BOOK OF REVELATION
Lesson 35 - Chapter 16 Continued
As we continue to examine Revelation chapter 16 today, we find that through the first 9 verses,
4 of the Bowl Judgments have been announced and poured out. They have so far been aimed
at 3 of the so-called "4 elements" of nature. The 4 elements of nature (earth, water, fire, and
air) that was thought to be the fundamental make up of all material objects, along with a 5th
element called "ether" that was believed to be the substance of the heavens and the spiritual
world, formed the basis of what could loosely be called science in John's era. And of these
elements, the first 4 Bowl Judgments have attacked 3 of them: earth, water, and fire (the sun).
By the time all 7 Bowl Judgments have been poured out all 4 elements will have been dealt
with.
Do not think that the Bible is attempting to teach us this debunked Greek theory of nature.
Rather John is merely recording his vision as presented to him. And, his vision is given to him
in terms that he and others of his day can best understand relative to the time and culture in
which they lived. Thus in the end, God's intended meaning is essentially the same for John as
it is for us of the 21st century. It is that every aspect of the world we live in....everything that
forms the basis of planet earth and the life that lives on it... and even things beyond the earth
that are essential to life.... are being afflicted. Yet we simply must not miss this: in the end it all
boils down to God's wrath addressing one thing; wicked humanity. It is humanity that is the
subject of His wrath.... evil, rebellious humanity. By afflicting the planet, He is judging mankind.
Let's talk about that, and I'm giving you notice I'll be a bit preachy today!
This amazingly unique planet that we live upon (science calls it the Goldilocks planet) was
created by God for the purpose of providing the "just right" conditions for the human race to
live and thrive. Genesis chapter 1 makes it clear that God created the heavens and the earth,
and that He prepared the earth as the ideal habitation for humanity by first establishing all the
essentials for our care in exactly the right form, in sufficient quantities that we might ever need.
The ratio of dry land to the oceans; the abundance of fresh water; the variety and scope of
edible plant life; the wondrous creatures that live in those waters and others that thrive on the
dry land, many of which provide meat for our tables; the moderate climate and the way that
weather cycles work for our good; the moon that has so much to do with the exact tilt of the
earth that gives us seasons and drives our oceans' tides; and the sun that gives us warmth and
provides nearly unlimited energy that living things convert to food and to new cells..... new
life... all these things were meant to see to the needs of humans. And yet the Bible also makes
it clear that the ultimate purpose for humans is to glorify God and we accomplish this through
our worship and obedience to Him. While I could quote you numerous passages as evidence
for this fact, one has (for me) always been the best summation for the purpose of our
existence. In the words of King Solomon:
CJB
Ecclesiastes 12:13-14
13
Here is the final conclusion, now that you have heard
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everything: fear God, and keep his mitzvot; this is what being human is all about.
14
For God will bring to judgment everything we do, including every secret, whether
good or bad...
There exists a segment of humanity that does not glorify God.... apparently the largest part.
Therefore this segment of humanity has not achieved its purpose for existing and so is worthy
only to have their existence terminated. This is the process that we are following in the Book of
Revelation. Listen to Paul in his typical uncompromising language:
CJB
Romans 1:20-25
20
For ever since the creation of the universe his invisible qualities-
both his eternal power and his divine nature- have been clearly seen, because they can
be understood from what he has made. Therefore, they have no excuse;
21
because,
although they know who God is, they do not glorify him as God or thank him. On the
contrary, they have become futile in their thinking; and their undiscerning hearts have
become darkened.
22
Claiming to be wise, they have become fools!
23
In fact, they have exchanged the glory of the immortal God for mere images, like a
mortal human being, or like birds, animals or reptiles!
24
This is why God has given them
up to the vileness of their hearts' lusts, to the shameful misuse of each other's bodies.
25
They have exchanged the truth of God for falsehood, by worshipping and serving
created things, rather than the Creator- praised be he for ever. Amen.
So as we see in John's Apocalypse, God is systematically separating the entire human
population of the world who glorify God from those who don't. He is saving the redeemed and
destroying the unredeemable. And the unredeemable are defined as those who would rather
worship and serve created things than the Creator. And because everyone on earth can visibly
see God's divine nature at work in the marvelous creation that surrounds them then those who
refuse to know God have no excuse for their choice. Therefore even though ocean life is being
destroyed and the sustenance provided on the dry land is being decimated by the Bowl
Judgments, and the essential Sun that we must have for life is being turned into a fiery furnace
to torment mankind, and the fresh water that keeps us alive has now been turned into a blood-
like liquid, it is not that God is angry with these created things; it is that He is angry with the
created humans that have been given every opportunity to understand their true purpose but
reject it. One by one He is taking a wrecking ball to the marvelous things that He had created
so that mankind could live and thrive; it is in this way He is judging mankind.
But now in verse 10 God shifts His attention to the leaders of rebellious humanity; the Devil
and his human henchmen. Let's re-read that portion of Revelation chapter 16.
RE-READ REVELATION CHAPTER 16:10 - end
The 5th Bowl Judgment has as its target the kingdom of the Beast. Who is the Beast? It is the
Anti-Christ. The Kingdom of the Beast is people, just as the Kingdom of God is people. The
Beast's Kingdom is unrepentant mankind. It is those who chose to wear the mark of the Beast
that unequivocally identifies them as Satan's followers. The 5th Bowl is said to be poured out
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specifically on the "throne" of the Beast. So the idea is that the sovereignty claimed by the Anti-
Christ is being challenged as he is attacked by the Lord. Suddenly the invincible Beast that has
awed the world and gained billions of followers either through its miracles and wonders or by
coercion looks vulnerable. Nothing he can do can stop God's onslaught.
It is said in verse 10 that the Beast's kingdom became dark. The Greek word being translated
into the English dark or darkened or darkness (depending on your translation) is skotoo and
indeed some variation of the word dark is what is meant. However the word dark was regularly
used as a metaphor (just as we use it today) that meant blind or evil or something that
negatively affects the mind. Clearly that is the use of the word here, as the previous Bowl
Judgment (the 4th) stokes the fires of the Sun to unprecedented levels that will make the earth
far brighter and hotter rather than darker.
The rather standard interpretation of this passage is that perhaps the earth is visibly darker due
to the smoke that is arising from the Abyss. Another line of thought is that darkness signifies
the eclipse of the Beast's power. Another quite popular view is that it is referring to the dimming
of the economic and political power of End Times Rome. I don't accept any of these because
they are purely allegorical. Rather, since especially the Bowl Judgments have many similarities
to the plagues that God punished Egypt with, then we need to think in terms of the plague of
darkness that He inflicted upon the Pharaoh's Kingdom in Exodus chapter 10.
CJB
Exodus 10:21-23
21
ADONAI said to Moshe, "Reach out your hand toward the sky,
and there will be darkness over the land of Egypt, darkness so thick it can be felt!"
22
Moshe reached out his hand toward the sky, and there was a thick darkness in the
entire land of Egypt for three days.
23
People couldn't see each other, and no one went
anywhere for three days. But all the people of Isra'el had light in their homes
When we put on the mind of a Jew, like John, and we think in Hebrew thought, then we realize
that the concept of darkness he has in mind comes from the Hebrew word chosek (chosek is
the word used for darkness in the Exodus passage). So chosek means darkness, but not like
the darkness of nighttime (there is a separate Hebrew word for that: layil). Layil simply means
the opposite of daytime. If we enter a room with no windows and the lights are turned off, that
is layil. However chosek is inherently negative; it is a term that denotes a spiritual deception
or blindness. In many contexts (like here in Revelation 16:10) evil is inherent in its meaning.
Thus the Kingdom of the Anti-Christ has just been hit with spiritual darkness to blind the souls
of those kingdom members to God's truth. They could no longer repent and choose God
because the capability to see the truth has been taken from them by God. Just as God sealed
the 144,000 witnesses He sent back to earth to protect them from deception and darkness, the
members of the Kingdom of the Beast have just been "sealed" (so to speak) from being able to
discern truth. All hope is gone for them.
The second half of verse 10 speaks of the people gnawing their tongues in pain. This is a
separate statement from the first half of this verse; that is, it is not so directly associated to
their spiritual darkness. Rather, as the beginning of verse 11 explains, this regards actual
physical pain and agony of being tormented with the lack of nearly everything that is needed to
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survive. This term, gnawed, is in Greek massaomai. It is used in this same context in Job 30:3
and this gives us a better understanding of the intent.
CJB
Job 30:1-4
1
"But now those younger than I hold me in derision, men whose fathers I
wouldn't even have put with the dogs that guarded my sheep.
2
What use to me was the
strength in their hands? All their vigor had left them.
3
Worn out by want and hunger,
they gnaw the dry ground in the gloom of waste and desolation.
4
They pluck saltwort
and bitter leaves; these, with broom tree roots, are their food.
So to gnaw the tongue means that they are in physical aguish and mental depression because
of great physical need. And yet what is their response to their problems? They curse God and
refuse to turn from their sinful deeds. "To turn" exactly defines the concept of repentance.
Repentance doesn't mean that one says, "I'm sorry". Repentance means to actively turn from
one path in order to go on another and different path. And why would the people of the Beast's
Kingdom do such an illogical, irrational thing as to curse the God who holds complete sway
over all these calamities that are destroying their lives? Because these folks are under spiritual
darkness: chosek. They can do nothing other than to shake their fists defiantly at the Lord of
the Universe. Again this reminds us of the Egyptian plagues when the Pharaoh, and in some
cases his court advisors, did the same. Only in Exodus this act was called a hardening of the
heart. Even when Moses brought disastrous plagues down upon Egypt unless the king of
Egypt changed his mind and his ways (meaning to repent), the Pharaoh was unable to repent
because God Himself had further hardened Pharaoh's already hardened heart because the
Pharaoh had already been destined for eternal punishment. So this is precisely the way we are
to understand the situation here in Revelation 16.
To summarize: as of the 5th Bowl Judgment, humanity has been judged through the
destruction of the oceans, the devastation of the land, the pollution of the drinking water, the
impossible-to-bear heat of the Sun, and now their misdirected trust in their Anti-Messiah to be
able to save them has been destroyed. The effects are global. And the eternal fate of those
who have taken on the mark of the Beast and thereby hitching their futures to the Beast and
His Kingdom, have reached the point of no return. And now comes the 6th Bowl Judgment.
The 6th Bowl is poured out upon the Euphrates River, allowing some portion of its 1800 mile
length to dry up in order for the forces of evil, a huge army, to cross over it. The leaders of this
army are said to be the kings of the east. Throughout history rivers have always been serious
barriers to the transport of goods and people and could be very problematic for armies (and in
many cases it remains so). Rivers were also typically used to define boundaries of territories
and nations. In the Bible, nations to the north and east above the boundary of the Euphrates
were usually considered to be enemies of God's people and at times were labeled as "kings of
the east". In the Bible the direction East always has great significance. The Temple in
Jerusalem faces East. The Garden of Eden was in the East part of the Land of Eden. The
Messiah will enter the Eastern Gate of the Temple when He returns. The most important tribes
of Israel camped on the Eastern side of the Wilderness Tabernacle during the exodus. And yet
as often in the Bible as East is the divine direction, we also find great tribulation coming from
the East as in Genesis when some kings coming from the East in Abraham's day kidnapped
Lot and Abraham had to rescue him and fight them off.
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The drying up of waters from rivers or even seas is spoken of in Isaiah, Jeremiah and
Zechariah. In fact, God's wrath that resulted from these halted flows of water were the subject.
Conversely, we find God drying up waters to aid His chosen people. He dried up the waters of
the Red Sea for the Israelites to escape the Egyptians. He dried up the Jordan River so that
the Joshua-led exodus people could cross into Canaan without getting their feet wet. Here in
Revelation 16, God dries up the Euphrates to open a pathway for the kings of the east to bring
their armies out into the open so that God can slaughter them all. When studying God's Word,
and especially when trying to discern unfilled prophecy, we will usually find that the best course
of action is to consider God's already established patterns (how He addressed matters in the
past) as the basis for how He will fulfill what He ordains for the future. And following this God-
pattern of drying up waters, since the Lord long ago had made a way for the destruction of
Babylon by drying up the Euphrates in order for Cyrus's forces to cross over and attack
Babylon (according to Herodotus), so now in Revelation God's target is the destruction of the
armies of Babylon the Great and it follows that we would find God drying up the Euphrates
River once again to provide a pathway for armies to cross over and go into battle. It seems that
the drying up of the Euphrates will be an irresistible lure to the nations to gather their armies in
order to attack the last hold-outs who defy the Beast by refusing to take on his mark.
Next, in verse 13, John says he sees 3 unclean spirits that looked like frogs (looked like frogs;
not that they WERE frogs). First off, since these are not actual frogs instead they personify
falsehood and deception, which, since they are sins, are unclean. Notice again the connection
to the plague of frogs in Exodus. Second, frogs are considered to be ritually unclean according
to the Law of Moses as they are animals that swarm. And we see these unclean frogs emerge
from the mouths of the Dragon (Satan), the Beast (the Anti-Christ) and the False Prophet......
the unholy triumvirate. So essentially since the mouth is the portal of speech, and speech can
destroy or it can build-up, then the idea is that these 3 speak lies and deceptions to get people
to do Satan's bidding. I think it is instructive to notice that False Prophets are, in the Bible,
nearly always in relation to either Israel or to followers of Christ. That is, it is lies and
deceptions within the body of Believers and God worshippers that are mostly being spoken
about. Clearly, then, the False Prophet will try to influence those who believe in some sort of
god system and since we are heavily warned about this, then their primary targets must be
Christianity and Judaism; people who worship the God of the Bible. What this must mean is
that the False Prophet will influence the leaders of Christianity and Judaism to adopt false
doctrines and beliefs within their ranks. One can only imagine that such false doctrines will be
especially pleasing to the people; for who adopts doctrines that are a turn-off? This shouldn't
be hard for us to imagine because from the earliest times doctrines.... whether called traditions,
customs, or faith pillars.... have been created to draw people towards some particular person
whether he is a teacher, leader, or holy man. There is nothing wrong with doctrines that
correctly summarize and explain the teachings and commands of God's Word. However too
many doctrines are agenda driven or simply taught by those who are themselves deceived and
don't realize that they are part of a long range plan by Satan to win over God's people in the
End Times by teaching them falsehoods.
CJB
Matthew 15:7-9
7
You hypocrites! Yesha'yahu was right when he prophesied about
you,
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8
'These people honor me with their lips, but their hearts are far away from me.
9
Their
worship of me is useless, because they teach man-made rules as if they were
doctrines.'"
It seems as though every era introduces some new generation of biblical error, and very soon
these errors become unquestionable pillars of that faith that are nearly impossible to reverse.
While I don't want to take the analogy too far, it might help us to be more diligent in testing our
own faith doctrines against what the Word of God actually says, when we have a rather
unsavory mental picture of unclean frogs coming out of the mouths of pastors, priests, Bible
teachers, and seminary professors as representative of the lies and deceit that are sometimes
taught instead of the truth of the Holy Scriptures. I'm not speaking of innocent error, which
happens to anyone who teaches most anything. I'm speaking of religious leaders being first
and foremost beholden to groups and sects and dedicated to their lists of rules (and
sometimes substantial pay checks) rather than living and teaching God's ways as presented in
the Word.
The point is this: open your eyes and look around you. Like most things in this world, new
realities seem to change and evolve slowly, nearly invisibly, until a tipping point is reached
overnight. I'm talking about the classic frog-in -the-kettle proverb. Over time Jews were
unwelcome to a greater and greater degree in Europe, but they grew used to it until one day a
tipping point was reached and the Holocaust erupted. Islamic groups around the world have
been warlike and troublesome since the inception of Islam in the 6th century. But in modern
times, their attacks among one another and upon various Eastern Christian groups seemed
distant and unconnected to our lives until Sept. 11, 2001. Who knew anything about Islam prior
to that? But Islamic terrorism didn't just suddenly begin that year when it had never before
existed; rather it's long simmering existence and its hideous nature suddenly burst into our
Western consciousness through our TV screens in but one day.
It will, I predict, be the same concerning the False Prophet of Revelation that will have such
great evil influence within the world of religion and especially within Christianity and Judaism.
We are far along the journey whereby the Church easily accepts new and modernized
doctrines if they sound good to our minds, uphold our wants and desires, and fit well with the
demands of an ever-changing secular society. A mere 40 years ago no one could have
imagined a Christian denomination, let alone several, that blesses and legitimizes homosexual
behavior (which God labels in both the Old and New Testaments as abomination), let alone
performing homosexual marriages and ordaining homosexual ministers, all in the name of
Christian love. But now it is in vogue, and churches that do NOT accept this false doctrine are
considered as lacking in love..... by the churches that do.
The Interfaith Movement is ever-growing with their basic doctrine that all religions and their
holy books are created equal. So it is arrogant and not loving for Believers in Christ or for Jews
to think that the Bible is any better than the Koran. And therefore Allah is really just another
name for the God of the Bible. And that Islamic values (such as Sharia Law) are just as good
and worthy as biblical values. I have no doubt that the stage is already set for the Anti-Christ
and the False Prophet to appear and quickly gain traction because Christianity and Judaism
are already well primed for it due to centuries of false teachings, dimming interest in God's
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Word, and the lax attitudes that result. We'll just look up one day and some wildly popular
religious figure that's burst onto the scene will align himself with a fast rising political figure and
together begin to call for a new global unity in both government and religion. Suddenly,
overnight, the world will understand that everything has changed and that this change has
been in progress for quite some time. Our biblical compasses were long ago tampered with
and even set aside in favor of doctrines of convenience and acceptance by the world. The Anti-
Christ and the False Prophet are not going to have to work very hard to win people over;
people are already yearning for it.
Not only that, says verse 14, but these 3 demonic "frog" spirits will be able to work jaw-
dropping miracles that include convincing government leaders the world over that had never
had a thought of working together, so as to form a joint allied fighting force the likes of which
the world has never known. The point is made that the entire inhabited world will commit troops
to the battle and that this battle has to do with the Great Day of God. Naturally that is not what
the huge army is going to call this; rather the Great Day of God is but a biblical description of a
time when God and the wicked of the earth will do battle (like the battle that already occurred in
Heaven as we saw in Revelation 12). And just like in Revelation 12, the Lord will win and evil
will be vanquished; the ending has already been written. The suddenness of the battle,
however, will startle the world and so worshippers of the God of Israel are warned to be ready
so that, of all the people on our planet, we will NOT be caught unaware. And then in verse 16,
for the first time, we hear about Armageddon.
Actually, the word Armageddon is an English-ized version of the Greek. But in Hebrew it is
highly likely that the word is Har Megiddo, which means hill of Megiddo. Megiddo can be
visited today and it has been an occupied city for millennia. In recent times it is only a tel; a
mound. It is an archeological site that consists of about 25 layers of civilization. That is, one
city is built, destroyed, and then another city is built upon it often using the rubble of the
destroyed city. Each build, destruction, and then rebuild is called a layer or a strata. On and on
for centuries goes this same cycle of destruction and rebuilding. So Megiddo, in cross section,
looks like a huge layer cake, but with 25 layers. The reason this place is important is because
of the strategic nature of its location that can view, and defend, the enormous breadbasket of
Israel called the Jezreel Valley.
It is usually said that here at Armageddon the armies of the kings of the east will do battle with
God. However, I don't find that a satisfying answer. In no way do I find it credible that this vast
combined army thinks that they are coming for some kind of a Science Fiction or spiritual
experience where they war against ghost-like souls of martyred Christians and even against
winged angels. The reason for their coming is to battle somebody for a very specific
geopolitical reason. I have no doubt that "somebody" is the remnant of Israel. It is going to be a
battle of real people against real people; at least to the human mind and eye it will be.
We must always keep in view that Israel is at the center of God's plans, and that Israel is God's
set apart people and nation and Jerusalem is His holy city. So, Israel is where the action is,
and shall remain, right through the End Times. That is the context of John's Apocalypse and it
will also be the context of the Battle of Armageddon. While I will not speculate as to the exact
cause or the moment of the tipping point into conflict that sets off this war to end all wars,
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clearly it will have something to do with the nation of Israel and whoever allies themselves with
Israel, standing defiantly against the rest of the world that has given itself over to the
government of the Anti-Christ. It will be a war between those who refuse to bow down and give
allegiance to the Anti-Christ against those who have. And, it will look like a slam dunk for the
world's armies because they will outnumber Israel's forces thousands to one. Boy are they in
for a surprise.
So much of what has been said and taught concerning Armageddon is comic book-like and
can be hard to come to grips with. So I want to tell you a short story that says just how feasible
such a scenario is as presented in Revelation. In 1973 the venerable Golda Meir was the
Prime Minister of Israel. On October 6th of that year, the combined armies of the Arab League
launched a surprise attack on Israel on the day of Yom Kippur, the holiest day of the year for
Jews. The Israeli Jews were woefully unprepared, their military under funded, and they were
on the verge of being overrun and pushed into the Sea. Richard Nixon was in the White House
at that time and Henry Kissinger was his primary advisor on international matters.
When it looked as though there was no hope for Israel to win and survive, Golda called
together her cabinet and discussed the unthinkable. By this time Israel had developed a
nuclear bomb. They didn't have many; that info is classified and it may have been as few as
one or two. But here lies the crux of the story. Golda and her cabinet decided that if they were
about to be completely overrun, and the State of Israel would no longer exist, that they would
use their atom bomb (or bombs) on the most populated Arab targets they could manage killing
as many Arab Muslims as possible. They knew this would not help them win, and they knew it
would likely start WWIII. Early on, not grasping the gravity of the situation, Nixon had refused
to help Israel. But in 4 or 5 days, with the Arabs taking ground quickly, Golda called Nixon and
again asked for immediate help and said that Israel would use the atom bomb if losing became
inevitable. Nixon shifted his stance, and began airlifting military supplies to Israel.
Had the Israelis used the bomb, many Jews would no doubt have been killed in reprisal as a
result of their action; the government would likely be immediately executed by the enemy if not
tried as war criminals in Europe and hung there. But, this time Israel was not going to march
like lambs into the ovens, they determined. If they had to go as a people and as a viable
nation, then much of the world would go with them because without doubt the nuclear
conflagration would spread.
The intervention of the USA turned the tide and a series of absolute miracles happened that
allowed Israel to push out the Arab attackers and win, so that terrible option that was no more
than hours away never happened. My intent of telling you this story is this: when the End
Times arrives, the only Israeli Jews and those standing with them that are determined to face
this unstoppable army of the Beast of Revelation 16 will probably mostly consist of Believers. It
will be people who know God's Word and so refused to take on the mark of the Beast. People
who know their death is a certainty. And so even knowing they stand utterly no chance against
the overwhelming forces of the Anti-Christ, Israel and their only remaining friends, Believers,
will fight trusting in what we will soon read in Revelation; that Messiah is going to show up and
win an otherwise un-winnable war, even though there will also be great loss of life. And the still
remaining non-Believing Jews? They are not going to go as lambs into the ovens.... ever
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again.
The content of John's Armageddon vision was probably not imaginable to John in his era.
Today, frighteningly, it is; and in fact the mindset of the many Israelis I know from my many
years of visiting Israel is not much different than Golda Meir's.
We'll finish up chapter 16 and the 7th Bowl Judgment next time.
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