John ate the whole scroll; he tasted and saw the goodness of the Lord. But he ate the whole thing. Even the bitter parts. That tells us that we too need to eat the whole thing; we cannot just look for the sweet parts of God’s Word. We must devour the whole thing; even the parts that seem bitter to us—the parts that clearly tells us to repent and lay off sin—the parts that tell us that those who reject Jesus will face His judgment.

For sure, John’s vision has been showing us just how much authority God has: it extends over all things. And we are right to be afraid.

Whether the righteous judgments of God against sinful people brings swarms of literal locusts, swarms of an attacking army of men, or swarms of demons out of the abyss, who can endure it? John’s vision answers that question.