Rev 16:10-16  The 5^th and 6^th Vials, Part 1

[Study Aired March 23, 2025]

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 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.
Rev 16:15  Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
Rev 16:16  And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

Introduction

Once again we must remind ourselves that the pouring out of these seven vials is a “great and marvelous” work of the Lord in our lives, and they are a vital part of “the words of this prophecy”. We must keep in mind that we are specifically told we are to “read, hear and keep”, “the things which are written” in this “revelation of Jesus Christ” within us.

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.

We are also told that the multitudes who come to Christ are “not given… to know the mysteries of the kingdom of heaven”:

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 [the multitudes who come to Christ] 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.

Mat 13:13  Therefore speak I to them in parables: because they seeing see not; and hearing they hear not, neither do they understand.
Mat 13:14  And in them is fulfilled the prophecy of Esaias, which saith, By hearing ye shall hear, and shall not understand; and seeing ye shall see, and shall not perceive:

Since we must all live by every word of God, we are therefore all first born blind from the womb of our first bondwoman mother.

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Joh 9:39  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

Gal 4:23  But he who was of the bondwoman was born after the flesh; but he of the freewoman was by promise.
Gal 4:24  Which things are an allegory: for these are the two covenants; the one from the mount Sinai, which gendereth to bondage, which is Agar.
Gal 4:25  For this Agar is mount Sinai in Arabia, and answereth to Jerusalem which now is, and is in bondage with her children. [All who think “Jerusalem which now is” is “God’s chosen people” are still “in bondage with… the children of the bondwoman” (vs 26-28)]

After we acknowledge that we were born in a spiritually blind condition, then we begin to be healed of our spiritual blindness.

Joh 9:39  And Jesus said, For judgment I am come into this world, that they which see not might see; and that they which see might be made blind.
Joh 9:40  And some of the Pharisees which were with him heard these words, and said unto him, Are we blind also?
Joh 9:41  Jesus said unto them, If ye were blind, ye should have no sin: but now ye say, We see; therefore your sin remaineth.

So it is at our own peril of being “hurt of the second death” in the lake of fire, that we put these seals, trumpets or vials off into the future or off in the past or onto anyone else but ourselves. Scripture is not written to others. Scripture is addressed to “he that hath an ear.” Hopefully that is to you and me, if indeed we are granted to know God and His Son. It is addressed to those who are given eyes to see and ears to hear that we ourselves are the beast whose throne and whose kingdom is affected by, and destroyed by, this revelation of Jesus Christ.

2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

This revelation is all about “the brightness of His coming” to judge our old beastly man within by the words of this prophecy which are “the spirit of His mouth”.

Rev 19:15  And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

It is all the revelation of our judgment, and our judgment is addressed to all the seven churches of Asia with all of their false doctrines within us. Those seven churches are shown by “the seven angels [of] the seven churches” that their judgment is in this revelation, which consists of a book sealed with seven seals.

Rev 1:20  The mystery of the seven stars which thou sawest in my right hand, and the seven golden candlesticks. The seven stars are the angels of the seven churches: and the seven candlesticks which thou sawest are the seven churches.

This ‘revelation’ signifies the entire Word of God, “the spirit of His mouth”, which is completely hidden with seven seals from all who are not given to understand that all of mankind is destined to “live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God” [Ecc 9:2, Mat 4:4].

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

If even one of those seven seals is not fulfilled within each of us, then this entire revelation of Jesus Christ will remain completely sealed from our understanding. The seven seals are seven judgments which are expanded to include seven more trumpet judgments, which are expanded to include these seven vials which “fill up the wrath of God” against all the ungodliness and unrighteousness within all of us.

It is first our own inward armies of false doctrines who are gathered to the great day of God almighty. It is us while we are yet self-righteous sinners in Babylon, who are completely unaware of the coming of our Lord as a thief who plunders and destroys the kingdom of our father, the Devil, within us. With that in mind, let’s see what our Lord is doing within that doomed kingdom within us all, in the fifth and sixth bowls which fill up His wrath against our ungodliness and unrighteousness. Here is this fifth vial:

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.

The first thing we need to notice is that this is the only one of the seven vials which does not use the exact same language as that used in the parallel seven trumpets. Let us remind ourselves of the fact that these vials are part of the seven trumpets, and that the principles found in the seven trumpets are also to be found corresponding with each of the seven vials. Here is a review of each to make this point:

First trumpet:

Rev 8:7  The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up. (1Pe 1:24  For all flesh is as grass, and all the glory of man as the flower of grass. The grass withereth, and the flower thereof falleth away:)

First vial:

Rev 16:2  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.

Second trumpet:

Rev 8:8  And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;
Rev 8:9  And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.

Second vial:

Rev 16:3  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. [Mat 26:27  And he took the cup, and gave thanks, and gave [it] to them, saying, Drink ye all of it; Mat 26:28  For this is my blood of the new testament, which is shed for many for the remission of sins.]

Third trumpet:

Rev 8:10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;
Rev 8:11  And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter [1Co 15:31  I protest by your rejoicing which I have in Christ Jesus our Lord, I die daily.]

Rev 10:9  And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.

Third Vial:

Rev 16:4  And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.
Rev 16:5  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.
Rev 16:6  For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.
Rev 16:7  And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.

The Word of God is sweet in our mouth, but it is both blood and bitter in our belly where we must digest and live by its every word.

Joh 6:53  Then Jesus said unto them, Verily, verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and drink his blood, ye have no life in you.
Joh 6:54  Whoso eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, hath eternal life; and I will raise him up at the last day.
Joh 6:55  For my flesh is meat indeed, and my blood is drink indeed.
Joh 6:56  He that eateth my flesh, and drinketh my blood, dwelleth in me, and I in him.

Fourth Trumpet:

Rev 8:12  And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.
Rev 8:13 And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!

2Co 4:6 For God, who commanded the light to shine out of darkness, hath shined in our hearts, to [give] the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ.

1Pe 2:9 But ye are a chosen generation, a royal priesthood, an holy nation, a peculiar people; that ye should shew forth the praises of him who hath called you out of darkness into his marvellous light:

Fourth Vial:

Rev 16:8 And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire.
Rev 16:9 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.

The apostle Paul who was first known as “Saul of Tarsus” signifies who we all are while we are in the harlot churches of Babylon. At that time we were one and all ‘blasphemers’:

1Ti 1:12  And I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who hath enabled me, for that he counted me faithful, putting me into the ministry;
1Ti 1:13  Who was before a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious: but I obtained mercy, because I did it ignorantly in unbelief.

It is while we are in spiritual darkness that we are being “scorched with fire from the Sun.”

Ecc 3:16  And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness [the Lord’s apostate churches], that iniquity was there.

God is calling light out of darkness, and for those who are given to fear Him and hear Him, the outcome is worth the pain.

Mal 4:2  But unto you that fear my name shall the Sun of righteousness arise with healing in his wings; and ye shall go forth, and grow up as calves of the stall.

Rom 8:18  For I reckon that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us.

We have all been blasphemers who, like the apostle Paul, “did it ignorantly in unbelief”, and it was at that time that we “repented not to give Him glory.” Instead we returned to our sins “as a dog to his vomit” (2Pe 2:22).

Rev 11:3  And I will give power unto my two witnesses [also called the “seven angels” with the seven vials, (Rev 19:10, 22:8-9) “our fellowservants”], and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
Rev 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
Rev 11:5  And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed.

Jer 5:14  Wherefore thus saith the LORD God of hosts, Because ye speak this word, behold, I will make my words in thy mouth fire, and this people wood, and it shall devour them.

Our old man, our first Adam, must be devoured by the scorching fire of God’s word, the scorching heat of the Sun of Righteousness, before we become that heat and that fire. Once again, good comes through “keeping the things written therein”, and we have delivered ourselves from the curses which are placed upon those who either “add to” or “take from the sayings of the prophecy of this book” (Rev 22:18-19).

The fifth trumpet and the fifth vial

Now we come to the fifth trumpet. Up until now, everything in every trumpet is repeated in the corresponding vial. That corresponding work will continue in the fifth trumpet, but it will be done in a way which will reveal to us that the “bottomless pit” is what the scriptures call ‘the sea’ within us. It will also reveal that this is where the throne of the beast is located. Read the paper entitled What is The Bottomless Pit?

https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/the-bottomless-pit/

Here again is this:

Fifth Trumpet:

Rev 9:1  And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.
Rev 9:2  And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.
Rev 9:3  And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.
Rev 9:4  And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads.
Rev 9:5  And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment [was] as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man.
Rev 9:6  And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them.
Rev 9:7  And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces [were] as the faces of men.
Rev 9:8  And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions.
Rev 9:9  And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
Rev 9:10  And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. [Isa 9:15 – … the prophet that teacheth lies, he [is] the tail.]
Rev 9:11  And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
Rev 9:12  One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter.

Gal 2:20  I am crucified with Christ [This is what men seek “in those days”]: 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.

Fifth Vial:

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.

Both this fifth vial and the fifth trumpet are concerned with the effects of the darkness they expose in our lives:

Rev 9:1  And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit.
Rev 9:2  And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit.

The revelation of the location of “the bottomless pit” is imparted to us when we see from whence all that darkness resides. It is the smoke out of the bottomless pit of the sixth trumpet which darkens the sun and air. The darkness associated with this 6^th vial corresponds with the darkness that comes out of the bottomless pit, revealing that “the seat (throne) and kingdom of the beast”, and the bottomless pit are one and the same thing. Both are the spiritually blind, rebellious, carnal mind which is revealed to be the source of all that darkness.

Rev 16:10  And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast [our rebellious, carnal mind]; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain,

The phrase “bottomless pit” is translated from two Greek words. ‘Bottomless’ is translated from the Greek word G12, ‘abussos’, meaning ‘deep’ and the Greek word ‘phrear’, G5421, “a pit”. So it is our rebellious, carnal mind which is a deep pit, and that deep pit is the home of the locusts [false doctrines] which darken the sun and the air:

Rev 9:2  And he opened the bottomless pit [abussos, phrear]; and there arose a smoke out of the pit [phrear], as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit [phrear].
Rev 9:3  And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power.

When the devils who were “legion” were being cast out of the demoniac man, they pleaded with the Lord not to send them “out of the country” but to send them into a herd of 2,000 swine:

Mar 5:10  And he besought him much that he would not send them away out of the country.
Mar 5:11  Now there was there nigh unto the mountains a great herd of swine feeding.
Mar 5:12  And all the devils besought him, saying, Send us into the swine, that we may enter into them.
Mar 5:13  And forthwith Jesus gave them leave. And the unclean spirits went out, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the sea, (they were about two thousand;) and were choked in the sea [G2281: ‘thalassa’, “lake”].

The Greek word ‘thalassa’ (lake) is replaced with the Greek word ‘limne’ in Luke’s account of this same incident where we learn that the devils requested that they not be sent into the abussos, the deep. They wanted to enter into the herd of swine [They were allowed for their request to be granted as they asked according to God’s plan.]:

Luk 8:30  And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him.
Luk 8:31  And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep [G12: ‘abussos’, deep].
Luk 8:32  And there was there an herd of many swine feeding on the mountain: and they besought him that he would suffer them to enter into them. And he suffered them.
Luk 8:33  Then went the devils out of the man, and entered into the swine: and the herd ran violently down a steep place into the lake [G3041: ‘limne’ “a pond or a lake”], and were choked.

“The deep”, ‘the abussos’ here in Luke 8:31 obviously refers to the “limne, a pond, a lake or sea” [G2281: ‘thlassa’] of Galilee where the herd of 2,000 swine drowned. The “lake of fire” of Revelation 19:20, 20:10; 20:14, 20:15 is the G3041, ‘limne’ of fire’ where the devil who was “cast into the bottomless pit” [abussos, “deep”] at the beginning of the thousand-year reign of Christ and His Christ, is now “cast into the ‘limne’ (G3041) of fire [which] is the second death”, as opposed to the first death which we die with Christ in “this present time” (Rom 8:18, 1Co 15:31, Gal 2:20).

Both this fifth trumpet and this fifth vial are poured out upon the throne of the beast because the Greek word translated ‘seat’ is ‘thronos’, which everywhere else is translated simply as ‘throne’. The sea signifies the “many waters” of our flesh where the doctrines of the harlot and the beast sit on that throne, which rightfully is Christ’s throne. The cleansing of the temple is accomplished through enduring the ‘fire’ of the Word which is called “a sea of glass mingled with fire” with which fire Christ will reclaim His throne.

Once again we see how the events of this fifth vial correspond to the events which take place in the fifth trumpet we can now understand that they both deal with the pain that must be experienced in the “bottomless pit” of our own rebellious carnal mind.

Rom 8:6  For to be carnally minded is death; but to be spiritually minded is life and peace.
Rom 8:7  Because the carnal mind is enmity against God: for it is not subject to the law of God, neither indeed can be.

Our carnal mind which cannot be subject to the law of God is our own dark bottomless pit which, being the darkened mind of our flesh, cannot inherit the kingdom of God:

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

Once again we see how the details concerning the purpose for the process of being judged by all of that pain which is poured out upon “the throne of the beast” are given to us in the fifth trumpet, while the filling up of that wrath and pain is given to us in the fifth vial. It is through the details of the trumpets that we are given to understand the meaning of the symbols of the vials. In this particular vial, we learn that “the seat [throne] of the beast” is ‘abussos’ , “the bottomless pit”. It is up from this abussos that we all rise:

Rev 13:1  And I stood upon the sand of the sea, and saw a beast rise up out of the sea [G2281: ‘thalassa’, which Mark 5:13 demonstrates is the same as the G12 ‘abussos’ of Luke 8:31, and the “lake”, G3041, ‘limne’ of Luke 8:33] having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy.

Rev 17:15  And he saith unto me, The waters which thou sawest, where the whore sitteth, are peoples, and multitudes, and nations, and tongues.

‘Thalassa’, ‘limne’, and ‘abussos’, one and all refer to the deep darkness of our carnal minds which are “enmity against the law of God” (Rom 8:7) and “cannot inherit the kingdom of God” (1Co 15:50).

We certainly do not immediately repent and thank the Lord for the pain we experience. Instead we, like self-righteous Job, first feel that the Lord has unjustly made us His target, and we blaspheme His name when we make that accusation:

Job 16:11  God hath delivered me to the ungodly, and turned me over into the hands of the wicked.
Job 16:12  I was at ease, but he hath broken me asunder: he hath also taken me by my neck, and shaken me to pieces, and set me up for his mark.
Job 16:13  His archers compass me round about, he cleaveth my reins asunder, and doth not spare; he poureth out my gall upon the ground.
Job 16:14  He breaketh me with breach upon breach, he runneth upon me like a giant.
Job 16:15  I have sewed sackcloth upon my skin, and defiled my horn in the dust.
Job 16:16  My face is foul with weeping, and on my eyelids is the shadow of death;
Job 16:17  Not for any injustice in mine hands: also my prayer is pure.

We have already learned that Satan’s throne is our hearts and minds which rightfully belong to our Creator. We have just seen that it is our hearts and minds which are first possessed by “the [self righteous] man of sin… the son of perdition” before the coming of Christ who drives Satan out of our hearts and minds with the brightness of His fiery coming:

2Th 2:7  For the mystery of iniquity doth already work: only he who now letteth will let, until he be taken out of the way.
2Th 2:8  And then shall that Wicked be revealed, whom the Lord shall consume with the spirit of his mouth, and shall destroy with the brightness of his coming:

“The seat of the beast” is our own hearts and minds which are full of so much pain that we “chew [our] tongues” when we finally come to see the depth of darkness we have been in for so long. Everything we have ever believed was a lie, and we blaspheme the name of the Lord because the pain of losing it all seems to be more than we can bear. The Lord wants us to know that the only way He can change our rebellious old man is through severe mental and spiritual pain. ‘Chewing our tongues’ is just another way of saying that He makes us eat our own words by judging us with our own iniquity and judging us “out of [our] own mouth”:

Jer 2:18  And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river?  
Jer 2:19  Thine own wickedness shall correct thee, and thy backslidings shall reprove thee: know therefore and see that it is an evil thing and bitter, that thou hast forsaken the LORD thy God, and that my fear is not in thee, saith the Lord GOD of hosts.

The waters of Sihor and the waters of Assyria signify the lying, smooth, false doctrines of all the harlot daughters of Babylon.

Luk 19:22  And he saith unto him, Out of thine own mouth will I judge thee, thou wicked servant. Thou knewest that I was an austere man, taking up that I laid not down, and reaping that I did not sow:

The sixth trumpet and the sixth vial

Sixth trumpet:

Rev 9:13  And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,
Rev 9:14  Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates.
Rev 9:15  And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men.
Rev 9:16  And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them.
Rev 9:17  And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone.
Rev 9:18  By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths.
Rev 9:19  For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.
Rev 9:20  And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:
Rev 9:21  Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

The sixth vial is also poured out upon the great river Euphrates:

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 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.
Rev 16:15  Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed [is] he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame.
Rev 16:16  And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.

We will pause our study at this point, and in our next study we will consider what the spiritual significance of “the great river Euphrates” is.  The Euphrates was the artery through which the wealth of all the provinces of Babylon flowed into that great city, and in our next study we will see that this great river signifies all the lies and false doctrines which keep the wealth of the whole world flowing into modern day spiritual Babylon the great, the mother of harlots. This river is referred to as “the waters of Assyria” in the Old Testament:

Jer 2:18  And now what hast thou to do in the way of Egypt, to drink the waters of Sihor [The Nile]? or what hast thou to do in the way of Assyria, to drink the waters of the river? [Euphrates]

]]> https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/rev-105-11-part-3-the-connection-between-the-little-book-and-the-7-thunders/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=rev-105-11-part-3-the-connection-between-the-little-book-and-the-7-thunders Sun, 29 Sep 2024 04:01:01 +0000 https://www.iswasandwillbe.com/?p=30733 Audio Download

Rev 10:5-11-Part 3- The Connection Between The little Book And The 7 Thunders  

[Study Aired Sept 29, 2024]

In this study we will consider why the seven thunders are placed where they are right after introducing the little book:

Rev 10:1  And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
Rev 10:2  And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
Rev 10:3  And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.
Rev 10:4  And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

6) What is the connection between this “little book” and the seven thunders which are sealed up and not written?

This little book is introduced to us just before the seven thunders utter their voices. We saw that John, the type and symbol of God’s elect, heard the voices of the seven thunders and “was about to write” what he had heard. If this little book signifies Christ and His Words working their fiery work of judgment within us, if John is the symbol of us and Christ in us being judged in this present time, and if thunder typifies the wrath of God upon the unrighteousness of those who are in the process of becoming His elect, then the connection between the revelation of this little book and the seven thunders, is the revelation of the work of Christ’s Words upon all that is within us which is contrary to those Words of Christ. While we are not given any specifics, which is the meaning of the words “write them not”, we are given to know what those seven judgments entail because the only thing the scriptures tell us is withheld from us, is “what tomorrow holds” and “the day and hour” of Christ’s appearing:

Mat 24:36  But of that day and hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels of heaven, but my Father only.

Mar 13:32  But of that day and that hour knoweth no man, no, not the angels which are in heaven, neither the Son, but the Father.

Mat 4:4  But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God.

Mat 24:34  Verily I say unto you, This generation shall not pass, till all these things be fulfilled.
Mat 24:35  Heaven and earth shall pass away, but my words shall not pass away.

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;

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.

Seal up the seven thunders

7) What is it that has been “sealed up and are not written”? What exactly is thunder? Exactly what is it that we are not being allowed to know?

The only other thing, besides the time of Christ’s appearing, which the scriptures tell us we do not know is exactly what will happen to us in the immediate future… “the morrow”:

Jas 4:13  Go to now, ye that say, To day or to morrow we will go into such a city, and continue there a year, and buy and sell, and get gain:
Jas 4:14  Whereas ye know not what shall be on the morrow. For what is your life? It is even a vapour, that appeareth for a little time, and then vanisheth away.
Jas 4:15  For that ye ought to say, If the Lord will, we shall live, and do this, or that.
Jas 4:16  But now ye rejoice in your boastings: all such rejoicing is evil.

We saw that ‘thunder’ symbolizes the wrath of God, on all that withstands His Word and His Work.

Psa 18:7  Then the earth shook and trembled; the foundations also of the hills moved and were shaken, because he was wroth.
Psa 18:8  There went up a smoke out of his nostrils, and fire out of his mouth devoured: coals were kindled by it.

Psa 18:13  The LORD also thundered in the heavens, and the Highest gave his voice; hail stones and coals of fire.

We saw that the Lord withholds nothing good from His elect.

Psa 34:10  The young lions do lack, and suffer hunger: but they that seek the LORD shall not want any good thing.

We know that what the seven thunders uttered did not concern the overall plan and “counsel of God”:

Act 20:27  For I have not shunned to declare unto you all the counsel of God.

We also saw that it is just after telling us that the thunder of God’s wrath will destroy all that is contrary to His Words within us, we are told that “the secret things belong to God”.

Deu 29:24  Even all nations shall say, Wherefore hath the LORD done thus unto this land? what meaneth the heat of this great anger?
Deu 29:25  Then men shall say, Because they have forsaken the covenant of the LORD God of their fathers, which he made with them when he brought them forth out of the land of Egypt:
Deu 29:26  For they went and served other gods, and worshipped them, gods whom they knew not, and whom he had not given unto them:
Deu 29:27  And the anger of the LORD was kindled against this land, to bring upon it all the curses that are written in this book:
Deu 29:28  And the LORD rooted them out of their land in anger, and in wrath, and in great indignation, and cast them into another land, as [it is] this day.
Deu 29:29  The secret things belong unto the LORD our God: but those things which are revealed belong unto us and to our children for ever, that we may do all the words of this law.

Compare those words of Deu 29 with these words of Rev 10.

Rev 10:2  And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth,
Rev 10:3  And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices.
Rev 10:4  And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.

Since we are told that we will not be given more than we can bear, it is obvious that what the seven thunders utter is “the secret things” which belong to God, concerning whatever lies ahead of us which we are not, at this moment, able to bear.

Joh 16:4  But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you.
Joh 16:5  But now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou?
Joh 16:6  But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart.
Joh 16:7  Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you.
Joh 16:8  And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:
Joh 16:9  Of sin, because they believe not on me;
Joh 16:10  Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more;
Joh 16:11  Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged.
Joh 16:12  I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now.

“But ye cannot bear then now” is the answer to the spiritual significance of the “write them not” part of the seven judgment trumpets. It is in the Lord’s great mercy upon us that we are not given to know the details of the seven trumpet judgments. But there is a connection between the seven trumpet judgments and the contents of the little book. That is why they are mentioned in the same context. While we are not given the specifics of the contents of the seven thunder judgments, we are given to know the counsel of God concerning what is in that little book and how the scriptures describe the Lord’s judgments upon the kingdom of our old man within us. This is the general content of what is written in that little book which is so sweet in our mouths and so bitter in our bellies:

Eze 2:9  And when I looked, behold, an hand was sent unto me; and, lo, a roll of a book was therein;
Eze 2:10  And he spread it before me; and it was written within and without: and there was written therein lamentations, and mourning, and woe.

There were no chapter breaks in the original Hebrew manuscripts, and these are the very next words here in Ezekiel:

Eze 3:1  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel.
Eze 3:2  So I opened my mouth, and he caused me to eat that roll.
Eze 3:3  And he said unto me, Son of man, cause thy belly to eat, and fill thy bowels with this roll that I give thee. Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for sweetness.
Eze 3:4  And he said unto me, Son of man, go, get thee unto the house of Israel, and speak with my words unto them.

Speaking The Truth is a sweet experience but the consequences of speaking The Truth is a revolutionary and bitter experience in our belly both in Ezekiel and in Revelation:

Eze 3:10  Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, all my words that I shall speak unto thee receive in thine heart, and hear with thine ears.
Eze 3:11  And go, get thee to them of the captivity [in Babylon], unto the children of thy people, and speak unto them, and tell them, Thus saith the Lord GOD; whether they will hear, or whether they will forbear.
Eze 3:12  Then the spirit took me up, and I heard behind me a voice of a great rushing, saying, Blessed be the glory of the LORD from his place.
Eze 3:13  I heard also the noise of the wings of the living creatures that touched one another, and the noise of the wheels over against them, and a noise of a great rushing.
Eze 3:14  So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away, and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the LORD was strong upon me.

Ezekiel’s witness to the Lord’s people in Babylon while sweet in his mouth, the mouth signifying his heart and mind, became ‘bitter in his belly’ signifying how his witness affected his bodily experience. It is a bitter experience to speak The Truth to those who reject The Truth. The book of Revelation is a confirmation of Ezekiel’s experience:

Rev 10:8  And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth.
Rev 10:9  And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it,and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey.
Rev 10:10  And I took the little book out of the angel’s hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter.
Rev 10:11  And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.

The only difference between these two accounts is that Ezekiel is sent only to ‘they of the captivity’, while the Revelation account sees us, signified by John, “prophesying again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings”.

Paul had this sweet in the mouth, bitter in the belly experience while witnessing to all the churches he had established:

1Co 3:1  And I, brethren, could not speak unto you as unto spiritual, but as unto carnal, even as unto babes in Christ.
1Co 3:2  I have fed you with milk, and not with meat: for hitherto ye were not able to bear it, neither yet now are ye able.
1Co 3:3  For ye are yet carnal: for whereas there is among you envying, and strife, and divisions, are ye not carnal, and walk as men?
1Co 3:4  For while one saith, I am of Paul; and another, I am of Apollos; are ye not carnal?

There are well over 40,000 Christian denominations who are all testifying against themselves as spiritually being “carnal… babes in Christ”. They are “in Christ” in the same sense that the five foolish virgins are “virgins”. If we remain a spiritual “carnal… babe in Christ, we will hear the same words spoken by the spirit to the five foolish virgins:

Mat 25:7  Then all those [ten] virgins arose, and trimmed their lamps.
Mat 25:8  And the [five] foolish said unto the [five] wise, Give us of your oil; for our lamps are gone out.
Mat 25:9  But the wise answered, saying, Not so; lest there be not enough for us and you: but go ye rather to them that sell, and buy for yourselves.
Mat 25:10  And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut.
Mat 25:11  Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us.
Mat 25:12  But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.
Mat 25:13  Watch therefore, for ye know neither the day nor the hour wherein the Son of man cometh.

Being ever vigilant is signified by ‘bringing oil in vessels with our lamps’:

Mat 25:3  They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them:
Mat 25:4  But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps.

The witness given by the Lord’s elect is signified by the witness of Ezekiel in Ezekiel 3, and the witness of the “two witnesses” who speak the Words of The Lord in Revelation 11:

Rev 11:1  And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein.
Rev 11:2  But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.
Rev 11:3  And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred andthreescore days, clothed in sackcloth.
Rev 11:4  These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.

Without verse 4 we would never know for certain what these “two witnesses” signify. But we have verse 4 and we find what they signify in Zechariah 4:

Zec 4:1  And the angel that talked with me came again, and waked me, as a man that is wakened out of his sleep,
Zec 4:2  And said unto me, What seest thou? And I said, I have looked, and behold a candlestick all of gold, with a bowl upon the top of it, and his seven lamps thereon, and seven pipes to the seven lamps, which are upon the top thereof:
Zec 4:3  And two olive trees by it, one upon the right side of the bowl, and the other upon the left side thereof.
Zec 4:4  So I answered and spake to the angel that talked with me, saying, What are these, my lord?
Zec 4:5  Then the angel that talked with me answered and said unto me, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Zec 4:6  Then he answered and spake unto me, saying, This is the word of the LORD unto Zerubbabel, saying, Not by might, nor by power, but by my spirit, saith the LORD of hosts.

There it is. “This is the Word of the Lord…” That is the significance of the symbol of “the two olive trees” of Revelation 11. “The two olive trees” have nothing to do with the literal number ‘2’. Rather that particular number in scripture signifies all those who faithfully witness the Lord’s Words which are ‘sweet in our mouths’. But those words which are sweet while we faithfully witness to what is right there in the Bible… those same ‘sweet words’ precipitate a very bitter experience in our spirit when that witness is rejected by this world. The details of that rejection are what we are not given to know. But we are made certain to know that the things that are “not written” have everything to do with the bitterness in our bellies and the bitterness of our spirits. Remaining faithful even through that ‘bitterness in our bellies’ is the very meaning of ‘standing faithfully by the Lord of the whole earth’:

Zec 4:11  Then answered I, and said unto him, What are these two olive trees upon the right side of the candlestick and upon the left side thereof?
Zec 4:12  And I answered again, and said unto him, What be these two olive branches which through the two golden pipes empty the golden oil out of themselves?
Zec 4:13  And he answered me and said, Knowest thou not what these be? And I said, No, my lord.
Zec 4:14  Then said he, These are the two anointed ones, that stand [faithfully] by the Lord of the whole earth.

If we are given to be faithful to the death of our old man while yet living in these corruptible clay vessels, we are considered by our Lord to be “dying daily” in His service (1Co 15:31). He considers us as being “crucified with Christ” (Gal 2:20), and “presenting our [physical] bodies as a living [scapegoat] sacrifice” (Rom 12:1). These verses are all signified by these words  concerning the two witnesses:

1Co 10:13  There hath no temptation taken you but such as is common to man: but God is faithful, who will not suffer you to be tempted above that ye are able; but will with the temptation also make a way to escape, that ye may be able to bear [it].

We also saw the verses of God’s Word which promise to “prepare our hearts” before we are faced with any trial.

1Ch 29:18  O LORD God of Abraham, Isaac, and of Israel, our fathers, keep this for ever in the imagination of the thoughts of the heart of thy people, and prepare their heart unto thee: 

Psa 10:17  LORD, thou hast heard the desire of the humble: thou wilt prepare their heart, thou wilt cause thine ear to hear:

It is only after we have been prepared, that we, with John, are given ears to hear the voices of the seven thunders and we are prepared for our trials which lies before us. But it is always sealed up, and we only hear it when we need to. It is “not written” because is it for us alone at that moment. “The secret things belong to God” who alone knows what we will do tomorrow, but we do not know because “The secret things [of our trials and tests] belong to God… because we have forsaken the covenant of our fathers… [so] seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.”

There should be time no longer

Now let’s look at the two verses we have not yet considered:

Rev 10:6  And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer:
Rev 10:7  But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

In verse six we are reminded that God is the Creator of the heavens, the earth and the sea, and all the things which are therein. It is by our Creator that this great angel swears and declares “that there should be time no longer.” What are we being told? The thousand years have not yet even begun, and the great white throne judgment and the lake of fire is not yet finished, so why are we being told “that there should be time no longer”?

In the days of the voice of the seventh angel… the mystery of God should be finished.

The answer to this question is actually revealed in the next verse, verse 7, where we are told “in the days of the voice of the seventh angel the mystery of God should be finished as he has declared to his servants the prophets.” When we know what the seventh trumpet is, and we know what the mystery of God is which He has declared to His servants, then we will understand why we are being told “that there should be time no longer”.

What is the voice of the seventh angel?

What happens “in the days of the voice of the seventh angel”? What happens at that time is the judgement of the world in us. As Christ plainly told His disciples just before His crucifixion:

Joh 16:8  And when he [the holy spirit] is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment:

That judgment “must begin at the house of God”.

1Pe 4:12  Beloved, think it not strange concerning the fiery trial which is to try you, as though some strange thing happened unto you:

1Pe 4:17  For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begin at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?

“The days of the voice of the seventh angel” signifies the seven last plagues of God’s wrath upon our sins, as detailed in chapters 15 and 16. This study concerns the sixth trumpet, and we are in Rev 10. Chapter 15 lays the groundwork for the pouring out of the seven last plagues of God’s wrath upon our idols and our sins. Here is what we are told in the last two verses of that chapter.

Rev 15:7  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.
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.

“No man is able to enter the temple of God, till the seven plagues of the seven angels is fulfilled.” Put that phrase together with our verse here in chapter 10 and we should begin to understand what “In the days of the voice of the seventh angel, the mystery of God should be finished” means.

Rev 10:7  But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.

The seventh seal, which is the seven trumpets, is opened in the first half of chapter 8. The last half of chapter 8 contains the events of all of the first four trumpets. Chapter nine contains the events of the fifth and sixth trumpets, which are referred to as two of “three woes.” These trumpets are even called “plagues” in chapter nine.

Referring to the 2 hundred million army of the horsemen of the sixth trumpet, “the second woe”, we are told this:

Rev 9:20  And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:
Rev 9:21  Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.

Notice that Revelation 9:20 refers to these trumpets as also being “plagues”. The Greek word for ‘plagues’ in Rev 9:20 is G4127, ‘plege’. That is the exact same word used in chapter 15 referring to “the seven last plagues” [G4127, ‘plege’]. Therefore, the events of the seventh trumpet, which is also called “the seven last plagues”, are obviously not the only plagues, and they are not the only wrath of God. What the seven last plagues accomplish is that they “fill up the wrath of God.” What that tells us is that God’s wrath continues on all sin until “the last trump.” If that seventh and “last trumpet” has no place in our lives, then neither will the finishing of the mystery of God, nor the first resurrection have a place in our lives in this present age.

1Co 15:52  In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.

Rev 22:18  For I testify unto every man that heareth the words of the prophecy of this book, If any man shall add unto these things, God shall add unto him the plagues that are written in this book:
Rev 22:19  And if any man shall take away from the words of the book of this prophecy, God shall [in this present time] take away his part out of the book of life, and out of the holy city, and from the things which are written in this book.

If that “mystery of the gospel” (Col 1:27) is finished “in the days of the voice of the seventh angel”, and if that ‘mystery’ really is “Christ in you the hope of glory [in] this present time”, then we must conclude that the work of this seventh trumpet begins early in our spiritual lives and continues till we die and are “raised a spiritual body”, and we are changed.

So we really do need to ask ourselves, How then will the mystery of God be fulfilled in you and me if the voice of this seventh angel has no personal application, as so many who teach that there is a way to avoid the wrath of God upon our ungodliness and unrighteousness:

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;

Christ tells us this is a book of signs and symbols, a book which reveals the beginning and the end of the entire process of Christ being formed within us as He is being revealed in us. He tells us that we will “live by every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.” He tells us that these words are “a two edged sword,” and that “things present and things to come are ours.” He tells us we will realize this revelation only as we “look behind us”. So, for all those who believe that this book is telling them to avoid keeping the things which are written therein” (Rev 1:3), including the seven last plagues which must be poured out upon all men who wish to enter the temple in heaven (Rev 15:8), instead of seeing this prophecy as an overview of the entire Adamic experience, we ask again, How will the mystery of God be fulfilled in you? How will you enter into the temple of God if these seven plagues are not experienced and “fulfilled” in your life?

Rev 15:7  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.
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.

We will pause our study at this point and meditate on that question, and we will continue to seek to know exactly what is “the mystery of the gospel”, and whether that ‘mystery’ includes the pouring out of the seven last plagues upon the kingdom of our old man in our next study.