(Revelation 15-16) What Are the Seven Last Plagues?

 

In our previous study we looked at the sixth of seven last plagues which deals with the Battle of Armageddon (the battle of Har Mo‘ed). In this study we will now discuss the remaining plagues. As we do, please keep in mind what we learned concerning "mount Zion" and the "heavenly Jerusalem." 

In Revelation chapter 15 John writes:

“And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God … And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened: And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues, clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles. And one of the four beasts (creatures) gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth for ever and ever. 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. And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.” (Revelation 15:1, 5-8; 16:1)

Please keep in mind of what the true definition of God’s wrath is. God’s wrath is the removal of His protective presence, giving the wicked up to the destruction they have wrought for themselves. They have “crucified Christ afresh” (Hebrews 6:6), leaving themselves without their only Life-Source. God is not directly causing their coming afflictions, but the absence of His protective presence is.

These passages of Scripture seem to indicate a time when God has had enough, His anger boils over, and so He unleashes His fury upon those who reject Him, because their probation is up, and they didn’t accept Him in time. But this is not what the message is. Remember, we must understand these things “from the east” perception and not “from the west.” John says, “And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God (His character), and from His power” and we have learned that “the glory (true character) of the God of Israel came from the way of the east” (Ezekiel 43:1, 2). John says, not only His glory, but also “His power” fills the temple. Paul tells us that “Christ” is both “the power of God, and the wisdom of God” (1 Corinthians 1:24). Thus the smoke which fills the temple represents the wisdom and truth of God’s character of love revealed through His Son Jesus as His Spirit (His presence, attitude and life) fills the believer, represented by the temple.

In an article on characterofgod.org, Ray Foucher writes this concerning the concept of “probation”:

“… the Bible also speaks of a more general (applying to all alive at the time) close of probation which, in context, happens just before the Second Coming:

‘He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still. And, behold, I come quickly; and my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be.’ (Rev 22:11-12)

It reads very much like a proclamation; something like that dreaded ‘time’s up.’ However, there is one small but important word in that passage that appears four times – the word ‘let’ which is defined as ‘allow’ or ‘permit.’ To arbitrarily close probation ending one’s opportunity to make a choice is limiting the exercise of free will whereas to ‘let’ someone do something implies allowing free will. The decree here is actually in favor of freedom of choice. It is essentially God saying that each person has made up his or her own mind and He is not going to force them to change it. God always honors freedom to choose. If not, He would be forcing the will and that is totally inconsistent with love. The only way for this to be an actual close of probation is if it is describing people who have each made such a firm decision (even in light of all the evidence) that they cannot change. Essentially, by ignoring the pleadings of God to the point they can no longer hear His voice (the voice of conscience) they have cut themselves off from Him.

But doesn’t Christ end His mediation? There is a concept that Christ, at some point shortly before He returns at the Second Coming, ends His mediation for sinners. That comes from verses such as these:

‘The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb.’ (Rev 14:10)

‘And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.’ (Rev 15:1)

If the seven last plagues contain the undiluted (or ‘full strength’ – English Standard Version) wrath of God unmixed with mercy there couldn’t still be mediation, could there? Doesn’t that sound like it is saying God is filled with wrath, that He couldn’t be angrier?  ‘Had it up to here’ as we might say? But the question is still how and why does that mediation end? If God’s mercy is everlasting (Psa 100:5) wouldn’t He always be offering it? As we saw above, the cutting off of the voice of the Holy Spirit by the willful action of the sinner effectively ends his probation. It marks his final choice. It means that while mercy is even still being offered there is no awareness or appreciation of the offer and therefore no reception of it. That was the situation in the state of people just before the flood:

‘Hast thou marked the old way which wicked men have trodden? Which were cut down out of time, whose foundation was overflown with a flood: Which said unto God, Depart from us: and what can the Almighty do for them?’ (Job 22:15-17)

God honored their freewill choice to have Him depart from them. Thus, He could do nothing for people who wanted nothing to do with Him.” (Ray Foucher, Revelation 22:11)

The First Plague

“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.” (Revelation 16:2)

We can see that these plagues fall upon those who receive the mark of the beast and those who worship his image. This in no way means that those who did not receive the mark of the beast are not upon the earth at this time. Just as the Israelites were still in Egypt, but did not experience seven of the ten plagues, God’s people in the end will be on the earth and be protected from the seven last plagues.

“He that dwelleth in the secret place of the most High shall abide under the shadow of the Almighty. I will say of the LORD, He is my refuge and my fortress: my God; in him will I trust. Surely He shall deliver thee from the snare of the fowler, and from the noisome pestilence. He shall cover thee with His feathers, and under His wings shalt thou trust: His truth shall be thy shield and buckler. Thou shalt not be afraid for the terror by night; nor for the arrow that flieth by day; Nor for the pestilence that walketh in darkness; nor for the destruction that wasteth at noonday. A thousand shall fall at thy side, and ten thousand at thy right hand; but it shall not come nigh thee. Only with thine eyes shalt thou behold and see the reward of the wicked. Because thou hast made the LORD, which is my refuge, even the most High, thy habitation; There shall no evil befall thee, neither shall any plague come nigh thy dwelling. For He shall give His angels charge over thee, to keep thee in all thy ways.” (Psalm 91:1-11)

The plague is poured out upon the earth which results in a “noisome and grievous sore” upon the people. We saw from our study on What is the Mark of the Beast?, that the mark and its image will be enforced using climate change as their argument. Does their agenda work? Apparently not since the plagues have a direct effect upon the earth to the point that it goes into a reverse order from its original creation. 

It is written that “in the beginning God created the heaven and the earth” (Genesis 1:1) and here in this first plague the vial is poured out “upon the earth” due to the iniquity of those who have worshipped the image of the beast and received his mark, which we have seen relates to the attempted change to God’s Law.

“The land shall be utterly emptied, and utterly spoiled: for the LORD hath spoken this word. The earth mourneth and fadeth away, the world languisheth and fadeth away, the haughty people of the earth do languish. The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof; because they have transgressed the Laws, changed the ordinance, broken the everlasting covenant.” (Isaiah 24:3-5)

The Second and Third Plagues

“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.” (Revelation 16:3)

“And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. 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. 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, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.” (Revelation 16:4-7)

In the book of Genesis it is written, “And God said, Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that hath life … And God created great whales, and every living creature that moveth, which the waters brought forth abundantly, after their kind” (Genesis 1:20, 21). Here again in the second and third plague we see a reversal of creation.

These plagues correspond to the plague during the time of Egypt when the Nile River turned to blood. Just as these seven last plagues fall upon those with a “seared conscience” (1 Timothy 4:2), and thus no awareness or appreciation of God’s free forgiveness, the first plague in Egypt fell because “Pharaoh’s heart is hardened, he refuseth to let the people go” (Exodus 7:14). The Nile was the life-source of Egypt’s very existence, just as the Euphrates River is the life-source of Babylon’s existence. Many sacrifices to their gods were performed at the Nile River. Likewise, modern Babylon is “drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus” (Revelation 17:6). Their security is in the wrong place, not trusting in the true God, thus they are mentally “tormented” by the convicting Word of God (His Two Witnesses) which has “power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues” (Revelation 11:6), exposing their false gods in whom their security lies. Again, the “smiting” of the earth with plagues is God permitting the inherent consequences to play out as the people willfully step out from within His protective hedge. For a detailed study on how God and His angels “smite” people, see the article entitled, Did the Angel of the LORD Kill Herod?

Literally, if the seas and rivers turned to blood and all life died, then exporting and importing will come to a halt and the water we drink will be polluted. One of the laws concerning the mark and image of the beast is that no one will be able to buy or sell and those who do not receive the mark will be killed (Revelation 13:15, 17). However, it appears that their false security turns upon their own head; “for they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and Thou hast given them blood to drink”, or as the Psalmist wrote: “He becomes the victim of his own destructive plans and the violence he intended for others falls on his own head” (Psalm 7:16).

In Scripture Jesus is referred to as the River of Life. In John chapter 4 Jesus told the Samaritan woman at the well, “Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life” (John 4:13).

On another occasion Jesus attended the Feast of Tabernacles and spoke again about this Living Water:

“In the last day, that great day of the Feast (of Tabernacles), Jesus stood and cried, saying, If any man thirst, let him come unto Me, and drink. He that believeth on Me, as the scripture hath said, out of his belly shall flow rivers of living water. (But this spake He of the Spirit, which they that believe on Him should receive: for the Holy Ghost was not yet given; because that Jesus was not yet glorified.)” (John 7:37-39)

On the first seven days of the Feast of Tabernacles the priests would gather jugs of water from the Pool of Siloam and poor it out onto the stone floor of the Temple. On the last great day of the Feast Jesus was rejected by most of the religious leaders when He declared He would pour out His Spirit (Breath/Life) as living water upon those who believe in Him. The next day Jesus returned to the Temple and the Pharisees brought to Him a woman who was supposedly caught in adultery (John 8). They told Him of their plans to stone her as prescribed in the Law. They said this to “test” Him (whom they have just openly rejected the day before), so they wanted to know what He thought first. Jesus knew the Pharisees were in violation of the Law for not having two or three witnesses, or even the man present, as prescribed by the Law (Leviticus 20:10). Jesus then revealed their own sins by writing their names with His finger in the sand, which was a light dusting upon the stone floor. Jesus then says, “He who is without sin cast the first stone” (John 8:7) because, according to the Law, the witnesses were to cast the first stones (Deuteronomy 17:5-7) and no one was without sin except for Jesus in their midst. As a result of this, all the accusers were astonished and left the scene one by one according to their age until only Jesus was left with the woman and He let her know that she had been forgiven and not condemned and all she needed to do was simply accept this fact and she did, and her life was forever changed (John 8:9-10). Why were the accusers so astonished? They knew Jeremiah’s Messianic prophecy which said:

“O LORD, the hope of Israel, all that forsake thee shall be ashamed, and they that depart from me shall be written in the EARTH, because they have forsaken the LORD, the FOUNTAIN OF LIVING WATERS.” (Jeremiah 17:13)

Do you think it’s a coincidence that the first plague is poured out “upon the earth” while the second and third is poured out upon “the sea” and upon “rivers and fountains of waters”? Who is your life-security? (For an in-depth look at the law of stoning as it relates to God’s character, see the article entitled, Why Did God Command the Horrific Death Sentence of Stoning?

The Fourth and Fifth Plagues

“And the fourth angel poured out his vial 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)

“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, And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.” (Revelation 16:10, 11)

In the book of Genesis we read, “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light. And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness. And God called the light Day, and the darkness He called Night … And God made two great lights; the greater light to rule the day, and the lesser light to rule the night: He made the stars also" (Genesis 1:4, 5, 16). Here again we see that the fourth and fifth plagues are yet another reminder of the inherent effects of man attempting to accomplish things outside of God’s Law as “the whole creation groaneth and travaileth in pain together” (Romans 8:22).

“Therefore hath the curse devoured the earth, and they that dwell therein are desolate: therefore the inhabitants of the earth are burned, and few men left.” (Isaiah 24:6)

These two plagues correspond to the ninth plague of Egypt:

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch out thine hand toward heaven, that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, even darkness which may be felt. And Moses stretched forth his hand toward heaven; and there was a thick darkness in all the land of Egypt three days: They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.” (Exodus 10:21-23)

The literal event of the sun being darkened represented their spiritual state resulting from their worship of the sun-god Ra (also known as Amen-Ra). They had trusted in their sun-god for warmth and health, and now that the true God’s life-giving presence is being removed, they are left in darkness (both literally and spiritually). However, God’s people “had light in their dwellings.” Likewise, we will have light in our dwellings during these last plagues:

“Arise, shine; for thy light is come, and the glory of the LORD is risen upon thee. For, behold, the darkness shall cover the earth, and gross darkness the people: but the LORD shall arise upon thee, and his glory shall be seen upon thee. And the Gentiles shall come to thy light, and kings to the brightness of thy rising. Lift up thine eyes round about, and see: all they gather themselves together, they come to thee: thy sons shall come from far, and thy daughters shall be nursed at thy side … The sons also of them that afflicted thee shall come bending unto thee; and all they that despised thee shall bow themselves down at the soles of thy feet; and they shall call thee, The CITY of the LORD, The ZION of the Holy One of Israel.” (Isaiah 60:1-4, 14)

During the fourth and fifth plagues in Revelation, the sun will scorch the people with great heat and darkness will cover the kingdom of the beast. While their backs are towards the temple of God worshipping the sun toward the east (see previous study), their Sun-day will “scorch them with fire” as they are mentally “tormented” by their constant trampling upon the truth of the Sabbath contained in God’s Word. We have seen that God’s Word is represented by His Two Witnesses and that “fire proceedeth out of their mouth”, symbolic of the scorching (tormenting/convicting) fire of truth which “devoureth their enemies” (Revelation 11:5; Jeremiah 5:14; 23:29). This mental anguish they put upon themselves is so severe because “they repented not to give Him glory.”

Instead, they “blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.” This again reveals their faulty thinking comes “from the west.” They echo what Insurance Policies endorse today, that all “natural disasters” out of our control are “Acts of God.” But it is Satan, the Destroyer, who brings trouble upon the earth and leads men to believe that it is God who is afflicting them. As we have seen in a previous study, it is not God’s angels who are causing the affliction through plagues, but “evil angels” as the people continue to “limit” or fully reject God’s protective presence:

“Yea, they turned back and tempted God, and limited the Holy One of Israel (rejected His protection). They remembered not His hand, nor the day when He delivered them from the enemy. How He had wrought His signs in Egypt, and His wonders in the field of Zoan: And had turned their rivers into blood; and their floods, that they could not drink. He sent divers sorts of flies among them, which devoured them; and frogs, which destroyed them. He gave also their increase unto the caterpiller, and their labour unto the locust. [By the absence of His presence] He destroyed their vines with hail, and their sycomore trees with frost. He gave up their cattle also to the hail, and their flocks to hot thunderbolts. He cast upon them the fierceness of His anger, wrath, and indignation, and trouble (by removing His protective presence), by sending (letting loose) EVIL ANGELS among them. He made a way to His anger; He spared not their soul from death, but gave their life over to the pestilence.” (Psalm 78:41-50)

The Sixth Plague

We have already discussed this plague in great detail in our previous study, but let’s add a couple more thoughts here. As the sixth angel pours out this vile, modern Babylon’s support system (represented by the Euphrates River) is dried up and he leads the people to assemble at God’s Mount of Festivals (Har Mo‘ed). We saw that Satan had usurped God’s position upon this Mount of Festivals (Isaiah 14:13) by deceiving the world to observe his festivals of Easter, Halloween, Christmas, Valentine’s Day, and the weekly Sun-day etc., which were all instituted by the Roman papacy. In fact, “the winding road leading up to Mount Zion is known as Pope’s Way (Derekh Ha’apifyor) because it was paved in honor of the historic visit to Jerusalem of Pope Paul VI in 1964” (Wikipedia).

During the sixth plague, as the support system is dried up, the kingdom of the beast will become dark, and their own co-operation with “spirits of devils” (evil angels) will cause them to destroy themselves with their own tongues (false teachings). These tongues come out from these evil angels represented by “frogs” which correlate to the second plague of Egypt (Exodus 8:1-6).

As a result of the plague of frogs, Pharaoh said to Moses, “Intreat the LORD, that He may take away the frogs from me, and from my people; and I will let the people go, that they may do sacrifice unto the LORD.” (Exodus 8:7). Pharaoh is referring to what Moses and Aaron had asked of him prior to this:

“And afterward Moses and Aaron went in, and told Pharaoh, Thus saith the LORD God of Israel, Let My people go, that they may hold A FEAST unto Me in the wilderness. And Pharaoh said, Who is the LORD, that I should obey His voice to let Israel go? I know not the LORD, neither will I let Israel go. And they said, The God of the Hebrews hath met with us: let us go, we pray thee, three days’ journey into the desert, and sacrifice unto the LORD our God; lest He fall upon us with pestilence, or with the sword. And the king of Egypt said unto them, Wherefore do ye, Moses and Aaron, let the people from their works? get you unto your burdens. And Pharaoh said, Behold, the people of the land now are many, and ye make them REST from their burdens.” (Exodus 5:1-5)

The “sacrifice unto the LORD” is “a Feast” which will give the people “rest from their burdens.” The plagues fall as a result of Pharaoh not allowing God’s people to keep the Feasts of the Lord. The Hebrew word for “rest” here is שָׁבַת (shabbat) which is the same word used in Genesis 2:1-3 where it says:

“Thus the heavens and the earth were finished, and all the host of them. And on the seventh day God ended His work which He had made; and He rested (Shabbat) on the seventh day from all His work which He had made. And God blessed the seventh day, and sanctified it: because that in it He had rested (Shabbat) from all His work which God created and made.”

As you know, this weekly rest day became known as “the Sabbath” (Shabbat):

“Remember the Sabbath (Shabbat) day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labour, and do all thy work: But the seventh day is the Sabbath (Shabbat) of the LORD thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work … [why?] … For in six days the LORD made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the LORD blessed the Sabbath (Shabbat) day, and hallowed it.” (Exodus 20:8-11)

In contrast, the Egyptians worshipped the goddess Heqet who was a FROG-HEADED woman thought to possess CREATIVE POWER.

“The frog appears to have been worshipped in primitive times as the symbol of generation, birth and fertility in general; the Frog-goddess Ḥeqet or Ḥeqtit was identified with Hathor, and was originally the female counterpart of Khnum, by whom she became the mother of Heru-ur. The great antiquity of the cult of the frog is proved by the fact that each of the four primeval gods, Ḥeḥ, Kek, Nāu, and Amen is depicted with the head of a frog, while his female counterpart has the head of a serpent. The cult of the frog is one of the oldest in Egypt, and the Frog-god and the Frog-goddess were believed to have played very prominent parts in the creation of the world.” (E. A. Wallis Budge, The Gods of the Egyptians, or: Studies in Egyptian Mythology vol. 2 (1904), p. 378, Quotation from Wikipedia)

This adds yet another element to the reason why the sixth plague involves frogs using their lying tongues to catch their prey. This “goddess of creation” was worshipped over the true God of Creation. The lying tongues come into play as false theories are presented concerning protecting the creation by not only worshipping a false god, but observing a false sabbath. Their hearts are hardened to the truth concerning their false gods and their rejection of God’s Sabbath, therefore God allows this delusion to run its course.

“And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion (allow the strong delusion to manifest), that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.” (2 Thessalonians 2:11)

Notice Heqet was identified with the goddess Hathor who was one of the most widely worshiped of all female deities of the Nile country. Hathor was represented by a cow, and thus we have the reason for the fifth plague in Egypt which dealt with their livestock (Exodus 9:1-7).

All of the plagues during the time in Egypt, as well as those plagues at the end of time, expose man’s false gods and the methods by which they are worshipped. God achieves this by permitting the whole worship system to implode upon itself. Just before the tenth plague of Egypt came, God instructed His people concerning a Festival which became known as Passover. They were to slay a lamb “without blemish” and smear its blood upon their doorposts.

“For I will pass through the land of Egypt this night, and will smite all the firstborn in the land of Egypt, both man and beast; and against all the gods of Egypt I will execute judgment: I am the LORD. And the blood shall be to you for a token upon the houses where ye are: and when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and the plague shall not be upon you to destroy you, when I smite the land of Egypt.” (Exodus 12:12, 13)

Notice again that this tenth and final plague will be “against all the gods of Egypt.” God is permitting all of this to save mankind (including the Egyptians) who are held captive to false deities and ideologies. It is NEVER God’s will that any perish, but to come to repentance (2 Peter 3:9). Now, remember, as we have learned from previous studies, although God said, “I will smite all the firstborn”, He is not the one who is directly killing all the firstborn in Egypt. He is only permitting it to happen. Verse 23 tells us who does the killing:

“For the LORD will pass through to smite the Egyptians; and when He seeth the blood upon the lintel, and on the two side posts, the LORD will pass over the door, and will not suffer (permit) the Destroyer to come in unto your houses to smite you.”

This Destroyer is non-other than the devil, a name meaning “Slanderer”; for he is always slandering God’s name (character):

“Ye are of your father the devil, and the lusts of your father ye will do. He was a murderer from the beginning, and abode not in the truth, because there is no truth in him. When he speaketh a lie, he speaketh of his own: for he is a liar, and the father of it.” (John 8:44)

“Be sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour.” (2 Peter 5:8)

It was our “adversary” (Satan) the devil (Slanderer) who was in charge of all the “evil angels” who wreaked havoc upon Egypt and will again during the seven last plagues.

Like the people before the flood who cried out to God saying “depart from us!” (Job 22:15-17), the Egyptians had rejected God afresh by saying, “Who is the LORD that I should obey Him?” (Exodus 5:22). They had not only rejected God, but they rejected the Son of God who is the only “mediator between God and men” (1 Timothy 2:5). They had spiritually crucified Christ, “the Firstborn of all creation” (Colossians 1:15), meaning He is the One “by whom” God created all things (verses 16-17; 1 Corinthians 8:6). John tells us that Christ was not only crucified in Jerusalem, but was “spiritually” crucified in “Sodom and Egypt” (Revelation 11:8). Thus their rejection of Christ (“the Firstborn of all creation”) backfired upon them and opened the way for the destructive evil angel to enter and kill all their firstborn sons. Yes, man “becomes the victim of his own destructive plans and the violence he intended for others falls on his own head” (Psalm 7:16, New English Translation).

How about you? Are you worshipping a false god? Are you crucifying the truth that Christ is the literal Son of God, or is His Sonship only a metaphor, in which one of three co-eternal beings is just playing His role? Many refer to the dragon, the beast and the false prophet as a counterfeit trinity. But this can only be true in the sense that there is in fact three powers in the heavenly Trio consisting of God the Father, His Son, and His Holy Spirit, which He gave to His Son, who in turn gives it to us.

Remember, Christ has declared, “For as the Father hath life in Himself; so hath He given to the Son to have life in himself” (John 5:26). And then again, “All power is given unto Me in heaven and in earth” (Matthew 28:18). The Father is the source of Jesus’ life and power. After Jesus came up from the water at His baptism the Father declared, “This is My beloved Son, in who I am well pleased” (Matthew 3:17).

This is what Satan is counterfeiting. In vision, John saw “a beast rise up out of the sea, having seven heads and ten horns, and upon his horns ten crowns, and upon his heads the name of blasphemy … and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority” (Revelation 13:1, 2). Satan, “the father of lies” gave his power, seat and great authority to “the son of perdition” represented by the ten-horned beast who rose out of the water. This beast reigns for “forty and two months” (verse 5) which we have learned is equivalent to 3 ½ prophetic years (1,260 years). After Jesus was baptized, His ministry in the flesh upon the earth lasted 3 ½ years. The beast received “a deadly wound” that was healed, resulting in all the world marveling after the beast (verse 3). Jesus received a deadly wound upon the cross and then rose again, resulting in all the world marveling after Him. Can you see how Satan is attempting to replace the Son of God? Through paganism, Satan has given his power, seat and authority to the beast – the Roman papacy who claims …

“The Pope is not only the representative of Jesus Christ, but he is Jesus Christ, Himself, hidden under the veil of flesh.” (Catholic National, July 1895)

“All the names which are attributed to Christ in Scripture, implying His supremacy over the church, are also attributed to the Pope.” (On the Authority of Councils, book 2, chapter 17)

And remember, we have learned that the official title for the pope is: Vicarious Filii Dei, which means “In place of the Son of God.”

The Roman Church believes the apostle Peter was the first pope. They try to prove this using Matthew chapter 16 where Jesus asked the question, “But whom say ye that I am?” (Verse 15). Peter answers saying, “Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God” (Verse 16). Jesus then replies, “Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but My Father which is in heaven. And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it” (Verses 17, 18). 

The claim is that Jesus is going to build His church upon Peter. However, the Greek word for Peter here is Πέτρος (Petros) which means “a rolling stone.” Jesus gave Peter this name due to his back and forth worship. Some days he would be on fire for the Lord while other days he’s cursing and denying His Lord. Like many of us, he was constantly putting his foot in his mouth. However, upon this day, he spoke heavenly truth concerning the Sonship of Jesus. When Jesus says, “upon this rock I will build My church”, Matthew uses the Greek word πέτρα (Petra) which means “a mass of rock.” Jesus did not say He would build His church upon “a rolling stone” (Peter) but upon “a mass of rock” referring to Himself (1 Corinthians 10:4). His church would be built upon the solid foundation that He is “the Christ, the Son of the living God.”

The Seventh Plague

“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. 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, 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. And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 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.” (Revelation 16:17-21)

This plague corresponds to the seventh plague in Egypt:

“And the LORD said unto Moses, Stretch forth thine hand toward heaven, that there may be hail in all the land of Egypt, upon man, and upon beast, and upon every herb of the field, throughout the land of Egypt. And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt. So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation. And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field. Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail.” (Exodus 9:22-26)

In the book of Ezekiel we see that hail falls due to the lies that are being spread in the name of God by false prophets and teachers:

“And the word of the LORD came unto me, saying, Son of man, prophesy against the prophets of Israel that prophesy, and say thou unto them that prophesy out of their own hearts, Hear ye the word of the LORD; Thus saith the Lord GOD; Woe unto the foolish prophets, that follow their own spirit, and have seen nothing! O Israel, thy prophets are like the foxes in the deserts. Ye have not gone up into the gaps, neither made up the hedge for the house of Israel to stand in the battle in the day of the LORD. They have seen vanity and lying divination, saying, The LORD saith: and the LORD hath not sent them: and they have made others to hope that they would confirm the word. Have ye not seen a vain vision, and have ye not spoken a lying divination, whereas ye say, The LORD saith it; albeit I have not spoken? Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD; Because ye have spoken vanity, and seen lies, therefore, behold, I am against you, saith the Lord GOD. And mine hand shall be upon the prophets that see vanity, and that divine lies: they shall not be in the assembly of My people, neither shall they be written in the writing of the house of Israel, neither shall they enter into the land of Israel; and ye shall know that I am the Lord GOD. Because, even because they have seduced My people, saying, Peace; and there was no peace; and one built up a wall, and, lo, others daubed it with untempered mortar: Say unto them which daub it with untempered mortar, that it shall fall: there shall be an overflowing shower; and ye, O great HAILSTONES, shall fall; and a stormy wind shall rend it.” (Ezekiel 13:1-11)

These false prophets and teachers who are speaking lies according to their own hearts have daubed the protective wall with untempered mortar. The word “untempered” means, “not brought to a proper consistency or hardness.” Other translations say they have plastered it with whitewash. Ezekiel is rebuking the preaching of a watered-down gospel. Instead of warning the lost to turn from their sins, their transgression of the Law, these false prophets and teachers tell people to be at peace because God’s grace has made void the Law. They give people a watered-down version of the gospel, which gives people a false sense of security. The whitewash is there to cover up their fraud. The whitewashed wall might look solid from the outside, but without the mortar it has no real strength. Jesus lovingly rebuked the Pharisees of His day saying:

“Woe unto you, scribes and Pharisees, hypocrites! for ye are like unto whited sepulchres, which indeed appear beautiful outward, but are within full of dead men's bones, and of all uncleanness. Even so ye also outwardly appear righteous unto men, but within ye are full of hypocrisy and iniquity.” (Matthew 23:27, 28)

The rain of hail will wash away and expose the whitewashed lies. God has said, “… I will make justice the measuring line, and righteousness the plummet; The hail will sweep away the refuge of lies, And the waters will overflow the hiding place” (Isaiah 28:17, New King James Version). So, what does the hail represent? One must ask, “What washes away lies?” Is it not the TRUTH? A hailstorm of truth will fall from heaven washing away and expose the whitewashed lies. The prophet Isaiah links the lies of the prophets and teachers, that have been whitewashed upon the wall, with God’s Law that has been breached:

“That this is a rebellious people, lying children, children that will not hear THE LAW of the LORD: Which say to the seers, See not; and to the prophets, Prophesy not unto us right things, speak unto us smooth things, prophesy deceits: Get you out of the way, turn aside out of the path, cause the Holy One of Israel to cease from before us. Wherefore thus saith the Holy One of Israel, Because ye despise this word, and trust in oppression and perverseness, and stay thereon: Therefore this iniquity shall be to you as a breach ready to fall, swelling out in a HIGH WALL, whose breaking cometh suddenly at an instant … For the people shall dwell in Zion at Jerusalem: thou shalt weep no more: He will be very gracious unto thee at the voice of thy cry; when He shall hear it, He will answer thee … And thine ears shall hear a word behind thee, saying, This is the way, walk ye in it, when ye turn to the right hand, and when ye turn to the left … And the LORD shall cause His glorious voice to be heard, and shall show the lighting down of His arm, with the indignation of His anger (the removing of His protective presence), and with the flame of a devouring fire (His love which convicts the sinner and devours his/her selfishness), with scattering, and tempest, and hailstones (solid truth).” (Isaiah 30:9-13, 19, 21, 30)

The false prophets and teachers are breaching God’s Law with their lies. A breach is defined as, “an act of breaking or failing to observe a law.” Not only have they tampered with God’s Law by changing it in our minds to operate as imperial law which can be modified and requires arbitrary punishments for disobedience, but also by attempting to change the “sacred Festivals and Laws” (Daniel 7:25, New Living Translation), which they herald as “proof” they have the authority to make such changes. They have in a sense created their own law, but have daubed it with whitewash to make it appear as if it were God’s Law. Their whole system will come crumbling down due to the weak mortar, but those dwelling in “Zion at Jerusalem” will be safe. Again, Zion and Jerusalem are referring to the heavenly and not the earthly (Hebrews 12:22). We will be safe from the attempted change of the Law because we willingly assemble with the Lamb (Christ) upon mount Zion, which is “the mount of the Appointed Times” (or, “Festivals) – Har Mo‘ed.

How do we know this breach in the Law which is “daubed with untempered mortar” relates to God’s Festivals? In Ezekiel chapter 22 the prophet speaks of this “untampered mortar” again which helps us understand what’s going on here:

“Her priests have violated My Law, and have profaned Mine holy things: they have put no difference between the holy and profane, neither have they showed difference between the unclean and the clean, and have hid their eyes from My Sabbaths, and I am profaned among them. Her princes in the midst thereof are like wolves ravening the prey, to shed blood, and to destroy souls, to get dishonest gain. And her prophets have daubed them with untempered mortar (whitewash), seeing vanity, and divining lies unto them, saying, Thus saith the Lord GOD, when the LORD hath not spoken.” (Ezekiel 22:26-28)

Clearly, we see here that the “divining lies” which “destroy souls” has to do with God’s Law. They have …

• Violated His Law
• Put no difference between the holy and profane
• Showed no difference between the unclean and the clean
• Hid their eyes from His Sabbaths
• Profaned His name (character) among the people
• Yet have daubed everything with untempered mortar (whitewash) making everything appear solid

How have they made everything appear solid, covering up their lies? By saying …

• “God’s Law was only for the Jews and not for Gentile Christians.”
• “If you do not participate in the charismatic gifts of speaking in tongues, being slain in the Spirit, miraculous healings and ‘holy laughter’ during worship, then you do not have the Holy Spirit.”
• “God’s health instructions are part of the Old Testament Law. There is no distinction between clean and unclean creatures anymore this side of the cross. We can eat anything.”
• “The ‘Jewish’ Festivals and Sabbaths were done away with and replaced with Christian festivals such as Sunday, Easter, Christmas etc.”
• “You better watch out and behave or God is going to reveal His justice by unleashing His wrath and anger by not only killing your body at the judgment but will torture your immortal soul for eternity while you scream in agony.”

God is looking for people to repair this breach:

“Cry aloud, spare not, lift up thy voice like a trumpet, and show My people their transgression, and the house of Jacob their sins … And they that shall be of thee shall build the old waste places: thou shalt raise up the foundations of many generations; and thou shalt be called, The repairer of the breach, The restorer of paths to dwell in. If thou turn away thy foot from [trampling upon] the Sabbath, from doing thy pleasure on My holy day; and call the Sabbath a delight, the holy of the LORD, honourable; and shalt honour Him, not doing thine own ways, nor finding thine own pleasure, nor speaking thine own words: Then shalt thou delight thyself in the LORD; and I will cause thee to ride upon the high places of the earth, and feed thee with the heritage of Jacob thy father: for the mouth of the LORD hath spoken it.” (Isaiah 58:1, 12-14)

“And they shall teach My people the difference between the holy and profane, and cause them to discern between the unclean and the clean. And in controversy they shall stand in judgment; and they shall judge it according to My judgments: and they shall keep My Laws and My Statutes in all Mine Assemblies (mo‘ed, Festivals); and they shall hallow My Sabbaths.” (Ezekiel 44:23, 24)

In vision of this seventh and final plague John saw that “every island fled away, and the mountains were not found” (Revelation 16:20). No secret things (island) nor high places of worship (mountains) can be found due to the hailstorm of truth. Only one mountain will remain, and that is God’s holy mountain. All other false gods and worship systems will be exposed and broken down, making ready for Christ to come and receive His bride, “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). Christ only comes as a thief to those who are not watching. The warning message of the fall of Babylon, represented by the second angel in Revelation 14:8 will be repeated one last time before Christ returns, represented by the angel in Revelation 18:

“And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with His (God’s) glory (character). And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine (divining lies) of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her (church and state have united), and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, My people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities.” (Revelation 18:1-5)

As mentioned throughout this study, the seven last plagues devastate the earth, bringing about a reversal of creation. This last plague calls forth our Savior from the heavens to receive us unto Him, leaving this earth in its mangled mess. The prophet Isaiah describes the scene:

“The earth is utterly broken down, the earth is clean dissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly. The earth shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage; and the transgression thereof shall be heavy upon it; and it shall fall, and not rise again. And it shall come to pass in that day, that the LORD shall punish (visit) the host of the high ones that are on high, and the kings of the earth upon the earth. And they shall be gathered together, as prisoners are gathered in the pit, and shall be shut up in the prison, and after many days shall they be visited. Then the moon shall be confounded, and the sun ashamed, when the LORD of hosts shall reign in mount Zion, and in Jerusalem, and before His ancients (the elders of His people) gloriously.” (Isaiah 24:19-23)

What is this “prison” that Isaiah speaks of where the lost are bound for “many days” only to be “visited” again? Find out in our next study entitled: What Happens During the Millennium?