THE STORY OF THE
"SEVEN LAST PLAGUES"

TABLE OF CONTENTS

Part I   Another Sign in Heaven   Victory Over the Beast and Image   Two Songs of Moses   The "Image" Becomes History

Part II   The Temple and the Tabernacle   Seven Angels   Golden Bowls    Filled with God's Glory  The Tabernacle Solomon's Temple Ezekiel's Temple

Part III 7 Last Plagues 1st Plague 2nd Plague 3rd Plague 4th Plague 5th Plague 6th Plague 7th Plague

Part IV Who Pours the Bowls Fall of Jericho The Elijah Type

PART III

7 Last Plagues

 

"Great voice out of the Temple saying to the seven angels [or messages], Go your ways, and pour out the vials [bowls] of the wrath of God upon the earth." Revelation 16:1

    Notice, the "seven angels" did not leave the Temple here, for in Revelation 15:6 we are told, "And the seven angels came out of the Temple, having the seven plagues."
    Remember, these messages come out of the Temple before the Temple is filled with God's glory. Afterward, the command is given for them to pour out their divinely provided bowls.
    Don’t ask what the "bowls" are. How God will provide the means for pouring out the "plagues" is not stated. It is God's problem to provide them. We know God doesn't have any problems. Nothing is too hard for God!

The Seven Last "Plagues"

      Who pours out the "plagues"?
    We believe the sealed saints on this side of the veil are the active agents. These "plagues" come from the Temple. This would eliminate any other agencies or class of Christians, such as the Great Company.
     Most important of all, they are the ones standing on the "sea of glass mingled with fire" who sing with biblical harps the "Song of Moses and the Lamb." Who else would this be, but the sealed Saints, the John the Baptist Class, the Elijah Class in their concluding witness. The whole Temple Class is represented, because this "honor have all his saints" (Psalm 149:5-9).

 

7 Angels	Vials Poured upon	Symbol of	Effects	Upon	Pictures
First	Earth	Stable society	Noisome & grievous sore = miserable & painful disintegration	Men with mark of beast who worshipped image	= Nominal Christians with characteristics of Papacy
Second	Sea	Restless masses of mankind	Became as blood of dead man = separated into clot & serum, radical vs. liberal groups	Every living soul died in sea	= Right-hearted ones ceased restless attitude of masses by seeking meekness & righteousness
Third	Rivers & fountains of waters	Sources of religious teaching— theological seminaries	Became blood = Abhorrent & deathly to any  who drank from these religious channels
Fourth	Sun	Gospel of Scriptures	Scorch men with fire & heat = Teachers exposed & uncomfortable  by Gospel Truths & threatened with destruction of their Christian professions	Men [professed Christians] blasphemed [defamed] name of God
Fifth	Seat of Beast	Papal Government	Beast's kingdom full of darkness = Full of gross error	Gnawed their tongues [in great agony] & blasphemed [defamed] God
Sixth	River Euphrates	People who support nominal church	Water dried up = People withhold their support	—Prepared way of kings of the east [Christ & true church] —3 unclean spirits like frogs [impure teachings that are boastful]	Gather kings of earth [rulers of present social order] to Armageddon [in position for their final destruction]
Seventh	Air	Spiritual controlling forces of Christendom, exposing them to be the forces of demons & Satan	—Voices [proclamations], thunders [controversies], lightnings [releases of truths], great earthquake [social upheaval or revolution] —Great Hail the weight of a talent [scourge of hard truths]	—Babylon [Christendom] divided into 3 parts, receives cup of wine of fierceness of God's wrath [judgments of God's anger] —Men [nominal Christians] blasphemed [denounced] God	Every island [republic] & mountain [kingdom] fled [vanished]

 

1st Plague "And the first [message] went, and poured out his vial [bowl] upon the earth [stable society]; 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." Revelation 16:2 This reading has a story to it. In Revelation 13 the "image of the beast" and "beast" developed an ugly attitude. They said: You cannot "buy or sell" in the spiritual market unless you have our mark. They claimed power to speak, slay, mark and prohibit unless you joined them. In Revelation 14:9, 10 we read God's mind on this matter. He says, "If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, "The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation." As the story ends we find, sure enough, God is vindicated. The first "bowl" of God's wrath is reserved for those who "worshipped the beast and its image." That's how it should be. That's how it is. Men who fell under the spell of the "beast" and its "image" now find foul and loathsome sores consuming them. They who would mark others, now are marked with opprobrium and stigmatized for their relationship with the "beast" and "its image." In Revelation 20:4 we learn that those who reign with Jesus never "worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands." Any Christian who does so will automatically be eliminated from being with Christ as his "bride."  What message "plague" would have this effect when delivered? Not any mysterious message. No, it is a plain old truth that has been around and preached for some time. The essence of THE DIVINE PLAN OF THE AGES, Chapter XIII, "The Kingdoms of this World," p. 245. The alliance of the religious Christian church with the kingdom of this world is a sad bit of history. The union of the church with the world should not have happened. When the truth is known, people will loathe those who betrayed the Kingdom of God to carry on a love affair with the world.

2nd Plague "And the second angel [message] poured out his vial [bowl] upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man [clot and serum]: and every living soul died in the sea." Revelation 16:3  THE BATTLE OF ARMAGEDDON, Chapter VII, "The Preparation of the Elements," p. 269, would serve as the essence for such a "plague"-producing message. This demonstrates the forces that precipitated the heaping of treasures by some and the exploitation of others. "Blood," dividing into clot and serum, shows the "sea" class dividing into the more radical and the liberal groups. The right-hearted cease their raging foam.

3rd Plague "And the third angel [message] poured his vial [bowl] upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood." Revelation 16:4 The angel message is the essence of THY KINGDOM COME, Chap. VI, "The Work of Harvest," p. 135. This shows the separation of the "Wheat and Tares," the truth of the High Calling, and the casting off of Babylon. The religious sources are here exposed.  The "rivers and fountains of water" are those who used the International Sunday School Lessons, Sunday Schools, churches and sects to channel their teachings into the Christian world. Religious leaders have not only missed the mark themselves, but they have taught men false concepts regarding the purpose of the church during this Gospel age. They are more responsible than others, because they are the source of these false teachings. In this "plague" we hear a rather powerful justification for these judgments. This is the only "plague" wherein the saints pick up the cry raised in Revelation 6:10.  This confirms that the cry from under the altar has been heard and is now being answered. "And I heard the angel of the waters [the angel message who poured his bowl on the rivers and fountains of water] say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. "For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy. "And I heard another out of the altar say [remember the souls under the altar in Revelation 6:10, who cried, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood"], Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments." Revelation 16:5-7 The tormented leaders and sources of teaching in Christendom are not shown any sympathy. Justice demands they be held accountable.

4th Plague "And the fourth angel [message] poured out his vial [bowl] upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. "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." Revelation 16:8, 9      The angel message is the essence of THE ATONEMENT BETWEEN GOD AND MAN, Chaps. XII and XIII, "The Subject of the Atonement-Man" and "Hopes for Life Everlasting and Immortality Secured by the Atonement," pp. 301 and 383. This "plague" does not hurt the Gospel sun. But the plain truth bears with increased strength. The Gospel sunlight bears down with such intensity, it causes professed Christians much pain and discomfort, their hearts not being right. Instead of accepting corrections and praising God, they do not repent. They only wish to make their false teachings to be seen as correct, as had been done in the past.

5th Plague "The fifth angel [message] poured out his vial [bowl] upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, "And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds." Revelation 16:10,11       The essence of this message is given in THE TIME IS AT HAND, Chap. IX, The Man of Sin-Antichrist, p. 267. The truths encapsulated here, when delivered, would cause professed Christians in these systems a great deal of pain and discomfort. They professed to be God’s agents, and are here being exposed before the world as the antichrist, the mystery of iniquity. It is very humbling. These truths do not bring repentance. Rather, antichrist's agents are prepared to curse God and vilify him for what befalls them. We understand they will not directly vilify God, but by renouncing the fifth message "plague" they are renouncing God who sent it. Their kingdom becomes "full of darkness." They have always been a dark kingdom, but apparently this means they are perceived to be "full of darkness" by many who once worshiped and obeyed them. Please notice the "beast" is still here to receive this plague. As long as the "leopard-like" "beast" is around, Satan is still actively represented.

6th Plague "The sixth angel [message] poured out his vial [bowl] upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings [the glorified saints] of the east [from the sunrising] might be prepared." Revelation 16:12  In another event in history, the river Euphrates was dried up when Darius had diverted the waters and entered under the gates of Babylon to take the city. Darius may have been under Cyrus. (See Daniel 5:30, 31.) This pictures how our Lord dries up the waters (peoples, multitudes, nations and tongues) that heretofore supported antitypical Babylon.   We believe the plague producing ingredients can be found in THE NEW CREATION Chap. V, "The Organization of the New Creation," p. 195. It shows there are only twelve Apostles and gives the true understanding of the keys of authority given to Peter, opening the High Calling at Pentecost to the Jews and later to the Gentiles, starting with Cornelius. By understanding the organization of the true church, it reveals the counterfeit Mystery of Iniquity with its images and holy candles. The "Kings from the east [sunrising]" are the Kings associated with our Lord in glory. (See Reprint 2498.) Cyrus means "the sun." It was his army under Darius that took the city of Babylon. As the waters dried up, they made way for the "sun." Up to this point, the "plagues" have not produced organized resistance. The sixth plague, however, changes that. "Three musketeers" step forward to deceive the world into fatally flawed action. "And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon [the civil Roman power], and out of the mouth of the beast [leopard-like papal power], and out of the mouth of the false prophet [what is left of the Protestant World Council of Churches now represented in the Church of England which originally gave it life]. "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." Revelation 16:13, 14 Notice there are two sets of kings. The "kings" from the "east [sunrising]" and the "kings of the earth and of the whole world" (Revelation 16:14). The battle lines are drawn.                                                             Now it is clearly seen whose banner the "beast" and "false prophet" are under. They are solidly in league with the "dragon" of Roman power. They are against the "kings from the east [sunrising]." Their cover is blown. They can no longer pretend to represent Christ and his Kingdom. Their new pitch is depicted as "croaking frogs" that are great and wise, proclaiming that if the world listens to them they will be saved from Armageddon. Do you believe that? Clearly, they are lying. But even as they lie, they gather the nations to Armageddon, the final crash and destruction of the present ruling powers. It is wonderful to see how God uses their deceit to bring about their own demise. He uses their lies to praise him. One thing stands out here. How can the Lord's people associate with Babylon, seeing how clearly it is in league with the kingdom of this world and how opposed it is to the true Kingdom of God? Here it is shown in tight coalition with the "dragon" (the Devil, Satan, and civil Rome). This is the worst possible place for a true Christian. Obviously, any Christian in Babylon will find himself in dire circumstances when this system is thrown down. The Great Company "Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame." Revelation 16:15 This verse seems out of context. However, the Lord is entreating the Great Company not to forsake their robe of righteousness as Babylon comes falling down around them. He promises a blessing to them, even though it will be a most difficult time for them.   Remember that the temple is filled with "God's glory." No one may enter it. The door to the high calling is shut at this point. Therefore, this verse could not apply to the "Little Flock." However, we see here a very warm and tender concern expressed for the Great Company as it belatedly takes its stand of allegiance with the Lord and his incoming Kingdom. "And he [they according to most ancient texts] gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon." Revelation 16:16 Armageddon is where the Lord wants them. Whether God does it, or he allows the three "unclean spirits" to accomplish his purpose, is of no great moment. It is here at "Armageddon" that the fatal blow is to be dealt.

7th Plague "The seventh angel [message] poured his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple [the Christ] of heaven, from the throne [Christ’s throne who also shares Jehovah's throne], saying, It is done. "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. And the great city was divided into three parts [papal "beast," "false prophet" and the "dragon"] 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." Revelation 16:17-19 What an inglorious end for this unfaithful city! She, who professed to represent the Lord Jesus Christ, is thrown down while she is in solid league against the one she professed to be her Lord and Master. How deceived can one get? What is the papal "beast" doing allied with the "dragon"? What is the "false prophet" doing allied with the papal "beast" and the "dragon"? This unholy alliance is exposed for what it is. The last "plague" is poured out on the air, exposing "the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience." Ephesians 2:2 The whole coalition of "beast," "false prophet" and "dragon" is seen for what it is—a central part of Satan's power and kingdom of darkness. With this exposé, the coalition collapses. The city of Babylon is divided into three parts—the "beast," the "false prophet" and the "dragon."  Each for himself. The charade is over. The truth is finally told and understood. The truth of Revelation on this subject is revealed and the consequences are awesome. Then follows the great earthquake, so mighty and so great. Revelation 16 shows this "earthquake" from the standpoint of Babylon. Ezekiel 38 shows the same "earthquake" from the standpoint of Gog’s invasion of Israel. We do not believe there are two great "earthquakes," only one. In Revelation 16 we have one view of it, and in Ezekiel 38 we have another view of it. The only difference is the vantage point, whether one is looking at Babylon’s fall or whether one is looking at Gog’s defeat.

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