This chapter details the seven bowls of judgement, which represent God’s final vengeance and wrath poured out upon His sinful and rebellious creation.
In Genesis seven, God used water to destroy all creatures with the breath of life in their nostrils. The rainbow is His sign that He will never again destroy all life by water. In chapter sixteen God doesn’t use water, but rather, the absence of it: Living Water, the presence of the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit will return to heaven along with the Church at the gathering in before the seventh trumpet (Revelation 11:11). All God will do is remove His hand from creation. Without God’s constant presence and attention, His creation will self-destruct.
The Bowls of Wrath
Revelation 16
1 I heard a voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the bowls of the wrath of God upon the earth.” 2 So the first went and poured his bowl upon the earth, and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image.
The King James Version says, a grievous, noisome sore. Does this plague sound familiar? This is one of the plagues God brought upon the Egyptians. (Exodus 9:9-10) At first glance this bowl contains a disease that causes mankind to break out in running, draining ulcers. A closer examination implies something different.
The word sore is the Greek helkos, translated as ulcer. It is from the root helkuō helkō: to draw, or to draw out. Noisome is the Greek kakos: depraved, bad, evil, wicked. Kakos is translated evil in these verses: Mark 7:21, Romans 1:30, James 3:8
The word grievous is ponēros, translated evil, lewd, malicious, wicked. (Acts 19:12-16) In Matthew 6:13 and Luke 7:21, the words translated evil spirits is the same ponēros.
There are diseases for which a doctor may prescribe massive doses of prednisone, a synthetic steroid. In high doses, the body is unable to absorb the steroid or process and eliminate the medication in the normal way. The patient’s body can erupt in acne-like pimples that burst and run.
This verse symbolizes the same effect. This first plague is sin allowed to run free and viral. These people are so full of sin and wickedness the poison will begin to be drawn out of them in the form of physical manifestation. People being delivered of demonic spirits will occasionally vomit up a materialization of the demon during the deliverance. The people referred to in verse two are so filled with sin it will begin to ooze out of them as running sores.
Refer to the plague of boils, Exodus 9:9-11. Also, Job 2
Second Bowl: Seas of Blood
3 The second angel poured his bowl out upon the sea, and it became blood as of a dead man; and every living creature in the sea died.
According to Genesis 7:21-22, the flood only killed land animals. This plague is aimed at the creatures in the seas. Has life become so tainted God must destroy all life on the planet?
Everything, even the world itself which comes in contact with mankind is tainted with sin. To cleanse the earth and make it new, everything must be destroyed. Sin is like tobacco smoke that permeates the walls of a house; the odor cannot be removed. The walls can be repainted, but as soon as the paint cures, the tobacco smell is back.
In Exodus 7:17-21, the Nile River turned to blood. The Nile valley was the bread basket of the world at the time. The Nile overflows each year to energize the entire area for farming. This makes the Nile River valley one of the world’s most productive farming areas, though Egypt has been a desert for millennia. Without the life-giving waters, all Egypt would be nothing more than the eastern end of the Sahara desert.
Here, the sea is symbolic for masses of humanity. The word dead is the Greek nekros, meaning devoid of life. However, there is also a spiritual connotation. According to Strong’s, nekros means spiritually dead, inactive as respects doing right, destitute of force or will power. In other words, dead in the spirit; they are unable to do anything but sin. Without the Living Waters, man’s spirit will become as the blood of a dead man, without life. Like Satan’s, man’s dead spirit cannot be resurrected.
Third Bowl: All Waters Die
4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying; “You are righteous, O Lord; the One who is and who was and who is to be, because You have judged these things. 6 For they have shed the blood of the saints and the prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. For it is their just due.”
I heard another from the altar saying; “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are your judgments.”
With the third bowl, all waters remaining become blood. Waters are symbolic for the spirit. In this case, the Holy Spirit. God lifted His hand from the masses of humanity with the second bowl, leaving some of His Spirit for the benefit of the last of mankind who would repent and turn to Him. He is not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance. 2 Peter 3:9
But there is a limit to God’s patience. The third bowl removes all influence, and evil mankind is left on its own. Without Living Water, the Holy Spirit, life cannot exist. (John 7:38, Isaiah 12:3) Christ is the only source of living water. All other sources are as dead men’s blood. Revelation 22:1
Verse five refers to the angel in charge of the waters (the spirits). All angels are on specific assignment. For example, Michael, the archangel is in charge of overseeing the carrying out of God’s plans. He is the chief angelic “supervisor.” Some angels are assigned only to you. Don’t provoke them! Exodus 23:20-22
This angel in verse five witnessed the destruction and death of the waters (spirits) over which he is in charge. He admits; “You, God, are righteous, because You have judged these things.” Revelation 6:10
The martyrs cry out, “How long, O Lord?” In verse one, the voice proceeds from out of the temple (tabernacle). Which temple? Chapter fifteen tells us, the Temple of Witness of the martyrs. God is righteous and just. Rest assured, He will avenge the persecution and death of His beloved. Are you persecuted? You will be avenged. “Vengeance is Mine, I will repay.” says the Lord. Romans 12:19, Hebrews10:30. These are references to Deuteronomy 32:35.
In verse six, they shed the blood of the saints and prophets. Matthew 23:34-36
You have given them blood to drink. (Isaiah 49:26) God is not only righteous, He is just. Do not be deceived. God is not mocked; for whatever a man sows, he will also reap. Galatians 6:7-8
Fourth Bowl: Men Are Scorched
7 I heard another from the altar saying; “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.” 8 Then the fourth angel poured his bowl out on the sun, and power was given him to scorch men with fire. 9 Men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.
Many teach the bowl poured out on the sun to scorch man will involve some sort of solar flare, or an asteroid impact (Wormwood, Revelation 8:10-11). Whatever, it seems to cause extreme heat on the earth, not normal “global warming.” Average temperatures on earth always fluctuate. It will be obvious to all. God is the cause of this heat. He will not share His power with man’s petty theories. They teach this extreme heat will cause massive fires, leading to the fifth bowl and darkness caused by the burning.
The sun is symbolic for glory, brightness, and the heavenly glory of the resurrected body of Christ and the saints of God. This plague of heat is symbolic. God will pull back the veil separating the spirit world from the physical world. This will allow the ungodly to witness the glory of the resurrected saints, and of God Himself.
The contrast of this glorious brightness next to their abysmal wretchedness and darkness will sear their consciences. As their consciences become more seared, their hearts will become harder. 1 Timothy 4:1-2, Matthew 24:12
In verse nine, they are scorched by this brightness and blaspheme God all the more. How can anyone who experiences the glory of God and His kingdom return to a life of sin and wretchedness? 2 Peter 2:22 (a reference to Proverbs 26:11) says; A dog returns to its own vomit. Sad, but true.
Fifth Bowl: Darkness and pain
10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness; they gnawed their tongues because of the pain. 11 They blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pain and sores, and did not repent of their sins.
Those who teach the sun will scorch the earth, believe the darkness is caused by the smoke and burning of the fourth bowl. However, this fifth bowl is not poured out over all the earth as smoke of burning would be. Rather, on the throne of the beast alone.
Throne is symbolic for the rulership and power base of the beast, his government. As in the previous bowl, the ungodly are permitted to witness the glory of God, and compare the two kingdoms side by side. The kingdom of heaven is full of unbelievable brightness. The beast’s kingdom, by comparison, is full of wretchedness and absolute darkness.
This realization dawns on them like a brilliant sunrise. What fools they are! What pain they must experience for having been so deceived. Their pride fills them with bitterness, resentment, and hatred for God, the beast, and themselves. They will “gnaw their tongues” from the pain. Men will loathe themselves because their sins (sores) will be so obvious. Their pride will not allow them to repent, so they blame God for all their problems. The ones they should be blaming are themselves.
Sixth Bowl: Euphrates and the Eastern Kings
12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the river Euphrates, and its waters dried up, so the way of the kings from east might be prepared. 13 I saw three unclean spirits 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 For they are spirits of demons, performing signs which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
The river Euphrates is one of the world’s largest rivers. It forms a natural boundary between Asia and the Middle East. The river would be a natural obstacle for an army moving on foot or by land vehicle, to reach Jerusalem from Asia.
The Euphrates flowed through the middle of Babylon. Nourishment and life of Babylon came from the river. Without the water of the Euphrates, Babylon would be weakened and in peril of being overthrown. Euphrates represents the blood and life spirit of the harlot Babylon. Without life blood, Babylon will shrivel up and die. Keep this in mind as we go into chapter seventeen and eighteen.
Frogs were one of the plagues God sent on Egypt. They are symbolic for demons and unclean spirits. These are the three demonic spirits animating the dragon, beast, and false prophet. They uphold these hosts like a hand animates a puppet. As long as the opportunity existed for men to be deceived, these three upheld the deception of the Antichrist’s trio. Now, since no more can be saved, no reason remains to continue the deception. When God lifts His hand from creation there is nothing to keep Satan in check. He can slink out into the open, shuck off the bodies of the three puppets he possessed, and go about undisguised.
Serving Satan can be fun for a while. But when he’s done using you, he discards you like a broken carapace, and leaves you used, abused, broken, alone, and empty. Ask any reformed drug abuser or alcoholic who had to hit rock-bottom before coming to his senses. The unsaved will begin to realize how empty they are, with no hope, no love, no future, and no god to worship. They are truly empty, looking forward to spending eternity in this black void. Like a child punished by being sent to sit in the corner, these pitiful humans will sit alone in empty darkness to contemplate their fate forever.
The three “frogs” are sent out to gather in the kings of the earth. No one can deny the hatred the world holds for Israel. Only God’s controlling hand keeps the world from attacking Jerusalem. When God lifts His hand, the kings of the earth will begin to gather. Like the Nazis in the 1930s and 40s, the people of the earth will find a scapegoat to blame and hate. Judah. They will gather together with a “holy purpose,” to destroy Israel, whom they hate. None realize they are marching toward a battle they cannot win; the final battle of Satan against God.
15 “Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.” 16 And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.
Verse fifteen is a reference to 1 Thessalonians 5:2, also an instruction Jesus gave His disciples in Matthew 24:36-44. Wake up! Flee from harlot Babylon; she’s about to fall.
The name Armageddon is symbolic. It refers to Mount Megiddo, which in Hebrew means “a place of troops.”
. Megiddo is mentioned throughout the Old Testament. Situated in a pass overlooking the Jezreel valley and the river Kishon, Megiddo guarded an important trade route linking Egypt with Asia Minor. To move South from Syria or Lebanon to Jerusalem, an army would pass through the valley of Jezreel, an appropriate place for a massive war.
The Seventh Bowl: The Earth Shaken
17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18 And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and a great earthquake, such a mighty earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth. 19 Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath. 20 Every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21 Great hail fell upon men, each hail stone about the weight of a talent. Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, since the plague was exceedingly great.
“It is done!” This completes God’s wrath on mankind. The word done as used here, is the Greek ginomai: to become, to be made, finished, completed. God has brought about the end of His work. Everything else man will do on his own. Like a man committing suicide, he will destroy himself.
This is the second time we find this phrase in scriptures. The first was when Jesus hung on the cross. He said, “It is finished,” and gave up His spirit. The word finished here, is the Greek teleō: to bring to a close, to bring to an end, to execute, complete, fulfill. This completed His work of redemption. He ran the course, and finished His race. 2 Timothy 4:7
Two, or twice mentioned, is the number of witness and completion. Evil mankind has completed the witness against himself. His cup of Iniquity is full. Genesis 15:16
This angel poured his bowl into the air. Where the other bowls aimed at a specific target, this one is all-encompassing. Air is the Greek ar, the surrounding atmosphere; the stuff life breathes. In fact, ar is from the root ami, to breathe, respire. Mankind will breathe in this plague with no way to escape. Pray to God you’re not among them.
The massive earthquake and other natural phenomena are most likely hyperbole, to show the convulsions of an earth out of control. Laden down with sin, the earth is trying to shake it off like a dog shakes off water. Refer to verse twenty.
In the original manuscripts, the great city referred to here is not Jerusalem, but rather, Babylon in the next sentence. God remembered Babylon, and is about to give her what’s coming to her. She is divided into three parts. Three is the number of divine testimony. The destruction of Babylon will be used as a witness to the fact Jehovah is the only One who holds things together. All the best and brightest in the world are not sufficient. More on who or what Babylon is will be found in chapter seventeen.
At the same time, the cities of the nations fell. Without Babylon to propel and prop them up, the rest of the cities collapse like houses of cards. Remember from chapter fourteen, Babylon represents a spirit of fleshly hedonism. Hedonism is the doctrine of pleasure or happiness being the goal in life. “Anything goes. If it feels good, do it. Grab all you can, while you can.”
The harlot Babylon is a coming-together of business, tech, media, education, and government, in an unholy amalgamation for the purpose of promoting sin and enriching themselves. Their merchants spread this spirit around the world and infect all the major cities dealing in commerce. Babylon’s cup of iniquity, too, is full.
In verse twenty, the islands fled, and the mountains fell. Again, this is hyperbole to help reinforce the concept of all creation convulsing. When God lifts His hand of control, His creation falls apart. Notice the plague of hail in verse twenty-one. Have you ever seen the damage softball-sized hail can do? The plagues God sent on the Egyptians in Genesis were shadows of these found in Revelation.
But mankind continues to blaspheme God and blame Him for all their troubles. We hear it today. “God took my husband. God gave me cancer to punish me. God made my car fall apart.” And on, and on.
Heaven forbid man should take responsibility for his own lack of faith and belief, stupidity, and iniquity.