Revelation Study

Revelation Study — Chapter 19

Analysis: The Heavenly visions ended with Jerusalem going to its doom in chapter eleven. The Earthly aspect of the Apocalypse begins with chapter twelve and continues through chapter 14 revealing the weapons Satan will use in his assault on the people of God and then in chapters 15-18 how God uses the forces of Satan to accomplish his vengeance on the Jews. We have the word picture of the victory celebration of the victory over BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH. But the battle continues between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent, good and evil, righteousness and unrighteousness, Christ and Satan. Then we have pictured the marriage of the Lamb and finally the victorious rider on the white horse, the KING of KINGS and LORD of LORDS!

Revelation 19:1-3 "And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God: 2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand. 3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever and ever."

A great voice is heard again. This singular voice is of many people in heaven. This voice belongs to the multitudes that have been described in several other places that surround the throne of God. It is the voice of praise in regard to the overthrow and judgment of the great whore. The voice said, "Alleluia!" That means "praise the Lord." Their praise was for the true and righteous judgment and this judgment goes on as smoke rising up for ever and ever.

Vss 4-5 "And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia. 5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great."

John sees the characters that were introduced in chapter four. These beasts are not the kind of beasts that depict kingdoms but rather known by the term "living creatures" in most translations. Evidently they were not a part of the heavenly voice of verse one for they join in the chorus already mentioned and cry out, "Amen; Alleluia." "So be it; praise the Lord." And a voice comes from out of the throne adding its voice to the chorus. Perhaps this is the Son who sits at the right hand of God on David's throne.

Vs 6 "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth."

Just who this multitude, many waters and mighty thunderings are, is a matter of speculation. It seems to me that since about all of God's servants have expressed their sentiments, this sounds like the entire known world is giving God praise as he who rules in the affairs of men.

Vss 7-8 "Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. 8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints."

The chorus of voices continue but this time the theme changes. From the sordid clothing of the harlot they now have the view of one who is arrayed in white linen which portrays the righteousness of saints.

There is little doubt that the Lamb is Christ. John the Baptizer announced, "Behold, the Lamb of God, who taketh away the sin of the world." But who is the wife? All the commentaries that I have examined agree that the wife or the bride is the church. Under the Old Covenant, righteous Israel was married to God. But we have a New Covenant now. We hear Paul in Romans 7:4: "Wherefore, my brethren, ye also are become dead to the law by the body of Christ; that ye should be married to another, even to him who is raised from the dead, that we should bring forth fruit unto God." Therefore the idea is that those who have been obedient to the gospel of Christ, have made a vow and become, as all others of like circumstances, the bride of Christ. [We'll have more to say about this bride in the 21st chapter.] It would be good also to read Paul's remarks concerning the husband-wife relationship as recorded in Ephesians 5:22-23 noting verse 32 in particular: "This is a great mystery, but I speak concerning Christ and the church."

There is considerable disagreement in regard to when this marriage takes place. There are at least three, maybe more, views regarding this question: (1) Jesus is regarded by many as presently married to the church. They believe the marriage had its beginning at Pentecost. (2) Others argue that Jesus will accept His bride (the church) in marriage when the saints are raptured to meet Him in the air. This is the premillennial view. (3) Other believe Jesus will accept the church as His bride after the resurrection and final judgment. This is usually called the post-millennial view. The last two views regard the present dispensation as a period of betrothal.

I believe the first. I believe the marriage took place on the Pentecost of Acts 2. However, it is a continuing situation. (More later.) Every time an individual obeys the gospel he is married to Christ. The language used here indicates that the marriage has been consummated. "The marriage of the Lamb is come." The New King James reads like this: "the marriage of the Lamb HAS come," past tense, as does the New American Standard, the Revised Standard and the New Revised Standard. Not something to be looked forward to but something that has happened and will continue to happen. The bride has been ready, she is arrayed in white linen indicating the "righteousness of the saints."

Vs 9 "And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God."

There are seven "blesseds" in the Revelation. These, like those in Matthew 5, are called beatitudes. This one is No. 4. Blessings, supreme happiness is the promise for those who are called to the marriage supper. The word "called" as used in this verse is used like Paul used it in Romans 8:30: "Moreover whom he did predestinate, them he also called: and whom he called, them he also justified: and whom he justified, them he also glorified," and not like it used in Matthew 22:14: "For many are called, but few are chosen." During his personal ministry, Jesus related a parable in which he likened the kingdom of heaven to a marriage feast. That parable is somewhat parallel to the application of the events of Revelation to this point. I reproduce it here for your convenience:

Matthew 22:1-10: "And Jesus answered and spake unto them again by parables, and said, 2 The kingdom of heaven is like unto a certain king, which made a marriage for his son, 3 And sent forth his servants to call them that were bidden to the wedding: and they would not come. 4 Again, he sent forth other servants, saying, Tell them which are bidden, Behold, I have prepared my dinner: my oxen and my fatlings are killed, and all things are ready: come unto the marriage. 5 But they made light of it, and went their ways, one to his farm, another to his merchandise: 6 And the remnant took his servants, and entreated them spitefully, and slew them. 7 But when the king heard thereof, he was wroth: and he sent forth his armies, and destroyed those murderers, and burned up their city. 8 Then saith he to his servants, The wedding is ready, but they which were bidden were not worthy. 9 Go ye therefore into the highways, and as many as ye shall find, bid to the marriage. 10 So those servants went out into the highways, and gathered together all as many as they found, both bad and good: and the wedding was furnished with guests."

Here we see the story of the Jews told: they were to be the ones to benefit from the gospel but they (generally) rejected it and killed those who preached it; God was wroth and he destroyed their city. Very few Jews obeyed the gospel after Jerusalem was destroyed but it was readily accepted by the Gentile nations.

Vs 10 "And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellow servant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."

Just exactly who this is at whose feet he fell is not clear. The last individual voice that was heard was the one from the throne. Likely it was the one in 18:21. He is the last angel mentioned that speaks. John seemingly is overwhelmed with all the splendor of the events he has witnessed and in this awe-stricken moment he sought to worship the angel. This must not be. The testimony of Jesus is the entire Book of Revelation. This is stated in the first chapter. Notice that the translators did not see fit to capitalize the word "spirit." Evidently they thought it could be anything the Greek word "pneuma" is defined as. One of these definitions is "breath or wind." So I think he is saying that the testimony concerning the fulfilling of prophecy is it life-breath. That is what makes prophecy real, when we see it fulfilled. That page of the history of Israel closes at this point. We are ready for page two.

Vss 11-13 "And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 13 And he was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean."

Here we are introduced to the Leader in this great battle between the seed of the woman and the seed of the serpent. To his enemies he would be an awesome sight for his eyes were as a flame of fire, but to his followers he was the crowned king. What the name was, as is stated, no one but himself knew. His vesture had been dipped in blood. "Vesture" could be just a mantle or cloak or it could be his robe or apparel. I think it would appropriate to just say his "garments" had been dipped in blood. Remember, we are talking about war, an all out war that he had been fighting for centuries. Hailey and some others think it ought to be "sprinkled" because it mentions that he "treads the winepress" where the blood was shed and that blood splattered or was sprinkled on him. Some say it was his own blood of atonement. Of course the battle he fights is a spiritual battle. It is not actual blood. But it indicates that he is a warrior who is not just splattered with the blood of his enemies, he had been immersed in that battle and the blood might be described as on another occasion, "up to the horses bridles." The word in Greek is "bapto." which comes from the same root that we get baptism, immersion or dipping, not sprinkling. But, some say, his followers are clothed in fine linen, white and clean. His followers are the heavenly band who have had their "garments washed in the blood of the lamb" and thus made clean. They are pure and righteous. They stand ready to join the battle.

Vss 15-16 "And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. 16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS."

His fight with the scribes and Pharisees, the hypocritical Jews, has now been fought and won. Now he is ready for the nations. His warfare will still be spiritual and he and his followers will fight it with the sharp sword of his mouth. Paul said, "the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty ...." He further told them what their battle regalia would be: (Ephesians 6:11-18) "Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. 12 For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. 13 Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. 14 Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; 15 And your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; 16 Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: 18 Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints." With that weaponry and with his followers armed with their swords and shielded against the onslaught of the enemy, the King of all kings, and the Lord of all lords, would rule the world with a rod of iron. That phrase had been used of him before in Rev. 2:27, Rev. 12:5 and Rev. 19:15.

Vss 17-18 "And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the great God; 18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great."

Another heavenly messenger invites the fowls, in particular, the scavenger birds to the feast of the enemies of the King. "Where the carcase is, there will the vultures be gathered together." Even though he had defeated the scarlet lady, there were still battles to be fought. It seems that on many and most occasions, in this battle between the forces of good and evil, that the evil oft times wins. It seems that the saints suffer and the enemy prospers. But however it may look on the outside, the saint is always the winner for he lives on and on while the unrighteous die and are cast out.

Vss 19-20 "And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. 20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone."

The beast (the Roman Empire) and the false prophet (the pagan religions) were in some way deceived by Satan and used in his battle against truth and righteousness but now they are defeated. They are cast into the lake burning with fire and brimstone. The great, invincible Roman Empire came to an end in 476 and the pagan religions that served it soon faded away to be heard of no more. They have been gone for about 1500 years. Where is the King and his army? They are still fighting against the new allies of Satan and winning every skirmish. Not crowned with earthly crowns, but with the heavenly crown of victory. God's kingdom is an everlasting kingdom that will live forever.

Vs 21 "And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of his mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh."

Anyone else who sees fit to fight against the Lord of lords, in the end will be defeated while the white robed followers of the Lamb will dwell with Him in eternity. The kingdom of God lives on.

Vss 4-5 "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. 5 For her sins have reached unto heaven, and God hath remembered her
iniquities."

Another voice, perhaps another angel, nevertheless, the voice of God, a heavenly voice. This seems to be indicative of the
warnings of Matthew 24 for God's people to look for the signs, "Watch, therefore." So the signs have come and now God calls on
his people to come out of the approaching destruction. Josephus records that this was done and no Christians perished but fled to
the hills of Peraea beyond Jordan near Pella.

Vss 6-8 "Reward her even as she rewarded you, and double unto her double according to her works: in the cup which
she hath filled fill to her double. 7 How much she hath glorified herself, and lived deliciously, so much torment and
sorrow give her: for she saith in her heart, I sit a queen, and am no widow, and shall see no sorrow."

The call is for double the vengeance that she rightly deserves. Why? She, Babylon, Jerusalem, the Jewish nation, stoned the
prophets and killed those who were sent to her under the Old Covenant and now they had also slain the apostles and prophets of
the New Covenant. So their punishment, the vengeance of God, should be double what it ordinarily would have been. All these
things she was guilty of but still she says in her heart, "I have done nothing wrong, I am still the Queen." This was their condition in
the days of Malachi when God sent a drought upon them, a famine of the word of God. They heard no more from God until John
the Baptist was sent from God about 300 years later. Notice Malachi 1:2: "... I have loved you, saith the LORD. Yet ye say,
Wherein hast thou loved us?" Verse 6: "O priests, that despise my name. And ye say, Wherein have we despised thy
name?" Verse 7: "Ye offer polluted bread upon mine altar; and ye say, Wherein have we polluted thee?" Verses 13-14
"that he regardeth not the offering any more, or receiveth it with good will at your hand. 14 Yet ye say, Wherefore?"
Verse 17 "Ye have wearied the LORD with your words. Yet ye say, Wherein have we wearied him?" (3:7) "Return unto me,
and I will return unto you, saith the LORD of hosts. But ye said, Wherein shall we return?" Verse 8 "Will a man rob God?
Yet ye have robbed me. But ye say, Wherein have we robbed thee?" Verse 13: "Your words have been stout against me,
saith the LORD. Yet ye say, What have we spoken so much against thee?" Never, at any time, did they see their wrongs and
repent. So it was in these days. Once again, the age-old cry of "Not me, Lord!"

Vss 9-10 "And the kings of the earth, who have committed fornication and lived deliciously with her, shall bewail her, and
lament for her, when they shall see the smoke of her burning, 10 Standing afar off for the fear of her torment, saying,
Alas, alas, that great city Babylon, that mighty city! for in one hour is thy judgment come."

All those who have committed fornication with her will lament her downfall because of what they have gained from her but they
stand afar off, lest they suffer the same judgment she is suffering.

Vss 11-17 "And the merchants of the earth shall weep and mourn over her; for no man buyeth their merchandise any
more: 12 The merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk,
and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of
brass, and iron, and marble, 13 And cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine
flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men. 14 And the fruits that
thy soul lusted after are departed from thee, and all things which were dainty and goodly are departed from thee, and
thou shalt find them no more at all. 15 The merchants of these things, which were made rich by her, shall stand afar off
for the fear of her torment, weeping and wailing, 16 And saying, Alas, alas, that great city, that was clothed in fine linen,
and purple, and scarlet, and decked with gold, and precious stones, and pearls! 17 For in one hour so great riches is
come to nought. And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar
off."

These verses are more specific in regard to the dealings of the Jews with the merchants of the world. These merchants shared in
the riches of trading with the Jews and now one of their major markets was being taken from them. They lamented. Not because
of their emotional feelings or concern for these people but because they could not use them for riches and fornication partners.
Even as the puppet kings would be kings for one hour as they allied themselves with the Jews, these merchants see a treasure
being taken from them in one hour.

Vss 18-19 "... And every shipmaster, and all the company in ships, and sailors, and as many as trade by sea, stood afar
off, 18 And cried when they saw the smoke of her burning, saying, What city is like unto this great city! 19 And they cast
dust on their heads, and cried, weeping and wailing, saying, Alas, alas, that great city, wherein were made rich all that
had ships in the sea by reason of her costliness! for in one hour is she made desolate."

Some have said that this great city could not be Jerusalem because she was not a seaport and these verses rather suggest that the
great city would be a seaport. This is just one other avenue through which the Jews made others rich. Notice what Josephus says
in regard to this avenue. Now Josephus was not commenting on this verse of scripture, he was not a commentator of Revelation,
he was just a historian relating the things that he actually sees. He is contemporary with these happenings. He says, "Nor indeed is
Judea destitute of such delights as come from the sea since its maritime places extend as far as Ptolemais: it was parted into
eleven portions, of which the royal city Jerusalem was the supreme, and presided over all neighboring country, as the head over
the body." Those who enriched themselves by sea commerce would also lament the death of one of their sources of wealth.

Vs 20 "Rejoice over her, thou heaven, and ye holy apostles and prophets; for God hath avenged you on her."

It was time for rejoicing for those who had been mistreated. God has promised vengeance concerning ill-treatment of his people.
They had mistreated everyone that was sent to her. His vengeance was complete and these heaven dwelling beings rejoiced. We
are told about the same thing in the New Testament: "Dearly beloved, avenge not yourselves, but rather give place unto
wrath: for it is written, Vengeance is mine; I will repay, saith the Lord" (Romans 12:19).

Vss 21-24 "And a mighty angel took up a stone like a great millstone, and cast it into the sea, saying, Thus with violence
shall that great city Babylon be thrown down, and shall be found no more at all. 22 And the voice of harpers, and
musicians, and of pipers, and trumpeters, shall be heard no more at all in thee; and no craftsman, of whatsoever craft he
be, shall be found any more in thee; and the sound of a millstone shall be heard no more at all in thee; 23 And the light of
a candle shall shine no more at all in thee; and the voice of the bridegroom and of the bride shall be heard no more at all
in thee: for thy merchants were the great men of the earth; for by thy sorceries were all nations deceived. 24 And in her
was found the blood of prophets, and of saints, and of all that were slain upon the earth."

Destruction of that great city, Jerusalem (Babylon) is to be complete. No more will these things be done in her. Palestine,
Jerusalem, has been rebuilt as a city belonging to men. The Zionist movement began in the late 1900's with a view to rebuilding
Palestine and Jerusalem. May 14, 1948 Israel was given a national charter by the United Nations, so some might say that this
prophecy was untrue.

This prophecy pertains to Jerusalem as the holy city of God, the city of David. That city can never be rebuilt because its very
existence as the holy city was destroyed. The holy city must be build on the foundation of the Old Covenant with its tribal divisions,
the Levitical priesthood and the temple service. The ark with the covenant written by God's hand in stone, the rod of Aaron which
authorized the priesthood and the golden pot of manna that indicated that God was with them, was all gone. All genealogical
records were destroyed. Never again will there be a Jerusalem of God. It was utterly destroyed. The last part of vs 23, introduced
by the word "for," and vs 24 tells of further reasons why Jerusalem was destroyed. The word "for" means "because."