The eternal gospel, which will be preached during the time of the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21), differs from the gospel of grace (Acts 20:24) preached in the church age. The basic contents of the gospel of grace are repentance unto God and faith in the Lord Jesus (Acts 20:21) that men may be forgiven of their sins and be born again as the children of God (Luke 24:47; John 1:12); whereas the basic content of the eternal gospel is that men should fear God and worship God that they may not be deceived and follow Antichrist but may be brought back to the genuine worship of God, who made heaven and earth (v. 7). Only man is privileged to preach the gospel of grace on the earth today (Acts 10:3-6). But the eternal gospel will be preached by the angel in the air at the close of this age.

Without blemish indicates that they are without spot or wrinkle and are perfect in the holiness of God (Eph. 5:27), absolutely sanctified to God and fully saturated with God (1 Thes. 5:23).

The devil is the father of all liars, and lies come out of him (John 8:44). That no lie was found in the mouth of the overcomers indicates that there is nothing of Satan in their expression.

These early overcomers will be the first-ripe ones in God's field. Hence, they will be reaped before the harvest as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb. The harvest will be reaped later, in vv. 14-16. This means that the overcomers will be raptured to the heavens before the harvest, just as the firstfruits of the good land were reaped and brought into the temple of God before the harvest (Lev. 23:10-11; Exo. 23:19). The events recorded in vv. 6-13, all of which will take place during the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21), indicate clearly and prove strongly that the first overcomers, the firstfruits in vv. 1-5, will be raptured before the great tribulation, and that the harvest in vv. 14-16, composed of the majority of the believers, will be raptured at the end of the great tribulation. See note Rev. 12:6¹.

This should be the virginity mentioned by the Lord in Matt. 19:11-12. However, the same principle could be applied to the sisters (1 Cor. 7:7, 37).

From the earth proves that they are no longer on the earth but have been raptured to the heavens.

No one can learn the new song sung by these first overcomers, a song that must be in accord with their experiences of the Lamb, because no one else has their specific and particular experiences of Christ.

Harp-singers signifies the pleasantness of the sound.

Loud thunder signifies the solemnity of the sound.

Many waters signifies the tumultuousness of the sound.

That these early overcomers have the name of the Lamb and the name of the Father written on their foreheads signifies that they are one with the Lamb and with the Father and that they belong to the Lamb and to the Father. They are in contrast to those who worship the beast and have the name of the beast written on their foreheads (Rev. 13:16-17).

This must be an actual number with a symbolic meaning. One hundred forty-four thousand is one thousand times twelve times twelve. Twelve is the number of completion in God's eternal administration. One hundred forty-four (Rev. 21:17) is twelve times twelve, which signifies the completion of completions, the ultimate completion in the fullest way. The number here is one thousand times this ultimate completion.

Zion here is not the Zion on the earth but the one in the heavens (Heb. 12:22).

Lit., sitting.

"Fear God and give Him glory" is a commandment given to those who dwell on the earth. It counters the false prophet's deceit that says that men should follow Antichrist and neutralizes the death threat against those who refuse to worship Antichrist during the great tribulation (Rev. 13:14-15).

The judgment here is the judgment that Christ will execute over all the nations at His coming back to earth, as He predicted in Matt. 25:31-46. This judgment will be executed on the living. It differs from the judgment on the dead, which will take place after the millennium, as mentioned in Rev. 20:11-15. All the people of the nations who remain at the Lord's coming back to earth will be judged according to the eternal gospel preached by the angel during the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21). If in fearing and worshipping God they have treated well the Christians and Jews, the Lord's brothers suffering poverty and imprisonment under Antichrist's persecution during the great tribulation, they will be justified by the Lord so that they can enter into the earthly part of the millennium to partake of the kingdom prepared by God for them from the foundation of the world (Matt. 25:34). If in following Antichrist and worshipping his image they have ill-treated the Christians and Jews, they will be condemned and cast into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels (Matt. 25:41).

The worship of Him who has made heaven and earth is in contrast to the worship of Antichrist and his image in v. 9.

The modifying clause who has made all the nations drink...indicates that Babylon here is the religious, mysterious Babylon, which is the Roman Catholic Church, as in Rev. 17:2-6, not the material Babylon, as in Rev. 18:2. Antichrist will destroy all religions when he breaks the covenant with Israel in the middle of the last week (seven years — Dan. 9:27; 11:31). This will be the beginning of the great tribulation (Matt. 24:21), which will last for three and a half years. Antichrist will exalt himself above all gods and force people to worship him (Dan. 8:9-11; 11:36-37; 2 Thes. 2:3-4; Rev. 13:4-6, 12, 14-15). At that time, he will destroy the religious Babylon, the apostate Roman Catholic Church (Rev. 17:16). Hence, the religious Babylon will fall at the beginning of the great tribulation, whereas the material Babylon will fall at the end of the great tribulation (Rev. 18:2).

Wine of...her fornication refers to the spiritual fornication of the Roman Catholic Church, of which she has made all the nations drink (Rev. 17:2-6). While she commits her fornication, she is furious with the saints who do not consent to her fornication. This is the fury of her fornication. Hence, the wine of her fornication is also called "the wine of the fury of her fornication."

This is the fire and brimstone in the lake of fire (Rev. 19:20; 20:10, 14).

The endurance to suffer Antichrist's persecution will be needed by the saints who remain in the great tribulation.

The saints who remain in the great tribulation are of two peoples: the Jews, who keep the commandments of God, and the believers, who keep the faith of Jesus.

This book, written in the time of the degradation of the church, stresses the Spirit. It does not say here "says the Scripture," but "says the Spirit."

A thousand six hundred stadia, 182 miles, is the distance from Bozrah (Isa. 63:1) to Armageddon (Rev. 16:16).

A stadion equals about 600 feet.

In 10:1 Christ is still clothed with a cloud, whereas here He is on the cloud. His being on the cloud corresponds with 1 Thes. 4:17 and indicates that at this point the Lord's coming back is made public in the air.

At His coming back, the Lord Jesus will still be the Son of Man. As the Son of Man, He is qualified to execute God's judgment on everyone (John 5:27).

The golden crown on the Lord's head indicates that the Lord is the One crowned with glory (Heb. 2:9).

The sharp sickle in the Lord's hand indicates that the Lord is the One who reaps God's field.

The harvest of the earth is God's people on earth, the believers in Christ (1 Cor. 3:9). At His first coming to the earth, the Lord sowed Himself into His believers (Matt. 13:3-8, 24). All the believers since that time, who have received Him as the seed of life, have become God's crop on the earth. The first-ripe ones will be reaped as the firstfruits to God before the great tribulation, as indicated in vv. 1-5. The majority will ripen with the help of the sufferings in the great tribulation and will be reaped, raptured, at the end of the great tribulation.

The dead here are those who are martyred under the persecution of Antichrist during the great tribulation. This is proved by Rev. 20:4.

The horses here correspond with the horses in Rev. 19:18.

Lit., dried. To be ripe is to be "dried" of all the earthly water. The suffering of the great tribulation, like the parching sun, will dry up the earthly waters from the believers who are left on the earth in the great tribulation, enabling the believers to ripen.

The sickle here signifies the angels sent by the Lord to reap the harvest (Matt. 13:39).

The reaping here will take place after Antichrist forces people to worship him and his image (v. 9). Hence, it refers to the rapture of the majority of the believers, who are left on the earth to pass through the great tribulation.

Him refers not to the Lord but to the angel in v. 17.

In the Bible the Jews are likened to the fig tree (Matt. 24:32), the believers are likened to wheat (Matt. 13:25, 30), and the wicked Gentiles are likened to the grapevine (v. 19), which is a counterfeit of the true vine composed of Christ and His members (John 15:1-6). The wheat is ripe when its water content is dried up, whereas the grapes are ripe when the water has filled them up. Fully ripened indicates that the Gentiles as the grapevine are filled to the brim with their sin and that the time of their judgment has come.

The great winepress of the fury of God is the war at Armageddon (Rev. 16:12-16), which is in the valley of Jehoshaphat (Joel 3:9-16). All the Gentile evil worldly forces will be gathered there, and the Lord with His overcoming saints will fight against them and destroy them there (Rev. 19:11-21; Joel 3:9-13; Isa. 63:1-6).

The city here is the city of Jerusalem.