The Lamb and The 144,000 Thousand On Mount Zion
Revelation 14:1-5: Then I looked, and behold the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him, one hundred and forty-four thousand, having His name and the name of His Father written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, like the sound of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder, and the voice which I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and the elders; and no one could learn the song except the one hundred and forty-four thousand who had been purchased from the earth. These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they have kept themselves chaste. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been purchased from among men as first fruits to God and to the Lamb. And no lie was found in their mouth; they are blameless.
144,000
These are the 144,000 we read about in Chapter 7. They are Jewish believers who minister during the Tribulation and are given a seal of protection throughout that period. Chapter 7 shows them at the beginning of the Tribulation. Here, they are at the end (seven chapters later), standing victorious on Mount Zion with Jesus.
Like the Jewish men who survived the fiery furnace in Daniel 3: 19-25, they prove God’s ability to keep His promises and preserve His people.
Mount Zion
Zion is the ancient name for the hills that make up Jerusalem and is the place where Jesus gathers His redeemed and reigns over the earth (Psalm 48; Isaiah 24:23; Joel 2:32; Obadiah 17 & 21; Micah 4:1 & 7).
His Father’s Name
In Revelation 13: 16-17, we read the followers of Satan and the beast will have a mark on their heads. But their mark will only be a copy of the idea behind the identifying mark written on the foreheads of the 144,000, which shows they belong to the Father.
A Voice From Heaven
This is the voice of God (Revelation 1:15 & 4:5). When I read these verses, I imagine God’s voice as a waterfall, such as Niagra Falls, and the most fierce lightning and thunderstorm I’ve ever experienced. How awesome and magnificent it will be to hear God speak! But for the time being, all I can do is imagine. It won’t be long now; we shall all hear Him.
John doesn’t tell us what God was saying to the 144,00. But, maybe, it was in the spirit of Matthew 25:21: Well done, good and faithful servant, God expressing His approval of His faithful servants.
Harpists Playing And Singing A New Song
John says he heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. In Revelation 5:8, we read that the elders have harps. Perhaps, the elders are playing to accompany the 144,000 as they sing a new song.
Sang Before The Throne
In Revelation 14:1, we read that the 144,00 have their feet firmly planted on Mount Zion. Yet their praise takes them right before the throne. So in our praise and worship, we can transport ourselves before the throne and be heard in heavenly places.
To be rapt in praise to God is the highest state of the soul. To receive the mercy for which we praise God for is something; but to be wholly colthed with praise to God for the mercy received is far more. Why, praise is heaven, and heaven is praise! To pray is heaven below, but praise is the essence of heaven above. When you bow in adoration, you are at your very highest.
Spurgeon
Heaven is not the place to learn that song; it must be learned on the earth. You must learn here the notes of free grace and dying love; and when you have mastered their melody, you will be able to offer to the Lord the tribute of a grateful heart, even in heaven and blend it with the harmonies eternal.
Spurgeon
The Ones Who Follow The Lamb
The words “for they are virgins” could symbolize their general purity, as in 2 Corinthians 11:2. However, Paul recommended celibacy in distressing times in 1 Corinthians 7:25-35. In Matthew 24: 19-21, Jesus speaks of the woes of those with children and families in those days. Weighing what we read in these verses, it isn’t hard to see that God calls these 144,000 to literal celibacy for the kingdom’s sake during the Great Tribulation.
We know that the 144,000 are of all the tribes of the children of Isreal (Revelation 7: 4-8). Yet clearly, they are believers in Jesus; otherwise, they would not follow the Lamb and could not be without fault before the throne of God.
A vast multitude will be saved during the Tribulation; they will be saved in the same manner as anyone today, by God’s grace, through personal faith in Jesus Christ unto salvation.
The First Fruits
The 144,00 are the beginning of a greater harvest; therefore, they are the first fruits of Jesus’ reign. Being that they are described as the first fruits tells us that these 144,000 will be instrumental in God’s plan for bringing in a great ingathering during the Tribulation and may be used to preach the gospel to those who will be saved in this period (Revelation 7:9).
Vision Of The Angel With The Gospel
Revelation 14: 6-8: And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven, having an eternal gospel to preach to those who live on the earth and every nation and tribe and tongue and people; and he said with a loud voice, “Fear God, and give Him glory because the hour of His judgment has come; worship Him who made the heaven and the earth and sea and springs of waters.” And another angel, a second one, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who has made all the nations drink of the wine of the passion of her immorality.”
The angel preaches the gospel and announces judgment. In the Tribulation, God’s judgment will be so evident; perhaps this is why the crowd of those saved can’t be numbered (Revelation 7:9-14).
Though many have tried to identify their ministry with this angel (Angel One satellite television, The British and Foreign Bible Society, etc.), there will be no ingathering of souls in this magnitude until the Tribulation because those who are still not believers at this point will not be able to ignore God’s judgment.
Fear God And Give Glory To Him
This is what the angel will tell the whole world to do. So it seems we can give God glory willingly in this life or be compelled to later, after much Tribulation.
One day ALL will certainly give God glory. Philippians 2:9-11 says, Therefore God also has highly exalted Him and given Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus, every knee should bow, of those in heaven, and of those on earth, and of those under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God.
Here is the bitter irony of their lot: though they damn themselves eternally by their refusal to face the truth, one day they will be forced to face it. Sooner or later the ‘glory’ they refuse to ‘give’ the Creator willingly will be torn from them by the spectacle of His wrath.
Kiddle
“It is one of the very last calls of grace to an apostate world.”
Seiss
This does not excuse us Christians from spreading the gospel. In Matthew 28:18-20, Jesus tells us, His followers, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything that I have commanded you.“
*Something To Research (Sidenote)
This is a topic for another day, but during my study of the book of Matthew, after reading this verse, I wondered, “What is EVERYTHING that Jesus has commanded of us?” “Did the people who taught me His commands teach me properly?” Did they teach me EVERYTHING?”
I found it to be an exciting journey and an enlightening lesson. So, if you’re looking for a good talk with Jesus, ask Him these questions, and He will surely lead you to the answers.
A Second Angel
Back to verse 8: Babylon is fallen. This Babylon is a representation of humankind in organized rebellion against God.
Prophetically, ‘Babylon’ sometimes refers to a literal city, sometimes to a religious system, sometimes to a political stystem, all stemming from the evil character of historic Babylon.
Walvoord
The Passion Of Her Immorality
The Bible I am using is NASB. Other versions use the word “fornication.” The definition of fornication is “sexual intercourse between people not married to each other.” Immorality is also generally taken to mean specific sexual sins. However, the actual meaning of immorality is “wickedness.”
Much more wickedness will bring God’s wrath than just fornication. Murderers, rapists, child predators, slavers, drug pushers, gluttony, war makers, thieves, religion, politics, fearmongers, hate lovers, the inactive church, etc. The list is inexhaustible as to how much our wickedness will rise.
Fornication is a sin, one that we need the blood of Jesus to cover, if we are to stand before the throne of God sinless or blameless. But it is by far not the only form of wickedness that will bring God’s judgment upon the world.
Aristotle distinguishes between two types of immorality: wickedness and weakness.
However, back to the topic, When we are told that Babylon has led all nations to immorality, it speaks of a spiritual problem – the worship of false gods or idols. And isn’t that the way of it? Where there is spiritual immorality, there is wickedness.
Doom For Worshippers Of The Beast
Revelation 14:9-13: Then another angel, a third one, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is mixed in full strength in the cup of His anger; and he will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever; they have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.” Here is the perseverance of the saints who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven, saying, “Write, ‘Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on!'” “Yes,” says the Spirit, “so that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow with them.”
The Mark Of The Beast
There is much concern from Christians about this mark. Some continuously fear receiving this mark unbeknownst; that somehow they will be tricked into getting it. But this passage reminds us there is a connection between worshipping the beast and his image and receiving his mark. No one will accidentally take the mark. The relationship between the beast and the mark will be clear enough.
For those who still dwell on the earth during this time, in their eyes, it may seem like nothing more than a pledge of allegiance. In much the same way Christians, during the first few centuries of Christianity, burned a pinch of incense to an image of Ceasar, declared, “Ceasar is Lord,” and regarded it as an act of innocent civic duty.
Drink The Wrath Of God
Those who worship the Antichrist will be forced (they will no longer have a choice) to drink the wine of the wrath of God. God’s wrath is likened to undiluted wine, full strength and bitter to taste. This is the cup that Jesus willingly drank, although He prayed for another possible way (Matthew 26:39).
The idea that God holds a cup of wrath, which He gives to those under judgment, is expressed several times in the Bible. Here are a few of them: Jeremiah 25:15-17, 49:12 & 51:7; Psalm 75:8; Zechariah 12:2-3; Lamentations 4:21; Habakkuk 2:16; Revelation 16:19 & 18:6.
The wine in the cup is associated with wrath (thymos), which describes passionate anger. The cup is associated with indignation (orge) and irritation from a settled disposition.
The ancient Greek word orge is the common word for God’s anger in the New Testament. On the other hand, the ancient word thymos is used only eleven times, ten of which are in Revelation. Usually, God’s anger toward sinners does not flash against them; it is simply His settled opposition against sin and unrighteousness. But in the Book of Revelation, which clearly describes God’s ultimate judgment, the term for passionate anger is used every time.
Smoke Goes Up
Tormented with fire and brimstone: The suffering of hell is a real torment. It is painful and repulsive. The smoke of their torment will ascend forever and ever. Those there will have no rest day or night. Many like to dispense with the idea of hell, but Revelation warns us of its reality.
In The Presence Of The Lamb
God is not absent even in hell. God is present in all His holiness and righteous judgment. Souls in hell will wish He were absent, but part of their torment is knowing God is real and not feeling any sense of His love. Hell’s occupants will feel only the presence of His holy justice and wrath against sin.
I always thought God would be absent from hell, that His absence would be part of its torments. But now I understand seeing but not feeling Him will be more painful. Also, I know now that even non-believers must feel Him. He is everywhere, in everything.
Rest From Their Labors
Here we see the contrast between the ‘rest’ of the saints and the continual torment of the wicked. God wants to encourage His people to be steadfast in times of trial, focused on the ‘rest’ and ‘rewards’ that await them in eternity.
The Reapers
Revelation 14:14-20: Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and sitting on the cloud was One like a Son of Man, having a golden crown on His head and a sharp sickle in His hand. And another angel came out of the temple, crying out with a loud voice to Him who sat on the cloud, “Put in Your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is ripe.” Then He who sat on the cloud swung His sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped. And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, and he also had a sharp sickle. Then another angel, the one who has power over fire, came out from the altar; and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, “Put in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, because her grapes are ripe.” So the angel swung his sickle to the earth and gathered the clusters from the vine of the earth, and threw them into the great wine press of the wrath of God. And the wine press was trodden outside the city, and blood came out from the wine press, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of two hundred miles.
Son Of Man
Some find it difficult to see Jesus as the One gathering the harvest and responding to an angel. But it is unlikely that it can be anyone other than Jesus who will be coming on a cloud wearing a crown of gold.
Is it difficult to see because Jesus will yield a weapon of sorts, a sharp sickle? A sickle is a tool with a sharp curved metal blade and a short handle used to cut grass or wheat. The time for a farmer to use his sickle is at harvest time. After a farmer has harvested his crops, he gathers them.
Jesus told us long ago He has planted crops, there will be a great harvest, and it will be the end of the age, in Matthew 13:37-43. “And He said, “The one who sows the good seed is the Son of Man, and the field is the world; and as for the good seed, these are the sons of the kingdom; and the tares are the sons of the evil one, and the enemy who sowed them is the devil, and the harvest is the end of the age; and the reapers are angels, and they will gather out of His kingdom all stumbling blocks, and those who commit lawlessness, and will throw them into the furnace of fire; in that place there will weeping and gnashing of teeth. Then the righteous will shine forth as the sun in the kingdom of their Father. He who has ears, let him hear.”
As Christians, we say we are waiting on Christ’s return, but perhaps He is waiting on us to ripen, to become as good as we’re going to get. Maybe it’s not the expansion of sin and corruption that will bring His return, but we Christians to reach our fullest potential. Are we ripe? Are we ready to be harvested?
In Matthew 24:30-32, Jesus tells us He will be the harvester and gatherer of His crops: “And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming on the clouds in the sky with power and great glory. And He will send forth His angels with a great trumpet, and they will gather together His elect from the four winds, from one end of the sky to the other.”
An Angel Out Of The Temple
When I first read Revelation 14:15, I thought, “Now wait a minute, who is this angel bossing Jesus around and Jesus doing what He’s told?” So recently, I’ve been giving much thought to the humanity of Christ, and I believe this verse speaks to that.
It’s healthy to ask questions because if we ask God, He will give us His wisdom and understanding.
Jesus says in Mark 13:32: “But of that day and hour no one knows, not even the angels in heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.”
How can Jesus, who is God, not know what God the Father knows? As Christians, we acknowledge Jesus as God; we should ponder this passage because of what we know of the nature of God. 1 John 3:20 says, God is all-knowing, so how can Jesus not know when He is returning?
The answer is found in the humanity of Christ and not His deity. While Jesus is fully God (John 1:1 & 14), He also became man. When He came to earth as man, He voluntarily restricted the use of specific divine attributes (Philippians 2:6-8). So perhaps, this angel (out of the temple) was instructed by God the Father to let Jesus know “the hour to reap has come.”
The Winepress Of The Wrath Of God
Is this the battle of Armageddon, the final judgment before God establishes His kingdom? This is the last scene in a cycle of visions found in Revelation 12-14. It foreshadows the final battle in the book, Revelation 16:17-19 & 19:11-15.
The image of the great winepress of the wrath of God is drawn from Isaiah 63:1-6. This disturbing passage describes the Lord clothed in a white robe stained with the blood of His enemies. Joel 3:12-16 and Zephaniah 1:14-18 also speak of God’s wrath. It is a picture of tremendous carnage when blood comes up to the horses’ bridles’.
This is a vivid, powerful description of God’s complete judgment of His enemies. Yet, as followers of Christ, we do not have to fear this judgment. Christ’s blood continuously flows at the altar of God to cover our sins from God’s sight (Hebrews 9:14 & 22; 1 John 1:7-9; Matthew 26:28; Ephesians 1:7; Leviticus 17:11; Hebrews 10:19-22; Revelation 1:5; 7:14 & 12:11).