Revelation: Final Justice

Revelation 16:1-11

Up to this point in our study of Revelation, we have seen judgments during the tribulation aimed at turning hearts to Jesus. The judgments have served as warnings and invitations to trust in Jesus. In most cases, they have been specific in their scope. For example, the trumpet judgments mostly affected one-third of the population. But now we come to the final judgments, which will impact all of humanity.  

As Revelation 16 opens, John hears a loud voice “from the temple telling the seven angels, ‘Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God’” (Rev. 16:1). Let’s start by examining the first five bowls of wrath. 

The First Bowl: Physical Judgment (Rev. 16:2)
The mark of the beast is described in Revelation 13. No one could buy or sell unless they had the number 666 on their forehead or their right hand. A choice had to be made—to follow Christ or the Antichrist. Those who refused the mark because they trusted in Jesus are in heaven with the Lord (Rev. 15). But those who “bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image” now face the first bowl of wrath—harmful and painful sores. This is similar to a judgment on Egypt in Exodus 9, when Moses took soot from a furnace and tossed it in the air, “and festering boils broke out on people and animals” (Ex. 9:10 NIV).  

The Second Bowl: Judgment on Nature (Rev. 16:3)
In the first plague on Egypt, the water turned to blood (Ex. 7:17-21). Likewise, in the second trumpet judgment, a massive object was thrown into the sea, turning a third of the waters to blood and killing a third of the sea creatures (Rev. 8:8-10). There will be no limits when the second angel pours his bowl of wrath into the sea. John states, “it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing died that was in the sea” (Rev. 16:3). This was not actual human blood but resembled blood. Like a person lying dead in his own blood, the sea died and everything within it. God is bringing his original creation, infected with sin, to an end. 

The Third Bowl: Judgment on Basic Needs (Rev. 16:4-7)
In the third trumpet judgment, a third of the rivers and waters become bitter (Rev. 8:10-11). Now, in the third bowl judgment, the waters are undrinkable, affecting all of humanity and animal life.  

Some may believe that the bowl judgments are too severe. Therefore, the third angel pauses to affirm the justice of these judgments. Remember, the bowls of wrath are directed at those who have persistently rejected God—even after his repeated warnings and invitations. They accepted the mark of the beast, demonstrating their allegiance to the one who opposes God. They chose the temporary over the eternal. And they killed those who stood up for God! They put Christians to death!  One commentator says it this way, “The judgments of God have fallen upon a rebellious world as a vindication of those who have been martyred (Rev. 6:9-11) and in answer to the prayers of the persecuted saints” (Rev. 8:3-4).[1]

The angel “in charge of the waters” emphasizes that God’s judgments are neither random nor impulsive. The angel states: 

Revelation 16:5b-7
Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was, for you brought these judgments. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve! And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, Lord God the Almighty, true and just are your judgments!”

The Fourth Bowl: Judgment on the Sun (Rev. 16:8-9)
In this judgment, God overrules the process of nature and allows the sun to inflict intense heat. But even in these supernatural events, the people did not repent and turn to God. Instead, they cursed the name of God, “who had power over these plagues.” It’s hard to imagine the hardness of their hearts in such unprecedented judgment. 

The Fifth Bowl: Darkness (Rev. 16:10-11)
The fifth bowl of judgment is poured directly on the center of the beast’s power—his very throne. God unleashes his wrath on the demonic forces operating on earth. The kingdom ruled by Satan was “plunged into darkness.” This resembles the darkness that covered Egypt during the plagues (Ex. 10:21-23). The darkness worsens the suffering already underway. People “gnawed their tongues in anguish” (Rev. 16:10). Yet instead of turning to God, they “cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds” (Rev. 16:11). 

We’ll stop here today and discuss the sixth and seventh bowls of wrath next time. Let me conclude with an important point for us to understand. 

Everything God does is just, true, and right. He hates sin. He sent Jesus to pay the penalty. Don’t forget—God poured out his wrath on Jesus at the cross so we would never have to experience it. Jesus took on God’s wrath so that those who trust in him “might die to sin and live to righteousness” (1 Pet. 2:24). We have been healed by the death Jesus died on our behalf. But for those who refuse Jesus, God’s wrath falls on them. As the angel said, his judgments are “true and just.” 

We praise God that, through Jesus, we have been saved from the coming wrath (Rom. 5:9). We wait for Jesus, God’s “Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who delivers us from the wrath to come” (1 Thess. 1:10). 

PERSONAL TIME WITH GOD 
Time in the Word: Read and reflect on Revelation 16:1-11.

Talking to God: What do the bowl judgments teach you about God’s view of sin and the seriousness of rejecting his grace? Thank him for his grace in sending Jesus to deliver us from his wrath.

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