Grosey's Messages: Revelation 16 Six Bowls of Wrath

Saturday, April 24, 2021

Revelation 16 Six Bowls of Wrath

Revelation 16: Six Bowls of Wrath

1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, "Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God."

2 So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth; and it became a loathsome and malignant sore on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.

3 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.

4 Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters; and they became blood.5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying, "Righteous are You, who are and who were, O Holy One, because You judged these things;6 for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. They deserve it."7 And I heard the altar saying, "Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments."

8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given to it to scorch men with fire.9 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.

10 Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain,11 and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.

12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.

13 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;14 for 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 clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.")16 And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.

17 Then 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."18 And 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.19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.21 And 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.

Two of the plagues mentioned here affect human bodies: the painful sores and the scorching sun. Why would God allow this to happen?
Why does the chapter note so many times the refusal of people to repent?
Why will no one be able to accuse God of being unfair when they receive His judgment?
Why are the glory and the judgment of God so often seen together? How do these two aspects of His character relate?
Why do people fail to repent even upon seeing God's judgment? How might this inform our evangelism and disciple making?
The passage tells us that the time of God's gracious patience with mankind will come to an end. How should this influence our missionary drive and strategy?
What does it mean to stay alert and remain clothed in preparation for Christ's return? What are some marks of being prepared? Unprepared?
Why do people continue to curse God, even to their dying breath? How were you changed from cursing to praising God?

Sermon version: https://youtu.be/UK2GimGGQTk

Zoom Online Bible Study Meeting Tuesday evening at 7:30 https://us02web.zoom.us/j/2402286476

Revelation Studies Video Channel https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCNs0iOkWo_sL2u7vLPOCQ2Q

Reading this chapter, dear Friends—this very terrible chapter—you must have been struck, I think, with the forces of God. How great are the armies of the Lord of Hosts! As the Lord smote Pharaoh with overwhelming plagues, so does the Lord in this awful portion of Revelation deal with the ungodly. Seven angels stood forth, each one with his vial full of the wrath of God, to be poured out upon the earth. Seven executioners were needed and seven were present—a perfect number for the accomplishment of the Divine purpose.

They proudly fancy that they can escape from God. Many a little Pharaoh says, in the hardness of his heart, "Who is the Lord, that I should obey His voice?" Boastful worldlings dream that they, at any rate, are beyond punishment.

No country, no city, and no man, however rich, or strong, or great, can climb beyond the reach of the Divine hand. In the height or in the depth, God is equally present in power—in this state or in the next—He is equally able to dispense justice.

The Ten Commandments remind us that there is one thing that particularly makes God angry. It is listed in two of the commandments.

Exodus 20: The Ten Commandments

1 Then God spoke all these words, saying,

2 "I am the LORD your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery.

3 "You shall have no other gods before Me.

4 "You shall not make for yourself an idol, or any likeness of what is in heaven above or on the earth beneath or in the water under the earth.5 You shall not worship them or serve them; for I, the LORD your God, am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers on the children, on the third and the fourth generations of those who hate Me,6 but showing lovingkindness to thousands, to those who love Me and keep My commandments.

Contagious sores.

Revelation 16:1-2

2 So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth; and it became a loathsome and malignant sore on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.

The mark of the beast turns into a cankerous, contagious sore that is incurable.

Deuteronomy 28:27-35 "The LORD will smite you with the boils of Egypt and with tumors and with the scab and with the itch, from which you cannot be healed.28 The LORD will smite you with madness and with blindness and with bewilderment of heart;29 and you will grope at noon, as the blind man gropes in darkness, and you will not prosper in your ways; but you shall only be oppressed and robbed continually, with none to save you.30 You shall betroth a wife, but another man will violate her; you shall build a house, but you will not live in it; you shall plant a vineyard, but you will not use its fruit.31 Your ox shall be slaughtered before your eyes, but you will not eat of it; your donkey shall be torn away from you, and will not be restored to you; your sheep shall be given to your enemies, and you will have none to save you.32 Your sons and your daughters shall be given to another people, while your eyes look on and yearn for them continually; but there will be nothing you can do.33 A people whom you do not know shall eat up the produce of your ground and all your labors, and you will never be anything but oppressed and crushed continually.34 You shall be driven mad by the sight of what you see.35 The LORD will strike you on the knees and legs with sore boils, from which you cannot be healed, from the sole of your foot to the crown of your head.36 The LORD will bring you and your king, whom you set over you, to a nation which neither you nor your fathers have known, and there you shall serve other gods, wood and stone.37 You shall become a horror, a proverb, and a taunt among all the people where the LORD drives you.

Exodus 32: 35 Then the LORD smote the people, because of what they did with the calf which Aaron had made.

Exodus 9: The Plague of Boils

8 Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, "Take for yourselves handfuls of soot from a kiln, and let Moses throw it toward the sky in the sight of Pharaoh.9 It will become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and will become boils breaking out with sores on man and beast through all the land of Egypt."10 So they took soot from a kiln, and stood before Pharaoh; and Moses threw it toward the sky, and it became boils breaking out with sores on man and beast.11 The magicians could not stand before Moses because of the boils, for the boils were on the magicians as well as on all the Egyptians.

Contaminated seas Revelation 16:3

3 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.

The sea becomes blood.. like that of a dead man.. congealed, thick , terrible.

Corrupted streams Revelation 16:4-7

The fresh water, lakes and spring s and rivers all become blood. Much like the terribe judgment on Egypt under Pharoah delivered by Moses.

God does not forget the slaying of His saints.

God is on His throne.

The same Jesus who turned water into wine will turn water into blood according to this passage.

Consuming sun Revelation 16:8-9

When the Lord Jesus was crucified, the sun hid its face and refused to shine; but when Jesus Christ is manifest in all His glory, there will be erupting flames of fire and judgment. The heat will be intense.

Mark 13: 24 "But in those days, after that tribulation, the sun will be darkened and the moon will not give its light,25 and the stars will be falling from heaven, and the powers that are in the heavens will be shaken.26 Then they will see the Son of Man coming in clouds with great power and glory.27 And then He will send forth the angels, and will gather together His elect from the four winds, from the farthest end of the earth to the farthest end of heaven.

Joel 2: The Terrible Visitation

1 Blow a trumpet in Zion, And sound an alarm on My holy mountain!

Let all the inhabitants of the land tremble, For the day of the LORD is coming; Surely it is near,

2 A day of darkness and gloom, A day of clouds and thick darkness.

As the dawn is spread over the mountains, So there is a great and mighty people; There has never been anything like it, Nor will there be again after it To the years of many generations.

3 A fire consumes before them And behind them a flame burns. The land is like the garden of Eden before them But a desolate wilderness behind them, And nothing at all escapes them.

30 "I will display wonders in the sky and on the earth, Blood, fire and columns of smoke.

31 "The sun will be turned into darkness And the moon into blood Before the great and awesome day of the LORD comes.

32 "And it will come about that whoever calls on the name of the LORD Will be delivered;

For on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem There will be those who escape, As the LORD has said,

Even among the survivors whom the LORD calls.

Isa 24: 21 On that day the LORD will punish the host of heaven, in heaven, and the kings of the earth, on the earth. 22 They will be gathered together as prisoners in a pit; they will be shut up in a prison, and after many days they will be punished.
23 Then the moon will be confounded and the sun ashamed, for the LORD of hosts reigns on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and his glory will be before his elders.

Isa 42:24 Was it not the LORD, against whom we have sinned, in whose ways they would not walk,

and whose law they would not obey? 25 So he poured on him the heat of his anger

and the might of battle; it set him on fire all around, but he did not understand; it burned him up, but he did not take it to heart.

Instead of causing people to repent, it will cause them to blaspheme God.

If the love of God does not bring you to repentance, then the judgment of God will not bring you to repentance.

Confounded sinners Revelation 16:10-11

The concentration of God's wrath is now poured out at the very source of the wickedness in the world, on the throne of the beast. The people on earth will be worshipping him and then they will see he is powerless to and helpless in the face of the judgments of the Almighty God. As the Sun burned bright, it will then be darkened again. It appears the sun will suddenly burn out.

There will be a crescendo of hurt that will culminate into a crescendo of hate, as they hate God. The darkness referred to in this passage does not speak necessarily of physical darkness but of moral and spiritual darkness that will engulf the world.

Controlling spirits Revelation 16:12-16

12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.

The dragon, the beast and the false prophet are the unholy trinity who will be working here on Earth during The Great Tribulation.

These unclean spirits are demons.

There is one devil and many demons working "miracles;" demon powers have miracle power.

These demon spirits that are already working in the world are drawing the nations to the final decisive battle of mankind: The Battle of Armageddon.

Spirits of demons are working in the hearts and minds of the world's national leaders.

Cataclysmic shaking Revelation 16:17-21

17 Then 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."

"It is finished."

Jesus spoke these words from the cross when redemption was completed. Now, retribution will be completed.

The greatest of all earthquakes will take place. Revelation 16:18-19

18 And 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.19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath.

There can be no ultimate victory apart from the wrath of God and the righteous judgment of God.

Sin must be dealt with.

Revelation 16:20-21

20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.21 And 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.

A talent was about all the weight that a man could carry.

Hail stones weighing hundreds of pounds will fall upon men during this period of time.

One Truth of God, however, comes out of this passage more plainly than any other, to my mind. And that is, that judgments, even the most terrible of them, do not, in themselves, produce a satisfactory repentance in the minds of men. The punishment drove men into still more furious rebellion. "And men were scorched with great heat and blasphemed the name of God, which has power over these plagues: and they repented not to give Him glory."

"And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast. And his kingdom was full of darkness. And they gnawed their tongues for pain and blasphemed the God of Heaven because of their pains and their sores and repented not of their deeds." The twenty-first verse is to the same effect—"And there fell upon men a great hail out of Heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail." The terrors of the Lord produced blasphemy but they did not produce repentance.

JUDGMENTS, APART FROM DIVINE GRACE, MAY PRODUCE A KIND OF REPENTANCE

Anzac Day celebrates that fact. In our despair in war men and women called upon God. Many attended church. Back in 1870 the church going population was about double to current attendance per head in Australia. About 20% attended church (including Catholics) divided equally between Catholics, Anglicans and other protestant denominations.

Today of the Australian population about 22% Catholic, 13% Anglican and 11% Other Protestant denominations. 1.8 million attend church each Sunday which is about 8% of the population. Less than one in seven of the Australians who ticked "Christianity" on their census form regularly attend a church.

Religious service attendance in Australia has never been an activity practised by the majority of the population. Some of the highest rates of attendance were recorded in the 1950s after World War II at the time of the baby boom (e.g., 44 per cent in 1950). After a steep decline in religious service attendance, particularly in the 1960s and 1970s, the decline has slowed since 1990.

Judgment may produce a carnal repentance—a repentance that is of the flesh and after the manner of the sinful nature of men. In this repentance the depravity of the heart remains the same in essence, though it takes another form of showing itself. Though the man changes, he is not savingly changed—he becomes another man but not a new man.

Such a repentance is caused by fear. Does not every thief repent of robbery when he is convicted and sent to jail? Does not every murderer repent of his crime when he stands under the fatal tree? This is the kind of repentance which the terrors of the Lord will work in men's minds unless they are altogether hardened and under the special dominion of the devil. Travelers in great storms will tremble and, trembling, will confess their guilt and begin to pray. But when the tempest is over, their trembling, their confession and their prayers are also, all over. They shake because of their sins but they are not shaken out of their sins.

Such a repentance is but a transient repentance. They repent but for a season. While they see the immediate evil of their sin in its results they cry out as if they really hated sin. But their hatred is only a little tiff, which lasts for a while and then they make friends with their sins, as Pilate made friends with Herod. Their goodness is as the morning cloud. And as the early dew it passes away. Even Ahab once repented. But, oh, what a poor and short-lived repentance it was! We find men turning away from their sin for a time but then going back to it with a greater gusto.

Such a repentance is superficial repentance. It only affects the surface of the man. It does not go to the heart, it is hardly more than skin deep.

That repentance which is worth having turns a man inside out and purges the innermost part of the soul—killing the love of sin so that even if sin could be made profitable and sweet to the man—he could not abide it.

Once again—the awful fear of God may produce such a repentance as is a despairing repentance. This is deep enough but then it lacks the element of bringing glory to God. It has in it no trace of submission, no touch of faith, no breath of love. There is nothing evangelical about it—it is legal all through—and therefore, worthless for salvation. It is a kind of anticipation of the endless judgment and the wrath to come. But it is not a deliverance from there. Take Judas as an example. "I have sinned," says he. He flings down the accursed silver for which he had sold his Master and his own soul but he goes out to hang himself.

THEY DO NOT AND THEY CANNOT OF THEMSELVES PRODUCE A REPENTANCE SUCH AS GIVES GOD GLORY. "They repented not to give Him glory."

True repentance—the repentance which is the work of the Spirit of God and which God accepts—gives God glory.

True repentance gives glory to God and reverences and adores God's omniscience. It is a confession of the fact of God's knowledge and the truthfulness of His statements. The man says, "O Lord, I am what Your Word says I am. I am a sinner through and through. And I know while I confess my sin that You know more about my sin than I do. I lay bare my soul but it never was possible for me to hide it from Your inspection. You have seen my thoughts and the secret intents of my heart. Before You have I sinned. In Your sight have I done evil. You know me altogether and I adore Your omniscience."

True repentance gives glory to the righteousness of God in His Law.

True repentance adores and glorifies the justice of God in His punishment of transgression. I know that when I was under a sense of sin I felt that if God did not punish me He ought to do so. I could not see how God could be the Judge of all the earth if He did not visit my transgressions with infinite wrath. I had no quarrel with the most stern Word either of the Old or of the New Testament. I was bound under my sense of guilt to bare my back to its scourges and to lay my neck upon its block. I said in so many words—"And if my soul were sent to Hell, Your righteous Law approves it well."

True repentance glorifies the sovereignty of God in His mercy. The man who is deeply conscious of his guilt, says, "Lord, I have no claim on You. I have no rights but the right to be punished. I have forfeited all claim to favor and reward. If You will freely forgive me, if You can justly do so, I will forever adore You for so doing. But I cannot say that I have any right thereto.

Further, I believe that the man has repented to the glory of God when he spies out that there is a way by which God can be just and yet the justifier of the ungodly—when he sees the Lord Jesus Christ, the adorable Son of God coming in our human nature and becoming the Substitute for sinners and the Sacrifice for sin. That is true repentance which washes the Redeemer's feet with her tears and wipes them with the hairs of her head.

Do you rejoice in Jesus crucified? Do you love Christ? Do you trust Him? Do you leap for joy at the very thought that God has set Him forth to be a propitiation for sin? This is repentance after a godly sort. He tells us, "I have blotted out your sins. I bore on the Tree the ransom for you. I have poured out My heart's blood that you might live." And then it is that we hate sin with a perfect hatred and are full of mourning because we pierced the Lord. Because evil is so hateful to the heart of Jesus we loathe it intensely. This is the repentance which glorifies God. The Lord grant such repentance to every one of us!

There is life for a look at the Crucified One,
There is life at this moment for thee;
Then look, sinner, look unto Him and be saved,
Unto Him who was nailed to the tree.

Look! look! look and live!
There is life for a look at the Crucified One,
There is life at this moment for thee.

Oh, why was He there as the Bearer of sin,
If on Jesus thy guilt was not laid?
Oh, why from His side flowed the sin-cleansing blood,
If His dying thy debt has not paid?

It is not thy tears of repentance or prayers,
But the blood, that redeemeth the soul;
On Him, then, who shed it, thou mayest at once
Thy weight of iniquities roll.

Then doubt not thy welcome, since God has declared
There remaineth no more to be done;
That once in the end of the world He appeared,
And completed the work He begun.

Then take with rejoicing from Jesus at once
The life everlasting He gives;
And know with assurance, thou never canst die
Since Jesus, thy Righteousness, lives.

("Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and men will not see his shame.")

Matthew 24: 43 But be sure of this, that if the head of the house had known at what time of the night the thief was coming, he would have been on the alert and would not have allowed his house to be broken into.

1 Thessalonians 5:2 For you yourselves know full well that the day of the Lord will come just like a thief in the night… 4 But you, brethren, are not in darkness, that the day would overtake you like a thief;

2 Peter 3:10 But the day of the Lord will come like a thief, in which the heavens will pass away with a roar and the elements will be destroyed with intense heat, and the earth and its works will be burned up.

Revelation 3: 3 So remember what you have received and heard; and keep it, and repent. Therefore if you do not wake up, I will come like a thief, and you will not know at what hour I will come to you.

3 What will you do without Him
When death is drawing near,
Without His love—the only love
That casts out every fear?

4 What will you do without Him,
When He hath shut the door,
And you are left outside, because
You would not come before?

5 You cannot do without Him!
There is no other name,
By which you ever can be saved,
No way, no hope, no claim!

6 You cannot do without Him!
God' word is ever true;
The world is passing to its doom—
And you are passing too!

# posted by Groseys messages @ 4:45 PM

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