Sunday
November 1
1. THE FIRST PLAGUE
a. What will the four angels of Revelation 7 do after Jesus’ work is ended in the heavenly sanctuary? Revelation 7:1-3; 15:7, 8.
“Let our prayers ascend to God that the four angels may still hold the four winds, that they may not blow to injure or destroy until the last warning has been given to the world.”—Testimonies, vol. 6, p. 61.
“John sees the elements of nature—earthquake, tempest, and political strife—represented as being held by four angels. These winds are under control until God gives the word to let them go.”— Testimonies to Ministers, p. 444.
“When our High Priest has finished His work in the sanctuary, He will stand up, put on the garments of vengeance, and then the seven last plagues will be poured out.”—Early Writings, p. 36.
b. How is the first plague described? Revelation 16:1, 2. Who will be protected against the plagues? Psalm 27:5.
“Satan is now using every device in this sealing time to keep the minds of God’s people from the present truth and to cause them to waver. I saw a covering that God was drawing over His people to protect them in the time of trouble.”—Ibid., p. 43.
Monday
November 2
2. THE PLAGUES OF BLOOD
a. What was the plague of blood in Egypt like? Exodus 7:20, 21. What is the second in the series of the seven plagues, and how far-reaching will be its effect? Revelation 16:3; Isaiah 26:21.
“The first plague which visited Egypt was to come upon the waters, one of the exalted gods of Pharaoh. Moses smote the water before Pharaoh and his great men, and they saw the water which they were adoring turned to blood. It was a putrid mass for seven days; and all the fish that were in it died. The people could not use the water for any purpose.”—The Spirit of Prophecy, vol. 1, p. 334.
“Greater wonders than have yet been seen will be witnessed by these upon the earth a short time previous to the coming of Christ. ‘And I will show wonders in heaven above, and signs in the earth beneath; blood, and fire, and vapor of smoke.’ ”—The Signs of the Times, March 13, 1879.
“Says the revelator, in describing those terrific scourges: ‘. . .The sea ‘became as the blood of a dead man: and every living soul died in the sea.’ ”—The Great Controversy, p. 628.
b. When the third plague is poured out upon the rivers and fountains, what will the angels say about God’s justice? Revelation 16:4–7.
“Terrible as these inflictions are, God’s justice stands fully vindicated. The angel of God declares: ‘Thou art righteous, O Lord, . . . because Thou hast judged thus. For they have shed the blood of saints and prophets, and Thou hast given them blood to drink; for they are worthy’ (Revelation 16:2–6). By condemning the people of God to death, they have as truly incurred the guilt of their blood as if it had been shed by their hands. In like manner Christ declared the Jews of His time guilty of all the blood of holy men which had been shed since the days of Abel; for they possessed the same spirit and were seeking to do the same work with these murderers of the prophets.”— Ibid., p. 628.
“For every drop of blood drawn forth by torture, for all they have burned with fire, they will receive punishment. God will reward them double for their sins. They have drunk the blood of the saints, and have become intoxicated with exultation.”—The Review and Herald, December 28, 1897.
Tuesday
November 3
3. THE SCOURGING SUN
a. Describe the fourth plague and its effect upon man and nature. Revelation 16:8, 9. If God would withdraw His wrath from men, would they acknowledge God’s justice? Isaiah 26:10.
“In the plague that follows, power is given to the sun ‘to scorch men with fire. And men were scorched with great heat’ (Verses 8, 9). The prophets thus describe the condition of the earth at this fearful time: ‘The land mourneth; . . . because the harvest of the field is perished. . . . All the trees of the field are withered: because joy is withered away from the sons of men.’ ‘The seed is rotten under their clods, the garners are laid desolate. . . . How do the beasts groan! the herds of cattle are perplexed, because they have no pasture. . . . The rivers of water are dried up, and the fire hath devoured the pastures of the wilderness’ (Joel 1:10–12, 17–20; Amos 8:3).”—The Great Controversy, p. 628.
“[The vast multitude] are to have no new probation in which to remedy the defects of their past lives. Nothing would be gained by this. A lifetime of transgression has not softened their hearts. A second probation, were it given them, would be occupied as was the first in evading the requirements of God and exciting rebellion against Him.”—Ibid., p. 662.
b. What will happen to God’s people in the time when the sun scorches the wicked with great heat? Psalm 91:3-8. What is required in order to be protected in the time of trouble? Psalms 91:14; 15:1–5.
“The people of God will not be free from suffering; but while persecuted and distressed, while they endure privation and suffer for want of food they will not be left to perish. That God who cared for Elijah will not pass by one of His self-sacrificing children. He who numbers the hairs of their head will care for them, and in time of famine they shall be satisfied. While the wicked are dying from hunger and pestilence, angels will shield the righteous and supply their wants. To him that ‘walketh righteously’ is the promise: ‘Bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure.’ ‘When the poor and needy seek water, and there is none, and their tongue faileth for thirst, I the Lord will hear them, I the God of Israel will not forsake them’ (Isaiah 33:15, 16; 41:17).”—Ibid., p. 629.
“Those who receive the seal of the living God and are protected in the time of trouble must reflect the image of Jesus fully.”—Early Writings, p. 71.
Wednesday
November 4
4. POWERFUL SCOURGES
a. What will God do in the time of His anger? Isaiah 28:21; Nahum 1:3–6. Why are not all the wicked destroyed by the first four plagues?
“To our merciful God the act of punishment is a strange act. ‘As I live, saith the Lord God, I have no pleasure in the death of the wicked’ (Ezekiel 33:11). . . . By terrible things in righteousness He will vindicate the authority of His downtrodden law.”—The Great Controversy, p. 627.
“These plagues are not universal, or the inhabitants of the earth would be wholly cut off. Yet they will be the most awful scourges that have ever been known to mortals. All the judgments upon men, prior to the close of probation, have been mingled with mercy. The pleading blood of Christ has shielded the sinner from receiving the full measure of his guilt; but in the final judgment, wrath is poured out unmixed with mercy.”—Ibid., pp. 628, 629.
b. As Ahab blamed Elijah in the past, whom will the wicked blame because of the terrible effects of the plagues? 1 Kings 18:17, 18.
“The messengers sent by God to deliver His warnings are hated by those whom they warn. The people charge upon them the calamities which are the result of their own departure from righteousness. Those who thus place themselves in Satan’s power do not see things as God sees them. They are blinded by Satan.”—The Review and Herald, October 22, 1901.
“These plagues enraged the wicked against the righteous; they thought that we had brought the judgments of God upon them, and that if they could rid the earth of us, the plagues would then be stayed.”—Early Writings, p. 36.
“Many of the wicked were greatly enraged as they suffered the effects of the plagues. It was a scene of fearful agony. Parents were bitterly reproaching their children, and children their parents, brothers their sisters, and sisters their brothers. Loud, wailing cries were heard in every direction, ‘It was you who kept me from receiving the truth which would have saved me from this awful hour.’ The people turned upon their ministers with bitter hate and reproached them, saying, ‘You have not warned us. You told us that all the world was to be converted, and cried, Peace, peace, to quiet every fear that was aroused.’ ”—Ibid., p. 282.
Thursday
November 5
5. THE PLAGUE OF DARKNESS
a. What was the plague of darkness in Egypt like? Exodus 10:22, 23. Where will the fifth plague be poured out? Revelation 16:10.
“Suddenly a darkness settled upon the land, so thick and black that it seemed a ‘darkness which may be felt.’ Not only were the people deprived of light, but the atmosphere was very oppressive, so that breathing was difficult. ‘They saw not one another, neither rose any from his place for three days: but all the children of Israel had light in their dwellings.’ ”—Patriarchs and Prophets, p. 272.
“I realized, as never before, the importance of searching the Word of God carefully, to know how to escape the plagues which that Word declares shall come on all the ungodly who shall worship the beast and his image and receive his mark in their foreheads or in their hands. It was a great wonder for me that any could transgress the law of God and tread down His holy Sabbath, when such awful threatenings and denunciations were against them.”—Early Writings, p. 65.
b. What did the wicked do when they were still suffering from the sores of the first plague? Revelation 16:11. What will be the effect of the fifth plague upon God’s people? Psalm 91:5, 6.
“In the midst of the time of trouble that is coming—a time of trouble such as has not been since there was a nation—God’s chosen people will stand unmoved. Satan and his host cannot destroy them, for angels that excel in strength will protect them.”—Testimonies, vol. 9, p. 17.
“I saw a covering that God was drawing over His people to protect them in the time of trouble; and every soul that was decided on the truth and was pure in heart was to be covered with the covering of the Almighty.”—Early Writings, p. 43.
Friday
November 6
REVIEW AND THOUGHT QUESTIONS
a. Who are the ones that will receive the plague of “grievous sore”?
b. Why were the second and third plagues poured upon the waters?
c. What will happen to the forests and fields under the fourth plague?
d. How many saints will perish under the powerful destroying scourges?
e. What makes us to believe that the plagues are cumulative?