Revelation 14:17; Another Angel Also Having a Sharp Sickle
Revelation 14:17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.
There are two angels in the vision of the one of the earth and its judgment. In v17, there is the temple angel with his “sharp sickle”. Corresponding with the description given of the Son of man in v14, this “angel of vengeance” signifies the association of angels with Christ in His judicial work. Thus,”another angel” came out of the altar.”
[Herbert Lockyer, Revelation – Drama of the Ages, Whitaker House, 2012, 230]
At first sight, this verse seems repetitious and superfluous. But on further reflection we notice an intricate design of the Apocalypse with respect to the last two angels of the six mentioned in this chapter.
• The fifth angel, who comes from the temple (v17), parallels the fourth angel, who comes from the same place (v15).
Revelation 14:17 And another angel came out of the temple which is in heaven, he also having a sharp sickle.
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.
• The fourth angel communicates to the “son of man” that the time of the harvest has come to put in the sickle (v15). The sixth angel (v18) instructs the fifth angel (v17) to take the sharp sickle and harvest the ripe grapes.
Revelation 14:18 And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
• The “son of man” harvests God’s elect, while the fifth angel harvests all those who throughout their lives opposed God, His Word, and His kingdom.
• The expression firstfruits (v4) refers to the harvest of God’s elect; separate from them is the harvest of reaping the grapes (the depraved) destined for the great winepress of God’s wrath (v. 19).
Revelation 14:4 These are they which were not defiled with women; for they are virgins. These are they which follow the Lamb whithersoever he goeth. These were redeemed from among men, beingthe firstfruits unto God and to the Lamb.
Revelation 14:19 And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast itinto the great winepress of the wrath of God.
The second sickle is used not for the harvesting of grain (God’s people) but for the grapes of wrath (God’s enemies). It is interesting that the Septuagint text of Joel 4:13 features the plural “sickles,” implying the sequence of two harvests. This Old Testament passage is the background of John’s design. This is obvious in Greek, for the writer of Revelation uses two different verbs for gathering grain (therizein, v15) and garnering grapes (trygan, v18). More, here threshing is a single act and is not followed by winnowing. Gathering the grapes, however, is followed by treading them out in the winepress (v. 20). Here is the difference between gathering God’s people for his glory and reaping his enemies for wrath.
Kistemaker, S. J., & Hendriksen, W. (1953–2001). Exposition of the Book of Revelation (Vol. 20, p. 418). Grand Rapids: Baker Book House.
The vision of the grain harvest is followed by the vision of the grape harvest, which does not speak of the bowl judgments but of the judgment that takes place at the battle of Armageddon. The vintage judgment is more dramatic because of the imagery of the winepress. Like the vision of the grain harvest, the grape harvest can be described in three points: the reaper, the ripeness, and the reaping.
The reaper in this vision is not the Son of Man, as in the grain harvest, but an angel, the fifth one mentioned in chapter 14. Like the fourth angel (v15), he came out of the temple which is in heaven. Like Christ in the previous vision, he also had a sharp sickle. Angels have played a prominent role in Revelation up to this point, summoning the four horsemen, sounding the seven trumpets, and defeating Satan and his demon hosts. Angels will also pour out the seven bowl judgments in chapter 16, announce the Battle of Armageddon (Revelation 19:17), and bind Satan (Revelation 20:1–3).
Revelation 19:17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God;
Revelation 20:1-3 And I saw an angel come down from heaven, having the key of the bottomless pit and a great chain in his hand. And he laid hold on the dragon, that old serpent, which is the Devil, and Satan, and bound him a thousand years, And cast him into the bottomless pit, and shut him up, and set a seal upon him, that he should deceive the nations no more, till the thousand years should be fulfilled: and after that he must be loosed a little season.
That an angel is pictured in this vision as the reaper, then, is not surprising. The Son of Man will be assisted by holy angels in His final judgment (cf. Matthew 13:39, 49; 2 Thessalonians 1:7).
Matthew 13:39 The enemy that sowed them is the devil; the harvest is the end of the world; and the reapers are the angels.
Matthew 13:49 So shall it be at the end of the world: the angels shall come forth, and sever the wicked from among the just,
2 Thessalonians 1:7 And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels,
MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2000). Revelation 12–22 (pp. 114–115). Chicago: Moody Press.