[Chapter 19-1] The Kingdom to Be Reigned by The Omnipotent (Revelation 19:1-21)
(Revelation 19:1-21)
“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! 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.’ Again
they said, ‘Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!’ And the
twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped
God who sat on the throne, saying, ‘Amen! Alleluia!’ Then a voice came
from the throne, saying, ‘Praise our God, all you His servants and those
who fear Him, both small and great!’ 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! 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.’ 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. Then 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.’ 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.’ 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. 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. He was clothed with a , and His name is called
The Word of God. And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white
and clean, followed Him on white horses. 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. And He has on His robe and on
His thigh a name written:
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
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, 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.’ 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. 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. 21And 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.”
Exegesis
Verse 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!”
The
passage describes the saints praising the Lord God as their marriage
day with the Lamb approaches. Our Lord God has given the saints their
salvation and glory, so that they may praise Him for a good reason. The
raptured saints in the air therefore continue to praise the Lord God,
for so great is His grace of delivering them from all their sins and
their inevitable condemnations.
The
word “alleluia” or “hallelujah” is a compound word conjoining the
Hebrew words of “halal,” meaning praise, and “Yah,” meaning
“Jehovah”—its meaning, therefore, is “praise Jehovah.” In particular,
Psalms 113-118 of the Old Testament are called as the “Hallel of Egypt,”
and Psalms 146-150 are called as the “Psalms of Hallel.”
These
“Psalms of Hallel” are songs that had accompanied the joy and sorrow of
the Jewish people, giving them strength in times of sadness and
tribulations, and sung as songs of joy in times of salvation and
victory. These songs were also sung whenever the praise of “hallelujah”
can be sung only to God. The reason is because the Lord’s judgment of
the great plagues rendered on this world is true and righteous, and
because salvation, power, and glory belong to only God.
Verse 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.”
That
the Lord God will avenge the saints by pouring the plagues of the seven
bowls on all the religionists of the earth and all the unbelievers is
the true and righteous judgment of God. Because the religionists of this
world had murdered the sinless and righteous servants of God, they, in
return, deserve to be condemned to eternal death by God.
Have
the servants of God ever done anything on this earth to deserve to be
killed by the worldly religionists? Of course not! Yet all the
religionists of the world have united in their scheme to murder the
children of the Lord God. As such, God’s pouring of the plagues of the
seven bowls on these murderers is just, which also manifests the
righteousness of God.
Verse 3: Again they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!”
The
saints are praising the Lord God in the air because the day of their
wedding with Jesus, who has become the Lamb, has approached.
“Her
smoke rises forever and ever.” This refers to the smoke coming out of
this world destroyed and burnt by the great plagues of the seven bowls
poured by God. It shows us that this world would never recover from its
ruins because its destruction will be fatal and eternal.
Verse 4:
And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and
worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!”
The
fact that the marriage day of the saints with the Lord Jesus has
approached is such a glorious event that the 24 elders and the four
living creatures in Heaven worship and praise the Lord God sitting on
His throne. This is why all the servants of God are praising the Lord
God in the air.
Verse 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!”
Because
the Lamb’s marriage day with the saints is such an unspeakably great
joy for all His servants and the saints who have been saved by believing
in the Lord God, the voice from the throne commands them all to praise
God. The time has now come for the servants of God and all His saints to
rejoice and praise the Lord.
Verse 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!”
This
verse tells us that as the time for the reign of the Lord God has
approached, it now is time for His saints and the servants to receive
their eternal peace, joy, and the blessings that flow like a river. This
is why they are praising the Lord God. The saints are praising our God
in the air even as the great plagues continue on this earth because the
time has come for them to be reigned by the Lord God—that is, it is now
time for God to glorify all His saints. The sound of the saints’ praise
at this time is like the sound of thunderings and of many waters. The
marriage supper of the Lord’s Kingdom thus begins with the beautiful
praise of the saints.
Verse 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.”
Now
that the plagues of the seven bowls brought by God are ending, this
verse tells us that the time has come for all the saints to be glad and
rejoice. The saints are glad and rejoice here because the day has
arrived for them to marry our Lord and live in His Kingdom. To live with
the saints, our Lord God has prepared His New Heaven and Earth, the
holy city and its gardens, and all glory and wealth, and He is only
waiting for them. From this time and on, the saints are to reign with
the Lord forever.
Verse 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.
The
Lord has given the saints new garments, which are made of fine linen.
Anyone who lives serving the Lord God is clothed in these garments. God
clothes the saints, in other words, in the garments of Heaven. These
heavenly garments of fine linen are not wet with sweat. This tells us
that the fact that we have become the Lamb’s brides is not because of
our man-made efforts and investments, but because of our faith in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit given by the Lord God.
In
distinctive contrast to the scarlet and purple garment worn by the
Antichrist, this fine linen is the precious linen used to make garments
for priests and kings. Free from sweat, the white, fine linen shows us
that the ones who are clothed in God’s grace and His righteousness have
now become His people.
By
the phrase, “for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints,”
it is meant that the ones who became saints by the grace of salvation
given by the Lord God gave glory to God with their martyrdom by the
Antichrist and his followers in defense of their faith. “The righteous
acts,” in other words, refer not the righteousness of the Law, but to
the saints’ martyrdom in defense of their precious faith. Likewise, all
the brides of Jesus Christ of the end times are the martyrs who, to
defend the chastity of their faith in the Lord, had stood up to and
fought against the Antichrist and his followers while on this earth.
To
prepare for their faith of martyrdom, all the saints must be nourished
for the first three and a half years of the Great Tribulation, for when
these three and a half years are over, they will indeed be martyred.
Verse 9:
Then 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.”
When
the plagues of God are ended in this world, the Lord God will invite
all the saints to the marriage supper of the Lamb (the Kingdom built and
reigned by the Lord), and He will allow them to live in the Kingdom of
Christ. Those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb here
are the blessed ones. Our God has told us that He will not fail to
fulfill this Word of promise. The day will finally come when the saints
are to marry the Lord. Our Lord will return to this earth to carry away
His brides, who have been cleansed of all their sins by believing in the
gospel of the water and the Spirit. And the Lord will live with His
brides forever and ever in His Kingdom.
The
saints’ union with the Lord is completed when they are raptured by
Christ, at which time they are to receive endless glory and rewards in
the Millennial Kingdom. Hallelujah! I praise and thank the Lord God who
has made us His people.
Verse 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.”
The
saints must give all these glories only to the Lord God. The One who is
to receive all worship and praise from the saints is solely our Triune
God.
The
phrase, “For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy,” means
that the testimony and prophecy of Jesus come through the Holy Spirit.
Verse 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.
When
the end times come, our Lord God, riding on a white horse, will fight
against Satan with His righteousness and bind him by throwing him into
the bottomless pit and the lake of fire.
Here,
the name of Jesus Christ is “Faithful” and “True.” The word “Faithful,”
meaning that Christ is trustworthy, expresses His truthfulness and
fidelity, while the word “True,” meaning that He is free from falsehood,
tells us that Christ would overcome the Antichrist with the righteous
judgment of God.
Verse 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.
That
the Lord’s eyes are “like a flame of fire” tells us that He has the
power to judge all. The phrase “on His head were many crowns,” on the
other hand, means that our Lord always triumphs over Satan in His fight
against him, for He is the omniscient and omnipotent God.
Verse 13: He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.
Our
Lord will avenge the saints on their enemies by judging these enemies
of His, who had stood against Him, with His fierce wrath. This God is
none other than Jesus Christ Himself. Just as He had promised with His
Word, our Lord indeed came to this earth in the flesh of a man, was
baptized by John to bear all the sins of the world, carried them to the
Cross, and made the sins of the entire mankind disappear.
The
“robe dipped in blood” — this blood does not refer to Christ’s own
blood. It refers to the blood of the enemies being splattered onto the
Lord’s robe as He brings His fearful judgment of wrath to them and
tramples them with His feet of power.
“The
Word of God” refers to Jesus’ character. Because our Lord does
everything by His powerful Word, He is named as “the Word of God.”
Verses 14-16:
And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean,
followed Him on white horses. 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. And He has on His robe and on His thigh a
name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
The army of the Lord God always serves His works, clothed in His glorious grace.
God
will judge this world with the Word coming out of His mouth. Our Lord
has always promised us with the Word of His mouth, and He always
fulfills these promises with His power. The One who judges the world and
destroys Satan is Jesus Christ, King of kings and Lord of lords.
Verse 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,”
This
world, along with Satan and his followers, will ultimately be destroyed
by Jesus Christ. The Bible describes the destruction of this world as
the supper of the great God.
Verse 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.”
This
Word tells us that because the whole world and everyone in it would
have been put to death by the time the great plagues of the Lord God are
ended, the birds flying in the sky would fill their bellies by feeding
on their carcasses. They would do so because God would have poured the
great plagues of the seven bowls on this world. Our Lord told us, “For
wherever the carcass is, there the eagles will be gathered together"
(Matthew 24:28). In the end times’ world, there will be only
destruction, death, and the punishment of hell for the sinners. But for
the saints, there will be the blessing of reigning in the Kingdom of
Christ.
Verse 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.
To
their very end, the Antichrist, Satan’s servant, and his followers will
stand against the servants of God and His saints and try to win over
them. But because our Lord is the King of kings, He will seize the
Antichrist and the false prophet, throw them into the lake of fire, and
kill all their servants with the sword of His Word.
Verse 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.
The
“Beast” here refers to the Antichrist. The “false prophet” is the
Antichrist’s servant who, by performing miracles and signs, turns people
away from faith in the Word of truth. Our Lord God will destroy Satan,
the Beast (the Antichrist), the false prophet, and the followers of
Satan who had worshipped the idol of the Antichrist and stood against
God, against the saints, and against the gospel of the water and the
Spirit.
The
“lake of fire burning with brimstone” refers to hell. Hell is different
from the bottomless pit. While the bottomless pit is where the forces
of Satan are temporarily bound in, the “lake of fire” is the place of
their eternal punishment. In particular, fire and brimstone have always
been used in the Bible as the instrument of God’s punishment and
judgment.
After
this world is destroyed, our Lord will return to this earth with the
saints, destroy Satan and his servants first, and then open the Kingdom
of Christ. The saints will then live and reign with the Lord in the
Kingdom of Christ for a thousand years to come.
Verse 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.
This
world was created by the Word coming out of the mouth of our Lord God;
likewise, the enemies of God will all be destroyed by the Word of
judgment coming out of His mouth. The Kingdom of Christ will then be
established on this earth. The saints, therefore, must place their hope
in the Kingdom of Christ and give glory to God by fighting against
Satan, the Antichrist and his followers, and by embracing their
martyrdom with faith.
No comments:
Post a Comment