Sermon Tone Analysis

Revelation 19:11-16 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him [was] called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

12 His eyes [were] as a flame of fire, and on his head [were] many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.

13 And he [was] clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies [which were] in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.

15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.

16 And he hath on [his] vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.

Introduction

Chapter nineteen opens with all of heaven rejoicing at the judgment of Babylon.

The four living beasts and the twenty-four elders fall on their face in reverence to the One who sits on the throne.

All declare their agreement, “Amen.”

The culmination of the wedding is about to begin.

The table is set, and the “Bride” is seated at the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

All eyes are looking for the arrival of the Bridegroom.

All of creation has been awaiting this moment.

Since the judgment in the Garden of Eden, the prophecies have led to this point in time.

The Christ was promised in the Old Testament.

He will come through the seed of the woman (Gen 3:15).

He will come through the line of Shem (Gen 9:25-27).

He will come through the line of Abraham (Gen 12:3).

He will come through the line of Judah (Gen 49:8-12).

He will come through the line of Jesse (Is 11:1a).

He will come through the line of David (2 Sam 7:10-13; Ps 132:11b).

He will come from the town of Bethlehem (Micah 5:2).

He will come as a child and a son (Is 9:6a).

He will be born of a virgin (Is 7:14).

He will be called “Immanuel” (Is 7:14).

He will be called “the Lord our righteousness” (Jer 23:6; 33:16; cf.

Mal 4:2).

He will be called Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace (Is 9:6c).

He will come in humility (Zech 9:9).

He will serve as a prophet in Israel (Deut 18:15, 18; cf.

John 6:14).

He will bring good news to the afflicted (Is 61:1-3).

He will crush the head of the Serpent (Gen 3:15).

He will wash away the guilt of sinners (Is 4:1-4).

He will serve as a channel of divine blessing to the world (Gen 12:1-3).

He will be rejected by man, pierced by the Jews, and crushed by God the Father (Is 53:1-12; Zech 11:4-14; 12:10; 13:7; cf.

Ps 22; cf.

Dan 9:26a).

He will die as a substitutionary sacrifice for guilty sinners to provide forgiveness and salvation (Is 53:1-12; Zech 3:9).

He will be resurrected from the dead (Ps 16:10; cf.

Acts 2:31).

He will come again in judgment upon the nations (Is 63:1-6).

He will bring destruction to the enemies of Israel (Num 24:15-19).

He will reign in perfect peace, justice, and righteousness as King over the entire earth (Gen 49:10; Num 24:17-19; Ps 2:6-12; 110:1-7; Is 9:6b-7; 11:1-16; 42:1-4; Jer 23:5; 33:14-2; Zech 9:10).

He will build the Temple of the Lord and rule on His throne as Priest (Zech 6:12-15).

He will unify and restore the nation of Israel (Ezek 36:16-38; 37:15-28).

He will feed and protect Israel as her divine Shepherd (Ezek 34:23-31; 37:15-28).

He will bring salvation to Israel and reign over her as King (Is 49:5-6a; Micah 5:2; Jer 23:5-6; 30:21; 33:16; Ezek 37:15-28).

He will be appointed as a covenant to the people and a light to the nations of the earth (Is 42:5-6; 49:6; cf.

Is 55:4; cf.

Mal 3:1).

He will be given glory and everlasting dominion over all the nations of the earth, and His kingdom will be established forever (Dan 7:13-14; 2 Sam 7:10-13; Ps 132:11b).

The Bridegroom/King Arrives

Revelation 19:11 ¶ And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

“And I saw heaven opened…”

In the previous section, John “heard” the great multitude singing their praises and awaiting the Marriage of the Lamb.

John is now permitted to see the events of the Return of Christ unfold before him.

“…and behold a white horse…”

This is not the same white horse of the Seal judgments found in chapter 6:2.

Our discussion centered on the horse and rider which were part of the “four horsemen of the Apocalypse.”

That rider represented the coming Antichrist.

That horse was white and had a rider.

However, that is where the similarities ended.

This horse and rider was different.

“…and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True…”

The name of the rider is not identified, but his title and characteristics are, “faithful and true.”

There is a reason that the King James translators capitalized Faithful and True, as they are giving titles to the rider of the white horse.

There can be no doubt that his rider is the Messiah for He is being faithful and true to the Word of God.

He is returning to fulfill the prophecies concerning the Messiah’s reign on the earth as King.

When John was writing the portion of the letter to the church at Laodicea, he identified Jesus as “the Amen, the faithful and true witness, the beginning of the creation of God.

I don’t know about you, but I am comforted in knowing that in the world there is lying and deceit.

However, the Bridegroom is the opposite of the way of the world.

His Words are Truth.

His Words are Faithful.

“…and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.”

The Greek word translated as “righteousness” is translated in other verses as “fairness of character or act, justice.”

Christ’s righteousness enables Him to judge of all the earth and to His enemies, He will make war.

The Lion of the Tribe of Judah will not make war for expansion of riches, lands, or ambition.

He will lead the war against the wicked and bring judgment to those that oppose Him.

Revelation 19:12 His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.

“His eyes were as a flame of fire…”

This is the same description we saw in 1:14:

Revelation 1:14 His head and his hairs were white like wool, as white as snow; and his eyes were as a flame of fire.

In the previous verse the rider of the horse is found to be Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

The judgment of His enemies is all-consuming, nothing escapes his piercing and penetrating gaze.

“…and on his head were many crowns…”

John’s use of the Greek word for “crown” is the English word “diadema”, and not “stephanos”, the crown of the winner of the public games, or symbol of honor.

The diadem is the royal crown of the King.

It is significant that He had “many” crowns.

The Lamb will wear all the crowns of the earthly kings (leaders of countries), their rule is over and Jesus rule begins.

“…and he had a name written…”

It appears that the new name is written on the crown, as we have not left that discussion.

The bride of Christ has a “new name.”

The renaming of a person in the Bible is nothing new.

For example; Abram to Abraham, Sarai to Sarah, Simon to Peter, Levi to Matthew and Saul to Paul.

“…that no man knew, but he himself…”

We learn that the rider on the white horse has a name that only he himself knows.

We know many of the names the Bible gives to the Son of God.

There are over 200 names that we are familiar with:

Advocate, Alpha and Omega, Ancient of Days, Anointed One, The Only Begotten of the Father, Captain of Our Salvation, the Christ, Creator, Emmanuel, Great Shepherd, the Holy One, Jesus, Lamb of God, Lion of the Tribe of Judah, Living Water, the Son of Man, Messiah, Propitiation for the Sins of the World, Rabbi, Teacher, Savior, Second Adam, the Corner Stone, the True Vine, Wonderful, the Word.