For they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets,
and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.
Revelation 16:6
Our study today focuses on the verse above. Let’s look at the context before going further. Revelation 16 deals with the seven bowls of God’s wrath poured out by seven angels. Let me briefly list each here; we won’t get into speculating how they each might literally manifest in the future:
- First Bowl: Sores break out on the people who worship the beast and take his mark
- Second Bowl: The sea turns to blood, causing the sea creatures to die
- Third Bowl: The rivers and springs also turn to blood, and the angel speaks about martyrdom, which we’ll look at shortly
- Fourth Bowl: The sun becomes hotter and burns the people, who remain stubborn
- Fifth Bowl: The earth plunges into darkness, and the people curse God
- Sixth Bowl: The Euphrates River dries up, and demonic activity becomes rampant for the purpose of gathering the world for the battle of Armageddon
- Seventh Bowl: An angel declares things finished, and an unprecedented earthquake is accompanied by one-hundred-pound hailstones, bringing cataclysmic damage
Now, back to the third angel. This heavenly being declares that God is justified in His judgment on the peoples of the earth because they have killed His people in general and His prophets specifically. Just as the blood of God’s people has been poured out, so the third bowl will be poured out and the rivers and springs turned to blood.
Stephen gave a long, thorough, impassioned speech just prior to being stoned. But it was the specific accusation in Acts 7:52 that set off the audience: “Was there ever a prophet your ancestors did not persecute? They even killed those who predicted the coming of the Righteous One. And now you have betrayed and murdered him”. Stephen and this angel are stating the same basic fact. From the prophets to Jesus to an untold number of saints, martyrdom has been present throughout.
The Bible clearly states that vengeance is the Lord’s to carry out against His enemies, who are likewise our enemies (Deuteronomy 32:35, Romans 12:19). As much as we’d like to give certain “evil” people what they deserve, we can have full confidence that God will handle it all one day. He will pour out His wrath on the wicked. Let’s also not forget that we too deserve God’s wrath, but His Son’s ultimate blood sacrifice took care of that once and for all. Give thanks to the Lord!