Revelation 15
McGeeCHAPTER 15THEME: Preparation for final judgment of the Great TribulationIn this chapter we have another sign in heaven, seven angels with the seven last plagues. Chapters 15 and 16 belong together because in them we have the pouring out of the seven mixing bowls of wrath. I imagine that you thought the worst was over, but the worst is yet to come. We have already seen the seven seals, the seven trumpets, and the seven personalities. Now the coming seven bowls of wrath are the worst of all. Chapter 15, besides being the shortest chapter in Revelation, is the preface to the final series of judgments which come on the earth during the Great Tribulation. These judgments are the most intense and devastating of any that have preceded them. The purpose of the Great Tribulation is judgment. It is not for the purifying of the church! It is to give Satan his final opportunity. God is going to remove the church before this time of tribulation because of His marvelous, infinite grace. If you are willing to accept His grace, then you can escape the Great Tribulation. Believe me, the bowls of wrath are not the “blessed hope” for which believers are looking.
No, we are “Looking for that blessed hope, and the glorious appearing of the great God and our Saviour Jesus Christ” (Tit_2:13). If we will grow in love with Him, we will not consider the judgments of the Great Tribulation terrifying. You don’t have to stick your head in the sand like the proverbial ostrich and refuse to read the Book of Revelation. My friend, if you are trusting Christ, you won’t be going through it. But you need to know what the unsaved will have to go through, and that might make you a zealous witness for Christ in these difficult days. Someone said of Dwight L. Moody that in his day he looked into the faces of more people than any man who ever lived and that he reduced the population of hell by two million. We hear a lot of talk about reducing the population explosion of this earth. Well, hell has had a population explosion for many years, and I would like to help reduce that. Before these angels begin to pour out their bowls of wrath, there may be the question still in the minds of some if any believers were able to stand up against the Antichrist. If that question has not been answered to the satisfaction of the reader, it is answered here. There will be those who will be enabled to stand. First of all, we will see the preparation for the final judgment of the Great Tribulation.
Revelation 15:1
TRIBULATION SAINTS IN HEAVEN WORSHIP GODIn the first four verses we see that the Tribulation saints in heaven worship God because He is holy and just. This is another interlude. And I saw another sign in (the) heaven, great and wonderful, seven angels having seven plagues, which are the last, for in them (was) finished the wrath of God. This will bring us to the end of the Great Tribulation period. I don’t know about you, but I will be glad to get to the end of it. And then we will see the coming of Christ to the earth. “And I saw” assures us that John is still a spectator to these events. He is attending the dress rehearsal of the last act of man’s little day upon the earth. “Another sign” connects this chapter with Rev_12:1, the first sign which, in the opening of chapter 12, was Israel. These seven angels of wrath are connected with the judgments to follow until Christ comes (see ch. 19). From chapter 12 to the return of Christ is a series of events which are mutually related. This does not mean that there is a chronological order but rather a logical order of retracing the same events with added detail. This method is the personal signature of the Holy Spirit, seen first in Genesis 1-2. In Genesis 1 we are given the account of the Creation, the seven days describing God’s handiwork.
In chapter 2 the Holy Spirit lifted out the account of the creation of man and went over it again, adding details. It is known as the law of recapitulation, and it runs all the way through the Scriptures. For another example, we have the giving of the Mosaic Law in Exodus and then in Deuteronomy the interpretation of the Law with forty years of experience in the wilderness and a great deal of detail added. Also, when we come to the New Testament, we find not one, not two, but four Gospel records because it takes four to give the many sides of the glorious person of Christ who came to earth over nineteen hundred years ago. Satan, having been cast into the earth, brings down his wrath upon the remnant of Israel. Also, he makes a final thrust for world domination through the two Beasts. Then God makes a final display of His wrath and concludes earth’s sordid tragedy of sin. “The LORD said unto my Lord, Sit thou at my right hand, until I make thine enemies thy footstool” (Psa_110:1). “Was finished” in the Greek language is in the prophetic aorist tense, which considers an event in the future as already accomplished. “The wrath of God” marks the final judgment of the Great Tribulation. God has been slow to anger, but here ends His longsuffering. Judgment in the final stages of the Day of Wrath proceeds from God, not from Satan or the wild Beast. It comes directly from the throne of God. God will judge.
Revelation 15:2
And I saw as it were a glassy sea mingled with fire, and them that came off victorious from the wild beast, and from his image, and from the number of his name, standing by (on the shore of) the glassy sea, having harps of God. “A glassy sea mingled with fire” represents the frightful persecution by the Beast during the Great Tribulation period. This is the period of time, as we have seen, where no man could buy or sell unless he had the mark of the Beast. It is going to be very difficult to get things to eat in that day. That is the reason the Lord Jesus, speaking of this period in His Olivet Discourse, said that whoever would give a cup of cold water in His name would not lose his reward. You see, anyone in that day who would give even a cup of cold water to one of the 144,000 would put his life in jeopardy because the Beast would put him to death for harboring what he would classify as a criminal. Those will be very difficult days. Again I ask the question: Will anyone make it through the Great Tribulation? No, they won’t unless they are sealed. Although multitudes will be martyred during this periodand I think that a great many of the 144,000 will lay down their lives for Jesusthey will be faithful to Him until death. As we have seen, all of the 144,000 will be with the Lamb on Mount Zion. “And them that came off victorious"here are the Tribulation saints who have come through the fires of persecution on the earth and yet have not lost their song. They have the harps of God, and in the next couple of verses we will see that they are able to sing, and they do sing. How about us today, Christian friend? We are not in the Great Tribulation now and never will be, but even in these days are you having trouble keeping from your heart just a little root of bitterness? We are warned against this in Heb_12:15 because it is so easy for it to happen. Maybe this has no application to you, but it does have application to me. When I was in my teens, I came to know the Lord and at seventeen or eighteen made my decision to study for the ministry. I expected the Christians to support me in my decision.
One wealthy family in Nashville actually turned against me. I was dating their daughter at the time, and they didn’t want a poor preacher in the family. A teenage boy feels these things most keenly, I guess, but even to this day I have to fight that little root of bitterness against that class of people who treated me so badly at that time. Now that wasn’t tribulation at all. It was a heartbreak, but it was not a Great Tribulation by any means. What about that little root of bitterness? Are you having a problem with it? I meet people, Christian people, who have let that little root of bitterness spoil their lives to the point that it actually causes them to deteriorate in their Christian life and testimony. I know of a lovely Christian family back East. Something happened that caused them to become very bitter towards another family, and they refused to let it go. That root of bitterness has entered into their lives. I have seen the family sitting in church on Sunday without a smile on one of the faces. Bitterness can ruin your Christian life. We need to pray, in the face of life’s circumstances, that there will be no root of bitterness within us. It is remarkable to see that these Tribulation saints who have lived through the horror of the Great Tribulation have kept their song! Let me share a poem on prayer with you. It was sent to me by one of our radio listeners. Unanswered yet? Faith cannot be unanswered. Her feet were firmly planted on the rock. Amid the wildest storm she stands undaunted Nor quails before the loudest thunder shock. She knows Omnipotence has heard her prayer And cries, It shall be done sometime, somewhere. Unanswered yet? Nay, do not say ungranted. Perhaps your part is not yet wholly done. The work began when your first prayer was uttered, And God will finish what He has begun. If you will keep the incense burning there, His glory you will see, sometime, somewhere. “Sometime, Somewhere” Ophelia Guyon Browning My friend, in this life which you and I are living down here, a little bitterness will come in. What will we do about it? We need to pray. In fact, we need to pray about this more than anything else. If these saints can come through the Great Tribulation and still sing, you and I certainly ought to have a song in our hearts regardless of our circumstances. The psalmist wrote, “For his anger endureth but a moment; in his favour is life: weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning” (Psa_30:5). I have learned over the years that God will never let anyone cross your pathway, not even an enemy, unless it will teach you a lesson. He permits it for a purpose, for the development of your character. We need to be in prayer that we not fall into the trap of Satan and lose the joy of our salvation.
Revelation 15:3
And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and wonderful are thy works, Lord God, the Almighty; righteous and true are thy ways, thou King of the ages (nations). Who shall not fear, Lord, and glorify thy name? For thou only art holy; for all the nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy righteous acts were made manifest. If you want to learn “the song of Moses,” you will find it in Exo_15:1-21 and Deu_32:1-43. Both songs speak of God’s deliverance, salvation, and faithfulness. “The song of the Lamb” is the ascription of praise to Christ as the Redeemer. We have seen that in Rev_5:9-12. Again let me call your attention to the fact that the Book of Revelation is Christocentric, that is, Christ-centered. Don’t let the four horsemen carry you away, or don’t be distracted by the blowing of the trumpets or by the seven performers. And don’t let your interest center on these bowls of wrath. Let’s keep our eyes centered on Christ. He is in charge; He is the Lord. In this book we have the unveiling of Jesus Christ in His holiness, in His power, and in His glory. The Man Christ Jesus is wonderful! He is the One who can put His hand in the hand of God and who can put His other hand in the hand of man and bring them together. He can do this because He is God. “King of the ages” has two other renderings, King of saints and King of the nations. Any rendering indicates that Christ will be the object of universal worship and acknowledgment. There will be no place where He will not be worshiped. “Who shall not fear, Lord, and glorify thy name?” In our day there is very little reverential fear of God, even among believers. We have been caught up in this love attitude, and I don’t think we should lose sight of the fact that God is love. But God is also light, which means He is holy. God is moving in on churches and dealing with Christians as I have never seen Him do before. I am one Christian who can testify to that. If you are God’s child, you had better not do as you please. If you think God would mind sending you a little trouble, you are wrong. God is to be feared. Our God is a holy God. “Nations shall come and worship before thee.” The day will come when nations will come and worship before the Lord Jesus Christ. This is not true of nations today. That little prayer breakfast in Washington is a pretty sorry substitute for universal worship of God. One man used that prayer breakfast as an argument that we are living in a Christian nation. What nonsense! We are not living in a Christian nation, but there will come a day when every nation will worship Him. This knowledge should cause us to take heart as we see our own nation moving in the wrong direction. The day will come when God will remove the rebellious men and leave only those who will worship Him. In Psa_2:8 we read, “Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen [nations] for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.” The nations are going to be His. And in Isa_11:9: “They shall not hurt nor destroy in all my holy mountain: for the earth shall be full of the knowledge of the LORD, as the waters cover the sea.” In that day there will be no need for our Thru the Bible study because all men are going to have a knowledge of God. In Jer_23:5 we are told, “Behold, the days come, saith the LORD, that I will raise unto David a righteous Branch, and a King shall reign and prosper, and shall execute judgment and justice in the earth.” It is true that our country has been through awful travail, but we have been so engrossed in our own problems that our hearts have grown weary from all the scandal. Other nations, however, have had this same problem. Today it is nauseating to see the immorality, the godlessness, and the injustice in the world. If I weren’t a Christian, I would be one of the most radical persons you have ever met. As a child of God, I can see what is happening in the world, but I know I cannot remedy one thing. But Christ is going to reign someday, and He is going to execute judgment and justice in the earth.
Thank God for that! I get so tired of politicians telling me that they represent me in Washington and that they are going to do what I want them to dowhen all the time they are doing everything they can for their own interests. With rare exceptions, this is equally true of each politicial party. In the face of gross immorality and gross injustice, what can we do? Well, all of us who are God’s children need to pray for our country and rejoice that there is coming One who will execute justice and judgment upon the earth. In Php_2:9-11 we read this: “Wherefore God also hath highly exalted him, and given him a name which is above every name: That at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of things in heaven, and things in earth, and things under the earth; and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Those who are in hell will not acknowledge Him as their Redeemer, but they are going to acknowledge that He is the boss, He is running the universe, and it belongs to Him. And they are going to acknowledge the glory of Godthey will have to do that. “For thy righteous acts were made manifest.” This testimony, coming from witnesses of this period, is inexpressibly impressive and should settle in the minds of believers the fact that God is right in all that He does. What God is doing may not look right to you, but if you don’t think God is doing the right thing, you are wrong, not God. We need to adjust our attitudes and our thinking. Notice the testimony of the Psalms: “Oh let the wickedness of the wicked come to an end; but establish the just: for the righteous God trieth the hearts and reins” (Psa_7:9). “For the righteous LORD loveth righteousness; his countenance doth behold the upright” (Psa_11:7). “O give thanks unto the LORD, for he is good: for his mercy endureth for ever…. He poureth contempt upon princes, and causeth them to wander in the wilderness, where there is no way…. The righteous shall see it, and rejoice: and all iniquity shall stop her mouth” (Psa_107:1, Psa_107:40, Psa_107:42). This will happen when God takes charge.
Revelation 15:5
TABERNACLE OPENED IN HEAVEN FOR ANGELS WITH SEVEN BOWLSAt this point the temple of the tabernacle is opened in heaven in order that seven angels, having seven golden bowls, might proceed forth. And after these things I saw, and the sanctuary (temple) of the tabernacle [Gr.: skenes] of the testimony (witness) in (the) heaven was opened; and there came out from the temple (the) seven angels, having the seven plagues, clothed in linen (precious stone) pure and white, and girt about the breast with golden girdles.The “temple” is referred to fifteen times in the Book of Revelation. Its prominence cannot be ignored. In the first part of Revelation, through chapter 3, the church is the subject and there is no mention of a temple. Beginning with chapter 4 the scene shifts to heaven, and we see the temple in heaven; also there is a temple on earth patterned after the one in heaven. There is no temple in New Jerusalem where the church is going. Why?
Because the church is not identified with a temple. This fact makes it abundantly clear that, beginning with chapter 4, God is dealing with people who have had a temple, and only to Israel had God given a temple, patterned after the one in heaven. In this instance, the reference is specifically to the tabernacle (skenes) and the Holy of Holies in which the ark of the testimony was kept. In the ark were the tables of stone. Both the tabernacle and the tables of stone were duplicates of originals in heaven. “And look that thou make them after their pattern, which was shewed thee in the mount” (Exo_25:40). “It was therefore necessary that the patterns of things in the heavens should be purified with these; but the heavenly things themselves with better sacrifices than these” (Heb_9:23). The originals are referred to in Rev_11:19: “And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple the ark of his testament: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.” The action of God here is based on the violation of His covenant with Israelthe broken Law. God is righteous in what He is about to do. He will judge, then He will carry out His covenant with Israel. The prominence of angels in this book is again called to our attention by the appearance of angels at this point. Previously, seven angels blew on seven trumpets. Here is the new series of seven angels who have the seven plagues of the seven bowls of wrath. The departure of the angels from the temple demonstrates that they depart from the throne of mercy, and now God acts in justice instead of in mercy. “Clothed in linen.” The angels are clothed in linenanother meaning is clothed with precious stones. It is an enigmatic expression due to a variant reading in the text. Were they clothed in linen or a stone? The intention, it seems, is to describe their garments as studded and set with precious stones. Though their garments identify them in a priestly activity, they forsake that work of mercy for plagues of judgment. The “golden girdles” reveal the angels in the livery of Christ, who no longer is exercising a priestly function but is seen here judging the world.
Revelation 15:7
And one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls, full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever. And the sanctuary (temple) was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no one was able to enter into the sanctuary (temple), till the seven plagues of the seven angels should be finished. “Seven angels seven golden vials.” Again let me call your attention to the repetition of the number seven. I sometimes hear it said that seven is the number of perfection, which is not exactly accurate. It is the number of completeness, and sometimes completeness is perfection. For example, in six days God created heaven and earth and rested on the seventh daynot only because it was complete, but because it was perfect. But here in the Revelation the series of sevens denotes a completion.
My feeling is that we have a complete history of the church in the seven churches, and that we have a complete Great Tribulation period in each one of the series of sevens; in other words, each covers it all. First, in the seven seals we see a broad outline, then, as we read along in the prophecy, we see that God zeroes in and focuses on the last three and a half years. “Bowls (vials), full of the wrath of God.” Notice, they are not filled with the love of God but with God’s wrath. “The sanctuary (temple) was filled with smoke from the glory of God.” The very fact that this section continues to deal with the temple ought to indicate to anyone who is knowledgeable that the church is not involved. Neither the temple nor the tabernacle had anything to do with the church. They present marvelous pictures of Christ which have spiritual applications for us today, but that does not mean that the church should build a temple or a tabernacle. Rather, this section refers to Israel, a people who had a tabernacle and a temple. A great many are reluctant to admit this fact because they dismiss Israel from the plan and purpose of God at the beginning of the New Testament. As you can see, the New Testament by no means dismisses Israel! The “seven golden bowls” represent the final part of the Great Tribulation period. I think that “bowls” better describes the container than “vials"a vial makes me think of a little test tube that is used in a laboratory. Bowls were used in the service of the temple. For example, a bowl of blood was taken by the high priest one day each year into the Holy of Holies. And that bowl of blood spoke of redemption for sin. These seven angels with priestly garments, having departed from the temple proper, are no longer engaged in a service of mercy but are beginning a strange ministry of pouring out bowls of wrath on a Christ-rejecting world. A world that has rejected the blood of Christ must bear the judgment for sin. This judgment is not the result of man’s or Satan’s enmity. It is the direct action of the Lord Jesus Christ. We have seen the gentle Jesus, and now we see the wrath of the Lamb. You never think of a little lamb as being angry. A lion can roar, but not a little lamb. The wrath of the Lamb is going to startle the world someday. The prophets of the Old Testament used the figure of the cup of iniquity and wrath filling up and spoke of God’s patience in waiting for it to fill. Then, when it is full, God moves in judgment. These seven angels with seven golden bowls make it clear that the judgments of the bowls proceed from God and are not the result of man’s mistakes or of Satan’s enmity. These judgments are the direct action of God.