Revelation 14 concerns three special messages of the Almighty which are scheduled to go to all the world during the time of the Seven Seals. To a limited degree these three messages are already being proclaimed to mankind by a few Christian groups, but it is quite obvious that they still have a lot further to go before they are concluded.
| Rev.14: | 6: And I saw another angel
fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel
to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation,
and kindred, and tongue, and people, 7: Saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters. |
Plainly this message is a special call
to all mankind to worship the Creator, the one who made
heaven, and earth, and the sea and the fountains of the water.
At a time when the scriptural record of creation is contemptuously
set aside by most of the intellectuals of this world: at a time
when multiplied millions of people disdainfully reject the Everlasting
Gospel: at a time when the prospect of the approaching Judgment
is sniggered and sneered at, this sacred message calling all mankind
to worship the Creator is scheduled to go forth.
Every true believer will agree that that time has arrived. The 1st Angel's warning message, calling upon mankind to worship the Creator is going into all the world at this very moment and there isn't a power in the universe that can stop it. See file The Everlasting Gospel for more details of this angel's message.
| Rev.14: | And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. |
Here we have another example of that
second clue to the understanding symbolic prophecy, where the
operation and outcome of the spiritual realities above can best
be understood by watching their earthly counterparts below. Babylon,
in this context, is not King Nebuchadnezzar's capital city, but
that other metropolis of evil Babylon the Great which straddles
the Great River Euphrates above. What is even more stunning is
the fact that all the vaunted earthly systems of which men are
so proud, are really only sub-systems of this spiritual capital
above
Babylon the Great! whose monarch is Satan the Devil.
The fall of Babylon the Great,
as predicted by this message, not only means the utter degradation
to which Satan's capital has descended, but also the total
overthrow of the spiritual capital itself. Just as ancient
Babylon fell into sin and was later overthrown on the very night
it's rulers were engaged in blasphemous revelry (Daniel 5), so
too will Babylon the Great and all it's sub-systems literally
collapse before the armies of God.
As far as this present world is concerned, the message of the 2nd Angel means that at the fall of Babylon the Great, all the Babylonian sub-systems of the world will collapse in confusion. It is probably at that time of collapse, when total anarchy and confusion reigns, that the Beast will visibly manifest himself on earth and masquerade as the long awaited Saviour of the human race. When he appears he will be welcomed by millions as Jesus Christ himself; as the only one powerful enough to rescue mankind from its myriad problems. The Antichrist will then take over the government of the world and dare to rule mankind as God! (2 Thess. 2:3-4) According to the Revelation, Yahweh's followers are advised to come out of Babylon at that time; come out in order to escape the seven last plagues scheduled to fall on mankind.
| Rev.18: | 1: And after these things
I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power;
and the earth was lightened with his glory. 2: And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. 3: For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. 4: And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. 5: For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities. |
Spiritually and socially we believers are, of course, already coming out of Babylon; but the day is not far distant when Babylon the Great will literally collapse before the armies of Yahweh and then we will physically move out of the world's cities just as God's people left ancient Babylon. May Yahweh hasten that day. The fall of Babylon the Great will be reflected on earth in the total economic and social collapse of all nations. Then will follow the punishment of Babylon's harlot daughters, the false religious systems and, finally the seven last plagues. These events are detailed in Revelation chapters 15 to 18. The reader is strongly advised to read those chapters in conjunction with the record of ancient Babylon's fall as given in the books of Isaiah, Jeremiah and Daniel.
| Rev.14: | 9: And the third angel followed
them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast
and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his
hand, 10: The same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: 11: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. 12: Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. |
Every knowledgeable Bible student will recognize that here is a message of unparalleled importance, undoubtedly the most awesome warning recorded in the entire Scriptures, and one which we must understand and heed if we are to escape the wrath of the Almighty. In view of this fact the AVITW - CANADA has published a special tract entitled the Mark of the Beast which explains in greater detail what the Mark is and how to avoid receiving it. The 3rd Angel's message is an awesome warning to mankind of the fearsome consequences awaiting those who accept the Mark of the Beast.
Let the reader pause and take note of
that terrifying prospect, for it is fearsome beyond imagination.
Here is no idle message, no meaningless threat, but the Almighty
God's last warning to mankind concerning a subject dearest to
His heart.
In summary the Three Angels' messages
call upon all believers:
Third Clue
At this point we will briefly explain
the 3rd clue to understanding Bible prophecy. It concerns the
existence of prophetic dramas. A drama is,
of course, a play, a staged performance directed by someone to
convey a given message. Prophetic dramas are staged
performances, real live shows directed by the Almighty
to put across the life-giving message of salvation. They are divinely
authorized productions designed to demonstrate to the entire universe
the spiritual realities scheduled to take place some time later
in the Plan of Salvation.
A perfect example of a prophetic drama
can be found in the first few books of the Bible which catalogues
the experience of ancient Israel in the time of the Pharaohs.
There we read of Israel's slavery, the sacrifice of the Passover
lamb, the miraculous deliverance from Egypt, the receiving of
the law at Mount Sinai and the subsequent journey to the Promised
Land. Those ancient experiences were all divinely directed
real-life dramas of prophetic significance, for they foreshadowed
mankind's slavery in sin, salvation through the blood of the Messiah
(the Lamb of God), the total overthrow of Satan and his system,
the Sealing work in the last days and the church's triumphant
entry into the glorious Kingdom of Heaven.
Yes, all those ancient experiences, and there are literally scores of them in the Scriptures, were 'prophetic dramas' which were arranged and directed by the Creator to prefigure the mighty spiritual realities involved in the salvation of mankind. An understanding of them is a vital key to understanding the future. To grasp the meaning of the Revelation, therefore, we must go back to the Scriptures to the records of those ancient prophetic dramas. Together with the law of God they constitute an illustrated systems specification of the complex Programme of Salvation which the Almighty is currently running. The following text of Scriptures will prove this point.
| 1 Cor.10: | 9: Neither let us tempt
Christ, as some of them also tempted, and were destroyed of serpents. 10: Neither murmur ye, as some of them also murmured, and were destroyed of the destroyer. 11: Now all these things happened unto them for ensamples: and they are written for our admonition, upon whom the ends of the world are come. |
Note the words: 'all these things happened unto them for ensamples.' In other words, all the events recorded in the Old Testament were 'prototypes,' 'shadows,' 'examples,' 'living dramas,' 'prophetic illustrations' of events scheduled to occur on a universal scale in these end times.
Let us now take one of those prophetic
illustrations which took place in ancient Babylon and
see how it warns us of coming events in Babylon the Great.
The example we will take is found in Daniel chapter 3. It is the
well known story of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego, the three
young Jews who were cast into the fiery furnace for refusing to
bow down to Nebuchadnezzer's image of gold. Almost every Christian
is acquainted with the story and knows how these three commandment-keeping
youths were miraculously preserved from death in the midst of
the furnace. But how few know that that experience was a prophetic
drama, a figure, a living prototype
of a far greater spiritual event scheduled to take place on
a world scale in our day? How many realize that very soon all
the world will be called upon to submit or bow down to another
'image of gold,' a computer-controlled economic
system which will monitor the financial activity of every person
on earth! Yes the time is almost upon us when every wage-packet,
every payment, every transaction involving money (gold) will be
vetted, processed, recorded and monitored in an international
economic system controlled by the coming Dictator of the World!
And once again, obedience to the commandments of Yahweh will be
the test of faith just as it was in the days
of Shadrach, Meshach and Abednego.
According to the prophecy many believers
will hearken to the message of the 3rd Angel in that day. They
will refuse to accept the Mark of the Beast or bow down before
the 'image of gold' in order to trade in the market
place. Instead, they will obey the commandments of the God of
Israel and like the three ancient worthies enter the furnace
of affliction unbowed. Then one of the greatest miracles
ever known to man will occur. Yahweh the God of the Hebrews will
miraculously intervene. His Son will once again walk with His
obedient servants in the midst of the furnace and all the
forces of hell will be powerless to destroy them. That is the
prophetic message of Daniel chapter 3. In dramatized form that
chapter tells us how the Treasures of Truth are
an invincible force, that their faith cannot be extinguished and
their numbers never totally wiped out. Persecution, in other words,
is totally incapable of destroying the commandment-keeping church
of the living God.
The closing words of the 3rd Angel clearly indicate that Yahweh's church will live through the fiery trials of that time and still maintain its faith and obedience. That's good news and it is expressed in these meaningful words:
| Rev.14: | 12 Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. |
