In speaking of the temple of the tent of testimony John is using a symbol of the very presence of God Himself. The tent of testimony or “witness” had special significance to those who had been martyred for testifying or witnessing of Christ.
The appearance of these angels symbolizes their holiness. It emphasizes the purity from which the wrath is poured out on the world. The wrath of God is His holiness put into action against sin.
The bowls which convey the last plagues are given to the angels by one of the four living ones. These have their place close to the throne of God, so this origin for the bowls will indicate that they come with the fullest divine sanction. That these seven golden bowls are full of the wrath of God further depict God’s judgment upon the wicked.
God is spoken of in terms of eternity: He lives forever and ever. His judgment of the wicked is an everlasting judgment as His salvation of the redeemed is an everlasting redemption.
At this solemn moment God’s glory is especially manifested. With glory linked with His power John tells us that nobody could enter the temple (the sanctuary) until the seven plagues were fulfilled. The main point is the inevitability of judgment.
THE SEVEN BOWLS OF WRATH 16:1-21
Part 1
The First Bowl 16:1-2
The seven angels are commanded to pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth. The first bowl was poured out on the land and ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. These sores are probably similar to what Satan inflicted Job with.
The Second Bowl 16:3
The second bowl was poured out on the sea and it turned into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea died.
The second bowl was poured out on the sea and it turned into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea died.
When a man dies his blood begins to coagulate and emits a foul odor. It is the smell of death when decomposition sets in and the flesh begins to rot.
The Third Bowl 16:4-7
The third bowl is poured out on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood. When the third trumpet was blown back in chapter 8 verse 10 the rivers and fountains were affected, and this is the case here. But there is an intensification. On that occasion there was no mention of blood, the waters simply became bitter. Here all turns to blood. It is true that it is not said here that men died, but that presumably is only because other judgments followed so swiftly. Without water to drink there is no future for man.
John heard the angel of the waters, a designation which appears to be found nowhere else in Scripture. The angel of the waters shows how the punishment God pours out on the wicked fits the crime. He is righteous and just in His judgments. The pouring out of the bowl’s is not a series of arbitrary actions but an act of righteous judgment. The wages of sin is death; the soul that sins must die.
Since they delighted in shedding blood it if fitting that they should now drink blood. The meaning may be that those who so readily shed the blood of Christ’s followers now find themselves caught up in fighting one another and consequently in bringing about the shedding of their own blood. This is common in the Old Testament where the enemies of Israel would be thrown into confusion and moved by God to fight and kill themselves.
The Fourth Bowl 16:8-9
The fourth bowl is poured out on the sun, and the sun was given power to scorch the people with fire.
There is no independent power in the sun. If the sun is to scorch men it is because God, the creator and designer of the sun, gives it the power to do so. Here God uses the sun to bring judgment upon the wicked.
The effect of the sun is strongly emphasized with the use of the adjective greatand the use of the cognate accusative (scorched a great scorching). This made the unbeliever’s torture all the more bitter. But Instead of causing the wicked to repent, it hardened their hearts even more. They blasphemed the name of God and refused to repent and glorify Him.
John brings out God’s sovereignty once more acknowledging that He had control over these plagues. It is important to John (and to us) that God (not Satan or man) is in complete control over all things right to the end.
The Fifth Bowl 16:10-11
The fifth bowl was poured out on the throne of the beast and his kingdom plunged into darkness. God brought all wicked governments down to their knees.
Just as there is no mention of what caused the darkness, so there is no mention of what brought about the pain (though possibly it is the result of the previous bowls; the first gave men sores, and the fourth burns from scorching heat). John is not giving a detailed report, but simply highlighting the important points.
Again this judgment does not move the wicked to repentance but only hardens their heart even more as they gnaw their tongues in agony and curse the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores.
The Sixth Bowl 16:12-16
The sixth bowl was poured out on the great river Euphrates. This river represents Assyria, Babylonia, and the wicked world. When the river is said to dry up, the road is prepared so that all the antichristian powers can make their attack upon the church.
John sees proceeding out of the mouth of the dragon (Satan) and out of the mouth of the beast (antichristian government) and out of the mouth of the false prophet (antichristian religion) three unclean spirits. These spirits or demons are compared to frogs in order to indicate their abominable, loathsome, repulsive character. They represent satanic, hellish, ideas, plans, projects, methods, enterprises, hell-born and introduced by hell into the sphere of thought and action.
At this moment of tribulation and anguish, of oppression and persecution, Christ suddenly appears. He comes as a thief, suddenly, unexpectedly to gather His elect from the four corners of the earth before He executes final judgment upon the wicked.
Knowing this, let professing believers be vigilant, watchful and ready. Let him keep his garments of righteousness unspotted, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.
The Seventh Bowl 16:17-21
The seven bowls, like the seven seals, seven trumpets, and seven signs, ends with a very vivid description of the terror of the final judgment, the seventh bowl. It does not say that all men will be killed but this bowl does mean the complete fragmentation of earthly life.
The seventh and final bowl is poured out into the air, which is the unique dwelling place of demons. The evil spirits are being attacked in their own element.
When the seventh bowl is poured out into the air life on earth perishes. John hears a loud voice from the temple—it was the voice of God Himself—saying, “It is done.” Just as Jesus upon completion of His work of redemption said “it is finished,” so God, upon His completion of His work of judgment says, “it is done.”
The final and complete exposure of God’s wrath so long restrained has come: the judgment day has arrived. Consequently, in the vision the apostle sees flashes of lightening. He hears the rumblings and peals of thunder. He witnesses an earthquake, the greatest of all time. The great city, Babylon (symbolic of the wicked world) is broken into three pieces; it falls apart.
