Revelation Chapter 16 (As taken from “The Book of Revelation“)

Verse 17: 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.

Verse 18: 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.

The seventh-plague angel message, yet to be poured, will be introduced into the air of the ecclesiastical realm. The prior plagues were poured on the ground, the sea, the rivers, the sun (the Gospel), etc.; but of all the elements affected, the one most essential to human life (from a natural standpoint) and all pervasive—in both the short and the long term and in whatever clime or condition one exists—is the air or atmosphere.

Perhaps the atmosphere is also chosen last to suggest the possibility of the message being aired in the news or television media. Divine Providence may cause the message to receive widespread publicity in this manner. (This of course is contingent upon whether or not there is power, and whether TV and internet services are still available at the time. Once the true trouble begins [anarchy takes hold] is very unlikely.)

The “great voice” John heard coming forth from the temple in heaven, from the throne, is God’s voice. It comes forth from the antitypical throne room or Most Holy compartment common to both the Tabernacle of Moses and the Temple of Solomon. The booming pronouncement is made: “It is done”!

But what is done?

First: The expression emphatically acknowledges that the last of the seven vials of the wrath of God, which He had so sternly commanded to be poured upon the earth (Verse 1) and had so long awaited, has finally reached accomplishment—AT LAST!

Now the wheels of God’s chariot could move forward to demolish the old order and usher in the “Thy kingdom come” of the Lord’s prayer—a fulfillment the saints have long yearned for.

Second: Being uttered subsequent to the pouring of the seventh vial, the statement “It is done” is a reminder of Christ’s dying words on the Cross of Calvary, when he said (John 19:30),

“It is finished”! The time frame of the statement “It is done” and other Scriptures indicate that the events and experiences of the last week of Jesus’ earthly ministry are a parallel to those which will befall the feet members.

The next verse (Verse 18) is strikingly reminiscent of some of the events that occurred in connection with Jesus’ agony on the Cross. These events include the darkness that came upon the land in Jesus’ last hours and at the actual time of his death; the earthquake that rent rocks, opened graves, and tore in twain the veil of Herod’s Temple; and possibly also a violent thunderstorm.

The Roman centurion standing guard on Calvary observed some of these events and the strange coincidence of time in juxtaposition with Jesus’ agony and death, for the very God of all nature seemed to be venting His open displeasure in an unparalleled public display of wonders because of the death of the Just One. Likewise, when the heel members of the body of Christ decease, a darkening over all the earth will forebode ominous conditions to follow.

There will be:

1) “voices” (universal tumultuous, internal, vocal controversy),

2) “thunders” (universal acts of violence, sabotage, and explosive social changes as in the French Revolution),

3) “lightnings” (universal public displays of mass disapproval of all governmental authority, accompanied by anarchistic graffiti, rioting, vandalism, and arson), and

4) a “great earthquake” (an unprecedented complete overthrow of all law and order, anarchy).

Jesus will not cast the censer of coals (Rev. 8:5) into the earth until all the prayers of The Christ, Head and body members, have ascended on high. The true Church has to be complete and changed from the flesh condition to the spirit condition above before the real Time of Trouble can occur. Not until the journeying ark enters its haven of rest in the Most Holy (Rev. 11:19), not until the seven plagues are poured, will come the “voices, and thunders, and lightnings” and a “great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth” (Compare Matt. 24:21). “When they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them” (1 Thess. 5:3).

The Holy Spirit indicates that as far as the “voices,” “lightnings,” and “thunders” are concerned, no particular sequence is followed. There is however an exception with the last two events, for the “earthquake” and the “hail” (Rev 11:19) do follow as a concluding sequence of the five-fold descriptive symbols.

Continued with next post.