Revelation 14:6-20

The Messages of the Three Angels

6 Then I saw another angel ¹flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to ²those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people.

7 And he said with a loud voice, ³"Fear God and ⁴give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and ⁵worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the ⁶springs of water."

8 Another angel, a second, followed, saying, ⁷"Fallen, fallen is ⁸Babylon the great, ⁹she who made all nations drink ¹⁰the wine of the passion^[a] of her sexual immorality."

9 And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, "If anyone ¹¹worships the beast and its image and receives ¹²a mark on his forehead or on his hand,

10 he also will drink ¹³the wine of God's wrath, ¹⁴poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and ¹⁵he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb.

11 And ¹⁶the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and ¹⁷they have no rest, day or night, these ¹⁸worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name."

12 ¹⁹Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who ²⁰keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus.^[b]

13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, "Write this: ²¹Blessed are the dead ²²who die in the Lord from now on.""Blessed indeed," says the Spirit, ²³"that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!"

The Harvest of the Earth

14 Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and seated on the cloud one ²⁴like a son of man, ²⁵with a golden crown on his head, and a sharp sickle in his hand.

15 And another angel ²⁶came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to him who sat on the cloud, ²⁷"Put in your sickle, and reap, for the hour to reap has come, for ²⁸the harvest of the earth is fully ripe."

16 So he who sat on the cloud swung his sickle across the earth, and the earth was reaped.

17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle.

18 And another angel came out from the altar, ²⁹the angel who has authority over the fire, and he called with a loud voice to the one who had the sharp sickle, "Put in your sickle and gather the clusters from the vine of the earth, ³⁰for its grapes are ripe."

19 So the angel swung his sickle across the earth and gathered the grape harvest of the earth and threw it into the great ³¹winepress of the wrath of God.

20 And ³²the winepress was trodden ³³outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as ³⁴a horse's bridle, for 1,600 stadia.^[c]

Revelation 14:6-20 Meaning and Commentary

INTRODUCTION TO REVALATION 14

This chapter contains three visions; one of the Lamb on Mount Zion, another of the three angels preaching against Babylon, and the third of the harvest and vintage. The vision of the Lamb is in Re 14:1, which is no other than Christ, described by his similitude, as a Lamb; by the place where he was, Mount Zion; by his position there, standing, and by the company that were with him, whose number were 144,000, and their character, his Father's name written on their foreheads; at the same time a voice was heard from heaven, comparable to the sound of many waters, of thunders, and of harps: and a song sung which none learn but the above number with the Lamb, Re 14:2,3, who are described by their purity, chastity, and strict adherence to Christ; by their redemption through him; by their being the firstfruits of God and of the Lamb, and by their integrity and unblemished character, Re 14:4,5; next follows the account of the three angels; the first comes with the everlasting Gospel, to preach it to all men, loudly calling upon all to fear and worship God, and give glory to him, since he is the Creator of all, and the hour of his judgment is come, Re 14:6,7; the second proclaims the fall of Babylon, with the reason of it, Re 14:8; and the third denounces the wrath of God upon the worshippers of the beast in the most public manner, and that for ever, Re 14:9-11; and this vision is closed with some expressions, showing that, till this was done, the patience of the saints would be tried, and the true worshippers of the Lamb be discovered, and comforting them with an assurance of that rest that remains after death for the faithful followers of Christ, Re 14:12,13; after this is the vision of the harvest and vintage of the earth. The reaper is described by his form, like the son of man; by his seat, a white cloud; by a golden crown on his head, and by a sharp sickle in his hand, Re 14:14; who is called upon by an angel out of the temple to make use of his sickle, and reap, because the time of reaping was come, the harvest being ripe, Re 14:15, upon which he thrusts in his sickle, and reaps the earth, Re 14:16; after this, another angel appears out of the temple, with a sharp sickle, to whom another angel from the altar, that had power over fire, calls to make use of his sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine, since the grapes were fully ripe, Re 14:17,18; upon which he thrusts in his sickle, and gathers them, and casts them into the winepress of divine wrath, which being trodden, blood comes out of it to the horses' bridles for the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs, Re 14:19,20.

Cross References

• 1. Revelation 8:13
• 2. [Revelation 3:10]
• 3. Revelation 15:4
• 4. See Revelation 11:13
• 5. Nehemiah 9:6; See Revelation 4:11
• 6. Revelation 8:10; Revelation 16:4
• 7. Revelation 18:2; Isaiah 21:9; Jeremiah 51:8
• 8. Revelation 16:19; Revelation 17:5; Revelation 18:10; [Daniel 4:30]
• 9. Jeremiah 51:7
• 10. Revelation 18:3
• 11. See Revelation 13:15
• 12. Revelation 13:16
• 13. Revelation 16:19; See Job 21:20
• 14. [Revelation 18:6; Isaiah 1:22]
• 15. Revelation 20:10
• 16. Isaiah 34:10; [Revelation 18:18; Revelation 19:3; Genesis 19:28]
• 17. Revelation 4:8
• 18. [See ver. 9 above]
• 19. Revelation 13:10
• 20. Revelation 12:17
• 21. Revelation 20:6; [Ecclesiastes 4:2]
• 22. 1 Corinthians 15:18; 1 Thessalonians 4:16
• 23. Revelation 6:11
• 24. See Revelation 1:13
• 25. Revelation 6:2
• 26. [Revelation 15:6; Revelation 16:17]
• 27. ver. 18; Joel 3:13; Mark 4:29; [Matthew 13:39]
• 28. Jeremiah 51:33
• 29. [Revelation 16:8]
• 30. Joel 3:13
• 31. Revelation 19:15
• 32. Isaiah 63:3; Lamentations 1:15
• 33. [Hebrews 13:12]
• 34. [Revelation 19:14]

Footnotes

• [a]. Or wrath
• [b]. Greek and the faith of Jesus
• [c]. About 184 miles; a stadion was about 607 feet or 185 meters