Preaching Goes Viral

Is The Coronavirus A Judgement From God?

Revelation 15:1 serves as a superscription, not only for chapter 15 but also for chapter 16. It is a sign that the end is fast approaching—that God is on the cusp of deposing evil and making all things right, as the world was when God first created the universe and placed man in the garden. As has become his practice, John introduces the first vision with the iconic kai eidon—“I saw.” As he had earlier, he saw “another sign in heaven.” The previous heavenly signs were of “the woman” (Revelation 12:1)—Israel—and of “a great red dragon” (Revelation 12:3)—Satan.  Like those former signs, this third one was “great” (maga), but it was also “marvelous” (thaumastos). These two words only occur together in verse 1 and in verse 13 of Revelation 15. The implication that the sign is “great” means that it is “incredible” or “important;” that it is “marvelous” means that it is “impressive, amazing, astonishing.”  Like “shock and awe,” taken together the phrase indicates that the sign is particularly awe-inspiring and jaw-dropping because it signified the climax of the outpouring of God’s wrath on nature, humankind, Satan, the Antichrist, and the False Prophet. The third sign itself is of the “seven angels who [pour out] the seven plagues” from the bowl judgments. We think of “plagues” today as natural events, like communicable diseases such as the newly discovered coronavirus that is running rampant. But in the Bible, a “plague” was a supernatural manifestation of divine judgment. Sometimes plagues were natural events that were supernaturally timed by God such as an earthquake or an infestation of locusts or frogs like Egypt experienced during the time of Moses.  Sometimes God’s judgments are prolonged, like the flood in Genesis 7. However, unlike long, drawn-out epidemics, like influenza, HIV, or tuberculosis, the “plagues” in verse 1 literally means “blow” or “wound.” These plagues will come with sudden impact—swift, decisive, and destructive.

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First Baptist Dallas

Dallas, TX

Baptist

10/26/2020 20:17