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REVELATION 14
HEAVEN'S MOUNT ZION
AND THE
SICKLE JUDGMENTS
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Rev. 14:1-5
Then I looked, and behold, [NU changes: a to: the] Lamb standing on Mount Zion, and with him one hundred and forty-four thousand, having his [NU adds: name and his] Father's name written on their foreheads. And I heard a voice from heaven, like the voice of many waters, and like the voice of loud thunder. And I heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. They sang as it were a new song before the throne, before the four living creatures, and the elders; and no one could learn that song except the hundred and forty-four thousand who were redeemed from the earth. These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault [NU omits: before the throne of God].
14:1-2
We return now to the linear action of the Great Tribulation in time. Keep in mind that the events of which we are about to read will occur in the exact sequence that they are set forth in this chapter. For quite a while now, we have been looking at the dark side of the Great Tribulation. But here in chapter 14, we come to a shaft of light. Down below, John has been observing Hell on Earth. But now God takes him back to Heaven where once again he can see the wondrous glory of God and his Lamb amongst his people. Despite Satan’s stranglehold on the earth below, all is well in God's Heaven and God’s program is right on track.
In this fresh vision, John says, I looked, and behold, the Lamb standing on Mount Zion. Now remember, this is the real Mount Zion in Heaven. The Greek with its article could be translated the Mount Zion. This Mount Zion is the original of which the one that is on earth is a mere shadow. As you have it in Hebrews 12:22-23,
But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, to an innumerable company of angels, to the general assembly and church of the firstborn who are registered in heaven, to God the judge of all, to the spirits of just men made perfect…
So, it is at Heaven's Mount Zion that this scene is set before us. John saw the Lord Jesus standing on that holy mount. Because Christ was standing on Mount Zion and not seated on his throne are clues to us that once again, he is on the move. Notice that the 144,000 are there as well. We recognize them because they have his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. You will remember they received that seal back in chapter 7 before they went out into the storm of The Great Tribulation to serve Christ. The fact that we find them in Heaven now, tells us they have all been martyred. Yet now, what a triumphant scene this is! These 144,000 who loved, preached, suffered, and died for their beloved Master ... are now singing to him on Heaven's Mount Zion. And their song is at the request of the one whose voice is like the sound of many waters. That, of course, was the voice of the omnipotent Son of God described to us back in 1:15.
As the 144,000 began to sing to their Lord and Savior, John also heard the sound of harpists playing their harps. Who might these accompanists be? I take it they would be the Church. You will remember, back in chapter 5:8, the elders, who are representatives of the Church, were holding harps. So, I don’t feel it is much of a stretch to say that you and I, dear believer, are scheduled to have a part at this happy occasion by manning the instruments.
14:3-5
The 144,000 sang, as it were, a new song. Truly it will be a great privilege for the Church to accompany the new song of the 144,000, before the throne, before the four living creatures, and before the elders on that future day. Verse three says they sang a song that belonged exclusively to the 144,000.
We read:
…These are the ones who were not defiled with women, for they are virgins. Some people try to explain this fact by saying that it simply means these 144,000 males are pure and single-hearted fellows. However, I see no reason to take it for other than what it says. That is, that they are indeed virgins who have not defiled themselves with women. Let me explain what I mean before I get myself into hot water for making such a politically incorrect statement. Think about it for a minute. What kind of women do you think inhabits the earth during the final days of the Great Tribulation? Ungodly wicked ones, am I right? Hooking up with those gals would, in fact, truly defile a man. The godly women were removed, either by the Rapture of the Church ... or by having been hunted down and killed by Antichrist … or they are camped out in the wilderness place of refuge. And believe me, these fellows will be far too busy serving Christ by getting the Word of God out to have time for romance and marriage. Their ministries for Christ will be their dynamic, hectic, dangerous, and short-term obsession. Hence, indeed, they will all be virgins to a man. It would be well for us to remember the Apostle Paul’s admonition to us believers along these same lines...
Are you bound to a wife? Do not seek to be loosed. Are you loosed from a wife? Do not seek a wife. But even if you do marry, you have not sinned; and if a virgin marries, she has not sinned. Nevertheless such will have trouble in the flesh, but I would spare you. But this I say, brethren, the time is short, so that from now on even those who have wives should be as though they had none… First Corinthians 7:27-29
All the Lord's 144,000 will have carried out this admonition to the letter. They went out to minister for Christ as virgins. They died as virgins. They were single minded in purpose, and they didn't allow themselves to become entangled with the wicked women of Antichrist's dark kingdom to which they were preaching. A very wise pastor I once knew, who lived and ministered for Christ well into his nineties, said that over the years of his ministry he had observed that there were three things that remove good men from the ministry … pride, money, and women. The 144,000 will escape all three of these pitfalls. May the Lord multiply their like in the Church today.
…These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. The single minded devotion to Christ of these men is on display for all of Heaven to see. They are completely enamored with their Lord and Savior. They follow him around like puppy dogs. Won't that be a wonderful sight to see? Such a congregation of Jews adoring Christ Jesus? We shall see it one day when we encounter Christ's 144,000 and accompany their new song to the Savior.
…These were redeemed from among men, being firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. This word here, firstfruits, is a word that speaks of a greater harvest to follow. The fact that these 144,000 are called firstfruits tells us a much greater harvest of the Jewish people is yet to come. As you have it in Romans 11:26,
And so all Israel will be saved, as it is written: ’The Deliverer will come out of Zion, and he will turn away ungodliness from Jacob…
…And in their mouth was found no deceit. Deceit means to be crafty, sneaky, and disingenuous. The 144,000 are true blue. They embody God’s original design for his people to be the righteous people of God. Nathaniel was such a Jew. When Jesus saw Nathaniel coming to him, he said to Philip,
Behold, an Israelite indeed, in whom is no deceit. John 1:47b
The 144,000 will be a 144,000 Nathaniels! The company that you and I keep in Heaven is going to be amazing! What a delight it will be to make the acquaintances of each one of these 144,000 men of integrity as we live with them in eternity.
How many of these fellows went out into the Great Tribulation? 144,000 ... right? How many do we find standing here on Heaven’s Mount Zion? 144,000. Our God is certainly able to keep his own, is he not?! 144,000 went out into the Great Tribulation and 144,000 have arrived safely in Heaven. Jesus keeps his own, beloved. Let's take a minute to look at some of our Lord's great promises to that effect in Scripture.
For he performs what is appointed for me, and many such things are with him. Job 23:14
The LORD will perfect that which concerns me; your mercy, O LORD, endures forever; do not forsake the works of your hands. Psalm 138:8
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me. And I give them eternal life, and they shall never perish; neither shall anyone snatch them out of my hand. My Father, who has given them to me, is greater than all; and no one is able to snatch them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. John 10:27-30
In him you also trusted, after you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation; in whom also, having believed, you were sealed with the Holy Spirit of promise… Ephesians 1:13
…being confident of this very thing, that he who has begun a good work in you will complete it until the day of Jesus Christ… Philippians 1:6
For this reason I also suffer these things; nevertheless I am not ashamed, for I know whom I have believed and am persuaded that he is able to keep what I have committed to him until that day. Second Timothy 1:12
…who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. First Peter 1:5
Now to him who is able to keep you from stumbling, and to present you faultless before the presence of his glory with exceeding joy, to God our Savior, who alone is wise, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and forever. Amen. Jude 24-25
One hundred forty-four thousand set out down on the Earth and a 144,000 arrived safely home in Heaven ... and so will you and I, dear saint. That's because it is God who does the keeping. We can take it to the bank. He will never lose one of his own.
My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me: And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me, is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Father's hand. I and my Father are one. John 10:27-30
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Rev. 14:6-12
Then I saw another angel flying in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth; to every nation, tribe, tongue, and people; saying with a loud voice, "Fear God and give glory to him, for the hour of his judgment has come; and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and springs of water. And another angel followed, saying, ‘Babylon [NU adds: the great is fallen, is fallen and omits: that great city, because she] which has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.’ Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, ‘If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. 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 ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints; [NU omits: here are those] who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus.’
14:6-7
No one who lives through the Great Tribulation will ever be able to accuse God of not giving them a chance. In addition to the testimony of the 144,000 and God's two witnesses ... the world in that dark day will also receive the testimony of three separate angels whom God will send to circumvent the globe preaching to every Earth-dweller during the final closing hours of that age. He will send forth one preaching angel, one proclaiming angel and, finally, one warning angel. Let’s look at them.
…The first angel John saw flying through the skies (heaven here, refers to the skies of Earth) had the everlasting gospel to preach to those who dwell on the earth. Incredible! In the closing days of the Great Tribulation our gracious and merciful God will send forth his angel to preach the everlasting gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to all the remaining Earth-dwellers until every soul has clearly heard the good news of salvation that is available in Christ Jesus! This has got to be the greatest instance of amazing grace that the world has ever seen. Truly, as the Psalmist so repeatedly exclaimed...
His mercy endureth forever... repeated in Psalm 136:1b,2b,3b,4b,5b,6b,7b,8b,9b,10b,11b,12b,13b,14b,15b,16b,17b,18b,19b,20b,21b,22b,23b,24b,25b,26b
For millennia, the Church of Jesus Christ has been involved in carrying out the great commission to go into all the earth and preach the gospel to every creature (Matthew 28:19). However, she has never fully gotten the job done. In fact, during some ages, the Church has been a complete flop at getting the gospel out. She has failed in the past and she will fail again in the future. My own generation failed, as well. Sadly, we will not get the good news about Jesus Christ to every creature of our own generation. During the Great Tribulation, the 144,000 will take their best shot and even give their lives for it, but they too will come up short. Ultimately, it will take an angel from God to complete the job. I believe it was this very angel with the loud voice that Jesus was thinking of when he said,
And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in all the world as a witness to all the nations, and then the end will come. Matthew 24:14
It will be impossible for men and women not to listen when God sends forth his angel with the loud voice preaching the everlasting gospel.
14:8
…The second angel went forth crying, Babylon the great, is fallen, is fallen. When Antichrist seizes Jerusalem at the middle of the Tribulation, there is a good deal of evidence in Revelation that he will change the city's name to Babylon. The name, Jerusalem, means city of peace. Babylon is a name derived from the Akkandian, babilu. It means gate of God. Since Antichrist will declare that he is God and demand he be worshipped at the temple in Jerusalem, it makes sense that he would choose the ancient name Babylon, the gate of God, for the name of his capital and center of his blasphemous worship. As we have previously noted, Babylon was the first kingdom to introduce counterfeit religion on earth under King Nebuchadnezzar when that ancient king had a statue of himself built and decreed that all his subjects were to bow down and worship it. When Antichrist seizes Jerusalem and renames it Babylon, he too will have his statue and require that all must fall and worship it … epitomizing the long tradition of man-worship in the Kingdom of Darkness which began so long ago at ancient Babylon. However, before Babylon's final demise, Earth-dwellers will be graphically warned of its inevitable destruction by a second of God's proclaiming angels. Though the city itself won't literally fall until the pouring out of the seventh Bowl, this angel will also circumvent the globe and proclaim it already fallen. By his bold proclamation, he will be emphasizing the certainty of Babylon's fast approaching destruction which, time wise, is only hours or at most, days away. What an amazing warning that will be! This proclaiming angel’s ominous and prophetic declaration will, no doubt, put a huge question mark in the minds of Antichrist worshipers in that day. I can almost hear them thinking, What's he talking about? Perhaps the Holy Spirit will answer in their minds and hearts, You know what I'm talking about! God's proclaiming angel will be speaking the Word of God to them, you see. This warning is in line with the Scripture's statement in Romans 4:17,
…even God, who quickeneth the dead, and calleth those things which be not as though they were…
14:9-11
…The third angel that went forth, proclaimed, If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on their foreheads or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God. One can't help but think here about how gracious and merciful God is. During the very last hours of the Great Tribulation, he will still be sending out his warnings to men and women in hopes they will repent and turn to him. First Timothy 2:4b, says,
…who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth.
Let's look a bit further at the important elements of this final warning by God’s angel. He warns:
…If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of his indignation. That’s telling it like it is, brother … no holds barred. This angel will declare to every Earth-dweller of that day that those who receive the mark of the Beast will be made to drink of the wrath of God full strength. This message, given at that very late hour is an assurance that people can still remove the beast's mark and be saved. It will still not be too late. However, he warns that those caught with that mark at the appearing of the Lord Jesus Christ will experience God’s wrath undiluted without a drop of mercy and with no way of escape. Psalm 75:8, says,
For in the hand of the LORD there is a cup, and the wine is red; it is fully mixed, and he pours it out; surely its dregs shall all the wicked of the earth drain and drink down.
…and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone. Jesus told a true story in Luke 16 about a rich man who died and woke up in Hell. The scripture does not say that this was a parable. It is a graphic illustration of what this angel is referring to. The “Hell” that Jesus was referring to is not the Lake of Fire. Rather, it is the temporary holding place of all the wicked dead. The Lake of Fire, which this angel will warn about, is the permanent home of the wicked dead. The Bible describes it as a horrible place that is to be avoided at all cost. It was originally created and reserved for Satan and his demons. In chapter 20 we read that hell and death will be cast into it.
...in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. The visibility of God's Lamb and his holy angels will no doubt greatly increase the suffering of the damned. There, in all their naked unrighteousness, they will be fully exposed to the gaze of the Holy One and his holy angels. In Proverbs 8, Christ, speaking as Wisdom incarnate, says,
Blessed is the man who listens to me, watching daily at my gates, waiting at the posts of my doors. For whoever finds me finds life, and obtains favor from the LORD; but he who sins against me wrongs his own soul; all those who hate me love death… Proverbs 8:34-36
…And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name. Thus, God will forewarn Earth-dwellers of the eternal nature of the punishment that Antichrist worshippers can expect. Eternal, conscious damnation is not a popular concept today. It's not in the playbook of political or even ecclesiastical correctness. Yet, Jesus and his Word speak of it openly and specifically. In Mark 9:43-44, Jesus said,
If your hand causes you to sin, cut it off. It is better for you to enter into life maimed, rather than having two hands, to go to hell, into the fire that shall never be quenched; where 'Their worm does not die, and the fire is not quenched.'
14:12
The angel concluded his message saying … Here is the patience of the saints; who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. I suspect that this will be a great consolation for those who will be on the receiving end of Antichrist's persecution and murder. When they hear these words being proclaimed from the sky by God's awesome angel, it will assure them that their trials are only temporary and will remind them that a dramatic reversal of their circumstances is just around the corner. Their tormentors will soon be disposed of in the Lake of Fire. It is just a matter of time and only requires patience.
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Rev. 14:13
Then I heard a voice from heaven saying, [NU omits: to me] ‘Write: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.’ ‘Yes,’ says the Spirit, ‘that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them.’
In the Psalm 116:15 it is written, Precious in the eyes of the Lord are the death of his saints. That is also reflected in these words as well. This exclamation pours out from the heart of God the Father and from the Holy Spirit and is directed at his suffering people who are paying so great a price for believing in his Son during the awful days of the Tribulation. Had we been able to hear these words as they were spoken, I believe we would have heard great empathy and concern in their inflection when he said, blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on. This statement from the Father was immediately followed by an Amen from the Holy Spirit. Doubtless, many a suffering, Tribulation saint will take comfort in these words as they pour over their Bibles in that day. The Holy Spirit, knowing the good things that await those saints, adds … that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them. Jesus’ words in Luke 6:21-23 come to mind here...
Blessed are you who hunger now, for you shall be filled. Blessed are you who weep now, for you shall laugh. Blessed are you when men hate you, and when they exclude you, and revile you, and cast out your name as evil, for the Son of Man's sake. Rejoice in that day and leap for joy! For indeed your reward is great in heaven, for in like manner their fathers did to the prophets.
Let's think a moment about the Person of God’s Holy Spirit as He is revealed to us here.
First, notice that the Holy Spirit is a Person, not an “it.” He is the third person of the Trinity. All through the scriptures, the Spirit is referred to by personal pronouns.
Second, notice that he has a will, intellect, and emotions. For example, he can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30). There is no room in Scripture for the notion that the Holy Spirit is any less a person than the Son or the Father. He is not a mere force, as many have erroneously taught. Nor is he a mere quantity that someone can get more or less of … like pouring water into a glass. You either have Him or you don't (Romans 8:9). His personality is clearly demonstrated here in our text by his words, ‘Yes,' says the Spirit, ‘that they may rest from their labors, and their works follow them.’ This is a statement made by someone speaking from their heart. Sadly, there is a great deal of confusion today about the person, work, and ministry of the Holy Spirit.
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Rev. 14:14-16
Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat One like 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 who sat on the cloud, ’Thrust in your sickle and reap, for the time has come [NU omits: for you] to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe. So he who sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped.
This is a new vision. And it may be the most sobering in all the Bible. It answers the question posed in Hebrews 10:28-29,
He that despised Moses' law died without mercy under two or three witnesses: of how much sorer punishment, suppose ye, shall he be thought worthy, who hath trodden under foot the Son of God, and hath counted the blood of the covenant wherewith he was sanctified, an unholy thing, and hath done despite unto the Spirit of grace? (KJV)
Before we get into it, let's lay a bit of ground work. The harvest of the souls of men can be divided into two categories. The first category is the harvesting of the righteous and the second is the harvesting of the wicked. These two categories don't happen simultaneously nor will all the individuals in either category be harvested at the same point in time. Here, in these last visions of chapter 14, we have arrived at the first batch of the harvest of the wicked. And, since we are in the linear action of the Great Tribulation, the harvest of souls described here takes place just prior to Christ's Second Coming to earth at the end of the Great Tribulation.
Because of the difficulty this passage presents, many commentators interpret it as merely a preview of the great battle of Armageddon, described much later in chapter 19. However, Armageddon does not fit here at all. It would be entirely out of sequence. Rather, everything in this passage points to the fact that this is the harvest of wicked Israel. It will occur immediately following the global warnings of God's three proclaiming angels and just prior to the commencement of the Bowl Judgments. I believe it is set here in stark contrast to the godly 144,000 Jews found just a few verses back. John the Baptist forewarned Israel of the severity of this impending judgment saying,
I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance, but He who is coming after me is mightier than I, whose sandals I am not worthy to carry. He will baptize you with the Holy Spirit and fire. His winnowing fan is in His hand, and He will thoroughly clean out His threshing floor, and gather His wheat into the barn; but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire. Matthew 3:11-12
When Christ judges ungodly Israelites one day, He will harvest them out of one of two realms. They will either come from the Jews on earth who are still alive at the end of the Great Tribulation or ... the second source, they will come from the resurrection of Israel … all Jews from all time ... clear back to the beginning of God's dealings with them as a people (Dan. 12:2). I believe this is what is pictured here in our passage in its two phases. In the first part of the vision, John saw One like the Son of Man upon a white cloud. This is the same name for Messiah that John used back in 1:13. It is the Old Testament Messianic title for Christ from Daniel 7. No mistake about it, it is Christ who is sitting on the white cloud. His Messianic title is the first evidence that this vision concerns the nation of Israel. Further, he is seen wearing a crown (singular), which points to the fact that he is functioning as a King rather than the King of kings. He appears here as the King of Israel who will shortly be placed on the throne of his ancestor, David. The Greek word translated crown is στέφανον (stephanon), from stephanos. It is a word that refers to a victor’s crown. By way of contrast, when he comes to judge the whole earth and to rule the nations, he will be wearing many diadems (Revelation 19:12). In sharp contrast to the mocking that Jesus received by the Jews at the cross about being the King of the Jews … when Jesus appears on this future day ... he will come as their undisputed King of Israel indeed.
John says he had a sharp sickle in his hand. J.B. Smith, an early expositor of Revelation, says that this Greek word, sharp, is used sixteen times in the New Testament and it is always used in a negative and uninviting sense. Sickles are frequently associated with judgment in the Bible. Joel 3:13-14, speaking of this very event, says,
Put in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. Come, go down; for the winepress is full, the vats overflow; for their wickedness is great. Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
What we are observing here is the fulfillment of this very prophecy. The word, ripe, in verse fifteen, is a Greek word that literally means dried up or withered. It indicates that the recipients of this judgment are long overdue. Now, let’s look to see if there is any scriptural basis for a future harvesting of wicked Israelites from off the earth and taking them away to judgment. Here, we will need to look at the teachings of Jesus concerning wicked Israel and carefully compare his words from Matthew.
Another parable he put forth to them, saying: "The kingdom of heaven is like a man who sowed good seed in his field; but while men slept, his enemy came and sowed tares among the wheat and went his way. But when the grain had sprouted and produced a crop, then the tares also appeared. So the servants of the owner came and said to him, 'Sir, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have tares? He said to them, 'An enemy has done this.' The servants said to him, 'Do you want us then to go and gather them up? But he said, 'No, lest while you gather up the tares you also uproot the wheat with them. Let both grow together until the harvest, and at the time of harvest I will say to the reapers, ‘First gather together the tares and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn.’ Matthew 13:24-30
Then Jesus sent the multitude away and went into the house. And his disciples came to him, saying, 'Explain to us the parable of the tares of the field.' He answered and said to them: ‘He who sows the good seed is the Son of Man. The field is the world, the good seeds are the sons of the kingdom, but the tares are the sons of the wicked one. The enemy who sowed them is the devil, the harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels. Therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so it will be at the end of this age. The Son of Man will send out his angels, and they will gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and those who practice lawlessness, and will cast them into the furnace of fire. There will be wailing and gnashing of teeth. Matthew 13:36-42
But as the days of Noah were, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. For as in the days before the flood, they were eating and drinking, marrying and giving in marriage, until the day that Noah entered the ark, and did not know until the flood came and took them all away, so also will the coming of the Son of Man be. Then two men will be in the field: one will be taken and the other left. Two women will be grinding at the mill: one will be taken and the other left. Watch therefore, for you do not know what hour your Lord is coming. Matthew 24:37-42
The Jews were the people of whom and to whom Jesus was speaking in all three of the passages above. Who did he say would be taken? His teaching is very clear. It is the unrighteous Jew who will be taken ... gathered out of his Kingdom at the end of the age. They will find themselves suddenly removed (harvested) from off the earth ... ultimately to be cast into the furnace of fire. It is the godly Jews who will be left on Earth to meet their Messiah at his coming and enter his kingdom with him. This is a very important concept to get a hold on.
God has been in a continuous covenant relationship with the Jewish people from the days of Abraham. His Mosaic covenant with them, the Law, contained both blessings and curses. For example, in Deuteronomy 11:26-28, we read,
Behold, I set before you today a blessing and a curse: the blessing, if you obey the commandments of the LORD your God which I command you today; and the curse, if you do not obey the commandments of the LORD your God, but turn aside from the way which I command you today, to go after other gods which you have not known.
At the cross, God instituted the New Covenant with his chosen people, the Jew, sealed with the blood of Christ. In the closing days of the Great Tribulation, Christ will resurrect and judge his Jewish people according to whether they were wicked or righteous and in accordance with his covenants with them. Those Israelites who lived their lives under the Old Covenant will be judged by the standards of the Old Covenant. Those who lived their lives under the New Covenant will be judged according to the standards of the New Covenant. As you have it in Daniel 12:23,
And many of those who sleep in the dust of the earth shall awake, some to everlasting life, some to shame and everlasting contempt. Those who are wise shall shine like the brightness of the firmament, and those who turn many to righteousness like the stars forever and ever.
First, a word as to the timing in the above prophecy. I believe the unrighteous Jews will be resurrected separately from the righteous Jew. The unrighteous being resurrected just prior to the Bowl Judgments and then enduring them up to the initial sighting of the Messiah and Lord at his Second Coming. The righteous Jews, however, will receive their resurrection following the Bowl Judgments and then seeing and receiving their Messiah and Lord at his Second Coming.
However, it is all the wicked Jews of Israel who are the subject of John's vision here. Christ, the Judge of Israel, will thrust in his sickle cutting off all the withered fruit from his vine, Israel ... both living and dead ... like a gardener hoeing weeds from his garden. This is pictured when Christ thrusts in his sickle upon the earth. Notice that there is no product of that reaping mentioned, just the statement that the earth was reaped, because nothing of value was harvested. This severing off of the rotten fruit of Israel will include both the resurrected wicked Jews from all time … along with all the Jews still living at the end of the Great Tribulation. Together, they all will then temporarily remain on earth up to the beginning of Christ’s very visible and glorious Second Coming.
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Rev. 14:17-20
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, who had power over fire, and he cried with a loud cry to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, ‘Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.’ So the angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses' bridles, for one thousand six hundred furlongs.
This is the second phase of the judgment of unrighteous Jews. It is the gather phase by Christ’s angels of the already cut down, dry and rotten clusters that Christ first cut off with his sickle and now await to be gathered by his angels and taken away to the place of judgment. This second phase of the harvest of wicked Israel will culminate in great carnage. John saw an angel come out of the temple in Heaven carrying a sickle. The fact that he emerges from the temple is a reminder that he has received his orders from within the Holy of Holies itself. All judgment begins with Holy God in accordance with his holy character.
Notice that the harvest by the angel with the sickle is said to be a gather of the clusters of the vine of the earth. This phrase, vine of the earth, adds further weight to the case that what we are looking at here is the judgment of unrighteous Israel. The picture of Israel as God's vine is a prominent one in the Old Testament.Psalm 80:8, 14-15, says,
You have brought a vine out of Egypt; you have cast out the nations, and planted it.
Return, we beseech you, O God of hosts; look down from heaven and see, and visit this vine and the vineyard which your right hand has planted, and the branch that You made strong for yourself.
Jeremiah quotes the Lord speaking to Israel as follows,
Yet I had planted you a noble vine, a seed of highest quality. How then have you turned before me into the degenerate plant of an alien vine? Jeremiah 2:21
This is the judgment of that vine … specifically, the judgment of its over-ripe clusters of rotten fruit. The cleansing will be a necessary step in the Lord’s refining of his covenant people in preparation for his return to rescue them and to fulfill his promise of a Jewish kingdom on Earth. As you have it in Zechariah 13:8-9,
And it shall come to pass, that in all the land, saith the Lord, two parts therein shall be cut off and die; but the third shall be left therein. And I will bring the third part through the fire, and will refine them as silver is refined, and will try them as gold is tried: they shall call on my name, and I will hear them: I will say,It is my people: and they shall say, The Lord is my God. (KJV)
John says the severed clusters were cast into the great winepress of the wrath of God. As I see it, these things will take place in the following order:
First, all wicked Jews who have ever lived (just resurrected or were currently alive on earth at the time) will observe Christ’s Second Coming but will then be immediately cut off by Christ. The Son of Man, seen here as thrusting his cycle over the earth, is probably refers to the exercise of his Word. This is when Jesus’ words to Caiaphas will be ultimately fulfilled.
Jesus said to him, 'It is as you said. Nevertheless, I say to you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.' Then the high priest tore his clothes, saying, 'He has spoken blasphemy! What further need do we have of witnesses? Look, now you have heard His blasphemy!' Matthew 26:64-65
Did you notice that Jesus told Caiaphas specifically that he would see him coming on the clouds of heaven? That could only occur at the very beginning of Christ’s Second Coming.
Second, all these wicked Jews will be carried away by Christ's gathering angels … taken away bodily … to judgment. As to Caiaphas’ case, he will one day find himself suddenly resurrected and gazing up at the Son of God coming in the glory clouds of Heaven, just as Jesus said he would. Then, he will experience being suddenly extracted from off the earth by Christ’s gathering angels.
Third, the severed clusters will be cast into the great winepress of the wrath of God. In Luke 17, Jesus said that ungodly Jews would one day be snatched off the earth. That passage has great bearing here. His disciples asked him, Where, Lord? His answer was clear. Let’s read it.
Two men will be in the field: the one will be taken and the other left. And they answered and said to him, ’Where, Lord?’ So he said to them, ’Wherever the body is, there the eagles [vultures] will be gathered together.’ Luke 17:36-37
Jesus’ answer to his disciples about where the wicked would be taken is specific. He said that they would be taken to a place of slaughter where vultures are waiting. Spiros Zodhiates, in his work The Complete Word Study Dictionary, defines the Greek word translated eagles here as, An eagle or vulture, a species of rapacious birds represented as preying on dead bodies where some species of vulture is probably intended. In the book to the Hebrews, the Jews were warned again and again of the severe judgment they will receive if they turn away from Christ and spurn the blood of his New Covenant with them. There we read,
How shall we [Jews] escape if we neglect so great a salvation, which at the first began to be spoken by the Lord, and was confirmed to us by those who heard him…? Hebrews 2:3
Following Jesus' teaching that ungodly Jews will be extracted out of his kingdom and taken away to judgment ... it follows that their judgment will take place somewhere other than on Earth. You will recall that this chapter opened at the city in Heaven. I take it therefore, because of that context, the city spoken of in verse 20 is still the heavenly New Jerusalem, not the earthly Jerusalem. Apparently, the judgment of wicked Israel will take place within eyesight of the very city whose gates bear the names of their twelve tribes and that should have been their eternal home. What a terrible judgment that will be. The scene before us truly answers the question as to what punishment should be appropriate for those who have trampled the Son of God under foot and counted the blood of the covenant a common thing and insulted the Spirit of grace (Hebrews 10:29). These wicked Jews from all time will be snatched bodily off the earth and be unceremoniously trampled underfoot by the Son of God in the winepress of the wrath of God. I say bodily because ultimately all judgment will be bodily judgment. Jesus confirms this in Matthew 5:29-30, when he said,
And if thy right eye offend thee, pluck it out, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. And if thy right hand offend thee, cut it off, and cast it from thee: for it is profitable for thee that one of thy members should perish, and not that thy whole body should be cast into hell. (KJV)
The text says blood ran up to the horses' bridles for sixteen hundred furlongs. The picture is of the notch-like gully that was chiseled below a winepress where the wine would run out as the grapes were pressed. Blood, however, will run from this winepress. I expect this trench will be five or so feet deep and run for approximately two hundred miles. To account for that much blood, I did some calculations based on the amount of blood in a human body. This probably is unduly gruesome and graphic, but I felt it necessary to show the possibility and reliability of these statements in the Word of God. A one-foot-wide ditch running for two hundred miles at the depth of say, five feet, (the approximate depth of horses' bridles) would equal 5260 feet times 200 times 5 times 1 foot. Such a gully would then have the capacity of 5,260,000 cubic feet. Rounded to 5,000,000 cubic feet and multiplied by approximately eight quarts per cubic foot, such an outlet would hold 40,000,000 quarts of liquid. 40,000,000 divided by 6 (assuming approximately six quarts of blood per human body) means that it would take 6.6 million people to produce that volume of blood. More than likely, there will be more people than that in this winepress of the wrath of God. Again, the warning from the writer of the Hebrews comes to my mind.
It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. Hebrews 10:31
I make no apology for this. It is what it is. It is a terrible mistake to assume that the God who is love will never be the Just and Holy Judge of the whole Earth.
One last thought. Daniel 12 says that righteous Jews are also scheduled for resurrection at the end of the age. So, not only will all the unrighteous Jews of all time see Christ at the Second Coming (to be cut down and then extracted from off the earth) … but all the righteous Jews of all time will meet their Messiah at his Second Coming ... to proceed with their Messiah into his Kingdom. Abraham and Sara, Isaac and Rebekah, Jacob and Leah and Rachel, David and Bathsheba and countless others will enter the Millennium. What a joyous occasion that will be.
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Scripture taken from the New King James Version. Copyright 1982 by Thomas Nelson, Inc. Used by permission.
All rights reserved.