5After these things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened, 6and the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in linen, clean and bright, and girded around their breasts with golden girdles. 7And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. 8And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power; and no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
5 The introduction to the bowls begun in v. 1 and interrupted in vv. 2-4 is now resumed. After these things I looked marks the beginning of a new vision and, in this case, the start of a new series of visions. Just as the image of a heavenly temple being opened both concluded and introduced major visionary sections in 11:19, so again the image functions in the same way, concluding the section from 12:1–14:20; 15:2-4 and introducing the bowls. V. 5 is an expansion of the vision of the seven angels which John began to view in v. 1. He sees the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven opened. The temple is called the tabernacle of testimony because it is the heavenly equivalent of the tabernacle of testimony, which was in Israel’s presence in the wilderness and is appropriate here because of the exodus context in vv. 2-4. The “testimony” was the Ten Commandments, which Moses placed in the ark of the tabernacle (cf. Exod. 25:21; 31:18; 32:15). The law of the Lord is His testimony, which reveals His just will. The tabernacle was constructed because, in revealing His just will, God was to “dwell among them” (Exod. 25:8). It also represented the mercy of God, since it was in the tabernacle that substitutionary animal sacrifices were offered to atone for Israel’s sin and to reconcile the nation to their Lord. However, now the tabernacle witnesses no longer to divine mercy but to judgment, since it is introduced in v. 5 to show that it is the source of the following bowl plagues.
The “testimony” in v. 5 includes not only the law but also the “testimony of Jesus” (see on 12:17; 19:10), who sums up the OT commandments of God in Himself. This is suggested by the fact that the “testify” (Greek martyreō) word group occurs seventeen times elsewhere in the book with sole reference to a testimony about or from Jesus. The point is that God will reveal His just will from His heavenly dwelling place by sending forth judgments on the earth against those who reject His testimony in Jesus Christ. The clause concerning the opening of the sanctuary is nearly identical to that in 11:19 (“and the temple of God which is in heaven was opened”). The point of the ark’s appearance (as a result of the temple being opened) in 11:19 was to emphasize that God was appearing to execute final judgment. Here the same theme of judgment is present, though judgments leading up to the final judgment are included in the scheme of the bowls. Already the “temple of God” (11:1-2) was said to be on earth in the form of prophets announcing their “testimony” (11:3, 7) in God’s tabernacling presence, which was a form of judgment against unbelievers (11:5-6). Now the heavenly origin of their earthly testimony and judgments is in view.
6 John sees the seven angels introduced in v. 1 coming out of the temple which has been opened. As in v. 1, they have the seven plagues, which must mean that they have been commissioned to execute the seven bowl judgments which follow in ch. 16, since they are not actually handed the bowls until v. 7. Four times, including this verse, the bowl punishments are called “seven plagues” (15:1, 6, 8; 21:9). The only place elsewhere in Scripture outside Revelation where the same phrase in Greek or Hebrew occurs is Lev. 26:21 (LXX): “I will further bring upon you [Israel] seven plagues according to your sins” (the Palestinian Targum repeats “seven plagues” four times; the Hebrew text is not dissimilar: “I will increase the plague upon you seven times”). The phrase does not appear by coincidence in Revelation 15, since the same Leviticus 26 passage has been seen as formative for the first four seal judgments (see introductory comments on ch. 6).
The Leviticus text also concerns woes which God will send on Israel if they commit idolatry. Four times it is repeated that God will judge them “seven times” if they become unfaithful. Each sevenfold figurative expression introduces a successively worse ordeal, on the condition that Israel does not repent from the preceding woe. The promise interwoven in these warnings is that if Israel repents of her idolatry (cf. Lev. 26:1, 30-31) — idolatry being the problem also in Rev. 15:5–16:21 — then God will bless them again. The warnings in Leviticus were meant to lead to repentance in true believers, while only hardening apostate Israelites. The afflictions cited there not only purge and punish, but also serve as warnings for people to repent. However, the emphasis is on successively severer ordeals because of lack of repentance from idolatry, all of which ends in final judgment. As in Leviticus and throughout Revelation, the number of seven judgments is figurative for many severe judgments and does not refer to a mere actual seven woes.
The seven angels are clothed in linen, clean and bright, and girded around their breasts with golden girdles. This description is almost identical to that of the Son of man in 1:13, which may imply that they are identified with Him in order to act as His representatives in carrying out judgment.
The beast was said in 13:3, 12 to have received a “fatal wound (literally ‘plague’),” which was inflicted by Christ’s death and resurrection. The bowl punishments reveal the decisive effects set in motion by Christ’s defeat of the beast, which will culminate with final judgment on him and his followers.
7 Next in the vision one of the four living creatures (cf. 4:6) gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. Bowls in the OT were used in conjunction with the priestly service in the tabernacle or temple. Some directly connected with the service of the temple are referred to as “golden bowls” (1 Chron. 28:17; 2 Chron. 4:8, 22). Now angelic priests minister with the bowls at the heavenly altar of the tabernacle of testimony. Though the altar is not mentioned it is implied, as is clear from 16:7, where the altar is explicitly associated with the bowl judgments. This connection with the altar shows that the bowl punishments are God’s answer to the saints’ prayers for vindication (see on 8:3-5). This connection is confirmed by the verbal similarity between the golden bowls full of the wrath of God and the “golden bowls full of incense” representing the saints’ prayers in 5:8. The image of “bowls” is also derived in part from Isa. 51:17, 22. Isaiah spoke of the “bowl of the cup of reeling; the chalice of My anger,” drunk first by Jerusalem but soon to be poured out on Israel’s tormentors, that is, Babylon (Isa. 51:22; cf. vv. 17-23). Now the same cup will be given to spiritual Babylon, as 16:19 reveals. The bowls here symbolize the wrath of God which comes to punish sinful people.
8 The concluding statement of ch. 15 underscores the fact that the bowl afflictions do not come ultimately from the seven angels, nor from the four living beings, but only from God. The temple is filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power (as in Exod. 40:34-35; 1 Kgs. 8:10-11; 2 Chron. 5:13-14; Isa. 6:4). The vision appears to allude to Ezek. 10:2-4, also an introduction to an announcement of judgment, where an angelic being clothed in linen stands close to the four cherubim in the heavenly temple, which is filled with the cloud of God’s glory. Ezekiel 10 is probably combined here with Isa. 6:1, 4, which has the same theophanic language and also presents a scene of heavenly beings standing in the heavenly temple introducing an announcement of judgment. Both scenes have affinities with Ezek. 43:5 and 44:4. Isa. 6:4 is the only verse in the OT which speaks of smoke filling the temple (other texts use “glory” or “cloud”), and Isa. 6:1 and 6:4 are the only verses which use “temple” in connection with the filling.
God’s presence is so awesome in expressing wrath that not even heavenly beings (the angels and four living creatures were outside the temple, according to vv. 6-7) can stand in His midst: no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished. The unapproachability of God in both the OT and Revelation texts could be due to the awfulness of His revealed presence. The priestly nature of the seven angels is suggested, not only by their attire (see on 1:13; 15:6), but also because 1 Kgs. 8:10-11 and 2 Chron. 5:13-14 mention priests who cannot stand in the midst of the divine glory. No one, not even heavenly intercessory priests, is able to hold back the hand of God when He decides to execute judgments (cf. Dan. 4:35).
On the mysterious efficacy of prayer. These verses reveal the connection between the “golden bowls of incense” (5:8; cf. 8:3-5), representing the prayers of the saints (verbalized in 6:10 as a cry for God’s justice), and the “golden bowls full of the wrath of God,” representing God’s answer to those prayers. The smoke of the incense (8:4) going up before God is met, as it were, by the smoke of God’s glory (15:8) coming down from His presence. So much happens between the offering up of the prayers and the answer — much suffering, much persecution, much apparent delay in respite and relief. Yet the certain fact presented here is that God will answer. Often many years pass between the offering of a prayer and its answer. This too involves the faith and perseverance of the saints (14:12) and requires wisdom from God (13:18). How important it is as we pray to ask God for His perspective, not to mention His patience, in order that we keep on praying and never get discouraged, at all times remembering Jesus’ instruction that we “ought to pray and not to lose heart” (Luke 18:1).
15:1, 5-8 have introduced the seven bowl plagues. Ch. 16 explains the contents of each of these woes. Many commentators argue that the trumpets are different judgments than the bowls because the first four trumpets appear to affect only nature, whereas the first four bowls affect wicked people, and because the first six trumpets are said to be partial in their effect, whereas the bowls seem to have universal effect. But the similarities overshadow the differences. Part of the answer is that what the trumpets state in a highly figurative manner is stated more directly in the bowls. Furthermore, the second and third trumpets are said explicitly to affect humanity (8:9-11), whereas the second bowl does not say this in such a direct manner. The difference in the relative extent of their effect may merely suggest that the trumpets are part of a larger process of judgment which, according to the bowls, strikes the entire world at the same time.
Both trumpets and bowls present each of the plagues in the same order: plagues striking the earth, the sea, rivers, the sun, the realm of the wicked with darkness, the Euphrates (together with influencing the wicked by demons), and the world with the final judgment (with the same imagery of lightning, sounds, thunders, earthquake, and hail). The overwhelming likeness of the trumpets and bowls is a result of both being modeled on the Exodus plagues. Each woe in each sevenfold series (except for the sixth trumpet) is an allusion to an Exodus plague. Further, in each series seven angels execute the seven plagues. These observations point to the probability that the trumpet and bowl series refer to the same series of events. The parallelism of the two series can be set out as follows (adapted from G. R. Beasley-Murray, The Book of Revelation [New Century; rev. ed., Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978], 238-39):
The exact manner in which each parallel trumpet and bowl are related must await analysis. The bowls go back in time and explain in greater detail the woes throughout the age which culminate in the final judgment. The phrase “seven plagues, which are the last” in 15:1 was seen to refer, not to trials occurring after the seals and trumpets at the very end of history, but to the bowls coming last after the seals and trumpets in the sequence of formal sevenfold visions seen by the seer. They are “last” in that they complete the thought revealed in the preceding woe visions and portray the wrath of God in a more intense manner than in the previous visions (see further on 15:1). This means that the bowl judgments do not come chronologically after the series of judgments in chs. 6–14. The bowls go back in time and explain in greater detail the woes throughout the age and culminating in the final judgment.
The purpose of this recapitulation is to explain further the extent and application of God’s latter-day exodus judgments, which began to be explained with the trumpets. The trumpet visions may be compared to incomplete snapshots and the bowls to fuller photographs. The bowls reveal more clearly that the trumpets are predominantly plagues directed against unbelieving humanity. As the Exodus plagues are both a literary and theological model for the bowls, the bowl plagues are better viewed as judgments instead of mere warnings. They demonstrate God’s uniqueness and incomparable omnipotence, as well as His righteous judgment (16:5-6). These plagues reveal unbelievers’ hardness of heart and the fact that they are punished because of such hardness, which is expressed by their idolatry (16:2), persistent non-repentance (16:9, 11), and persecution of the saints (16:6). Also, like the trumpets, the bowls are God’s further answer to the saints’ plea in 6:9-11 that their persecutors be judged. Such a link is apparent in 16:5-7 by reference to the altar and to God as “holy” and His judgments as “true.” This connection with 6:9-11 also explains why the bowls are not merely warnings but ultimately punishments and are called “bowls of wrath” (16:1; cf. reference to God’s wrath in 15:1). The Exodus plagues are applied typologically to the ungodly throughout the inter-advent period in the first five bowls, and to the wicked at the conclusion of history in the last two bowls. The result and goal of all seven bowl judgments is not only to demonstrate God’s incomparability and the just judgment of sinners, but ultimately the glory of God (so 15:8; 16:9; cf. 11:13, 15-16; 15:4; 19:1-7). The number seven is figurative and refers not to a mere seven specific woes, but to the completeness and severity of these judgments upon the wicked.
The former chapters envision the rise of the dragon (ch. 12), followed by that of the beast (13:1-10) and the false prophet (or second beast, 13:11-18), and finally Babylon’s success in deceiving the nations is noted (14:8). Ch. 16 begins a segment which reverses this order in explaining the demise of these evil protagonists: Babylon (alluded to briefly in 14:8, but expanded on in 16:17-21 and chs. 17–18), followed by the beast and the false prophet (19:17-20), and finally by the dragon himself (20:10). This reversal points further to a lack of concern for chronological sequence in the book. The elimination of the four foes in fact occurs simultaneously, as is evident from the same wording and same OT allusions being utilized in the descriptions of their defeat (note the references to their being “gathered together for war” in 16:14; 19:19; 20:8).
1And I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God into the earth.”
1 A loud voice commands the seven angels to go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God into the earth. That God is the speaker in v. 1 is confirmed by the fact that God has just been mentioned as being in His heavenly temple (15:5-8), and by the allusion to Isa. 66:6: “a voice from the temple, the voice of the Lord who is rendering recompense to His enemies.” The phrase “pour out God’s wrath” in the OT is used to indicate judgment against either covenant breakers or those who have persecuted God’s people (Ezek. 14:19; Jer. 10:25; similarly Ps. 69:24; Zeph. 3:8). Sometimes the formula includes fire as the figurative destructive effect of the pouring, which enforces a figurative interpretation of the bowls (e.g., Jer. 7:20; Lam. 2:4; 4:11; Ezek. 22:21-22; 30:15-16; Zeph. 3:8). The pouring out of a bowl by each angel is certainly not literal, but is rather a metaphorical representation of the execution of a divine judgment from heaven. Further study of each bowl plague will confirm a symbolic understanding.
2And the first angel went and poured out his bowl into the earth; and it became a loathsome and malignant sore upon the men who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image. 3And the second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man; and every living thing in the sea died. 4And the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters; and they became blood. 5And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “Righteous art Thou, who art and who wast, O Holy One, because Thou didst judge these things; 6for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and Thou hast given them blood to drink. They deserve it.” 7And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Thy judgments.” 8And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun; and it was given to it to scorch men with fire. 9And men were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues; and they did not repent, so as to give Him glory. 10And the fifth angel poured out his bowl upon the throne of the beast; and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, 11and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.
2 The first angel sets in motion his judgment, which comes to punish people because of their idol worship (those who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image). Just as the pouring out of the bowls and the mark of the beast are figurative, so also is the reference to a loathsome and malignant sore. The description of the first bowl’s effect is based on the literal Egyptian plague of boils (Exod. 9:9-11), which is referred to in Deut. 28:35 as “sore boils.” The punishment matches the crime: those who receive an idolatrous mark will be chastised by being given a penal mark. The sore here represents some form of suffering presumably like that entailed by the spiritual and psychological “torment” of the fifth trumpet (see on 9:4-6, 10).
3 The second bowl has striking parallelism with the second trumpet. The second trumpet strikes the sea and “a third of the sea became blood; and a third of the creatures, which were in the sea and had life, died” (8:8-9). Likewise, the second bowl strikes the sea and it became blood like that of a dead man; and every living thing in the sea died. Both are based on Exod. 7:17-21, where Moses turned the Nile into blood and the fish in it died. The primary difference is that the former trumpet has partial effect and the latter corresponding bowl has total effect. The second bowl shows that what can be applied partially in the trumpets can also be applied universally at times throughout the inter-advent age. The world-kingdom of Babylon is the object of the second trumpet’s woe (see on 8:8-9), and the bowls generally are linked to the judgment of Babylon. This is implied from the fact that the bowls end with Babylon drinking the cup of God’s wrath (16:19; also mentioned in 14:8, 10), as well as the fact that the bowls are said to be “full of the wrath of God” (15:7) and are described as “bowls of the wrath of God” (16:1).
As with the second trumpet, the similar imagery of the second bowl may indicate famine conditions, which is inextricably linked to economic deprivation. The economic implications of the judgment are also to be seen in the light of ch. 18. In fact, the “mark of the beast,” which has just been mentioned in 16:2, first appeared in 13:16-17, where it had an essentially economic connotation. The second bowl is either a symbolic parallel with or an anticipation of the dissolution of “Babylon the great” as the source of prosperous maritime commerce in ch. 18. As a result, all those who make their living on the “sea” become impoverished (18:17, 19). The phrase translated every living thing in the sea died can be translated “every living soul in the sea died” and is similar to the second trumpet’s woe of (literally) “the dying of the creatures which were in the sea which had life [literally ‘souls’]” (8:9). The point of the description there was to highlight maritime disaster and famine conditions in general, in which sea life dies and humans also die and suffer. The death of sea life and humans appears to be the point here as well (every use of “soul” [Greek psychē] except 8:9 [!] refers exclusively to people: 6:9; 12:11 [“life”]; 18:13 [“lives”], 14 [“desire of your soul”]; 20:4). Babylon’s demise is referred to as “plagues” which result in “pestilence, mourning, and famine.” Therefore, the sea being turned to blood in 16:3 is figurative, at least in part, for the demise of the ungodly world’s economic life-support system, as represented by maritime commerce, which includes human suffering and loss of life. That blood here (and in the second trumpet, 8:8) probably includes not only the harm of sea life but also the suffering of the ungodly is evident from the immediate context (e.g., vv. 2, 8-11) and from the use of “blood” (Greek haima) elsewhere in Revelation without exception for the suffering of the wicked or of Christ and the saints (for the former see 11:6; 14:20; 19:13; cf. 6:12; 8:7-8; for the latter see 1:5; 5:9; 6:10; 12:11; 17:6; 18:24; 19:2). Thus, to summarize this analysis, death need not be taken literally here but could just as well suggest scarcity of sea life and of humans who work the sea, which leads to failure of economies and the suffering caused by it.
The “sea” (Greek thalassa) of blood as figurative for the economic life-support system of ungodly humanity is not inconsistent with the other uses of the word in the book (twenty-four times), which are susceptible to such a symbolic interpretation (except for 18:17, 19, 21), and the “many waters” of 17:1 are a picture of unbelievers throughout the earth (17:15). Furthermore, Satan’s standing “on the sand of the seashore” in 13:1 may refer to his sovereignty over the wicked nations, since in 20:8 ungodly nations are compared to “the sand of the seashore.” The sea from which the beast of 13:1 emerges represents the mass of nations; for the generally negative connotation of “sea” in Revelation see also on 4:6; 13:1; 15:2; 21:1.
4 The third bowl is similar to the third trumpet (8:10-11), again with the distinction between partial and universal effect (a third of the rivers and spring as opposed to the waters and the springs of waters) that we saw with the second bowl and trumpet (though, in fact, the waters are mentioned only generally and not explicitly said to be “all the waters,” so that possibly only a part could be in mind). Both the third trumpet and bowl are based on the same Exodus plague and picture water being turned into blood (see on v. 3). In both bowls, the blood is figurative, standing not only for death but for suffering in general, which may lead to literal death, though we shall see that there is a more specific focus on a particular kind of suffering. Therefore, the third bowl, like the second, is also either a figurative parallel with or an anticipation of the portrayal of the destruction of “Babylon the great” as the basis of prosperous maritime commerce in ch. 18. And just as the unbelievers constituting spiritual Babylon were the object of the third trumpet’s woe (see on 8:10-11), so likewise those who persecute the saints suffer from the bowl judgment (16:6). As a result, all those who make their living on the basis of sea commerce and fishing become destitute (18:10-19). Babylon’s demise is referred to as “plagues” which result in “pestilence and mourning and famine” (18:8). This again points to an economic interpretation of the nature of the saints’ suffering in 16:6, and of the suffering of the ungodly envisioned in this bowl. This is supported by the verbatim parallel between 16:6 and 18:24, which says that the ungodly world is to be judged (16:6; 18:20) because it “poured out the blood of saints and prophets” (though the wording is reversed in 18:24). Since the judgment on Babylon and her dependents in 18:8-19 clearly is partly expressed in economic terms, this parallel between 16:6 and 18:24 indicates that the cause of this aspect of economic judgment is persecution by unbelievers.
5 The phrase angel of the waters refers to the angel’s sovereignty over the waters. The angel’s declaration in vv. 5-6 provides an interpretative elaboration of the third bowl. He declares that God is righteous because Thou didst judge these things. The angel attributes to God the threefold name found already in 1:4, 8; 4:8; 11:17, but the third part of the formula substitutes the Holy One for the earlier end-time title “the One who is to come.” The reason for the substitution is that Holy One designates God’s sovereign uniqueness in beginning to execute end-time judgment (because thou didst judge these things) in His role as “the One who is to come.” The end times or latter days, as we have seen repeatedly, have been inaugurated with Christ’s death and resurrection. The context of the third bowl, however, shows it is not describing the final act of judgment, but the trials which lead up to it. The OT use of the formula especially focused on God’s ability to deliver His people despite the overwhelming odds of antagonistic world kingdoms (see on 1:4, 8). The formula is used likewise in connection with the third bowl, since it is a judgment which vindicates not only God’s name but also His people, who have been judged guilty by the world system. Therefore, the use of the threefold formula here implies that the act of judgment envisioned is another demonstration of God’s sovereignty over history. The combined use here of Holy One and the verb judge reflects the same twofold description of God in 6:10, the appeal to God by persecuted saints that He will vindicate Himself and them by judging their persecutors. Therefore, the woe of the third bowl is part of God’s answer to the saints’ plea in ch. 6.
6 The introductory word for further elucidates the basis for the declaration of God’s character in v. 5. It is based on His judgment of persecutors according to the OT principle that the punishment should fit the crime: for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and Thou hast given them blood to drink. They deserve it. The use of poured out for both the pouring out of blood by the wicked here and the pouring out of wrath against the wicked by angels (as in v. 4) highlights that same principle. The judgment of blood in v. 6 is the same as the woe of waters turning to blood in v. 4, especially since vv. 5-6 are an interpretative expansion of v. 4. Both occurrences of blood here represent not mere literal death but various degrees of suffering (see further on 6:9-10; 12:11).
This figurative interpretation is supported by Isa. 49:26, which probably stands behind the wording here: “And I will feed your oppressors with their own flesh, and they will become drunk with their own blood … and all flesh will know that I, the Lord, am your Savior.” Those who have oppressed Israel will be dealt with in the manner that Israel has been treated, which includes various forms of suffering up to and including death. This eye-for-eye punishment is indicated by Isa 49:25, “I will contend with the one who contends with you.” Drinking blood is thus not a limited reference to death, but to all kinds of suffering, including death. The precise reason people suffer under the judgment of the third bowl is that they have caused God’s people to suffer. This is apparent not only from the Isaiah text but also from Ps. 79:3, 10, 12, which is echoed here (see on 16:1): “They have poured out their (Israel’s) blood like water…. Let there be known among the nations in our sight, vengeance for the blood of Thy servants, which has been shed…. And return to our neighbors sevenfold into their bosom the reproach with which they have reproached Thee, O Lord.”
That Babylon’s punishment is linked with the judgment described here in v. 6 is apparent from the similar imagery of blood in 17:6; 18:24; and 19:2, which is part of the description of her judgment. In the same way that God (4:11), the Lamb (5:9, 12) and His followers (3:4) are “worthy” to receive blessing, the persecutors are “worthy” and deserving of being cursed.
7 Another declaration by a different angel or by Christ comes forth from the altar. The mention of the altar together with the declaration true and righteous are Thy judgments adds to the link to 6:9-10 observed in v. 5. The voice may represent the souls of the martyrs John heard crying out for justice in those verses. In the OT and elsewhere in Revelation, the name Lord God, the Almighty alludes to God’s absolute sovereignty over the historical affairs of His people (see further 1:8 and 15:3). Just as the God of the exodus generation was praised as One whose “work is perfect” and “all His ways are just” (Deut. 32:4), so likewise is He acknowledged again in connection with the latter-day plagues. In fact, the identical phrase (Lord God, the Almighty) has occurred already in 15:3, where it refers to God’s judgment and redemption as a part of the grand exodus at the consummation of the ages.
8 The fourth angel pours his bowl on the sun, causing it to scorch men with fire. God’s sovereignty over the plague is expressed by the phrase was given, and is explicitly indicated in v. 9: “God who has the power over these plagues.” It is important to recall that since the language describing the commencement of each bowl judgment is figurative (he poured out his bowl upon), the resulting effect of each judgment is likewise figurative (see on v. 1). Therefore, the burning of people with fire in v. 8 is also likely not literal. The pouring out of God’s wrath in the OT is often figuratively expressed as accompanied by fire: “My anger and my wrath will be poured out on this place, on man and on beast … and it will burn and not be quenched” (Jer. 7:20); “I shall gather you and blow on you with the fire of my wrath, and you will be melted in the midst of it … and you will know that I, the Lord, have poured out my wrath on you” (Ezek. 22:21-22). The fourth bowl speaks figuratively, in line with OT language, of God’s judgment on those who blaspheme Him (v. 8), and it cannot be assumed that literal fire is a component of this judgment. The figurative view is supported further by patterns of similar imagery in the OT and Judaism, in which interruption of the regular patterns of the heavenly light sources predominantly symbolizes covenantal judgment. The symbolism of cosmic alteration indicates that people are to be judged because they have altered God’s moral laws, usually through idolatry (for references and discussion, see on 8:12).
9 The concluding effect of the fourth bowl, that the sun will scorch people with fire, is repeated in the first part of the verse. The repetition emphasizes that men were scorched with fierce heat. They will thus be repaid in like manner for what they have done to the redeemed, for, according to 7:16, the deceased saints will be delivered from their previous condition: “neither shall the sun beat down on them, nor any heat.” That imagery is combined with language referring to economic suffering, as is also the case in Isa. 49:10, to which Rev. 7:16 alludes (“They will not hunger or thirst; neither will the scorching heat or sun strike them down”). Deut. 32:24 explains that part of the curse for covenantal disobedience is that people will be “consumed by burning heat,” and this is directly linked in that verse to the woe of being “wasted by famine,” which has economic connotations. This punishment of the fourth bowl, occurring prior to the return of Christ, anticipates the final judgment of Babylon, which also will be burned by fire (cf. v. 8, “scorch with fire,” with 17:16 and 18:8, “burn up with fire”).
This bowl plague brings about only blasphemy and non-repentance, much like the results of the sixth trumpet. The similarity suggests that the burning of 16:8-9 is a suffering like the three plagues of “fire and smoke and brimstone” in 9:17-18. Both there and here the plague of fire is a figurative woe comparable to the fire that the two witnesses unleash against their unbelieving opponents during the church age (11:5-7). There, the fire is a form of spiritual judgment against persecutors, which also lays the basis for their future, final punishment (see on 9:17-18; 11:5-7). The blaspheming is a defiant slandering or defaming of the name of the true God. God’s “name” represents His attributes and character. Therefore, the reprobates utter lies about God’s character as a vengeful response to the punishments which they experience under His hand. The blasphemy shows they have become like the false, beastly god which they worship, since elsewhere outside ch. 16 “blaspheming” is attributed only to the beast (13:1, 5, 6; 17:3). The beast likewise begins to engage in blasphemy only after he has been struck by a divine “plague,” that is, his apparently fatal wound (13:3-8). The focus of the people’s blasphemy probably includes a denial that their afflictions are sovereign punishments from God. Their blasphemy would presumably also entail a denial that God really and ultimately has the power over these plagues. The plural “plagues” suggests that recipients of the woe of the fourth bowl also suffer under the trials unleashed by the preceding and following bowls. They did not repent, so as to give Him glory, thus becoming immovable in their refusal to acknowledge God’s glorious character.
10 The contents of the fifth bowl are poured out … upon the throne of the beast. The throne represents the beast’s sovereignty over his realm. Therefore, the bowl affects his ability to rule. The result of the judgment is that his kingdom became darkened. Like the fourth trumpet, this woe is also based on Exod. 10:21-29, where God brought darkness over Egypt (see on 8:12). The Egyptian plague was partly a polemic against the sun god Ra, of whom Pharaoh was believed to be an incarnation. The plague came against Pharaoh because of his disobedience to God’s command, as well as oppression of Israel and allegiance to Egypt’s idolatrous system.
The phrase throne of the beast is to be identified with “Satan’s throne” in 2:13. There the throne refers to Pergamum as a center of Roman government and of the imperial cult, which was ultimately under Satanic control. Consequently, the similar woe in Revelation 16 is appropriately directed against world rulers who oppress the saints and foster idolatry (see on 13:1-7). This could include internal rebellion against rulers and their allies or removal of political and religious power from the state.
Exod. 10:23 explains that the darkness was so dense that the Egyptians were visually separated from one another (“they did not see one another”). Early Jewish interpreters thought, probably correctly, that the darkness of this Egyptian plague symbolized spiritual separation from the true God (Wisd. 17:2 says they were “exiled from the eternal providence”), and pictured the eternal darkness of hell which awaited them (Wisd. 17:21; likewise Midrash Rabbah Exod. 14.2 on Exod. 10:22). The darkness caused horror and fear (Wisdom 17–18). The height of their spiritual anguish was that the Egyptians’ contemplation of their own wretchedness became “more burdensome than the darkness” itself (Wisd. 17:21).
Isa. 8:21-22 says that a severe famine will come on sinful Israel. The famine is linked with “darkness so that they could not see” (LXX), as well as with “distress and darkness, the gloom of anguish.” Their response to the famine is to be “enraged and curse their king and their God as they face upward.” Likewise in Jeremiah 13, Israel is commanded to “give glory to the Lord” (which they will not do, as in Rev. 16:9) before God “brings darkness and … makes it into deep darkness, and turns it into gloom” (v. 16). The darkness is interpreted as the coming captivity of the nation (vv. 19-20) which will cause “pangs” (v. 21). The darkness strikes even the kings that sit on the throne (cf. v. 13 with v. 16). This punishment comes because of idolatry (vv. 10, 13).
The darkness in Rev. 16:10 has the same general figurative significance as in the Exodus, Isaiah, and Jeremiah passages. It is metaphorical for all ordained events designed to remind the ungodly that their persecution and idolatry are in vain, and it indicates their separation from God. As with the Egyptians, this darkness induces anguish, figuratively expressed by the phrase they gnawed their tongues because of pain. God causes all who follow the beast to have times of anguish and horror when they realize that they are in spiritual darkness, that they are separated from God and that eternal darkness awaits them. The temporal judgment in v. 10 is a precursor of the final judgment, when unbelievers will be “cast into the outer darkness,” where “there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth” (Matt. 8:12; cf. Matt. 22:13; 25:30).
11 The suffering of v. 10 does not soften the subjects of the beast but, like Pharaoh and his subjects (cf. Exod. 10:1-2), hardens them further in their antagonism to God: and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds. The lack of repentance here and throughout ch. 16 (vv. 9, 11, 21) is irremediable, according to the theological pattern of the hardening of Pharaoh. Though a remnant of Egyptians did repent and came out of Egypt with Israel, the vast majority refused to trust in Israel’s God. The remnant from the world who repent do so only because they have been sealed by God (7:1-4; 14:1-2). The rest do not believe because they have not been so sealed but can only give allegiance to the beast, whose mark they gladly receive (13:8, 16-17). Their sinful deeds include murder, sorcery, and immorality, which is implied by the exact parallel of this verse with 9:20 (“they did not repent of the works of their hands”), which is then followed by the list of those vices in 9:21. The mention of sores points back to the first bowl plague and suggests that the sufferers of the fifth bowl also sustain injury from the previous bowls and vice-versa (for the same idea see on v. 9).
The sinful deeds from which they did not repent include murder and thievery, as well as idol worship, sorcery, and immorality. These vices are implied by the verbatim parallel of 16:11 with 9:20, the latter of which is followed by the above vice list:
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Rev. 16:11 |
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They “did not repent of the works of their hands.” |
“They did not repent of their deeds.” |
On the bowl plagues as expressing the judgment of God. In the bowl plagues of vv. 1-11 the parallel to the plagues of Egypt come most clearly into focus, climaxing in v. 11 in the response of blasphemy rather than repentance. The commentary draws the conclusion that judgment, rather than warning, is at the heart of these plagues. Part of the reason for this conclusion is the analogy to the hardening of the heart of Pharaoh and the Egyptians, whom the plagues drove further from God rather than being an occasion for repentance, though a remnant did repent and came out of Egypt with the Israelites. How in this process are the mercy, the justice, and the judgment of God illustrated?
On God’s judgment of the world’s economic system. These plagues make clear how God carries out His judgment against the economic system of the world, which the enemy and his agents have used to deceive unbelievers and lure them away from worship of the true God. Collapse of the economic system eventually plunges the kingdom of the beast into darkness (v. 10). How careful are we as Christians to avoid dependence on this system or compromise with it? How closely and regularly do we examine the values governing our attitude toward money and material success? Do we depend on some aspect of the world and its physical security, which God intends to remove at the end of history? How can this become an idolatrous focus of which we may not even be conscious?
On blasphemy as blaming God. How often do we place blame on God for things that go wrong in our lives? This may take the form of suppressed bitterness rather than outright declaration, but it can nonetheless be present in our hearts. The commentary suggests that in the experience of unbelievers, the response to suffering, even suffering caused by their own sin and rebellion against God, is to blame God. Yet how often do we blame God (or others) for the consequences of our own sin? Do we realize that when we do so, we are actually perilously close to blaspheming God, insofar as blasphemy is a failure to honor God for who He truly is and for His mercy in sparing us from the judgment, punishment, and true suffering we in fact deserve?
12And the sixth angel poured out his bowl upon the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, that the way might be prepared for the kings from the east. 13And 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 frogs; 14for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. 15(“Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his garments, lest he walk about naked and men see his shame.”) 16And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon. 17And the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air; and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done.” 18And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. 19And the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath. 20And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men; and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague was extremely severe.
12 The woe of the sixth bowl (And the sixth angel poured out his bowl upon the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up) is depicted according to the description of God’s judgment of Babylon and Israel’s restoration, which itself was patterned after the drying up of the Red Sea at the exodus (cf. Exod. 14:21-22 with Isa. 11:15; 44:27; 50:2; 51:10). The OT prophesied that this judgment would include the drying up of the Euphrates River (Isa. 11:15; 44:27-28; Jer. 50:38; 51:36; cf. Zech. 10:11). The prophecy was fulfilled fairly literally by Cyrus, who diverted the waters of the Euphrates (Isa. 44:27-28). This allowed his army to cross the now shallow waters of the river, enter the city unexpectedly, and defeat the Babylonians. God executed judgment against Babylon by raising up Cyrus, who was to come “from the east” (Isa. 41:2; 46:11), or “from the rising of the sun” (41:25). Jer. 50:41 and 51:11, 28 refer to “kings” whom God was preparing to bring against Babylon. The victory by Cyrus led to Israel’s release from captivity (Isa. 44:26-28; 45:13). In the OT, God is always the One who dries up the water, whether for redemption or judgment.
John understands this pattern typologically and universalizes it. As noted at Rev. 14:8, the symbolic interpretation of Babylon as representing the world system is assured beyond much reasonable doubt by the prophecies of God’s judgment on historical Babylon, which foretold that Babylon will be desolate forever and never again be inhabited (Jer. 50:39-40; 51:24-26, 62-64; so also Isa. 13:19-22). As at the exodus and especially at the fall of historical Babylon, the drying up of the Euphrates in Revelation 16 marks the prelude to the destruction of latter-day Babylon. This cannot be a literal geographical reference to the Euphrates River in modern Iraq, but must be figurative and universal. This is indicated by 17:1, where the Babylonian harlot “sits on many waters,” which is another way of referring to the Euphrates and its water (16:12). The “many waters” of 17:1 are figuratively interpreted as “peoples and multitudes … and nations and tongues” in 17:15. Rev. 17:15-18 is a specific amplification of v. 12, since ch. 17 is an expansion of the sixth and seventh bowl judgments directed against Babylon (so 17:1, where one of the bowl angels introduces the judgment). A symbolic interpretation of the Euphrates River is suggested also by the figurative use of “sea,” “river,” or “water” elsewhere in the book when in conjunction with the dragon, the beast, or their followers (see on 12:15, 16; 13:1; 15:2; 17:1, 15). Therefore, the drying up of the Euphrates’ waters is a picture of how the multitudes of Babylon’s religious adherents throughout the world become disloyal to it. This is explained further in 17:16-17 (on which see).
Not only is there a figurative universalization of Babylon and the Euphrates River, but also of Cyrus and his allies: the kings from the east are interpretatively escalated into “the kings of the whole world” (16:14; cf. 17:18). The same phenomenon appears in 20:8. There the traditional northern enemies, Gog and Magog, which are also gathered together for the war (compare 16:14 and 19:19 with 20:8), are explained to be the nations which are “in the four corners of the earth.” The common point between the OT forerunners and the latter-day fulfillment is that in each case it is God who dries the waters up; in each case a force, either good (Cyrus) or evil (Pharaoh or the kings of the east), crosses through; and in each case a battle ensues, in which God’s people are delivered. The idea here is that God, as He did in the days of Cyrus, will dry up the waters of the river protecting and nurturing Babylon to allow for the kings of the earth, under immediate demonic influence but ultimately under God’s sovereign control, to gather together in order for Babylon to be defeated and for His eternal kingdom and the reign of His saints to be established.
13 V. 12 is a summary statement of the sixth bowl, which shows that the judgment is commenced from heaven by angelic activity. Vv. 13-16 spell out the specific details of the bowl by explaining the secondary earthly agents who execute the woe and then asserting the purpose of the woe. The pouring out of the bowl sets in motion actions by the three great opponents of the saints and leaders of the forces of evil: 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 frogs. This is the first time that the phrase false prophet occurs in the book. It summarizes the deceptive role of the second beast of ch. 13, whose purpose is to deceive people so that they will worship the first beast. Elsewhere in the NT, the false prophets without exception speak falsehood within the context of the covenant community of Israel or the church in order to deceive (Matt. 7:15; 24:11, 24; Mark 13:22; Luke 6:26; Acts 13:6; 2 Pet. 2:1; 1 John 4:1). This points further to the conclusion in 13:11-17 that the second beast’s activity is conducted not only outside but also within the churches, which is confirmed further here by vv. 14-16 (especially the exhortation to saints not to compromise in v. 15).
The description of the spirits as unclean suggests their spiritually deceptive nature. The same word is used to describe the deceptive and ungodly activities of Babylon in 17:4 and 16:2, where her uncleanness is associated with her “immorality” (Greek porneia). For the association of “immorality” with idolatry see on 2:14. The deceptive nature of the spirits is pointed to by the linking of the “unclean things of her [Babylon’s] immorality” in 17:4 and Babylon’s immoral uncleanness in 18:2-3 with Babylon’s powers of ungodly deception here in vv. 13-14. In this respect, note the wording of 18:2 (Babylon is “a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit”) in relation to the reference in vv. 13-14 to “unclean spirits like frogs … they are spirits of demons.” These Babylonian spirits in vv. 13-14 deceive people about idol worship. See further on 14:8 for the link between Babylon’s immorality and deception.
That unclean spirits refer to demonic beings is evident from observing that the same phrase has this meaning elsewhere in the NT (so about twenty times in the Gospels and Acts), and this is made explicit in v. 14. The only other places in biblical literature where the word “frog” appears are Exod. 8:2-13 and Pss. 78:45; 105:30, all of which describe the Exodus plague. The frogs appeared harmless, yet they “destroyed” the Egyptians (Ps. 78:45). Now they appear as wise counselors, but are spiritually corrupt. The depiction of frogs here as unclean is consistent with Lev. 11:9-12, 41-47, where frogs are counted among the “unclean” animals from which one needs cleansing. It may be that frogs are chosen to represent deceptive spirits partly because of their characteristic croaking, which is loud but meaningless. Here, in connection with the mouths of the three agents of evil, the frogs and their croaking represent the confusion brought about by deception (as suggested by Jewish commentators in interpreting the Exodus plague of frogs: e.g., Philo, On Dreams 2.259-60; On the Sacrifices of Abel and Cain 69). Perhaps frogs are chosen as pictures of deceptive influence because they were one of the two Egyptian plagues which Pharaoh’s magicians were able to reproduce through their deceptive arts (Exod. 8:7). Here also the frogs perform signs (v. 14), ultimately under the hand of God. Divine superintendence is clear from the model of the Exodus plagues; cf. also the background of Zechariah 12–14 in relation to God’s sovereign gathering together of the nations for war (and see on v. 14b below). The historical plague of frogs now is applied symbolically to deceptive spirits. The allusion is one of the clearest examples in the book of a literal Exodus plague which is reapplied symbolically to a new situation and spiritualized!
14a For they are spirits of demons introduces an explanation of the unclean spirits and frogs of the previous verse. The frog plague in Egypt was partly a polemic against the goddess Heqt, who was the goddess of resurrection and was symbolized by a frog. The deceptive activity is appropriately portrayed as frog-like, since the evil triumvirate were attempting to deceive people about the purported fact of the beast’s resurrection (see on 13:1-5). The rationale for demonizing the frogs from Exodus is based in part on the biblical evaluation that behind false gods and idols were demons (see on 9:20).
14b These demons are performing signs, which identifies them further with the work of the deceptive agents of ch. 13, especially with the activity of the second beast or false prophet, whose work is described in 13:13 and 19:20: “he performs great signs” and “[he] who performed the signs … by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image.” These demons go out to the kings of the whole world. Likewise, in the Exodus plagues the frogs first affected the king (Exod. 8:3-4), and Ps. 105:30 says only that “kings” in Egypt were struck by the frogs. That these are kings of the whole world, and not merely from one region, is shown by use of the same and like phrases elsewhere in the book and Johannine literature (3:10; 12:9; cf. 13:3 and 1 John 2:2; 5:19). In fact, “the kings from the east” (v. 12) may be synonymous with the kings of the whole world. The universal application is also apparent from 13:14, where idolatrous earth-dwellers are deceived, and from 19:19-20, where the “kings of the earth” are likewise deceived. The kings represent political authorities of the ungodly world system. Indeed, the phrase “kings of the earth” is used with such an earthly political sense repeatedly elsewhere in the book: cf. 1:5 and 6:15, as well as 17:2, 18 and 18:3, 9, which refer to the kings’ allegiance to idolatrous Babylon.
The purpose of the deception is to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. The same phrase occurs in chs. 19 and 20, where it refers respectively to the beast and the dragon gathering kings together to fight against Christ at His final coming: “And I saw … the kings of the earth … gathered together to make war” (19:19); “[Satan] will come out to deceive the nations … to gather them together for the war” (20:8). Those texts and this one here refer to the confrontation between Christ and the forces of the beast at the very end of the age and are based on OT prophecy, especially from Zechariah 12–14 and possibly Zeph. 3:8-20, as well as Ezek. 38:2-9; 39:1-8, which foretold that God would gather the nations together in Israel for the final war of history. Particularly in mind behind the notion of gathering kings for battle are Zech. 14:2 (“I will gather all the nations against Jerusalem to battle”); 12:3-4 (“all the nations of the earth will be gathered together against it. ‘In that day,’ declares the Lord …”); and 14:13 (“and it will come about in that day that a great panic from the Lord will fall on them”). In Jewish literature, 4 Ezra 13:34-35 alludes to the picture of Zech. 14:2, as does 1 Enoch 56:5-8, in the context of the final battle of history of the nations against the Messiah. Strikingly, Zech. 13:2 (LXX) says that the activity of “false prophets and the unclean spirit” will be active in Israel contemporaneously with the gathering of the nations. The false prophets encourage idolatry (Zech. 13:2) and delude Israel about the truth (the Aramaic translation of Zech. 13:2 has “deceitful prophets and the unclean spirit”). Later Jewish interpreters also identified the “unclean spirit” of Zech. 13:2 as demonic (Midrash Rabbah Num. 19.8; Pesikta de Rab Kahana 4.7; Pesikta Rabbati 14.14).
All three parallel clauses in Rev. 16:14; 19:19; and 20:8 have the definite article, “the war,” because they are referring to the well-known “war of the end” prophesied in the OT. 20:7-10 shows this war to be part of the final attack of Satan’s forces against the saints. Therefore, it is the same war as in 11:7, since that battle is also one in which the beast attempts to annihilate the whole body of believers on earth (see on 11:7-10). In this light, the definite article may be an article of previous reference, not only (as noted above) to OT prophecy, but also back to the initial description of the last battle in 11:7 (which has no definite article before “war”). That the battle is called the war of the great day of God, the Almighty indicates that the battle is one in which God will decisively judge the unrighteous. This is the meaning of the phrase “the great day of the Lord” in Joel 2:11 and Zeph. 1:14 and of the eschatological prophecy of judgment in Joel 2:31 (also alluded to in Matt. 24:29; Mark 13:24; Acts 2:20). The nations are deceived into thinking that they are gathering to exterminate the saints, but in fact they are gathered together ultimately by God in order to meet their own judgment at the hands of Jesus (19:11-21).
15 A parenthetical exhortation is addressed to believers: Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his garments. The voice exhorts them to be ever vigilant for Christ’s final appearing, since He will come unexpectedly like a thief. In context, the exhortation appears abruptly and seems awkward, but upon closer study it has a similar function to the exhortations in 13:9 and 14:12: in the midst of suffering, the saints are to persevere. According to 20:8, the war is directed first against the saints, and the identical scenario is implicit in 16:14 (and in 19:19, in light of 17:14; 20:8; Zech. 14:2ff.; 4 Ezra 13:34-35; 1 Enoch 56:5-8; see on v. 14 above). A time will come when the beast will attempt to annihilate the entire community of faith (so 20:8-9 and 11:7). This onslaught on the “great day” of God and the Lamb (6:17) could occur at any hour, and believers must be prepared to hold firm in faith and not compromise when it does happen. The thief metaphor from the gospel tradition is used not to suggest any idea of burglary but only to convey the unexpected and sudden nature of Christ’s coming. In the context of ch. 16 and Revelation in general, staying awake and keeping one’s garments refers to being alert in not conceding to the idolatrous demands of beast worship (see on 3:4-5) in the face of the pressure of the final attack.
If a believer so cares for his garments, then he will not walk about naked and people will not see his shame. This develops the same imagery as 3:18, where uncovering the shame of the Laodiceans’ nakedness was a metaphor drawn from God’s accusations of Israel and other nations for participation in idolatry (so Ezek. 16:36; 23:29; Nah. 3:5; Isa. 20:4). Yahweh would figuratively lift up the skirts of idolaters (strip their cities bare through judgment) in order to show that they had committed fornication with false gods. John warns that such exposure due to lack of vigilance in the end-time war will identify compromising believers with the Babylonian harlot, who will be judged for her idolatry by being made “desolate and naked” (17:16). The garments symbolize a refusal to compromise with the world and are to be identified with the “fine linen … the righteous acts of the saints” (19:8-9), which are necessary for admission to the marriage supper of the Lamb, whereas nakedness, by contrast, signifies lack of righteousness.
16 After the parenthetical exhortation in v. 15, the thought of v. 14 is picked up again. The demonic spirits deceiving the kings gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon, where the war is to occur. The outcome of the war is found in 17:14; 19:14-21; and 20:7-10, where the forces of the dragon and beast are portrayed as destroyed by Christ and God. Har-Magedon, or Armageddon as it is usually called, like the place names “Babylon” and “Euphrates,” does not refer to a specific geographical locale, but has global application.
That Armageddon is not to be taken literally is shown by the fact that the plain of Megiddo is about a two days’ walk north of Jerusalem, whereas OT prophecy generally places the last battle in the immediate vicinity of Jerusalem and Mount Zion or its surrounding mountains (Joel 2:1, 32; Mic. 4:11-12; Zech. 12:3-4; 14:2, 13-14; Ezek. 38:8 and 39:2-8 speak of the “mountains of Israel” and 38:16 of the whole land of Israel as the battleground). Zech. 12:1-14 pictures the end-time attack by the nations against Jerusalem, in which the nations are destroyed but the righteous remnant receives the Spirit of grace, as they look on the One “whom they have pierced” (v. 10) and mourn for Him. Furthermore, John himself places the location directly outside Jerusalem in 14:20 and 20:8-9, though he typologically universalizes the OT references and speaks in spiritual rather than literal geographical terms. Also, if 20:8 is a parallel referring to the same event as 16:14, as argued above (see on v. 14), then 20:9 defines Armageddon as “the beloved city” of Jerusalem, and likely as Mount Zion, both of which in John’s terms refer to the worldwide church (see on 20:9). A figurative view of Armageddon is also apparent from the fact that there is no mention of a “mountain” of Megiddo in the OT or in Jewish literature. In OT times, the city of Megiddo would have sat on a “tell” or very small hill, whereas the normal meaning of the word har in Hebrew is a mountain.
Armageddon, literally in Hebrew the “mount of Megiddo,” may have been named as the site of the last battle because Israel’s battles in the plain of Megiddo became a prophetic or typological symbol of the last battle. First, the battle between Barak and Sisera took place at Megiddo (Judg. 5:19), as did the battle between Pharaoh Neco (on his way to the Euphrates!) and Josiah (2 Kgs. 23:29; 2 Chron. 35:22). Megiddo became proverbial in Judaism as the place where righteous Israelites were attacked by evil nations. In particular, the battle between Barak and Sisera served as a pattern for Israel’s defeat of a foe with overwhelmingly greater power (Judg. 4:3; 5:8). God said He would draw out the commander of the army, with his chariots and many troops, to the river Kishon (Judg. 4:7), where the kings came and fought at the waters of Megiddo (Judg. 5:19). In the same way God is ultimately the One drawing the enemy kings together to do battle at Megiddo (here in vv. 12-14, 16).
But the fact that there never was any mountain of Megiddo suggests a second possibility. Not far from Megiddo is Mount Carmel, and if the mountain of Megiddo is to be identified with Mount Carmel, there may well be a symbolic reference to the site of one of the OT’s greatest battles between the forces of good and evil (1 Kgs. 18:19-46), where Elijah (symbolic, along with Moses, of the church in Rev. 11:3-7) defeated the prophets of Baal. Mount Carmel thus becomes symbolically representative of the end-time church.
All of the above passages recording events occurring in the vicinity of Megiddo may stand behind the reference in Rev. 16:16, so that John’s reference to this place may ring with the following typological and prophetic associations: the defeat of kings who oppress God’s people (Judg. 5:19-21), the destruction of false prophets (1 Kgs. 18:40), the death of misled kings, which led to mourning (2 Kgs. 23:29; 2 Chron. 35:20-25), combined with the future expectation of a future final battle in which, in direct connection with the One “whom they have pierced” (Zech. 12:10), would occur destruction of “all the nations that come against Jerusalem” (Zech. 12:9) and mourning by all Israel’s tribes (Zech. 12:10-14). That Zech. 12:1-14 is perhaps uppermost in mind is apparent from observing that Zech. 12:11 is the only instance prior to Rev. 16:16 where the name Megiddo appears in an apocalyptic context concerning God’s end-time destruction of ungodly nations and the only OT text where the Hebrew spells Megiddo as megiddon (= English “magedon”).
17 The seventh bowl describes the final destruction of the corrupt world system, which follows on the heels of the battle of Armageddon: And the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air. The presence of hailstones in v. 21 suggests a link with the Exodus plague of hail (Exod. 9:22-35). The “sun and the air” were darkened by the smoke coming out of the pit at the sound of the fifth trumpet (Rev. 9:2), which seems to associate the “air” here with demonic activity. In Eph. 2:2, Satan is referred to as the “prince of the power of the air.” As in the fourth, fifth, and sixth bowls, the judgment here is also upon the unbelieving realm ruled over by the dragon and the beast. Note especially that in v. 10, the bowl is poured out “upon the throne of the beast; and his kingdom became darkened.”
The utterance and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne is that of either God or Christ, since it comes from the throne itself. The announcement “It is done” marks the historical realization of the purpose of the seven bowls stated in 15:1: “in them (the bowls) the wrath of God is finished.” The declaration is the converse (using the same Greek verb) of Christ’s accomplishment of redemption at the cross (“it is finished” in John 19:30). It is a part of the same event of final judgment of the wicked referred to in Rev. 21:3-6, where the same phrase, “a loud voice from the throne” (21:3), is followed by “it is done” (21:6). There the focus is on final punishment of the wicked and the destruction of the old cosmos (21:1, 8), as well as on the complete redemption of God’s people in a new creation (cf. 21:1-7, 9–22:5).
18 And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake is imagery of the last judgment. It is based in large part on Exod. 19:16-18, which describes the appearance of God on Mount Sinai (see also Ps. 77:18 and Isa. 29:6, the latter of which says, “You will be punished with thunder and earthquake and loud noise”). As noted in the discussion on 8:5, Richard Bauckham has shown that 4:5; 8:5; 11:19; and 16:18-21 form a progressive sequence of allusions to Exodus 19:16, 18-19, which systematically build upon one another in expressing aspects of divine judgment, commencing with lightnings, sound, and thunders in 4:5, and at each step adding in other elements. Jesus used earthquake imagery to portray woes preliminary to the final cosmic destruction but not part of it (Matt. 24:7; Mark 13:8; Luke 21:11). These features of cosmic destruction from the OT are now applied typologically to the unqualified judgment at the end of world history. But the escalated nature of the application here is expressed by the phrase such as there had not been since man came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. And it is beyond chance that this wording is taken from Dan. 12:1: “And there will be a time of distress such as never occurred since there was a nation until that time.” Daniel describes the tribulation at the end of history, when God’s people will be delivered and undergo a resurrection to life, but the wicked will be raised to “disgrace and everlasting contempt” (Dan. 12:2). In the context of the plague of hail (cf. v. 21), note that Daniel’s wording is itself a typological application of Exod. 9:24, where there is fire flashing in the midst of the hail so severe “such as had not been in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation.”
19 The effects of the incomparable earthquake mentioned in v. 18 are elaborated: And the great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. The depiction is fashioned according to the biblical expectation of a catastrophic earthquake accompanying God’s latter-day appearing at the final judgment (Hag. 2:6; Zech. 14:4; Heb. 12:26-27). The object of judgment is explicitly identified: And Babylon the great was remembered before God. The background to the phrase Babylon the great is Dan. 4:30 (cf. 14:8), which is the only place in all the OT where the phrase “Babylon the great” occurs. Now the latter-day Babylon is about to face judgment, as did the proud Babylonian king who was so proud of his worldly and superficial “Babylon the great.” That the cities of the nations fell describes the universal extent of the last judgment to take place in history. It is not just Rome or some later great capital of evil which is decimated, but all the world’s cultural, political, and economic centers, because they are part of the great city and world system of Babylon. The picture here, give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath, develops the similar picture of the last judgment in 14:8, 10, where Babylon the great has fallen and her patron nations are made to “drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of his anger” (14:10). Now we find that Babylon herself, the inducer of the nations’ intoxication, will be punished in like manner, under God’s judging hand, by being made to drink the wine that leads to her own destructive intoxication. On the OT background of the pouring out of wine as describing the unleashing of divine judgment see on 14:10. The judgment highlights that Babylon’s punishment fits her crime, a principle already illustrated in 16:6. As she destroyed (11:18), so shall she be destroyed. V. 19, together with vv. 17-21, amplify the introductory statement of Babylon’s fall (in 14:8), which is expanded in detail in 17:1–19:10.
The great city has been identified as Jerusalem, Rome, and the ungodly world system, which would include the former two and all other wicked people groups. The third view is preferable, as argued elsewhere in this commentary (see on 11:8 and 14:8).
20 The absolute nature of the judgment is continued by a picture of the further breakup of the cosmos: And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. Virtually identical descriptions in 6:14 (“and every mountain and island were moved out of their places”) and 20:11 (“earth and heaven fled away, and no place was found for them”) also indicate the conclusive, universal destruction of the earth at the Judgment Day. That parts of the world were not found anticipates the similar portrayal of Babylon’s final, definitive destruction repeated three times in ch. 18 (vv. 14, 21, 22).
21 The Exodus plague of hail (Exod. 9:22-35) is duplicated, but this time it strikes not one nation but all nations throughout the world in opposition to God: And huge hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, came down from heaven upon men. The hail comes down from heaven upon the unfaithful as “fire came down from heaven” upon the persecuting nations in 20:9, which also alludes to the conclusive punishment. The plague of hail, which was not the last of the original Exodus plagues, is being combined here with the cosmic phenomena surrounding the Sinai theophany of Exodus 19, alluded to in v. 18 above. Perhaps hail is easily associated with the lightning, thunder, clouds, smoke, and trumpet sounds of Sinai.
The identification of this plague with that of the plague of hail in Egypt is evident further because both v. 21 and the Exodus account emphasize the severity or large size of the hail by twice mentioning that it was “great” or “very great.” V. 21 reads literally: “great hail … the plague of it is very great.” Exod. 9:18, 24 reads literally “very great hail … the hail was very great” (likewise Josephus, Antiquities 2.304-5). The weight of the hailstones in v. 21 is said to be a “talent” (NASB “one hundred pounds”), which is variously estimated to be anywhere from forty-five to one hundred and thirty pounds (cf. Josephus, War 5.270).
Also echoed may be the hail that struck the Amorites in Josh. 10:11 (“the Lord threw large stones from heaven … hailstones”), which is seen as part of the whole redemptive program associated with the Exodus, focusing on subsequent entry into the Promised Land. Furthermore, the mention of hail in connection with the final judgment has been influenced by Ezek. 38:19-22, where hail and earthquake as well as fire and brimstone (cf. Rev. 19:20; 20:9, 10) mark the final stage of judgment on the end-time enemy. Note the formative influence of Ezekiel 38–39 on v. 14, as well as on 19:19 and 20:8.
The people suffering the judgment blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because its plague was extremely severe. This does not necessarily mean that some were left after the judgment of the hail, but that they were blaspheming during the onslaught of the woe, just as in 6:15-17 people undergoing the commencement of the final judgment try to hide during its execution (note also the parallel between 6:14 and 16:20 noted above). In contrast to vv. 9 and 11 above, which also refer to people blaspheming, there is no mention of people refusing to repent, which also suggests that the end has come, so that no room is now left for repentance.
Vv. 17-21 could be viewed as the beginning of the last judgment in history, with chs. 17–19 giving subsequent chronological developments of that judgment. However, it is best to view the following chapters as supplemental perspectives on the same events concerning the last judgment pictured in 16:17-21, as well as in the sixth and seventh seals, the seventh trumpet, and the final judgment scene in 14:14-20.
On the importance of reading the Bible contextually. These verses again show how important it is to the read the Bible carefully and in context. The commentary has argued that John’s vision takes the account of the historical fall of Babylon, relates it backward to the defeat of Pharaoh at the Red Sea, and uses it typologically to predict the fall of the latter-day Babylonian world system. At the same time, all the original elements of Babylon’s destruction (the city itself, its king, the river on which it sits, and the manner of its fall) are universalized. Failure to understand this leads many contemporary commentators to isolate particular people and places as the site of the last-day warfare, even to the point of predicting a rebuilding of Babylon, which would in fact nullify OT prophetic declarations affirming that Babylon would be decimated by the Persians, never to rise as a world power again (e.g., see Isa. 13:17-22; Jer. 50:13, 39; 51:62-64). The same is true of the mention of Armageddon in v. 16. We have tried to set forth in the commentary the richness of biblical allusions, which points to a universal reference, yet how many have tried to locate Armageddon as a particular place, focusing on the involvement of ethnic Israel, and thereby missed the main point regarding the nature of the battle as of worldwide extent, and fought between the forces of the enemy and the church?
On the reality of demonic activity and our lack of readiness to fight it. Vv. 13-14 highlight the activity of unclean spirits coming forth from the devil and his agents, performing signs which influence the kings of the earth and draw them together for war. Because they are identified as frogs, they may be linked with the Egyptian goddess of resurrection, who was symbolized as a frog. The NT is full of accounts of the reality of the kingdom of darkness. Our rationalistic age makes it difficult for us to see with the same eyes as the biblical writers, yet these same age-old forces are still very much at work (on which see, e.g., Eph. 6:10-17). Does part of their deception convey the notion that they do not exist? Do we really understand how to fight this activity of such forces? Do we sometimes fight only attitudes or actions they produce, rather than confronting the underlying reality? Our battle is not only against the world’s influence and the influence of our own indwelling sin and the detrimental influence of our old nature on us, but our “struggle is … against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places” (Eph. 6:12).
On the cry from the cross and the cry from the throne. The commentary points out that the cry from the throne “It is done” echoes the cry of Jesus from the cross (John 19:30), using the same Greek verb. This can hardly be an accident. Using the analogy of the inauguration of the kingdom through the cross and resurrection, consider how Jesus’ cry set in motion the breaking in of God’s kingdom, yet in such a way that it would only reach fulfillment at the time of the second cry, when there would be not only the final redemption of God’s people (Rev. 21:1–22:5), but the decisive and final judgment of God’s enemies. Could the loud voice uttering the cry belong to Christ Himself? How is this an encouragement to us as we live in the time in between the two cries?