Bible Study Notes for Lord’s Day,
December 20, 2009
Revelation 15-18
The Victory of the Kingdom of God
Introduction The Revelation is the Apocalypse, the sudden unveiling
of Jesus in His full glory, as the rightful Heir and King of the
Universe.
Ch 1 - the introduction to the unveiling of Jesus.
Ch 2-3 Jesus’ messages to His churches in the meantime.
Ch 4-5 John’s first glimpse of the Throne Room in Heaven, and
the praise and worship going on there, for Creation and Redemption.
Ch 6-7 God’s judgment on the evil world system begins. But
first His people are sealed and protected.
Ch 8-9 The Prayers of the Saints are vindicated, as God uses our
prayers for His Kingdom to come and His will to be done, to begin
the judgment and termination of this evil world system, and to usher
in the reign of Christ.
Ch 10-11 The Words of the Prophets are vindicated. The world hates
the truth of God’s Word, seeks to question it, to discredit
it, to stamp it out, to persecute and kill those who preach and
teach it. But in the end, God Himself will validate His prophets,
and judge those who rejected His Word.
Ch 12-14 At the sounding of the 7th Trumpet, before the 7 last plagues,
the story of Jesus is told, from His birth, to His final victory
and the harvest at the end of the age.
Ch 15-18 The Kingdom of God casts down the kingdom of Babylon.
1. The Kingdom of God Ch 15
2. God Judges the World System and Calls for Repentance Ch 16
3. The Kingdom of Babylon (the World System) Ch 17
4. The Fall of Babylon Ch 18
1. The Kingdom of God Ch 15
Revelation 15
1 Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvelous: seven
angels having the seven last plagues, for in them the wrath of God
is complete.
2 And I saw something like a sea of glass mingled with fire, and
those who have the victory over the beast, over his image and over
his mark and over the number of his name, standing on the sea of
glass, having harps of God. 3 They sing the song of Moses, the servant
of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying:
“ Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Just and true are Your ways,
O King of the saints!
4 Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy.
For all nations shall come and worship before You,
For Your judgments have been manifested.”
5 After these things I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle
of the testimony in heaven was opened. 6 And out of the temple came
the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in pure bright
linen, and having their chests girded with golden bands. 7 Then
one of the four living creatures gave to the seven angels seven
golden bowls full of the wrath of God who lives forever and ever.
8 The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from
His power, and no one was able to enter the temple till the seven
plagues of the seven angels were completed.
a. God is holy, the Lord God Almighty. His ways are just and true.
He is worthy of respect, praise and worship from the whole world
b. God has a Heaven, a Temple and holy angels who carry out His
decrees. His temple is filled with the smoke of His overwhelming
shekinah glory and His power.
c. He is King of the saints. His saints have been tried, tested,
persecuted, even martyred by the world system, but God has given
them the victory, and they sing the victorious song of Moses and
the Lamb to praise Him.
3 They sing the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song
of the Lamb, saying:
“ Great and marvelous are Your works,
Lord God Almighty!
Just and true are Your ways,
O King of the saints!
4 Who shall not fear You, O Lord, and glorify Your name?
For You alone are holy.
For all nations shall come and worship before You,
For Your judgments have been manifested.”
This is the Kingdom of God.
2. God Judges the World System and Calls for Repentance Ch 16
Just as God had to finally use ten plagues to dismantle Egypt and
set His people free, so He will finally have to use seven plagues
to bring about the end of the world system, and bring in the peace
and blessing of the Kingdom of God to planet Earth.
Revelation 16
1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven
angels, “Go and pour out the bowls of the wrath of God on the
earth.”
First Bowl: Loathsome Sores
2 So the first went and poured out his bowl upon the earth, and
a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of
the beast and those who worshiped his image.
Second Bowl: The Sea Turns to Blood
3 Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it
became blood as of a dead man; and every living creature in the
sea died.
Third Bowl: The Waters Turn to Blood
4 Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs
of water, and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the
waters saying:
“ You are righteous, O Lord,
The One who is and who was and who is to be,
Because You have judged these things.
6 For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets,
And You have given them blood to drink.
For it is their just due.”
7 And I heard another from the altar saying, “Even so, Lord
God Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.”
Fourth Bowl: Men Are Scorched
8 Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and power
was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched
with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power
over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.
Fifth Bowl: Darkness and Pain
10 Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the
beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness; and they gnawed
their tongues because of the pain. 11 They blasphemed the God of
heaven because of their pains and their sores, and did not repent
of their deeds.
Sixth Bowl: Euphrates Dried Up
12 Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river
Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings
from the east might be prepared. 13 And I saw three unclean spirits
like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth
of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14 For
they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to 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 am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches,
and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.”
16 And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew,
Armageddon.
Seventh Bowl: The Earth Utterly Shaken
17 Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and
a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne,
saying, “It is done!” 18 And there were noises and thunderings
and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty
and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth.
19 Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities
of the nations fell. And great Babylon was remembered before God,
to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath.
20 Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
21 And great hail from heaven fell upon men, each hailstone about
the weight of a talent. Men blasphemed God because of the plague
of the hail, since that plague was exceedingly great.
So God will finally have to use seven plagues to bring about the
end of the world system, and bring in the peace and blessing of
the Kingdom of God to planet Earth.
3. The Kingdom of Babylon (the World System) Ch 17
Revelation 17:1 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls
came and talked with me, saying to me, “Come, I will show you
the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 2 with
whom the kings of the earth committed fornication, and the inhabitants
of the earth were made drunk with the wine of her fornication.”
3 So he carried me away in the Spirit into the wilderness. And I
saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast which was full of names of
blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 The woman was arrayed
in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones
and pearls, having in her hand a golden cup full of abominations
and the filthiness of her fornication. 5 And on her forehead a name
was written:
MYSTERY, BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS
AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.
6 I saw the woman, drunk with the blood of the saints and with the
blood of the martyrs of Jesus. And when I saw her, I marveled with
great amazement.
7 But the angel said to me, “Why did you marvel? I will tell
you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her,
which has the seven heads and the ten horns. 8 The beast that you
saw was, and is not, and will ascend out of the bottomless pit and
go to perdition. And those who dwell on the earth will marvel, whose
names are not written in the Book of Life from the foundation of
the world, when they see the beast that was, and is not, and yet
is.
9 “Here is the mind which has wisdom: The seven heads are seven
mountains on which the woman sits. 10 There are also seven kings.
Five have fallen, one is, and the other has not yet come. And when
he comes, he must continue a short time. 11 The beast that was,
and is not, is himself also the eighth, and is of the seven, and
is going to perdition.
12 “The ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have received
no kingdom as yet, but they receive authority for one hour as kings
with the beast. 13 These are of one mind, and they will give their
power and authority to the beast. 14 These will make war with the
Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, for He is Lord of lords and
King of kings; and those who are with Him are called, chosen, and
faithful.”
15 Then he said to me, “The waters which you saw, where the
harlot sits, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and tongues. 16 And
the ten horns which you saw on the beast, these will hate the harlot,
make her desolate and naked, eat her flesh and burn her with fire.
17 For God has put it into their hearts to fulfill His purpose,
to be of one mind, and to give their kingdom to the beast, until
the words of God are fulfilled. 18 And the woman whom you saw is
that great city which reigns over the kings of the earth.”
So this is Babylon - the world system - a tangled web of unrighteous
agreements designed to control and rip people off, hostile to the
truth, kindness and blessing of the Kingdom of God.
4. The Fall of Babylon Ch 18
Revelation 18:1 After these things I saw another angel coming down
from heaven, having great authority, and the earth was illuminated
with his glory. 2 And he cried mightily with a loud voice, saying,
“Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and has become a dwelling
place of demons, a prison for every foul spirit, and a cage for
every unclean and hated bird! 3 For all the nations have drunk of
the wine of the wrath of her fornication, the kings of the earth
have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth
have become rich through the abundance of her luxury.”
4 And I heard another voice from heaven saying, “Come out of
her, my people, lest you share in her sins, and lest you receive
of her plagues. 5 For her sins have reached to heaven, and God has
remembered her iniquities. 6 Render to her just as she rendered
to you, and repay her double according to her works; in the cup
which she has mixed, mix double for her. 7 In the measure that she
glorified herself and lived luxuriously, in the same measure give
her torment and sorrow; for she says in her heart, ‘I sit as
queen, and am no widow, and will not see sorrow.’ 8 Therefore
her plagues will come in one day—death and mourning and famine.
And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong is the Lord
God who judges her.
9 “The kings of the earth who committed fornication and lived
luxuriously with her will weep and lament for her, when they see
the smoke of her burning, 10 standing at a distance for fear of
her torment, saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city Babylon,
that mighty city! For in one hour your judgment has come.’
11 “And the merchants of the earth will weep and mourn over
her, for no one buys their merchandise anymore: 12 merchandise of
gold and silver, precious stones and pearls, fine linen and purple,
silk and scarlet, every kind of citron wood, every kind of object
of ivory, every kind of object of most precious wood, bronze, iron,
and marble; 13 and cinnamon and incense, fragrant oil and frankincense,
wine and oil, fine flour and wheat, cattle and sheep, horses and
chariots, and bodies and souls of men. 14 The fruit that your soul
longed for has gone from you, and all the things which are rich
and splendid have gone from you, and you shall find them no more
at all.
15 The merchants of these things, who became rich by her, will stand
at a distance for fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, 16 and
saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city that was clothed in fine
linen, purple, and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones
and pearls! 17 For in one hour such great riches came to nothing.’
Every shipmaster, all who travel by ship, sailors, and as many as
trade on the sea, stood at a distance 18 and cried out when they
saw the smoke of her burning, saying, ‘What is like this great
city?’
19 “They threw dust on their heads and cried out, weeping and
wailing, and saying, ‘Alas, alas, that great city, in which
all who had ships on the sea became rich by her wealth! For in one
hour she is made desolate.’
20 “Rejoice over her, O heaven, and you holy apostles and
prophets, for God has avenged you on her!”
21 Then a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone and
threw it into the sea, saying, “Thus with violence the great
city Babylon shall be thrown down, and shall not be found anymore.
22 The sound of harpists, musicians, flutists, and trumpeters shall
not be heard in you anymore. No craftsman of any craft shall be
found in you anymore, and the sound of a millstone shall not be
heard in you anymore. 23 The light of a lamp shall not shine in
you anymore, and the voice of bridegroom and bride shall not be
heard in you anymore. For your merchants were the great men of the
earth, for by your sorcery all the nations were deceived. 24 And
in her was found the blood of prophets and saints, and of all who
were slain on the earth.”
This is the fall of Babylon, the world system. They rejected the
beauty of Christmas, Christ, the Christian life, so all the beauty
of life is gone. They wanted utopia without the Creator.
The next thing - the Creator shows up.
Conclusion God will not allow this corrupt and destructive world
system to continue forever. He will end it, and usher in the blessed
Kingdom of His Son, the Lord Jesus.
The world system, Babylon seems too big, too powerful, all controlling
and all consuming. It seems impossible for Babylon to fall. “You
can’t fight city hall.”
15:8 The temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and
from His power, and no one was able to enter the temple till the
seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.
17:14 These will make war with the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome
them, for He is Lord of lords and King of kings; and those who are
with Him are called, chosen, and faithful.”
18:8 Therefore her plagues will come in one day—death and mourning
and famine. And she will be utterly burned with fire, for strong
is the Lord God who judges her.
Pastor Steve Boggan
Living Waters Christian Fellowship
Heritage Ranch by Lake Nacimiento, CA
Website - livingwaters.cc
