Alleluia! Thine The Glory
Notes
Transcript
Throughout the Book of Revelation, we have seen we have seen the glory of the Lord in different ways.
In Chapter 1, we saw His glory as He revealed Himself to John in the first vision.
In Chapters 2 and 3, we saw His glory as the head of the church and the glory of it.
In Chapters 4 and 5, we saw His glory in the throne room of Heaven.
In Chapters 6 through 18, we saw His glory being poured out upon the wicked of the earth in wrath, bringing upon them the just judgment of their sin and wickedness.
Here in Chapter 19, we see His glory as He stands victorious over Babylon and all of its wickedness, over the Antichrist and the False Prophet, and exalted above all that is in Heaven above and earth beneath.
Throughout the Scriptures, we are given many different reasons for why we are to give praise to God, but here in the beginning of this Chapter, we are given a reason to praise God that we normally don’t think of. We are told to give praise to God for the destruction of the wicked.
Praising God For The Destruction Of The Wicked
Praising God For The Destruction Of The Wicked
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!
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.”
3 Again they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!”
4 And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!”
In verses 1, 3 and 4, we see this great cry of praise… Alleluia! The reason for this cry of praise is that God 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.
Back in Chapter 6, those who had been killed during the Tribulation period for their faith in Christ were standing before the throne of God saying:
10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?”
11 Then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed.
Here in Chapter 19, this cry of the saints has come into fruition. God has finally defeated the wickedness of this world… Babylon is fallen. Not only is it fallen, but it says that Her smoke rises up forever and ever. This evil system and its rulers are finished. God has poured out upon them the fullness of His wrath, and they could not stand the weight of it. No man could.
With the evil systems of this world destroyed forever, the saints of heaven can truly cry out saying, Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God!
Praising God Because of His Omnipotence
Praising God Because of His Omnipotence
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!”
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!
We see here another cry of praise brought forth by the angel speaking to John. This time the cry of praise is because of the omnipotence of the Lord. The word omnipotence (omni meaning all and potent speaking of power) speaks to the fact that God is all-powerful. It speaks to the sovereignty of God.
God sits on the throne of everything and reigns supreme from it. He is in control of all things that take place within the physical and spiritual realms. Up until this point of Tribulation the physical realm is all but clueless to the spiritual realm that surrounds it. Many do not believe in angels and demons, God and Satan, Heaven or Hell. But during the time of Tribulation, demons will be set loose upon the earth, angels will fly through heavens declaring the Gospel of Christ, and the spiritual realm will become very much alive to those who had denied it before.
It is one thing to believe that God reigns supreme over all of physical creation. But to see the power that just one angel or demon possesses, and then realize that God reigns supreme over them as well, is to believe God on a whole other level. The power of God is truly limitless.
But then to couple that omnipotence with His righteousness and holiness allows our understanding of Him to take on a whole new level of belief. Not only Is He the most powerful being in all of existence, but to know that He will use that power for good, for righteousness, and for holiness gives us hope. God will use this great power to render all things just, but for those of us who have dedicated our lives to living in accordance to His will, to be as He is, this means that this power will be used for us. The omnipotent (all-powerful) God of Heaven is on our side.
4 You are of God, little children, and have overcome them, because He who is in you is greater than he who is in the world.
We see here in this wonderful Chapter that God stands victorious, but this also means that we His children also stand victorious with Him. We will all stand before the throne crying, “Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!”
Praising God For The Great Consummation (The Marriage Supper of The Lamb)
Praising God For The Great Consummation (The Marriage Supper of The Lamb)
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.”
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.
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.”
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.”
All throughout Scripture, the church (God’s people) is referred to as the bride and Christ as the groom.
9 Then one of the seven angels who had the seven bowls filled with the seven last plagues came to me and talked with me, saying, “Come, I will show you the bride, the Lamb’s wife.”
In a Jewish wedding, there were three distinct parts to a wedding.
A marriage contract was signed by the parents of the bride and the bridegroom, and the parents of the bridegroom or the bridegroom himself would pay a dowry to the bride or her parents. This began what was called the betrothal period - what we would call today the engagement.
The bridegroom, accompanied by his male friends, went to the house of the bride. Many times, this would occur at the stroke of midnight, which is where the phrase “The Midnight Cry” came from. The groom and his friends would light torches and travel through the streets of the city to the house of the bride. The bride was to be ready with her bridesmaids, and when the groom arrived, they would all join the parade and end up at the groom’s home. This is the basis for the parable of the ten virgins in Matthew 25:1-13.
The groom would provide a great meal (feast, supper) for the families of both the bride and groom, and they would celebrate, sometimes for days. At the end of the celebration, the bride and groom would consummate the marriage with one another.
The contract between God and the Church is the Gospel. The price paid by God (The Father of the Groom) was the blood of His Son at Calvary. This began the betrothal period of the Christ and His Church. The Rapture of the Church will be the moment when Christ comes back for His church, and we as the bride are told to be ready and waiting for Him at His arrival. Once we are taken back to the home of Jesus (Heaven) there will be a great celebration (The Marriage Supper of the Lamb). This will be the consummation of our marriage.
We will be given fine linen to wear, representing the righteous acts performed for Jesus while on the Earth. We will accompany Him to the feast, and we will dine with our Lord and Savior for the appointed time.
Who are the blessed in verse 9?
Seeing these things, John is filled with the need to give worship to God. Because the angel is standing there, he falls down before the angel to worship Him. The angel stops John from doing so saying, “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.”
These last words tell us who is worthy of our worship and why. The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy he says. In other words, it is the narrative of Jesus that was the central theme of OT prophecy. Everything prophesied of old looked forward to the first coming of Jesus. Everything told within the NT either looks back at His first coming or forward to the second coming. It has all been about Him and it should still be about Him. He is the One who is worthy of our worship.
Jesus Second Coming
Jesus Second Coming
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.
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.
13 He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God.
14 And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.
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.
16 And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written: KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS
When Jesus comes, He will be riding on a white horse. A white horse was ridden by victorious Roman generals in their triumphal processions through the streets of Rome.
He will wear many crowns upon His head, signifying that He alone is the ruler of the whole world. It was customary in battle for the king of the victorious army to take the crown from the losing army’s king and place it upon his own head. This meant that from then on, he would be acknowledged as the ruler of the land.
30 Then he took their king’s crown from his head. Its weight was a talent of gold, with precious stones. And it was set on David’s head. Also he brought out the spoil of the city in great abundance.
The next characteristic John gives us of Christ is that He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood. This does not represent the blood He shed at Calvary, but rather of the blood of His enemies that have fallen before Him. In this vision of Christ, He is not the Lamb slain before the foundations of the world, but the KING OF KINDS AND LORD OF LORDS.
His name is called the Word of God. This speaks of Him being the Truth, but it also speaks of His power. The entire world was created by the Word of God in the beginning, and all the evil of the world will be destroyed by the power of His Word in the end. It tells us that out of His mouth goes a sharp sword and with it He should strike the nations. This final battle that will be fought, will not be fought with swords and shields, but by the Words of righteousness from which He speaks.
All the armies of Heaven… followed Him on white horses. Christ will bring with Him all the force of heaven when He comes. This will not be a battle indeed, but rather a reckoning. It will be a completely one-sided event in which all the evil of this world will be utterly destroyed.
Once this battle is over, Jesus will rule the nations of this world with a rod of iron, meaning that they will adhere to His rules and regulations or be instantly judged/punished.
The Battle of Armageddon
The Battle of Armageddon
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,
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.”
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.
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.
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.
As Jesus comes with His heavenly host, the beast and the false prophet will be assembling their forces as well. This angel standing in the sun knows what is about to happen, so he calls for all the birds to come and gather together for the supper of the great God, that they 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.
In the midst of this Holy massacre, the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet. The two greatest enemies within Satan’s army were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone.
Everyone else was killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Jesus.
Within this Chapter, we see the supper of the bride and the supper of the birds. Both of these feasts speak of the victory of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Praise be to the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS!!!
