Revelation 15:1-8 - Saints Standing on the Sea of Glass

And I saw another sign in heaven, great and marvellous, seven angels having the seven last plagues; for in them is filled up the wrath of God.

2 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.

3 And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints.

4 Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest.

5 And after that I looked, and, behold, the temple of the tabernacle of the testimony in heaven was opened:

6 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.

7 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.

8 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.

Revelation 15

In these verses, John notices the seven angels with the wrath of God. They are prepared to pour the wrath of God upon earth's inhabitants in the form of plagues. Then John notices something else and desires that we consider this part of the vision. 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.

John sees an assembly of people that have gotten the victory over the beast and all his deception, praise God! This great multitude are saints that have resisted and departed from the false religion of the last days. Revelation 7:9-17 They are influenced by the teachings of the 144,000 prophets that faithfully delivered the Word of God. The 144,000 were martyred. God resurrects them as a witness against the rulers of this world. They ascend to Heaven and are received as acceptable first fruits of the final harvest. Revelation 14:1-6 The ones that slayed the prophets will soon experience the wrath of God through the falling of the seven last plagues. With the plagues God agenges the shedding of innocent blood.

The plagues do not fall on the saints because God shelters them as they stand on the sea of glass. In the courtyard of Israel's temple, there was a highly polished bronze bowl of water called the laver (sea of glass). When entering the courtyard, the patriarch of the family would first bring his living sin sacrifice to the altar of sacrifice. The priests would offer both sin and daily sacrifices on behalf of the people. Their garments and body would be covered by the blood of the sacrifice. The priests would then come to the laver and see their blood stained garments reflected in the shining bowl of water. They would wash the blood off their bodies in the laver. The soot, ash, dust and dirt would stick to the blood and would sink to the bottom of the laver. This sacrament demonstrates the blood of the lamb that washes away the sins of the world and the Heavenly sea where God casts our sins to sink to the bottom and never be recalled again. Leviticus 17:11; Revelation 1:5; Micah 7:18-20

Jesus walking on the water of the Sea of Galilee demonstrated to the disciples that God is both the Master of the winds and the waves. He is the only wind and water bender. Peter walking on the water demonstrates that through the power of God we can rise above our sins and master the elements of this world. In doing so we defy our human nature and demonstrate Christ's great power over our sins.

The saints of the final generation demonstrate this power more fully than any other. The fullness of their faith is rewarded with the fullness of God's grace. They stand on the sea of glass because their sins have been washed to the bottom of the sea no longer holding them back or bringing them down. The result is that they remain steadfast in their Godly convictions. They will not be submerged by the sea of ungodliness that surrounds them while in this world. This truly demonstrates to the cosmos the power of God fully reflected in the faith of mankind.

And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvelous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. At the time of his death, Moses sang a song glorifying God. He knew would not enter the Promised Land. Of course, he was certainly disappointed, but Moses knew God to be just. Moses witnessed God destroying pharaoh's army to spare the Israelites. God is mighty and eager to save. Moses recognized that this one showdown between a world empire and the Creator of the world only typified the day when God would deal with all the kings of the earth. He hoped Israel would separate herself from the other nations by following God. Sadly, Moses knew she would stray and sang this song regarding the end of the ages as a forewarning to Israel and all that would hear.

The song of Moses is strikingly original in its form and was believed by some to have been placed at one time in the Ark of the Covenant with Aaron's rod and the ten commandments. Clearly, this passage is considered of great importance in Israel. My convictions are that it is a clear message of warning to the entire world. It is long, but well worth the read. I highly recommend hearing and heeding all the verses in this song. Deuteronomy 31 The saints sing this song the entire time they are on the sea of glass declaring the righteous judgment that is about to come upon the entire earth.

Just as Moses mediated with God on behalf of Israel, the 144,000 mediate for the final generation. Numbers 14:11-20 The 144,000 follow the Lamb wherever He goes, even to the cross. They are offered as a sacrifice on behalf of all those whom God loves. God receives their sacrifice, but martyrdom fully demonstrates that Ha Satan is the blood thirsty one. The faith of the 144,000 demonstrates to the cosmos the love of God dwelling in mankind. Their blood is poured out as was that of Christ and all the other martyrs of the ages. Greater love hath no man than this, that a man lay down his life for his friends. John 15:13 Those watching from above the earth recognize the character of Christ reflected in the martyrs and know they are worthy inhabitants of God's heavenly dwelling place. They demonstrate that the blood of Christ was poured out for them and flows through them as the righteous seed of Christ. To further demonstrate that these are His own, Christ marks the saints with this sacred blood so the angel of death will pass over them. The plagues will not touch them in the flesh nor come nigh their dwelling. Psalm 91

The slaying of the 144,000 marks the final Passover before the Greater Exodus. Romans 8:35-39; Isaiah 53:7 Passover is followed by the week of Unleavened Bread. In Israel the day before the week of Unleavened Bread, all leaven is removed from the dwelling place indicating they are denying sin. They must be prepared to live during the week of unleavened bread without leavening of any kind in their diet. Then, in the midst of the week on the Sunday following the first Sabbath of the week, the First Fruits is offered. This is when the counting of the omer begins. At the end of that fifty day period of counting the omer, the full harvest is gathered in.

Before the harvest is gather in, the world will slay the prophets and will promise to do the same to the saints if they do not deny their Creator. The week of unleavened bread will be the greatest challenge to the faith of the saints thus far. Fully embracing the message delivered by the 144,000 prophets will rid their dwelling place (body) of any leaven or sin of doubt. They are prepared to believe during the entire week of unleavened bread that a just God will deliver them. Their faith flies in the face of the evidence. When the week of unleavened bread begins, the world has slain the prophets and their dead bodies are lying in the midst of the street serving as a warning to the saints. Revelation 11:8-13

During the midst of the week of Unleavened Bread, the 144,000 are resurrected and ascended as First Fruits. This event gives the saints twice as must faith as the 144,000 prophets had. The old testament type is Elisha receiving a double portion of Elijah's blessing when he saw him ascend into Heaven. Once the 144,000 prophets are ascended, the plagues will fall. The saints will witness the falling of the plagues, but God shelters them just like he hid Moses in the cleft of the rock.

The world will know the plagues are a Godly demonstration that the criminal act filling their cup of iniquity was the shedding of innocent blood. The saints will verify the justice of God to the universe by singing the song of Moses while standing on the sea of glass. This song is summarized in the following verse: Who shall not fear thee, O Lord, and glorify thy name? for thou only art holy: for all nations shall come and worship before thee; for thy judgments are made manifest. There will come a time when all the kings of the earth that ever lived and every pauper that served them will come and bow before the King of Kings and confess that He is God. However, before that happens, much will occur.

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.

The temple in Heaven where God dwells is opened to let the angels with the plagues out. Then it is immediately closed and will not be opened until God's wrath is poured out and the smoke of His wrath has cleared the temple. This demonstrates that the spring and fall festivals intersect at the end of time. The spring festivals include Passover, Feast of Unleavened Bread, First Fruits and Pentecost. The fall festivals include Elul, Feast of Trumpets, Day of Atonement and Feast of Tabernacles. Pentecost and Day of Atonement occur at the same point in time. Pentecost is the harvest that occurs at the coming of Jesus on the Day of Atonement.

The Day of Atonement is the tenth day during the Feast of Trumpets. The Feast of Trumpets, also known as the Days of Awe, represent the time of warning that the king is coming. On the last day when the time of warning is complete, the King comes in all His glory. The great high priest goes behind the veil to meet with the King of Israel. Before the great high priest goes behind the veil he offers copious amounts of incense on the altar of incense and fills the temple with smoke. No one is allowed to enter the temple until the smoke clears. This is the final cleansing act that cleanses the temple of all the sins of the Israelites from the previous year.

The Day of Atonement beautifully represents the day the sky, which is the veil separating us from God's dwelling place, is ripped apart giving God's own access to our Heavenly home. The Way is made for the kings of the east to cross over. We are not currently kings of the earth and will not be until after the 1,000 year millennium. At that time the kingdom will be restored to the sons of Adam, which Christ is the chief and rightful reigning prince. Through Him our right to rein on the earth is reestablished. Until then, we are sojourners looking for a heavenly dwelling place. Christ demonstrated the fullness of this promise by ripping the veil separating the holy from the most holy place in Herod's temple at his crucifixion. There will be a time when we will see God face-to-face and stand before His throne in righteousness. Once the smoke has cleared, the temple will open and God's own will enter in with gladness. The saints will serve Him in His temple during the millennial rein.

I would like to draw your attention to the fact that the Heavenly temple is the only possible temple where the saints can serve God since there will not be a temple in the heaven and earth made new. And I saw no temple therein: for the Lord God Almighty and the Lamb are the temple of it. Revelation 21:22 Why would there be a temple? The temple is a place for sacrifice. There will be no more death so there will be no more sacrifice; therefore, no more temple. The city will be a place without need of sacrament because there shall in no wise enter into it any thing that defileth, neither whatsoever worketh abomination, or maketh a lie: but they which are written in the Lamb's book of life. Revelation 21:27

the earth made new, there will be no more religiosity because all things Godly will be based upon our relationship with the Father and the Son. Therefore, they are our temple. Their role in our world is to overcome death. They do not desire death and never did. They warned our first father and mother about death and will relieve them and their children of that burden. In the earth made new, there will be no more sin to cause death, sorrow, or tears. Therefore, there will be no more sacrificial system because the law of sin and death has been satisfied. A temple would indicate that the law that is against us can never be nullified and would be offensive to the One that paid that offense in full. No more offense, no more temple! T

Revelation 16 includes information that will expand and enlarge our understanding of the seven last plagues. Click here to learn more about the seven last plagues.