ApocalypseChapitre 15

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Then I saw another sign in heaven, great and astounding: seven angels holding seven plagues — the last ones, for with them the wrath of God is completed.

And I saw what looked like a sea of glass mixed with fire, and standing on the sea of glass were those who had conquered the beast and its image and the number of its name, holding harps given them by God.

And they sang the song of Moses, the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb: "Great and astounding are your works, Lord God Almighty. Just and true are your ways, King of the ages.

Who will not fear you, Lord, and glorify your name? For you alone are holy. All the nations will come and worship before you, for your righteous acts have been revealed."

After this I looked, and the temple — the tent of witness — was opened in heaven,

and out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven plagues, dressed in clean, shining linen and wearing golden sashes across their chests.

Then one of the four living creatures gave the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever.

And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God and from his power, and no one could enter the temple until the seven plagues of the seven angels were completed.

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Résumé2

Chapitre 15

Main Theme: The preparation for God’s final judgment through the seven last plagues.

Content: John sees a great sign in heaven: seven angels with the seven last plagues, which complete God’s wrath. Standing by a sea of glass mixed with fire are those who have overcome the beast, singing the song of Moses and the Lamb. From the heavenly temple come the seven angels, and one of the four living creatures gives them seven golden bowls filled with God’s wrath. The temple is filled with smoke from God’s glory, and no one can enter until the plagues are completed.

Key Words/Images:

The Seven Last Plagues: The final fulfillment of God’s judgment upon evil.
Sea of Glass Mixed with Fire: Symbolizes both God’s holiness and the trials believers have endured.
The Song of Moses and the Lamb: Unites deliverance from Egypt with Christ’s ultimate work of salvation.
Smoke in the Temple: An expression of God’s glory and power filling the sanctuary during judgment.

Contexte historique

Historical and Cultural Context for Revelation 15

Events and Customs

The chapter contains a direct reference to the song of Moses (τὴν ᾠδὴν Μωϋσέως), pointing back to two central texts in the Old Testament: the victory song after crossing the Red Sea in Exodus 15 and the farewell song in Deuteronomy 32. For Jewish and Jewish-Christian readers, these songs were well known from synagogue liturgy. The song of Moses was sung in the temple every Sabbath during the morning offering. By combining "the song of Moses" with "the song of the Lamb", John creates a theological bridge between the old and new covenants—both celebrate God’s deliverance of His people from oppression.

The image of the sea of glass mixed with fire (θάλασσαν ὑαλίνην μεμιγμένην πυρί) combines two elements from Israel’s exodus: the sea they crossed and the pillar of fire that led them. In the temple in Jerusalem stood a large bronze basin called "the Sea" (1 Kings 7:23–26), which was used for ritual cleansing. The heavenly sea of glass represents the perfect, heavenly version of this temple furniture.

Key Terms

The expression "the last plagues" (πληγὰς ἑπτὰ τὰς ἐσχάτας) uses a word that directly connects to the plagues in Egypt. The Greek πληγή was used in the Septuagint for the Egyptian plagues and signals that the coming bowls are to be understood as a new exodus judgment against the world’s oppressive powers.

The term ὁ ναὸς τῆς σκηνῆς τοῦ μαρτυρίου ("the temple of the tabernacle of testimony") combines two central elements from Israelite tradition: the permanent temple and the movable tabernacle from the wilderness wanderings. "The tabernacle of testimony" was the place where the tablets of the law were kept, and this expression emphasizes that the judgment proceeding is grounded in God’s revealed will and covenant requirements.

Places

The heavenly temple opened in verse 5 reflects the idea that the earthly temple was a copy of a heavenly original (cf. Exodus 25:9, 40; Hebrews 8:5). In Jewish apocalyptic literature, especially in texts such as 1 Enoch and 2 Baruch, the heavenly temple is described as the place of God’s throne and the starting point for divine judgment. The smoke that fills the temple (verse 8) mirrors both Isaiah’s temple vision (Isaiah 6:4) and the dedication of the tabernacle and Solomon’s temple, where God’s glory filled the sanctuary so completely that the priests could not perform their service (Exodus 40:34–35; 1 Kings 8:10–11).

Chapter-Specific Findings

The golden bowls (φιάλας χρυσᾶς) mentioned in verse 7 were a known type of offering bowl in antiquity. Archaeological finds from the Hellenistic and Roman periods show that such broad, shallow bowls were used for drink offerings in both Jewish and Greco-Roman worship. In the temple in Jerusalem, similar vessels were used to collect sacrificial blood and to pour out drink offerings. The reliefs on the Arch of Titus in Rome (erected around 81 CE) depict Romans carrying away sacred vessels from the destroyed temple, including such bowls, providing a visual reference to this type of cult object that John’s readers would have known.

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Mots-clés

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Chronologie1