Notes on Revelation 14-16

In contrast to the mark, i.e., the name, of the beast that the entire world takes upon itself by either believing false religious ideas or doing the immoral things of the world, the people of God upon the earth, represented by the 144,000, have the name of God and the Lamb on them. In other words, they belong to God and Christ as opposed to the rest of the world that belongs to the beast and the devil. Verse 12 summarizes these two as "holding to the commandments of God and to the faith about Jesus."

The fact that they are described as virgins who have not defiled themselves with women is in contrast to the sexual immorality that stands as representative of all immoral behavior. In contrast, virginity stands as symbolic way of saying that they are not engaged in any of the immoral behavior of the world in terms of their keeping themselves from it or seeking repentance when they have sinned (lots of Johannine theology here from his epistles). This is made clearer by saying that there is no lie found in their mouths (a possible reference to their teaching or their faithfulness to bear witness to the truth when pressured to worship the beast and his image), and that they are blameless.

They alone can sing a song that is taught to them, and I would argue that the song refers to their preaching the message that exists in vv. 6-11, and is presented as the message of the angels: (1) the eternal gospel, (2) a call to repentance, (3) proclamation that the world has been condemned by God, and (4) that those Christians who partake in the false religious ideas or immoral practices of the world will be damned along with it.

The righteous dead are told that they are blessed because their deeds will follow them, again indicating that John is concerned with refuting the antinomian teaching in the church that divorces works from faith. Only those who hold to the commandments of God and the faith of Christ are blessed. These are the works that follow them. Everyone else is condemned as the following scene depicts.

Verses 14-20 are likely meant to be an introduction to the salvation and judgment scenes that take place in Chapters 15-16. The one like a son of man reaps a harvest and then an angel reaps another harvest. It seems as though the first is salvation of the righteous and the last is certainly the condemnation of the wicked. It is difficult to say whether the one like a son of man here refers to Christ or another angel, but since both the salvation and judgment are Christ's work in the book, it seems to have little importance.

It may also be that these verses are Christ's salvation and judgment upon the world, not at the end, but throughout the age of the church, as in the previous judgments where there are microcosmic judgments given throughout history that lead up to the final judgment. Chapters 15-16 very much seem to be final, as what is destroyed (as opposed to merely a third as in other scenes) is total.

In Chapter 15, those who overcome (think back to the letters at the beginning of the book) by not worshiping the beast, his name, or his image, stand over a sea of glass and fire, a symbol of chaos subdued.

The temple is opened again to display that God's presence revealed in the world means salvation for those who have followed Him and damnation for those who have not. It is this act of God no longer separating His glorious presence from the created world that ultimately brings about deliverance for those who have overcome and destruction to their oppressors.   

The plagues brought on by the pouring of the bowls mimic that of the Egyptian plagues, as they do in the previous scene. Waters into blood, boils, darkness, hail, etc. The frogs are turned into three demonic spirits that come from the mouth of Satan, the beast, and the false prophet, displaying that these three are united in deceiving the world into its own doom.

In 16:8-11 and 21, none of these things cause the people to repent. Their wicked rebellion is displayed in that they blaspheme God all the more and continue in their rebellion.

Finally, the entire world collapses in the greatest earthquake that has ever existed, as God pours giant hail onto the wicked to finish the job.

It should be noted again that each of the scenes in Revelation have various images of judgment that John employs, not to tell his readers how the world will end in some literal depiction of events, but rather to argue that it will end violently from God's wrath. He does this, again, to argue to the church that is being pressured to compromise to overcome this temptation and remain faithful to the Lord who is bringing and will bring about the collapse of the wicked world and the damnation of the wicked.