Revelation 14:1-8 (The Lamb, 144,000 & Babylon the Great)

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Introduction

14 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.

The Messages of the Three Angels

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.”

As we pickup in chapter 14, it’s important that we continue to keep the broader storyline of John’s Apocalypse in view. Chapter 14, in one sense, is a direct response to the events of chapter 13. And what I mean is that when we see Jesus standing with his saints on Mount Zion, he’s doing so in response to the events of chapter 13.
If you recall, the characters and circumstances of chapter 13 are quite terrifying. While the dragon (who is the devil) was thrown down out of heaven in chapter 12, we were also told that he was thrown down upon the earth, and John writes, “woe to you, O earth and sea, for the devil has come down to you in great wrath, because he knows his time is short!” That the dragon had become furious and went off to make war on the saints, on those who keep the commandments of God and hold to the testimony of Jesus. So, chapter 12 ends with the dragon standing on the sand of the sea, poised to attack the church.
Then in chapter 13 John sees two beasts rising out of the sea and out of the land. The first beast (which is Rome) is described like the dragon in chapter 12, with seven heads and ten horns, and is given power and authority by the the dragon. And the second beast (which is Jerusalem and her religious system), while it has two horns like a lamb, it speaks like a dragon, and it exercises all the authority of the first beast in it’s presence. In other words, it’s power and authority are derived from the first beast, and they work together to persecute the church, they work together to carry out the dragon’s war against the saints.
The dragon and these beasts are a grave threat to the church’s existence in the first century, and they appear invincible. How could a fledgling church survive this all-out attack against her? Well, the answer is found in chapter 14, when John writes,

14 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.

“Behold, on Mount Zion stood the Lamb!” The Lamb stands in opposition to the dragon and his two beasts, he stands ready for action, and he stands ready to protect his church. So, while the dragon stood on the sand of the sea accompanied by two beasts, 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.
And this imagery immediately reminds us of the words in Psalm 2,
“Why do the nations rage and the peoples plot in vain? The kings of the earth set themselves, and the rulers take counsel together, against the LORD and against his Anointed, saying, “Let us burst their bonds apart and cast away their cords from us.” He who sits in the heavens laughs; the Lord holds them in derision. Then he will speak to them in his wrath, and terrify them in his fury, saying, “As for me, I have set my King on Zion, my holy hill.” I will tell of the decree: The LORD said to me, “You are my Son; today I have begotten you. Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel.” Now therefore, O kings, be wise; be warned, O rulers of the earth. Serve the LORD with fear, and rejoice with trembling. Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him.”
Chapters 12-14 are what you might call an intermission between the trumpet judgments and the bowl judgments, these chapters are meant to summarize the events leading up to Christ first coming and the consequences associated with it in the first century, particularly as the devil is thrown out of heaven and down to the earth, making war on the saints, but is ultimately defeated by the Lamb and his saints at the fall of Jerusalem in AD 70 and Nero’s death in AD 68. That the ruler of this world would be cast out and bound from deceiving the nations later in chapter 20. Therefore, chapters 12-14 are meant to give the church hope, and to encourage the church to endure, to be a reminder, despite their earthly circumstances, that God had set his King on Zion, and blessed are all who take refuge in him.
And that hope still remains for us today, not as though Jesus were literally standing on Mount Zion in Jerusalem, but as the writer of Hebrews puts it,

22 But you have come to Mount Zion and to the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and to innumerable angels in festal gathering, 23 and to the assembly of the firstborn who are enrolled in heaven, and to God, the judge of all, and to the spirits of the righteous made perfect, 24 and to Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and to the sprinkled blood that speaks a better word than the blood of Abel.

Just like the 144,000 we are sealed, and written on our foreheads is the Lamb’s name, we’re bought and paid for, holy unto the Lord like Aaron, a royal priesthood, and we stand with Christ, sharing in his victory over sin, death, and the dragon. This imagery in chapter 14 is meant to be a special encouragement to the early church, and an encouragement to us today.
In chapter 14 we will also see a repeated contrast between those who serve Christ and those who serve the beast. The 144,000 are described here as virgins, or as those who have not defiled themselves with women, and that they follow the lamb wherever he goes. Whereas, those who bear the mark of the beast, whether on their foreheads or on their hands, are those who partake of sexual immorality, and serve the beast. And we’re meant to ask ourselves, “Whom do we serve?” “To whom is our allegiance?” “Who do we follow?”
This was the driving purpose of the 7 letters to the 7 churches in chapters 2-3, to examine their works. This is why Jesus is described as being in the “midst of the lampstands”. He exposes their compromise and presses them to repent, for those who have an ear to hear what the Spirit says to the churches, that they might overcome the dragon, that they might conquer him by their faithfulness to Christ. In order that they might eat of the tree of life and not be hurt by the second death.
The conflict between Christ and the dragon is essentially a war of worship. Who will you worship? Who will you serve? Will you worship the dragon and his beast? Or will you worship Christ? To whom will you render service? Who’s mark will you bear on your forehead and on your hands? This is the tension we’re intended to feel in chapters 13 and 14 at this showdown between Christ and the dragon.

144,000

With that, let’s read again, starting in verse 1,

14 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.

We’ve seen much of this imagery before. We saw the 144,000 back in chapter 7 right before the judgment against Jerusalem began. Four angels standing at the four corners of the earth, holding back the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow on the earth or sea or against any tree. Told not to harm the earth or the sea or the trees until they had sealed the servants of God on their foreheads.

Firstfruits

These are what John calls, there in verse 4, the “firstfruits for God and the Lamb.” The idea of firstfruits typically refers to a sacrifice, the offering of the first harvest of the land to the Lord. Therefore, John’s describing the first converts to faith in Christ in the land of Judea. They are the Judean Christians who were commanded by Christ to get out of Jerusalem when they saw it surrounded by armies, so that they wouldn’t be destroyed along with city. They’re also the firstfruits of the innumerable multitude that will ultimately be a result of the Gospel. In one sense, 144,000 points to those in the first century who were firstfruits, but in another sense they represent all of the redeemed, like two sides of one coin.

Holy unto the Lord

We’ve also seen this imagery of a name being written on their forehead. John said in chapter 7 that they were sealed on their foreheads, and then here he says that on their foreheads was written the Lamb’s name and the name of his Father. Like Moses’ brother Aaron, who was a priest, wore on his forehead a gold plate, and written on it was, ‘Holy to the Lord’. Those who are standing with the Lamb on Mount Zion are holy to the Lord, they’re his, and their allegiance is to him.

Following the Lamb wherever he goes

In fact, John writes there in verse 4 that they “follow the Lamb wherever he goes.” They’re the Lamb’s disciples, they follow him. Which ought to describe us as well, disciples, following the Lamb wherever he goes. Therefore, we should ask ourselves, often, “Do we following the Lamb wherever he goes?” And I don’t mean whether you think he wanted you to move to a certain place, or to take a certain job, or to go to a certain school. I mean do you obey everything that he has commanded you?
In Jesus’ great commission in Matthew 28, he told his disciples,

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.

The great commission is more than sharing the Gospel with others, it certainly beings there, but we’re commissioned to make disciples, and that includes teaching them to observe all that Christ has commanded, to follow the Lamb wherever he goes, so are you searching the scriptures, and desiring to know everything that Christ has commanded you, in order to obey him? Do you know the scriptures well enough to follow the Lamb wherever her goes? Because, that should be our aim, to follow the Lamb wherever he goes.

Spiritual fidelity

This imagery of the Lamb’s name being written on their forehead also indicates that the 144,000 are set apart unto to God, or as the plate on Aaron’s forehead read, ‘Holy unto the Lord’. This is why John also describes them as those who have not defiled themselves with women, or as virgins.
Now, John isn’t indicating that these are 144,000 men who have never had sex with women (even though some commentators do make that assertion). No, the imagery here is meant to describe their spiritual fidelity, or their spiritual faithfulness, that they have never engaged in spiritual fornication . That they have never worshiped another. That they have been faithful to Christ.
The Apostle Paul uses similar language in 2 Corinthians 11:2 while describing the church there,

2 For I feel a divine jealousy for you, since I betrothed you to one husband, to present you as a pure virgin to Christ.

Our relationship to Christ is frequently described as a marriage covenant, that we are the bride of Christ. In fact, when we get to chapters 19 and 21 we’ll see this type of analogy used several times when John describes the marriage supper of the lamb and the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven prepared as a bride adorned for her husband.
Those who are Christ’s have only one allegiance, just has a husband and a wife are bound to one another by the marriage covenant that forsakes all others. If a husband or a wife were to engage in fornication outside of the marriage covenant they would be described as unfaithful, or an adulterer. Therefore, what John is describing here is that these 144,000 have been faithful to Christ. That they have not served the beast or the dragon. That they stand in contrast to Babylon the great (who is Jerusalem) and those who worship the beast (who is Rome). Their allegiance is to Christ, not to Caesar.

New song

And John says that they sing a new song before the throne and before the four living creatures and before the elders, and that no one could learn that song except the 144,000 who had been redeemed from the earth. In other words, it’s a song that belongs to the church. It’s a song born out of experience, a song of the redeemed, a song sung by those who have been born from above. It’s probably the new song that was described earlier in chapter 5 when all of heaven rejoiced when the Lamb was found worthy to open the scroll, and they sang,
Revelation 5:9–10 (ESV)
“Worthy are you to take the scroll
and to open its seals,
for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God
from every tribe and language and people and nation,
and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God,
and they shall reign on the earth.”

“Worthy is the Lamb who was slain,

to receive power and wealth and wisdom and might

and honor and glory and blessing!”

“To him who sits on the throne and to the Lamb

be blessing and honor and glory and might forever and ever!”

Characterized by truth

And lastly, John says that in their mouth no lie was found, for they are blameless. The idea here is that while the dragon and his followers are characterized by lies and deception, Christ and his followers are characterized by truth.
This is why I’ve stressed to my children repeatedly over the years the importance of the truth, that when we lie we behave like the dragon, who is the father of lies. In fact, back in chapter 13 we’re told that the first beast uttered blasphemies against God, blaspheming his name and those who dwell in heaven, and that the second beast looked like a lamb, but spoke like a dragon. These beasts were marked by lies and deception, and to blaspheme God is to lie about him. It’s a flagrant violation of the 3rd commandment, to no take the Lord’s name in vain.
And you probably remember during Jesus’ ministry when the Pharisees blasphemed the Holy Spirit, when they lied about him by ascribing his miracles to Satan, and if you recall Jesus didn’t take too kindly to it, so He told them that if they blasphemed the Holy Spirit that they would not be forgiven.
Now, John isn’t saying that the 144,000 don’t sin, or have never told a lie, but that those who follow the Lamb are those who are marked by truthfulness, that they are those who do not make it a practice to bear false witness, but to tell the truth, therefore so should we.

Three angels

Then John describes three angels who are flying overhead, who make three pronouncements. The first angel is portrayed as carrying with him the eternal gospel to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth, the second angel is described as saying, “Fallen, fallen is Babylon the great,” and the third says with a loud voice, “If anyone worships the beast and its image and receives the mark on his forehead or his hand, he will also drink the wine of God’s wrath.”
The point of these angels is that God’s wrath against Jerusalem has come to a climax, that the Gospel has been proclaimed throughout the whole world, that the end has come, and Jerusalem and anyone else who worships the beast and receives his mark will drink the wine of God’s wrath. This isn’t the end of the physical world, but the destruction of Jerusalem and those who have served the beast.

Gospel proclaimed, then the end

Let’s pickup there in verse 6,

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.”

If you were here during our study in Matthew 24, you might recall what Jesus told his disciples to expect leading up to the Temple’s destruction when he said,

14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

In other words, one of the signs that Jerusalem and the Temple’s destruction was near was that the Gospel had been proclaimed throughout the whole world. Now, that might sound strange to our ears because the scope of “the whole world” by our reckoning is much larger than it was in their day. In their day the scope of “the whole world” was largely the Roman Empire, which dominated the entire known world by their reckoning. Therefore, in the years leading up to Rome’s attack on Jerusalem the Apostle Paul described the impact of the Gospel in Romans 1:8 as having been “proclaimed in all the world,” and then again in Colossians 1 that “the gospel … has … come to the whole world,” and “has been proclaimed in all creation under heaven.”
Therefore, the first angel in John’s Apocalypse is proclaiming that the hour of God’s judgment has come as a result of the eternal gospel being proclaimed to every nation and tribe and language and people. That the end had come, therefore repent, fear God, give him glory, and worship him, lest you be swept away with the wicked.

Fallen is Babylon the great

Then we pickup in verse 8,

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.”

Now, this is the first time Babylon is mentioned in John’s Apocalypse, and she’ll be referred to again in chapters 16-19, after the 7 bowl judgments in chapter 15. Like the second beast of Revelation, the beast that rises out of the land, not all preterits agree on her identity. One group typically identifies her with Rome while another identifies her with Jerusalem. The imagery is complex and can be difficult to follow, but as I mentioned before in chapter 13 I believe Jerusalem is portrayed in three different ways in John’s Apocalypse, first as a beast that rises out of the land, second as a false prophet, and finally as Babylon the great beginning here in chapter 14.
And the reason John uses multiple images to portray Jerusalem and her religious system is to illustrate her different qualities. In one sense she’s a beast, she’s dangerous and formidable, in another sense she’s a religious figure, a false prophet, she claims to be a true prophet, but really she’s a wolf in sheep’s clothing, and in yet another sense she’s a harlot like the pagan empire of Babylon, that she has commited spiritual fornication with Rome, and is unfaithful to God. And so I believe it’s John’s intention for these images to give us a complete understanding of just how far Jerusalem had fallen.

Babylon = Jerusalem

And it’s at this point that I think it would be helpful to give you the primary reasons I believe Babylon the great is referring here to Jerusalem. The first reason, is that thus far the main object of God’s wrath has been Jerusalem, and I don’t see any clear indication that this has changed.

That great city

The second reason, and possibly the most convincing, is that Babylon, later, at several points, is described as “the great city”. John seems to assume that his readers will know what he’s referring to when he describes Babylon as “the great city.” In fact, when John uses the phrase “the great city” for the first time chapter 11, he says in verse 8 that “the great city which is symbolically called Sodom and Egypt,” is “where their Lord was crucified.” Therefore, if “the great city” is a reference to where Jesus was crucified then we know John is referring to Jerusalem. And we also see in chapter 11 that John is already referring to Jerusalem, symbolically, as Sodom and Egypt. The idea here is that Jerusalem has become like the pagan nations around her, that the same cities and nations that were obviously enemies of God and deserving of judgment had become descriptive of Jerusalem herself. That Jerusalem had become like Sodom, Egypt, and Babylon.

Riding the beast

The third reason, is that later in chapter 17 Babylon the great is depicted as riding on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, a beast with seven heads and ten horns, which directly parallels the description in chapter 13 of the beast who rose out of the sea (which is Rome). This beast in chapter 13 is even described as having a mouth that utters haughty and blasphemous words, just like the scarlet beast that Babylon the great is riding in chapter 17. This imagery of her riding on the beast describes well the adulterous relationship Jerusalem had with Rome, that she was allied with the beast, but eventually in chapter 17 we’re told that the beast would turn on her, which illustrates well how Rome eventually turned on Jerusalem and destroyed her in the Jewish-Roman War.

Haunt for demons

The fourth reason is that in chapter 18, verse 2 we read that Babylon the great would “become a dwelling place for demons, a haunt for every unclean spirit,” which coincides with what Jesus warned the Pharisees of in Matthew 12 when he said that if the demons he cast out returned to find the house empty, swept, and put in order, that those unclean spirits would bring with them seven other spirits more evil than themselves and enter and dwell there, and that the last state of that person would be worse than the first, and so also would it be with their evil generation.” In other words, Jesus went around casting out demons in Israel, but unless they repented, those unclean spirits would return sevenfold. Jesus told the Pharisees that unless they repented Jerusalem would become a dwelling place for demons, and a haunt for every unclean spirit.

Jerusalem contrasted heavenly Jerusalem

The fifth reason is that the most fitting contrast to the bride of Christ is Jerusalem, not Rome. Only one nation was described as being betrothed to God, and that was Israel, and not any of the other nations around them. Moses wrote in Deuteronomy 7:6,
Deuteronomy 7:6 ESV
“For you are a people holy to the Lord your God. The Lord your God has chosen you to be a people for his treasured possession, out of all the peoples who are on the face of the earth.
And then listen to how the prophet Amos described Israel in Amos 3:2,
Amos 3:2 ESV
“You only have I known of all the families of the earth; therefore I will punish you for all your iniquities.
Israel was the only nation that had made a covenant with God, and marriage was used as an analogy of that covenant between God and Israel. Therefore, it’s fitting that the church, the new Jerusalem coming down out of heaven, described as a virgin, or a faithful bride, is contrasted with the earthly Jerusalem who is described as sexually immoral, or unfaithful to God.
There was a covenantal expectation that Jerusalem should be faithful, whereas there was no such expectation for a pagan nation like Rome. In other words, Rome’s paganism is of no surprise, but Jerusalem’s unfaithfulness is. While Rome makes an appearance in the Book of Revelation, it always plays second fiddle to Jerusalem, because it’s Jerusalem’s unfaithfulness that’s being judged, not Rome’s. And it’s fitting that Jerusalem’s removal gives way to the new Jerusalem that comes down out of heaven later in chapter 21.

Great prostitute

And lastly, the sixth reason that I believe Babylon the great is a reference to Jerusalem is because Jerusalem is repeatedly described as a harlot or a prostitute in the OT when she commits fornication with other nations. The reason this is significant, is because, later, in chapters 17 and 19 Babylon the great is repeatedly referred to as the great prostitute or the mother of prostitutes.
In the OT prostitution was meant to depict Israel’s unfaithfulness to God, and Israel’s harlotry included not just idolatrous worship practices, but her failure to trust God in the face of political pressure, relying upon alliances with the nations around her like Egypt and Assyria instead of the Lord, just as Jerusalem did with Rome, declaring to Pontius Pilate, “we have not king but Caesar,” and putting Christ to death.
Now, I’m sure I could come up with additional reasons, but I believe these are some of the most compelling.

Conclusion

Now, obviously we’re running out of time, so we’ll have to pickup with the third angel in our next time, but I want to leave you with a few takeaways. 1) Don’t fear the dragon or his beasts, fear God, for Christ has already won; remember that God has set his king on Zion, and blessed are those who take refuge in him; now this is easier said than done, governments, corporations, and religious institutions can still put enormous pressure upon us to compromise, and the consequences at times could be severe, but we must always remember that we overcome the enemy when we remain faithful to Christ, we don’t overcome the enemy by outsmarting him or being clever, we trample him underfoot when we remain faithful. 2) Serve Christ, not the dragon; be a disciple of Christ, not the world, follow the Lamb wherever he goes, and make disciples wherever you go.

Prayer

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