Revelation 14:14-20
New Revised Standard Version Updated Edition
Reaping the Earth’s Harvest
14 Then I looked, and there was a white cloud, and seated on the cloud was one like the Son of Man, with a golden crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand!(A) 15 Another angel came out of the temple, calling with a loud voice to the one who sat on the cloud, “Use your sickle and reap, for the hour to reap has come, because the harvest of the earth is fully ripe.”(B) 16 So the one who sat on the cloud swung his sickle over 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 Then another angel came out from the altar, the angel who has authority over fire, and he called with a loud voice to him who had the sharp sickle, “Use your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for its grapes are ripe.”(C) 19 So the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the vintage of the earth, and he threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. 20 And the winepress was trodden outside the city, and blood flowed from the winepress, as high as a horse’s bridle, for a distance of about one thousand six hundred stadia.(D)
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Revelation 14:14-20
New English Translation
14 Then[a] I looked, and a white cloud appeared,[b] and seated on the cloud was one like a son of man![c] He had[d] a golden crown on his head and a sharp sickle in his hand. 15 Then[e] another angel came out of the temple, shouting in a loud voice to the one seated on the cloud, “Use[f] your sickle and start to reap,[g] because the time to reap has come, since the earth’s harvest is ripe!” 16 So[h] the one seated on the cloud swung his sickle over the earth, and the earth was reaped.
17 Then[i] another angel came out of the temple in heaven, and he too had a sharp sickle. 18 Another[j] angel, who was in charge of[k] the fire, came from the altar and called in a loud voice to the angel[l] who had the sharp sickle, “Use[m] your sharp sickle and gather[n] the clusters of grapes[o] off the vine of the earth,[p] because its grapes[q] are now ripe.”[r] 19 So[s] the angel swung his sickle over the earth and gathered the grapes from the vineyard[t] of the earth and tossed them into the great[u] winepress of the wrath of God. 20 Then[v] the winepress was stomped[w] outside the city, and blood poured out of the winepress up to the height of horses’ bridles[x] for a distance of almost 200 miles.[y]
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- Revelation 14:14 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
- Revelation 14:14 tn Grk “and behold, a white cloud.”
- Revelation 14:14 tn This phrase constitutes an allusion to Dan 7:13. Concerning υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου (huios tou anthrōpou), BDAG 1026 s.v. υἱός 2.d.γ says: “ὁ υἱὸς τοῦ ἀνθρώπου lit. ‘the son of the man’…‘the human being, the human one, the man’…On Israelite thought contemporary w. Jesus and alleged knowledge of a heavenly being looked upon as a ‘Son of Man’ or ‘Man’, who exercises Messianic functions such as judging the world (metaph., pictorial passages in En 46-48; 4 Esdr 13:3, 51f)…Outside the gospels: Ac 7:56…Rv 1:13; 14:14 (both after Da 7:13…).” The term “son” here in this expression is anarthrous and as such lacks specificity. Some commentators and translations take the expression as an allusion to Daniel 7:13 and not to “the son of man” found in gospel traditions (e.g., Mark 8:31; 9:12; cf. D. E. Aune, Revelation [WBC], 2:800-801; cf. also NIV). Other commentators and versions, however, take the phrase “son of man” as definite, involving allusions to Dan 7:13 and “the son of man” gospel traditions (see G. K. Beale, Revelation [NIGTC], 771-72; NRSV).
- Revelation 14:14 tn Grk “like a son of man, having.” In the Greek text this is a continuation of the previous sentence.
- Revelation 14:15 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
- Revelation 14:15 tn Grk “Send out.”
- Revelation 14:15 tn The aorist θέρισον (therison) has been translated ingressively.
- Revelation 14:16 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s directions.
- Revelation 14:17 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence within the narrative.
- Revelation 14:18 tn Here καί (kai) has not been translated because of differences between Greek and English style.
- Revelation 14:18 tn Grk “who had authority over.” This appears to be the angel who tended the fire on the altar.
- Revelation 14:18 tn Grk “to the one having the sharp sickle”; the referent (the angel in v. 17) has been specified in the translation for clarity.
- Revelation 14:18 tn Grk “Send.”
- Revelation 14:18 tn On this term BDAG 1018 s.v. τρυγάω states: “‘gather in’ ripe fruit, esp. harvest (grapes) w. acc. of the fruit (POslo. 21, 13 [71 ad]; Jos., Ant. 4, 227) Lk 6:44; Rv 14:18 (in imagery, as in the foll. places)…W. acc. of that which bears the fruit gather the fruit of the vine…or the vineyard (s. ἄμπελος a) Rv 14:19.”
- Revelation 14:18 tn On this term BDAG 181 s.v. βότρυς states, “bunch of grapes Rv 14:18…The word is also found in the Phrygian Papias of Hierapolis, in a passage in which he speaks of the enormous size of the grapes in the new aeon (in the Lat. transl. in Irenaeus 5, 33, 2f.): dena millia botruum Papias (1:2). On this see Stephan. Byz. s.v. Εὐκαρπία: Metrophanes says that in the district of Εὐκαρπία in Phrygia Minor the grapes were said to be so large that one bunch of them caused a wagon to break down in the middle.”
- Revelation 14:18 tn The genitive τῆς γῆς (tēs gēs), taken symbolically, could be considered a genitive of apposition.
- Revelation 14:18 tn Or perhaps, “its bunches of grapes” (a different Greek word from the previous clause). L&N 3.38 states, “the fruit of grapevines (see 3.27)—‘grape, bunch of grapes.’ τρύγησον τοὺς βότρυας τῆς ἀμπέλου τῆς γῆς, ὅτι ἤκμασαν αἱ σταφυλαὶ αὐτῆς ‘cut the grapes from the vineyard of the earth because its grapes are ripe’ Re 14:18. Some scholars have contended that βότρυς means primarily a bunch of grapes, while σταφυλή designates individual grapes. In Re 14:18 this difference might seem plausible, but there is scarcely any evidence for such a distinction, since both words may signify grapes as well as bunches of grapes.”
- Revelation 14:18 tn On the use of ἥκμασαν (ēkmasan) BDAG 36 s.v. ἀκμάζω states, “to bloom…of grapes…Rv 14:18.”
- Revelation 14:19 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “so” to indicate the implied result of the angel’s directions.
- Revelation 14:19 tn Or “vine.” BDAG 54 s.v. ἄμπελος a states, “τρυγᾶν τοὺς βότρυας τῆς ἀ. τῆς γῆς to harvest the grapes fr. the vine of the earth (i.e., fr. the earth, symbol. repr. as a grapevine) Rv 14:18f; but ἀ may be taking on the meaning of ἀμπελών, as oft. in pap., possibly PHib. 70b, 2 [III bc].” The latter alternative has been followed in the translation (ἀμπελών = “vineyard”).
- Revelation 14:19 tn Although the gender of μέγαν (megan, masc.) does not match the gender of ληνόν (lēnon, fem.) it has been taken to modify that word (as do most English translations).
- Revelation 14:20 tn Here καί (kai) has been translated as “then” to indicate the implied sequence of events within the vision.
- Revelation 14:20 sn The winepress was stomped. See Isa 63:3, where Messiah does this alone (usually several individuals would join in the process).
- Revelation 14:20 tn L&N 6.7 states, “In Re 14:20 the reference to a bit and bridle is merely an indication of measurement, that is to say, the height of the bit and bridle from the ground, and one may reinterpret this measurement as ‘about a meter and a half’ or ‘about five feet.’”
- Revelation 14:20 tn Grk “1,600 stades.” A stade was a measure of length about 607 ft (185 m). Thus the distance here would be 184 mi or 296 km.
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