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Revelation 5

Revelation 16-18

Objective: 

  • The Seven Bowls

  • The Scarlet Woman and the Scarlet Beast

  • The Meaning of the Woman and the Beast

  • The Fall of Babylon the Great

  • The World Mourns Babylon’s Fall

  • Finality of Babylon’s Fall

Resources:

Reading:

  • Revelation 16
  • Revelation 17
  • Revelation 18

Key verse(s):

"Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame" Revelation 16:15

Comments:

  • The word translated “Revelation” means “unveiling.
  • The verb simply means “to uncover, to reveal, to make manifest.”
  • Apocalypse = Revelation = unveiling = uncover = to make manifest
  • The author is St. John the Beloved

  • Author

    St. John the Beloved

    Place 

    Patmos during exile

    Date

    96 AD

    Theme

    The things which are things which you have seen the things which will take place after this

    Key verse

    Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this-1:19 
  • Ch.16
    • Reminder:
      • Trumpets = Warnings - 1/3's were destroyed
      • Bowls = Judgments - Complete destruction of the UNRIGHTEOUS
      • Goal of Trumpets and bowls -> Repentance of people
    •  Bowls of God's wrath
    • Bowls are somewhat similar to the 10 plagues - Both were meant for repentance of sinners and avenging the righteous
    • These bowls coincide with the plagues that happened in Egypt

    • However, they are in agreement with the spirit of the book, which is symbolic

    • The plagues that happened in the past were real

    • These bowls also agree with the seven trumpets, except that they are more severe and harsher

    • First Bowl: Loathsome Sores

      • On those who had the mark of the beast

      • Similar to 6th plague

    • Second Bowl: The Sea Turns to Blood

      • The sea represents the world
      • Similar to 1st plague

    • Third Bowl: The Waters Turn to Blood

      • Waters = rivers - represent heretic Christians

      • They lead Christians astray
    • V.5: The angel of waters
      • God has angels for different things (water, earth, seas, air, etc.)

      • It is traditionally known that the Coptic Church angel of water is Archangel Michael

    • Fourth Bowl: Men Are Scorched

      • Similar to 9th plague
      • V.9: Still did not repent

    • Fifth Bowl: Darkness and Pain

      • V.10: On the throne of the beast on earth
      • V.11: Still did not repent

    • Sixth Bowl: Euphrates Dried Up

      • Euphrates is in Babylon. Babylon is a symbol of sin. The Euphrates is the biggest river there. Symbolizes the main source of sin
      • V.13: "Frogs"
        • Frogs like to work in darkness - unclean spirits are darkness
        • Frogs are noisy - unclean spirits that do not give peace
        • Frogs like mud - unclean spirits lead people to mud
      • V.14: Miracles are sometimes done by evil spirits. Not all miracles are Godly, and we should not follow any and all miracles
      • V.15: God is telling us to watch and be ready because He will come at any time
      • V.16: Armageddon - A mystery in the Book
        • Armageddon is the mountain of Megiddo
        • The literal spelling in the Greek is Har-Magedon, which means Mount Megiddo
        • Has multiple references in the OT. A reference to a place that witnessed multiple wars

    • Seventh Bowl: The Earth Utterly Shaken

      • After this, the judgment of the devil and the unrighteous people is complete
      • It is done after God extended the time for judgment (7 seals, 7 trumpets)
      • V.19: Great city = Jerusalem
      • Hail" is frequently mentioned as a judgment of God (Psalm 78:47, 105:32; Isaiah 28:2, 30:30; Ezekiel 13:11, 38:22; Haggai 2:17; Revelation 8:7, 11:19)
      • The men blaspheme God because of the hail, the plague was exceedingly great (1 Talent = approximately 75 pounds)
      • V.19: "And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath" : Explained in Ch. 17

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  •  Ch.17
  • The Scarlet Woman and the Scarlet Beast (1-6)
  • The Mystery of the Woman and Beast Explained (7-18) 
    • Babylon is a symbol of sin and disobedience to God in the Bible
    • V.2: Shows how kings were affected by this lady
    • This "lady" symbolizes sin that people left God and went away from Him to commit sin; "adultery" with satan.
    • V.3: This wilderness is different from Ch. 12, where the "Lady" was taken there. This represents spiritual dryness
    • "Scarlet Beast" is the devil. Takes the lady wherever he wants. Scarlet because of the blood of the saints
    • Seven heads = seven kingdoms, and ten horns = ten kings
    • Sin looks like an attractive royal (purple and scarlet) woman, but the one controlling it is satan. And this satan(scarlet beast) is "full of names of blasphemy"
    • V.6: Shows the great enmity between the lady, devil, or sin and the righteous sons of God
    • V.7: Angel explaining to St. John the mystery
    • V.8:
      • In Rev. 1:8, Christ called Himself " who is and who was and who is to come, the Almighty.” 
      • Here we see the devil (beast) being called by the angel "was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and go to perdition"
      • We have the complete faith that the devil was defeated on the Cross and will be tied, defeated, and put into hades at the end of times. He has no power or authority!
      • Those who are not the children of God (who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose names are not written in the Book of Life), when they see the righteous having great authority and defeating that beast
    • V.9-10:
    • Seven mountains = Seven kingdoms
    • Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come: This could be understood from OT history
      • Five have fallen: Kingdoms who have enslaved God's people and ruled the world: Egypt, Assyria, Babylon, Persia, and Greece
      • One is: Roman Empire
      • The other has not yet come: An empire that came after the Roman empire and "continue a short time" - This is a Mystery!
    • V.11: Satan is the 8th king to rule and enslave God's people (Satan's empire)
      • "and is of the seven" means he will rule and act as the past seven kingdoms. At the end of times, the devil will establish his kingdom, but will also be defeated and "is going to perdition"
    • V.12: 10 kings will come during the devil's empire and join and support him.
      • Received no kingdom = they did not come yet (will come during the time of his empire)
    • V.13: They are in one accord (Matthew 12:-22-30)
    • V.14: Even though there are seven kingdoms and ten kings, God will defeat them and the devil because He is the "Lord of lords and King of kings"
      • The righteous are called "called, chosen, and faithful"
        • He called us
        • He chose us
        • We have to remain faithful so we can keep that calling and choice and enter the Kingdom!
    • V.15: Many people will follow the sinful ways
    • V.16: After the ten kings were defeated by God (V.14), they went back and fought the beast. Evil will always go against itself at the end and defeat itself
    • V.16-18: shows what happens to the kingdoms and sinful people at the end.
    • V.18: The great city: the spiritual meaning is the kingdom of the devil
  • Ch.18:
    • This chapter explains the death of the woman, the devil, and her eternal defeat
    • V. 1-4:
      • It is important to know that the evil will have a judgment
      • Babylon - Sin has fallen. This is the judgment of sin and those who followed the devil
      • V.4: God wants us (His people) to go out of this sinful city - leave sin
        • This also means being different from the world and its ways
    • V.5: God remembers the sins only if we don't repent and confess
    • V.7: The sin that people admire or take pride in was the reason for their torment. 
      • Ex. Smoking causes lung cancer. Drinking causes liver failure
      • ‘I sit as queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow’: Thinks that she is good and has no problems, but she is a widow in fact. This symbolizes people who enjoy sin and think it is ok, but after they taste the temporary lucrative taste, they taste the pain and suffering
    • V.9-10: Sometimes people don't think that strong/powerful nations/people/sins will never fail. But nothing is too big for God
      • Standing far shows how severe the judgment is
    • V.11-16:
      • Mentioned things that the worldly people care about. Gold & silver (Looks) - cinnamon and incense, fragrant oil (fragrance) - fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep (foods) - bodies (sexual activity) - souls of men (heresies). All kinds of things that are used in trading
      • V.16 The merchants also wail and regret what they did by focusing on earthly things (trading) and not God
    • V.20: The heavens and righoues rejoice when the sin and sinners are judged and the saints are avenged
    • V.21: A milestone will never float on water. This means Babylon (sin) will be judged and will be thrown out in Hades and never float again
    • V.22-24:
      • Shows the complete destruction of sin
      • The worldly music will not be heard any longer
      • The worldly acts will also end

Review/recap questions:
**Servant may add more questions

  1. Who told the seven angels to pour out on the earth the seven bowls of wrath?
  2. What are these bowls of wrath resembling?
  3. How and why does the altar speak to the third angle?
  4. How can the judgments contained in God’s bowls of wrath be true and just?
  5. What does Jesus mean when He says, It is done?
  6. What did God want the plagues to accomplish?
  7. Why describe the unclean spirits like frogs?
  8. Who is the beast, and why is he in the past and in the future but not in the present?
  9. Why do two evils, the beast and the harlot hate each other?
  10. God’s people should separate themselves from the world?

Homework:
**Servant may add more questions

 
  1. The bowls contained:
    a) gold b) the wrath of God c) food d) water
  2. The fourth bowl was poured out on:
    a) the earth b) the rivers c) the sun d) the sea
  3. MYSTERY, ________ THE GREAT, THE ____________ OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE ___________.
  4. "Babylon the great is fallen, is _____, and has become a dwelling place of ________ a prison for every foul _______, and a cage for every unclean and hated _________."
  5. Babylon's judgment will come in: a) one hour b) one day c) one month d) one year


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