English
And I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, ‘Go and pour the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth.’
And the first went and poured his bowl on the earth, and evil and painful wounds came on the men who had the wild animal’s mark and the ones who worshiped its image.
And the second poured his bowl in the sea, and it became blood like a corpse’s, and every living soul that was in the sea died.
And the third poured his bowl into the rivers and the streams of water, and they became blood.
And I heard the angel of the waters say, ‘You are just, the one who is and who was, the sacred one, because you have judged these things, because the blood of the holy ones and prophets were poured out. You gave them blood to drink; they deserve it.’
And I heard the altar saying, ‘Yes, Lord God the Almighty, your judgments are true and just.’
And the fourth poured his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to scorch men with fire. And the men were scorched with intense heat, and they cursed God’s name—who has authority over these plagues—and they did not repent to give him glory.
And the fifth poured his bowl on the wild animal’s throne, and its kingdom was darkened. And they gnawed their tongues from the pain, and they cursed the god of heaven because of their pain and because of their wounds, and they did not repent from their works.
Interpretation
Like the seven trumpets, the seven bowls broadly adapt some of the plagues from Exodus.
Parallels
Psalms
105.28 He sent darkness, and made the land dark; they rebelled against his words.
Isaiah
42.25 So he poured upon him the heat of his anger
Nahum
1.6 Who can stand before his indignation? Who can endure the heat of his anger? His wrath is poured out like fire, and by him the rocks are broken in pieces.
10.21–22 Then Yhwh said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand towards heaven so that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness that can be felt.’ So Moses stretched out his hand towards heaven, and there was dense darkness in all the land of Egypt for three days.
Deuteronomy
28.22 Yhwh will afflict you with […] fiery heat and drought
Ezekiel
38.19–22 For in my jealousy and in my blazing wrath I declare: On that day there shall be a great shaking in the land of Israel; the fish of the sea, and the birds of the air, and the animals of the field, and all creeping things that creep on the ground, and all human beings that are on the face of the earth, shall quake at my presence, and the mountains shall be thrown down, and the cliffs shall fall, and every wall shall tumble to the ground. I will summon the sword against Gog in all my mountains, says the Lord Yhwh; the swords of all will be against their comrades. With pestilence and bloodshed I will enter into judgement with him; and I will pour down torrential rains and hailstones, fire and sulphur, upon him and his troops and the many peoples that are with him.
Exodus
9.8–10 Then Yhwh said to Moses and Aaron, ‘Take handfuls of soot from the kiln, and let Moses throw it in the air in the sight of Pharaoh. It shall become fine dust all over the land of Egypt, and shall cause festering boils on humans and animals throughout the whole land of Egypt.’ So they took soot from the kiln, and stood before Pharaoh, and Moses threw it in the air, and it caused festering boils on humans and animals.
10.21 Then Yhwh said to Moses, ‘Stretch out your hand towards heaven so that there may be darkness over the land of Egypt, a darkness that can be felt.’
Sibylline Oracles
3.310–313 Then you will be as you were before, as if you had not been. Then you will be filled with blood, as you yourself formerly poured out the blood of good men and righteous men, whose blood even now cries out to high heaven.
7.33–35 The angels will sleep under his feet—those who cause fires to gleam and those who pour forth rivers, those who protect cities and those who send out storm winds.
Jubilees
2.2 For on the first day he created the heavens, which are above, and the earth, and the waters and all of the spirits which minister before him: the angels of the presence, and the angels of sanctification, and the angels of the spirit of fire, and the angels of the spirit of the winds, and the angels of the spirit of the clouds and darkness and snow and hail and frost, and the angels of resoundings and thunder and lightning, and the angels of the spirits of cold and heat and winter and springtime and harvest and summer
2 Enoch
19.4 and there are also angels over rivers and oceans
3 Enoch
14.3 the angel of fire, the angel of hail, the angel of wind, the angel of lightning, the angel of whirlwind, the angel of thunder, the angel of snow, the angel of rain, the angel of day, the angel of night, the angel of the sun, the angel of the moon, the angel of the stars, the angel of the constellations