Revelation 19

How will it all end?” has been mankind’s major question for centuries. Historians have studied the past, hoping to find a clue to understanding the future. Philosophers have tried to penetrate the meaning of things, but they have yet to find the key. No wonder perplexed people have turned in desperation to astrology and spiritism!

The prophetic Word of God shines like a “light… in a dark place” (2 Peter 1:19), and on that we can depend. Here in Revelation 19—20, John has recorded five key events that will take place before God “wraps up” human history and ushers in His new heavens and earth.

When Babylon fell on the earth, the command was given in heaven, “Rejoice over her!” (Rev. 18:20), and what we read in this section is heaven’s response to that command. The word alleluia is the Greek form of the Hebrew word hallelujah, which means “praise the Lord.” This is heaven’s “Hallelujah Chorus” and it will be sung for three reasons.

God has judged His enemies (vv. 1–4). Since the “great whore [harlot]” of Revelation 17 was destroyed by “the beast” and his fellow rulers (Rev. 17:16) in the middle of the tribulation, the “great whore” referred to here must be Babylon the Great. Comparing Revelation 17: with 18: and 9, the connection is obvious. Both the apostate religious system and the satanic economic-political system led the world astray and polluted mankind. Both were guilty of persecuting God’s people and martyring many of them.

The song emphasizes God’s attributes, which is the proper way to honor Him. We do not rejoice at the sinfulness of Babylon, or even the greatness of Babylon’s fall. We rejoice that God is “true and righteous” (Rev. 15:3; 16:7; 17:6) and that He is glorified by His holy judgments. As we discovered in Revelation 8:1–6, God’s throne and altar are related to His judgments. Revelation 19: should be compared with Revelation 14:10–11, and Revelation 19: with Revelation 5:6–10.

God is reigning (vv. 5–6). The literal translation is, “The Lord God omnipotent has begun to reign.” This does not suggest that heaven’s throne has been empty or inactive, because that is not the case. The book of Revelation is the “book of the throne,” and the omnipotent God has indeed been accomplishing His purposes on earth. This burst of praise is an echo of Psalm 97:1—”The Lord reigneth; let the earth rejoice!”

God has been reigning on the throne of heaven, but He is now about to conquer the thrones of earth as well as the kingdom of Satan and “the beast.” In His sovereignty, He has permitted evil men and evil angels to do their worst, but now the time has come for God’s will to be done on earth as it is in heaven. Domitian was emperor of Rome when John was on Patmos, and one of his assumed titles was “Lord and God.” How significant it must have been, then, to John’s readers that he used the word alleluia four times in the first six verses of this chapter—truly, only Jehovah is worthy of worship and praise.

The bride is ready (vv. 7–10). The bride, of course, is the church (2 Cor. 11:2; Eph. 5:22–33), and Jesus Christ, the Lamb, is the Bridegroom (John 3:29). At a wedding, it is customary to focus attention on the bride, but in this case, it is the Bridegroom who receives the honor! “Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honor to him.”

“What did the bride wear?” is the usual question asked after a wedding. The Lamb’s bride is dressed “in the righteous acts of the saints” (literal translation). When the bride arrived in heaven at the judgment seat of Christ, she was not at all beautiful (in fact, she was covered with spots, wrinkles, and blemishes according to Paul in Eph. 5:27), but now she is radiant in her glory. She has “made herself ready” for the public ceremony.

Jewish weddings in that day were quite unlike weddings in the Western world. First, there was an engagement, usually made by the parents when the prospective bride and groom were quite young. This engagement was binding and could be broken only by a form of divorce. Any unfaithfulness during the engagement was considered adultery.

When the public ceremony was to be enacted, the groom would go to the bride’s house and claim her for himself. He would take her to his home for the wedding supper, and all the guests would join the happy couple. This feast could last as long as a week.

Today, the church is “engaged” to Jesus Christ, and we love Him even though we have not seen Him (1 Peter 1:8). One day, He will return and take His bride to heaven (John 14:1–6; 1 Thess. 4:13–18). At the judgment seat of Christ, her works will be judged and all her spots and blemishes removed. This being completed, the church will be ready to return to earth with her Bridegroom at the close of the tribulation to reign with Him in glory (see Luke 13:29; Matt. 8:11). Some students believe that the entire kingdom age will be the “marriage supper.”

Revelation 19: contains the fourth of the seven “beatitudes” found in the book (see Rev. 1:3). Certainly the bride is not invited to her own wedding! This invitation goes out to the guests, believers from the Old Testament era and the tribulation. During the eternal state, no distinctions will be made among the people of God, but in the kingdom age, differences will still exist as the church reigns with Christ and as Israel enjoys the promised messianic blessings.

John was so overwhelmed by all of this that he fell down to worship the angel who was guiding him, an act that he later repeats (Rev. 22:8–9)! Of course, worshipping angels is wrong (Col. 2:18), and John knew this. We must take into account the tremendous emotional content of John’s experience. Like John himself, this angel was only a servant of God (Heb. 1:14), and we do not worship servants (see Acts 10:25–26).

First, John described the Conqueror (Rev. 19:11–16) and then His conquests (Rev. 19:17—20:3). The rider on the white horse (Rev. 6:2) is the false Christ, but this Rider is the true Christ. He is not coming in the air to take His people home (1 Thess. 4:13–18), but to the earth with His people, to conquer His enemies and establish His kingdom.

Note the emphasis on Jesus’ names (Rev. 19:11–13, 16). He is “Faithful and True” (see Rev. 3:14), in contrast to “the beast” who was unfaithful (he broke the covenant with Israel) and false (he ruled by means of deception and idolatry). Suffering saints need to be reminded that God is faithful and will not desert them, because His promises are true.

Perhaps the “secret name” (see Rev. 19:12) is the same as the “new name” (Rev. 3:12). Not knowing what this name is, we cannot comment on it, but it is exciting to know that, even in heaven, we shall learn new things about our Lord Jesus!

“The Word of God” is one of the familiar names of our Lord in Scripture (John 1:1–14). Just as we reveal our minds and hearts to others by our words, so the Father reveals Himself to us through His Son, the incarnate Word (Rev. 14:7–11). A word is made up of letters, and Jesus Christ is “Alpha and Omega” (Rev. 21:6; 22:13). He is the “divine alphabet” of God’s revelation to us.

The Word of God is “living and powerful” (Heb. 4:12); what’s more, it fulfills His purposes on earth (Rev. 17:17; note also Rev. 6:11; 10:7; 15:1). Jehovah Himself says, “I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled” (Jer. 1: niv). Just as the Word was the Father’s Agent in Creation (John 1:1–3), so the Word is His Agent for judgment and consummation.

Christ’s most important name is “King of kings, and Lord of lords” (Rev. 19:16). This is His victorious name (Rev. 17:14), and it brings to mind references such as Daniel 2: and Deuteronomy 10:17. Paul used this same title for our Lord Jesus Christ in 1 Timothy 6:15. The title speaks of Christ’s sovereignty, for all kings and lords must submit to Him. No matter who was on the throne of the Roman Empire, Jesus Christ was his King and Lord!

The greatness of Christ is seen not only in His names, but also in John’s description of the conquering King (Rev. 19:12–16). The eyes “as a flame of fire” symbolize His searching judgment that sees all (Rev. 1:14). The many crowns (diadems) indicate His magnificent rule and sovereignty. The vesture dipped in blood speaks of judgment and probably relates to Isaiah 63:1–6 and Revelation 14:20, the conquest of His enemies. It is not our Lord’s blood that marks His vesture, but that of His foes.

The sharp sword is a symbol of God’s Word (Rev. 19:21; see also Eph. 6:17; Heb. 4:12; Rev. 1:16). This is in keeping with the fact that Christ will consume the enemy “with the spirit of His mouth” (2 Thess. 2:8; note also Isa. 11:4). We have met with the “rod of iron” before (Rev. 2:27; 12:5), a symbol of His justice as He rules over the earth. The image of the winepress must be associated with the judgment at Armageddon (Rev. 14:14–20; see also Isa. 63:1–6).

Jesus is not alone in His conquest, for the armies of heaven ride with Him. Who are they? Certainly the angels are a part of this army (Matt. 25:31; 2 Thess. 1:7), but so are the saints (1 Thess. 3:13; 2 Thess. 1:10). Jude describes the same scene (Jude 14–15). The word saints means “holy ones” and could refer to believers or angels.

It will be unnecessary for the army to fight, for Christ Himself will defeat the enemy through three great victories.

He will defeat the armies of the kings of the earth (vv. 17–19, 21). These warriors have assembled to fight “against the Lord and against His anointed” (Ps. 2:1–3), but their weapons prove futile. The battle turns out to be a slaughter—a “supper” for the scavenger birds! The first half of Revelation 19 describes the marriage supper of the Lamb; the last half describes the “supper of the great God” (see Matt. 24:28; Luke 17:37).

The word flesh occurs six times in this paragraph. While John’s immediate reference is to the human body, eaten by the vultures, there is certainly a deeper meaning here: man fails because he is flesh and relies on flesh. The Bible has nothing good to say about fallen human nature. Recall the Lord’s words before the flood: “My spirit shall not always strive with man, for that he also is flesh” (Gen. 6:3). (See also John 3:6; 6:63; Rom. 7:18; Phil. 3:3.) “All flesh is as grass” (1 Peter 1:24) and must be judged.

This is the account of the well-known “battle of Armageddon,” which was anticipated earlier (Rev. 14:14–20; 16:13–16). All that our Lord has to do is speak the Word, and “the sword of His mouth” will devour His enemies.

He will defeat “the beast” and false prophet (v. 20). Since Satan’s “henchmen” are the leaders of the revolt, it is only right that they be captured and confined. They are cast into the lake of fire (see Rev. 20:10, 14–15), the final and permanent place of punishment for all who refuse to submit to Jesus Christ. “The beast” and false prophet are the first persons to be cast into hell. Satan will follow 1,000 years later (Rev. 20:10), to be joined by those whose names are not recorded in the Book of Life (Rev. 20:15).

Today, when an unbeliever dies, his spirit goes to a place called hades, which means “the unseen world”— that is, the realm of the dead. When believers die, they go immediately into the presence of the Lord (2 Cor. 5:6–8; Phil. 1:19–23). Hades will one day be emptied of its dead (Rev. 20:13), who will then be cast into hell to join Satan, the beast, and the false prophet.

Satan will be defeated (vv. 1–3). The “bottomless pit” spoken of in Revelation 20: is not the same as hell; it is the “abyss” that we have met before in our studies (Rev. 9:1–2, 11; 11:7; 17:8). Satan is not cast into hell immediately, because God still has one more task for him to perform. Rather, Satan is confined in the bottomless pit for 1,000 years. First, Satan was cast out of heaven (Rev. 12:9), and now he is cast out of earth!

Some Bible students feel that the “chaining” of Satan took place when Jesus died on the cross and arose from the dead to ascend to heaven. While it is true that Jesus won His decisive victory over Satan at the cross, the sentence against the devil has not yet been effected. He is a defeated foe, but he is still free to attack God’s people and oppose God’s work (1 Peter 5:8). I think it was Dr. James M. Gray who suggested that, if Satan is bound today, it must be with a terribly long chain! Paul was sure that Satan was loose (Eph. 6:10ff.), and John agreed with him (Rev. 2:13; 3:9).

Having taken care of His enemies, the Lord is now free to establish His righteous kingdom on the earth.