Revelation 15

3-4 These victorious ones were singing the song of MOSES (Exodus 15:1-18) and the song of the Lamb (Christ). Just as God, through Moses, delivered the Jews from bondage in Egypt, so in the same way God, through Christ the Lamb, delivers believers from bondage to Satan and gives them salvation. Because of God’s great righteous acts of deliverance, all nations will come and worship before Him (verse 4). This does not mean that all the people of these nations will receive salvation; rather, it means that after God’s final judgment is given, all those who have gone to hell will also acknowledge the one true God (see Psalm 86:8-10; Philippians 2:9-11).

5-6 Then John saw God’s temple open, and out of the temple came the seven angels with the seven last plagues. John here calls the heavenly temple the tabernacle of Testimony (verse 5). This was the name of the tabernacle of the ancient Jews, when they were in the desert after escaping from Egypt. It was actually a tent, and so it was also called the Tent of the Testimony (Numbers 9:15). The Testimony was the name given to the two stone tablets on which God had written the ten commandments of the Jewish law (see Exodus 32:15; Deuteronomy 10:4; Acts 7:44 and comment). The followers of the beast had disobeyed these ten commandments; therefore, it was fitting that out of the tabernacle of Testimony should come forth God’s wrath and righteous judgment against those who had disobeyed these commandments.

7-8 One of the four living creatures (Revelation 4:6-8) gave the seven angels seven golden bowls filled with God’s wrath. Then the tabernacle was filled with smoke, which was a sign of God’s presence and power and glory (Exodus 19:18; 40:34-35; 1 Kings 8:10-11).