Commentaries:
<< Revelation 19:6 Revelation 19:8 >>
Revelation 19:7
When the time of the marriage of Jesus Christ to His Bride has arrived, then will be the time for the resumption of gladness and rejoicing. Not forgetting that it will also be a time for giving additional glory and honor to the great God, this gladness and rejoicing—shared with God the Father, His Son, and all the angelic host of heaven—will exceed anything that we have ever experienced. It is very important to note that Christ's Bride will have "made herself ready" for the wedding. She will not have allowed anything to sidetrack her from her preparation for this most wonderful occasion.
Staff
The Marriage of the LambRelated Topics: Bride Making Herself Ready | Bride of Christ | Bride of Christ, Preparation for Marriage | Bride/Bridegroom Analogy | Church as Bride of Christ | Jesus Christ as Bridegroom | Marriage of the Lamb | Preparing for Marriage of the Lamb
Revelation 19:7
This verse records in advance that the bride "has made herself ready." When Christ comes she is prepared to take her place beside Him. This indicates she yields to God to be ready exactly when He is, but it does not say how painful it is for her or what she has to go through to be ready.
Preparing for a wedding between a man and woman is stressful. Besides the bride and groom beginning to blend their lives together, a multitude of arrangements must be completed so that the marriage ceremony proceeds smoothly. Jesus Christ is energetically working on us now to prepare us to take Him as our Husband. Paul writes in II Timothy 3:12, "Yes, and all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will suffer persecution." Jesus adds in John 16:33, "In the world you will have tribulation." There will also be times of stern correction (Hebrews 12:5-11). It can be very painful if we fail to yield because He will apply whatever pressure is needed to motivate us to use our free moral agency rightly. Does it not seem wise to yield? Why not make it easier on ourselves?
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Sovereignty of God: Part FourRelated Topics: Bride Making Herself Ready | Bride of Christ | Bride of Christ, Preparation for Marriage | Bride/Bridegroom Analogy | Church | Church as Bride of Christ | Church, The | Persecution | Preparing for Marriage of the Lamb | Preparing the Bride for Christ | Tribulation | Yielding to God | Yielding to God's Will
Revelation 19:7
Most believe that this person in question, "His wife," is the church, the Bride of Christ. Notice, however, what the verse says: "[She] has made herself ready." God does not lead us in wrong directions, so whhat this description suggests is true. The woman - the Bride, the church - has had to do things. She had to perform certain actions to get herself into position to be ready to marry Christ. It was not merely a matter of repenting, getting baptized, and receiving God's Spirit. She had to do something to be prepared to be in the Kingdom and marry her Savior.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Covenants, Grace, and Law (Part One)Related Topics: Bride of Christ | Bride of Christ, Preparation for Marriage | Bride/Bridegroom Analogy | Church | Church as Bride of Christ | Church, The | Preparing for Marriage of the Lamb | Preparing the Bride for Christ
Revelation 19:6-9
God blesses marriage in the first chapter of Genesis, and it is interesting that as the Book nears its end, in Revelation 19, marriage and His blessing on it once again take center stage. Clearly, the institution of marriage has a far higher purpose than just the physical union of a man and a woman.
Here we have a prophetic portrayal of the ultimate marriage, and God's blessing goes out to those who comprise the wife—the bride—of Jesus Christ. This blessing in Revelation 19:9 gives the blessing in Genesis 1:28 its true context. Our human marriages are types of this greater spiritual marriage. The experiences that we go through during a blessed physical marriage are designed by God to prepare us for our part in the ultimate intimate relationship with our Savior.
Marriage is a representation on the human plane of union between God and man. A similar intimacy exists in both relationships. Just as the sexual bond between a man and woman makes them "one flesh" (Genesis 2:24; see I Corinthians 6:16), a close, spiritual unity between God and a converted human being—which Jesus says is "to know" God in John 17:3 (compare this term to the sexual imagery of Genesis 4:1)—makes them "one spirit." On this, the apostle Paul writes in I Corinthians 6:17, "But he who is joined to the Lord is one spirit with Him" (see also Ephesians 4:4). Physical marriage, then, can teach us how to be spiritually one with God.
Just as surely as God will bless the union between His Son and the Bride, He will also endue the physical type with the ability to fulfill its purpose—that is, to create unity between marriage partners to prepare them for union with God.
Richard T. Ritenbaugh
Marriage—A God-Plane Relationship (Part Three)Related Topics: Bride of Christ, Preparation for Marriage | Eternal Life is Being Intimate with God | Intimate Relationship with our Savior | Marriage -A God Plane Relationship | Marriage as a God-Plane Relationship | Marriage as God Ordained Institution | Marriage of the Lamb | Marriage Partners to Become One Flesh | Sexual Imagery | Spiritual Marriage | Spiritually One with God | Union with God
Revelation 19:7-8
At this time, the bride of Christ, the church, has made herself ready and is clothed in white linen, which represents her righteous acts. The implications are clear: Getting ready, walking worthy, and overcoming are the righteous acts of the saints that prepare her to be His wife in the resurrection to the Kingdom of God.
John W. Ritenbaugh
The Elements of Motivation (Part Five): Who We AreRelated Topics: Bride Making Herself Ready | Bride of Christ | Bride of Christ, Preparation for Marriage | Bride/Bridegroom Analogy | Church | Church as Bride of Christ | Church, The | Overcoming | Overcoming, Mankind's Participation in | Preparing for Marriage of the Lamb | Preparing the Bride for Christ
Revelation 19:7-8
The fine linen represents the righteous acts of the saints. Consider that the marriage analogy carries right through from the Old Covenant into the New. Under the New Covenant, the church is seen as a bride preparing for marriage.
There is a major difference, however, between the Old and New Covenant marriage analogies. In the Old Covenant, when Israel agreed to God's proposal, and Moses performed the ritual described in Exodus 24, they were married. When we enter into the New Covenant, we are not married yet. We are like a bride preparing for marriage, even though we have already agreed to the New Covenant. God has made this change to resolve the weakness of the first covenant, which will be eradicated before the actual ceremony and union take place.
Revelation 19 is the announcement that the bride is now ready and the marriage can take place. There are four things that a marriage relationship must have to really be successful:
1) A marriage must have love. A loveless marriage is a contradiction in terms.
2) A marriage must have intimate communion—so intimate that the bride and groom become one flesh. The two become one.
3) A marriage should have joy. This will be a natural result if love exists in the marriage. The joy of loving and being loved is like nothing else.
4) A marriage must have fidelity, loyalty, and faithfulness. No marriage can last without it.
The weakness of the first covenant will be resolved—eradicated—before the actual ceremony and union take place. This time, Christ will be married to a wife who has already proved that she loves Him, that she is capable of intimate communication, that she is happy with Him as her Husband, and that she is faithful in every aspect of her life.
Notice how attention is drawn to her preparations, as well as her righteous acts. Could her righteous acts have anything to do with the preparation? Absolutely. Could it have anything to do with her being qualified? Absolutely. Works—her righteous acts—are represented here.
We should not be misled into thinking that her deeds, her righteous acts, have earned her salvation. All through the Bible, it maintains a delicate balance between grace (what is given) and obedience (the proper response). Here, that balance is shown by the wife's garments being granted to her. She has worked, but the gift is still given.
It takes work to make a marriage successful. It takes work to make our relationship with God successful. If we do the right kind of works, there is no doubt that the relationship will be successful, and God will be well pleased with us. And we will enter His Kingdom.
John W. Ritenbaugh
Love and WorksRelated Topics: Bride of Christ | Bride/Bridegroom Analogy | Faithfulness | Fine Linen Symbol of Righteousness | Marriage | Marriage Analogy | Marriage Covenant | Marriage Supper of the Lamb | Preparing for Marriage of the Lamb | Preparing the Bride for Christ | Works | Works, Christ's Emphasis UponOther Forerunner Commentary entries containing Revelation 19:7:
Numbers 12:1
Ruth 3:2
2 Kings 4:8-37
Psalm 1:1-3
Song of Solomon 1:1
Ezekiel 18:31
Amos 5:21-24
Matthew 6:9
Matthew 13:44
Matthew 13:45-46
Matthew 22:1-14
Matthew 22:11-14
Matthew 22:11
Matthew 22:37-40
Matthew 24:29-31
Matthew 25:1-13
Mark 1:14-15
John 6:44
Romans 14:7-8
<< Revelation 19:6 Revelation 19:8 >>
Join 135,000+ readers
A Verse and a Thought, Every Morning
The Berean delivers one scripture and a short, insightful commentary to your inbox each day — a starting point for reflection and study.
What Does Revelation 19:7 Mean?
Revelation 19:7 heralds the readiness of the bride for the marriage of the Lamb, a moment of gladness and rejoicing to give glory to God. The bride, having made herself ready through righteous acts represented by fine linen, has prepared diligently for this union. This preparation involves overcoming challenges and yielding to God's direction, enduring pain and correction to align with Christ's timing. Her readiness is a cooperative effort, supported by Christ's provisions, emphasizing love, intimate communion, joy, and fidelity. This marriage, unlike the Old Covenant, awaits the bride's full preparation, ensuring a successful eternal relationship with Christ at His return.