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The worship of the Beast
or
the worship of God.
The receiving of his mark
or
the mark of the Father.
The earth dwellers
or
the pilgrims.
Those who bow to the Beast
or
the overcomers.
Those who save their lives by idolatry
or
those who love not their live unto the death.
The one class constitute the great supper of God (19: 17), and the other is called unto
the marriage supper of the Lamb (19: 9). The one class are devoted to a special and
signal punishment, the other to a special and signal reward. The one class are ranged
under the Dragon and the other under the Lamb.
The exhortation to patience will be needed in those days of trial and fierce temptation.
John could write sympathetically of this, for he describes himself as "Your brother and
companion in tribulation and in the kingdom and patience of Jesus" (1: 9). The churches
of Ephesus and Thyatira are commended for their patience, and the church of
Philadelphia will receive a wonderful deliverance because it keeps the Word of the
Lord's patience.
The only other reference to patience are those of Rev. 13: 10 and 14: 12 ("Here is
patience"), both of which refer directly and exclusively to the period of the Beast and the
False Prophet. The references in other scriptures, particularly those in the epistle of
James, are also very applicable to this period of tested faith.
Our lot is cast in a different day. Our trial may be of a different character, but to us, as
to all saints, at all times the Word is true, "Ye have need of patience" (Heb. 10: 36). "Let
patience have her perfect work" (Jas. 1: 4).
#45.
The Harvest and the Vintage (14: 14-20).
pp. 76 - 78
Immediately following the cry of the third angel and the indication that wickedness
had reached its height comes the twofold scene of judgment, represented under the
figures of the Harvest and the Vintage.
It will enable us to see more clearly the bearing of these visions upon the theme of
the book and their place in its outworking if we take a wider view than the limits of
chapter 14:
In Volume IV & V, page 46, the structure of the Revelation as a whole is given. The
central member is composed of a series of seven pairs of visions. It will be seen that
14: 6-20, "The six angels" is echoed in the structure by 16: 1 - 18: 24. "The seven
vials". This helps us to place the Harvest and the Vintage and to see that both will be
fulfilled in the doom of Babylon and the Beast.