What’s the largest hail you’ve ever seen? I've witnessed some impressive hailstorms in my time, but the largest hail was about 4 inches in diameter. The 1995 Mayfest Storm in Ft. Worth, TX, with similarly sized hail, left a lasting impact on my car – literally. The hailstones, which weighed about 1 pound each, may not have seemed heavy, but they cratered plenty of dents with their force. In fact, I saw some of the damage to the rubber seals daily for the 17 years I had the Tempo.
The Bible, however, paints a far more intense picture of the
end. In Revelation, we read about extreme earthquakes and hailstones that weigh
100 pounds for the final judgment on earth.
Revelation 16:17-21 17 The 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!” 18 Then 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. 19 The
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. 20 Every
island fled away and the mountains could not be found. 21 From
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.
Again, I love how God is
still gracious, even to the last moment. He doesn’t zap everyone, but as these
plagues are unleashed, people have opportunities to repent, turn to God and
submit to His will. However, most will use their last breath to curse God rather
than humbly call out to Him.
This 7th bowl of
wrath from the seventh angel completes God’s wrath, as proclaimed in Revelation
15.1 (I saw in heaven another great and marvelous
sign: seven angels with the seven last plagues—last, because with
them God’s wrath is completed.) The voice from heaven also announced “It is done!”
(Rev 16:17). Jesus’s last words on the cross come to mind – “It is finished” (John 19:30). Jesus completed the work of
paying for our sin. In contrast, the bowl judgments in Revelation bring about
the end to earthly judgment.
In thinking about the end, how
do you want to use your last breath? Cursing God or claiming Him? If you have
accepted and value Jesus’s completed work on the cross to pay for your sins,
then you can look forward to claiming Him and enjoying His blessings for all
eternity!
