Do Not be among the Vine of the Earth When Gathered! 

A study in Revelation 14:14-20.

By Nab B. 

September 26, 2022

Updated Dec 2025

The Meaning is Spiritual!

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“The flesh profiteth nothing: 

the words that I speak unto you, 

they are spirit, and are life.” 

(John 6:63)

“The things of the Spirit of God 

are spiritually discerned.” 

(1 Cor 2:13-14)

Verse By Verse Series©

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Revelation 14:14

“Then I looked, and behold, a white cloud, and on the cloud sat One like the Son of Man, having on His head a golden crown, and in His hand a sharp sickle.” NKJV

"I looked, a white cloud and on the cloud sat one like the Son of Man."

Every word is a symbol of a spiritual reality described here vividly. 

White represents righteousness as in the rest of Revelation; "white clothes," "white throne," and "white stone."

Clouds represent coming in power and glory far above the earthly realm. Jesus spoke of his coming with the clouds, not literal clouds, but coming in power and glory and in full bright light.

“They shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.” (Matthew 24:30)

“I saw in the night visions, and, behold, one like the Son of man came with the clouds of heaven.” (Dan 7:13)

"Having on his head a golden crown and a sharp sickle." 

The ‘golden crown’ is Christ's high authority. A sickle is used for harvesting, symbolically representing Christ's judgment! A sharp sickle indicates harvest is at hand.

“Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe. ” (Joel 3:13)

Revelation 14:15

“And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.”

"Another angel...crying...to him (Christ), "Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come...the harvest of the earth is ripe.'" 

The word 'end' should be rendered 'completion' or 'conclusion'. The harvest symbolizes the completion of the age in bringing the chosen (or the harvest), as noted below:

“The harvest is the end of the age, and the reapers are the angels (messengers)” (Matt 13:39)

“The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few: pray ye, therefore, the Lord of the harvest, that he would send forth labourers into his harvest.” (Luke 10:2)

“Behold, I say unto you, Lift up your eyes, and look on the fields; for they are white already to harvest.” (John 4:35)

Revelation 14:16

“So He who sat on the cloud thrust in His sickle on the earth, and the earth was reaped.”

"He who sat on the cloud thrust in his sickle and the earth was reaped."

While a final Day of Judgment is coming, Jesus is also judging the Church continually based on these verses below:

“For the time is come that judgment must begin at the house of God: and if it first begins at us, what shall the end be of them that obey not the gospel of God?” (1 Pet 4:17). KJV

“Watch ye therefore . . . that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man.” (Luk 21:36) KJV

Revelation 14:17

“Then another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.”

"Another angel came out of the temple with a sharp sickle."

The angel represents human messengers at Christ’s disposal. The sharp sickle isn't about destroying people, but rather cleansing and removing the marred effects of sin (that which offends and stumbles) in people. This is done through the blood of Christ.

“The Son of man shall send forth his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.” (Matt 13: 41-42)

Revelation 14:18

“And another angel came out from the altar, who had power over fire, and he cried with a loud cry to him who had the sharp sickle, saying, 'Thrust in your sharp sickle and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth, for her grapes are fully ripe.” NKJV

"Another angel came out of the altar, who had power over fire, and cried with a loud cry, saying Thrust in your sickle and gather the clusters."

Now the clusters of the vine of the earth are ready to be gathered. Who is the vine? And who are the clusters? The meaning is already told by Jesus, 

“I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing. If a man abide not in me, he is cast forth as a branch, and is withered; and men gather them, and cast them into the fire, and they are burned. If ye abide in me, and my words abide in you, ye shall ask what ye will, and it shall be done unto you.” (John 15:5-7) 

Jesus Christ is the True Vine. True believers are the good branches or the good clusters. False believers are the bad branches or the “CLUSTERS” to be gathered and judged.

Matthew 13:39-42 shows that the wheat is the “sons of the kingdom”, while the tares are the “sons of the evil one” or those “clusters” to be gathered for judgment.

Revelation 14:19

“So the angel thrust his sickle into the earth and gathered the vine of the earth, and threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.” NKJV

"The vine of the earth."

If Jesus is the true vine, who is the vine of the earth? They are a false vine with false clusters that need to be removed. It's the false church system pretending to be the "true vine". 

Note the similarities between Judah and the unfaithful church: 

“Yet I had planted thee a noble vine, wholly a right seed: how then art thou turned into the degenerate plant of a strange vine unto me?.” (Jer 2:21-22) 

God’s expectation of the vine turned sour: 

“And he fenced it...and planted it with the choicest vine...and he looked that it should bring forth grapes, and it brought forth wild grapes. ” (Isa 5:2) KJV

"Threw it into the great winepress of the wrath of God." 

God's judgment against the fallen church was shown earlier as drinking His cup of wrath. Here, it is shown by casting her into the great winepress of His wrath. 

Many interpret this to be God’s judgment on the world in general. While this will happen, the description fits the false church system that it worships. They commit spiritual fornication with Babylon the Great. 

This symbolic winepress of judgment was mentioned by Jesus: 

“The Son of man shall send his angels, and they shall gather out of his kingdom all things that offend, and them which do iniquity, and shall cast them into a furnace of fire: there shall be wailing and gnashing of teeth.”  (Matt 13:4-42) 

Revelation 14:20

“And the winepress was trampled outside the city, and blood came out of the winepress, up to the horses’ bridles, for one thousand six hundred furlongs.” NKJV

"And the winepress was trampled."

Judgment begins with trampling. Where did we read about trampling before? It appeared in Rev 11:1-2:

“But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread [trample] under foot forty and two months.” KJV

God is allowing the fallen church to be punished and judged by ravenous wolves who will devour her from within. God's elect, the virgin church, is protected from such a fate.

"Outside the city."

I believe this city is the kingdom of God. God’s judgment is executed far away from the spiritual peaceful condition found in the city of God. 

Keep in mind, there are only two cities: the city of God (for the saints), and the city of Babylon (for the unfaithful).

“The one who overcomes . . . I will write the name of My God and the name of the city of My God and My new name.” (Rev 3:12)

"And blood came out of the winepress." 

Is this some sort of bloody vengeance or something else? Keep in mind that it's an easy feat for God to destroy everyone and everything. But it is not an easy task to save everyone. Revelation deals with spiritual realities. And although it uses the language of blood, winepress, and judgment, it is pointing to something glorious. 

God's wrath is against sin in our old nature. To represent killing sin, the old nature must be killed. Hence, blood, which represents blood, is used to show that God has achieved His purpose.

Babylon the Great has produced so much deception and kept believers in bondage to sin and death despite the saving work God did through His Son. Babylon was heavily blood-guilty and “God has remembered her iniquities.” (Rev 18:5)

“In her was found the blood of prophets, saints, and all slain on the earth.” (v. 24)

"Up to the horses' bridles."

What is meant by horses’ bridles? Let me share some scriptures that reveal the meaning:

“We put bits in the horses' mouths, that they may obey us; and we turn about their whole body.” (James 3:3) 

“I will turn you around, put hooks in your jaws, and bring you out with all your army--your horses, your horsemen in full armour.” (Eze 38:4)

These warhorses were on a race course, muzzled to be steered on a specific course. God is steering this apostate church system by putting hooks and bridles in their figurative mouths, steering them toward His winepress! The point is that there's no escape from God's cleansing judgment upon all things that offend in His kingdom.

"One thousand six hundred furlongs (stadia)."

The word furlong is stadion in Greek. It’s a measure of length, and it implies a race course. The word denotes either a measurement (an ⅛ of a mile ) or a race course for a public game.

What is the verse saying? That, unlike believers who are in a race for eternal life, the unfaithful church is in a race colliding with God and Christ, who are destroying her impurities.

It’s not exactly clear what 1,600 furlongs represent. But we have some biblical clues. Here are a few ideas:

1. 1. 1. 1. Four is the number of completions (4 winds, 4 creatures, 4 corners, 4 judgments, etc.). 1,600 can be viewed as (4 x 4 x 100) squared and multiplied by 100. This method is similar to the 144,000 number, which is squared and multiplied by 1,000 (12 x 12 x 1000).

1. 1. 1. 2. The number 1,600 symbolizes the scope (4 corners of the earth) of God's wrathful judgment being confirmed, complete and just.

Because the false church system has caused tremendous spiritual death to many through her cup of fornication, God causes it to drink His cup of wrath in full measure by destroying it while saving and cleansing the many.

A Personal comment

Keep in mind, that although there are systems that deceive and keep us in spiritual bondage, there is also us, with our devils and demons, beasts and locusts, which we need to conquer and overcome by the blood of the Lamb. Christ came mainly to eradicate sin and death. And these reside within us not without. There's no sense talking about outside forces without looking at what lurks within us. The real battle is with our old natures. They are the beasts, the dragons, the galloping hosers and the locusts that need to be conquered!

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