In Revelation, God has revealed Himself to the churches in the first century, in the person of His Son (cpt 1). He was commended the churches for their faithfulness and warned them of punishment for unfaithfulness (cpt 2-3). God has given John a vision to share with those Christians, of God on His throne and Christ, the Lamb who was victorious in and through death (cpt 4-5).
In chapter 6, God provides a series of visions about the future, to call mankind and His own unfaithful children to repent. Chapter 7 contains another vision of heaven, this time portraying the end of those Christians who die faithful. Chapters 8 & 9 the Lord sounds a series of trumpets, again to call mankind and His own children to repent.
Chapters 10 & 11 remind Christians that even in the midst of persecution, their mission is the same: Preach the Gospel. In chapter 12, we learn that Satan hates Christians because he was not able to destroy Jesus Christ. He turned his wrath from Child to those on earth and he enlists two allies in his cause: false religion and the civil state (cpt 13).
That brings us to the message of chapters 14-16. In chapter 14, Christ gives another vision of the saints in heaven, those who have not committed spiritual adultery and whose mouths are not full of lies. But the bulk of the picture in these chapters refer to the destruction of those persecuting God’s people, the church of His Son.
Those who worship the beasts and their leader, Satan, will be tormented. Christians, by contrast, will die in peace (vs 13). The focus in verses 14-20 is the wrath of God exhibited in His harvesting the disobedient. “Sickle” and “reaping” are key words in this text and in verse 20 we see that the blood of the disobedient will flow as high as the horses’ bridles for 200 miles or 1,600 stadia, if we wish to preserve the figurative numbers.
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Chapter 15 is another vision of the saints in heaven while on earth, mankind experience the wrath of God. The seven bowls will complete the wrath of God on the Roman Empire (15:1, 8). These bowls were shallow such that their contents could be easily poured. From bowl after bowl, God pours out plagues just as He did on the Egyptians.
We see again that God desired man to repent (16:9, 11) but they refused. Instead, they hardened their hearts and blasphemed God (16:21).
What do we learn from this section of the Apocalypse that gives us hope? A harvest is coming. “A sad day is coming when the saints and the sinners shall be parted right and left.” Water-boarding may offend your sensibilities but God will torment forever and ever, day and night with no rest (14:11) those who do not know Him and who do not obey His Gospel nor remain faithful to it.
Stay faithful, committed, dedicated.
–Paul Holland
