Bible Tuesday – Revelation Part 31

I looked up, I caught my breath!—a white cloud and one like the Son of Man sitting on it. He wore a gold crown and held a sharp sickle. Another Angel came out of the Temple, shouting to the Cloud-Enthroned, “Swing your sickle and reap. It’s harvest time. Earth’s harvest is ripe for reaping.” The Cloud-Enthroned gave a mighty sweep of his sickle, began harvesting earth in a stroke.

Then another Angel came out of the Temple in Heaven. He also had a sharp sickle. Yet another Angel, the one in charge of tending the fire, came from the Altar. He thundered to the Angel who held the sharp sickle, “Swing your sharp sickle. Harvest earth’s vineyard. The grapes are bursting with ripeness.”

The Angel swung his sickle, harvested earth’s vintage, and heaved it into the winepress, the giant winepress of God’s wrath. The winepress was outside the City. As the vintage was trodden, blood poured from the winepress as high as a horse’s bridle, a river of blood for two hundred miles.

Revelation 14:14-16

 

Do you know how tall a horse is?  God’s wrath is going to produce blood as high as a horse’s bridle.  A TWO HUNDRED MILE RIVER OF BLOOD!  I would really like to assume that this is just some poetic imagery John is using to make a point.  But good grief, it is oddly specific.  And it’s just hard to imagine giving this many details if he was just trying to make the point that ‘there is gonna be a lot of blood.’  But clearly I don’t know one way or the other.

I saw another Sign in Heaven, huge and breathtaking: seven Angels with seven disasters. These are the final disasters, the wrap-up of God’s wrath.

Revelation 15:1

I think we have to assume that the ‘wrap-up’ of God’s wrath is going to be worse than all the stuff that has aready happened.  And, yeah, I guess that means worse than the TWO HUNDRED MILE RIVER OF BLOOD.

I saw something like a sea made of glass, the glass all shot through with fire. Carrying harps of God, triumphant over the Beast, its image, and the number of its name, the saved ones stood on the sea of glass. They sang the Song of Moses, servant of God; they sang the Song of the Lamb:

Mighty your acts and marvelous,
O God, the Sovereign-Strong!
Righteous your ways and true,
King of the nations!
Who can fail to fear you, God,
give glory to your Name?
Because you and you only are holy,
all nations will come and worship you,
because they see your judgments are right.

Then I saw the doors of the Temple, the Tent of Witness in Heaven, open wide. The Seven Angels carrying the seven disasters came out of the Temple. They were dressed in clean, bright linen and wore gold vests. One of the Four Animals handed the Seven Angels seven gold bowls, brimming with the wrath of God, who lives forever and ever. Smoke from God’s glory and power poured out of the Temple. No one was permitted to enter the Temple until the seven disasters of the Seven Angels were finished.

Revelation 15:2-8

Before we get to this ‘wrathmageddon’, we get a brief respite.  This ‘Song of the Lamb’ is not in this spot by accident.  It’s here to remind us that the coming horror is a righteous judgement. And it’s probably important to take a minute to remind ourselves of just that.  Revelation is not the story of a mean God getting his revenge on humanity.  It’s the story of a righteous, long suffering, forgiving and loving God bringing about a conclusion and a new beginning.  Trust me when I tell you that none of us will be innocent victims.

 

Speak Your Mind

*