THE SUN-FACED ANGEL & THE BOOK OF JUDGMENT

The Sun-Faced Angel and the Book of Judgment  Ch. 10

This is an Inset

The key is in verse 6: "Time no longer" AV; "Delay no longer" RV.

"And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer."

 

 The Mighty Angel and His Actions 1-4
"And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:" "And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth," "And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices." "And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not."

The Identification of the Angel 1

This is not Christ as Seiss thinks, but simply another mighty angel serving the Lord Jesus (allon aggelon iscuron). This rules out Christ.

He is sent with delegated authority to discharge a certain task for Christ. He therefore comes from heaven where Christ is. Christ does not come to earth until Rev. 19:11-21.

This angel must swear by God and Christ in order to guarantee the veracity of his message (6)

The Description of the Angel  1

He is clothed with a cloud which may be a cloud of glory. This is because he is acting for Christ. The rainbow upon his head indicates that his work shall be tempered with mercy. The face shining as the sun indicates that his authority is supreme, even as the Son of God. The feet like pillars of fire make it clear that judgment is in the exercise of this angel.

The Appropriation of the Angel and The Instrument for Taking Possession vs. 2-3

The little book is the same book of chapters 5-6. It is the book that now is completely open, for the seals have been removed. It is the title deed to the universe, and without which he could not take possession.
5:1 (biblion). 10:2 (biblaridion).

The Actual Taking of Possession

This is the symbolic action of the angel setting his right foot upon the sea and his left foot upon the earth. Joshua 1:3.

"Every place that the sole of your foot shall tread upon, that have I given unto you, as I said unto Moses."

The Declaration of Possession vs. 3

His cry was like that of a Lion when it roars. This means that he not only has taken possession but will use force to hold and defend what is his. This precipitates the seven thunders.

The Expulsion Announced by the Voice vs. 4

John would have written the message of the seven thunders, but a voice commanded him to seal up those things uttered by the thunders. Therefore, it is useless to speculate concerning their nature.

However, it may be said that since they are thunder, the general message is judgment. Again, the impor­tance of the passage is judgment.

THE SIXTH TRUMPET

The Sixth of the Trumpets of Judgment  9:12-21

"One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter." "And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God," "Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates." "And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men." "And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them." "And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone." "By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths." "For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt." "And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk:" "Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts."

2nd Woe 12

The Origination of the Infernal Horsemen  12-15

"One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter." "And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God," "Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates." "And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men."

 

The Ultimate Source of the Judgment is the Voice From the Horns of the Golden Altar 13

"And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God,"

This voice is in response to the prayers of the saints and based upon the efficacy of the work of Christ. The horns signify the power to answer. The same voice that was meant to call for mercy instead calls for judgment.

The Mediate Source of the Judgment is the Sixth Angel  14

This angel is to loose the four angels bound in the great river Euphrates.
This is the place where evil began upon earth and the place it will end (Zech. 5:8-11).

"And he said, This is wickedness. And he cast it into the midst of the ephah; and he cast the weight of lead upon the mouth thereof." "Then lifted I up mine eyes, and looked, and, behold, there came out two women, and the wind was in their wings; for they had wings like the wings of a stork: and they lifted up the ephah between the earth and the heaven." "Then said I to the angel that talked with me, Whither do these bear the ephah?" "And he said unto me, To build it an house in the land of Shinar: and it shall be established, and set there upon her own base."

This is Babylon in the land of Shinar on the Euphrates. This is where false religion began (cf. Rev. 17-18).

The Immediate Source of the Judgment is the Four Angels and Their Army 15-16

"And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men." "And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them."

These angels have been prepared for some time to slay the third part of men. But they have been restricted. When they do go forth, they marshal an army of considerable proportions. (See verse 16).

The Description of the Infernal Horsemen  vss. 16-17

"And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them." "And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone."

 

The army numbers 200 thousand thousand.

While it is possible that these may refer to men and mechanical horses, it seems unlikely. This is 200,000,000. However, compare Chap. 16:12ff.

The Appearance of the Horses and Horsemen is Terrifying  vs. 17

Breastplates of fire and jacinth and brimstone.
This is yet the language of appearance.

The Intention of These Infernal Horsemen  vss. 18-19

"By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths." "For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt."

They kill the third part of men with the fire, smoke, and brimstone which issues out of their mouths. vs. 18
They hurt with mouths, heads, and tails many others who do not suffer death. vs. 19

The Explanation of These Locusts and Horsemen vss. 20-21

These plagues referred to are the 5th and 6th trumpets.
These are woes of a more dreadful kind than in the earlier trumpets (cf. 8:13 with 9:12).
These result in the death of many and the torment of many others (9:5 with 15, 18, 20).

The Response of the Living to the Plagues Explains Them

The living continue to worship as they have worshipped. cf. vs. 21
The works of their hands is the making and use of images. Idolatry is connected with pagan worship (1 Cor. 8:4-5).

"As concerning therefore the eating of those things that are offered in sacrifice unto idols, we know that an idol is nothing in the world, and that there is none other God but one." "For though there be that are called gods, whether in heaven or in earth, (as there be gods many, and lords many,)"

 

They worship demons as they have previously done. The word is "demons" in the RV. These are the spirits behind the images. All Gentile pagan worship is demonic (1 Cor. 10:20-21).

"But I say, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice, they sacrifice to devils, and not to God: and I would not that ye should have fellowship with devils." "Ye cannot drink the cup of the Lord, and the cup of devils: ye cannot be partakers of the Lord's table, and of the table of devils."

 

The Living Continue in Wickedness Associ­ated With Idolatry 21

Killing is associated with paganism because of the low value placed on life.
Sorceries and witchcraft have always been associated with pagan worship.
Fornication or sexual sin has also been associated with pagan worship.
Thievery has also been associated with paganism because of the low value placed on personal property.

NOTES

In the end time there will be an outbreak of demonic worship which may become well-nigh universal. 1 Tim. 4:1-3

"Now the Spirit speaketh expressly, that in the latter times some shall depart from the faith, giving heed to seducing spirits, and doctrines of devils;" "Speaking lies in hypocrisy; having their conscience seared with a hot iron;" "Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth."

Satan will sponsor this among those who have rejected the truth and they shall be led along in delusion. 2 Thess. 2:1-3; 2 Tim. 4:3; 2 Thess. 2:9-12

"Now we beseech you, brethren, by the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, and by our gathering together unto him," "That ye be not soon shaken in mind, or be troubled, neither by spirit, nor by word, nor by letter as from us, as that the day of Christ is at hand." "Let no man deceive you by any means: for that day shall not come, except there come a falling away first, and that man of sin be revealed, the son of perdition;"

"For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears;"

"Even him, whose coming is after the working of Satan with all power and signs and lying wonders," "And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in them that perish; because they received not the love of the truth, that they might be saved." "And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion, that they should believe a lie:" "That they all might be damned who believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."

Since men have preferred to reject the truth and follow demons, God will grant to them their own gods. They shall learn how utterly impure and malignant are their gods. This will settle the matter about the goodness of the pagan "isms."

But the response of men will be rebellious­ness and the refusal to repent, even though they have had first-hand experience of their gods. This shows that they are incorrigible and that the time for the harvest is ripe.
For such men, there is only one thing that can be done and that is to confine them in prison for judgment and punishment. They have gone beyond the place where they can change.

THE FIFTH OF THE TRUMPETS

The Fifth of the Trumpets of Judgment   9:1-11

"And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit." "And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit." "And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power." "And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads." "And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man." "And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them." "And the shapes of the locusts were like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads were as it were crowns like gold, and their faces were as the faces of men.
8  And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions." "And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle." "And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months." "And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon."

The Origination of These Locusts  9:1-3

The Star

This star does not fall, but is already fallen. RV. 1 Greek (pemptoV).
This is not a natural star, as the personal pronouns and actions indicate.
Stars refer to angels as already pointed out in this book, cf. 1:20.
This must be an angel in charge of the pit. cf. 20:1-3.
"And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand." "And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years," "And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season."

This angel is not Satan, for Satan's work is to torment the righteous and not the wicked as the locusts turn out to do (4-5). 12:17

"Fallen" taken in the moral sense means this angel is forced to obey God.

The Abyss 1-2

The AV reads the bottomless pit, while the RV is more accurate, reading the "pit of the abyss." Gr: the well of the Abyss. This must be the lower part of the Abyss (tou jreatoV thV abussou).

This may be the place where wicked spirits are confined and is the same as lower Sheol or lower Hades or Tartarus (2 Pet. 2:4).
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;"

Satan is confined in the Abyss for 1000 years (20:1-3). Demons also are tormented in this place (Luke 8:27-31 "deep").
"And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand." "And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years," "And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season."
"And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs." "When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not." "(For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.)" "And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him." "And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep."

It is the place of the dead, as indicated by the reference to Christ (Rom. 10:7).
"Or, Who shall descend into the deep? (that is, to bring up Christ again from the dead.)"

The Smoke 2-3

The smoke came out of the place called the well or the pit. It was a great smoke that darkened the sun and air and was as the smoke of a great furnace (2).
The smoke was not the locusts, for the locusts came out of the smoke (3).
The smoke doubtless has reference to the torment these creatures suffer. In other places it speaks of "the smoke of their torment" (14:11; cf. also Luke 8:27-31).
"And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name."
"And when he went forth to land, there met him out of the city a certain man, which had devils long time, and ware no clothes, neither abode in any house, but in the tombs." "When he saw Jesus, he cried out, and fell down before him, and with a loud voice said, What have I to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God most high? I beseech thee, torment me not." "For he had commanded the unclean spirit to come out of the man. For oftentimes it had caught him: and he was kept bound with chains and in fetters; and he brake the bands, and was driven of the devil into the wilderness.)" "And Jesus asked him, saying, What is thy name? And he said, Legion: because many devils were entered into him." "And they besought him that he would not command them to go out into the deep."

The furnace refers to the place of torment where judgment is being meeted out (cf. Rev. 18:9-10, 15, 18; 19:3; 20:10; 2 Pet. 2:4; Jude 6-7).
"And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning," "Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying, Alas, alas that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come."
"The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing,"
"And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city!"
"And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever."
"And the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where the beast and the false prophet are, and shall be tormented day and night for ever and ever."
"For if God spared not the angels that sinned, but cast them down to hell, and delivered them into chains of darkness, to be reserved unto judgment;"
"And the angels which kept not their first estate, but left their own habitation, he hath reserved in everlasting chains under darkness unto the judgment of the great day." "Even as Sodom and Gomorrha, and the cities about them in like manner, giving themselves over to fornication, and going after strange flesh, are set forth for an example, suffering the vengeance of eternal fire."

The Locusts 3

Out of the smoke come the locusts upon the earth.
Power is given to them such as scorpions have power.

The Intention of These Locusts 4-6

The realm of their power is unsaved men. 4
They must not hurt grass, green things, or trees.
They dare not hurt men with the seal in the forehead.
They may hurt men without the seal in their foreheads.

The Extent of Their Power is Limited  5

The limitation of time is five months.
The limitation of force is not to kill.
The limitation of kind is like a scorpion.

The Result of Their Power is Tremendous  6

Death shall be sought by the tormented and they shall not be able to effect it.
They shall desire to die, and death shall always elude them.

The Description of These Locusts  7-11
The Shapes  7

This was probably assumed like angels. To say the least, the description is grotesque and gruesome.
Like horses prepared for battle. 7
Crowns of gold seemed to be on their heads. 7
Their faces were like men's faces. 7 4g. Their hair was like that of women. 8
Their teeth were like lions'. 8
They seemed to have breastplates of iron. 9
Their tails were like scorpions. 10

The Sound  9

The sound of their wings was like that of many chariots in the rush toward battle.

The Stings  10

Their stings were in their tails and with these they tormented men like a scorpion.

The Sovereign  11

His dominion is over the locusts.
His designation is that of an angel.
His domain is the bottomless pit. Abyss.
His distinction is marked by his names.

In Hebrew: Abaddon, meaning destruction. In Greek: Apollyon, meaning destroyer.

The Species

These are not ordinary locusts as indicated by the place from which they come, the things they do not eat, their shapes and description, and their purpose.
These are not ordinary, for they have a king, and ordinary locusts do not.(Prov. 30:27.  cf. also. Ex. 10:14.)
"The locusts have not king" (Prov. 30:27).

The Explanation of These Locusts  9:20-21

We reserve the explanation until we come to the close of chapter nine, believing that the fifth and sixth trumpets loose plagues exactly alike upon the world of wicked men.

THE FOURTH ANGEL AND THE FOURTH TRUMPET

The Fourth Angel and the Fourth Trumpet  8:12

"And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise."

The Language of This is One of Appearance

The substance of this judgment is the reduction of light and the time it shines.

From sun, moon, and stars, the light is reduced by one third and the length of time it shines is reduced by one third. Cf. Isa. 13:9ff.
"Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it." "For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine." "And I will punish the world for their evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogances of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible."

The Objects of Judgment are the Sun, Moon, Stars, and Indirectly the Earth

The purpose of this judgment is to teach men that these luminaries are not gods, but the creations of God.

The Intermission Before the Sounding of the Fifth Trumpet  8:13

"And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!"

An Eagle and not an Angel Flies Through the Midst of Heaven

The revised reading is correct. This is not to be construed with Matt. 24:28 where it speaks of the eagles gathering to the carcass. Vultures gather about dead carrion and not eagles (See ISBE).
"For where so ever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together."

The Eagle Speaks, crying, Woe, woe, woe, etc.
This is not impossible when one remembers that God made an ass to speak. This is a literal eagle carrying a message.
Where moral corruption exists, divine judgment falls.

The Eagle is a Symbol of Judgment

That is precisely what his message is. The three remaining trumpets are announced as woes, more dreadful than the previous judgments (cf. Deut. 28:49; Jer. 48:40; Rev. 8:13).
"The LORD shall bring a nation against thee from far, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flieth; a nation whose tongue thou shalt not understand;"
"For thus saith the LORD; Behold, he shall fly as an eagle, and shall spread his wings over Moab."

THE THIRD ANGEL AND THE THIRD TRUMPET

The Third Angel and the Third Trumpet   8:10-11

"And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;" "And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter."

The Language Again is That of Appearance

The substance of the judgment is a great star, probably a meteor, producing chemical reaction in the waters.

This star may have broken up when it hit the earth's atmosphere and became like dust. Thus it spread out over a wide space. It is poison­ous, but not always fatal. The Greek word is "absinthe." In some places men use this to make an aromatic cocktail which produces a dead drunk. God gives them their fill.

The objects of the judgment are a third part of the rivers and the fountains of waters

The result is that many died. This is prophesied in the Old Testament (Jer. 9:13-15). Christ was given such to drink. Matt. 27:34.
"And the LORD saith, Because they have forsaken my law which I set before them, and have not obeyed my voice, neither walked therein;" "But have walked after the imagination of their own heart, and after Baalim, which their fathers taught them:" "Therefore thus saith the LORD of hosts, the God of Israel; Behold, I will feed them, even this people, with wormwood, and give them water of gall to drink."
"They gave him vinegar to drink mingled with gall: and when he had tasted thereof, he would not drink."

The purpose of the judgment is to teach men that those things upon which they have depended as the primary source of life, health, and happiness are after all dependent upon the Creator and Sustainer

THE SECOND ANGEL AND THE SECOND JUDGMENT

The Second Angel and the Second Trumpet   8:8-9

"And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;" "And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed."

 

The Language is the Same as in the First

The substance of the judgment is a great moun­tain burning. This is probably a meteoric mass, perhaps falling into the Mediterranean Sea, or any sea without designation.

The objects of the judgment are the ocean, life in the sea, and ships in the sea. Sea became to look like blood. From shock or pollution or both, a third part of the sea life died. One third of the ships were destroyed.

The purpose of this judgment is the same as above and also for three and four.

THE FIRST FOUR TRUMPETS OF JUDGMENT

The First Four Trumpets of Judgment   8:6-13

6  "And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound."
7  "The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up."
8  "And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood;"
9  "And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed."
10  "And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters;"
11  "And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter."
12  "And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise."
13  "And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!"

Introductory (6): The fact that these angels prepare themselves to sound, or announce the judgments shortly to be poured out, indicates the seriousness of the events to follow.

The First Angel and the First Trumpet 7

The language is that of appearance, but it depicts actualities and not by means of symbols. It is picturesque.

The substance of the judgment: hail, fire, blood. This is doubtless hail and lightning with blood red color.

The objects of the judgment is the earth, and especially trees and vegetation on a world-wide scale. A third part of trees and all grass was burnt (Exod. 9:23-28).
"And Moses stretched forth his rod toward heaven: and the LORD sent thunder and hail, and the fire ran along upon the ground; and the LORD rained hail upon the land of Egypt." "So there was hail, and fire mingled with the hail, very grievous, such as there was none like it in all the land of Egypt since it became a nation." "And the hail smote throughout all the land of Egypt all that was in the field, both man and beast; and the hail smote every herb of the field, and brake every tree of the field." "Only in the land of Goshen, where the children of Israel were, was there no hail." "And Pharaoh sent, and called for Moses and Aaron, and said unto them, I have sinned this time: the LORD is righteous, and I and my people are wicked." "Entreat the LORD (for it is enough) that there be no more mighty thunderings and hail; and I will let you go, and ye shall stay no longer."

The purpose of the judgment is to teach men that those things upon which they have depended as the primary source of life, health, and happi­ness are after all dependent upon the Creator and Sustainer.