Revelation 14:15; The Time Is Come for Thee to Reap (2)

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, distinct from the others already mentioned, comes out of the temple and calls for immediate action on the part of the Reaper. This angel does not command the Son of man but is only a messenger announcing the will of God the Father to the Son. All along, Christ had expected such a message, and now, He bears it.

Hebrews 10:12-13 But this man, after he had offered one sacrifice for sins for ever, sat down on the right hand of God; From henceforth expecting till his enemies be made his footstool. 

Psalm 2:7-9 I will declare the decree: the LORD hath said unto me, Thou art my Son; this day have I begotten thee. Ask of me, and I shall give thee the heathen for thine inheritance, and the uttermost parts of the earth for thy possession. Thou shalt break them with a rod of iron; thou shalt dash them in pieces like a potter’s vessel. 

God is roused to action, and the angel comes of the temple; the Sower of the judgment is about to overtake the earth. The temple and the throne, used often in Revelation, represent the presence and authority of God.

The Son of man promptly, since “the harvest of the earth is ripe” or “overripe,” or even “dry.” William Newell tells us, “The Greek word used here is the same as is used of the fig tree in Mark 11:20; in Luke 23:31, the adjective form is used: “If they do these things in a green tree, what shall be done in the dry?” meaning “the dreadful state of Israel.”

This ominous declaration takes us back to the Old Testament prophets, who described harvest time for overripe workers of iniquity at the end-time period of Gentile domination.

Joel 3:13 Put ye in the sickle, for the harvest is ripe: come, get you down; for the press is full, the fats overflow; for their wickedness is great.

This can mean only that the ripe are not the saved saints, ripe for glory; they are the wicked, who are overripe for judgment. 

[Herbert Lockyer, Revelation – Drama of the Ages, Whitaker House, 2012, 228-229]

When John writes the term another, he is not implying that the “son of man” is angelic. In the Apocalypse John nowhere states that Jesus is an angel. In fact, the writer of Hebrews clearly shows that the Son has inherited a name that is far superior to that of angels (Hebrews 1:4).

Hebrews 1:4 Being made so much better than the angels, as he hath by inheritance obtained a more excellent name than they. 

The expression, therefore, should be seen in the sequence of the angels mentioned earlier in verses 6, 8, and 9; this angel is the fourth one, with two more to come.

Revelation 14:6 And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, 

Revelation 14:8 And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication. 

Revelation 14:9 And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive hismark in his forehead, or in his hand, 

The angel comes forth out of the temple, from the very presence of God. From the throne room (Revelation 7:15), the angel is sent forth to shout in a loud voice so that everyone far and near can hear him tell the “son of man” to harvest the ripe grain.

Revelation 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 

This is the symbolic wheat harvest that is harvested at the right time when the stalks and the kernels are dry.

 Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953–2001). Exposition of the Book of Revelation (Vol. 20, p. 417). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.