NT Text: Revelation 16:2
OT Source(s):
Source: Treasury of Scripture Knowledge
Reference Type: Allusion
Connection Method(s): Typology (Direct Type, Forward-Looking) + Longitudinal Theme
Significance: The first bowl plague producing "loathsome, malignant sores" (helkos kakon kai ponēron) directly corresponds to the sixth Egyptian plague of boils (shehin) in Exodus 9:9-11. The LXX of Exodus 9:9 uses helkos, the same term John employs. Just as the Egyptian plague targeted those under Pharaoh's dominion while sparing Israel, the bowl plague strikes specifically "those who had the mark of the beast." This typological correspondence is part of Revelation's sustained new-exodus pattern: the seven bowl plagues systematically recapitulate the ten Egyptian plagues in escalated form. Where the Egyptian plague was localized and temporary, the bowl plague is universal and eschatological. The deliberate parallel reinforces the theological point that the God who judged Egypt's gods will judge the beast's counterfeit worship system.