The Seven Plagues and the Day of the Lord

The grace we experience today will one day come to an end. There are voices in the world suggesting that the God of the Old Testament no longer exists or that the signs and wonders He performed in the past are no longer relevant. But THE DAY OF THE LORD IS COMING, and no one should wish to experience it! It is a time of God’s unrelenting wrath, and it is not something anyone should desire, not even for their worst enemies. The wrath of God is currently being held back out of mercy for the world, providing time for repentance. But when the time comes, those who reject this grace will face the consequences of their refusal.

The Seven Plagues and the Day of the Lord

There are three main future events in God’s redemptive timeline that we must understand:

The Great Tribulation

The Day of the Lord

The Lake of Fire

In this section, we will explore the Day of the Lord, the specific period when God’s final judgment will be executed upon the world, and who will be affected by it.

1. The Great Tribulation

The Great Tribulation will be a time of unprecedented suffering, particularly for those who are faithful to Christ. This period will primarily affect Christians who refuse to accept the mark of the beast, as described in Revelation. They will be severely persecuted, and many will be martyred for their faith. The Great Tribulation will last for three and a half years, during which the world will continue in sin, following the Antichrist and rejoicing in his rule.

Matthew 24:21-22 (NIV): “For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. If those days had not been cut short, no one would survive, but for the sake of the elect those days will be shortened.”

Despite the suffering, those who endure to the end will be saved. The Great Tribulation will culminate in the Day of the Lord, a time of God’s wrath that will follow the rapture and the final judgment of the world.

2. The Day of the Lord

The Day of the Lord is not a specific 24-hour day but a period of time in which God will pour out His judgment upon the world, punishing sin and rewarding righteousness. It is a day that will be filled with terror for those who are unrepentant and rebellious. The Bible describes this day as one of great darkness, destruction, and cosmic upheaval.

Isaiah 13:6-9 (NIV): “Wail, for the day of the Lord is near; it will come like destruction from the Almighty. Because of this, all hands will go limp, every heart will melt with fear. Terror will seize them, pain and anguish will grip them; they will writhe like a woman in labor. They will look aghast at each other, their faces aflame. See, the day of the Lord is coming—a cruel day, with wrath and fierce anger—to make the land desolate and destroy the sinners within it.”

During this time, the world will face the wrath of God for their sin, especially those who have taken the mark of the beast, worshiped the Antichrist, and persecuted God’s people.

Joel 2:31 (NIV): “The sun will be turned to darkness and the moon to blood before the coming of the great and dreadful day of the Lord.”

3. The Duration of the Day of the Lord

The Day of the Lord will last for 75 days, based on the prophecy found in Daniel 12:11-12. This is calculated by the period of 1,260 days (the Great Tribulation) and an additional 1,335 days, making the difference 75 days. This period will be marked by various catastrophic events, including the judgment poured out from the seven trumpets and the seven bowls.

Daniel 12:11-12 (NIV): “From the time that the daily sacrifice is abolished and the abomination that causes desolation is set up, there will be 1,290 days. Blessed is the one who waits for and reaches the end of the 1,335 days.”

The Seven Trumpets and Plagues

Before the Day of the Lord begins, seven trumpets will sound, each heralding a specific judgment on the earth. These judgments will be part of God’s warning to humanity. While some will heed the warning, many will still refuse to repent.

Revelation 8:6-7 (NIV): “Then the seven angels who had the seven trumpets prepared to sound them. The first angel sounded his trumpet, and there came hail and fire mixed with blood, and it was hurled down on the earth. A third of the earth was burned up, a third of the trees were burned up, and all the green grass was burned up.”

These trumpet judgments will be devastating. As each trumpet is sounded, a third of the earth’s resources—trees, rivers, seas, and skies—will be destroyed.

The Seven Plagues of Revelation

In Revelation 16, we see the seven bowls of God’s wrath, which will be poured out on the world during the Day of the Lord. These bowls will contain the final outpouring of God’s judgment and will affect those who have chosen to follow the beast.

First Plague – Sores on those with the mark of the beast:

Revelation 16:2 (NIV): “The first angel went and poured out his bowl on the land, and ugly, festering sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.”

This plague will bring agonizing sores to those who worship the beast, marking the beginning of God’s judgment on the wicked.

Second Plague – The sea turning to blood:

Revelation 16:3 (NIV): “The second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it turned into blood like that of a dead person, and every living thing in the sea died.”

The seas, once teeming with life, will become lifeless, bringing about ecological and economic collapse.

Third Plague – Rivers turning to blood:

Revelation 16:4-7 (NIV): “The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood… And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: ‘You are just in these judgments, O Holy One, you who are and who were; for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve.’”

This plague is a direct judgment upon those who have spilled the blood of the martyrs, turning the earth’s fresh water sources into blood.

Fourth Plague – Scorching heat from the sun:

Revelation 16:8-9 (NIV): “The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire. They were seared by the intense heat and they cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him.”

This intense heat will torment the unrepentant, yet they will continue to curse God rather than repent.

Fifth Plague – Darkness and pain in the kingdom of the beast:

Revelation 16:10-11 (NIV): “The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in agony and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.”

The Antichrist’s kingdom will be plunged into utter darkness, and people will be in severe torment.

Sixth Plague – The Euphrates River dries up and preparations for Armageddon:

Revelation 16:12-16 (NIV): “The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up to prepare the way for the kings from the East.”

The drying up of the Euphrates will facilitate the gathering of armies for the final battle at Armageddon.

Seventh Plague – A devastating earthquake and the collapse of cities:

Revelation 16:17-21 (NIV): “The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and out of the temple came a loud voice from the throne, saying, ‘It is done!’ Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake… The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed.”

The final plague will shake the earth to its very foundations, as the judgment reaches its climax.

The Lake of Fire and Final Judgment

After the Day of the Lord, all the wicked will be judged and cast into the Lake of Fire, a place of eternal torment.