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The Firstfruits and the Harvest

Under the Mount Sinai Covenant, all firstfruits were to be given to God: not just the firstfruits of the Spring grain harvest, but also of the Autumn harvest of fruit, wine and oil. Likewise, all the firstborn/firstfruit-of-the-womb of both livestock and men – the latter were redeemed with a substitute offering – were to belong to God. Ex. 34:19-26; Deut. 26:2; Neh. 10:35-39

This law applies spiritually under the Covenant of Christ. The Latter Day firstfruits of men’s souls out of the tribes of Israel are the 144,000: “These were redeemed from men, a firstfruit to God and to the Lamb.” Rev. 14:4 Like the 70 Israelite elders on Mount Sinai (Ex. 24:1, 9-10), and the 120 or so Israelite disciples of Christ in the upper room (Acts 1:13-15), the 144,000 Israelites will be sanctified for God’s earthly use at the time that the Presence (Parousia) descends in the clouds of heaven in power and glory.

Upon Mount Sinai and in the upper room, the elect/chosen firstfruits consisted solely of Israelites. At Christ’s coming in the clouds of heaven, however, there is another group, one of predominantly Gentile firstfruits of men’s souls, called “the Church of the Firstborn.” Heb. 12:23 This body, the elect/chosen firstfruits of Christ’s Church, is prophetically represented by the wedding-going virgins – the ready ones – of Matthew 25:1-11; and also, by the fairest-only virgins gathered into the king’s house in the days of Esther. Esth. 2 (Note that the 144,000 are also called “virgins.” Rev. 14:4)

Like the virgins of Esther’s day, the Church of the Firstborn will remain in the King’s house, heaven.

Like the 70 elders and the 120 disciples, and also like Mordecai in Esther’s day, the 144,000 will ‘come down from the mountain/upper room’ to work in God’s service on Earth; but they are later to ascend to the heavenly “Mount Zion…before the throne of God.” Rev. 14:1, 3, 5

The Earthbound

Firstfruits are but a small portion of any harvest. The greater parts of both Israel and the Gentile Church will remain on Earth, because they will not have been “ready” at Christ’s return. Matt. 24:44; 25:10 Under the typology of the Mosaic Law, only the best of the harvest, the firstfruits, were to be taken up to God’s Tabernacle. Even so, the Latter Day Firstborn will constitute “a great multitude which no one [can] number” (Rev. 7:9), because they will be the firstfruits of the souls of all 2000 years of Christ’s Church.

Of the congregation represented by the Woman of Revelation 12, the ones who remain in the wilderness for 1260 days will be the largest group of the earthbound, non-firstborn, non-elect believers in Christ. However, Rev. 12 also tells of “the rest of her offspring, who [1] keep the commandments of God, and [2] have the testimony of Jesus.” This “rest of her offspring” represents individuals and smaller groups of God’s faithful scattered around the globe.

I give it as my opinion that the Woman’s congregation, seemingly being the largest and most prominent group of God’s earthly people, represents the earthly remnant of the American Church. However, many believers will flee out of other nations and come join with it, both during and after the Great Tribulation. These were foreshadowed in type by the “mixed multitude” of peoples that fled with the Israelites out of Egypt during the Exodus, and by Moses’ Midianite relatives that joined with them afterwards. Ex. 12:38; Num. 10:29; Judg. 4:11

Beginning at the Great Tribulation, the Woman and her offspring, like Israel during the Exodus, will be forced to flee the cities and comforts of civilization and dwell in wilderness areas in “tabernacles,” that is, tents and makeshift dwellings. But like He did with the Israelites during the Exodus, God will sustain their needs there. See Rev. 12:13-17.

During the 1260 days/42 months/3½ times (Rev. 11:3; 12:6, 14; 13:5; Dan. 7:25; 12:7), the 7 Trumpets will carry out God’s earthly judgment upon soul/nephesh/psuche-level men. The 144,000 will be on earth at this time, along with the Two Witnesses of Revelation 11, having been sanctified for the Lord’s earthly ministry. After this 1260-day period of judgment is fulfilled, the full harvest of Earth will commence, as foretold in Revelation 14:

Rev. 14:15 “…for the hour has come to reap, for the harvest of the earth is ripe. Matt. 13:30 “...gather the wheat into my storehouse.”

God’s harvest refers only to his own peoples, even though “tares” – phony believers – will also be reaped among them, which the angels will separate out from the believers. Matt. 13:37-43 At this time, being that of the 7th Trumpet, the Kingdom of Heaven will become established upon Earth, as foretold in Revelation 11:

Rev. 11:15 Then the seventh angel sounded: And there were loud voices in heaven, saying, “The kingdom of this world has become the kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ, and He shall reign forever and ever!”

Again, this is the full harvest, as contrasted to the harvest of the firstfruits, which comes 1260 days earlier. Following the typology of Mosaic Law, only the Firstfruits/Firstborn are to be brought before God’s sanctuary: in the Latter Days, that being the heavenly sanctuary. God’s people from the main harvest receive the secondary blessing, that is, becoming partakers of the earthly portion of the Kingdom of Heaven. Those gathered to the place (or places) wherein the earthly Kingdom is first established will be the ones “gathered into the storehouse.”

The establishment of the Kingdom of heaven upon earth will not be instantaneous over all lands and peoples:

Dan. 2:44 “And in the days of these [pagan earthly] kings, the God of heaven will [1] set up a kingdom that shall never be destroyed; and the kingdom shall not be left to another people. [2] It shall break to pieces and bring to an end all these kingdoms, and it shall stand forever.”

The defeat of the rival earthly kingdoms will take place at the 7th Bowl judgment, generally known as the Battle of Armageddon. This sequence of 1) the establishment of the earthly Kingdom of Heaven, followed later by 2) the utter defeat of “the Beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies” (Rev. 19:19) is shown in earlier blog articles, such as The Kingdoms of Solomon and Jesus Christ.