31 Jan 2014

Revelation 16:12-16

Posted by joncooper

Revelation 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.
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.
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.
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.
16 And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.”

This vial (#6) is a bit different from the others. Instead of a direct judgment, God dries up the Euphrates river so that the armies of the “kings of the east” can come. Verse 16 tells us why: God is preparing the way for the great battle of Armageddon. It is almost time for the antichrist’s final push against Israel. The evil’s one hour of judgment is approaching. When the antichrist does come against the hidden enclave of the Jews (who many think will be hiding out in what is now Jordan), Jesus will return and defeat the armies of the antichrist.

It appears that the kings of the Earth will need some persuasion to come and fight, so Satan will send out evil spirits in order to deceive the nations. As a result of this deception the kings will gather for a massive battle against Jerusalem. (This is not the last time Jerusalem will see war; after the thousand years of the Millennial Kingdom have expired the devil will try to come against the city one more time. That, however, is a discussion for another time.)

Verse 15 is interesting. Since we are currently living in the Church Age, our salvation is assured. We are dressed in Christ’s righteousness and have the Holy Spirit sealed within us; no matter what happens, we cannot lose the Spirit or commit a sin that is unforgivable. However, those who are saved after the Church is gone are faced with a very different situation. Verse 15 warns the Tribulation saints to be careful how they live lest they lose their righteousness. This is not saying that they must try to earn their salvation, but it does say that they have to maintain their faith. If they ever decide to turn away from God and worship the antichrist then they will be lost. There will be a massive and constant temptation to commit the unforgivable sin and take the Mark. If they ever do that then they will be damned. Needless to say, it will be a very difficult time to be alive.

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