We started looking at these final set of judgments known as the Bowl Judgments last time. The chronology of the book, the timeline of the book of Revelation, is starting to move forward again. Revelation 12, 13 & 14 did not advance the timeline, but this does. We are going to have a great worship service just prior to the final judgments being poured out, these Bowl Judgments. This is not unusual in the book of Revelation. In fact, before each of the other major judgments that were poured out, there was a worship service before that.
If you go back for a moment to Revelation 6, you see the first set of judgments known as the Seal Judgments, there are seven of them, and they begin to be poured out in Revelation 6. Just prior to that, however, we have this wonderful worship service in heaven. Possibly the greatest example of heavenly worship anywhere in the Bible in Revelation 4 & 5. They deal with the worship of God the Father and God the Son by all the angelic hosts. It is a glorious, glorious worship service. Then in Revelation 6:1 he says that he saw one of the seals broken by the Lamb and these judgments begin to pour out. The same thing is true for the second series of judgments known as the Trumpet Judgments. Those are picked up in Revelation 8. The seventh Seal Judgment contains the seven Trumpet Judgments. That’s the content of the seventh seal. All of that began in Revelation 8, but prior to that there was again a wonderful worship service. In Revelation 7:11 it says, “And all the angels were standing around the throne and around the elders and the four living creatures; and they fell on their faces before the throne and worshiped God.” So, prior to the pouring out of this series of judgments we have the angelic and heavenly beings once again, especially the elders and the four living creatures, worshiping God. When we go back to Revelation 15, we are ready for this next series of judgments. This series goes back to Revelation 11:14, when it speaks of a third woe coming. Remember the final three Trumpet Judgments were called woes because they were so horrendous and horrible. The third woe was coming it says in Revelation 11:14 and then in Revelation 11:15 it announces the seventh Trumpet Judgment, but it doesn’t give us much detail about what it is about.
