Red Robe & White Horse - Revelation 19

19:1-6 - After the woman representing Satan’s kingdom is destroyed by God, there is great cheering in heaven and glorifying of God, “For true and righteous are his judgment.” The 24 elders who were seen sitting on chairs and the four beasts fall down and worship God. I’ve always struggled with the concept of being happy when God deals out justice to the wicked and I think that’s because the wicked being punished doesn’t make any suffering they caused me any less severe. I understand that that punishment has to happen, and if it didn’t then I would have a problem with that, but I just can’t imagine myself being happy when that time did come. Those suffering doesn’t lessen anything that happened to me, it doesn’t bring me happiness. Maybe some aspects of the judgment of the wicked in the last days that I will be happy about is Jesus’ takeover of the political systems throughout the world and his subsequent reign as King of Kings. That will be amazing because then the people can be ruled and governed in righteousness by a leader who cannot be corrupted and who has the power to demand conformity. The concept of praising God for the destruction of the wicked has an interesting explanation in the IM from Lectures on Faith by Joseph Smith that helped me understand a bit more. He said, “No sooner is the idea of the existence of (God’s judgment) planted in the minds of men, than it gives power to the mind for the exercise of faith and confidence in God, and they are enabled by faith to lay hold on the promises which are set before them, and wade through all the tribulations and afflictions to which they are subjected by reason of the persecution from those who know not God, and obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ, believing that in due time the Lord will come out in swift judgment against their enemies.” The IM continues, “Knowing that God will one day judge the enemies of His people can help Saints in the last days to endure in ‘patience and… faith.’” So maybe it isn’t so much about watching other people suffer that brings people joy, but the fact that all will be held accountable for their own actions. That makes more sense because it takes a really sick person to see someone else suffer, regardless of who it is, and be happy with it. There’s so much emphasis on us being held accountable at the judgment for our own lives and actions, especially as those who study the scriptures, it can seem overwhelming sometimes. It might even seem like the righteous are getting scrutinized and punished for every little wrong thing they do, whereas those who reject the gospel can do whatever they want without repercussion. Knowing that there will be a day when judgment will come to all the wicked can give us assurance of the fairness and justice in the plan. 19:7-9 - Part of the praising is about the “marriage of the Lamb… and his wife hath made herself ready.” The IM says, “Israel’s covenant relationship with God is symbolically portrayed in the scriptures as a marriage covenant. Marriage is the relationship that requires the most fidelity, sacrifice, commitment, and long-suffering of all relationships.” I thought that this comparison gave significant insight into the process of conversion. I learned a lot of lessons while I was married, and someone them were that marriage is hard, it’s CHOOSING to stay committed when the fun is less frequent, when someone else looks more appealing, or when you just don’t want to do it anymore. Similarly, being committed to the gospel is a choice that sometimes has to be made even when the fire of our testimonies are flickering. All relationships take work, whether we’re talking about spousal relationships, friends, or the personal relationship that we have with the Savior. Testimonies must be polished to stay bright, just like relationships. 19:10 - It seems here that John falls to the ground at the feet of the angel giving him this part of the tour, and the angel says “see thou do it not,” because I’m just a fellow believer like you, so “worship God: for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy.” The IM quotes Elder Dieter F. Uchtdorf as teaching, “We receive this testimony when the Holy Spirit speaks to the spirit within us. We will receive a calm and unwavering certainty that will be the source of our testimony and conviction irrespective of our culture, race, language, or socioeconomic background. These prompting of the Spirit, rather than human logic alone, will be the true foundation upon which our testimony will be built.” 19:11-21 - Now the heavens open and John sees Jesus in a red robe riding a horse. Something I found interesting about the horse is that is stands in such contrast to the donkey that Jesus rode into Jerusalem on Palm Sunday. A donkey was seen as a working animal, to pack stuff around, so even the overly sensitive Romans didn’t see Jesus’ riding a donkey as any type of sedition back then. But the IM notes, “The white horse is symbolic of conquest and victory, as horses were used almost exclusively for war in John’s time.” So instead of quietly going into the city to teach and then to be killed like last time, at the end, Jesus comes back as conqueror and everyone will know it. The red robe he’s wearing can symbolize the blood he shed performing the atonement. There is a JST in verse 15 that important. The KJV says that Jesus “shall rule them with a rod of iron,” which implies a heavy-handed, violent approach to governance. In actuality it says, “and he will rule them with the word of his mouth,” which gives a sense of reason and logic which ultimately, the gospel is and surely the just political kingdom of God will too, logic, reason, and contemplation of the deeper issues and love for each other. Finally, another angel calls to “all the fowls that fly in the midst of haven” to come and eat the rotting corpses of the wicked that have been destroyed.” They eat the left over bodies and the rest of the wicked were slain “and all the fowls were filled with their flesh.”