Revelation 16
New King James Version
The Seven Bowls
16 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying (A)to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the [a]bowls (B)of the wrath of God on the earth.”
First Bowl: Loathsome Sores
2 So the first went and poured out his bowl (C)upon the earth, and a [b]foul and (D)loathsome sore came upon the men (E)who had the mark of the beast and those (F)who worshiped his image.
Second Bowl: The Sea Turns to Blood
3 Then the second angel poured out his bowl (G)on the sea, and (H)it became blood as of a dead man; (I)and every living creature in the sea died.
Third Bowl: The Waters Turn to Blood
4 Then the third angel poured out his bowl (J)on the rivers and springs of water, (K)and they became blood. 5 And I heard the angel of the waters saying:
(L)“You are righteous, [c]O Lord,
The One (M)who is and who [d]was and who is to be,
Because You have judged these things.
6 For (N)they have shed the blood (O)of saints and prophets,
(P)And You have given them blood to drink.
[e]For it is their just due.”
7 And I heard [f]another from the altar saying, “Even so, (Q)Lord God Almighty, (R)true and righteous are Your judgments.”
Fourth Bowl: Men Are Scorched
8 Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl (S)on the sun, (T)and power was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9 And men were scorched with great heat, and they (U)blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; (V)and they did not repent (W)and give Him glory.
Fifth Bowl: Darkness and Pain
10 Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl (X)on the throne of the beast, (Y)and his kingdom became full of darkness; (Z)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 (AA)on the great river Euphrates, (AB)and its water was dried up, (AC)so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared. 13 And I saw three unclean (AD)spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of (AE)the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of (AF)the false prophet. 14 For they are spirits of demons, (AG)performing signs, which go out to the kings [g]of the earth and of (AH)the whole world, to gather them to (AI)the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
15 (AJ)“Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, (AK)lest he walk naked and they see his shame.”
16 (AL)And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, [h]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, (AM)“It is done!” 18 And (AN)there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; (AO)and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake (AP)as had not occurred since men were on the earth. 19 Now (AQ)the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And (AR)great Babylon (AS)was remembered before God, (AT)to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath. 20 Then (AU)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.
Footnotes
- Revelation 16:1 NU, M seven bowls
- Revelation 16:2 severe and malignant, lit. bad and evil
- Revelation 16:5 NU, M omit O Lord
- Revelation 16:5 NU, M was, the Holy One
- Revelation 16:6 NU, M omit For
- Revelation 16:7 NU, M omit another from
- Revelation 16:14 NU, M omit of the earth and
- Revelation 16:16 Lit. Mount Megiddo; M Megiddo
Revelation 16
New Catholic Bible
Chapter 16
The Seven Bowls of the Wrath of God.[a] 1 Then I heard a loud voice from the temple say to the seven angels, “Go forth and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.”
2 The first angel went forth and poured out his bowl on the earth. Immediately, foul and malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped its image.[b]
3 [c]The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea. It turned to blood, like the blood of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died.
4 The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and the springs of water, and they turned to blood. 5 Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say:
“You are just, O Holy One,
who are and who were,
in these your judgments.
6 For they have shed the blood
of the saints and the Prophets,
and you have given them blood to drink,
as they deserve.”
7 And I heard the altar respond:
“Yes, Lord God Almighty,
true and just are your judgments.”
8 The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was allowed to burn people with its flames. 9 They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had the power to inflict those plagues, but they refused to repent and pay him homage.
10 The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness.[d] People gnawed their tongues in agony 11 and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and sores, instead of repenting for what they had done.
12 The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East. 13 I saw three unclean spirits like frogs[e] come forth from the mouth of the dragon, from the mouth of the beast, and from the mouth of the false prophet.
14 These are demonic spirits with the power to work miracles. They were sent to the kings of the entire world to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty.
15 [f]“Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes close by so that he will not have to go naked and be exposed to shame.” 16 These spirits then assembled the kings at the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.[g]
17 The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18 Then there followed flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a violent earthquake—so violent that there has never been one like it since the human race has inhabited the earth.
19 The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed in ruin. Babylon the Great was also remembered by God, as he made her drink the cup filled with the wine of his fury and wrath. 20 Every island vanished, and no mountains were to be found. 21 Huge hailstones, each weighing about one hundred pounds, fell from the sky on the people, and they cursed God on account of the plague of hail that turned out to be so terrible.
Footnotes
- Revelation 16:1 The story of the plagues in Egypt (Ex 7–12) remained deeply inscribed in the imagination of the Jews; once again, as in chapters 8–10 (vision of the trumpets), that story here inspires the description of the final cataclysm of the universe and of the lives of its peoples and nations. The desolating picture shows all the hostile forces united at Armageddon (the Megiddo of the Bible, where King Josiah died with his troops); it became a place of sinister memory, and an omen and symbol of military defeat and even annihilation (see 2 Ki 23:29-30; Zec 12:11). The great city Babylon, i.e., Rome, is collapsing.
- Revelation 16:2 Similar to the sixth plague of Egypt (see Ex 9:8-11).
- Revelation 16:3 Similar to the first plague of Egypt (see Ex 7:20f).
- Revelation 16:10 Similar to the ninth plague of Egypt (see Ex 10:21-23).
- Revelation 16:13 Frogs: an allusion to the second plague of Egypt (see Ex 7:26—8:11).
- Revelation 16:15 This verse interrupts the text. It fits in better in the literary atmosphere of the letters to the Churches, especially Rev 3:3-4, 18. Blessed: the third beatitude (see note on Rev 1:3).
- Revelation 16:16 Armageddon: i.e., the “mountain of Megiddo,” the site of many battles in antiquity (see Jdg 5:19f; 2 Ki 9:27; 2 Chr 35:20-24); it symbolized the final defeat of the powers of evil.
Scripture taken from the New King James Version®. Copyright © 1982 by Thomas Nelson. Used by permission. All rights reserved.
