The fourth angel of the six angels of judgment is about to speak. However, John is allowed to see Someone first. As always, everything will shortly be explained in greater detail, with more accuracy,1 but for the moment he is now allowed to see the general framework. He first saw the Lamb and His redeemed,2 then the announcement of the judgment,3 the fall of ‘Babylon’4 and the cup of the ‘wine of God’s wrath’ that will have to be drunk.5 Then John saw thereafter, the encouragement and the stimulation of the believers to persevere. How worth it is to persevere!6 The earth is now to be mown with the sickle, and the winepress of God’s wrath is to be trodden. Three angels have announced the judgments; the next three carry out the judgments, or take part in them. Before this takes place, however, John says: “I looked, and behold.” This expression is always a transfer of thought, a turning point, as when he saw the door open in Heaven,7 when he saw the first white horse ride out, and the black and the pale horse,8 and when he saw the Lamb on Mount Zion with the ‘hundred and forty-four thousand’ redeemed.9
What does John see? A white cloud. This refers to God’s throne, and to the Son of Man “enthroned” upon it, as some translations say. Daniel saw the Son of Man carried on clouds before the throne,10 where He is given dominion.11 The cloud surrounds God’s Glory.12 The Lamb, the Son of Man, is with God on the throne.13 Christ ascended to Heaven in clouds14 and He will return on the clouds of Heaven.15 The Shekinah Glory was covered by the cloud and rested upon the Tabernacle and the Temple. The voice came from the cloud on the Mount of Transfiguration. The cloud came on the Mount of Olives to bring Jesus to the right hand of the Father. And by that cloud He will return to planet earth.
He also wears the golden victor’s crown, the golden laurel given to victors at sports tournaments or to victorious commanders in ancient times. The Son of man whom John sees is Christ. Of that there is no doubt. He first wore the crown of thorns with the long thorns that caused the blood to flow over His head when they beat Him on His head with wooden sticks.16 The Lamb of God was bleeding from many wounds. His head, upon which His sweat had already turned to drops of blood in the Garden of Gethsemane, was bleeding by this crown of thorns; His back was bleeding, as a result of the scourging and the beating with sticks; His hands and feet were bleeding, as a result of the nails, and from His side came a trickle of blood mixed with water, as a result of the spear. The crown of thorns has now become a crown of gold. The Father has now given everything into His hands. “And He has given Him authority to judge because He is the Son of Man,” John says.17 He has a sharp sickle in His hand. He is going to mow the earth and its inhabitants. He takes the initiative. Standing grain was reaped with sickles in Israel,18 after which it was threshed, separating the grain from the chaff. Luke 3:17 NIV says: “His winnowing fork is in His hand to clear His threshing floor and to gather the wheat into His barn, but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire.” The good grain has to be ‘threshed’ as well, good works to be separated from the works of the flesh. But here, in this verse, it refers to the ‘mowing of the earth’ and ‘apostate mankind’ is being harvested. ‘Earth’ in the Book of Revelation always has a negative connotation. It refers to apostate, stubborn, unconverted and unconvertible sinful mankind on earth in the last days. What is now about to happen is referred to in Matthew 13:36–43. The ‘reapers’ are the angels who, at His command, gather the tares together and throw them into the fire.
• The image of the harvest is a type of two opposing concepts in the Bible: on the one hand ‘destruction and judgment’ when mowing and threshing are at the forefront, but on the other hand ‘reward and salvation’ when gathering in is at the forefront. Only ‘mowing’ is spoken of here and it serves as a ‘spacer’ to comfort the persecuted and the oppressed Church in their trials and tribulations. God’s justice and judgment is coming. The Son of man has the sickle at the ready.
• The scourging of Jesus. The Roman flagellation or scourging was one of the most feared of all punishments. It was a form of brutal, inhumane punishment generally executed by Roman soldiers using the most dreaded instrument of the time, called a flagrum.
• The flagrum used in scourging was a whip consisting of three or more leather tails that had small metal balls or sheep bones at the end of each tail. Or even small pieces of glass. The bits of metal would dig deep into the flesh, ripping small blood vessels, nerves, muscle, and skin.
• Often the number of lashes was dependent upon the cruelty of the executioners. If the executioners did not want the victim, to die too quickly, they limited the amount of lashes administered.
• Pontius Pilate ordered that Jesus be scourged in an extreme manner in an attempt to appease the crowd. But when they were not satisfied and demanded the release of Barabbas, he pronounced the death sentence
Bible References:
1.Revelation 19 and 20 2.Revelation 14:1–5 3.Revelation 14:6–7 4.Revelation 14:8 5.Revelation 14:9–11 6.Revelation 14:12–13 7.Revelation 4:1 8.Revelation 6:2, 5 and 7 9.Revelation 14:1 10.Daniel 7:13 11.Daniel 7:14 12.Exodus 24:15–18, 40:34–35 13.Revelation 5:6; Acts 7:56 14.Acts 1:9–11 15.Mark 13:26; 1 Thessalonians 4:17; Revelation 1:7 16.Matthew 27:27–30 17.John 5:27, comp. Acts 17:31 18.Deuteronomy 16:9
