The grapes being fully ripe means they are overripe—past the proper harvest time—and this signals that God's judgment of the earth's people has fully come.
Les Feldick shows that the Greek word translated 'fully' carries the sense of 'overripe' or 'past harvest time.' The overripeness emphasizes that God is not acting prematurely: the moment for judgment has arrived. The fully ripe grapes are gathered and cast into the great winepress of the wrath of God.
Revelation 14:18 — This is the key verse in question, where the angel describes the clusters of the vine as having grapes 'fully ripe' before the sickle is thrust in.
Revelation 14:19 — It immediately connects the gathered grapes to being 'cast into the great winepress of the wrath of God,' explaining what the ripeness leads to.
Revelation 14:14–20 presents a symbolic harvest scene. An angel tells the One on the cloud to thrust in His sickle, saying, 'Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe' (Revelation 14:15). Then another angel says, 'Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe' (Revelation 14:18). The text itself simply states that the grapes are fully ripe and does not define the ripeness. Revelation 14:19–20 shows the result: '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.' The passage links the grape harvest to the winepress of God's wrath. The gathering of the fully ripe grapes is followed immediately by the treading of the winepress.
Les Feldick explains that the key to the phrase 'fully ripe' is the Greek word behind 'fully.' He says it means 'overripe'—the grapes are really past harvest time. He makes the same point about the earlier harvest of the earth, which he says is 'more than ripe,' almost past harvest time. This language shows that God's judgment is not early or premature; the time has fully come. The symbolic picture, Les says, is of God gathering the residue of humanity that is still living. Just as a husbandman gathers his grapes into a wine vat, God gathers the peoples of the earth, the armies, into the Middle East—specifically the Valley of Megiddo. The grape vat represents the wrath of God, and the gathering is under military auspices, forced by a sovereign God even though it makes no military sense. Finally, Les points to the treading of the winepress. In ancient times, people walked on the grapes in the vat until the juice ran out. Christ is the One who treads the winepress alone, because no one else is worthy. The image is awful and beyond human comprehension, but it is the climactic point when God says 'Enough!' and gathers them into the great wine vat of His wrath.
Les Feldick says the word translated 'fully' in the Greek means 'overripe'—the grapes are really past harvest time. He makes the same point about Revelation 14:15, saying the Greek is a stronger word: 'more than ripe,' almost past harvest time. The overripe condition shows that harvest time has come and cannot be delayed.
The fully ripe grapes are symbolic language for the residue of humanity that is still living on the earth. They are gathered like a husbandman gathers his grapes. Les says God is harvesting the men and people of the world into His wine vat, congregating them in the Valley of Megiddo in the Middle East under military auspices. This is not a beautiful picture; it is awful and beyond human comprehension, but it is the work of a sovereign God forcing the issue.
Les explains the ancient method: grapes were gathered and placed into a vat where they were crushed by walking on them until the juice ran out. The gathered grapes are cast into the great winepress, which Les identifies as the wrath of God. Revelation 14:20 says the winepress was trodden without the city, and Les notes this is northeast of Jerusalem. Christ is the One who treads the winepress alone, because He alone is worthy to bring this judgment.
The overripeness emphasizes that this harvest is not early or premature. It is the climactic point at which the harvest is due. Les says there is coming a day when God will say 'Enough!'—even as He did with Sodom and Gomorrah and with the Noach flood—and He will gather the nations into the great wine vat of His wrath. The ripeness signals that the time for judgment has fully arrived.
The Gathering to the Valley of Megiddo
Les sets the context for the Revelation 14 harvest by explaining that a sovereign God will cause the nations to gather in the Valley of Megiddo, and that the symbolic picture is awful and beyond human comprehension.
'Fully' Means Overripe
Les explains that the Greek word translated 'fully' in Revelation 14:18 means 'overripe,' so the grapes are really past harvest time.
More Than Ripe, Almost Past Harvest
Les shows that the harvest of the earth in Revelation 14:15 is described as 'more than ripe'—almost past harvest—signaling that the sovereign God is now bringing in the harvest.
Grapes Represent Residue of Humanity
Les interprets the fully ripe grapes as symbolic of God gathering the residue of humanity still living, gathering them in the Middle East under military auspices.
Christ Treads the Winepress Alone
Les applies the winepress image to Christ, who treads the winepress alone because He alone is worthy to bring this judgment.
People Gathered Like Grapes Into the Vat
Les explains the ancient practice of gathering grapes into a wine vat and walking on them to press out the juice, and applies it to God gathering the people of the world into His wine vat at Megiddo.
When Will Old Testament Saints Rise? Daniel 12 Explained:
Verse 10, "...and thou shalt not glean thy vineyard," in other words they weren't to pick every last grape in their vineyard, "...neither shalt thou gather every grape of thy vineyard, thou shalt leave them," you know, a gleaning, "...thou shalt leave them," for whom? The poor, see? That was mandated by God.
The Winepress Is the Wrath of God
Les concludes that the gathered grapes are cast into the great winepress—the wrath of God—and that God will say 'Enough!' and tread the winepress without the city.
Revelation 14:15: And another angel came out of the temple, crying with a loud voice to him that sat on the cloud, Thrust in thy sickle, and reap: for the time is come for thee to reap; for the harvest of the earth is ripe.
This verse introduces the harvest image and uses the word 'ripe' for the harvest of the earth, which Les says is actually 'more than ripe' in the Greek.
Revelation 14:18: And another angel came out from the altar, which had power over fire; and cried with a loud cry to him that had the sharp sickle, saying, Thrust in thy sharp sickle, and gather the clusters of the vine of the earth; for her grapes are fully ripe.
This is the verse in question, where the grapes are described as 'fully ripe' immediately before the gathering for judgment.
Revelation 14:19: 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.
This verse connects the gathered grapes to the great winepress of the wrath of God, explaining what the fully ripe harvest leads to.
Revelation 14:20: 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.
This verse describes the result of treading the winepress and is the climax of the grape-harvest judgment scene.
Yes. Les Feldick explains that the Greek word translated 'fully' means 'overripe'—the grapes are really past harvest time. This is why he says it is not simply ripe but beyond ripe.
The fully ripe grapes are symbolic of the peoples of the earth still remaining at the end of the age. They are gathered like grapes into a wine vat, which represents the wrath of God.
According to Les Feldick, the people of the world are gathered into the Valley of Megiddo in the Middle East. God sovereignly brings them there under military auspices.
The grapes are cast into the great winepress of the wrath of God and are trodden without the city. Les describes this as the climactic moment when God says 'Enough!'
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