Chapter 19 Commentary

The Second Coming of Jesus Christ

Having been moved from the “wilderness” and brought back into the vibrant throws of heaven, John finds it in full celebration over the destruction of Babylon. Then he witnesses two of our most anticipated events: The wedding of the Lamb, and the glorious Second Coming of Jesus Christ.

v.1-4 After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power 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! And 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!”

Heaven has rejoiced throughout this book at every juncture where Christ’s return and earthly kingdom is anticipated (Rev.4, 5, 7, 11, 15, 16). “When the kingdoms of this world have become the kingdoms of our Lord and of His Christ” is heaven’s longing, so it is little wonder that John is witness to a loud and thunderous ocean of angelic adulation, praise, and worship with heaven’s awareness that “the great harlot” Babylon has been uprooted and Christ is coming to consume all sinners from the earth and to establish His righteous kingdom.

The word “Alleluia” is a transliteration of the Hebrew word “Hallelujah” and means “Praise ye the Lord.” And though it is used four times in this chapter, it’s the only time it is used in the entire New Testament. So seemingly the Holy Spirit has reserved it especially for this triumphant and long awaited moment.

Okay, let’s consider why heaven is rejoicing.

“Salvation and glory and honor and power to the Lord our God!” God’s salvation has gloriously and powerfully come. He has saved His people and delivered them from sin and a fallen world full of abominations, wickedness, and oppression.“For true and righteous are His judgments” God has meted out justice. He has judged the great harlot righteously, thereby avenging the saints killed by the corrupt and unrighteous worldly system that her profane religious and commercial schemes have birth and influenced. The slain in Christ had cried, “How long?” (Rev.6:10), and finally His response comes with unbridled fury (see also—Deu.32:42-43).“And her smoke rises up forever and ever!” The judgment is permanent. The literal city of Babylon indeed burned with fire (Rev.18:8), but that fire will cease and Babylon will be wiped clean from earthly memory without even a trace. The thought here is that the rebellion spawned in Babylon is eternally ended, and those who took part “the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever” (see—Rev.14:11).

v.5-6 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!”

The heavenly Hallelujah chorus continues.

John hears another voice from heaven calling for the servants of God to praise God. It is uncertain whether this call is made by Jesus or an angel, but the response comes resoundingly from a great multitude. The earlier Alleluias appeared only to come from angels joined by the twenty-four elders, whereas this response surely includes every inhabitant of heaven.

Okay, let’s continue the list started in the last passage for the reasons heaven is rejoicing by adding a fourth reason.

“For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns!”

Though the literal return of Christ and the final fiery destruction He brings upon the ungodly forces remaining on earth doesn’t occur until later (v.11-20), it’s already over for them. God is in control. Christ is coming. Evil men will be abolished, the Kingdom will be established, and He will reign. So it’s a done deal.

v.7-8 “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.

The great multitude of voices continues to resonate with the announcement that the long-awaited union of Christ and His Bride has come. Thereby leading us to a fifth reason why heaven is rejoicing.

“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.”

With the awareness that His kingdom is about to come the realization that the Lamb’s holy marriage is also about to come; thus exciting gladness and joy and adulation to the Lord God omnipotent from the heavenly host.

Okay, let’s consider it.

The imagery of marriage is a theme the New Testament uses to portray the union between Christ and the Church. We see this beautifully illustrated in Ephesians where our relationship to Christ is prefigured by the symbol of marriage (Eph. 5:22-32), again in Corinthians where it speaks of us as “betrothed” to Christ (2Cor. 11:2), and then in Romans where it says we shall be “married” to Christ (Rom.7:4).

So the Bridegroom is Christ and the Bride is the Church. And the joy in heaven is caused by the knowledge that the long-awaited union of time and eternity between Christ and His Bride (whom He purchased with His own blood on Calvary as the spotless Lamb of God) is near and about to begin.

“His wife has made herself ready.” Following rapture, in heaven we will appear before the bema seat of Christ (2Cor.5:10) to have our earthly works put to fire. The wood, hay, and straw are burned off and we are rewarded for the gold, silver, and precious stones that remain (1Cor.12-14). Afterward, I believe we do indeed become pure and made like Christ (1Jo.3:2) and therefore made ready for the marriage.

“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.” All sin and remnant self-righteousness will have been exposed, judged, and purged at His judgment seat. So we have become pure, holy, and righteous.

Therefore we are granted to wear a new and pure gown of fine linen, clean and bright, to enter His holy presence. This is the same type linen worn by the angels (see—Rev.15:6), so it does not merely clothe us in righteousness, but reveals our righteousness in full glory.

“I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for He hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, He has covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decks himself with ornaments, and a bride adorns herself with her jewels” (Isa.61:10)

v.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.”

During John’s time, wedding customs essentially regarded the “marriage” and the “marriage supper” the same, to which friends and neighbors were invited to celebrate the betrothal for seven, or even fourteen days, followed by the bride being taken to the bridal chamber.

It is very difficult to offer a definitive time when this ceremony takes place but I tend to think that it occurs during the Millennium and will be attended by all the saints, past before the Church and future following the rapture. And clearly, the New Jerusalem will become our eternal home (see notes—Rev.21:2).

“Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!” This concerns the guests, not the bride. For a bride is never invited to her own wedding. So who are these that are called unto it? These are all those (past and future) who have responded in true saving faith to the gospel invitation (check—Matt.8:11, John 3:29).

v.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.”

John is so overcome with emotion that such great scenes are indeed “the true sayings of God” he wrongly feels the compulsion to worship the angel escorting him and is immediately reminded that only God should be worshiped. He will make the same mistake again (Rev.22:8-9).

“For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” True prophecy always surrounds Jesus Christ. Even the Revelation, despite its awesome and wondrous truths about future events, serves no other purpose than to rouse the hearer closer to Christ.

v.11 Then 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 robe dipped in blood, 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.

John’s attention is now drawn to the open doors of heaven and beholds the Lord Jesus Christ coming in great glory with the armies of heaven.

“And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True.” These names define the nature of Jesus. For He is Faithful to keep His promises, He is True to His Word, and His Word is true.

“And in righteousness He judges and makes war.” The war speaks of the final stage of Armageddon wherein Jesus will battle against and destroy the armies of Antichrist (see notes—14:14-20).

“His eyes were like a flame of fire.” This speaks of the ability God has to see everything and miss nothing. The Bible says, “Neither is there any creature that is not manifest in His sight, but all things are naked and opened unto the eyes of Him with Whom we have to do” (Heb.4:13).

“And on His head were many crowns.” There are two Greek words used in the Revelation for “crown.” One is “Stephanos” (signifying royalty) used in connection with the Church (Rev.2:10; 3:11), the twenty-four elders (Rev.4:4, 10), Israel (Rev.12:1), Jesus Christ (Rev.14:14), the locust-demons (Rev.9:7), and the Antichrist (Rev.6:2). The other is “diadem” (meaning “as bound about the head”) which speaks of a crown meant to signify something less than royalty. It’s used in connection with seven worldly kingdoms and the ten yet-future kings that make up the heads and horns of the image of the beast (Rev.12:3; 13:1).

In this case, Jesus will be wearing many “diadems” at His Return. That is, He will wear the crowns associated with the kingdoms of man. Why, because as King triumphant, Jesus is showing Himself as the King of Kings against whom neither man nor kingdom can stand.

“He had a name written that no one knew except Himself.” For reasons known only to Him, Jesus will bear a name unutterable and unintelligible to others.

“He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood.” This is the blood of His enemies. For Jesus will severely judge and destroy their armies at Armageddon (see—Rev.16:21; Isa.63:1-4).

“And His name is called The Word of God.” This name has been His from the beginning (John 1:1, 14).

“And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses.” These armies in heaven are the believers the Bible has long told will join with Christ in His Second Coming. (Check—Jude 14-15).

v.15-18 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.”

In one final desperate attempt to retain the world by preventing our Lord’s Coming, Satan will cause the armies of the world to do battle against the Lord. Unbeknownst to them, however, they will be gathering themselves together to receive the great judgment of God; not even aware that the fowls of heaven have been called by God to indulge themselves on the soon-to-be exposed flesh.

v.19-20 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. 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.

The reality of Armageddon is that man’s war against God never takes place, and only God battles. It’s even doubtful the armies of Antichrist ever see Jesus because most are crushed under one hundred pound hailstones unleashed in the aftermath of the seventh bowl judgment (Rev.16:17-21) even before He appears. Moreover, those who aren’t crushed are mysteriously “dissolved.” Listen to the Bible:

“And this shall be the plague with which the Lord will strike all the people who fought against Jerusalem: Their flesh shall dissolve while they stand on their feet, their eyes shall dissolve in their sockets, and their tongues shall dissolve in their mouths” (Zech.14:12)

The Antichrist and False Prophet are rendered helpless by the breath of our Lord’s mouth and the brightness of His Coming (2Thess.2:8) and then thrown “alive” into the lake of fire (see also—Dan.7:11).

Satan is cast into the bottomless pit (Rev.20:1-3) where he remains bound for one thousand years. At which time he will again be released (Rev.20:7) and then subsequently, he too, will be cast into the lake of fire (Rev.20:10).

One final thought, dear ones.

It should be noted that the armies know they have gathered to fight Jesus. How they come to accept the idea they must fight Christ isn’t explained, though the Bible does speak of a strong “delusion” God permits the world to fall under therein causing the world to believe the “lie” of Antichrist (2Thess.2:11).

It’s probably safe to say that they come to believe the lie that Satan is God. But what I find interesting is what lie they come to believe about Jesus Christ. For they seem to be totally aware that He exists and is coming. My own thought is that the world will be conditioned during the Tribulation to believe that Jehovah God is an extra-terrestrial enemy whose power they must resist (check also—Ps.2:1-3). It seems strange to us now, but those will be dark and sinister times unlike any other we have ever known.