In seven verses of Revelation 14, a prophetic mystery is presented about a harvesting process in two phases at the end of the world. Far more than a poetic analogy of gathering the righteous like wheat into the barn or the wicked like overripe grapes bound straight for the winepress, this prophetic puzzle confirms the arrival of the blessed hope of God’s people amid troubled times when they need Him most. As it is with God’s revelation, while we can benefit from His words at any level, none could comprehend the detail and profound depth that they conceal until the time was right.

Who is it who takes a close look at the grapes of the earth, and determines that they are fit for the winepress of divine wrath? Who is it who stands larger than the earth to thrust in his giant sickle to cut them and cast them in? What is the important issue on the earth that readied God’s people for the test of this hour? Who is the angel who observed this divine harvest and determined that the virgin’s seed had borne fruit that was after the kind of Jesus, and would yield an abundant harvest?

These questions and more will be answered with divine clarity as the heavenly imagery reveals the mystery of the apocalyptic harvest.