Revelation 19 - ESV - Bible Reading / Study Notes

Revelation 19

Rejoicing in Heaven

19:1 After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out,

  “Hallelujah!
  Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,
2     for his judgments are true and just;
  for he has judged the great prostitute
    who corrupted the earth with her immorality,
  and has avenged on her the blood of his servants.”

3 Once more they cried out,

“Hallelujah!
The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.”

4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who was seated on the throne, saying, “Amen. Hallelujah!” 5 And from the throne came a voice saying,

  “Praise our God,
    all you his servants,
  you who fear him,
    small and great.”

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

6 Then I heard what seemed to be the voice of a great multitude, like the roar of many waters and like the sound of mighty peals of thunder, crying out,

  “Hallelujah!
  For the Lord our God
    the Almighty reigns.
7   Let us rejoice and exult
    and give him the glory,
  for the marriage of the Lamb has come,
    and his Bride has made herself ready;
8   it was granted her to clothe herself
    with fine linen, bright and pure”—

for the fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints.

9 And the angel said¹ to me, “Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the marriage supper of the Lamb.” And he said to me, “These are the true words of God.” 10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said to me, “You must not do that! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God.” For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

The Rider on a White Horse

11 Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war. 12 His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself. 13 He is clothed in a robe dipped in² blood, and the name by which he is called is The Word of God. 14 And the armies of heaven, arrayed in fine linen, white and pure, were following him on white horses. 15 From his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations, and he will rule³ them with a rod of iron. He will tread the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God the Almighty. 16 On his robe and on his thigh he has a name written, King of kings and Lord of lords.

17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, “Come, gather for the great supper of God, 18 to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave,⁴ both small and great.” 19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. 20 And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence⁵ had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur. 21 And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh.

Footnotes

[1] 19:9 Greek he said
[2] 19:13 Some manuscripts sprinkled with
[3] 19:15 Greek shepherd
[4] 19:18 For the contextual rendering of the Greek word doulos, see Preface
[5] 19:20 Or on its behalf

Commentary

v1-3: Joy in the presence of God, the great multitude in Heaven, declaring God's righteousness;

now God's righteousness is displayed in the gospel of Christ, and people believing in Him;
then God's righteousness will be demonstrated in the judgment of the great prostitute.

Here is the goodness of God on those who believe, and the severity of God on those who fall, Rom 11.22. Babylon was guilty of much sin, of claiming universal power, and of killing the Lord's people; no wonder the multitude rejoice at her destruction.

v4: The elders and living creatures share the same adoration of God.

v5: The invitation, from an angel, for people to praise God. This is the joyful duty of all God's servants.

v6-9: In response to the invitation, and leaving aside Babylon, the gathered multitude set their hearts and voices afresh upon Almighty God. The marriage supper of the Lamb; the servants of God have remained faithful, and here is their reward.

They are dressed in white, as in 7.13-14, the bride made ready by her righteous acts. Faith in Christ must be manifest by doing good. The fine white clothes are not a end-of-time reward for good works. From Eph 2.10 we understand that these are righteous acts which Christ gives to those who trust in Him. The fine linen equips for life now, that our works will be truly righteous.

The emphasis for God's servants is that they remain faithful to Him. They have come through terrible trials on the earth, suffering under the dragon and the beast, remaining distinct as multitudes were marked with the number of man.

v10: John's response was inappropriate, but understandable. How does a human react to these things? He began to worship the mighty angel, but was quickly rebuked.

v11: Jesus Christ, the faithful and true one, 1.5; 3.14. He is the perfect Son of God, worthy, qualified to judge and to make war. This verse introduces a long section (to 22.5), where the Lord Jesus is seen as central and predominant in all matters.

This vision takes us back to the divien warrior in Is 59; and echoes the spiritual armour of Eph 6. The victory is His; and His people share this victory.

v12: His eyes are blazing fire, a terrifying experience for His enemies. He wears many crowns for He is worthy. He has a secret name, for the world cannot know Him.

v13-16: John had marvelled at the mighty angel, v9-10; but here is the vision of Christ, the Word of God, King of Kings, Lord of Lords; as proper exaltation is given to Him. In the midst of terrible judgments, Jesus Christ is set apart as the Lord.

He comes with a sharp sword and an iron sceptre; His reign is uncomfortable for those who do not know Him. This is the day of vengeance of our God, prophesied in Is 61.1-2, which was not fulfilled in Capernaum (Luke 4.18-19). Christ rules the nations with the iron sceptre (12.5; Ps 2.7-9); He treads the winepress of God's wrath (14.20). He has every right to do this, for all things were made for Him, Eph 1.10; Col 1.16-18.

v17-18: The message for the angel; victory for Jesus Christ the Lord is certain; there will be the supper for the birds; this is a reference to vultures and other carrion birds. The army opposing the Lord includes free and slave, great and small, as all mankind gathered against Him.

v19: The beast leads the rebellion against the Lord Jesus Christ. He had previously exercised a worldwide influence (ch 13), and now brings his army against the Lord and, it seems, against Jerusalem, Zech 12.8-9.

v20: The beast and the false prophet are captured, and he is cast into the fire.

v21: Victory comes solely by the sword of Jesus Christ; it is His work, and we make no contribution to it, although we share in the spoils of His victory.