Revelation 19 - Introduction

Introduction

The first part of this chapter is actually a conclusion to the previous one. The first few verses describe the joy and celebration of the saints at the destruction of Babylon, mother of harlots.

We have seen the doom of one of the three “frogs” that lead Satan’s army on the attack against the people of God. The mother of harlots, the great harlot, the great city of fornication, Babylon is down. Now, it is time for the people faithful to God to declare, “One is down. Two more to go.”

In this chapter we will learn the fate of the beast (persecuting governments) and the false prophets.

Some have thought that this describes a judgment that will take place on earth, before the second coming. I believe, as we near the climax of this vision, we are seeing the beginning of the end. Imagine watching a movie where a gang of outlaws is being chased by the sheriff. Toward the end of the movie, the sheriff begins to “pick off” the gang members, one at a time. Finally, there is no one but the leader of the gang of outlaws left to arrest and put in jail.

This is where we are in the book of Revelation. We have met the gang. We have learned the wicked things they have done. Now God is picking them off, one by one and sealing their fate. By the time this chapter ends, all that is left is to bind Satan and seal his eternal fate.

Woodruff states, “The purpose of this vision is twofold. First, it assures us that the church has been established. Then it compares the destiny of the church to that of the beast and the false prophet. Because the church has been established, man has a way to avoid the plagues of the great harlot (18:4) and the final destruction of the beast and false prophet (v. 20).” (1, 338)