[:en]SCRIPTURE: REVELATION 15
“Great and marvelous are your deeds, Lord God ALmighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages. Who will not fear you, O Lord, and bring glory to yur name? For you alone are holy. All nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed” (Revelation 15:3-4)
SEVEN ANGELS WITH SEVEN PLAGUES (vs. 1-8)
John saw great and marvelous signs in heaven as follows: There are 7 angels with 7 last plagues. He also saw a sea of glass mixed with fire and standing beside the sea are those who had been victorious over the beast and his image and over the number of his name. They played harp and sang the Song of Moses and the Song of the Lamb. Then the tabernacle of the Testimony in the heavenly temple opened. Out of the temple came 7 angels with 7 plagues. They were dressed in clean linen with golden sashes around their chests. Then one of the living creatures gave to the 7 angels 7 golden bowls filled with the wrath of God. And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory and power of God. No one could enter the temple until the 7 plagues of the 7 angels were completed.
The song sang by those victorious over the beast traces back to Exodus 15 where Moses and the Israelites sang this song to the Lord. They sang it when they were delivered from Egypt and they sang it again when they returned to their land after the Babylonian Captivity. This song is a celebration of Israel’s deliverance from the enemy.
Here is a comparison of the Old Testament in Exodus against what John saw which are both recorded in Chapter 15:
- In Exodus 15, God’s people stood by an earth’s sea (Red Sea) while here, it is the heavenly sea. (Rev. 15:1-2)
- In the Old Testament, they had been delivered by the blood of the Passover lamb; here, the saints were delivered by the blood of Jesus- the lamb.
- In Exodus 15,, the Israelites sang the Song of Moses while here, they sang both the Song of Moses and the Song of the Lamb. (Rev. 15:3)
Then, the temple in heaven, which is the tabernacle of the Testimony opened. 7 angels with the 7 plagues came out to complete the judgment of God on earth. They were dressed in clean, shining linen with golden sashes around their chests. The white linen was the dress of the Old Testament priest. The golden sashes signify “kinghood”. The saints of God are both priests and kings.
When the Old Testament tabernacle and the Old Testament temple were dedicated (2Chro. 7:2-1-4), God’s glory filled the tent without smoke. Here, the glory of God mixed with smoke filled the temple. It symbolizes judgment is about to come.
SUMMARY:
The seven bowls of wrath remind us of the plagues God sent to Egypt during Moses’ time. The Israelites sang Song of Moses to celebrate their victory at the Red Sea. The victorious saints during Tribulation period sang both the Song of Moses and Song of the Lamb for their triumph at the heavenly sea. The glory of God filled the tabernacle and temple in the Old Testament, but the heavenly temple is filled with the glory of God and smoke. It was an announcement to the forthcoming God’s wrath.[:]