Revelation 14:6-11: a reflection

6I saw an angel flying in mid heaven, having an eternal Good News to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth—to every nation, tribe, language, and people. 7He said with a loud voice, “Fear the Lord, and give him glory, for the hour of his judgment has come. Worship him who made the heaven, the earth, the sea, and the springs of waters!” 8Another, a second angel, followed, saying, “Babylon the great has fallen, which has made all the nations to drink of the wine of the wrath of her sexual immorality.” 9Another angel, a third, followed them, saying with a great voice, “If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives a mark on his forehead or on his hand, 10he also will drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is prepared unmixed in the cup of his anger. He will be tormented with fire and sulfur in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. 11The smoke of their torment goes up forever and ever. They have no rest day and night, those who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name.

In the midst of visions of judgment, John sees an angel flying in mid-heaven with an eternal gospel to proclaim to every nation, tribe, language, and people. I saw an angel flying in mid heaven, he writes, having an eternal Good News to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth, to every nation, tribe, language, and people. The gospel here is called eternal, and it is for all peoples, proclaimed to the whole earth, calling all to fear God and give him glory and worship the Creator. Even amid the visions of judgment, the eternal gospel goes out to every people, a call to all to turn to God. The eternal gospel is proclaimed to every nation and people. The Good News goes out to all the earth. God's gospel is eternal and for every people. The call to worship God goes out to all nations.

Notice the reach and the nature of this gospel. It is eternal, an everlasting Good News, not a passing message; and it is proclaimed to every nation, tribe, language, and people, for all the earth. The call it carries is to fear God and give him glory, to worship him who made heaven and earth and sea. Even in the midst of visions of coming judgment, God's heart is to have the eternal gospel proclaimed to all peoples, calling everyone everywhere to turn to him, to worship the Creator. This tells us something about God's purpose: that his gospel is for all, that no people is left out of the reach of the Good News, that the call to know and worship God goes out to every nation. And it tells us the fitting response: to fear God, give him glory, and worship him as Creator. The eternal gospel is for every people, calling all to worship God. God's Good News reaches to all nations; the call is to worship him. To fear God and give him glory is the response the eternal gospel calls for. The gospel is for all; worship of the Creator is its call.

That is worth taking to heart, for the eternal gospel is proclaimed to every nation and people, calling all to fear God and give him glory and worship the Creator. We can think the Good News is for some and not others, or forget that it goes out to all the earth; but John saw an angel with an eternal gospel to proclaim to every nation, tribe, language, and people, calling all to worship God who made all things. The gospel is for all peoples. Let the eternal gospel that goes out to all nations find its fitting response in you: fear God, give him glory, and worship him as Creator. Take to heart that the eternal gospel is proclaimed to every nation, tribe, language, and people, as John saw an angel flying in mid-heaven with an everlasting Good News to proclaim to all who dwell on the earth, calling all to fear God and give him glory and worship him who made heaven and earth and sea; for even in the midst of visions of judgment, God's purpose is that his eternal gospel be proclaimed to all peoples, so that no nation is left outside the reach of the Good News, and the call to know and worship the Creator goes out to every people, finding its fitting response in fearing God, giving him glory, and worshiping him as Creator, so that we do well both to rejoice that the gospel is for all and to answer its call ourselves.

Lord, in the midst of visions of judgment, John sees an angel flying in mid-heaven with an eternal gospel to proclaim to every nation, tribe, language, and people. I saw an angel flying in mid heaven, he writes, having an eternal Good News to proclaim to those who dwell on the earth, to every nation, tribe, language, and people. The gospel here is called eternal, and it is for all peoples, proclaimed to the whole earth, calling all to fear you and give you glory and worship you the Creator. Even amid the visions of judgment, the eternal gospel goes out to every people, a call to all to turn to you. Show me the reach and the nature of this gospel. It is eternal, an everlasting Good News, not a passing message; and it is proclaimed to every nation, tribe, language, and people, for all the earth. The call it carries is to fear you and give you glory, to worship you who made heaven and earth and sea. Even in the midst of visions of coming judgment, your heart is to have the eternal gospel proclaimed to all peoples, calling everyone everywhere to turn to you. This tells me something about your purpose: that your gospel is for all, that no people is left out of the reach of the Good News, that the call to know and worship you goes out to every nation. And it tells me the fitting response: to fear you, give you glory, and worship you as Creator. Take that to my heart, for the eternal gospel is proclaimed to every nation and people. Let the eternal gospel that goes out to all nations find its fitting response in me, Lord: help me fear you, give you glory, and worship you as Creator, rejoicing that the Good News is for all peoples and answering its call myself.