“The Sixth Vial” is the term by which the plague that brings about the return of Jesus Christ in the Book of Revelation, is most commonly known. In more modern versions, these seven judgements are called “the bowls of the wrath of God”. This article is particularly concerned with the sixth.
The Sixth Vial is divided into two parts:
- The Drying up of the Great River Euphrates to prepare the way for the “kings of the east”.
- The demonic like spirits “like frogs” coming out of the mouths of Dragon, Beast and False Prophet, which lead the nations to a war which begins with the Battle of Armageddon.
We going to look at each of the two parts and then show how they are connected at the time of the end.
The Sixth Vial – Part 1
So let’s lay a foundation by looking at Part 1. The angel pours out his bowl into the great river Euphrates and the waters are dried up, to prepare for the “kings of the east”. We must look to the Old Testament scriptures for clues as to the meaning of this imagery. Why? Because this is where most of the imagery in the Book of Revelation comes from. In Isaiah chapter 8 we read these words concerning the expansion of the Assyrian empire.
Isaiah 8:7-8
(7) Therefore the Lord is about to bring against them the mighty floodwaters of the Euphrates – the king of Assyria with all his pomp. It will overflow all its channels, run over all its banks
(8) and sweep on into Judah, swirling over it, passing through it and reaching up to the neck. Its outspread wings will cover the breadth of your land, Immanuel!” (NIV).
We would expect therefore, for a symbol such as the “drying up” of Euphrates, to represent exactly the opposite – the contraction and bringing to an end of a great empire, based around the river Euphrates.
Recent history fulfilled this in the decline of the Ottoman Empire. The Ottoman Turks had ruled the Middle East since the 14th century and during this time, the land of Israel was a desert wasteland.
However, one of the major outcomes of World War 1, was the end of the Ottoman power and its replacement by the modern nations of the Middle East, under the supervision of the British and French victors.
The modern nations of the Middle East, are the “kings of the east” that the apostle John speaks of. The aftermath of the first World War created these fledgling nations and thanks to the “Balfour Declaration” by the British government in 1917, laid the foundation for the re-establishment of the modern nation of ISRAEL.
It took another “World War” to accomplish that, but in 1948 the last of the “kings of the east” made its debut. With Israel among the nations of the world once again, the scene was now set for the coming Kingdom of God.
But first . . .
Phase 2 of the Sixth Vial Prophecy had to be Realized
“Three unclean spirits, like frogs” emerge from the mouths of the Dragon, the Beast and the False Prophet. These “spirits” have the ability to “perform signs” and they go forth to the “kings of the earth” to gather them to a placed called in Hebrew, “Armageddon”.
Some bible commentators have suggested that the spirit of the French Revolution, or at least modern French influence, may be the answer. Other connections with France include the fact that, historically speaking, much of French land consisted of marshes and as a consequence, there was an abundance of frogs.
In H. Grattan Guinnes’s book “History Unveiling Prophecy” he notes that before the 1789 Revolution, the incessant croaking of frogs in the French countryside was so troublesome, that nobles and courtiers forced the local peasants to flog the marshes all night to keep them quiet, whenever they visited. He also notes that medieval French banners consisted of three frogs.
In view of the above, frogs seem to be an apt symbol of a loud, incessant, vociferous spirit that emanates from dark and sordid minds; which are most loquacious when darkness has fallen upon the world.
Historically speaking, they say that Cyrus was able to enter ancient Babylon undetected in BC 540 because, having diverted the Euphrates from the city, the croaking of the frogs in the dry river bed were so loud that the Babylonians didn’t hear the Persians coming in under their walls (the Euphrates ran through the city).
There seems to be a direct connection with the drying up of Euphrates in the language of the Sixth Vial prophecy and the release of the frog-like spirits.
The Sixth Vial and the Plague of Frogs
Considering the fact that most of The Apocalypse is drawn from Old Testament symbols or concepts, I would be looking there for an answer first. The obvious one is the second plague on Egypt in the days of Moses. The notable thing about the plague of frogs was, that they came “out of the river” and infiltrated into every part of Egyptian life.
They were “everywhere” and in such abundance that they even infested their beds, causing great distress. The plague of frogs was an insult to the Egyptian god Hekt, the wife of the “creator of the world”, who was always shown with the head and the body of a frog. As such, it was a “sign” of her impotence, being unable to keep her frogs in the river.
Now, looking at today’s current events. We have a Middle East which has originated out of a fallen Ottoman Empire. They are all Islamic, except Israel. Due to recent events in Syria, there has been a huge wave of Islamic refugees swarming into Europe, who at first, were welcomed with open arms on humanitarian grounds, but NOW, the Europeans are living in FEAR of them.
These refugees have come from the region of Euphrates and pose a cultural and religious threat to the future identity of Europe.
Moreover, the European democratic process is being affected by the Islamic tidal wave. How? Because the Islamic immigrants were given full voting and citizenship rights. Consequently, the Islamic population in European countries has become significant enough for politicians to feel the need to cultivate their vote.
This in turn, exacerbates the problem. In addition, Muslims are far more “religious” than most secular Europeans and they breed more prolifically.
Attempts by native Europeans to protest and halt the tide of Islamic immigrants are being ignored by their leaders. Some are even being told, “if you don’t like it, you’re free to leave“. As I write, there is great unrest in Europe over this.
Could it be, that the rising Islamic influence in Europe from people who have swarmed in from the land of the Euphrates, will so influence European policies, that the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet entities, will become stirred up by them to lead the “kings of the earth” in a holy war against Israel and bring on “the war of the great day of God Almighty”?
The other notable fact about the Egyptian plague of frogs is, that when God decided to remove the plague, we read this: “and the frogs died out of the houses, out of the villages and out of the fields. And they gathered them together, upon heaps, so that the land stank” (Exod. 8:13-14).
The frog spirits will likewise gather the nations to the land of Israel, where they will be slain. Like the Egyptian frogs, there will be so many of them that it will take 7 months to bury the dead (Ezek. 39: 12).
The Dragon, Beast, and False Prophet
Taking a step back, we need to identify the other symbols in the sixth vial – the Dragon, the Beast and the False Prophet. The first two of these, first appear in chapters 12 and 13 and their descriptions align them with the “dreadful and awesome” Fourth Beast of Daniel chapter 7.
The fourth beast of Daniel 7 represents the Roman Empire, followed by its decline into a loose confederation of European nations following barbarian invasions. The “glue” that held these nations together was initially the Roman Catholic Church and the authority of the Eastern Roman emperor in Constantinople.
In more modern times, we saw the emergence of the Common Market in 1957 and ultimately, the European Union as we know it today.
Once the Roman Empire was divided into two parts, different forms of government were to be seen in each “half” of the Roman territory. In the East, a cohesive imperial government, headed by the emperor, continued the legacy of the original empire. In the West, the scene was evolving, usually with an ongoing struggle between “emperor” (wherever he was based … Germany, France etc.) and the Papacy.
When the Eastern Empire fell to the Ottoman Turks in 1453, the Orthodox Church along with some of the empire’s royalty migrated to Russia, following which, Moscow became known as “The Third Rome“. Historically, Constantinople had been “New Rome” (or the second Rome) and now the Russians claimed the title.
So in summary, the symbols of Dragon, Beast and False Prophet point us to Russia and Europe. So how are they connected with the “drying up of the great river Euphrates” and the relatively new Middle East?
Spirits of Demons
One final matter to solve before we proceed – the “spirits of demons” that look like frogs.(v13). This is a subject in itself, but to summarize, the concept is drawn from Greek and Roman mythology. “Demons” were a type of “demi-god” whose origins began when Pandora’s box was opened. They were lower in status to the main gods such as Jupiter or Zeus and because they didn’t have a home, wandered about inhabiting poor souls and driving them insane. This was the best explanation that the ancients could come up with, for insanity.
But for biblical writers, it served a useful purpose to describe those who worshiped idols in general, which coincidentally, from God’s perspective, is a form of insanity (Isaiah 44:10-18). You can also follow the idea through the Old Testament where a similar usage will be found – “they sacrificed to demons and not to God” (Deut. 32:7) – for example, which is quoted by Paul in 1Cor. 10:20 where he comments “what am I saying then? that an idol is anything?” (v9).
In Mark 3:22, Jesus is accused of performing miracles by “Beelzebub, the prince of the demons”. Beelzebub was the ancient Philistine god of Ekron (2 Kings 1:2).
Transferring the concept into modern times, we would say that modern “idolatry” is the worship and glorification of anything other than what the only true and living God stands for. It is also making God into who we want, or need, Him to be, rather than accepting what He tells us about Himself. In this way, people effectively create ‘gods’ in their own image and likeness.
This may transfer into a political or religious system, a prevailing philosophy, or culturally accepted norms. “Covetousness is idolatry” wrote the apostle Paul. This refers to a mentality – a mindset, that excludes trust in God and worships ‘mammon’ instead. Idolatry is not confined to objects of metal, wood, and stone. It is a collective mindset that worships and submits to something that excludes God’s true values and principles.
It seems to me, that the sixth vial “frog-like spirits” coming from the Russo-European entities, is the infiltration of a strong Islamic element into the policies of European leaders who, being “possessed” with this new demonic-like spirit, will eventually wage a “holy war” against Israel.
Meanwhile, native Europeans, racked with fear, are seeking to protect their religious and cultural heritage. It is creating a resurgence in the spirit of nationalism, similar to that which led to two world wars. The upcoming French elections (2017) are being decided over this very issue.
These frog-like demons “perform signs” before the “kings of the earth”. How so? A clue is given as to what a “sign” means, in Rev. 13:14. There, the “beast that came up from the earth” was able to “bring fire down from heaven” and by this “sign” deceive those who dwelt on the earth, to make an image to the sea beast. This is symbolic language that speaks of the power of armies to vanquish enemies.
Remember also, that the plague of frogs in the early chapters of Exodus, was a “sign” of the impotence of the Egyptian god Hekt, to keep the frogs in the river. It could also be said that the refugee problem in Europe is a “sign” that the religious and cultural integrity of Europe is under threat.
Moreover, they are described as “unclean spirits”. This seems particularly relevant to their “frog-like” nature.
In summary, we may well be looking at an unclean, false, dark, and evil perception of the nation of Israel, based on lies, that infiltrates the nations. Like the incessant croaking of frogs, they loudly condemn the Jewish state in morbid unison – and eventually, find in this, self-justification for one last attempt to take them out. It will become politically expedient for Russia and Europe to unite, as champions for this enterprise.
Russia is now in Syria, which qualifies it as the “King of the North” of Daniel 11. He “thinks an evil thought” according to Ezekiel 38 and invades the land of Israel … first thrusting down into Egypt (or maybe directly from the Mediterranean with “many ships”) but then, hearing news from “the east and north” (Israel’s involvement somehow, via the USA, who is responsible for ISIS in the first place, plus other US aligned Arab nations?) goes forth to invade the Holy Land and comes to his end there.
Somewhere in the middle of all this, the Lord says “Behold! I come as a thief. Blessed is he who watches and keeps his garments” …
…. and they gathered them into a place called in the Hebrew tongue, Armageddon.”
