Jesus was a judge of wrath

JESUS WAS A JUDGEOF WRATH
EDITED BY GLENN PEASE
REV 6:16 They calledto the mountains and the rocks,
“Fall on us and hide us[f] from the face of him who sits
on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!
BIBLEHUB RESOURCES
"the Wrath Of The Lamb."
Revelation6:16
D. Thomas
Hide us from the wrath of the Lamb. Wrath is a terrible thing. But the most
terrible of all wrath we have here - the wrath of the Lamb. "Hide us." Who
says this? "The kings of the earth, the greatmen, and the rich men, and the
chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free
man." These men had, no doubt, braved terrible things during their existence,
but they could not brave this. It struck an overwhelming horror into their
souls. What makes this wrath so terrible?
I. ITS UNEXAMPLED STRANGENESS. Who eversaw a lamb in a rage?
The wrath of a lion, a tiger, or a bear, - this is common, this is natural. But the
lamb is essentiallymeek, tender, yielding. Of all creatures this is the last
creature that could be excited to wrath. As a rule, whatever is strange is more

or less alarming. A strange comet, a strange heaving of the sea, or a strange
vibration in the earth. The wrath of a tender, loving, meek-minded man is a
far more terrible thing than the wrath of an irascible nature. The more
difficulty you have in exciting wrath the more terrible it is when it appears.
When the Lamb is in wrath it implies some terrible provocation, and that
provocationis sin. The wrath of the Lamb is an oceanof oil in flames. Well
may it strike terror. Another reasonwhy this wrath is so terrible is -
II. ITS INFINITE PURITY. The lamb is the emblem of innocence. The wrath
of the Lamb is not a passion, but a principle. It is not malign, but benevolent.
It is not againstexistence, but againstits sins and its crimes. Anger in man is
necessarilyan evil. Hence we are commanded to be "angry and sin not."
Learn from this that we turn our greatestblessing into the greatestcurse. Our
optic and auricular organs may be so diseasedas to give to the most beautiful
objects and most melodious sounds in nature a powerto convey into us the
most poignant anguish, and so our moral nature may become so corrupt as to
turn love into wrath, and blessedness into misery. - D.T.

Biblical Illustrator
Fall on us, and hide us.
Revelation6:15, 16
The lastgreat prayer meeting
W. M. Blackburn, D. D.
It is generally thought that none but the penitent really pray. And yet the day
is coming when even impenitent people will throng togetherand hold a prayer
meeting, and perhaps the most intensely earnestone ever upon record. Notice
the time. It is future. It will be after the day of grace has passed, after the
privilege for Christian prayer has ceased, andafter human probation has
been completed. Yes, when the righteous have ceasedto pray, and are
changing prayers on earth to praises in heaven, the impenitent will begin to
pray as if they thought of it for the first time in their lives. It will be when
Divine judgments are falling upon the earth. Where? In their homes? No,
those prayerless houses will be shaking into ruins by an earthquake. In the
churches? The day for churches will be gone. Why did they not hastento them
in the time of mercy? They will meet in the dens and caves, and among the
rocks ofthe mountains. Who will be there? In ages whenGod's children were
hunted down by foes, chiefly the lowly, the poor, met in such difficult retreats,
but to this lastprayer meeting kings will run, noblemen will hasten, courtiers
and statesmenwill speed, rich men and great captains will rush, and all who
thought they could trust in the permanence of earthly things. No real
Christians will be there. Mere professors andpretenders, deceivedin heart or
deceiving the very elect, and prayerless in their lives, may be expected;and
when there they will contribute their part for the first time to the interest of a
meeting, for they will pray voluntarily and with an earnestnessthey never
knew before. What are to be the exercises, the services?No reading of the
Word of God. None in that assembly will wish to hear it read or explained.
They disowned it once, they dislike it still, for it must expose their sins and
neglects. No preaching, because the day for that has passed. No psalms nor
spiritual songs. To what will they pray? Notto God. At sea, whenthe tempest
is raging, and all human control of the ship is lost, when the masts are torn

awayand the next wave that sweeps the deck may bury the company in the
deep, the passengersand crew lift their entreaties, not to the storm, not to the
waves, but to God, their only resort and refuge. But the prayer at this last
meeting is not to God, nor is it to men. In their fears they callupon the
mountains. Unwilling to call upon God in the day of prosperity, and disliking
to have friends pray for them, their aversionclings to them as a fixed habit,
and they are still determined not to cry unto the Lord. Nothing could once
persuade them to do it, and now nothing can force them, for the human will is
not convertedby force, Rather than submit to God's way, they callupon
everything else, idolising the deaf rocks and the dead mountains. These are
their gods. Can anything else so portray impenitence and stubbornness of
will? And why such a prayer for destruction? There are three reasons here
given.
I. THEIR DREAD OF SEEING THE FACE OF GOD. Once that face was
radiant with mercy. They might have been forgiven, but they would not seek
His pardon. Oh, the lost opportunities, the rejectedmercies!All gone for ever.
They cannot bear the sight of Him whose offers ofgrace they so wilfully
refused, and they ask the rocks to conferon them a merciless burial.
II. A FEAR OF THE JUSTICE OF CHRIST. Once He was the Lamb of
sacrifice, the atoning Redeemer, the entreating Saviour, ready to save all that
would call upon Him for salvation. But they would not call. Their day of
redemption is past, and Christ is coming as their Judge. They see punishment
awaiting them, and perdition before them as the just desert of their treatment
of Christ.
III. THE KNOWLEDGE THAT THEY ARE WITHOUT EXCUSE. There is
for them no apology, no availing plea, no justification, no righteousness, no
hope of future grace.
(W. M. Blackburn, D. D.)

The lastgreat prayer meeting
W. H. M. H. Aitken, M. A.
The first thing that strikes us about it is that this lastgreat prayer meeting
will be attended by a vasterassemblage ofhuman beings than it is even
possible for us to conceive. Everygrade of societyhas its representative there
— men and women, young and old, the child and the hoary-headed, the lofty
and the mean. They have come from every land. In a strange unity of woe the
attendants at this lastgreat prayer meeting are to be gatheredtogetherinto
one common centre. Again, this lastgreat prayer meeting is to be, in the
fullest and widest sense ofthe word, a united prayer meeting. There is a unity
of sin, as well as a unity of holiness, and the attendants at this last strange
audience are all thus bound together. Notthat it is a real unity. There seems to
be very little of anything like a corporate feeling in this last greatgathering.
Every man is engagedwith his own thoughts, offering his own prayer, yet are
they all brought togetherto one point, and all induced to address a certain
particular class ofobjects, and to offer a certain particular kind of prayer by
one vast, common, overwhelming necessity, whichspreads its fearful influence
over them all. It is a united prayer meeting; and as I contemplate that vast
gathering, I find all earthly distinctions have vanished. Socialdistinctions
have passedaway. The prince kneels beside the peasant. Again, I observe that
all ecclesiasticaldistinctions have vanished. Yet, again, I notice that in this
prayer meeting every man is thoroughly in earnest. I wish I could say as much
of the prayer meetings held here on earth in our day. Yet, again, I observe
that these men who pray so well and so earnestlyare preciselythe people who
were leastgiven to that pursuit while on earth: the people we very seldomsee
at prayer meetings here. Yet, again, it is a meeting at which every man prays
with a very definite purpose. If I were asked, Whatis the particular fault of
our modern prayer meetings? I should say — Indefiniteness. Yet, again, I
notice in this prayer meeting a peculiarity that we do not frequently observe
in our gatherings for prayer. I find that every man prays for himself. Now I
do not think we ought to confine our prayers to ourselves, but we should pray
to a far better purpose if we sometimes prayed out of our ownhearts, and

askedfor the things we ourselves need. People seemrather to aim at
employing vague expressions than making their wants known in a spirit of
believing supplication to God. And now we come to considerthe strangest
feature of all. While there are ten thousand times ten thousand voices, it may
be, lifted up in supplication, yet we are astonished at observing that of all
these prayers that go ringing around a startled world there is not so much as
one single petition that is offered to Almighty God — not one. When these
praying men were down here on earth they were always flying awayfrom
God; they did not want to have anything to do with Him; they could geton
very well without Him; they were worshippers of nature; they were believers
in secondcauses — not that they were all such by profession, but they were so
practically. These men have made earth their God: they have bowed down
before the spirit of this world: they have enthroned that subtle intelligence of
evil who has usurped the sovereigntyof this fallen world within their hearts.
They have practically made him the lord of their will, and submitted their
nature to his control; and now, when the last terrible moment comes, and
these men are gatheredtogetherfor their last greatprayer meeting, not one of
them prays to God. Why? Becausethe Nemesis oftheir own sin has come
upon them. What is it? Before they would not pray to God, and now they dare
not. Where is the answerto come from? These prayers are not addressedto
God: they do not reachthe place where His honour dwelleth: they dare not
hope that they will penetrate into His ears and reachHis heart. No:their own
consciencesforbid such an expectation. Such will be the last prayer meeting.
And now I want to ask a question, Are any of you ambitious to bear a part in
it?
(W. H. M. H. Aitken, M. A.)
Terrified sinners in the last earthly scene
J. A. Seiss, D. D.
1. We have here a glimpse of the constitution and generalcondition of society
at the time these prodigies befall the world. Suppose that the sixth sealwere to
be opened to-night, what would it find? Kings and emperors on their thrones;

princes, nobles, dukes, and lords securelypriding themselves in the
prerogatives oftheir caste andstation; rich people wallowing in wealth and
luxury; men and women in high places and in low working the wires that
fashion events;slaves toiling at their tasks and freedmen just out of their
bondage;and evidences everywhere of a depraved and disordered state of
things. This is what the judgment would find if it came to-night. And this,
John tells us, is what it finds when it does come in reality.
2. There is one thing, however, which shall be very different under the
opening of the sixth sealfrom what it is now. The self-securityand composure
with which godless people live will then be driven to the winds. Though all the
judgments under preceding seals may have failed to appal or arouse them,
they will not be able to maintain their equanimity under what this shall bring
forth. Self-possession, unshakencourage, dignified composure, philosophic
thinking, hopefulness, assurance, and the last remains of the stern intrepidity
and statue-like imperturbability which characterise some men now, will then
have vanished from humanity. That day will destroy them utterly.
3. We notice also the correctinterpretation which mankind will then put upon
the terrific disturbances of nature around them. Storms, earthquakes,
eclipses, andunusual phenomena in the heavens, are natural symbols of
Divine wrath. Modern science calls itsuperstition. But when the vision of the
text comes to be realised, woe to the materialistic, pantheistic, and atheistic
philosophies with which men suppose they have rid themselves of the
superstitions of antiquity! One flash from the judgment throne will confound
them utterly.
4. Noris it so much the physical prodigies as what they argue that renders the
dismay so unsupportable. It is not the shaking, the obscured sun, the falling
stars, the recoiling heavens, the moving mountains, so much as the moral
truths they flash into the spirit, to wit, that God is on the throne, that sin is a
reality, that judgment is come, and that every guilty one must now face an
angry Creator. It is not nature's bewildering commotions, for they would

willingly have the falling mountains coverthem if that would shelterthem
from what is much more in their view, and far more dreadful to them. What
they speak ofis, God upon the throne, the fear of His face, the day of
reckoning, and the wrath of the Lamb. These are more than all the horrors of
a universe in convulsions.
5. And how pitiable and absurd the expedients to which they are driven! Oh,
imbecile people! When prayer would have been availing, they scornedand
detestedit as mean and useless;and now that it is futile, they go at it with a
will. Still more absurd is the direction in which they address their prayers.
Once they consideredit folly that man should call on the living God; but now
they pray to dead rocks!Once they thought it philosophic to deny that He who
made the earcould hear prayers, or that He with whom is the Spirit, and
whose is the power, could answerthem; but now they supplicate the deaf and
helpless mountains! And yet weakerand more insane is the import of their
prayers and efforts. Omniscience and omnipresence are among the natural
attributes of God. The very things before these people's eyes should have been
enough to teachthem this. And yet, philosophers as they are, their proposalis
to concealthemselves from the Almighty, and so elude His wrath! Often had
shelter and peacefulsecurity been offered them in the mercies of the loving
Saviour, and as often had they despised and rejectedthem; but now the silly
souls would take the miserable rocks forsaviours! Oh, the foolishness ofmen
who think it folly to serve God!
(J. A. Seiss, D. D.)
Presumption running into despair
T. Adams.
I. THE HORROR OF THE REPROBATES.

1. The persons thus amazed with terror are described in the precedent verse,
"The kings of the earth," etc. The greatness ofman, when it comes to
encounter with God, is weaknessandvanity. Is he great? Be he never so high,
there is One "higher than he, and the Highest of all regardethit" (Ecclesiastes
8:5), and will subject it. Is he rich? Were he the eldest sonof Mammon, and
sole heir to all the usurers in the world, can his gold save him? Is vengeance
afraid to strike his vesselbecause his sails be of silk and it is ballasted with
refined ore? Shall he buy out his damnation with coin? No, heaven will never
take bribes. Is he a chief captain? Be his looks neverso stern, his speechnever
so imperious, impetuous, he may command here and go without. "Man is not
savedby the multitude of an host."
2. "Theysaid." They open their lips to confess the invincible and inevitable
powerof Christ.(1) The sense of present misery takes awayatheism. The day
of judgment, when it comes, shallfind no atheist.(2)The saying that comes
from them is desperate;whence note that, in God's just punishment,
desperationis the rewardof presumption. They that erstfeared too little shall
now fear too much. Before they thought not of God's justice, now they shall
not conceive His mercy.
3. These necessaryoccurrencesthus considered, let us pass to their invocation,
wherein is exemplified their error. Here we must observe, To what; For what
they call.(1)To what. They are mountains and rocks, unreasonable, yea,
insensible creatures.
(a)Negatively, it is clearthat they have no acquaintance with God, therefore
know not how to direct their prayers unto Him.
(b)Affirmatively, this presents a soul amazed with fear and folly. They call to
the mountains that can neither hear nor answer.(2)Forwhat. The benefit that

they would have the rocks and the mountains do them is to fall on them and
hide them.(a) Despairis everwishing for death, often impatiently snatching at
it in this world; but when the last day comes, so greedily longing for it, that to
be sure of it, they desire the mountains to dispatch them.(b) Observe that
rocks and mountains are far lighter than sin. Such a weightbore our Saviour
that He groanedunder it.(c) Observe that before these wickedwere lords of
nations and countries;now they would be glad of one hole to hide them. Of all
their dominions they beg but the barrenestparcel, a rock or mountain; and
that to do them a poor office, to concealthem. How much doth man's avarice
and ambition covethere, how little contents him hereafter! Nothing helps
when God will smite; mountains and rocks are no defence when God pursues
(Jeremiah 22:15). God hath a hand that canstrike through forts, rocks, and
bulwarks. The heavens "melt at the presence ofthe Lord; if He touch the
mountains, they smoke" for it.
II. THE JUDGE, FROM WHOM THEY DESIRE TO BE HIDDEN.
1. "Fromthe face." It was ever the fashion of guiltiness to fly from the
presence ofGod. Adam had no soonersinned, but he thrusts his head in a
bush. Sin's inevitable effect is shame. "Of Him that sitteth." Christ now sits in
glory. While He was on earth how little restedHe! Hast thou laboured? thou
shalt have ease:hast thou travelled in the ways of grace? thou shalt sit on the
seatof glory. "On the throne." Christ at this day shall appear in His true
majesty.
2. "Fromthe wrath." The wrath of Christ in His justice.
(T. Adams.)

From the wrath of the Lamb
The wrath of the Lamb
Homilist.
I. ITS UNEXAMPLED STRANGENESS. Who eversaw a lamb in a rage?
The more difficulty you have in exciting wrath, the more terrible it is when it
appears.
II. ITS INFINITE PURITY. "The Lamb" is the emblem of innocence. This
wrath of the "Lamb" is not a passion, but a principle. It is not malign, but
benevolent. It is not againstexistence, but againstits sins and its crimes.
Conclusion:Learn from this that we turn our greatestblessing into the
greatestcurse. Our optic and auricular organs may become so diseasedas to
give to the most beautiful objects and melodious sounds in nature a powerto
convey into us the most poignant anguish, and so our moral nature may
become so corrupt as to turn love into wrath, and blessednessinto misery.
(Homilist.)
The wrath of the lamb
G. Matheson, D. D.
The first thing which strikes us about the expressionis its extreme dramatism.
There is nothing so dramatic, in my opinion, as the sight of an emotion
contrary to the nature. When a man who has always hid his griefs bursts into
tears, when a man, like Arnold, who has always veiled his anger, gives way for
once to passion, we are impressedwith something like a sense oftragedy; it is
a bitter day in summer; it is a storm upon a lake. How canwe think of the love
of God as interrupted even for a moment by a thing calledwrath? Canwe any
more conceive a limit to the love of God than we can conceive a limit to the
powerof God? The state of mind he is describing is the wrath of a lamb — a
particular kind of wrath. He is considering a mode of angerwhich is not an

interruption of love, but itself a phase of love. The wrath of the Lamb is the
wrath of love itself. It is no more an interruption to Divine love than the haze
is an interruption to the heatof the morning. The wrath clouds the love; the
haze clouds the morning; but both the one and the other have grownout of
the very thing they obscure. There is an angerwhich is incompatible with the
absence oflove, which could not exist unless love existed before it. Here, then,
is the subjectwhich rises before us — the difference betweenthe wrath of the
Lamb and the wrath of the lion, betweenthe angerof love and the angerof
nature. Now, it seems to me that there are three distinct points of difference
betweenthem.
1. And first, I would observe that the wrath of the Lamb, or sacrificialspirit,
differs from the wrath of the lion in being purely impersonal. The wrath of the
lion says, "I, king of the forest, have receivedan affront; some one has
presumed to do an unkindness to me." The wrath of the Lamb says, "An
unkind thing has been done." It keeps the "me" out of the question altogether.
It looks at the deed in itself. It refuses to considerthe sense ofpersonalinjury
as a main feature of the case. Youhave a son who has defied your authority,
spent his substance in riotous living. You are incensedat this actof individual
disrespect. You resolve to bring him to his senses;you say, "We shall see
whether he or I shall be master here." Now, that is quite a legitimate mode of
anger, and quits a legitimate ground for it; but it is not the wrath of the
Lamb. It is neither goodnor bad. It is simply an appetite of nature like any
other appetite — like hunger. But it is possible for a father in these
circumstances to be filled with indignation on a different ground altogether. It
is possible for him to see in his son's delinquency, not an act, but a principle. It
is possible for him to feel, not that an insult has been offered to his pride, but
that an injury had been done to the universe. It is possible for him to
experience, not the sense ofa wounded self-love, but an angerfrom the fact
that love itself has been violated. This is the wrath of the Lamb. The Sonof
Man has reacheda splendid impersonality in His judgment of the world.
Though Himself at once the greatestandthe most wrongedof all, He refuses
to measure the wrong by His own feeling of pain. He throws Himself into the
position of the meanest, the lowliest. I pass to a secondpoint of difference
betweenthe wrath of love and the wrath of mere nature.

2. And it is this: The wrath of nature must begin by tearing out pity; the
wrath of love is a wrath createdby pity. In the former case our indignation is
stimulated by hiding the prospective photograph — by shutting our eyes to
the possible goodnesswhichthe bad man may yet attain. In the latter case the
indignation is stimulated by exactly the opposite process — by bringing out
the prospective photograph, and considering what the man might be made to
become. This brings me to a third point of difference betweenthe two kinds of
wrath.
3. They express their feeling in a different formula. The wrath of the lion says,
"I must have satisfaction";the wrath of the Lamb says, "Justice must be
satisfied." There is all the difference in the world betweengiving me
satisfactionin a quarrel and satisfying my justice in a wrong. The wrath of the
Lamb is always a redemptive wrath. Its first impulse is to buy back what has
been enslaved, to restore what has been wrongfully taken, to setat liberty
what has been bruised. The wrath of the lion will be satisfiedif the delinquent
is dead; the wrath of the Lamb pauses not until it learns that the delinquency
itself has been wiped away. And this renders powerfully suggestive that
theologicalepigramwhich represents Christ as paying the debts of humanity.
Nothing in a short compass could more completely describe the facts of the
case.
(G. Matheson, D. D.)
There is something of appalling significance in so paradoxicalan expressionas
this, of the "Wrath of the Lamb." It makes the wrath trebly potent that it
should be wrath, long suppressed, but at length discharged, of a nature

essentiallyand exceptionally meek, patient, long-suffering, easyto be
entreated, hard to be angered.
Furor fit
Francis Jacox, B. A.
laesa sapius patienia, says the Latin proverb: patience, trespassedupon too
often, is convertedinto wrath. And if, O patience, the long-suffering that is in
thee becomes wrath, how greatis that wrath! Plutarch says of the Roman
populace, on the occasionofa certain tumult, "they thought that the wrath of
Fabius now provoked, albeit he was naturally so mild and patient, would
prove heavy and is "placable" — all the more so, indeed, because ofthat
natural disposition now abusedand overstrained. An eminent critic observes,
in arguing that all great effects are produced by contrast, that angeris never
so noble as when it breaks out of a corn° parative continence of aspect;it is
the earthquake bursting from the repose of nature. Charlevoix, in his
"Histoire de St. Domingo," remarks ofthe sea of the Antilles and
neighbouring isles that R is commonly more tranquil than ours; "but, like
certain people who are excitedwith difficulty, and whose transports of passion
are as violent as they are rare, so when the sea becomes irritated, it is
terrific."
(Francis Jacox, B. A.)
H. Bushnell, D. D.
The lamb is the most simply innocent of all animals. Historically, also, it had
become a name for sacrifice. Under this twofoldreasonChrist is setforth as
the Lamb. The lamb is but the complemental gentleness ofGod's judicial
vigour. We must have the right to believe in the real Christ, and not that
theologic Christ which has so long been praised, as it were, into weakness, by
the showing that separates Him from all God's decisive energies andfires of
combustion, and puts Him over againstthem, to be only a pacifier of them by

His suffering goodness.Our Christ must be the real King — Messiah— and
no mere victim; He must govern, have His indignations, take the regalway in
His salvation. His goodness must have fire and fibre enough to make it Divine.
Wrath must be kept as a moral, not merely animal, passion, or it will connect
associationsofunregulated temper that are wholly unsuitable. We understand
by wrath, as applied to God and to Christ, a certain principled heat of
resentment towards evil. doing and evil-doers, such as arms the goodto
inflictions of pain or just retribution upon them. It is not the heat of revenge.
It is that holy heat which kindles about order and law, and truth and light,
going in, as it were, spontaneouslyto redress their wrongs, and chastise the
injuries they have suffered. Is it, then, a fact that Christ, as the incarnate
Word of God, embodies and reveals the wrath principle of God, even as He
does the patience, or love-principle, and as much more intensely? On this
point we have many distinct evidences.
1. Christ cannot be a true manifestation of God when He comes in half the
characterof God, to act upon, or qualify, or pacify, the other half. If only
God's affectionalnature is representedin Him, then He is but a half
manifestation. If the purposes of God, the justice of God, the indignations of
God, are not in Him — if anything is shut away, or let down, or coveredover
— then He is not in God's proportions, and does not incarnate His character.
2. Christ can be the manifested wrath of God without being any the less
tender in His feeling or gentle in His patience. In the history of Jesus we see
occasions in which He actuallydisplays the judicial and the tender, most
affectingly, togetherand in the very same scene, as in His denouncing and
weeping over Jerusalem.
3. God, without the wrath-principle, never was, and Christ never can be, a
complete character. This element belongs inherently to every moral nature.
God is no God without it; man is no man without it. It is this principled wrath,
in one view, that gives staminal force and majestyto character.

4. It is a concededprinciple of justice that wrong-doers are to suffer just
according to what they deserve. In Christianity God is not less just or more
merciful, but He is more fitly and proportionately expressed.
5. One of the things most needed in the recoveryof men to God in this very
thing — a more decisive manifestationof the wrath-principle and justice of
God. Intimidation is the first means of grace.
6. We can see for ourselves that the more impressive revelationof wrath,
which appears to be wanted, is actuallymade in the personof Christ, as in His
driving out the money-changers and denouncing the hypocritical Pharisees.
7. Christ is appointed and publicly undertakes to maintain the wrath-
principle officially, as the Judge of the world, even as He maintains the love-
principle officially, as the Saviour of the world. He even declares that
authority is given Him to execute judgment, because He is the Son of man. But
the wrath-principle in Christ is only that judicial impulse that backs Him in
the infliction of justice wheneverjustice requires to be inflicted. And it does
not require to be inflicted always;it never ought to be when there is anything
better that is possible. Put it down, then, first of all, at the close ofthis great
subject, that the New Testamentgives us no new God, or better God, or less
just God, than we had before. He is the I AM of all ages, the I AM that was,
and is, and is to come;the same that was declaredfrom the beginning "The
Lord God, gracious and merciful, forgiving iniquity, transgressions, and sin,
and that will by no means clearthe guilty."
(H. Bushnell, D. D.)

The greatday of His wrath
The wrath of God and the Lamb
T. Hannam.
I. WHO ARE THE PERSONSWHOSE ASPECT AND APPEARANCE
SHALL THEN BE SO DREADFULTO SINNERS?It is God, the Father of
all, and the Lamb of God.
II. HOW COMES THE WRATH OF THAT GREAT DAY TO BE SO
TERRIBLE?
1. It is wrath that ariseth from the clearestdiscoveriesofthe love of God
neglected.
2. It is wrath that is awakenedby the expensive methods of salvationbeing
slighted (Isaiah 5:4; Isaiah 55:1).
3. It is wrath that must avenge the affronts done to the chief messengerof
God's mercy.
4. It is such wrath as arisethfrom the patience of God, tired and worn out by
the boldestiniquities of men.
5. It is such wrath as shall be executedimmediately and eternally.
III. HOW VAIN ALL THE REFUGES AND HOPES OF SINNERS WILL
BE FOUND IN THAT DREADFULDAY, TO AVOID THIS WRATH AND
VENGEANCE!

1. Rocksand mountains, whose aid is sought in the last extremity of distress,
will be but as spiders' webs. What folly to call upon creatures to help them
againsttheir Creator!(Proverbs 9:21).
2. Rocksand mountains, though places of secrecyand concealment, cannot
hide them from the eyes of God (Proverbs 15:3; Jeremiah 23:1. 24).
3. Rocksand mountains, though bulwarks of defence and places of security,
cannot stand before the indignation of the Almighty (Nahum 1:2, 6).
4. Rocksand mountains falling upon us are instruments of sudden death.To
conclude.
1. What a wretchedmistake it is to imagine that God is all mercy, and Jesus
Christ nothing else but love and salvation!
2. The day of Christ's patience makes haste to an end (Psalm 2:12).
3. How very different will the thoughts of sinners be in that day! (Isaiah2:10,
21).
4. What hideous and everlasting mischief is containedin rejecting the gospel
of Christ!

5. Sinners, consideryour ways, the dangeryou are in, and the need you have
of a Saviour (Psalm 61:2).
6. You, whose defence is the Rock of Ages, continue in Him (Revelation2:10).
(T. Hannam.)
The wrath of God
J. M. Sherwood, D. D.
And this wrath impends over every impenitent and unforgiven sinner.
I. IT IS SURE TO FALL UPON HIM IN DUE TIME. It is not a simple
possibility. It is not merely a threat to terrify him. It is as sure in the future as
God Almighty's Word and throne.
1. Eternal and Omnipotent Justice has decreedit.
2. Revelationdeclares iton almostevery page.
3. The providence of Godillustrates and confirms His Word.
II. IT IS SURE, IN DUE TIME, TO FALL UPON THE SINNER IN ALL
THE TERRIBLENESSOF ITS POWER AND SEVERITY.

1. Here mercy tempers justice. Here wrath is restrained and grace works.
Here the blood and intercessionofJesus Christ, and the tears and prayers of
the Church, prevail to mitigate the severityof God's anger.
2. This is the world of probation, not of final award.
3. The day of reckoning is appointed after death.
4. "The wrath of the Lamb" will not break forth till the greatday of assize
shall have come. So that all we know and see of the Divine wrath againstsin
and incorrigible sinners, in this life, is only an "earnest" ofthat awful tempest
that will burst in fury upon the ungodly when "the greatday of His wrath"
shall have come.
III. THIS WRATH WILL BE JUSTLY DESERVED. Itmight have been
turned aside;voluntary sin, and the persistentrefusal of mercy and grace, will
have provokedit. It is not simply the wrath of a God of eternal righteousness,
hating all iniquity and bound to vindicate outragedjustice in the interest of
goodgovernment; but it is also "the wrath of the Lamb," kindled by slighted
love, by rejectedmercy, by the blood of the covenantcounted an unholy thing,
by all His bloody sweatand agony and intercessiondespised!
(J. M. Sherwood, D. D.)
The greatday and the greatquestion
J. D. Smith.
I. WHY IT IS HERE CALLED "THE GREAT DAY OF WRATH."

1. It may be calledthe greatday of wrath inasmuch as no other preceding day
of wrath everequalled it. If all the tempests that ever roared, and all the vivid
flashes of lightning that were ever seen, and all the hoarse thunders that have
ever rolled, and all the roaring of the sea and every noise that has taken place,
were all united togetherin one greatswell, it would be nothing to the
confusionof that greatday. "The heaven shall pass awaywith a greatnoise."
We are told that if you put one drop of water upon an anvil, and some heated
iron over it, and strike the iron, that drop of waterwill explode, and make a
sound equal to that attending the discharge ofa musket. If one drop of water
will produce such a sound, what will it be when all the watery vapours
surchargedwith fire shall burst in one mighty and terrible crash?
2. It may be calledso if we remember that it will be the last day. The sun will
shine, on the morning of that day, for the lasttime. All the wheels of nature
will come to a standstill; all the mysterious and intricate movements of time
will cease.
3. But we may callit a greatday of wrath, more particularly, if we remember
that it will be the judgment day.
4. It will be a greatday of wrath if we consider, moreover, the Judge who will
preside on that day, and I-Its character. Jesus ChristHimself will be the
Judge — very consoling to the believer, because the Judge will be his best
Friend; exceedinglyannoying to the sinner, for he will have sins revealedthat
he would not have known for ten thousand worlds. Jesus Himself, who is
impartial, who will then be inexorable — He will be the Judge. Ah, now is the
time. The Saviour will listen to your cry this night. Therefore, whenwe
considerwho is the Judge, that He will be inexorable, and will not be then
entreated, we may say that it is a greatday of wrath.

II. "WHO SHALL BE ABLE TO STAND?" A safe and Scriptural answerto
this question is, indeed, very important.
1. "Who shall be able to stand?" Notthe swearer:he has askedGodto
destroy his soul and body, and now all his prayers shall be answered. Notthe
liar: all liars shall have their part in "the lake that burneth with fire and
brimstone." Notthe drunkard: he will receive something now more hot than
alcohol. Notthe hypocrite: the mask will fall off. Notthe formalist. Notthe
backslider. And thus we may go on answering the question in a negative way.
2. I fancy I hear a voice coming from some one in this audience — "Well, I am
very glad that you have made an exceptionof me: I am sure that I do not
belong to the bundle of swearers," etc. Stop, friend, there is one bundle yet; if
you are not there, well, then, we must put you aside. Where is that large
bundle of gospelhearers — men and women who have heard the Word and
have not obeyedit? You are there.
3. Those, and those alone, will stand in the great day of wrath, who are resting
entirely upon the blood and righteousness ofthe Lord Jesus Christ.
(1)They will have their characters publicly vindicated.
(2)They will gatherin the fruit of their labours.
(J. D. Smith.)
Safetyin the day of wrath

D. Moore, M. A.
I. WHOSE IS THE WRATH HERE SPOKEN OF? As a Lamb the Saviour
stands on Mount Zion, surrounded by a thousand hosts of His redeemed; as a
Lamb He appears before the throne, receiving the prostrate adoration of the
elders; as a Lamb He appears as a Bridegroomwaiting for the New
Jerusalem, "adornedas a bride prepared for her husband"; and as a Lamb
He is representedas standing in the very midst of the throne, with His wounds
all fresh, intimating H us that He is still sustaining to His Church the
functions of a prevailing, unchangeable, everlasting priesthood. And this
image is manifestly designedto setbefore us various attributes in the
characterof our Redeemer. First, no doubt it is designedto endearto us the
mild and gentle attributes of His nature; to show to us how patient He is to
forgive injuries, how long He will bear with the sinner's affronts, how hard it
is to arouse Him from the serene calmof His holy nature, what a "strange
work" it is with Him to punish and destroy. But in the text there is an adjunct
to this image, which at first seems to take awayfrom its fitness and propriety;
it would seemto suggestto us attributes of an opposite and conflicting kind;
for who ever heard of "the wrath" of a lamb? Why is it that, on this occasion,
the Saviourappears not under one of His more majestic titles — as "the Lion
of the tribe of Judah," tearing the seedof the rebellious to pieces? This title is
retained even in describing the solemnday of Christ's appearing as a witness,
as a warning, as a setting forth of the aggravatedcharacterofman's
disobedience, and the utter exclusiveness ofa despisedsalvation.
II. WHAT IT IS IN THAT DAY THAT WILL MAKE "THE WRATH OF
THE LAMB" SO TERRIBLE.
1. First, it will be because thenthis "wrath" will be felt to have been deserved.
Well may the Lamb sayto those who have refused Him on that day, "What
more could I have done for you that I have not done? I gave Myself to the
insults of men, to the buffetings of Satan, to the piercing of the swordof
justice, to the degradationand shame of the Cross."

2. Again: the "wrath" will be felt to have been deservedon accountof the
light we enjoy, and the means used by the offended Man to bring us to a
knowledge ofHimself, and to constrainus to embrace the offers of His love.
3. Then another considerationwhich will make this wrath so terrible will be
its utter implacableness, the awful consciousnessthatit cannever change
through the ages ofeternity, that the Lamb will never put on those aspects of
gentleness, andpity, which were turned towards us in the day of our
probation and our hope.
III. WHO ARE THEY THAT "SHALL BE ABLE TO STAND"? Ofcourse
the first answerto this is, they are those who are in Christ Jesus. Who are
they that shall stand? Why, they are those who feelthat they have made
Christ their one entire sole dependence:"Thouwilt keephim in perfect peace
whose mind is stayedon Thee." "Trustin the Lord; for in the Lord Jehovahis
everlasting strength." "O Lord, our Lord, other gods besides Thee have had
dominion over us; but by Thee only will we make mention of Thy name."
Then, once more: there is good hope that we shall be able to stand in the day
of Christ if we are of those who are waiting for, and hastening to, and desiring
His appearing.
(D. Moore, M. A.)
Who shall be able to stand in the lastjudgment
Homilist.
? — There will assuredly come a day of judgment. The material universe
symbolically prophecies some such a moral crisis in the history of man. The
flowing river, the growing plants, the breathing tribes, the planetary systems,
all tend to a crisis. The unremitting increase from age to age in the human

family, viewed in connectionwith the limited capacityof this planet to sustain
animal existence, irresistiblyindicates some such a turning point in human
history. The universal and concurrent references ofthe human conscience
through all ages and lands, give a high probability to the dawn of such a
moral juncture. The Bible settles the question. The sentence preceding the text
calls it a greatday. It will be "great," onaccountof the number and variety of
the moral beings that will be assembledtogether;great, on accountof the
results which will then be effected — redemptive providences ended, and the
agenciesofa righteous retribution brought into full play; great, on accountof
the thrilling interestit will awake through all the realms of moral existence
the universe over; great, on accountof the Divine glories that will then be
displayed. But our point now is — Who shall be able to stand on that day? In
order to illustrate this solemn question I shall suppose a case. Whatunder a
legalcharge could enable you to look calmly forward to the coming day of
trial, feeling that you could stand? We can only conceive ofseventhings which
would answerthis purpose.
I. A CONSCIOUSNESS OF INNOCENCE AND THE POWER OF
SHOWING THAT THE CHARGE HAS NO FOUNDATION.
II. ASSURANCE THAT THE EVIDENCE WILL BE FOUND
INSUFFICIENT TO CONVICT. There will be —
1. The omniscient Judge. He knows everything about you.
2. There will be present the persons to whom and through whom you have
sinned.
3. Then there will be consciencewithin you bearing the strongesttestimony
againstyou.

III. A FEELING THAT THE CRIME WITH WHICH YOU ARE
CHARGED IS VERY INSIGNIFICANT. No. Sin, believe me, is no trifling
matter.
1. Think of it in its relation to God. It is a violation of the most righteous laws,
for He is your Sovereign. It is a violation of the highesttrust; for He is your
Proprietor, and you are His stewards. It is a violation of the most wonderful
love. He is your loving Father — your merciful Redeemer.
2. Think of it in its bearing on yourself and on the universe. "One sinner
destroyeth much good." This then will not serve you, will not enable you to
stand in the judgment. Another thing that might answerthe purpose in the
supposedcase is: —
IV. A FELT CAPABILITY OF PROVING THAT THE CRIME WAS
COMMITTEDACCIDENTALLY, NOT BY PURPOSE.
V. FAITH IN THE SYMPATHY OF THE WHOLE COURT IN YOUR
FAVOUR.
VI. AN ABILITY TO PROVE THAT YOU HAVE RENDEREDSIGNAL
SERVICE TO THE STATE.
VII. THE ASSURANCE THAT SOME ONE HAS SUCCESSFULLY
INTERPOSEDBETWEEN YOUAND THE SUPERIOR AUTHORITY. On
the pages ofthe Bible I find written in sunbeams, that in consequenceofwhat

Christ has done, and is willing to do, for us as sinners, we may escapethe sad
consequencesofour sins, and stand triumphantly in the Day of Judgment.
(Homilist.).
COMMENTARIES
Matthew Henry's Concise Commentary
6:12-17 When the sixth sealwas opened, there was a greatearthquake. The
foundations of churches and states would be terribly shaken. Such bold
figurative descriptions of greatchanges abound in the prophecies of
Scripture; for these events are emblems, and declare the end of the world and
the day of judgment. Dreadand terror would seize on all sorts of men. Neither
grandeur, riches, valour, nor strength, cansupport men at that time. They
would be glad to be no more seen;yea, to have no longerany being. Though
Christ be a Lamb, he can be angry, and the wrath of the Lamb is exceedingly
dreadful; for if the Redeemerhimself, who appeases the wrath of God, be our
enemy, where shall we find a friend to plead for us? As men have their day of
opportunity, and their seasons ofgrace, so Godhas his day of righteous
wrath. It seems that the overthrow of the paganism of the Romanempire is
here meant. The idolaters are describedas hiding themselves in their dens and
secretcaves, andvainly seeking to escape ruin. In such a day, when the signs
of the times show those who believe in God's word, that the King of kings is
approaching, Christians are called to a decided course, and to a bold
confessionofChrist and his truth before their fellowmen. Whateverthey may
have to endure, the short contempt of man is to be borne, rather than that
shame which is everlasting.
Barnes'Notes on the Bible

And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal - See the notes at Revelation
5:1; Revelation6:1.
And, lo, there was a great earthquake - Before endeavoring to ascertainto
what the sixth sealwas designedto refer, it is proper, as in the previous cases,
to furnish a particular explanation of the meaning of the symbols. All the
symbols representedin the opening of this sealdenote consternation,
commotion, changes;but still they are all significant, and we are to suppose
that something would occurcorresponding with eachone of them. It cannot
be supposed that the things here described were representedon the part of the
roll or volume that was now unfolded in any other waythan that they were
pictures, or that the whole was a species ofpanoramic representationmade to
pass before the eyes. Thus understood, it would not be difficult to represent
eachone of these things in a painting: as the heaving ground - the agitated
forests - the trembling hills - the falling cities and houses - the sun blackened,
and the moon turned to blood:
(a) The earthquake, Revelation6:12; "There was a greatearthquake." The
word used here denotes a shaking or agitationof the earth. The effect, when
violent, is to produce important changes - opening chasms in the earth;
throwing down houses and temples; sinking hills, and elevating plains;
causing ponds and lakes to dry up, or forming them where none existed;
elevating the oceanfrom its bed, rending rocks, etc. As all that occurs in the
opening of the other seals is symbolical, it is to be presumed that this is also,
and that for the fulfillment of this we are not to look for a literal earthquake,
but for such agitations and changes in the world as would be properly
symbolized by this. The earthquake, as a symbol, would merely denote great
agitations or overturnings on the earth. The particular characterof those
changes must be determined by other circumstances in the symbol that would
limit and explain it.
There are, it is said, but three literal earthquakes referredto in the Scripture:
that mentioned in 1 Kings 19:11; that in Uzziah's time, Amos 1:1; Zechariah

14:5; and what took place at the Saviour's death. All the rest are emblematical
or symbolical-referring mostly to civil commotions and changes. Thenin
Haggai2:6-7; "Yet once, it is a little while, and I will shake the heavens and
the earth, and the sea, and the dry land, and I will shake all nations, and the
desire of all nations shall come;and I will fill this house with glory, saith the
Lord of hosts." That is, there would be greatagitations in the world before he
came. See the notes on Hebrews 12:26-28. So also greatchangesand
commotions are referred to in Isaiah 24:19-20;"The earth is utterly broken
down, the earth is cleandissolved, the earth is moved exceedingly. The earth
shall reel to and fro like a drunkard, and shall be removed like a cottage."An
earthquake, if there were no other circumstances limiting and explaining the
symbol, would merely denote greatagitationand commotion - as if states and
empires were tumbling to ruin. As this is here a mere symbol, it is not
necessaryto look for a literal fulfillment, or to expect to find in history actual
earthquakes to which this had reference, anymore than when it is said that
"the heavens departed as a scroll" we are to expect that they will be literally
rolled up; but if, in the course of history, earthquakes precededremarkable
political convulsions and revolutions, it would be proper to represent such
events in this way.
(b) The darkening of the sun: "And the sun became black as sackclothof
hair." Sackclothwas a coarse black cloth, commonly, though not always,
made of hair. It was used for sacks, forstrainers, and for mourning garments;
and as thus worn it was not an improper emblem of sadness anddistress. The
idea here is, that the sun put on a dark, dingy, doleful appearance, as if it were
in mourning. The generalimage, then, in this emblem, is that of calamity - as
if the very sun should put on the robes of mourning. We are by no means to
suppose that this was literally to occur, but that some greatcalamity would
happen, of which this would be an appropriate emblem. See the Isaiah13:10
note; Matthew 24:29 note; Compare Isaiah 24:23;Isaiah34:4; 1, 3; Isaiah
60:19-20;Ezekiel32:7-8; Joel2:10; Joel3:15-16;Amos 8:9. What is the
particular nature of the calamity is to be learned from other parts of the
symbol.

(c) The discolorationof the moon: "And the moon became as blood." Redlike
blood - either from the smoke and vapor that usually precedes an earthquake,
or as a mere emblem. This also would betokencalamity, and perhaps the
symbol may be so far limited and modified by this as to denote war, for that
would be most naturally suggestedby the color - red. Compare the notes on
Revelation6:4 of this chapter. But any greatcalamity would be appropriately
representedby this - as the change of the moon to such a colorwould be a
natural emblem of distress.
(d) The falling of the stars, Revelation6:13;"And the stars of heaven fell unto
the earth." This language is derived from the poetic idea that the sky seems to
be a solid concave, in which the stars are set, and that when any convulsion
takes place, that concave willbe shaken, and the stars will be loosenedand fall
from their places. See this language explainedin the notes on Isaiah34:4.
Sometimes the expanse above us is spokenof as a curtain that is spread out,
and that may be rolled up; sometimes as a solid crystalline expanse in which
the stars are fixed. According to either representationthe stars are described
as falling to the earth. If the expanse is rolled up, the stars, having nothing to
support them, fall if violent tempests or concussions shakethe heavens, the
stars, loosenedfrom their fixtures, fall to the earth. Stars, in the Scriptures,
are symbols of princes and rulers (see Daniel8:10; Revelation8:10-11;
Revelation9:1); and the natural meaning of this symbol is, that there would
be commotions which would unsettle princes, and bring them down from their
thrones - like stars falling from the sky.
Even as a fig tree castethher untimely figs - Mart., "green";Greek, ὀλύνθους
olunthous. This word properly denotes "winter-figs," orsuch as grow under
the leaves, anddo not ripen at the proper season, but hang upon the trees
during the winter (Robinson, Lexicon). This fruit seldom matures, and easily
falls off in the spring of the year (Stuart, in loco). A violent wind shaking a
plantation of fig-trees would of course castmany such figs to the ground. The

point of the comparisonis, the ease with which the stars would seemto be
shakenfrom their places, and hence, the ease with which, in these
commotions, princes would be dethroned.
(e) The departing of the heavens, Revelation6:14; "And the heaven departed
as a scroll." That is, as a book or volume - βιβλίον biblion - rolled up. The
heavens are here described as spread out, and their passing awayis
representedby the idea that they might be rolled up, and thus disappear. See
the notes on Isaiah 34:4. This, too, is a symbol, and we are not to suppose that
it will literally occur. Indeed it never canliterally occur; and we are not,
therefore, to look for the fulfillment of this in any physical fact that would
correspondwith what is here said. The plain meaning is, that there would be
changes as if such an event would happen; that is, that revolutions would
occurin the high places of the earth, and among those in power, as if the stars
should fall, and the very heavens were sweptaway. This is the natural
meaning of the symbol, and this accords with the usage of the language
elsewhere.
(f) The removal of mountains and islands, Revelation6:14; "And every
mountain and island were moved out of their places." This would denote
convulsions in the political or moral world, as greatas would occurin the
physical world if the very mountains were removed and the islands should
change their places. We are not to suppose that this would literally occur;but
we should be authorized from this to expect that, in regard to those things
which seemedto be permanent and fixed on an immov able basis, like
mountains and islands, there would be violent and important changes. If
thrones and dynasties long establishedwere overthrown; if institutions that
seemedto be fixed and per manent were abolished;if a new order of things
should rise in the political world, the meaning of the symbol, so far as the
language is concerned, would be fulfilled.

(g) The universal consternation, Revelation6:15-17;"And the kings of the
earth, etc." The design of these verses Revelation6:15-17, in the varied
language used, is evidently to denote universal consternationand alarm - as if
the earth should be convulsed, and the stars should fall, and the heavens
should pass away. This consternationwould extend to all classes ofpeople,
and fill the world with alarm, as if the end of all things were coming.
The kings of the earth - Rulers - all who occupiedthrones.
The greatmen - High officers of state.
And the rich men - Their wealth would not secure them from destruction, and
they would be alarmed like others.
continued...
Jamieson-Fausset-BrownBible Commentary
16. from the face—(Ps34:16). On the whole verse, compare Ho 10:8; Lu
23:30.
Matthew Poole's Commentary
And said to the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide us: see Hosea 10:8
Luke 23:30. They shall be in a greatconsternation, and be ready to take any
course for security.
From the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the
Lamb; from the wrath of God, and of Jesus Christ.

Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible
And said to the mountains and rocks, fall on us,.... They chose deathrather
than life. Dioclesianbeing invited by Constantine to a marriage feast, excused
himself by reasonof his old age;but receiving threatening letters, the
historian (t) says, in which he was chargedwith having favoured Maxentius,
and with favouring Maximinus, he poisonedhimself; and others of the
emperors are said to lay violent hands upon themselves:
and hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the
wrath of the Lamb; thus they ownedthe proper deity, and almighty power of
God, and Christ, which they dreaded; so Maximinus being afflicted with a
most horrible disease, ofwhich he died, askedpardon of the God of the
Christians, and owned that he suffered justly, for his reproaches ofChrist (u)
Licinius, who sometimes pretended to be a Christian, and joined with
Constantine, but afterwards revoltedand fought againsthim, being
conquered and taken, was put to death; at which time he, and they that
suffered death with him, confessedthat the Godof Constantine was the only
true God (w). This passageshows,that Christ, God's firstborn, is higher than
the kings of the earth; yea, that he is equal with him that sits upon the throne,
with God his Father, since his wrath is equally dreaded as his; and that,
though he is a Lamb, mild, meek, and gentle, yet there is wrath, fury, and
indignation in him, againsthis enemies, which is very dreadful and
intolerable; see Psalm2:12.
(t) Aurel. Victor. Epitome. (u) Euseb. Hist. l. 9. c. 10. & de Vita Constantin. l.
1. c. 59. (w) Euseb. de Vita Constantin. l. 2. c. 18.
Geneva Study Bible
And said to the mountains and rocks, {11}Fall on us, and hide us from the
face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

(11) These are words of those who despair of escape:of the cause ofthis
despair there are two arguments, the presence of God and the Lamb provoked
to wrath againstthe world, in this verse:and the awareness oftheir own
weakness,feeling that they are not able to survive the day of the wrath of God
Re 6:17 as it is said in Isa 14:27.
EXEGETICAL(ORIGINAL LANGUAGES)
Cambridge Bible for Schools andColleges
16. and said] should be and they say.
to the mountains, &c.] Hosea 10:8 : adopted by our Lord, Luke 23:30. In that
passage, it is entirely natural to understand Him to refer to the destruction of
Jerusalemonly: and therefore it does not seem necessaryto understand this
vision as implying that the Last Judgement is immediately to come. A
judgement of the Lord has now been prepared for, by all the signs that He
foretold of it: His Disciples, no doubt, will “look up and lift up their heads,”
while the world which does not “love His appearing” is terrified. And we see
in the next chapter that the faith of those is not unrewarded: but the dread of
these is not immediately realised. In fact, the last “Dayof the Lord” will come
“when they shall say, ‘Peace andsafety’ ” (1 Thessalonians 5:3)—not
therefore, apparently, preceded by terrors like those among the ungodly, but
rather by an unbelief (not so uncommon now) that has outlived such alarms,
and asks, “Where is the promise of His Coming? for since the fathers fell
asleep, allthings continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.”
from the face of him that sitteth, &c.] In spite of John 5:22, it seems plain that
the Fatheras well as the Son will be speciallypresent and speciallyrevealedin
the judgement. See Matthew 16:27 and parallels:which are to be takeninto
accountin the interpretation of Titus 2:13, and of ch. Revelation20:11 in the
book.

from the wrath of the Lamb] It is scarcelynecessaryto point out the
paradoxicalcharacterof the words, and its deep significance.
Pulpit Commentary
Verse 16. - And said to the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide us from
the face (cf. Hosea 10:8, "They shall say to the mountains, Coverus; and to
the hills, Fall on us;" also Luke 23:30, "Then shall they begin to say to the
mountains, Fall on us; and to the hills, Cover us ") of him that sitteth on the
throne. The Triune God (see on Revelation4:2). And from the wrath of the
Lamb. The result of the wroth of the Lamb is depicted in Revelation21:8.
God's wrath with the wickedis the assurance ofhis mercy and love for the
righteous. Thus in Revelation11:18, we have, "The nations were angry, and
thy wrath is come, and the time of the dead that they should be judged, and
that thou shouldestgive reward unto thy servants," etc. Similarly, in
Revelation14:10-13, the wrath of God upon the wickedis associatedwith the
peace ofthe faithful. Revelation6:16
Vincent's Word Studies
Said (λέγουσιν)
Lit., say. So Rev.
Fall on us
Compare Hosea 10:8; Luke 23:30.
Wrath (ὀργῆς)

Denoting a deep-seatedwrath. See on John 3:36.
STUDYLIGHTRESOURCES
Adam Clarke Commentary
Said to the mountains and rocks - Expressions which denote the strongest
perturbation and alarm. They preferred any kind of death to that which they
apprehended from this most awful revolution.
From the face of him that sitteth on the throne - They now saw that all these
terrible judgments came from the Almighty; and that Christ, the author of
Christianity, was now judging, condemning, and destroying them for their
cruel persecutions of his followers.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain.
BibliographicalInformation
Clarke, Adam. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "The Adam Clarke
Commentary". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/acc/revelation-6.html.
1832.
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John Gill's Exposition of the Whole Bible

And said to the mountains and rocks, fall on us,.... They chose deathrather
than life. Dioclesianbeing invited by Constantine to a marriage feast, excused
himself by reasonof his old age;but receiving threatening letters, the
historianF20 says, in which he was chargedwith having favoured Maxentius,
and with favouring Maximinus, he poisonedhimself; and others of the
emperors are said to lay violent hands upon themselves:
and hide us from the face of him that sitteth upon the throne, and from the
wrath of the Lamb; thus they ownedthe proper deity, and almighty power of
God, and Christ, which they dreaded; so Maximinus being afflicted with a
most horrible disease, ofwhich he died, askedpardon of the God of the
Christians, and owned that he suffered justly, for his reproaches ofChristF21
Licinius, who sometimes pretended to be a Christian, and joined with
Constantine, but afterwards revoltedand fought againsthim, being
conquered and taken, was put to death; at which time he, and they that
suffered death with him, confessedthat the Godof Constantine was the only
true GodF23. This passage shows, thatChrist, God's firstborn, is higher than
the kings of the earth; yea, that he is equal with him that sits upon the throne,
with God his Father, since his wrath is equally dreaded as his; and that,
though he is a Lamb, mild, meek, and gentle, yet there is wrath, fury, and
indignation in him, againsthis enemies, which is very dreadful and
intolerable; see Psalm2:12.
Copyright Statement
The New John Gill's Exposition of the Entire Bible Modernisedand adapted
for the computer by Larry Pierce of Online Bible. All Rights Reserved, Larry
Pierce, Winterbourne, Ontario.
A printed copy of this work can be ordered from: The Baptist Standard
Bearer, 1 Iron Oaks Dr, Paris, AR, 72855

Gill, John. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "The New John Gill
Exposition of the Entire Bible".
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/geb/revelation-6.html. 1999.
Geneva Study Bible
And said to the mountains and rocks, 11 Fallon us, and hide us from the face
of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
(11) These are words of those who despair of escape:of the cause ofthis
despair there are two arguments, the presence of God and the Lamb provoked
to wrath againstthe world, in this verse:and the awareness oftheir own
weakness,feeling that they are not able to survive the day of the wrath of God
(Revelation6:17) as it is saidin (Isaiah14:27).
Copyright Statement
Text Courtesyof BibleSupport.com. Used by Permission.
Beza, Theodore. "Commentaryon Revelation6:16". "The 1599 Geneva Study
Bible". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/gsb/revelation-6.html. 1599-
1645.
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible
from the face — (Psalm34:16). On the whole verse, compare Hosea 10:8;
Luke 23:30.
Copyright Statement
These files are a derivative of an electronic edition prepared from text
scannedby Woodside Bible Fellowship.

This expanded edition of the Jameison-Faussett-BrownCommentary is in the
public domain and may be freely used and distributed.
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on
Revelation6:16". "Commentary Criticaland Explanatory on the Whole
Bible". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/jfb/revelation-6.html. 1871-8.
Robertson's WordPictures in the New Testament
They say (λεγουσιν — legousin). Vivid dramatic presentactive indicative, as is
natural here.
Fall on us (Πεσατε επ ημας — Pesate eph' hēmās). Secondaorist(first aorist
ending) imperative of πιπτω — piptō tense of urgency, do it now.
And hide us (και κρυπσατε ημας — kai krupsate hēmās). Same tense of
urgency againfrom κρυπτω — kruptō (verb in Revelation6:15). Both
imperatives come in inverted order from Hosea 10:8 with καλυπσατε —
kalupsate (cover)in place of κρυπσατε — krupsate (hide), quoted by Jesus on
the wayto the Cross (Luke 23:30)in the order here, but with καλυπσατε —
kalupsate not κρυπσατε — krupsate the face of him that (απο προσωπου του
— apo prosōpoutou etc.). “What sinners dread most is not death, but the
revealedPresence ofGod” (Swete). Cf. Genesis 3:8.
And from the wrath of the Lamb (και απο της οργης του αρνιου — kai apo tēs
orgēs tou arniou). Repetition of “the grave irony” (Swete)of Revelation5:5.
The Lamb is the Lion againin the terribleness of his wrath. Recallthe
mourning in Revelation1:7. See Matthew 25:41. where Jesus pronounces the
woes onthe wicked.
Copyright Statement

The Robertson's WordPictures of the New Testament. Copyright �
Broadman Press 1932,33,Renewal1960. All rights reserved. Used by
permission of Broadman Press (Southern BaptistSunday SchoolBoard)
Robertson, A.T. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "Robertson's Word
Pictures of the New Testament".
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/rwp/revelation-6.html. Broadman
Press 1932,33. Renewal1960.
Vincent's Word Studies
Said ( λέγουσιν )
Lit., say. So Rev.
Fall on us
Compare Hosea 10:8; Luke 23:30.
Wrath ( ὀργῆς )
Denoting a deep-seatedwrath. See on John 3:36.
Copyright Statement
The text of this work is public domain.

Vincent, Marvin R. DD. "Commentaryon Revelation6:16". "Vincent's Word
Studies in the New Testament".
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/vnt/revelation-6.html. Charles
Schribner's Sons. New York, USA. 1887.
Wesley's ExplanatoryNotes
And said to the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide us from the face of
him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
To the mountains and the rocks — Which were tottering already, verse12.
Revelation6:12 Hide us from the face of him - Which "is againstthe
ungodly," Psalm34:16.
Copyright Statement
These files are public domain and are a derivative of an electronic edition that
is available on the Christian ClassicsEtherealLibrary Website.
Wesley, John. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "John Wesley's
Explanatory Notes on the Whole Bible".
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/wen/revelation-6.html. 1765.
James Nisbet's Church Pulpit Commentary
THE WRATH OF THE LAMB
‘The wrath of the Lamb.’

Revelation6:16
We should not allow the sympathy, the gentleness, the compassion, the loving
humanity of Jesus, as we find Him portrayed in the Gospels, to blind us to the
fact that there is such a thing, after all, as the ‘wrath of the Lamb.’ ‘The
wrath of the Lamb’! The words suggesta somewhatpainful line of thought.
God is incapable of change. And such as God was in the times of the older
dispensation, such is He now to us who live in the clearerlight and fuller
privileges of the dispensation of the Spirit.
I. It was unavoidable that the sterner side of the Divine charactershould be
first turned to the human race. Men had to be educatedin the knowledge of
sin before they could come to understand their true position; before they
could appreciate their need of God’s help, as well as the necessityof an entire
and perfectsubmission to God’s will.
II. With regard to the present dispensation—thatof Christianity—the process
may be said to be reversed. We have the love first and the severity afterwards;
or, as perhaps I ought to put it, we have the evidence that the Divine nature—
which is full of compassionand tender mercy, which continually invites,
persuades, evenbeseeches, the sinner to approachit in confidence and trust—
has yet in it a capability of righteous indignation, in factof wrath, most
formidable to those who persist in refusing compliance with its claims and
acceptanceofits invitations.
III. There is something in the nature of man himself which corresponds with
this twofold aspectofthe characterof God, and enables us to understand it. I

will suppose you to have heard of some frightful crime. Now what is your
feeling? It is one of fierce, fiery indignation, which demands the immediate
and condign punishment of the offender. There is that in you which will not be
quieted—which will not be satisfied—until the criminal has met with his
deserts.
—Rev. Prebendary Gordon Calthrop.
Copyright Statement
Nisbet, James. "Commentaryon Revelation6:16". Church Pulpit
Commentary. https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/cpc/revelation-6.html.
1876.
John Trapp Complete Commentary
16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide us from the face
of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
Ver. 16. And said to the mountains] Which yet was but a poor shelter;for
mountains melted and rocks rent at his presence. So that if wickedmen cry to
the hills, Help us, they will give an echo, Help us. ForGod’s wrath is upon the
creature for man’s sin.

Copyright Statement
Trapp, John. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". John Trapp Complete
Commentary. https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/jtc/revelation-6.html.
1865-1868.
Sermon Bible Commentary
Revelation6:16
The ConsequencesofSin.
I. The wages ofsin are paid with a fearful compound interest, and the real
terror of evil is that it does not die with its immediate author. It lives with a
strange, vicarious life, ramifying, developing, multiplying, hideously
replenishing the earth, till the lust of one ancestor, and the intemperance of
another, and the pride, and the jealousy, and the selfishness ofothers, have
intertwined and interwoven and invested their posterity with a thousand
incapacities, andhindrances, and weaknesses, andtendencies to evil; and the
world has become one greatdiscordof pain, and sorrow, and
misunderstanding, and intellectual failure, and moral palsy, and spiritual
death.
II. Throughout the ages manhas been incessantlyimpelled to ask, What is
there in moral evil more than meets the eye? What will sin turn out to be
when we see it in the light of the real world? And if we confine ourselves to

observationof history, quite apart from revelation, Shakespeare'swords are
literally true,
"The weariestand most loathèd worldly life
That age, ache, penury, and imprisonment
Can lay on nature is a paradise
To what we fear of death."
III. The judgment of man upon himself has been that the consequencesofsin
cannot but last beyond the grave. If we will from time to time think upon
these facts—the factof the present consequencesofmoral evil and the fact of
the gloomyforebodings with which the sight of these consequences time out of
mind has filled the heart of man—we shall be in less dangerof the popular
modern fallacywhich insults alike both the human dignity and the Divine by
promising to sin apart from repentance an amiable obliteration, forgetting
that hell, after all, may be the last prerogative of the human will.
J. R. Illingworth, Sermons, p. 48.
I. Considerthe ideas presentedto us and apprehended by faith when Jesus
Christ is revealedunder the name of the Lamb. (1) One of these, doubtless, is
the idea of meekness. It was not as a stern and just Judge that He came to save
the world, or as a Monarchin the pride of state, or a Conqueror flushed with
victory. He was humble and gentle, of poor parents, and from a despised

town, born in a stable and cradled in a manger. He sits on the throne of
heaven and earth, but still it is the throne of the Lamb. (2) Another idea
comprised in this appellation is that of perfectpurity and innocence. Notonly
was every animal used in the typical services ofthe Temple to be free from
imperfection, but Christ was expresslycompared to a lamb without blemish
and without spot, and most exactly was the type fulfilled. (3) The leading idea
of the title "the Lamb" is the atonement Christ made for sin by the sacrifice of
Himself upon the cross.
II. Considerthe awful words of our text: "The wrath of the Lamb." The meek
and holy Being, who is the propitiation for the sins of the whole world, has His
wrath; and His wrath is the more terrible because He is meek and lowly and
the propitiation for all sins. Mercy neglectedis guilt incurred, and in
proportion to the love displayed in man's salvationis the ingratitude of evil,
and must be the condemnation of those who rejectHim. (1) "Beholdthe Lamb
of God." And who is He? He is a Man, but no mere man, for no man ever
spake or lived as this Man. An angel? "He took not on Him the nature of
angels." Godwas manifestin the flesh, and God and man, one Christ, bore
our sins and atoned for them on the cross;and canwe think that such love,
beneath the conceptionof which the mind staggers, halfincredulous of mercy
so infinite—can we ever think that it can be neglectedwithout guilt, and may
be for ever setat nought with impunity? (2) Again, considerthe price paid for
our redemption, the exceeding bitterness of the cup which He drained that our
souls might be healed. Christ has no recompense exceptthat you should
believe and be saved, and in every repenting and returning sinner He sees of
the travail of His soul, the reward of all His sufferings, and is satisfied. And if
you will not, if all has been suffered for you in vain, surely your ingratitude,
cold-heartedness,neglect, must add tenfold terror to the wrath of the Lamb.
(3) Remember the plainness of the warnings that are used and the mercy of
His invitations. Pastmercy will enhance future judgment; the love of Christ
will shine at the lastday upon the open books;and in its bright beam will
stand out, in dark, plain characters,the guilt, the folly, the ingratitude, of
those for whom Christ died, and who would not live for Christ.

J. Jackson, PennyPulpit, New Series, No. 780.
References:Revelation6:17.—Homilist, 2nd series, vol. ii., p. 153. Revelation
7:1-3.—Ibid., 3rd series, vol. iv., p. 134.
Copyright Statement
Nicoll, William R. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "SermonBible
Commentary". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/sbc/revelation-6.html.
Matthew Poole's EnglishAnnotations
on the Holy Bible
And said to the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide us: see Hosea 10:8
Luke 23:30. They shall be in a greatconsternation, and be ready to take any
course for security.
From the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the
Lamb; from the wrath of God, and of Jesus Christ.

Copyright Statement
Poole, Matthew, "Commentaryon Revelation6:16". Matthew Poole's English
Annotations on the Holy Bible.
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/mpc/revelation-6.html. 1685.
Alexander MacLaren's Expositions ofHoly Scripture
от гнева Агнца В первый раз населениепланеты осознает, гдеисточник
всех его бед (см. пояснениек 4:6). Невероятно, но до тех пор они будут
вести свой обычный образ жизни (Мф. 24:37-39).
Copyright Statement
MacLaren, Alexander. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". Alexander
MacLaren's Expositions ofHoly Scripture.
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/mac/revelation-6.html.
Justin Edwards' Family Bible New Testament
Full on us, and hide us; representing their greatconsternationwhen Christ
should appear, in answerto the prayers of the martyrs, to deliver his people

and take vengeance ontheir foes. Compare Hosea 10:8. When Christ comes to
take vengeance onhis foes, they canneither elude nor withstand him. No dens
nor caverns, rocks normountains, canhide them; nor can any createdpower
screenthem from the indignation of him who sitteth upon the throne, and
from the wrath of the Lamb.
Copyright Statement
Edwards, Justin. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "Family Bible New
Testament". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/fam/revelation-6.html.
American Tract Society. 1851.
E.W. Bullinger's Companion Bible Notes
said = they say.
Fall, &c. See Hosea 10:8, and compare Luke 23:30.
face. Greek. prosopon. Same word"presence"in 2 Thessalonians1:9.
wrath. Greek. orge. Only once in N.T. is "wrath" attributed to the Lord; see
Mark 3:5. Elsewhereit pertains to God. "Wrath of the Lamb"! Divine love
spurned and rejectedturning to judicial "wrath" and destruction.

Lamb. In Revelation5:5 the Lamb-Lion; here, the Lion-Lamb.
Copyright Statement
Bullinger, Ethelbert William. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "E.W.
Bullinger's Companion bible Notes".
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/bul/revelation-6.html. 1909-1922.
Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible - Unabridged
From the face - (Psalms 34:16 : cf. Hosea 10:8; Luke 23:30.)
Copyright Statement
Jamieson, Robert, D.D.;Fausset,A. R.; Brown, David. "Commentary on
Revelation6:16". "Commentary Criticaland Explanatory on the Whole Bible
- Unabridged". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/jfu/revelation-6.html.
1871-8.

Treasuryof Scripture Knowledge
Fall
10:6; Jeremiah8:3; Hosea 10:8; Luke 23:30
the face
4:2,5,9;20:11
and from
10; 19:15;Psalms 2:9-12;14:5; 21:8-12;110:5,6;Zechariah 1:14,15;Matthew
26:64;2 Thessalonians 1:7-9
Reciprocal:Exodus 11:6 - General; Joshua 2:11 - did there remain; Joshua
2:24 - all the inhabitants; Judges 8:12 - took; 2 Kings 7:6 - the Lord; 2
Chronicles 32:21 - the leaders; Esther 1:12 - was the king; Job13:20 - hide
myself; Job 18:11 - Terrors; Job 24:17 - in the terrors; Job 25:2 - Dominion;
Job 34:22 - no; Psalm 2:12 - when; Psalm 18:45 - afraid; Psalm 21:9 - in his;
Psalm45:4 - right; Psalm 47:2 - is terrible; Psalm 50:22 - I tear; Psalm 68:2
- as wax; Psalm68:35 - terrible; Psalm 76:7 - who; Psalm 88:7 - Thy wrath;
Isaiah2:10 - Enter; Isaiah 5:15 - the mean; Isaiah 6:1 - sitting; Isaiah10:3 -
And what; Isaiah22:5 - crying; Jeremiah11:11 - which; Ezekiel25:14 - and
they shall know; Zechariah 14:5 - the Lord; Matthew 3:7 - flee; Mark 3:5 -
with anger; John 1:29 - Behold; John 3:36 - but; Romans 4:15 - Because;
Romans 9:22 - willing; 2 Thessalonians1:8 - taking; Hebrews 2:3 - How;
Revelation5:6 - a Lamb; Revelation5:13 - and unto; Revelation9:6 - shall
men
Copyright Statement

Torrey, R. A. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "The Treasuryof Scripture
Knowledge". https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/tsk/revelation-6.html.
E.M. Zerr's Commentary on SelectedBooksofthe New Testament
In their state of fearthey would prefer being put out of the conﬂict, even if the
mountains would tumble down upon them. Hide us from the face of the Lamb.
These men who had held swayfor so long were made to realize that the
change was brought about by the inﬂuence of the religion their emperor had
espoused.
Copyright Statement
Zerr, E.M. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". E.M. Zerr's Commentary on
SelectedBooksofthe New Testament.
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/znt/revelation-6.html. 1952.
Hanserd Knollys' Commentary on Revelation
Revelation6:16
Revelation6:16 And saidto the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide us
from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the
Lamb:

These idolatrous potentate kings, priests, and captains, in the day of God
vengeance (his temple vengeance)seekforhiding places, but find none. They
had rather the rocks and mountains should have fallen on them and destroyed
them, than to be brought before the judgment of seatof God and Jesus Christ,
whose name they have blasphemed, whole churches, ministers, and members,
they had persecuted, imprisoned, martyred and murdered, by their edicts,
decrees, laws,and soldiers, and by the Judges, juries, and the false witnesses. {
Amos 9:1-3}
Copyright Statement
Knollys, Hanserd. "Commentary on Revelation6:16". "HanserdKnollys'
Commentary on Revelation".
https://pro.studylight.org/commentaries/hkc/revelation-6.html.
Whedon's Commentary on the Bible
16.Fallon us—Begging the boon of death to escape a doom worse than death.
Says Stuart: “In like manner Pliny represents some fugitives from the fiery
showerof Vesuvius as praying for death that they might escape the igneous
deluge of the mountain: Erant qui metu morris mortem precaventur—some,
through fear of death, beggedfor death.” (Epis. 6:20.) The wish expressedin
the text may be further illustrated by a reference to the very common cases of
suicide in prisons, when persons are under sentence of death, or expect it with
certainty. They thus escape a more horrible death, and, in their apprehension,
a more disgracefulone, by an exit which is less appalling. Note on Revelation
9:6.

Sitteth on the throne—Notthe apocalyptic symbol throne of Revelation4:1,
but the judgment throne of Revelation20:11.
Wrath of the Lamb—The wrath of him on the throne is the wrath of rectoral
justice; the wrath of the Lamb is the still more terrible wrath of abused grace
and mercy. No vengeance so awful as divine love transformed to divine wrath.
PRECEPTAUSTIN RESOURCES
DR. TONY GARLAND
Revelation6:16 Open Bible at Rev. 6:16 Listen to Rev. 6:16
fall on us
So intense is their fear of God’s judgments that they temporarily seek even
death—anything to flee from His manifest presence (Hos. 10:8; Luke 23:30;
Rev. 9:6‣ ).
hide us from the face of Him
Attempting to hide from God illustrates how sin and fear warp the intellect,
for it is impossible to hide from the Omnipresent One (Job 34:22). How
different the motivation of the godly from the ungodly. Those with faith in
Christ desire His presence andseek His face. (Ps. 17:15;Pr. 8:7; Isa. 45:19;

Isa. 58:2; 65:1; Jer. 29:13;Amos 5:4). Those who rejectGod fear His presence
and flee His face. This dichotomy is seentoday in the reactionof people to the
preaching of the gospel:
For we are to God the fragrance of Christ among those who are being saved
and among those who are perishing. To the one we are the aroma of death
leading to death, and to the other the aroma of life leading to life. And who is
sufficient for these things? (2Cor. 2:15-16)
At the scene ofGod’s final judgment of the ungodly, there will be nowhere
available to hide from His face, for heaven and earth will have fled away(Rev.
20:11‣ ). All things are naked in His sight!102
who sits on the throne
See commentary on Revelation4:2.
the wrath of the Lamb
Here we encountera phrase of seeming contradiction. The Lamb who was
silently led to the slaughter(Isa. 53:7) now metes out wrath. It is the Lamb
which opens eachof the seals bringing forth these judgments which are
indicative of the wrath of God. See commentary on Revelation5:5.
The wrath of God began earlier, when the Lamb arose from His seatto open
the first seal. Now it is recognizedfor what it is. “It should be noted that the
passagedoes notsay that the wrath of God begins only with the sixth seal, but
that only with the sixth sealdo unbelievers recognize that it is the wrath of
God.”103Those onthe earth are ignorant of the Scriptures. Yet even they
recognize that the time of God’s wrath has now come upon the earth (Rev.
11:18‣ ;14:9-10‣ , 19‣ ;15:1‣ , 7‣ ; 16:1‣ , 19‣ ). See commentary on
Revelation5:6.

CHRIS BENFIELD
The Despairof the Wicked(15-17)– Here we see all men, greatand small,
facing God’s
wrath. V.15 – And the kings of the earth, and the greatmen, and the rich men,
and the chief
captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid
themselves in the
dens and in the rocks ofthe mountains; Placesofposition, power, and prestige
will not matter.
All will stand equal before God! All their worldly accomplishments will not
prevent the hand of
God. Notice:
1. Their Position(15b) – They hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of
the mountains.
Mankind is found seeking some type of shelter from the Almighty. For
thousands of years they
have stooddefiant in the face of God. They have refusedHis tender mercies
and consumed
their lives on sinful lusts.
 In that terrible day they are no longerstanding in open defiance, but
desperatelytrying
to hide from Him. The realizationthat He is God is sinking in, but it’s too late.
All they can do is
hide in fear!

2. Their Plea (16) – And said to the mountains and rocks, Fallon us, and hide
us from the
face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: They
cry out for the
mountains and rocks to coverthem from the face of God. They literally want
to die to escape
the wrath of the Lamb.
 They wouldn’t receive the Rock ofAges, but are crying out to the rocks of
the earth.
They wouldn’t acceptthe sacrificialLamb, and now are left to face His wrath.
The time of
mercy has ended. Their pleas for protection and deliverance go unheard. They
are left to stand
before the Lamb as He pours out His wrath for the sin of the world.
ALAN CARR
v. 15-17 The Unconverted In Terror – We are told that men of all ranks are
overcome with fear. Kings are the rulers. Greatmen are the governmental
leaders and men of power. Richmen are those who control the wealth of the
world. Chief Captains are the military leaders. Mighty men are the celebrities
and those with influence and power. Bondmen and free men alike are
affected. When God’s wrath is finally poured out upon this world, men will
be reduced to the same level. Fearin the face of wrath will be the rule of the
day. Let’s examine these verses for a few minutes.

1. v. 12-14 WhatThey See – As the universe convulses in geologicaland
astronomicalupheaval, men will see everything they have ever considered
stable and permanent takenawayfrom them. The earth is always there and it
is always stable. It will be shaken. The sun, moon and stars are always there.
They too will be takenaway. Formillennia men have worshipedthis natural
world and stakedtheir hope and futures upon the stability of the universe.
They will suddenly find themselves in a world where nothing is stable. Their
world is literally coming apart at the seams and they are terrified!
2. v. 15-16 WhatThey Say – In their terror they cry out for the mountains to
fall on them and hide them from the terrible gaze of Godon His throne and
from the wrath of the lamb of God. Here is a world that has rejectedGod at
every turn. They have denied Him and His Sonwhile they have embraced
Satanand His false Christ. Now, they must face His judgment and they are
filled with fear.
3. v. 16 What They Seek – They run to the “caves anddens of the earth” to
find a refuge from the presence ofGod. Folks, the evolutionists have sold this
world a bill of goods! Cavemenare not in our past, they are in our future!
(Ill. You do your children a grave disservice when you trust them to a godless
schoolsystemand never check up on what they are learning!)
They want to hide themselves from the face of God and from Jesus.
They use a strange statement. They saythey want to hide themselves from
“the wrath of the Lamb”. That is a strange picture! There is probably no
animal more tender or gentle than a little lamb. Yet, these big, powerful men
want to be delivered from the “wrathof the Lamb”.
There are two words translated “wrath” in the New Testament. One is
the world “thumos”. It refers to a “sudden outburst of anger.” It is like a

shotgun blast that is over in a moment. The other word is the word “orge”. It
speaks ofangerthat slowlyrises like wateragainsta dam, until the dam
breaks and the flood comes. It has the idea of someone standing, red-faced
with heir fists clenchedas they try to hold back their anger.
Well, God has held His angerfor 6,000 years andthe waterof His
wrath has risen againstthe dam of mercy and that dam is at the bursting
point. Menare going to face the flood of God’s fury because oftheir sins and
their rejectionof Christ.
4. v. 17 What They Sense – Men sense that their time is up and that they are
about to face the undiluted wrath of Almighty God; and they are absolutely
right! Man’s time is up and judgment is coming! They pray, but their
prayers will go unanswered. Nothing can deliver them from the judgment
whose time has come!
Notice this: when these people begin to pray, they do not pray to God.
They call on this natural world. That is where their faith is and this world
will fail them in that day. There is no cry for grace ormercy from God.
There is no confessionof sin. There is only a desire to be free from wrath.
Even in the midst of judgment, lostsinners are still selfish and unchanged!
Conc: The martyred saints in Heaven are praying for God to judge sin. The
lost sinners on earth are praying to be delivered from the unflinching gaze of
God. The saint’s prayer will be answeredthe sinner’s prayers will not!

Friend, it is either grace orwrath! Psalm130:3 says, “If thou, LORD,
shouldestmark iniquities, O Lord, who shall stand?” I would not want to face
God in my own righteousness. The bestman can produce is filth in the sight
of God, Isa. 64:6. I thank God that I will stand before Him one day clothed in
the righteousnessofthe Lord Jesus Christ, Phil. 3:9. How about you? When
I see the Lamb, I will see Him as my Savior. Many will face Him as their
Judge, Rev. 20:11-15. How will you meet Him?
IN THE DAY OF HIS WRATH
Dr. W. A. Criswell
Revelation6:12-17
5-20-62 10:50 a.m.
On the radio and on televisionyou are sharing the services ofthe First Baptist
Church in Dallas. This is the pastorbringing the 11:00 o’clock morning
messageentitled In the GreatDay of His Wrath. In our preaching through
the Bible after these many, many years, we have come to the last and the
climactic book, the Revelation. And in our preaching through the Revelation,
we have come to chapter 6, beginning at verse 12, which is sealnumber six
[Revelation6:12]. If you will turn in your Bible to the last book, to the sixth
chapter, to the twelfth verse, and leave your Bible open, you can easilyfollow
the messageofthis morning hour. The reading of the text is this, Revelation
6:12:

And I beheld when He had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great
earthquake;and the sun became black as the sackclothof hair, and the moon
became as blood;
And the stars of heavenfell unto the earth, even as a fig tree castethher
untimely figs, when she is shakenofa mighty wind.
And the heaven departed as a scrollwhen it is rolled together;and every
mountain and island were moved out of their places.
And the kings of the earth, and the greatmen, and the rich men, and the chief
captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid
themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;
Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:
For the greatday of His wrath is come;and who shall be able to stand?
[Revelation6:12-17]

This the sixth seal, and the passage we have just read describing its opening,
this is not the end but it is the beginning of the end. These who live in the
earth in that awful and terrifying hour think it is the greatjudgment day of
God—that this is the end, but it is not. It is just the beginning of the end, and
is an adumbration, a harbinger, an earnestof that awful and final and
consummating denouement. The Book of the Revelationis like the twenty-
fourth chapter[of Matthew], the apocalyptic discourse ofour Lord, and it is
like the Book of Daniel. In the ninth chapter of the Book of Daniel, that
prophet divides the end time into two equal parts. He calls it a “seventieth
week,”and he divides that week that brings the end of the world into two
halves [Daniel 9:27]. If the week represents a week of years, then it is three
and a half years for the first half and three and a half years for the second
half. Our Lord does that same thing in His apocalyptic discourse in Matthew
24: the first part of it He calls “the beginning of sorrows” [Matthew 24:8], and
the lastpart of it He calls “the greattribulation” [Matthew 24:21-29]. Itis
like that you find in the Apocalypse:the first part is found in the opening of
the first six seals [Revelation6:1-17], and the lastpart is the seventh seal
[Revelation8:1] which carries with it the seventh trumpet [Revelation11:15-
19], which carries with it the sevenvials of the wrath of God [Revelation15:1-
16:21].
And we approach now the end of the beginning of sorrows andthe beginning
of the greatand indescribable tribulation [Matthew 24:8]. In the Book ofthe
Apocalypse, we will refer to that in the same terms you will find in the
prophetic discourses ofthe Old Bible. Sometimes it is called“three and a half
years,” the secondhalf of that week. Sometimes it is called“a time, times, and
half a time [Revelation12:14].” Sometimes it is called“forty-two months”
[Revelation11:2]. Sometimes it is called“a thousand, two hundred sixty
days” [Revelation12:6]. But whether any of those designations, theyare all
the same length of time—whether it is in days or weeks oryears or times—
and they all refer to this greatand final day of the judgment, the judicial
administration of God in this earth. So we come at sealnumber six
[Revelation6:12]—to the beginning of the end [Revelation6:17]. This is the
end of the first three and half years; this is the end of the beginning of sorrows

[Matthew 24:8]. And after the great parentheticalchapter, number seven,
then we enter into the final consummation of the age, the great tribulation
from God [Matthew 24:2-22].
These first six seals, then, coverthat period of time of the first half of that
final week [Revelation6:1-17]. The first seal, as you remember, is the seal
that brings across the horizon of history the ultimate and the final dictator;
the world tyrant, the man of sin [Revelation6:1-2, 2 Thessalonians 2:3]. And
he comes in in the applause and with the acceptanceofthe nations of the
world and of all mankind. He comes in in a bloodless coup, in a bloodless
revolution, without war, without destruction, without the shedding of human
blood. He comes in as the saviorof the world: “This is the man who delivers
us from war, this is the man who has the answers to all of the economic ills
and disturbances of mankind,” and they all come in like that.
They are the saviors of the world. Whether they are in ancient history,
medieval history, or today, they all come in alike. This is Demetrius Soter,
this is Ptolemy Soter, this is Philadelphia Soter, this Antiochus Soter, this is
Seleucus Soter. Thatword soteris their self-styled Greek name of “savior.”
Same thing in the medieval world: this is the NapoleonBonaparte who
delivers France, or this is Frederick the Great, or Bismarck, who delivers
Germany, or this is one of the greatheroes of the British Empire. Or today:
this is Der Führer, who delivers the homeland, Deutschland;or this is Il Duce
who delivered his native Italy. Or this is Stalin, who delivers mother Russia.
Or this is Tojo, who finds a place for Nippon in the sun. They all come alike,
just as you find it here in the Word of God.
And the corollary and the concomitantand the accompanimentis likewise
always the same. Their story without exceptionis written in blood, and in
tears, and in war, and in death; just like it is in the Book. And after, on the
horizon of history there comes that world emancipator, that self-styled savior,

that dictator who liberates and emancipates mankind [Revelation6:2]. Then
comes war, and the secondhorsemanof the Apocalypse is red, and he has in
his hand a greatsword, and the world is bathed in blood [Revelation6:3-4].
Then the third horsemaninevitably follows after which is the third seal, and
the horse is black, and there is famine and dearth and want in the earth
[Revelation6:5-6]. And then the fourth horsemanalways follows after
[Revelation6:7-8]; there is pestilence, and there is plague, and there is death,
with the grave opening her mouth to swallow up the vast multitudes of
humanity who fall in the wake ofthe leadershipof these so-called“saviorsof
the world.” All of the them in the past are but types and figures of that
ultimate and final dictator who will seize the reigns of the governmental
power, the military power, the socialand cultural outreach of this earth.
Then sealnumber five: you do not see the action, just the results of it
[Revelations 6:9-11]. There in heaven are the souls of those who have been
martyred for the testimony of God and the faith of Jesus Christin the earth,
and they cry unto God in heaven for vengeance,that they might be avenged
for the blood shed on the earth; and they cry unto God, “Holy and true, how
long dost Thou not judge and avenge our blood?” [Revelation6:10]. That
certainly does not fit modern day soft, saccharin, pusillanimous Christianity;
for the day of the modern pulpit, and the day of the modern faith, and the day
of the new theologyis a God who is softand easy. He would not think of hell
nor the flame of vengeance northe judgment of a righteous indignation. He is
easy, and He is soft, and you can push Him, and He is malleable;He is like
putty, He is like clay. Thatis the modern God in the modern pulpit. But how
different the God of judgment and of vengeance and of visitation that you find
in this Book.
That’s why I had us read togetherthis word in the first letter that Paul wrote,
these letters to the Thessalonianchurch. And in them our greatapostle said,
“You who are in trouble and trial, rest; rest, for it is a righteous thing with
God . . .”

Jesus was a judge of wrath

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