OK, now a third angel appears and pronounces doom on those who receive the mark of The Beast (back in revelation 13) and worship his name. People start to talk about eternal torment in this passage but there are two problems with this idea. 1) The torment is connected to a specific group of people, not universal punishment for all sinners and 2) It does not say they will be tormented but that THE SMOKE of their torment goes up forever and ever. I am simply saying there is enough doubt to raise an eyebrow or two.
Going back to how the seven churches would have looked at this, I see specifically verses 12 and 13 where the emphasis is on perseverance, obedience and faith. All things that Christ stressed back in chapters 2 and 3.
The next section chronicles two harvests 1) the first is the earth and 2) the second is the grapes of God's wrath. In each case, both are commanded to reap but the results are different. One thing is for sure, nothing good is about to happen, God is about to let loose with something terrible. Terrible to the point of bridle high blood for 200 miles.
Next: Back to the Throne of God
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