At the close of the seventh seal, the rise of the beasts and the false prophet began upon the earth. In this time frame, the name of God was blasphemed and the people of God were ridiculed, even many of them were killed because of their faith. It got so bad that only those that had the mark of the beast could buy or sell. In all this, God was just waiting for the right time to call seven angels, in order to administer different plagues upon the earth. Because the people were filled with wickedness and fought against the saints of God, God’s wrath was upon them. John helps us understand this, when he said, 1“I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.” (Revelation 15:1) What is fascinating here is that although the dragon had two beasts, John see’s that God has himself beasts that serve him in heaven also. Of which 1“one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.” (Revelation 15:7) It was then that that God’s 1“temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.” (Revelation 15:8) This is when the angels got their commands from God. It was said to them, out of the temple, to 2“go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.” (Revelation 16:1) So God’s wrath was poured out upon the people through these different plagues, in a very similar way that He did to the Pharaoh and Egyptians in Egypt. Because they did not want the people of God to go free, God administered plagues upon them, until their freedom was given and they could go free.
The seven plagues of God, who are administered by angels, are listed below:
- Strange sores will appear on people who have the mark of the beast
2“And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.” (Revelation 16:2) - All the sea life died
2“And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.” (Revelation 16:3) - The rivers and fountains became blood
2“And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.” (Revelation 16:4-7) - The sun got hotter and scorched people with fire
2“And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.” (Revelation 16:8,9) - The kingdom of the beast was darkened
2“And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.” (Revelation 16:10,11) - The river Euphrates was dried up
2“And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.” (Revelation 16:12-16) - There were Lightnings, thunders and the greatest earthquake to ever hit the earth
2“And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.” (Revelation 16:17-21)
After the seven plagues were dispersed upon the earth, the kingdom of the dragon, beasts and the false prophet did crumble. Even the end of their reign did come at the end of the battle of Armageddon, where the people of God win the battle. Oh, how the people of this earth should have listen to those that followed Jesus. Over the course of their years, God’s messengers did testify to them of the truthfulness of God and still people rejected them. However, those that denied the Lord Jesus would soon suffer for all eternity in the lake of fire, while those that endured in their faith will continue to be blessed forever in heaven. John wrote of this and said, 1“and I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God. And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.” (Revelation 15:2-4) The saints of God are victorious in the last days, for their joy is not in earthly pleasures but in the things of God. They have listened to God’s counsel, when it was said, 2“blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.” (Revelation 16:15) So what path will you take? Please know that there is still mercy and forgiveness for your life, through the blood of the lamb. Give your lives to Jesus today, that you may be led away from temptation, even when times are hard.
Let us pray:
Lord God, I pray that people will not lose hope in You when times are hard. Help us all understand that difficult times come to each of us, but what matters is who we turn to for peace and solace in those times. The people of this world may help us mask our heartaches, fears and depression for a time, but You, God, are the giver of peace and hope that never ends. I know that as long as I continue to put my trust in You and call upon Your name, day in and day out, will You be there for me. For You have never let me down. Even in my sicknesses has there been Your presence to bear me up and heal me. When I go on the streets to witness for Your great name, people may persecute me but I know that Your Spirit is working harder to win souls. As long as I continue to look to You and seek Your face, with all my heart, I am made stronger in this life. I have the power to break the chains of sin and darkness and be rescued by Your hand, dear Lord. You have raised me up from a life of lust, covetousness, bitterness and anger and filled me with Your love. In this way, my own desires have turned to doing Your will in other people’s lives. Because of this, all I want is to do is to help my neighbor now. If a person is in need, my heart aches for them and I must stop to care for them in that moment. This is Your love working in my life, Lord. If my life is different, it is because You have poured into me the Holy Spirit. And now, I am able to be a light to this lost generation and warn others about these last days. I pray that more people will repent and be drawn from their carnal state of mind and into following You, Lord. May You become the king of their lives as You are mine. Then, will more souls be won for Your kingdom. This I pray Lord, in thy holy Name, Jesus. Amen.
Let us read the Bible:
Note: Any Numbered References, found above, are listed below.
1Revelation 15 (KJV)
1 And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.
2 And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire: and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass, having the harps of God.
3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.
4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.
5 And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened:
6 And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles.
7 And one of the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever.
8 And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from his power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels were fulfilled.
2Revelation 16 (KJV)
1 And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.
2 And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.
3 And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.
4 And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.
5 And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus.
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.
7 And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
9 And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
10 And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,
11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.
12 And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared.
13 And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.
14 For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
15 Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
17 And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done.
18 And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great.
19 And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.
20 And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
21 And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.
