Devotional 05 April 2025

As the second bowl is poured out, we see a striking echo of the second trumpet (Revelation 8:8–9), now brought to full judgment (Revelation 15:1). The sea, often symbolic of the Gentile world in biblical imagery (compair Daniel 7:2–3), turns to death. What once appeared teeming with power and vitality is revealed to be lifeless—”like the blood of a corpse.”

This judgment reveals the destiny of a world that has rejected Christ. Jerusalem, having aligned itself with Rome, declared, “We have no king but Caesar” (John 19:15). But the very power it embraced—Rome—became God’s tool of judgment. The old covenant order was destroyed, the temple made desolate, and the center of Jewish worship was left in ruins. The sea they trusted in became death to them.

Just as sores in the first bowl revealed internal corruption, this second bowl shows the external systems of the world for what they are: spiritually dead. Yet in the midst of this decay, the Kingdom of Christ stands unshaken. Rome, once a fearsome enemy of the Church, is now dust and memory. But the Church—the true Temple of the living God—remains.

Let this be a reminder that no worldly kingdom offers life. Only Christ, the King of kings, brings resurrection power. His kingdom does not pass away but grows, even through judgment, even through history’s darkest moments. As His people, we march forward not with the strength of empires, but with the sword of the Spirit and the Word of God.