Revelation 17:1-5 One of the seven angels who had the seven bowls came and said to me, “Come, I will show you the punishment of the great prostitute, who sits on many waters. 2 With her the kings of the earth committed adultery and the inhabitants of the earth were intoxicated with the wine of her adulteries.” 3 Then the angel carried me away in the Spirit into a desert. There I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast that was covered with blasphemous names and had seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, and was glittering with gold, precious stones and pearls. She held a golden cup in her hand, filled with abominable things and the filth of her adulteries. 5 This title was written on her forehead: MYSTERY BABYLON THE GREAT THE MOTHER OF PROSTITUTES AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
 
THE word “prostitute” here and in many other scriptures refers to a city, nation or several nations partnering with Satan as they reject God’s rule. For example, see God’s word to Jerusalem when they rejected him before the exile: Isaiah 1:21 See how the faithful city has become a prostitute! She once was full of justice; righteousness used to dwell in her – but now murderers! Jerusalem became a prostitute as the Jews worshiped idols, which included sacrificing children into fire.
   How did Israel, a nation God formed to be his own, give their souls to evil? The question is answered in the vision. The prostitute is with the devil – the dragon. Those with Satan become evil as he is evil, opposing and negating God’s rule on earth.
   What city is this in the vision? Perhaps I tis  the church. We must remember that Revelation is a message to seven churches. We know that many false teachers have led God’s church – his kingdom city – away from God. History records portions of Jesus’ church living in Satan’s ways, and it is very evident today. Self-interests and worldly gratification can work quietly to prostitute the church’s mission.
   We must, then, as individuals and as the church universal, continually examine ourselves. Are we rejecting God in some way? With proper examination, we will likely discover some spiritual weaknesses as Jesus noted in his letters to the seven churches. As he listed some sins in each church, he also called on them to “Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.” (Revelation 2:10)  
   God will judge and destroy those who prostitute his Word. He will save and protect those who are faithful. This is the angel’s message to John and Jesus’ church then and now. I pray we are listening.
 
Prayer: Reveal our sins that we may repent and be saved. Amen.

Revelation 16:17-21 The 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!” 18 Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since man has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. 19 The 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. 20 Every island fled away, and the mountains could not be found. 21 From the sky huge hailstones of about a hundred pounds each fell upon men. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.
 
A familiar Bible story to many is in Genesis 4:1-9, telling of Cain killing his brother Abel. But what happened next? When Cain refused to repent of his crime, God judged Cain to be a restless wanderer of the earth. However, Cain again rejected God’s command. He, instead, built a city he named Enoch (after a son). Genesis 4 then records that out of this city came generations of people who rejected God as Cain had. Sin’s legacy is death until we confess and repent.
   But we thank God he has promised in Genesis 3 that a Savior will destroy sin one day. To that end, Genesis 5 records the birth of Seth. Out of Seth comes godly men who worship God from one generation upon another. This marked a divine divide in mankind. But sadly that changed in Genesis 6:2 the sons of God saw that the daughters of men were beautiful, and they married any of them they chose. In other words, Seth’s line intermarried with Cain’s line. Sin corrupted the righteous. In response to the sin, God judged the world in the Great Flood, leaving only Noah and his family – descendants of Seth.
    God’s purpose for Jerusalem was to be the city of God. It was constructed in God’s plan to declare God to the world. But Jerusalem, too, became a center of sin and idolatry. Three times God has destroyed the city and his temple.
   In this seventh bowl of wrath, God prophesied judgment on the world’s cities. “Babylon” represents all the world’s evil, especially Rome, to John’s readers. God wants the church to know then and now that one day his judgment will shake the world’s cities to destruction.
   Jesus told us a way the church can be his city: Matthew 5:14 “You are the light of the world. A city on a hill cannot be hidden.” The church is to be the godly line of people on earth today. God’s true church is his holy city to declare his sure kingdom come forever. In faith, we can joyfully anticipate our heavenly city.
 
Prayer: From Hebrews 12:28 Therefore, Lord, since we are receiving a kingdom that cannot be shaken, let us be thankful, and so worship you, Lord, acceptably with reverence and awe, for you, God are a consuming fire. Amen. 

Revelation 16:10-11 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. Men gnawed their tongues in agony 11 and cursed the God of Heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.
 
HAVE you noticed that there are people who deny God’s existence until they curse him? They will live and talk as if there is no God until they blame and accuse him for causing difficult things into their lives. God afflicts the unrepentant tongues who only speak anger against him. There is no peace with God or with one another until we confess, “Jesus is Lord.” May your tongue graciously speak of Jesus’ salvation to an angry, bitter world.
 
Revelation 16:12, 16 The 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…16 Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.  
 
GOD prepares the earth for a final war. The Euphrates River is often a boundary separating Israel from pagan nations in the East. A dry river would become a highway for invasion. Armageddon is the form of a city called Megiddo. It is a vast plan where huge armies could assemble.
 
Revelation 16:13-14 Then I saw three evil 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. 14 They are spirits of demons performing miraculous 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.
 
THE frogs are demons from the mouths of the unholy trinity. The dragon is the devil, the false father; the beast is the counterfeit son; and the prophet is an unholy spirit. God permits them to perform false signs to deceive the unrepentant. They will gather the armies for a final battle. The war between Satan and God that began in Heaven with Satan’s rebellion will end on earth to prepare the world for Jesus’ Second Coming.
  
Revelation 16:15 “Behold, I come like a thief! Blessed is he who stays awake and keeps his clothes with him, so that he may not go naked and be shamefully exposed.”
 
God’s message is clear: “Be ready! Do not be naked in your sin. Instead, be clothed in God’s truth.” He is coming suddenly to destroy evil and to save his church. God’s victory over sin is the Bible’s message. Thank God he is the victor. Praise God Christ is your peace.
 
Prayer: Lord Jesus, we thank you for great love to battle for our souls on the cross. We know our victory is in you. Amen.

Revelation 16:1-9 Then 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.” 2 The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly and painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. 3 The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead man, and every living thing in the sea died. 4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood. 5 Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: “You are just in these judgments, you who are and who were, the Holy One, because you have so judged; 6 for they have shed the blood of your saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.” 7 And I heard the altar respond: “Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments.” 8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was given power to scorch people with fire. 9 They 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.
 
FROM Jeremiah 10:25 comes the prophet’s prayer as Babylon prepared to destroy Jerusalem: Pour out your wrath on the nations that do not acknowledge you, on the peoples who do not call on your name. For they have devoured Israel; they have devoured him completely and destroyed his homeland. Babylon did destroy Jerusalem, but about 70 later God answered that prayer with Babylon’s destruction.
   Revelation 19 can be God’s eternal answer to this prayer. God pours his wrath onto the nations marked as he devil’s own. As Satan’s army seems to overwhelm the church today, we rejoice God will be victorious at the final judgment. His just wrath avenges the blood of his saints. Even the altar of the temple speaks as the voices of the martyrs who earlier pleaded, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” (Revelation 6:10)
   The blood in the waters is the drink of those who have shed Christians’ blood. The scorching sun is Hell’s fiery, unspeakable torment. The unrepentant sinners represent the generations who have refused to relent and obey God. John the Baptist warned the Jewish rulers of God’s wrath: Luke 3:7 “You brood of vipers! Who warned you to flee from the coming wrath?”  The apostle Paul warns the church: Romans 2:5 But because of your stubbornness and your unrepentant heart, you are storing up wrath against yourself for the day of God’s wrath, when his righteous judgment will be revealed.
   This is God’s world. In his gift of faith, we are his children. Our task is to reveal the Father’s great love to a world, trusting he will save his own from the nations.  
 
Prayer: I pray we as your church, Lord, hold fast to your truth. You have told us. We must tell all. Amen

Revelation 15:1-8 I saw in Heaven another great and marvelous sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues – last, because with them God’s wrath is completed 2 And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire and, standing beside the sea, those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They held harps given them by God 3 and sang the song of Moses the servant of God and the song of the Lamb: “Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. 4 Who will not fear you, O 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.” 5 After this I looked and in Heaven the temple, that is, the tabernacle of the Testimony, was opened. 6 Out 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. 7 Then 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. 8 And 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 were completed.
 
REVELATION is God’s message to John about what must soon take place (Revelation 1:1c) before Jesus comes to establish the new heaven and earth. The Lord has revealed many visions with particular images to illustrate Satan’s war against the church. The Lord has also revealed he will protect the church for its final victory.
   This new sign points to the last plagues that will complete God’s just wrath. The result is salvation for those who are victorious over the beast.
   Notice the marvelous signs of worship. As in chapter 4, Heaven’s throne room is as a sea of glass. Harps will accompany Heaven’s song of Moses. This is Moses’ praise in Exodus 15 of God’s deliverance from Egypt’s slavery. In Heaven, the new song is of God’s deliverance from sin’s bondage.
   The angels are messengers of God’s sovereign authority. They will come from the temple to distribute God’s final wrath upon Satan. The Lord’s glory is the manifestation of his power and presence. His glory fills Heaven’s temple as when Solomon completed the first temple in 1 Kings 8:11 And the priests could not perform their service because of the cloud, for the glory of the Lord filled his temple. There is no room for any unholy, impure presence when God fully manifests his glory to his own.
   Our Holy King has come to declare, “It is finished!” (John 19:30) Yes, his righteous acts have been revealed. Out of God’s wrath comes his holy salvation to fill our souls forevermore.
   Are you saved in Jesus’ blood? Then sing your new song to God. Sing of the joy in your deliverance. The holy God has made you holy in his sight through the Son’s sacrifice. He has manifested his glory to fill your soul. Death and sin have no room in you as Jesus’ true church. Let the world know of the cross. It is a great and wondrous sign.
 
Prayer: You are great and marvelous, O God. I sing and rejoice in the music of my deliverance! Hallelujah! Amen.
 

Revelation 14:6-20 Then 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. 7 He 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.” 8 A second angel followed and said, “Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries.” 9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, 10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God’s fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name.” 12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God’s commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. 13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, “Write: 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.” 14 I 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. 15 Then 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.” 16 So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested. 17 Another angel came out of the temple in Heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 Still 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.” 19 The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s wrath. 20 They 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.
 
THE Bible is the story of God’s glorious eternal love overcoming Satan’s tormenting evil. Here are urgent warnings against sin’s unimaginable penalty. They should give us, Jesus’ church, an urgency to declare the gospel.
   The gospel is God’s sharp two-edged truth to judge the sinner to eternal torment and to harvest the repentant sinner into heaven’s joy. The gospel is the winepress to separate the saved from the wicked. The King reigns, and his will is done on earth as it is in Heaven. Yes, the gospel reigns.
 
Prayer: Your Word, Lord, is our salvation. I pray we confess it, teach it and live it. Amen.

Revelation 14:1-5 Then 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. 2 And 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. 3 And 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. 4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. 5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
 
SINCE the church began, those marked in Christ have known persecution. Countless people have died for their faith. But then comes the church’s reward. Who are the “blameless” 144,000? Could they be special people who never sinned? No, they are all who believe in Christ. This is a vision of Jesus’ entire church in Heaven. The 144,000 here is a number of completeness. Jesus’ church are people the Holy Spirit has set apart from sin. He makes the saints holy – blameless – in the blood of Christ. Those who did not defile themselves with women refers to those who did not worship idols.
   Jesus has nailed the sins of all believers to the cross. The sacrificial Lamb of God will one day welcome all who believe into his presence for eternal worship.
   Note, too, the church is on Mt. Zion. This is an image of a new Jerusalem, a vision of the perfect city on the height and strength of God’s holy mountain.
   Throughout the Bible God often manifests his glory on a mountain. This is in contrast to the beast’s reign along the shore and in the ocean. The devil is of the world. God is of the heavens.
   Then note the worship. In response to their salvation, the church sings a new song. It is a triumphant chorus, one the living creatures and elders do not know because they have not experienced trial, suffering and death. The new song is a song of victory, joy, praise and salvation. Only those saved from the beast’s temptations into God’s perfection know such joy.
 
Prayer: Thank you, Father, for showing to us this holy worship for your church. We rejoice yours is the kingdom, power and glory forever. Amen. 

Revelation 13:16-18 The beast also forced everyone, small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on his right hand or on his forehead, 17 so that no one could buy or sell unless he had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of his name. 18 This calls for wisdom. If anyone has insight, let him calculate the number of the beast, for it is man’s number. His number is 666.
 
THE references to the mark of the beast and 666 may be two of the best-known passages in Revelation. How do we understand the mark of the beast and 666?
   To begin, as many of Revelation’s images are first in the Old Testament, the mark of the beast is a mark of sin rooted in Genesis. When Cain killed his brother Abel and did not repent, God sent him out East of Eden with a mark of judgment: Genesis 4:15b Then the Lord put a mark on Cain so that no one who found him would kill him. 16 So Cain went out from
the Lord’s presence and lived in the land of Nod, east of Eden. Cain’s mark could have been a physical or a spiritual “mark” that kept Cain’s brothers from killing him in response to Abel’s murder. God wanted all to know that Cain was under God’s judgment, not man’s. God would deal with Cain as he determined.
   The same is true for the mark of the beast. The mark on the head or hand can illustrate sin in the thoughts and actions of all who do not repent of their sins. Sin’s mark is clear as we disobey God, isn’t it? Further, as the mark is needed for buying, selling, etc., this illustrates how ungodly governments
rule the world. Many rulers have restricted and divided Christians from their societies in an attempt to destroy them.
   The number 666 is a number formula of the Hebrew word for the name Nero. He is the Roman emperor who mercilessly persecuted Christians. He was an antichrist, a beast against Jesus’ church. Identifying Nero as 666 warns the Christians of John’s time and points to all world leaders who are antichrists until Jesus returns to rule.
   John wrote of this also in 2 John 7 Many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist. 8 Watch out that you do not lose what you have worked for, but that you may be rewarded fully.
   Judgment will come on the antichrists, banishing them from the new Eden. Salvation will be for those the Spirit of God has marked as Jesus’ own.
   How free we are in Jesus! Christ’s blood is the true mark of life. Christ is our Bread of Life, and he is our Living Water. He is all in all. The beast’s mark is sure death. Jesus’ mark is eternal life.
  
Prayer: Father, open our eyes to see your magnificent care for our souls. Help us to be alert to the antichrists around us. Teach us to be confident of our salvation in your sovereign authority. Amen.

Revelation 13:11-15 Then I saw another beast, coming out of the earth. He had two horns like a lamb, but he spoke like a dragon. 12 He exercised all the authority of the first beast on his behalf, and made the earth and its inhabitants worship the first beast, whose fatal wound had been healed. 13 And he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from Heaven to earth in full view of men. 14 Because of the signs he was given power to do on behalf of the first beast, he deceived the inhabitants of the earth. He ordered them to set up an image in honor of the beast who was wounded by the sword and yet lived. 15 He was given power to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that it could speak and cause all who refused to worship the image to be killed.
 
IN chapters 12 & 13, we have seen God give permission to Satan, defined as a dragon, to rule on earth. As the Father raised up a Son, Satan has raised up a “son” opposing Christ - an antichrist. Then Satan forms a third force of this unholy trinity. This new beast acts as a false prophet, causing the world to worship the antichrist. This third beast is false in appearance and words. He had two horns like a lamb, disguised as the Lamb of God. False teaching and idolatrous worship has infected mankind.
   This unholy demon mirrored the two witnesses’ power as he performed great and miraculous signs, even causing fire to come down from Heaven to earth in full view of men. The devil is the dragon. The antichrist is the first beast. The false prophet is the second beast. This is an unholy trinity to deceive the world regarding the Holy Trinity.
   Remember, all is done under the sovereign Lord’s permission and purpose. Many Bible passages tell us God permits evil as a means of judgment on a world eager to worship the devil. Idolatry has always been a great insult to the Living God. It is the reason he exiled Judah into Babylon. Countless statues throughout the ages, some even within churches today, are worshiped as if they are alive or represent spirits empowered to help mankind. Some people believe manmade stone and wooden statues can hear, speak and influence their lives!
   Beginning with the first century Jewish rulers, countless government and church leaders under Satan’s power have attempted to literally kill the church’s mission. But faithful witnesses have put their lives into Jesus’ firm salvation.
   But thankfully, humility, sacrifice and devotion have caused many Spirit-inspired leaders to keep the church pure. Stay true to God, and thank him the holy Trinity protects you from the devil’s unholy threesome.
 
Prayer: Lord God, we do not fully understand this great persecution over your church and the world. We yield our minds and hearts to you, thanking you for your eternal life power against this false trinity of evil. Amen. 

Revelation 13:3-10 One of the heads of the beast seemed to have had a fatal wound, but the fatal wound had been healed. The whole world was astonished and followed the beast. 4 Men worshiped the dragon because he had given authority to the beast, and they also worshiped the beast and asked, “Who is like the beast? Who can make war against him?” 5 The beast was given a mouth to utter proud words and blasphemies and to exercise his authority for forty-two months. 6 He opened his mouth to blaspheme God, and to slander his name and his dwelling place and those who live in Heaven. 7 He was given power to make war against the saints and to conquer them. And he was given authority over every tribe, people, language and nation. 8 All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast – all whose names have not been written in the book of life belonging to the Lamb that was slain from the creation of the world. 9 He who has an ear, let him hear. 10 If anyone is to go into captivity, into captivity he will go. If anyone is to be killed with the sword, with the sword he will be killed. This calls for patient endurance and faithfulness on the part of the saints.
 
REMEMBER the beast is an antichrist Satan formed to rule with political power. The best understanding of this vision comes from the apostle Paul: 2 Thessalonians 2:7-10 For the secret power of lawlessness is already at work; but the one who now holds it back will continue to do so till he is taken out of the way. 8 And then the lawless one will be revealed, whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by the splendor of his coming. 9 The coming of the lawless one will be in accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders, 10 and in every sort of evil that deceives those who
are perishing. They perish because they refused to love the truth and so be saved.
   The beast will suffer a great, perhaps fatal wound. In a counterfeit of Jesus’ resurrection, it will
appear the beast has resurrected. This will begin what many see as the final world tribulation – the worst time of evil in the world and persecution against the church in history.
   The Lord God permits this for 42 months for his purposes. Praise God, the faithful who are sealed in Christ will be saved.
   Verse 10 is a somber call to faith. Are you ready to receive possible trials and even death for Jesus’ sake?
 
Prayer: Lord God, we praise you for sealing us against death. We pray today for more to be sealed in Jesus’ blood, safe in you forever. Amen.