BOOK OF REVELATION SERIES (7 Angels & 7 Plagues Rev 14-16)

By Bishop Elijah H. Hankerson III, BA, MA, DD

LESSON NOTES:

I.                 THE SETTING.

A.             THE GREAT TRIBULATION. In the text, the world is in the midst of the Great Tribulation. This is the period after the Rapture (where saints are “caught up”) and the Judgment Seat of Christ (where saints are judged), when God’s wrath is poured out upon the Earth.

B.             TRIBULATION SAINTS. As has been shared in previous lessons, people will yet be able to get saved during the Tribulation. It is a false statement to say that the Holy Ghost will be removed and people will not be able to get saved. Scripture does not teach that the Holy Ghost will be removed. People will be able to get saved. The catch is they must die; because they cannot take the Mark of the Beast and be saved. The Mark of the Beast will be necessary to buy, sell, do business and live under the administration of the Antichrist. The Antichrist will be empowered by Satan and supported by the False Prophet. So, most of the world will follow the Antichrist, who will be charismatic and lauded as a supernatural world leader. People will see him as the true god. They will look at the real saints and the real God as imposters.

C.             DON’T GET LEFT BEHIND. It’s best to get saved now, than be left behind and be part of this fiasco.

II.            THE SEVEN ANGELS.

A.             THE 144,000. These are Israelites that have received Christ as Savior during the Tribulation. While enjoying a sense of blessedness; they are yet have to give their life for Christ; because they must refuse to take the Mark of the Beast (which when taken acknowledges the Antichrist as god).

Revelation 14:1-5 ¹Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144, 000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads. ²And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. ³And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144, 000 who had been redeemed from the earth. ⁴These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they remained virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among mankind and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. ⁵No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.

B.             THE FIRST ANGEL. The Church was commissioned to proclaim the Good News of Jesus Christ. However, that does not prohibit and angel in sharing in that task as well. Behind the scenes we do not know all of the mechanisms that God uses to win the lost to the saving knowledge of Jesus Chrst.

Revelation 14:6-7 ⁶Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earth-to every nation, tribe, language and people. ⁷He said in a loud voice, "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water."

C.             THE SECOND ANGEL. Babylon is the antithesis to Jerusalem the holy city. Some interpret this to be a backslidden city of Jerusalem; while others feel it is another city full of corruption. Whatever it is, it represents everything that God is not and it will fall.

Revelation 14:8 ⁸A second angel followed and said, "'Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great,' which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries."

D.             THE THIRD ANGEL. Those who took the Antichrist’s Mark are doomed for eternity. While those who die in the Lord are blessed.

Revelation 14:9-13 ⁹A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives its mark on their forehead or on their hand, ¹⁰they, too, will drink the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. They will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. ¹¹And the smoke of their torment will rise for ever and ever. There will be no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and its image, or for anyone who receives the mark of its name." ¹²This calls for patient endurance on the part of the people of God who keep his commands and remain faithful to Jesus. ¹³Then I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the LORD from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them."

E.             THE FOURTH ANGEL. This angel executes God’s wrath on the Earth. The slaughter and death is so great that the blood of the slaughtered reaches to horses bridles and flows out for 180 miles!

Revelation 14:14 ¹⁴I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand.

Revelation 14:16 ¹⁶So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.

Revelation 14:19-20 ¹⁹The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God's wrath. ²⁰They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses' bridles for a distance of 1, 600 stadia.

1.               THIS ANGEL DOES NOT APPEAR TO BE THE LORD JESUS CHRIST.

a.               He is listed in the most accurate translations as “a” son of god; not “the” Son of god.

b.               He is commanded by an angel. Jesus gives orders to angels. They do not order him around.

c.                Six angels would not match the context. The context of the entire book of Revelation lists God’s actions in sevens. To have six angels would go against the grain of the whole book.

F.              THE FIFTH ANGEL. This angel also commands the fourth angel to execute his duty.

Revelation 14:15 ¹⁵Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, "Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe."

G.            THE SIXTH ANGEL. This angel is also ready to execute God’s wrath.

Revelation 14:17 ¹⁷Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.

H.            THE SEVENTH ANGEL. This angel also gives command to execute the wrath of God.

Revelation 14:18 ¹⁸Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, "Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth's vine, because its grapes are ripe."

III.        THE SEVEN PLAGUES. We have had seven seals of judgement, seven thunders of judgment (which we do not know what those were) and seven angels to execute judgment. Now there will be seven vials (or bowls) full of judgment to fall upon the Earth during the Great Tribulation.

A.             WORSHIP IN HEAVEN. The wrath of God being poured out only gives credence to the fact that God is the Supreme Ruler of everything. Therefore, He must be worshipped for His greatness.

Revelation 15:1-4 ¹I saw in heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues-last, because with them God's wrath is completed. ²And I saw what looked like a sea of glass glowing with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and its image and over the number of its name. They held harps given them by God ³and sang the song of God's servant Moses and of the Lamb: "Great and marvelous are your deeds, LORD God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the nations. ⁴Who will not fear you, LORD, and bring glory to your name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed."

B.             GOD’S TEMPLE IN HEAVEN. As of right now, God has a Temple in Heaven. This text gives us a peek into that Temple. It is in that Temple that the Throne Room of God abides; which we studied about in Revelation 4.

Revelation 15:5-8 ⁵After this I looked, and I saw in heaven the temple-that is, the tabernacle of the covenant law-and it was opened. ⁶Out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues. They were dressed in clean, shining linen and wore golden sashes around their chests. ⁷Then one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives for ever and ever. ⁸And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.

1.               THE TABERNACLE OF MOSES WAS PATTERNED AFTER THIS TEMPLE IN HEAVEN. And all of the subsequent temple’s (Solomon, Zerubabbel and Herod’s) were all patterned after the Tabernacle.

Hebrews 8:5-6 ⁵They serve at a sanctuary that is a copy and shadow of what is in heaven. This is why Moses was warned when he was about to build the tabernacle: "See to it that you make everything according to the pattern shown you on the mountain." ⁶But in fact the ministry Jesus has received is as superior to theirs as the covenant of which he is mediator is superior to the old one, since the new covenant is established on better promises.

Hebrews 9:1-10 ¹Now the first covenant had regulations for worship and also an earthly sanctuary. ²A tabernacle was set up. In its first room were the lampstand and the table with its consecrated bread; this was called the Holy Place. ³Behind the second curtain was a room called the Most Holy Place, ⁴which had the golden altar of incense and the gold-covered ark of the covenant. This ark contained the gold jar of manna, Aaron's staff that had budded, and the stone tablets of the covenant. ⁵Above the ark were the cherubim of the Glory, overshadowing the atonement cover. But we cannot discuss these things in detail now. ⁶When everything had been arranged like this, the priests entered regularly into the outer room to carry on their ministry. ⁷But only the high priest entered the inner room, and that only once a year, and never without blood, which he offered for himself and for the sins the people had committed in ignorance. ⁸The Holy Spirit was showing by this that the way into the Most Holy Place had not yet been disclosed as long as the first tabernacle was still functioning. ⁹This is an illustration for the present time, indicating that the gifts and sacrifices being offered were not able to clear the conscience of the worshiper. ¹⁰They are only a matter of food and drink and various ceremonial washings-external regulations applying until the time of the new order.

C.             THE FIRST PLAGUE. For everyone that has the Mark of the Beast, there body will break out in painful wounds and sores all over their body.

Revelation 16:1-2 ¹Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, "Go, pour out the seven bowls of God's wrath on the earth." ²The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly, festering sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

D.             THE SECOND PLAGUE. The ocean is poisoned; killing sea life. The stench is almost unbearable.

Revelation 16:3 ³The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died.

E.             THE THIRD PLAGUE. The fresh water system of rivers and springs is also poisoned. Fresh water becomes a premium as the stench and poison from these water systems is also unbearable.

Revelation 16:4-7 ⁴The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood. ⁵Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: "You are just in these judgments, O Holy One, you who are and who were; ⁶for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve." ⁷And I heard the altar respond: "Yes, LORD God Almighty, true and just are your judgments."

F.              THE FOURTH PLAGUE. Earlier in our study the heat of the Sun was diminished. Now there is a reversal and the heat becomes unbearable. People curse and swear instead of repenting. They feel it is the work of the Devil; when it is actually the work of Almighty God.

Revelation 16:8-9 ⁸The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire. ⁹They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.

G.            THE FIFTH PLAGUE. Intense darkness and pain hits the kingdom of the Antichrist. But, again, they attribute this to the Devil (who they are actually worshipping) when it is actually the wrath of God.

Revelation 16:10-11 ¹⁰The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in agony ¹¹and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.

H.            THE SIXTH PLAGUE. The Euphrates dries up (most likely due to the intense heat of the Sun).

Revelation 16:12 ¹²The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East.

I.                 THE SEVENTH PLAUGE. The worst earthquake in history occurs, simultaneously with hailstones (100 lbs in weight) falling. Again, people curse the real God because they think this is the Devil; when they are actually deceived and worshipping the Devil. 

Revelation 16:17-21 ¹⁷The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, "It is done!" ¹⁸Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. ¹⁹The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. ²⁰Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. ²¹From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.

IV.        SPIRITS OF DEVILS! Deception reaches its ultimate level. Demon spirits that work in the Devil, the Antichrist and the False Prophet go throughout the Earth to influence the nations and world rulers. They are being geared up to fight in the Battle of Armageddon. This battle will occur at the Second Coming. They will think that they are fighting against the Devil. They will actually be fighting against the Lord Jesus Christ and the armies of heaven and they will horrendously lose.

Revelation 16:13-16 ¹³Then I saw three impure spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. ¹⁴They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty. ¹⁵"Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed." ¹⁶Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.

V.             CONCLUSION. Jesus is coming back. Don’t get left behind! Receive Christ today as Lord and Savior.

A.             PRAYER FOR SALVATION FOR YOU TO KNOW JESUS CHRIST; THE SON OF THE LIVING GOD.[1] As we close, if you have not received this Jesus pray this simple prayer:

"Father, I know that I have sinned against You. Please forgive me. Wash me clean. I promise to trust in Jesus, Your Son. I believe that He died for me—He took my sin upon Himself when He died on the cross. I believe that He was raised from the dead. I surrender my life to Jesus today.

"Thank You, Father, for Your gift of forgiveness and eternal life. Please help me to live for you. In Jesus' name, Amen."                             

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[1] http:www.joycemeyer.orgOurMinistriesEverydayAnswersHow+to+Become+a+Christian. (Accessed, March 2, 2011).