REVELATION SIMPLIFIED

 

CHAPTER 19.17

Gleanings from the Book of Revelation:

A Weekly Verse-by-Verse Bible Study Series

 

The

REVELATION TO JOHN

 

Chapter Nineteen

Battle at Armageddon

 

 

Introduction

At the beginning of the final conflict of Tribulation, the remaining ten kings and merchants of the earth who witnessed the great city of Babylon go up in smoke (cf. Revelation 18:9, 12) gather their armies together, cross the dried-up Euphrates River (cf. Revelation 16:12), and prepare themselves on the fertile plains of Megiddo to wipe Israel off the face of the earth. Additionally, the loosed four angels from the Bottomless Pit and their armies (cf. Revelation 9) also engage in this massive show of force.

 

Emerging from the clouds, Jesus Christ is followed by His armies of Heaven (cf. Revelation 19:11, 14) to defend Israel. However, it is Christ alone Who destroys His enemies with the Word of His mouth (cf. Revelation 19:15). No battle is fought but there is massive destruction, unparalleled in Scripture since Noah’s Flood.  And, what follows is incredible.

 

 

(Verse 17)

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.

 

An Announcing Angel

In the sight of the whole world and in a dramatic fashion, another angel of God stands, not in the sun, but in front of the sun-blocking its light like a lunar eclipse. Something extremely important needs to be said. In like manner as announcements from other angels, he cries out in a loud voice, not to the peoples of the earth, but this time to the birds of prey of the air. His unique message is heard and understood by all creatures.

 

An Unusual Message

Addressing the fowls of the air, and birds of prey (e.g., vultures, hawks, crows, eagles, etc.) directly, the messenger (in effect) exclaims, “Go forth and feast on the fruits of the Lord’s battle. “Feed on the carnage from the flesh of His enemies’ bones!” This was an Old Testament and New apocalyptic expectation as expressed in the slaughter of Gog’s armies:

Ezekiel 39:17-20 - And, Thou Son of Man, thus saith the Lord GOD; Speak unto every feathered fowl, and to every beast of the field, Assemble yourselves, and come; gather yourselves on every side to my sacrifice that I do sacrifice for you, even a great sacrifice upon the mountains of Israel, that ye may eat flesh, and drink blood. Ye shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth, of rams, of lambs, and of goats, of bullocks, all of them fatlings of Bashan. And ye shall eat fat till ye be full, and drink blood till ye be drunken, of My sacrifice which I have sacrificed for you.

 

New Testament revelation anticipates the fulfillment of the Final Battle:

Matthew 24:28 - For wheresoever the carcass is, there will the eagles be gathered together.

The word for supper (deipnon) is described in Greek as the main formal meal of the day. Subsequently, scavenger birds will over-feast on the spoil of God’s enemies.

 

Two Suppers Contrasted

Intriguingly, there are two comparative banquets substantial to the final days of Tribulation:

A. The Marriage Supper of the Lamb

B. The Supper of the Great God

 

A.  The celebratory supper of life

B.  The heartbreaking supper of death

 

A.  The Feast for the Saints

B.  The feast for the carrions

 

 

(Verse 19)

 

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.

 

Following, the Apostle perceives three opponents assembled on the plains of Megiddo for the great (decisive) Battle with a Rider on a white horse, the Messiah, the Son of God, and His heavenly armies. Enemy forces include:

1. The beast (Antichrist), the general

2. The ten kings of the earth, the commanding officers

3. The armies of the Antichrist and the ten kings, the military

 

 

(Verse 20)

 

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 worshipped his image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.

 

Riding on a white horse and having His vesture dipped in blood, THE KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS finally captures His worst adversaries:

A. Antichrist, the beast of Revelation, a political power

B. The False Prophet, the little horn of Daniel, a spiritual power

 

First, the leader of the rebellion against God and next, the second in command, who deviously and deceptively persuaded all those to receive the mark of the beast and worship his image, were thrown alive into an eternal fiery lake of sulfur having twice the heat of the sun. These were the first two inhabitants of the Lake of Fire who will serve their sentence for one-thousand years.

 

A lake of fire burning with brimstone

The Lake of Fire is not a place of annihilation, but a place for punishment. Revelation 20:14 labels it as “the second death.” Bodies die but the Lake of Fire is a permanent and eternal abode for the spirits of unrepentant people and angels. Its fire is unquenchable and it is a place initially prepared for Satan and his fallen angels:

Matthew 25:41 - Then shall He say also unto them on the left hand, Depart from Me, ye cursed, into everlasting fire, prepared for the devil and his angels.

[See also Revelation Study 9.1]

 

 

(Verse 21)

 

And the remnant were slain with the sword of Him that sat upon the horse, which sword proceeded out of His mouth: and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.

 

Again, no battle is fought. Anyone remaining (the remnant, the rest) from the Kings and their armies on earth was defeated and slaughtered by Christ’s voice - The Word of God - Complete victory.

 

Interestingly, the armies that follow the Lord are not even prepared for battle. They are described as not having weapons but only appearing in clean white fine linen.

 

A Remnant

The Bible speaks of two important remnants:

A.  A remnant unto life – Israel

Romans 9:27 - Esaias (Isaiah) also crieth concerning Israel, Though the number of the children of Israel be as the sand of the sea, a remnant shall be saved (cf. Isaiah 10:27).

 

B.  A remnant unto death - The armies that followed Antichrist (cf. Revelation 19:21)

 

His Spoken Word

1. He spake and the world came into existence (cf. Genesis 1; John 1:1-5)

2. He spake to a fig tree and it withered (cf. Mark 11:21)

3. He spake to a legion of demons and they fled (cf. Luke 8:31-33)

4. He spake to the wind and waves and a storm was calmed (cf. Mark 4:30)

5. He spake to Lazarus and he rose from the dead (cf. John 11:43-44)

6. He spake to a sinner and his sins were forgiven (cf. Mark 2:5)

7. He spake and a great battle was won (cf. Revelation 19:15ff.)

 

And all the fowls were filled with their flesh

As rendered in the Greek, “The (scavenger) birds gorged themselves on the carcasses of human remains or flesh.”  There were enough dead bodies to fill the hunger of all the birds of the air.

 

Commentary

Thus ends another timeline in biblical history – The end of Tribulation. God is faithful to His promise:

Isaiah 11:4 - But with righteousness shall He judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and He shall smite the earth with the rod of His mouth, and with the breath of His lips shall He slay the wicked.

 

The Good News, however, is that God is a God of mercy and forgiveness for anyone who accepts His offer to repent, come, and submit themselves to Him:

John 3:16-17 - For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.

 

Acts 16:31 - …Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ, and thou shalt be saved, and thy house.

 

Acts 4:12 – Neither is there salvation in any other: for there is none other name under heaven given among men, whereby we must be saved.

 

2 Corinthians 5:17 - Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.

 

The free gift of salvation per se is available to everyone! Anyone reading Revelation Simplified still has an opportunity to transform their lives (cf. Romans 3:23) and receive Jesus Christ as their personal Saviour.

 

 

Throughout Scripture, the Millennium (the 1,000-year reign of Jesus Christ) foretells of the coming Kingdom Age, and gleanings of the Period are revealed. Not much detail is presented as to the character of the age itself. During the studies of Revelation Chapter 20, only the major judgmental events that transpire in the Millennium are addressed.

 

Then, Chapters 21 and 22 reveal the New Heaven and Earth in greater detail. So, introductory material is discussed in the subsequent study followed by Satan’s demise and the Great White Throne Judgment.

 

 

QUESTIONS:

1.   What is unusual about the angel’s announcement?

2.   What is the angel’s message?

3.   Who fights the battle against Christ?

4.   How does Christ accomplish His victory?

5.   What is the purpose of Christ’s armies?

6.   Why is God’s Word so powerful?

7.   How can Revelation become a message of salvation?

 

 

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