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Revelation chapter 16

English Standard Version

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple telling the seven angels, "Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God."
2So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and harmful and painful sores came upon the people who bore the mark of the beast and worshiped its image.
3The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse, and every living thing died that was in the sea.
4The third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood. 5And I heard the angel in charge of the waters say, "Just are you, O Holy One, who is and who was, for you brought these judgments.
6For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. It is what they deserve!" 7And I heard the altar saying, "Yes, Lord God the Almighty, true and just are your judgments!"
8The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was allowed to scorch people with fire. 9They were scorched by the fierce heat, and they cursed the name of God who had power over these plagues. They did not repent and give him glory.
10The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues in anguish 11and cursed the God of heaven for their pain and sores. They did not repent of their deeds.
12The 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. 13And I saw, coming out of the mouth of the dragon and out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs. 14For they are demonic spirits, performing signs, who go abroad to the kings of the whole world, to assemble them for battle on the great day of God the Almighty. 15("Behold, I am coming like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake, keeping his garments on, that he may not go about naked and be seen exposed!") 16And they assembled them at the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
17The seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple, from the throne, saying, "It is done!" 18And there were flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder, and a great earthquake such as there had never been since man was on the earth, so great was that earthquake. 19The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell, and God remembered Babylon the great, to make her drain the cup of the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20And every island fled away, and no mountains were to be found. 21And great hailstones, about one hundred pounds each, fell from heaven on people; and they cursed God for the plague of the hail, because the plague was so severe.
New International Version

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, "Go, pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth."
2The 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.
3The 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.
4The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.
5Then 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; 6for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, and you have given them blood to drink as they deserve."
7And I heard the altar respond: "Yes, Lord God Almighty, true and just are your judgments."
8The fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire. 9They 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.
10The 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 11and cursed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they refused to repent of what they had done.
12The 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. 13Then I saw three impure spirits that looked like frogs; they came out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14They are demonic spirits that perform signs, and they go out to the kings of the whole world, to gather them for the battle on the great day of God Almighty.
15"Look, I come like a thief! Blessed is the one who stays awake and remains clothed, so as not to go naked and be shamefully exposed."
16Then they gathered the kings together to the place that in Hebrew is called Armageddon.
17The 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!" 18Then there came flashes of lightning, rumblings, peals of thunder and a severe earthquake. No earthquake like it has ever occurred since mankind has been on earth, so tremendous was the quake. 19The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations collapsed. God remembered Babylon the Great and gave her the cup filled with the wine of the fury of his wrath. 20Every island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21From the sky huge hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell on people. And they cursed God on account of the plague of hail, because the plague was so terrible.
New American Standard Bible

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple, saying to the seven angels, 'Go and pour out on the earth the seven bowls of the wrath of God.'
2So the first angel went and poured out his bowl on the earth; and a harmful and painful sore afflicted the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his image.
3The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood like that of a dead man; and every living thing in the sea died.
4Then the third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of waters; and they became blood. 5And I heard the angel of the waters saying, 'Righteous are You, the One who is and who was, O Holy One, because You judged these things; 6for they poured out the blood of saints and prophets, and You have given them blood to drink. They deserve it.' 7And I heard the altar saying, 'Yes, Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.'
8And the fourth angel poured out his bowl upon the sun, and it was given power to scorch people with fire. 9And the people were scorched with fierce heat; and they blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent so as to give Him glory.
10And the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became darkened; and they gnawed their tongues because of pain, 11and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pain and their sores; and they did not repent of their deeds.
12The sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates; and its water was dried up, so that the way would be prepared for the kings from the east.
13And I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits like frogs; 14for they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the entire world, to gather them together for the war of the great day of God, the Almighty. 15('Behold, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who stays awake and keeps his clothes, so that he will not walk about naked and people will not see his shame.') 16And they gathered them together to the place which in Hebrew is called Har-Magedon.
17Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl upon the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, 'It is done.' 18And there were flashes of lightning and sounds and peals of thunder; and there was a great earthquake, such as there had not been since mankind came to be upon the earth, so great an earthquake was it, and so mighty. 19The great city was split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered in the sight of God, to give her the cup of the wine of His fierce wrath. 20And every island fled, and no mountains were found. 21And huge hailstones, weighing about a talent each, *came down from heaven upon people; and people blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, because the hailstone plague *was extremely severe.
Christian Standard Bible

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, "Go and pour out the seven bowls of God’s wrath on the earth." 2The first went and poured out his bowl on the earth, and severely painful sores broke out on the people who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped its image.
3The second poured out his bowl into the sea. It turned to blood like that of a dead person, and all life in the sea died.
4The third poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood.
5I heard the angel of the waters say, You are just, the Holy One, who is and who was, because you have passed judgment on these things. 6Because they poured out the blood of the saints and the prophets, you have given them blood to drink; they deserve it!
7I heard the altar say, Yes, Lord God, the Almighty, true and just are your judgments.
8The fourth poured out his bowl on the sun. It was allowed to scorch people with fire, 9and people were scorched by the intense heat. So they blasphemed the name of God, who has the power over these plagues, and they did not repent and give him glory.
10The fifth poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and its kingdom was plunged into darkness. People gnawed their tongues because of their pain 11and blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, but they did not repent of their works.
12The sixth 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. 13Then I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming from the dragon’s mouth, from the beast’s mouth, and from the mouth of the false prophet. 14For they are demonic spirits performing signs, who travel to the kings of the whole world to assemble them for the battle on the great day of God, the Almighty. 15"Look, I am coming like a thief. Blessed is the one who is alert and remains clothed so that he may not go around naked and people see his shame." 16So they assembled the kings at the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.
17Then the seventh poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple from the throne, saying, "It is done!" 18There were flashes of lightning, rumblings, and peals of thunder. And a severe earthquake occurred like no other since people have been on the earth, so great was the quake. 19The great city split into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the Great was remembered in God’s presence; he gave her the cup filled with the wine of his fierce anger. 20Every island fled, and the mountains disappeared. 21Enormous hailstones, each weighing about a hundred pounds, fell from the sky on people, and they blasphemed God for the plague of hail because that plague was extremely severe.
New Living Translation

1Then I heard a mighty voice from the Temple say to the seven angels, 'Go your ways and pour out on the earth the seven bowls containing God’s wrath.'
2So the first angel left the Temple and poured out his bowl on the earth, and horrible, malignant sores broke out on everyone who had the mark of the beast and who worshiped his statue.
3Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it became like the blood of a corpse. And everything in the sea died.
4Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs, and they became blood.
5And I heard the angel who had authority over all water saying, 'You are just, O Holy One, who is and who always was, because you have sent these judgments. 6Since they shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, you have given them blood to drink. It is their just reward.'
7And I heard a voice from the altar, saying, 'Yes, O Lord God, the Almighty, your judgments are true and just.'
8Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, causing it to scorch everyone with its fire. 9Everyone was burned by this blast of heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over all these plagues. They did not repent of their sins and turn to God and give him glory.
10Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. His subjects ground their teeth in anguish, 11and they cursed the God of heaven for their pains and sores. But they did not repent of their evil deeds and turn to God.
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.
17Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air. And a mighty shout came from the throne in the Temple, saying, 'It is finished!' 18Then the thunder crashed and rolled, and lightning flashed. And a great earthquake struck — the worst since people were placed on the earth. 19The great city of Babylon split into three sections, and the cities of many nations fell into heaps of rubble. So God remembered all of Babylon’s sins, and he made her drink the cup that was filled with the wine of his fierce wrath. 20And every island disappeared, and all the mountains were leveled. 21There was a terrible hailstorm, and hailstones weighing as much as seventy-five pounds fell from the sky onto the people below. They cursed God because of the terrible plague of the hailstorm.
King James Version

1And I heard a great voice out of the temple saying to the seven angels, Go your ways, and pour out the vials of the wrath of God upon the earth.
2And the first went, and poured out his vial upon the earth; and there fell a noisome and grievous sore upon the men which had the mark of the beast, and upon them which worshipped his image.
3And the second angel poured out his vial upon the sea; and it became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.
4And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood. 5And I heard the angel of the waters say, Thou art righteous, O Lord, which art, and wast, and shalt be, because thou hast judged thus. 6For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy.
7And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments.
8And the fourth angel poured out his vial upon the sun; and power was given unto him to scorch men with fire. 9And men were scorched with great heat, and blasphemed the name of God, which hath power over these plagues: and they repented not to give him glory.
10And the fifth angel poured out his vial upon the seat of the beast; and his kingdom was full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues for pain, 11And blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and repented not of their deeds.
12And the sixth angel poured out his vial upon the great river Euphrates; and the water thereof was dried up, that the way of the kings of the east might be prepared. 13And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs come out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14For they are the spirits of devils, working miracles, which go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. 15Behold, I come as a thief. Blessed is he that watcheth, and keepeth his garments, lest he walk naked, and they see his shame. 16And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Armageddon.
17And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done. 18And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great. 19And the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell: and great Babylon came in remembrance before God, to give unto her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath. 20And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21And there fell upon men a great hail out of heaven, every stone about the weight of a talent: and men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail; for the plague thereof was exceeding great.
New King James Version

1Then I heard a loud voice from the temple saying to the seven angels, “Go and pour out the bowls of the wrath of God on the earth.”
2So the first went and poured out his bowl upon the earth, and a foul and loathsome sore came upon the men who had the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image.
3Then the second angel poured out his bowl on the sea, and it became blood as of a dead man; and every living creature in the sea died.
4Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.
5And I heard the angel of the waters saying: “You are righteous, O Lord, The One who is and who was and who is to be, Because You have judged these things. 6For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, And You have given them blood to drink. For it is their just due.”
7And I heard another from the altar saying, “Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are Your judgments.”
8Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and power was given to him to scorch men with fire. 9And men were scorched with great heat, and they blasphemed the name of God who has power over these plagues; and they did not repent and give Him glory.
10Then the fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom became full of darkness; and they gnawed their tongues because of the pain. 11They blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores, and did not repent of their deeds.
12Then the sixth angel poured out his bowl on the great river Euphrates, and its water was dried up, so that the way of the kings from the east might be prepared. 13And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet. 14For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty.
15“Behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his garments, lest he walk naked and they see his shame.”
16And they gathered them together to the place called in Hebrew, Armageddon.
17Then the seventh angel poured out his bowl into the air, and a loud voice came out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, “It is done!” 18And there were noises and thunderings and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such a mighty and great earthquake as had not occurred since men were on the earth. 19Now the great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. And great Babylon was remembered before God, to give her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of His wrath. 20Then every island fled away, and the mountains were not found. 21And great hail from heaven fell upon men, each hailstone about the weight of a talent. Men blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, since that plague was exceedingly great.

What does Revelation chapter 16 mean?

Revelation 16 resumes the account of God's judgments on the wicked. It describes the bowl judgments, the third seven-part series of God's wrath described in the book of Revelation. Prior to this were seven seal judgments, the last of which were the trumpets. The trumpet judgments totaled seven, the last of which were these bowls of the wrath of God.

The first bowl judgment brings harmful and painful sores to those who carry the mark of the beast. The second judgment turns the sea into blood and kills all the marine life. The third bowl judgment turns rivers and springs into blood. Unlike prior incidents where some portion of the sea or rivers was affected, this event appears to ruin all waters throughout the entire earth (Revelation 16:1–4).

Following the third bowl judgment, an angel declares that God is just to avenge the wicked for their murderous acts against the saints and prophets. The angel's declaration is met with full agreement from a voice from the altar (Revelation 16:5–7).

The fourth judgment scorches the wicked with fire, but instead of repenting, unbelievers curse God. This might refer to a reduction in earth's natural protection from the sun, "allowing" it to burn the people of earth. The fifth bowl judgment plunges the kingdom of the beast into darkness. The wicked respond by gnawing their tongues in anguish and by cursing God. The sixth judgment dries up the Euphrates to prepare the way for the kings of the east. Next, demons assemble the kings of the whole earth to battle against God at a location referred to as Armageddon, meaning the hill—or mountain—of Megiddo (Revelation 16:8–16).

The seventh bowl judgment brings about an earthquake that splits Jerusalem into three parts. Also as a result of this earthquake, cities worldwide fall, Babylon feels God's wrath, islands flee, mountains crumble, and hailstones weighing about 100 pounds bombard people. Still, the wicked refuse to repent. Instead, they curse God (Revelation 16:17–21).

At this point, earth has been fatally ruined and the tribulation is all but over. Chapters 17 and 18 will go into greater detail, some of it poetic and descriptive, to further explain the fall of the wicked. Chapter 19 will resume the moment-by-moment description of the end times, including the second coming of Jesus Christ.
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