The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God,.... Which is a just punishment for their sin; that as such have drank of the wine of the wrath of Rome's fornication, Re 14:8 so they shall now drink of the wine of God's wrath; it is usual in Scripture to express the punishment God inflicts upon wicked men by his wrath, and by the wine cup of his fury; and their suffering such punishment, by their drinking of it; see Jer 25:15 soazgwrd Nyy, "the wine of wrath", is a phrase used by the Jews :which is poured out without mixture, into the cup of his indignation; sometimes called a cup of fury and of trembling, Isa 51:17 and is sometimes said to be full of mixture, Ps 75:8 of various ingredients of wrath and fury; and the words may be rendered here, "which is mixed without mixture": and though it seems to carry in it a contradiction, yet is true in different senses; it may be said to be mixed as wine with various sorts, which is the stronger, and sooner inebriates and intoxicates; or in allusion to the cup the Jews gave to malefactors, to stupefy them, when going to execution, which had various things put in it for that purpose;See Gill on "Mr 15:23" and so designs the several ingredients in the cup of divine indignation, or the several ways in which God expresses his wrath; and yet it is without mixture; it is judgment without mercy, pure wrath, without the least allay; not so much as a drop of cold water granted, or the least your shown, or any mitigation of fury for a moment:and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone: in allusion to the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, which are now a burning and a sulphurous lake, called Asphaltites, and is an example, pattern, and similitude of the vengeance of eternal fire, #Jude 7 and hence the beast and false prophet are said to be cast into such a lake, Re 19:20 and here their followers will be punished; which is expressive of the horrible torments of hell, and the dreadful punishment of the antichristian party there; see Ps 11:6 and what will aggravate their misery is, that it will bein the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb; the latter will be their Judge, and will condemn them to everlasting burnings, and pronounce the sentence on them; and the former will be the executioners of it; they will gather them out, and sever them from the righteous, and cast them into the furnace of fire, and will be spectators of their punishment, and rejoice at it; and the sight of their power and glory will increase the torment of the sufferers.
Zohar in Gen. fol. 51.