In this sermon, the preacher discusses the concept of God's judgment and how it is demonstrated throughout the Bible. He emphasizes that God's judgment is predictable and operates by laws. The preacher refers to Isaiah 51:17, where Jerusalem is described as having drunk from the cup of God's fury. This cup represents God's wrath against sin, which must be satisfied. The preacher warns that no sin, no matter how small, can go unpunished, and God will compel us to drink from this cup of judgment. The sermon concludes with the assurance that God will come and wipe out the wicked, bringing astonishment and judgment upon them.

Isaiah chapter 51 and then over to Obadiah, verse 16. Isaiah chapter 51, I want to read a few verses from this chapter, and then we're going to turn over to Obadiah 16. We come to the end of the section in Obadiah, dealing with the judgment prescribed for the ungodly. We have seen in verse 15 that the judgment prescribed, was prescribed for a particular day, it was a day of the Lord. And the Lord was going to come in, and He was going to come out of His place, as one of the prophets puts it. He was going to enter into time, and He was going to manifest His power and His glory in that great day of the Lord. We saw last week then, the decree by which that judgment was prescribed. It was the law of retribution, or the eye for the eye. And we saw that the Lord works by laws, He is predictable, as far as this is concerned, and He works by laws. And that law then, the Lex Talionis, is the law by which He deals with us, and by which He deals with the world. We come tonight to see then, the demonstration of judgment. The judgment was given for a particular day, it was given by a particular decree, and it will be demonstrated with particular demonstration. And the demonstration that the Lord uses, and the analogy that the Lord uses to demonstrate His judgment, is very significant, as we see it throughout in particular, the prophets and into the New Testament. Let's read from Isaiah chapter 51, verse 17. Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of His fury. Thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out. There is none to guide her among all her sons whom she hath brought forth, neither is there any that taketh her by the hand of all the sons that she hath brought up. These two things are come unto thee, who shall be sorry for thee, desolation and destruction, and the famine and the sword, by whom shall I comfort thee? Thy sons have fainted, they lie at the head of all the streets, as a wild bull in a net. They are full of the fury of the Lord, and the rebuke of thy God. Therefore hear now this, thou afflicted and drunken, but not with wine. Thus saith the Lord the Lord, thy Lord the Lord, or thus saith thy Lord Jehovah. And thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury. Thou shalt no more drink it again, but I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee, which have said to thy soul, bow down, that we may go over. And thou hast laid thy body as the ground, and as the street to them that went over. Amen. We trust the Lord will bless the reading of his word. Let me just give you a brief overview of what this passage is saying. The picture that is being used here, Jerusalem, is pictured as a drunken woman lying in the street. She has no children to help her, none of her children can lift her up or guide her or strengthen her, as verse 18 tells us, there is none to guide her among all her sons. She is lying there in a drunken stupor, because Jerusalem has drunk from the cup of God's wrath. God has afflicted his people with a great affliction. He has taken them, and he will take them, into captivity, and afflict them, and they will drink from the cup of God's wrath, because of their disobedience to God, and because of their rebellion against God. They will drink, verse 17, the dregs of the cup of trembling, or the word could be translated, the cup of the cup, or the bowl of the cup. You get the idea that the cup right down at the bottom of the cup, the bowl or the rounded bottom of the cup is dry. They have drunk the cup of affliction dry. And the Lord says that he has given them this cup to drink. But in verse 22, we come to a very interesting turn, a twist, in the story regarding Israel. Thus saith the Lord, thus saith thy Lord Jehovah, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people. God is pleading Israel's cause. God took Israel into captivity for a reason. They were his people. He loved them. They were his particular, peculiar, and loved people. He gave them the cup of affliction in order to restore them, in order to bring them, and to purify them, because as we come into the New Testament, we have not yet reached the fullness of time when Israel has brought forth the Messiah. And they've been brought into captivity, and the drinking of the cup of affliction was in order that the Lord might preserve Israel. But that cup has been drunk dry. For Israel, for God's people, affliction is temporary. And here in verse 22, Thus saith thy Lord Jehovah, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of his people, Behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury. Thou shalt no more drink it again. But I will put it into the hand of them that afflict thee, which have said to thy soul, bow down, that we may go over, and thou hast laid thy body as a ground, and hast the street to them that went over. The Lord took the cup of affliction from Israel, and he gave it into the hands of the enemies of God and the enemies of Israel. This is what we find in Obadiah chapter, or Obadiah verse 16. Let's read Obadiah verse 15 and 16. The section that deals with the judgment prescribed on the ungodly. For the day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen. As thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee. Thy reward shall return upon thine own head. For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. Yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been. We've read these two passages for a purpose, for a reason. And the passage in Obadiah, or in Isaiah chapter 51, verses 17 to 23, the Spirit of the Lord, through the prophet Isaiah, summons Jerusalem out of the chastisement that he has brought upon her. He calls Jerusalem to rise up from under the judgment of God. He calls Jerusalem to come out from under the cup, from drinking the cup of the wrath of God. And verse 18, as we saw, he is going to put it into the hand of her oppressors. When we read, what we read of in Isaiah 51, verses 17 and following, is what Obadiah is speaking of in verse 16 of Obadiah's prophecy. There is a debate as to whether this verse is the last verse of judgment and applied to the Edomites, or is it the first verse of the consolation and applied to Judah. We see from the Authorized Version that the translators of the Authorized Version have made the paragraph division at verse 17. But there's debate as to whether verse 16 is actually part of the consolation. As ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. Yea, they shall drink, and they shall swallow down, and they shall be as though they had not been. I believe with the Authorized Version, the translators of the Authorized Version, that this verse 16 is the last verse that deals with the judgment upon Edom. I believe also that since it is the last verse that deals with the judgment, and it is the first verse, 17, is the first verse that transitions us into the blessing of God for Judah. I believe verse 16 is both a curse upon Edom and the heathen, and it is a blessing and it is consolation for the people of God. Because if we read it in the light of what God says to Israel in Isaiah chapter 51, He is now giving the cup of wrath to the enemies of God. He is now giving the cup of wrath to Edom and all the heathen. Why? Because He has taken it from Israel. And so this verse 16 is both consoling to Israel, in that the cup of wrath has been taken away from them, and it is judgment for the Edomites. The cup of wrath is given to the heathen because of what they did also to the Israelites. This is what we have seen throughout the prophecy of Obadiah. The Lord is looking out for Israel. The Lord is defending Israel. Obadiah has drunk the cup of God's wrath. Why? Because they have treated Israel in such a manner. You should not have done this. From verse 10 down to verse 14, the Lord says, You should not have done this. You should not have done this. And they are drinking the cup of wrath because they treated Israel so. And so it is both judgment upon the heathen, and it is consolation to the Israelites. In verse 16 Obadiah continues not only to prescribe judgment on Edom, but he also describes why he is prescribing this judgment upon Edom, in verses 15 and 16. But in verse 16 he is describing why he is giving them this judgment. And he says in the first verse, For as ye have done this, because ye have drunk upon my holy mountain. And that carries us back then into what we have already looked at in verses 10 to 14. Here is another reason why Edom is being judged. Because they have drunk upon God's holy mountain. We are going to get to that a little later on. This verse not only prescribes the judgment, but it describes why God is judging Edom. The invasion of Jerusalem had facilitated the drunken bouts that the conquering armies had in the city of Jerusalem. They have reveled, they have gloated at Jerusalem. In the face of God they have drunk to intoxication, drinking in celebration and drinking in the holy city, desecrating God's holy city. God is going to judge them for that. Now it is not what they have done to Israel. It is now what they have done to God's possession, specifically. They have drunk in His holy mountain. Desecrated God's holy mountain. First thing I want us to notice tonight, there are two things, judgment demonstrated by the ungodly and judgment demonstrated in the ungodly. There are two main headings that I want us to look at tonight. This judgment is demonstrated by the ungodly and it is demonstrated in them. We saw in verse 3 when we looked at it a few weeks ago, the irony of pride, the irony of pride. Well here we see the irony of punishment. The Lord says, For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. There is an irony there. There is a twist. Edom come in to Jerusalem. They drank in triumph and defiance against Israel and against the God of Israel. Now, Edom and all the heathen are going to drink. But it is going to be not the wine of celebration, but they are going to drink the cup of God's wrath. And God says, As ye have drunk in my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. And God is going to make them drink the cup of His wrath. They have then demonstrated in Jerusalem. The irony of it is that they have demonstrated in Jerusalem what God was going to do against them. They drank in defiance. God is going to make them drink His wrath. The figure of drinking the cup of wrath is used throughout scripture. The clearest expression is found in Psalm 75 verse 8. For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red. It is full of mixture, and he pours out the same. But the dregs are off, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out and drink them. Psalm 75 verse 8. For in the hand of the Lord there is a cup, and the wine is red. It is full of mixture, and he pours out the same. But the dregs are off, all the wicked of the earth shall wring them out and drink them. We come into the New Testament. We see again in Revelation chapter 18 verse 3. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her. And the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. Now you can either take this prophecy in Revelation chapter 17 and chapter 18. You can either take this prophecy to mean the wicked ungodly system. The great beast, the whore of Revelation. Or you can take it to be Roman Catholic Church and the Antichrist. If you read chapter 17, for my opinion, I take it to be the Antichrist, the Roman Catholic system. It is an ungodly system. And the system, Roman Catholic Church chapter 17 tells us, is drunk with the blood of the saints. It is drunk with the blood of the saints. You read down through church history and see that played out in history. The saints that the Roman Catholic Church murdered, put to death with cruel hatred. But chapter 18 verse 3 says, for all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And all the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her. And the merchants of the earth are waxed rich. What this is saying, what this verse is saying concerning the fornication and the cup of the wrath of her fornication. Is the fornication and the judgment that will be brought about by and because of that fornication, that spiritual fornication. The wrath that will be brought about by the sin and the punishment of the system of ungodliness. They have drunk it and they have made the nations to drink of it. And if you read the chapter 17 and 18, you will see that for yourselves in Revelation. But this idea of drinking the cup of the wrath of God is found throughout, for the most part, the prophetic scriptures. Drunkenness is one of the most horrid sights that one can ever look on. One of the most horrid sights. It turns the drunkard into a mental stupor and a physical inability. Makes a fool of an individual. James Henley Thornwell, great preacher from the 1800s, describes the drunkard as worse than a beast. In the act it is momentary derangement in the habit it is general incapacity. Worse than a beast he said. Have you ever had any dealings with drunkards and drunkenness? You can understand that description. I remember a few years ago a lady I used to do some work for in her garden and her son, teenager at the time. I came home late one night from a meeting and he was lying at the end of our street in a pool of vomit. Young fellow, teenager. And I got him into the car and took him home and got him up the stairs into bed and he knew nothing of it. So drunk, so out of his mind. I was talking to a doctor recently who works in the emergency. New Years Eve, a young 16 year old came in to the emergency. In her own vomit, sitting in her own urine and could hardly keep her eyes open. Was nearly unconscious because of drunkenness. It is one of the most horrid sights that you can ever look on. You can get this picture of the Edomites and this description and this analogy that the Lord uses of drunkenness. As the Edomites come up to Jerusalem with the armies and the enemies of Israel. And as Psalm 137 records, the Edomites, not the other nations, the Edomites cried, raise it, raise it, even to the foundation thereof. And as the Edomites had destroyed the city of Jerusalem. And they go into the temple and they take the vessels of gold, the vessels of silver, the sacred vessels of the temple. And they begin this drunken orgy in the city of God. And there they lie in their own vomit and urine. There in the wake of a temporary victory they lie inebriated and incapacitated. Celebrating and desecrating the Lord's city, reeling under the potent influence of intoxicating liquor. They have captured the city. And there in their drunken orgy and reveling they lie in a stupor. And God says in Obadiah 16, as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. And if you can visualize that drunken reverie of Edom. If you can visualize that drunken orgy in the city of Jerusalem as Edom raises it to the ground. Then you are looking at a demonstration of what the Lord is going to do to the heathen on the last day. Psalm 60 verse 3 gives us a picture of drunkenness in the judgment of God. Thou hast shewed thy people hard things, thou hast made them to drink the wine of astonishment. And we are going to see the use of the genitive construction there. You have made them to drink the wine that causes them to stagger. That's the word that is used, astonishment. They have made them to drink the wine that causes them to reel. This my friend is what the Lord says and describes in verse 15. For the day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen. A day that they are going to be staggering and reeling. A day when God is going to demonstrate His power. And as Amos chapter 2 verses 14 to 16 tells us. Therefore shall the flight perish from the swift, and strong shall not strengthen his force. Neither shall the mighty deliver himself, neither shall he stand that handleth the bow. And he that is swift of foot shall not deliver himself. Neither shall he that rideth his horse deliver himself. And he that is courageous among the mighty shall flee away naked in that day, saith the Lord. The Lord is going to come in and He is going to wipe them out. He is going to put a stupor and an astonishment of judgment upon them. They are going to be staggering and reeling in judgment. This my friend, what they demonstrated in Jerusalem in celebration. Listen, they are going to experience in reality, in God's judgment. As ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. It was demonstrated by them. There is the irony in it. It was not only demonstrated by them, it was demonstrated in them. As ye have drunk on my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. And the last verse says, the last line of the verse says, And they shall be as though they had not been. They shall be as though they had not been. What the Edomites have demonstrated in their drunkenness, God is going to bring to pass in judgment. And here we see the effects of God's wrath. It is a sad reality. It is not pleasant talk. It is not pleasant speech. They are not pleasant words. But the effect of God's wrath is going to be a reeling and a staggering under the wrath of God. What they had done in Jerusalem was demonstrative of what God was going to bring upon them in judgment. The victim of divine wrath then would be sent reeling as helpless and intoxicated by the potency of God's wrath. They had staggered. They had reeled by the potency of intoxicating wine. Now they are going to stagger and reel by the potency of God's wrath. As a drunk man. What we have here is a demonstration of judgment against sin. Not merely in time. Not merely in time. But in eternity. In eternity. Because the word that is used, as we are going to see a little later on, the word that is used for the social law of the heathen drink continually. It signifies that once Edom is dealt with, the heathen continually are going to drink. And this judgment of God is not going to cease when Edom is exterminated. It is a continual judgment of God. And this is what the book of Edom, of Obadiah, is dealing with. The book is dealing with the retribution against sin. Punishment for sin. We have heard of the day of the Lord in verse 15. We have heard of the decree of the Lord in verse 15 also. And verse 16 then tells us how God intends to demonstrate this judgment. There are certain characteristics. There are certain characteristics about this figure, this cup of wrath, that I want us to get to tonight. And we glean from scripture, in particular from the prophets, we glean from scripture the characteristics of what this day of wrath, this cup of wrath, is going to be. And there are uses of the term that are nuanced to give us different aspects of the day of the cup of wrath. The first thing I want us to notice is that it is a cup that contains wrath. It is a cup that contains wrath. We are not going to go into detail on these, but I want us to see certain scriptures. Psalm 11, verse 6, Upon the wicked shall he reign snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest. This shall be the portion of their cup. This shall be the portion of their cup. This shall be, in other words, this shall be the content of their cup. It is a cup that contains wrath. In Isaiah 51, verse 17, we have already seen, Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury. It is the cup that contains the fury of God. It is a cup that pours out fury. It is an instrument that pours out the wrath of God upon sin and ungodliness. This, my friend, under the cup of God's wrath, is a cup that is filled with the fury of God. That's the content. And there's a potency about that. There's a strength about the wrath of God. It is not diluted. It is not diluted. It is the potent wrath of God in this cup. That is the content of the cup. Not only is it a cup that contains wrath, but it is a cup that causes reeling. It is a cup that causes reeling. Isaiah 51, verse 17, again, we see the parallelism of this verse. Awake, awake, stand up, O Jerusalem, which hast drunk at the hand of the Lord the cup of his fury. The cup that contains his fury. Thou hast drunken the dregs of the cup of trembling, and wrung them out. And here we see the effects of the cup. It is a cup that causes reeling. It is a cup that causes trembling. We see this again in Psalm 60, verse 3. Thou hast shown thy people hard things. Thou hast made us to drink of the wine of astonishment. There is the effects of the drink. This is what it affects. This is what it does. It causes astonishment. It causes staggering. It causes reeling. It will cause trembling. The wrath of God is one thing. The wrath of God is one thing, my friend. But what the effects of that wrath will be seen. At the last day, when men cry to the mountains and the rocks and the hills to fall on them, there is the effects, there is the cause of the cup of God's wrath. There is what it is going to affect. It is a cup of trembling. Not only is it the cup that contains wrath and a cup that causes reeling, it is a cup that continues giving. It is a cup that continues giving. We have heard of the barrel of meal that the widow had, and it never ran out. She was living in a famine, and the Lord provided for her, and every time she put her scoop into the barrel of meal, it was always there. It continued giving. It was an unending fountain for her. Here we see in this cup of the wrath of God a continuous giving. For Israel, the wrath of God was temporary. For Israel, the wrath of God was tempered with mercy. We have seen this in Isaiah chapter 51. God was chastening His people. According to Isaiah chapter 51 verse 22, the Lord took the cup from Israel, and He gave it to the heathen. I want you to see what is happening here. When the Lord took the cup from Israel, after they had drunk the dregs of the cup, the Lord gave it to the heathen. Not saith the Lord thy God, Isaiah 51 verse 22, and thy God that pleadeth the cause of His people, behold, I have taken out of thine hand the cup of trembling, even the dregs of the cup of my fury. Thou shalt no more drink it. You are not going to drink it again, Israel. But when we come to Obadiah 16, we see here in Obadiah 16, For as ye have drunk upon my holy mountain, so shall all the heathen drink continually. Continually. This is God's continued wrath upon sin. God gave the cup to the Gentiles. God gave the cup, more specifically, to the heathens, and the ungodly and the rebellious, with whom He would show no mercy. No mercy. And the Edomites, along with the heathen, were to drink of that cup of God's wrath continually. Here is a cup that will never, ever, ever run dry. Never. It's never going to run dry. The word that is used here, as we've seen, is translated continually, implies that this judgment will not end with the extermination of the Edomites. It will continue for all who rebel against God. It will continue for all who are haters of God and His people. We have already seen that Edom personifies a hatred for God and Israel. Edom represents the Gentile nations who are in opposition to God. And Edom is used here as a representative. And God says, when Edom is exterminated as a nation, my wrath, the cup of my wrath, will continue to pour out upon all the heathen. Continually. Continually. Now, in keeping with this idea, and the continued wrath of God against ungodliness, we see in Zechariah 12, verse 2, that no matter how many, no matter how many people defy God, no matter how many nations defy God, no matter how many wills defy God, God still has a cup of wrath for everyone who defies God. Zechariah 12, verse 2. Zechariah 12, verse 2. Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling upon all the people round about, when they shall be in a siege, both against Judah and against Jerusalem. God is going to make Jerusalem a cup of trembling upon all the people. We are going to come to this aspect of Jerusalem as a cup of trembling. But I pick up on this verse, because this verse in particular, the other verses that we have looked at, the word that is translated cup, is the word kok. It means a cup. But the word in Zechariah 12, verse 2, where God is speaking of all the heathen drinking, is a different word that speaks of a bowl. It's a bowl. And the word uses a different word for a purpose. This bowl is so large that all the nations will drink together. It's not the cup of God's wrath, it is the bowl of God's wrath. And if we were to translate it literally in Zechariah 12, verse 2, we would not use the word cup there. It's the bowl of God's wrath for all the heathen. And they are going to drink together. There is going to be enough wrath in this cup against all the heathen that they are all going to drink of it, and they are all going to drink of it continually. They are going to drink of it continually. Zechariah chapter 2, that Jerusalem is put for the cup of trembling. Notice that. I have made Jerusalem a cup of trembling. I want us to notice that in particular in relation to what we are looking at in Obadiah. And that is interesting. It signifies that any attack on Jerusalem will ultimately be hurtful and destructive. Any attack on Jerusalem will ultimately be hurtful and destructive by those who make it. We have seen in this passage, in this chapter of Obadiah, we have seen that God is looking out for His people. Now think of it, and apply it to yourself. God is looking out for His people. He is defending His people. In Obadiah, He is defending His people against Obadiah, against Edom. And God is going to destroy Edom. Why? Because they have been so treacherous and so cruel against Israel. And God says in Zechariah 12 too, that God is going to make Jerusalem a cup of trembling. That is, that anyone who destroys Jerusalem or anyone who defies Jerusalem or anyone who is a hatred for Jerusalem, i.e. the people of God, God is going to deal with them. God is going to deal with them. Now you carry that back into what we looked at last week, the law of retribution, the eye for the eye. We are not to seek revenge. We are not to seek retribution. We are to leave it in God's hands. Why? Because God will deal with sin on our behalf. Vengeance is mine, God says. I will repay. And for my part, I am prepared to leave it to the Lord to seek revenge upon any who would want to do me ill. God will repay. My friend, if we only had the faith to understand that, if we only had the grace to understand that and to practice it, we would understand that the payment that God gives them is far greater than any payment we could mete out for them. God has made us, His people, a cup of trembling for the ungodly. Anyone who touches God's people, touch not mine anointed, the Lord said. Anyone who touches God's people will be dealt with. We may not see it in our day. We may not see it in time. But God will deal with it. There is consolation in that. There is comfort in that. And God is looking out for His people. This cup of trembling. We see it in the context of Isaiah 63. Verses 1 to 3. Very famous words. Of Isaiah chapter 63 verses 1 to 3. Where we find a very vivid description of the Lord's victory over the ungodly. God is conquering the ungodly. And this cup of wrath is continually given on the ungodly. And in Isaiah 63, a passage that is not speaking, let me say this particularly, that this passage is not speaking about Christ. Primarily. And in context, it is not speaking about Christ. It can be applied to Christ. But it is not speaking about Christ. Who is this that cometh from Edom? With thy garments from Bozrah, this that is glorious in his apparel, traveling in the greatness of his strength, I will speak in righteousness, mighty to save. Wherefore art thou red in thine apparel, and thy garments like him that treadeth in the winepot. I have trodden the winepress alone, and of the people there was none with me. For I will tread them in mine anger, and trample them in my fury, and their blood shall be sprinkled upon my garments. And I will stain all my raiment. That passage, my friend, is describing God's victory over the ungodly. And his defense of his people Israel. And he comes from Edom. We have already seen that Edom personifies the ungodly. And Edom represents ungodliness. And he describes here the Lord coming from ungodliness, coming from the world. He is coming from the world. And the Lord says, and Paul says in Romans, Sin shall no longer have dominion over you. Why? Because Christ has destroyed sin on our behalf. And God has dealt with the world on our behalf. And he is protecting us in this world, and consoling us. And he comes from the world with his garments dyed red. Why are they dyed red? Because he is victorious over them, and the blood of the enemy is sprinkled on his garments. He has treaded the winepress alone on our behalf. And he has poured out the cup of wrath on the nations continually. He is defending us. And this cup of wrath is continually poured out. It is a cup, forcefully. It is a cup, firstly, that contains wrath. Secondly, that causes reeling. Thirdly, that continues giving. Fourthly, it is a cup that compels drinking. It compels drinking. The wrath of God against sin must be satisfied. It must be satisfied. Not one sin, not one sin in this world can go unpunished. Not one sin against God in this world can go unpunished. It cannot be ignored. Not a sin, not a single, as they call it, not a single little white sin can go unpunished. It must be satisfied. They have to be accounted for. And this is what Jeremiah said in Jeremiah 25 verse 15. And thus saith the Lord God of Israel unto me. Take the wine cup of this fury at my hand and cause all the nations to whom I send thee to drink it. The Lord says to Jeremiah in Jeremiah 25 verse 15. Take the cup of wrath and give it to the nations and cause them to drink it. And he goes on in verse 28 then. And it says and it shall be if they refuse to take the cup. If they fight the cup. If they refuse to take it at thine hand to drink. Then shalt thou say unto them thus saith the Lord of hosts. Ye shall certainly drink. God has given the cup of wrath to the ungodly. And he says to Jeremiah if they refuse it. If they resist tell them ye shall certainly drink. This is a cup my friend that compels drinking. Because judgment must be satisfied. Sin must be dealt with. And God is going to deal with sin. God is going to punish sin. And God will compel us to drink it. He will cause us to drink it. It is the Lord who gives this cup. According to Isaiah chapter 51 verse 22. It is the Lord who takes it from the mouth of Jerusalem Israel. And he gives it to the heathen. And my friend it is interesting and it is important for you to know. That the cup of wrath and the punishment and the judgment that you will endure. If you are out of Christ. And the judgment that you will endure in hell for all eternity. Is a judgment that comes to you from the hand of God. And he will cause you to drink it. He will compel you to drink it. And you will certainly drink it. It is a cup of wrath that you must drink. And the fact that this cup is compulsory. That is the fact that you must drink it. In order to satisfy the wrath of God. Leaves you with a great problem. Unbeliever. Leaves you with a great problem. As you sin and rebel against God. And you must drink the wrath. The cup of God's wrath. You must drink it. What are you going to do? How are you going to drink it? This cup that gives continually. This cup that is eternal. This cup that you must drink. We have spoken of the contents of the cup. It is a cup of wrath. We have spoken of the effects of the cup. It is a cup that causes this reeling and agony and pain and astonishment. We have spoken that it is a continual eternal cup. All of which ought to strike fear into the hardest of hearts. The fear of the destruction of this judgment. And a reverence for the God who will mete this judgment out. That leaves you without hope. Unbeliever. That leaves you without hope. If Christ had not drunk the cup. On your behalf. If Christ had not drunk the cup. On our behalf. This brings us to notice in closing. That Christ has drunk the cup of wrath. On our behalf. Believer tonight. Christ has taken the cup. Of God's eternal wrath. Christ has drank the cup of trembling. On our behalf. He has satisfied the justice of God for me. He has drank the cup of God's wrath. The dregs of it. And he has drank it dry. And as Mark chapter 10 verse 38 says. When the mother of James and John. Came to ask Christ. For a position. One on the right hand and one on the left. Christ said unto them. In Mark chapter 10 verse 38. She asked. Grant unto us that we may sit. One on the right hand and one on the left. And Jesus said unto them. Ye know not what you ask. Can you drink of the cup that I drink of? Ye know not what you ask. Christ said. Can you drink of the cup that I drink of? This my friend deals with the necessity. Of Christ drinking the cup on our behalf. The necessity of it. We could never. Ever. Ever. In all of eternity. Drink the cup of God's eternal wrath. Against sin. We could never finish. The payment against sin. On our behalf. And escape the wrath of God. But Christ has drank it. And when the disciples ask. To sit on the right hand of the throne. With Christ. Christ says. Ye know not what you ask. Ye know not what you ask. Augustine says. They sought the exaltation. But did not see the step. They sought the exaltation. But they did not see the step. They wanted the kingdom of God. But they failed to see. That the kingdom of God was gained. Through suffering. The kingdom of God was gained. By Christ. Drinking the wrath of God. And Christ established his kingdom. Why? Because he drank the cup of the wrath of God. And he drank it dry. There is not an ounce. There is not an ounce. Of the wrath of God. Against God's people. Tonight. Here in Christ. There is not an ounce. Of the wrath of God. Against you believers tonight. If you are in Christ. Why? Because Christ drank the wrath of God. Dry. In it's completion. He drank it dry. And we. Tonight. Are exalted. We will sit. With Christ. On his throne. And we will reign with Christ. On his throne. Why? Because Christ has drunk the cup of the wrath of God. On our behalf. That cup that we were not able to bear. The cup that we were not able to drink. Not only do we see the necessity of Christ drinking our cup of wrath. But we see the determination of Christ drinking our cup of wrath. The determination of Christ. Drinking this cup of wrath. In John chapter 8 verse 11. We read then. I said Jesus unto Peter. Put up thy sword. Into thy sheath. The cup which my father hath given me. Shall I not drink it? Remember when Christ was in the garden. And the guards came. And Peter. Petulant Peter. Takes his sword out of his sheath. And he cuts the ear of the high priest. Of Malchus. Servant. And Christ says. Shall I not drink the cup of wrath that the father has given to me? In other words. I am determined to drink it alone. Matthew 26.39. We read. And when he went a little further in the garden. This is the night before. He fell on his face. And prayed. Saying. O father. If it be possible. Let this cup pass from me. Nevertheless. Not as I will. But as I will. Now I believe. And if I. Read the context correctly. And if I understand correctly. That all the prayers of Christ are answered. I believe this prayer. Was answered. That the Lord did take away that cup of wrath. That cup that he was dealing of. Speaking of. When Christ was in the garden. And listen to me. Listen to me carefully. When Christ was in the garden of Gethsemane. And he was sweating great drops of blood. He was nigh unto death. And I believe when Christ prayed this prayer. Take this cup of wrath. From me. That he meant. Death in the garden. Satan. I believe. Was seeking to kill him. Before he got to the cross. And Christ in the garden. Prayed. That the Lord would take the cup of wrath. From him. The cup of the garden agonies. Why. Would Christ want the garden agonies. Taken from him. Or the death in the garden. Taken from him. In order that he might make it to the cross. In order that he might drink the cup of wrath. In order that he might hang. As was spoken of. Throughout the prophets of the old testament. In order that he might hang. On the cross. Cursed is everyone that hangeth on a tree. The prophecies of the old testament. The plan of God. Would not have been fulfilled. Had Christ died in the garden. Had Satan had his way in the garden. The prophecies of the old testament. And the plan of salvation by the cross. Would never have been fulfilled. And I believe all the prayers of Christ are answered. And this prayer is one of them. That Christ. Prayed that the Lord would take. Death in the garden from him. That he might make it to the cross. He made it. To the cross. He set his face as a flint. To go to Calvary. He was determined to get to Calvary. He was determined to drink the cup of wrath. On my behalf. And he did. Christ drank the cup of God's wrath. So that we could drink the cup of God's blessing. And salvation. In 1 Corinthians chapter 10 verse 16. The cup of blessing. Which we bless. Is it not the communion of the blood of Christ. The bread which we break. Is it not the communion of the body of Christ. Every time you celebrate the Lord's supper. You drink the cup of God's blessing. We drink the cup of blessing. Because Christ has drank the cup of wrath. On our behalf. This my friend. Is Christ drinking the cup of wrath. On our behalf. As ye have drunk on my holy mountain. God says to the heathen. So shall ye drink continually. I think if we see it in the context of 1 Corinthians 11. I think here we have this desecration. Of the place of God. And we have the desecration of the table of God. Drinking unworthily. And the same is true. If you drink the cup unworthily. You will drink the cup of wrath. Continually. So it can be tied in to Obadiah 16 here. Here we have the cup of God's wrath. Drank in totality. By the Lord Jesus Christ. Let's bow in prayer.