Revelation Lesson 36

Revelation

Lesson 36

Are We Living in the End Times?

Revelation 16:1   16 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.

In chapter 15 we read that the heavenly temple will be filled with some that no man will be able to enter the temple. Then a loud voice from the temple is saying go and pour out the bowls of wrath of God on the earth.

This refers to the kingdom of the antichrist and not to the believers. Crisis usually causes men to look to God. The tribulation period will be a time when God creates a climate of crisis, a climate conducive, or helpful in causing men to call upon God while he is near.

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

The trumpet judgments extend to only one third of the earth, while the bowl judgments extend to the entire earth. Scripture reveals that these judgments as time progresses will become increasingly worse and occur in raping chronological order. These judgments are beyond anything ever mentioned before.

Revelation 16:2   ² And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.

This first bowl judgment introduces grievous or painful sores or boils upon men and women who had the mark of the beast who worshiped his image. The only ones who will escape this judgment are those who have refused to worship the beast.

This proves that these plagues will be poured out only on the kingdom of the beast. These sores will have a very offensive odor. When the antichrist is unable to heal his own people, the world will know he is a false healer.

In the end times there will be several worldwide epidemics raging out of control and no one will be able to stop it.

Revelation 16:3   ³ And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.

Following next the second bowl is poured out. The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea pertains to the entire Mediterranean Sea. It turns to blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea died.

This second bowl judgment is even worse than the second trumpet judgment. In the second trumpet judgment. One third of the sea creatures were killed. One can only imagine the repercussions of such a horrible event.

When people know of the true existence of God and refuse to glorify Him as God and stop being thankful for the great gifts of his creation, God will finally give up on them, even so the creation itself turns against them.

Revelation 16:4   ⁴ And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.

This speaks of all underground rivers as well as all the water throughout the kingdom of the beast is poisoned.  It becomes blood, this is not to be explained away as being merely symbolic. This will actually happen.

Then I heard the angel in charge of the water say: you are just in these judgments and you are and who were the holy one. Because you have so judged for, they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve. In response to this a voice is heard again from the alter. Yes, Lord God almighty true and just are your judgments.

Some try to explain the judgment of the sea turning into blood as something not actually blood. If one accepts the omnipotence of God of course nothing is impossible and the sea could become literal blood: or it may be the language of appearance, but in either case it is a terrible judgment rendering the water unfit for both fish in the sea and for man to drink.

Attention is called in the third bowl to the martyrdom of the saints and rejection of the prophets. The judgment was declared to be just.

Revelation 16:5   ⁵ And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.

We probably don’t realize the important role angels play in the managing of God’s creation. We have already encountered the four wind angels, those angels in charge of holding back the earths wind. Now we learn that God has a water angel in charge of the earths water. Were it not for these angels, man would not have survived as long as he has: The angel in charge of the earth’s waters will look at this judgment and declare it to be a judgment deserved: He will express the justice of God the eternal existence of God the holy nature of God.

You are righteous o Lord, proclaims the fact that what the Lord is doing is righteous. In fact, everything he does is righteous. God does not change. It would be unrighteous if God did not judge accordingly.

Until our next lesson,

Stay in the word.

Brother Andy