(ii) His name is the Word of God. They are glorified saints, and not angels. "Let him that is unrighteous be unrighteous still: and let the filthy be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still." We can quite understand that God would comfort His people in the dark ages by this book; and a very imperfect glimpse at its real meaning might in His grace serve to cheer them on in their trials as far as it went. The prophecy centers around the person of Jesus Christ. Now, this law that has the backing of the Greek Orthodox Church, or it was instituted because of the Greek Orthodox Church against proselytization, is the law that they used to charge him.In Egypt it is a capital offense to lead a Muslim to a faith in Jesus Christ. In other words, it is too He is saying (throw them out), they are not part of the elect. There are not enough adjectives in the dictionary The particulars are reserved for a later point in this prophecy. The spiritual power is wholly in the hands of the false prophet. And yet in such times John calls God pantokrator ( G3841) . Therefore be zealous and repent. It begins with the shout of a vast multitude in heaven. Revelation 19:8 "And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine That is good. and could only be broken by divorce. Hitherto the reverse of this has been true in history. After so long a tarrying how blessed! . 5. Isaiah speaks of God preparing for his people "a feast of fat things, a feast of wine on the lees, of fat things full of marrow, of wine on the lees well refined" ( Isaiah 25:6). The Gothic hordes were not yet incorporated with the empire, still less were they horns of the beast, nor did they give their power to it, but destroyed it rather. The salvation of God should awaken the gratitude of man; the glory of God should awaken the reverence of man; the power of God is always exercised in the love of God and should, therefore, awaken the trust of man. What about little babies?" ", GOD'S WORD IN ACTION ( Revelation 19:13 ). But she has a golden cup in her hand full of abominations and the impurities of her fornication. The folly of Satan thinking that he would be able to fight against God. Lord. The seventh bowl contained under it the fall of Babylon, which "was remembered before God, to give to her the cup of the wine of the fierceness of his wrath.". A New Translation from a Revised Text of the Greek Original. Once again we must remember that this picture is demonstrably painted in Jewish terms. However, Satan is not yet destroyed. and the fullness of the Gentiles will be brought in. There is no expression in the word of God which binds all to rise at the same instant. Wheat and tares grow together till the process of judgment separates. We desire that He should come quickly, but we leave this to Him, because we know His love, and can trust Him. Gods meting out of justice (verse 2); (3) Then, as we have seen, comes the final test of the nations of the earth after that kingdom has run its course, and the devil let loose once more deceives flesh and blood after the analogy of all other dispensations. ( John 1:14 ) And now again He comes as the Word of God. Like Hosanna ( H3467 + H4994 and G5614) it is one of the few Hebrew words which have established themselves in ordinary religious language. The Spirit of God implies that it is decidedly not the righteousness here which is by another, and we thereby imputed righteous, but righteousnesses personal and actual. But it really is. ). So far they were right. Choose a verse from 'Revelation 1' to begin your 'Verse-by-Verse' study of God's Word using the more than 100 commentaries available on StudyLight.org . honors God and sin mocks Him. We know that if He tarries, it is not that He is "slack concerning His promise," but that "His long-suffering brings salvation to many." It gives a retrogressive account of Babylon's character, and shows how it morally compelled the divine judgment. Nobody can dispute that this remarkable cluster of kingdoms in Europe was the fruit providentially of the destroyed unity of the Roman empire when the barbarians invaded it. God is sovereign. And he said unto me, "For the glory of God enlightened it, and the Lamb is the lamp thereof." Out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword Revelation 1:16; Revelation 1:16. I do not doubt that there was a corrupt form in connection with Israel in times past. Some evade the difficulty by referring the desolation to the Gothic powers; and these Protestants, as if they were mere Praeterists! (i) There is love. Here we see the chaste virgin there is rejoicing and giving of honor. Echoing an earlier rabbinic comment found in the commentary of Rashi to the Songs of Songs (4:5) Ginzberg explainedthere is also a great bond of union between the first five commandments and the last five. "Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, because his judgments are true and just, for he judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication, and has avenged upon her the blood of his servants.". and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. But a grave consideration soon disposes of both views by the relation to the beast, and more particularly by what will be shown a little farther on. ( Revelation 18:20). "So he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness" a thorough waste as to the knowledge or enjoyment of God. It is a description, and not one of the visions that carry us onward. into the Holy of Holies, he wore pure white linen. "Whoever comes to me I will in no wise cast out" ( John 6:37 ). Gen. 1; Isaiah 55:11; John 1:1; 2 Thessalonians 1:8) not a literal description. Bride. It probably came to be so well known to even the simplest member of the Church through its special use as a response of praise in the Easter worship. . Jesus Christ was a threat to the religious leaders as He would be to all religious leaders. "Why are you red in your apparel, and your garments like the ones that have been treading in the wine vat?" See bibliographic information; Read aloud; Stop reading aloud Hide links to Bible word meanings Choose a verse from 'Revelation 19' to begin your 'Verse-by-Verse' study of God's Word using the more than 100 commentaries available on StudyLight.org. "And if any one was not found written in the book of life, he was cast into the lake of fire." He is an American citizen and his base is in Sunland, California. (19:6-9), are evidence of the Church being in heaven prior to the return of that those who were meant under the figures of the elders and of the living creatures assume the name and figure of the bride? Verse 6. "And they went up on the breadth of the earth, and encompassed the camp of the saints, and the beloved city." 4:17). On the contrary, it proved the immediateness of communion. Night and day it shall not be quenched; its smoke shall go up for ever and ever. He has with him the armies of heaven. So, Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. [Note: Ladd, pp. shall be their shepherd, as in Revelation 2:27, Revelation 12:5 Of course in all three places the reference is to Psalms 2:9. Verse 11. Persecuted Christians have been encouraged to endure their trials by the assurance that God is still in control. But first, the first five verses show heaven's response to the judgment of the In the coming of the Lord all include His coming to the habitable earth. And he shall rule them with a rod of iron; use them with the utmost severity; the phrase is taken out of Psalms 2:9 a prophecy of Christ, and mentioned twice before in this book, Psalms 2:9- :. And they also lasted much longer. Clearly the same saints whom we have seen first set forth by the elders in heaven, subsequently by the elders and the living creatures, next, by the bride and the living creatures at the marriage-supper, and finally by the armies that followed the Lord out of heaven. His attributes: he is faithful and true to his covenant and promise, he is righteous in all his judicial and military proceedings, he has a penetrating insight into all the strength and stratagems of his enemies, he has a large and extensive dominion, many crowns, for he is King of kings, and Lord of lords. This verse declares it, and there is no other interpretation that can stand even a moment's fair discussion. It seems clear that the name is visible to all, and, therefore, probably the likeliest solution is that it was written on the skirt of the warrior Christ's robe, lying over his thigh, as he rode upon the white horse. In any event, the name singles him out as the greatest of all rulers, the only true divine One and the universal King. We can understand a remnant saved out of one or more nations; but who ever heard of "nations of them which are saved"? Then go into each of the twenty two chapters of the Book of Revelation one by one. First, there are his servants. Bad as pagan Rome was, it would be false to affirm that it ever had come out of the bottomless pit. God will judge Israel, namely, Jews living when He returns (Ezekiel 20:33-38), and the Gentiles living then (Matthew 25:31-46). Reuchlin. (i) He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, not his own but that of his enemies. Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! 19:9-10a And he said to me: "Write! It is reigning. As far as the display of government goes, it is according to God morally, and for His glory, though I deny not for a moment that there are elements of evil which are never allowed, but kept under if not expelled. 13:20), and will be presented to Him at the Rapture (John It is said that the judgments of God are true and just. "Called" is most evidently inapplicable, because calling supposes that the person is brought out of one condition and raised into another and a better one. Here were joined good and evil in godless union, for the worse, not for the better, this alliance, unholy in principle, irremediable therefore in practice, between God and the natural man, who substitutes rites for the grace and word of God, for the blood of Christ, and the power of the Spirit, and employs the name of the Lord as a cover for grosser covetousness and ambition, yet more aspiring than the vulgar world. The Bible forbids the worship of angels (Col. Now, this vesture dipped in blood is probably a reference to Isaiah sixty-three. Then comes not the destruction only of these rebels by divine judgment, but the dissolution of heaven and earth. And I have to apologize sometimes for my judgments. "And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army. The beast is Nero redivivus; the false prophet is the provincial organization which administered Caesar worship; those who have the mark of the beast are they who have worshipped at the shrine of Caesar; the kings of the earth and their armies are the Parthian hosts, which Nero was to lead again against Rome and against the world. Babylon symbolized by its capital city of Babylon. We have not to learn what the other mystery means; we know well that it is according to God and godliness. May our hearts answer freely to His word of love and truth with our "Amen." This is a metaphor of the power of the gospel or of Gods spoken word (cf. church. Not so. For according to unquestionable testimony the Reuchlinian copy has like some half-dozen cursives, which was probably a mistake for . The ten horns with the beast are all to receive authority the beast of course wielding the imperial power, they as kings, all during one and the same time before the end comes. "Come," he said, "assemble for the great feast which God will give you, that you may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses and of those who ride them, and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, both small and great.". Verse 10. So here He is sitting upon a white horse. The voice that comes from the throne is most likely to be understood as the voice of one of the cherubim. I saw still another mighty angel coming down from heaven, clothed with a cloud. Such is God's account of Babylon the great. In the description of the total destruction of Babylon, come the words: "Rejoice over her, O heaven, O saints and apostles and prophets, for God has given judgment for you against her!" is a word to him that hears. Without Jesus, there It appears that those who were redeemed were looking on from heaven and His Kingship is universal--But one thing remains--that the enemies of His people be consigned to their doom. Those who are invited to the marriage supper are Israel (see article Marriage Thus the second beast is no longer seen as an earthly power, but as a prophet-of course a false prophet. marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.". And thus it was but a little glimpse they had of prophecy. The fine linen, clean and white, represents the Thomas viewed the second coming of Christ plus everything else through Revelation 22:5 as part of the seventh bowl judgment. That is, the sixth head (reigning then in John's day) was the imperial form of government. There is a distinct contrast between the city John describes and the ancient Babylon, in that the latter was built on the plain of Shinar, while the former is expressly said to have seven heads, and these explained to mean seven mountains. Scholz's note ("rec. Moral elements too were not wanting: the mystery of lawlessness had long been at work, though the enemy had not yet brought in the apostacy, and still less the manifestation of the lawless one. But a very different point of interest is to be observed. "The kings of the earth do bring their glory and honour unto it" not into but unto. the church. There are those who have set themselves deliberately and conscientiously to fight against God.The humanists in their Humanist Manifesto have declared their intention of destroying God out of the minds and conscientiousness of men. Tribulation saints. That religious system has an incomparably nearer connection with this mysterious harlot than anything we have yet spoken of. It is thus that God is wont to deal as a rule in His judgments, not necessarily on the one that first introduces an evil, but on those that inherit the guilt, and perhaps aggravate it, instead of taking warning by it. He was filled with astonishment that this mysterious form of evil, this counter-testimony of the enemy (not antichrist, but antichurch), should seem and be largely accepted as the holy catholic church of God, that Christendom, if not Christianity, should at the same time become the bitterest of persecutors, more murderously incensed against the witnesses of Jesus and the saints of God than ever paganism had been in any country or all ages. Then there is the reigning power, but not the execution of judgment in this awful fashion which is attributed to the Lord Himself. For it is clear that, though principles might reign, to be priests is quite inconsistent with a mere figure. We have already met this description in Revelation 1:14 and Revelation 2:18. He has, I think, exactly that class in view when He sanctions the calling him who hears to say "Come." pure and faithful, never a harlot, like Israel was (see Hosea chapter 2). It "shall go into perdition," it is therefore added, "and they that dwell on the earth shall wonder, whose names are not written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, when they behold the beast that was, and is not, and shall be present." Revelation 19:6 "And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as I think, therefore, that the elders and the living creatures comprehend both the Old Testament saints and the church, the bride of Christ, that consequently, when the bride is mentioned, there were these others who had been included in the elders and the living creatures, but who are now seen as a separate body. oceans will become thick, dark, and coagulated, like the blood of a corpse. This brings in idolatry, real shameless idolatry too, not merely that subtle working of the idolatrous spirit that every Christian has to guard against. 1:8; 4:8; 11:17; 15:3; 16:7, 14; 21:22). II. It is not the gospel, nor the Holy Spirit, but the lawless revived Latin empire with its vassal kingdoms of the west, that combine and destroy Babylon. Revelation. Four beasts: The four beasts are the cherubim as described (in Rev. ", 2. linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.". "His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many diadems." 4:13-18). Take this quite simply and literally. 135:1; 146:1). But no believer comes into judgment. The New Testament is the "last will and testament" of Jesus, and to These remain as yet in the condition of separate spirits. 21 To him who overcomes I will grant to sit with Me on My throne, as I also overcame and sat down with My Father on His throne. harlot. It supposes the effect and the exercise of faith. Verse 6 commends these sayings afresh. Christianity teaches that God is reaching down to man; exactly the opposite of religious thoughts, man trying to reach God. According to the biblical narrative, Zerubbabel [a] was a governor of the Achaemenid Empire 's province of Yehud [3] and the grandson of Jeconiah, [4] penultimate king of Judah. Accordingly the resuscitated Roman empire will carry men away by a storm of wonder at its revival. There will be no time for seeking mercy, as it were: whatever the state in which the Lord at His coming will find us, all is closed up and fixed. Scripture records no name whatever among those judged written there. They are joined by the twenty-four elders (Revelation 4). But then while there is such a call to Christ, while the believer is not to be afraid, but to call on the Lord to come, the church does not forget those that are poor sinners, let them be deeply conscious of it, or let them be those that are only made willing by the grace of God (which is the feeblest expression of the sinner's need, just as you have the feeblest expression of the saint in the previous call). 16 And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS. 4:17; see And I saw the beast [that is the antichrist], and the kings of the earth [which have been drawn by the demonic forces], and their armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the horse, and against his army ( Revelation 19:18-19 ). If anyone hears My voice and opens the door, I will come in to him and dine with him, and he with Me. because of the number of people speaking. It is a Hebrew word that has become universal, "Allel", "u", "yah", which means, "praise to Jehovah" or Yahweh. WATCH ON YOUTUBE Book of Revelation Explained 2: The Last Days (Revelation 1:1-5) This remains true also in its own place, as we shall find; and when it is a question of reward, this is precisely the grand point; but when it is a question of the bride above, that is the way in which it is presented here, as we may see clearly from verse 8. His equipage: he is again described as sitting on a white horse, to show the equity of the cause, and certainty of success. This is the This scene Christ needs no armies, whether of angels, or anyone else. They "lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.". Worship God!". And again they said, Alleluia. He uses a "staff" to gently nudge or guide his sheep. There is a scripture that would indicate maybe two hundred million.And that is when the blood will flow to the horses bridle all the way through the Valley of Megiddo clear on down to Edom through the valley of Jehoshaphat as they gather together against the Lord and His anointed. Hence arose the prominence of angels. It was, as H. B. Swete puts it, like "the din of a vast concourse, the roar of a cataract, the roll of thunder.". })(); Return to Revelation Menu | 1. They would have a big dance and party, as they would crush all of the grapes, they would get the juice out of them. willing to be his in the day of his power. Now the scene totally changes to heaven. That is spiritually in chapter seventeen, that great religious system that corrupted the earth. . "Praise our God," it said, "all you his servants, you who fear him, small and great.". The marriage feast will take place on earth following Christ's return with the harlot), and avenging the blood of the martyrs (7:9-17). Revelation chapter 19 and 20 THE ALMIGHTY AND HIS KINGDOM ( Revelation 19:6-8 continued). ceremony. "Crowns and thrones may perish Kingdoms rise and wane But the Church of Jesus Constant will remain. The race was now in the resurrection state either for good or for evil; and thus it must be for ever. (John 17:18). Up till now the visions have mainly been concerned with the power of evil and the sufferings of believers. The return of Christ to earth 19:11-16. Revelation 6 Verse By Verse Bible Study Guide With Discussion Questions Revelation 6 Bible study guide with verse by verse teaching, applications, and discussion questions to supercharge your study of the Word. all the faithful believers saved by grace through faith up to the birth of the Well, the folly of men today that think that they are able to fight against God and to come out victorious. The Spirit of God contrasts with the fall of Babylon the marriage. But, further, we find that the saints who had suffered for Christ, during the time that the others were in heaven, are now reunited to their bodies and live, the Lord waiting for the last martyr that He might not leave out one of those who had died for His name. Now that time had come. And there is probably an area right in the center of the earth that is hollow and because of the rotation of the earth and gravitation and all you would be constantly falling. inhabitants of the Roman empire into wicked and idolatrous practices, and so Salvation is simple. You can trust in this that these are the true sayings of God. Third, he alone has the wisdom to find the right judgment and the power to apply it. Judgment is the inescapable consequence of sin. Now, the time has come for the Lord Jesus Christ Himself to return in power and great glory and establish God's kingdom upon the earth.