RSV ~ Revelation 19 Notes
Rev 19:2 | ISB Notes
avenged … the blood: In answer to the pleas and petitions of the martyrs in 6:9-10 (CCC 2642).
Rev 19:7-9 | ISB Notes
Christ and the Church are forever united in a covenant of marital love. In one sense, this is a present reality for the Church, who is joined to the Bridegroom by the grace of Baptism (Eph 5:22-32); but it is also a future hope, inasmuch as that union will reach perfection in the glory of heaven (Mt 25:1-13). John envisions the Church dressed in a bridal gown sewn by a life of purity and righteousness. Later, the Bride of the Lamb is described as the heavenly Jerusalem, the virgin city gilded with gold and adorned with precious stones (21:9-21) (CCC 757, 865).
• The marriage of the bridal city recalls Ezek 16:8-14, where the Lord joined himself in wedlock to ancient Jerusalem, having cleansed her in water and clothed her in gold, jewelry, and fine linen. Similar images of glorified Zion appear in Is 61:10 and 62:5.
Rev 19:9 | ISB Notes
Blessed are those: The fourth of seven beatitudes in Revelation. See note on Rev 1:3.
Rev 19:10 | ISB Notes
Worship God: The worship of any created thing is idolatry. John, of course, is not an idolater but is overcome by the heavenly glory radiating from the angel (22:8-9). He receives no such rebuke when he falls prostrate before the glorified Christ (1:17).
Rev 19:11-21 | ISB Notes
Christ appears as the warrior Messiah, riding into battle with a full cavalry of angels trailing behind him. His mission: to execute judgment on the beast and the false prophet who allied themselves against him and his followers. This is the battle of Armageddon, for which preparations were made in 16:14-16.
• The depiction of Christ dressed in a robe covered with blood (19:13) and treading the wine press of wrath (19:15) recalls Is 63:1-6, where the Lord marches forth to war, his garments splattered with enemy blood and his feet stomping down the nations in a wine press. The depiction of Christ as the Word (19:13) who swings a sharp sword (19:15) recalls Wis 18:15-16, where the divine word leaps down from heaven as a warrior armed with a sword.
Rev 19:12 | ISB Notes
many diadems: Jesus is crowned with many crowns, symbolizing the plentitude of his royal authority as “King of kings” (19:16).
a name inscribed: Either on his crowns or possibly on his forehead, like the saints who bear his name (14:1).
Rev 19:13 | ISB Notes
The Word of God: Jesus, the divine Word of the Father (Jn 1:1), enacts the divine word of judgment (Jn 5:22) against those who reject his gospel (Jn 12:48).
Rev 19:15 | ISB Notes
a rod of iron: The scepter of the Davidic Messiah (Ps 2:9). See note on Rev 12:5.
Rev 19:17-21 | ISB Notes
Jesus condemns his enemies to a dreadful destiny. The judgment in question is spiritual, leading to the eternal lake of fire, though it is possible that historical events of the first century lie in the background. For instance, the overthrow of the beast may be linked to the suicide of Nero in A.D. 68. Not only was his name the number of the beast (note on Rev 13:18), but he had waged a violent war against the Church (11:7; 13:7). Likewise, the judgment of the false prophet may be linked to the massacre of Judea’s religious leadership in the first Jewish revolt against Rome (A.D. 67 to 70). So understood, this is a vision of divine punishment being imposed on the first persecutors of Christianity. Ultimately, however, it foreshadows the final battle of history, when Christ returns and destroys the powers of evil once and for all (20:710; 2 Thess 1:5-10; 2:1-12).
• The imagery of the great supper comes from the apocalyptic war scenes of Ezek 38-39. After the Lord destroys those who assault his people, birds are invited to gorge themselves on the flesh and blood of fallen enemies strewn across the battlefield (Ezek 39:17-20).
Rev 19:20 | ISB Notes
the lake of fire: The molten sea of hell, where the damned are destined to writhe in everlasting torment (21:8). Eventually the devil himself will be hurled into its flames (20:10) (CCC 1033-37).