SEVEN FINAL VISIONS (4) | KING ON A WHITE HORSE (REVELATION 19:11-21)
1. Revelation
a) John wrote Revelation while a prisoner on the Island of Patmos, approximately 85-95 A.D. Its purpose is to give encouragement and hope for all Christians to continue watching for the return and triumph of the Lord Jesus Christ. It also is to warn of the Final Judgment that nonbelievers will endure on that Last Day.
b) John wrote that Revelation is special because,“Blessed is he who reads and those who hear the words of the prophecy, and heed the things which are written in it; for the time is near” (Revelation 1:3).
c) A brief view of the Book of Revelation. It gives you some basic understanding of the book of Revelation.
2. King On A White Horse
Revelation 19:11-21
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. 15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in mid-heaven, “Come, assemble for the great supper of God, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great.”
19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.
20 And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. 21 And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.
3. The Procession Of Christ
Revelation 19:11-16
a) A white horse
i) In the vision of the four horses, the first was a white horse and its rider went out to conquer (Revelation 6:2). Now again a white horse appears and its rider ¶ "wages war" against evil (Revelation 19:11).
b) His eyes
i) His "eyes like a flame of fire" show him to be the same person (Jesus Christ) whom John saw in the very first vision (Revelation 1:14).
c) His name is called
i) In this vision, John is made aware of four names for Jesus.
@1. Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11).
@2. A name which nobody knows except Jesus himself (Revelation 19:12).
@3. The Word of God (Revelation 19:13).
@4. King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16).
ii) The first name tells us that we can trust him; the second that he is God; the third that he explains God, the fourth that he has the highest authority over us.
d) A robe dipped in blood
i) This is a two-way symbol: we may think of this blood as Jesus’s own, shed for our redemption; but we may also take it to be the blood of his enemies (Revelation 19:13, cf Isaiah 63:1-6).
e) Fine linen white and clean
i) The "armies of heaven" who follow behind Jesus do not have blood-stained robes like his. (Revelation 19:14). This shows us that Jesus is the only one authorized to judge, to redeem or to destroy. We can follow him as soldiers of Christ, but he alone takes responsibility and has the authority for treading out the wine-press of God’s wrath.
f) A sharp two-edged sword
i) This sign of a sword coming out of his mouth is another mark showing this horseman to be the same person (Jesus Christ) whom John saw in the very first vision(Revelation 19:15, Revelation 1:16). The sword coming out of his mouth is a sign for the word of God (cf Ephesians 6:17, Hebrews 4:12). Jesus has ultimate authority —he is called "the Word of God" (Revelation 19:13). It is a happy accident that in English “word” is within “sword”.
g) Rod of iron
i) This sword is an "iron rod" (Revelation 19:15) by which Jesus shepherds and rules the nations of the world (Revelation 19:15). His is a rule of iron far stronger than that of the iron kingdom of Rome which ruled the world in John’s time (cf Daniel 2:31-35).
4. The Supper Of Wrath
Revelation 19:17-18
a) Angel in the sun
i) The visions now move from heaven back to earth, and an angel issues an invitation, "Come! Assemble for the great supper of our God" (Revelation 19:17).
b) Great supper of our God
ii) Now this great supper of God is not the blessed "marriage supper of the Lamb" (Revelation 19:9). This great supper of God is for the birds! They feast on the flesh of the dead after the battle between good and evil is won. The blessed marriage supper of the Lamb signifies the grace of God and eternal life. This supper for the birds signifies the wrath of God and eternal death.(Revelation 19:17-19).
5. The Battle Of Futility
Revelation 19:19-21
a) Assembled to make war
i) While John watches, the army of evil, led by the beast, gathers to make war against Jesus and his saints (Revelation 19:19). This vision is like the vision of the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:14,16; cf Revelation 20:7-10). No battle takes place. The army gathers, but its leaders are powerless; they are destroyed and all their defenseless armies are vanquished before they can strike one blow.
ii) This victory before battle in the vision doesn't mean there's no battle between good and evil —there is! (Ephesians 6:10-13). The battle in this vision is a fiasco to assure us that victory is a foregone conclusion. We must choose this day whom we will serve, and become soldiers of Christ protected by his invincible power; otherwise we will be killed by the other edge of his two-edged sword.
Revelation 19:11-21
11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse, and He who sat on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and wages war. 12 His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself. 13 He is clothed with a robe dipped in blood, and His name is called The Word of God. 14 And the armies which are in heaven, clothed in fine linen, white and clean, were following Him on white horses. 15 From His mouth comes a sharp sword, so that with it He may strike down the nations, and He will rule them with a rod of iron; and He treads the wine press of the fierce wrath of God, the Almighty. 16 And on His robe and on His thigh He has a name written, “KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.”
17 Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and he cried out with a loud voice, saying to all the birds which fly in mid-heaven, “Come, assemble for the great supper of God, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings and the flesh of commanders and the flesh of mighty men and the flesh of horses and of those who sit on them and the flesh of all men, both free men and slaves, and small and great.”
19 And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies assembled to make war against Him who sat on the horse and against His army.
20 And the beast was seized, and with him the false prophet who performed the signs in his presence, by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped his image; these two were thrown alive into the lake of fire which burns with brimstone. 21 And the rest were killed with the sword which came from the mouth of Him who sat on the horse, and all the birds were filled with their flesh.
3. The Procession Of Christ
Revelation 19:11-16
a) A white horse
i) In the vision of the four horses, the first was a white horse and its rider went out to conquer (Revelation 6:2). Now again a white horse appears and its rider ¶ "wages war" against evil (Revelation 19:11).
b) His eyes
i) His "eyes like a flame of fire" show him to be the same person (Jesus Christ) whom John saw in the very first vision (Revelation 1:14).
c) His name is called
i) In this vision, John is made aware of four names for Jesus.
@1. Faithful and True (Revelation 19:11).
@2. A name which nobody knows except Jesus himself (Revelation 19:12).
@3. The Word of God (Revelation 19:13).
@4. King of Kings and Lord of Lords (Revelation 19:16).
ii) The first name tells us that we can trust him; the second that he is God; the third that he explains God, the fourth that he has the highest authority over us.
d) A robe dipped in blood
i) This is a two-way symbol: we may think of this blood as Jesus’s own, shed for our redemption; but we may also take it to be the blood of his enemies (Revelation 19:13, cf Isaiah 63:1-6).
e) Fine linen white and clean
i) The "armies of heaven" who follow behind Jesus do not have blood-stained robes like his. (Revelation 19:14). This shows us that Jesus is the only one authorized to judge, to redeem or to destroy. We can follow him as soldiers of Christ, but he alone takes responsibility and has the authority for treading out the wine-press of God’s wrath.
f) A sharp two-edged sword
i) This sign of a sword coming out of his mouth is another mark showing this horseman to be the same person (Jesus Christ) whom John saw in the very first vision(Revelation 19:15, Revelation 1:16). The sword coming out of his mouth is a sign for the word of God (cf Ephesians 6:17, Hebrews 4:12). Jesus has ultimate authority —he is called "the Word of God" (Revelation 19:13). It is a happy accident that in English “word” is within “sword”.
g) Rod of iron
i) This sword is an "iron rod" (Revelation 19:15) by which Jesus shepherds and rules the nations of the world (Revelation 19:15). His is a rule of iron far stronger than that of the iron kingdom of Rome which ruled the world in John’s time (cf Daniel 2:31-35).
4. The Supper Of Wrath
Revelation 19:17-18
a) Angel in the sun
i) The visions now move from heaven back to earth, and an angel issues an invitation, "Come! Assemble for the great supper of our God" (Revelation 19:17).
b) Great supper of our God
ii) Now this great supper of God is not the blessed "marriage supper of the Lamb" (Revelation 19:9). This great supper of God is for the birds! They feast on the flesh of the dead after the battle between good and evil is won. The blessed marriage supper of the Lamb signifies the grace of God and eternal life. This supper for the birds signifies the wrath of God and eternal death.(Revelation 19:17-19).
5. The Battle Of Futility
Revelation 19:19-21
a) Assembled to make war
i) While John watches, the army of evil, led by the beast, gathers to make war against Jesus and his saints (Revelation 19:19). This vision is like the vision of the battle of Armageddon (Revelation 16:14,16; cf Revelation 20:7-10). No battle takes place. The army gathers, but its leaders are powerless; they are destroyed and all their defenseless armies are vanquished before they can strike one blow.
ii) This victory before battle in the vision doesn't mean there's no battle between good and evil —there is! (Ephesians 6:10-13). The battle in this vision is a fiasco to assure us that victory is a foregone conclusion. We must choose this day whom we will serve, and become soldiers of Christ protected by his invincible power; otherwise we will be killed by the other edge of his two-edged sword.
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