The fifth angel poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was plunged into darkness. Men 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. (Revelation 16:10-11, NIV 1984).
My Musings – Satan is the prince of darkness, so it is only fitting that darkness should invade his kingdom. And expected. “Blow the trumpet in Zion; sound the alarm on my holy hill. Let all who live in the land tremble, for the day of the Lord is coming. It is close at hand— a day of darkness and gloom, a day of clouds and blackness.” (Joel 2:1–2, NIV 1984). See also Christ’s prophecy in Mark 13:24.
This plague corresponds to the ninth plague in Exodus 10:21–23, where the darkness is centralized in Egypt (Revelation 8:12). In that case, the entire land was dark, except for Goshen where the Israelites lived. The judgment of the fifth bowl is just the opposite. While there is light for the world, darkness reigns “on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom.”
People will chew their tongues, because of the pain caused by the sores, thirst, and burns inflicted thus far. This may indicate confusion, delirium and mental/emotional derangement brought on by prolonged, intense physical suffering. “But they refused to repent of what they had done.” This is the last reference in Revelation to a failure to repent, underscoring the finality of the choice of the remaining unredeemed.
The fifth bowl is similar to the fifth trumpet (Revelation 9:1–11) in that both will bring darkness. However, some suggest that the fifth trumpet related to spiritual darkness rather than literal darkness.
My Advice – “This is the verdict: Light has come into the world, but men loved darkness instead of light because their deeds were evil. Everyone who does evil hates the light and will not come into the light for fear that his deeds will be exposed. But whoever lives by the truth comes into the light, so that it may be seen plainly that what he has done has been done through God.” (John 3:19–21, NIV 1984). What will your verdict be? “Come into the light” before the final darkness comes, “where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.” (Matthew 8:12, NIV 1984).
Resources:
Wiersbe, W. W. (1992). Wiersbe’s expository outlines on the New Testament (p. 842). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, p. 610). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
Barry, J. D., Heiser, M. S., Custis, M., Mangum, D., & Whitehead, M. M. (2012). Faithlife Study Bible (Re 16:10). Bellingham, WA: Logos Bible Software.
Walvoord, John F. (1985). Revelation. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 967). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.
The Brew Is A Musing 