Revelation 14:18
And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
Revelation 14:18 belongs to the closing harvest scene that follows the threefold message, when the Son of man is seen coming in glory on a white cloud with a sharp sickle to reap the earth. Within that scene it forms the vintage that comes after the reaping of the earth, in which another angel comes out from the altar having authority over fire and cries loudly to the one with the sharp sickle to thrust it in and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth because her grapes are fully ripe. The fully ripe grapes are the wicked ready for judgment, showing that apostasy and the union of the world with the church have reached their full measure. Their gathering casts the vine of the earth into the great winepress of the wrath of God in terrible judicial destruction, while God's commandment-keeping people with the seal of the living God are a separate, preserved company. The chapter is heaven's message for the last days, the everlasting gospel with the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus, to be understood in all its bearings and proclaimed again everywhere with distinctness and a loud voice as Christ's coming draws near.
Harvest Vision Setting
The verse belongs to the closing harvest scene that follows the proclamation of the threefold message and the warning of the third angel. After that final proclamation the Son of man is seen coming in glory on a white cloud with a sharp sickle to reap the harvest of the earth. That coming follows the warning against worship of the beast and its mark, the revealing of God's patient commandment-keeping people who keep the faith of Jesus, and the blessing pronounced on those who die in the Lord. The chapter thus presents the everlasting gospel with the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus as the truths distinguishing Christ's church before His appearing, and it is present truth to be unitedly proclaimed and meditated upon as His coming draws near, calling for immediate cooperation with God and preparation without delay.
Within that vision the verse forms the vintage part that comes after the reaping of the earth. It presents in contrast the appointed-time harvest of the wicked as distinct from the harvest of the earth described just before it. That vintage leads directly to gathering the vine of the earth and casting it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
Another angel comes out from the altar having authority over fire. He cries with a loud cry to the one with the sharp sickle to thrust in the sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth because her grapes are fully ripe. That gathering casts the vine into the winepress of God's wrath, portraying terrible judicial destruction when God's wrath breaks upon the world.
The angels in the chapter represent a series of five distinct messages given before the advent. The last two angel messages are messages of prayer that will be better understood when they are fulfilled.
Ripe Grapes Judgment
The fully ripe grapes are the wicked ready for judgment, showing that the earth's wickedness has reached its full measure. An angel comes out from the altar having authority over fire and orders the bearer of the sharp sickle to gather the vine of the earth because its grapes are fully ripe. That gathering casts the vine into the great winepress of the wrath of God for judicial destruction.
That ripeness is the culmination of a progressive fall into apostasy and the union of the world with the church, a final condition reached after that fall whose fulfillment was still future. It portrays terrible destruction when God's wrath breaks upon the world, a world filled with violence and crime, robbery of God and man, selfish greed and avarice, sensuality and demon-worship, standing on the brink of perdition with in it the elements that destroyed Sodom. It marks the point when His anger is no longer appeased and sinners are destroyed from the earth. While the wicked vine is thus gathered for wrath, God's commandment-keeping people who have the seal of the living God upon their foreheads are seen as a separate, preserved company.
The verse belongs to the prophecies of Revelation 12 to 18, which are fulfilling and being fulfilled as the last message of warning that all are to hear.
Final Warning Proclamation
Revelation 14 presents heaven's message for the last days, the everlasting gospel with the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus that distinguish Christ's church before His appearing, and after their final proclamation the Son of man comes in glory on the white cloud to reap the earth. That message is connected with Christ's ministration in the heavenly sanctuary and is among the foundational truths that God's commandment-keeping people are to preserve and hold firmly. The united first, second, and third angels' messages, revealed from the middle of the chapter to its end, form part of the whole gospel to be proclaimed throughout the world. The first and second were proclaimed in years past and the third is now being given to the fallen churches, including the other two in itself and making prominent the Sabbath of the fourth commandment as a solemn warning entrusted to watchmen and light-bearers to warn the world and save souls.
Those messages were given as light after the 1844 disappointment together with the sanctuary question and the Sabbath truth. They were carried as present truth from city to city and town to town in the East to shine on the pathway of scattered believers concerning the near advent, with some receiving gladly and others turning from the light and losing hold on God and His truth. They form a special movement whose relation to past and future is connected with Christ's closing work in heaven and His people's work on earth, guarding from deception and confirming faith in what was accomplished in the past. That same prophecy underlies the prediction that those apart from the little flock will unite to exalt Sunday and enforce it by stringent laws.
The angels represent people who accept the light and go forth as God's agents to sound the warning throughout the length and breadth of the earth. As ancient Israel was called, the church in this day is called to stand as a light in the earth, separated by the first, second, and third angels from the churches and from the world into sacred nearness to God. It is made the depositary of His law with the great truths of prophecy for this time committed as a sacred trust to be communicated to the world. To every soul accepting Jesus the cross declares the worth of the soul and commands worldwide preaching of the gospel to every creature, and the love shown in His sacrifice for redemption actuates all followers, so that nothing may hinder this all-important work for time, far-reaching as eternity.
The chapter is of deep interest, to be understood in all its bearings and proclaimed again with distinctness and a loud voice everywhere. During the third angel's message the earth will be illuminated by a powerful Spirit-blessed proclamation of the gospel and the knowledge of salvation. The harvest vision to which the verse belongs follows the third angel's warning against worship of the beast and its mark, the revelation of God's patient commandment-keeping people who keep the faith of Jesus, and the blessing on those who die in the Lord, moving from the reaping of the earth by the One like the Son of man on the white cloud with the sharp sickle to the gathering of the clusters of the vine of the earth when fully ripe for judgment. It is present truth to be unitedly proclaimed and meditated upon as Christ's coming draws near, calling for immediate cooperation with God, earnest preparation of the world for the end, and preparation without delay.
Those who hear are to show genuine faith and spirituality, come out from worldly practices, and refuse to assimilate with the world. The special warning messages point out the right way and have called God's people out from the world, and they are not secondary to medical missionary work but call for an experience different from the unbelief and worldliness of the Jewish nation. The third angel's message is now to be proclaimed not only in lands far off but in neglected places close by where multitudes dwell unwarned and unsaved, with work in the cities of special importance. That work is to be done by carefully selected workers laboring two and two in harmony with the counsel of experienced leaders and under the direction and commission of Jesus Christ, as part of the last warning of the prophecies of Revelation 12 to 18 that are being fulfilled and that all are to hear.