Revelation 16 in the context of Seven trumpets

Divine retribution (also known as divine punishment or divine abuse) is the supernatural punishment of a single person, a group of people, or everyone, by a deity in response to some action. Mythology and folklore about how a deity imposed punishment on previous inhabitants of their land, causing their doom, can be found in several cultures.

An example of divine retribution is the story found in many religions about a great flood destroying all of humanity, as described in the Epic of Gilgamesh, the Hindu Vedas, or the Christian Book of Genesis (6:9–8:22), but leaving one principal 'chosen' survivor. In the Epic of Gilgamesh, the survivor is Utnapishtim. In the Hindu Vedas, it is Manu. In the Christian book of Genesis, it is Noah. References in the Old Testament and the Quran to a man named Nuh (Noah), who was commanded by God to build an ark, suggest that one man and his followers were saved in a great flood.

Wadi Ara (Arabic: وادي عارة; Hebrew: ואדי עארה) or Nahal 'Iron (Hebrew: נחל עירון), is a valley and its surrounding area in Israel populated mainly by Arab Israelis. The area is also known as the "Northern Triangle".

Wadi Ara is located northwest of the Green Line, in the Haifa District. Highway 65 runs through the wadi. The ancient town of biblical fame, Megiddo, known from Revelation 16:16 as Armageddon, used to guard its northern exit during much of the Bronze and Iron Ages.

The seven bowls (Greek: φιάλας, phialas (acc. pl.), nom. sing. φιάλη, phialē; also translated as cups or vials) are a set of plagues mentioned in Revelation 16. They are recorded as apocalyptic events that were seen in the vision of the Revelation of Jesus Christ, by John of Patmos. Seven angels are given seven bowls of God's wrath, each consisting of judgements full of the wrath of God. These seven bowls of God's wrath are poured out on the wicked and the followers of the Antichrist.