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<center><h1>Matthew Henry's Complete Commentary
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on the Whole Bible</h1>
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[<A HREF="MHC00000.HTM">Table of Contents</A>]<BR>
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Matthew Henry<BR><I>Commentary on the Whole Bible</I> (1721)
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<!-- (Begin Body) -->
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<CENTER>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+3><B>R E V E L A T I O N.</B></FONT>
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<BR>
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<BR><FONT SIZE=+2>CHAP. XIX.</FONT>
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<HR SIZE=1 WIDTH=50>
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</CENTER>
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<FONT SIZE=-1>
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<P>
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In this chapter we have,
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I. A further account of the triumphant song of angels and saints for
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the fall of Babylon,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:1-4">ver. 1-4</A>.
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II. The marriage between Christ and the church proclaimed and perfected,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:5-10">ver. 5-10</A>.
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III. Another warlike expedition of the glorious head and husband of
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the church, with the success of it,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:10-21">ver. 10</A>,
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&c.</P>
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</FONT>
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<A NAME="Re19_1"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_2"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_3"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_4"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec1"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Triumph of the Saints.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT VALIGN=BOTTOM><FONT SIZE=-1>A. D.</FONT> 95.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>1 And after these things I heard a great voice of much people
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in heaven, saying, Alleluia; Salvation, and glory, and honour,
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and power, unto the Lord our God:
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2 For true and righteous <I>are</I> his judgments: for he hath
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judged the great whore, which did corrupt the earth with her
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fornication, and hath avenged the blood of his servants at her
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hand.
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3 And again they said, Alleluia. And her smoke rose up for ever
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and ever.
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4 And the four and twenty elders and the four beasts fell down
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and worshipped God that sat on the throne, saying, Amen;
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Alleluia.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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The fall of Babylon being fixed, finished, and declared to be
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irrecoverable in the foregoing chapter, this begins with a holy triumph
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over her, in pursuance of the order given forth: <I>Rejoice over her,
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thou heaven, and you holy apostles and prophets, </I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+18:20"><I>ch.</I> xviii. 20</A>.
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They now gladly answer the call; and here you have,
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1. The form of their thanksgiving, in that heavenly and most
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comprehensive word, <I>Alleluia, praise you the Lord:</I> with this
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they begin, with this they go on, and with this they end
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>);
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their prayers are now turned into praises, their hosannas end in
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halleluias.
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2. The matter of their thanksgiving: they praise him for the truth of
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his word, and the righteousness of his providential conduct, especially
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in this great event--the ruin of Babylon, which had been a mother,
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nurse, and nest of idolatry, lewdness, and cruelty
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:2"><I>v.</I> 2</A>),
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for which signal example of divine justice they ascribe <I>salvation,
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and glory, and honour, and power, unto our God.</I>
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3. The effect of these their praises: when the angels and saints cried
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<I>Alleluia,</I> her fire burned more fiercely and <I>her smoke
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ascended for ever and ever,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:3"><I>v.</I> 3</A>.
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The surest way to have our deliverances continued and completed is to
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give God the glory of what he has done for us. Praising God for what
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we have is praying in the most effectual manner for what is yet further
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to be done for us; the praises of the saints blow up the fire of God's
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wrath against the common enemy.
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4. The blessed harmony between the angels and the saints in this
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triumphant song,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:4"><I>v.</I> 4</A>.
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The churches and their ministers take the melodious sound from the
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angels, and repeat it; falling down, and worshipping God, they cry,
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<I>Amen, Alleluia.</I></P>
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<A NAME="Re19_5"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_6"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_7"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_8"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_9"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_10"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec2"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Triumph of the Saints.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT VALIGN=BOTTOM><FONT SIZE=-1>A. D.</FONT> 95.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>5 And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God,
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all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.
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6 And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as
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the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings,
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saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth.
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7 Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the
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marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself
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ready.
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8 And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine
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linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness
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of saints.
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9 And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed <I>are</I> they which are
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called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb. And he saith unto
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me, These are the true sayings of God.
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10 And I fell at his feet to worship him. And he said unto me,
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See <I>thou do it</I> not: I am thy fellowservant, and of thy brethren
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that have the testimony of Jesus: worship God: for the testimony
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of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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The triumphant song being ended, and epithalamium, or marriage-song,
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begins,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:6"><I>v.</I> 6</A>.
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Here observe,</P>
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<P>
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I. The concert of heavenly music. The chorus was large and loud, <I>as
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the voice of many waters and of mighty thunderings.</I> God is fearful
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in praises. There is no discord in heaven; the morning stars sing
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together; no jarring string, nor key untuned, but pure and perfect
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melody.</P>
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<P>
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II. The occasion of this song; and that is the reign and dominion of
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that omnipotent God who has <I>redeemed his church by his own
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blood,</I> and is now in a more public manner betrothing her to
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himself: <I>The marriage of the Lamb has come,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:7"><I>v.</I> 7</A>.
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Some think this refers to the conversion of the Jews, which they
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suppose will succeed the fall of Babylon; others, to the general
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resurrection: the former seems more probable. Now,
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1. You have here a description of the bride, how she appeared; not in
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the gay and gaudy dress of the mother of harlots, but <I>in fine linen,
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clean and white,</I> which <I>is the righteousness of saints;</I> in
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the robes of Christ's righteousness, both imputed for justification and
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imparted for sanctification--the <I>stola,</I> the <I>white robe</I> of
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absolution, adoption, and enfranchisement, and the white robe of purity
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and universal holiness. She had <I>washed her robes and made them
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white in the blood of the Lamb;</I> and these her nuptial ornaments she
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did not purchase by any price of her own, but received them as the gift
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and grant of her blessed Lord.
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2. The marriage-feast, which, though not particularly described (as
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Mt+22:4">Matt. xxii. 4</A>),
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yet is declared to be such as would make all those happy who were
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called to it, so called as to accept the invitation, a feast made up of
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the promises of the gospel, <I>the true sayings of God,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:9"><I>v.</I> 9</A>.
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These promises, opened, applied, sealed, and earnested by <I>the Spirit
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of God,</I> in holy eucharistical ordinances, are the marriage-feast;
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and the whole collective body of all those who partake of this feast is
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the bride, <I>the Lamb's wife;</I> they eat into one body, and drink
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into one Spirit, and are not mere spectators or guests, but coalesce
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into the espoused party, the mystical body of Christ.
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3. The transport of joy which the apostle felt in himself at this
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vision. <I>He fell down at the feet of the angel, to worship him,</I>
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supposing him to be more than a creature, or having his thoughts at the
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present overpowered by the vehemency of his affections. Here observe,
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(1.) What honour he offered to the angel: <I>He fell at his feet, to
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worship him;</I> this prostration was a part of external worship, it
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was a posture of proper adoration.
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(2.) How the angel refused it, and this was with some resentment:
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"<I>See thou do it not;</I> have a care what thou doest, thou art doing
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a wrong thing."
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(3.) He gave a very good reason for his refusal: "<I>I am thy
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fellow-servant, and of thy brethren which have the testimony of
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Jesus</I>--I am a creature, thine equal in office, though not in
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nature; <I>I,</I> as an angel and messenger of God, <I>have the
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testimony of Jesus,</I> a charge to be a witness for him and to testify
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concerning him, and thou, as an apostle, having <I>the Spirit of
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prophecy,</I> hast the same testimony to give in; and therefore we are
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in this brethren and fellow-servants."
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(4.) He directs him to the true and only object of religious worship;
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namely, God: "<I>Worship God,</I> and him alone." This fully condemns
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both the practice of the papists in worshipping the elements of bread
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and wine, and saints, and angels, and the practice of those Socinians
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and Arians who do not believe that Christ is truly and by nature God,
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and yet pay him religious worship; and this shows what wretched
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fig-leaves all their evasions and excuses are which they offer in their
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own vindication: they stand hereby convicted of idolatry by a messenger
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from heaven.</P>
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<A NAME="Re19_11"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_12"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_13"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_14"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_15"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_16"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_17"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_18"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_19"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_20"> </A>
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<A NAME="Re19_21"> </A>
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<A NAME="Sec3"> </A>
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<TABLE WIDTH="100%" BORDER=0>
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<TR><TD><FONT SIZE=+1><I>The Triumph of the Saints.</I></FONT></TD>
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<TD ALIGN=RIGHT VALIGN=BOTTOM><FONT SIZE=-1>A. D.</FONT> 95.</TD></TR>
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<TR><TD COLSPAN=2><HR SIZE=1></TD></TR>
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</TABLE>
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<P>
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<FONT SIZE=+1>11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he
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that sat upon him <I>was</I> called Faithful and True, and in
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righteousness he doth judge and make war.
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12 His eyes <I>were</I> as a flame of fire, and on his head <I>were</I>
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many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he
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himself.
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13 And he <I>was</I> clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his
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name is called The Word of God.
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14 And the armies <I>which were</I> in heaven followed him upon
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white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.
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15 And out of his mouth goeth a sharp sword, that with it he
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should smite the nations: and he shall rule them with a rod of
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iron: and he treadeth the winepress of the fierceness and wrath
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of Almighty God.
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16 And he hath on <I>his</I> vesture and on his thigh a name
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written,
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K<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ING OF KINGS, AND</B></FONT>
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L<FONT SIZE=-1><B>ORD OF LORDS.</B></FONT>
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17 And I saw an angel standing in the sun; and he cried with a
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loud voice, saying to all the fowls that fly in the midst of
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heaven, Come and gather yourselves together unto the supper of
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the great God;
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18 That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of
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captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses,
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and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all <I>men, both</I>
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free and bond, both small and great.
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19 And I saw the beast, and the kings of the earth, and their
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armies, gathered together to make war against him that sat on the
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horse, and against his army.
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20 And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that
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wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had
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received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his
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image. These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning
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with brimstone.
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21 And the remnant were slain with the sword of him that sat
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upon the horse, which <I>sword</I> proceeded out of his mouth: and all
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the fowls were filled with their flesh.
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</FONT></P>
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<P>
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No sooner was the marriage solemnized between Christ and his church by
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the conversion of the Jews than the glorious head and husband of the
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church is called out to a new expedition, which seems to be the great
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battle that was to be fought at Armageddon, foretold
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+16:16"><I>ch.</I> xvi. 16</A>.
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And here observe,</P>
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<P>
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I. The description of the great Commander,
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1. By the seat of his empire; and that is <I>heaven;</I> his throne is
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there, and his power and authority are heavenly and divine.
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2. His equipage: he is again described as sitting <I>on a white
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horse,</I> to show the equity of the cause, and certainty of success.
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3. His attributes: he is <I>faithful and true</I> to his covenant and
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promise, he is righteous in all his judicial and military proceedings,
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he has a penetrating insight into all the strength and stratagems of
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his enemies, he has a large and extensive dominion, many crowns, for he
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is <I>King of kings, and Lord of lords.</I>
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4. His armour; and that is <I>a vesture dipped in blood,</I> either his
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own blood, by which he purchased this mediatorial power, or the blood
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of his enemies, over whom he has always prevailed.
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5. His name: <I>The Word of God,</I> a name that none fully knows but
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himself, only this we know, that this <I>Word was God manifest in the
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flesh;</I> but his perfections are incomprehensible by any
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creature.</P>
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<P>
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II. The army which he commands
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:14"><I>v.</I> 14</A>),
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a very large one, made up of many armies; angels and saints followed
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his conduct, and resembled him in their equipage, and in their armour
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of purity and righteousness--chosen, and called, and faithful.</P>
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<P>
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III. The weapons of his warfare--<I>A sharp sword</I> proceeding from
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<I>his mouth</I>
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:15"><I>v.</I> 15</A>),
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with which <I>he smites the nations,</I> either the threatenings of the
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written word, which now he is going to execute, or rather his word of
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command calling on his followers to take a just revenge on his and
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their enemies, who are now put into the wine-press of the wrath of God,
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to be trodden under foot by him.</P>
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<P>
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IV. The ensigns of his authority, his coat of arms--<I>a name written on
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his vesture and thigh, King of kings, and Lord of lords,</I> asserting
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his authority and power, and the cause of the quarrel,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:16"><I>v.</I> 16</A>.</P>
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<P>
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V. An invitation given <I>to the fowls of heaven,</I> that they should
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come and see the battle, and share in the spoil and pillage of the
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field
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(<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:17,18"><I>v.</I> 17, 18</A>),
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intimating that this great decisive engagement should leave the enemies
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of the church a feast for the birds of prey, and that all the world
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should have cause to rejoice in the issue of it.</P>
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<P>
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VI. The battle joined. The enemy falls on with great fury, headed by
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<I>the beast, and the kings of the earth;</I> the powers of earth and
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hell gathered, to make their utmost effort,
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Re+19:19">v. 19</A>.</P>
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<P>
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VII. The victory gained by the great and glorious head of the church:
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<I>The beast and the false prophet,</I> the leaders of the army, are
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taken prisoners, both he who led them by power and he who led them by
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policy and falsehood; these are taken and <I>cast into the burning
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lake,</I> made incapable of molesting the church of God any more; and
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their followers, whether officers or common soldiers, are given up to
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military execution, and made a feast for <I>the fowls of heaven.</I>
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Though the divine vengeance will chiefly fall upon <I>the beast, and
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the false prophet,</I> yet it will be no excuse to those who fight
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under their banner that they only followed their leaders and obeyed
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their command; since they would fight for them, they must fall and
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perish with them. <I>Be wise now therefore, O you kings, be instructed,
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you rulers of the earth; kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish
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from the way,</I>
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<A HREF="http://bible.gospelcom.net/bible?version=KJV&passage=Ps+2:10,12">Ps. ii. 10, 12</A>.</P>
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