Revelation 14 - Verse by Verse Bible Study

By Pastor Steven L Anderson

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January, 2013

Now in Revelation chapter 14, verse number , the Bible reads "And I looked... written

in their foreheads." Now, we should expect to see the , here, because as I explained

in other sermons, the book of Revelation goes in chronological order from chapters through

, then the chronology starts over in chapter with the birth of Christ. And then we see

the whole story play out all over again. Well in the first half of the book of Revelation,

we saw the story play out as the tribulation, then after the tribulation the sun and moon

are darkened, then there was mention of the , being sealed, then we had the rapture

where the great multitude appears in heaven in chapter , and then we have God pour out

his wrath. Well in the second half of Revelation, we see the same sequence of events. We see

the events of the tribulation, and that's where we were in chapter , at the time of

the abomination of desolation. Great tribulation and persecution and people being killed for

the cause of Christ. Therefore we should expect the next thing to be mentioned as the ,,

because it goes in the first half- tribulation, , rapture, and then God pouring out

his wrath. Same exact order in the second half. And so here, right on time, we've got

the , once again. It said "I looked and lo a... written in their foreheads." Now

let's compare this with chapter . Keep your finger in chapter as we go back to chapter

. Let's go back and forth between these two chapters, because when it talks about the

Father's name being written in their foreheads, that's actually mentioned in chapter what

that is. It says in verse of chapter , "And after these things, I saw... in their

foreheads." So the Father's name written in their foreheads written in their foreheads

in Revelation , is here known as being "sealed" in their foreheads, in chapter . It says

"I heard the number of them which were sealed, and there were sealed an hundred and forty

and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel." And then He gets very

specific and mentions that there are twelve thousand from each tribe, and he list those

tribes. From the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand, Reuben, Gad, Asher, on and

on. Everything except the tribe of Dan, which is not mentioned. Now, let me point out a

couple of things quickly about Revelation here. First of all, isn't it clear from

verses and that God has not begun to pour out his wrath on this earth yet at this time?

Because he says that they're not going to hurt the earth, they're not going to hurt

the trees. Well look, when God starts to pour out his wrath with the trumpets and vials,

he is definately hurting the trees. The first trumpet, He says that one third of the trees

are burnt up. So this is CLEARLY, this sealing is clearly taking place BEFORE that time.

So, it's after the tribulation when the sun and moon are darkened. But it's BEFORE God

pours out his wrath, before He pours out the wrath, He is going to seal the ,. That's

what we see here in chapter . After the listing of all the different tribes, it says in verse

, "After this I beheld, and, lo, a great multitude which no man could number, of all

nations". So this great multitude appears in heaven right after the , are sealed.

He says "this group came out of great tribulation, they've washed their robes, they've made them

white in the blood of the lamb." And I'm not going to re-preach my sermon from Revelation

, I already covered that in Revelation . But we see from chapter , that these people

are sealed in their foreheads, AFTER the sun and moon are darkened with the opening of

the sixth seal, which JESUS in Matthew said is AFTER the tribulation, but it's before

God begins to pour out His wrath and destroy the earth. Go back if you would to Revelation

. And in Revelation , it says "And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many

waters". So where is the voice coming from? From heaven. That's significant. It says "and

as the voice of a great thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps:

And they sung"- so the harpers are singing. And it says "And THEY sung as it were a new

song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn

that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth."

So what we see here with the , is that they are singing a song that no-one else can

learn, and that when they sing that song they also play harps. And when they sing that song,

the Bible says that it's coming from heaven, because the voice of the song, it says he

heard it coming from heaven. Where are the ,? Well, it says they stood on the mount

Zion with the Lamb. Of course the Lamb is Jesus CHrist. Well, if we go to Hebrews :-

"But ye are come unto mount Sion, and unto the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem,

and to an innumerable company of angels, To the general assembly and church of the firstborn,

which are written in heaven". So what we see is that the Bible is telling us very clearly

that the , are located not on the earth, but in heaven. The , are in heaven playing

on harps and singing a song that only they can sing. Now, he says that the sound of the

singing sounds like the voice of many waters. Well look, if you are listening to ,

MEN sing, that's going to be pretty loud, that's going to be like the voice of many

waters. It's going to sound like a great thunder when that many people are singing. It says

they are on mount Zion. Hebrews tells us that the "mount Zion" is talking about the

heavenly Jerusalem. The voice of their singing is coming from heaven and they're with the

Lamb, who of course is in heaven. So it's very obvious that they're in heaven. You say

"what's the significance of the fact that the , are in heaven at this time?" Here's

the significance. Remember in Revelation , the , were SEALED BEFORE the RAPTURE,

or before the great multitude appears in heaven. Because when the multitude appears in heaven,

he very carefully tells us... "AFTER this, I saw a great multitude", and it's clear that

they just got there. And again, I'm not going to re-preach my Revelation sermon. But,

if Revelation is giving us the same events of chapter in the same order, then we would

expect the rapture to be signified right after the mention of the ,. Because if the

first half gace us tribulation, , rapture, then God pours out the wrath... The second

half of the book of Revelation is going to follow the same order. Well look, later on

we do see the rapture. Look down if you would at verse number of chapter . It says

"And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of

man". Well look, the Son of man is something that Jesus called himself I believe times.

So it says that the one that is on the cloud is like the Son of man, "having on his head

a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle. And another angel came our of the temple,

crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle and reap:

for the the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe. And

he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped." So

look, we see in chapter , verses through , Jesus Christ coming in the clouds, and

reaping the earth. Now some people will try to say "well, this reaping is a reaping of

the tares, of the bad, the children of the wicked one, of BAD people to face God's wrath."

Nope. Because right after Jesus reaps in the clouds, right after that it says in verse

"And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp

sickle. And another angel came out from the altar from the altar, which had power over

fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thust in thy

sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully

ripe. And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth,

and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden

without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by

the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs." So what we see is two reapings, don't we?

First we see Jesus Christ reaping the earth, coming in a cloud, then AFTER that we see

another angelwho gathers the clusters of the vine of the earth, and casts them into the

winepress of the wrath of God. That's the negative reaping. Now you say "wait a minute

Pastor Anderson, I remember a parable in Matthew chapter that talked about the tares being

gathered and also the wheat being harbested. And you know the "wheat" were the children

of the kingdom of God, and the "tares" were the children of the wicked one. And the Bible

says "therefore as the tares are gathered and burned in the fire, so shall it be in

the end of the world." And if you remember, in that scripture it said "gather ye together

FIRST the tares, and bind them in bundles to burn them, but gather the wheat into my

barn."" And you say "Pastor Anderson, this appears to be in the opposite order, because

in Matthew chapter it said "gather together FIRST the tares, and bind them in bundles

to burn them, but gather the wheat into my barn." Seems like a different order." But

wait a minute, he didn't say that the tares were going to be BURNED before the wheat is

gathered into the barn. He just said "GATHER TOGETHER first the tares, and bind them in

bundles to burn them." Here we see that the unsaved are pictured as CLUSTERS of grapes.

Now can you see a similarity between a cluster and a bundle? They're both a group, they're

both something of a smaller unti that's joined together. And here is the thing, what we see

happen BEFORE the wheat is gathered into the barn, before the children of the kingdom of

God, the saved, the elect, BEFORE they're gathered and taken to heaven, we see the wicked

bound into bundles, or clustering together, we see them uniting. Remember Psalm ? "The

kings of the earth are gathered together against the Lord and against his annointed". And what

we see is that the unbelievers and the unsaved UNITE, the religions UNITE, the governments

unite, the unsaved world UNTIES and rallies around the antichrist, and they even receive

the mark of the antichrist, the mark of the beast in their forehead or in their hand.

They're being marked and identified for judgement. They're being gathered and bound into bundles

to be burnt, to be destroyed. Then the wheat is gathered into the barn, THEN the clusters

or bundles are cast into the fire or the winepress of the wrath of God, whichever metaphor you

are looking at. So what we are seeing here, is that Jesus Christ comes in the cloud, to

reap the wheat, or to reap the saved, to gather the elect. Look, why else is Jesus coming

in a cloud in Revelation ? When he comes in a cloud, it's to sound the trumpet and

to gather the elect. He is reaping the earth. He is harvesting in the good crop of the saved

in Revelation . But here is what's interesting. If Revelation , verses through is

referring to the rapture, which I believe it clearly is, it's following the same exact

chronology as Matthew and as Revelation , if that's referring to the rapture... Think

about this. How did the , end up in heaven BEFORE the rapture? Did you notice

that? Becasue at the beginning of chapter , the , are already in heaven, and

they already have the seal in their foreheads BEFORE the rapture. Now that's consistent

with Revelation , because the , are sealed right before the rapture in Revelation

. Here it's the same order. Here is a question though. How do you get to heaven without being

raptured? Dying, right? How do you get to heaven without being raptured? Look, when

I die, I'm going to heaven, right? When you die, if you are saved, you are going to heaven,

right? How long do we wait to get there? It's instant. The moment that you die, to be absent

from the body is to be present with the Lord. And the moment I breathe my last breath physically,

I am going straight to heaven. So look, if the , are in heaven BEFORE the rapture,

BEFORE Christ has come in the cloiuds, before the dead in Christ are raised to meet Christ

in the clouds, before it's even said "hey the time has come". Look, the fact that they

are already there proves that the , have already DIED. That's how they got to

heaven. They've died physically. Now, here is the proof that they've died physically-

because the Bible clearly told us in Revelation , that the , were of the tribes

of Israel, right? Now, alot of people will misquote this, and this is what they'll say.

"Oh, the , JEWS". Have you heard people say ", Jews". Now, did the Bible say

, Jews? No. It said , of the tribes of Israel. And it clearly stated which

tribes they were from, and twelve thousand from each tribe. You say wait a minute Pastor

Anderson, they Jews are the tribes of Israel. Wrong. Go to nd Kings chapter . Because

you see the term "Jew", God never used it in the Bible to refer to all tribes. NEVER.

In fact, the word "Jew" is never used in the Bible until nd Kings . nd Kings is

the first time that the word "Jew" is ever used in the Bible. Now let me explain something

to you. When you're studying the Bible and you've got a word, and you want to know what

that word means, usually if you go back to the first time that word is mentioned, God

will define it for you, to make it easy to understand. Look at Genesis chapter , how

God is defining everything. He defines day, He defines night, He defines seas, He defines

earth, He defines all these things. If you look up words the first time they are used,

look up the first time "tongues" is used, look up the first time "reprobate" is used.

Look up the first time most words are used, look up the first time "hell" is used, it

talks about fire. God usually defines things, the first time they are mentioned. If we go

to the first mention of the word "Jew" in the Bible, it becomes very clear that the

term "Jew" is NOT synonymous with the twelve tribes of the children of Israel as people

have tried to say. "Oh, these , are the Jews in the last days believing on Christ."

Look at nd Kings :. Read this very carefully. It says "Then Rezin king of Syria and Pkah

son of Remaliah king of Israel came up to Jerusalem to war". So who is fighting against

Jerusalem? Syria and Israel. And it says that they "they beseiged Ahaz, but could not overcome

him." Now, Ahaz is the King of Judah in Jerusalem. "At that time Rezin king of Syria recovered

Elath to Syria, and drave the JEWS from Elath: and the Syrians came to Elath and dwelt there

unto this day." And you can keep reading the whole chapter, it tells the story. The first

time the Jews are ever mentioned in the Bible, who is fighting against the Jews? Israel.

Syria and Israel unite to fight against the Jews. You say "I'm confused Pastor Anderson."

Let me explain it to you. When the children of Israel first became a nation, they were

under the system of the Judges, right? And for about the space of four hundred years,

they were under the system of the judges. Well, after about years of the judges,

do you remember when they said "we want to have a king so we can be like all the nations"?

What was the name of that first king? Saul. So they were under king Saul, right? He reigned

for forty years. Then they had another king, David. He reigned for how long? Forty years

again. Then they had a third king, Solomon. How long did he reign for? Forty years. So,

Saul, David and Solomon each reigned for forty years and they reigned over all the twelve

tribes of Israel. Did Solomon's son reign over all tribes? No he did not, because

if you remember, because of Solomon's sins, the kingdom was taken away from his son. But,

to keep His promise to David, He left a remnant with Solomon, He left him two tribes and the

other ten tribes broke off and formed a seperate nation in the north, under king Jeroboam.

So Solomon's son Rehoboam did not reign over the tribes. He only reigned over the two

tribes. Because remember when Ahijah the Shilonite came and preached to Jeroboam? He had a garment

in his hand, and he tore it into pieces, and he said to him, take of them, representing

the tribes that would follow Jeroboam. So, after king Solomon, we don't have a united

kingdom of Israel. Instead we have kingdoms. The NORTHERN kingdom, which became known as

"Israel". And the SOUTHERN kingdom, which became known as Judah. Now, here is where

some people get confused. When you try to tell them that "Jews" are people who live

in "Judah", which is what they are, which is why the first time we see "Jews" mentioned,

is after that split has taken place, and it talks about Syria and Israel fighting against

Judah. He calls the people in Judah, "Jews", and for the whole rest of the Bible when He

uses the term "Jews", He is talking about people from Judah. Before that they were called

Israelites. When it was all the tribes, or the hebrews. And even in the New Testament,

when He talks about all tribes, He refers to them as "Israelites", when He is talking

about all tribes. But when He is talking about people from the southen kingdom of Judah,

He calls them "the Jews". Now here is where some people will mischaracterise what I'm

saying. They'll say "well, you're saying only people from the tribe of Judah are Jews!"

No, that's not what I said. I said people from the SOUTHERN KINGDOM of Judah are Jews.

And that is NOT just the tribe of Judah. Because if you remember, that also included the Benjamites,

because the two tribes... remember? Ten and two. Two of the tribes- Judah and Benjamin

were part of that southern kingdom. Also, many of the Levites came down and were part

of that southern kingdom, because of the fact that the Northern Kingdom went in to Apostasy

and worshipped false Gods. So alot of the Levites stayed in the northern kingdom, alot

of them came and joined the southern kingdom. So what we have in the southern kingdom of

Judah are the tribes of Judah, Benjamin, and alot of the Levites. That's primarily what

made up the southern kingdom. Now, because the northern kingdom became so wicked and

apostate, many of the individuals from some of the northern tribes, they came down and

immigrated into Judah, just because they didn't want to live in the heathen northern kingdom.

Especially in the days of Hezekiah, they went out and invited alot of those northern tribes

to come down into Judah. So of course, there were some people from some of the northern

tribes coming down into Judah, but primarily, ninety something per cent of the people living

in Judah, are of the two tribes. Judah and Benjamin, and also the Levites. Those three

tribes, Judah, Benjamin and Levi, are going to represent most of "the Jews", or people

of Judah. That's why when you get into the New Testament, when it talks about people

being from a specific tribe, you've got alot of people from Judah, you've got people from

Benjamin mentioned. The apostle Paul said "I'm of Benjamin". Makes perfect sense because

he was part of that southern kingdom. You only have one person in the entire New Testament

mentioned as being a part of one of the other tribes, and that's the prophetess Anna, and

she was of the tribe of Asher. But the exception proves the rule my friend. Most of the people

that were in Judea in Jesus' day, that were called "the Jews", are of the tribes of Judah,

Benjamin and Levi. You say, "well, what happened to the other ten tribes, what happened to

them?" Well, the ten tribes, the northern kingdom of Israel was taken captive by the

Assyrians. Because remember how the JEWS were taken captive by the Babylonians? Nebechunezzar.

And that's Daniel, that's his friends, that's Ezekiel. And then remember the Jews come back

from Babylon? And we read about that in Ezra, Nehemiah. That's the southern kingdom. What

happened in the northern kingdom? They were taken captive, not by the Babylonians, they

were taken captive earlier by the Assyrians. And when the Assyrians took them captive,

what they did is, they took all the people that were educated and wealthy, and had anything

going for them... They took them captive to their land, and they left the poor of the

land to stay in the northern kingdom of Israel to till the land. All the poor people of the

ten tribes stayed in Israel. Then they brought in all their heathens to intermarry with the

ten tribes that were left behind in that northern kingdom of Israel, and those people became

known as "the samaritans". Because the capital of Judah was Jerusalem, but the capital of

the northern kingdom of Israel was Samaria. Now originally it was Tirzah. Later it became

Samaria. Omri bought the hill of Samaria. He built his capital there. His son Ahab kept

it there. And pretty soon, God started to sometimes refer to the whole northern kingdom

as Samaria, because the capital was Samaria. So what we see is that the Assyrians took

the ten tribes captive, then brought in a bunch of heathen that intermarried with the

ten tribes that were left behind. Not only that, they begin to have a religion that was

a mixture of the biblical worship of the Lord, mixing in heathen practices and heathen tradition.

Because you remember when the heathen came in, lions came and there were alot of bad

things happening. And basically, the priests of the northern kingdom, they started to create

a mixed religion. You read about this in the book os nd Kings, where they said they worship

the Lord AND they worshipped all these other Gods. They worshiped both. So they had a mixed

religion. Those people in the New Testament are referred to as the Samaritans. Now remember

how the Jews hated the Samaritans? The Jews had no dealings with the Samaritans? The reason

whu is because they looked at the Samaritans as being totally polluted, as being totally

mixed with the heathen, both ethnically and spiritually. Because remember, God had told

the Israelites not to mingle with the heathen, not to marry the heathen. And this has nothing

to do with interracial marriage, because I don't believe that interracial mariage is

a sin. But the Bible does teach that marrying unbelievers or heathens is a sin. Now, what

happened in the Old Testament is that if a person wanted to become a Jew, or join the

nation of Israel, they would have to be circumcised, and then they could join the nation, and then

they could marry them. So it's not a racial thing. But we see that the Samaritans had

completely mingled with the heathen, they had completely lost their identity as Israelites,

lost their identidy of what tribe they were from. They didn't have a genealogy to show

where they were from. And they became mingled with the heathen, both physically and spiritually.

Therefore the Jews despised them and rejected them. Now, the ten tribes who were acrried

captive, they never came back. They got mingled and assimilated in with the countries to whom

they were brought. And then the ones who were left behind, they were all mingled and mixed

in. That is why today those ten tribes are lost. Now you can look this up, you can get

any kind of history book you want, you can get an encyclopaedia and look up the tribe

of Reuben. Look up the tribe of Gad. Look up the tribe of Asher. And you know what it's

going to tell you about the tribe of Reuben? Any encyclopaedia will tell you this. It's

GONE. Did you hear me? It's gone. Because look, they got mingled with the heathen hundred

of years go by, they don't know what tribe they're of, they're just mixed in with the

heathen, they get completely mixed in with other cultures and so forth. That's why today

the people you run into who call themself "jews", if they can trace their lineage at

all, they're tracing it back to Judah, Benjamin or Levi, per cent of the time. Because

that's who they came from. Judah. Whereas alot of those northern tribes were lost. Now,

some of those tribes, you can say, okay, there's this group over there that descends from the

tribe of Issachar, whatever. But some of the tribes, for sure have been lost. You're not

going to find. Let me put it to you this way. You're not going to find , people on

this earth who say "I'm of the tribe of Reuben". You're not even going to find people of

the tribe of Reuben. In fact, you probably can't find anybody who can prove to you that

they're from the tribe of Reuben. And not only that, but they've been totally mingled

with the heathen. So the people that we think of as "the Jews" today, you know what? That's

not going to make up the , because that would only make up a couple of tribes. That

would only make up Judah, Benjamin, Levi. That would be ,. But here is the thing.

Let's pretend for a minute that these people who say "oh, the , JEWS, that's JEWS

in the last days that are all going to get saved and turn to Christ." Well, wait a minute,

how are you going to find , that are males, and that are virgins, and that are

believers in Jesus Christ? Look down at your Bible there in Revelation , because that's

the bill that they have to fit. It says in Revelation :, "These are they which were

not defiled with women; for they are virgins". So they're men that were not defiled with

women, they're virgins, "these are they which follow the Lamb withersoever he goeth. These

were redeemed from among men, being the firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb. And in their mouth

was found no guile: for they are without fault before the throne of God." Now look, they're

believers, they're males, and they're virgins. Are you going to tell me that you are going

to find , Jews today that fit that bill? Let alone, twelve thousand from Reuben, twelve

thousand from Gad, that are going to fit that bill. What some people believe gets even weirder,

they'll say this... "Oh, these people are going to get saved after the rapture." Okay,

so now you're telling me you've got , male Jews that have kept their virginity,

even though they weren't saved, they just stayed virgin. And they're just going to get

saved and become these great Christians right away. Just following the Lamb whereever he

goes. No. Come on, it's far fetched. Oh it's not far fetched. It's IMPOSSIBLE. I would

challenge you to even find , saved Jews, let alone whether they're male, female, virgin

or have been married times. You're not going to find them. And so what I'm trying to say

is that to believe that these , of the twelve tribes of the children of Israel are

"Jews that are going to get saved in the last times", is taking a very loose interpretation

of the passage. I don't take a look interpretation of the passage. I'm taking it literally. And

when I say I am taking it literally, you know what I mean by that? I'm saying that these

are , MEN from the tribe of Reuben. And let me tell you something, that means that

they came from back when the tribe of Reuben existed. The tribe of Reuben does not exist

today. Even at the time of Christ, the tribe of Reuben had been all but decimated. And

people say "oh, it's people who are from Reuben and don't even know it." That's far fetched.

But now think about this. I said earlier, how do they get to heaven before the rapture?

By dying. So think about this now. What if we just take the passage literally at face

value for what chapter and chapter are actually saying, and what if we say this...

Okay, they're already in heaven, because they've already died, because they're Old Testament

saints. Now, could we go out today and find , male virgins that are believers in

Christ from the tribe of Reuben to fit this bill? No. But what if we looked at the history

of the children of Israel spanning thousands of years, right? All the ones who were saved

and in heaven right now, could we find , saved Reubenites that were male virgins who

died, that are up in heaven? I'm sure we could easily find that, looking over the centuries

of history. You understand what I'm saying? So basically, these are Old Testament believers,

these are Old Testament saints of these literal tribes that are up in heaven. And they get

this special priveledge of being able ot be sealed, and basically come back to this earth

to preach the gospel, okay? Now it makes perfect sense. You say "well, how could they come

back to earth after they've died?" Newsflash! We're all coming back! Because after the rapture,

we go up to heaven, right? But then don't we come back to this earth on white horses

in Revelation to rule and reign with Christ for a thousand years? So we're all coming

back. These guys are just coming back a few years early. They're going to be here during

the plagues. That's why the Bible says they have to get that seal in their forehead, to

make them immune from the plagues. That's why when the fifth trumpet sounds, and the

locusts from hell come, they stay away from the ,. It says that they torment everybody

who doesn't have the seal of God in their foreheads. So they're tormenting everybody

except these ,. And look, remember in Revelation , we talked about how the two

witnesses are Moses and Elijah come back? So it makes sense. If Moses and Elijah are

coming back, it makes sense that the , are coming back. And that they're from the

literal tribes. It's the only way to take it literally. If you are going to spiritualise

it and say "well, they're just kind of spiritually from the tribe of Reuben." Well, you know

what? The only way to make them physically from the tribe of Reuben, from the literal

tribe, would be that they'd have to be from the Old Testament. So that these guys are

just like Moses and Elijah coming back from the Old Testament. These guys are coming back

from the Old Testament, and they're going to be on this earth during the time that the

plagues are poured out. So they're not people that are left behind in the rapture, because

no believer is going to be left behind during the rapture. They're people that are coming

back, basically as we're going up, they're coming down. Basically they're taking our

place. Because think about this. When the rapture takes place, all the saved are caught

up to heaven, right? Who is going to be left behind to represent the gospel on this earth?

Who is going to do the soul winning? Is God just going to leave this earth without any

witness, without any hope? Without any preaching of His word? You say "well, Moses and Elijah

will take care of that?" Two guys? You've got billions of people in this world, two

guys are going to take care of that? See, these ,, I believe during the time when

God's wrath is poured out, while we're up in heaven, I believe that on this earth Moses

and Elijah are obviously going to... The two witnesses whoever they are, I believe it's

Moses and Elijah... They're going to have a more public ministry, because the Bible

talks alot about everybody in the world hearing their preaching, and hating them and being

happy when they die. I think the , will have a more local ministry, because they can

be scattered throughout the whole world. And just as the apostles in acts , remember,

they were all Galileans but they spake with other tongues, and they were able to give

the gospel to people from all over the world. I think the , are going to come back

to preach the gospel to all nations and languages and tongues. And they will be here, since

we're going to be gone, they're going to be here. They are going to be immune from the

plagues of God's wrath. They are not going to be tormented with locusts, and they will

be here to preach the gospel. You say "well, how do you know they are going to be preaching

the gospel. Well, look at the next verse after the , are described. It says "they are

without fault before the throne of God"- look at verse - " And I saw another angel fly

in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the

earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people. Saying with a loud voice,

Fear God and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgement is come: and worship him

that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters." So what we see

hear, right after we talk about the , the next verse talks about preaching the gospel

to every nation, kindred, tongue and people. So that kind of gives some sense to why they're

there. Because in Revelation , He didn't really tell us why they're there. Here we

get an idea why they're there, to preach the gospel. You say "well, the angel is going

to do that". Well, he has the gospel to preach unto them, but I think that the , are

going to be preaching that same gospel. Now, alot of people who have a false doctrine will

point to Revelation : to say "well, there is different gospels". And these dispensationalists

are followers of the false teacher Peter Ruckman, who says "there are actually different gospels".

Well let me tell you something, "if anybody preaches another gospel, let him be accursed",

because there is but one. And anybody who tells you there is another gospel, let him

be accursed. And people come to you telling you... Somebody said to me recently, "Paul

preached a different gospel than Jesus". Anybody who says that is a heretic and a false teacher.

Because if Paul preached another gospel than Jesus, he is saying Jesus is accursed. He

is saying anybody who preaches Jesus' gospel is accursed. Because he said "if anybody preaches

another gospel than the one that I preach, let him be accursed!" Are you saying that

every follower of Christ is accursed? See that kind of GARBAGE is believed by the simple

and the ignorant. But let me tell you something. There is ONE GOSPEL, and if anyone preaches

ANY OTHER GOSPEL, than that which we have received, it says in Galatians , let that

person be accursed. You say, "well, it's for different times." Well, goodnight, you just

preach the right gospel at the wrong time and you're cursed! That doesn't make any sense.

That's baloney. There is but one gospel of Jesus Christ. They say "well, this angel is

preaching a different gospel". It doesn't say that he is preaching the gospel with what

he says in verse . It just says "he HAS the everlasting gospel to go preach, and here

is what he says". What he says is not the gospel. By the way, if it's only for a certain

time period, why is it called "the everlasting gospel"? Sounds to me like it's going to last

forever. And guess what? That gospel is the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The gospel is the good news that Jesus died for our sins, according to the scriptures.

And that's great news that he died for our sins, because we have alot of sins. And we

need a saviour. And THANK GOD that Jesus Christ DIED for our sins. And listen, when he says

"according to the scriptures". Is he talking about the Old Testament or the New Testament?

THE OLD TESTAMENT! Because in 1st Corinthians, alot of the New Testament hadn't even been

written yet. And in 1st Corinthians , it says he died for our sins according to the

scriptures, talking about the Old Testament scriptures. And by the way, the Bible says

"to him give ALL the prophets witness". You say, "the Old Testament is not about Jesus".

Oh, it's ALL about Jesus. To him give ALL the prophets witness, that through HIS NAME,

whosoever believeth in him shall receive remission of sins, even the Old Testament points to

that. They didn't know that name in the Old Testament. But it pointed to the fact that

whosoever believeth in him should receive remission of sins through his name. And here's

the thing, that gospel is the same gospel that Jesus preached and it's the same gospel

that Paul preached. See, this is what people will say. "Well, Paul..." These dispensationalists,

these Ruckmanites. Here is what they'll teach. "Well the gospel of Paul preached, was a gospel

by grace through faith..." And what they're teaching is that Jesus taught a works salvation.

Do you believe that? Listen, anybody who has ever gone to heaven, went by grace. Because

you know what grace means? They didn't deserve it. Do you think Abel deserved to go to heaven?

Do you think Noah deserved to go to heaven? The drunk that he was. I mean, do you think

Abraham deserved it? Do you think Isaac deserved it? Do you think Jacob deserved it? Look,

there is NONE righteous, no not ONE. For ALL have sinned of the glory of God. That includes

the Old Testament saints. David was not perfect. David had sin. David did not earn his way

into heaven. Even as David also describeth the blessedness of the man unto whom God imputeth

righteousness without works, saying BLESSED are they whose iniquities are forgiven, and

whose sins are covered. BLESSED is the man to whom the Lord will not impute sin. That's

what David preached, that it's without works. Abraham believed that it was without works.

It's always been by grace through faith. And here is what's so silly. They say "well, Paul

preached that it is by grace through faith, he revealed that". Okay, so are you telling

me that Jesus didn't teach salvation by faith alone? How about this verse that Jesus taught?

"For God so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son that whosoever believeth

in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." Did Jesus teach that verse to Nicodemus?

Did he teach :? "He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not

is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten

Son of God." Did he teach the verse that said "Verily, verily I say unto you, he that heareth

my word, and believeth on him that sent me hath everlasting life, and shall not come

into condemnation, but is passed from death unto life". He said that in John :. That's

JESUS preaching salvation by faith! He said in John :, "Verily, Verily I say unto you,

I say unto you, He that believeth on me hath everlasting life." Is that salvation by faith?

What about when Jesus said at the raising of Lazarus, "I am the resurrection and the

life. He that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And whosoever liveth

and believeth in me shall never die. Believest thou this?" Is that salvation by faith? See

how Jesus taught over and over again that salvation is by faith? That's why if somebody

tells you that Jesus and Paul preached two different gospels, you can know that that

person is a heretic, a false prophet, a false teacher, let them be accursed. They need to

learn the true gospel of Jesus Christ, which is the same one that Paul preached. It's the

everlasting gospel. So don't let people try to point this out to you- "See verse is

another gospel!" No it isn't. That's not the gospel, it's just saying that the angel had

the gospel, and here is what the angel said. The angel is going to preach the gospel to

the earth with a loud voice, saying "Fear God and give glory to him; for the hour of

his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea and the

fountains of waters." That's not good news. Gospel means "good news". Is it good news

that God is about to pour out His wrath on you? The good news is that Jesus died for

their sins, that's what they need to hear. The , are going to preach that message.

Most people aren't going to listen. Moses and Elijah, the two witnesses will preach

that message. Most people won't listen. Let's keep reading. It says in verse , there followed

another angel. So there are three angels that give these messages at this time, right before

God begins to pour out His wrath, they give these messages. Verse , here's the next message.

"And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city,

because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. And

the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast

and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, The same shall drink

of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of

his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of

the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb." You know what blows my mind about this

verse? That people teach that hell is separation from God. Does that not say that people are

going to be tormented in the presence of the Lamb? Correct me if I'm wrong, the "the Lamb"

God? Jesus Christ is the Lamb. And the Bible also says, "If I make my bed, behold, thou

art there." So here He says that they will be tormented with fire and brimstone in the

presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb, verse , and the smoke of their

torment ascendeth up forever and ever, and they have no rest day nor night who worship

the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name". Let me ask you this,

does that sound like hell is temporary? That says that "the smoke of their torment ascendeth

up forever and ever". And people say "well, that's just the smoke going up forever and

ever. The torment doesn't last forever." Look at the next words. He shall be tormented with

fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb:

And the smoke of thir torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day

nor night". Does that sound like they're just burned up and it's over? No. It says "they

have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth

the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the

commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus." What's that saying in verse ? It's saying

"look, the patience of the saints, is that when we see evil people prosper, when we see

great persecution coming from the wicked, we know where they're going to end up." And

therefore we patiently whatever trials and tribulations come our way. And sometimes it's

easy to get angry and say "God, why do you let these evil people get away with the things

they do?" Nobody is going to get away with it. But look at chapter , let me just prove

to you that hell is eternal, because alot of people teach that hell is "annihilation".

They teach that you burn up and that's it. Well, the Bible says that they are going to

be tormented day and night, and the smoke of their torment ascendeth up forever and

ever. But look at Revelation , verse . Now, what's interesting is that at the end

of chapter , the antichrist and the false prophet are cast into the lake of fire. Then

there is a thousand years of Christ's reign. So a THOUSAND years AFTER the beast and the

false prophet have been cast in the lake of fire, look what the Bible says in verse -

"and the devil that deceived them was cast into the lake of fire and brimstone, where

the beast and the false prophet" what's the next word? "ARE". Does it say "where they

WERE"? This is THOUSAND years after they got there! It says "where the beast and the false

prophet ARE, and shall be tormented day and night FOR EVER and EVER." So is the lake of

fire a place where you just burn up and it's over? No, he said a thousand years, they're

still there. And they shall be tormented for ever and ever. And then look at Revelation

:. It says "But the fearful, and unbelieving, and the abominable, and murderers, and whoremongers,

and sorcerers, and idolaters, and all liars, shall have their part in the lake which burneth

with fire and brimstone: which is the second death." Look , every single one of us has

told a lie. Let me tell you something, we all deserve hell. And without Jesus Christ

as their saviour, this is where all liars will end up. This is where murderers will

end up, this is where sorcerers will end up, this is where whoremongers will be, in the

lake of fire for eternity, with the false prophet. And let me tell you something. The

only way to escape this is to believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. The Bible says "believe

on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou SHALT BE SAVED." And the Bible says that God, those

of us that are saved, He has seperated us from our sins as far as the east is from the

west. You say, "how is a liar like you going to make it in? How is a murderer like David

going to make it in? How did that whoremonger make it in? You know what? Through the blood

of the Lamb. SAVED from our sins. Sins FORGIVEN and forgotten as far as the east is from the

west. That's salvation. But to the unsaved, make no mistake, hell is eternal. The lake

of fire is a place of eternal torment and punishment. The Bible says "these shall go

away into EVERLASTING punishment". That's a punishment that lasts forever, "but the

righteous into life eternal". Go back to Revelation . It says in verse , "And I heard a voice

from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth:

Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their works do follow

them." Why? He's saying "look, they're about to rest". "Blessed are the dead which die

in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours;

and their works do follow them. And I looked, and behold a white cloud"- here is Jesus coming

in the clouds. "And upon the cloud, one sat like unto the Son of man". Some people will

say "well, it's not the Son of man, it's just LIKE him." It's him, okay? He comes in the

clouds and he's got on his head a golden crown and in his hand a sharp sickle. And some people

say "well WHY does he need this other angel to tell him it's time if he's the boss?" Well,

of course he's the boss. But you remember, when Jesus was on this earth, and he talked

about his coming, he said "of that day and hour knoweth no man, no not the angels in

heaven but my Father only". And in Mark , he said "of that day and hour knoweth no man".

He said "the angels don't know it, neither the SON! The Son doesn't know it, the Father

only". That's why he is notified when the time comes, it's just symbolic, obviously.

Obviously it's just part of the symbolism that the angel tells him, "it's time for thee

to reap". He reaps the earth, he gathers the elect, he gathers the believers, he gathers

the wheat into his barn, and we already covered that earlier in the sermon. Then another angel

comes and reaps the clusters of the vine of the earth, to cast them into the great winepress

of the wrath of God. Now let me ask you this. Is the "winepress of the wrath of God", a

literal winepress? Obviously this isn't literal. Now you say, "well, Pastor Anderson, how do

you know when things in the Bible are literal, and when they're figurative?" Here is a really

easy rule of thumb for you. We should always assume that the Bible is literal, unless it's

OBVIOUS that it's not literal. Now, you say "well, where do you base that on?" Isn't that

just how we talk to each other in real life? I mean, if I talk to you, if I say something

to you, wouldn't you assume it's literal unless it's obvious that it's not? For example, think

about my wife and I. My wife and I communicate on a daily basis, right? What if my wife just

decided that everything that I say is symbolic? Wouldn't that be annoying? And I think God

gets pretty annoyed, when everything he says, people say "oh that's symbolic, that's symbolic,

everything is symbolic." Now look, if I'm being symbolic, it's going to be obvious that

it's symbolic. For example, if my wife says to me, "honey, would you please take out the

trash?" Should I take that literally, or symbolically? When she says "honey, would you please take

out the trash?" And I say, "maybe what she is really saying, is that there is alot of

bad things in our relationship that she'd like to see removed... maybe she is talking

about getting some bad things out of our relationship, emotionally, spiritually." Do you really think

that that would make any sense? Or would I just assume that she is saying "take out the

trash"? It makes sense, right? What if I said to her, "honey, I would like Tacos for dinner.

Would you please make Tacos?" And she thought "maybe what he really means, is that he wants

us to start speaking spanish more. Maybe he wants to take that vacation to Cancun... It's

ALL figurative, it's ALL symbolic... Tacos represents...." NO! I'm talking about a Taco!

That's what I want to eat! I want Tacos! And what if I said "honey, would you fry the corn

tortillas in oil?" And she thought "maybe the oil represents the holy spirit there..."

I mean, how far are you going to take this? So usually, when my wife and I communicate,

usually what we say is literal. So shouldn't I just assume that what she says is literal,

unless it's obvious that it's not, and vice versa. And what if I said to my wife "it's

raining cats and dogs outside?" Isn't it pretty clear that that's not literal? She knows "okay,

there aren't pets falling from the sky, it's just raining heavily." Or if I say "honey,

you look like a million dollars", she is not going to take that literally. But, she is

going to understand, "okay, that's figurative". It's the same way in the Bible. It's obvious

when it's figurative folks. When God's talking about "gathering the cluster of the vine of

the earth, and throwing it in the great winepress of the wrath of God, and then BLOOD coming

out of the winepress up to the horse bridles by the space of a THOUSAND and SIX HUNDRED

furlongs", that's NOT literal. And here's why. Because you don't throw grapes into a

winepress and have BLOOD come out. What really comes out of a winepress when you put grapes

in? WINE. So clearly not literal here. And look, God's not going to gather up human beings

and put them in a literal winepress, and smash humans until blood comes out like wine. That's

clearly not a literal event. But it is symbolic. What this is referring to is that mankind

is about to enter the winepress of God's wrath. Meaning that mankind is about to face the

intense wrath of God. And that man's blood will be shed. And that if we were to take

all the blood that's going to be shed of man, and we were to put it all in one place, it

would flow up to the horse bridles by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.

So this is clearly figurative. And what this is saying is, that AFTER the rapture, God's

going to pour out his wrath on mankind. That's why we see the rapture in verses through

, and then in verses through , we see mankind, the unsaved that have been left behind

going into the winepress of God's wrath. Then in chapter ... Because sometimes we just

stop at the chapter division... You need to keep reading, because when chapter : tells

us about the winepress of God's wrath, look at the next verse. "And I saw another sign

in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them

is filled up the wrath of God." So you see how it's really clear here? When he talks

about them going into the winepress of God's wrath, that is FIGURATIVE, they're going into

the seven last plagues of God's wrath, THAT'S the winepress of God's wrath. It culminates

in the battle of Armageddon in chapter number , which is discussed in chapter , it culminates

in chapter . But really, the whole period of God's wrath is signified by the winepress

of the wrath of God. You get that when you read from : to :, it's just clear,

it's obvious. Now, you say, "well, how far is a furlong?" Well, believe it or not, a

furlong is a measurement that we use today, we just don't call it a furlong. You know

what we call it today? A "block". A "block" is a "furlong". And the reason I say that,

is because a furlong, is exactly and eigth of a mile. And in fact, the "furlong" comes

from the word "furrow", and the word "long", the "long furrow". This is how much a man

would plow with one man, with one mule, in one day, something like that. He would plow

an acre, right? And an acre is a furlong, by this many chains or whatever. I'm sorry,

I'm not a medieval farmer. But I do know this, a furlong is an eight of a mile, and it's

the length of the long furrow, which is part of an acre. Now, the reason I say that a furlong

is equivalent to a block, is because, for example in Phoenix, the numbered streets are

exactly and eight of a mile apart. So for example, we're on th street, if we were

to go to th street, that's exactly mile. If we were to go to nd street, that's another

mile, because every blocks, or every streets, we have a mile. So therefore, from th to

th is an eight of a mile. They're roughly an eighth of a mile apart. Therefore, central

avenue in Phoenix to th street is how many furlongs? furlongs, right? Which is miles.

So th Street to th Avenue, you can always do the math and figure out exactly how many

FURLONGS it is, but you usually divide it by eight. And I do this all the time. When

I am coming home from Los Angeles, and I am anxious to get home, I will look at the avenue

signs and say "okay, how far am I from home?" Because I live right off th street, near

the church. So, as I'm driving home, I'll say "okay, street, divide by , that's

six miles... Okay, I'm on th Avenue, that's another and something odd... okay, I'm about..."

You know, it just gives me roughly an idea of how far I have to go, because a block is

a furlong, an eighth of a mile. So when the Bible says "by the space of a thousand and

six hundred furlongs, if we divide that by eight, you're looking at miles. Now, think

about a horse bridle. Think about a horse's mouth. That's about what, this level, right?

(Gestures) Now think of this deep of blood, for miles? That's a pretty long river

of blood, isn't it? That's a river of blood thats this deep. I guess it depends on the

horse, but we are not talking about these miniature ponies. But we're talking about

a horse bridle. And we're talking about mile long river of blood this deep. We're

talking about some serious wrath of God. That's the winepress of God's wrath. That's what

mankind is going into. Thank God for Christ's coming in the clouds in verse to get us

out of here before this takes place. But woe unto them that are upon the earth during that

period of God's wrath. So chapter is a fascinating chapter. It's one of the more

difficult chapters, it's one of the more cryptic chapters. But the key to understanding it

is first of all, get it in it's proper chronology. And alot of people will tell you "well, chapter

is just totally outside the chronology of Revelation." But really it fits in perfectly

if you expect it to be like the first half of Revelation. Tribulation, ,, rapture,

and then God pours out his wrath. You know what? Revelation follows that sequence

perfectly. And so it's a really interesting chapter. Next sermon we will get into the

seven plagues of God's wrath, with chapters and , where we'll delve into the carnage

there. Similar to the things we saw back in chapters through . Let's bow our heads

and have a word of prayer. Father we thank you so much for your word, and we thank you

for Revelation chapter . Please help us to study to show ourselves approved unto God,

workmen that need not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth and understanding

the difference between Old Testament and New Testament. Dividing between Old Covenant and

New Covenant. Dividing between Jew and tribes of Israel, not the same thing. And

Father please just help us as we study the book of Revelation to learn as much as we

can. Thank you for the salvation that you've given us, and that you've saved us from the

wrath to come, that we're going to see in the next few chapters. In Jesus' name we pray,

amen.