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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
“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
“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;
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. 19:9 “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.’”
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----He
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
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
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
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
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
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
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 Huang《Christian Digest Bible
Commentary Series》
Translated by Sharon Ren