La naturaleza que recibe de vuelta y “extiende una mano”

The WRATH of GOD

Rev. 15, 16

The TRIBULATION period, that three-and-a-half-year time frame, has now been concluded. The Antichrist has now ruled the earth for the last 3½-year period of his seven year reign over earth. Christ has come (Rev. 14) and the Wrath of God is about to begin.

The WRATH of GOD

Remember one main reason God gave us Revelation was to inform us (even us who live in these last days) of happenings before, during, and after THE DAY OF THE LORD (Rev. 1:10). The Day of the LORD refers to the time of God’s Wrath, as we saw in Chapter 6. The Resurrection occurs before the Wrath begins, for Christians are not appointed to wrath. Thus we see a pre-wrath rapture.

In the Book of Revelation, this Wrath is first mentioned in Revelation 6:16 and 17: “Fall on us (you mountains) and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb;

for the great day of His wrath has come; and who shall be able to stand?” As the Wrath is not poured out until Revelation 15 and 16, we understand the above passage is announcing its coming. It has not come yet, but it is coming soon.

The next place in Revelation that God’s wrath is mentioned is in Chapter 11:18, in the summary of events to happen: “The nations were enraged, and Thy Wrath came….” Still the seven parts of God’s wrath have not been spelled out. It is mentioned in this summary of things to happen.

The third place the Wrath of God is mentioned is Revelation 14:9 and 10 where it says, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or upon his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the Wrath of God….” The wrath is still future. In verse 19, the Wrath is still to come.

Finally, in Revelation 15 and 16 we come to the actual pouring out of the wrath of God on sinful men.

But first, let us see Who has been decreed to take charge of God’s Wrath on sinners.

JESUS CHRIST THE JUDGE

It is JESUS the Christ Who will execute this judgment (Jude 14, 15). It is He whom God has appointed to judge the world (Acts 17:31). God has committed all judgment to Christ (John 5:22). He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of God (Rev. 19:15; see 14:19). It is CHRIST who will destroy ANTICHRIST (2 Thess. 2:8). The reason he (Antichrist) reigns over the world only 42 months (Rev. 13:5) is because Christ comes and destroys him. It is our Savior who will take Antichrist’s dominion away, and establish GOD’S KINGDOM on earth (Dan. 7:26, 27).

Revelation 15

“I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last, because in them is filled up the wrath of God” (v. 1).

“And the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple (in heaven, v.5)… and one of the four living creatures (cherubim) gave to the seven angels seven bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever” (vv. 6, 7).

“And the temple (in heaven) was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from His power, and no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished”

(v. 8).

Revelation 16

“And I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, ‘Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God upon earth.’” (v. 1).

1. “The first angel went and poured out his bowl into the earth; and it became a

LOATHSOME and MALIGNANT SORE upon the men who had the mark of the beast and who worshipped his image” (16:2).

We have already mentioned that chips can now be implanted in a person’s head or hand; chips that can be read by a computer. They are powered by a lithium battery. But if this battery leaks, it causes a terrible sore.

If this mark is an implanted chip, this may be a possible fulfillment.

2. “The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it BECAME BLOOD like that of a dead man; and every living thing in the sea died” (16:3).

The blood of dead creatures is thick, not thin and a liquid. If the sea water becomes thick and perhaps devoid of oxygen, all sea creatures would die.

3. “And the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water; and they became BLOOD” (16:4-7).

This angel comments: “You (God) are just in these judgments, You who are and were, the Holy One, because You have so judged; for they have shed the blood of Your saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink as they deserve.”

4. “And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun; and it was given to it to scorch men with fire. 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, so as to give Him glory”

(16: 8, 9).

Isaiah spoke similar words in chapter 30:26. “In the day of the great slaughter” (v. 25), “the light of the moon shall be as the light of the sun, and the light of the sun shall be sevenfold, as the light of seven days, in the day that the LORD binds up the fracture of His people and heals the bruise He has inflicted.”

We can agree that the GOD Who made the sun for man’s blessing can and will use that sun to punish men. Yet this plague will still not cause them to acknowledge God; they will still not repent.

5. “And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast; and his kingdom became DARKened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds”

(Rev. 16:10, 11).

God can use darkness as well as brightness and heat to punish men. Such darkness was over Egypt for three days that they could not see one another nor did any move away from his place (Ex.

10:22, 23).

Great pain and sores in darkness are worse than in the light.

This fifth plague may give us an indication of the length of the final wrath of God, which we understand will take place “quickly.” These wicked people are still suffering from the sores and pain of the first vial of God’s wrath. The sores are still there. They are still in pain. This is speaking of those who will have the mark of the beast and worship his statue.

6. And the sixth angel poured out his bowl upon the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up , that the way might be prepared for the kings from the east” (Rev. 16:12).

Then John saw coming out of the mouths of the beast, false prophet, and dragon three unclean spirits like frogs. “They are the spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the

Almighty…and they gathered them together to the place which in the Hebrew is called Har-mageddon” (Armageddon).

We have suggested in chapter 16 that the spirit coming from the dragon may be: Worship me, for Revelation 13:4 says “they worshipped the dragon”. In other words, “Worship the Devil.”

We have suggested the spirit coming from the beast may be: Down with God, for chapter 13:6 says “he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God.”

We have suggested the spirit coming from the false prophet may be: I am Christ. Worship this image, because in chapter 13:14 it says he will deceive people by his miracle-working power, telling them to make a statue of the beast. This false prophet (19:20), will even give this statue breath and the ability to speak and cause the people who do not worship the image to be killed. He also causes men to receive the mark of the beast. No one can buy or sell without this mark. The number of the beast is 666 (13:15-18).

This counterfeit power to give life (KJ) or breath to the statue is similar to Creation, or Resurrection, but is from the Devil, not from our ALMIGHTY GOD. He allows this.

Christians must be steadfast and not receive the mark of the beast, because if they do, they will experience the Wrath of God (14:10).

It appears that the Euphrates River will be dried up so the kings of the East may cross on dry ground. This sounds like an invasion from the East. It makes us think of the two hundred million horsemen of Revelation 9.

7. “The seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the AIR” (Rev. 16:17). A loud voice out of the temple from the throne said, “It is done.”

There were flashes of lightning and peals of thunder.

There was a great earthquake, such as never was before.

The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell.

Babylon was remembered before God, the recipient of “His fierce wrath.”

Every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.

Huge hailstones, about 100 pounds each, came down from heaven on men, and men blasphemed God because of the terrible hail.

All of the 17^th and 18^th chapters of Revelation speak of the judgment and fall of Babylon. This is followed by the angelic hallelujah chorus, rejoicing at wicked Babylon’s demise by the hand of God (19:1-3). For a study of Revelation 19 see Chapter 17 of this book.

Chapter 20 Revelation 17

The Beast and Its Harlot Rider Babylon BABYLON THE HARLOT

Revelation 17 gives the account of “the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters” and