Revelation 16:4 kjv
And the third angel poured out his vial upon the rivers and fountains of waters; and they became blood.
Revelation 16:4 nkjv
Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.
Revelation 16:4 niv
The third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.
Revelation 16:4 esv
The third angel poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood.
Revelation 16:4 nlt
Then the third angel poured out his bowl on the rivers and springs, and they became blood.
Revelation 16 4 Cross References
| Verse | Text | Reference |
|---|---|---|
| Exod 7:19 | "...Aaron...stretch out your hand...on the waters of Egypt...that they may become blood..." | Moses' rod turns water to blood in Egypt. |
| Exod 7:20 | "...all the waters in the Nile River were turned into blood." | First plague of Egypt. |
| Exod 7:21 | "...the fish in the Nile died...Egyptians could not drink water from the Nile." | Consequences of the plague on water and life. |
| Psa 78:44 | "He turned their rivers into blood, and their streams, so that they could not drink." | Echoes the Exodus plague as God's judgment. |
| Psa 105:29 | "He turned their waters into blood and caused their fish to die." | Reinforces God's power over creation. |
| Rev 8:10 | "The third angel blew his trumpet, and a great star, blazing like a torch, fell on a third of the rivers..." | The third trumpet affects fresh waters. |
| Rev 8:11 | "...making a third of the waters bitter..." | Third trumpet: water poisoned, not blood. |
| Rev 11:6 | "They have power...to turn waters into blood..." | Two witnesses' power, reminiscent of Moses. |
| Rev 16:3 | "The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became like the blood of a dead man..." | Previous bowl affected salt water. |
| Rev 16:5 | "Then I heard the angel in charge of the waters say: 'You are just in these judgments..." | Justification for the water judgments. |
| Rev 16:6 | "...for they have shed the blood of your holy people and your prophets, and you have given them blood to drink..." | Direct reason for water turning to blood. |
| Isa 49:26 | "I will make your oppressors eat their own flesh; they will be drunk with their own blood..." | Enemies consumed by their own evil. |
| Isa 19:5 | "The waters of the Nile will dry up, and the river will be parched and dry." | Judgment related to drying up vital water. |
| Jer 9:22 | "their corpses will lie like dung...none will gather them." | Extensive death from divine judgment. |
| Eze 32:6 | "When I spread your gore on the mountains...the land will be drenched with your flowing blood." | Imagery of a land soaked with blood of the slain. |
| Zec 14:12 | "And this will be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the peoples who have fought against Jerusalem..." | Plague as divine punishment for enemies. |
| Deut 32:41-42 | "...my sword devours flesh, my arrows made drunk with blood..." | God's vengeance on His adversaries. |
| Matt 23:35 | "So that on you may come all the righteous blood shed on earth..." | Bearing the guilt for shedding innocent blood. |
| Luke 11:50-51 | "...that the blood of all the prophets, shed from the foundation of the world, may be charged against this generation..." | Accountability for historical bloodshed. |
| Rev 6:10 | "How long, Sovereign Lord...until you judge those who live on the earth and avenge our blood?" | Saints crying out for justice/vengeance. |
| Rev 18:24 | "And in her was found the blood of prophets and of saints, and of all who have been slaughtered on earth." | Babylon's guilt in bloodshed. |
| Rev 19:2 | "...for he has judged the great prostitute...and has avenged on her the blood of his servants." | God's justice in avenging blood. |
Revelation 16 verses
Revelation 16 4 Meaning
Revelation 16:4 describes the outpouring of the third bowl of God's wrath, where an angel pours judgment upon the fresh water sources of the earth. As a result, rivers and springs are transformed into blood, signifying a catastrophic and pervasive judgment that denies humanity essential sustenance and marks the contamination and judgment of life-giving resources. This event underscores divine retribution against those who have shed the blood of God's saints.
Revelation 16 4 Context
Revelation chapter 16 unfolds the grim series of the seven bowl judgments, also known as the "seven last plagues," for "in them the wrath of God is finished" (Rev 15:1). These judgments escalate in severity and comprehensiveness compared to the trumpet judgments, impacting a world that has hardened its heart against God despite previous warnings. The first bowl brought painful sores, the second turned the sea to blood, leading to widespread death of sea creatures. The third bowl, specifically Revelation 16:4, follows this progression by targeting fresh water sources. It's crucial to understand this plague not as arbitrary destruction, but as an act of divine justice directly responding to the pervasive bloodshed of God's people by the antichrist system, a truth explicitly revealed in verses 5-7 of the same chapter. Historically, this aligns with the pervasive evil of oppressive empires, often shedding the blood of righteous individuals and seeking to control vital resources, which find their ultimate manifestation in the anti-God world system of the last days.
Revelation 16 4 Word analysis
- The third angel: Indicates the specific chronological position in the sequence of seven bowl judgments. Each angel is an agent of God's divine will, executing pre-ordained wrath.
- poured out (ἐξέχεεν - exexeën): Aorist active indicative of ἐκχέω (ekcheō), meaning "to pour out," "to empty completely." It implies a swift, full, and decisive act of discharge, leaving nothing in the vessel. This contrasts with the gradual nature of the trumpet judgments, emphasizing the immediacy and completeness of the wrath.
- his bowl (τὴν φιάλην αὐτοῦ - tēn phialēn autou): The "bowl" (φιάλη - phialē) is a shallow saucer, designed for quick, total emptying, symbolizing a swift and unrestrained release of judgment. Unlike a vial (long narrow neck), it signifies no reservation in the pouring out of God's wrath.
- on the rivers (ἐπὶ τοὺς ποταμοὺς - epi tous potamous): Refers to flowing streams and large waterways. Rivers are fundamental sources of fresh water and life, often representing the stability and prosperity of a region.
- and springs of water (καὶ τὰς πηγὰς τῶν ὑδάτων - kai tas pēgas tōn hydatōn): "Springs" (πηγὰς - pēgas) are natural underground sources from which water bubbles up. Together with rivers, this encompasses all primary sources of fresh water, making the judgment universal and inescapable.
- and they became (καὶ ἐγένετο - kai egeneto): A shift from their natural state, denoting a supernatural transformation. This is not merely pollution but a complete change in essence, a literal transformation by divine power.
- blood (αἷμα - haima): The transformation into blood carries immense symbolic and literal weight. Literally, it means death and makes water undrinkable. Symbolically, blood is often associated with life (Lev 17:11), but in this context, it signifies death, defilement, and retributive justice, echoing the Exodus plagues (Exod 7:19-21) and the shedding of innocent blood (Rev 16:6).
Words-Group Analysis
- "The third angel poured out his bowl": Emphasizes divine agency and a structured, deliberate unfolding of God's judgment through specific, assigned spiritual beings. It is a divine, controlled, yet devastating act.
- "on the rivers and springs of water": Pinpoints the precise targets of this judgment—the earth's entire system of fresh water, crucial for life. This signifies a disruption of the very essentials of human existence, turning a life-sustaining element into an instrument of death and horror.
- "and they became blood": Highlights the terrifying and comprehensive nature of the transformation. It is not mere contamination, but a fundamental alteration making the water lethal and horrific. This directly alludes to the Mosaic plagues and carries profound theological implications of just retribution for bloodshed (Rev 16:6).
Revelation 16 4 Bonus section
The third bowl judgment stands as a powerful symbol of divine lex talionis – "law of retaliation" or "an eye for an eye," in its most terrifying and righteous form. The exact nature of "blood" can be debated between literal transformation (as in Exodus) or symbolic meaning (e.g., undrinkable, deadly, polluted by war and death), but the effect is unequivocally lethal and universally catastrophic for those who receive the plague. The specific targeting of freshwater sources ensures the inescapability and widespread nature of the judgment, impacting internal, essential life processes in a way the prior sea-to-blood plague (Rev 16:3) did not for land dwellers. The immediate follow-up in verses 5-7 by the "angel of the waters" provides explicit theological justification for the severity of this plague, clarifying that God's wrath is neither arbitrary nor excessive, but a holy and just response to great wickedness and the murder of His witnesses. This scene also foreshadows the complete moral collapse of human civilization when basic necessities become instruments of death.
Revelation 16 4 Commentary
Revelation 16:4 vividly portrays a divine judgment that turns all fresh water into blood. This is not just a scarcity but a perversion of life itself, as water, essential for survival, becomes a source of death and defilement. The specificity of "rivers and springs" means no natural source of drinking water is spared, affecting all who are dependent on them. This judgment is profoundly retributive, as indicated by the subsequent verses (16:5-7): those who shed the "blood of your holy people and your prophets" are now justly given "blood to drink." This demonstrates God's sovereign justice and His direct intervention to avenge the wrongs committed against His people, affirming that the shedding of innocent blood does not go unpunished. It underscores a central theme of divine judgment in Revelation: a righteous recompense that fits the crime, forcing the unrepentant to experience a horror akin to that they inflicted.