Revelation 15
15 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished.
2 And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who were victorious over the beast and his image and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God. 3 And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God, the Almighty;
Righteous and true are Your ways,
King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear You, Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy;
For all the nations will come and worship before You,
For Your righteous acts have been revealed.”
5 After these things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened, 6 and the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in linen, clean and bright, and their chests wrapped with golden sashes. 7 And one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. 8 And the temple 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.
Breakdown:
1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous, seven angels who had seven plagues, which are the last, because in them the wrath of God is finished.
Just to review when did the wrath of God begin?
With the opening of the first seal back in Revelation 6:1.
6 Then I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, “Come!” 2 I looked, and behold, a white horse, and the one who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out conquering and to conquer.
How do we know this is God’s wrath?
As evidence, look at 6:16 – ‘who can save us from the wrath of the Lamb?’
16 and they *said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the sight of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; 17 for the great day of Their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
Again, this is ammunition against, rather a gentle admonishment for the ‘pre-wrath rapture’ camp who believes the rapture won’t occur until right before the first bowl judgement. They take the verse that says the church is not destined for wrath (1 Thess 5:9) to mean this specific part of the Tribulation, completely ignoring Revelation 6:16.
(9 For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ,)
The fact that only Jesus Christ was found worthy to open the seals at all (cf chapter 5) shows that ALL of the seals are God’s wrath.
…because in them the wrath of God is finished.
And not a moment too soon, in fact, Matthew 24:22 says
22 And if those days had not been cut short, no life would have been saved; but for the sake of the elect those days will be cut short.
2 And I saw something like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and those who were victorious over the beast and his image and the number of his name, standing on the sea of glass, holding harps of God (electric guitars?)
We encountered this sea of glass already in Revelation 4:5-6
5 Out from the throne *came flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne, which are the seven spirits of God; 6 and before the throne there was something like a sea of glass, like crystal; and in the center and around the throne, four living creatures full of eyes in front and behind.
But this time it is mixed with fire. I think of an ice-skating rink that is built over a lava field from a volcano. Fire always represents judgement.
For now God’s most severe judgement is about to commence, yet many will not repent (cf Revelation 16:8-10
(8 And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 And the people were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.
10 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, 11 and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pain and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.)
So now the martyrs who were previously beneath the altar during the fifth seal, are now celebrating before the throne of God, on the sea of glass mixed with fire.
(Cf Revelation 6:9-11
9 When the Lamb broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been killed because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; 10 and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, will You refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who live on the earth?” 11 And a white robe was given to each of them; and they were told that they were to rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brothers and sisters who were to be killed even as they had been, was completed also.
*An interesting allusion is made here.
From GotQuestions.org…
The bronze laver, also called the “bronze basin” (NIV) and the “laver of brass” (KJV), was one of the furnishings required by God in the outer courts of the tabernacle and temple. It stood between the temple and the altar, and it held water for washing (Exodus 30:18).
The first bronze laver was made for the tabernacle, the movable tent erected in the desert after the exodus of the Israelites from Egypt. The bronze laver was for Aaron and his sons (the priests) to wash their hands and feet before they entered the tabernacle, “so that they will not die” (Exodus 30:20). The priests also had to wash their hands and their feet before they approached the altar with a food offering (verse 21). God declared that this was to be a statute forever to them. The washing of the priests was to be observed by Aaron and his descendants in all ages, as long as their priesthood lasted. God wanted His people to understand the importance of purity.
Exodus 38:8 tells us that the bronze laver and its base of bronze were made from the mirrors brought by “the women who served at the entrance to the tent of meeting.” The women of that day did not have glass mirrors as we do today. They used highly polished brass and other metals. Job 37:18 refers to a “mirror of cast bronze.” The serving women donated their mirrors to the tabernacle to be used in creating the bronze laver.
After the Jews ended their wandering in the desert, the tabernacle was replaced by the temple in Jerusalem, built by King Solomon. The bronze laver in the temple was made by a bronze worker named Hiram of Tyre who also crafted the bronze pillars that stood at the entrance to the temple vestibule (1 Kings 7:13–14). The “Sea of cast metal” (1 Kings 7:23), so called because of its great size, took the place of the tabernacle’s laver, but its function was the same—the washing of the priests.
This second laver was much larger than the one in the tabernacle: 15 feet in diameter at the top and about 47 feet in circumference, with a depth of 7.5 feet (1 Kings 7:23). The depth of the water in the bronze laver seems to indicate that the priests completely immersed themselves in it, rather than just washing their hands and feet. The brim of the laver was carved with flowers, and oxen were carved or cut on the outside all around. The laver stood on a pedestal of twelve bronze oxen, three facing each direction of the compass. The temple court also held ten bronze basins for washing the sacrifices (2 Chronicles 4:6), but the Sea, or the bronze laver, was only for the priests to wash in…
…It is significant that the bronze laver was the last object to be encountered before entering the tabernacle (Exodus 40:6–7). Before entering God’s presence, one must be cleansed. The Levitical priests had to continually wash to ready themselves for the presence of Holy God, but Jesus Christ fulfilled all the Law (Matthew 5:17). When Christ died, His people were cleansed once for all time by His blood shed on the cross. We no longer need a ritualistic washing with water to come before God, because Christ has “provided purification for sins” (Hebrews 1:3). Now we can “approach the throne of grace with confidence” (Hebrews 4:16), being sure that we are acceptable to Him because we are spiritually clean.
Ephesians 5:26 says,
25 Husbands, love your wives, just as Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for her, 26 so that He might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word,
The picture here some say, is of the martyrs literally standing on the Word of God. As we should. A word that pronounces both peace and judgement.
3 And they *sang the song of Moses, the bond-servant of God…
Song(s) of Moses:
Exodus 15:1-18
15 Then Moses and the sons of Israel sang this song to the Lord, saying:
“I will sing to the Lord, for He is highly exalted;
The horse and its rider He has hurled into the sea.
2The Lord is my strength and song,
And He has become my salvation;
This is my God, and I will praise Him;
My father’s God, and I will exalt Him.
3 The Lord is a warrior; The Lord is His name.
4 Pharaoh’s chariots and his army He has thrown into the sea;
And the choicest of his officers are drowned in the Red Sea.
5 The waters cover them;
They went down into the depths like a stone.
6 Your right hand, Lord, is majestic in power;
Your right hand, Lord, destroys the enemy.
7 And in the greatness of Your excellence You overthrow those who rise up against You;
You send out Your burning anger, and it consumes them like chaff.
8 At the blast of Your nostrils the waters were piled up,
The flowing waters stood up like a heap;
The depths were congealed in the heart of the sea.
9 The enemy said, ‘I will pursue, I will overtake, I will divide the spoils;I shall be satisfied against them;
I will draw my sword, my hand will destroy them.’
10 You blew with Your wind, the sea covered them;
They sank like lead in the mighty waters.
11 Who is like You among the gods, Lord?
Who is like You, majestic in holiness,
Awesome in praises, working wonders?
12 You reached out with Your right hand,
The earth swallowed them.
13 In Your faithfulness You have led the people whom You have redeemed;
In Your strength You have guided them to Your holy habitation.
14 The peoples have heard, they tremble;
Anguish has gripped the inhabitants of Philistia.
15 Then the chiefs of Edom were terrified;
The leaders of Moab, trembling grips them;
All the inhabitants of Canaan have despaired.
16 Terror and dread fall upon them;
By the greatness of Your arm they are motionless as stone,
Until Your people pass over, Lord,
Until the people pass over whom You have purchased.
17 You will bring them and plant them in the mountain of Your inheritance,
The place, Lord, which You have made as Your dwelling,
The sanctuary, Lord, which Your hands have established.
18 The Lord shall reign forever and ever.”
Deuteronomy 32:1-43
32 “Listen, you heavens, and I will speak;
And let the earth hear the words of my mouth!
2 May my teaching drip as the rain,
My speech trickle as the dew,
As droplets on the fresh grass,
And as the showers on the vegetation.
3 For I proclaim the name of the Lord;
Ascribe greatness to our God!
4 The Rock! His work is perfect,
For all His ways are just;
A God of faithfulness and without injustice,
Righteous and just is He.
5They have acted corruptly against Him,
They are not His children, because of their defect;
But are a perverse and crooked generation.
6 Is this what you do to the Lord,
You foolish and unwise people?
Is He not your Father who has purchased you?
He has made you and established you.
7 Remember the days of old,
Consider the years of all generations.
Ask your father and he will inform you,
Your elders, and they will tell you.
8 When the Most High gave the nations their inheritance,
When He separated the sons of mankind,
He set the boundaries of the peoples
According to the number of the sons of Israel.
9 For the Lord’s portion is His people;
Jacob is the allotment of His inheritance.
10 He found him in a desert land,
And in the howling wasteland of a wilderness;
He encircled him, He cared for him,
He guarded him as the apple of His eye.
11 As an eagle stirs up its nest,
And hovers over its young,
He spread His wings, He caught them,
He carried them on His pinions.
12 The Lord alone guided him,
And there was no foreign god with him.
13 He had him ride on the high places of the earth,
And he ate the produce of the field;
And He had him suck honey from the rock,
And [f]oil from the flinty rock,
14 Curds of the herd, and milk of the flock,
With fat of lambs
And rams, the breed of Bashan, and of goats,
With the best of the wheat;
And you drank wine of the blood of grapes.
15 “But Jeshurun became fat and kicked—
You have become fat, thick, and obstinate—
Then he abandoned God who made him,
And rejected the Rock of his salvation.
16 They made Him jealous with strange gods;
With abominations they provoked Him to anger.
17 They sacrificed to demons, who were not God,
To gods whom they have not known,
New gods who came lately,
Whom your fathers did not know.
18 You forgot the Rock who fathered you,
And forgot the God who gave you birth.
19 “The Lord saw this, and spurned them
Because of the provocation by His sons and daughters.
20 Then He said, ‘I will hide My face from them,
I will see what their end will be;
For they are a perverse generation,
Sons in whom there is no faithfulness.
21 They have made Me jealous with what is not God;
They have provoked Me to anger with their idols.
So I will make them jealous with those who are not a people;
I will provoke them to anger with a foolish nation,
22 For a fire has flared in My anger,
And it burns to the lowest part of Sheol,
And devours the earth with its yield,
And sets on fire the foundations of the mountains.
23 ‘I will add misfortunes to them;
I will use up My arrows on them.
24 They will be wasted by famine, and emaciated by plague
And a bitter epidemic;
And the teeth of beasts I will send against them,
With the venom of crawling things of the dust.
25 Outside the sword will make them childless,
And inside, terror—
Both young man and virgin,
The nursing child with the man of gray hair.
26 I would have said, “I will wipe them out,
I will remove the mention of their name from humanity,”
27 Had I not feared the provocation by the enemy,
That their adversaries would misjudge,
That they would say, “Our hand is triumphant,
And the Lord has not performed all this.”’
28 “For they are a nation destitute of counsel,
And there is no understanding in them.
29 If only they were wise and they understood this;
If only they would discern their future!
30 How could one chase a thousand,
And two put ten thousand to flight,
Unless their Rock had sold them,
And the Lord had given them up?
31 Indeed, their rock is not like our Rock;
Even our enemies themselves judge this.
32 For their vine is from the vine of Sodom,
And from the fields of Gomorrah;
Their grapes are grapes of poison,
Their clusters, bitter.
33 Their wine is the venom of serpents,
And the deadly poison of vipers.
34 ‘Is it not stored up with Me,
Sealed up in My treasuries?
35 Vengeance is Mine, and retribution;
In due time their foot will slip.
For the day of their disaster is near,
And the impending things are hurrying to them.’
36 For the Lord will vindicate His people,
And will have compassion on His servants,
When He sees that their strength is gone,
And there is none remaining, bond or free.
37 And He will say, ‘Where are their gods,
The rock in which they took refuge?
38 Those who ate the fat of their sacrifices,
And drank the wine of their drink offering?
Let them rise up and help you,
Let them be your protection!
39 See now that I, I am He,
And there is no god besides Me;
It is I who put to death and give life.
I have wounded and it is I who heal,
And there is no one who can save anyone from My hand.
40 Indeed, I raise My hand to heaven,
And say, as I live forever,
41 If I have sharpened My flashing sword,
And My hand has taken hold of justice,
I will return vengeance on My adversaries,
And I will repay those who hate Me.
42 I will make My arrows drunk with blood,
And My sword will devour flesh,
With the blood of the slain and the captives,
From the long-haired leaders of the enemy.’
43 Rejoice, you nations, with His people;
For He will avenge the blood of His servants,
And will return vengeance on His adversaries,
And will atone for His land and His people.”
**Actually, neither version above, as the words are given to us in these next verses…
…, and the song of the Lamb, saying,
“Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God, the Almighty;
Righteous and true are Your ways,
King of the nations!
4 Who will not fear You, Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy;
For all the nations will come and worship before You,
For Your righteous acts have been revealed.”
‘All the nations will come and worship before You’
This hearkens back to Isaiah 11:9,
9 They will not hurt or destroy in all My holy mountain,
For the earth will be full of the knowledge of the Lord
As the waters cover the sea.
Jeremiah 23:5
5 “Behold, the days are coming,” declares the Lord,
“When I will raise up for David a righteous Branch;
And He will reign as king and act wisely
And do justice and righteousness in (all) the land.
(and no, this is not David Koresh from Waco TX)
As well as Psalm 86:9,
9 All nations whom You have made will come and worship before You, Lord,
And they will glorify Your name.
Psalm 22:27,
27 All the ends of the earth will remember and turn to the Lord,
And all the families of the nations will worship before You.
And even recalls Joseph’s brothers bowing before him in Genesis 44:14 and 50:18 – Joseph of course is a Biblical ‘type’ of Christ
Daniel 2:44-45
The Divine Kingdom
44 And in the days of those kings the God of heaven will set up a kingdom which will never be destroyed, and that kingdom will not be left for another people; it will crush and put an end to all these kingdoms, but it will itself endure forever. 45 Just as you saw that a stone was broken off from the mountain without hands, and that it crushed the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver, and the gold, the great God has made known to the king what will take place in the future; so the dream is certain and its interpretation is trustworthy.”
Philippians 2:9-11
9 For this reason also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.
Zechariah 8:22-23
22 So many peoples and mighty nations will come to seek the Lord of armies in Jerusalem, and to plead for the favor of the Lord.’ 23 The Lord of armies says this: ‘In those days ten people from all the nations will grasp the garment of a Jew, saying, “Let us go with you, for we have heard that God is with you.”’”
That will be a refreshing change! My dad has sometimes said that the best form of government is a benign monarchy. No committees, no injustice or corruption by the one at the top. The king always has the people’s best interests in mind with no nepotism or graft. Now, I’ve just developed the idea more than he ever did, but you get the picture. That’s exactly what we will get to enjoy. Government by the one and only Jesus Christ, perfect in wisdom and power.
5 After these things I looked, and the temple of the tabernacle of testimony in heaven was opened, 6 and the seven angels who had the seven plagues came out of the temple, clothed in linen, clean and bright, and their chests wrapped with golden sashes. 7 And one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. 8 And the temple 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.
The temple is mentioned 15 times in Revelation, but not until chapter 4. This is yet more evidence that the church is snatched away prior to this point. As long as the church is on the earth, He’s indwelling the church. Once the church is raptured, God’s attention turns again to the Jewish people and the temple again comes into play.
Remember that the earthly temple and ark of the covenant are merely replicas of what exists in heaven.
Hebrews 9:19-24
19 For when every commandment had been spoken by Moses to all the people according to the Law, he took the blood of the calves and the goats, with water and scarlet wool and hyssop, and sprinkled both the book itself and all the people, 20 saying, “This is the blood of the covenant which God commanded you.” 21 And in the same way he sprinkled both the tabernacle and all the vessels of the ministry with the blood. 22 And almost all things are cleansed with blood, according to the Law, and without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.
23 Therefore it was necessary for the copies of the things in the heavens to be cleansed with these things, but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these. 24 For Christ did not enter a holy place made by hands, a mere copy of the true one, but into heaven itself, now to appear in the presence of God for us;
*In Leviticus 16 and Numbers 16, Aaron had to carry a censer of coals from the altar so he wouldn’t die.
*Smoke would fill Solomon’s temple so much the priests could not minister.
2 Chronicles 7:1-2
7 Now when Solomon had finished praying, fire came down from heaven and consumed the burnt offering and the sacrifices, and the glory of the Lord filled the house. 2 And the priests could not enter the house of the Lord because the glory of the Lord filled the Lord’s house.
In this picture, even the redeemed are denied access to the temple, indicating God suffers alone for the sins of the people.
and no one was able to enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were finished.
*By now, there should be no question that these 7 angels with their 7 bowls of wrath are coming from God, not satan, not mankind. This is God’s wrath and is likely already part of His war on Babylon and the forces gathering for Armageddon. Har Megiddo, as described in the big notes, actually has 8 phases (you’d think it’d be seven) spread out over several books of the Bible as below (copied from the ‘big’ notes)…
[[Gathering of world forces at ‘Armageddon’ – (from ‘Har Megiddo’) (Har is Hebrew for ‘mountain’) – the plain of Megiddo is just the staging area for antichrist’s armies, like England was the staging area for the Normandy invasion. (Zechariah 14:2) (page 63 in ‘Charting’) 8 phases to Armageddon.
Phase one – (above) – the Antichrist’s Allies assemble for war (Rev. 16:14,16)
Phase two – Commercial Babylon (Antichrist’s headquarters) is destroyed (Revelation 18:21) by a military coalition from the north (Jeremiah 50) – expanded below (this occurs concurrently with the assembling of armies at Armageddon.)
Phase three – Jerusalem falls and is Ravaged (Zechariah 12:1-3, 14:2)
Phase four – Antichrist moves south against the Remnant hiding in Bozrah
Phase five – The remnant endangered and regenerated (Hosea 6:1-3, Joel 2:28-29, Zechariah 12:8) Israel cries out for the Messiah (Hosea 5:15)
Phase six – Jesus Christ returns in Glory (Revelation 1:7, Matthew 24:30) first to Bozrah (Isaiah 34:1-7, 63:1-6, Habakkuk 3:3, Micah 2:12-13), then to the Mount of Olives
Phase seven – The Final Battle Erupts (Revelation 19:11-16, Habakkuk 3:13, 2 Thess. 2:8) Antichrist’s forces destroyed from Bozrah to Jerusalem (Joel 3:12-13, Zechariah 14:12-15, Revelation 14:19-20). (distance is 361.2 km which equals 224.43 miles
Phase eight – Christ Victoriously Ascends the Mount of Olives (Zechariah 14:3-4)
Christ’s victory at Armageddon is summarized in Rev. 14:20 ]]
‘Bowls’ = ‘vials’ = ‘censers’ (shallow bowls).