Revelation 14:4
These are the ones who have not been defiled with women, for they are virgins. They follow the Lamb wherever He goes. They have been redeemed from among men as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb.
These are the ones who have not been defiled with women
This phrase speaks to the purity and dedication of the 144,000 mentioned earlier in Revelation. The Greek word for "defiled" is "molyno," which implies being stained or polluted. In a historical context, this purity can be seen as a metaphor for spiritual faithfulness, as idolatry and spiritual adultery were often equated with physical impurity in the Old Testament. The emphasis here is on spiritual integrity and devotion to God, rather than a literal interpretation of celibacy.

for they are virgins
The term "virgins" in this context is symbolic, representing those who have remained spiritually pure and faithful to Christ. The Greek word "parthenos" is used, which can mean a literal virgin but also carries the connotation of purity and dedication. In the conservative Christian perspective, this symbolizes the Church's call to remain untainted by the world, echoing the call to holiness found throughout Scripture.

They follow the Lamb wherever He goes
This phrase highlights the complete devotion and obedience of the 144,000 to Christ, the Lamb. The Greek word "akoloutheo" means to follow or accompany, suggesting a close and continuous relationship. Historically, following a rabbi or teacher was a sign of discipleship, and here it signifies the unwavering commitment of believers to Christ's teachings and path, regardless of the cost.

They have been redeemed from among men
The concept of redemption is central to Christian theology, with the Greek word "agorazo" meaning to buy or purchase. This indicates that these individuals have been bought by the blood of Christ, set apart from the rest of humanity. In a historical and scriptural context, this echoes the Old Testament practice of redeeming firstborns and points to the sacrificial system that prefigures Christ's ultimate sacrifice.

as firstfruits to God and to the Lamb
The term "firstfruits" is rich in biblical symbolism, referring to the first portion of the harvest offered to God, as seen in the Old Testament. The Greek word "aparche" signifies a pledge of the greater harvest to come. In this context, it suggests that the 144,000 are a special offering to God, representing the initial and dedicated portion of a larger group of believers. This imagery underscores the idea of being set apart for divine purposes, reflecting the Church's role as a holy and consecrated community.

Persons / Places / Events
1. The 144,000
This group is described as those who have not been defiled with women and are virgins. They are symbolic of purity and dedication to God.

2. The Lamb
Refers to Jesus Christ, who is followed by the 144,000. The Lamb is a central figure in Revelation, representing sacrifice and redemption.

3. Firstfruits
This term is used to describe the 144,000 as being set apart for God and the Lamb, indicating their special status and role in God's plan.
Teaching Points
Purity and Dedication
The 144,000 are described as virgins, symbolizing spiritual purity and complete dedication to God. This calls believers to live lives of holiness and commitment to Christ.

Following the Lamb
The 144,000 follow the Lamb wherever He goes, illustrating the importance of discipleship and obedience to Jesus in all aspects of life.

Redeemed and Set Apart
Being described as firstfruits signifies a special calling and purpose. Believers are reminded of their identity in Christ and their role in God's redemptive plan.

Symbolism of Virginity
While literal virginity is mentioned, the deeper spiritual meaning points to faithfulness and purity in one's relationship with God.
Bible Study Questions
1. How does the description of the 144,000 as virgins challenge or inspire your understanding of spiritual purity?

2. In what ways can you follow the Lamb more closely in your daily life, and what might that look like practically?

3. How does the concept of being "firstfruits" influence your view of your identity and purpose as a believer?

4. What are some practical steps you can take to maintain spiritual purity and dedication in a world that often promotes the opposite?

5. How do the connections to other scriptures, such as the parable of the ten virgins, enhance your understanding of Revelation 14:4?
Connections to Other Scriptures
Matthew 25:1-13
The parable of the ten virgins emphasizes readiness and purity, similar to the description of the 144,000 as virgins.

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Discusses the body as a temple of the Holy Spirit, underscoring the importance of purity and dedication to God.

James 1:18
Refers to believers as a kind of firstfruits, connecting to the idea of being set apart for God.
The Greater SalvationS. Conway Revelation 14:4
The Perfect ChurchS. Conway Revelation 14:1-5
The Supersensuous Heaven of HumanityD. Thomas Revelation 14:1-5
The Triumphant HostR. Green Revelation 14:1-5
A Song of FreedomJ. M. Hoppin.Revelation 14:1-13
Absolute Obedience to the Guidance of ChristBp. Woodford.Revelation 14:1-13
Angelic IncompetencyT. De Witt Talmage.Revelation 14:1-13
Devotion to ChristR. Forgan, B. D.Revelation 14:1-13
Man Training for HeavenHomilistRevelation 14:1-13
Music in HeavenG. Kingsley.Revelation 14:1-13
Musical Art in its Relation to Divine WorshipJ. W. Shackelford, D. D.Revelation 14:1-13
The 144,000J. A. Seiss, D. D.Revelation 14:1-13
The Church God's FirstfruitsW. Milligan, D. D.Revelation 14:1-13
The Communion of SaintsArchdeacon Manning.Revelation 14:1-13
The Followers of JesusT. Kidd.Revelation 14:1-13
The Followers of the LambC. H. Spurgeon.Revelation 14:1-13
The Followers of the LambW. Dyer.Revelation 14:1-13
The Greater SalvationS. Conway, B. A.Revelation 14:1-13
The Music of HeavenS. D. Hillman.Revelation 14:1-13
The Name on the ForeheadPreacher's Portfolio.Revelation 14:1-13
The New SongJames Kidd, B.A.Revelation 14:1-13
The New SongT. G. Selby.Revelation 14:1-13
The New Song in the SoulFred. Brooks.Revelation 14:1-13
The Song of the RedeemedR. Watson.Revelation 14:1-13
The Sublimest Human DistinctionHomilistRevelation 14:1-13
The Unlearned Song of the RedeemedC. A. Bartol.Revelation 14:1-13
TruthfulnessRevelation 14:1-13
UndefiledW. Milligan, D. D.Revelation 14:1-13
People
John
Places
Babylon, Mount Zion, Patmos
Topics
Bought, Chaste, Defiled, First-fruit, Firstfruits, First-fruits, Follow, Fruits, Goes, Kept, Lamb, Mankind, Offered, Ones, Purchased, Pure, Redeemed, Themselves, Unclean, Virgin, Virgins, Wheresoever, Wherever, Whithersoever, Women
Dictionary of Bible Themes
Revelation 14:4

     5794   asceticism
     7348   defilement
     7402   offerings
     8115   discipleship, nature of
     8120   following Christ
     8209   commitment, to Christ

Revelation 14:1-4

     8204   chastity

Revelation 14:1-5

     4442   firstfruits
     8278   innocence, teaching on

Revelation 14:3-4

     5402   market

Library
The Approval of the Spirit
TEXT: "Yea, saith the Spirit."--Rev. 14:31. The world has had many notable galleries of art in which we have been enabled to study the beautiful landscape, to consider deeds of heroism which have made the past illustrious, in which we have also read the stories of saintly lives; but surpassing all these is the gallery of art in which we find the text. Humanly speaking John is the artist while he is an exile on the Island of Patmos in the Aegean Sea. The words he uses and the figures he presents
J. Wilbur Chapman—And Judas Iscariot

The Declensions of Christianity, an Argument of Its Truth.
"When the Son of man cometh, shall he find faith on the earth?" That the coming of the Son of man, is here intended of Christ's coming at the commencement of the latter day glory, hath been alleged in the preceding discourse, and several considerations adduced in proof. Additional evidence will arise from a view of the prophecies relative to the great declensions which were to take place in the church, during the gospel day. These, we observed, are of two kinds, one, a corruption of religion,
Andrew Lee et al—Sermons on Various Important Subjects

Heavenly Worship
"Up to her courts, with joys unknown, The sacred tribes repaired." Between the wings of the cherubim Jehovah dwelt; on the one altar there all the sacrifices were offered to high heaven. They loved Mount Sion, and often did they sing, when they drew nigh to her, in their annual pilgrimages, "How amiable are thy tabernacles O Lord God of hosts, my King and my God!" Sion is now desolate; she hath been ravished by the enemy; she hath been utterly destroyed; her vail hath been rent asunder, and the virgin
Charles Haddon Spurgeon—Spurgeon's Sermons Volume 3: 1857

20TH DAY. Bliss in Dying.
"He is Faithful that Promised." "Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord."--REV. xiv. 13. Bliss in Dying. My Soul! is this blessedness thine in prospect? Art thou ready, if called this night to lie down on thy death-pillow, sweetly to fall asleep in Jesus? What is the sting of death? It is sin. Is death, then, to thee, robbed of its sting, by having listened to the gracious accents of pardoning love, "Be of good cheer, thy sins, which are many, are all forgiven thee?" If thou hast made up thy
John Ross Macduff—The Faithful Promiser

Wherefore Also the virgins of God Without Blame Indeed...
49. Wherefore also the virgins of God without blame indeed, "follow the Lamb whithersoever He shall have gone," both the cleansing of sins being perfected, and virginity being kept, which, were it lost, could not return: but, because that same Apocalypse itself, wherein such unto one such were revealed, in this also praises them, that "in their mouth there was not found a lie:" [2205] let them remember in this also to be true, that they dare not say that they have not sin. Forsooth the same John,
St. Augustine—Of Holy Virginity.

Let the Inner Ear of the virgin Also...
24. Let the inner ear of the virgin also, thy holy child, hear these things. I shall see [2284] how far she goes before you in the Kingdom of That King: it is another question. Yet ye have found, mother and daughter, Him, Whom by beauty of chastity ye ought to please together, having despised, she all, you second, marriage. Certainly if there were husbands whom ye had to please, by this time, perhaps, you would feel ashamed to adorn yourself together with your daughter; now let it not shame you,
St. Augustine—On the Good of Widowhood.

Letter Xlix to Romanus, Sub-Deacon of the Roman Curia.
To Romanus, Sub-Deacon of the Roman Curia. He urges upon him the proposal of the religious life, recalling the thought of death. Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux, to his dear Romanus, as to his friend. MY DEAREST FRIEND, How good you are to me in renewing by a letter the sweet recollection of yourself and in excusing my tiresome delay. It is not possible that any forgetfulness of your affection could ever invade the hearts of those who love you; but, I confess, I thought you had almost forgotten yourself
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

Whether virginity is the Greatest of virtues?
Objection 1: It would seem that virginity is the greatest of virtues. For Cyprian says (De Virgin. [*De Habitu Virg.]): "We address ourselves now to the virgins. Sublime is their glory, but no less exalted is their vocation. They are a flower of the Church's sowing, the pride and ornament of spiritual grace, the most honored portion of Christ's flock." Objection 2: Further, a greater reward is due to the greater virtue. Now the greatest reward is due to virginity, namely the hundredfold fruit, according
Saint Thomas Aquinas—Summa Theologica

The Glory of the virgins and Religious.
Here are two other bright throngs that present themselves. They are the holy Virgins and the Religious. Let us first contemplate the bright glory of the virgins. I quote again from the Apocalypse: "And I heard a great voice from heaven. . . . And the voice which I heard was as the voice of harpers, harping upon their harps. And they sang as it were a new canticle before the throne. . . . And no man could say that canticle but those hundred and forty-four thousand. These are they who were not defiled
F. J. Boudreaux—The Happiness of Heaven

Naked or Clothed?
'As he came forth of his mother's womb, naked shall he return to go as he came, and shall take nothing of his labour, which he may carry away in his hand.'--ECCLES. v. 15. '... Their works do follow them.'--REV. xiv. 13. It is to be observed that these two sharply contrasted texts do not refer to the same persons. The former is spoken of a rich worldling, the latter of 'the dead who die in the Lord.' The unrelieved gloom of the one is as a dark background against which the triumphant assurance of
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Ripe for Gathering
'Thus hath the Lord God shewed unto me: and behold a basket of summer fruit. 2. And He said, Amos, what seest thou? And I said, A basket of summer fruit. Then said the Lord unto me, The end is come upon My people of Israel; I will not again pass by them any more. 3. And the songs of the temple shall be howlings in that day, saith the Lord God: there shall be many dead bodies in every place; they shall cast them forth with silence. 4. Hear this, O ye that swallow up the needy, even to make the poor
Alexander Maclaren—Expositions of Holy Scripture

Which Sentence Dishonoreth the Holy Martyrs, Nay Rather Taketh Away Holy Martyrdoms Altogether. ...
3. Which sentence dishonoreth the holy Martyrs, nay rather taketh away holy martyrdoms altogether. For they would do more justly and wisely, according to these men, not to confess to their persecutors that they were Christians, and by confessing make them murderers: but rather by telling a lie, and denying what they were, should both themselves keep safe the convenience of the flesh and purpose of the heart, and not allow those to accomplish the wickedness which they had conceived in their mind.
St. Augustine—Against Lying

Therefore, if we Compare the Things Themselves, we May no Way Doubt that The...
28. Therefore, if we compare the things themselves, we may no way doubt that the chastity of continence is better than marriage chastity, whilst yet both are good: but when we compare the persons, he is better, who hath a greater good than another. Further, he who hath a greater of the same kind, hath also that which is less; but he, who only hath what is less, assuredly hath not that which is greater. For in sixty, thirty also are contained, not sixty also in thirty. But not to work from out that
St. Augustine—On the Good of Marriage

Letter Lii to Another Holy virgin.
To Another Holy Virgin. Under a religious habit she had continued to have a spirit given up to the world, and Bernard praises her for coming to a sense of her duty; he exhorts her not to neglect the grace given to her. 1. It is the source of great joy to me to hear that you are willing to strive after that true and perfect joy, which belongs not to earth but to heaven; that is, not to this, vale of tears, but to that city of God which the rivers of the flood thereof make glad (Ps. xlvi. 4). And in
Saint Bernard of Clairvaux—Some Letters of Saint Bernard, Abbot of Clairvaux

A Treatise of the Fear of God;
SHOWING WHAT IT IS, AND HOW DISTINGUISHED FROM THAT WHICH IS NOT SO. ALSO, WHENCE IT COMES; WHO HAS IT; WHAT ARE THE EFFECTS; AND WHAT THE PRIVILEGES OF THOSE THAT HAVE IT IN THEIR HEARTS. London: Printed for N. Ponder, at the Peacock in the Poultry, over against the Stocks market: 1679. ADVERTISEMENT BY THE EDITOR. "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom," and "a fountain of life"--the foundation on which all wisdom rests, as well as the source from whence it emanates. Upon a principle
John Bunyan—The Works of John Bunyan Volumes 1-3

Appendix the Daughters of Jerusalem
The question is frequently asked, Who are represented by the daughters of Jerusalem? They are clearly not the bride, yet they are not far removed from her. They know where the Bridegroom makes His flock to rest at noon; they are charged by the Bridegroom not to stir up nor awaken His love when she rests, abiding in Him; they draw attention to the Bridegroom as with dignity and pomp He comes up from the wilderness; their love-gifts adorn His chariot of state; they are appealed to by the bride for
J. Hudson Taylor—Union and Communion

Vanity of Human Glory.
"The world knoweth us not, because it knew Him not."--1 John iii. 1 Of St. Simon and St. Jude, the Saints whom we this day commemorate, little is known[1]. St. Jude, indeed, still lives in the Church in his Catholic epistle; but of his history we only know that he was brother to St. James the Less, and nearly related to our Lord and that, like St. Peter, he had been a married man. Besides his name of Jude or Judas, he is also called Thaddaeus and Lebbaeus in the Gospels. Of St. Simon we only
John Henry Newman—Parochial and Plain Sermons, Vol. VIII

Links
Revelation 14:4 NIV
Revelation 14:4 NLT
Revelation 14:4 ESV
Revelation 14:4 NASB
Revelation 14:4 KJV

Revelation 14:4 Commentaries

Bible Hub
Revelation 14:3
Top of Page
Top of Page