Works
'Works,' as in Revelation 16:11, signify falsities of faith, and the resulting evils of life.
In Revelation, 'I know thy works,' is said frequently. This makes it clear that 'works' signify, generally, every aspect of the church.
'Works,' as in Genesis 46:33, denote goods, because they are from the will, and anything from the will is either good or evil, but anything from the understanding, like spoken words, are either truths or falsities.
In Genesis 2:2, the work signifies the celestial man, the highest use of God; or the accomplishment when the spiritual man becomes celestial. (Arcana Coelestia 84, 88)
In Exodus 5:9, work signifies assault for the purpose of subjugation. (Arcana Coelestia 7120)
In Genesis 39:11, it signifies the process when the Lord was conjoining Himself with spiritual good in the natural. (Arcana Coelestia 5004)
In Genesis 47:3; Psalms 8:3; 44:1; 63:12, works concern offices and uses which are done for the neighbor, the country, the church, and the Lord's kingdom.
In Exodus 5:4, work signifies that the people were not to be exempted from things that were hard to bear. (Arcana Coelestia 6073, Arcana Coelestia 7104)
In Revelation 2:2, works signify that the Lord sees man's exterior as well as his interior things. (Apocalypse Revealed 76)
In Revelation 2:6, it signifies that people do not want to claim personal merit. (Apocalypse Revealed 86)
In Revelation 2:19, 23, 26, it signifies all things of charity and faith. (Apocalypse Revealed 138, 141)
In Revelation 9:20, it signifies that they did not shun as sins their own things, which are evils of every kind. (Apocalypse Revealed 457)
(Reference: Arcana Coelestia 6048)
Revelation 16
1
I heard a loud voice out of the temple, saying to the seven angels, "Go and pour out the seven bowls of the wrath of God on the earth!"
2
The first went, and poured out his bowl into the earth, and it became a harmful and evil sore on the people who had the mark of the beast, and who worshiped his image.
3
The second angel poured out his bowl into the sea, and it became blood as of a dead man. Every living thing in the sea died.
4
The third poured out his bowl into the rivers and springs of water, and they became blood.
5
I heard the angel of the waters saying, "You are righteous, who are and who were, you Holy One, because you have judged these things.
6
For they poured out the blood of the saints and the prophets, and you have given them blood to drink. They deserve this."
7
I heard the altar saying, "Yes, Lord God, the Almighty, true and righteous are your judgments."
8
The fourth poured out his bowl on the sun, and it was given to him to scorch men with fire.
9
People were scorched with great heat, and people blasphemed the name of God who has the power over these plagues. They didn't repent and give him glory.
10
The fifth poured out his bowl on the throne of the beast, and his kingdom was darkened. They gnawed their tongues because of the pain,
11
and they blasphemed the God of heaven because of their pains and their sores. They didn't repent of their works.
12
The sixth poured out his bowl on the great river, the Euphrates. Its water was dried up, that the way might be prepared for the kings that come from the sunrise.
13
I saw coming out of the mouth of the dragon, and out of the mouth of the beast, and out of the mouth of the false prophet, three unclean spirits, something like frogs;
14
for they are spirits of demons, performing signs; which go forth to the kings of the whole inhabited earth, to gather them together for the war of that great day of God, the Almighty.
15
"Behold, I come like a thief. Blessed is he who watches, and keeps his clothes, so that he doesn't walk naked, and they see his shame."
16
He gathered them together into the place which is called in Hebrew, Megiddo.
17
The seventh poured out his bowl into the air. A loud voice came forth out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, "It is done!"
18
There were lightnings, sounds, and thunders; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since there were men on the earth, so great an earthquake, so mighty.
19
The great city was divided into three parts, and the cities of the nations fell. Babylon the great was remembered in the sight of God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.
20
Every island fled away, and the mountains were not found.
21
Great hailstones, about the weight of a talent, came down out of the sky on people. People blasphemed God because of the plague of the hail, for this plague is exceedingly severe.
