Sunday School Notes: Revelation 16:4-7
4 And the third poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and it became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying, “Righteous are You, the one who is and who was, the Holy One, for You judged these things, 6 for they poured out [the] blood of the saints and the prophets, and You have given to them blood to drink; they are worthy.” 7 And I heard the altar saying, “Yes, O Lord, God the Almighty, true and just are Your judgments.”
We turned our attention this week to the third of the seven bowls. This, like the second, appears to be a strike against water. They differ from one another by the fact that the second bowl was very general in its focus (the sea and all that’s in it), whereas the third bowl deals specifically with rivers and springs. Since rivers and springs are fed by the sea, one might imagine these smaller bodies of water were covered in the second bowl. First, remember, this is a vision, so there is a certain amount of suspension of logic. Connected to this is the fact that these visions are supposed to be communicating truth symbolically. The seas and the dead creatures in them represent some kind of wide-scale economic disaster, and perhaps also a famine. With the third bowl, it’s more personal. It’s not just about the availability of food and commerce, but about the water supply people wash with and drink. It’s not just the seas that surround, but the rivers and streams the flow through towns and villages. Again, there is a parallel between this bowl and the first Exodus plague (Exodus 7:17-25), reminding us that God’s hand is behind this judgment.
John then hears “the angel of the waters,” or as the ESV renders it, “the angel in charge of the waters.” I think the ESV has the right idea (you’re welcome!). In 7:1, there were angels holding the four winds of the earth, and an angel with “authority over fire” in 14:18. Of course, we understand this angelic authority is derivative. True authority belongs to God alone who has clearly delegated it to these heavenly beings in these instances. Indeed, the following angelic proclamation shows they understand who’s really in control of things.
In this declaration, the angel refers to God as the one “who is and who was, the Holy One.” This formula looks somewhat familiar. In Revelation 1:4, John says that God is “the One who is, and the One who was, and the One who is coming” (Greek: ho ōn kai ho ēn kai ho erchomenos). God Himself repeats this same phrase in 1:8. However, in 16:5, “the coming” has been replaced with “the Holy One” (Greek: hosios). Why?
I can think of a few reasons, not necessarily mutually exclusive; they both could be true. First, perhaps the fact that these judgments are not things that are future, but are a judgments that have been and are a present reality necessitates dropping “the One who is coming.” In chapter 1, the emphasis was on God’s eternal nature, with perhaps a nod to God the Son’s future return. But in chapter 16, the emphasis is on the fact of these judgments and God’s hand behind them. Second, underscoring God’s presence at this time reminds the church that He is with them, not simply as a future hope, but right now. He has been with His people from the beginning, and continues to abide with His church, even during trials and especially in the midst of judgment.
As we are reminded that God is the author of this judgment, we need to bear in mind that God is also righteous, and He is the Holy One. The word for “holy” here is not the word we might expect, hagios, but the word hosios. The two words can be uses synonymously, but there is a subtle difference in their meaning. Broadly speaking, hagios is functional. A people, or utensils, or children (1 Corinthians 7:14) can be hagios. They are not holy in themselves, but they have been set apart for a godly purpose. On the other hand, hosios speaks more of personal piety. It’s more about the nature of something, rather than its function. Holy as a character trait that is manifested through actions (see, for example, Psalm 4:4; Psalm 31:6; Proverbs 10:29; Acts 13:34-35; Ephesians 4:24; 1 Thessalonians 2:10; 1 Timothy 2:8). Again, language being what it is, these definitions are not absolute, and I’m sure there are exceptions. But I think they hold out generally when we see how they are used.
Of course, God is the only being in the universe who is truly intrinsically holy. Any holiness in His creation is derived. Indeed, the only holiness we have is the holiness of Jesus imputed to us by grace. Our own natures are far from holy. If we are to be acceptable before a God who is pure and true holiness, we need that “alien” holiness that Christ gives to us by virtue of his death on our behalf. The angel’s point here is, I think, the fact that God is righteous and holy means that He is the only one truly able to judge righteously. (Remember how the Lamb was the only one worthy to break the seals in chapter 5?) Unlike our judgments, God’s judgments are not tainted in the slightest with sin. They are pure, true, and just. Always.
God is, therefore, the only person qualified to bring judgment upon those who persecute His people. “They poured out the blood of the saints and the prophets, and you have given them blood to drink.” The use of “blood” here is, I believe, symbolic of judgment and death, and this same idea underlies the “water turned to blood” in this and the previous bowl. Death and suffering is the “water” of those who deny the Lord and indulge in the culture around them. That culture is a culture of death. It cannot bring life because it rejects the only One able to give life. Isaiah 49:25-26 talks about God rescuing His people and bringing judgment upon their oppressors. He will make them “eat their own flesh and be drunk with their own blood as with wine.”
The mention of the blood of the saints and the prophets reminds us, again, of the saints under the altar in Revelation 6:9-10. These saints had been “slain,” which probably encompasses more than death to include any and all kinds of persecution. God promised to vindicate them, and here we see how He is doing that. There is a now-and-not-yet aspect to this, since God does bring judgment upon those who reject Him–not, I hasten to add because of their rejection of God, but because of their sin for which there is no forgiveness outside of the blood of Christ (John 3:18). But there is also a final judgment to come, which we will see in chapter 20.
According to the angel, “They are worthy.” In His righteous judgment, God considers the earth-dwellers worthy to to drink the blood of their own oppression. They have denied God and oppressed His people, so they deserve the judgment God metes out to them. And only God is worthy to judge, because He alone is holy at the core of His nature.
The cry of the altar that follows affirms this. It seems strange to speak of a cry of the altar, and not a cry from the altar, but I think there are a couple of reasons for this. First, “the altar” is the place of sacrifice, a reminder of Christ’s blood shed for his people. According to chapter 5, Christ’s worthiness to break the seals and open the scroll (i.e., to execute the seal judgments) is based in his sinless self-sacrifice. Also, the altar reminds us, again, of the saints under the altar crying out for justice in chapter 6.
The altar calls God “the almighty” (Greek: pantokratōr). God is absolutely sovereign over history, people, judgment–all things. This same term was used of God in 15:3-6 with regard to His kingly rule over all nations, and the fact that all nations will one day worship Him (Philippians 2:10-11).
“True and just are your judgments” echoes the words of Deuteronomy 32:4, which falls in the midst of Moses’s song, in which he warns Israel of the judgments that will befall them if they stray from the Lord. Verse 43 says that God “avenges the blood of His children and takes vengeance on His adversaries. He repays those who hate Him and cleanses His people’s land.”
