REVELATION 16: 17-21

                                                    REVELATION 16: 17-21  

 

Rev 16:17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!"

18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe Earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake.

19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath.

20 Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found.

21 From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.

The seventh bowl follows on swiftly from the sixth bowl, there is no interlude as there was between the six and seventh seal, and the sixth and seventh trumpet, in which the church can witness, the time for repentance is now past. There are similarities between the seventh trumpet (11:15) and the seventh bowl.

i. Loud voices in heaven.

ii. God’s wrath has come.

iii. God’s temple was opened

iv. Flashes of lightening, thunder, an earthquake, and a great hailstorm

Rev 16:17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!"

1.     Air is the important source to living being. If the air polluted nothing can live in this world.

2.     Sound came out of the temple rom the throne – clearly we can understand this voice from God

3.     Saying “it is done”.  When Yahuwah created the world after the everyday creation He said “it is good”

Now He destroying the world and all the beings in this world. So He saying it is done. His wrath come to end.

v18 - No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. –

1.     This is the climax of God’s judgement, complete destruction rather than partial as in the seals and trumpets.

2.     Earthquake – Whenever God’s presence we can see in the earth quake

a.      Mount Sinai (Ex 19:18)

b.     On Lord’s day – (Joel 2:10)

“The earth shall quake before them; the heavens shall tremble: the sun and the moon shall be dark, and the stars shall withdraw their shining: “

3.     Daniel 12:1

There shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time:

4.     Matthew 24:21
21 “For then there will be a great tribulation, such as has not occurred since the beginning of the world until now, nor ever will.”

5.     Joel 2:2

A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and of thick darkness, as the morning spread upon the mountains: a great people and a strong; there had not been ever the like, neither shall be any more after it, even to the years of many generations.

19 The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath.

1.     The great city split into three parts : Really it is mystery about three parts. But one thing we can understand that it the great city was completely destroyed. Because we can see in revelation 21:10 talks about the New Jerusalem.  

2.     the cities of the nations collapsed :

Nahum 1: 5 the mountains quake at him, and the hills melt, and the earth is burned at his presence, yea, the world, and all that dwell therein.

3.     “God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath.

v20 - Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. –

This emphasises the destruction caused by the earthquake, compare this with the similarity of the sixth seal of 6:14, in which 'every mountain and island was removed from its place', see also

Isa 13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, And the earth will move out of her place, In the wrath of the LORD of hosts And in the day of His fierce anger.

Isa 24:19 The earth is violently broken, The earth is split open, The earth is shaken exceedingly.

20  The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, And shall totter like a hut; Its transgression shall be heavy upon it, And it will fall, and not rise again.

21  It shall come to pass in that day That the LORD will punish on high the host of exalted ones, And on the earth the kings of the earth.

There is also a similarity to the effect of the presence of God on the great white throne in which the earth and sky which fled from his presence (20:11).

v21 - From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.  - They curse God as they had done with the fourth and fifth plagues but this time there is no mention of repentance. This is mankind's final attitude towards God, the time for repentance is past. The plague of hail corresponds with the seventh plague on Egypt and the judgement of God

Josh 10:11 And it happened, as they fled before Israel and were on the descent of Beth Horon, that the LORD cast down large hailstones from heaven on them as far as Azekah, and they died. There were more who died from the hailstones than the children of Israel killed with the sword.

Ezek 38:22 The likeness of the firmament above the heads of the living creatures was like the color of an awesome crystal, stretched out over their heads.

 The hail is sent from God, see Rev 11:19 in which when God’s temple is opened, the Ark of the Covenant was seen and there came flashes of lightening, rumblings, peals of thunder, an earthquake and a great hailstorm, therefore the people curse God for sending the hail. Hail the size of golf balls is a known climatic feature in N America.

 
Scene 6: Babylon the whore.

The woman on the beast (17:1)

The mystery of the woman and the beast explained (17:7)

The fall of Babylon (18:1)

Mourning for Babylon (18:9).

Hallelujah (19:1)

Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb (19:9)