Revelation 19:1-10 Lesson 494

Revelation 19:1-10
Lesson 494

Read both the "King James Bible" and the "New Living Translation."

In this lesson:

Shouts for the Lamb's victory.

The Praise and Judgment Song (19:1-5).

The Marriage Song (19:6-8).

Unknown artist.

Study Tip:

Put verses in your own words.
The extra time and thought help you get more meaning from each passage.

The Revelation of Saint John the Divine

The King James Bible

Revelation 19:1-10
The marriage of the Lamb

1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour, and power, unto the Lord our God:

2 For true and righteous are his judgments: for he hath judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her hand.

3 And again they said, Alleluia And her smoke rose up for ever and ever.

4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen; Alleluia.

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.

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, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.

7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready.

8 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.

9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto me, These are the true sayings of God.

10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me, See thou do it not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.

Margin notes:

"Alleluia." (19:1) - "Hallelujah." From the Hebrew, it translates into "Praise the Lord." Although it appears numerous times in the Old Testament, this is the only chapter in the New Testament where the word "Alleluia" appears. Why did they praise the Lord? "Five reasons for their praise emerge: (1) God's deliverance of His people from their enemies (v. 1); (2) God's meting out of justice (v. 2); (3) God's permanent crushing of man's rebellion (v. 3); (4) God's sovereignty (v. 6); and (5) God's communion with His people (v. 7). (From "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; page 2030)

"The great whore." (19:2) - We first met "the great whore" in verses 17:1-18 (lesson 491). Controversy has raged for centuries over who or what "the great whore" is. There is no universal agreement; however, because they are unfaithful to God, the Bible refers to people who practice idolatry as fornicators and whores (1 Chronicles 5:25; Ezekiel 16:1-63; 23:1-49).  Therefore, many Bible scholars believe "the great whore" is anyone or anything (i.e., person, wayward church, religion, or government) that practices idolatry. Some scholars say "the great whore" was Rome with its pagan gods, or Babylon, or perhaps even Jerusalem. Other Christians believe "the great whore" doesn't represent any one person, thing, or government but symbolizes every society throughout history that was unfaithful to God.

"Hath avenged the blood of his servants." (19:2) - God will punish those who persecut His church (Deuteronomy 32:43).

"The four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down and worshipped God." (19:4) - These are the same elders and beasts we saw praising God in verses 4:4-11 (lesson 474).

"Praise our God." (19:5) - Good advice from Psalm 135:1.

"For the Lord God omnipotent reigneth." (19:6) - "For the Lord God almighty reigns." How long will God reign? See verse 11:15.

"His wife hath made herself ready." (19:7) - Most Christians believe the "wife" is the Christian church (Matthew 22:1-2; 25:1-13) about to be united with Jesus Christ. But there is also a minority opinion that feels the "wife" is Israel (Isaiah 54:5; Hosea 2:19). Still, other Christians believe the "wife" is Israel and the church.  For proof, they point to the marriage parable in
Matthew 22:1-10 which calls both Jews and Gentiles to "the wedding." Regardless of who the "wife" is, the image of marriage shows Jesus' love for His people and demonstrates the deep bonding a relationship with Jesus offers.

"And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white." (19:8) - "Fine linen, clean and white" represents righteousness. Contrast the bride's dress to what the "great whore" wears in verse 17:4.

"Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb." (19:9) - This is the fourth of seven "beatitudes" in Revelation. The other six can be found in 1:3, 14:13, 16:15,
20:6, 22:7, and 22:14.

"I am thy fellowservant." (19:10) - "I am a servant (of God), like you." As "fellow servants," angels should not be worshipped (Colossians 2:18).

"The testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy." (19:10) - The purpose of Old Testament prophecy was to tell the world about Jesus.

New Living Translation

Revelation 19:1-10
Songs of Victory in Heaven

1 After this, I heard what sounded like a vast crowd in heaven shouting,

  "Praise the Lord!
      Salvation and glory and power belong to our God.

2 His judgments are true and just.
      He has punished the great prostitute
   who corrupted the earth with her immorality.
      He has avenged the murder of his servants."

3 And again their voices rang out:

  "Praise the Lord!
      The smoke from that city ascends forever and ever!"

4 Then the twenty-four elders and the four living beings fell down and worshiped God, who was sitting on the throne. They cried out, "Amen! Praise the Lord!"

5 And from the throne came a voice that said,

  "Praise our God,
      all his servants,
   all who fear him,
      from the least to the greatest."

6 Then I heard again what sounded like the shout of a vast crowd or the roar of mighty ocean waves or the crash of loud thunder:

  "Praise the Lord!
      For the Lord our God, the Almighty, reigns.

7 Let us be glad and rejoice,
      and let us give honor to him.
   For the time has come for the wedding feast of the Lamb,
      and his bride has prepared herself.

8 She has been given the finest of pure white linen to wear."
      For the fine linen represents the good deeds of God's holy people.

9 And the angel said to me, "Write this: Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding feast of the Lamb." And he added, "These are true words that come from God."

10 Then I fell down at his feet to worship him, but he said, "No, don't worship me. I am a servant of God, just like you and your brothers and sisters who testify about their faith in Jesus. Worship only God. For the essence of prophecy is to give a clear witness for Jesus."

This second Bible text from the "New Living Translation" (Tyndale House, Publishers, Wheaton, Illinois) is a paraphrase and not an accurate word-for-word translation of the Bible. However, it is a helpful tool when read with the "King James Version."

Today's question:

1. What is the purpose of the two songs?

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Answer: (Do you agree?)

1. "The first chorus (19:1-5), expresses heaven's joyous celebration over the destruction of Babylon the harlot church.
The second chorus (19:6-8), in a swell of voices like the ocean's roar and the roll of distant thunder, announces the marriage of the Lamb to His true bride."

("Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; page 733)

Application thought for the day:

What important truth does this passage teach?
How can you apply that truth to your life?

Thanks to the writings and commentary of John Wesley and Adam Clarke. Also, "The Layman's Bible Study Notebook" by Irving Jensen published by Harvest House Publishing, Irvine, California; the "Life Change Series" published by NavPress books, Colorado Springs, Colorado; the "Life Application Study Bible" published by Tyndale House Publishing, Carol Stream, Illinois; the "Quest Study Bible" published by The Zondervan Corporation, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "Robertson's New Testament Word Studies;" "The MacArthur Bible Commentary" by John MacArthur published by Thomas Nelson, Nashville, Tennessee; "Wisdom of the Bible" CD by Topics Entertainment, Inc., Renton, Washington for their inspiring pictures; "My utmost for His Highest" by Oswald Chambers, published by Barbour Publishing, Inc., Uhrichsville, Ohio; The "Treasury of Scriptural Knowledge" by Reuben Archer Torrey; "Hope For Each Day" by Billy Graham published by J. Countryman, a division of Thomas Nelson, Inc., Nashville, Tennessee; "Easton's Bible Dictionary" by Matthew George Easton; "Unger's Bible Dictionary" by Merrill F. Unger, published by Moody Press, Chicago, Illinois; "Halley's Bible Handbook" by Henry H. Halley, Zondervan Publishing House, Grand Rapids, Michigan; "The Everyday Bible" published by World Wide Publications, Minneapolis, Minnesota; "The Living New Testament" published by Tyndale house, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Living Translation" published by Tyndale House, Wheaten, Illinois; "The New Testament" translated from the Latin Vulgate, published by Guild Press, New York, New York; BibleGateway.com for all their wonderful links; and of course, the "King James Bible." All were critical in putting these lessons together.
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