Revelation14:3

The Bible contains various references to a “new song” meaning an original song which was usually a spontaneous expression of worship. Every time we sing “a new song” to God it must be a fresh expression from the heart. Think of it as more than music, but rather as any expression of praise to God, regardless of the audible form it takes. Because it is an original it should have different words each time. It is a fresh and genuine expression of praise to Jesus growing out of one’s experiences with God. For that reason, each person’s original song is unique. When a “new song” is memorized and sung by someone else, it ceases to be a “new song.” When that same song is sung by someone whose heart has not been transformed, it loses all its meaning and becomes nothing but empty words. People who are playing the “churchianity game” and pretending to be followers of God have a difficult time generating genuine, original, and fresh praise to God and Jesus. When you hear someone share a word of praise you can usually tell if it is coming from the heart or just the head.

We seldom create “new songs” these days. We let the professional musicians write the songs and we adopt their expressions of worship as our own. I challenge you to consider making your own original expressions of praise to God. He does not care how perfect the music is; He will be overjoyed because it is coming from your heart and from your own experiences with Him.

We return to our discussion of the use of the number 144,000 because there are some differences between this passage and that of chapter 7. First we should consider the character of these who are sealed by God’s mark. “They had His name (the Lamb’s name) and the name of His Father written on their foreheads’ ” (v.1); “These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are pure. These are the ones who follow the Lamb wherever He goes. These have been redeemed from among men; they are firstfruits to God and to the Lamb” (v. 4). The 144,000 are not the focal point of this passage, the Lamb is. However, regarding those that are sealed by God, the emphasis is on their character, not their identity.

Having established that this passage is about character more than identity, we need to take a closer look at a few dilemmas presented by this passage. It uses the number 144,000 in conjunction with those “who have His name and the Father’s written on their foreheads.” This obviously means “all” who have God’s name constantly before their eyes.

Yet in verse 4 it calls them an offering of “first fruits” to God and to the Lamb, which at first glance seems to imply that there are more to come later. I cannot see any way to make 144,000 mean anything other than “all,” so I must see if there is another way to understand “firstfruits,” and there is. The NLT renders this as “a special offering” to God and to the Lamb. I think that is the idea here. We should not get hung up on the fact that in the Old Testament era the people gathered the first fruits, then later gathered the rest of the crop. In a general sense the term “firstfruits” meant a special offering that was very pleasing to God. When applied to Jesus (I Cor 15:20 & 23), it did not mean there were more like him to come, rather it meant supremacy, or the most special one. So in the end, the term “firstfruits” was always used of something that was special, and sometimes there was more to come later, but not always.

Who is presenting this sacrifice? Did the Lamb purchase us and then offer us as an offering to the Father and to Himself, or are we offering ourselves as a firstfruits offering to God and to Jesus? The Greek text says it like this: “These have been redeemed from among men, firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.” It is obvious that something in this sentence is assumed rather than stated, therefore something needs to be inserted between “men,” and “firstfruits.”  There are two things that can be inserted at this point in the verse. “These have been redeemed from among men, as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb,” or “These have been redeemed from among men; they are firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.” Either way is plausible. (New Testament era Greek used no punctuation whatsoever, and verbs of being are often assumed in many languages).

In my opinion, if Jesus were offering us as firstfruits, the offering would be made to God the Father. He would not offer us as a firstfruits offering to Himself. Therefore, I favor rendering it as: “These have been redeemed from among men; they are firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.”

If my assumption is correct, there are two separate realities being expressed here. Jesus has purchased/redeemed us with His blood; that is the first reality.  Then we offer ourselves as a special offering to God the Father and to Jesus through a life that is fully committed to them; that is the second reality. When we are acting as a firstfruits offering, we offer ourselves totally and continually to God; we are “consumed” for God. In this case the firstfruits is all there is going to be. Here the firstfruits is not a portion that we give to God with more coming that we can use for ourselves, rather it is all we are, and it is all given to Him.

Another perceived “problem” with this passage is that, in calling them “pure or chaste” it uses the term often used for “virgins.” Is it the intent of the passage to isolate 144,000 specific people who are actual virgins, or is it to point to “all” of those who are pure in heart? Our answer depends largely on whether we see 144,000 as a specific number or as a symbol. I suggest that the people of John’s day would have seen it as a symbol of all those who are pure.

If “144,000” means “all,” then “chaste” and “firstfruits” cannot indicate “some” selected from the whole; the passage must mean “all the pure who are also a special offering to God.”

The emphasis of this passage is on the Lamb, not on the 144,000.  Those who praise Him must be pure and righteous, but the emphasis is not on them, it is on the Lamb who is worthy of our praise.