Revelation 18:1-3

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1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted: “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a home for every impure spirit, a home for every unclean bird, a home for every unclean and detestable animal. 3 For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries.”  ~ Revelation 18:1-3

Today, we make our transition into Revelation 18, where, we are given three reasons for the overthrow of Babylon. She is demonic. She is spiritually unfaithful. And, she is materially seductive. For these reasons she will be overthrown.

The world is very dependent on money. In fact, we are very dependent on the economics of our societies. It seems that our survival depends upon a good economy. We are perhaps nowadays more dependent than ever on things holding together, since most of us have our money in a bank, most of us have it in a savings account or have it in stocks or some other non-liquid place. This is why there’s elevated fear of the potential, at any moment, for the world market to crash.

For sure, there is coming, a final, economic crash, and it is described for us here in Revelation 18. And, we are all curious about the current state of the world economically. And that which elevates our curiosity is a one-world economy. Up until recent years, there were economies in the world. We are living in a day of global commerce by the design of the god of this world. We really only have a one-world economy. We are told that great effect on the stock market occurs because of something that goes on in a nation across the ocean from us. We are all tied together. The dollar, of course, becomes a standard against which foreign currency is measured, and it has tremendous implications on our dollar, and our dollar has implications worldwide. And, this all fits into the final picture prophetically here in the book of the the Revelation. 

The world, in the end, before the second coming of the Lord Jesus, will be in the midst of a one-world, capitalistic, economic boom. As the book of the Revelation unfolds, the judgments of God will be poured out prior to the day of the Lord, there is going to be an awful lot of chaos in the world. But, as is indicated in today's text, amazingly, the world will survive with some measure of economic prosperity.

In v.1-2 of our text today we read, "1 After this I saw another angel coming down from heaven. He had great authority, and the earth was illuminated by his splendor. 2 With a mighty voice he shouted: “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a home for every impure spirit, a home for every unclean bird, a home for every unclean and detestable animal."

Whereas Revelation 17 described religious Babylon and her destruction, Revelation 18 describes the demise of the economic system. In v.1 another angel will come from heaven with great authority or power from God and his glory will be evident to all. And, he will pronounce God's judgment upon Satan's world-wide economic system.  

In v.2 we read, "With a mighty voice he shouted: “‘Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great!’ She has become a dwelling for demons and a home for every impure spirit, a home for every unclean bird, a home for every unclean and detestable animal."

This is a direct quote from Isaiah 21:9. Most often there is not a direct confrontation between God and Satan. God almost always uses angels to deliver His judgment or message. And, so, the angel pronounces the message and then he gives the reason for the punishment. The reason here for God's punishment upon Babylon will be that she became the home for evil. This entire satanic world empire will simply be infested with demons and impure spirits. All the emissaries of Satan will be demonic from one end to the other. And, Satan's abode will be a home for every unclean bird and every unclean and detestable animal. God is simply here highlighting the fact that Satan is pure evil and he propagates pure evil.

So, this final form of the one-world government will be controlled by hell itself. Hell’s powerful presence will dominate, influencing and controlling people in the system of the antichrist under the direction of Satan.

In v.3 we read, "For all the nations have drunk the maddening wine of her adulteries. The kings of the earth committed adultery with her, and the merchants of the earth grew rich from her excessive luxuries."

The Apostle John uses an analogy of drunkenness. The whole world will be in a materialistic drunken stupor. They will all be swept away, indulging in the sins that go along with it. This will like a drunk who’s given himself to every passion, to every prostitute, to commit every act of immorality, to do anything that is sensual. It pictures the world seduced by the antichrist, engaging itself in a form of fornication, prostitution, drunkenness with passionate materialism.

The Apostle identifies particularly the kings of the earth who will have made alliances with one another and the antichrist. They literally will commit fornication with the antichrist who represents Babylon. And so, they will drag their nations into this one-world government. And the antichrist will control everybody with the mark of the beast. This kind of thing could happen today because everything is fed into computers, and if someone controls all of those, they can, in effect, control everything.

Not only will the kings of the earth bring all their nations into this alliance, but the merchants of the earth will all join. We might say that it’s a unionized world, and the head of the union is the antichrist. The whole world will be engulfed in this. 

Today, we are heading faster and faster toward this one world system. All of the alliances of all the leaders of all the nations will continue to come together. Even the merchants of the world will think they must globally market their products. Everybody is being set up, even now, to prostitute themselves to this satanic antichrist world system.

The beauty of all of this is: If you like stories that end well, you'll love Christianity. One of the great themes of our faith is triumphant hope, an unshakeable assurance that things will end right. In the midst of struggles and storms, battles and trials, we focus beyond the present moment and we see the victory. We see relief, because in the end, God wins! 

We must not be shocked that for a time, evil will appear to win. God has clearly shown us this. We must understand that there is a redemptive story that has been unfolding since the beginning of creation and is spreading across all time. It all will lead to God conquering evil, which will usher in the great eternal Kingdom of Christ. 

Until then, we will have the rise and fall of human kings and kingdoms. But this never strips away the power and omniscience of God, who is bringing human history to pass, surprisingly, by using both His enemies and His people to serve His purposes. All of this is proof that the difficult times that we go through have their purpose. God does not want us to be so attached to this earth that we lose sight of heaven. He does not want us to be so attached to time that we lose sight of eternity.

Revelation 17:9-18

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9 “This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits. 10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. 11 The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction. 12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast. 14 They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers.” 15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. 16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth.” ~ Revelation 17:9-18

Revelation 17 makes it very clear there will be a final formation of a one world religion during the Tribulation. This one world religion will be Satan’s final attempt to capture the minds and the souls of people. All the diverse ideologies of this world will blend together into one.

The term "mystery" means "hidden as for now." The name “Babylon the Great” has always been the source of all false religions. It all began at the Tower of Babel, when man deliberately refused to follow the command of God. They carried their false religious systems all over the world. It all started in one place, and all those prostituted children will come home in the end, and it’ll be the same form of religion that mothered all the prostitutes and all the abominations of religion throughout the world.

In v.9 of our text we read, "This calls for a mind with wisdom. The seven heads are seven hills on which the woman sits."

Literally, God is saying to us here: "I invite you to more closely inspect this. Look more deeply into what I am saying." And, only those with spiritual minds and wisdom are going to understand the revelation that is about to follow. The seven heads are seven small mountains on which the prostitute sits, according to v.3. This will be Rome, the city built on seven hills. Throughout history, Rome has been described as the city of seven hills. But, there is something much deeper here. It will be much more than just the city Rome; this false religious system will be worldwide.

In v.10-11 we read, "10 They are also seven kings. Five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; but when he does come, he must remain for only a little while. 11 The beast who once was, and now is not, is an eighth king. He belongs to the seven and is going to his destruction."

This kingdom will be vastly more than one city. The beast's or the antichrist's kingdom will be the false world religious system which will cover the world. And, the heads are on the beast, not on the religious system. The religious system is one world unified religion. But the heads are on the beast, and the beast is the political figure, not the religious one. So, Rome is referenced here, but not for its religious component, because the seven heads are on the beast.

In Daniel 2:36-43 we read, "39 “After you, another kingdom will arise, inferior to yours. Next, a third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40 Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron—for iron breaks and smashes everything—and as iron breaks things to pieces, so it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay, so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more than iron mixes with clay."

This passage corresponds with our text today. Daniel, here, tells us who these five empires were: They were Egypt, Babylon, Medo-Persia, and Greece. The descending weakness in Daniel's description depicted by the changing metals. These five empires have come and gone. And, one is, which was a reference to the Roman Empire of the Apostle John's day. And as John writes, there is one yet to come. This one will be the revived Roman Empire. The seventh empire is the kingdom which is to come, the kingdom of antichrist during the Tribulation. And, although he will be set back, he will bounce back as the eighth kingdom in the later part of the Tribulation.

In v.12-13 we read, "12 “The ten horns you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but who for one hour will receive authority as kings along with the beast. 13 They have one purpose and will give their power and authority to the beast."

The ten horns represent ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom. During the Tribulation or the time of antichrist’s reign, there will be ten kings that help him rule the world. Their reign will be brief as indicated by the reference to one hour in v.12.

These ten kings will be devoted to the Antichrist who will take control of the world. These kings will rule in one of the beast's divided ten sections of the world. To these kings, the beast will be God. His purpose will be to destroy Christ, Christians, Israel, so that his kingdom will prevail.

In v.14 we read, "They will wage war against the Lamb, but the Lamb will triumph over them because he is Lord of lords and King of kings—and with him will be his called, chosen and faithful followers."

The Lamb or the Lord Jesus will overcome the beast and his supporters. That is the repeated theme of the book of the Revelation: the Lamb will be unveiled, He will be revealed, and He will triumph over Satan. This will be the final battle of Armageddon. The church will look on as the Lord Jesus will single-handedly defeat the greatest human force ever amassed against God.

In v.15-18 we read, "15 Then the angel said to me, “The waters you saw, where the prostitute sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations and languages. 16 The beast and the ten horns you saw will hate the prostitute. They will bring her to ruin and leave her naked; they will eat her flesh and burn her with fire. 17 For God has put it into their hearts to accomplish his purpose by agreeing to hand over to the beast their royal authority, until God’s words are fulfilled. 18 The woman you saw is the great city that rules over the kings of the earth."

This massive army of the antichrist which will come from all over the world, will be defeated. The irony will be, according to v.16, the antichrist will hate the prostitute or his world religion. And, he will "bring her to ruin and leave her naked." It will be just like Satan to oppose even his own. And, the antichrist will rob the prostitute's wealth, leaving her absolutely bankrupt. The antichrist will eat up all of the resources of his one world religion. 

In the end, according to v.17, the purposes of God will come to pass. Oddly, according to v.17, sometimes Satan accomplishes God’s will. God will use the evil desires of Satan to totally destroy all wickedness on the earth.

And so, Revelation 17 gives us a picture of the final destruction of all false religion. All that will be left will be the beast and his world empire which Christ will eventually destroy. To better understand the beast and his empire, we will have to go through Revelation 18. And we will begin to do that tomorrow.

In the end, God will have His way. And, as we have seen, there will always be times when we will be left scratching our heads. But, at the end of it all, we will look back and we will see the great tapestry that God always weaves in and through our lives. This is always amazing to me. In the end, we will have enough information to marvel at God for all of eternity. We can truly trust an unknown future to this known God!

Revelation 17:3-8

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3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. 5 The name written on her forehead was a mystery: Babylon the great the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth. 6 I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished. 7 Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns. 8 The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come. ~ Revelation 17:3-8

Today, we continue our study of Revelation 17, and the Apostle John is led into a wilderness. In this chapter we learn of a coming world revival, a revival of religion that exalts man and minimizes God. Today, this religion is already in so-called Christian universities and some churches. One day it will overtake the world. 

The Lord delivers this vision to John in the context of a wilderness. And, we know that Satan is the master counterfeiter. We have seen this clearly during our study of the book of the Revelation. He will be the originator of this coming counterfeit world religious system. Satan's counterfeit system will always lead us to a place where there is no water. And, in the scriptures, water is symbolic of finding the Lord.

We have seen, in this study, the figure of a woman used as a symbol of a religious system. In Revelation 2:20, Jezebel represents a false religious system at Thyatira. In Revelation 12 a woman represents the nation of Israel. And, in Revelation 19, we will see the church represented as the virgin bride of Christ. 

Here in Revelation 17 is an unfaithful woman. Her unfaithfulness is expressed through prostitution. The will be a system that claims to be joined to God, but, like a prostitute, will be unfaithful to Him. Adultery is often a symbol in the Bible of spiritual unfaithfulness. 

In v.3 of today's text we read, "Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns."

One of the things that will make the great tribulation so awful is the fact that Satan will be allowed to have more control over the earth. The restraints will be removed. In Revelation 12, the demons will be cast to the earth. In Revelation 6, thousands of demons that have long been chained at the Euphrates river will be released to cover the earth. There will be heightened demonic activity everywhere. This will result in increased deception that will come upon planet earth.

The beast in v.3 will have seven heads and ten horns. According to v.9 the seven heads will be seven mountains. And, according to v.18 the woman will be the great city which reigns over the kings of the earth. This will be the city on seven hills, namely Rome. The ten crowns will represent a ten nation confederacy. This will be the last kingdom of the antichrist. 

In v.4 we read, "The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries."

Here, this religious system will wear all the colors of worldly honor and riches. She will display her pride through the wearing of her precious gold, stones and pearls. She will be given to the sensual and she will appeal to the sensuality of worldly minds.

In v.5 we read, "The name written on her forehead was a mystery: Babylon the great the mother of prostitutes and of the abominations of the earth." 

Notice this verse is written from God's perspective. This is God's view of this counterfeit system. The name, Babylon, is mentioned 287 times in the Bible. In one place, Jerusalem is called Babylon. Whenever Babylon is noted and characterized, she is identified as a false religion. And whenever you have any group or city or system characterized by false religion, it is called Babylon in the Bible. 

In Genesis 10, we are introduced to a guy by the name of Nimrod. He was the fourth generation from Noah. His grandfather was Ham, the wicked son of Noah. After the Flood, God told the people to fill the earth, to scatter, and to multiply. But some of his descendants clung together and came to the plain of Shinar.

In Genesis 11, they decided, "Let us build ourselves a city and a tower whose top is in the heavens. Let us make a name for ourselves lest we be scattered abroad over the face of the whole earth." 

There's nothing wrong with building a city but notice their philosophy. Let's build a city for ourselves. This city was conceived in rebellion. They exalted themselves and degraded God. Though they were human-centered, at the same time they were religious. They built a tower that reached to the heavens. They recognized their spiritual need but they sought to fill that need for God with religion. History tells us that at the top of these Babylonian towers, was a platform with the zodiac and it was officiated by a priest who would officiate over the signs of the zodiac and predicted the future for people. 

Ancient documents tell us that Nimrod had a wife. Her name was Simuramis and she had a son named Tomuz whom she said was not conceived by a man but a sun beam from heaven shone on her belly and she conceived. Being a virgin, she conceiving Tomuz whom she said was the savior of the world. 

Tomuz grew up and as he grew up, playing out in the field, he was gored by a wild boar, and was killed. Simuramis wept over the death of her son and after forty days, supposedly, he rose from the dead. The counterfeit Satan has long been known to copy God. A false religion, a virgin-born savior of the world who died and rose again. 

As the world was scattered, Simuramis and Tomuz were worshiped as the mother and child. In fact, she was called in Babylon the queen of heaven and many cultures worshiped this combination together. In fact, in Nineveh, she was called Ishtar, In Phoenicia, she was called Ashtoreth and he was called Baal, the child. In Egypt, she was called Isis and he was called Osiris. In Greece, she was known as Aphrodite and he was called Aras. In Rome, she was Venus and he was Cupid. In Rome, the emperor was officiated over this cult for he was the Pontific Maximus or the greatest high priest.

In v.6 we read, "I saw that the woman was drunk with the blood of God’s holy people, the blood of those who bore testimony to Jesus. When I saw her, I was greatly astonished."

There will be an alliance between the beast and its followers, and they will be allied against God's people. Every false religious system has always persecuted God's people. In fact, there is a conditioning right now going on in the world and we see it in our country, a conditioning toward the elimination of people who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ.

In v.7-8 we read, "Then the angel said to me: “Why are you astonished? I will explain to you the mystery of the woman and of the beast she rides, which has the seven heads and ten horns." The beast, which you saw, once was, now is not, and yet will come up out of the Abyss and go to its destruction. The inhabitants of the earth whose names have not been written in the book of life from the creation of the world will be astonished when they see the beast, because it once was, now is not, and yet will come."

The beast will be the same beast of Revelation 13 that received a fatal wound to his head but will be resurrected. The Bible says the false prophet, by this sign, will cause the world, at this point, to worship the Antichrist.

Revelation 17:1-2

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1 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters. 2 With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.” ~ Revelation 17:1-2

By nature, fallen human beings are religious. You might think this is good, but it is not. You see, religion is man's attempts to earn God's favor. But we can not earn His favor. In fact, we were made by God to worship Him. He made us to reach out to something beyond us. He made us with a longing and a restlessness and a desire and a capacity to relate to something that gives us meaning and purpose. Man is restless until he finds his rest in God. We were made with a God-shaped vacuum that only God can fill. 

Since the fall of man in Genesis 3, when man rebelled against God, man started down this awful road of being defined by the accursed one. And since, we have lived according to our default worship mode. We still reach out for the supernatural but we no longer naturally long for God. In fact, the Bible says "no man seeks after God." 

Immediately after the Fall, man began to live life with himself at the center of his world. And now, we live out of a religion that seeks to primarily accommodate ourselves. Our need for a relationship with God has been corrupted because of our love of self. And since, Satan has been accommodating religion in the heart of man. Religion begins with man while Christianity begins with Christ. In Revelation 17 we are, once again, given more details about this religion. 

The final world empire of Satan will be ruled on this earth by the antichrist who will be assisted by the false prophet. This empire will be a military, materialistic, economic, and political kingdom. It will also be a religious one. As we will see, Revelation 18 will reveal the nature of the material side of Satan’s kingdom, whereas Revelation 17 will reveal the nature of its spiritual side. Revelation 18 will describe God’s judgment on Satan's material  kingdom, and Revelation 17 will describe God’s judgment on his spiritual kingdom. In both cases Satan's kingdom is referred to as Babylon. 

Now, you will notice that the chronology in these chapters isn't fluid. From the pouring out of the seventh bowl in Revelation 16 will be followed immediately by praise in heaven, recorded in Revelation 19, and then the return of the Lord Jesus Christ. Revelation 17 & 18 take us backward and describes for us not the judgment but what is being destroyed by that judgment, namely Satan's empire. In Revelation 17 we are looking at Babylon as the religious empire and its destruction.

In v.1 of today's text we read, "One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits by many waters."

Now, one of those angels will come and show John this great prostitute religion that sits by many waters. All major cities in the world are positioned in close proximity to water. This is partly why they have a certain measure of power. And, this Babylon or prostitute by nature will sit by many waters. This means the influence of Satan's kingdom will be global.

In Revelation 17:5, this kingdom is called, "Mystery Babylon the Great." It is called this so that we do not confuse it with some geographical location. Babylon will not be confined to any one city or place. It will be a movement and it will capture the minds and hearts of most. Mystery Babylon will be something deeper and broader and wider and more profound and more mystical than any physical location. In fact, here is an undisclosed Babylon, a secret reality to be revealed in its final form. This is Babylon beyond geography. 

Revelation 16 ends just before Christ returns, but He will not return until Revelation 19. So, what we have here in Revelation 17-18 is a description of the religious system of the antichrist  that will be on the earth before the return of Christ. 

In Revelation 21:9 we read, "One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls full of the seven last plagues came and said to me, 'Come, I will show you the bride, the wife of the Lamb.'"

This is God's reference to the true Church, the bride of the Lamb cleansed from every stain, from all defilement by the shed blood of the Lamb. 

But, in today's text, we read of "the great prostitute, who sits by many waters." This great prostitute is a metaphor for false religion, being led by Satan himself. In the Old Testament there are several cities which are called prostitute cities because they were involved in idol worship. 

In v.2 of today's text we read, "With her the kings of the earth committed adultery, and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries."

This religion is referred to as a "prostitute" because these people will not know the God of the Bible, and they, therefore, will be not be His. They will not follow the God who created them, they will follow the god who is out to deceive them.

The word translated "adultery" is always used in the Bible as a symbol for idolatry. Whenever people in the Bible turn to other gods, rather than the true God, God calls it adultery. He describes these as those who have joined themselves to a prostitute.

Babylon the Great will be the mother of all idolatry. This final world religion will embrace all of the religions of the world, not including Christianity which is not even a religion. Whereas religion is man reaching to attain status with God, Christianity is God coming down to man to give him eternal life. This Babylon, of which John writes, is the very same Babylon that once gave birth to all of the prostituted religions of the world. Frequently, we discover, that throughout the book of the Revelation, women appear as symbols of religion. 

So, Babylon the Great will give birth to all forms of false religions across the world, and she will be the mother of all religions. She gave birth to them all the way back in Genesis, and in the end they all will come home to her, because they will all have come from her.

In v.2 of today's text, John is not talking about real wine, and he’s not talking about real sexual immorality. He is talking about becoming a part of the false form of religion. They will all get drunk with it; they will all be intoxicated with passion for this religion that appeals to their flesh. Totally, passionately, and intensely, they will give their hearts to this counterfeit of what their hearts truly long for, which is a personal relationship with God Himself through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ.

Revelation 16:17-21

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17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. Then a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is finished!” 18 Then there were flashes of lightning, noises, thunder, and a big earthquake—the worst earthquake that has ever happened since people have been on earth. 19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations were destroyed. And God remembered the sins of Babylon the Great, so he gave that city the cup filled with the wine of his terrible anger. 20 Then every island ran away, and mountains disappeared. 21 Giant hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell from the sky upon people. People cursed God for the disaster of the hail, because this disaster was so terrible. ~ Revelation 16:17-21

Today, we return to Revelation 16 where the seven bowl judgments are given. For quite some time now in our study of the book of the Revelation, we have been considering the wrath of God. In fact, last time, we watched as the armies of the world gathered around the tiny nation of Israel for a great conflict after all of these other horrifying things had happened. The armies of the world will be gathered together for this final war with God, Himself.

Sometimes people think the wrath of God is an Old Testament theme. This, of course, is not the case. In John 3:36 we read, "Whoever believes in the Son has eternal life, but whoever rejects the Son will not see life, for God’s wrath remains on them."

In Colossians 3:5-6 we read, "5 Put to death, therefore, whatever belongs to your earthly nature: sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. 6 Because of these, the wrath of God is coming." 

God's wrath is preceded by man's sexual immorality, impurity, lust, evil desires and greed, which is idolatry. No one can accuse God of being anything less than holy and just. But, in the end, rebellious and stubborn man will go the way of Satan because he will love the way of Hell more than the way of God.

In v.17 of today's text we read, "The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. Then a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, 'It is finished!"' 

This scene probably describes nuclear war. When the bombs are detonated there will be the release of enormous clouds of radiation upon the earth and the air will be poisoned. The word "loud" here in v.17 is used seven times with this bowl judgment. This is the climax of the great day of the Lord that will spread chaos and destruction over the entire face of the earth. This will be the most awful time ever on the earth.

By the way, the very same expression that is used here was used by the Lord Jesus while on the cross: "It is finished!" These words spoken by the Lord Jesus was a judgment that provided grace for honest and humbled sinners. The "It is finished!," in our text today, is a judgment with no grace. It is written in the perfect tense, meaning "it has been and will remain finished."

In the same way as at Calvary when it was finished, God punctuated it with an earthquake. Only this earthquake will not be local. It will be worldwide, and it will remake the earth appropriately for the kingdom of the Lord Jesus Christ in His millennial reign.

In v.18-20 we read, "18 Then there were flashes of lightning, noises, thunder, and a big earthquake—the worst earthquake that has ever happened since people have been on earth. 19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations were destroyed. And God remembered the sins of Babylon the Great, so he gave that city the cup filled with the wine of his terrible anger. 20 Then every island ran away, and mountains disappeared."

The pouring out of this seventh bowl corresponds well with the seventh seal and the seventh trumpet. But, this great earthquake will affect the whole world and the cities of the earth will fall, which will probably result in putting the earth back into the state that it was before the Fall, before the curse, and before the flood. 

In v.19 we learn the great city will be divided into three parts. In Revelation 11:8 the two witnesses will be killed in Jerusalem because it says their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city where also our Lord was crucified. Not only that but Zechariah said, that at the end, when all the nations gather together in Israel to fight this great battle, in that day His feet will stand on the Mount of Olives and the Mount of Olives will be split in two from east to west. When the Mount of Olives splits, Jerusalem will split. 

In Genesis 6-7, when the flood happened, not only did it rain many days, but the fountains of the great deep broke and the waters gushed out over the face of the earth. From that point on  continents were formed, islands were formed, oceans were formed, and the tectonic plates were formed in the earth. Since that time there's been earthquake activity on the earth. We live in an unstable earth because the earth, after the curse, was not destined to last. 

In v.21 we read, "Giant hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell from the sky upon people. People cursed God for the disaster of the hail, because this disaster was so terrible."

Then a terrible hail storm will happen. This will be the last of God's judgment. The penalty in the Old Testament for blasphemy was to be stoned to death. And God will stone these people with hail. Man, apart from Christ, in his fallen state, will always curse God. 

You will remember this book of the Revelation was written for the seven churches, which represents the whole church on earth today. And, the ultimate message of this book is clear: Judgment does not produce repentance. 

In Romans 2:4 we read, "Do you not know that God's kindness is meant to lead you to repentance?" It is not judgment that will change our minds or our hearts. Men often get more stubborn, more set upon evil, by judgment. But it is His grace that changes our hearts. Judgment removes and ends evil. Judgment cleanses society. Judgment enables a new beginning to come. But it does not change people's minds or hearts. No, for that we have to look to the grace of God.

The Bible has always pointed to the warnings of God for generations. And, it's been pointing all of us to the cross where God took the judgment for our sin. It was the Lord Jesus Christ who said, "It is finished," and for those who do not receive the free gift of forgiveness, the final judgment of God will come upon them.

Revelation 16:12-16

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12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates so that the water in the river was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the east to come. 13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 These evil spirits are the spirits of demons, which have power to do miracles. They go out to the kings of the whole world to gather them together for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. 15 “Listen! I will come as a thief comes! Blessed are those who stay awake and keep their clothes on so that they will not walk around naked and have people see their shame.” 16 Then the evil spirits gathered the kings together to the place that is called Armageddon in the Hebrew language. ~ Revelation 16:12-16

Today, we return to Revelation 16 where we find the last of the judgments of God, the seven bowls. From Revelation 6 through Revelation 15, we have been given frighteningly clear details of the coming wrath of God upon the unbelieving world. Today, we come to the beginning of God's description of the end of the world.

In v.12 we read, "The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates so that the water in the river was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the east to come."

With the pouring out of the sixth bowl judgment, the Euphrates River will be dried up. This isn’t the first time, by the way, in the judgments of the book of the Revelation that the Euphrates has been mentioned. Back in Revelation 9:14, the sixth angel blew his trumpet. That reference to the Euphrates river indicated that a barrier will be removed so the Eastern armies can come into the west. Then, here in Revelation 16 we find the Euphrates river appearing again and this time it will be dried up so that the armies of the east can freely advance on up to Israel.

John refers to the Euphrates river as "great" because it is eighteen-hundred miles long. In fact, its headwaters are found in  Mount Ararat where Noah's ark ended up. The summit of Mount Ararat is somewhere around seventeen thousand feet. It is snow-capped all year long. The great Euphrates River begins there and it flows downhill all the way to the gulf of the Arabian Sea, clear across the Middle East in what we know as the Fertile Crescent. At certain spots it is as wide as thirty-six hundred feet, and as deep as thirty feet.

The sixth bowl dries up the river to prepare the way for the kings of the East, the armies of perhaps, India and China and maybe Japan. This was at the battle of Armageddon which will be the final Great War between those loyal to Satan and the Antichrist and the tiny nation of Israel. At Armageddon the Antichrist and his followers will be overthrown and defeated.

In v.13-14 we read, "13 Then I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 These evil spirits are the spirits of demons, which have power to do miracles. They go out to the kings of the whole world to gather them together for the battle on the great day of God Almighty."

Here we are given insight into how nations of this world will be manipulated by the unseen forces of Satan. The nations will be unaware of the fact but they will be made to do certain things. Three evil spirits that look like frogs which come out of the Satanic trinity will deceive the nations. They will trick them into launching World War III. This will be a terrible time when the nations of the world launch their nuclear warheads. This will be the time when, as we saw in Revelation 9, the armies from the east, some 200,000,000 gather around Israel, to make war.

In v.15 we read, "Listen! I will come as a thief comes! Blessed are those who stay awake and keep their clothes on so that they will not walk around naked and have people see their shame."

As we have seen before, there is always a parenthesis between the sixth and seventh of each of the seals and the trumpets. Here that parenthesis is found in v.15. This includes a pause and a word from heaven. This will come in the form of a promise to the believers, because between the sixth and seventh seals there was a pause to give promise and hope to the believers, and between the sixth and seventh trumpets there was a pause to give promise to the believers. So, it makes sense here that between the sixth and seventh bowls there will be a pause and a promise to give hope and encouragement to the believers. 

In v.16 we read, "Then the evil spirits gathered the kings together to the place that is called Armageddon in the Hebrew language."

This will be Satan's final attempt to destroy the people of God, to make one final attack on Jerusalem and destroy the Jews once and for all. So, he will lure the strongest and the greatest armies on the earth to Israel to try to destroy her.

The cross of Christ and the valley of Megiddo are two altars of sacrifice that dominate the history of the world. Both describe God's wrath upon sin. Both are brought about by God’s enemies. From each proceeds a supper: the first the Lord's Supper for the people of God. The second, a feast of God's retribution upon rebellious and stubborn man. And, both end with the victorious cry, "It is finished."

And I might add that the comparison is apt because the judgment on Calvary provided forgiveness and grace for those who are humble enough to admit they are sinners and are in need of a Savior. The judgment at Armageddon will provide destruction and damnation for those who will be so proud they will not admit they are sinners and are in need of a Savior. One is a saving judgment on sin, the other will send the unwilling to Hell for eternity.

Revelation 16:8-11

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8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and he was given power to burn the people with fire. 9 They were burned by the great heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these disasters. But the people refused to change their hearts and lives and give glory to God. 10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and darkness covered its kingdom. People gnawed their tongues because of the pain. 11 They also cursed the God of heaven because of their pain and the sores they had, but they refused to change their hearts and turn away from the evil things they did. ~ Revelation 16:8-11

Today, we return to Revelation 16 where we find the seven bowl judgments of God. In today's text, we come to the fourth and the fifth bowl judgments.

In v.8-9 of today's text we read, "8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and he was given power to burn the people with fire. 9 They were burned by the great heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these disasters. But the people refused to change their hearts and lives and give glory to God."

The fourth bowl will happen in rapid succession after the third. And, at this point in time, for a brief time, the sun's heat will suddenly and dramatically increase. This will be a much more intense form of what happens from time to time when flares of fire burst from the surface of the sun, sometimes causing havoc with the magnetism of the earth, and affecting radio waves. With the pouring out of this fourth bowl, an enormous flare from the sun will create intense heat upon the earth. People will be in anguish, and, they will see that this burst of heat will come from God. 

This sounds a lot like a radiation burn. In the electromagnetic spectrum that measures wavelengths of radiation, there are long wavelength radiations like radio waves, and then there are short wavelength radiations like gamma rays. The shorter the wavelength, the more dangerous it is to the human body. In fact, short wavelengths can alter cell structure in the human body. A photon, for example, can kick an electron out of orbit in the cell structure and cause all sorts of damage.

In a practical sense, when we go to the beach on a cloudy day and think there is no danger from the sun because there is cloud cover, and at the end of the day we discover that we are burnt, we will have discovered this phenomena. The long wavelengths had been stopped by the clouds but the short wavelengths had penetrated the clouds and our bodies will show the impact.  

This fourth bowl will cause an alteration in the earth's atmosphere. We know that the core of the sun is helium and if it were to expand outwardly it would incinerate the earth. There have been some problems with explosions on the sun causing power outages on the earth in the past. 

In Isaiah 24:5-6 we read, "5 The people of the earth have ruined it, because they do not follow God’s teachings or obey God’s laws or keep their agreement with God that was to last forever. 6 So a curse will destroy the earth. The people of the world are guilty, so they will be burned up; only a few will be left."

In Malachi 4 we read, "There is a day coming that will burn like a hot furnace, and all the proud and evil people will be like straw. On that day they will be completely burned up so that not a root or branch will be left,” says the Lord All-Powerful." 

This will be the end, and it will come fast. It will be awful, no seas, no fresh water, burning sun. We would think that if the people on the earth at that time were scorched with fierce heat like this, they would repent. But, according to v.9 of today's text, they will "refused to change their hearts and lives and give glory to God."

In v.10 of today's text we read, "The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and darkness covered its kingdom. People gnawed their tongues because of the pain."

With this fifth bowl, darkness will cover the earth. The entire system that will be called Babylon will then be engulfed in darkness. In Mark 13:24 we read, "In those days the sun will be dark and the moon will not give its light. The stars will be falling from heaven and the powers that are in the heavens shall be shaken."

This will be the mother of all power outages. It will be directed at the kingdom of the beast or the Antichrist. Ironically, his kingdom will become full of darkness. The intense heat in the previous bowl will come from the sun expanding into a supernova and after that phenomena occurs, a blackout. And, it will be darker than dark. 

And, the people on earth will know who will be behind all of this, but they will refuse to repent and turn to God. They will know it’s God. But, they will be so in love with their sin, they will still not repent. They will be just like their leaders, Satan and the Antichrist. This is the height of arrogance and pride and stubbornness. Neither grace nor wrath will impact the hearts of these people. This underscores a very important point: If we will not be won by God's grace we will never be won at all. 

At the end of v.10, the pain will be so bad they will gnaw their tongues. They will literally chew on their own tongues to distract themselves from their other agony. And while they’re chewing on their tongues, you might think they would repent, but no.

In v.11 we read, "They also cursed the God of heaven because of their pain and the sores they had, but they refused to change their hearts and turn away from the evil things they did."

This is the last reference to the unbeliever's unwillingness to change. So, they will curse God. These first five plagues were sent by God in order to get people to wake up and repent but they wouldn't do it. At this point their fate will be set and they will not be able to turn to God because it will be too late.

Revelation 16:3-7

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3 The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, 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, O Holy One, you who are and who were; 6 for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your 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.” ~ Revelation 16:3-7

Today, we come back to our study of the book of the Revelation. Our text for today informs us about the second and third bowl judgments of God. Throughout the book of the Revelation, the Apostle John uses the land as a symbol for the people of Israel. And, when he writes about the sea, he speaks symbolically of the Gentile nations surrounding Israel. In yesterday's passage, the wrath of God was poured out on unbelieving Israel. In today's passage judgment is poured out on the unbelieving Gentiles.

In v.3 we read, "The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died."

With the pouring out of the second bowl, the sea literally will become blood red. This could be similar to the phenomenon known as "Red Tide," which is caused by a microorganism which turns the waters blood red. Eating fish contaminated by this tide produces severe symptoms caused by potent nerve poison and resulting in possible death to people. An unchecked population explosion of this toxic microorganism would kill all the fish in the sea. Maybe that’s what will happen in the second bowl judgment, which as a result, will kill every living thing in the sea. And when they die, to the surface they will go with an awful stench. And the world’s seas will become putrid pools of death. This will be like the plague that fell on Egypt in Exodus 7:20-25 when the Nile River turned to blood. But, this will be much more intense and extensive. 

In v.4 we read, "The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood."

The same thing that happened in Egypt, according to Exodus 7:19-21, will happen all over the world. And, it will not just happen in the saltwater, it will impact fresh water, as well. And, according to Revelation 11:6, rain water will be in short supply. These will combine into a situation where drinking water will be very scarce throughout the world. 

And, according to Revelation 7:1 the four angels standing at the four corners of the earth will be holding back the four winds so that no wind should blow on the earth or on the sea or on any tree. 

As a result, rain clouds will not allow the rain to move across the land for it is by wind that clouds are blown across the land. There will be no wind, no cloud, no cloud development and no cloud movement. It may well be a time of unbelievable draught and then compounding, all the fresh water on earth will be turned into blood.

In v.5-6 we read, "5 Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: “You are just in these judgments, O Holy One, you who are and who were; 6 for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.”

As people, no doubt, across the world will be cursing and blaming God, an angel, in v.5, will declare that God is righteous and holy. This is an appropriate response to rejection. It’s not as if rebellious man didn’t have any opportunities to repent. In fact, according to v.6, they will have mercilessly killed those who believe in the Lord Jesus, along with His messengers. The truth hurts exponentially for those who have rejected it so many times.

The Lord Jesus in Matthew 24:21 told us that there is coming a time, and He was speaking of this time, the likes of which there has never been. This will be a time of retribution like there has never been before. And, because of this, God will clearly be just in His response. 

In v.7 we read, "And I heard the altar respond: 'Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments."' 

The altar here is personified because it is the altar under which the saints had been praying. And now, in v.7, the altar is affirming the responsibility of God. And, the actions of God are justified. You see, God sets the standard for what is right by what He does. He doesn’t have to live up to a standard. He sets the standard. He is the standard and when He acts, His actions are the righteous standard. So, when the seas are destroyed and the fresh water is scarce, God will be justified and His word will be true. If He did not judge sin, He would not be God.

These people will reject the Lord Jesus so much, their hearts will have become so hard against God, it will be too late. Due to their unwilling hearts, their condition will be cemented. The answer is turning away from our way and turning to Him. It involves feeling sorry about who we have been, but it is more than just that. There are many people who are sorry for their sinfulness. But, their failure to repent and believe in the Lord Jesus will be their undoing.

The Lord Jesus Christ is the answer to all of our troubles. He is the fulfillment of God's justice and love which met at the cross. At the cross we see God's love for people and His wrath upon sin. The Lord Jesus was our substitute. He tasted death for every human being and bore the punishment for every sin. None of us can imagine what He endured. He endured hell for us, so that none of us would have to endure it for ourselves. This is why the Lord Jesus is the key, and life's supreme question becomes, "What will you do with the Lord Jesus Christ?"

Revelation 16:1-2

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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, festering sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. ~ Revelation 16:1-2

Today, we transition into Revelation 16 wherein we have the seven bowl judgments. As with the trumpet judgments, these are both literal and symbolic. They actually do occur as described, but they have a hidden meaning, as well. They reveal something that otherwise would be unknown. Some scholars have called this "the great chapter" because the word "great" occurs eleven times. Today, we will just consider the first of the seven bowl judgments. 

There are those who say, "The Old Testament was written by a God of judgment and the New Testament was written by a God of grace." And some would go as far as to say that each testament has two different authors. This is not so. There is equal judgment in the New Testament as there is in the Old Testament. All writers of the Bible agree that God’s love and God’s judgment are two sides of the same coin. Fire can both burn and give warmth. It all depends on where we stand in relationship to the flame.

In v.1 we read, "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.”'

As we will see in v.2, this first bowl will be a judgment upon the land of Israel. It will fall upon the unbelieving Jews who will be so deceived that they will follow the beast whose lies and deception will convince  them that he is their long awaited Messiah. 

In Joshua 10, when Israel fought the Amorites, we are reminded that God sent hailstone from heaven on the enemies of Israel. And the hail didn't hit the children of Israel. It hit just the Amorites. That judgment was very selective. More were killed by the hailstones that fell from heaven than the army of Israel. Then there was the worship of the calf in the wilderness and Scripture says the Lord plagued those who worshiped the calf. In our text today, we learn God will judge the worshipers of the beast. God has always been clear in His word with warnings against worshipping idols. 

In Revelation 14:9 we read, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he will also drink of the wine of the wrath of God which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger. He will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image and whoever receives the mark of his name.” 

This verse speaks of eternal judgment. These will have rejected the warning of the flying angel who continually said, “Fear God and give Him glory because the hour of His judgment has come.” These will have chosen the antichrist over the Lord Jesus Christ who grew up in Nazareth. 

Here in Revelation 16 there will a clear difference in this expression of the wrath of God. The difference will be seen in that which is partial and that which is total. Here, we will have a gathering of all the horrors and all the terrors that were most severe from all the history of the judgment of God in all the past plagues, only now not partial, but now completely inundating the entire world in total disaster. This will be the judgment of God on all those who have heard the gospel multiple times and will have rejected it.

By this point in time, God will have demonstrated His love, mercy and grace in enormous ways. He will have sent His Son to die. He will have raised up messengers who faithfully proclaimed the Gospel. He will have given mankind tastes of His judgment. And still, they will say, "no" to the very One who created them. They will resist His appeal to be recreated. They will love themselves and their sin more than anything else. They will knowingly worship Satan and they will bow down to the antichrist. They will believe the false prophet, and they will reject the eternal Son of God.

And so, sadly, God's final judgment will come. The first judgment that came in Egypt happened over a period of time. The seven seal judgments and the seven trumpet judgments will take place over a period of years. This last series of judgments, the bowl judgments, will come very fast. In a matter of hours and days, and it will be all over.

If we understand love, it is because we understand the harmful nature of hate. If we understand truth, it is because we understand the deceptive and painful expression of lies. If we understand goodness, it is because we understand how wickedness rips mankind apart. If we understand reward, it is because we understand punishment. And God cannot love righteousness and faith unless He hates sin and unbelief. He cannot love truth unless He hates lies. He cannot love goodness unless He hates wickedness. He cannot reward unless He also punishes. Otherwise, He would not be God, for God is the standard bearer.

Revelation 15:5-8

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5 After this I looked, and I saw in heaven the temple—that is, the tabernacle of the covenant law—and it was opened. 6 Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests. 7 Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for ever and ever. 8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed. ~ Revelation 15:5-8

Today, we come back to Revelation 15 to a scene which happens in heaven at the end of the Great Tribulation. After having looked through the transparent platform beneath the throne of God, and seeing the believers, the Apostle John hears them sing the song of Moses and the song of the Lamb. Then, he sees the tabernacle of the covenant law.

In v.5 we read, "After this I looked, and I saw in heaven the temple—that is, the tabernacle of the covenant law—and it was opened." 

Here, the Apostle John sees the tabernacle of the covenant law opened. In other words, it was accessible. You see, within the tabernacle in the Old Testament was the Holy of Holies. This was the most interior room, the place of greatest intimacy with God. Only the high priest had access into the Holy of Holies. The high priest was a picture of the Lord Jesus Christ. And, within the Holy of Holies, there was the ark of the covenant. Within the ark of the covenant were the two tablets of stone on which God's law was written. Interestingly, the most complete listing of the contents of the ark of the covenant is found in Hebrews 9:4 which informs us it contained a gold jar of manna, a picture of the Lord Jesus, Aaron’s staff that had budded, the sign of life, and the stone tablets of the covenant which required the shedding of blood for the forgiveness of sin. That is the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Lord Jesus is the bread of life who shed His blood so that we could have eternal life.

The ark of the covenant also had another name, the tabernacle of testimony. And, once a year, only the high priest would enter the Holy of Holies. When the Lord Jesus died on the cross, He made it possible for all people to enter into a personal and an intimate relationship with God. And, if you are a believer in the Lord Jesus, you have access to God's presence, at any time and anywhere. This is due to the fact that we have been made alive to God through believing in the finished work of the Lord Jesus on the cross. God, since the cross, now lives not in a tabernacle or a temple, He lives in each believer in the Lord Jesus via the Holy Spirit. So, in a sense, we are all, little tabernacles. The point is we have access to God through the High Priest, the Lord Jesus Christ. We have access 24/7, anywhere we go.

In v.6 we read, "Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests."

In this verse the law will be opened so that the judgment of God would come out. And, right out from the very presence of God, these seven angels come with seven plagues. Their clothing is evidence of their holiness. And they’re girded with golden sashes or girdles which are golden belts running from their shoulders to their waists. These belts are evidence of their royalty and their untarnished glory. 

In v.7 we read, "Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for ever and ever."

The four living creatures are cherubim which are very unique angels. These are the highest ranking angels. They first appear in the Bible in Genesis 3:24 where they were placed by God, after the rebellion of Adam from the garden of Eden. Their role was "to keep sinful man from the tree of life." Otherwise, mankind would have been forever in our sinful state with no hope of escape from our sinfulness and damned condition. Here, in today's text, these cherubim have "seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God."

In v.8 we read, "And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.

Throughout the Bible, smoke symbolizes the powerful glory of God. Perhaps this is where the saying, "Holy Smokes" came. At any rate it fills the great temple so no one can enter until the work of the angels is completed. This is symbolic. It means it is too late to pray! By faith and by prayer we can enter into the presence of God, by trusting the finished work of the Lord Jesus, but here a personal relationship with God has become impossible. The time has come when men can no longer repent. It is too late to pray when this judgment scene begins.

In Revelation 16, the seven angels pour out their bowls in rapid succession. It is a terrible time of judgment, the most intense period of tribulation the world has ever seen. It is what several of the Old Testament prophets call "The Great and Terrible Day of the Lord." It is what the Lord Jesus referred to in Matthew 24:22, when He said, "If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive." No one! All the population of the world would have been destroyed. It is a brief, intense period which comes at the close of the last half of the Great Tribulation. As we go through this passage you will notice that it covers the same areas of judgment as the trumpets did. 

The psalmist said, “In the hand of the Lord there is a cup, I will take the cup of salvation.” The cup, in the Bible is illustrative of the wrath of God. And, all of the Bible has as its singular subject: the Lord Jesus Christ. God’s plan has always been holiness and peace and joy. The Scripture says, “Today is the day of salvation.” Now is the time to hear, before it is too late or before our hearts get so used to rejecting that we will reject even in the direst of times. The Lord Jesus took that cup so that you and I would not have to. And, because He took that cup, we can receive His salvation.

The Lord Jesus spoke of a man who planted a fig tree, and he went back three years and it bore no fruit and he said cut it down. And another man said give it another year and then if it doesn’t bear fruit, cut it down. You see, there is a time of patience and there is a time of mercy, but it is limited. May the fact that the judgment of God will fall on unbelieving man grip our hearts with a such a fear for them that we might be cautioned enough to persuade others to come to the truth before, for them, it is too late.