Skip to content
mannafest.faith
Read

Revelation 16:2

in Revelation 16

So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and loathsome, malignant sores broke out on those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.

BSB

The same verse in ASV and KJV ▾

ASV

And the first went, and poured out his bowl into the earth; and it became a noisome and grievous sore upon the men that had the mark of the beast, and that worshipped his image.

KJV

And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.

⋯

This verse in Revelation 16

Commentary

13 notes on this verse

A commentator

Bede

Commentary on Revelation · Written before 735.

And the first went and poured out his bowl on the earth. Preachers pour out the bowls of God's wrath in two ways: either by spiritually judging and imposing punishments on the impious, as Peter did to Simon, saying: Your money perish with you (Acts …

This site's exposition

loathsome, malignant sores

The sores strike those who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image, the people the third angel warned at 14:9-11. They recall the boils of Exodus 9:9-11, the sixth plague on Egypt, which struck even Pharaoh's magicians.

The record, by era

The Church Fathers3 voices

A commentator

Caesarius of Arles

EXPOSITION ON THE APOCALYPSE 16:2, HOMILY 12 · Written before 542.

proposed

All of these plagues are spiritual, and they occur in the soul. For at that time the whole people of the impious will be unharmed by any plague of the body, because they were undeserving to be chastised in the present age, and it was …

A commentator

Primasius of Hadrumetum

COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 16:2 · Written before 560.

proposed

The character of a mortal wound is such that the smaller the area on the body that is infected, the greater the likelihood that the remaining healthy part of the body can serve for the restoration of the health of the person. And although the …

A commentator

Oecumenius

Commentary on Revelation · Written before 550.

proposed

These things could be understood in two ways: either as events that will occur sensibly at the time of the end, or allegorically. For when the Lord, addressing the signs of the end to his own disciples, set forth many of the evils that were …

The Medieval Church2 voices

A commentator

Andreas of Caesarea

COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 16:2 · Written before 614.

proposed

The bowl here, just as the cup, is to be interpreted as a tormenting activity that, when poured out by the angel, produces an evil sore, which here is symbolic of grief that throbs in the heart even as puss oozes from a sore. This …

A commentator

Bede

Commentary on Revelation · Written before 735.

proposed

And it became a severe wound, etc. Those who, having forsaken the Lord, worship the devil, will perish spiritually by the grievous wound of the same impiety.
6 more voices on this verse

The Puritans and the Awakening3 voices

A commentator

Matthew Henry

1662–1714

Commentary on the Whole Bible (1710)

They had marked themselves by their sin; now God marks them out by his judgments. This sore, some think, signifies some of the first appearances of Providence against their state and interest which gave them great uneasiness, as it discovered their inward distemper and was a token of further evil; the plague--tokens appeared.

A commentator

John Wesley

1703–1791

Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament (1755)

proposed

And the first went - So the second, third, &c., without adding angel, to denote the utmost swiftness; of which this also is a token, that there is no period of time mentioned in the pouring out of each phial.
And the first went,....

The Nineteenth Century3 voices

A commentator

Jamieson, Fausset & Brown

1802–1910

Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible (1871)

The very same Greek word is used in the Septuagint as here, Greek, "helkos." The reason why the sixth Egyptian plague is the first here is because it was directed against the Egyptian magicians, Jannes and Jambres, so that they could not stand before Moses; and so here the plague is sent upon those who in the beast worship had practiced sorcery.

A commentator

Adam Clarke

1762–1832

Commentary on the Bible · Written before 1832.

proposed

A noisome and grievous sore - This is a reference to the sixth Egyptian plague, boils and blains, Exo 9:8, Exo 9:9, etc.
And the first went - Went forth from heaven, where the seat of the vision was laid. And poured out his vial upon the earth - That is, upon the land, in contradistinction from the sea, the rivers, the air, the seat of the beast, the sun, as represented in the other vials. In Rev 16:1, the word earth is used in the general sense to denote this world as distinguished from heaven; in this verse it is used in the specific sense, to denote land as distinguished from other things. Compare Mar 4:1; Mar 6:47; Joh 6:21; Act 27:29, Act 27:43-44. In many respects there is a strong resemblance between the pouring out of those seven vials, and the sounding of the seven trumpets, in Rev. 8–9, though they refer to different events. In the sounding of the first trumpet Rev 8:7, it was the earth that was particularly affected in contradistinction from the sea, the fountains, and the sun: “The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth.” Compare Rev 8:8, Rev 8:10, Rev 8:12. In regard to the symbolical meaning of the term earth, considered with reference to divine judgments, see the notes on Rev 8:7. And there fell a noisome and grievous sore - The judgment here is specifically different from that inflicted under the first trumpet, Rev 8:7. There it is said to have been that “the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.” Here it is that there fell upon people a “noisome and grievous sore.” The two, therefore, are designed to refer to different events, and to different forms of punishment. The word rendered “sore” properly denotes a wound (Homer, Iliad xi. 812), and then, in later writers, an ulcer or sore. […]

The words behind it

33 Greek words

Every Greek word of this verse in the order it stands, with what it means and the door to its own study. The last column counts the times a word stands in the whole Bible: the rarer the word, the more the places it appears belong together.

A shaded row is a word that stands 400 times or fewer in the Bible.

Related verses

18 in all, six open

The number beside each verse is how many compiled reference works tie it to this one. The strongest six stand open.

Exodus 20:4You shall not make for yourself an idol in the form of anything in the heavens above, on the earth below, or in the waters beneath.17 worksRevelation 8:7Then the first angel sounded his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, along with a third of the trees and all the green grass.9 worksExodus 9:9It will become fine dust over all the land of Egypt, and festering boils will break out on man and beast throughout the land.”7 worksRevelation 16:11and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores; yet they did not repent of their deeds.5 worksRevelation 13:15The second beast was permitted to give breath to the image of the first beast, so that the image could speak and cause all who refused to worship it to be killed.5 worksLeviticus 19:28You must not make any cuts in your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.4 works
The other 12 cross-references, with their words ▾
Revelation 15:7Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls full of the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.4 worksLuke 16:20–22And a beggar named Lazarus lay at his gate, covered with sores3 worksExodus 9:8–11Then the LORD said to Moses and Aaron, “Take handfuls of soot from the furnace; in the sight of Pharaoh, Moses is to toss it into the air.3 worksDeuteronomy 28:27The LORD will afflict you with the boils of Egypt, with tumors and scabs and itch from which you cannot be cured.3 worksRevelation 13:14Because of the signs it was given to perform on behalf of the first beast, it deceived those who dwell on the earth, telling them to make an image to the beast that had been wounded by the sword and yet had lived.3 worksEzekiel 9:11Then the man clothed in linen with the writing kit at his side reported back, “I have done as You commanded.”3 worksIsaiah 3:17the Lord will bring sores on the heads of the daughters of Zion, and the LORD will make their foreheads bare.”3 worksJob 2:7–8So Satan went out from the presence of the LORD and infected Job with terrible boils from the soles of his feet to the crown of his head.2 works1 Samuel 5:6Now the hand of the LORD was heavy on the people of Ashdod and its vicinity, ravaging them and afflicting them with tumors.2 worksDeuteronomy 7:15And the LORD will remove from you all sickness. He will not lay upon you any of the terrible diseases you knew in Egypt, but He will inflict them on all who hate you.2 works2 Chronicles 21:15And day after day you yourself will suffer from a severe illness, a disease of your bowels, until it causes your bowels to come out.’”2 worksIsaiah 1:5–6Why do you want more beatings? Why do you keep rebelling? Your head has a massive wound, and your whole heart is afflicted.2 works

The walk

8 stops

Each card is a verse this one points to, and under it the verses that one points to in turn. Where several paths arrive at the same place, that place is listed first: the text keeps returning to it.

  • Through

    Revelation 8:7

    Then the first angel sounded his trumpet, and hail and fire mixed with blood were hurled down upon the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, along with a third of the…

    it leads to

    • Ezekiel 38:22

      I will execute judgment upon him with plague and bloodshed. I will pour out torrents of rain, hailstones, fire, and sulfur on him and on his troops and on the many nations with him.

    • Revelation 9:4

      They were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but only those who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.

    • Revelation 9:18

      A third of mankind was killed by the three plagues of fire, smoke, and sulfur that proceeded from their mouths.

    • Isaiah 28:2

      Behold, the Lord has one who is strong and mighty. Like a hailstorm or destructive tempest, like a driving rain or flooding downpour, he will smash that crown to the ground.

    • Revelation 9:15

      So the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were released to kill a third of mankind.

  • Through

    Revelation 16:11

    and curse the God of heaven for their pains and sores; yet they did not repent of their deeds.

    it leads to

    • Revelation 16:9

      And the people were scorched by intense heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had authority over these plagues; yet they did not repent and give Him glory.

    • Revelation 16:21

      And great hailstones weighing almost a hundred pounds each rained down on them from above. And men cursed God for the plague of hail, because it was so horrendous.

    • Revelation 11:13

      And in that hour there was a great earthquake, and a tenth of the city collapsed. Seven thousand were killed in the quake, and the rest were terrified and gave glory to the God…

Where this verse is studied

About Revelation

The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, Jan and Hubert van Eyck, about 1430 to 1432. Public domain.
The Adoration of the Mystic Lamb, Jan and Hubert van Eyck, about 1430 to 1432. Public domain.
Revelation: the study guide →Read Revelation 16 →
This page draws on 11 works. Open the list of works

This page draws on Adam Clarke, Commentary on the Bible; Albert Barnes, Notes, Explanatory and Practical, on the Old and New Testaments (1832-1869); Andreas of Caesarea, COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 16:2; Bede, Commentary on Revelation; Caesarius of Arles, EXPOSITION ON THE APOCALYPSE 16:2, HOMILY 12; Jamieson, Fausset & Brown, Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible; John Gill, Exposition of the New Testament (1746-1748); John Wesley, Explanatory Notes upon the New Testament; Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible; Oecumenius, Commentary on Revelation and Primasius of Hadrumetum, COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 16:2.

Read on in Revelation 16 →