“Then the fourth angel poured out his bowl on the sun, causing it to scorch everyone with its fire. Everyone was burned by this blast of heat, and they cursed the name of God, who had control over all these plagues. They did not repent of their sins and turn to God and give him glory.” Revelation 16:8-9
The fourth angel pours out his bowl on the sun, “and the sun was allowed to scorch people with fire. They were seared by the intense heat. Rather than repent of their sin, the wicked inhabitants of the earth cursed the name of God, who had control over these plagues, but they refused to repent and glorify him. What is normally taken for granted as a blessing – the warmth of the shining sun – is now a curse.
The sun’s intense heat will melt the polar ice caps. The resulting rise in the oceans’ water level will inundate coastal regions, flooding areas miles inland with the noxious water of the dead oceans. Wide spread damage and loss of life will accompany that flooding, adding farther to the unspeakable misery of the devastated planet. Today we talk of climate change, we need to realize that God is in control of the climate and someday I believe soon that what we read in Revelation will happen. This is what will happen with climate change. More frequent and intense droughts, storms, heat waves, rising sea levels, melting glaciers and warming oceans can directly harm animals, destroy the places they live, and wreak havoc on people’s livelihoods and communities. Doesn’t this read just like Revelation?
The failure of men to respond with repentance shows that knowledge or experience of judgment will not change man’s sinful condition. Those who are not won by grace will never be won. The wishful thinking of some that men would repent if they only knew the power and righteous judgment of God is shattered by frequent mention in this chapter of the hardness of the human heart in the face of the most stringent and evident divine discipline. These people do not want to reflect or submit to the name of God. God revealed Himself to these people in a powerful, undeniable way, but they have no humility, no repentance, and no pleas for mercy or forgiveness. They continue to blaspheme and refuse to give Him glory.