Revelation 14
Notes
Transcript
Revelation 14
Revelation 14
14:1-5 ; The Lamb and His Followers
14:1-5 ; The Lamb and His Followers
v. 1
Chapter 13 described this unholy Trinity of Satan, The Beast of the Sea, and the Beast of the Land. In Chapter 14, Jesus is contrasted with this unholy picture. Jesus stands on Mount Zion (contextually it appears to be the Mount Zion in heaven) with his redeemed children. The redeemed were marked by God (not the beast) and reign with the lamb in heaven, above the pain and suffering of this world.
vs. 2-5
John hears the sound like many waters and thunder. He also hears harps, the four living creatures, and the twenty four elders. This clearly is a heavenly experience since we have seen all of these elements in chapters 4-5. (Rev 4:4-6 and Rev 5:8-9)
144,000 - I will continue to defend the identity of this group as the symbolic representation of the church (just as it was in chapter 7 and the 2 witnesses in chapter 11). Here in particular, it appears as these are the 144,000 who were slain here on earth or merely the representation of all Christians currently in the presence of God. Lets look at the descriptions given and understand them.
“Who had been redeemed from the earth” - this could apply to Israel specifically (Deut 7:6) ; however, this more naturally applies to all believers.
“defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins.” - Sexual impurity or even virginity is often a symbolic idea used to refer to true worship of God. Israel is often described as a virgin but when she commits idolatry it is described as whoredom or harlotry (Jer 3:8-9, 18:13, Eze 16; 23, Hos 1:1-2, 2 Kings 19:21, Lam 2:13, Amos 5:2) Also, Paul says the church is presented as a husband to Christ, as a pure virgin. (2 Cor 11:2, see his use of the marriage metaphor in Eph 5:25-27)
“no lie was found, for they are blameless” - pretty straightforward. The no lying is connected to their blamelessness. In other words, its not just literal lying but speech and actions (remember the context of chapter 13 and the wickedness of the confession and false worship of those that follow the unholy Trinity).
14:6-13; Angelic Messages
14:6-13; Angelic Messages
vs. 6-7
The message of salvation goes out to the whole earth. As God’s messengers, we ought to proclaim this message even in the face of this great persecution.
v. 8 - Schreiner
Hebrews–Revelation Comment
14:8 Another angel appears, declaring that Babylon the great has fallen. The fall of Babylon was prophesied by Isaiah (Isa. 21:9) and Jeremiah (Jer. 51:8) and fulfilled in 539 BC. John applies the description of Babylon to Rome (cf. comments on Rev. 17:1–19:5; 1 Pet. 5:13), showing that Babylon functions as a precursor and type of godless cities to come. John will expand significantly on the angel’s words in 17:1–19:5, but here he declares Babylon’s fall (cf. 18:2, 10, 21). Babylon is judged for making the nations drink the wine of her fornication (16:19; 17:2, 5; 18:3). This fornication is spiritual and not literal, though it surely includes the idea of sexual sin. Still, the focus is on spiritual harlotry and prostitution (cf. Jer. 3:8–9; Ezekiel 16; 23; Hos. 1:1–3:5). Babylon will face judgment for encouraging the worship of false gods, spreading worldwide the message that it is good and right to rebel against the one true God.
vs. 12-13
Again, we forget the pain the readers and hearers were experiencing. Nero or Domition were persecuting, torturing, and murdering Christians. God is reminding his people to keep the faith and his commandments. Not only that, they are blessed if they are counted worthy to be killed for the sake of Christ and the gospel.
The Martyrdom of Polycarp
But the proconsul was insistent and said: "Take the oath, and I shall release you. Curse Christ."
Polycarp said: "Eighty-six years I have served him, and he never did me any wrong. How can I blaspheme my King who saved me?"
10 And upon his persisting still and saying, "Swear by the fortune of Caesar," he answered, "If you vainly suppose that I shall swear by the fortune of Caesar, as you say, and pretend that you do not know who I am, listen plainly: I am a 153Christian. But if you desire to learn the teaching of Christianity, appoint a day and give me a hearing."
2The proconsul said, "Try to persuade the people."
But Polycarp said, "You, I should deem worthy of an account; for we have been taught to render honor, as is befitting, to rulers and authorities appointed by God434 so far as it does us no harm; but as for these, I do not consider them worthy that I should make defense to them."
11 But the proconsul said: "I have wild beasts. I shall throw you to them, if you do not change your mind."
But he said: "Call them. For repentance from the better to the worse is not permitted us; but it is noble to change from what is evil to what is righteous."
2And again [he said] to him, "I shall have you consumed with fire, if you despise the wild beasts, unless you change your mind."
But Polycarp said: "The fire you threaten burns but an hour and is quenched after a little; for you do not know the fire of the coming judgment and everlasting punishment that is laid up for the impious. But why do you delay? Come, do what you will."
12 And when he had said these things and many more besides he was inspired with courage and joy, and his face was full of grace, so that not only did it not fall with dismay at the things said to him, but on the contrary, the proconsul was astonished, and sent his own herald into the midst of the arena to proclaim three times: "Polycarp has confessed himself to be a Christian."
2When this was said by the herald, the entire crowd of heathen and Jews who lived in Smyrna435 shouted with uncontrollable anger and a great cry: "This one is the teacher of Asia, the father of the Christians, the destroyer of our gods, who teaches many not to sacrifice nor to worship."436
Such things they shouted and asked the Asiarch Philip437 that he let loose a lion on Polycarp. But he said it was not possible for him to do so, since he had brought the wild-beast sports to a close. 3Then they decided to shout with one accord that he burn Polycarp alive. For it was necessary that the vision which had appeared to him about his pillow should be fulfilled, when he saw it burning while he was praying, and 154turning around had said prophetically to the faithful who were with him, "I must be burned alive."438
13 Then these things happened with such dispatch, quicker than can be told—the crowds in so great a hurry to gather wood and faggots from the workshops and the baths, the Jews being especially zealous, as usual, to assist with this. 2When the fire was ready, and he had divested himself of all his clothes and unfastened his belt, he tried to take off his shoes, though he was not heretofore in the habit of doing this because [each of] the faithful always vied with one another as to which of them would be first to touch his body. For he had always been honored, even before his martyrdom, for his holy life. 3Straightway then, they set about him the material prepared for the pyre. And when they were about to nail him also, he said: "Leave me as I am. For he who grants me to endure the fire will enable me also to remain on the pyre unmoved, without the security you desire from the nails."
14:14-20; The Harvest
14:14-20; The Harvest
Jesus told his disciples a parable about wheat and tares. That parable sounds a lot like the harvesting of the wheat (the gathering of the righteous to God) and the harvesting of the tares (the gathering of the wicked to judgement).
24 He put another parable before them, saying, “The kingdom of heaven may be compared to a man who sowed good seed in his field,
25 but while his men were sleeping, his enemy came and sowed weeds among the wheat and went away.
26 So when the plants came up and bore grain, then the weeds appeared also.
27 And the servants of the master of the house came and said to him, ‘Master, did you not sow good seed in your field? How then does it have weeds?’
28 He said to them, ‘An enemy has done this.’ So the servants said to him, ‘Then do you want us to go and gather them?’
29 But he said, ‘No, lest in gathering the weeds you root up the wheat along with them.
30 Let both grow together until the harvest, and at harvest time I will tell the reapers, “Gather the weeds first and bind them in bundles to be burned, but gather the wheat into my barn.” ’ ”
Leon Morris argues that there are seven angels in this chapter. If we see the one who looks like a son of a man then there are 7 angles. If we take this figure as Christ then that leaves us with 6 angels. I think that this unique figure is an angel; however, the language used to describe it (son of a man and golden crown) is used to invoke language of Jesus. This would be consistent with other NT passages that speak of Jesus coming with the shout of an angel and gathering his elect.