Bible Gem 2339 – The Sixth Bowl and the Significance of the Great Euphrates River (Revelation 16:12-16)

¹²Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great Euphrates River, and it dried up so that the kings from the east could march their armies toward the west without hindrance. 

¹³And I saw three evil spirits that looked like frogs leap from the mouths of the dragon, the beast, and the false prophet. ¹⁴They are demonic spirits who work miracles and go out to all the rulers of the world to gather them for battle against the Lord on that great judgment day of God the Almighty. 

¹⁵“Look, I will come as unexpectedly as a thief! Blessed are all who are watching for me, who keep their clothing ready so they will not have to walk around naked and ashamed.” ¹⁶And the demonic spirits gathered all the rulers and their armies to a place with the Hebrew name Armageddon. 

Revelation 16:12-16

This sixth bowl is a little enigmatic to say the least, but still tracking with the revelation John has been shown. There are two key elements we need to keep in mind when reading and studying this letter or book. It was primarily written for the churches of John’s era and it’s apocalyptic writing. Reduced to the core, John recorded for the people of his day and age the matters concerning their future which God showed him. Revelation is not a chronological breakdown of end times events for us to chart a time line of the events which lay before us. Time and the verb tenses change to sharpen John’s point for his readers. He is primarily giving them keys to deal with life under Roman rule. We can’t treat Revelation as a blow by blow sequence of what’s next on the end times schedule of events. Biblical prophecy and apocalyptic writing is not necessarily written in a time oriented order in which the events ahead will happen. Apocalyptic writing includes flash backs and thematic cycles which repeat for emphasis and build on that which has been introduced before.

That is exactly what we have here. Included again in this portion related to the sixth bowl is another pause and a flashback to what John has already been shown. This portion before us is in parallel which what John revealed in earlier visions and explanation. Allow me to remind you again of how John received this revelation. He saw in vision form what God revealed to him and then was told the significance of it; what he was to write and what he was not to write down.

When the seven thunders spoke, I was going to write, but I heard a voice from heaven say, “Seal up what the seven thunders have said, and don’t write it down.”

Revelation 10:4

I have been over that before but I feel I need to remind myself as much or as frequently as I remind you. To make sense of Revelation we have to hold each portion in its right place in the overall schema. We also have to realise there are parts of the Revelation that are for a particular time. Later more light will be shed on the matter when the time is right. Only God knows the difference between the two.

This sixth bowl does not appear to have any outpouring of the content of the bowl. We need to ask ourselves, “What is in the bowl to be poured out?” Like the other bowls we are not told the content of the bowl, only the ensuing effect. I am reminded of what John has told us already. Isn’t it interesting that with the sixth bowl, the waters referred to are specific? Up until now the earth, seas, rivers and springs have all been generic. Now suddenly the reference is specifically focused on the great Euphrates River.

• Why the switch from generic to specific?
• Why refer to the great Euphrates River?
• Do you recall that we have met this river before in Revelation 9:14 in the context of the 6^th Trumpet judgement?
• Do you see the cyclic nature of Revelation?
• Is it clear to you now?  

John is simply building on what has been revealed before. It is time to put the pieces together. The cumulative judgements are escalating and in this case we have been given the clue already. John was given the name of a specific river by the voice speaking from the altar in heaven.

Now in Revelation 16:12 we are told the river targeted by the sixth bowl judgement is none other than the great Euphrates River. The sixth bowl is connected to the sixth trumpet. The fifth trumpet opened the floodgates of hell and the demonic hordes were released. Now with the sixth bowl the escalation of judgement is related again to demonic activity. It is not a vague unconnected series of events, it is all interconnected and orchestrated from heaven. I will be kind to you and give you the reference to read for yourself right here in this Gem, so you don’t have to go and look it up.

¹⁴And the voice said to the sixth angel who held the trumpet, “Release the four angels who are bound at the great Euphrates River.” ¹⁵Then the four angels who had been prepared for this hour and day and month and year were turned loose to kill one-third of all the people on earth. ¹⁶I heard the size of their army, which was 200 million mounted troops. ¹⁷And in my vision, I saw the horses and the riders sitting on them. The riders wore armor that was fiery red and dark blue and yellow. The horses had heads like lions, and fire and smoke and burning sulfur billowed from their mouths. ¹⁸One-third of all the people on earth were killed by these three plagues—by the fire and smoke and burning sulfur that came from the mouths of the horses. ¹⁹Their power was in their mouths and in their tails. For their tails had heads like snakes, with the power to injure people. ²⁰But the people who did not die in these plagues still refused to repent of their evil deeds and turn to God. They continued to worship demons and idols made of gold, silver, bronze, stone, and wood—idols that can neither see nor hear nor walk! ²¹And they did not repent of their murders or their witchcraft or their sexual immorality or their thefts.

Revelation 9:14-21

There is one more repetitive element to be found in Revelation 16, a MEGA sized one! The Greek word [μέγα] meaning “great” is found seven times in this one chapter to great effect.

• a great voice – μεγάλης φωνῆς (16:1)
• great heat – καῦμα μέγα (16:9)
• the river the great the Euphrates – τὸν ποταμὸν τὸν μέγαν τὸν Εὐφράτην (16:12)
• the great day of the LORD God Almighty – τῆς ἡμέρας τῆς μεγάλης τοῦ Θεοῦ τοῦ παντοκράτορο (16:14)
• a great voice – φωνὴ μεγάλη (16:17)
• a great earthquake – σεισμὸς μέγας (16:18)
• great hail – χαλάζης μεγάλη (16:21)

I suspect there are numbers of you readers, who have spotted the context of this MEGA pattern. Do you see it? What else binds this MEGA link to the GREAT Euphrates River? None other that the lack of response to the call to repent! There it is again in the context of both Revelation 9 and Revelation 16. The same warning receives the same response which necessitates the consistent Divine response: no repentance brings down judgement.

I have one last question to leave you with before the next Gem in this series.

Why is the Euphrates River in focus in both Revelation 9 and Revelation 16?

Let me rephrase the question to give you a hint:

• Why are two cities connected with two harvests?
• I could have called Gem 1327 – A Tale of Two Harvests alternatively ‘A Tale of Two Cities’. Why?

I did consider doing that but thought it was too early in the revelation process to use that title back in Gem 1327. We needed more time to allow the essential elements to be revealed. I trust now it is becoming clearer how all the pieces go together. As my Greek professor, Dr Basil Brown, used to say: “Class, no word of Scripture is a throw-away; every word is important!”

Let me know why you think the reason the great Euphrates River is mentioned before the next Gem when I will tell you what I think.

Greatness is not found in where we stand, but in what direction we are moving.  

Oliver Wendell Holmes

Those who have the ability to be grateful are the ones who have the ability to achieve greatness.

Steve Maraboli

Not everybody can be famous but everybody can be great, because greatness is determined by service.

Martin Luther King Jr

“Whoever wants to be great among you must be your servant and whoever wants to be first among you must be your slave. That’s the way it is with the Son of Man. He did not come to be served, but to serve and to give his life as a ransom for many people.” Jesus

Matthew 20:26-28