the book of Revelation chapter 14, Revelation chapter 14. And tonight we want to look at verse 1, Revelation 14 verse 1. And I looked, and lo, a lamb stood on the Mount Zion, and with him 144,000 having his father's name written in their foreheads." Let's pray. Our Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you for The Book of Revelation, we thank you for your plan for the future, and Lord, we thank you that your way is perfect. Just guide our thoughts now as we meditate on this portion of scripture, we pray in Jesus' name. Amen. We're at, as we've noted last time, and a few times before this, there are parentheses in the Book of Revelation, and we're at the the largest parentheses in between the sixth and seventh trumpet. And this parentheses, like the others, is background information that doesn't change the chronology of the judgments at all. And this is the most extensive from chapters 12, 13, and 14. All of this is background information that doesn't advance the narrative of the book whatsoever. And so we've seen in these chapters a description of the woman, Israel, and her man-child, the Messiah. And we saw warfare in heaven in chapter 12 also. And then in chapter 13, we saw the beast out of the sea, the Antichrist. And last time, we looked at the beast out of the land, the false prophet. And tonight, we want to look at what John saw in the very next chapter. the Lamb standing on Mount Zion. So notice in verse 1, it begins with the word, and, and I looked. And so here, John is describing what he looked and he saw something. And what John sees in this vision is the Lamb. The Lamb of God. In chapter 13, he saw something as well. In chapter 13, he saw the rise of the Antichrist. He saw the dragon give the Antichrist power over the earth. He saw the Antichrist rise militarily and so nobody could make war with him. And he saw also the Antichrist speaking blasphemy against God and against those in heaven. And he saw the Antichrist given power by the dragon to make war with the saints, and in particular, the saints of Israel, and to kill them, to kill all his opposition. And John saw in chapter 13 that the Antichrist gained worldwide worship. The whole world worshiped this man. John also saw the rise of the false prophet. And his role was to point men to the Antichrist, to encourage the whole world to worship him and to worship the image, to which he gave, he seemed to give life and speech. And so John saw the whole world, virtually the whole world, worship the Antichrist and receive the mock of the beast. A mark that spelled out eternal doom for all those who bowed to the Antichrist. And this mark identified all the earth dwellers, not as followers of Christ, but as followers of the Antichrist. And so in chapter 13, John saw a lot. And everything that John saw in chapter 13 was very bleak and gloomy and discouraging. Chapter 13 begins with, I stood on the sea and saw. Chapter 14 begins with, I looked and behold the lamb. And so here we see in chapter 14, John looks and he sees the Lamb of God. Not the dragon, not the Antichrist, not the false prophet, but he sees the Lamb of God. And what an amazing contrast between what John saw in the vision in chapter 13 and what John sees in his vision in chapter 14. On the one hand, he saw a bloodthirsty dragon and two vicious beasts, one of whom was like a lamb, but he wasn't a lamb, he spoke like the dragon. And on the other hand, we see in chapter 14, a meek and mild and gentle lamb. Our blessed hope. And so when all looked like gloom and doom in chapter 13, John opened, and I love our opening song today, Behold the Lamb of God. And that's exactly what John did. He looked and he beheld the Lamb of God standing on Mount Zion. And what a great counterbalance chapter 14 is with all the glory and joy and victory to all the gloom and doom that we saw in chapter 13. You know, as believers, there are times in our lives when we seem only to see the gloom and the doom. And sometimes that's because that's where we choose to place our focus. That's what we choose to look at. And here we see, in chapter 14, John had been looking at all the gloom and doom, and then he looks, and now he's beholding the Lamb. You know that's how we got saved? By looking to the Lamb of God. In John chapter 3, John writes about Moses lifting up a serpent on a pole. And all that looked upon that serpent, that was taken from the Old Testament, and all those Jews in the Old Testament who were bitten by deadly serpents, they had the seed of death in them, but if they would look, they would live. Not live and look, but if they would look, they would live. And that's the illustration that John gives us in his gospel in chapter 3 of salvation. Just a look of faith is all it takes to be saved. And as we saw this morning, faith that saves us also keeps us going throughout our Christian lives. And that's not only, that look to the Lamb of God is not only how we got saved, but it's also how God can save us from the doom and gloom that seems to be all around us in a cursed earth. And God's answer is, look to the Lamb of God. He's right there to be seen with the eyes of faith. And God wants us to be looking in faith and trusting in him day by day. And so what an amazing contrast between what John looked and saw in chapter 13 and what he saw in chapter 14. And you know we also have the ability, if we choose to do so, to look at all the discouraging things in the cursed earth all around us. And that will make us discouraged. What we focus our attention on will make us discouraged if it's discouraging things. But if we look to the glorious Lamb of God, we can be encouraged if that's our focus. And in this vision, John sees the Lamb of God. He looked and there he was. He looked and he beheld and saw the Lamb. Look in verse 14. in Revelation chapter 14 and in verse 14, "...and I looked," here he says the same thing again, "...and behold a white cloud, and upon the cloud one sat like unto the Son of Man, having on his head a golden crown in his hand, a sharp sickle." Again, John looks, he's looking for the lamb and he saw the lamb. And you know, as the Lamb of God, John is picturing Jesus Christ as the one who came to settle the sin issue between God and man. Ultimately, sin is the reason behind all the judgments in the book of Revelation. And sin is the reason for all the suffering and the pain and the sickness and the disease and the death in this life today. Sin is at the root of it all, and the Lamb of God is the Lord's cure. And he is mentioned several times in the book of Revelation as the Lamb that was slain. the Lamb that was slain to pay the penalty for our sin, and also to bring about reconciliation between an infinitely holy God and infinitely unholy creatures like us. And just a look to the Lamb makes all that difference. In Revelation chapter 5, well let's turn there, Revelation chapter 5 in verse 6, It says, and I beheld and lo in the midst of the throne and of the four beasts and in the midst of the elders stood a lamb as it had been slain. John gets a little glimpse of heaven and he sees the one we know as Jesus Christ as the lamb on the throne, a lamb as it had been slain. And then in the same chapter in Revelation 5 in verse 12, saying with a loud voice, worthy is the lamb that was slain. And this is in the midst of an angelic choir. And then we see again in Revelation 13, the Lord is described as the lamb slain from the foundation of the earth. So this lamb was slain to pay the price of human sin. to provide redemption for lost sinners like us, to bring reconciliation between God and man. And John, who in this vision in Revelation 14 and verse 1, this John the apostle said, he looked and behold, the Lamb. That same John, the Apostle, wrote about another John in the first chapter of the Apostle's Gospel. And in chapter one of the Gospel of John, the Apostle John writes about John the Baptist. And it says, the next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him and saith, Behold the Lamb of God. And so these were the words that introduce the Messiah King, Jesus Christ, to the nation of Israel. And John introduced the Messiah to the nation of Israel by saying, behold the Lamb. Take a good look at this person. Investigate this person. Keep your eyes upon him. He's the Messiah. And then John writes, And I saw the Spirit of God descending from heaven like a dove, and it abode on him. And so the Messiah came, and John the Baptist said, behold, look at him. And the Spirit, the heavens opened, and the Father spoke, and the Holy Spirit came and abode on the Lamb, the Lord Jesus. What a way to be introduced to his ministry. And then in John 12, in John 12 and verse 12, It says, and on the next day, much people that were come to the feast, when they heard that Jesus was coming to Jerusalem, took branches of palm trees, it's Palm Sunday, and went forth to meet him and cried, Hosanna, blessed is the King of Israel that cometh in the name of the Lord. And Jesus, when he had found a young ass, sat thereon, as it is written, fear not, daughter of Zion, don't be afraid. Behold, thy king cometh sitting on an ass's colt. Quoting scripture from the Old Testament. So not only when he was introduced at the beginning of his ministry, but when he offered himself as the Messiah King formally, In his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, he quoted that passage, Behold, thy king cometh unto thee. And they should have recognized him as their king. You know why? Because Isaiah described him perfectly. Isaiah tells us in Isaiah chapter 13, Behold, your God shall come, with vengeance, even God with a recompense, and he will come and save you. And here's how you note, here's how you can identify when the Messiah King comes. Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Now the Lord Jesus, before his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, had done exactly that throughout Israel. And so when he offered himself as the Messiah King, he came with credentials. And the children of Zion should have recognized him. Isaiah writes, O Zion, that bringest good tidings, get thee up unto the high mountain, O Jerusalem, and bring good tidings. Lift up thy voice with strength. Lift it up and be not afraid. Say unto the cities of Judah, behold your God. Behold, the Lord God will come with a strong hand, and his arms shall rule for him, and his reward shall be with him, and his work before him. And so throughout Israel's history, the prophets always said, be ready for the coming of the Messiah and behold the lamb. And Zechariah says in Zechariah chapter 9 and verse 9, rejoice greatly, O daughter of Zion. Shout, O daughter of Jerusalem. Behold, thy king cometh unto thee. He is just and having salvation, lowly and riding upon an ass, an occult, the foal of an ass. When Jesus presented himself to the nation of Israel and his triumphal entry into Jerusalem, they should have looked to that man. They should have looked to him as their Savior, as their Messiah King. They should have recognized him. He did what all the prophets predicted he would do as identifying marks, but they didn't recognize him. They didn't know who Jesus was. Because they weren't looking for a humble king coming to them riding upon a donkey. They were looking for a political leader. A king coming to them with a great military riding on a white horse that would rescue them from the Roman oppression. And what an awful mistake Israel made. And they will end up receiving another. They rejected their own Messiah. And John tells us in John chapter 5, I know you that you have not the love of God in you. I am come in my father's name and you receive me not. But if another come in his own name, meaning the Antichrist, him you will receive. So Jesus' heart was burdened when he came into Jerusalem. And even though they were shouting, Hosanna in the highest, glory be to God, it was just a few hours later that same crowd was chanting, let him be crucified. So Jesus officially offered himself to Israel as their Messiah King. And how quickly those superficial shouts of Hosanna turned to words of condemnation, let him be crucified. We have no king but Caesar. The nation refused to behold their king when he came. All the prophets, not all, but many of the prophets told them to behold God when he comes, behold the king when he comes, lowly and riding upon an ass, the one who will have healed the sick and the deaf and the lame. And Israel refused to behold him in that day. And to this very day, Israel is suffering the consequences. In 70 AD, Jerusalem was destroyed by the ancient Roman Empire. Thousands upon thousands of Jews were slaughtered, and the rest were scattered around the world, and Jerusalem was utterly destroyed. And Revelation 13 looks to Israel in the future, this woman, who will be persecuted by the Antichrist, this phony Messiah, whom Israel will receive in that day. And so with all that as a background, in Revelation chapter 14 in verse 1, John sees the same Lamb of God, only now he is not lowly upon a donkey, but rather he's seen standing victoriously on Mount Zion, that holy hill of God, and standing with him 144,000 of his evangelists that he sends out, his faithful witnesses during the tribulation period. Now, let's think about what his stand on Mount Zion means. Well, first of all, what is Mount Zion? It's a term that's used 150 times or more in the Old Testament. And originally it was a Jebusite fortress. And then it was conquered by David. And then for a while that city was called, the city there was called the City of David. It was a walled city. It was called Zion. It was called the City of David. But eventually the city grew beyond the walls and the entire city, it wasn't just that walled-in section that was called Zion, but it expanded to include the whole city. And then the whole elevated area in Jerusalem was called Zion. In Psalm 74, the psalmist says, remember thy congregation which thou hast purchased of old, the rod of thine inheritance which thou hast redeemed, this Mount Zion wherein thou hast dwelt. Mount Zion will be God's dwelling place, this elevated area in Jerusalem. And in Psalm 76, The psalmist says, in Salem, not New Hampshire, in Salem also is his tabernacle. And his dwelling place is in Zion. So God will live in Zion. And then in Psalm 78, David writes, that he chose the tribe of Judah, the Mount Zion, which he loved. And so here we see God loves this place. He loves this focal point on the earth, that walled city, the expanded city of Jerusalem, the expanded even a little further, Judah. This is all Zion. It's a place that God chose because he loved Zion. And then in Psalm 132, for the Lord hath chosen Zion. He hath desired it for his habitation. This is my rest forever. Here, God says, I will dwell for I have desired it. So what a very special place Zion is, Jerusalem is, that high holy hill where the Temple Mount is, Mount Zion is a very special place to God. He says he chose it, he desired it, he longed for it. That's where his rest is, that's where his name will be, that's where he said he will dwell because he desires to do so. This is a very special place for God. And this is where John sees Jesus standing in the future. Not only our future, but even future with respect to that point in the tribulation. Now, turn to the Old Testament to the book of Psalms in chapter 2. Psalm chapter 2. And let's read verses 1 through 6. Why do the heathen rage and the people imagine a vain thing? The kings of the earth set themselves and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against his anointed. That word means Christ. Christ means anointed one. Saying, let us break their bands asunder, cast away their cords from us, And as that's going on on earth, as the nations are raging and have the audacity to think that they can fight against the Lord, we see in verse 3, verse 4, he that sitteth in the heavens, on the other hand, shall laugh. The Lord shall have them in derision. Then shall he speak unto them in his wrath, and vex them in his sore displeasure." And here's what he'll say. As the nations are raging against the Lord and against his Messiah, Christ, God says, I have set my king in my holy hill of Zion. And that's exactly what John sees in Revelation 14. This is a messianic psalm. the nations raging upon the earth, the battle of Armageddon, the nations united as a united kingdom of the Antichrist. And to think that they could overthrow Jesus Christ at his second coming. God says it's laughable. He was laughing in heaven at this. He was laughing at their insanely foolish rebellion that was obviously destined to fail. nations thinking that they could overthrow God. I read the other day in my devotions a psalmist's description of people that think they can overthrow God, the opposition that God has from men. He said it was like melting wax before the fire. The wax doesn't stand a chance before the fire. And so despite the foolish counsel and the plans of the nations, and all their military might, and all they can gather together against the second coming of Christ, God says, I've set my king in my holy mountain. And that's the end of the story, as far as the nations are concerned. And so that's what we see in Revelation 13. The nations are raging against God under the leadership of the Antichrist. rebellion against God, worshiping the Antichrist and bowing before that image. And so in Revelation 13, all the things that seemed so fearful and terrifying were laughable to God. And so in spite of all the raging of the nations that take place on earth during the tribulation period, our sovereign God will do as he pleases. He sets his King, the Lord Jesus, in his holy mountain Zion just as he promised, just as he said he would in those psalms, those repeated psalms that we read. And so John sees the Lamb standing in victory on God's holy mountain right where God said he would place him. And think of the ease with which the Lord has victory. In Psalm 2 in verses 8 and 9, or verse 9, he says, Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron and shalt dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel. And just think of how lopsided that battle is between a rod of iron and a chintzy little piece of pottery. Who do you think is going to win that battle? And you know, You don't have to swing with all your might with a rod of iron to break a piece of pottery. One little pop and that's all it takes and that pottery is dashed to pieces. And that's the illustration that God gives of the destruction of the nations. It's nothing to the Lord. And we worry so often about all of our adversaries and all of the troubles that we surround our lives and it's nothing to the Lord, to just one little pop. And he dashes the nation to pieces. You know, eventually God is going to reign on Mount Zion, because that's exactly what Isaiah promised. In Isaiah 24 and verse 23, the prophet said, the moon shall be confounded and the sun ashamed during the tribulation period, when the Lord of hosts shall reign in Mount Zion and in Jerusalem before his ancients gloriously. So there's going to be all that turmoil on earth, and then the Lord is going to come and reign in Mount Zion exactly as God said. Micah said the same thing as Isaiah. Micah said, but in the last days it shall come to pass that the mountain, the high hill, Zion, the mountain of the house of the Lord, that mount of the temple, Temple Mount shall be established in the top of the mountains, and it shall be exalted above the hills, and people shall flow into it. And many nations shall come and say, come, let us go to the mountain of the Lord and to the house of the God of Jacob, and he will teach us his ways, and we shall walk in his paths. For the law shall go forth of Zion. That will be the center of government in the Messianic kingdom. The Lord Jesus Christ will rule from Jerusalem, just where God said, in that temple mount, in that millennial temple that will be built, and there he shall send forth his law for all the nations. And then David writes in Psalm 48 about this place. Beautiful, the situation. Mount Zion, beautiful. The joy of the whole earth is Mount Zion on the sides of the north in the city of the great king. And so this tells us that one day in the future, the whole earth will be rejoicing in the beauty and the glory of the city of God, Mount Zion. The whole earth isn't rejoicing in Israel today. And sadly, even in our own country. Joel writes, so shall ye know that I am the Lord your God dwelling in Zion, my holy mountain. And then Jerusalem shall be holy. The whole city will be set apart unto God. So back in Revelation 14, when John sees the Lamb standing on Mount Zion, he's looking ahead into the future with respect to the place in the kingdom, I mean, in the tribulation period. The second half of the tribulation period has begun, and he's still looking ahead into the future. And he sees the Lord Jesus standing with 144 faithful Jewish male witnesses. And we say that he's standing there victoriously because the 144,000 are still there. God sealed them. And now after the tribulation period is over, as Messiah returns to establish his kingdom, they're still there with him, the 144,000. And while Antichrist seemed to be victorious in chapter 13, the whole world was worshiping him. He had conquered every nation. They all submitted to him. They all submitted to his economic system. But he didn't kill every Jewish saint. And he didn't kill the 144,000. And at the end of the Battle of Armageddon, Christ was victorious. And the Antichrist did not establish his worldwide kingdom very long. The Lord Jesus came, and he came to establish his eternal kingdom. The first 1,000 years of which God will use to fulfill all the Old Testament promises that he made to Israel. So the Temple Mount is a hot-button issue in Jewish history, and it always has been. Many of us might remember June 1967 during the Six-Day War when the Israeli forces captured the old city of Jerusalem. They captured the old city from Jordan and they took over control of the Temple Mount. And Israel exploded in joy when that Temple Mount was taken by their people after all these centuries. Unbelievable. Dr. Wickham would call that a Category B miracle. God has a plan for Mount Zion. Remember, he loved it, he chose it, he desired it for his habitation, and there he will dwell forever. So now we want to tackle one more little question. It's not a big issue, but which Mount Zion is Jesus standing on? There are two Mount Zions mentioned in scripture. There's an earthly Mount Zion, and all the passages that we just looked at referred to the earthly Mount Zion, but turn to the book of Hebrews. The book of Hebrews in chapter 12 and verse 22. There's not only an earthly Mount Zion, but there's also a heavenly Mount Zion. And here the author of Hebrews says to his Hebrew Christian audience, he says, but ye as Hebrew Christians are come not to Mount Sinai, but you're come to Mount Zion unto the city of the living God, not the earthly Jerusalem, but the heavenly Jerusalem. And that's where there is, right now, an innumerable company of angels. The General Assembly and Church of the Firstborn will be there. The 24 elders represents that. And we see also God, the Judge of the Earth, and the spirits of just men made perfect. It's not Resurrection Day yet for the Old Testament saints, but their spirits will be in glory. And Jesus, the Mediator of the Covenant. So which mountain's eye on? is Jesus standing on. And in my research, it looks like it's divided about 50-50, and there were very good men on both sides of this, and it doesn't make a lot of difference theologically, but it's something interesting to think about. And I would say perhaps one half or so, one side, they have the view that this is the heavenly Mount Zion. And they arrive at that from the context, which is a good way to make a decision interpreting the Bible. And in verses 2 and 3, they mention that in conjunction with this lamb on Mount Zion, he hears voices in heaven singing, and there's the harps hopping, harpers hopping on their harps, and they sang a new song there. And it's before the throne, and there are the four beasts, and there are the elders, the 24 elders as well, and they're all singing this song of redemption. And so their view was this, that this must be the heavenly Zion because John is speaking in connection with this Zion and the 144,000 there. The picture is in heaven. It's before the throne of God. It's clearly that picture that we described, that we just read after this, clearly that is heaven. And we saw a glimpse of this way back in chapter 4 in our studies. And we saw the throne of God was in heaven, and the 24 elders were there, the same characters. And then in chapter 5, we see the same thing. The throne of God was there, and the four beasts, and the elders, and the lamb as it had been slain. So clearly, we do see those characters in heaven that we read about in verses 4 and following. around the throne. So it is a reasonable argument to believe that the Lamb was standing on the heavenly Mount Zion. But others, myself included, understand John's vision to refer not to the heavenly Mount Zion, but rather to the earthly Mount Zion. Christ is coming to establish his kingdom on earth. And when Christ comes, this millennial kingdom will be established. And Jerusalem will be its capital city. And all throughout chapter 13 of Revelation, the action has all been on earth. Satan was cast down from heaven to earth. And there on earth, the dragon is chasing the woman. And the Antichrist and the false prophet are all on the earth. And so if this is the heavenly Mount Zion, there's no indication in the context here that the scene has shifted from earth to heaven in verse 1. I think there is in verse 2, but not in verse 1. And notice the wording in verse 1. John says, And I looked, and lo, a lamb stood on Mount Zion. There's a conjunction here connecting this verse to the context. I looked, he's describing the way things were on earth, and he looked and he saw the Lamb. So he's looking at all these things on earth, the Antichrist, the false prophet, the temple, and all the rest, and he looked and he saw the Lamb on Mount Zion. But notice the words in verse 14 and verse 2. He says, and I heard a voice from heaven as the voice of many waters and of great thunder. And clearly, this sound that he hears is from heaven. He says it. In verse 2, I would say this is a shift in the scene from earth to heaven. He heard a voice from heaven. And this word from is a little Greek word that means out of. He hears a voice out of heaven. So here, put yourself in John's shoes and just assume for the sake of argument. that John is seeing the Lamb on the earth and the earthly Mount Zion. But if he was in heaven, would he say, and I heard a voice coming out from heaven? It seems like you would say that if you were not in heaven. If you were on the earth and you heard a voice coming out of heaven, then it seems like he's talking about two different places. So Christ returned from the earth to Mount Zion, and there he will establish his kingdom, and the law will go forth from there. And as that was taking place on earth, John heard voices from heaven, and he hears that choir. And so John, he's on earth all through chapter 13 and chapter 14 in verse 1, he looks and there's the Lamb. And then he hears a voice from heaven. So it sounds to me like John is on the earth, that he's seeing Jesus on the earth on the earthly Mount Zion, and it's the earthly Mount Zion that all the Old Testament passages refer to. They were always promising this earthly Mount Zion is where Messiah is going to establish his kingdom. This is the spot that God loved. And so I take this to be the earthly Mount Zion. as a fulfillment of all of those Old Testament promises that Messiah would come to that spot that God loved so much, and also because of the way he describes the voices that he hears coming out from heaven. And so there's a shift here. So you can understand this Mount Zion however you like, I'm convinced that this is the earthly Mount Zion. It's not a major point. It's not something you would form a denomination over. But either way, whether it's the earthly Mount Zion or it's the heavenly Mount Zion, the point that John is making is exactly the same. Both of those, the earthly Mount Zion and the heavenly Mount Zion, would be after that point in the tribulation period that John is describing. So he's looking ahead when he sees Jesus on Mount Zion, whether it's the earthly or the heavenly is irrelevant at this point. And what does he see? He sees Jesus standing victoriously after all the gloom and doom that took place on earth for the last seven years. The worst period of human history has finally come to an end. And how discouraging that must be to have seen so many thousands, maybe hundreds of thousands of believers that were slain and tortured and imprisoned and beheaded by the Antichrist and the UN armies, or the future version of that, And then for John to open his eyes and see the Lamb, he won. That's the picture here. God won. And when John sees the victorious Jesus standing on Mount Zion, he hears a voice, a joyful song from heaven. All heaven is rejoicing. They know what's taking place on earth during the tribulation period. And we've seen that on several occasions in the scriptures that Heaven responds. There's a response in heaven to things that take place on earth. When a saint gets, when a believer puts his, when an unbeliever puts his faith in Christ and becomes a saint, when somebody gets saved, there's joy in heaven. And here, when there's victory and the kingdom is about to be established, there is unbelievable joy in heaven. Multitudes of angels and saints singing together before the throne of God. What a joyful song that will be. And that's a good reminder to us that in the midst of all the Stuff that's on our plates. In the midst of all the discouraging events in life, a joyful song is coming. Victory. is final and forever. Let's pray. Father, we thank you for your word. We thank you for the truth of it. We thank you, Father, for the Lord Jesus Christ and the victory that he has accomplished for us on Calvary and which will be consummated in the coming kingdom as he fulfills all the promises that you made to your people Israel. Help us, Lord, to be encouraged to know that Joy comes in the morning, that there is a joyful song ahead, and we'll be with that throng in glory one day. And we thank you for this promise, in Jesus' name, amen.