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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, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, great and small.” 19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur. 21 The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh. ~ Revelation 19:17-21
Today, we close out our study of Revelation 19, the crescendo chapter of the book of the Revelation. This will be the moment of the second return of the Lord Jesus Christ. It will be the precise day that was spoken of in Psalm 2 which reads, “Why are the nations in an uproar and the peoples devising a useless thing? The kings of the earth take their stand and the rulers take counsel together against the Lord and against His anointed.”
In v.17-18 of today's text reads, "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, 18 so that you may eat the flesh of kings, generals, and the mighty, of horses and their riders, and the flesh of all people, free and slave, great and small."'
The last battle of this world is known to all as the Battle of Armageddon. Present in this scene are the armies of the ten nations of Europe, the Confederation. Joining them will be the armies of the kings of the east. The leftover armies from Russia and from Egypt that all gather together in that 200 mile area of Israel beginning in the valley of Armageddon and moving forward toward Jerusalem. The antichrist and the false prophet will also be there. With one weapon, the Word of His mouth, the Lord Jesus will conquer them all.
This is not the final judgment of the ungodly, this is simply their execution. Their final judgment will come in Revelation 20:11, after the thousand-year Kingdom, at an event called the Great White Throne. They are simply executed here. They will be judged a thousand years later. This is the execution of the ungodly sinners of the world who have sided with Satan during the time of the tribulation. These had taken the mark of the beast for they worshiped him. These continuously rejected the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Six times in Revelation 19, the word "flesh" is used. If we sow to the flesh, we will reap corruption. And, there are two suppers mentioned in this chapter. The first is mentioned at the beginning of this chapter and the second, the great supper of God, is mentioned at the end of the chapter.
In v.19-20 we read, "19 Then I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to wage war against the rider on the horse and his army. 20 But the beast was captured, and with it the false prophet who had performed the signs on its behalf. With these signs he had deluded those who had received the mark of the beast and worshiped its image. The two of them were thrown alive into the fiery lake of burning sulfur."
The Lord Jesus referred to this moment in Matthew 25:31-33 which reads, "31 “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, he will sit on his glorious throne. 32 All the nations will be gathered before him, and he will separate the people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats. 33 He will put the sheep on his right and the goats on his left."
When He comes to earth a second time, He will come as judge. He will judge individuals from every people group who have continually rejected the gospel. This will be a judgment of separation. The believers will be separated on the right side of the Lord Jesus and the goats on His left.
The sad thing is the ultimate reality for those who refuse to take the offer of God's grace will spend eternity in Hell. God does not want anyone to go to Hell. He didn't create it for people. He created it for the devil and his angels. God's plan has always been that people would come and drink freely of the water, the river of life. When I came to the Lord, I was so thirsty, and I didn't even know what I was thirsty for. I just had this inner thirst in my life and I cried out to God to quench it. I discovered, it is only the Lord Jesus Christ who can quench this thirst.
In Daniel 7:11 we read, “I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and given to the burning fire.”
The antichrist and the false prophet will be cast alive into the lake of fire. Their bodies will literally be killed but their spirits will live on into eternity in Hell. The antichrist and the false prophet will have the privilege of being the first to populate the final place of destruction, eternal hell.
In v.21 of today's text we read, "The rest were killed with the sword coming out of the mouth of the rider on the horse, and all the birds gorged themselves on their flesh."
In Revelation 19:15, we learned that out of His mouth will come a sharp sword, and with it, the Lord Jesus will strike down the nations. And, suddenly it will all be over. Its finality will come after one word spoken from Him who sits on the great white horse. Once He spoke a word to a fig tree and it withered away. Once He spoke a word to howling winds and heaving waves, and the storm cloud vanished and the waves fell still. Once He spoke to a legion of demons bursting at the seams of a poor man’s soul, and instantly they fled. And now, He speaks a word, and the war will be over.
