Revelation 14:6–12 & 18:1–5

The Three Angels' Messages

The everlasting gospel proclaimed to every nation, kindred, tongue, and people. The final warning before the close of probation. The seal of God versus the mark of the beast. The last test for eternity — determined by whether you come out of Babylon.

The First Angel's Message

Revelation 14:6–7 · c. 1840–1844

"And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people, saying with a loud voice, Fear God, and give glory to him; for the hour of his judgment is come: and worship him that made heaven, and earth, and the sea, and the fountains of waters."

— Revelation 14:6–7 (KJV)

The First Angel calls all the world back to the Creator God — the God who made heaven and earth, the sea and the fountains of waters. This is a direct reference to the fourth commandment (Exodus 20:8–11), the Sabbath of creation, which identifies the true God from all false systems of worship.

James White · 1849–1850

The First Angel’s Message in The Present Truth

James White carried the judgment-hour proclamation into print through The Present Truth. The paper gathered the scattered believers around the sanctuary, Sabbath, sealing, and the faith of Jesus, preserving the light that the Protestant churches the Advent band had come out of in 1843 and 1844 had rejected.

“The present truth now, is that which shows present duty, and the right position for us who are about to witness the time of trouble such as never was.”

— James White, The Present Truth, as preserved in the SundayLaw source study

Read the original periodical and compare its burden with the testimony of Ellen White’s writings and the prophetic charts.

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The proclamation "the hour of His judgment is come" pointed prophetically to October 22, 1844 — the end of the 2,300-day prophecy of Daniel 8:14, when Christ entered the Most Holy Place of the heavenly sanctuary to begin the investigative judgment. William Miller, Charles Fitch, Apollos Hale, and a host of Advent preachers carried this message across the United States and the world from approximately 1840 to 1844.

"The first angel's message of Revelation 14, announcing the hour of God's judgment and calling upon men to fear and worship Him, was designed to separate the professed people of God from the corrupting influences of the world and to arouse them to see their true condition of worldliness and backsliding."

— Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 379

The Second Angel's Message

Revelation 14:8 · Summer 1844

"And there followed another angel, saying, Babylon is fallen, is fallen, that great city, because she made all nations drink of the wine of the wrath of her fornication."

— Revelation 14:8 (KJV)

In the summer of 1844, Charles Fitch preached his landmark sermon "Come Out of Her, My People" — calling all true believers to separate from the fallen Protestant churches that had rejected the First Angel's Message. When the churches closed their doors to the Advent message, they fell from their position of favor with God. Babylon — confusion — describes any church that mixes human tradition with the commandments of God.

The Midnight Cry of Matthew 25:6 — "Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him" — joined and amplified the Second Angel's Message in the autumn of 1844, producing the great Seventh-Month Movement. Tens of thousands came out of the established churches in preparation for October 22, 1844.

"As the churches refused to receive the first angel's message, they rejected the light from heaven and fell from the favor of God. They trusted to their own strength, and by opposing the first message placed themselves where they could not see the light of the second angel's message."

— Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p. 237

III

The Third Angel's Message

Revelation 14:9–12 · From October 22, 1844 onward

"And the third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, If any man worship the beast and his image, and receive his mark in his forehead, or in his hand, the same shall drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out without mixture into the cup of his indignation; and he shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels, and in the presence of the Lamb: And the smoke of their torment ascendeth up for ever and ever: and they have no rest day nor night, who worship the beast and his image, and whosoever receiveth the mark of his name. Here is the patience of the saints: here are they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus."

— Revelation 14:9–12 (KJV)

The Third Angel's Message is the most solemn warning in Scripture. It warns against worshiping the beast and his image — the Papacy and any civil-religious system that enforces false worship — and against receiving his mark. The seal of God (the seventh-day Sabbath, Revelation 7; Ezekiel 20:12,20) stands in direct opposition to the mark of the beast (Sunday observance enforced by civil law).

The people who survive this final test are described plainly: "they that keep the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus" (Revelation 14:12). All ten commandments. The seventh-day Sabbath included. This is the identifying mark of the 144,000 — those sealed before the close of probation (Revelation 7:1–4; Daniel 12:1).

"The third angel's message is to lighten the earth with its glory. How important, then, that we stand in the right position to receive this message. Let us not through our own perversity dishonor God, and misrepresent the precious truth that has been given us."

— Ellen G. White, Testimonies for the Church, Vol. 6, p. 401

The Final Test — Commandments of God vs. Mark of the Beast

The Third Angel draws the final line in earth's history. On one side: those who keep the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus — including the seventh-day Sabbath (the fourth commandment, Exodus 20:8–11; the seal of the living God, Revelation 7:2–3).

On the other side: those who worship the beast and his image — any church-state union that enforces false worship by civil law, mirroring the model of the Papacy, which changed the Sabbath from the seventh day to the first day without biblical authority.

James White — The Reformers Stopped Reforming

"The 'mystery of iniquity' began to work in the church in Paul's day. It finally crowded out the simplicity of the gospel, and corrupted the doctrine of Christ, and the church went into the wilderness. Martin Luther, and other reformers, arose in the strength of God, and with the Word and Spirit, made mighty strides in the Reformation. The greatest fault we can find in the Reformation is, the Reformers stopped reforming. Had they gone on, and onward, till they had left the last vestige of Papacy behind, such as natural immortality, sprinkling, the trinity, and Sunday-keeping, the church would now be free from her unscriptural errors."

— James White, "The Word," Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, February 7, 1856, vol. 7, no. 19, p. 148. View Original PDF

"The third angel's message was, and still is, a WARNING to the saints to 'hold fast,' and not go back, and 'receive' the marks which the virgin band got rid of, during the second angel's cry."

— A Word to the Little Flock

"Here we might mention the Trinity, which does away the personality of God, and of his Son Jesus Christ, and of sprinkling or pouring instead of being 'buried with Christ in baptism,' 'planted in the likeness of his death:' but we pass from these fables to notice one that is held sacred by nearly all professed Christians, both Catholic and Protestant. It is, The change of the Sabbath of the fourth commandment from the seventh to the first day of the week."

— James White, "Preach the Word," Advent Review and Sabbath Herald, December 11, 1855, vol. 7, no. 11, p. 85. View Original PDF

The Angel of Revelation 18 Joins

Revelation 18:1–5 · The Loud Cry

"And after these things I saw another angel come down from heaven, having great power; and the earth was lightened with his glory. And he cried mightily with a strong voice, saying, Babylon the great is fallen, is fallen, and is become the habitation of devils, and the hold of every foul spirit, and a cage of every unclean and hateful bird. For all nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her fornication, and the kings of the earth have committed fornication with her, and the merchants of the earth are waxed rich through the abundance of her delicacies. And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities."

— Revelation 18:1–5 (KJV)

Just as the Midnight Cry (Matthew 25:6) joined and amplified the Second Angel's Message in 1844, so the angel of Revelation 18 joins the Third Angel's Message in final power — the Loud Cry. The message of Babylon's fall is repeated with additional force, now including the corruptions that have been entering the churches since 1844.

"The message of the fall of Babylon, as given by the second angel, is repeated, with the additional mention of the corruptions which have been entering the churches since 1844. The work of this angel comes in at the right time to join in the last great work of the third angel's message as it swells to a loud cry."

— Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p. 277.1

"This message seemed to be an addition to the third message, joining it as the midnight cry joined the second angel's message in 1844… proclaiming the fall of Babylon and calling upon God's people to come out of her."

— Ellen G. White, Early Writings, p. 277.2

"When the messages of the three angels come prominently before the world again just before the second advent of Christ, the angel of Revelation 18:1 joins in the proclamation of the second angel in the message that 'Babylon is fallen.' 'Come out of her, my people.'"

— Ellen G. White, Early Writings, Appendix, p. 304.1

What Is Babylon? — The Final Test for Eternity

Answer the Five Questions: What Is Babylon?

Babylon means confusion. It describes every religious system that mixes the commandments of men with the commandments of God. In the final crisis, Babylon is specifically the church-state union — any church organization that submits to civil government control of religion.

“Thousands upon thousands will listen who have never heard words like these. In amazement they hear the testimony that Babylon is the church, fallen because of her errors and sins, because of her rejection of the truth sent to her from heaven.”

— Ellen G. White, The Great Controversy, p. 606.2

The IRS 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status is a legally binding contract between a church and the civil government. The historic Adventist pioneers already had what they needed spiritually — but by choosing to incorporate under civil law (April 15, 1904) and register with the government, the "new organization" joined church and state together, creating an image of the same system the Pilgrim fathers fled Europe to escape in 1620.

The Pilgrims left England on the Mayflower, landing at Plymouth Rock in 1620, to escape the Church of England — a state-controlled church that persecuted those who would not conform to its forms of worship. The Vatican's model of joining church and state to enforce religious observance is the very system the Book of Revelation calls Babylon. To form another image of that same system on American soil is the fulfillment of Revelation 13:11–17.

God's call is plain: "Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues." — Revelation 18:4. Come into home churches. Study the original books, tracts, sermons, and prophecy charts of the historic Adventist pioneers. Keep the commandments of God. Hold the faith of Jesus.

Matt 25

Two Groups — Two Different Foundations

Matthew 25:1–13 · The Wise and Foolish Virgins

"Then shall the kingdom of heaven be likened unto ten virgins, which took their lamps, and went forth to meet the bridegroom. And five of them were wise, and five were foolish. They that were foolish took their lamps, and took no oil with them: But the wise took oil in their vessels with their lamps. While the bridegroom tarried, they all slumbered and slept. And at midnight there was a cry made, Behold, the bridegroom cometh; go ye out to meet him… And they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut."

— Matthew 25:1–6, 10 (KJV)

The parable of the ten virgins describes the Advent movement exactly. All ten went out to meet the Bridegroom. All ten had lamps — a profession of truth. But only five had oil — the Holy Spirit, living obedience, the commandments of God kept in faith. The dividing line was not visible from the outside. It was internal. Foundational.

The Wise Virgins

The Original Foundation

Built on October 22, 1844

The historic Adventist pioneers came out of Babylon in response to the Second Angel's cry. They laid their foundation on the prophetic waymarks — the heavenly sanctuary, the seventh-day Sabbath, the Three Angels' Messages, the commandments of God, and the faith of Jesus. They rejected every vestige of Papal tradition.

Foundation: October 22, 1844 — Daniel 8:14
Oil: Sabbath, Sanctuary, Seal of God
Standard: Commandments of God + Faith of Jesus
Lamp: The Present Truth — James White, 1849
Cry: Three Angels' Messages — Revelation 14:6–12
Goal: The 144,000 sealed — Revelation 7; Daniel 12:1

Explore the Historic Pioneers →

The Foolish Virgins

The New Organization Foundation

Built on April 15, 1904

The new organization incorporated on April 15, 1904, creating the General Conference Corporation of Seventh-day Adventists under civil law — joining church and state together. Lamps but no oil. A profession of truth without the living obedience. Roman hierarchical structure. Catholic doctrines brought back in. "Another universal and truly Catholic organization." (Review, March 5, 1981)

Foundation: April 15, 1904 — civil incorporation
No oil: Church joined to state — EIN 52-0643036
Standard: Government-registered corporation
Path: Same as fallen Protestant churches in 1844
Image: Papacy / Church of England / Vatican model
End: "The door was shut" — Matthew 25:10

View the 1904 Incorporation Record →

"Adventists from 1844 onward built on the everlasting gospel — the commandments of God and the faith of Jesus. The new organization of 1904 built on a civil charter. One foundation is the Rock. The other is sand. The storm is coming."

— Paraphrase from Matthew 7:24–27 applied to the Advent movement

Ellen White Warned Before It Happened

"The enemy of souls has sought to bring in the supposition that a great reformation was to take place among Seventh-day Adventists, and that this reformation would consist in giving up the doctrines which stand as the pillars of our faith, and engaging in a process of reorganization. Were this reformation to take place, what would result?

The principles of truth that God in His wisdom has given to the remnant church, would be discarded. Our religion would be changed. The fundamental principles that have sustained the work for the last fifty years would be accounted as error. A new organization would be established. Books of a new order would be written. A system of intellectual philosophy would be introduced."

"We cannot now step off the foundation that God has established. We cannot now enter into any new organization; for this would mean apostasy from the truth."

— Ellen G. White, Selected Messages Book 1, p. 204.2

This warning was given before April 15, 1904. The new organization was formed anyway. The wise virgins hear the warning and keep their oil. The foolish hear it — and go in without it anyway.

Q&A

What Is the Message of the 144,000?

Answered by Elder James White — "The Modern Moses"

"The third angel's message was, and still is, a WARNING to the saints to 'hold fast,' and not go back, and 'receive' THE MARKS which the virgin band got rid of, during the second angel's cry."

— James White, A Word to the "Little Flock", April 21, 1847, p. 11

The message of the 144,000 is not a new message — it is the recovery and holding fast of every truth the Second Angel's cry exposed and separated God's people from. The marks of Babylon that the virgin band got rid of in 1843–1844 must never be received again. That is what James White called the Third Angel's Message.

Yet in 1856 — only nine years after writing those words — James White warned that the movement was already beginning to drift. Elder White, sometimes called the Modern Moses, identified four specific dangers the emerging denomination faced:

The Reformers Stopped Reforming

"The greatest fault we can find in the Reformation is, the Reformers stopped reforming… had they left the last vestige of Papacy behind — like the Trinity, Sunday sacredness, natural immortality, sprinkling — the church would now be free from her unscriptural errors."

— James White

The pioneers did not borrow from Rome. They rejected Rome. The marks of Babylon — the doctrines listed above — were precisely what the Second Angel's cry called God's people to leave behind. To bring them back in is apostasy from the foundation.

The SDA Denomination Followed the Same Path

The Seventh-day Adventist denomination followed the same trajectory as the fallen Protestant churches did in 1843–1844 during the Second Angel's cry. Step by step, the marks that were cast off were brought back in. The corporate incorporation of April 15, 1904 — creating the General Conference Corporation of Seventh-day Adventists under civil law — joined church and state together, creating the very image the pioneers had warned against.

That new organization became Babylon the moment it was created on April 15, 1904, as documented in the 1905 Seventh-day Adventist Yearbook. The record is not hidden.

View 1905 Yearbook — Incorporation Record April 15, 1904 Documentary Evidence

The Confession of What It Had Become

"Another Universal and Truly Catholic Organization"

"There is another universal and truly Catholic organization, the Seventh-day Adventist Church."

— Review and Herald, March 5, 1981 (Neal C. Wilson)

View Original Document (PDF) Adventist Review 1981 (Full Issue)

The path is traceable. From "hold fast and do not receive the marks of Babylon back" (James White, 1847) — to "we are another truly Catholic organization" (1981). That is what happens when a movement stops reforming, incorporates under civil law, adopts Roman hierarchical structures, and trades the commandments of God for the approval of the kingdoms of this world.

The Final Call — Escape While You Can

The angel of Revelation 18:1–5 joins the Third Angel's Message with final, earth-lightening power. This is the Loud Cry. It unmasks the corruptions that have entered since 1844 and calls God's people to complete separation. There is no neutral ground.

"Come out of her, my people, that ye be not partakers of her sins, and that ye receive not of her plagues. For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her iniquities."

— Revelation 18:4–5 (KJV)

"Flee from the Laodicean churches like Lot from Sodom! Their teachings lead to destruction — DEATH! DEATH!! eternal DEATH!!! is on their track."

— Joseph Bates (paraphrase of his Laodicean warning, echoing Flee From Laodicea)

Can you join with those who deny God's word? The April 15, 1904 corporate structure became Babylon the moment it was created — a state-recognized, federally registered corporation that joined church and state together, exactly as the Vatican did, exactly as the Church of England did, exactly as every fallen church did before it.

The Pilgrims left England in 1620 on the Mayflower to escape that very thing. The call has not changed: Come out of her, my people.

The 1850 Prophetic Chart

The 1850 prophetic chart — prepared by Otis Nichols and used by Captain Joseph Bates — displays the Three Angels' Messages, the heavenly sanctuary, the commandments of God, and the prophetic timeline from Daniel and Revelation. It was the visual foundation upon which the pioneer preachers proclaimed the urgent message after 1844. "Write the vision, and make it plain upon tables, that he may run that readeth it." — Habakkuk 2:2–3.

1850 Adventist Pioneer Prophetic Chart — Three Angels' Messages, Heavenly Sanctuary, Commandments of God

Use the controls to enlarge the chart up to 10x. Scroll or drag the enlarged image to inspect its details.

Open 1850 Chart (PDF) Key of Explanation (PDF) 1850 Chart Biography Page

Captain Joseph Bates — Explanation of the 1850 Chart

Captain Joseph Bates wrote the key of explanation for the 1850 prophetic chart, connecting the Three Angels' Messages, the heavenly sanctuary, and the sealing of the 144,000 to the prophetic timeline. Read it below beginning on the first page.

Open Full PDF A Seal of the Living God — Bates (1849)

Primary Source Documents

The Three Angels' Messages were proclaimed and explained in detail by the historic Adventist pioneers in their books, tracts, sermons, and periodicals. Read them in their own words.

The Present Truth — James White (1849–1850) · The foundational periodical establishing the pillars of truth Come Out of Her My People — Charles Fitch (1843) · The Second Angel's Message sermon A Seal of the Living God — Captain Joseph Bates (1849) · Seventh-day Sabbath as the seal of the 144,000 The 1843 Prophetic Chart — Fitch & Hale · First Angel's Message visual timeline The 1850 Prophetic Chart — Otis Nichols · Three Angels' Messages with sanctuary Captain Joseph Bates — Biography & complete works April 15, 1904 — The new organization incorporation record