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The Song of the Saved

14 Then I looked, and there before me was the Lamb. He was standing on Mount Zion.[a] There were 144,000 people with him. They all had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. And I heard a sound from heaven like the noise of flooding water and like the sound of loud thunder. The sound I heard was like people playing harps. And they sang a new song before the throne and before the four living things and the elders.[b] The only ones who could learn the new song were the 144,000 who had been saved from the earth. No one else could learn the song. These 144,000 are the ones who did not do sinful things with women. They kept themselves pure. They follow the Lamb every place he goes. These 144,000 were saved from among the people of the earth. They are the first people to be offered to God and the Lamb. They were not guilty of telling lies. They are without fault.

The Three Angels

Then I saw another angel flying high in the air. The angel had the eternal Good News to preach to those who live on earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. The angel said in a loud voice, “Fear God and give him praise. The time has come for God to judge all people. Worship God. He made the heavens, the earth, the sea, and the springs of water.”

Then the second angel followed the first angel and said, “She is destroyed! The great city of Babylon is destroyed! She made all the nations drink the wine of her adultery and of God’s anger.”

A third angel followed the first two angels. This third angel said in a loud voice: “It will be bad for the person who worships the beast and his idol and gets the beast’s mark on the forehead or on the hand. 10 He will drink the wine of God’s anger. This wine is prepared with all its strength in the cup of God’s anger. He will be put in pain with burning sulfur before the holy angels and the Lamb. 11 And the smoke from their burning pain will rise forever and ever. There will be no rest, day or night, for those who worship the beast and his idol or who get the mark of his name.” 12 This means that God’s holy people must be patient. They must obey God’s commands and keep their faith in Jesus.

13 Then I heard a voice from heaven. It said, “Write this: From now on, the dead who were in the Lord when they died are happy.”

The Spirit says, “Yes, that is true. They will rest from their hard work. The reward of all they have done stays with them.”

The Earth Is Harvested

14 I looked and there before me was a white cloud. Sitting on the white cloud was One who looked like a Son of Man.[c] He had a gold crown on his head and a sharp sickle[d] in his hand. 15 Then another angel came out of the temple. This angel called to the One who was sitting on the cloud, “Take your sickle and gather from the earth. The time to harvest has come. The fruit of the earth is ripe.” 16 So the One that was sitting on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth. And the earth was harvested.

17 Then another angel came out of the temple in heaven. This angel also had a sharp sickle. 18 And then another angel came from the altar. This angel has power over the fire. This angel called to the angel with the sharp sickle. He said, “Take your sharp sickle and gather the bunches of grapes from the earth’s vine. The earth’s grapes are ripe.” 19 The angel swung his sickle over the earth. He gathered the earth’s grapes and threw them into the great winepress of God’s anger. 20 The grapes were crushed in the winepress outside the city. And blood flowed out of the winepress. It rose as high as the heads of the horses for a distance of 200 miles.

Footnotes

  1. 14:1 Mount Zion Another name for Jerusalem, here meaning the spiritual city of God’s people.
  2. 14:3 elders Elder means “older.” Here the elders probably represent God’s people.
  3. 14:14 Son of Man “Son of Man” is a name Jesus called himself. It showed he was God’s Son, but he was also a man. See dictionary.
  4. 14:14 sickle A farming tool with a curved blade. It was used to harvest grain.

The Lamb And The 144,000 Stand On Mt. Zion, Singing a New Song

14 And I saw, and behold— the Lamb was standing on Mount Zion, and with Him one-hundred forty four thousand having His name and the name of His Father having been written on their foreheads. And I heard a sound from heaven like a sound of many waters, and like a sound of loud thunder. And the sound which I heard was like that of harpists harping with their harps. And they[a] are singing something like a new song before the throne and before the four living-creatures and the elders. And no one was able to learn the song except the one-hundred forty four thousand, the ones having been bought[b] from the earth. These are ones who were not stained[c] with women, for they are virgins. These are[d] the ones following the Lamb wherever He goes. These were bought from mankind to be the firstfruit to God and to the Lamb. And falsehood was not found in their mouth. They are without-blemish.

Three Angels Proclaim God’s Message To The Earth

And I saw another angel flying in mid-heaven[e], having eternal good-news to announce-as-good-news to[f] the ones sitting on the earth— indeed, to every nation and tribe and tongue and people, saying with a loud voice “Fear God and give Him glory, because the hour of His judgment came[g]. And give-worship to the One having made the heaven and the land and sea and springs of waters”. And another angel, a second, followed, saying “Babylon the great fell[h], it fell— she who has given-a-drink-to all the nations from the wine of the passion[i] of her sexual-immorality”. And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10 he himself will also drink from the wine of the fury of God having been mixed undiluted in the cup of His wrath. And he will be tormented with fire and sulphur in the presence of holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb. 11 And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. And they do not have a rest by day and by night[j]— the ones worshiping the beast and his image, and if anyone receives the mark of his name. 12 Here[k] is the endurance of the saints, the ones keeping the commandments of God and the faith of [l] Jesus. 13 And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write— ‘Blessed[m] are the dead dying in the Lord from-now-on! Yes, says the Spirit, so that they will rest from their labors, for their works are following with them”.

The Reaping of Mankind

14 And I saw and behold— there was a white cloud, and one sitting on the cloud resembling a son[n] of man, having a golden crown[o] upon his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying-out with a loud voice to the one sitting on the cloud, “Send your sickle and reap, because the hour to reap came, because the harvest of the earth was dried-up[p]”. 16 And the one sitting on the cloud cast his sickle over[q] the earth, and the earth was reaped. 17 And another angel came out of the temple in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle. 18 And another angel came-out from the altar— the one having[r] authority over the fire. And he called-out with a loud voice to the one having the sharp sickle, saying, “Send your sharp sickle and gather the clusters from the grapevine of the earth, because its grapes became ripe”. 19 And the angel cast his sickle into the earth, and gathered the grapevine of the earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the fury of God. 20 And the winepress was trodden outside the city. And blood came out of the winepress up to the bridles of the horses, one-thousand six-hundred stades[s] away.

Footnotes

  1. Revelation 14:3 That is, the unidentified group in heaven before the throne.
  2. Revelation 14:3 Or, purchased.
  3. Revelation 14:4 Or, soiled, defiled. They never engaged in sexual-immorality.
  4. Revelation 14:4 Or, were.
  5. Revelation 14:6 See 8:13.
  6. Revelation 14:6 Or, across, over, for.
  7. Revelation 14:7 That is, has arrived.
  8. Revelation 14:8 This further announcement of judgment is given as if the falling had already occurred.
  9. Revelation 14:8 Or fury, as in v 10; meaning, the wine consisting of the fury [of God] belonging to her sexual-immorality.
  10. Revelation 14:11 Same phrase as in 4:8.
  11. Revelation 14:12 Or, At-this-point.
  12. Revelation 14:12 That is, given by; or, in.
  13. Revelation 14:13 Or, Fortunate (from God’s point of view).
  14. Revelation 14:14 See 1:13.
  15. Revelation 14:14 That is, a victor’s crown or wreath, as in 4:4.
  16. Revelation 14:15 Or, became dry. That is, ready to harvest.
  17. Revelation 14:16 Or, upon, across, to. Some think believers are harvested here, unbelievers next.
  18. Revelation 14:18 John may be referring to the angel in 8:3-5.
  19. Revelation 14:20 1600 stades is about 184 miles or 296 kilometers.