ACC ~ Revelation 19 v7 - 10

OVERVIEW:

In the present age the church is in the stage comparable to courtship before a wedding. As a sign of courtship the church has received the Holy Spirit (OECUMENIUS) and so persists in her works of righteousness. However, at the end of the world, the church, having shown herself ready for the spiritual banquet (BEDE), will be united in the purity of faith with Christ (APRINGIUS, OECUMENIUS, BEDE). As now a husband becomes one flesh with his wife, then the church catholic will become one spirit with Christ and will receive ineffable gifts (OECUMENIUS) suitable to her manner of life and virtue (OECUMENIUS, BEDE).

The elect who will enjoy this marriage supper of the Lamb will partake of the wine of the Father’s kingdom (APRINGIUS) and will recline at table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (APRINGIUS, PRIMASIUS). They will have new bodies, a new joy and a pure righteousness (APRINGIUS). This banquet will be sumptuous, not a light meal, for it will be nothing other than the refreshment of the heavenly vision (BEDE). Since this joy will surpass our present understanding, the Scriptures call it by various names, such as “paradise,” “kingdom of heaven” or “marriage” (ANDREW OF CAESAREA).

The angels even now enjoy the happiness of eternal contemplation. However, the God of their contemplation, the changeless Wisdom of God, took upon himself our own nature to teach us that we must worship only what the angels worship (AUGUSTINE). Unlike the Greeks, therefore, who believe that multiple gods rule over the nations (OECUMENIUS), in the fullness of the catholic confession the church knows that all prophecy and the divine law testify to Christ and to his church (APRINGIUS, PRIMASIUS). With the angels, therefore, Christians worship the incarnate God alone (OECUMENIUS) and pray that they might have a humble mind as did the Savior and as do the holy angels, who out of their humility allow no worship to be directed to themselves (ANDREW OF CAESAREA).

19:7-8 | The Marriage of the Lamb

THE CATHOLIC CHURCH WILL BE JOINED TO CHRIST. APRINGIUS OF BEJA: The fine linen is the righteous deeds of the saints. After thanksgiving has been given and after the voice of exhortation has been heard, the praise to God, as though the sound of claps of thunder, is loudly proclaimed by those who rejoice that the marriage feast of the Lamb has come. This will occur when, after the consummation of the world, “every rule and authority will have been destroyed and he will have delivered the kingdom to God the Father, so that God will be all in all.” This will occur, that is, when his wife, namely the catholic church, will be joined to him in the purity of faith. Concerning this the holy apostle said: “For I betrothed you to Christ to present you as a pure virgin to one husband.” And so, the fine linen which she [the church] wears does not represent the beauty of a vestment, but the righteousness of the saints. TRACTATE ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.6-8.

THE CHURCH WILL BECOME ONE SPIRIT WITH CHRIST. OECUMENIUS: In the present age the marriage of the Lord with the church is still in the stage of courtship and is not yet a consummated marriage. The holy apostle indicates this when he writes his second letter to the Corinthians and says, “For I betrothed you as a pure bride to one husband to present you to Christ.” Therefore, the time of courtship remains. For “I betrothed” refers to courtship, and we receive the pledge of the Spirit as a sign of courtship. However, when the church becomes one spirit with Christ, as a husband becomes one body with his wife, then will the marriage be perfected. For indeed the wise apostle has spoken wisely concerning bodily marriage when he wrote, “The two shall become one flesh.” But then he continues, “This is a great mystery, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church.” For this reason the holy angels say, “The marriage of the Lamb has come,” signifying that the marriage, which now is in the stage of courtship, will then be consummated. And the Gospel also clearly gives this understanding to us. For on one occasion it introduces the wedding festivities of a son, prepared by his father who is a king. Although many have been invited to the banquet, some partake of the feasting while others excuse themselves from the supper, and one person is excluded because he is not dressed in a wedding garment. On another occasion the Gospel speaks of ten virgins, five of whom are wise and they enter with the bridegroom into the blessed bridal chamber. The other [virgins] are locked outside since they did not fill up their lamps with sufficient oil. It is not suitable to regard any of this as referring to the present time; it rather refers to that which is coming. Therefore, the marriage of the Lamb has come and his bride, the church, is presented as ready to receive those ineffable gifts that come by union with Christ. [The church] is clothed, it says, with fine linen, that is, with a robe made of virtues. It is linen because it is bright and of fine texture, bright from her incomprehensible manner of life, and fine because of her teachings and convictions concerning God. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.6-9.

THE CHURCH WILL UNITE WITH CHRIST. BEDE: The marriage supper of the Lamb occurs when the church will be united with her Lord in the wedding chamber of the heavenly kingdom. “And his bride has made herself ready.” By always persisting in the works of righteousness, [the church] has shown herself worthy of the spiritual banquet and the eternal kingdom. One can also interpret this according to the parable of the Gospel, which speaks of the virgins who, when the bridegroom was coming, rose up to prepare their lamps, that is, among themselves to consider their deeds for which they hope to receive eternal blessedness. … It was granted to [the church] to be clothed with her own deeds. But it is not so with the wicked who, according to Isaiah, “weave a spider’s web and will not be covered by their works, for their works are without benefit.” EXPLANATION OF THE APOCALYPSE 19.7-8.

19:9 | Blessed Are Those Invited to the Marriage Supper

PREPARATION FOR THE FEAST OF THE LAMB. APRINGIUS OF BEJA: Who are those who have been invited to the feast of the Lamb, unless those to whom it is said: “I will not drink from this fruit of the vine until I will drink it new with you in the kingdom of my Father who is in heaven.” And again, “Many will come from east and west and will recline at table with Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven.” This is to drink the new cup, to prepare the new bodies of those being raised, to keep a new joy, and to repay the sincere righteousness of a true faith. These are the blessed who are prepared for this feast and for this repast. TRACTATE ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.9-10.

AT TABLE IN THE KINGDOM OF HEAVEN. PRIMASIUS: The Lord spoke of this, saying, “They will recline at table with Abraham, Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom of heaven,” and again, “He will come and serve them.” Certainly [the Lord] is indicating those “who are called according to his purpose” and who enter the full number of the elect. “For many are called, but few are chosen.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.9.

THE MANY BLESSINGS OF THE COMING AGE. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: The marriage supper of Christ is the feast of those who are being saved and the joy that accompanies it. The blessed will come into these things when they enter into the eternal bridal chamber with the holy Bridegroom of their purified souls. For he who has promised this is faithful. Since there are many blessings in the coming age, which surpass every understanding, the participation in them is indicated through various terms. Sometimes they are called the “kingdom of heaven” on account of their glory and honor; sometimes they are called “paradise” on account of the everlasting banquet of good things; sometimes they are called the “bosom of Abraham” on account of the rest of those who repose there, or the “bridechamber” and “marriage” because of the endless joy and the perfect and inexpressible union of God with his servants. This union surpasses every carnal and bodily union as much as light is separated from darkness or a perfume from a foul odor. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.7-9.

A GREAT FEAST. BEDE: It says that they are invited to a supper, not to a mere lunch, for at the end of days the supper will certainly be a great feast. Therefore, when the time of the present life is ended, those who come to the refreshment of the heavenly contemplation are truly invited to the supper of the Lamb. EXPLANATION OF THE APOCALYPSE 19.9.

19:10 | “Worship God”

WE HONOR ANGELS WITH LOVE. AUGUSTINE: The lowest person must worship the same God as is worshiped by the highest angel. In fact it is by refusing to worship him that human nature has been brought low. The source of wisdom and of truth is the same for angel and humankind, namely, the one unchangeable Wisdom and Truth. The very Virtue and changeless Wisdom of God who is consubstantial and coeternal with the Father, for our salvation deigned, in the temporal dispensation, to take upon himself our nature in order to teach us that humanity must worship what every rational intellectual creature must also worship. Let us believe that the highest angels and most excellent ministers of God want us to join them in the worship of the one God, in contemplation of whom they find their happiness. Even we are not made happy by seeing an angel but by seeing the Truth, by which we love the angels too and rejoice with them. We do not grudge that they should have readier access to the Truth and enjoy him without obstacle. Rather, we love them because we are bidden by our common Lord to hope for the same condition hereafter. So we honor them with love but not with divine worship. We do not build temples for them. They do not wish to be honored by us in that way, because they know that when we are good people we are ourselves the temples of the most high God. OF TRUE RELIGION 110.

TRUTH, JUDGMENT AND JUSTICE. APRINGIUS OF BEJA: When the royal commands of God were heard, he fell down to worship him who was speaking with him. However, to respect the nature of his own office and to show that God is above all things, he prohibited this, saying, “Do not do this, because I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold the testimony of Jesus.” The testimony of Jesus is the true profession of the catholic confession. “For the testimony of Jesus is the Spirit of prophecy.” The Spirit of prophecy is truth and judgment and justice, which in their fullness are contained in the catholic faith. TRACTATE ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.9-10.

THE GREEKS REGARD AS DIVINE THOSE DEMONS THEY HAVE ASSIGNED TO THE NATIONS. OECUMENIUS: The [pagan] Greeks, though accursed and hated by God, heard of the teaching given in our prophecies that by the good will of God the holy angels protect the nations and the churches and every individual. … Since [the Greeks] have heard that such things were being taught by us, they say to us, “Since you claim the same things as we do, O people, why do you find fault with the teaching that we advance concerning the gods that rule over the nations? For those whom you call angels we call gods, so that we differ only in the use of the names but not in the substance of the matter. But since you also call the order of angels gods, there is no difference with us even in regard to the use of names.”

To such persons one must say the following: “O you accursed people. You worship the works of your own hands and until very recently have established for yourselves gods with whom you associated for every vile purpose. You have purloined most of our divine teachings and adding these to your own destructive teachings, you have made a grand mixture of them. But since you use your own mind as guide and not God, you have not been able to maintain the nobility of our teachings in every regard. Rather, although you followed him for a short while, somewhere at the beginning of things, you suffered shipwreck. There is, therefore, nothing in common between us and you, just as there is nothing in common between light and darkness or between Christ and Beliar, as it is written. Assuming the gods, or rather the unclean demons, to be the rulers of the nations, you bring yourselves into league with them, ascribing reverence to them and wishing to worship them as gods.

Moreover, [these demons] are regarded by you as divine, while no mention is made of that God who has ordered all things for the providential care of humankind, these rather governing the nations by their own counsel, as they themselves wish. Therefore, you have assigned to Ares the most savage and bloodthirsty Scythians and Germans, who became such since they were ruled by that murderous plague of man, Ares. But you assigned the Greeks, because of their understanding, to Athena, since from her they received understanding as their lot. And you assigned other peoples to other gods, each of the gods training the nations according to their own passions.”

When the evangelist wished to worship the holy angel, … [the angel] says, “See that you do not do this! I am a fellow servant with you and your brothers who hold the testimony of Jesus.” The exclamation “See!” is not simply the cry of someone who wishes temporarily to hinder something but of someone who wants to prevent something altogether. He calls himself a “fellow servant” with all of those who confess themselves to be servants of Christ and who testify that he is God incarnate. What, then, is to be done, O most holy angel, since you forbid yourself to be worshiped? “Worship God!” he says, “for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” This is as though he had said, “Do you seek to worship me, since I announced to you ahead of time what was to take place? Whoever witnesses to the lordship and deity of Christ is filled with the prophetic grace, not I alone. Why therefore, he says, do you worship that grace which I have in equal measure with my fellow servants? Are the things which the Greeks think about the rulers of the nations really the same as what the Christians say about the holy angels?” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.10.

EVERY WORK OF THE SPIRIT IS A TESTIMONY TO JESUS CHRIST. PRIMASIUS: Indeed, the whole point of prophecy and of the sanctifying work of the Spirit lies in the testimony of Jesus Christ, whom the entire law and all prophecy serve [as though slaves]. For this reason, when he manifested himself on the mountain between Moses and Elijah, his face and his clothing were resplendent with his brightness, and he declared that the law and the prophets had truly testified of him. And so, whatever they had foretold, he himself testifies that it serves Christ and the church, for he said of Moses, “For he wrote of me.” And when he had risen from the dead, he said, “Everything written about me in the law of Moses and the prophets and the psalms must be fulfilled.” COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.10.

THE HOLY ANGELS ARE OF HUMBLE DISPOSITION. ANDREW OF CAESAREA: “Do not worship me as one who is foretelling the future,” the holy angel says. For the confession of Christ, that is, the testimony is the gift of the prophetic Spirit. And you should note also this. The prophecy [is given] for this reason, so that the testimony of Christ may be made strong and the faith be given witness by the saints. Therefore, do not pay homage to me, as fellow servant, but to him who possesses power over all things. From this passage we also learn of the humble disposition of the holy angels, for they do not claim for themselves divine glory as do the evil demons but ascribe this glory to the Lord. May it be that we “outdo one another” with a humble mind, thus fulfilling the saying of the Lord: “Learn from me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls.” And may we receive rest in the coming age, where “sorrow and pain and groaning have fled,” and where the dwelling is of all who rejoice and gaze upon the light of the face of Christ our God, to whom every song of praise, honor and worship be given, together with the Father and the life-giving Spirit forever and ever. Amen. COMMENTARY ON THE APOCALYPSE 19.10.