The Beautiful Wedding Garment - Revelation 19:7, 8

All right, good morning to everyone and welcome to All Things Fulfilled. To Rod, to Ron, to Richard, and to Tyrone. I'm sure there will be some others who will be joining us shortly. Still got, you know, a few seconds to go before it hits the top of the hour. I hope that you all are having a great beginning of your week. We're going to be starting here shortly. Okay, well, let's get underway. We're talking this morning from Revelation chapter 19, particularly verses 7 and 8. We're talking about the beautiful wedding garment, and last week we looked at the announcement of the wedding of the marriage of And this is a stark contrast between the harlot, or stark contrast to the harlot, who was put to death for her adulteries in chapter 17, and for which she was judged, which leads to the opening of chapter 19 as a continuation of what was taking place in chapter 18. And so we can see that message and theme continuing in Revelation 19, and then leading into that contrast for the bride, as we talked about on last week. Now, John's attention is directed by the seventh angel, or the messenger, to focus on more positive imagery. That is the wedding and the beginning of a new chapter in the fulfillment of the promises of Israel, as we see in the new covenant, this new covenant relationship that is coming about. In addition, we looked at the first part of the announcement for here comes the bride, as we spoke on last week, as she was presented from Isaiah chapter 25 as a background text to those points that we made on last week, where he said he will swallow up death forever, and the Lord God will wipe away tears from all faces. The rebuke of his people he will take away from all the earth. For the Lord has spoken, and it will be said in that day, Behold, this is our God. We have waited for him, and he will save us. This is the Lord. We have waited for him. We will be glad and rejoice in his salvation. And, you know, as that text says in Revelation 19, let us be glad and rejoice for the marriage of the Lamb has come. And so that language is used in that context to indicate that the time of fulfillment in Isaiah's prophecy is about the wedding that was going to take place. But it's also the time where a death was destroyed. And it's the time of the messianic banquet, which we'll speak about on next week. But those themes are also found in Revelation chapter 21, showing you that Revelation 19 that deals with the bride and Revelation 21 are speaking of the same things. It's just a little bit different wording, different imagery, etc. And a few other things that are included in the one or not stated in the other, but they should definitely be parallel. And the arguments that we make from them should be rather similar. It's also telling you that the time of Revelation 19 is when the millennium comes to an end, because in Revelation 21 that has already occurred. And so we won't say very much about it now. We've reached that in chapter 20. And we'll say a little bit more about that. But at least all of those things should be recognized in chapter 19 as we discuss it. And so, again, in Isaiah 25, it talked about the fortified city that was destroyed in order that the veil cast over all the nations would be destroyed. And that's when Isaiah prophesied that they would rejoice and be glad according to verse nine. Now, interestingly, this phrase is found in other texts in Isaiah, one involving the new heaven and new earth in Isaiah 65, 17 through 19. And that should kind of show the link between Revelation 19 and Revelation 21 as we were speaking before, because he says, well, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth and the former shall not be remembered or come to mind, but be glad and rejoice forever in what I create. For behold, I create Jerusalem as a rejoicing and her people a joy. So this wording, be glad and rejoice, the very same language that's used in Isaiah 25. But here it's used in connection with the new heaven and new earth. And that is the text that's quoted in Revelation 21 in terms of John saying, behold, I saw a new heaven and a new earth. Well, the first heaven and the first earth had passed away and there was no more sea. And then he talks about the bride in Revelation 21 and verse two. And so in verse 19, he says, and this is back to, excuse me, Isaiah chapter 65, I will rejoice in Jerusalem and joy in my people, the voice of weeping shall no longer be heard in her, nor the voice of crying. So you see that theme from both Isaiah 25, as well as Isaiah 65. And again, in Revelation 21 in connection with the bride. Now today we're going to compare another chapter and that is Isaiah 61. And we'll be looking at Isaiah 61 to speak about this rejoicing as well. And as we talk about Isaiah 61, we're going to see also the relationship to the language regarding the bride. So let's look at a few passages in Isaiah 61. And I think we'll start maybe around verse three to speak about it. And by the way, in this particular chapter, of course, it's speaking of the time of atonement in verse one. So some very familiar passages that are spoken of here. We have the time of Jubilee and that sort of ties it in with Daniel chapter nine and the six promised blessings that are mentioned there within that 70 weeks. So all of this is tying together beautifully with those things which are found in the old covenant prophets. In Isaiah 61, let's see here. Verse three, he talks about proclaiming the acceptable year of the Lord and the day of vengeance of our God to comfort all who mourn. We've just seen the vengeance played out on a mystery Babylon, the old Jerusalem of the old covenant. And then he says to console those who mourn in Zion, to give them beauty for ashes, the oil of joy for mourning. And notice the next statement, the garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness, that they may be called trees of righteousness, the planting of the Lord, that he may be glorified. And let's drop down at this point to verse six. He says, but you shall be named the priest of the Lord. They shall call you the servants of our God. You shall eat the riches of the Gentiles. And in their glory, you shall boast instead of your shame, you shall have double honor. And remember all the persecutions that the saints were going through those who were under the altar, who were crying out, et cetera, all the shame, even being called the body of the humiliation of us in Philippians chapter 321, the sufferings of this present age or time in Romans chapter eight and 18. But now he says, instead of your shame, you shall have double honor. Instead of confusion, they shall rejoice in their portion. Therefore in their land, they shall possess double everlasting joy shall be theirs. For I, the Lord love justice. I hate robbery for burnt offering. I will direct their work in truth and will make them an everlasting covenant. Their descendants shall be known among the Gentiles and their offspring among the people. All who see them shall acknowledge that they are the posterity whom the Lord is blessed. Now look in verse 10, I will greatly rejoice in the Lord. My soul shall be joyful in my work or he had clothed me with the garments of salvation. He has covered me with the robe of righteousness. As a bride groom decks himself with ornaments, as a bride adorns herself with her jewels, whereas the earth brings forth its bud as the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth. So the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations. And so this I believe is also where the text in Revelation 19, seven and eight is drawing from to speak of the bride and this wedding garment that she wears. Now let's read in Revelation 19, seven and eight. So you can kind of see that correlation. He says, let us be glad and rejoice and give him glory for the marriage of the lamb has come and his wife has made herself ready. And to her, it was granted to be arrayed or clothed in fine linen, clean and bright for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. Now, actually, I keep reading it that way because one I've read it from the King James version for so long, but two, I personally don't necessarily like the rendering in the new King James version, which is the one that I'm using. Even though if we understand it, it's really not a problem because the righteousness of God is the righteousness of the saints, which has been appropriated to them. But I think the idea here is to point out the fact that they are now clothed with the righteousness of God. And so from that perspective, she has made herself ready by appropriating God's righteousness to her. Now, the word for made ready is the word Ketumatzo. It means to prepare, to provide, to make ready. It's used in several passages that focus on the wedding and the bride and garment. Even in John chapter 14, verses one through three, when he says, let not your heart be troubled. You believe in God, believe also in me. In my father's house are many mansions or abiding places. I go to prepare a place for you. And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come and he says, and receive you unto myself that where I am there, you will be also that's wedding terminology. And the fact that the bride is going to the home of the groom from that perspective, being able to dwell with him. And that word prepare is the same word Ketumatzo, which involves the preparation that a bride makes for her wedding. Peter used it in first Peter chapter one and verse five, to speak of the prepared salvation, when he says that they were about to inherit the salvation that had been prepared for them. So Isaiah is looking forward to this time, ultimately in the prophecies as they are applied in the new Testament. And therefore to be made ready was to be taken from this first century timeframe that we see in Isaiah. There are a lot of people who are still looking for the wedding to be consummated, but this future that is spoken of in the text has to be understood from the perspective of the first century, even as the book starts out, the revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave to him to show to his servants, things which must shortly come to pass. And he said, and signified it by his angel unto his servant, John, who bore witness of the things that they saw. And therefore he says, blessed is he who reads and those who keep the words of this prophecy for the time has drawn near. And therefore from a first century perspective, these things were near there. We're looking in the past on them from our perspective today. And that's something that continues and needs to be repeated throughout because of so many people who misunderstand these particular points. But at any rate, that's the reason these things were shortly to come to pass. And of course, he reminds us of that throughout the book. And it's also why the text says the Lord was to come quickly in Revelation 21 and verse 12. Now it is at the fall of the city of Jerusalem that is of mystery Babylon that the wedding comes. And that's a pattern that repeats itself in the new Testament. For example, in Matthew chapter 22 verses one through 14, we see that the king makes a wedding for his son, a marriage for his son, and he invites guests to the wedding, but many of them spurned the invitation. Well, that would be a reference to those who rejected the gospel, who refused to worship and accept the Messiah, who refused to have this man reign over us. And as they spurned the invitation, it was a great insult to the king who had made this wedding and sent out invitations to them. And so what was the retribution? The retribution was that he would send out his armies and destroy them, burned up their city, et cetera. And that's the fall of Jerusalem and the fall of the temple. So you see this connection in Matthew chapter 22 of the fall of the city and also of the fall of the temple for rejecting the invitation to the marriage, but they go together in scripture. You cannot separate the fall of the city of Jerusalem in 70 AD when the Romans sacked it from the timeframe of the wedding of the Messiah. Again, in Matthew chapters 24 and 25, we've long held debates about whether or not you could separate Matthew chapter 24 from Matthew 25. And when you really look at it, they cannot be separated. People try to do it at verse 34. That doesn't work. They try to do it at verse 35. That doesn't work. And they try to do it at verse 36. Neither of them work because it's one continuous narrative. And if you can't separate it in those places, it cannot be separated in any place. And of course, the chapter divisions that were later placed by man certainly don't do it as well. So you're looking at a continuous narrative, really starting back as early as chapter 22, I believe, and maybe 21, but this continuous narrative that goes on all the way through to the end of Matthew chapter 25. But Matthew 24 and 25 cannot be divided. We spoke about that in one lesson where we talked about this peri-deh, which is but of that day and hour. That's just a Hebrew idiom for the feast of trumpets and the fact that it was called the hidden day. So what the Lord is saying is all of these things would come to pass within the generation that was then living on the earth. That generation would not pass away until they all took place. And he was saying, but of that day and hour, that is of the specific time that was unknown, just like it was with the feast of trumpets in Leviticus chapter 23 and verse 1 and following where it talks about the feast of trumpets and also in Zechariah 14 as that unknown day. Any Jew in that day and time would have recognized specifically what was being spoken of. And so he's saying they didn't know the specific day and hour, but they knew the generation and knowing the generation did not mitigate against that specific day and hour. And that's what he means about the times and seasons in Acts 1, 6, and 7, as well as in 1 Thessalonians 5, 1 through 3. But nevertheless, with that, we see the destruction of the temple in Matthew chapter 24, when the disciples came to Christ and said, when will these things be? What shall be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age? They weren't talking about the end of the physical universe. They were talking about the end of the age. And so Jesus told them the things that would happen, the signs that were preliminary, that were leading up to it, the wars, rumors of wars, the pestilence, famines, and earthquakes all were the beginning of the birth pangs. But he said, when this gospel of the kingdom had been preached as a witness to all the nations, you know, in all the inhabited earth, then the end will come. And then he enumerated what events would take place, saying that all of it would occur within that generation. The abomination of desolation, all of it would occur in that generation. And it's really sad that we have people as late as now still looking for these things to take place. And every news channel that comes on and all of these prophecy outlets across the internet and across the television, et cetera, are still looking for these things to take place when they have yet already occurred. But as we see the fall of the temple and the city in Matthew 24, the next thing on the agenda in Matthew 25, verses one through 10, is the kingdom of heaven is like a 10 virgins that go out to meet the bridegroom. And so we have this wedding terminology that is used in that context, showing the connection between the fall of the city and the temple and the wedding. Ephesians 5 also continues this because in Ephesians 6, you have this war that breaks out where they are warring with the rulers of darkness of this age, spiritual weakness in the high places. So there's the war that's, in my judgment, the same war of Revelation 12 and verses 7 and following that we see in Revelation, involving the same church, Ephesus as well, along with the other churches. But nevertheless, in Ephesians 5, the Bible talks about the presenting or the presentation of the bride without spot and without blemish at the parousia, at the coming of the Lord. So in the epistles, in the gospels, you have this connection between the fall of the city and the marriage or the wedding, the consummation of the wedding with the Messiah. And that's the same relationship that we find in Revelation chapter 19 and also in Revelation chapter 21. It's the fall of the city and temple in both chapters. And immediately after that, what do we see? We see that the time has come for the marriage. And so we should not, and we cannot logically disconnect those and claim that it's referring to something else. Now, we also see from this chapter that the wedding garment, and from the book of Revelation, that the wedding has been mentioned throughout the book of Revelation. For example, in Revelation chapter 3 and verse 4, the text says, you have a few names in Sardis who have not defiled their garments, and they shall walk with me in white for they are worthy. These are the wedding garments. And again, in Luke, for example, chapter 20, he talks about those who are accounted worthy to attain that age. Now, notice he says the ones who are worthy will receive this wedding garment. And, or he says that they should not defile their wedding garment. And there were some in Sardis who had not done so, and that they would walk with him in white. Well, that's the coming together of the son of man with the bride. And then he says, and this is resurrection terminology as well, just as we saw from Isaiah 25, he says, but those who are counted worthy to attain that age, same age of Matthew 24, 3, and the resurrection from the dead, neither married nor given in marriage, nor can they die anymore for they are equal to the angels and are the sons of God being the sons of resurrection. And he's just talking about there is no procreation in order to produce sons in the kingdom of God, because they are born not of the flesh, but of the spirit from that perspective. But the overall theme and concept of that text is the wedding for those who were worthy in terms of their covenant relationship with God. So he says, he overcomes, and this is Revelation chapter three, he says, he overcomes shall be clothed in white garments. Now also notice the fact that there is an already, but not yet going on there. He says they shall not defile their garments. But again, he says there was a future aspect to it. In the sense, he says, he who overcomes shall be clothed in white garments, and I will not blot out his name from the book of life, but I will confess his name before my father and before his angels. When he spoke to the church at Laodicea, he says, I counsel you to buy from me gold refined in the fire, that you may be rich and white garments, that you may be clothed, that the shame of your nakedness may not be revealed. Now this is a very important theme and concept when we talk about this shame and the nakedness that comes about for not having this wedding garment and what this wedding garment is. I see my time is getting away. I'm going to try to get all this in before we leave this morning. But he says in Revelation 16 and verse 15. Now, and this, I mean, just drives a sword into the heart of those who want to talk about physical resurrection. When we look at the wedding garment in Revelation chapter 16 and verse 15, and even as we've seen in chapter three and verse four, he says, behold, I am coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches and keeps his garments, lest he walked naked and they see his shame. Well, what is that telling us? That's telling us that they already have the wedding garment on. These are not people who are dead in the grave. This is not a post-death experience. This is an experience for people who were alive. And yet he says they are wearing the wedding garment and Jesus warns them saying, look, I'm coming as a thief. That's the day and hour coming of Matthew 24, 36 and first Thessalonians five, one through three. He says, I'm coming as a thief. Blessed is he who watches and does what? And keeps his garment. Now they weren't talking about dying in this context and then putting on a garment after they died. Well, look, if the garment is the physical body, then once they died, they would have put off the physical body and they would have been naked. It just doesn't work. He says, unless they keep his garments and walk naked and they see his shame. Well, who was going to see them? We can't put this in a post physical experience in this verse. So let's talk a little bit more about the wedding garment. The wedding garment constitutes the righteousness of God, the new covenant, the temple of God and the resurrection and the life. All of those are in couched in the meaning of the wedding garment. It is the righteousness of God. The text says the bride is clothed in fine linen, clean and bright for the fine linen is the righteousness of the saints. That's what the wedding garment is. It's righteousness. This is why we spoke from Isaiah 61 and verse 10, which speaks of there being clothed with robes of righteousness. Fine linen is the fabric of the tabernacle from Exodus 26 and verse one, also verse 26 and verse 36. He talked about making the tabernacle with 10 curtains of fine woven linen and blue, purple and scarlet thread with artistic designs of caribou. You shall weave them. So this language is speaking both of the new temple of God and of the wedding garment, because all of those are in couch together. And you'll see that laid out in the scriptures. It was also the fabric of the high priest. You know, we spoke about the holy of holies being the wedding chamber. And so as the bride is being received to Christ, they're entering into the most holy place. And therefore you have that. But look in Exodus 28 verses four through eight, those were the garments that were worn by the high priest on the day of atonement when he entered into the most holy place. And the fact that they are worn by the bride shows that the holy of holies is the wedding chamber where the bride meets with Christ and consummates the wedding. The holding of the bride is the time of the making of a covenant. Let's look in Ezekiel chapter 16. And this is where we have this, this language taken from that talks about the garment. It talks about the covenant. It talks about the full imagery all in one section of Ezekiel chapter 16. And I think it's just a great commentary on this concept of, you know, wedding temple, et cetera, and the garment beginning in verse eight of Ezekiel 16. And this is speaking about when God found Israel in the wilderness, et cetera, said that she was naked and bare about to die, you know, all writhing in her blood. And he spoke to her and said, live. But at any rate, in verse eight, he says, he passed by her again, and he looked upon her and he says, indeed, your time was the time of love. So I spread my wing over you and covered your nakedness. Now, this is God talking about Israel in the wilderness and saying that he spread his wing over her and covered her nakedness. Look, Israel wasn't dead, but here is God covering the nakedness of Israel. They weren't walking around physically nude, but they were walking around in sin, lacking the righteousness of God. So this is what this language is referring to. And thus he says, yes, I swore an oath to you and entered into a covenant with you. So you can see that this is also the time of making of a covenant with them. Then he says, and you became mine. See, you married her or became betrothed to her. And thus he says, says the Lord, then I washed you in water. Yes, I thoroughly washed off your blood and I anointed you with oil. I clothed you in embroidered cloth and gave you sandals of badger skin. Where do we find the sandals of badger skin? Notice I clothed you with fine linen and covered you with silk. I adorned you with ornaments, put bracelets on your wrist and a chain on your neck. And I put a jewel in your nose, earrings in your ears and a beautiful crown on your head. She talks about being clothed with badger skins. All you got to do is look in Exodus chapter 25, when God says, let them make me a sanctuary that I may dwell among them. And when you look at all the materials that were in the tabernacle, you will find badger skins and dyed red and all of these things that were used as a covering of the tabernacle. Well, what was the tabernacle for to Israel, to make atonement for their sins, so they would be able to dwell in the presence of God. And then he says, you were exceedingly beautiful. You ate, excuse me, pastry of fine flour. That's the show bread, et cetera, honey and oil. You were exceedingly beautiful and succeeded to royalty. Your fame went out among the nations because of your beauty, where it was perfect through my splendor. See, that's God saying they were perfect through his splendor, not their own. And therefore, which I had bestowed on you says the Lord. And that's why I say the righteousness in revelation 19 is the righteousness of God that has been bestowed upon the saints through their faith and obedience. Well, this is the language that Paul is drawing from in second Corinthians chapter three, all the way through chapter seven and one, but particularly in chapter three and chapter five, when you consider that now in chapter three, he talks about this new covenant that God was making. God makes a new covenant by the blood of Christ, of course. And this new covenant, of course, is marriage. It starts out with the, with the betrothal, and then it consummates as we see in revelation with the wedding, just as Matthew 25 speaks as well. But let me get to second Corinthians and read a couple of passages as we are quickly moving to a close. Our time is really out at this point, but I don't want to leave us hanging just at that point. In second Corinthians three, notice he says, who also made us, this is verse six, sufficient as ministers of the new covenant, not of the letter, but of the spirit for the letter kills, but the spirit gives life. But if the ministry of death written and engraved on stones was glorious so that the children of Israel could not look steadily at the face of Moses because of the glory of his countenance, which glory was passing away. I will, the ministry of the spirit not be more glorious for if the ministry of condemnation had glory, the ministry of righteousness exceeds much more in glory. Now whole point is they were transitioning out of the old into the new and being transformed as a result that we see in second Corinthians three and verse 18. But as we continue through the chapters, there's a lot that can be said here. I recently commented on this, on one of the two guys in the Bible programs with Don Preston. So I can't go into all of that now, but it's absolutely just a beautiful imagery that talking about this transition out of the old covenant, which could not atone for their sins because it was ratified through the blood of bulls and goats into the new, which was through the blood of Christ. And look at the language in second Corinthians chapter five, he says, for, we know that if our earthly house, this tent is destroyed. Well, the tip there is the tabernacle. It's the old covenant and everything that involves that ministry under the Levitical priesthood is destroyed. We have a building from God, a house not made with hands eternal in the heavens. Now watch for in this, we groan, that's Exodus terminology from Exodus chapter two, earnestly desiring to be what to be clothed with our habitation, which is from heaven. That's the new heavens and new earth. That's the wedding garment that they would be clothed with. If indeed having been clothed, we shall not be found naked. You see the same things running through revelation 16, 15, Ezekiel chapter 16, second Corinthians chapter five, even all the way back to the garden with Adam and Eve, this idea of being clothed and it's being clothed with the righteousness of God. But most people want to take this as a physical resurrection text. And that's not what it's talking about. It's talking about this garment of righteousness that the church wears. And so he says, well, we indeed having been clothed, we shall not be found naked for we who are in this tent grown, they're transitioning out of it. It was an already, but not yet a situation being burdened, not because we want to be unclothed, but further clothed that mortality might be swallowed up of life. See, that's when they received the light, but that's Christ coming to them. Jesus said, I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live. And he who lives and believes in me shall never die. Well, look, we're out of time. I can't really finish all of this, but this imagery of the wedding garment, that's look, that's first written in 1534 when he says awake to righteousness and do not sin. What are they awakened to? The resurrection was an awakening to righteousness. Just like Daniel 12, two says, just like Psalm 1715 says, David says, I will be satisfied when I awake in your likeness. When I see your face in righteousness, Galatians five, five quoting from Daniel, we through the spirit wait for the hope of righteousness, which is by faith. That's the righteousness found in the new heavens and new earth of second Peter chapter three 13, whereby we look for new heavens and a new earth in which righteousness dwells. They're all quoting from Daniel chapter nine. That was speaking about bringing in everlasting righteousness within the 70 weeks. So we've seen covenant. We've seen righteousness. We've seen Christ who is the new temple revelation 21 and 22. John said, when he looked at the city, he saw no temple there in for the Lord God almighty and the lamb are the temple. So to be united with Christ is to be in the temple of God. It's also the resurrection because Christ is the resurrection. He is the life. And that is the beautiful wedding garment of revelation chapter 19 versus seven and eight on next week. We'll be back to talk about the messianic banquet that is found in verse nine. As we continue our studies in the book of revelation, we want to say good morning to several people who are here. Good morning to Teresa, to Julie, to Deb, Beatrice, Christopher. Good to see you again. And to Bishop Gabriel, to Ohema and welcome to Deb. Let's see, to Alan Roosevelt, Eric Tyrone. We've spoken to Ron, Richard, and I think that's and Ron, of course. And of course, Rod is here and all of you who will join later. Look, be sure and share this message with others. What that does is it allows the video to have a wider coverage because it's something with the algorithm rhythms. So if you share it, that means more people will get the opportunity to be shown more. And that's a way that you can help to spread the message. We hope that it has been enlightening to you, that you've been encouraged by it. We look forward to seeing you on next week. So everyone have a wonderful Sunday morning and we're going to say good morning and God bless to you all.