At Probations End Graves Cease Revelation Chapter 14 and 15

At Probation’s End, Graves Cease

Revelation 14 And 15

Rev. 14:1 “And I looked, and lo, a Lamb stood on the mount Sion, and with him an hundred
forty and four thousand, having his Father’s name written in their foreheads.” The “Lamb”
denotes Christ, signifying the position He occupies before the close of probation, while yet
interceding for His people; therefore, the specific number of saints stand with Him on earth while
He is yet in the Most Holy place. Mount Zion in old Jerusalem was an ancient spot of that city,
and the place of the royal residence of David and his successors. Therefore, from that viewpoint
we must present the meaning of the “Lamb” that stood on the mount Zion. We are told by the
following Scriptures the Lord had made a promise that the house of David (Mount Zion) was a
light to him and to his sons forever. “Howbeit the Lord would not destroy the house of David,
because of the covenant that he had made with David, and as he promised to give a light to him
and to his sons forever.” 2 Chron. 21:7. The promise was not to Mount Zion (house of David)
in ancient Jerusalem, for the existence of the Jewish nation was conditional.

“Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made. He saith not, And to seeds, as of many;
but as of one, And to thy seed, which is Christ” — “the son of David.” (Gal. 3:16). Therefore,
mount Zion, as in Revelation 14:1, is the eminent royal spot in the heavenly Jerusalem, as David
himself says; “For there are set thrones of judgment, the thrones of the house of David.” Psa.
122:5. David looked forward to the time when the judgment in heaven would be set up: “In that
day there shall be a fountain opened to the house of David and to the inhabitants of Jerusalem
for sin and for uncleanness.” Zech. 13:1.

Therefore, John’s vision of the 144,000 as they stood on Mount Zion with the Lamb, is an
incident after this special company of saints had been sealed, and some time before the close of
probation. The sealing of the 144,000 is at the closing of the judgment of the dead, and at the
beginning of the judgment of the living. Therefore, they have a great duty to perform upon the

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earth in connection with the judgment. Their service was typified by ancient Israel when they
were obliged to possess the Promised Land. The prophet Zechariah has well described the time:
“In that day shall the Lord defend the inhabitants of Jerusalem; and he that is feeble among
them at that day shall be as David, and the house of David shall be as God, as the angel of the
Lord before them. And it shall come to pass in that day, that I will seek to destroy all the nations
that come against Jerusalem [the church]. And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon
the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon
me whom they have pierced, [because He died for their sins] and they shall mourn for him, as
one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for
his first born.” Zech. 12:8-11. What a wonderful experience it will be when we fully
comprehend the love of God and the price paid for our redemption!
The prophet Micah calls the 144,000, the “remnant of Jacob.”

Here are some examples of: (What Constitutes The Remnant?
The definition of “remnant” is: That which is left after the separation, removal, or destruction of
a part. (Standard Dictionary). The beginning of the church of Christ in the days of the apostles
was not a large “bolt” just starting to unroll, getting smaller and smaller down through the ages,
and now, being at the end of the history of the church be the smallest portion, or that which is
left. But, on the contrary, the church just began then to roll on, and had but a very small
beginning. It has been rolling and rolling, and putting on all through the ages, and the very end of
the history of the church is by no means a remnant. “Remnant” signifies a very small portion, a
fragment, or a small bit. The Master said the harvest is at the end of the world; the angels are the
reapers. Then there is reaping to be done. “Harvest” means a collection of crops; to gather, store
up, or garner in. According to this the harvest is by no means a remnant, but just the opposite, for
at harvest we gather in the most.

The remnant of Israel must be something else than what we have thought it to be for
“remnant” is a small portion, or part which is left after a destruction. The destruction is the
mighty shaking, sifting time which is the separation of the two classes in the church (the sealing
of the 144,000) as prophesied in Ezekiel 9, and Isaiah 63. Those who escape are the “remnant.”
The Bible gives no other definition of “remnant” than the one given here.
See these Scriptures as well - Lev. 5:13 “And the priest shall make an atonement for him as

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touching his sin that he hath sinned in one of these, and it shall be forgiven him: and the
remnant shall be the priest's, as a meat offering.”

2 Kings 19:4 “It may be the Lord thy God will hear all the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king
of Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God; and will reprove the words which
the Lord thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that are left.”

Isa. 37:4 “It may be the Lord thy God will hear the words of Rabshakeh, whom the king of
Assyria his master hath sent to reproach the living God, and will reprove the words which
the Lord thy God hath heard: wherefore lift up thy prayer for the remnant that is left.”

Ezra 9:8 “And now for a little space grace hath been shewed from the Lord our God, to leave
us a remnant to escape, and to give us a nail in his holy place, that our God may lighten our
eyes, and give us a little reviving in our bondage.”

Isa. 1:9 “Except the Lord of hosts had left unto us a very small remnant, we should have been as
Sodom, and we should have been like unto Gomorrah.”

Isa. 11:11 “And it shall come to pass in that day, that the Lord shall set his hand again the
second time to recover the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria, and from
Egypt, and from Pathros, and from Cush, and from Elam, and from Shinar, and from Hamath,
and from the islands of the sea.”

Isa. 16:14 “But now the Lord hath spoken, saying, Within three years, as the years of an
hireling, and the glory of Moab shall be contemned, with all that great multitude; and the
remnant shall be very small and feeble.”

Jer. 44:28 “Yet a small number that escape the sword shall return out of the land of Egypt into
the land of Judah, and all the remnant of Judah, that are gone into the land of Egypt to sojourn
there, shall know whose words shall stand, mine, or their's.”

Ezek. 6:8 “Yet will I leave a remnant, that ye may have some that shall escape the sword among
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the nations, when ye shall be scattered through the countries.”

Joel 2:32 “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be

Joel 2:32 “And it shall come to pass, that whosoever shall call on the name of the Lord shall be
delivered: for in mount Zion and in Jerusalem shall be deliverance, as the Lord hath said, and in
the remnant whom the Lord shall call.”

Rom. 11:5 “Even so then at this present time also there is a remnant according to the election
of grace.”

Rev. 11:13 “And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell,
and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and
gave glory to the God of heaven.”)

Now back to our study
“And they shall waste the land of Assyria with the sword, and the land of Nimrod in the
entrances thereof: thus shall he deliver us from the Assyrian, when he cometh into our land, and
when he treadeth within our borders. And the remnant of Jacob shall be in the midst of many
people as a dew from the Lord, as the showers upon the grass, that tarrieth not for man, nor
waiteth for the sons of men. And the remnant of Jacob shall be among the Gentiles in the midst of
many people as a lion among the beasts of the forest, as a young lion among the flocks of sheep:
who, if he go through, both treadeth down, and teareth in pieces, and none can deliver. Thine
hand shall be lifted up upon thine adversaries, and all thine enemies shall be cut off…. And I will
execute vengeance in anger and fury upon the heathen, such as they have not heard.” Micah
5:6-9, 15.

“The portion of Jacob is not like them; for he is the former of all things: and Israel is the rod of
his inheritance: the Lord of hosts is his name. Thou art my battle axe and weapons of war
[144,000]: for with thee will I break in pieces the nations, and with thee will I destroy kingdoms;
and with thee will I break in pieces the horse and his rider; and with thee will I break in pieces

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the chariot and his rider; with thee also will I break in pieces man and woman; and with thee
will I break in pieces old and young; and with thee will I break in pieces the young man and the
maid; I will also break in pieces with thee the shepherd and his flock; and with thee will I break
in pieces the husbandman and his yoke of oxen, and with thee will I break in pieces captains and
rulers.” Jer. 51:19-23. Therefore, at the fulfillment of John’s vision, the 144,000 “Stand on
Mount Zion,” not bodily, but in the sense of the position they occupy. In the same way as the
five virgins who went in with Him to the marriage.
The proclamation, “Behold, the Bridegroom cometh,” in the summer of 1844, led thousands to
expect the immediate advent of the Lord. At the appointed time the Bridegroom came, not to the
earth, as the people expected, but to the Ancient of Days in heaven, to the marriage, the reception
of His kingdom. “They that were ready went in with Him to the marriage: and the door was
shut.” They were not to be present in person at the marriage; for it takes place in heaven, while
they are upon the earth. The followers of Christ are to “wait for their Lord, when He will return
from the wedding.” Luke 12:36. But they are to understand His work, and to follow Him by
faith as He goes in before God. It is in this sense that they are said to go in to the marriage
(See “The Great Controversy,” p. 427.)
As ancient Israel was a terror to the heathen in the promised land, just so the Israel of God at this
time will be a terror to the sinner in the world, and as ancient Israel had to fight with the sword to
possess the land, just so Israel now must battle with the “sword of the Spirit” to possess the
world (promised land).

“And I heard a voice from heaven, as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of a great
thunder: and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps: And they sung as it were a
new song before the throne, and before the four beasts, and the elders: and no man could learn
that song but the hundred and forty and four thousand, which were redeemed from the earth.”
(Rev. 14:2, 3).

The song was sung in heaven by heavenly beings before the throne, and before the beasts, and
the elders. Therefore, it is evident that the judgment was in progress. (Further explanation to
follow.) Note that the 144,000 did not sing, but they only could learn the “song” as it was sung
in heaven; that is, they alone understood the heavenly truth in that particular time and their

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position in connection with the message they must bear.

“And I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Write, Blessed are the dead which die in the
Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from their labours; and their
works do follow them.” (Rev. 14:13) “Which die from henceforth,” that is, from the
commencement of the “loud cry.” Thus the word declares that some of the saints will be laid in
the grave even during the time of the harvest (loud cry). We quote from “Counsels on Health,”
p. 375 “Many will be laid away to sleep before the fiery ordeal of the time of trouble shall come
upon the world.”

While some of the saints shall be laid to sleep in the time of the “loud cry,” it is made clear
by Revelation 15:1, 2 that all who are alive after probation has closed and before the “Blessed
are the dead which die in the Lord from henceforth: Yea, saith the Spirit, that they may rest from
their labours; and their works do follow them.” (Rev. 14:13) “Which die from henceforth,” that
is, from the commencement of the “loud cry.” Thus the word declares that some of the saints will
be laid in the grave even during the time of the harvest (loud cry). We quote from “Counsels on
Health,” p. 375 “Many will be laid away to sleep before the fiery ordeal of the time of trouble
shall come upon the world.”

While some of the saints shall be laid to sleep in the time of the “loud cry,” it is made clear
by Revelation 15:1, 2 that all who are alive after probation has closed and before the
commencement of the pouring out of the plagues will be translated without tasting death: “And I
saw another sign in heaven, great, and marvelous, seven angels having the seven last plagues;
for in them is filled up the wrath of God. And I saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire:
and them that had gotten the victory over the beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and
over the number of his name, stand on the sea of glass having the harps of God.” The “sea of
glass” is a symbol of life eternal.

(Here is a brief explanation –
The sea is the most extensive body upon the earth; thus it is used to represent eternity. “Clear as
crystal” denotes perfection, freedom from sin and defects. In Revelation 15:2, we read: “And I

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saw as it were a sea of glass mingled with fire.” Fire would be the only perfect symbol that could
be used to represent life. Therefore, the sea of glass proceeds from God’s throne, and represents
life eternal, which is the reward of those whose names are in the Lamb’s book of life, within the
seven seals. “And there shall in nowise enter into it anything that defileth, neither whatsoever
worketh abominations, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb’s book of life.”
(Rev. 21:27.) In the judgment it is granted to the saints “that had gotten the victory over the
beast, and over his image, and over his mark, and over the number of his name,” to stand on the
sea of glass—life eternal. (Rev. 15:2.)
In as much as all who had gotten the victory stand on the sea, it denotes that they have passed
from death to life, and their destination now is “God, new Jerusalem.”

Rev. 15:5-8: “And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony
in heaven was opened: And the seven angels came out of the temple, having the seven plagues,
clothed in pure and white linen, and having their breasts girded with golden girdles. And one of
the four beasts gave unto the seven angels seven golden vials full of the wrath of God, who liveth
for ever and ever. And the temple was filled with smoke from the glory of God, and from His
power; and no man was able to enter into the temple, till the seven plagues of the seven angels
were fulfilled.” After the investigation is completed and every case decided, the temple of the
testimony will open similar to when the typical opened at the close of the sacrificial system: and
the vail which divided the two apartments rent in twain from the top to the bottom.” (See Matt.
27:51).
The door that is opened after the close of probation is the entrance to the holy place which was
closed in 1844. After the close of probation the temple is to be filled with the power and glory of
God so that no man shall be able to enter in till after the seven plagues are fulfilled. Showing that
all God’s people stood on the sea of glass (eternal life) and then probation closed. Thus after
Jesus leaves the most holy place, God’s servants shall have no funeral sermons to preach and no
gospels for sinners.

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