Revelation 19
Songs of praise to the LORDversus 1-3
And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven
saying
Aleluia – Salvation – glory – honor – power – to the Lord our God
for true and righteous are HIS judgments
for HE has judged the great whore
which did corrupt the earth with
her fornication – and has avenged
the blood of HIS servants at her hand
And again they said
Aleluia
And her smoke rose up forever and ever
Elders and angels worshiped the LORD with praiseverses 4-5
And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down
and worshiped God that sat on the throne – saying
Amen – Alleluia
And a voice came out of the throne saying
Praise to our God – all you HIS servants
and you that fear HIM – both small and great
Congregation continued to praiseveres 6-8
And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude
and as the voice of many waters
and as the voice of mighty thunderings
saying
Alleluia – FOR the Lord God omnipotent reigns
Let us be glad and rejoice – and give honor to HIM
for the marriage of the Lamb is come
and HIS wife has made herself ready
And to her was granted that she should be
arrayed in fine linen – clean and white
for the fine linen is the
righteousness of saints
John has interaction with angelverses 9-10
And he said to me – Write
Blessed are they which are called to the
marriage supper of the Lamb
And he said unto me
These are the true sayings of God
and I fell at his feet to worship him
And he said to me
See you do it not I am your fellow servant
and of your brethren that have the
testimony of Jesus WORSHIP God
for the testimony of Jesus
is the spirit of prophecy
Vision of Jesus Christ and his armyverses 11-16
And I saw heaven opened – and BEHOLD a white horse
and HE that sat on him was called Faithful and True
and in righteousness HE does judge and make war
HIS eyes were as a flame of fire – on HIS head were many crowns
and HE had a name written – that no man knew
BUT HE HIMSELF
And HE was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood
and HIS name is called the Word of God
And the armies which were in heaven followed HIM on white horses
clothed in fine linen – white and clean
And out of HIS mouth goes a sharp sword
that with it HE should smite the nations
and HE shall rule them with a rod of iron
and HE treads the winepress of the fierceness
and wrath of Almighty God
AND HE has on his vesture and on HIS thigh a name written
KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS
Angels shouts to the birdsverses 17-18
And I saw an angel standing in the sun
and he cried with a loud voice
saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of heaven
COME and gather yourselves together unto the
supper of the great God
that you may eat the flesh of kings – captains – mighty men
horses – and of them that sit on them
and flesh of all men – both free and bond
both small and great
False political leader and false prophet defeatedverses 19-21
And I saw the beast – and kings of the earth – and their armies
gathered together to make war against HIM that
sat on the horse – and against HIS army
And the beast was taken
and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him
with which he deceived them that had received
the mark of the beast – and them that
worshiped his image
These both were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone
and the remnant were slain with the sword of HIM
that sat on the horse which sword proceeded
out of HIS mouth
and all the fowls were filled with their flesh
COMMENTARY:
DAILY SPIRITUAL BREAKFAST: Young Believers
: 1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honor, and power, unto the Lord our God. (239 “alleluia” [allelouia] means praise ye the LORD, or hallelujah)
DEVOTION: It is time for a VICTORY dance. It is time for a VICTORY song. It is time to worship the KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.
HE is riding on a white horse. HE is defeating the beast and the false prophet that received their power from the fallen angel, Satan. The two of them are cast into the LAKE OF FIRE. This is the Gehenna hell that is talked about as the final place of torment for the devil and his angels. The first one in there are the beast and the false prophet. Satan or the devil is going to be bound for a thousand years. At the end of the thousand years we have him released for one last stand. It fails. Then the Great White Throne judgment for all those who refused to follow Christ will be judged from the book of life and for their deeds and cast into the LAKE OF FIRE. This is the second death. The devil will join them. This will be his first time in the LAKE OF FIRE for eternity.
Meanwhile we have a chapter of praise given here just before Christ comes on HIS white horse against the devil and his army at the battle of Armageddon.
This word for “praise the LORD” is used four times in Revelation, and only in this chapter. This is the only time the word is used in the New Testament. The saints in heaven are really glad that God has taken care of the enemy on earth.
We will be singing praises in heaven on a regular basis. We should be learning to use this word NOW while we are here on the earth. We have many people who sing as if they are getting their teeth pulled, instead of with a mouth full of praise. Can you imagine Baptists saying “Praise the LORD” or “AMEN” now!
This chapter is the introduction to the final battle at the end of the Tribulation. Christ defeats them with the sword coming out of HIS mouth. We need to remember that the sword is the Word of God. Christ defeats Satan and his armies with the word of HIS mouth. Remember that we have power from the LORD to face our daily battles against the world, the flesh and the devil. Victory is ours!!!
Are we using the sword of the LORD in our daily battles with our enemy? Are we willing to thank HIM for VICTORY with our voices in song? So little praise is happening NOW in our churches.
CHALLENGE: Encourage those around you to sing praises to the LORD with their WHOLE HEART.
DAILY SPIRITUAL LUNCH: Transitional Believers
: 5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great. (134 “Praise” [aineo] means extol, to glorify, or to tell)
DEVOTION: We have a story to tell to the nations and it is all about Jesus Christ. During our lifetime we will attend thousands of church services where we are asked to stand up and sing songs that extol our LORD Jesus Christ. There are thousands of songs in our hymnbooks. There are many more choruses that are made up every day it seems that we can sing to extol the LORD.
The sad truth is that many believers are not too excited about singing songs that glorify the LORD. They want to get that part of the service over to hear the message from the Word of God or they just want to put in their hour or hour and a half to say they have been in church. Many people complain about the song service as too long or the songs are not ones they like or they are repeating the chorus to often during the singing of the songs. We are a group that can complain about everything in the service.
I have heard that people complain about the length of the sermon when it is about forty-five minutes long.
For some people that is the only time they hear the Word of God all week. Their Bibles are never opened during the week and many times they don’t even bring their Bibles to church. Even reading the Word of God is a time of glorifying the LORD.
When we have so many problems on earth regarding our worship of the LORD what are we going to do in heaven? Some people think that glorifying the LORD in song is boring. They tend to think that heaven will be boring because we will be singing praises to God at times.
This group in heaven is not BORED. They are obeying a command sing because they realize they are finally part of the victory singers. They are part of those who follow Jesus Christ when HE judges those who have rejected HIM.
Our times of praise should be ones that cause us to have a smile on our face as we realize we are on the winning side. The war is not over yet for us but each battle we face we can see HIM getting more victory over our lives.
One day the fact that we have victory in Jesus will cause us to forget our troubles or trials and genuinely go to a worship service ready to focus on Jesus Christ and not worry about what those around us think or let them get us down.
The circumstances are different in heaven but we can have a taste of heaven while we are here on this earth with fellow believers when we are with a group that enjoys singing songs that glorify the LORD.
The end of the verse states that both small and great will worship the LORD at this time. There are not those who are in and those who are out like we have in some churches. Many in the in group will not give time to those who are out because they think they are better than them but that is not true. In fact, the in group that doesn’t fellowship with the out group might not even be saved. Read about how the early church had this problem in I Corinthians 11: 17-34. Ill treatment of fellow believers in church is a sin. No one is to manifest spiritual pride over other believers. I have attended some churches that this spiritual pride is evident among people who are members of even small churches.
CHALLENGE: No matter what is happening around you in church sing out songs to the glory of God each Sunday. Your enthusiasm might cause others to sing with all their heart too!!
: 6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, sayings Alleluia; for the Lord God omnipotent reigns. (3841 “omnipotent” [pantokrator] means he who holds sway over all things, the ruler of all, Almighty, someone whose controlling influence over reality is unlimited, or the one who has all power)
DEVOTION: Many translations use the word “omnipotent” for the word Almighty in this verse. We find that when we study words that describe God we run into words that many people don’t understand.
The “Omni” in this word means “all.” The final part of the word “potent” means powerful. We serve a God that is all powerful. What does that mean to you? Many have tried to question this statement. Some have said is it possible for God to create a stone too heavy for HIM to lift. They try to speculate about something that God cannot do. That is the wrong approach to God.
We need to realize that our God can do anything. HE never fails. HE has HIS plan made up from the foundation of the world and it has never changed. Some people who study the Bible have tried to say that God has changed HIS plan because of sin.
HE knew that Adam and Eve were going to sin in the Garden before HE created them. HE knew that HE was going to provide a way for them to have salvation. HE offered the first blood sacrifice when HE gave them their first clothes.
Sometimes we think that God can’t possibly win against sin in our world. It seems that those who are against Jesus Christ are winning in our society. More people used HIS name in vain than worship HIM that attend our schools and workplace. It seems that HE will never be able to be king over the world.
However, we find that the Bible says HE will. We need to trust the Bible because it came to us through the ministry of the Holy Spirit. HE spoke through men who lived in times like ours where people seemed to be going away from God more than toward HIM. Some of them even got discouraged but were still able to sing praises to HIM in spite of their circumstances. We need to do the same.
God wants to hear our praise every day. We need to believe that HE is almighty which means HE is all powerful. HE can defeat any enemy we face. We can do all things through Christ who gives us strength.
CHALLENGE: Doubt should not be a Christian’s vocabulary regarding what God can do!!!
DAILY SPIRITUAL SUPPER: Mature Believers
: 10 And I fell at his feet to worship him, And he said to me, See you do it not: I am your fellowservant, and of your brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. (4352 “worship” [prokuneo] means to prostrate oneself in the presence of the divine or supernatural as a sign of deference and worship, fall down, kneel, bow low, to do reverence to, to do obeisance to, or to kiss towards)
DEVOTION: One of the problems we have today is that we find people substituting other beings to worship rather than just Jesus Christ. We have “saints” that can be worshiped. We have “Mary” that can be worshiped. We have the “angels” that can be worshiped.
Here we have John falling down to the message that was telling him to write down what he was seeing. Most believe this was angel instructing John. He was so amazed at all he saw he fell at the feet of this angel and started to give praise to him the message he was receiving.
The angel immediately stopped him from worshiping him. He told him that the ONLY one to worship is God. The Godhead is made up of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. All three are to be worshiped. The make up ONE God. So we can worship Jesus Christ which is what is happening throughout the book of Revelation. We can worship the Father for sending the Son to die on the cross for our sins. We can even worship the Holy Spirit as the one who is teaching all these truths through HIS indwelling in us and through the Word of God that HE made sure was written properly.
We are not to worship anything or anyone one else. If we worship anything or anyone other than the Godhead we are involved in false worship.
Too often we want something we can see to worship and that is why so many worship the sun, moon and stars in our society and in past societies. Churches think that we need something tangible to worship so they give us saints and angels to worship. They are wrong.
Our prayer life should help us understand that we are worshiping a God who hears and answers our prayers. HE wants exclusive rights to our worship.
CHALLENGE: Listen to the angel speaking to the Apostle John and only worship God.
: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. (4103 “Faithful” [pistos] means 1 trusty, faithful. 1a of persons who show themselves faithful in the transaction of business, the execution of commands, or the discharge of official duties. 1b one who kept his plighted faith, worthy of trust. 1c that can be relied on. 2 easily persuaded. 2a believing, confiding, trusting. 2b in the NT one who trusts in God’s promises. 2b1 one who is convinced that Jesus has been raised from the dead. 2b2 one who has become convinced that Jesus is the Messiah and author of salvation. [Strong, J. (1995). Enhanced Strong’s Lexicon. Woodside Bible Fellowship])
DEVOTION: What does it mean to be faithful? Sometimes when we think about this question, what jumps into our mind is a dog. A dog will continue to love and serve his master even when he mistreats him. Most dogs are totally supportive of their owners. Another picture that comes into our minds is that of a geyser in Yosemite National Park. It has erupted on such a predictable continuous schedule that it has earned the nickname “Old Faithful.”
But faithfulness entails more than that. It should bring forth the picture of a couple who have remained married for over fifty years. Both have decided to continue to seek one another only, and to build a family together. They have decided that that one person they have married is truly special and is deserving of their full attention.
In the same way, the Bible describes God as faithful. This quality is so essential to His character that it becomes part of His name. God is faithful because He cannot deny Himself, and remains so even when we are faithless (2 Timothy 2:12-13). He is the one who has made the sacrifice for our sins, and continues to hold us in His loving care. We rest as we think of God’s unchanging character and love for us.
CHALLENGE: Is there any area of your life where you have been tempted to think of God as being unfaithful? Realize that He is the totally faithful one who will hold and keep you. (MW)
DISCIPLINES OF THE FAITH:
BODY
Chastity (Purity in living)
Fasting (Time alone with LORD without eating or drinking)
Sacrifice (Giving up something we want to serve the LORD)
Submission (Willing to listen to others and LORD)
Solitude (Going to a quiet place without anyone)
SOUL
Fellowship (Gathering together around the Word of God)
Frugality (wise use of resources)
Journalizing (Writing down what you have learned from the LORD)
Write
Study and Meditation (Thinking through your study in the Word)
Secrecy (Doing your good deeds without others knowing but God)
SPIRIT
Celebration (Gathering around a special occasion to worship LORD)
Alleluiaverses 1, 3, 4, 6
Amenverse 4
Praiseverse 5
Gladverse 7
Rejoiceverse 7
Confession (Tell the LORD we are sorry for our sins on a daily basis)
Prayer (Conversation with God on a personal level)
Silence (Letting the LORD deal with some problems and needs)
Worship (Time to praise the LORD alone or in a group)
Singing: Alleiuia, salvation, glory, honor, powerverses 1, 3, 4, 6
Twenty-four eldersverse 4
Four beastsverse 4
Worship God onlyverses 4, 10
Praise our Godverse 5
Great multitudeverse 6
Voice of many watersverse 6
Voice of mighty thunderingsverse 6
Let us be glad and rejoiceverse 7
DOCTRINES OF THE FAITH:
Scripture (66 inerrant books of the Bible)
Marriage (Is. 61:10)verses 7-9
Writeverse 9
True sayings of Godverse 9
Prophesyverse 10
Garment sprinkled with blood (Is. 63:1- 3)verse 13
King of kings (Dan 4: 37)verse 16
Destruction of beast (Ezek. 39: 4, 17-20)verses 17-18
Kings of the earth (Ps. 2: 2)verse 19
Sword out of mouth (Is. 49:2; 11: 4)verse 21
God the Father (First person of the Godhead)
Godverses 1, 4-6, 9, 10, 13, 15, 17
Lordverse 6
Lord God omnipotentverse 6
Reignsverse 6
Worship Godverse 10
Fierceness and wrathverse 15
Almighty Godverse 15
Great Godverse 17
God the Son (Second person of the Godhead –God/man, Messiah)
Lordverses 1, 6
Godverses 1, 6, 17
Lord our Godverse 1
Trueverse 2
Righteousverse 2
Judge great whoreverse 2
Avengerverse 2
Lord God verse 6
Omnipotentverse 6
Reignsverse 6
Lambverses 7, 9
Marriage supper of Lambverse 9
Jesusverse 10
Testimony of Jesus verse 10
Faithfulverse 11
Trueverse 11
Judge in righteousnessverse 11
Righteous warverse 11
Eyes = flame of fireverse 12
Head with many crownsverse 12
Clothed with vesture dipped in bloodverse 13
Word of Godverse 13
Armies of heaven followed HIMverse 14
Sharp sword out his mouthverse 15
Smite the nationsverse 15
Rule nations with rod of ironverse 15
King of kingsverse 16
Lord of Lordsverse 16
Supper of the great Godverse 17
God the Holy Spirit (Third person of the Godhead – our comforter)
Spirit of prophecyverse 10
Trinity (Three persons of the Godhead who are co-equal = ONE God)
Angels (Created before the foundation of the world – Good and Evil)
Four beasts (Serapim)verse 4
Angelverses 10, 17
Good angel not accept worshipverse 10
Fellow servantverse 10
Angel cries out to fowlsverse 17
Man (Created on the sixth twenty-four hour period of creation)
Earthverse 2
Kingsverses 18, 19
Captainsverse 18
Mighty menverse 18
Flesh of horsesverse 18
All menverse 18
War against Christverse 19
Sin (Missing the mark set by God on man and angels)
Whoreverse 2
Corrupt the earthverse 2
Fornicationverse 2
Killed believersverse 2
False mirclesverse 20
Deceivedverse 20
Received the mark of beastverse 20
Worshiped image of beastverse 20
Salvation (Provided by Christ’s death on the cross for our sins)
Alleluiaverses 1, 3, 6
Salvationverse 1
Gloryverse 1
Honorverses 1, 7
Powerverse 1
Servantsverses 2, 5
Fear Godverse 5
Gladverse 7
Rejoiceverse 7
Wife [church]verse 7
Righteousnessverse 8
Righteousness of saintsverse 8
Blessedverse 9
Brethren verse 10
Testimonyverse 10
Israel (Old Testament people of God)
Eldersverse 4
Called to marriage supper of Lambverse 9
Church (New Testament people of God)
Eldersverse 4
Marriage supper of the Lambverse 7
Wifeverse 7
Arrayed in fine linen: clean & whiteverses 8, 14
Righteousness of the saintsverse 8
Called to the marriage supper of the Lambverse 9
John fell at feet of angelverse 10
Brethrenverse 10
Testimonyverse 10
Last Things (Future Events)
People in heaven singingverses 1-3
Smoke rose up forever and eververse 3
Marriage supper of Lambverse 7
King of kings and LORD of LORDSverses 11-17
White horse
Faithful and True sat on it
Righteous Judge
Make war
Armies of heaven followed HIM
Clothed in fine linen
Mouth was sharp sword
Smite the nations
Rule with rod of iron
Fowls gathered to supper
Flesh eatenverses 18, 21
Beast and false prophet takenverse 20
Mark of the beastverse 20
Lake of fireverse 20
Sword proceeded out of mouth of LORDverse 21
Fowls filled with fleshverse 21
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QUOTES regarding passage
19–21 The contrast between the assembling of the beast’s might with his kings and their soldiers and the ease by which he is overthrown and captured highlight the beast’s powerlessness before his mighty conqueror. The “kings of the earth” refer to the ten horns (kings) of the beast, which is another way of describing the beast’s power (see comments at 17:12–14). Both the beast and the false prophet (13:1ff.) are simply seized and thrown into the lake of fire (v. 20). Their followers fall before the sword (word) of Christ (v. 21). No battle is actually fought. Only the arrangement of the foes and the defeat of the beast is described. Is this accidental? Is John indicating that the battle has already been fought and this is simply the final realization of that previous victory? In chapter 5 the Lamb had overcome (won the victory) by his death (5:5, 9). Further, we are told that there was a battle in heaven, and Satan was cast out and defeated by the blood of the Lamb and the word of his followers’ testimony (12:7–9, 11).
There seems to be only one actual battle described in Revelation. Thus these further scenes may be understood as more judicial in character than as literal battlefield descriptions. Because of John’s christological reinterpretation, no great eschatological military battle, such as that envisaged in the Qumran War Scroll, will actually be fought. The decisive battle has already been won at the Cross. These armies and the beast are the destroyers of the earth (11:18), who ultimately are the satanic principalities of the world who ally themselves with the human puppets for their idolatrous ends. These have been positionally defeated at the Cross (Col 2:15), but they will finally be stripped of all power at Christ’s return. Certainly John would not have denied that Satan and his evil powers are active in the world and that they use historical persons such as a Nero or a Hitler and oppose and harass Christians today.
Although Satan has been dealt a death blow at the Cross (cf. John 12:31; 16:11), he nevertheless continues to promulgate great evil and deception during this present age (cf. Eph 2:2; 1 Thess 3:5; 1 Peter 5:8–9; Rev 2:10). Yet he is a deposed ruler who is now under the sovereign authority of Christ but who for a “little time” is allowed to continue his evil until God’s purposes are finished. In this scene of the overthrow of the beast and his kings and their armies, John is showing us the ultimate and swift downfall of these evil powers by the king of kings and lord of lords. They have met their Master in this final and utterly real confrontation. (On the “lake of fire,” see comments at 20:14.) (Johnson, A. F. (1981). Revelation. In F. E. Gaebelein (Ed.), The Expositor’s Bible Commentary: Hebrews through Revelation (Vol. 12, p. 576). Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan Publishing House)
Was taken (ἐπιασθη [epiasthē]). First aorist (prophetic) passive indicative of the Doric πιαζω [piazō] (Attic πιεζω [piezō]). Cf. 2 Thess. 2:8. The false prophet (ὁ ψευδοπροφητης [ho pseudoprophētēs]). Possibly the second beast of 13:11–17; 16:13; 20:10. Charles takes him to be “the priesthood of the Imperial cult, which practised all kinds of magic and imposture to beguile men to worship the Beast.” That wrought the signs in his sight (ὁ ποιεσας τα σημεια ἐνωπιον αὐτου [ho poiesas ta sēmeia enōpion autou]). As in 13:14. Wherewith (ἐν οἱς [en hois]). “In which” signs. He deceived (ἐπλανησεν [eplanēsen]). First aorist active indicative of πλαναω [planaō]. He was only able to deceive “them that had received” (τους λαβοντας [tous labontas], articular second aorist active participle of λαμβανω [lambanō], “those receiving”) “the mark of the beast” (13:16; 14:9ff.; 16:2; 20:4) “and them that worshipped his image” (τους προσκυνουντας τῃ εἰκονι αὐτου [tous proskunountas tēi eikoni autou]) as in 13:15. They twain (οἱ δυο [hoi duo]). “The two.” Were cast (ἐβληθησαν [eblēthēsan]). First aorist passive Indicative of βαλλω [ballō]. They fall together as they fought together. “The day that sees the end of a false statecraft will see also that of a false priestcraft” (Swete). Alive (ζωντες [zōntes]). Present active participle of ζαω [zaō], predicative nominative, “living.” Into the lake of fire (εἰς την λιμνην του πυρος [eis tēn limnēn tou puros]). Genitive πυρος [puros] describes this λιμνην [limnēn] (lake, cf. Luke 5:1) as it does γἑεννα [gehenna] in Matt. 5:22. See also 20:10; 21:8. It is a different figure from the “abyss” in 9:1ff. and 20:1ff. This is the final abode of Satan, the beast, the false prophet, and wicked men. That burneth with brimstone (της καιομενης ἐν θειῳ [tēs kaiomenēs en theiōi]). Note the genitive here in place of the accusative λιμνην [limnēn], perhaps because of the intervening genitive πυρος [puros] (neuter, not feminine). The agreement is regular in 21:8. For ἐν θειῳ [en theiōi] (with brimstone) see 14:10; 20:10; 21:8. The fact of hell is clearly taught here, but the imagery is not to be taken literally any more than that of heaven in chapters 4; 5; 21; 22 is to be so understood. Both fall short of the reality. (Robertson, A. T. (1933). Word Pictures in the New Testament (Re 19:20). Nashville, TN: Broadman Press.)
19:19–21. The beast and his armies will gather to fight against Christ and His army. The outcome of this battle—referred to in 16:14 as “the battle on the great day of God Almighty”—is summarized in 19:19–21. The world rulers—the beast and the false prophet—will both be captured. Their former miraculous demonic power will no longer be sufficient to save them. Both of them will be thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.
The wicked who have died throughout the history of the world up to this point are in hades (Luke 16:23). The fiery lake, a different place, was prepared for the devil and his angels (Matt. 25:41), and will not be occupied by human beings until later (Rev. 20:14–15).
The armies themselves will be killed by Christ’s sword (19:21; cf. 1:16; 2:12, 16; 19:15). The number of dead will be so great that the vultures will have more than they can eat. The defeat of the earth’s wicked will then be complete, and will be finalized as later judgments search out the unsaved in other parts of the earth and also kill them (cf. Matt. 25:31–45).
The same inspired Word of God which so wonderfully describes the grace of God and the salvation which is available to all who believe is equally plain about the judgment of all who reject the grace of God. The tendency of liberal interpreters of the Bible to emphasize passages dealing with the love of God and to ignore passages dealing with His righteous judgment is completely unjustified. The passages on judgment are just as inspired and accurate as those which develop the doctrines of grace and salvation. The Bible is clear that judgment awaits the wicked, and the second coming of Christ is the occasion for a worldwide judgment unparalleled in Scripture since the time of Noah’s flood. (Walvoord, J. F. (1985). Revelation. In J. F. Walvoord & R. B. Zuck (Eds.), The Bible Knowledge Commentary: An Exposition of the Scriptures (Vol. 2, p. 977). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
He will defeat “the beast” and false prophet (v. 20). Since Satan’s “henchmen” are the leaders of the revolt, it is only right that they be captured and confined. They are cast into the lake of fire (see Rev. 20:10, 14–15), the final and permanent place of punishment for all who refuse to submit to Jesus Christ. “The beast” and false prophet are the first persons to be cast into hell. Satan will follow 1,000 years later (Rev. 20:10), to be joined by those whose names are not recorded in the Book of Life (Rev. 20:15).
Today, when an unbeliever dies, his spirit goes to a place called hades, which means “the unseen world”—that is, the realm of the dead. When believers die, they go immediately into the presence of the Lord (2 Cor. 5:6–8; Phil. 1:19–23). Hades will one day be emptied of its dead (Rev. 20:13), who will then be cast into hell to join Satan, the beast, and the false prophet. (Wiersbe, W. W. (1996). The Bible exposition commentary (Vol. 2, pp. 618–619). Wheaton, IL: Victor Books.)
19:20 beast was seized, and … the false prophet. In an instant, the world’s armies are without their leaders. The beast is Antichrist (see notes on 13:1–8); the false prophet is his religious cohort (see notes on 13:11–17). thrown alive. The bodies of the beast and the false prophet will be transformed, and they will be banished directly to the lake of fire (Da 7:11)—the first of countless millions of unregenerate men (20:15) and fallen angels (cf. Mt 25:41) to arrive in that dreadful place. That these two still appear there 1,000 years later (20:10) refutes the false doctrine of annihilationism (cf. 14:11; Is 66:24; Mt 25:41; Mk 9:48; Lk 3:17; 2Th 1:9). lake of fire. The final hell, the place of eternal punishment for all unrepentant rebels, angelic or human (cf. 20:10, 15). The NT says much of eternal punishment (cf. 14:10, 11; Mt 13:40–42; 25:41; Mk 9:43–48; Lk 3:17; 12:47, 48). fire … brimstone. See note on 9:17. These two are frequently associated with divine judgment (14:10; 20:10; 21:8; Ge 19:24; Ps 11:6; Is 30:33; Eze 38:22; Lk 17:29). (MacArthur, J. F., Jr. (2006). The MacArthur study Bible: New American Standard Bible. (Re 19:20). Nashville, TN: Thomas Nelson Publishers.)
Ver. 20. And the beast was taken, &c.] At the first onset, as soon as ever the battle begun, and carried away captive, as it was threatened he should, ch. 13:10 and this by Christ, who will destroy him with the breath of his mouth, and the brightness of his coming, 2 Thess. 2:8. And with him the false prophet; that is, the second beast in ch. 13:11, 12, 13, 14 as appears by the characters by which he is here described, or antichrist in his ecclesiastic capacity; that is, the pope with his clergy: and indeed, when the antichristian princes and states are taken and destroyed, which are the support of the Papacy, that must in consequence sink, be crushed and ruined; the Alexandrian copy reads, and they that are with him, the false prophet Jezabel; the false prophetess and her children, who will now be killed with death, ch. 2:20, 23 that wrought miracles before him; the beast, or the civil antichristian powers, even signs and lying wonders, which were approved of, and applauded by him, by which, believing them, he was confirmed in antichristian principles: with which he deceived them that had the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image; the several subjects of the antichristian states; see ch. 13:14, 15, 16, 17 but none of God’s elect, who cannot be seduced by such means, Matt. 24:24. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone; which is the second death, ch. 21:8. The severe punishment of antichrist, considered in both his capacities, civil and ecclesiastic, is expressed by being cast into a lake of fire, not material fire, but the wrath of God, which will be poured out like fire, and will be intolerable; and by this lake burning with brimstone, which, giving a nauseous stench, aggravates the punishment. Says R. Joden, when a man smells the smell of brimstone, why does his breath draw back at it (or catch)? because he knows he shall be judged with it in the world to come. The allusion seems to be to the place where Sodom and Gomorrha stood, which is become a sulphurous lake, and is an emblem of the vengeance of eternal fire, Jude 8 and these two are said to be cast alive into it, which shews that they will not only suffer a corporeal death at this battle, and in the issue of it, but will be destroyed, body and soul, in hell: the phrase denotes the awfulness, inevitableness, and severity of their punishment; there seems to be some reference to the earth’s swallowing up Korah and his company alive, Numb. 11:33 see Dan. 7:11. (Gill, J. (1809). An Exposition of the New Testament (Vol. 3, p. 843). London: Mathews and Leigh.)
FROM MY READING:
(Remember the only author that I totally agree with is the HOLY SPIRIT in the inerrant WORD OF GOD called THE BIBLE! All other I try to gleam what I can to help me grow in the LORD!!)
IMPOSSIBLE PEOPLE by Os Guinness – InterVarsity Press 2016
The church that cannot say no to all that contradicts its Lord is a church that is well down the road to cultural defeat and captivity. But the courage to say no has to be followed by an equally clear, courageous and constructive yes – to the Lord himself, to his gospel and his vision of life, humanity and the future, so that Christians can be seen to live differently and to live better in the world of today. (p. 22)
To be sure, Christians in the West are certainly facing powerful opposition created by the convergence of several streams of ideas that have created a raging flood that threatens to overwhelm the Christian faith in its deluge. This flood is the result of four infamous S factors that have built up over several centuries. Secularism, reinforced by secularization, has been empowered by separationism, and the outcome is a new and formidable form of statism. (A fifth S might be added, The Sixties, as there is no question that in both Europe and America the 1960s had a watershed cultural significance.) (p. 24)
As followers of Jesus we are called to live before one audience, the audience of One. From Abraham on, the life of faith has always been “all at the sound of a voice.” There is only one voice that matters for us – the voice of God, and not the voice of the people or the voice of the times. (p. 27)
Would we be convicted today for being stubborn, tenacious, unbending and obstinate? It is surely undeniable that only rarely in Christian history has the lordship of Jesus in the West been treated as more pliable or has Christian behavior more lax, Christian compromise more common, Christian defection from the faith more casual, and Christian rationales for such slippage more spurious and shameless. (p. 30)
All who would be faithful followers of Jesus in our advanced modern world are facing similar challenges and seductions, and we too must become impossible people – Christians with hearts that can melt with compassion, but with faces like flint and backbones of steel who are unmanipulable, unbribable, undeterrable, without ever losing the gentleness, the mercy, the grace and the compassion of our Lord. (p. 32)
On Saturday, SpaceX and NASA, in a remarkable achievement, sent astronauts to the International Space Station. We cheered their success, but the timing, juxtaposed beside the horrific murder of George Floyd, protests by so many disillusioned and hurting Americans, and repeated nights of lawlessness that left cities across America looted and burned, was more than a little strange.
Think about it. We can go to space. We can instantly communicate with anyone anywhere in the world. We might even develop a treatment for COVID-19. It’s amazing what humans can do. And yet, and yet, we are, by any objective measure, a nation barely holding itself together. Our best scientific achievements and our brightest technological innovations offer no solutions for our deepest divisions or our most serious problems.
Though no one who witnessed the scope and scale of the chaos this weekend could conclude “all is OK,” there are indicators everywhere that our nation’s health is worse than we’re willing to admit. We are what Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn called, in his famous 1978 Harvard University commencement speech, “a world split apart.” Like his audience that day, we too risk underestimating just how deep the fissures are.
For example, the initial condemnation of George Floyd’s killing was bipartisan and unequivocal by both right and left, but is since increasingly seen through, and being greatly distorted by, our political lenses. Solzhenitsyn warned against thinking “the danger (of the Cold War) could be abolished through successful diplomatic negotiations” alone. Well, neither can politics alone, much less increased state force alone, calm this perfect storm of a long history of racial grievance, a slow-moving and often malfunctioning justice system, misguided social justice warriors, and extremist agitators and opportunists, all swirling together within a nation on edge from seven weeks of social isolation.
Christians must not run for political or ideological corners. To the best of our ability, we must affirm all truths, even those hard to swallow, and we must deny all lies, even the ones that are politically expedient.
For example, even if the story is wrongly told, America still faces whirlwind-intense consequences from her “original sin.” Though current economic, political, and social conditions for the African-American community is light years ahead of, say, 1863 or even 1963, American slavery was especially evil in ways that still poison today. In directly assaulting the image of God in African-Americans, the heinous sin of racism took deep root in American hearts, American institutions, and American history. And, slavery uniquely targeted and, in many ways, broke the black family. These are generational-sized evils that one does not just “get over.”
At the same time, indoctrinating our young in identity politics and critical theory has made things worse. These bad ideas have consequences too, which in this case, take the form of rioters hijacking both protests and grievances that don’t belong to them. As Dr. Anthony Bradley of The Kings College has repeatedly noted throughout this episode on Twitter, privileged, “woke” white kids are wreaking havoc that will only blow back on the very communities they are purporting to “stand with.” Or, as Claire Lehmann, founding editor of Quillette tweeted, “Maybe saddling an entire generation of kids with debt & no hope of joining the property class while sending them to institutions that marinate them in neo- Marxist orthodoxy wasn’t such a good idea.”
Another hard truth to face is that no political solution can overcome our collective loss of virtue. It’s either the conscience or the constable, and the cracks in our social fabric cannot ultimately be held together by more creative (or condescending) public policies, or strong-man type leadership, and certainly not by unwise tweets. To paraphrase C. S. Lewis, we’ve abandoned character and are surprised to see Antifa in our midst. The increasingly militarized governmental response that will most-likely be required in the coming days should not be confused, neither by us nor our president, as a solution. No, it’s a sign of just how bad things are.
None of this is to say that we don’t need leadership. Of course we do: political, spiritual, familial, and otherwise. Even more, we need a population able to govern itself. Our current lack of both means we instead, more and more, resemble Solzhenitsyn’s description of a dying society.
This past Sunday, Christians around the world remembered Pentecost, the day that God’s gift of the Holy Spirit enabled apostles to proclaim Christ and His resurrection across tongues and tribes. The day foreshadowed the day John describes in Revelation 7, when Babel is reversed and people from every tongue, tribe, nation, and language are united, once again, before the throne of God.
Could the Holy Spirit also empower us, today, to bridge the deep divide of tribe that inflicts our hearts and our nation?
This Thursday, innovative thinker and cultural analyst Andy Crouch will join me for our Thursday Q&A session, based on his Truth. Love. Together. session that released this week. It’s entitled “How We Can Be the Sort of People the World Needs, right now.” Live attendance is limited, but if you register and we run out of space, we will send you a link to the recording. Come to breakpoint.org to register.
(Break Point)
As violent protests ensue over the death of George Floyd, Evangelist Franklin Graham is calling for the church to pray.
Graham, who serves as president and CEO of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association (BGEA) and heads up humanitarian aid organization Samaritan’s Purse, stressed the importance of prayer in a Facebook post on Saturday.
“As Christians, the greatest weapon and the most powerful defense we have is prayer. Our country needs prayer in a critical way,” he asserted
Graham then called for churches to “have a special time of intercession for our nation in their Sunday morning services”, whether it was online or in person.
“Will you pray, and will you share this with your pastor?” he asked.
Graham continued, imploring the church to pray for peace, perspective, patience and an outpouring of God’s wisdom.
He wrote, “We need to pray for PEACE, because “’the anger of man does not produce the righteousness of God’ (James 1:20).
“Pray for PERSPECTIVE, because ‘the wisdom from above is first pure, then peaceable, gentle, open to reason, full of mercy and good fruits, impartial and sincere’ (James 3:17).
“Pray for PATIENCE, because of God’s ‘kindness and forbearance and patience’ toward us all (Romans 2:4).
“And pray for an OUTPOURING of His wisdom and direction for our leaders and officials who are dealing with this crisis. Ask God to change hearts and heal this divide in our nation.”
Graham concluded by encouraging people to “ask God to change hearts and heal this divide in our nation.” (Franklin Graham)
1 Kings 2
David charges Solomon with the urgency of living for the Lord
INSIGHT
Parts of the Old Testament tax our understanding and our acceptance.
First, we do not understand much about Judaism, the Law, and Old Testament
culture and customs. Second, many of the events are violations of God’s desires-though that is not explained to us. And finally, God deals with men differently in the Old Testament than in the New Testament.
While not all things are easily explained, in chapter 2, Solomon takes vengeance only upon all those people who had already committed acts that were punishable by death. This doesn’t answer every problem we might have with this difficult chapter, but it is a beginning. (Quiet Walk)
HINDRANCES TO REVIVAL
And Isaac departed thence, and pitched his tent in the valley of Gerar, and dwelt there. And Isaac digged the wells of water, which they had digged in the days of Abraham his father; for the Philistines had stopped them after the death of Abraham: and he called their names after the names by which his father had called them. Genesis 26:17-18
This incident in the life of Isaac has much to teach us in our consideration of the whole question of revival. The picture is one of Isaac in trouble, in a difficulty. If you read the context, you will find that he had been living in another part of the country, and God had blessed him in a very striking manner. So much so that Isaac had become the object of envy of those who were living round and about him, and they had forced him to move. “And Abimelech said unto Isaac, Go from us; for thou art much mightier than we” (Genesis 26:16). And so Isaac was compelled to move with his family and all his servants, possessions, and belongings. Then he came to the valley of Gerar and decided that he would dwell there.
Of course, the moment he arrived he was confronted by an urgent and a very desperate need—the need of water. I do want to emphasize that because this was the need for something that is absolutely essential to life, in addition to being essential to well-being. He was not merely confronted by the problem of seeking some beautiful spot where he might pitch his tent or erect some kind of dwelling-place for himself. He was not looking for entertainment or for luxuries; he was not looking for any kind of accessory to life. The whole point of the story is that he was looking for something that is an absolute essential and without which life cannot be maintained at all.
I emphasize that because the first thing that we must realize about the situation we are in today is its desperate character.
A Thought to Ponder: The first thing that we must realize about the situation we are in today is its desperate character.
(From Revival, p. 21, by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones).
Let Him Hear
“He that hath an ear, let him hear what the Spirit saith unto the churches.” (Revelation 3:22)
It makes an eternal difference whether a person hears—yet doesn’t hear—or really hears what he hears, especially when God speaks! In Christ’s seven letters to the seven churches (Revelation 2 and 3), representing all churches, each letter concludes with His words in our text. How important it is to really hear when He speaks!
First of all, when we truly hear His call, He gives salvation. “He that heareth my word, and believeth on him that sent me, hath everlasting life, and shall not come into condemnation; but is passed from death unto life” (John 5:24). Then, if we have really become His sheep, we will hear His voice and follow Him as He leads. “My sheep hear my voice, and I know them, and they follow me” (John 10:27). “He calleth his own sheep by name, and leadeth them out” (John 10:3). Also, if we really hear when He speaks through His Word, we will do what He says. “Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock” (Matthew 7:24)
The voice of the Lord can even raise the dead: “Marvel not at this: for the hour is coming, in the which all that are in the graves shall hear his voice, and shall come forth” (John 5:28-29). Now, if even those who have died physically can hear Him, surely He is able also to quicken those who are spiritually dead if they will only listen as He calls. But it is necessary that they hear! “To day if ye will hear his voice, harden not your hearts, as in the provocation. For some, when they had heard, did provoke….whose carcasses fell in the wilderness….So we see that they could not enter in because of unbelief” (Hebrews 3:15-19). “He that hath an ear, let him hear!”
(HMM, The Institute for Creation Research)
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