Revelation Chapter 19

UNIVERSAL REJOICING (Rev 19:1-10)

VERSE 9 “Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.”

AND HE SAID TO ME: This “he” comes out of nowhere! BUT, if, as suggested, Rev 19:1-10 is actually a part of Chapter 18, the reference does NOT AT ALL seem disconnected, but is a natural reference back to Rev 18:4. THIS voice is the angel of Rev 17:1 which again appears in Rev 18:4 and continues with John throughout the remainder of Revelation as companion and instructor. He is Pastor C. T. Russell, the Seventh Messenger (angel) to the church (of Laodicea), via his writings.

WRITE: = take note of; don’t forget; publish it. With all of the emphasis on the true Church in Verse 7, and with John’s commentary in Verse 8, the angel wants us to take a mental note that we not forget that Great Multitude of spirit-begotten ones, by-products of the Gospel Age — the “Great Company Class.” They are the ONLY ones not mentioned thus far in this rejoicing narrative although they are, no doubt, included in the heavenly hosts of verse.

BLESSED: Indeed, they are! Once their tears are wiped away, they will be a blessed and important factor in carrying out the Divine Plan. Never again will it be possible to develop a spirit class sympathetic to all the ills that mankind experienced during the permission of evil.

ARE THOSE WHO ARE INVITED: — A Divine invitation, the greatest of honors!

TO THE MARRIAGE SUPPER OF THE LAMB: — NOT to be part of the bride, but to be those blessed virgins which follow her (“She shall be brought to the King in robes of many colors; The virgins, her companions who follow her, shall be brought to You.” Psa. 45:14, 15).

The Marriage Supper represents the taking part in the APPLICATION of the benefits of the marriage — i.e., the blessing administration of the mediatorial kingdom. What better way is there to “feast” on the event of the “marriage.” Just as the Church, during the Gospel Age, “celebrated the feast” of Passover (1 Cor. 5:7, 8) representing APPLYING the benefits of the crucifixion, thus the Great Company participates in the WEDDING SUPPER by APPLYING the benefits of the wedding — an age-long process.

AND HE SAID TO ME:

WHO taught the John Class the truths about the Great Company Class? The reference is unmistakable.

THESE ARE TRUE WORDS OF GOD: The doctrine of the Great Company class is an obscure teaching. But that does not make it untrue! The fact is, understanding this doctrine has vitally enhanced our appreciation of the standards for the bride and the legally-binding nature of consecration and spirit-begettal. The doctrine is a magnificent complement to the doctrine of the “little flock.” It takes most of the objection away from a Church class of only 144,000 when so very many have been striving for a heavenly reward (heavenly inheritance). They are true words of God!

VERSE 10 “And I fell at his feet to worship him. But he said to me, “See that you do not do that! I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren who have the testimony of Jesus. Worship God! For the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

AND I FELL AT HIS FEET: (Compare Verse 4) — the visible action of total respect and dedication; but here, IMPROPER.

This is the first of TWO instances when the John class attempts to worship the messenger rather than the message-Sender.

Compare with Rev 22:8, 9 “Now I, John, saw and heard these things. And when I heard and saw, I fell down to worship before the feet of the angel who showed me these things. Then he said to me, “See that you do not do that. For I am your fellow servant, and of your brethren the prophets, and of those who keep the words of this book. Worship God.”

Why this occurs twice is a matter of speculation and concern. In both cases it is at the end of John’s having learned wonderful things at the hand of the angel (the Seventh messenger) Perhaps there is an implication that parts of the John class in Brother Russell’s day, and parts now, need this special reminder. Safety in Jesus will not come from improper estimation and use of Brother Russell and his writings.

TO WORSHIP HIM: There is something imbalanced in our natures that makes it so easy for us to mistake the difference between appreciation and acceptance of the messenger’s message on the one hand, and idolization and reliance on the individual who delivers the message on the other. It is vitally imperative that we make this distinction.

AND HE SAID TO ME: Brother Russell, in the clearest of terms, both spoke and wrote regarding his observations of the preaching of Brother Russell over the preaching of Jesus Christ. How hard we are of hearing sometimes!

DO NOT DO THAT: If we DO, we deny BOTH the Lord who sent the message AND the man who delivered it. BOTH said, “DO NOT DO THAT.”

I AM A FELLOW SERVANT OF YOURS AND YOUR BRETHREN: “You are all brethren and One is your Master.”

“Yours AND your brethren” may refer to the John class (the Church) and its companion (the Great Company Class.)

WHO HOLD THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS: This is an important point. Brother Russell, in essence, does not really serve anyone who is not HOLDING ONTO the testimony of Jesus — the Scriptures. He is no “Bible student” who does not study the Bible — regardless of how many helps he has in doing so.

WORSHIP GOD: The advice is priceless. These two words are worthy of hours of meditation.

FOR THE TESTIMONY OF JESUS: — talking about him, applying his words to our hearts and our ways.

IS THE SPIRIT OF (THIS) PROPHECY: Here we have the point of it all. The spirit of prophecy — the thing which gives prophecy life and breath, makes it live — is its application to character: the testimony of Jesus in our lives and words.

We will finish up with a look at Verses 9 and 10 as explained by Brother Shallieu in our next post.