The Scarlet Woman (Revelation 17)

The Scarlet Woman (Revelation 17)

Revelation 17:1-3
“And there came one of the seven angels that had the seven bowls, and spake with me, saying, Come hither, I will show thee the judgment of the great harlot that sitteth upon many waters; 2 with whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and they that dwell in the earth were made drunken with the wine of her fornication.“

Chapter 17 opens with one of the angels bearing God’s bowls of wrath coming near to John with the intention of showing him the “judgment of the great harlot that sitteth on many waters.”  The King James version refers to this woman as a “whore.”  There is some dispute in the religious world today as to who is to be the recipient of God’s wrath as pictured in the Revelation.  When looking at the characteristics of this woman and comparing her to what we know of the Roman Empire, there can be little doubt as to who this infamous woman represents.  The angel goes to great lengths to identify her throughout the chapter.  In verse 18, the angel removes all doubt as to who this woman is. 

Revelation 17:18
“And the woman whom thou sawest is the great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.”

There was only one city on earth in the time of John’s letter that fit that description.  The woman can only be the city of Rome.  So with this in mind, we will look at the characteristics of this woman and examine just how closely she really resembles the imperial city. 

She is introduced as a “harlot” in verse 1.  In verse 5 she is labeled on her forehead as the “Mother of the harlots.”  Being the mother of harlots means being responsible for the procreation of harlots.  Harlotry in this case being descriptive of spiritual fornication or unfaithfulness to the Lord (Ezekiel 16, Jeremiah 2:1, Hosea 1:1). Imperial Rome compelled the conquered kings to enter into fornication with her in the form of emperor worship and she tried to force it upon her citizenry.  Thus we have the imagery of a woman who by her actions spawned spiritual harlots who worshipped the emperor instead of Jehovah. 

The “many waters” upon which the scarlet woman sits is explained in verse 15: “And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.”  This leads right into verse 2 where the angel says “with whom the kings of the earth have committed fornication.”  The key words being “with whom.”  The imagery here is that the rulers of the people represented by the “many waters” were guilty of fornication with the “mother of harlots” and they were specifically mentioned by the angel, signifying this was coming from the highest levels of government.  The spiritual fornication in view here was mandated from the leadership of the people down to the citizenry. 

Revelation 17:3
“And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness: and I saw a woman sitting upon a scarlet-colored beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.”

In the vision, the angel removes John from where he was and takes him into a wilderness where he sees “a woman.”  The question immediately arises, is this the same woman previously mentioned?  A closer examination of her characteristics reveals that she is bedecked with those items signifying royalty.  Verse 4 describes her in terms of being “arrayed in purple (meaning royalty) and scarlet (meaning deadly), and decked with gold and precious stone and pearls.”  This is most certainly an image of the top of the hierarchy of Roman authority.  The woman in view here is representative of none other than the Roman emperor himself.

“…[S]itting upon a scarlet colored beast….” This beast bears a striking resemblance to the beast mentioned in Revelation 13:1.  The scarlet color would indicate that the beast was deadly and wicked. Like the previous beast, this one has seven heads and ten horns.  The seven heads are later described in Revelation 17:9-10, “Here is the mind that hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth: and they are seven kings….”  We don’t need to speculate any on what this means.  It obviously refers to the emperors of the Roman Empire. 

The “ten horns” are explained in verse 12: “And the ten horns which thou sawest are ten kings.” The Roman Empire as a republic was organized as a provincial government.  Each province was ruled by a governor appointed by the Emperor.  There were many more than just ten provinces in the Roman Empire, and there were not exactly seven emperors at the time of John’s letter.  A figurative view of the imagery would be that the beast had 7 (perfect) heads and 10 (complete) horns (authority).  The imagery will be something that is easily pictured in the imaginations the first readers.  It is likely the complete sum of all the Roman provinces were represented by the number ten with the seven mountains which were also kings being the Emperors reigning over the kings of the provinces.  The discussion of the ten horns is taken up in more detail later in this study.   

“Full of the names of blasphemy” would be a reference to the names the beast called himself.  Domitian, during his reign issued his decrees as “Lord God Domitianus” and such.  Therefore it would have been unmistakable in the minds of the first readers of John’s letter that he was referring to the emperor.  

Revelation 17:4
“And the woman was arrayed in purple and scarlet, and decked with gold and precious stone and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations, even the unclean things of her fornication,”

The woman sitting on the beast is arrayed in royal trappings. This imagery is descriptive of the Roman leadership.  She is carrying a “golden cup full of abominations“.  In verse 6 we see that this woman is “drunken in the blood of the saints and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus” signifying some of the contents of the golden cup.  The “unclean things of her fornication” would represent all the evils which have come from her idolatry and persecution.

Revelation 17:5-6
“And upon her forehead a name written, MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF THE HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. 6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I wondered with a great wonder.“

God is giving this description as an identification of the scarlet woman.  She is the main harlot of John’s Revelation, she is the main one responsible for idolatry, referred to as the “mother of the harlots.”  In Daniel, Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon made a statue roughly 90 feet tall and 9 feet wide.  He set this huge statue up in the plain of Dura in the province of Babylon.  Everybody is familiar with the story of Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-nego.  They refused to bow down to Nebuchadnezzar’s statue and worship it and were thrown into the fiery furnace (Daniel 3).  The scarlet woman, this mother of harlots, was named Babylon the great.  What did real Babylon and the great harlot named Babylon in Revelation 17 share in common?  They both imposed forced worship of an idol of the king of their country on their citizenry.  Looking back on the lesser land beast described in Revelation 13, we see in verse 14 that the lesser beast, which has been identified as the Roman Imperial cult known as the Concilia, made images, or statues to the greater beast and required these statues to be worshipped.  They had the power to cause those who refused to worship the images to be killed (Revelation 13:15).  This is identical to what happened in Babylon under the reign of king Nebuchadnezzar.   Thus the great whore is identified with Babylon who forced her people to worship idols.

In Peter’s epistle, he made a reference to Babylon in 1 Peter 5:13.   Although questioned by some who would see this verse as a reference to Peter’s wife, the best view is almost certainly that the church in Babylon is meant.  At the time of this writing Babylon had been destroyed never to be rebuilt and was nothing more than an isolated military outpost at best.  There is no evidence anywhere that Peter was literally in Babylon at any time.  There is evidence that Peter did travel to Rome and this evidence predates the apostate church.  Tradition places the death of Peter in Rome by the order of Nero.  At the time Peter wrote this epistle it was necessary to speak in guarded terms about the city of Rome in view of the persecution of Nero.  

There are a number of reasons why Peter would refer to Rome as Babylon.  Ancient Babylon was a center of enmity and oppression of God’s people, so Rome had become in the times of the apostles.  Peter referred to his readers as “strangers and pilgrims” in a foreign land (1 Peter 2:11) as were the Israelites in Babylon.  Babylon was well known to the Jews as being a nation who worshipped many false gods as was Rome.  All these considerations taken together have great weight in indicating that the Peter’s meaning was the city of Rome.  It is most significant here in this examination to recognize the fact that Jerusalem was never referred to as Babylon in scripture.  Peter almost certainly had Rome in mind when he spoke allegorically of Babylon.   His readership would have known this which strongly indicates that it was a well known and commonly understood reference to the city of Rome among the Jewish Christians which the Romans would be unable to understand.  This well known reference to the city of Rome certainly carried over to John’s Jewish readership and there is every reason to believe that when the name of Babylon was given to the harlot, the city of Rome came to the minds of the Christians.  We must keep in mind that what Revelation meant to them is what it must mean to us.  It was written specifically to them, with applications for us. 

In addition to being named “BABYLON THE GREAT“, the scarlet woman is called “THE MOTHER OF THE HARLOTS“.  A mother is responsible for producing offspring.  She forms a mental image of someone from whom others come forth.  Nebuchadnezzar’s forced idol worship proliferated and produced idol worshippers out of her citizenry.  The scarlet woman, who is identified by name with Babylon, was said to have made the inhabitants of the earth “drunk with the wine of her fornication”  Fornication in this context is representative of idol worship or the worship of a false god.  The Scarlet Woman, the great harlot, was guilty of forced idolatry. 

Moreover, this woman delights to drink or partake of the blood of God’s saints.  This certainly fits the city of Rome and her severe oppression of the 1st century Christians.  She has spilled so much blood and partaken of so much bloodshed that she is intoxicated by it.  The blood of the saints is all over her.   The scarlet woman’s identity is further determined by the explanation given to John by the angel beginning in verse 7. 

Revelation 17:7-8
“And the angel said unto me, Wherefore didst thou wonder? I will tell thee the mystery of the woman, and of the beast that carrieth her, which hath the seven heads and the ten horns. 8 The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss, and to go into perdition. And they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, (they) whose name hath not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast, how that he was, and is not, and shall come. “

“and of the beast that carrieth her”
This imagery is of the scarlet woman being born upon or supported by the beast.  This certainly fits the relationship between the city of Rome and the empire.

“The beast that thou sawest was, and is not; and is about to come up out of the abyss, and to go into perdition.”
The beast that was and is not and is about to come and then go is probably a reference to the changing leadership of the Empire.  Emperors came and emperors went.  It is obvious that the imagery here is one of the changing nature of the beast.  The line of evil Roman emperors certainly fits this description.  History records that there was some controversy around the death of Nero.  Many people doubted that he was really dead from suicide.  It was suspected that he actually fled to Parthia where he was gathering an army from among them to return to Rome and unseat whatever emperor was in control and rule over the Roman Empire again.  Domitian claimed in his early years as emperor to be Nero returned so it was a common superstition among the people of the time that Domitian was thought to be Nero either returned or reincarnated.  The allusion to the “was, and is not; and is about to come” certainly appears to fit the text.  We must keep in mind the writer is appealing to the imaginations of his first readers and they would certainly be familiar with the general superstitions and be able to understand what was being illustrated here.   

“And they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, (they) whose name hath not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world“

Obviously those who never had their names written in the book of life is a reference to the infidels.  Their “wonder” may be an expression of amazement at the beast’s vitality and ability to die or disappear and then return in another form to continue his deadly designs on the Christians.  Those who do have their names written in the book of life (the faithful) understand that as terrible and tenacious as the beast appears to be, his end is going to be perdition.  The Greek word for perdition here means destruction, utter ruin and loss of well being.  This also fits well with the superstitions of a returning Nero as Domitian who would rule again and then disappear into ruin. 

Revelation 17:9-11
“Here is the mind that hath wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains, on which the woman sitteth: 10 and they are seven kings; the five are fallen, the one is, the other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a little while. 11 And the beast that was, and is not, is himself also an eighth, and is of the seven; and he goeth into perdition.“

The seven heads of the beast were seven heads of the Roman empire.  The first emperor who was emperor under constitutional law was Augustus.  He was the first one that was elected by the senate and approved by the military.  Election and military approval were necessary by Roman law.  Julius Caesar was a dictator before Rome was a republic and was only in office because of popular demand.  He was never legally appointed to his position under constitutional law.  So with this in mind, we start our counting with the first legally elected head of the Roman Empire, as a republic, under the government in force at the time of the writing of John’s revelation. 

The first five emperors are Augustus (26BC-13AD), Tiberius (14AD-37AD), Caligula (37AD-41AD), Claudius (41AD-64AD)  and Nero (64AD-68AD).  Verse 10 says these five are fallen thus out of the picture.  “The one is” in verse 10 would be Vespasian, the sixth king/emperor, who ruled from 69AD-79AD.  The “other is not yet come; and when he cometh, he must continue a little while” would be Titus who only reigned from 79AD-81.  His reign was short, only a “little while”, and he was the seventh king.  Now we come to the king in verse 11 who is the “eighth”.  This is the first mention of this king, who would have been Domitian.  He is the one that “was and is not” which refers back to Domitian’s claim that he was the reincarnation of Nero. Also the eighth king was “of the seven”  which means that he was related to them.  Domitian was the brother of Titus and the son of Vespasian of the Flavian dynasty. 

Clearly the text appears by all points to date the writing of the Revelation during the reign of Vespasian.  This creates a difficulty in that tradition places John on the island of Patmos when the letter was written, having been exiled there by Domitian himself.  The Revelation is believed by the majority of scholars to have been written toward the end of Domitian’s reign based largely on secular writings. There are some difficulties with John writing the revelation at that time, chiefly that one must ask what good it would do to write the book in 95-96AD, when the fiercest persecutions were almost over?  Additionally, how much time would it take to copy and distribute this letter to the churches in Asia to which the letter was addressed?   

Here is a possible explanation.  Secular writing states that “Revelation was written in the days of Domitian.” It’s hard to tell in the original Greek if that means it was WRITTEN then or SEEN then.  John could have been sent to Patmos by the local authorities there in Ephesus rather than by Vespasian himself sometime during his reign.  The Gnostics in Ephesus felt John was causing problems as he was exposing the error of their thinking.  John being on Patmos during Vespasian’s reign would make the writing of the book in the late 70’s very possible.  John may have still been there during the reign of Titus and then allowed back to the mainland around 81 AD. The book at that point could have been copied and dispersed to the churches in Asia to be “SEEN in the days of Domitian.” Domitian’s worst persecutions started later into his reign, so that would have given the Christians time to read the book and know what was coming “shortly” and help them get ready for the intense persecutions to come. 

Revelation 17:12-13
“And the ten horns that thou sawest are ten kings, who have received no kingdom as yet; but they receive authority as kings, with the beast, for one hour.  13 These have one mind, and they give their power and authority unto the beast.“

This is an explanation of the of the ten horns of the beast mentioned back in verse 3.  The ten horns represent the power of the empire which was concentrated in the provinces and not in the city of Rome herself.  The ten kings who had not yet received a kingdom were the vassal kings/leaders who ruled over the provinces and received authority from Rome, basking in this authority for a short period of time (one hour).  These vassal kings realizing their power and authority came directly from Rome were eager to please those in power in the imperial city.  This would explain why they were so zealous to persecute Christians.  When recruited by Rome to respond to insurrection they viewed the Christians as easy targets, thus being able to curry the favor of the Emperor easily.  Leaders of Provinces ruled longer with the favor of the emperor.

Daniel prophecies of a great beast in Daniel 7:23, “Thus he said, The fourth beast shall be the fourth kingdom upon earth, which shall be diverse from all kingdoms, and shall devour the whole earth, and shall tread it down, and break it in pieces.”  The “beast” of Daniel is the same as the “beast” of Revelation.  This is an unmistakable reference to the Roman Empire.  No other empire fitting this description devoured the whole earth.  Daniel goes on to say that out of this 4th kingdom will arise one who will “speak great words against the most High, and shall wear out the saints of the most High, and think to change times and laws” (Daniel 7:25). This can be no other person but an emperor of the 4th kingdom; The beast of Daniel; the beast of Revelation.  No other imagery would come to mind in the imaginations of the first readers of Revelation.

Revelation 17:14
“These shall war against the Lamb, and the Lamb shall overcome them, for he is Lord of lords, and King of kings; and they (also shall overcome) that are with him, called and chosen and faithful.”

The leaders of these provinces rose up against the Christians to the call of the Imperial city.  However, the faithful Christians, against all odds will prevail against them and win in the end.  The lamb in this verse is obviously Jesus who was portrayed in other New Testament as a lamb (John 1:29; 1:36). 

Revelation 17:15
“And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the harlot sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.”

This was the explanation of the waters upon which the harlot sat, given to John by the angel in verse 1.  Commentaries on Revelation are a lot easier when it explains itself from within.  There is little room for error in such instances. 

Revelation 17:16
“And the ten horns which thou sawest, and the beast, these shall hate the harlot, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and shall burn her utterly with fire.”

The kings of the provinces will ultimately turn against Rome.  One of Rome’s greatest fears was insurrection and turmoil in the provinces.  History records that is precisely what happened to the Roman Empire.  She was defeated from within by her own subjects. 

Revelation 17:17
“For God did put in their hearts to do his mind, and to come to one mind, and to give their kingdom unto the beast, until the words of God should be accomplished.”

This was John’s way of saying, “God’s will be done.”  To ask how God did this is but an exercise in futility.  Throughout history God used men and nations to carry out His purpose.  He could turn a nation to fighting within itself, as in the case of Midian during the time of Gideon (Judges 7:22), and of the Philistines in the days of Saul (1 Samuel 14:20).  In the battle of Moab and Ammon against Mount Sier, God gave victory to king Jehoshaphat without the army of Judah lifting a sword (2 Chronicles 20:23).  God’s objective of putting in the hearts of the kings in Revelation 17 to do his mind is merely an example of His divine guidance in everything.  God is in charge and His will shall be accomplished.  Not one word shall fail, all will come to pass.

Revelation 17:18
“And the woman whom thou sawest is the great city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth.”

If one shred of doubt remains as to the identity of this woman, it should here be solved once and for all.  This verse was mentioned at the onset of the study on chapter 17 in order to give a positive identification to her identity for the purpose of firmly establishing who she was in our minds as we work through the text.  The woman is here identified for us as the “city that reigneth over the kings of the earth.”  Rome ruled her empire through a government system made up of several geographic territories called provinces. Each province fell under the control of a provincial governor. The governors of these provinces were completely at the whim of the Emperor and could serve from 1 to 5 years.  There were about 28 imperial provinces at the height of the empire.  All of these provinces were subject to Roman rule.

There is some thinking in the brotherhood that names the Jewish nation as the identity of the great whore and the recipients of God’s wrath in the revelation pertains to the destruction of Jerusalem in AD70.  Jerusalem did not reign over the kings of the earth.  Jerusalem was not forcing anybody to worship a false god.  They were worshipping the one true and living God falsely.   The Jews were in God’s disfavor from their rejection of Christ and His Gospel message and found themselves under Roman authority.  They were not ruling over the kings of the earth, rather they were vassal nation within and under the subjection of the Roman Empire and they were crushed because of their revolt against Roman authority. 

In addition to this, the Revelation was written in symbolic language which Jews would have been able to understand.  God always expressed His will in this manner when His people were in distress.  This was the way God used to communicate to His people without placing them in danger from their enemies.  God’s will was revealed to His faithful children in ways only they would be able to understand while keeping it concealed from their enemies.  The immediate problem with Jerusalem being the Harlot is that the Jews still worshipping under the Mosaic Law would have been perfectly well able to understand all the symbols used in the Revelation.  God’s purpose for using Apocalyptic language would have been self defeating if the Harlot was the city of Jerusalem. 

God’s judgment was coming on the “great harlot that sitteth on many waters” (Revelation 17:1); “BABYLON THE GREAT” who forced idol worship on her citizens on pain of death, just like the real Babylon did.  There can be no doubt this is referring to the Imperial City of Rome.  She with “whom the kings of the earth committed fornication” (17:2); She who was “drunken with the blood of the saints” (17:6); and who sits “upon a scarlet colored beast” (17:3); She who was the “Mother of the Harlots” (17:5); and she who is “the city, which reigneth over the kings of the earth” (Revelation 17:18).

The Downfall of Imperial Rome

Such great significance has been attached to Imperial Rome as the center of the persecuting power toward Christianity in the latter half of the first century, that three chapters of the Revelation are given to portray her downfall.  Chapter 17 appears to be intent on identifying Rome as the recipient of God’s judgment and portraying just how evil an adversary she is to the saints.  Verse 14 reassures the Christians that God will be victorious in the end.  Those who are “called and chosen and faithful” will overcome and emerge victorious.

 

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The Battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16)

The Battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16)

For centuries mankind has been interested in the battle of Armageddon.  Countless books have been written about this topic.  This battle is and has been the subject of so much controversy over the years that entire doctrines have been contrived around it.  It is not the purpose of this study to determine what the battle of Armageddon is not.  Rather, the goal of this study is to shed light on what this battle really is so that informed students of scripture can determine for themselves what it is not.  

First, we must bear in mind that John wrote this book directly to the churches of Asia in the latter half of the 1st century.  At the time of this writing the Lord’s church was undergoing some of the most severe organized persecution it would face in all the Christian age.  In the years soon to come, Christianity was outlawed by the Roman Empire.  Emperor Domitian, the son of the reigning emperor Vespasian, demanded to be worshipped as a god on earth under his rule and any who refused became enemies of the Imperial Roman Empire.  Violators were ostracized from society, forbidden to buy, sell or participate in any kind of government program.  Not only was it illegal for a Christian to buy or sell within the empire, it was illegal for the Roman citizens loyal to Domitian to sell to or buy from them.  All commerce with Christians who refused to worship the emperor was forbidden by the state.   These economic sanctions were focused primarily on the Christians and excluded the Jewish people still worshipping under the Mosaic system.  The Jews comprised such a large part of the Roman economic engine that Domitian permitted them a degree of religious freedom but, they were forbidden to trade with their brethren of nationality who were Christians.   

Those who were even suspected or accused of being Christians or even aiding them were imprisoned, their property seized by the state, their children were often sold into slavery, and the prisoners of the state were often subjected to various tortures up to and including their use in the Roman games for the public entertainment of the masses.  Publicly slaughtered by gladiators and wild beasts they became a grim example to the rest of the citizenry of Rome of the consequences for refusing to bow down to Emperor worship or for helping anyone who refused to obey their authority.  It was a dark time for God’s faithful.  

The conditions under which the recipients of this letter received it forms the backdrop for how we are to understand it today.  Revelation was a book of comfort, exhortation and hope to a severely oppressed group of God’s people.  It is only logical that they would be able to understand John’s letter.  They would know the Battle of Armageddon and what it meant to Christians.  They would be familiar enough with the imagery to understand and apply it to their situation.  Nobody would write a letter of encouragement to a suffering loved one that they could not understand.  So with this in mind, to the best of our ability, let’s look at the Battle of Armageddon through the eyes of those to whom Revelation was written.  What the battle of Armageddon meant to John and the first readers of his book is what it was, is, or will be.  

In the original text, the word Armageddon is “Harmaggedon.”  This is a compound word derived from the Hebrew word “Har” which means a mountain or range of hills, (See Strongs OT 2022).  This word is a shortened version of the Hebrew word “harar”, (Strong’s OT 2042), which means to loom up; a mountain or hill. 

“Meggedon” is derived from the Hebrew word “Megiddown” or “Megiddow”.  These words originate from the Hebrew word “gadad” which means to assemble, gather troops for battle, or to cut or gash oneself.  The latter meaning being of no apparent connection to this context.  The ASV renders this as “Har-Magedon.” which literally means the “mount of Megiddo” or the “looming” or perhaps “rising” of Megiddo.  This would suggest the imagery of the rising presence of an impending battle of particular relevance to Megiddo.   

There are numerous references to Meggido in scripture but nowhere else is this place referred to as a mountain.  The Bible speaks geographically of “Megiddo and its three heights” (Joshua 17:11), “Megiddo and its towns” (Judges 1:27), the “waters of Megiddo” (Judges 5:19), and the “valley of Megiddo” (2 Chronicles 35:22; Zechariah 12:11).  Geographic Megiddo was a battlefield beginning on the Northwest side of Palestine at Mount Carmel, extending across Palestine to Mount Gilboa on the southeast.  Megiddo was a strategic point in the protection of Israel and Judah, since it guarded the northern entrance into Israel.  See Map

Several decisive historical battles were fought in this area.  There were battles between the powers on the northeast and those on the southwest, between the Egyptians and the Assyrians, the Egyptians and the Babylonians, and the Egyptians and the Medes and the Persians.  On one occasion, Pharaoh Necho, on his way to fight the Assyrians encountered Josiah, a good king of Judah.  Pharaoh Necho tried to dissuade Josiah from the battle, but he refused to listen and was killed, (2 Chronicles 35:20-24). Barak and Deborah defeated Sisera and the Caananites “by the waters of Megiddo” (Judges 5:19-20).  Saul and Jonathan fought their last battle with the Philistines and died on the eastern side of plains of Megiddo, (1 Samuel 31:1-6).  It was in the valley of Jezreel, “west of the hill of Moreh.” that Gideon took 300 men and defeated the Midianites, (Judges 7:1).  It was at Megiddo where Ahaziah, king of Judah, in league with Joram of Israel was slain at the command of Jehu, (2 Kings 9:27).  At Megiddo a small army of Israelites defeated an overwhelming force led by Antiochus Epiphanes IV, as prophesied in Daniel 11.  The Hebrews of the first century recognized any reference to Megiddo as a place where countless hundreds of thousands of their countrymen lost their lives in numerous battles over centuries of time in conflicts that often decided their fate on earth.  The best blood of the Israelites soaked that battlefield along with the blood of their mortal enemies since the time of Nebuchadnezzar, king of Babylon.

Was the battle of Armageddon a literal battle, fought between the Lord’s people and the forces of darkness, on a literal battlefield, with literal weapons of war?  To answer this question we must first look to what Paul wrote in Colossians 3:17, “And whatsoever Ye do, in word or in deed, (do) all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.”  No matter what the Christian does whether it be in peace or at war, they must have authority from Jesus Christ to do it.  So if a Christian is going to wage war with earthly weapons and shed the blood of their enemies then this must be done with proper Biblical authority.  Paul wrote to the Christians in Corinth, “For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh (for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but mighty before God to the casting down of strongholds)” (2 Corinthians 10:3-4).  Not only is there no authority for the Christian to wage spiritual war against the enemies of God with earthly weapons, their use is prohibited by divine inspiration.

How does scripture teach the Christian to deal with their enemies?  Christians are to love their enemies, (Luke 6:27), blessing those that curse them,  doing good to all that hate them, praying for those who use and persecute them, (Matthew 5:44).  Paul taught:  “If it be possible, as much as in you lieth, be at peace with all men. Avenge not yourselves, beloved, but give place unto the wrath (of God): for it is written, Vengeance belongeth unto me; I will recompense, saith the Lord.  But if thine enemy hunger, feed him; if he thirst, give him to drink: for in so doing thou shalt heap coals of fire upon his head.  Be not overcome of evil, but overcome evil with good” (Romans 12:18-21). Paul refers to Christians as soldiers in his second letter to Timothy where he also said that they must contend lawfully, (2 Timothy 2:4-5).  The only scripturally approved offensive weapons of the soldiers of Christ are described in Ephesians 6:13-17, “Wherefore take up the whole armor of God, that Ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and, having done all, to stand.  Stand therefore, having girded your loins with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, and having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace; withal taking up the shield of faith, wherewith Ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the evil (one).  And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”  Nowhere in scripture is the faithful child of God instructed to wage war against evil by taking up a manmade weapon of war and using it to shed the blood of the enemies of God in the post cross Christian age.  

John 18:36
“Jesus answered, My kingdom is not of this world: if my kingdom were of this world, then would my servants fight, that I should not be delivered to the Jews: but now is my kingdom not from hence.” 

Whatever the battle of Armageddon was, is, or will be, it must be fought with the spiritual weapons of the soldiers of Christ, it must be fought lawfully using only the approved methods and means for spiritual warfare as authorized in scripture.  This battle cannot be a literal conflict where the righteous shed the blood of the enemies of God.  Such an interpretation of this battle would be to create a direct conflict with the rest of scripture which plainly teaches that the weapons and armor which the righteous use against evil is the word of God and their faith, (Ephesians 6:13-17; Hebrews 4:12).

Furthermore, if the battle of Armageddon were a literal physical battle, one would expect to see three literal frogs going out from the mouth of a literal dragon into the world to rally the forces of evil and to lead them in their crusade against the Christians.  Frogs were loathsome and despised creatures to the Israelites.  Their meaning is given in Revelation 16:14, “For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.”  So the frogs weren’t really literal frogs, rather they represented something loathsome coming out of the mouth of…  “the dragon” (Satan), the beast (Imperial Rome), and the false prophet (The Concilia).  The Concilia was an imperial cult whose purpose was to enforce the worship of the Roman Emperors.  This false prophet is also identified as the earth beast in Revelation 13:11-18. 

Backing up to Revelation 16:12 we see the sixth bowl of God’s wrath poured out in order to prepare the way of the kings of the east.  The kings of the east were the Parthians who hated the Roman Empire.  The Roman Empire tried on several occasions to conquer them and they were never able to do so.  Contextually speaking, the battle of Armageddon was to be fought between the Roman Empire and her enemies, the kings of the east.  The Battle of Armageddon was not even a battle between the Christians and their enemies as some people try and set forth.  The actual battle had nothing whatsoever to do with the Christians except that they would ultimately benefit from the demise of the Roman Empire.  God was using the enemies of the Roman Empire to execute His wrath and judgment against them in order to bring the Empire down.  The symbolism of Armageddon was simply used by John to indicate there will be a battle against the evil forces of the Roman Empire with God in control.   

To the first century Christians, the battle of Armageddon could only have been a battle between God and the Roman Empire which would ultimately result in its downfall.  They would read John’s letter and relate his writings to their immediate situation.  At the time of this letter, they were engaged in a life and death struggle with the Roman Empire under the reign of an evil emperor dedicated to their eradication.  Their immediate concerns were not some dim and distant futuristic battle to be fought some time in the obscure future.  The spiritual battle of Armageddon for them was being fought in their lifetimes.  They were fighting the Christian fight of righteousness.  They were being persecuted for their beliefs and they were dying for their faith in God.  They lived their lives on the battlefield of oppression and they fought their own battle of Armageddon every single day of their lives and we today owe them a debt of gratitude we can never repay.  Because it is upon their faith and steadfastness that the future of all Christianity hung.  Just like the real battles fought in the valley of Megiddo where the future of God’s people was decided by the outcome, so also did the outcome of the real battle of Armageddon assure for all Christians of all ages yet to come that righteousness will prevail and God’s faithful people will be triumphant. 

The first century Christians who remained faithful till death fought their own personal battle of Armageddon and won.  For us the war between righteousness and evil still rages.  Satan’s hatred of mankind has not abated one bit in the last 1900 years.  Until heaven and earth pass and the great day of the Lord is come upon us, we will fight against the forces of darkness, using only the spiritual weapons of warfare.  There are still plenty of forces out there hostile to Christianity.  Islam is the fastest growing religion on earth right now.  Denominationalism and religious division is running rampant over the globe.  True Christianity is always represented by the minority or a remnant.  In third world countries, Christianity faces poverty and oppression from the government.  In wealthy countries, Christianity faces the problems brought on by opulence and wealth.  The unrighteous in fat and happy societies feel no need for God in their lives, being wrapped in a false security of wealth and ease.   The faithful watch as the unrighteous force God out of their societies inch by inch.  

While the battle of Armageddon may be over for those who lived in the Roman Empire, it rages still today against the righteous, and our enemy is no less opposed to us as he was against them.  God is still waging war against unrighteousness and Christians today are His soldiers in this war against the forces of evil just like in the first century.  Satan’s weapons today are the same as they were then; Trickery, deception, lies, fleshly pleasures, oppression and division.  Satan knows that the kingdom of God divided is like a house divided.  It cannot stand, (Matthew 12:25).  Our battle of Armageddon today is no less important than the ones fought in previous times.  It is on our shoulders that the future of Christianity sets.  It is our resolve and dedication to the truth that will someday have a part in the preservation of the Lord’s church for all future generations for as long as earth remains.  Our duty is solemn and of vital importance to all who may live after us and seek God’s truth.  

So with this thought anchored in heart and soul, let us set our hand to the plough, never looking back and run with patience the race that is set before us.  Let us contend earnestly for the faith, of Jesus Christ, taking heed to and teaching no other doctrine but the one that was received by the apostles.  Let us forget those things which are behind and reach forth unto those things which are before, pressing toward the mark for the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus. Let us put on the whole armor of God that we may be be able to stand against Satan, girding our loins with truth, wearing the breastplate of righteousness, having our feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace, taking up the shield of faith while wearing the helmet of salvation and wielding the sword of the spirit which is the word of God.  Let us fight the good fight to the end, girding up the loins of our minds, with sobriety, finishing the course and keeping the faith, with hope to the end for the grace that is to be brought to us at the coming of Jesus Christ.  For we are not fighting against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places.  Therefore let us stand united under the banner of truth and righteousness, holding forth the word of life, using spiritual weapons and fighting the battles of Armageddon wherever they may be, defending the church of the living God which is the pillar and ground of the truth, and laying up for ourselves and for our children, a good foundation against the time to come.   The battle of Armageddon in the first century was the conflict between righteousness and evil.  Those battles are still being fought today. Those who emerge victorious from their battles of Armageddon will win the war and lay hold on eternal life.  (c.f. Luke 9:62, Jude 3, Galatians 1:8-9, 1 Timothy 4:16; 6:19; 3:15, Philippians 3:13-14, 2:16, 2 Timothy 4:7, 1 Peter 1:13, Ephesians 6:11-17)

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The Bowls of Wrath (Revelation 16)

The Bowls of Wrath (Revelation 16)

Keeping in mind that the book of Revelation was written to the oppressed Christians of the time, let’s look at the bowls of wrath.  Seven angels in glorious array were given seven bowls of wrath and directed by God to pour then out on the earth.  There is a lot of figurative language associated with this, no doubt in view of the fact that the means by which God would destroy the Roman Empire is being laid out for all who can comprehend the imagery to see.  Let’s briefly revisit the consequences that would be wreaked on the already oppressed Christians if the imperial authorities could understand this letter.  God’s message of perseverance and hope would turn into a death sentence for the Christians, thus rendering the message of Revelation a hindrance to the Christians rather than a help. 

The bowls containing God’s wrath are obviously symbolic.  Wrath is not a material substance that can be contained in anything and be dispensed like one would pour water out on a flower bed.  The numeral seven represents the completeness of divine judgment upon an ungodly world.  Note that the term “wrath” is an affirmation that God will express his holy and just nature in retribution upon rebellious conduct. 

It is noteworthy that the first 4 bowls of wrath of John’s vision was poured out upon nature but the direct effect was upon the ungodly men of the Imperial Roman Empire.  John used a lot of figurative language to make this vision seem unreal thus disguising the real meaning from the enemies of the Christians.  When the real is separated from the figurative, the bowls of wrath represent the partial destruction of the Roman Empire by natural phenomena.  The Roman historian Edward Gibbon recorded in his book, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire, chapter 71, page 891, that one of the major reasons for the fall of Imperial Rome was a series of natural calamities which caused great unrest among the people throughout the Empire.  

The fifth and sixth bowls of wrath are poured out directly on man, indicating that God will use internal debauchery and external invasion to complete the fall of the Empire.  History bears out that this was indeed the case. 

The First Bowl of Wrath

Revelation 16:1-2
1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple, saying to the seven angels, Go ye, and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God into the earth.
2 And the first went, and poured out his bowl into the earth; and it became a noisome and grievous sore upon the men that had the mark of the beast, and that worshipped his image.

The first bowl of wrath was poured out upon the earth.  Poured out upon the Roman Empire, it affected only those who bore the mark of the beast and worshipped Domitian.  This plague paralleled the boil plague of Egypt in the days of Moses and caused grievous sores to come upon those who bowed to worship the emperor. 

The Second Bowl of Wrath

Revelation 16:3
And the second poured out his bowl into the sea; and it became blood as of a dead man; and every living soul died, (even) the things that were in the sea.

Immediately following the first plague, the second bowl of wrath was emptied out upon the sea.  The imagery paralleled the plague of Egypt where the Nile was turned to blood.  This is not to be taken literally, as God promised to protect the Christians who made their livelihood by the sea from His wrath.  What was intended here was to illustrate that God would use natural calamities of the sea to orchestrate, in part, the downfall of Rome.  Keep in mind that a significant portion of Rome’s power lay in its trade expansion through conquering territories.  Major trade routes to the east were achieved by sea travel.  Closing these would seriously cripple Rome’s ability to pursue trade in this and other directions.  Looking ahead briefly to chapter 18, we see a reference to the merchants who were said to weep and mourn over the loss of Roman commerce. 

The Third Bowl of Wrath

Revelation 16:4-7
4 And the third poured out his bowl into the rivers and the fountains of the waters; and it became blood.
5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying, Righteous art thou, who art and who wast, thou Holy One, because thou didst thus judge:
6 for they poured out the blood of the saints and the prophets, and blood hast thou given them to drink: they are worthy.
7 And I heard the altar saying, Yea, O Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.

The third bowl of wrath was poured out on the fresh water.  During this event, a voice was heard that proclaimed God’s righteousness in this act.  The Roman Empire slaughtered so many Christians.  They literally made their blood flow like water.  It could be said that they drank of the blood of the Christians.  This bowl of wrath surely gave comfort to the Christians who had seen their blood spilled mercilessly.  God is assuring the Christians that the Roman Empire will drink of the blood they shed.  God’s final words of judgment to Edom speak similarly of them suffering equally for what they had inflicted:

Obadiah 15-16
15 For the day of Jehovah is near upon all the nations: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee; thy dealing shall return upon thine own head.
16 For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the nations drink continually; yea, they shall drink, and swallow down, and shall be as though they had not been.

The Fourth Bowl of Wrath

Revelation 16:8-9
8 And the fourth poured out his bowl upon the sun; and it was given unto it to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat: and they blasphemed the name of God who hath the power over these plagues; and they repented not to give him glory.

The fourth bowl of wrath was emptied out upon the sun which then sent out scorching rays to burn the wicked.  Those upon whom the rays fell were so hardened in their hearts that they refused to see this as an act of divine retribution and added blasphemy to their already sin cursed lives.  John gives credit to God as having power over the plagues that were coming.  The Christians to who this was written were here told that God is in charge of what’s going on. 

Of significance also is the wording, “and they repented not to give him glory”.  This reveals that the oppressors were given the chance to repent.  This should bring great comfort to those who believe they have gone too far and can never repent and come back to God.  Even after all the horrible things done to the Christians, the people of the Roman Empire still were given an opportunity to avoid God’s eternal wrath which is far more severe and lasting than His wrath executed on earth.  We can see God’s longsuffering and patience at work here in His efforts to reach those who worshipped under the beast and to present them with every opportunity to avoid His eternal wrath.  This calls to mind God’s reluctance to destroy Nineveh when He sent Jonah to preach to them in hopes of converting them from their evil ways.

But, they repented not and gave not any glory to God.  The subjects of the beast, (Imperial Rome), had so taken in his spirit and absorbed his characteristics that instead of repenting and turning to God, they rebelled against God’s efforts to turn them, hardened their hearts just like Pharaoh and rebelled against His efforts to soften them.  Even the scorching heat of God’s wrath unleashed with the sun could not mellow their rebellious hearts, rather it hardened them. 

The fourth bowl completes the first section of plagues involving earth, sea, waters and the sun.

The Fifth Bowl of Wrath

Revelation 16:10-11
10 And the fifth poured out his bowl upon the throne of the beast; and his kingdom was darkened; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,
11 and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they repented not of their works.

And now we see the fifth bowl of wrath being poured out on the throne of the beast, (Domitian), and his entire kingdom is darkened.  This imagery is reflective of Psalms 69:23-24, “Let their eyes be darkened, so that they cannot see; and make their loins continually to shake. Pour out thine indignation upon them, and let the fierceness of thine anger overtake them.”  Beginning at the throne, the kingdom is darkened so that the eyes of the leaders lose their ability to see how their kingdom needs to be managed.  They are turning a blind eye to the priorities of managing a world wide empire and turning them instead to the inner pleasures of wicked debauchery.  They feel secure in their power so they become blind to the needs of the empire.  The Roman Empire is by no means the only power on earth that came to demise because of this. 

The Romans who are faithful to the Empire and its emperor worship see it happening, they are in anguish over it, yet in their stubborn pride, they continue to refuse to accept that this internally evil system of government cannot possibly be worthy of their worship so they “repented not of their works,” rather choosing to blame and blaspheme the one to whom they should have turned.

Romans 1:21-25
21 because that, knowing God, they glorified him not as God, neither gave thanks; but became vain in their reasonings, and their senseless heart was darkened.
22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 and changed the glory of the incorruptible God for the likeness of an image of corruptible man, and of birds, and four-footed beasts, and creeping things.
24 Wherefore God gave them up in the lusts of their hearts unto uncleanness, that their bodies should be dishonored among themselves:
25 for that they exchanged the truth of God for a lie, and worshipped and served the creature rather than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.

The Sixth Bowl of Wrath

Revelation 16:12
And the sixth poured out his bowl upon the great river, the (river) Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way might be made ready for the kings that (come) from the sunrising.

The sixth bowl of wrath was said to be poured out directly on the Euphrates River causing it to dry up.  The Euphrates River formed the eastern boundary of the Imperial Roman Empire.  Beyond the river was the Parthian nation which had been in rebellion to the empire throughout its existence.  The ancient city of Babylon was finally destroyed in 539 B.C. when the Persians diverted the Euphrates River and entered the city underneath its protective walls, (cf. Jeremiah 50:38; 51:36).  That historical event formed the imagery that the Christians would identify the overthrow of God’s enemies with.  Again, this imagery is used to conceal the real meaning from the Roman authorities.  The drying up of the Euphrates signified to the oppressed Christians that the Roman Empire was now vulnerable to external invasion by the Parthian kings.  The external invasion did indeed occur, after which, The mighty Roman Empire was reduced to a declining world power. 

The Vision of the Three Frogs

Rev 16:13-16
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, as it were frogs: 
14 for they are spirits of demons, working signs; which go forth unto the kings of the whole world, to gather them together unto the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. 
15(Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.) 
16 And they gathered them together into the place which is called in Hebrew Har-Magedon. 

A break is given between the sixth and seventh symbols.  God has provided a way for the Parthians to attack the Roman Empire.  The Parthian kings were Rome’s bitterest most aggressive enemies.  The text of Revelation 17:14 indicates that the kings of the earth are being gathered to do battle.  Rome recognized the danger of a Parthian invasion and was moving to ally the nations within the Roman empire to battle against this deadly foe.

We read that three unclean spirits in the form of frogs appear through the mouths of the dragon, (Satan), the sea beast, (Domitian), and the earth beast, (the Roman Concilia).  The frogs were not literal and had a significant meaning to the Christians of the day.  A study of Leviticus 11:9-12 reveals that all animals that lived in the water but did not have fins or scales were to be regarded as an abomination to the Israelites.  They were loathsome creatures not to be eaten nor touched in any way.  Thus we see that the three frogs represent to the Christians of the time vile creatures who are to be rejected and viewed as abominations.  

These three symbolic frogs are said to be “spirits of demons” which are sent out by the dragon, the sea and the earth beast to deceive and rally the kings of the world to defeat the coming invasion by the Parthian kings.  They are successful in deceiving the kings and they all unite in a place called “Har Megadon” to do battle against the invading force.  Only the gathering of forces is mentioned here.  The actual battle does not take place until later in Revelation.  

The words “Har-Megedon” more familiarly known as “Armageddon” means the “mount of Megiddo.”  John was describing the mustering of forces at a place called the Mount of Megiddo.  This was a Hebrew battlefield which had historical significance because this was where Gideon defeated the Midianites, King Saul was defeated by the Philistines, Barak and Deborah overthrew Jabin, (Judges 5:12-19), Jehu killed Ahaziah with an arrow, (2 Kings 9:27), and Josiah was defeated by Pharoah-Necho, (2 Chronicles 35:22).  In the minds of the Hebrew Christians, Megiddo was a place where decisive conflicts took place.  Therefore Har-Megedon fitly symbolizes to the Christians of the day, a battlefield where the forces of God and the forces of evil meet in deadly conflict to determine the earthly future of God’s people.  A more extensive study of the battlefield of Megiddo and Armageddon will follow after we have concluded the study on the bowls of wrath.  

Revelation 16:15
(Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.) 

The entire core message of Revelation is for the Christian to persevere against all persecution no matter what the personal consequences to their earthly persons.  God remains in charge and those who endure and remain in righteousness will be victorious in the end.  This message is repeated over and over throughout the text and Revelation 16:15 is a repetition of this exhortation.  The coming as of a thief, (cf Revelation 3:3), was imagery introduced by Jesus during His earthly ministry to encourage constant watch and preparedness for His coming, (cf Luke 12:39).  This imagery was used by the apostles as well in reference to the day of the Lord, (1 Thessalonians 5:2-4; 2 Peter 3:10).  It is therefore impossible to know the day of the Lord’s coming for the final judgment.  

“Blessed is he that watcheth”

Matt 24:42-51
42 Watch therefore: for Ye know not on what day your Lord cometh.
43 But know this, that if the master of the house had known in what watch the thief was coming, he would have watched, and would not have suffered his house to be broken through.
44 Therefore be Ye also ready; for in an hour that Ye think not the Son of man cometh.
45 Who then is the faithful and wise servant, whom his lord hath set over his household, to give them their food in due season?
46 Blessed is that servant, whom his lord when he cometh shall find so doing.
47 Verily I say unto you, that he will set him over all that he hath.
48 But if that evil servant shall say in his heart, My lord tarrieth;
49 and shall begin to beat his fellow-servants, and shall eat and drink with the drunken;
50 the lord of that servant shall come in a day when he expecteth not, and in an hour when he knoweth not,
51 and shall cut him asunder, and appoint his portion with the hypocrites: there shall be the weeping and the gnashing of teeth. 

“and keepeth his garments”

The Christian “puts on Christ” or clothes himself with Christ at baptism, (Galatians 3:27).  In scripture, the inspired writers illustrated Christ and God’s righteousness as something the Christian figuratively wears upon His person.  Sin is illustrated as spots and blemishes on one’s garments, (Jude 23).  The Psalmist referred to cursing as being like a garment that clothed the unrighteous, (Ps 109:18-19), so the imagery of garments represents to the Christian that which he adorns himself with be it righteousness or unrighteousness.  A blessing is given to those Christians who keep their garments in the state it was when they clothed themselves with Christ.

“lest he walk naked, and they see his shame”

2 Cor 5:1-3
1 For we know that if the earthly house of our tabernacle be dissolved, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal, in the heavens. 
2 For verily in this we groan, longing to be clothed upon with our habitation which is from heaven: 
3 if so be that being clothed we shall not be found naked. 

The present tense of the verbs, “watcheth” and “keepeth” indicate a continuous effort necessitating a daily watchfulness.  The Christians were exhorted to be continuously on guard, watching and keeping themselves clean in all appearance.  The application of this for us today is that since this was required of the Christians to which Revelation was written, so also must it apply to all Christians thereafter.  God is no respect of persons, (Romans 2:11).  God is not going to require Christians who were being slaughtered for their faith to remain righteous and let all the rest of the Christians living afterwards to slide by.  Let us also watch and keep our garments lest we be be found naked and in shame.

The Seventh Bowl of Wrath

Rev 16:17-21

17 And the seventh poured out his bowl upon the air; and there came forth a great voice out of the temple, from the throne, saying, It is done: 
18 and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunders; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since there were men upon the earth, so great an earthquake, so mighty. 
19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and Babylon the great was remembered in the sight of God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. 
20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 
21 And great hail, (every stone) about the weight of a talent, cometh down out of heaven upon men: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof is exceeding great. 

The seventh bowl poured out upon the air symbolizes the complete retribution of God through the use of natural elements, earth water, fire, (the sun) and air.  The previous natural disturbances were not as severe as the ones after the outpouring of the seventh bowl.  There can be no doubt that there is a great deal of figurative language used here and so it would be in that God is describing the downfall of the Roman Empire and must protect the Christians from added persecutions by concealing the real message from the Roman authorities.  

A clue to figurative significance of the outpouring of the final bowl of wrath on the air may be found in Ephesians 2:2, “wherein Ye once walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the powers of the air, of the spirit that now worketh in the sons of disobedience;”  The prince of the powers of the air spoken of by Paul is undoubtedly Satan.  In view of the gathering forces for the upcoming battle of Har-Megedon mentioned earlier, it is reasonable to conclude that the final bowl of wrath will be poured out directly on the “powers of the air“, or the powers of Satan.  The fifth bowl was poured out on the throne of the beast, the sixth bowl opened the way for invasion from hostile countries followed by a gathering of forces by the allies of Satan to his evil cause, followed then by the outpouring of God’s wrath upon the entire sphere of Satan’s operation.  Air would be an appropriate symbol representing the prevailing influence surrounding the Roman Empire.  Thus the course of the Empire which was evil to the core, characterized by lives of trespass and sin, ruled by the Satan, (prince of the powers of the air), who controlled his subjects by a spirit of rebellion and disobedience to God, is now going to brought under divine judgment.  

With the pouring of the seventh bowl, the Christians are again reminded that the forces of evil cannot win the battle.  With the outpouring of this last bowl of wrath, we are told that thunder and lightning from heaven and an earthquake unlike any other shakes the earth, all of which are manifestations of divine retribution.  The city of Rome is divided into three parts,  (the divine number) which symbolizes God’s involvement in the overthrow of the city.  When this final action is finished, God’s wrath on the beast and the false prophet is complete.  

The seven bowls of wrath represented three things which historian Edward Gibbons attributed to the ultimate fall of the Imperial Roman Empire: 1) natural calamity, 2) internal rottenness, and 3) external invasion.  All three of these were works of God which ultimately caused the doom of the Roman Empire.  It did no good for Rome to rally help from other nations, for God would destroy Rome irregardless of any help Satan may recruit.  The vision of the bowls of wrath were designed to set forth the assurance of ultimate triumph of righteousness over any and all evil that may be hurled at it.  The message to the Christians of of the day was that God is ruling and they must persevere and keep themselves in righteousness and in so doing they will achieve the ultimate victory.  The message for us is the same.  God cares for us and as long as we live in righteousness we too can triumph over any evil which can be hurled at us.

Romans 8:35-39

35 Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? shall tribulation, or anguish, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or peril, or sword? 
36 Even as it is written, For thy sake we are killed all the day long; We were accounted as sheep for the slaughter. 
37 Nay, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him that loved us. 
38 For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels, nor principalities, nor things present, nor things to come, nor powers, 
39 nor height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord. 
ASV

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Comfort for the Saints (Revelation 15)

Comfort for the Saints (Revelation 15)

Let’s call to mind that in Revelation 6:10, the saints asked God how long it would be before He avenged the blood of the slain saints shed by their oppressors.  Here they are told that it is now time for the punishment due for the suffering brought about by the dragon and his allies.  The forces of heaven are given the directive to implement the wrath of God upon the enemies of righteousness.  Those who are still alive are given a picture of the triumphant martyrs who, having died at the hands of Domitian, kept their faith and endured to the end.  The assurance to the oppressed is that if they too shall overcome the persecution to be inflicted upon them, they also shall receive the crown of life.  It is as if the fallen martyrs are cheering their earthly brethren on to victory. 

It is significant to note that once again, the saints are being exhorted to keep the faith.  Don’t give in, don’t give up, the God of all creation is aware, still in control, angry with the beast and is about to step in and set things right.  The cruel oppressors are about to face the wrath of God.  In the end, the Roman Empire, as powerful as it seems, will succumb and the faithful saints of God will emerge victorious.  “What then shall we say to these things? If God (is) for us, who (is) against us?” (Romans 8:31). (ASV)

Revelation 15:1
And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having seven plagues, (which are) the last, for in them is finished the wrath of God. (ASV)

John saw a great and marvelous sign in heaven.  There were seven angels with seven plagues to dispense on the earth.  The number seven represents completeness to the people of the time.  This would suggest that John’s vision previews the complete wrath of God which is to be directed toward the unrighteous.  Biblical history is replete with examples of God’s punishment upon the unrighteous.  Sodom and Gomorrah, Egypt, Babylon, Assyria and many others suffered defeat at the direction of God due to their rebellion.  These judgments on earth pale to insignificance in the view of the judgment yet to come, when the eternal punishment of Hell shall be manifested upon them. 

Notice that the text refers to the “finished” wrath of God.  This is no way means that the punishment of the unrepentant oppressors is over.  God’s eternal wrath will continue to be upon those outside of Christ, manifested in the eternal punishment of Hell.  (Reference Revelation 14:10-11).  This merely means that God’s anger is complete and will be poured out on the Roman Empire until His purpose is fully executed.  The Christians are being told here that the Roman Empire is going to eventually fall as a result of their persecution.

Revelation 15:2
“And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire; and them that come off victorious from the beast, and from his image, and from the number of his name, standing by the sea of glass, having harps of God.” (ASV)

This “sea of glass” was mentioned previously in Revelation 4:6, “And before the throne there was a sea of glass like unto crystal: and in the midst of the throne, and round about the throne, were four beasts full of eyes before and behind.”  The glass was mentioned in conjunction with the eyes of the living creatures and probably illustrates the transparency of everything to God who knows all things. (cf. 1 John 3:20) and sees all the works of man, (Job 34:21-22, Hebrews 4:13).  The sea represents a barrier between two points.  A barrier from which turmoil and disaster can erupt suddenly and with little warning.  Fire represents both the judgment of God and purification from sin.  The “sea of glass mingled with fire”  here would then seem to represent the all seeing eye of God, burning with the fire of the impending judgment.  And standing there by the sea of glass are those who were “victorious from the beast“, separated from God by the confines of their physical existence but still in fellowship with Him as Christians.  Those who rejected emperor worship and refused to accept the mark of the beast are there, ready to witness the coming fire.  “How long, O Master, the holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?” (Revelation 6:10).  The time has come and the faithful are there, looking on, encouraging their still living brethren and praising God.  In revelation 21, the sea which stands between God and His children on earth is gone.  The saved then stand in the actual presence of God in Heaven.

Let’s pause and look at the “harps of God” in this context.  The victorious are represented as standing beside the sea of glass mingled with fire having the harps of God.  Attempts have been made to literalize the “harps of God” in an attempt to legitimize the use of Manmade instruments of music in our worship today.  The first problem with this is that if one is going to literalize the harps of God, one needs to look at literalizing the sea of glass mingled with literal fire too.  The second problem with this that must be dealt with is that if there are literal harps of God in heaven, we can be assured they are not made by the fleshly hands of men.  A third problem with this is that this vision is not one of the saints in the eternal bode of heaven, rather, the vision is of the redeemed still on earth, known as the body of Christ. 

Revelation 15:3
“And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, O Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are thy ways, thou King of the ages.”

Moses and the Israelites sang a song of victorious deliverance over the Egyptian forces after they were destroyed in the Red Sea, (cf. Exodus 15:1-19).  The Christians of the day, especially the Jewish Christians, would recognize this figurative representation of victory instantly.  The song of the lamb is a figurative expression for the deliverance from the bondage of sin.  Thus the combined effect of both songs is a song of deliverance from both earthly oppression and the complete and utter deliverance and triumph over sin that is realized through Christ Jesus, the lamb.  Moses’ song of deliverance and Jesus’ song of redemption are the ones only the redeemed who were “purchased out of the earth” can sing, (cf. Revelation 14:3). 

“O Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are thy ways, thou King of the ages.”  Notice the similarity to the wording from Psalms 145:17, “Jehovah is righteous in all his ways, and gracious in all his works,”  The book of Revelation is saturated with allusions to Old Testament scripture. 

Revelation 15:4
“Who shall not fear, O Lord, and glorify thy name?“  

We will let the Bible comment on this beautiful verse.

Isaiah 45:23
“By myself have I sworn, the word is gone forth from my mouth (in) righteousness, and shall not return, that unto me every knee shall bow, every tongue shall swear.”  See also Romans 14:11, Philippians 2:10-11. 

Revelation 15:4 “ …for thou only art holy”  

1 Samuel 2:2
“There is none holy as Jehovah; For there is none besides thee, Neither is there any rock like our God.“

Revelation 15:4 “…for all the nations shall come and worship before thee; “

Psalms 86:9
“All nations whom thou hast made shall come and worship before thee, O Lord; and they shall glorify thy name.”

Revelation 15:4 “…for thy righteous acts have been made manifest.“

2 Thessalonians 1:4-5
4 “so that we ourselves glory in you in the churches of God for your patience and faith in all your persecutions and in the afflictions which ye endure;
5(which is) a manifest token of the righteous judgment of God; to the end that ye may be counted worthy of the kingdom of God, for which ye also suffer:”

Let’s back up now and look at the whole of John’s description of praise in its entirety. 

Revelation 15:3-4
3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, O Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are thy ways, thou King of the ages.
4 Who shall not fear, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy; for all the nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy righteous acts have been made manifest.
ASV

What a beautiful picture of praise to God we have here. It embodies so much.  Entire books could be written about these two verses of scripture and never fully cover their content.  As one studies through John’s Revelation and struggles with understanding the symbolic language, it is a great comfort that intermingled within this letter are passages that stand out so clear to us in their meaning.  One of the main things we pick up from this and other similar passages is that praise and worship to God is the privilege of the redeemed.  While this blessing is extended to all, not all decide to avail themselves of it, choosing rather to live in rebellion to God’s will.  And it is those who so refuse who will never know this privilege.

Revelation 15:5
“And after these things I saw, and the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened:”

The word “temple” here is rendered from the Greek word “naos”  This word alludes directly to the inner sanctuary of the Tabernacle, known as the Holy of Holies.  Within this chamber of the tabernacle was kept the Ark of the Covenant which contained the tables of the law, called “the testimony.”  The image here is that the royal throne room of Heaven itself was opened up and what was about to come forth was coming forth from Jehovah Himself and will be supervised under His personal direction.  God is angry and the doors of the inner sanctuary are thrown open to the view of John, thus revealing the gravity of God’s intentions. 

Revelation 15:6
“and there came out from the temple the seven angels that had the seven plagues, arrayed with (precious) stone, pure (and) bright, and girt about their breasts with golden girdles.“

And there came out from the very holiness of God Himself, the plagues of judgment.  Seven plagues carried by seven angels.  As noted earlier, the number seven is representative of that which is complete.  The seven seals in Revelation 5 and 6 reveal the wrath of God, the seven trumpets announce and warn of the coming wrath of God, (Revelation 8), and the seven bowls execute the wrath of God.  The doom of the Roman Empire is sealed.  It will be methodically and absolutely trodden out under the feet of God like treaders pressing the juice out of grapes in a winepress. 

The glorious array of the angels with their precious stones in golden girdles most likely signifies that these angels are coming forth from the presence of God almighty with a solemn mission to carry out.  The adjectives “pure” and “bright” are representative of the purity and holiness of the judgments of wrath to come. 

Revelation 15:7
“And one of the four living creatures gave unto the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.”

The four creatures here being the same ones mentioned in Revelation 4:6; 5:6-8; 5:14; 6:1-6; 7:11; 14:3, and later on in 19:4.  The idea here being that in understanding the symbolism of John’s Revelation, the figurative language is consistent and a consideration of all of it throughout can be used to help unravel the mysteries of this book. 

The wrath of God’s judgment is now given over to the angels for implementation.  The plan is complete, God’s will on the matter is settled.  The time has come.  The blood of the martyrs, just like the blood of Cain’s brother Abel, is crying out from the ground, (cf. Genesis 4:10), and now the punishment has been dispatched to the angels for execution and is about to commence. 

Revelation 15:8
“And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and none was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels should be finished.“

The temple here is still indicative of the Holy of Holies.  Looking at this from the view of the oppressed Christians, it is probable that the smoke is representative of God’s anger.  However this is not always the case in the Old Testament.  For example, Mt. Sinai in its entirety smoked and quaked from the presence of God when he descended to speak with Moses.  The smoke could therefore be representative of God in action.  Either view is consistent with the theme of the scene being described by John. 

None were able to enter into the temple until all was finished.  There will be no intercessions.  There will be no distractions.  The execution of God’s wrath on the Roman Empire is of a paramount priority, under the personal supervision of almighty God Himself, with the doors of Heaven’s throne room itself thrown open wide to His view. 

What a picture of comfort this must be to the living saints.  God is in control.  The Roman Empire as evil and cruel as they have been in their persecutions is now going to be called out for their actions.  The oppressed Christians can’t buy, they can’t sell, they can’t participate in any kind of transaction whatsoever.  Their friends and families have been turned over to the state, tortured, maimed, sold into slavery and killed.  They worship God in fear of their lives every day, often assembling in secret places out of the public eye.  They have seen their brethren rounded up and fed to beasts in the Roman games for the enjoyment of the citizens of Rome.  They have seen their brethren hung on posts in the street, doused with oil and lit afire to serve as street lamps.  They have seen their properties seized, their children abused.  They have been persecuted and ostracized by the general populace who hate them and blame them for every thing bad that happens.  This message of divine intervention could not come at a better time.  God is about to put a stop to this and nothing is going to stand in His way or detract Him from this mission.  When He is finished, the Roman Empire who has so viciously and cruelly oppressed the innocent faithful will fall.

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The Sickle and the Winepress (Revelation 14:6-20)

The Sickle and the Winepress (Revelation 14:6-20)

It is generally agreed that this is a picture of divine judgment.  There is some disagreement over whether or not this is representative of two separate judgments, one of the righteous and the other of the wicked, or if the imagery represents only a single judgment which God uses to defeat the forces of evil.  The disagreement stems mainly from the futurist interpretation of Revelation, which has been previously noted, offers no value whatsoever to the oppressed Christians of the day.  I believe the context supports a single instrument of God’s judgment on the wicked in a dramatic way that leaves the reader with the impression that it will be terrible and final.  The terror and scope of God’s judgment is seen in the size of the river of blood, as deep as the bridle of a horse and about 200 miles in length. 

Revelation 14:14
“And I saw, and behold, a white cloud; and on the cloud (I saw) one sitting like unto a son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.”

White symbolizes purity and a cloud is a vantage point of lofty perspective.  Setting upon this pure lofty seat is Jesus wearing on His a golden crown, symbolic of the highest of authority and in his hand is a sharp sickle.  The sickle was a sharp edged tool used to harvest grain.  We sometimes refer to it as a scythe, however a scythe typically has a longer handle.  The reapers of the time would use a sickle to cut down the stalks of grain.  The long curved blade served both to cut and to gather the stalks into a bunch as it is drawn toward the reaper.  The stalks were then gathered into bundles and were later gathered and transported to the threshing floors. 

The words “sharp sickle” do not bring to mind a pleasant thought for the harvest of the just.  John the baptist spoke of hewing down the unfruitful trees with an axe, (Matthew 3:10, Luke 3:9).  Jesus also said that the unfruitful would be “hewn down and cast into the fire” (Matthew 7:19).  Nowhere in scripture is it mentioned that the just will be gathered with a sickle. 

Revelation 14:15-20
15 “And another angel came out from the temple, crying with a great voice to him that sat on the cloud, Send forth thy sickle, and reap: for the hour to reap is come; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
16 And he that sat on the cloud cast his sickle upon the earth; and the earth was reaped.
17 Another angel came out from the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.
18 And another angel came out from the altar, he that hath power over fire; and he called with a great voice to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Send forth thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
19 And the angel cast his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vintage of the earth, and cast it into the winepress, the great (winepress), of the wrath of God.
20 And the winepress was trodden without the city, and there came out blood from the winepress, even unto the bridles of the horses, as far as a thousand and six hundred furlongs.” ASV

Three sickles are used to reap the vintage of the earth. One of them being with fire. Scripture is replete with passages that warn of the punishment of fire for the wicked. Those who were cut and gathered were cast into a press and trodden out with an enormous river of blood issuing forth.

The winepress is imagery drawn from Lamentations when Jeremiah wrote of Judah’s captivity in Babylon: “…The Lord hath trodden as in a winepress the virgin daughter of Judah.” (Lamentations 1:15).

Ancient wine presses ordinarily consisted of two rectangular or circular excavations, hewn (Isaiah 5:2) in the solid rock to a depth of 2 or 3 feet. Where possible one was always higher than the other and they were connected by a pipe or channel. Their size, of course, varied greatly, but the upper vat was always wider and shallower than the lower and was the press proper, into which the grapes were thrown, to be crushed by the feet of the treaders. The treaders would get into the winepress with the grapes and walk back and forth, stomping on the grapes with their feet until the juice was extracted.

God’s wrath is here described as being a great winepress. The imagery here is of God cutting down His enemies, casting them into the winepress and treading them out until they are completely destroyed with their blood flowing forth in a river. This is not representative of an instantaneous overthrow on the part of God, rather it is indicative of a methodical and systematic plan designed to utterly and completely vanquish His enemies.

Isaiah 63:1-3
1 Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah? this that is glorious in his apparel, marching in the greatness of his strength? I that speak in righteousness, mighty to save.
2 Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winevat?
3 I have trodden the winepress alone; and of the peoples there was no man with me: yea, I trod them in mine anger, and trampled them in my wrath; and their lifeblood is sprinkled upon my garments, and I have stained all my raiment. (ASV)

The scene of the sickle and the winepress is telling God’s people, with imagery they would be able to understand, that the oppressive forces of evil are powerful but are no match for God. This scene gives Christians of the first century hope as they are assured that God is still on His throne and that He cares for His people and that He will be their champion in the end and they will be victorious through Christ and through His divine judgment.

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