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Revelation Chapter Nineteen

 

I. Content of the Chapter

 

The Two Suppers

I.  The marriage supper of the Lamb (v.1-10)

  A. Alleluia----praise God who is true and righteous (v.1-6)

  B. blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb! (v.7-9)

  C. the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (v.10)

II. The great supper of all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven (v.11-21)

  A. the Faithful and True one who sat on a white horse (v.11-16)

  B. all the flying birds gathered together for the supper of the great God (v.17-18)

  C. the beast and the false prophet were cast into the lake of fire (v.19-21)

 

II. Verse by Verse commentary

 

Rev. 19:1 “After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, "Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!

   YLT: “And after these things I heard a great voice of a great multitude in the heaven, saying, `Alleluia! the salvation, and the glory, and the honour, and the power, [is] to the Lord our God;”

   Meaning of Words: “great”: plenteous, much; “multitude”: crowd, people.

   Literal Meaning: “After these things” refers to after Babylon the great was fallen (See 18:2, 21), i.e. the time close to the ending of the great tribulation.

I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying,” “multitude” in the original refers to a much great crowd, i.e. all believers who have been bestowed grace and saints in both the Old Testament and the New Testament (See 18:20). “In heaven” at that time, the dead has risen and those who are alive shall be caught up with them (See 1Thess. 4:16-17).

“‘Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!” “Salvation” shows that the multitude who praise includes believers who have been bestowed grace, i.e. the church (See 7:9-10). “Allelu” means praise; “ia” refers to Jehovah, i.e. the Lord God.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) The multitude has to praise God in heaven because they have experienced tribulation and learned God’s grace and His mighty works. And the deeper their experiences are, the louder their praise shall be.

2) Our being saved is not by ourselves (See Eph. 2:8) and our overcoming is also by His glorious appearing and mighty works. And therefore salvation and honor and power belong to the Lord our God.

 

Rev. 19:2 “For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.’”

   YLT: “because true and righteous [are] His judgments, because He did judge the great whore who did corrupt the earth in her whoredom, and He did avenge the blood of His servants at her hand;'”

   Meaning of Words: “judgment”: judge, condemnation; “corrupt”: destroy, defile; “avenge”: punish.

  Literal Meaning: “For true and righteous are His judgments” “His judgments” refers to God’s judgments. “True” indicates that His judgments are according to the real conditions. “Righteous” indicates that His judgments are according to the just and reasonable ways. The whole sentence and “just and true are Your ways” (See 15:3) are equivalent in meaning, showing that the judgment for the great harlot is fair and reasonable.

“Because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication;” “with her fornication” refers to the way of “confusion” that she utilized. “Corrupt” refers to deceiving the world, that they would be rotten. “The great harlot” indicates that Babylon the great (See 17:18), in the religious aspect, brings in heretical teachings and persecutes the saints (See 17:6) and deceives the world to live luxuriously and corruptly in the physical aspect.

“And He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.’” “Shed by her” refers to killing believers faithful to the truth. This sentence specially refers to her crimes in the religious aspect.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) Men judge things mostly according to their own subjective opinions and selfish positions and therefore their judgments neither conform to the real facts of the things nor accord with justice.

2) God keeps watching throughout human history and therefore He has clear understanding towards everything. There is not the respect of persons in Him (See 2Cor. 19:7) and He shall reward every man according to his works in due time (See Matt. 16:27). And therefore His judgments are true and righteous.

 

Rev. 19:3 “Again they said, Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!’”

   YLT: “and a second time they said, `Alleluia;' and her smoke doth come up -- to the ages of the ages!”

   Meaning of Words: “rise up”: ascend, grow up; “forever and ever”: the ages of the ages, for ever and ever.

  Literal Meaning: “Again they said, Alleluia!” in these scriptures (See v.1-6), there are four Alleluias (v.1, 3, 4, 6).

Her smoke rises up forever and ever!’” “Her smoke” refers to her smoke of suffering in the fire and brimstone (See 14:10-11). “Forever and ever” indicates that her punishment is forever and ever.

 

Rev. 19:4 “And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, Amen! Alleluia!’”

   YLT: “And fall down did the elders -- the twenty and four -- and the four living creatures, and they did bow before God who is sitting upon the throne, saying, `Amen, Alleluia.'”

   Meaning of Words: “fall down”: fail, fall; “Amen”: verily, surely.

   Literal Meaning: “And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures” they are the representatives of angles and all the living creatures (See 4:9-11; 7:9-11).

“Fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying,” “fell down and worshiped God” refers to worshipping in truth (See John. 4:23-24).

“‘Amen! Alleluia!’” here it is the third “Alleluia”, and it is the response of angles and living creatures to the Alleluia of those who have been bestowed grace (See v.1, 3).

 

Rev. 19:5 “Then a voice came from the throne, saying, Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!’”

   YLT: “And a voice out of the throne did come forth, saying, `Praise our God, all ye His servants, and those fearing Him, both the small and the great;'”

   Meaning of Words: “came”: depart, get out; “fear”: be afraid of, be in awe of.

   Literal Meaning: “Then a voice came from the throne, saying,” It is the declaration from heaven and the “voice” from the Lord Jesus to lead all the brothers to sing praise to the Father in the midst of the church (See Heb. 2:12). After the Lord Jesus had risen, He stood in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures, and in the midst of the elders (See 5:6).

“All you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!’” “His servants” refers to all the creatures of God, including angles, the living creatures and it specially refers to believers who have been bestowed grace (See 22:3, 9). “Those who fear Him” the range is much broader than that of His servants and it refers to those who fear God among the Jews and the Gentile believers. “Both small and great” the range is much greater than the above-mentioned two ones and it refers to all the people of God.

“‘Praise our God” It is the theme that the Lord leads the meeting in heaven (See Heb. 2:12).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) Praising God is the duty that every man of God should do. Regardless of one’s spiritual years or his spiritual measurement, everyone should praise God.

2) We always pray to God for things and seldom praise Him. Actually the most effective prayer is praise.

 

Rev. 19:6 “And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, ‘Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!

   YLT: “and I heard as the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, `Alleluia! because reign did the Lord God -- the Almighty!”

   Meaning of Words: “great”: plenteous, much; “Lord”: supreme, master; “reign”: rule.

   Literal Meaning: “And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying,” “and I heard” this verse is the response to the Lord’s guidance in the previous verse----the heaven breaks out the harmony. “The voice of a great multitude” describes that the voice is great and in concert. “The sound of many waters” describes that the sound is resonant and continuous. “The sound of mighty thunderings” describes that the sound shocks and lingers.

 “‘Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!” It is the fourth Alleluia and it is the unanimous praise from those who have been bestowed grace, angles and all the creatures. “Reigns” in the original refers to having reigned. He reigns all the time, however, it is fully manifested now.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) Many times, the Holy Spirit always urges us to open our mouth to praise God, however, we are timid for many people. And many chances of glorifying God have lost like this and many hearts waiting to resonate with them keep silent.

2) Whenever our hearts see Him reign, our lips have to offer the sacrifice of praise (See Heb. 13:15).

 

Rev. 19:7 “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.’”

   YLT: “may we rejoice and exult, and give the glory to Him, because come did the marriage of the Lamb, and his wife did make herself ready;”

   Meaning of Words: “be glad”: rejoice; “rejoice”: rejoice greatly, exult, jump for joy; “the marriage”: wedding, wedding feast.

   The Background: in the ancient times, when the Jewish groom took the bride, he gave the feast which always lasted seven days (See Gen. 29:22. 27-28).

   Literal Meaning: “Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory” it shows that the marriage of the Lamb is a great event worthy of joy and happiness towards men and it is also the plan worthy of glory towards God.

“For the marriage of the Lamb has come,” refers to the time the Lord Jesus Christ takes the bride and holds the banquet (See Matt. 25:10). According to the Bible, the marriage of the Lamb takes place after the majority of believers had been caught up into heaven and the great harlot had been destroyed (See v.1-2). And the marriage includes the following contents: 1) sharing the joy of victory (See v.11-21); 2) sharing the joy of kingship (See 20:4-6). The time is as long as a thousand years. Until the new heaven and the new earth appear and the New Jerusalem comes down from heaven, the bride (it refers to all believers, i.e. the church) will be perfectly adorned (See 21:1-2).

“And His wife has made herself ready.’” “His wife” the wife here is not the whole church but the overcomers among believers. They are a part of the wife and are qualified to represent the wife because only they “have made themselves ready”. Please note that the word “herself” here has profound meaning----our being saved is not by ourselves but by grace (See Eph. 2:9), however, we must do our utmost to pursue to gain our “overcoming” (See Phil. 3:12-14).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) According to the traditional Christian idea, the whole church will be raptured before the tribulation and become “the bride of the Lamb” here voluntarily because men have mixed His wife in this chapter up with the bride in the twenty-first chapter (See 21:2) and had not understood the delicate differences between them.

2) Some people reason fallaciously that “His wife” should refer to the corporate instead of the individual. It seems that God won’t see about the works of individuals. If so, could it be said that the previous words that “true and righteous are His judgments” (See v.2) only apply to the great harlot instead of the bride?

3) It is said again and again in the Bible that God “shall reward every man according to his works” (See Matt. 16:27; Rom. 2; 1Cor. 3:8; 2Cor. 5:10; Eph. 6:8; 1Pet. 1:17; Rev. 2:23; 20:13; 22:12). The word must be fulfilled and therefore we should be responsible for our works respectively after we have been saved.

4) The problem of believers lies in where we “have made ourselves ready” before the kingdom of a thousand years or we are “adorned perfectly” after the kingdom of a thousand years.

 

Rev. 19:8 “And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

   YLT: “and there was given to her that she may be arrayed with fine linen, pure and shining, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.'”

   Meaning of Words: “grant”: give, permit; “bright”: shining, brilliant; “righteous”: just, equitable.

   Literal Meaning: “And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright,” “it was granted to be arrayed” indicates that believers’ overcoming is of their own works, however, they have achieved the degree by the equipment and working of the Holy Trinity (See Eph. 2:10; Phil. 2:12-13). “Fine linen” refers to the righteous acts. “Clean” refers to purifying oneself, even as He is pure (See 1John. 3:3). “Bright” refers to shining as lights and holding forth the word of life (See Phil. 2:15-16).

“For the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.” The plural words “righteous acts” refer to the righteousness in acts. “The righteous acts of the saints.” There are two righteous clothes upon the saints: 1) we put on Christ as our righteousness when we are saved (Sees 1Cor. 1:30); 2) we manifest that Christ is our righteousness through our acts after we have been saved (See Phil. 1:11). The righteous acts of the saints refer to the latter and only those who have made themselves ready and put on the clothes of “righteous acts” can attend the marriage of the Lamb (See Matt. 22:11-14).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) Common Christians always confuse the righteousness accomplished by the Lord Jesus Christ with the righteousness we do through Christ. In other words, they confuse the objective righteousness with the subjective righteousness and do not understand them. Even the theologians who have known this truth did not see the essentials of the subjective justification and sanctification and said “peace, peace” invariably (Jer. 6:14) concerning believers’ being raptured and marriage in the last day. Probably it is hard for them to give the accountant to the Lord in future.

2) He who has been bestowed grace has been justified by God in the objective position (See Rom. 3:28), however, we have to live out the righteous deeds in the subjective experiences (See James. 2:24).

 

Rev. 19:9Then he said to me, Write: Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!"' And he said to me, "These are the true sayings of God.’”

   YLT: “And he saith to me, `Write: Happy [are] they who to the supper of the marriage of the Lamb have been called;' and he saith to me, `These [are] the true words of God;'”

   Meaning of Words: “blessed”: happy, supremely blest; “marriage”: wedding; “supper”: feast, dinner; “true”: real, trustworthy; “sayings”: words (logos).

   Literal Meaning: Then he said to me, Write:” “write” refers to making men of later generations read and keep (See 1:3).

“‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!'” According to the Book of Revelation, there are two kinds of blessed men: 1) the dead who die in the Lord (See 14:13); 2) he who watches, and keeps his garments when the Lord comes again (See 16:15). Some Bible exegetes held that those who are called to the marriage supper are companions of the wife and therefore they are not believers but the Jewish saints who fear God in both the New Testament and the Old Testament.

And he said to me, These are the true sayings of God.’” “The true sayings of God” indicates that these words are not yea and nay (See 2Cor. 1:18-20) and are true and faithful (See 21:5; 22:6).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) We who read the Bible had better not read the Bible for others and should apply the Bible to ourselves. Only the overcomers can come in to supper with the Lord (See 3:20). Anyway, we have to pay the price to be called to the marriage supper of the Lamb.

2) The word “blessed” shows that it is not the common blessing of all believers. It is the blessing upon blessing of grace upon grace and the blessing of certain requests (See Matt. 5:3-12).

3) “These are the true sayings of God” refers to encouraging us to pursue. Being able to be called to the marriage supper of the Lamb is not only the extra enjoyment of sitting with the Lord but also sitting with the Lord on His throne (See 3:20-21) and reigning with Him a thousand years (See 20:4-6). It is the true blessing.

 

Rev. 19:10 “And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.’”

   YLT: “and I fell before his feet, to bow before him, and he saith to me, `See -- not! fellow servant of thee am I, and of thy brethren, those having the testimony of Jesus; bow before God, for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of the prophecy.'”

   Meaning of Words: “do not do that”: not, must not; “fellow servant”: companion, co-slave; “spirit”: ghost, breath, breeze; “prophecy”: speaking in the spirit, prophesying.

   Literal Meaning: “And I fell at his feet to worship him.” It is one of the two silly acts done by John the apostle in this book (See 22:8-9). He recorded it without disguise and it must have enlightenment to us.

But he said to me, See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus.” “Have the testimony of Jesus” in the original is “keeping the testimony of Jesus” which stresses on our beings and doings. We should never misunderstand that only preaching bears the testimony of Jesus. Every Christian bears the testimony of Jesus (See 12:17), however, probably some people have not kept the testimony that they should keep.

Worship God!” it means that we should not worship anyone else except God.

For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.’” “For” shows the reason why we should not worship the angel. “The spirit of prophecy” means that the functions, intentions and purposes of all the prophecies in the Bible, especially all the prophecies in the Book of Revelation, are for the testimony of Jesus. Please note that here the angel was sent to explain the prophecy of “being called to the marriage supper of the Lamb” (See v.9) and the angel itself is a spirit (See Heb. 1:14). And therefore this sentence can be explained that you and I are the same----the servants who bear the testimony of Jesus.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) According to the present forms and nature, we men are indeed a little lower than angels (See Heb. 2:7). Even the angels, we should not worship them and we should never worship the fellow brothers who have the testimony of Jesus.

2) But actually, believers who have few gifts and talents are “worshipped” by men everywhere. Those who have been worshipped feel complacent over themselves and those who worship others justify themselves that they only respect them instead of worshipping them. The ideas of imitating men above what is written in the Bible and “puffing up for one against another” (See 1Cor. 4:6) in our hearts are probably not merely respect.

3) The greatest feature of the Lord Jesus’ incarnation is His humbling Himself (See Phil. 2:6-8) and therefore the lowliness of mind is the best testimony of Jesus and it is better than preaching several thousands of messages and writing several hundreds of theological great works.

 

Rev. 19:11 “Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.

   YLT: “And I saw the heaven having been opened, and lo, a white horse, and he who is sitting upon it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness doth he judge and war,”

   Meaning of Words: “opened”: open up, open wide; “faithful”: honest, trustworthy; “judge”: determine, discern.

   Literal Meaning: “Now I saw heaven opened” “heaven opened” refers to the Lord’s public coming of His second coming----IhisHIHiHe is not in the clouds (See 1Thess. 4:17) but that everyone shall see Him (See 1:7; Acts. 1:11).

“And behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True” “He who sat on him” is Christ Himself. “Was called Faithful and True” means that His acts “faithfully” (in the original) accomplish what He has promised, i.e. making His promises “real” (in the original).

“And in righteousness He judges and makes war.” “Judges and makes war” these two things are the two aspects of one----judgment brings in war and war finishes the judgment. “In righteousness” the righteous judgment deals with the inward of men and the righteous war deals with the outward of men.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) Christ is “faithful and true” towards God and us believers, however, He is “righteous” towards Satan and the world that follow Satan. 

2) Compared to the deceit and dishonesty of antichrist, Christ is faithful and true. His second coming not only faithfully accomplishes the words that He has promised but also makes His every sentence revealed to us through the Bible “real”.

 

Rev. 19:12 “His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself.

   YLT: “and his eyes [are] as a flame of fire, and upon his head [are] many diadems -- having a name written that no one hath known, except himself,”

   Meaning of Words: “know”: be aware, perceive.

   Spiritual Meaning: “His eyes were like a flame of fire” symbolizes that His judgments are according to what He has seen and nothing can be hidden from Him (See 1:14; 2:23).

“And on His head were many crowns.” It symbolizes that He is worthy to be called “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” (See v.16) because He has been crowned with glory and honor (See Heb. 2:7, 9).

He had a name written that no one knew except Himself.” “Name” symbolizes His being and experiences. “No one knew except Himself” symbolizes that no one can fully understand His being and experiences.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) The eyes of the Lord perceive everything and refine everything.

2) Our Lord far surpasses what we can know. His abundance is inexhaustible and therefore we should seek to know and enjoy Him more.

 

Rev. 19:13 “He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.

   YLT: “and he is arrayed with a garment covered with blood, and his name is called, The Word of God.”

   Meaning of Words: “dip”: stain, steep; “word”: (logos).

   Literal Meaning: “He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood” “dipped in blood” the blood is not His blood shed on the cross but the blood of the enemies that He dipped in the war (See Is. 63:1-6). The whole sentence means that He is invincible and all-conquering.

“And His name is called The Word of God.” “The Word of God” the whole sentence indicates that Christ is the expression, declaration and manifestation of God (See John. 1:14, 18; 1John. 1:1).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) The Lord Jesus has shed the precious blood for everyone, however, if one is indifferent to His precious blood, he shall be judged by the Lord and pay the price of blood, i.e. his own life.

2) Christ is the word of God and in Him dwells all the fullness of the Godhead bodily (See Col. 2:9). He becomes the enjoyment of those who believe in Him.

3) The Bible is the word of God and for the testimony to Christ (See John. 5:39). Every time we read the Bible, we should hold the attitude of coming to the word of God to meet Christ and have life from Him (See John. 5:40) and only this attitude is beneficial for us.

 

Rev. 19:14 “And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.

   YLT: “And the armies in the heaven were following him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen -- white and pure;”

   Meaning of Words: “armies”: troops; “clean”: clear, pure; “follow”: go behind, accompany.

   Literal Meaning: “And the armies in heaven, on white horses.” “The armies in heaven” some Bible exegetes held that they refer to all the angels (See Matt. 25:31). However, according to the explanation of the following sentence, they should refer to believers who have been caught up into heaven, i.e. those who are called, and chosen, and faithful (See 17:14), those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb (See v.8).

  “Clothed in fine linen, white and clean” symbolizes the righteousness of saints (See v.8).

  “Followed Him” refers to being with Christ all the time (See 1Thess. 4:17).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) As Christ is, so are those who follow Him: Christ sat on a white horse, so did the armies who follow Him sit on white horses (See v.11); Christ judges and makes war in righteousness (See v.11), so do the armies that follow Him clothe in righteousness----fine linen, white and clean.

2) Seriously speaking, the armies in heaven are the bride of the Lamb----the groom won’t leave the bride or lead another group of men to go to war. The prologue of the marriage supper of the Lamb is sharing the joy of victory with the Lord.

 

Rev. 19:15 “Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

   YLT: “and out of his mouth doth proceed a sharp sword, that with it he may smite the nations, and he shall rule them with a rod of iron, and he doth tread the press of the wine of the wrath and the anger of God the Almighty,”

   Meaning of Words: “go”: go out, come forth; “strike”: smite, chop, hit; “rule”: shepherd, feed; “tread”: trample.

   Spiritual Meaning: “Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations.” “A sharp sword” symbolizes that the words out of the mouth of the Lord are the standard of His judgments on one hand (See John. 12:48), and on the other are the weapons that He strikes the enemies (See Eph. 6:17; 2Thess. 2:8).

And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” It means that this war has a dual purpose: 1) on the negative aspect it wipes out all the rebellion----treading the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God (See 14:17-20); 2) on the positive aspect it brings in the kingdom of a thousand years, i.e. the realization of the kingdom of a thousand years----shepherding them with a rod of iron (See 2:27; 12:5).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword (See Heb. 4:12) that can be used to attack the enemies and deal with our all own positive constitutions.

2) In the kingdom of God, men have to absolutely obey the rule of the Lord and no one can resist His “rod of iron”. However, the Lord’s rule is absolutely different from the tax and exploitation on the earth because He “shepherds” (the original) His people.

 

Rev. 19:16 “And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

   YLT: “and he hath upon the garment and upon his thigh the name written, `King of kings, and Lord of lords.'”

   Spiritual Meaning: “And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:” “His robe” refers to the robe dipped in blood with which He was clothed in the war (See v.13) and it symbolizes His invincible and all-conquering power. “Thigh” symbolizes the place where the power that He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God (See v.15) is.

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” indicates that His royalty and sovereignty are of His great power and in all things, no one can resist Him and His power is above kings and lords.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) We believers still have the innate rebellion----we always want to decide by ourselves and as a result, we bear the bitter fruits. We’d better know that it is hard for us to kick against the pricks (See Acts. 26:14) from His works and rule (robe and thigh) and become obedient completely.

2) He is “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS” and it means that under Him there are still the positions and rewards of kings and lords. The more one obeys Him or suffers for Him, the more chances he will have to reign in the kingdom of God (See Rom. 8:17; 2Tim. 2:12).

 

Rev. 19:17 “Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, "Come and gather together for the supper of the great God,

   YLT: “And I saw one messenger standing in the sun, and he cried, a great voice, saying to all the birds that are flying in mid-heaven, `Come and be gathered together to the supper of the great God,”

   Meaning of Words: “in the midst of heaven”: in the mid-sky; “gather”: assemble, collect.

   Spiritual Meaning: “Then I saw an angel standing in the sun;” symbolizes that Christ is the Sun of righteousness (See Mal. 4:2).

“And he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven,” “all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven” according to the literal meaning, the birds that fly in the midst of heaven are flying birds and God arranged some birds that specially eat corpses in the nature. According to the symbolic meaning, the birds that fly in the midst heaven symbolize those whose life have kept aloof from the shackles of the earth and their life can sallow up morality (See 2Cor. 5:4).

“‘Come and gather together for the supper of the great God,” “the supper of the great God” is contrast to “the marriage supper of the Lamb” (See v.9). Actually, these two suppers could be regarded as the two aspects of one: from the positive aspect it is “the marriage supper of the Lamb” and from the negative aspect it is “the supper of the great God”. Both of them are enjoyments and the former stresses on the joy and rejoice of uniting with the Lamb and the latter stresses on the joy and enjoyment of making war and conquering with the Lamb.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) When the Lord Jesus mentioned the states of His second coming, He suddenly inserted that, “wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together” (Matt. 24:28). This verse closely meets the word of the Lord according to both the literal meaning and the spiritual meaning.

2) If believers usually enjoy good things, our youth will be renewed like the eagle's (See Ps. 103:5) and be full of the newness of life (See Rom. 6:4). And if we always wait on the LORD, we shall renew our strength and mount up with wings like eagles (See Is. 40:31). We shall be gathered by God in the war as the eagles suck up blood (See Job 39:30), that life will swallow up mortality.

 

Rev. 19:18 “that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great."

   YLT: “that ye may eat flesh of kings, and flesh of chiefs of thousands, and flesh of strong men, and flesh of horses, and of those sitting on them, and the flesh of all -- freemen and servants -- both small and great.'”

   Meaning of Words: “flesh”: body; “free”: at liberty.

   Spiritual Meaning: “flesh” is mentioned five times in this verse in the original and the birds that fly in the midst of heaven take the flesh as their food. Men brought in the judgment of God because they were indeed flesh (See Gen. 6:3, 13). In the decisive battle at the last day in this chapter, what God deals with is the flesh of all the rebellious.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) The flesh lusts against the Spirit forever (See Gal. 5:17) and therefore we should deal with the flesh with the affections and lusts by the cross (See Gal. 5:24).

2) We are debtors----not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. If we through the Spirit do mortify the deeds of the body, we shall live (See Rom. 8:12-13).

 

Rev. 19:19 “And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.

   YLT: “And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, having been gathered together to make war with him who is sitting upon the horse, and with his army;”

   Meaning of Words: “armies”: troops; “war”: fight, battle.

   Spiritual Meaning: this verse shows us that there are two camps in the universe and the two camps are against each other without any compromise or the possibility of neutrality.

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) The associates that antichrist can strive for are only the kings of the earth and the earthly soldiers. As long as we are not afraid of death, it can do nothing towards us (See 12:11).

2) The kings of the earth cling to the earthly power and influence and therefore they are easily deceived by antichrist. This fact shows us that power and influence can corrupt the hearts of men and make them the tools of the devil.

 

Rev. 19:20 “Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.

   YLT: “and the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who did the signs before him, in which he led astray those who did receive the mark of the beast, and those who did bow before his image; living they were cast -- the two -- to the lake of the fire, that is burning with brimstone;”

   Meaning of Words: “capture”: seize, lay hand on; “cast”: throw, cast off; “alive”: living.

   Literal Meaning: the ending of antichrist and the false prophet is “being captured” together and it means that they cannot get away. They had not experienced the judgment before “the great white throne” (See 20:11-12) and were “cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone” directly. It means that they will be tormented there for ever and ever (See 20:10).

 

Rev. 19:21 “And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh.

   YLT: “and the rest were killed with the sword of him who is sitting on the horse, which [sword] is proceeding out of his mouth, and all the birds were filled out of their flesh.”

   Meaning of Words: “filled”: satisfy.

   Literal Meaning: as the leader is, so are the followers. But they were killed first and their bodies were eaten up by birds. And they shall rise and receive judgment. Finally they will be cast into the lake of fire unavoidably (See 20:13, 15).

   Enlightenment in the Word:

1) Men who do not listen to the word of God today will be judged by the word of God in future.

2) Believers who blindly follow the leaders in the church hold that if the leaders are wrong, they the followers have nothing to do with their wrong and the leaders should be responsible for their own mistake, however, they are the innocent followers. Please remember that if the blind leads the blind, both will fall into a ditch (See Matt. 15:14). The ending of the leader is, so are the endings of the followers.

 

III. Outlines of the Spiritual Lessons

 

The Four Alleluias

I. Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! (v.1)

II. Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever! (v.3)

III. Alleluia! Worshipping God who sat on the throne (v.4)

IV. Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! (v.6)

 

The Two Suppers

I.  The marriage supper of the Lamb

  A. the leading role: the Lamb (v.7)----Christ

  B. the distinguishing feature: the bride had made herself ready (v.7-8)---enjoying the joy of victory

  C. those who are called: the blessed ones (v.9)

II. The supper of the great God

  A. the leading role: an angel standing in the sun (v.17)----Christ the sun of righteousness

  B. those who are invited: all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven (v.17)----the life is as freely as the flying birds

  C. the distinguishing feature: eating the flesh (v.18)----enjoying the joy of victory

 

One War----the Great War in Armageddon

I. The heaven opened (v.11)----Christ came publicly

II. He who sat on a white horse was called Faithful and True (v.11)----whatever He has promised will be fulfilled

III. In righteousness He judges and makes war (v.11)----sending a punitive expedition against all unrighteousness

IV. His eyes were like a flame of fire (v.12)----He pierces everything

V. On His head were many crowns (v.12)----He is worthy of all honor and glory

VI. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself (v.12)----no one can understand His being

VII. He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood (v.13)----being invincible and all-conquering

VIII. His name is called The Word of God (v.13)----He is the manifestation and interpretation of God

IX. The armies in heaven (v.14)----the overcoming saints followed Him

X. Out of His mouth goes a sharp sword (v.15)----the words out of His mouth are sharp weapons to kill enemies

XI. He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron (v.15)----bringing in the kingdom of God

XII. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God (v.15)----wiping all the evil out

XIII. The name of KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS (v.16)----the power that surpassing everything

XIV. Capturing the leader of the enemies (v.19-20)----being cast into the lake of fire directly

XV. Killing all the enemies (v.21)----holding the feast for all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven

 

── Caleb HuangChristian Digest Bible Commentary Series

   Translated by Sharon Ren