I am beginning to fear I may never finish this series.  I am a slacker in need of grace and forgiveness.  @0 minutes of peace and quiet around this nuthouse would help a lot too 🙂

The Angel said to me, “Write this: ‘Blessed are those invited to the Wedding Supper of the Lamb.’” He added, “These are the true words of God!”

I fell at his feet to worship him, but he wouldn’t let me. “Don’t do that,” he said. “I’m a servant just like you, and like your brothers and sisters who hold to the witness of Jesus. The witness of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.”

Revelation 19:10

Don’t you just love that we get to go to supper with Jesus? Ya’ll…I cannot wait!  I bet we won’t even have to do dishes and nobody will be calculating Weight Watchers points.

Then I saw Heaven open wide—and oh! a white horse and its Rider. The Rider, named Faithful and True, judges and makes war in pure righteousness. His eyes are a blaze of fire, on his head many crowns. He has a Name inscribed that’s known only to himself. He is dressed in a robe soaked with blood, and he is addressed as “Word of God.” The armies of Heaven, mounted on white horses and dressed in dazzling white linen, follow him. A sharp sword comes out of his mouth so he can subdue the nations, then rule them with a rod of iron. He treads the winepress of the raging wrath of God, the Sovereign-Strong. On his robe and thigh is written, King of kings, Lord of lords.

Revelation 19:11-16

‘Pure righteousness” – can you even imagine?  It’s sad to admit but one of the things I long for is the day when I don’t have to argue with people about God.  (And when I say ‘argue’, I mean stomp around the house and rant and rave behind said people’s backs.  I can’t help it.  I’m a lover, not a fighter.)  When Jesus rides that white horse, the arguments will be over.  And I assure you that on that day, those of us who were right won’t be gloating.  We will be humbled in the presence of that pure righteousness…just like the rest of you heathens.

I saw an Angel standing in the sun, shouting to all flying birds in Middle-Heaven, “Come to the Great Supper of God! Feast on the flesh of kings and captains and champions, horses and their riders. Eat your fill of them all—free and slave, small and great!”

I saw the Beast and, assembled with him, earth’s kings and their armies, ready to make war against the One on the horse and his army. The Beast was taken, and with him, his puppet, the False Prophet, who used signs to dazzle and deceive those who had taken the mark of the Beast and worshiped his image. They were thrown alive, those two, into Lake Fire and Brimstone. The rest were killed by the sword of the One on the horse, the sword that comes from his mouth. All the birds held a feast on their flesh.

Revelation 19:17-21

Well this deal just got weird again in a hurry, didn’t it?   It appears there is going to be a great big battle and the birds are gonna feast on dead bodies.  Circle of life I suppose…

Following this I saw another Angel descend from Heaven. His authority was immense, his glory flooded earth with brightness, his voice thunderous:

Revelation 18:1

I just really am curious about this particular angel, aren’t you?

Ruined, ruined, Great Babylon, ruined!
    A ghost town for demons is all that’s left!
A garrison of carrion spirits,
    garrison of loathsome, carrion birds.
All nations drank the wild wine of her whoring;
    kings of the earth went whoring with her;
    entrepreneurs made millions exploiting her.

Revelation 18:2-8

It’s all over for Babylon ya’ll.  You can read the whole chapter here.  But trust me when I tell ya, it’s nothing but doom.

But after all this doom, something interesting happens.

I heard a sound like massed choirs in Heaven singing,

Hallelujah!
The salvation and glory and power are God’s—
    his judgments true, his judgments just.
He judged the great Whore
    who corrupted the earth with her lust.
He avenged on her the blood of his servants.

Then, more singing:

Hallelujah!
The smoke from her burning billows up
    to high Heaven forever and ever and ever.

The Twenty-four Elders and the Four Animals fell to their knees and worshiped God on his Throne, praising,

Amen! Yes! Hallelujah!

From the Throne came a shout, a command:

Praise our God, all you his servants,
All you who fear him, small and great!

Then I heard the sound of massed choirs, the sound of a mighty cataract, the sound of strong thunder:

Hallelujah!
The Master reigns,
    our God, the Sovereign-Strong!
Let us celebrate, let us rejoice,
    let us give him the glory!
The Marriage of the Lamb has come;
    his Wife has made herself ready.
She was given a bridal gown
    of bright and shining linen.
The linen is the righteousness of the saints.

It appears that there is great rejoicing in Heaven when God finally issues His righteous judgement.  No one is questioning God in this passage.  It’s quite lovely, isn’t it?

I think if you’ve been with me on this since week one (and if so, God luv ya!) you can begin to understand why some people are just not big fans of the book of Revelation.  I can readily admit that this book has probably been more misused, mis-preached and misunderstood than any other portion of scripture.  But that’s no good excuse to give up.  So let’s keep going.

One of the Seven Angels who carried the seven bowls came and invited me, “Come, I’ll show you the judgment of the great Whore who sits enthroned over many waters, the Whore with whom the kings of the earth have gone whoring, show you the judgment on earth dwellers drunk on her whorish lust.”

In the Spirit he carried me out in the desert. I saw a woman mounted on a Scarlet Beast. Stuffed with blasphemies, the Beast had seven heads and ten horns. The woman was dressed in purple and scarlet, festooned with gold and gems and pearls. She held a gold chalice in her hand, brimming with defiling obscenities, her foul fornications. A riddle-name was branded on her forehead: great babylon, mother of whores and abominations of the earth. I could see that the woman was drunk, drunk on the blood of God’s holy people, drunk on the blood of the martyrs of Jesus.

Revelation 17:1-6

Alrighty then.

 Astonished, I rubbed my eyes. I shook my head in wonder.

Apparently John and I are on the same page here which makes me feel a bit better.

The Angel said, “Does this surprise you? Let me tell you the riddle of the woman and the Beast she rides, the Beast with seven heads and ten horns. The Beast you saw once was, is no longer, and is about to ascend from the Abyss and head straight for Hell. Earth dwellers whose names weren’t written in the Book of Life from the foundation of the world will be dazzled when they see the Beast that once was, is no longer, and is to come.

“But don’t drop your guard. Use your head. The seven heads are seven hills; they are where the woman sits. They are also seven kings: five dead, one living, the other not yet here—and when he does come his time will be brief. The Beast that once was and is no longer is both an eighth and one of the seven—and headed for Hell.

The ten horns you saw are ten kings, but they’re not yet in power. They will come to power with the Scarlet Beast, but won’t last long—a very brief reign. These kings will agree to turn over their power and authority to the Beast. They will go to war against the Lamb but the Lamb will defeat them, proof that he is Lord over all lords, King over all kings, and those with him will be the called, chosen, and faithful.”

The Angel continued, “The waters you saw on which the Whore was enthroned are peoples and crowds, nations and languages. And the ten horns you saw, together with the Beast, will turn on the Whore—they’ll hate her, violate her, strip her naked, rip her apart with their teeth, then set fire to her. It was God who put the idea in their heads to turn over their rule to the Beast until the words of God are completed. The woman you saw is the great city, tyrannizing the kings of the earth.”

Revelation 17:6-14

 The Great Whore is Babylon which may be a real place or may just be a symbol of heathen type behavior everywhere. As for the rest…Ya’ll, I just have no idea.  And, you know what?  I could find out.  I could research this and really get an informed answer for you.  But until we actually have a world leader that promises peace, gets killed and then COMES BACK TO LIFE!, I’m not sure it’s of utmost important to parse every detail of this paragraph.