“And I saw three unclean spirits like frogs coming out of the mouth of the dragon, out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet.”
—Revelation 16:13
Revelation 16 contains the seven bowl judgments, what the King James Version called “the vials of the wrath of God.” The “bowls” or “vials” (Greek phialē, “a bowl or shallow cup,” from which English derives “phial” or “vial”) contain the seven last plagues to be poured out on the earth (Revelation 16:1). “In them,” Revelation 15:1 affirms, “the wrath of God is complete.” The seven last plagues are judgments against mankind, punishments for human sin and rebellion against God and fellow man. As Revelation 15:3-4 attests, “Great and marvelous are Your works, Lord God Almighty! Just and true are Your ways, O King of the saints! . . . For Your judgments have been manifested.” The heavenly host knows these judgments are well-deserved.
The three unclean spirits appear in the sixth angel’s bowl, which he pours out “on the great river Euphrates,” drying up its water (Revelation 16:12). The river’s evaporation opens the way for “the kings from the east” to drive their armies to the place of the titanic battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:16). This devastating battle will feature world leaders and their massive armies from all over the earth, first to fight each other—East versus West—and then turning to fight the returning Christ (Revelation 19:19; see Zechariah 14:1-4, 12-15). Much of what remains of rebellious humanity will perish there.
The context defines the three unclean spirits in the following verse: “For they are spirits of demons, performing signs, which go out to the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty” (Revelation 16:14). Note that these demons are seen leaving the mouths of the Dragon (Satan the Adversary), the Beast, and the False Prophet. In the symbolic language used in the book of Revelation, this detail points to these demons inspiring deceptive but persuasive words—what we would call “propaganda”—accompanied by “signs” (pseudo-miraculous wonders).
The thrust of this propaganda campaign is to convince the whole world to join and support Satan’s total war plan to bring humanity to genocide. The Devil desires nothing more than to eradicate mankind, and he evidently thinks he can foil God’s far superior, sovereign plan at the Battle of Armageddon. So, by whatever means necessary, he pushes the inhabitants of the whole planet to gather in northern Israel for “the battle of that great day.” He does not seem to care that he is doing God’s work for Him by bringing humanity to face His wrath in just judgment.
The thrust of this propaganda campaign is to convince the whole world to join and support Satan's total-war plan to bring humanity to genocide. Click To TweetWhy are these unclean spirits described as frogs? There may be several reasons:
- Frogs are ugly, slimy, and unclean. In other words, they make a good image of demons.
- Frogs are known for their incessant croaking. The image may emphasize the sound of harsh words coming from the mouths of the evil triumvirate.
- Frogs are also known for leaping or jumping. This image makes a reader imagine the words springing from the mouths of the three evil leaders, giving them vitality and urgency. Charles B. Williams’ The New Testament: A Translation in the Language of the People renders the first part of this verse, “Then I saw three foul spirits leap like frogs from the mouths of the dragon . . ..”
However we look at it, the idea of frogs brings to mind a disgusting image, something most human beings immediately recognize as loathsome and revolting. Revelation 16:13 turns it into a diabolical image: Demons verbally hurling themselves upon humanity to deceive them into mass suicide. Yet, at that point, much of mankind will be so far from God that it will gladly, even triumphantly, go along like lemmings over a cliff.
