Revelation 14:1-13

¹ Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. ² And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, ³ and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. ⁴ It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, ⁵ and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. ⁶ Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. ⁷ And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.” ⁸ Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.” ⁹ And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, ¹⁰ he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. ¹¹ And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.” ¹² Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. ¹³ And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

Andrew Peterson has written about two interesting marks that the great German composer Bach put on his musical compositions.

If you’re familiar with Bach, you may know that at the bottom of his manuscripts, he wrote the initials, “S. D. G.” Soli Deo Gloria, which means “glory to God alone.” What you may not know is that at the top of his manuscripts he wrote, “Jesu Juva,” which is Latin for “Jesus, help!”[1]

I was, in fact, unfamiliar with the “Jesu Juva,” the “Jesus, help,” at the top.

What interests me is the interplay between these two ideas: “Glory to God Alone!” and “Jesus help!” Bach seems to have meant that we do what we do for God’s glory and that, in doing it, we beseech the Lord Jesus for His help.

But is there another connection between divine glory and divine help? I think there is. I think we should have “Glory to God Alone!” and “Jesus help!” written across our lives because it is, in fact, God’s glory that is our help!

Put another way, what if God gives us glimpses of His glory to help us in our darkest moments? What if a vision of the glory of God is what we most need to see us through?

In fact, I would argue that Revelation 14:1-13 proves that point. Here, fast on the heels of the very frightening imagery of Revelation 13 with its unholy trinity and its dragon and its beasts, the scene shifts to the very opposite reality: a vision of the glory of the Lamb, of the victory of the Lamb, of the victory of the followers of the Lamb, and of glory.

The Victory of the Lamb and His Followers is Revealed

We first see in the beautiful imagery of Revelation 14 a depiction of the Lamb and of His followers victorious.

¹ Then I looked, and behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb, and with him 144,000 who had his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads. ² And I heard a voice from heaven like the roar of many waters and like the sound of loud thunder. The voice I heard was like the sound of harpists playing on their harps, ³ and they were singing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders. No one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. ⁴ It is these who have not defiled themselves with women, for they are virgins. It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes. These have been redeemed from mankind as firstfruits for God and the Lamb, ⁵ and in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless.

As we discussed when we looked at Revelation 7, the 144,000 are perhaps best seen as a picture of the people of God in their totality. In Revelation 14 the special focus is on those who are martyred in tribulation and received into the glory of God. Yet the image is clearly intended to inspire all of God’s children and especially those undergoing trials.

The image of the Lamb and of His people assembled “on Mount Zion” takes us back to Psalm 2 and its messianic prophecy.

⁶ “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.”

Notice the activity around the Lamb. It is joyful and jubilant! With him are His followers who have “his name and his Father’s name written on their foreheads.” This is in obvious contrast to the mark of the beast depicted in Revelation 13. Then we see a description of various sounds: a strong and loud voice from Heaven, a voice of music, a voice of singing. And we see too the character of those with the Lamb: they are pure (depicted here as virgins). This image of virginity is almost certainly intended to be a contrast to those who are unfaithful, to those who have whored after other gods, imagery employed frequently in the Old Testament for faithless Israel. This image of purity and faithfulness goes hand in hand with the next words: “It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes.” The faithfulness of Christ’s bride manifests itself in the obedience of the church. This is the perfect definition of discipleship: “It is these who follow the Lamb wherever he goes.” They are likewise called “redeemed” and “blameless.”

This is a picture of the Lamb and His followers. This is a picture of glory. This is a picture of victory. And it is given to the church in the midst of the church’s most difficult moments in order to embolden, to inspire, to grant courage.

Gordon Fee writes of our text:

At this point the modern (especially Western) reader must give up the penchant for literalism, and (especially) chronological sequencing, and hear the text on its own terms, and thus for the glory that belongs to it. This is not about time; this is about who. Here is the divine response through the prophet John to assure his readers that even though martyrdoms will come—and there will be many—the martyrs themselves have a special place in the divine economy.[2]

This vision of glory is God’s help to us! See there on Mt. Zion the Lamb of God with His people, victorious and joyful and celebrating! See it and take heart!

The Victory of the Lamb and His Followers is Announced

Then we see that the message of this victory is heralded and announced.

⁶ Then I saw another angel flying directly overhead, with an eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on earth, to every nation and tribe and language and people. ⁷ And he said with a loud voice, “Fear God and give him glory, because the hour of his judgment has come, and worship him who made heaven and earth, the sea and the springs of water.”

Danny Akin observes that “[f]lying ‘high overhead’ (ESV, “directly overhead”) is actually mid-heaven. It refers to that point in the sky where the sun reaches its apex or highest point.”[3] So the angel goes high into the sky and proclaims the gospel, the good news of Jesus!

And to whom does the angel announce it? To everybody, to “every nation and tribe and language and people.” The angel loudly calls upon the nations, “Fear God and give him glory!” That is, believe in God, trust in God, embrace the Lamb in faith. The angels call upon the nations to worship the Lord. Why? Because “the hour of his judgment has come.” They are almost out of time.

Seen in this light, evangelism is simply inviting those lost in darkness into the light of glory! It is telling people what you have seen and experienced in your own life because of Jesus.

Here is a picture of the desire of Christ: that the gospel would be announced to the nations. In Matthew 28:19, we are told to “[g]o therefore and make disciples of all nations…” In Acts 1:8 Jesus tells us that we “will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” The angel is doing here in the great tribulation what the church is to being doing even now.

The followers of the Lamb are heralds. We are heralds and proclaimers! We are to announce the victory of the Lamb especially in difficult time. Part of this inspiring picture is the image of angelic pronouncement and evangelism

The Victory of the Lamb and His Followers Contrasted with Unbelief

But part of this picture of glory involves a contrast as well, the contrast between the Lamb and His followers on Mt. Zion and the fate of those who follow the Beast.

⁸ Another angel, a second, followed, saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great, she who made all nations drink the wine of the passion of her sexual immorality.” ⁹ And another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, ¹⁰ he also will drink the wine of God’s wrath, poured full strength into the cup of his anger, and he will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. ¹¹ And the smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever, and they have no rest, day or night, these worshipers of the beast and its image, and whoever receives the mark of its name.”

It is a stark contrast! Indeed, part of heralding the good news is painting a very clear picture of what happens when people reject the good news, when people reject the Lamb. See here the fate of those who take the mark of the Beast and reject the Lamb who saves.

• They become objects of God’s wrath. (v.10)

• They will be cast into hell. (v.10)

And these are contrasted with the children of the Lamb yet again.

¹² Here is a call for the endurance of the saints, those who keep the commandments of God and their faith in Jesus. ¹³ And I heard a voice from heaven saying, “Write this: Blessed are the dead who die in the Lord from now on.” “Blessed indeed,” says the Spirit, “that they may rest from their labors, for their deeds follow them!”

This image of the Lamb and this call to salvation and trust is, we are told, “for the endurance of the saints.” It is to inspire us in our obedience and our faith. To be in the Lamb is to be “blessed,” even if we taste martyrdom.

The image of “endurance”—“Here is a call for the endurance of the saints…”—is critically important in the book of Revelation. Scott Duvall writes that “‘endurance’ (hypomonē), perhaps ‘the key ethical term in the Apocalypse,’ appears seven times in Revelation (1:9; 2:2, 3, 19; 3:10; 13:10; 14:12)…”[4] It is a very important theme.

Why the repetition? Undoubtedly because God knows that endurance is what the church will need in her most difficult moments. We need to endure, to not lose heart, to stay focused on the Lamb! Jay Adams writes:

In counseling, week after week, I continually encounter one outstanding failure among Christians:  a lack of what the Bible calls “endurance”; they give up.[5]

Church! Do not give up! Endure! See there the Lamb and His followers on Mt. Zion!

Let us go back to J.S. Bach for a moment. On the top of his compositions he wrote “Jesus help!” and on the bottom he wrote “The Glory of God Alone!”

Justin Rossow of “The Next Step Community” passes on an amusing story about what happened when he came to learn this about Bach. He writes:

I am such an idiot. I had just read something cool about how J. S. Bach started many of his compositions with the initials, “J.J.” Latin shorthand for “Jesus, help!” (I already knew he often finished a score with “S.D.G.” or “to God alone the glory,” and I was really excited about this new discovery.)

Almost immediately, I shared what I had learned with our team of Visual Faith artists just as we were beginning the When from Death I’m Free hymn journal for Holy Week project. I thought the idea of beginning our work with “Jesus, help!” (just like Bach did) was pretty awesome!

Except…

Except my Latin isn’t that good and I didn’t triple check before I sent the email because, well, it was an email after all, and no one would have ever been the wiser if my mistake had died a quiet death buried in the inbox of five illustrators…

I got the “J.J.” part right, and it does stand for, “Jesus, help!” The phrase should read in Latin, “Jesu Juva.” I told everyone I know that it stands for “Jesu Jura.”

Not a big mistake, you say? That’s fine. Except that I think “Jesu Jura” means something drastically different. I’m no Latin scholar (obviously) but I think “Jesu Jura” should come out to be something like, “Jesus, judge me!”

Oof.[6]

It is a funny story, but one with an important point. Revelation 14 actually depicts both “Jesu Juva” (“Jesus help!”) and “Jesu Jura” (“Jesus judge!”). It depicts the saving help of Jesus for His church and the judgment of Jesus against those who reject Him.

But make no mistake: for the church what we most need is the good news that when we cry out “Jesu Juva!” Jesus does help! And one of the ways that He helps is to give us beautiful reminders of that which our hearts most need: the truth of the Lamb’s victory! This is what He has done in Revelation 14. He has shown us the glory and victory of Jesus, and we are forever changed!

 

[1] Peterson, Andrew. Adorning the Dark. (p. 14). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

[2] Fee, Gordon D. Revelation. (New Covenant Commentary Series Book 3) (p. 175). Cascade Books, an imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers. Kindle Edition.

[3] Daniel Akin. Exalting Jesus in Revelation. (Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary) (p. 269). B&H Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

[4] Duvall, J. Scott. Revelation (Teach the Text Commentary Series) (p. 209). Baker Publishing Group. Kindle Edition.

[5] Jay E. Adams.  Godliness through Discipline.  (Phillipsburg, NJ:  P&R Publishing, 1972), p. 18-19.

[6] https://community.findmynextstep.org/2020/04/03/jesus-judge-me/