Audio Download

Rev 16:17-21 The 7^th Vial, Part 2

[Study Aired April 4, 2025]

Rev 16:17  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.
Rev 16:18  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.
Rev 16:19  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.
Rev 16:20  And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
Rev 16:21  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.

This seventh and last of the seven last plagues fills up the wrath of God against all the ungodliness and uncleanness in our lives. There has been and still is uncleanness in each of us if we are still abiding in these bodies of corruption as we each are:

Rom 1:18  For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

1Co 15:50  Now this I say, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; neither doth corruption [flesh and blood] inherit incorruption.

We paused our last study quoting these following verses which demonstrate the extent to which Christ identifies with us and we with Him even as we live in these corruptible bodies:

Act 22:6  And it came to pass, that, as I made my journey, and was come nigh unto Damascus about noon, suddenly there shone from heaven a great light round about me.
Act 22:7  And I fell unto the ground, and heard a voice saying unto me, Saul, Saul, why persecutest thou me?
Act 22:8  And I answered, Who art thou, Lord? And he said unto me, I am Jesus of Nazareth, whom thou persecutest.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.

1Jn 4:17  Herein is our love made perfect, that we may have boldness in the day of judgment: because as he is, so are we in this world.

The curse that was placed upon Christ’s body as it hung upon the cross, signifies the curse of the spiritual type of our crucifixion with Christ while we are yet alive in these clay vessels:

Isa 54:7 For a small moment have I forsaken thee; but with great mercies will I gather thee.
Isa 54:8 In a little wrath I hid my face from thee for a moment; but with everlasting kindness will I have mercy on thee, saith the LORD thy Redeemer.

Act 5:30 The God of our fathers raised up Jesus, whom ye slew and hanged on a tree.

Gal 3:13 Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us: for it is written, Cursed is every one that hangeth on a tree.

So Christ has partaken of everything we endure, including being “forsaken of God… in a little wrath”, and we, too, must accept that “all things are ours… things present and things to come”:

1Co 3:21  Therefore let no man glory in men. For all things are yours;
1Co 3:22  Whether Paul, or Apollos, or Cephas, or the world, or life, or death, or things present, or things to come; all are yours;

Lo and behold, we are to follow in the footsteps of, and live by the pattern set for us by our Savior. What a radical concept:

Col 2:6 As ye have therefore received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk ye in him:
Col 2:7 Rooted and built up in him, and stablished in the faith, as ye have been taught, abounding therein with thanksgiving.
Col 2:8 Beware lest any man spoil you through philosophy and vain deceit, after the tradition of men, after the rudiments of the world, and not after Christ.
Col 3:17 And whatsoever ye do in word or deed, do all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God and the Father by him.

1Pe 2:21 For even hereunto were ye called: because Christ also suffered for us, leaving us an example, that ye should follow his steps:

It is the function of these seven plagues to burn out of us “the traditions of men… the rudiments of the world” which are not after the “steps” of Christ. How have we received these things? Do we receive the traditions of men “after Christ”, or do we receive the rudiments of this world through “the example Christ has left us”? No, we receive them through human “philosophy and vain deceit”, and we simply reject those who follow the example and “steps” Christ has left us as an example for us to follow.

Gal 4:1 What I am saying is that as long as the heir is a child, he is no different from a slave, although he owns the whole estate.
Gal 4:2 He is subject to guardians and trustees until the time set by his father.
Gal 4:3 So also, when we were children, we were in slavery under the basic principles of the world. [Which includes verse 10 below]
Gal 4:4 But when the time had fully come, God sent his Son, born of a woman, born under law,
Gal 4:5 to redeem those under law, that we might receive the full rights of sons.
Gal 4:6 Because you are sons, God sent the Spirit of his Son into our hearts, the Spirit who calls out, “Abba,[1] Father.”
Gal 4:7 So you are no longer a slave, but a son; and since you are a son, God has made you also an heir.
Gal 4:8 Formerly, when you did not know God, you were slaves to those who by nature are not gods.
Gal 4:9 But now that you know God– or rather are known by God– how is it that you are turning back to those weak and miserable principles? Do you wish to be enslaved by them all over again? [Here is what Paul is referring to:]
Gal 4:10 You are observing special days and months and seasons and years!
Gal 4:11 I fear for you, that somehow I have wasted my efforts on you.
Gal 4:12 I plead with you, brothers, become like me, for I became like you. You have done me no wrong.
Gal 4:13 As you know, it was because of an illness that I first preached the gospel to you.
Gal 4:14 Even though my illness was a trial to you, you did not treat me with contempt or scorn. Instead, you welcomed me as if I were an angel of God, as if I were Christ Jesus himself.
Gal 4:15 What has happened to all your joy? I can testify that, if you could have done so, you would have torn out your eyes and given them to me.
Gal 4:16 Have I now become your enemy by telling you the truth?  [BSB]

According to the scriptures, there is a very close link between the pain we experience in life and the darkness in which we live due to the “unclean spirits” which come out of the mouths of the dragon, the beast and the false prophets which dominate our lives until the seven plagues of the seven angels are fulfilled in us.

Jud 1:6 And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day. [‘Darkness’ is God’s judgment which causes us to “gnaw our tongues for pain” (Rev 16:10)]

Rev 6:17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

Rev 15:4 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 [the seven plagues of the seven angels] are made manifest.

Rev 16:10 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,
Rev 16:11 And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.
Rev 16:12 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 [the way of Truth which destroys Babylon] might be prepared.
Rev 16:13 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.
Rev 16:14 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.

While it is absolutely true that “the sword does not depart from our house”, even after we repent of our sins, it is nevertheless also true that as our unrighteousness and ungodliness are replaced with “Christ in us”, the wrath of God subsides until we can say with the apostle:

Eph 2:1 And you [hath he quickened], who were dead in trespasses and sins;
Eph 2:2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
Eph 2:3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.

So in the gospel of John we read:

Joh 3:36 He that believeth on the Son hath everlasting life: and he that believeth not the Son shall not see life; but the wrath of God abideth on him [It does not continue to abide on “he that believeth on the Son”].

The corresponding seventh trumpet

Rev 11:15 And the seventh angel sounded; and there were great voices in heaven, saying, The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever.
Rev 11:16 And the four and twenty elders, which sat before God on their seats, fell upon their faces, and worshipped God,
Rev 11:17 Saying, We give thee thanks, O Lord God Almighty, which art, and wast, and art to come; because thou hast taken to thee thy great power, and hast reigned.
Rev 11:18 And the nations were angry, and thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead, that they should be judged [“The time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God” (1Pe 4:17)], and that thou shouldest give reward unto thy servants the prophets, and to the saints, and them that fear thy name, small and great; and shouldest destroy them which destroy the earth.[Our old man]
Rev 11:19 And the temple of God was opened in heaven, and there was seen in his temple [“which temple we are” (1Co 3:15-16)] the ark of his testament [His Truth within our lives]: and there were lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail [Which all “sweeps away the refuge of lies” (Isa 28:17)].

In the seventh vial we are told “It is done.” In the seventh trumpet we read “The kingdoms of this world are become the kingdoms of our Lord, and of his Christ; and he shall reign for ever and ever”.

Both the vials and the trumpets are declared to be judgments of God, and in both the seventh vial and the seventh trumpet we are told there are “lightnings, and voices, and thunderings, and an earthquake, and great hail.”

Rev 16:17 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.
Rev 16:18 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.

Rev 16:21 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.

Once again, this seventh trumpet corresponds perfectly with this seventh vial because each trumpet is but the second, middle part of the same three-step process which makes up and fills up the judgments and the wrath of God against all of our ungodliness and unrighteousness, in which we hold and claim Christ, who is the Truth of God.

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;

Joh 14:6 Jesus saith unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me.

Christ never in His life says “I know the Truth”, rather, He tells us “I AM the Truth”, simply because that is the Truth.

“He who has an ear let him hear”

This entire “revelation of Jesus Christ” is addressed to “the seven churches.” We come so very far in our service that we are fighting wars in the heavens, before we are caused to “Remember the height from which we have fallen.”

Here is what the spirit says to the first two churches:

Rev 2:1 “To the angel of the church in Ephesus write: These are the words of him who holds the seven stars in his right hand and walks among the seven golden lampstands:
Rev 2:2 I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked men, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false.
Rev 2:3 You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary.
Rev 2:4 Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken your first love.
Rev 2:5 Remember the height from which you have fallen! Repent and do the things you did at first. If you do not repent, I will come to you and remove your lampstand from its place.
Rev 2:6 But you have this in your favor: You hate the practices of the Nicolaitans, which I also hate.
Rev 2:7 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. To him who overcomes, I will give the right to eat from the tree of life, which is in the paradise of God.
Rev 2:8 “To the angel of the church in Smyrna write: These are the words of him who is the First and the Last, who died and came to life again.
Rev 2:9 I know your afflictions and your poverty– yet you are rich! I know the slander of those who say they are Jews and are not, but are a synagogue of Satan.
Rev 2:10 Do not be afraid of what you are about to suffer. I tell you, the devil will put some of you in prison to test you, and you will suffer persecution for ten days. Be faithful, even to the point of death, and I will give you the crown of life.
Rev 2:11 He who has an ear, let him hear what the Spirit says to the churches. He who overcomes will not be hurt at all by the second death. (NIV)

These two churches, and the other five, are all being addressed to “He who has an ear.” “What you are about to suffer” is “what is written in the sayings of the prophecy of this book.” It is the seven seals, the seven trumpets and the seven vials, and “no man can enter the temple till the seven plagues of the seven angels have been fulfilled.” So “what you are about to suffer” is the “seals, trumpets and vials”, and there is no way to pick and choose what we want to keep and what we do not want to keep. We must all “keep those things which are written therein… till the seven plagues of the seven angels are fulfilled” in our lives.

Rev 1:3 Blessed is he that readeth, and they that hear the words of this prophecy, and keep those things which are written therein: for the time is at hand.

Rev 15:8 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.

This seventh vial is the “great earthquake” which accomplishes what nothing to this time has accomplished. It is greater than any earthquake that has ever or ever will be experienced in our lives, and this earthquake is the turning point in our lives. This ‘great earthquake’ is “[our] wits’ end” of this verse of scripture:

Psa 107:25  For he [the Lord] commandeth, and raiseth the stormy wind, which lifteth up the waves thereof.
Psa 107:26  They mount up to the heaven, they go down again to the depths: their soul is melted because of trouble [because of the seven last plagues].
Psa 107:27  They reel to and fro, and stagger like a drunken man, and are at their wits’ end [Great earthquake].

Here is where the fire is cleansing the temple and purifying our temple for the arrival of our True King, Christ.

Here is this seventh vial in the words of our Lord in Mat 24:

Mat 24:21 For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.

The “great tribulation” Christ refers to here is the “great earthquake such as was not since men were upon the earth”:

Rev 16:17  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.
Rev 16:18  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.

The “great day of His wrath”, the “great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be”, and the “great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, are all one and the same event we “must [all] suffer [and] endure to the end.”

Rev 2:10  Fear none of those things which thou shalt suffer: behold, the devil shall cast some of you into prison, that ye may be tried; and ye shall have tribulation ten days: be thou faithful unto death, and I will give thee a crown of life.
Rev 2:11  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; He that overcometh shall not be hurt of the second death.

“He who hath an ear let him hear” is always associated in scripture with the fact that the masses of those who come to Christ and believe on Him, still are “not given… to understand the mysteries of the kingdom of God.” Notice verse 9 of Matthew 13.

Mat 13:9 Who hath ears to hear, let him hear.
Mat 13:10 And the disciples came, and said unto him, Why speakest thou unto them in parables?
Mat 13:11 He answered and said unto them, Because it is given unto you to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven, but to them it is not given [ears to hear].

So just how does our Lord keep the masses of Christianity from “understanding the mysteries of the kingdom of God?” How does He stop the masses of Christians from “keeping the things written therein”? Here is what we are clearly told:

Mat 13:19 When any one heareth the word of the kingdom, and understandeth it not, then cometh the wicked one, and catcheth away that which was sown in his heart. This is he which received seed by the way side.
Mat 13:20 But he that received the seed into stony places, the same is he that heareth the word, and anon with joy receiveth it;
Mat 13:21 Yet hath he not root in himself, but dureth for a while: for when tribulation or persecution ariseth because of the word, by and by he is offended.
Mat 13:22 He also that received seed among the thorns is he that heareth the word; and the care of this world, and the deceitfulness of riches, choke the word, and he becometh unfruitful.

Let us analyze what we are told here. Those who are “carnal… babes in Christ” (1Co 3:1-4) and those who are “weak in the faith” (Rom 14:1), “understand not the word of the kingdom… are offended when tribulation and persecution arise because of the Word”, and the Word is “choked by the cares of this world and they are unfruitful.”

Conversely those who “go on unto perfection” (Heb 6:1), understand the Word of the kingdom, remain steadfast in tribulation and persecution because of the Word, and the cares of this world do not choke the Word in their lives and they are very fruitful.

None of this is of ourselves, it is all of Christ and His Father. Nevertheless this is how it is lived out in our lives:

Rom 12:2 And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Rom 12:3 For I say, through the grace given unto me, to every man that is among you, not to think of himself more highly than he ought to think; but to think soberly, according as God hath dealt to every man the measure of faith.

2Co 13:5 Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye be reprobates?

The word ‘prove’ in Romans 12:2 is the same Greek word translated “alloweth” in Romans 14:22. Those who mature in Christ “prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect will of God.” They do not simply “agree to disagree” with the elders of the body of Christ. Those who are not “weak in the faith… prove themselves” and are not offended by a weaker brother who has not bothered to prove his doctrine. They bear with his infirmities, while steadfastly “proving what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God”, instead of taking on the infirmities of their weaker, infirm brother.

Rom 14:22 The faith which thou hast, have to thyself before God: happy, he that bringeth not judgment upon himself by that which he approveth; (REV)

Whether we are “weak in the faith”, or we are able to “eat strong meat”, we will be judged “according to our works.”

Rev 20:12 And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

We will pause our study at this point where we are being informed that being weak in the faith can lead to bringing judgment upon ourselves by “that which [we] approve”. These “great and marvellous” plagues reveal whether that is the case if we are granted to “go on to perfection and stop laying again the foundational doctrines of Christ”:

Heb 6:1  Therefore leaving the principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection; not laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith toward God,
Heb 6:2  Of the doctrine of baptisms, and of laying on of hands, and of resurrection of the dead, and of eternal judgment.
Heb 6:3  And this will we do, if God permit.