Revelation of John 16:8
A plain-spoken deep dive on this verse. Read the chapter →
Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given power to scorch the people with fire.
Commentaries
Excerpts gathered from published commentaries to ground the reading.
angel--so Coptic and ANDREAS. But A, B, C, Vulgate, and Syriac omit it. upon--not as in Rev 16:2-3, "into." sun--Whereas by the fourth trumpet the sun is darkened (Rev 8:12) in a third part, here by the fourth vial the sun's bright scorching power is intensified. power was given unto him--rather, "unto it," the sun. men--Greek, "the men," namely, those who had the mark of the beast (Rev 16:2).
Open source ↗In these verses we see the work going on in the appointed order. The fourth angel poured out his vial, and that fell upon the sun; that is, say some, upon some eminent prince of the popish communion, who should renounce their false religion a little while before his utter downfall; and some expect it will be the German emperor. And now what will be the consequence of this? That sun which before cherished them with warm and benign influences shall now grow hot against these idolaters, and shall scorch them. Princes shall use their power and authority to suppress them, which yet will be so far from bringing them to repentance, that it will cause them to curse God and their king, and look upward, throwing out their blasphemous speeches against the God of heaven; they will be hardened to their ruin. The fifth angel poured out his vial, Rev 16:10. And observe, 1. Where this fell - upon the seat of the beast, upon Rome itself, the mystical Babylon, the head of the antichristian empire. 2. What effect it had there: The whole kingdom of the beast was full of darkness and distress. That very city which was the seat of their policy, the source of all their learning, and all their knowledge, and all their pomp and pleasure, now becomes a source of darkness, and pain, and anguish. Darkness was one of the plagues of Egypt, and it is opposed to lustre and honour, and so forebodes the contempt and scorn to which the antichristian interest should be exposed. Darkness is opposed to wisdom and penetration, and forbodes the confusion and folly which the idolaters should discover at that time. It is opposed to pleasure and joy, and so signifies their anguish and vexation of Spirit, when their calamities thus came upon them.
Open source ↗16:8-9 The fourth . . . bowl is unlike any of the plagues of Egypt or the earlier seals or trumpets. • Everyone was burned: Contrast 7:16. Yet the recipients of this judgment refused to repent or give God glory (see 9:20-21; 16:11; cp. 14:6-7); they even cursed the name of God.
Open source ↗Original language
The Hebrew and Greek words behind this passage, with Strong's numbers — from openscriptures (CC BY-SA).
Cross-references
Other passages the community most often connects to this one. Tap to read.
The sun will be turned to darkness, and the moon to blood, before the coming of the great and glorious Day of the Lord.
Still another angel, with authority over the fire, came from the altar and called out in a loud voice to the angel with the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the vine of the earth, because its grapes are ripe.”
As the sun was rising, God appointed a scorching east wind, and the sun beat down on Jonah’s head so that he grew faint and wished to die, saying, “It is better for me to die than to live.”
There will be signs in the sun and moon and stars, and on the earth dismay among the nations, bewildered by the roaring of the sea and the surging of the waves.
‘Never again will they hunger, and never will they thirst; nor will the sun beat down upon them, nor any scorching heat.’
But when the sun rose, the seedlings were scorched, and they withered because they had no root.
The moon will be confounded and the sun will be ashamed; for the LORD of Hosts will reign on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem, and before His elders with great glory.
Then the fourth angel sounded his trumpet, and a third of the sun and moon and stars were struck. A third of the stars were darkened, a third of the day was without light, and a third of the night as well.
The star opened the pit of the Abyss, and smoke rose out of it like the smoke of a great furnace, and the sun and the air were darkened by the smoke from the pit.
And when I saw the Lamb open the sixth seal, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black like sackcloth of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red,