19 After this I heard what sounded like the roar of a great multitude in heaven shouting:

"Hallelujah!

Salvation and glory and power belong to our God,

2 for true and just are his judgments.

He has condemned the great prostitute

who corrupted the earth by her adulteries.

He has avenged on her the blood of his servants."

He has condemned the great prostitute who corrupted the earth by her adulteries. God is not on the side of the Whore of Babylon.

3 And again they shouted:

"Hallelujah!

The smoke from her goes up for ever and ever."

4 The twenty-four elders and the four living creatures fell down and worshiped God, who was seated on the throne. And they cried:

"Amen, Hallelujah!"

5 Then a voice came from the throne, saying:

"Praise our God,

all you his servants,

you who fear him,

both small and great!"

6 Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting:

"Hallelujah!

For our Lord God Almighty reigns.

For our Lord God Almighty reigns. The Lord reigns despite the Whore of Babylon deceiving nations.  

7 Let us rejoice and be glad

and give him glory!

For the wedding of the Lamb has come,

and his bride has made herself ready.

For the wedding of the Lamb has come, and his bride has made herself ready. Now he contrasts two women: the whore (prostitute) and the bride of the Lamb. Jesus gave the parable of the ten virgins waiting for their groom, but only five were ready when the groom arrived. Like these virgins, many are expecting the return of Christ, but only those that are ready will be part of the wedding of the lamb.

8 Fine linen, bright and clean,

was given her to wear."

(Fine linen stands for the righteous acts of the saints.)

Fine linen, bright and clean, was given her to wear. Righteousness is a gift from the groom (Christ) but it is the bride’s responsibility to put on the bridal gown. Our responsibility is to walk in righteousness.

9 Then the angel said to me, "Write: 'Blessed are those who are invited to the wedding supper of the Lamb!'" And he added, "These are the true words of God."

10 At this I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you and with your brothers who hold to the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy."

I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, "Do not do it! I am a fellow servant with you. Over and over again the angel stops John from showing too much reverence toward him. While we respect angels and the saints in heaven, we must avoid going overboard in our reverence of them.

Worship God. There can be no one else but him that we worship.

testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy. Prophecy ultimately points to Christ and his work. Prophecy is not concerned about who wins the lottery or what person you marry. It is about Christ.

11 I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.  

white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. See 6:2. The two great attributes of Christ is Faithful (you can depend on him) and True (no lie is found in him.)

With justice he judges and makes war. He does not use natural destructive weapons to win, but he uses “justice.” Judges are supposed to be just, but often their rulings are based on prejudices and false ideologies, but Christ justice is based on absolute truth. Make no mistake about his rulings: they are often attacked and maligned by those who do not embrace the truth, thus war breaks out over his rulings.

12 His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself.

on his head are many crowns. Unlike the beast that has seven crowns (limited and complete) his crowns are unlimited and his rule never comes to an end.

13 He is dressed in a robe dipped in blood, and his name is the Word of God.

dipped in blood. A reminder of his right to rule all men is because he alone gave his life to all men. Everyone owes their redemption to Christ.

his name is the Word of God. God has exalted his Word above his name (Ps 138:2). A person’s good name is only as great as his Word. The fact that Jesus is called the Word of God shows that he is deity. Deity (God) has the right to fully rule.

14 The armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses and dressed in fine linen, white and clean.

armies of heaven were following him, riding on white horses. Christ does not rule “alone” but with “us” his true followers. We are actually the ones engaged in the war, while Christ is in heaven guiding us.

15 Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. "He will rule them with an iron scepter." a He treads the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God Almighty.

Out of his mouth comes a sharp sword with which to strike down the nations. The sword is the Word of God, and often, men resist the Word so to them the Word feels like an enemy weapon. God Word is meant to be an instrument in your hands, but if you resist and disagree with the Word of God, then the Word will fight against you.

16 On his robe and on his thigh he has this name written:

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.

KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS. This is the ultimate message to the world: no king, emperor, politician, president or governmental officer can rule over Christ Word without incurring his wrath.

17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun, who cried in a loud voice to all the birds flying in midair, "Come, gather together for the great supper of God,

Come, gather together for the great supper of God. This supper is not a diet of filet mignon but people (v 18). The phrase “I ate your lunch” means “I defeated you.”  It is a description of the church defeating worldly and immoral ideas by using the Word of God.

18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and mighty men, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, small and great."

19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war against the rider on the horse and his army.

After a long period of watching the followers of Christ defeat the world, the beast rises up with the kings of the earth to wage a final battle against the church.

20 But the beast was captured, and with him the false prophet who had performed the miraculous signs on his behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped his image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur.  

The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. The beast and false prophet must be people, since “systems” or “governments” cannot be thrown alive into the lake of fire. They are alive at the final judgment. The anti-Christ and the false prophet will be alive at the return of Christ.

21 The rest of them were killed with the sword that came out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh.