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Click here for Chapter 14 in Streaming Sound 14 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads. 2And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. 3And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. 4These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb. 5No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless.
INTRODUCTION Here we have a resplendent scene, 144,000 have their Fathers name on their foreheads. In the previous chapter those who followed the beast had his mark on their forehead. The 144,000 are seen as singing a new song. "On Zion's glorious summit stood a numerous host redeemed by blood! They hymned their King in strains divine; I heard the song, and strove to join, I heard the song, and strove to join. Here all who suffered sword or flame for truth, or Jesus' lovely name, shout victory now and hail the Lamb, and bow before the great I AM, While everlasting ages roll eternal love shall feast their soul, and scenes of bliss, forever new, rise in succession to their view." The scene changes and we see an Angel flying in mid-heaven with the everlasting gospel to preach to all the world. While the dark ages was in progress the everlasting gospel was hidden from the people now the reformation and restoration have come and the reformers are preaching the gospel to all humanity, "Fear God and give Him glory." No longer did men have to fear the Pope. He had been locked up in exile. Following the announcement that the gospel has been preached again to all the world by the reformers, comes the second announcement: "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great," (better known to us as Church and State). The Pope had lost the 10 kingdoms of Europe. Hallelujah! She had made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. Now God says that his judgments have come. The imagery is awesome. All who have the mark of the beast must suffer its doom. All who have a part with the religion of Catholicism will be doomed. God says "come out of her my people."
EXPOSITION 1 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb, standing on Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father's name written on their foreheads.
The lamb has been identified as Christ in an earlier chapter:
"Standing on Mount Zion" is typical of the church:
2 And I heard a sound from heaven like the roar of rushing waters and like a loud peal of thunder. The sound I heard was like that of harpists playing their harps. As the voice of many waters (Rhythm). As the voice of a great thunder (Volume). As the voice of harpers playing their harps (Melody).
3 And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders. No one could learn the song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. See comments about the four living creatures in chapter 4:6,7. See comments about the 144,000 in chapter 7:4. With the 1260 years of struggle between the saints and Catholicism, the saints needed encouragement; without it they would faint and not endure through the great tribulation period. None could learn the song but the redeemed. None but the redeemed can fully appreciate the joys of salvation.
4 These are those who did not defile themselves with women, for they kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb wherever he goes. They were purchased from among men and offered as firstfruits to God and the Lamb.
The 144,000 had not followed "THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS."
5 No lie was found in their mouths; they are blameless. No deceit. No fraud. No hypocrisy. No guile. No treachery. No craftiness.
6 Then I saw another angel flying in midair, and he had the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who live on the earthto every nation, tribe, language and people. The everlasting gospel was first preached on the day of Pentecost.
Jesus said this gospel was to be preached till the end of the world.
After the long period of the dark ages, when the gospel was obscured and hidden in dead languages, and the church refused to give it to the common people; the spell of Rome was broken and the mighty Reformation occurred. This gave way to liberty and the gospel spread as though it had angels wings. This long night of religious slavery had ended. The glorious freedom of the gospel had finally arrived. All nations would soon have the Word of God again. Hallelujah!
7 He said in a loud voice, "Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heavens, the earth, the sea and the springs of water." Catholic power was broken. During this period they had given glory to the beast. They had said "Who is able to make war with her" All nations had drank of the wine of her fornication. Its different now. You and I can thank God for the greatest movement, since Pentecost, that occurred in this world, the mighty Reformation.
8 A second angel followed and said, "Fallen! Fallen is Babylon the Great, which made all the nations drink the maddening wine of her adulteries." Literal Babylon took Jerusalem, destroyed the temple, removed the vessels and put the people in bondage for seventy years. The papal hierarchy through its perversion of the church took away the true worship and put the people in spiritual bondage for 1260 years. The reformers ended the bondage but did not destroy the papal system any more than freeing Israel from Egyptian bondage destroyed Egypt. Wine of her adulteries:
9 A third angel followed them and said in a loud voice: "If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives his mark on the forehead or on the hand, In chapter 13:15,16 we learned that worship was given to the beast and that the beast had a number which was 666.
10 he, too, will drink of the wine of God's fury, which has been poured full strength into the cup of his wrath. He will be tormented with burning sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and of the Lamb. We are repeatedly told that all who are associated and affiliated with the Catholic church will suffer for her crimes. Fornication is typical of false doctrine, idolatrous practices, heathen rites and observanceswhich leads to confusion and rebellion against God. Remember when God pours out his wrath without mixture (KG) it will be undiluted or in other words full strength.
11 And the smoke of their torment rises for ever and ever. There is no rest day or night for those who worship the beast and his image, or for anyone who receives the mark of his name." cf. Sodom in Gen. 19:28. The destruction of the wicked often fall under this image.
12 This calls for patient endurance on the part of the saints who obey God's commandments and remain faithful to Jesus. Nothing but the strongest faith can meet such tests.
13 Then I heard a voice from heaven say, "Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on." "Yes," says the Spirit, "they will rest from their labor, for their deeds will follow them." You can't die in a state or relationship that you did not sustain in this life. If you are a friend of Jesus in this life, you will be his friend in death.
14 I looked, and there before me was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one "like a son of man" [Daniel 7:13] with a crown of gold on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. This reaping is not the end of the world! It is the reaping of Babylon. Her harvest of sin was ripe and God is going to cut her down and tread her in his wine press of wrath. This could hardly be the end of the world for we still have chapters l5 through 22.
15 Then another angel came out of the temple and called in a loud voice to him who was sitting on the cloud, "Take your sickle and reap, because the time to reap has come, for the harvest of the earth is ripe." The great day of accounting has come for spiritual Babylon just as it had come for literal Babylon in the Old Testament. 16 So he who was seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was harvested.
In the next chapter we will see how God meets out his wrath on spiritual BABYLON.
17. Another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. All the reaping is not done by the Lord himself. In this instance he employs an Angel, and in the following verse still yet another angel.
18. Still another angel, who had charge of the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, "Take your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of grapes from the earth's vine, because its grapes are ripe." The whole episode it likened to reaping ripe grapes. A cluster of grapes must be harvested when they are fully ripe. Harvest does not begin until they are ripe, nor does it wait until after they are ripe. The whole analogy of the vineyard is to liken spiritual Babylon to a vineyard of grapes that are to be harvested. These are grapes of wrath.
19. The angel swung his sickle on the earth, gathered its grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God's wrath. A winepress was a vat for treading out the juice from grapes. This is therefore a symbol of God tromping and stomping the wicked. "Vengeance is mine. I will repay," says the Lord. After 1260 long years of the sins of the Catholic Church, God began to tread her in his winepress of wrath.
20. They were trampled in the winepress outside the city, and blood flowed out of the press, rising as high as the horses' bridles for a distance of 1,600 stadia. [That is, about 180 miles (about 300 kilometers)] Winepresses were generally built outside the city and a person hopped into the press barefooted and began to tread out the grapes.
Edom was a bitter enemy of Israel. Isaiah represents Jehovah as a warrior with bloodstained garments. Edoms destruction was to be utteroverwhelmingabsolute. The wicked of this chapter will in a similar manner be trodden under the foot of Jehovah. The winepress is represented as overflowing with blood as high as horses bridles and 180 miles long. Links to other Revelation chapter commentary below e-mail echo@4thewordofgod.com
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