these people knew that the source of this scorching heat came from God, they became even more hardened against God.  Listen carefully beloved, the more people harden themselves against God the more difficult it is for them to respond to God…ask Pharaoh.

Much like in the plagues of Egypt, unbelievers of the Tribulation period remain unmoved by God.  Not only do they completely rebel against God’s authority over their lives, they blaspheme His holy Name. But God will not be mocked by anyone….God's judgment may not be immediate, but it is inevitable.

While the Bible is a book of hope, it is also a book of judgment. The writer of Hebrews warned that there will be no escape for those who reject the gospel when the judgment comes. "It is a fearful thing," said the writer, "to fall into the hands of the living God."

No wonder God is His perfect love cries out to every single person here this morning, Today if you hear His voice, harden not your heart. I urge you in light of the love and terror of The Lord to turn from your sin and rust in Jesus Christ alone as your Atoning sacrifice…I urge each and every one of us who profess to know Jesus Christ to lay at the feet of The Master every single rival of His affection, every idol, every passion or pleasure that occupies that place in our souls that belongs only to Him.

• 2Ch 25:2 And he (Amaziah) did that which was right in the sight of the LORD, but not with a perfect heart.
  • He did what was right but out of a supreme love for God, and eventually, he fell into idolatry because his heart was not whole with God. Have you ever wondered what happened to Demas, who withdrew from ministry because he fell in love with this present world?
  • May the supreme passion of every single person that calls KF their home be loving The Lord Jesus with all of our heart, souls, mind and strength….may we do all that we do for the glory of God.

 

Come forward for prayer…pray with one another…with the good weather upon us beloved, do not get lulled into a state of spiritual vacation…..