Heaven Exults over Babylon
Christ on a White Horse
The Beast and His Armies Defeated
| << Revelation 18:24 | Revelation 19:2 >> |
What Does Revelation 19:1 Mean?
Revelation 19:1-3
Compare two far-apart scriptures, ones which really are not that distant, considering they both deal with the concept of God's judgment. In the first one, Abraham “looked toward Sodom and Gomorrah, and toward all the land of the plain; and he saw, and behold, the smoke of the land which went up like the smoke of a furnace” (Genesis 19:28).
In the second passage, smoke attends the fall of another great city, Babylon:
After this I heard what seemed to be the loud voice of a great multitude in heaven, crying out, “Hallelujah! Salvation and glory and power belong to our God, for His judgments are true and just; for He has judged the great prostitute who corrupted the earth with her immorality, and has avenged on her the blood of His servants.”
Once more they cried out, “Hallelujah! The smoke from her goes up forever and ever.” (Revelation 19:1-3, ESV)
Judgment forms the backdrop of both passages, and, in both cases, smoke is present. One of the underlying concepts behind smoke is God's judgment. In fact, one Hebrew noun for “smoke” is closely associated with the noun “anger,” as illustrated in Psalm 74:1: “Why does Your anger smoke against the sheep of Your pasture?”
God also links judgment with smoke in Nahum 2:13: “'Behold, I am against you,' says the LORD of hosts, 'I will burn your chariots in smoke.'” It is only appropriate, then, that fully 22% of the scriptural references to smoke appear in the book of Revelation, since that book narrates the visions the apostle John saw regarding the Lord's Day—the Day of the Lord (Revelation 1:10)—a day of judgment.
Smoke and judgment fit hand and glove for at least two reasons:
First, smoke is evanescent; it is short-lived, ascending, dispersing, quickly becoming rarefied. In Psalm 102:3, the psalmist writes: “For my days pass away like smoke . . ..” God, speaking through the prophet Isaiah in Isaiah 51:6, assures us that “the heavens will vanish away like smoke.” As smoke is short-lived, so is God's wrath. In Isaiah 10:25 (ESV), God tells us that “in a very little while My fury will come to an end.” Like smoke, God's judgment is intense but short-lived.
Second, not only is smoke an apt image for the brevity of God's judgment, but it is also a good image of the fate of those judged and found wanting. In Psalm 37:20, David assures us that the wicked shall perish “like the splendor of the meadows, [they] shall vanish, into smoke they shall vanish away.” In Hosea 13:3, the prophet, speaking of those who offer human sacrifices, concludes: “Therefore they shall be like the morning cloud and like the early dew that passes away, like chaff blown off from a threshing floor and like smoke from a chimney.” Poof! And they are gone.
Charles Whitaker
Clouds (Part Two): God's Cloud as His Chariot
Does Not Revelation 19:1 Say There Are 'Much People in Heaven'?
This is an unfortunate translation in the King James and other Bible versions of the Greek phrase óchlou polloú. This combination can mean "much [or many] people," but it also has a variety of other English synonyms. Since the Bible elsewhere plainly tells us that the reward of the saved is this earth (see Matthew 5:5; Psalm 37:22; Romans 4:13; Revelation 5:10; etc.)—not heaven—it is evident that another rendering of this Greek phrase should have been chosen.
Many modern translations, for instance, the New King James, the New American Standard, English Standard, New International, and the Revised Standard versions render óchlou polloú as "great multitude." The Revised English Bible translates it as "vast throng," the Moffatt translation renders it as "great host," the Amplified New Testament uses "great crowd," and the J.B. Phillips version has it as "vast crowd."
These translations best convey the meaning of the original Greek. Thus, the "people" of Revelation 19:1 are not humans, as we normally construe the word to mean. John is actually describing the "host, crowd, throng, or multitude" of heaven. This verse is speaking of thousands or tens of thousands of angels who sing praises to God before His throne in heaven (Revelation 5:11-12).
Additional Reading:
Where Are Enoch and Elijah?
The Ministry of Angels
Caught Up in the Rapture
Basic Doctrines: The Reward of the Saved
Death: The End of the Beginning
Parable of Lazarus and the Rich Man (Part Two)
Basic Doctrines: The Second Resurrection
Other Forerunner Commentary entries containing Revelation 19:1:
| << Revelation 18:24 | Revelation 19:2 >> |
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The loud voice of the great multitude in heaven arises against the backdrop of God's judgment, paralleling the smoke Abraham saw ascending from Sodom and Gomorrah. Smoke consistently accompanies God's judgment throughout Scripture, one Hebrew noun for smoke being closely associated with anger, as in Psalm 74:1 and Nahum 2:13. Fittingly, 22% of scriptural references to smoke appear in Revelation, which narrates John's visions of the Day of the Lord, a day of judgment. Smoke suits judgment for two reasons: it is short-lived, ascending and dispersing quickly, mirroring the brevity of God's wrath, which will come to an end in a very little while; and it depicts the fate of the wicked, who vanish away into smoke and are gone.