The Plagues of the Seven Bowls

Lesson 24
Revelation Chapter 16

The Lord is speaking.  He will not stand for anyone worshipping graven
images.  Isaiah 42:8  I am the Lord:  that is My Name:  and My glory
I will not give to another, neither My praise to graven images.
In Exodus 20:4 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or 
any likeness of anything that is in the heaven above, or that is in the 
earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
However, those left on earth are worshipping the image of the beast,
and God's patience is exhausted.  He no gives the order to pour out 
His wrath upon the earth, and woe unto men.

This is a repetition of one of the plagues Moses caused at God's 
command on Egypt, except with one difference.  Read Exodus
9:8-11.  The difference being that the sores in Moses time fell on man
and beast alike, but in this case, only on man.  The words noisome
and grievous would involve these sores as being hideous and 
incurable, causing much pain and suffering.

The vast majority of the earth is covered by water, the seas and oceans,
and these all turned to blood, and every living soul died.  It is almost
impossible to imagine the stink and stench that will cover the earth as
all these dead bodies come floating to the surface and begin to rot
and decay.  In Exodus 7:17-21 one of the Egyptian plagues was
turning the Nile river into blood, and the fish died.  This was only one
river, but now all the seas and oceans of the world will be affected.
How horrible, but we who have accepted Christ as Lord and Saviour
will be gone to be with Him in heaven.

How much worse can it get?  Now the rivers and waters of the fountains
are turned to blood.  The angels that are in charge of the waters of the
earth, and the angel of the altar, these angels who usually are assisting
and beneficial to man, are now agreeing and approving of what God is
doing.  True and righteous are Thy judgments.  In Genesis 18:25 -
Shall not the Judge of all do right?  Who can dispute what God does?
His patience is long lasting, but His judgment must eventually come on
those who continually resist and turn away from Him.

What a heat wave this will be.  We have been warned that the ozone
layer which protects the earth from the sun's harmful rays, is being 
reduced.  Could this be the cause of great heat?  God is in charge and
He knows what He is doing.  In Matthew 24:22  And except those days
should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved:  but for the elects
sake those days shall be shortened.
Now what does this actually mean?  The tribulation period will be seven
years.  The Jewish calendar consisted of 12 months of 30 days each --
360 days times 7 totals 2,520 days.  The final three and one half years
will be the 'Great Tribulation' as told in Rev 11:2 the holy city shall they
tread under foot forty and two months. (1260 days)
No, not one day will be removed.  However, the day light hours will be
shortened.  Matthew 24:29  Immediately after the tribulation of those
days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light.
So there will still be a full seven years, but when the angel pours out his
vial upon the sun, the sun would scorch and burn every person on the
earth, but for the elects sake, the sun will be darkened for most of the
daylight hours.  However, man will still continue to blaspheme God.

Darkness has been a plague in Moses time as in Exodus 10:22.
And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was
a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days.
Joel 2:2  A day of darkness and of gloominess, a day of clouds and
thick darkness.
Amos 5:18  Woe unto you that desire the day of the Lord!  To what end
is it for you?  The day of the Lord is darkness and not light.

Have you ever gone into deep caves when the guide has turned out all
light, and total darkness envelopes you?  Absolute darkness!!  It is
scary and one guide told us he would not leave lights off very long 
because there were those that would panic.
Back again in Matthew 24:29  sun be darkened, the moon shall not give
her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven....Absolute and total
darkness.  No wonder there will be those that will gnaw their tongues.  
Yet they will still blaspheme God instead of kneeling in prayer and
asking for His mercy.

The Euphrates river is mentioned 21 times in the bible, and called
the great river five times.  It was a protection to Israel as the eastern
boundary, as the Mediterranean, (the Great Sea)  was the western
boundary.  This river is nearly 2000 miles long, (1,780) and is first
mentioned in Genesis outside Eden where human sin began, and
last seen here in Revelation where sin reaches it's height.  And here
it is dried up, allowing the kings of the east to rush into their doom.

God uses the frog as plagues several times in the bible.
Exodus 8:2-14 tells of the hordes of frogs that invaded Egypt, and
caused such a stench when God, at the request of Moses, killed
all the frogs and they died in heaps.  And in Psalms 78:45 He sent
divers sorts of flies - - and frogs, which destroyed them.  
And in Psalms 105:30  And the land brought forth frogs in abundance,
in the chambers of their kings. And so these unclean spirits are
compared 'as like frogs'.  Slimy and repulsive.
Do you realize that if we watch and wait for the return of the Lord,
we will receive a crown?  II Timothy 4:8 reads,
Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which
the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to
me only, but unto them that love His appearing.

We know not when Jesus will again appear.  Oh, we are given many
signs to show His near appearing, but not any exact time.  II Peter 3:19
But the day of the Lord shall come as a thief in the night; in that which
the heavens shall pass away with a great noise.
But watch and wait and receive a crown of righteousness.  It could
be any minute now!!
And He gathered them into a place called Armageddon.
This is the only place in the bible where this name Armageddon is used. 
The valley of Megiddo has been the sight of many wars, and here, by
divine appointment, but by Satanic agency, are gathered the armies of
the earth, two hundred million in one army alone. (Rev 9:16)  And it
is here where the Lord and His saints shall come to destroy the beast
and his armies.  Revelation 19:15  And out of His mouth goeth a
sharp sword, and with it He should smite the nations:  and He should
rule them with a rod of iron.

This seventh angel poured out his vial into the air.  In Ephesians 2:2 According to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now
worketh in the children of disobedience.  Satan is this prince and the
seventh vial is poured out in his realm.  And then a voice from the
temple of heaven saying, it is done.  One other time a voice went up
to heaven.  In John 19:30  When Jesus therefore had received the
vinegar, He said, It Is Finished:  and He bowed Hi head, and gave
up the ghost.
And not the twenty-one judgments are complete, and  a final earthquake like never before rocks the whole world.  It splits the city of Jerusalem into three parts, destroying the cities of the nation, and Babylon, that city
of the beast received God's total wrath.  This earthquake will be so tremendous that even the Islands of the sea will be destroyed, and
mountains torn down.  It is very hard for us to imagine such an
earthquake, but God's word says it will happen, and it will.  And how
about those hailstones?  Every stone about the weight of a talent.
How much is a talent?

Again, I say, true believers who have accepted Jesus as their
personal Saviour, confessed their sins to Him and asked for forgiveness,
will not experience these terrible punishments, but will be at the side
of Jesus as His bride......I cannot emphasize enough the importance
of turning to Jesus if you have not already done so.  Few preachers
today will preach on Hell's fire and the second coming of Jesus,
fearing they will be called Fanatics.  But Noah preached, warning
the people for 120 years, and they laughed at him, but he
continued to warn them as God had told him to do.

Read your bible, study all references.  Do not reject bible prophecy.
Peter tells us in II Peter 1:19
We have a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well
that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until
the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts.

MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL!!

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