Presents the Tell it like it is! series of studies:

Revelation 2:17  He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches; To him that overcometh will I give to eat of the hidden manna, and will give him a white stone, and in the stone a new name written, which no man knoweth saving he that receiveth it.

John 15:26
But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, even the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me:

John 16:13-14
[13] Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. [14] He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew it unto you.

This Bible Study was originally written by Roger Christopherson,
 published at http://www.theseason.org/ 

Without the leading by the Holy Spirit, there is no understanding of the truths, for all the truth of the Scriptures are revealed to us by God's Spirit.

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Now here is our revised study of: Christopherson's Revelation chapter 14

REVELATION

Chapter 14

"The Fall of Babylon"

Chapter fourteen has a great deal to do with what is happening on the earth at the time during Satan's religious systems [Babylon's] fall. Chapter fourteen deals with the events taking place here on earth, chapter fifteen will deal with those events going on in heaven at the same time. This period is just ahead of us, and in our generation. So from these two chapters, the fourteenth and the fifteenth, we can have a pretty good idea of the total picture of when Satan and his system are defeated.

Revelation 14:1 "And I looked, and, lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Si'-on, and with him an hundred forty and four thousand, having his Father's name written in their foreheads."

This "Lamb" is Jesus Christ. Christ has returned at this time, and is standing on Mount Sion with his saints. Earilier we saw one "that looked like a Lamb", yet spoke like a dragon, and he was Satan. So Christ has now returned, and is with the 144,000 that were sealed in Chapter seven. Remember that the 144,000 sealed of the tribes never went/flew anywhere, but remained here on earth during the entire time of the Antichrist. Not one of these saints yielded to Satan, nor took his name, nor his number. They did not take the "Mark of the Beast" because they had "their Fathers name in their foreheads". They knew how to identify Satan, and that the first Messiah to come to earth was the fake.

That marking was placed in their minds back in chapter seven, when God told the "four Spirits of God" to hold their position, until this group could be sealed.

Then they were allowed to open the seals. 

That sealing is in the process today, and many of us are now seeing and understanding the truth of God's Word, as events are going on before our eyes daily.

Revelation 14:2 "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:"

This is a heavenly time, with many people [waters] singing with a great thunder and playing their harps in praise of our Lord's return to earth.

Revelation 14:3 "And they sung as it were a new song before the throne, and before the four beasts [living creatures], and the elders: and no man could learn that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth."

This is the 144,000 that are finally redeemed [purchased by Christ's blood] from the earth. 

They are in their spiritual [soul] bodies, which are eternal, incorruptible, and immortal. 

This is because the last trumpet has sounded, and all people were changed in a twinkling [wink] of an eye [I Corinthians 15:50-54].

Christ is standing with this group on the mount of Olives. 

They have been "purchased" from this earth age with the blood of the Lamb. 

Revelation 14:4 "These are they that 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."

A "virgin" is "a pure, undefiled bride, that upon marriage presents herself pure and chaste to their husband". In Isaiah 62:5, and 6, foretold of what Revelation 14:4 is saying.

Isaiah 62:5 "For as a young man marrieth a virgin, so shall thy sons marry thee [Christ]: and as the bridegroom rejoiceth over the bride, so shall thy God rejoice over thee."

Isaiah 62:6 "I have set watchmen upon the walls, O Jerusalem [referring to Christ's church today] which shall never hold their peace day or night: they make mention of the Lord, keep not silent."

Spiritually, these virgins are Christ's church, His elect, with no reference to gender. They were the "watchmen on the wall" who knew when the enemy, Satan, was to come, and went not into the false Christ's chambers [churches]. [They Spiritually remained virgins] They knew their husband to be was, and waited for Him, and His appointed time. There is no secret when this wedding is, for it will be at the sounding of the seventh trumpet. God gave us His Bible, and it is our instructions, to keep us from attending the wrong wedding. However, most Christians simply don't care to read it and know when the wedding date is set for.

This "virgin", or bride of Christ will "follow the Lamb", by their study of God's Word, and will know the voice of the true Lamb; not the lamb that has the voice of the dragon as we saw in Revelation 13:11. This virgin bride, or 144,000 of Israel, are the firstfruits, even before those who allowed the Holy Spirit to speak through them. The "firstfruits" are not those taken in any rapture, because there is no rapture, and those relying on a rapture will be taken by Satan, called the Antichrist by many, the wrong husband.

The "elect" of God are the firstfruits in the age that was; that first earth age that ended with the flood of Genesis 1:2. "Lucifer's Flood" The "elect" will stand also for Christ in this earth age, however, the 144,000 sealed of God are overcomers only from and in this earth age of the flesh. They are not the only overcomers, but they are the firstfruits to God, and the Lamb [Christ]. They were lost souls in the first earth age until they accepted Christ's forgiveness in this earth age..

Revelation 14:5 "And in their mouth was found no guile [lie]: for they are without fault [blemish] before the throne of God."

The spoken words of these 144,000 souls that followed the Lamb, were only the truths from God's Word. They did not repeat the false doctrines of Satan, or the Kenites, or push themselves off as authorities of God's Word; when all they would say is the simple truths Christ has given us in His Word. Many today call themselves higher critics, when the only purpose of their existence is to twist and pervert the Scriptures to fit their dogma.

Revelation 14:6 "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,"

The angel preached God's Word to everyone on earth, and what might be confusing about this, is the fact that Satan is gone at this time, and cannot muddy the Word with his twisted doctrines here. Satan, who most call the Antichrist is defeated, and Christ has returned to earth. So if the age is over, and Christ is back on earth, why preach the gospel? Who is there to preach this gospel to, and what is this gospel that will be preached?

The "gospel of Christ" is the everlasting gospel. God loves His people, and He will judge no one in their ignorance. By what is taught today in many churches, you can understand why God sent the Spirit of Stupor upon them, for the truth is far from being taught. We are now in the Millennium age kingdom. There is going to be 1000 years of teaching and discipline. Remember, the age of grace is now over; All those who were not part of the first resurrection to eternal life will be judged at the end of the 1000 years by their works during this Millennium. 

Revelation 14:7 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."

Do you remember what this is saying? Jesus went into the temple, and started to read from Isaiah [Luke 4:19], and when He had read half of Isaiah 61:2 he stopped in mid-sentence: He then closed the book and left. This is the last half of that verse that Jesus read. It's the part He did not read, for it had not yet come to pass.

This is yet to come, and will happen at the sounding of the seventh trumpet.

The "mourning" is to comfort all them that are concerned for those who have fallen to Satan. God's punishment, or vengeance is only on those who have fallen to the false-christ. His love and protection continues to cover His elect and his sealed 144,000 of Israel. Those that fell to Satan the spurious messiah will only be saved by their works following and done within the Millennium age, as we will discuss in the twentieth chapter.

Revelation 14:8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city [Babylon the great], because she made all nations drink of the wine of he wrath of her fornication."

This city of "Babylon" is the religious system of the false-christ [Satan]. Babylon in the end times is simply "confusion". And prior to the sounding of the seventh trumpet, the whole world will bow to that system of confusion and to the false-christ. That is, all except for the elect of God, and the 144,000 of Israel.

Revelation 14:9 "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,"

This "beast" is that religious one that looked like the Lamb, but spoke like a dragon, because it was Satan. It is Satan and his system that caused the whole world to fall and worship Satan, the spuroius messiah, who many refer to as the Antichrist, and do his work.

Revelation 14:10 "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 fermented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:"

It is at this time that those lost souls will be praying for the mountains to fall upon them. Many are misled, and have attended church all their lives, trying to do what they were taught there was right and listening Sunday after Sunday to the babblings of ignorance coming forth.

They had not been taught there were two Christ's coming, and the first was the fake. They were told Revelations is confusing, and the Old Testament was outdated, and just didn't matter. Don't worry, they were told, you will fly away and be gone; or any of many other false doctrines.

When Satan came with his angelic army and in all his cheap splendor; all those who will drink of God's wrath will be the ones that had chased after him and his religious system. This is the "cup of wrath" that Jesus talked about when He said, "O my Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me: nevertheless not as I
will, but as thou will." [Matthew 26:39]

Jesus understood the "wrath of God" that would come upon these misguided souls, as he prayed this prayer in the garden, the night before His crucifixion. He loved all of them, yet the will of His Father came first. As you sit in the pew and listen to everything but God's warnings Sunday after Sunday, you are not going to have any armor [spiritual armor] on when Satan and his angelic hosts of fallen angels arrive on the earth. The sputtering of dos and don'ts just won't matter any more once your fleshly knee bows to the false-christ. Remember in Revelation 9:4, 5, God said that once the sealing process is over, it is He that will give you over to Satan. We are in that time of sealing, but the time is very short.

Revelation 14:11 "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."

The smoke of their torment, is their response to the deception; their words, and deeds given for the false-christ in this earth age. Once you participate, you are marked from then on. If you know the truth, and still follow Satan, there is no grace offered to you, ever. If your soul survives beyond judgment, it will be through, and by your works in the Millennium age only.

This verse is to let you know that not only will God remember your acts and deeds, but you will also. If you fail then, then your very soul will be turned to ashes, following the Millennium and the judgment. This will be discussed in detail in the twentieth chapter.

Revelation 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus."

The "rapture belief" is the beginning of accepting the Mark of the beast. It teaches you to worship the first Messiah that comes in the clouds. John says, "here is the patience [endurance] of the saints." These saints are those that know what is to come, and held to their faith. They have stood fast through every deception, and trick the false-christ could pull, and they kept the commandments of God.

Revelation 14:13 "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."

This "voice" is from heaven, yet many pastors tell their people their "works don't count". Here is God speaking from heaven, and He is letting you know once and for all, your works do count, and they will follow you right into eternity. For the seeds of the words you plant in the minds of those around you, will be well rewarded, and every work you do in the name of the Lord is remembered, and will have it's reward also in the eternity.

There is forgiveness through the blood of Christ now, through your repentance; however, once Satan, the spurious messiah, comes, God will allow him to have his way with you. The time to arm yourself against Satan is now. The arming of yourself is the sealing in your mind, of knowledge from God's Word that you get through studying. That knowledge will allow you to understand who Satan is, and what God's plan is.

Your works are the only thing you can take with you out of this earth age that is of value. It is presented in the Greek text, that "your labor and the works are a close companion of yours." These acts for the Lord, are what weaves the white sacred garment that you will wear in heaven [the eternity]. Revelation 19 will discuss this in detail.

Revelation 14:14 "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, and in his hand a sharp sickle."

The one sitting on the white cloud and holding the golden crown is Jesus Christ, coming with his saints. It's harvest time.

Revelation 14:15 "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 [overripe]."

It is reward time on the earth, and on this day you will get exactly what is coming to you. The day is the "day of the Lord", at the seventh trumpet, and Jesus Christ is here with his saints and angels.

Revelation 14:16 "And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped."

This is the time that the wheat and the tares are separated. Remember Mathew 13:37-42?

Matthew 13:37 "He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;

Matthew 13:38 "The field is the world; the good seed are the children of the kingdom; but the tares are the children of the wicked one;

Matthew 13:39 "The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels."

Matthew 13:40 "As therefore the tares are gathered and burned in the fire; so shall it be in the end of this world [age]."

Matthew 13:41 "The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend [cause stumbling], and them which do iniquity;"

Matthew 13:42 "And shall cast them into the furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth."

 American Wisdom Series Editor's Note: Did you notice, It is the tares that are gathered FIRST AND BURNED! That doesn't sound like a "Rapture of the Saints" to me!

Jesus gave this in answer to the parable of the tares while he was with his disciples, and here in the vision of the John, Jesus is giving the same lesson to us again as to what shall take place of that dreaded day of the Lord.

Revelation 14:17 "And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle."

Revelation 14:18 "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."

This angel is directed from God. The fire he has is right off the altar of God, and is ready for the harvest.

You don't harvest grapes with a sickle, you pick the grapes. The sickle is used to harvest grain. This is the point John is writing, as Jesus revealed it to him. In a spiritual sense, it's going to be a mess for those that have it coming. The grapes represent those Christians who would not wait to be picked in season, at the seventh trumpet, but were harvested out of season, at the fifth trumpet. They will not be picked as precious fruit, but slaughtered as with the sickle as stubble for the trash pile to be burned.

Do you get it? When you allow yourself to be taken out of season by the false-christ, this is exactly how God values you, and the fruit you bear. You then become a brush pile, and not the fruit basket He desires.

Revelation 14:19 "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."

The wrath you receive here is not the wrath of Satan and his system, that of tricks and deception; but of the wrath of Almighty God. We are told in Luke 12:4 by Jesus, "Be not afraid of them that kill the body, and after that have no more that they can do." Jesus goes on to say in verse five, "But I forewarn you whom ye shall fear: Fear him, which after he hath killed hath power to cast into hell; yea, I say unto you, Fear him."

Your physical body hasn't much time left in this age; Then it becomes a matter of the life of your soul.

Which do you fear, God or Satan? 

Remember, God promised His elect, those sealed in their minds, protection from Satan, through the sealing in their minds.

When you understand the outcome of events ahead of time, the chance of selection is gone,
and you then rest in the knowledge God has given you through His Word.

Revelation 14:20 "And the wine press 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."

This is the size of the New Jerusalem, and represents a distance across of one hundred eighty miles, to two hundred miles, at the return of Jesus Christ. If you have the right faith, and the endurance to wait on Jesus' return at the seventh trumpet, you have nothing to fear. God's wrath will not touch you. Only God's love and rewards are then given you eternally.

American Wisdom Series Editor's Note: We are going to stop here in this "Revelation of Jesus Christ" study to review some commentary from Chapter 14 in an earlier study we published on the "Revelation of Jesus Christ."  I don't believe you will find much difference in the general opinion of these 2 authors, but to read another person's perspective of events that did and will take place may prove helpful in our understanding of Jesus' revelation. Also, our introduction #9300 was taken from this earlier study so keep your eyes open for study tips and rules to help simplify your grasp of Jesus' end time revelation

In chapter 14 we get to see what is happening on earth when Jesus Christ returns. Good old John is still in heaven and once again he looks on.

Rev. 14:1
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.

The qualifier in this verse, "having His and His Father's name (as the texts read) written in their foreheads", lets us know that these are the same 144,000. Let's review from chapter 7:

Rev. 7:2
And I saw another angel ascending from the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the sea, [3] Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. [4] And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel.

Rev. 14:2 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:

[3] 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.

Yes, they made a joyful noise before the LORD.  (We'll document that it was the Song of Moses when we get to chapter 15.)

Please notice that these are only the 144,000, redeemed from the earth, redeemed from this earth age, singing at this time and not God's elect.  God's elect were chosen before the foundation of the world, before this earth age. Of course the 144,000 were redeemed from the earth by the Blood of the Lamb but it was His elect that help to seal them.

So did you get the PICTURE of the ceremony going on? The return of Christ is a momentous occasion to say the least. So this is not a difficult thing to understand. It is simply a special presentation of the firstfruits unto God. Of course there will be millions more who attend the wedding, from the great multitude out of all the nations in Rev. 7:9, which no man could number.

[4] 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.

Flesh, flesh. Our minds seem to always go there first, don't they? But we know this doesn't mean they never had sex. These folks were not "spiritually seduced" by Satan and his angels into believing the Great Lie! Which was what? That the one sitting in the temple in Jerusalem was Jesus Christ as Paul so warned in 2 Thes. 2. Remember Satan deceives the whole world with his miracles and his great and prosperous "Peace on Earth" society, which means they all got screwed!

Note: It is written that at the time Satan appears in person, when he is cast to this earth (Rev. 12:7-9), that only the 7,000 very elect will not bow a knee to Baal. Therefore, the 144,000 will at first fall for him, i.e. engage in his foreplay, but they ultimately do not go all the way, and jump out of his bed when they see God's elect delivered up and give testimony, i.e. witness to the world at which time the gospel goes forth in all languages, direct from the Holy Spirit, through His elect. Pretty cool that it's called a "Witness Stand", isn't it?

[5] And in their mouth was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God.

[6] 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,

[7] 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.

[8] 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 if you know the history of that first great city, Babylon, founded by the "seed" (offspring  of the serpent), who was Cain sent forth into the land of Nod, who is also known as Sargon the Magnificent in secular history, then you know how perverse and idolatrous the first world empire was at the beginning. So shall it be at the end.

Do you recall in Daniel chapter 2 the image that Nebuchadnezzar saw, with Babylon as the first "one world political system", the head of gold? Well, the last "one world political system", is the "beast" we just studied in Rev. 13:1, the one with the 10 "crowns", i.e. kings, remember? It is the same as the fourth kingdom of iron in Nebuchadnezzar's image, the one with the 10 "toes" identified as "kings" in verse 44 of Dan. 2, and it is smashed by Jesus Christ at his return. Then the angel of Rev. 14:8 will say "Babylon is fallen, is fallen."

Isn't it amazing how we've seen all of this before in the Word of God?  The scripture so rings true as it is recorded in Eccles. 1:9 "... there is no new thing under the sun."  Here's the account in Daniel:

Daniel 2:40
And the fourth kingdom shall be strong as iron: forasmuch as iron breaketh in pieces and subdueth all things: and as iron that breaketh all these, shall it break in pieces and bruise.

[42] And as the toes of the feet were part of iron, and part of clay, so the kingdom shall be partly strong, and partly broken.

[43] And whereas thou sawest iron mixed with miry clay, they shall mingle themselves with the seed of men: but they shall not cleave one to another, even as iron is not mixed with clay.

[44] And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom, which shall never be destroyed: and the kingdom shall not be left to other people, but it shall break in pieces and consume all these kingdoms, and it shall stand for ever.

[9] 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,

[10] 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 3rd angel followed the other 2 angels and said loud enough so everyone could hear him, 'If anyone participates with Satan's activities in any way shape or form, he's really going to 'get it' from our Father according to His Word, who will give it to him with the fire and brimstone paddle, right in front of everyone in total anguishing humiliation!"

And by the way, the "cup of His indignation" is the same cup that Jesus desired could pass from Him in the garden. It was the cup of wrath to be poured out, not a cup of fear. Christ was never afraid to pay the price! He came for that express purpose.

11] 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.

Anyway, here's verse 11 with some updated figures of speech:

"The aftermath of their punishment will reach to high heaven and they are going work their butts off (during the whole period of the Millennium.)"

Rev. 20:12
And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works.

Note: Those who do not partake of the first resurrection, who enter the Millennium with spiritual bodies (which everyone will have (1 Cor. 15) but still have mortal souls, meaning they could still perish in the lake of fire at the end of the Millennium, are referred to as "the dead", not dead as corpses (not dead like we in the flesh thiink) but spiritually dead. You'll need to understand the Greek words translated "dead" in the Bible in order to rightly divide the subjects of resurrections and judgments. If you don't want to take the time to do it then you can simply remain confused. Appendix 139 in the Companion Bible titled "DEAD" AND "THE DEAD" will assist you with this study. If you don't have one, then at least get a Strong's Concordance and do some work now "whilst thou still havest time." (Hey, I can speak 1611 English!)

Rev. 14:12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus.

Rev. 14:13
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.

Why? Yea, saith the spirit, they get to rest during the Millennium, the day of rest, instead of working their butts off day and night while awaiting the great white throne judgment and the hope of the second resurrection! So you see, your works do follow you, don't they?

It's the Day of the Lord, the first day of Millennium here on earth. Jesus Christ has returned to reap the harvest of that good seed which He has sown (Mat. 13) and to exercise judgment and pour out "the cup of wrath" on the wicked.

In the first few verses of this chapter 14 we saw the "Happy Time" of the Day of the Lord when the overcomers were singing and the heavenly orchestra was playing and the saints were with Jesus on Mount Zion.

Now, in the remaining verses of this chapter 14 we are going to SEE a very graphic PICTURE of what the "No-So-Happy Time" looks like for those who are not standing on Mount Zion. We continue with John's description:

Rev. 14:14
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.

[15] 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.

[16] And He that sat on the cloud thrust in His sickle on the earth; and the earth was reaped.

[17] And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.

[18] 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.

But it would seem that there's somewhat of a problem here. The problem is that you don't harvest "grapes" with a sickle! It gets real messy!

[19] 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.

[20] 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.

What does it mean "without the city? Without or outside the city simply means the wrath of God is not poured out on His children who love Him, because do you remember where they are?  They are with Him on Mount Zion, which is where John saw Jesus standing in verse 1, which is "within in the city".

Is all this something brand new that we are reading in the Book of Revelation? Hardly. Remember we have said repeatedly that if you are familiar with the Word of God then by the time you get to the Book of the Revelation you'll have seen and read it all before?

Well, the prophet Joel told us EXACTLY the same thing about the judgment we just read of on the Day of the Lord. Have you read it? Let's do it now.

Joel 3:12-15
Let the heathen be wakened, and come up to the valley of Jehoshaphat: for there will I sit to judge all the heathen round about.

[13] Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

Here's the definition of "fats" word for word from Strong's Concordance:

yeqeb, yeh'-keb, Hebrew 3342; from an unused root meaning to excavate; a trough (as dug out); specifically a wine-vat (whether the lower one, into which the juice drains; or the upper, in which the grapes are crushed) :- fats, presses, press-fat, wine (-press).

And when does all this occur? Joel tells us!

Joel 3:14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision: for the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.

And when the "multitudes" are squeezed in the winepress (figuratively of course) there will be more than a few drops of blood (figuratively of course). There will be river of blood! Yeeccchhh! I think I'd rather be standing on Mount Zion.

By the way, here's the definition of "blood" used in the last verse of Revelation 14:

haima, hah'ee-mah, Greek 129; of uncertain derivative; blood, literal (of men or animals), figurative (the juice of grapes) or special (the atoning blood of Christ); by implication bloodshed, also kindred :- blood.

As a final thought, in the next chapter of Revelation, chapter 15, we will see the overcomers singing the Song of Moses, which is the 32nd chapter of Deuteronomy (Deut. 31:30 And Moses spake in the ears of all the congregation of Israel the words of this song, until they were ended.)

You see, we know who the true vine is. Jesus said in John 15:1 "I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman." But just as their rock is not our Rock, their vine is not our Vine:

Deut. 32:32-43
For their vine is of the vine of Sodom, and of the fields of Gomorrah: their grapes are grapes of gall, their clusters are bitter:

[33] Their wine is the poison of dragons, and the cruel venom of asps.

[34] Is not this laid up in store with me, and sealed up among my treasures? [35] To me belongeth vengeance, and recompence; their foot shall slide in due time: for the day of their calamity is at hand, and the things that shall come upon them make haste.

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