Revelation 14:13
13 Then I heard a voice from heaven saying 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.”

The three angel’s messages really goes to the end of the chapter.

What we see here is really the conclusion of what we have been studying so far. There is a blessing uttered.

• Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.
• The challenge we have is determining when the “now on” is.

What did we read just before in the third angel’s message?

• It warned us about the mark of the beast, the national Sunday law and great persecution.
• It also warned us about the seven last plagues which would take place shortly before the second coming of Jesus.
• And also, it talked about hell fire which would take place 1000 years after the second coming.

Now it doesn’t make sense to put the blessing of those who die in the Lord after the seven last plagues or after the 1000 years. Why?

• Because none of the saints are dying after or even during the 7 last plagues.
• And no saints will die after the 1000 years. Once we’re in heaven, no more death!
• So this blessing cannot be referring to those at that time.

So when is this “now on” referring to?

• It does include the third angels’ message which warns us of the mark of the beast. But really, it takes us all the way back to the first angel’s message and also the second angel’s message.
• There is a blessing to those that die in the Lord from the giving of the three angel’s messages.
• Notice when the first and second angel’s message is given, that is when the third angel’s message begins.
• So this blessing is given to those that live from 1844 onwards.

Another clue that we have that it is from the giving of the first angel’s message is at the end of verse 13.

• It says that they will rest from their labours and their works will follow them.
• What works are those?
• Those that have heeded the message of the first angel – to fear God and give glory to Him and to worship the Creator.
• They honored the ten commandments.
• They had victory over sin.
• And they kept the Sabbath.
• And it includes the last saint who will perish under the mark of the beast as well.
• All those from 1844 onwards are uttered a very special blessing.
• The time from which Jesus could come at any time.
• The time from which the investigative judgment would begin.
• We are still living in that very special time!
• There is a very special blessing that God desires to give us even today!

Let’s continue.

Revelation 14:14
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.

What does the white cloud symbolize?

• Revelation 1:7
  Behold, He is coming with clouds, and every eye will see Him, even they who pierced Him. And all the tribes of the earth will mourn because of Him. Even so, Amen.
• It is the second coming.
• But what about the clouds?
• Psalms 104:3
  He lays the beams of His upper chambers in the waters, Who makes the clouds His chariot, Who walks on the wings of the wind.
• Psalms 68:17
  The chariots of God are twenty thousand, even thousands of angels: the Lord is among them, as in Sinai, in the holy place.
• Christ is coming with all the heavenly angels!

So right after the three angel’s messages are wrapped up, and the gospel has gone to the whole world, the seven last plagues are poured out, then Christ will come for a second time.

Revelation 14:14
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.

• Notice that is says “One like the Son of Man”.
• Jesus will come in the form of a human. A glorified body that He had already when He resurrected from the grave.
• A form that He will keep throughout eternity. An eternal connection to the inhabitants of the earth.

Revelation 14:14
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.

• He has on His head a golden crown.
• Crown symbolizing kingship and victory and rulership.
• He is coming as king of kings!

But what does He have in His hand?

• Revelation 14:14
  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.
• He has a sharp sickle.
• What does this sickle represent?
• Mark 4:29
  But when the grain ripens, immediately he puts in the sickle, because the harvest has come.”
  • It represents harvest time.
• What is this harvest time?
  • James 5:7-8
    7 Therefore be patient, brethren, until the coming of the Lord. See how the farmer waits for the precious fruit of the earth, waiting patiently for it until it receives the early and latter rain. 8 You also be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand.
  • The harvest time is the coming of the Lord. The second coming!
• What is the one characteristic that we need in anticipation of the coming of the Lord? It is patience!
  • The patience of the saints!
  • But we need the early and the latter rain.
• What is this early and latter rain?
  • Joel 2:23-29
    23 Be glad then, you children of Zion, and rejoice in the LORD your God; for He has given you the former rain faithfully, and He will cause the rain to come down for you— the former rain, and the latter rain in the first month. 24 The threshing floors shall be full of wheat… 28 “And it shall come to pass afterward that I will pour out My Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see visions. 29 And also on My menservants and on My maidservants I will pour out My Spirit in those days.
  • It is the outpouring of the Holy Spirit at the end of time.
  • This is similar to what happened in Acts 2. They received the Holy Spirit and then they went out and preached the word with power.
• So actually, if we really want to preach the gospel to the whole world, we need the early and the latter rain.
  • We need the Holy Spirit power!
• So more than preaching to others, we need to be praying.
• Luke 11:13
  If you then, being evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your heavenly Father give the Holy Spirit to those who ask Him!”
• How important prayer and prayer meeting is, especially in our time. Without which, we can never receive the Holy Spirit.
• In Acts 2, the Holy Spirit did not fall randomly on people. It fell upon those that were praying.
• So it will be at the end of time. Not the whole church will receive the Holy Spirit, because not all are praying.

How important is this harvest?

• Jeremiah 8:20
  “The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved!”
• The harvest time is the final gathering. There are no more second chances after that.
• If you miss this harvest, you are not saved. Your probation has closed.
• Christ is gathering those that are reflecting the character of Christ.

Is there any other farming or agriculture language used in Revelation?

• Revelation 14:4
  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.
• The 144,000 – they are the firstfruits.
• They are a product of the latter rain at the end of time.
• So we only need to go back to look at all that we have studied of Revelation 14 so far to determine if we will be part of this in-gathering, this harvest.

We can even go through the parables of the wheat and the tares and the parable of the 4 grounds, to help us understand more on how we can be ready for this harvest!

Let’s keep going in Revelation 14.

• So Christ is coming with all His angel’s.
• It is the second coming.
• And He is coming to harvest – to divide the wheat from the tares.

Revelation 14:15
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 for You to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe.”

Another angel comes out from the temple.

• Where do we see angel’s coming out of the temple in Revelation?
• Revelation 15:5-6
  5 After these things I looked, and behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened. 6 And out of the temple came the seven angels having the seven plagues, clothed in pure bright linen, and having their chests girded with golden bands.
  • These verses, although in the next chapter, they are referring to the seven last plagues that are actually poured out before the second coming.
• Angel’s are coming out of the temple when the temple is opened.
  • Probation has ended.
  • The plagues are about to be poured out.
• So this angel coming out of the temple is symbolic of probation already ended.

What is the angel saying to Jesus?

• Thrust in Your sickle and reap, for the time has come for You to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe!
• It is time to gather up all the saints and also gather up the wicked.
• Jesus, speaking of the parable of the wheat and the tares says this about the two groups:
  • Matthew 13:30
    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.”
  • Both will be harvested. Both the righteous and the wicked.
• But notice that the angel says that the harvest of the earth is
  • This means that everyone that will be living at the time when Jesus appears for a second time, they will have received all the chances to be saved.
  • So every person will either be ripe for salvation or ripe for destruction.

Revelation 14:16-18
16 So He who sat on the cloud thrust in His sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped. 17 Then 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, 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.”

It appears that there are two harvests.

• In verse 16 there is a harvest.
• And then in verse 18 there is a harvest of the grapes.
• Which is the good one and which is the bad one?

Revelation 14:19
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.

• The second harvest, which is the harvest of the grapes, is the harvest of the wicked.
• The first harvest is the harvest of the righteous.

It is interesting that the wicked are depicted as grapes that are fully ripe. Where have we seen the concept of grapes used so far in this chapter?

• Revelation 14:8
  And another angel followed, saying, “Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she has made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.”
• Babylon makes everyone drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication.
• These people that are alive at that time have been made drunk on her wine. And wine is made of grapes.
• They have been fully deceived.
• But why were they deceived? Or why did they receive the mark of the beast?
• Remember that the mark of the beast goes in forehead or the right hand? Some aren’t deceived. They are just scared of not being able to support themselves. But some are fully and totally deceived.

The wicked will be thrown into the winepress of the wrath of God.

• Remember that the wrath of God is referring to the seven last plagues. These will be poured out before the close of probation.
• The wicked that are alive at the end of time, who receive the mark of the beast and drink of the wine of Babylon, will have the plagues from God poured upon them.
• I want to remind you that is not a threat from God, but rather a warning. He does not wany anyone to go through this.
• We are not given that much information about what happens to the wicked, but there is more information about what will happen to the wicked.
• This is not the only place that the Bible talks about this.
• Joel 3:12-14
  12 “Let the nations be wakened, and come up to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; for there I will sit to judge all the surrounding nations. 13 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.” 14 Multitudes, multitudes in the valley of decision! For the day of the LORD is near in the valley of decision.
  • The wickedness of the people at the end of time will be great.
  • It reminds me of Noah’s day where the thoughts of the people’s hearts were thinking evil continually, non-stop!
• God will have to come and put an end to it before we end up destroying ourselves.

So we see that there will be two harvests at the end of time.

• The righteous will be saved and brought up to heaven.
• The wicked will also be gathered up and they will receive ppunishment from God.

Then we come to this last verse at the end of Revelation 14.

Revelation 14:20
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.

The only city that we know that is spoken of in Revelation is the New Jerusalem.

• New Jerusalem comes down on to earth after the 1,000 years. So we know that this event that is being described here must be referring to after the 1,000 years are finished.
• What happens after that?
  • Revelation 20:9
    They went up on the breadth of the earth and surrounded the camp of the saints and the beloved city. And fire came down from God out of heaven and devoured them.
  • This is when hell fire takes place.
  • Fire will come down from heaven and consume all the wicked.

But where else do we see the Bible talking about outside the city?

• Hebrews 13:12
  Therefore Jesus also, that He might sanctify the people with His own blood, suffered outside the gate.
• Jesus suffered outside the gate. He suffered outside the city.
• Jesus already died and paid the penalty of sin for us – dying outside the city so that we may go into the city.
• If you refuse His sacrifice, then you have to die without the city – the same death that He died.

Jesus, before He died began to drink that cup of wrath for us in the garden of Gethsemane.

• The word Gethsemane means oil press.
• He was already pressed for each of us.
• If you reject that, then you are pressed in the wine press.

The last verse there in Revelation also mentions the horse bridles. Where do we see in the bible that it talks about the horse bridle?

• James 3:3
  Indeed, we put bits in horses’ mouths that they may obey us, and we turn their whole body.
• Why is it talking about the horse bridle and putting bits in their mouths?
• James 3:2
  For we all stumble in many things. If anyone does not stumble in word, he is a perfect man, able also to bridle the whole body.
• It is about being able to control our tongues.
• The wicked, they are not able to control their tongues.
• And in contrast to that, we have the 144,000.
• Revelation 14:5
  And in their mouth was found no deceit, for they are without fault before the throne of God.
• God helps them to control their tongues. They don’t stumble in word. They are perfect!
• This is the first group that are mature. The firstfruit to God.

Revelation 14:20
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.

When they are trampled outside the city, the blood come up even to the horse bridles, and for one thousand six hundred furlongs.

• One furlong is approximately 185m.
• 1600 furlongs is 296,000m. Which is 296km. That is a long distance, and a huge amount of blood.
• I don’t see the significance in the number. But what it does show is that there will be a lot of wicked people that will be lost at the end of time.
  • Just like Noah’s day – only 8 people were saved. The rest of the world was lost.
• The 144,000 is a very small number at the end of time.
  • Many millions will be lost.
• Majority is never a good indicator to determine what is truth.
• Many will receive the mark of the beast at the end of time.