Friday, December 26, 2025

One Year Journey Through the New Testament

Revelation 19

Welcome to our journey through the New Testament!

Heaven Exults Over Babylon

1 After these things I heard a loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, saying, “Alleluia! Salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God! ² For true and righteous are His judgments, because He has judged the great harlot who corrupted the earth with her fornication; and He has avenged on her the blood of His servants shed by her.” ³ Again they said, “Alleluia! Her smoke rises up forever and ever!” ⁴ And the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God who sat on the throne, saying, “Amen! Alleluia!” ⁵ Then a voice came from the throne, saying, “Praise our God, all you His servants and those who fear Him, both small and great!”

⁶ And I heard, as it were, the voice of a great multitude, as the sound of many waters and as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, “Alleluia! For the Lord God Omnipotent reigns! ⁷ Let us be glad and rejoice and give Him glory, for the marriage of the Lamb has come, and His wife has made herself ready.” ⁸ And to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.

⁹ Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.” ¹⁰ And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” 

(Revelation 19:1–10, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• John has just finished recording the finality of the fall of Babylon, making clear that this is a devastation with no possible comeback. Now, he moves to a record of the reaction in heaven to the fall of Babylon and the rejoicing over the Lord’s greatness.
• The heavenly scene unfolds with a multitude loudly proclaiming that salvation and glory and honor and power belong to the Lord our God. They lift up His righteous judgments and the fact that He has judged the great harlot Babylon for her corruption of the earth. She killed many of God’s servants, and now vengeance has been unleashed upon her. They rejoice over the smoke rising from her ruins. The scene here even hearkens back to the twenty-four elders and the four living creatures who appeared in the beginning of the book. They now fall down and worship God on His throne for His mighty works and greatness. A voice from the throne, presumably God or the Lamb, affirm this action and call for even more praises for God from all His servants and those who fear Him.
• In this scene, it is as if the multitude moves beyond the excitement about Babylon’s fall, and moves into a chorus of praise to the Lord God because the marriage of the Lamb has come. His bride is prepared and made ready. She is arrayed in fine linen, which represents the righteous acts of the saints. She is clean and bright and fit for the Lamb. His blood has washed her garments, and she is clean. If you are a believer, you are part of that bride, and will meet Jesus the Lamb for this marriage in heaven when the Tribulation is past.
• The heavenly narrator or messenger seems to take over the rhetoric again here, offering a blessing to those who are called to this marriage and the marriage supper of the Lamb. He confirms the word given to John through this revelation, and John falls to worship this narrator. He rebukes John, and reveals that he is but a fellow servant with John, not a deity. We do not have the exact identification of this narrator, but he seems to be another man if not an angel, who has the testimony of Jesus. He sums up his address to John with the command to worship God, and the affirmation that the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. This seems to confirm that what has been said is from God, delivered by the Holy Spirit, and is worthy of hearing and believing.
• When a prophetic word is given, there will be no doubt as to its veracity and truthfulness. It will resonate with those who hear it if they are hearing God’s voice as His servant. Listen for the voice of God. Hear it through whatever conduit God chooses to use. Let it transform your thinking and your actions, your dreams and your path. This will bring you closer to His perfect will and the heaven that awaits you, that marriage supper of the Lamb.

Christ on a White Horse

¹¹ Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war. ¹² His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself. ¹³ He was clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. ¹⁴ And the armies in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, followed Him on white horses. ¹⁵ Now out of His mouth goes a sharp sword, that with it He should strike the nations. And He Himself will rule them with a rod of iron. He Himself treads the winepress of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God. ¹⁶ And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS 

(Revelation 19:11–16, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• After declaring the ultimate end to Babylon’s existence, the voice in heaven has concluded his word of judgment on her. John’s attention then turns to another opening in heaven and the appearance of Jesus riding on a white horse, preparing for Armageddon.
• As the new scene in heaven opens, John sees a majestic white horse. There is nothing else said about that horse, but the rider is described in detail. He who say on the horse was called Faithful and True, and He is identified as a righteous judge and a military leader, prepared to make war. He is described as having eyes like a flame of fire, and as wearing many crowns on His head. His name was written, but no one knew the name except Himself. The account goes on to describe his clothes as a robe dipped in blood. Although the name written was unknown to anyone but Jesus, His name was called The Word of God. This deity, righteous and pure, is preparing to go to battle in the Valley of Megiddo (Battle of Armageddon). The armies of heaven are clothed in fine linen, and are white and clean. They followed Him on white horses as well.
• The description continues by discussing the sharp sword that goes out of His mouth. With this sword, or His word, He will strike the nations. After defeating them in a moment, He will then rule them with a rod of iron, signifying the absolute power the Lord will wield. He personally treads out the “wine press of the fierceness and wrath of Almighty God.” The imagery of a wine press and the vintage of the grapes of wrath describe the actual action of God exacting justice on the amassed armies of the world who would oppose Him. On His robe and on His thigh is the name written, “KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” This regal title places Jesus above all other leaders and rulers of the world.
• No one can rise above Him. Satan tried to become His equal and was thrown out of heaven for His efforts. Jesus is preparing for the great battle, and has fully established Himself in the eyes of all men as the greatest being to ever exist. He is eternal, immutable, omnipresent, omniscient, and omnipotent, attributes that cannot be credited to any other being. Jesus is poised to retake control of the earth, which He gave to man after the creation. Now, the redemption of all souls who served Jesus, and the redemption of the earth He created, is just moments away.
• Jesus always had the power, but made time for man to live in the tension that comes when man’s free will and the sovereignty of God work in tandem. Theologians describe a principle called epistemic distance, or the perfect distance at which man and God exist. This allows man to know the greatness of God, His grace, and His offer of salvation, yet far enough away that He can refuse and deny the call of Holy Spirit to salvation. This gives man a choice, whether to accept the offer of grace and salvation, or to refuse this gracious offer and be lost forever. Jesus has made the offer for thousands of years, but when this moment arrives, all offers of salvation are completed, and the time for judgment has come. The opportunity for free will is ended for those living at this moment. Although we will here of an offer to children born during the millennial reign, this moment ends the offer of salvation for those who are already alive. Get right with God, and do not delay your acceptance of His offer of grace and salvation. This is the only way to live eternally!

The Beast and His Armies Defeated

The Beast and His Armies Defeated

¹⁷ Then I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a loud voice, saying to all the birds that fly in the midst of heaven, “Come and gather together for the supper of the great God, ¹⁸ that you may eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, both small and great.”

¹⁹ And I saw the beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army. ²⁰ Then the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who worked signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. ²¹ And the rest were killed with the sword which proceeded from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse. And all the birds were filled with their flesh. 

(Revelation 19:17–21, NKJV)

Points to Ponder:

• As was foretold in the last passage studied, the actual completion of the battle of Armageddon occurs in this passage. The aftermath and the subsequent reign of Christ on the earth for a thousand years is also discussed here.
• As the battle is about to start, an angel stood in the sun on earth and cried out loudly, inviting the birds of the air to come and eat the flesh of kings and mighty men, horses and those who sit on them. He proclaims that the battle which will commence momentarily will not go in favor of those who reign and live on the earth at this time. Instead, the One Who sits on the white horse will prevail, and beast, the kings of the earth, and their armies will suffer the defeat in this military encounter. The beast and his false prophet were captured first and thrown into the lake of fire burning with brimstone. All the rest of the earthly army, vast in number and deceived in their thinking, were then killed by the sword that came from the mouth of Christ, who sat on the white horse. It was then that the birds of the air flew in and began to feast on the flesh of the fallen soldiers. As is always the case, those who opposed Christ will not prevail. Christ is the Supreme ruler over all the earth, and no one can contend with Him and succeed.

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All Scriptures from New King James Version unless otherwise noted.

Join us this afternoon at 5:00 pm for a discussion of this chapter live online. Live@5 with Dr. Greg Sloop can be found on Facebook on the Dr. Greg Sloop page or on the Kannapolis Church of God Facebook page or Youtube page. Another blog will be posted each weekday at 6:00 a.m.