And I heard a voice from Heaven as the voice of many waters, and as of the voice of a great thunder, and I heard the voice of harpers harping with their harps. Revelation 14:2
I don’t play the harp, and at my stage of life I have no interest in learning how. But I find harps fascinating both as an instrument and as a source of beautiful music. In addition, I am fascinated by the concept that is generally accepted that every Christian on arriving in Heaven will be issued a harp on which to play accompaniment to our songs of worship. Maybe we will receive harps, I don’t know; the Bible certainly doesn’t say we will. Tribulation saints, many of them, will be given harps, as will at least some of the faithful tribulation 144,000 witnesses, who are the ones being described in our text today. Whether we make it ourselves or whether we listen to others making it, harp music will certainly play a prominent role in Heaven. And that is good, because no other form of music so perfectly portrays the atmosphere of peace and tranquility that we hear from the harp.
As the sweet strains of the harp fill Heaven’s corridors, all discordant sounds from human tongues will be silenced. That means no more lies and gossiping, even from Christians who stoop to such misbehaviour now. It also means an end to all scheming and plotting for revenge or advantage, to all proclaiming of personal agendas and ideas. It also terminates all business dealing and all planning for great programs and construction projects. The sound of harps will align all tongues in perfect harmony with Heaven’s greatest theme of ascribing glory to the Lamb.
Every day we hear of some new development in the conflicts of earth, battles and uprisings and terrorist attacks; and every month, the scene simply changes to another part of our tumultuous planet. So-called peace talks break down within hours because of hardened attitudes and unreasonable agendas. But in Heaven, the melody of the harps will forever replace all sounds of turmoil and strife, silencing the clash of swords and the sounds of gunfire and bombs. We are so accustomed to the animosity and struggles of this world that it is difficult for us to imagine a place where all that is silenced.
Great composers have created wonderful masterpieces of music, some of them capable of calming our souls and filling us with calm and peacefulness. These masterpieces capture a little bit of the sweetness of the music that fills Heaven’s halls. We listen to such music and appreciate the release of the tensions of life, if even for a little time. How wonderful to know that the release of life’s tensions in Heaven is permanent, and the sound of the harps and the wondrous singing of praise to the Lamb will be our eternal atmosphere. -Jim MacIntosh