³ The second poured out his bowl into the sea. It turned to blood like that of a dead person, and all life in the sea died.…

The third poured out his bowl into the rivers and the springs of water, and they became blood.

Revelation 16

Literal or not?

The judgement from these bowls is reminiscent of the plague that struck Egypt, when Moses turned the Nile to blood and all the fish died. Unlike Moses’ literal staff, this is not a literal bowl of wrath. This description is likely to be figurative because Jesus is coming without major announcement. (Revelation 16:15).

For the literalist: does “sea” refer to all the oceans, or just a specific sea? If the sea turns to blood, wouldn’t it be a very obvious sign, and therefore hard for Jesus to say he was coming like a thief? If literal, it would be a very obvious sign of Christ’s imminent return. (see caveat at the bottom of the page). We will proceed on the basis it is non-literal because it if is literal it can’t be missed, and if it is non-literal, it may be missed without careful attention.

Blood of a dead person

The Apostle John says that this appears to produce the qualities like that of a dead person – this vax may kill people. Within 0.5-1 hours of death, large blood clots form. It separates into “blood” and “water” (think back to Jesus on the cross – “blood” and “water” came out when pierced by a spear). Depending on a range of factors, blood loses its deep red and can become bluish (cells are still using oxygen at this time). After many hours, the blood “settles” to the lower extremities.

It is doubtful John is saying the sea turned bluish, or even putrid in later stages of decay. John is more likely to be referring to commonly observed events, rather than the decay and purification, because that process is altogether hidden from most observers due to burial.

In the Bible, the sea and waters are frequently symbolic references to people:

Isa 57:20 – The wicked are like the tossing sea.

Isa 17:12 – Alas, the uproar of many peoples, Who roar like the roaring of the seas, And the rumbling of nations, Who rush on like the rumbling of mighty waters!

Isa 48:18 – “If only you had paid attention to My commandments! Then your well-being would have been like a river, And your righteousness like the waves of the sea.

Revelation 17:15 – “The waters you saw, where the prostitute was seated, are peoples, multitudes, nations, and languages….”

Psalm 65:7 – “Who stilled the roaring of the seas, the roaring of their waves, and the turmoil of the nations.“

I think it is consistent with metaphorical language that the Sea here refers to people, and that the blood of a dead person refers to clotting.

Coming immediately after the 1st bowl which is explicitly manifest in those who received the Mark of the Beast, it is not unexpected to find another adverse reaction.

3rd Bowl – rivers and springs become blood

⁹“And wherever the river goes, every living creature that swarms will live, and there will be very many fish. For this water goes there, that the waters of the sea may become fresh; so everything will live where the river goes.”

Ezekiel 47

I believe the clear implication for this being the 2nd & 3rd bowl being together, is that they are related.

There are two possible explanations regarding the representation of rivers and springs.

1. Health/vitality
2. Children and infants

There are bible passages that support both understandings, for example:

Thus whether it is a reference to ongoing illness or whether it refers to children and then infants being also affected by the Mark, also getting clots, is uncertain, but I think both can be seen. I’m inclined to favour that it refers to children and infants because initially they were unable to get the vaccine, and so there is a time delay between the adult world getting the reactions and the children getting vaccinated and suffering adverse reactions.

These judgements are because people have persecuted his saints. (v.6). If these are adverse reactions from the Mark of the Beast, it is vitally important that Christians who were deceived into taking it, repent of the damage they did to God’s people.

According to multiple sets of data babies breastfed by mothers who took mRNA vaccines are dying¹

Caveat explained

It is possible that these two refer to pollution (decay and putrification) and a mass extinction of sea life. And this may go unnoticed until it is too late. This is also consistent with Jesus statement that he is coming to judge those who destroy the earth (Revelation 11). However it seems odd to mix metaphorical meanings, whereby the sea is literal, but not the blood, and likely not the “all life”.

1. https://citizens.news/729292.html