Notes on Revelation 14

And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:  And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.--Revelation 14:1-3

Wow...what did John see?  He saw the Lamb of God on Mount Zion that is prophesied and pictured in Psalm 2.  His appearance is awe-inspiring...Jesus poised to take possession of the earth.

Yet have I set my king upon my holy hill of Zion.I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession.  Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel.  Be wise now therefore, O ye kings: be instructed, ye judges of the earth.  Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling.  Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him.--Psalm 2:6-12

The Lamb appears with the 144,000 who have the name of the God sealed on their foreheads.  These are the servants of God that were sealed...12,000 from each of the tribes of the children of Israel.  Unbelievers have the mark of the beast but these have the mark of God.  They are protected as they preach and do His will.   These men enter the millennial kingdom alive.  Here they can be heard singing the song of redemption.  The voice of God is said here to have a musical sound...i love that!  Harps in the bible symbolize joy...heaven sings...Jesus is triumphant!

These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.--Revelation 14:4-5

We get a little more information here about the 144,000, who truly will  shine as lights in the world during its darkest time.  They will not be defiled with women.  They are devoted followers of the Lamb.   They are the first fruits unto God and therefore separated completely to do His will.  In their mouth is no guile.  They speak the truth of God.  They are blameless before Him.  They are not sinless but their lives are godly examples to all...lights among a crooked and perverse generation.

Then the presidents and princes sought to find occasion against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find none occasion nor fault; forasmuch as he was faithful, neither was there any error or fault found in him.--Daniel 6:4

And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.  And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall 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 ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.--Revelation 14:6-11

The first angel preaches the Gospel to those who dwell on the earth, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters.  Our God's mercy, grace and love toward His creatures truly reaches into the heavenlies.

I love what John MacArthur says about the various ways the gospel is described in Scripture:

"Like a multifaceted jewel, Scripture describes the gospel in various terms, each looking at it from a different viewpoint, including the gospel of the kingdom, the gospel of God, the gospel of the grace of God, the gospel of the glory of Christ, and the gospel of salvation (Matthew 4:23; Mark 1:14; Acts 20:24; 2 Corinthians 4:4; Ephesisans 1:13). Here it is described as “eternal” because it provides the means to eternal life."

The next angel sadly pronounces judgment....an indication that the message of the first angel was mostly rejected.  

The third angel promises damnation.  The bible tells us we are without excuse when we reject the word of God.  (Romans 1:20-21) The fate of those who reject the message of God is absolutely horrifying.

The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall 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 ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name.

Forever and ever is a long time...

Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow them.--Revelation 14:12-13

The perseverance of the saints...Those whom God has justified will never lose their faith.  They will keep His commandments and keep the faith come what may...even when facing the loss of their lives.   They will maintain their testimony to the end...no group in history will face face more intense persecution and no group in history will manifest the character of saving faith more than the tribulation believers.  Our faith is from God.  As such it is supernatural.  The kind of faith that endures to the end is from God.  Believers are kept by the power of God.  He is able to save to the uttermost and lives to make intercession for us.  Jesus is speaking in John 10:28-29:

My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand.

True saving faith from God endures...I am so encouraged when I read the many verses in the Scripture that tell me over and over again that it is not up to me...If my confession was sincere, I cannot do anything to lose my salvation. 

Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord!  You do not hear blessed are the dead often but believers who live out the the reality of their faith trusting in Jesus for it all die with the promise of eternal life.   Their suffering ends and they rest from their labors...their deeds follow them.  

For God is not unrighteous to forget your work and labour of love, which ye have shewed toward his name, in that ye have ministered to the saints, and do minister.--Hebrews 6:10

And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.  And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.  --Revelation 14:14-16

Read that very last verse again...and the earth was reaped.  Divine judgment executed.  Pretty sobering thought.  These final judgments are detailed in Chapter 16.

Then another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.  And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.--Revelation 14:17-20

The execution of final judgment is in view here.  The grain harvest  (14-16) and the grape harvest (17-20)  The grain harvest symbolizes the seven bowl judgements and the grape harvest, Armageddon.  The imagery used is pretty dramatic and very sobering.  In fact the word for ripe in verse 15 means to be withered...to become dry.  The grain here has passed the point of usefulness and fit only as it says in Matthew 13 to be burned.  

The word ripe in 18 means to flourish or come to maturity.  The ungodly people of the earth are literally "bursting with the juice of wickedness and ready for the harvest of righteousness.

This angel does not come from the throne of God but from the altar where the saints of God are...the ones who have been beheaded because of their belief.  This pictures their prayers being answered. When the angels swings his sickle to the earth, all the enemies of God who have up to this point survived the other judgments will be annilhated.  I will end with a quote from John MacArthur's description of the Battle of Armageddon from his book, Because the Time is Near, that is so worth reading:

They "will be gathered like grape clusters from the vine of the earth and flung into the great wine press of the wrath of God. A winepress consisted of two stone basins connected by a trough. Grapes would be trampled in the upper basin, and the juice would collect in the lower one. The splattering of the juice as the grapes are stomped vividly pictures the splattered blood of those who will be destroyed (cf. Isaiah 63:3; Lamentation 1:15; Joel 3:13). 

The staggering, horrifying bloodbath of the battle of Armageddon will be so widespread that blood will come out from the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for a distance of two hundred miles. “The winepress [will be] trodden outside the city,” as the Lord protects Jerusalem from the carnage of the battle of Armageddon (cf. 11:2; Daniel 11:45; Zechariah 14:1–4). There will be millions of people engaged in the battle of Armageddon, as all the nations gather together to fight against Christ. Still, it is difficult to imagine that they could produce a flow of blood “up to the horses’ bridles [about four feet deep] for a distance of two hundred miles” (literally “1,600 stadia”). A better interpretation, whether there are actual horses involved or not, sees this as hyperbole to suggest the slaughter in which blood will splatter into the air profusely along the whole length of the battle. When the slaughter reaches its peak, blood could flow deeply in troughs and streambeds. Armageddon, as this passage indicates, will actually be a slaughter rather than a battle. 

When the Lord Jesus Christ returns, Antichrist, the false prophet, and all their human and demonic forces will be immediately destroyed. Those who refuse to repent, even after repeated warnings, will learn firsthand the sobering truth that 

“it is a terrifying thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (Hebrews 10:31). 

They would do well to heed admonition of Psalm 2: 

“Do homage to the Son, that He not become angry, and you perish in the way, for His wrath may soon be kindled. How blessed are all who take refuge in Him!” "