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Revelation
Chapter Sixteen
I.
Content of the Chapter
The Plague of Seven Bowls
II. Pouring out the first bowl---- a foul and loathsome sore
came upon the men who worshiped the
beast (v.2)
III. Pouring out the second bowl----the sea became blood and every living creature in the sea died (v.3)
IV. Pouring out the third bowl----the rivers and
water became blood and the blood was given to those who have shed the blood of
saints to drink (v.4-7)
V. Pouring out the fourth bowl----power was given
to the sun to scorch men with fire (v.8-9)
VI. Pouring out the fifth bowl----the kingdom of
the beast became full of darkness and they gnawed their tongues because of the
pain (v.10-11)
VII. Pouring out the sixth bowl----the way of the
kings from the east was prepared that they shall be gathered in Armageddon
(v.12-16)
VIII. Pouring out the seventh bowl----there was a
mighty and great earthquake and the cities of the nations fell and great hail
fell upon men (v.17-21)
II.
Verse by Verse commentary
Rev. 16:1 “Then I heard a loud voice
from the temple saying to the seven angels
"Go and pour out the bowls of
the wrath of God on the earth."”
YLT: “And I heard a great
voice out of the sanctuary saying to the seven messengers
`Go away
and pour
out the vials of the wrath of God to the earth;'”
Meaning of Words: “go”: go away
depart; “wrath”: fierceness
indignation; “pour out”: gush out
shed abroad.
Literal Meaning: “Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying
to the seven angels” “a loud voice from
the temple” this voice should refer to the voice of God or Christ and the
reasons are as follows: 1) at this time no one was able to enter the temple
(See 15:8); 2) according to the structure of the sentence in the original
it
stresses on the authority of “the loud voice”.
“‘Go
and pour out the bowls of the wrath of God on the earth.’” “Pouring out on the earth” at this time
the majority of men of God on the earth (the harvest of the earth) have become
mature and been carried up into heaven (See 14:14-16). And therefore the
targets of the punishment of the seven bowls are mainly the monarch and his
subjects and the people in the kingdom of the beast.
Rev. 16:2 “So the first went and
poured out his bowl upon the earth
and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the
men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image.”
YLT: “and the first did
go away
and did pour out his vial upon the land
and there came a sore -- bad
and grievous -- to men
those having the mark of the beast
and those bowing to
his image.”
Meaning of Words: “foul”: noisome
worthless; “loathsome”: grievous
harmful.
Literal Meaning: “and a foul and loathsome
sore” it iterated the plague of boil when the
children of Israel went out of Egypt (See Exod. 9:8-12)
however
the degree
here is much greater than the degree of that time and therefore “foul and
loathsome” is used to describe the sore.
“Came
upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image” it shows that the sore did not come upon
others
as the boil was upon all the Egyptians and their cattle during that
time (See Exod. 9:11) with the purpose of letting men know that it is the work
of God.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) First something is wrong with men’s hearts and
then the difficulties of their health are brought in. The health of men whose
hearts are healthy is kept and they are much healthier generally. It is said in
the Bible that a merry heart does good like a medicine (Prov. 17:22). And it
conforms to this opinion.
2) Men must be responsible for their choice----men
who chose to worship the beast seemed to have the privilege of existence in the
beginning (See 13:17)
but actually they brought themselves the plague “worse
than death”. Believers should also be responsible for our way of life
today----whether we fear God or let our hearts be attracted by idols.
Rev. 16:3 “Then the second angel
poured out his bowl on the sea
and it became blood as of a dead man; and every
living creature in the sea died.”
YLT: “And the second
messenger did pour out his vial to the sea
and there came blood as of [one]
dead
and every living soul died in the sea.”
Meaning of Words: “became”: cause to
be
be made
be performed; “living”: animate; “creature”: soul.
Literal Meaning: “the sea became blood as of a dead man;” it describes that the seawater corrupted
and went bad and not only the color was unsightly but also the smell was
stinking.
“And
every living creature in the sea died.”
In the generation of Noah
the living creatures in the water had not been
judged by God when every living creature of the land was killed by the flood
(See Gen. 7:23). And now they were also included because the first bowl and the
second bowl brought plagues to the living creatures in the water first and then
men who needed to drink water were affected (See v.6).
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) “Blood” is originally the symbol of life (See
Lev. 17:11)
however
it now becomes the symbol of judgment and death. If men
do not respect the effect of redemption of the precious blood of the Lord
Jesus
they bring themselves the consequence of judgment and death.
2) As “while water can carry a boat
it can also
overturn it”
“blood can make man live and it also can make them die”.
Believers should abstain from
any blood (See Acts. 15:20
29) except the blood of the Lord Jesus. We
have to receive the salvation of the cross and should never rely on any other
religious way.
Rev. 16:4 “Then the third angel
poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water
and they became blood.”
YLT: “And the third
messenger did pour out his vial to the rivers
and to the fountains of the
waters
and there came blood
”
Meaning of Words: “water”: rainwater;
“spring”: source
fountain.
Literal Meaning: “the rivers and springs of water” refers to all the sources of water.
Originally the seawater evaporates and then rains and becomes clean water
but
now the circulatory system in the nature has been broken.
“And
they became blood.” It shows that the
essential water for men’s daily life is probably gained by filtration (See
Exod. 7:24)
however
not everyone can enjoy it.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) When God creates men in the beginning
He has
planed the perfect living environment for us and even various kinds of “chains
of life” in the sea and on the land are complete. Unfortunately
men do not
know how to maintain the “environment” and destroy the ecological environment
increasingly which is essential for their existence.
2) Today the plague that “water becomes blood” also
warns us: those who only concern themselves and never concern others in their
life and only concern today and never concern future will eat their own bitter
fruit.
Rev. 16:5 “And I heard the angel of
the waters saying: "You are righteous
O Lord
The One who is and who was
and who is to be
Because You have judged these things.”
YLT: “and I heard the
messenger of the waters
saying
`righteous
O Lord
art Thou
who art
and who
wast
and who shalt be
because these things Thou didst judge
”
Meaning of Words: “righteous”: just
reasonable; “judge”: make a judgment
condemn.
Literal Meaning: “the angel of the waters” We have seen the angels that hold fast the winds
(See 7:1)
the angel which has power over fire (See 14:18) and the angle of the
waters so far.
“The One who is and who was and who is
to be” The appellation
implies that God’s judgments towards men today are based on men’s past works
because He is “the One…who was”. And therefore He is perfectly clear.
“You
are righteous Because You have
judged these things” “You have judged these things” refers to making all the
waters of the earth become blood. “Righteous” refers to being fair
just and
reasonable.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Our God is “the One who is and who was” and our
deeds are not beyond His attention all the times. He is perfectly clear and
therefore we should be careful and not disobey His disposition of “holiness”.
2) God’s judgments are absolutely righteous and
everything conforms to our situations: just as we do to others
they also do to
us likewise; we shall be condemned if we condemn others and we shall be
forgiven if we forgive others (See Luke 6:31
37).
Rev. 16:6 “For they have shed the
blood of saints and prophets
And You have given them blood to drink. For it is
their just due.’”
YLT: “because blood of
saints and prophets they did pour out
and blood to them Thou didst give to
drink
for they are worthy;'”
Meaning of Words: “shed”: pour out
gush out
shed abroad; “just due”: worthy
due reward
meet.
Literal Meaning: “For they have shed the blood of saints and
prophets” “they” indicates
that those who worship the beast persecuted saints and prophets at the
instigation of the devil. “Saints” generally refers to believers and the Jews.
“Prophets” refers to those who speak for God
including the two prophets (See
11:10).
“And
You have given them blood to drink. For it is their just due.’” “Giving them blood to drink who shed the
blood of others” it means that those who treat human life as if it were not
worth a straw shall harm their own life. “Just due” means that this treatment
is just.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) A common saying goes like this
a measure for a
measure and it is not repaid but the time has not come yet. Believers should
not wrong others
however
if we are wronged by others
we should not avenge
ourselves
because vengeance is the Lord’s (See Rom. 12:19).
2) The righteous God shall reward men all “their
just due”. He will not only pay off our debts but also reward us the
achievements we deserve (See Luke. 14:14; Rom. 2:7).
Rev. 16:7 “And I heard another from
the altar saying
‘Even so
Lord God Almighty
true and righteous are Your judgments.’”
YLT: “and I heard another
out of the altar
saying
`Yes
Lord God
the Almighty
true and righteous
[are] Thy judgments.'”
Meaning of Words: “true”: authentic
real; “judgments”: judicial decision
discernment.
Literal Meaning: “And I heard another from the altar saying” the voice from the altar most probably
responds to the cry asking God to avenge them “under the altar” (See 6:9-10).
The martyrs have been raised up because of the Lord’s second coming and are
caught up in clouds to meet the Lord (See 1Thess. 4:16-17). And probably it is their
voice from the altar in heaven.
“‘Even
so
Lord God Almighty
true and righteous are Your judgments.’” “So” means that they did not understand
why God had not judged men who dwell on the earth to avenge their blood on them
earlier (See 6:10) and now they suddenly saw the light and expressed Amen from
the bottom of their hearts. “True
and righteous are Your judgments”
indicates that God judges according to the righteous and faithful principle
(See the note in 15:3).
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Believers always misunderstand that God has not
listened to our prayers
but actually God walks according to His principle and
time. And sometimes His silence is exactly His answer to our prayers. Sometimes
His silence does not mean that He does not agree with us but that the time that
He answers our prayers has not come yet.
2) If we understand that God cannot deny His
righteous and faithful principle
many problems will be readily solved.
Rev. 16:8 “Then the fourth angel
poured out his bowl on the sun
and power was given to him to scorch men with
fire.”
YLT: “And the fourth
messenger did pour out his vial upon the sun
and there was given to him to
scorch men with fire
”
Meaning of Words: “given”: bestow
deliver; “scorch”: burn
bake.
Literal Meaning: “power was given to the sun to scorch men with fire.” According to the natural principle
the heat of
the sun can only get weaker gradually
however
the heat gets stronger
contrarily. Probably God gives power to the sun through the pouring out of the
bowl or removes the role of the atmospheric layer which cuts off the heat
energy
that the heat of the sun increases and men feel that they are scorched
by fire.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Fire is usually used to symbolize judgment in
the Bible (See Is. 24:6; Mal. 4:1; Matt. 3:10-12). One day in future
all the elements shall melt with fervent heat and
therefore “scorching with fire” is only a sign of God’s judgment in future.
2) God makes the sun to rise on the evil and on the
good (See Matt. 5:45)
showing that the sun won’t merely scorch those who
worship the beast when “the sun scorches men with fire”. If men of God have not
risen up to love and fear God
it will be too late for them to regret.
Rev. 16:9 “And men were scorched
with great heat
and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these
plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.”
YLT: “and men were
scorched with great heat
and they did speak evil of the name of God
who hath
authority over these plagues
and they did not reform -- to give to Him glory.”
Meaning of Words: “great heat”: burn
flame; “blaspheme”: defame
speak evil of.
Literal Meaning: this verse shows one
thing that how shortsighted men are----they only see their suffering and have
not seen the reason for their suffering.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) William R. Newell said that
“if grace cannot
make one turn to the Lord
then this man won’t turn to the Lord under any
circumstance” (it is translated from the Chinese version).
2) It is men’s nature to blame everyone and
everything but themselves. Men merely want to utilize the nature
however
they
never thank God from the heart who gives us richly the nature to enjoy and
contrarily destroy the nature. They ascribe the blame to God by the time when
they suffer the ill effects caused by themselves.
Rev. 16:10 “Then the fifth angel
poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast
and his kingdom became full of
darkness; and they gnawed their tongues because of the pain.”
YLT: “And the fifth
messenger did pour out his vial upon the throne of the beast
and his kingdom
did become darkened
and they were gnawing their tongues from the pain
”
Meaning of Words: “darkness”: dimness
blackness; “pain”: suffering.
Literal Meaning: “Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the
throne of the beast
and his kingdom became full of darkness;” “the throne of the beast” refers to the
command center of antichrist
i.e. the place where his capital town is. “His
kingdom became full of darkness” indicates that the whole realm of antichrist
became darkened
just as all the land of Egypt was darkened on that day (See
Exod. 10:21-23). It was not clearly stated in the Bible that where the kingdom
of the beast and its capital were. And how the kingdom of the beast became darkened
was not clearly interpreted.
“And
they gnawed their tongues because of the pain.” “Pain” refers to the pain caused by foul and
loathsome sores and the scorching of the sun. And they cannot be cured and
became worse because the whole place was darkened. “Gnawing their tongues”
describes that they suffered pain to the extreme.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Darkness is usually used to symbolize judgment
in the Bible (See Is. 60:2; Joel 2:2; Nah. 1:8; Mark. 13:24-25). Darkness can
make the antichrist’s system of domination and direction become paralyzed. And
men usually do not know where to go in the darkness (See 1John. 2:11).
2) What’s the most terrible is not the outer
darkness but the inner darkness of men. When the light that is in men is
darkness
the Lord said that
how great is that darkness (Matt. 6:23)!
3) The night is far spent
the day is at hand.
Therefore let us cast off the works of darkness
and let us put on the armor of
light. Let us walk properly
as in the day (Rom. 13:12-13).
Rev. 16:11 “They blasphemed the God
of heaven because of their pains and their sores
and did not repent of their
deeds.”
YLT: “and they did speak
evil of the God of the heaven
from their pains
and from their sores
and they
did not reform from their works.”
Meaning of Words: “repent”: the change
of mind; “deeds”: behavior
works.
Literal Meaning: it is mentioned in
this chapter for the second time that tribulation cannot make men repent and
contrarily they rebel against God more (See v.9).
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) This verse implies that these men obviously knew
that these plagues were of “the God of heaven”
however
they were not inclined
to repent and contrarily hardened their hearts to blasphemed God. It shows that
once men are deceived by Satan
they lose the rationality and become
unreasonable.
2) This verse also implies that if men repent of
their deeds
they still have the chance of receiving grace to avoid the
judgment of God. However
no one can simply repent.
Rev. 16:12 “Then the sixth angel
poured out his bowl on the great river
YLT: “And the sixth
messenger did pour out his vial upon the great river
the
Meaning of Words: “
Literal Meaning: “Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the
great river Euphrates
and its water was dried up” “the
great river Euphrates” is within the
borders of
“So
that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared” “the kings” refers to the political
leaders of the nations. “The way might be prepared” refers to paving the way
for military actions.
Rev. 16:13 “And I saw three unclean
spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon
out of the mouth of
the beast
and out of the mouth of the false prophet.”
YLT: “and I saw [come]
out of the mouth of the dragon
and out of the mouth of the beast
and out of
the mouth of the false prophet
three unclean spirits like frogs --”
Meaning of Words: “unclean”: dirty;
“like”: as
similar.
Spiritual Meaning: “And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs” “unclean spirits” refers to evil spirits
(See v.14). This word describes its nature and it is opposite to the Holy
Spirit. “Like frogs” frog is the symbol of evil spirits
just as the dove is
the symbol of the Holy Spirit. The features of frogs are: 1) it is unclean in
the Bible (See Lev. 11:41-42) and its nature is dirty. 2) It jumps close to the
ground and the objects of its work are men who dwell on the earth. 3) It
specially eats the small and weak insects and the objects which it devours are
men who are spiritually weak. 4) It cries loudly from time to time and the way
it deceives men is speaking various kinds of false-named doctrines.
“Coming
out of the mouth of the dragon
out of the mouth of the beast
and out of the
mouth of the false prophet” “the dragon”
refers to Satan the devil (See 12:9). “The beast” refers to the beast rising up
out of the sea
i.e. antichrist (See 13:1). “The false prophet” refers to the
beast coming up out of the earth (See 13:11).
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) The evil spirits are good at possessing the heretical
false teachers to make them deceive the hearts of the simple by good words and
fair speeches through their silver tongues (See Rom. 16:18).
2) The evil spirits can also pretend to be the true
God who exists in three persons----the Father
the Son and the Spirit and play
the game of the false trinity in order to deceive men who do not seek to
understand the truth thoroughly.
Rev. 16:14 “For they are spirits of
demons
performing signs
which go out to the kings of the earth and of the
whole world
to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.”
YLT: “for they are
spirits of demons
doing signs -- which go forth unto the kings of the earth
and of the whole world
to bring them together to the battle of that great day
of God the Almighty; --”
Meaning of Words: “demon”: unclean
devil
devil; “sign”: omen
token.
Literal Meaning: “For they are spirits of demons
performing signs” “spirits of demons” refers to evil spirits. “Performing signs”
indicates that they can perform supernatural miracles and wonders.
“Which
go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world” “the
kings of the earth and of the whole world” refers to the political leaders who have power
and influence in the whole world.
“To
gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty” “to them” refers to persuading them. “That
great day of God Almighty” refers to the day that God Almighty had established
to gather the fully ripe grapes of the earth
(See 14:18-20)
i.e. the day that all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven
come and gather together unto the supper of the great God (See 19:17-18).
“Gather them to the battle” refers to the world war in future (See 9: 15-19)
and the place is in Armageddon (See v.16).
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) Today many believers accept some miracles and
signs as true and hold that all the miraculous things are of the great power of
the Holy Spirit. However
we have to know that evil spirits can also “perform
signs” and if possible
they even deceive the elect (See Matt. 24:24).
2) In that great day of God Almighty
the devil’s
power of mobilization is quite surprising. And its scale is unprecedentedly and
unrepeatably large
however
the consequence is that they come there to lose
their life. Today not only the world holds that something is right if many
people do it but also believers believe that there must be the blessing of God
if there are many people. And therefore there are huge crowds of people in the
gathering of famous ones
however
the majority of them only watch the scene of
bustle.
Rev. 16:15 “‘Behold
I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches
and keeps his garments
lest
he walk naked and they see his shame.’”
YLT: “`lo
I do come as a
thief; happy [is] he who is watching
and keeping his garments
that he may not
walk naked
and they may see his unseemliness
' --”
Meaning of Words: “watch”: keep awake
vigilant; “keep”: preserve
guard; “walk”: walk about
go; “shame”:
unseemliness.
Literal Meaning: “‘Behold
I am coming as a
thief.” “Behold” this
verse is the warning to all believers at the present days and it should not be
considered as the warning to believers who are left on the earth at that time.
“As a thief” implies that: 1) the day of the Lord’s coming is beyond all
expectations and therefore we should watch and wait. 2) The Lord raptures
overcomers when He comes and therefore we should prepare ourselves.
“Blessed
is he who watches
and keeps his garments
lest he walk naked and they see his
shame.’” “Keeping his
garments” garment here should not indicate that Christ is the righteousness of
believers (See Gal. 3:27) because we won’t lose it after we have been justified
by faith. And therefore it should refer to believers’ righteous deeds (See
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) The Lord is coming as a thief
showing that no
one can know when the Lord comes again. If someone declares that he knows the
day when the Lord comes for the second time
he must be the false teachers who
exaggerates things just to scare people because no man knows of that day and
hour and even the Lord does not know it (See Matt. 24:36).
2) If believers put on and keep our garments
closely today
we will be raptured before the great tribulation and we won’t
experience the great tribulation by ourselves to let others see our shame.
Rev. 16:16 “And they gathered them
together to the place called in Hebrew
Armageddon.”
YLT: “and they did bring
them together to the place that is called in Hebrew Armageddon.”
Meaning of Words: “gather”: assemble
collect; “Armageddon”: the mount of slaughter.
Literal Meaning: “Armageddon” is a famous battlefield in the
Rev. 16:17 “Then the seventh angel
poured out his bowl into the air
and a loud voice came out of the temple of
heaven
from the throne
saying
‘It is done!’”
YLT: “And the seventh
messenger did pour out his vial to the air
and there came forth a great voice
from the sanctuary of the heaven
from the throne
saying
`It hath come!'”
Meaning of Words: “done”:
accomplished
brought
come.
Literal Meaning: “Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into
the air” the plagues caused
by the pouring out of the seventh bowl were recorded in v.17-21. “Pouring out
into the air” some Bible exegetes held that the reason is that Satan is the
prince of the power of the air (See Eph. 2:2) and finally the dragon shall be
seized on and cast into the bottomless pit (See 20:1-3).
“And
a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven
from the throne
saying
‘It is done!’”
“A loud voice” refers to the voice of God Himself. “It is done” means that the
wine of God’s wrath has been poured out completely and all the predestinated
things have been accomplished.
Enlightenment in the Word:
1) “It is done” has been recorded in the Bible four
times: a) on the seventh dad God’s work which He had made was ended
“it was
so” (Gen. 1:30); b) when the Lord Jesus was on the cross at the point of death
He said that “it is finished” (See John 19:30); c) when the seventh bowl has
been poured out
a loud voice came out of the throne
saying
“it is done”; d)
when the heaven
the earth and everything are made new
the voice came out of
the throne
saying “it is done” (See 21:6).
2) When we are in the process of things
we really
feel that it is hard to understand the things
however
when all the things are
accomplished
we suddenly realize the will of God. May believers have the
heavenly sight to see that He will accomplish the thing which He has initiated
(See 1Thess. 5:24).
Rev. 16:18 “And there were noises and
thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake
such a mighty and
great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth.”
YLT: “and there came
voices
and thunders
and lightnings; and a great earthquake came
such as came
not since men came upon the earth
so mighty an earthquake -- so great!”
Meaning of Words: “such”: so; “great”:
big
enormous.
Literal Meaning: “And there were noises and thunderings and
lightnings; and there was a great earthquake” When God began to judge
there were also
lightnings
and voices
and thunderings
and an earthquake
and great hail (See
11:19).
“Such
a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth.” Earthquakes are recorded four times in
this book
each more serious than the last. The final one is not only
unprecedented but also brings in the change of the landform (See v.20): 1) the
time the sixth seal was opened (See 6:12); 2) the time the first trumpet was
about to be sounded (See 8:5); 3) the time before the sounding of the seventh
trumpet (See 11:13); 4) the time the seventh bowl was poured out (this verse).
Enlightenment in the Word: the Lord Jesus said that earthquakes are the
beginning of sorrows (See Matt. 24:7-8). Earthquakes accompanied the period of
the great tribulation and there was the great earthquake at the end of the
tribulation. It shows that the earthquake is the symbol of the great
tribulation and God wants to shake the hearts of men through earthquakes for
the purpose of letting us pursue the kingdom which cannot be shaken (See Heb.
12:26-28).
Rev. 16:19 “Now the great city was
divided into three parts
and the cities of the nations fell. And great
YLT: “And it came -- the
great city -- into three parts
and the cities of the nations did fall
and
Meaning of Words: “part”: sector of an
area
section; “fall”: fail
fall down; “
Literal Meaning: “Now the great city was divided into three parts
and the cities of the nations fell.”
“The great city” refers to the city of
“And
great
Enlightenment in the Word: all the earthly buildings of men are predestinated
to fall and be destroyed by earthquakes
no matter how great and how solid they
are. It warns us that we should not pay too much attention to every visible or
invisible building and we must build the kingdom which cannot be shaken
according to the will of God (See Heb. 12:28).
Rev. 16:20 “Then every island fled
away
and the mountains were not found.”
YLT: “and every island
did flee away
and mountains were not found
”
Meaning of Words: “flee away”: run
away
get away
escape; “not found”: not seen.
Literal Meaning: “Then every island fled away” the great earthquake brings in the crustal
movement and every island sank under the seawater.
“And
the mountains were not found.” The great
earthquake also causes the great change of the landform.
Rev. 16:21 “And great hail from
heaven fell upon men
each hailstone about the weight of a talent. Men
blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail
since that plague was
exceedingly great.”
YLT: “and great hail (as
of talent weight) doth come down out of the heaven upon men
and men did speak
evil of God because of the plague of the hail
because its plague is very
great.”
Meaning of Words: “fall”: descent;
“plague”: strike; “exceedingly”: very
greatly.
Literal Meaning: “And great hail from heaven fell upon men
each
hailstone about the weight of a talent.” “Great hail” there was the plague of hail in
“Men
blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail
since that plague was
exceedingly great.” it means that the
hearts of men are obstinate and hard.
III.
Outlines of the Spiritual Lessons
The Spiritual
Lessons of the Plagues of the Seven Bowls
I. The first bowl (v.2):
A. pouring out the bowl upon the earth----dealing with one of the
deceitful trick of the enemy: the earthly deceit
B. a foul and loathsome sore came upon----exposing the reason why men
are deceived: the evil and greed of hearts
C. those who worshiped the beast----the consequence of their being
deceived: worshiping idols and bringing in themselves bitter fruits
II. The second bowl (v.3):
A. pouring out the bowl on the sea----dealing with the second deceitful
trick of the enemy: the religious ways
B. the sea became blood as of a dead man----exposing the reason why men
are deceived: holding fast to the dead regulations
C. every living creature in the sea died----the consequence of their
being deceived: letters and ceremonies make men die
III. The third bowl (v.4-7):
A. pouring out the bowl on the rivers and springs of water----dealing
with the third deceitful trick of the enemy: the physical enjoyment
B. they became blood----exposing the reason why men are deceived:
building their own enjoyment upon the price of others’ blood
C. giving those who shed the blood of men blood to drink----the consequence
of their being deceived: they shall be judged finally
IV. The fourth bowl (v.8-9):
A. pouring out the bowl on the sun----dealing with the fourth deceitful
trick of the enemy: enjoying the nature habitually
B. power was given to the sun to scorch men with fire----exposing the
reason why men are deceived: being ignorant of the nature
C. men who were scorched blasphemed God----the consequence of being
deceived: they ate their own bitter fruits because they were ignorant of
self-control
however
they blamed everyone and everything but themselves
V. The fifth bowl (v.10-11):
A. pouring out the bowl on the throne of the beast----dealing with the
fifth deceitful trick of the enemy: heretical teachings
B. the kingdom of the beast became full of darkness----exposing the
reason why men are deceived: the hearts of men were blind and they were in the
darkness
C. men gnawed their tongues because of the pain----the consequence of
their being deceived: they bore the consequence for the ignorant speeches
VI. The sixth bowl (v.12-16):
A. pouring out the bowl on the great river
B. the way of the kings from the east might be prepared----exposing the
reason why men are deceived: taking rights by force
C. the kings were gathered to Armageddon----the consequence of their
being deceived: they shall be destroyed finally in taking force
VII. The seventh bowl (v.17-21):
A. pouring out the bowl into the air----dealing with the seventh
deceitful trick of the enemy: man will triumph over nature
B. the great earthquake destroyed three kinds of cities----exposing the
reason why men are deceived: building the things of men (which are not of the
kingdom that cannot be shaken)
C. great hail fell upon men----the consequence of their being deceived:
they shall be punished by heaven finally
──
Caleb Huang《Christian Digest Bible
Commentary Series》
Translated by Sharon Ren