CHAPTER 19

(A.D. 96)

PRAISE

¹And after these things (pertains to specifically Chapter 18, but also the entire Book of Revelation in a broader sense,) I heard a great voice of much people in Heaven (proclaims praise, which is the exact opposite of what is happening on Earth), saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and Glory, and Honour, and Power, unto the Lord our God (the song here, and it is a song, does not begin with ascribing Salvation to God, as the English version suggests; it rather affirms the fact; The Salvation is Gods; it is the echo of the ancient utterance Salvation belongs unto God):

²For true and righteous are His Judgments (neither man nor spirit beings, in all honesty, can fault God for what He has done regarding the system of this world): for He has Judged the great whore (pertains to every false way of Salvation, irrespective of what it might be; no matter how beautiful it might look outwardly, the Lord refers to it as the great whore), which did corrupt the Earth with her fornication (this refers to all the religions of the world, and for all time; however, it also refers to the fact that if the Preacher is not preaching Jesus Christ and Him Crucified as the answer to mans dilemma, then in some manner he is preaching and projecting a type of spiritual fornication [Rom. 7:1-4]), and has avenged the blood of His servants at her hand. (Almost all of the persecution against the true Saints of God in this world, and for all time, has come from apostate religion. It started with Cain [Gen., Chpt. 4].)

³And again they said, Alleluia. (This praise of the Lord is because of the destruction of the literal city of Babylon. The Alleluia in Verse 1 was proclaimed concerning the destruction of Mystery Babylon.) And her smoke rose up for ever and ever (proclaims the fact that her Judgment is Eternal).

⁴And the four and twenty Elders and the four Beasts (Living Ones) fell down and worshipped God Who sat on the Throne (the 24 Elders represent all the Redeemed of all the ages; they are in fact 24 men; the four Living Ones represent the Creation of God, and how that Creation can now serve its full purpose as originally intended), saying, Amen; Alleluia. (This Alleluia signals the end of all evil, and the beginning of all Righteousness.)

⁵And a voice came out of the Throne (is silent regarding the identity), saying, Praise our God, all you His servants, and you who fear Him, both small and great. (Every true Believer will praise the Lord, and should do so continually.)

⁶And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude (this great multitude consists of every single Believer who has ever lived, all the way from Abel to the last one Saved in the Great Tribulation), and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings (this is praise that expresses itself, and not merely the thoughts of a silent heart), saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God Omnipotent Reigns. (This Alleluia pertains to the Lord reigning as King, and doing so forever. Satan does not reign. The Lord God Omnipotent Reigns, and He is All-powerful.)

⁷Let us be glad and rejoice (all the Redeemed are about to be joined in Holy Matrimony to the Lamb Who has Saved them), and give honour to Him (God has made it possible for mankind to be Redeemed, and did so through the Sacrifice of His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ): for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and His Wife has made herself ready. (This presents a scene that will take place in Heaven immediately before the Second Coming. The Wife is the Redeemed of all ages.)

⁸And 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 fine linen is symbolic of Righteousness, which was afforded by what Christ did at the Cross.)

⁹And he said unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. (The man speaking to John says this. The word Lamb is used, signifying that all of this is made possible because of what Jesus did at the Cross.) And he said unto me, These are the true sayings of God. (This refers again to the fact that all of this is made possible by what Jesus did regarding His Finished Work.)

¹⁰And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See you do it not: I am your fellowservant, and of your Brethren (as is obvious here, this is a man; he looks so much like Jesus, because of his glorified form, that John thought it was Jesus; in a sense, this tells us what all Saints will look like in the coming Resurrection) who have the Testimony of Jesus (presents the fact that the Ministry of the Holy Spirit is to testify to Christ and of Christ): wor ship God (tells us in these two words that we are not to worship Angels, Saints, or the Virgin Mary): for the Testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of Prophecy. (This Testimony is His Atoning Work, i.e., what He did at the Cross. Every Prophecy of the Old Testament points in some way to Christ and what He did at the Cross. As well, every proclamation presently uttered must in some way point to the Cross of Christ.)

THE SECOND COMING

¹¹And I saw Heaven opened (records the final Prophetic hour regarding the Second Coming, without a doubt the greatest moment in human history), and behold a white horse (in effect, proclaims a war horse [Zech. 14:3]); and He Who sat upon him was called Faithful and True (faithful to His Promises and True to His Judgments; He contrasts with the false Messiah of Rev. 6:2, who was neither faithful nor true), and in Righteousness He does Judge and make war (refers to the manner of His Second Coming).

¹²His eyes were as a flame of fire (represents Judgment), and on His Head were many crowns (represents the fact that He will not be Lord of just one realm; He will be Lord of all realms); and He had a Name written, that no man knew, but He Himself (not meaning that it is unknown, but rather it is definitely unknowable; it will remain unreachable to man, meaning that its depths can never be fully plumbed).

¹³And He was clothed with a vesture dipped in Blood (speaks of the Cross where He shed His Lifes Blood, which gives Him the right to Judge the world): and His Name is called The Word of God. (His revealed Name is the Word of God, for He revealed God in His Grace and Power to make Him known, so the Believer can say, I know Him.)

¹⁴And the armies which were in Heaven followed Him upon white horses (these armies are the Saints of God, in fact, all the Saints who have ever lived, meaning we will be with Him at the Second Coming), clothed in fine linen, white and clean. (Harks back to Verse 8. It is the Righteousness of the Saints, all made possible by the Cross.)

ARMAGEDDON

¹⁵And out of His mouth goes a sharp sword (represents Christ functioning totally and completely in the realm of the Word of God), that with it He should smite the nations (refers to all the nations that will join the Antichrist in his efforts to destroy Israel; it is the Battle of Armageddon): and He shall rule them with a rod of iron (refers to the fact that the Lord of Glory will not allow or tolerate in any shape, form, or fashion that which steals, kills, and destroys): and He treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God (refers to the Battle of Armageddon).

¹⁶And He has on His vesture and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS (proclaims the fact that there will be no doubt as to Who He actually is).

¹⁷And I saw an Angel standing in the sun (proclaims the fact that Faith believes what is written, even if the mind cannot comprehend what is written); and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the fowls who fly in the midst of Heaven (denotes, as is obvious, supremacy over the Creation), Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of the Great God (this is symbolic, but it is spoken in this way to proclaim the magnitude of that coming time [Ezek. 39:2, 11-12]);

¹⁸That you 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 who sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great. (This proclaims the fact that the Power of Almighty God doesnt blink at those on this Earth who consider themselves to be great. The Judgment will be identical for all [Ezek. 39:18-20].)

¹⁹And I saw the beast (John saw the Antichrist leading this mighty army; this is the man of sin mentioned by Paul in II Thess., Chpt. 2), and the kings of the earth, and their armies (refers to all the Antichrist could get to join him; it includes the kings of the East of Rev. 16:12), gathered together to make war against Him Who sat on the horse, and against His army (refers to Christ and the great army of Heaven which is with Him; as stated, this is the Battle of Armageddon [Ezek., Chpts. 38-39]).

²⁰And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet who wrought miracles before him (refers to both of them falling in the Battle of Armageddon), with which he deceived them who had received the mark of the beast, and them who worshipped his image (pertains to Satans chief weapon, which is deception). These both were cast alive into a Lake of Fire burning with brimstone (thus is the destiny of the Antichrist and the False Prophet, and all who follow them).

²¹And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him Who sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of His mouth (the Lord Jesus will speak the word in the Battle of Armageddon, and whatever He speaks will take place): and all the fowls were filled with their flesh. (This proclaims the end of this conflict. The Antichrist and his hoards will announce to the world what they are going to do regarding Israel, but the end result will be buzzards gorging on their flesh.)