Revelation 16:1-21

1. marching orders are given – 1
1. this chapter opens with a GREAT VOICE out of the temple to the seven angels
1. each angel had a specific set of orders
2. there is no mistake regarding the place where the contents of these vials are to be poured
3. they go only when told to
2. the Bible ascribes all judgments that falls upon the world for its wickedness, to God as the author
1. they come from Him, and execute His holy purposes
2. it is not the effect of man's revenge, but the fruit of God's wrath
3. it is hard for man to believe that God is going to pour out His wrath on a rebellious, God-hating world
1. there are many Christians that find this hard to believe as well
2. the truth is: everything we see today is under the judgment of God
3. as a believer, we need to make our investments in heaven
4. these seven vials are to be poured out upon ALL the earth -- not just on one location
2. the first angel pours out his vial – 2
1. the first vial is poured out upon the earth
1. we know where and what the EARTH is, and there is no point in spiritualizing this statement
2. when the angel poured out his vial, a sore came upon men who bore the mark of the beast
3. it seems as though God is engaged in germ warfare
4. the most amazing aspect of this judgment is that it will not affect those who have refused the mark of the beast
2. the first vial judgment reminds us of the sores in Egypt during the sixth plague
1. the sore in Moses' day was a terrible, loathsome disease - Deuteronomy 28
2. the God of Moses' day is the God of Revelation
3. if God poured out sores upon the ungodly men of Egypt, it will be no hard task for Him to again inflict people with "noisome and grievous" sores
3. "noisome and grievous"
1. of a bad nature, troublesome, injurious, pernicious, destructive
2. of a bad nature or condition, annoyances, hardships
3. words cannot describe the despicable condition and the awfulness of such a plague
3. the second angel pours out his vial – 3
1. some symbolize the blood
1. why should we not believe that the sea will actually turn to blood "as the blood of a dead man," just as the Bible tells us
2. the rivers of Egypt turned to blood: literal blood, not spiritual nor symbolic blood
3. it is so strange that some people have a hard time believing what the Bible has to say
2. one day the seas will change to the blood of a dead man
1. that will be in a rotten, stinking, deplorable condition
2. all the fish and sea monsters will die and begin to decay
3. think of it, aren’t we glad that we will not be here
4. the third angel pours out his vial – 4-7
1. the rivers and fountains of water become blood – 4
1. this plague is similar to the third trumpet, but more severe
2. the contamination of the oceans would not be sufficient to destroy the human water supply
3. with this plague, every source of water has now been polluted
2. the proclamation made by the third angel – 5-6
1. men may fret and whine when they receive the just rewards of their deeds, but all that know God also know that He acts in perfect righteousness
1. what God does is the definition of righteousness
2. if we do not agree with God, it is too bad; we are wrong, not God
3. no doubt there will be bitter complaining and resentment against the Creator, when they are forced to drink blood to survive
4. complaining is not repenting, and so it will avail them nothing
2. this angel ascribes to God all praise for the unique appropriateness of the judgment rendered
3. because he is not blinded by sin or self-interest as fallen men are, he can commend and applaud the mighty Creator and Judge
4. John hears this testimony, and would have us know that he hears it - 5
1. it is a testimony that every man needs to hear and burn into his heart
2. God is a righteous God, and He will judge unrighteousness in a righteous way
3. to refuse grace is to choose unrighteousness, and God will allow this for a time
4. men should remember the final consequences of such a foolish choice: God is not mocked
5. the righteousness of God’s vengeance is attested to in the peculiar nature of His punishment – 6
1. poetic justice with a vengeance
2. they did not hesitate to shed righteous blood; now they must drink the blood of judgment
3. a voice from the alter – 7
1. this voice is in complete agreement with the proclamation made by the third angel
2. notice the appropriate name they ascribe to the great Judge [Lord God Almighty]
3. seven times in the book of Revelation is Jesus called both "Lord" and "Almighty"
5. the fourth angle pours out his vial – 8-9
1. the sun was created to serve the earth
1. to give light, to mark the seasons, and to divide the day
2. the sun has been a good servant to the earth
2. the sun, like Jesus Christ, can be an enemy as well as a servant
1. it can quicken and slay with great power
2. now is the time for judgment, and those plants without roots will be revealed for what they are
3. think of the torment that man will be in
1. the burning heat is bad enough
2. their bodies are already covered with sores
3. it will be difficult to sleep in such heat
4. the water supply is contaminated
5. drought and melting ice-caps(raise the water level by 200 feet)
4. a tragic commentary on human nature – 9
1. no longer could there be any doubt that these judgments came from God
2. those affected will choose to believe Satan, thinking they can defeat and dethrone God
3. because they refused to love the truth, they are under the spell of a strong delusion, that they might believe an incredible lie
4. not even the terrible pain in their bodies will cause them to repent
5. knowing that only God can remove the plagues, they continue to defy and blaspheme His name
6. all they can think of is hatred to God
6. the fifth angle pours out his vial – 10-11
1. darkness in the kingdom of the beast
1. reveals that the beast of Revelation 13 was a man and that he was a king
2. the plagues resemble the plagues of Egypt, so the worshippers of the beast resemble Pharaoh king of Egypt, who hardened his heart yet more and more against the Lord, and repented not
3. every new judgment only further hardened the unrepentant heart of man
2. there are two self-evident fact at this point
1. God is righteous in pouring out the bowls of wrath
2. mankind will not be led to repentance, in spite of their suffering
3. another very powerful evidence that God is still God
1. the reign of the beast is outwardly impressive and global, but it is no match for the power of Christ
2. the kingdom of the beast will soon be forgotten, when Christ establishes His kingdom on earth
4. the torment of the sores, the bitter water, the burning heat, and the heavy darkness are becoming almost unbearable for many [gnawed their tongues for pain]
1. these people are in such agony, but they will not fall on their faces and beg God for mercy
2. they curse God and blaspheme His name, but they will not repent
3. they have become so possessed with hatred for God that they seem eager for a final confrontation
4. these people have been sent strong delusions, they believed the Lie and now they must be condemned
7. the sixth angel pours out his vial – 12-16
1. the Euphrates River is dried up
1. this river is an important river throughout the Bible
1. it is first mentioned in Genesis 2
2. it is mentioned over twenty-five times in the Bible
3. it was a border between the east and the west
4. it was 1,800 miles long, as well as being deep and wide
2. the drying up of the river Euphrates is an allusion to the manner of old Babylon's destruction
1. the river Euphrates ran through old Babylon, and was a greater defense to it than its walls
2. when Cyrus took Babylon, he diverted the river so that he and his soldiers could enter the city
3. as the drying up of the river was a forerunner to the destruction of old Babylon, so shall the drying up of the river now be a sign of its destruction (the seat of Satan’s power - 10)
3. this isn’t the first time that God dried up a body of water
1. He made a path through the Red Sea for Israel to cross safely over
2. He dried up the Jordan River for Israel to pass over into the promised land
3. in both cases it meant destruction for the enemies of God
4. this will prepare the way and open the door for the gigantic eastern armies to cross over and assemble with the antichrist
2. three unclean spirits – 13-14
1. the drying up of the river would not be enough to persuade the armies of the world to gather together, something more is needed
2. spirits of devils come on the scene to deceive
1. these spirits have power to work miracles: Satanic miracles
2. through these miracles the multitudes who are following the Antichrist will be deceived
3. through the power and unusual miracles of the spirits, all the followers of the satanic trinity will be stirred up to declare war on the Lamb and His followers
4. the whole satanic system responds and unites to march to Jerusalem for the great battle
5. they will find the going easy since Euphrates, the great natural barrier, is dried up
6. can anyone doubt, with the hundreds of millions going to battle, that the blood will be as deep as the horses’ bridal (Rev.14:20)
3. a solemn warning from Jesus – 15
1. a thief is someone you shut out; someone that is not welcome
2. Christ does not come as a thief for His people who are looking for him
3. the world does not want Him to come, hopes that He will not come, and thinks that He will not come
4. to these He will come as a thief, when they think least likely, and will destroy them
4. a blessing is announced for those that are watching and hoping – 15
1. Christians that are not ready at His coming will be ashamed
2. "keepeth his garments" – if a guard was found asleep, his garments were set on fire
5. the place called Armageddon – 16
1. all is now ready for the final vial to be poured out
2. here we see God’s will being fulfilled [he gathered them together]
8. the seventh vial is poured out – 17-21
1. this vial was poured out into the air – 17
1. the whole earth is to be affected, therefore the pouring is upon the most universal element
2. by which is meant the kingdom of Satan, he being the prince of the power of the air
1. not that he has power over the air, to raise winds and storms at his pleasure
2. he is so called because he is the prince of the devils that have their dwelling in the air
3. his powers are restrained, his policies confounded
4. he was bound in God's chain; the sword of God was upon him
5. Satan, as well as all powers of the earth, are subject to the almighty power of God
3. he had used all possible means to preserve the antichristian kingdom, but now this vial is poured out upon his kingdom, and he is not able to support his cause and interest any longer
4. there came a voice out of the temple from the throne, saying, "IT IS DONE"
1. directly from the Judgment-seat, we learn that the end is reached
2. with this outpouring the whole contents of the wrath of God upon this present world are exhausted
2. the effects and dreadful consequences of this last vial – 18-21
1. there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings – 18
1. the storm of God's wrath would be very terrible and amazing
2. there will no doubt be rejoicing in heaven as the devil finally gets what he deserves
2. a great earthquake – 18
1. the earthquake is so great and powerful that there has never been one like it before
2. meant to reveal the severity of the judgment
3. results of the earthquake - 19-20
1. the great city here is Jerusalem, and it is divided into three parts
2. all the rest of the cities of the world fall in ruin
1. can you imagine the death and destruction of such an hour
2. this is the end of the satanic system and his henchmen
3. men spend billions of dollars on bombs, planes, ships and guns in order to bring about this kind of destruction; but not so with God
3. the sins of Babylon are remembered
1. the degrees of judgment
1. Jerusalem is partially destroyed because something of the sacred is there
2. the Gentile cities are utterly destroyed because they belong to the beast
3. Babylon receives the fierceness of God’s wrath because she is the center of every evil
2. while it may seem that the sins of Babylon were forgotten, take note that her day is coming
4. the configuration of the earth is changed – 20
1. they will be fled away at the appearance of Christ the Judge
2. this day of the Lord will be upon every high mountain and hill, to bring them low, and the Lord alone shall be exalted
4. a great hail storm – 21
1. a "talent" is about a hundred pounds
2. the design of the whole event is to show that the destruction would be complete and awful
3. the earthquake will kill many, the hail storm will kill many more, but some still remain
5. what will be the moral effect - 21
1. will the people bend, and own their sins, and seek for heaven's pity and forgiveness
2. it would seem that by this time, someone would be praying, but no, they have sold out to sin and the devil for eternity, and there is no repentance for them
3. no one having the brand of the antichrist ever repents
4. the antichrist has taught them to curse God and die; and so they curse and blaspheme to the last
5. unsoftened and unchanged by all the terribleness of an oncoming hell
6. those who are cursing God in Revelation 16:21 are those who chose Antichrist instead of Christ
7. we are either on God's side or on the side of the devil, there is no middle ground