End Time Judgements: The Bowls of Wrath - Glorious Hope | Studies in Revelation

In 1998, Touchstone Pictures, a film studio of the Walt Disney

Company, released a film called Armageddon.

It actually ended up being the studio's most successful film starring

Bruce Willis, Ben Affleck and Liv Tyler.

And if you don't recognize any of those names, as we left the 90s

and into the early 2000s, these were the three big names in

Hollywood.

And it was a science fiction disaster film following a group of

blue collar deep core drillers sent by NASA to destroy a gigantic

asteroid which was the size of Texas and was on a direct collision

course with Earth, as would be expected and in a way that only the

Americans can they succeed and Earth is saved.

Now, the storyline doesn't concern us so much this evening as

much as the film's title does, because the name of such a global

disaster to hit humanity that the writers turned to to find it

was revelation and to find a word that would suggest just how

bad things would be if the asteroid collided with Earth.

And of course, anything they projected in the storyline, nothing

compared to what would happen if such an event took place.

A collision of that size with an asteroid would knock Earth off

its axes and we would either all freeze to death or we'd burn

in the heat.

And so they chose the name Armageddon.

And Armageddon is often used in a lot of culture, and particularly

film culture, and it's used as a term to describe complete desolation,

be it by natural disaster or by warfare.

And it's a word that conjures up all kinds of apocalyptic ideas

in fantasy literature.

And with that, then there has been a lot of unhelpful interpretations

regarding this one event.

And the reason why I mentioned here this evening is because, as

you'll see, it was the concluding word of our scripture

passage as the sixth bowl of judgment is poured out on the earth

for the sixth bowl and there's another bowl to come.

And we'll look at that next week, but we'll only look at the

first six.

It concludes with a plan set for battle, a battle that will end

all time, because after this will come Christ and the consummation

of the kingdom.

So what we're looking at this evening, as I've already said, are

events that must take place close to the end of human time so

that Christ will come and so we will see him and his reign and

rule.

So when we concluded chapter 15 two weeks ago or three weeks ago,

we saw how from heaven God would bring his final judgment on

the earth.

And as we concluded that passage, one of the Four living creatures

had given seven bowls of judgment that would then be poured

out by the seven angels.

And John told us in verse one, then I saw another sign in heaven.

This is chapter 15, great and amazing.

Isaiah 15 · chapter mention

Seven angels with seven plagues, which are the last, for

with them the wrath of God is finished.

And so what we're looking at here is the moment where God has

done everything to punish wicked humanity.

Now, it's also interesting that in chapter 15, verse 1, the

word plague is used, because as we read through these bowls of

wrath, we will see them very closely linked to the plagues in

Egypt.

And as I said in September, there is nothing new presented to

us in Revelation that Scripture has not already revealed

to us in one way or another.

Rather, revelation is showing us what must take place in these

end times so that we will be ready for the coming of Christ.

So what we have now before us in chapter 16 is the final judgment

of God.

And within these judgments we will see how they have been foretold.

But now we see in them the complete wrath of God being poured

out on a rebellious people.

And in verse one of chapter 16, John hears a voice from the temple

telling the angels to go out on the earth and pour the bowls of

wrath.

And I think it's interesting that a bowl is used in this final,

because if you have ever had a bowl and even trying to pour it out,

unless you're very, very careful, there's inevitably always

going to be more poured out than you anticipate.

It's one of the things that I'm discovering as I'm baking.

If you're pouring water from the kettle of a certain temperature,

you know that unless you've got a perfect measuring jug, there's

always going to be more going than you intended.

And so there's no mistake that we're given this visual image of

bowls being poured.

And of course, once a bowl is poured, it's completely empty, thereby

telling us that this is the full punishment of God, his full

wrath poured out on rebellious humanity.

So verse two of chapter 16 gives us the first, and we're told

the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth,

and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the

mark of the beast and worshipped its image.

And immediately we see echoes of the plagues in Egypt.

The sixth plague saw boils coming on the people which would

have been sore and left their mark.

And here the sores now in Revelation are harmful and painful.

And they come on the people because they have followed the beast

in other words, they have followed the systems that the beast

has put in place to deceive, to make people think that he is the

true authority and the true ruler.

And so, in turn, they have then worshiped his image.

We've come across the beast in his image before, and this is the

second time that we're now seeing it.

And the response of what will happen to those who do worship that

image and who do follow the beast.

And so this first judgment falls on people who turn away from

the true and living God and will therefore experience agony because

they have refused the one who offers life.

They have believed the lies in front of them, the lies that the

beast has spilled out.

And because they have, they have rejected Christ and his salvation,

that wonderful, eternal life that he offers.

And so, as a rebellious people against the word of God, as we were

thinking this morning in Exodus, they will be punished.

And this is their punishment.

The second angel comes to us in verse three with the second bowl,

and it is poured out into the sea.

And here's how the devastation is described.

The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became

like the blood of a corpse.

And every living thing died that was in the sea.

Now, there is no doubt of the wealth and the riches that are within

the waters around us.

Coming from this part of the world.

We know that too well in the fishing industry and how much we

enjoy the catch of the day.

Well, can you imagine a situation where the water becomes

uninhabitable for the fish, and look how it's described, becomes

like the blood of a corpse.

It's decaying.

It has no life and has no opportunity of life, and every living

thing died that was in it.

So here we have, in a way, commerce stopped.

It's not water that can be traversed so that catches can be

got or that shipments can be made.

And so this second bowl, and this is again where we now go back

a little bit into revelation.

Just like the second trumpet that was sounded afflicts the sea

in the second trumpet judgment in chapter 8, 1/3 of the sea became

blood, and one third of its creatures die.

But in the second bowl judgment, the entirety of the sea

becomes like the blood of a corpse, and every single creature

in the sea dies.

So the severity and intensity of the judgment suggests this event

comes near to the final judgment, when the entire world is

collapsing and everything sustaining the world begins to fall

apart.

Well, the third angel pours out their bowl in verse four, and

this time the focus is on rivers and springs of water.

And the result is that These rivers and springs of water become

blood.

And again we're taken back to the first plague in Egypt, when the

Nile is turned to blood and every drop of water in the canals

and the pots in the homes becomes undrinkable.

And so the severity and intensification of the judgment points

to the time of the end.

Water is the source of life, and so God is eradicating in judgment

what is vital for life.

So not only do you see God pouring his judgment on all of the

earth, on all of creation, on humanity, on the seas, and on the

sources of rivers, but through them he is bringing about the punishment

that a rebellious people deserve.

And this is going to be our problem, because we're going to hear

them cry out.

It's not fair.

And so the next three verses that we have interpret the sequence

of the bold judgments and comment on the suitability of these

judgments.

And so we're told that there is an angel superintending the waters,

which shows us the close connection between angels and the

world of nature.

And we also see this in the book of Hebrews.

But this angel declares, God is righteous and is holy in judging

the wicked.

Now, John's audience, as the rebellious, will also question the

severity of the judgments.

But the angel assures us that the punishment is fitting and it

is right, because verse six goes on to say that those receiving

the judgments have killed the saints and the prophets.

Therefore they have done dealings with God's people throughout

all of the history of the Church, Old Testament and New Testament

combined.

And now they will face the punishment for their wickedness.

Because here the rightness of God's judgment is explained.

God has turned the rivers and springs to blood because the wicked

have spilled the bloods of the saints and the prophets.

And so the punishment fits, and in fact it accords with the crime.

And so this is an expression, not a miscarriage of justice.

And those who have inflicted suffering on believers will themselves

suffer.

But this little interruption continues because verse 7 now presents

to us voices, and the altar speaks, perhaps representing the

voice of an angel.

But the altar speaks to add its witness on behalf of the saints

who were slain onto the altar of chapter six, affirming that the

judgments of the Lord God Almighty are true and righteous.

And we don't often think of judgment as righteous.

We think of God as righteous, that he's completely right.

But because he is that, then his judgments are righteous.

His judgments are not unfair, and the punishment that follows is

not unfair.

It is right and it is true.

And so John emphasizes that these judgments verify God's justice,

that he truly is a God of justice, and that sin must face its

punishment, just as the redeemed in Christ must enjoy their

eternal reward.

Because the Holy One of Israel always does what is right, even though

life often seems futile and meaningless and irrational, in the

end, God will make everything right.

And this is where we must take hope this evening.

I guess the circumstances of the past couple of months have forced

me to answer the question that many have been asking.

And it's that question.

It's not fair.

Why did this happen?

And the simple truth is, the world in which it is found now is

not the way God intended.

Read Genesis 1 and 2 and it will tell you clearly God created

a perfect world that humanity may enjoy.

And it wasn't God that messed it up.

God set the parameters and God set the limits of what could happen.

They could have anything in the garden except eating from the

tree of the fruit of the tree.

And what did they do?

They consumed it and devoured it.

They listened to a lie.

And it wasn't God that brought evil and pain and suffering into

the world.

It was humanity.

Because they broke God's way, they went against him.

And as we've been seeing in these past couple of texts, a rebellious

people.

And so we need to know tonight that where there is pain, where there

is suffering, where there is grieving and mourning, God will make

everything right one day.

One day he'll make everything new.

One day we will rejoice in Him.

But we have to wait until all is fulfilled and Christ will take

his people home.

And so we turn to the fourth of these bowl judgments in verse

eight.

And this time the angel pours out their bowl on the sun.

The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed

to scorch people with fire.

If you recall the fourth trumpet judgment, then you'll remember

that a third of the sun, moon and stars were darkened.

But this is different, because here the judgment of the fourth bowl

appears to make the sun more intense.

For by it people are scorched, experiencing something like a very

painful sunburn.

And this punishment tells us of the intense punishment experienced

by those who reject the Lord.

And aren't we already knowing of what's going to happen to the

lost?

They will be thrown into the lake of fire.

And is this not telling us what that experience is like?

That it is intense punishment for those who reject the Lord?

And so those afflicted are certainly unbelievers, responding

with fury to the God who exercises his sovereign authority

to bring these plagues upon them.

They're convinced, and they have the audacity to be convinced

that they don't deserve these punishments.

And so their response is, is to blaspheme and to revile God for

punishing them, complaining that the judgments are unfair and

calling into question his very nature and his very character.

John has just emphasized the justice of the punishment.

So their response is irrational and it's false.

God's judgments and plagues should have provoked them to repent

and give glory to him, acknowledging their guilt for what

they've done.

Instead, in their thrandness, they are angry at what God is doing

and in a way, ironically confirming the justice of the very

judgments they're facing.

And as we move on to the fifth and sixth bowls, our focus moves

to the great deceiver of humanity.

In the fifth bowl, the throne of the beast receives its punishment.

And in the sixth, the river Euphrates, a source of protection

from enemies, is dried up.

And so verses 10 and 11 tell us that the fifth angel poured out

his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged

into darkness.

People gnawed their tongues in anguish and cursed the God of heaven

for their pain and sores.

They did not repent of their deeds.

And so the fifth bowl is poured out on the beast's throne,

in other words, the place of his authority, his realm, his kingdom,

is darkened, echoing the ninth plague to strike Egypt in Exodus

10.

And the apocalyptic language makes the exact nature of this judgment

difficult to determine, because we would not expect, for

instance, people plunged into darkness to gnaw their tongues in

anguish.

So whether this is physical, psychological, or both, what we do

know is that this judgment clearly brings torment and anguish.

And it's fascinating to compare the fifth bowl and the fifth

trumpet, as we've done with the first four.

Because the fifth trumpet brings about unleashes, as it were,

darkness on the earth and a demonic presence bringing agony to

men.

And we're given that in verses 1 to 12 of that chapter where the

trumpets are mentioned, this sense of the agony, of the darkness,

we know that the devil loves darkness.

He doesn't want us walking in the light of Christ, because then

we will know his true lies.

And so it seems that the fifth bowl further intensifies the pain

that indeed it is the evil one causing through the beast.

But this pain, suggesting John is describing events again near the

end of history, near the time when God will truly consummate his

kingdom.

And so the judgments of God, as both the fourth and fifth bulge

reveal, are meant to be a precursor and anticipation of what

is to come.

They're intended to snap people out of their spiritual lethargy

and turn them to God in repentance.

Instead, those suffering from their pains and sores are enraged

at God, thinking that what has happened to them is completely unwarranted,

that actually they're the good ones and God's the baddy.

But Proverbs helps us here because it's Proverbs 19:3 that says

Proverbs 19:3

when a man's folly brings his way to ruin, his heart rages against

the Lord.

So they curse and they blaspheme God instead of blessing

him, and they do not repent of their evil deeds.

The irrational.

The irrational response of human beings underscores once again

the rightness of God's actions.

Let me pause here for a moment and ask you a question about judgment.

We don't like judgment.

None of us do.

Whether that be by society around us judging us, or maybe a

court of law judging us.

But how much more when the Sovereign Lord will judge?

And let's be honest with ourselves, we know deep down whether

we are of the redeemed or whether we're not.

And if we're not, then we will face a judgment.

And the reality is, we cannot say that that judgment is not fair,

because even Tonight in Revelation 16, we are presented with

opportunity again and again to repent so that we will not face what

is presented here that must take place before humanity this time

on earth ends.

Now, I don't know when that will be, but I'm not willing to.

To take the risk.

I hope you appreciate I'm not a gambling man, and I hope that encourages

you.

But what about you?

If you're not of the redeemed, you're taking an awful gamble here.

I truly believe this to be the living word of God and given to us

this night as a warning that judgment is coming.

And therefore tonight there must be a response.

And we'll come to that just as we finish.

So the fourth and fifth bowl, although the bowls, five and six

go together, but four and five show us something of our cry of not

being fair.

But yet God says, this is truly fair because he is truly a

God of justice.

But we move to the sixth bowl of wrath, and we see greater detail

of its intention because its target is the river Euphrates.

And as its waters are dried up, we're told that this is preparation

for the kings from the east.

And once again, a comparison can be made with the sixth trumpet

judgment, in which four angels bound at the Euphrates were released,

and an army of 200 million came forth to kill a third of mankind.

Well, in the sixth bowl's drying up the Euphrates, it opens

that pathway now across that river, riverbed for eastern kings.

And what we see here coming across is a kind of unholy exodus

in which evil kings are unable to cross the river, those who are

against God's people to rage in battle, as we'll now find out,

in the hope that they can once and for all defeat the armies of

God.

Perhaps John was thinking of the Parthians.

The Parthians were hardened enemies of Rome.

But the fulfillment of this prophecy is not limited to a specific

historical moment.

And we know that the Parthians did not succeed in bringing Rome

down.

But we also know that Revelation has been a book for the

generations.

And so what we're seeing here is this understanding that Israel's

enemies were always from the east, coming across, attacking them.

And so once again, it is now a final showdown.

What will happen when the enemies of God, and we'll find out

how they're rallied in a moment, think that they can rally

themselves and defeat him.

You see, this bowl tells us of the impending judgment on the wicked.

It tells us of what's about to happen.

But there's more to this scene.

And verse 13 tells us, and I saw coming out of the mouth of the

dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of

the false prophet, three unclean spirits, like frog.

Now, that's a bit bizarre, talking about frogs.

But again, if we know our exodus and the plagues, we know that

frogs were one of the plagues.

But we'll come to that in a minute, because what John sees is

once again the unholy trinity as they've been described, the dragon,

the beast, and the second beast, who now for the first time,

is called the false prophet.

And so something horrific and repulsive is spewed out of their

mouths.

And John repeats the word mouth three times, calling attention

to the words, these unholy sources.

And this fits with the second beast being called the false prophet,

for he speaks words that are not from God.

He speaks lies, he tries to tickle ears and convince of things

that aren't right.

And so what comes out of their mouths is an unclean and disgusting

as frogs, showing that their words defile and destroy, just as

the plague of frogs did in Egypt.

And the use of the word unclean in this section also shows

the demonic character of what issues or what comes out of their

mouths.

As unclean spirits are demonic.

And so we here not just have a battle of the flesh, but of the principalities

and the powers in the spiritual realm.

We see this taking place in these last days of what now must

take place before the end of time.

And it is these demonic spirits that now rally the kings

of the world to assemble for battle as they take on the armies

of God and when he will complete his judgments and his punishments

on the earth.

And we have that little bit in verse 15.

And if you've a Bible that has the words of Jesus in red, you will

see those that text, that verse in red, because Jesus now interrupts

with an exhortation.

He announces that he is coming like a thief.

And this is a phrase that echoes the rest throughout the rest

of the New Testament.

Just as thieves do not announce when they will strike, so

the time of Jesus return will be a surprise.

Jesus then announces one of the seven blessings of this book,

declaring a blessing for those who stay awake and keep their garments

on.

The blessing is reversed for those who stay morally alert and

live righteously, or sorry is reserved.

And here the promise of coming judgment is not merely a word for

unbelievers.

It is an urgent reminder to the church of Jesus that they must

not join forces with the the wicked, as Paul would say, make shipwreck

of our faith by following the ways of the beast and the world.

Because if we do, then we will face the same fate.

And so the battle lines are drawn, and we're told in verse 16

that they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called

Armageddon.

Now, Armageddon was not a new or unknown place to John or his first

readers.

They would have known it to be the plain of Megiddo.

And it's mentioned in 2nd Chronicles 35 and Zechariah chapter

Zechariah 12 · chapter mention

12.

And anyone who's familiar with the land of Israel would know that

this is a plain.

And so whenever Armageddon is here, it's not talking about the

plain of Megiddo, it's actually talking of Mount Megiddo.

But there's no mountain on the plain of Megiddo.

And so here John is telling us something that we may not fully understand,

but calling it Armageddon is telling us something different of

this place, that something different is going to happen.

And John gives us a clue that he's writing perhaps more symbolically

about this particular mountain, not the plain, because

it is real, but for some reason this mountain, by calling

it just that.

And many important battles took place in Megiddo in which Israel

was attacked by its foes.

And here we have a scene of the last battle, the last great battle,

where the enemies will assemble and they will fight to the

death, but they will not be victorious, for it will be the Lord

Almighty who will win.

The nations you see have been deceived by the dragon, by the beast,

and by the false prophet.

They assemble for a final war that they have no chance of winning,

because the victory will be Christ's, and the enemies of God

will be punished for all eternity in this final moment of

human history.

And so the six bowls of wrath have been poured out, and next week

we look at the seventh.

And again, I stress, all of this is to take place at the end

of human history so that we will know the complete judgment of

God on rebellious people.

But what we're reading, as we know, must take place, and it must

happen before the defeat of Satan and the coming kingdom of God.

And it was Jesus himself in verse 15, tells us that he was the

one coming like a thief.

So we won't be able to crack a code to know when all of this is

going to happen.

And so it's presented here to us to assure us that the cry of the

martyrs, that the continued cry of God's people throughout the

generations will be heard and that evil will be punished.

And so this should give us two responses tonight.

The first is to know that when there doesn't seem to be justice

for the wrong that has been done against us, against the church,

or the general injustice of life, those perpetrators of these

injustices will face their punishment.

We may look at them as they swan around and think it's not fair.

And we'll cry out, just like those who are facing judgments cry

out.

But actually it will be them who will cry.

It's not fair, because they think they're perfect.

But judgment will come if they do not turn to Christ.

And that judgment will be right, and it will be true.

You see, nothing is out of sight of God.

And he will bring those to book who have rejected him and those

who have persecuted his people.

Be that to persecute an individual for their faith or a group

of people.

That's why Paul writes in Romans 12:19, Beloved, never avenge

Romans 12:19

yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written,

vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.

And sometimes this is hard for us to accept because we want vindication

now.

But God's timings are perfect, and it is in him that we must trust

to vindicate his people.

So if you have a troubled heart and soul this evening because

you feel that the devil has been against you and he's used people

around you to do it.

Well, take heart, it has not escaped the sight of God and it will

not escape his punishment and judgment for the wicked will be thrown

in their ways and they will receive their just judgment for what

they have done against the name of God and against his people.

But the second response this evening is to be aware of what the

future looks like.

Believer and non believer alike are told to take notice for

the people, just sorry for the believer.

Just as the people of the exodus from Egypt had to be ready

to depart, so Jesus warns us here in verse 4:15, that we must

be ready, staying close to the faith for the hour when Jesus will

come.

And so that means that we must keep reading our Bibles, praying,

fellowshipping, learning and growing.

And as I often pray, knowing Jesus more tomorrow than we do today,

so that indeed we will know that when he comes we will be ready

and as he says here in verse 15, ready to depart for when he comes.

But to the non believer, he is coming soon.

When he comes, it will be too late and you will face the punishment

you deserve for your sins.

But there is still time to repent of the rebellion that you

have against the Lord and turn to him and he will accept you.

He will receive you into his kingdom as his children.

Child.

So let's stop the cries of it's not fair and let's turn to the

Savior and know him as the only One who can save us and redeem

us and make us a child of God.

Why wouldn't you want this?

And why would you risk not having it by rejecting Christ and

the life that he calls you to?

Because we had this verse this morning and I want to use it again

this evening.

It's Jesus Himself that assures us that all that the Father

gives me will come to Me, and whoever comes to Me, I will never

cast out.

Don't fear the Savior while you still have time to come to Him.

Don't fear the Savior because He offers you the repentance of your

sins and he gives you that freedom to know him and live for

Him.

Don't take the risk.

Don't try to be a gambling man or woman thinking that you'll be

okay, because you won't.

And Revelation 16 has made it very clear that you won't.

And no amount of protestation will ever change that.

Simply accepting Christ is all that we can do to know that we will

be safe forever.

The Plain of Megiddo is given to us as the scene of the final battle.

John gives it to us here as Armageddon, the mount of Megiddo.

Many books and many movies have gone with an Armageddon theme

and that apocalyptic desolation that they believe it brings.

But trust me, it's going to be far worse than anything Hollywood

can present to us tonight.

While there is still time.

Come to the Savior and know Him.

And know that you will pass through the judgment and you will

enter eternity free and completely perfect.

And that will be forever and ever and ever.

Let's pray.

Our Father, we thank you that this evening we do truly have glorious

hope in Jesus Christ.

And however we understand Revelation 16 to be played out on

the world stage at the end of time.

Father, what is more important is that we look to Christ as the

only one who can rescue us and save us.

The only one we can turn to this night, so we will not face these

judgments that have been foretold through the trumpets and

now through the bowls, this wrath of God poured out on a rebellious

people.

May we not be found amongst the rebellious, but may we be found

amongst the redeemed.

This night, as we place our trust and our only trust in Jesus.

Help us to stop looking at the world around us and help us to focus

on Christ and Him alone.

For he is the only one that matters.

He is the only one who can save us.

And it is only his standard by which we are called to live.

So, Lord, help us all to look to the Savior.

Help us all to respond well, not to seek vengeance, but to know

that Christ will bring it on that day when he will come as a thief

comes in the night.

And Father, for His people, may we be ready for that day.

Not make shipwreck of the faith we have, but rather enjoy it

each day that we're given and be drawn closer to the Savior for

this wonderful assurance, and it's in Jesus name we pray.

Amen.