Rev. 14:
14 And I looked, and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the
Son of man, having on his head a golden crown, and in his hand a sharp sickle.
And I looked, and behold a white cloud...
(Click here for our
notes on the "clouds" of prophecy.)
...and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of man... This identifies
Christ. The "Son of Man" was one of His favorite titles when He was on the
earth.
...having on his head a golden crown... This brings to mind I
Peter 1:3-7.
3 Blessed [be] the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ,
which according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by the
resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead,
4 To an inheritance incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in
heaven for you,
5 Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be revealed in
the last time.
6 Wherein ye greatly rejoice, though now for a season, if need be, ye are in heaviness
through manifold temptations:
7 That the trial of your faith, being much more precious than of gold that perisheth,
though it be tried with fire, might be found unto praise and honour and glory at the
appearing of Jesus Christ:
The Bible teaches that by the trying of our faith we are refined as gold is by the
fire. In fact, Peter tells us in this passage that the trying of our faith is much
more precious than the gold of this life. But in our trials, as in all things
pertaining to the Church, Christ is first; and the "golden crown" on the head of
the returning Christ speaks to the trials that he endured for His Bride, the Church.
...and in his hand a sharp sickle.
The "sharp sickle" obviously refers to the Lord's harvest of souls; and
no one is more qualified for this harvest than the one who created all, who planted the good
seed, and who wears the crown of gold that HE earned by His sufferings for the man HE
created. As to the nature of this harvest, John the Baptist gives us some insight in
Matthew 3:11-12:
11 I indeed baptize you with water unto repentance: but
he that cometh after me is mightier than I, whose shoes I am not worthy to bear: he
shall baptize you with the Holy Ghost, and [with] fire:
12 Whose fan [is] in his hand, and he will throughly purge his floor, and gather his wheat
into the garner; but he will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.
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Rev. 14:
15 And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat
on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for
the harvest of the earth is ripe.
16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the earth was
reaped.
And another angel came out of the temple... What is the
significance of this angel? From what temple will he come out? from the Jewish temple?
from the temple in heaven comprised of the glorified New Testament Church? from some other
temple? The word "angel" means "messenger," so perhaps, this angel is
simply a messenger sent from the presence of God the Father in heaven to God the Son
telling Jesus that it is time to reap the "believers" of the Kingdom Age.
...crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud... Is
this simply an expression to identify Christ Jesus? or does the expression "to him
that sat on the cloud" mean that this will be the time that Jesus and the glorified
Church will have removed themselves from the presence of the people on the earth for the
"little season" so that Satan can deceive and be deceived for the last time?
(Rev. 20:3)
...Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for
the harvest of the earth is ripe. Here at the end of the Kingdom Age — when time as we know it will be brought to an end —
the Lord's harvest will be fully ripe for the final gathering in of His crops.
(The word translated "ripe" is xeraino which means
"overripe/dried up, withered"--suggesting that at the end of the
Kingdom Age, the "church" of that age, like ours, will once again be
neglecting the Lord's harvest. The word also might apply to the
fruit of the Lord's disciples of the time, suggesting that they will not
be bearing the delightful fruit of the Holy Spirit, but be turned in on
themselves.) Again, the
Lord Jesus does not leave this task to His angels, but takes charge of it Himself.
This is the 13th rendering of Daniel's 70th Week and the meaning of the number 13
applies to the second half of this set as well as the first. The number thirteen in
Scriptural numerology stands for rebellion or depravity; and after Christ puts in his
"sharp sickle," will there be any left on the earth other than the rebellious
and the depraved?
16 And he that sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle on the earth; and the
earth was reaped.
Does this mean that when the Lord puts His sickle to the earth, it
will be depleted of all godly people? Or will this set follow the pattern of the
first set wherein the sealed Hebrew children will have to go on through the period as part
of some sort of judgment? This question may not be answerable at this time; but my first
inclination is to go with a total harvest of the believers. But whatever the case, the
last half of the next set will be the time to harvest the "vine of the earth."
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