We know what the outcome of the Battle of Armageddon will be. This devotional reading looks at the message of the angel and the consequences of the battle.
Nuggets
- An angel brings a message about the battle.
- The false christ and false prophet will receive their judgment at the conclusion of the Battle of Armageddon.
- Punishment is severe.
- The army following the beasts and kings is then punished.
I’m sorry. I just had trouble with the passage at the end of Revelation 19.
Timing confused me. Players confused me.
Hopefully this can make sense by the time we get to the end.
Let's Put It into Context
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Devotions in the Homecoming series
A Message from an Angel
“Then I saw an angel standing in the sun, and with a loud voice he called to all the birds that fly directly overhead, ‘Come, gather for the great supper of God, to eat the flesh of kings, the flesh of captains, the flesh of mighty men, the flesh of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all men, both free and slave, both small and great’” (Rev. 19: 17-18 ESV)
An angel brings a message about the battle.
Angel Standing in the Sun
We have gotten a lot of angels who perform the actions in Revelation. Clarke thought this one was an unnamed archangel. The archangels, near the top of the angel hierarchy, are special messengers between God and mankind.
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The angel is going to be standing in the sun. That means he will be seen by all.
I am having trouble with there still being a sun. Wasn’t that taken care of in the fifth bowl?
Call to All Birds
It seems kind of strange that the angel is calling the birds to supper. But then, is it?
“For as the lightning comes from the east and shines as far as the west, so will be the coming of the Son of Man. Wherever the corpse is, there the vultures will gather” (Mt. 24: 27-28 ESV).
Some types of birds are scavengers — especially for things dead. They are the crime scene sweepers of the wide-open spaces.
Gather for the Great Supper of God
I admit. At first, I thought this was referring to the marriage supper of the Lamb. Then I read it again.
I guess what I am having trouble with is the fact that there will be time for the birds to eat the flesh from the bodies. Oh, yes. There will be mass casualties in the Battle of Armageddon. There are more going to hell than Heaven (Mt. 7: 13-14).
I probably was thinking that Revelation 20: 11 was going to happen almost immediately after the Battle of Armageddon ended.
What I do get is this is all about the vengeance of God. He will defeat His enemies. This goes back to Ezekiel 39: 17-22.
“As for you, son of man, thus says the Lord God: Speak to the birds of every sort and to all beasts of the field: ‘Assemble and come, gather from all around to the sacrificial feast that I am preparing for you, a great sacrificial feast on the mountains of Israel, and you shall eat flesh and drink blood. You shall eat the flesh of the mighty, and drink the blood of the princes of the earth — of rams, of lambs, and of he-goats, of bulls, all of them fat beasts of Bashan. And you shall eat fat till you are filled, and drink blood till you are drunk, at the sacrificial feast that I am preparing for you. And you shall be filled at my table with horses and charioteers, with mighty men and all kinds of warriors,’ declares the Lord God. And I will set my glory among the nations, and all the nations shall see my judgment that I have executed, and my hand that I have laid on them. The house of Israel shall know that I am the Lord their God, from that day forward’” (Ezek. 39: 17-22 ESV).
That really puts into perspective how vast and total the victory is going to be.
I love the last verse. God isn’t doing this just for vengeance. He is doing it to show us just Who He is.
God loves showing us Who He is.
Ooo, baby. There are times we need to be reminded of God’s strength and power.
Judgment for the Two Beasts and Earthly Kings
“And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who in its presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who had received the mark of the beast and those who worshiped its image. These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur” (Rev. 19: 19-20 ESV)
The false christ and false prophet will receive their judgment at the conclusion of the Battle of Armageddon.
Gathered to Make War
Hang on. Does the angel call the birds to the feast before the battle is waged?
Well, we know God is going to win, so why not?
Anyway, this is the Antichrist and his prophet from Revelation 13. The earthly kings from Revelation 17.
- “And I saw a beast rising out of the sea, with 10 horns, and seven heads, with 10 diagrams on its horns, and blasphemous names on its heads” (Rev. 13: 1 ESV).
- “Then I saw another beast rising out of the earth. It had two horns like a lamb and it spoke like a dragon” (Rev. 13: 11 ESV).
- “Then one of the seven angels, who had the seven bowls cam and said to me, ‘Come, I will show you the judgment of the great prostitute who is seated on many waters, with whom the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality, and with the wine of whose sexual immorality the dwellers on earth have become drunk’” (Rev. 17: 1-2 ESV).
Along with the false christ, false prophet, and earthly kings, they have an army. This army will be comprised of all who do not believe in truth and righteousness.
It will be all of him against all of us.
Against Him
A couple of devotions back, we talked about who was going to be sitting on the white horse. “Then I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse! The one sitting on it is called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he judges and makes war” (Rev. 19: 11 ESV)
Jesus is the faithful and true Witness (Rev. 3: 14 ESV). He will be on the horse.
Why will Satan be fighting against Jesus? Benson says it will be to stop the expansion of God’s kingdom.
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I agree and I disagree. Yes, Satan will want to stop the expansion. More importantly, my disagreement is that he will want to take what God has.
Beast and False Prophet Captured
This is where the false christ and false prophet are captured. It looks like Satan isn’t.
Satan was the dragon. I always assumed he was captured here, too. It doesn’t read that way here.
The first and second beasts are thrown in the fire here. Satan gets his punishment in Revelation 20.
Do you think the worldview people are finally going to start shaking in their shoes when they see the one that they’ve put their allegiance in is going to be defeated?
Remember, this is the Antichrist that lived, died, and lived again (Rev. 13: 3). They are probably thinking he is going to return — unless they see him thrown into the fire.
Mark of the Beast
We talked about the mark of the beast in Revelation 13. “Also it causes all, both small and great, both rich and poor, both free and slave, to be marked on the right hand or the forehead, so that no one can buy or sell unless he has the mark, that is, the name of the beast or the number of its name” (Rev. 13: 16-17 ESV).
Macmillan took it a different way. He wrote,
“Every human being has the mark of the beast in him, to show that God has made all animal structures after the same pattern; and united together all His creatures, from the highest to the lowest, by ties of mutual resemblance and sympathy, so that they all might be able to live harmoniously together on the earth. But there is a mark of the beast that ought to make us ashamed — that does degrade us. It is the mark of sin in our souls which destroys the image of God within us, and reduces us to the level, nay, below the level, of the beasts that perish.”
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I get that. Humans are mammals, just like other animals are. We have a sinful nature, which is a mark of Satan.
I just don’t think that is what is meant here. The word that blows these explanations out of the water for me is the word received.
It could be argued that we received mark when we were created as mammals. But then everyone has it.
We could have received the mark when we received the flawed, sinful nature when Adam and Eve chose to sin. But then everyone has it at birth.
But the mark of the beast discussed in Revelation 13 was a choice. Being mammals and having a sinful nature wasn’t our choice. That is just what we are and who we were at birth.
That is who we became. Macmillan reminded us that we are changed upon conversion. “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come” (II Cor. 5: 17 ESV).
The mark of the beast in the end times will be the choice of those alive at that time. We will either choose to have it or be sealed by God.
Worshiped Its Image
Of course, Clarke had to equate “… worshiped its image …” (Rev. 19: 20 ESV) with the Catholic Church. He wrote, “The beast has been represented as the Latin empire; the image of the beast, the popes of Rome; and the false prophet, the papal clergy.”
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No, I don’t think Satan is limiting himself to only corrupting the Catholic Church. I think his goal is to corrupt all of God’s Church.
In addition, I don’t think Satan would want us worshiping any type of image of God. He is trying to turn us away from God. He wants us to totally deny God.
That being said, Satan will use try to get the church to implode within itself. Think of how gobsmacked someone is going to be when they thought they were worshiping God and find out they were truly worshiping Satan.
We know there are goats masquerading in sheep’s clothing. Jesus said so himself (Mt. 7: 21-23).
Cast into the Fire
Punishment is severe.
“… These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire that burns with sulfur” (Rev. 19: 20 ESV).
The false christ and false prophet earned their punishment. They not only championed false doctrine, but they also blasphemed against God. They lied about the miracles they said they were performing.
Bottom line is that they support apostasy — a churchy word for sin. They not only led worldview people astray, but they also led disciples away from God.
They will receive their punishment while they were alive. “… These two were thrown alive into the lake of fire …” (Rev. 19: 19-20 ESV emphasis added).
I know. I’m having trouble wrapping my head around the fact the fake christ and fake prophet get punished before Satan. I think I know why he isn’t punished now — which we will discuss in the next devotion.
I think it is just our weird division into chapter and verses. Satan really isn’t punished later. Someone’s division made it look later.
But then, I can see saving the head honcho for last. It is the fulfillment of the statement: the buck stops here.
I think our takeaway here is that the fiery pit is up and running long before the Day of the Lord. Eternity hasn’t started yet, but the fake christ and fake prophet are getting their punishment in flames.
Benson thought they got the early punishment because of their hardened hearts. Maybe.
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They may have also gotten immediate punishment for their role in leading others astray. They weren’t the top dog, but the tribulation was much worse because of them.
All the Rest
“And the rest were slain by the sword that came from the mouth of him who was sitting on the horse, and all the birds were gorged with their flesh” (Rev. 19: 21 ESV)
The army following the beasts and kings is then punished.
The rest refers to those who have taken the mark of the beast. It is those who chose Satan over God.
They will be slain by the sword that comes out of Jesus’ mouth.
A couple of devotions back, we talked about John identifying the rider by the name of the Word of God.
John had already so identified Him. “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God” (Jn. 1: 1 ESV).
Jesus is the Word because the whole of God’s Word is about Him.
But look at it this way. “For the word of God is living and active, sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing to the division of soul and of spirit, of joints and of marrow, and discerning the thoughts and intentions of the heart” (Heb. 4: 12 ESV).
Jesus isn’t going to defeat Satan and sin by guns and bombs — or even swords. He is going to defeat Satan by the Gospel.
The Word of God – Jesus – is living and active because He was resurrected. He will be judging our thoughts and intentions of the heart as they relate to our spiritual condition.
Clarke agreed with me. He wrote, “… and his sword is his word – the unadulterated Gospel.”
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No, Jesus isn’t and never was going to be a military leader.
Go back and look at the battle again. “And I saw the beast and the kings of the earth with their armies gathered to make war against him who was sitting on the horse and against his army. And the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet …” (Rev. 19: 19-20 ESV emphasis added).
It goes straight from gathered to captured. No tactical maneuvering. No ordinance.
Just victory.
Then the gospel metes out the punishment for those who chose evil over good.
Making the Connections
Why are we surprised at this? I feel like a broken record every time I say that God isn’t concerned about the physical.
God is more concerned about the spiritual. The spiritual can only be corrected by the Word of God.
God doesn’t do things the way we do. His ways are higher than ours (Isa. 55: 8-9).
Beyond that, God is all-powerful. Satan isn’t.
It will be no contest.
How Do We Apply This?
Choose salvation through Jesus Christ.
The ABCDs of Salvation
If you have not become a believer in Christ, please read through the
Plan of Salvation and prayerfully consider what God is asking you to do.
A – admit our sins
B – believe His Son Jesus is our Redeemer
C – confess God as Sovereign Lord
D – demonstrate that commitment by making any changes needed in our lives to live the way in which God has called us
The Disciple’s Job Description
Father God. We can’t wait until the day that the Battle of Armageddon is won. We want to be right there at Jesus’ side to see Him defeat Satan by His Word. Amen.
What do you think?
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