The Winepress of God's Wrath

What is the Winepress?

And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.
- Revelation 14:20

The winepress of the wrath of God will be a literal event, ending the Battle of Armageddon. The story of Moses leading the children of Israel through the Red Sea, drowning the Egyptians that followed, can be used to help us picture this event. At the end of the age the Lord will open up a large valley, starting at the Mount of Olives, through which the children of Israel will flee, pursued by their enemies. "And blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs." (180 miles)

A Biblical Description of the Winepress

Zechariah 14:1-5

1.       Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee.

2.       For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city.

3.       Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle.

4.       And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south.

5.       And ye shall flee to the valley of the mountains; for the valley of the mountains shall reach unto Azal: yea, ye shall flee, like as ye fled from before the earthquake in the days of Uzziah king of Judah: and the LORD my God shall come, and all the saints with thee.

According to Zechariah, Israel will lose the battle of Armageddon ¹ (vs. 2); the situation will look even more hopeless than it did when Moses was penned in at the edge of the Red Sea.

And when Pharaoh drew nigh, the children of Israel lifted up their eyes, and, behold, the Egyptians marched after them; and they were sore afraid: and the children of Israel cried out unto the LORD.
And they said unto Moses, Because there were no graves in Egypt, hast thou taken us away to die in the wilderness? wherefore hast thou dealt thus with us, to carry us forth out of Egypt? - Exodus 14:10-11

There will be one difference, however. This time, when all seems lost, the children of Israel will reconcile with God, an event which never happened in the wilderness. Zechariah said it perfectly:

And I will pour upon the house of David, and upon the inhabitants of Jerusalem, the spirit of grace and of supplications: and they shall look upon me whom they have pierced, and they shall mourn for him, as one mourneth for his only son, and shall be in bitterness for him, as one that is in bitterness for his firstborn. - Zechariah 12:10

Jesus Himself said that He would come when this event happened.

For I say unto you, Ye shall not see me henceforth, till ye shall say, Blessed is he that cometh in the name of the Lord. - Matthew 23:39

All will seem lost, but at this time, when Israel recognizes her Messiah, the mountain will cleave in half and the children of Israel will "flee to the valley of the mountains." While Zechariah chapter 14 does not state that the armies of the world will follow after Israel, many other passages in the Bible hint at how it will end.

And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God.  And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs.  - Revelation 14:19-20

AND

And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood. And the earth helped the woman, and the earth opened her mouth, and swallowed up the flood which the dragon cast out of his mouth.
- Revelation 12:15-16

Moses and Egypt are allegories

According to the days of thy coming out of the land of Egypt will I show unto him marvelous things. - Micah 7:15 

At the end of the age God will duplicate many events that happened during the children of Israel's exodus out of Egypt. For instance, God will duplicate the plagues of Moses, pleading for the world to leave his chosen people alone, until He finally destroys the wicked.

Here are a few other passages of scripture that point to God doing similar miracles to the ones He did through Moses, when he lead the Israelites through the Red Sea.

Therefore thus saith the Lord GOD of hosts, O my people that dwellest in Zion, be not afraid of the Assyrian: he shall smite thee with a rod, and shall lift up his staff against thee, after the manner of Egypt. For yet a very little while, and the indignation shall cease, and mine anger in their destruction.  And the LORD of hosts shall stir up a scourge for him according to the slaughter of Midian at the rock of Oreb: and as his rod was upon the sea, so shall he lift it up after the manner of Egypt.  - Isaiah 10:24-26

AND

And there shall be an highway for the remnant of his people, which shall be left, from Assyria; like as it was to Israel in the day that he came up out of the land of Egypt.
- Isaiah 11:16

AND

Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his Holy Spirit within him?
That led them by the right hand of Moses with his glorious arm, dividing the water before them, to make himself an everlasting name?
That led them through the deep, as a horse in the wilderness, that they should not stumble?
As a beast goeth down into the valley, the Spirit of the LORD caused him to rest: so didst thou lead thy people, to make thyself a glorious name. -  Isaiah 63:11-14

AND

The LORD hath sworn by the excellency of Jacob, Surely I will never forget any of their works.
 Shall not the land tremble for this, and every one mourn that dwelleth therein? and it shall rise up wholly as a flood; and it shall be cast out and drowned, as by the flood of Egypt.
- Amos 8:7-8

AND

And the Lord GOD of hosts is he that toucheth the land, and it shall melt, and all that dwell therein shall mourn: and it shall rise up wholly like a flood; and shall be drowned, as by the flood of Egypt. - Amos 9:5

This is the same event that is spoken of by John:

And the angel thrust in his sickle into the earth, and gathered the vine of the earth, and cast it into the great winepress of the wrath of God. And the winepress was trodden without the city, and blood came out of the winepress, even unto the horse bridles, by the space of a thousand and six hundred furlongs. - Revelation 14:19-20 

Three verses later, in Revelation 15:3, the saints sing of their triumph:

And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb.
- Revelation 15:3a
 

What was the song of Moses?

Then sang Moses and the children of Israel this song unto the LORD, and spoke, saying, I will sing unto the LORD, for he hath triumphed gloriously: the horse and his rider hath he thrown into the sea. - Exodus 15:1