Revelation 19:12 - Printer Friendly

ESV: His eyes are like a flame of fire, and on his head are many diadems, and he has a name written that no one knows but himself.

NIV: His eyes are like blazing fire, and on his head are many crowns. He has a name written on him that no one knows but he himself.

NASB: His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many crowns; and He has a name written on Him which no one knows except Himself.

CSB: His eyes were like a fiery flame, and many crowns were on his head. He had a name written that no one knows except himself.

NLT: His eyes were like flames of fire, and on his head were many crowns. A name was written on him that no one understood except himself.

KJV: His eyes were as a flame of fire, and on his head were many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself.

NKJV: His eyes were like a flame of fire, and on His head were many crowns. He had a name written that no one knew except Himself.

Jesus' first coming to earth was humble (Luke 2:7) and included His sacrificial death (Philippians 2:8). His second coming, however, sees Jesus arrive as the King of kings and Lord of lords, with piercing eyes. He sees all, and therefore is justified in making war. When John first received his vision of Jesus at Patmos, he reported that Jesus' eyes were "like a flame of fire" (Revelation 1:14).

The diadems on Jesus' head show that He is the absolute ruler of the universe. In this capacity He is able to carry out the sentence of doom and destruction that He imposes on the wicked. Further, He is well qualified to take control of the nations and rule them. Psalm 2:8–9 God declares: "Ask of me, and I will make the nations your heritage, and the ends of the earth your possession. You shall break them with a rod of iron and dash them in pieces like a potter's vessel."

Among the many names He can claim, Jesus has a name only He knows. This likely refers to the fact that Jesus is indescribable. In ancient times, it was often held that knowing a person's name provided certain spiritual leverage (Genesis 32:27; Mark 5:9). Symbolically, then, the Son of God returns to earth with a name unknowable to any other person. His personality and deeds extend far beyond what we can comprehend.

Revelation 19:11–21 presents one of Scripture's most spectacular moments of victory: the second coming of Jesus Christ. In this event, Christ returns to earth at the close of the tribulation. At His first coming to earth, Jesus appeared as a baby and sacrificial Savior. This time, He arrives as King of kings and Lord of lords. Many prior Scriptures prophesied this epic day of victory (Matthew 25; Zechariah 14:1–4; 2 Thessalonians 2:7–12; Hebrews 9:27–28; Jude 1:14–15). Christ arrives in a blaze of glory, obliterating His enemies single-handedly, at the head of the armies of heaven. The Antichrist and False Prophet become the first two cast into the lake of fire, ushering in the beginning of Christ's millennial reign on earth.

Revelation 19 begins with a multitude in heaven singing a doxology to God. He is praised for judging religious Babylon and avenging the martyrs. They are joined by the twenty-four elders (Revelation 4). Voices cry out joyfully that the Lord reigns and the marriage supper of the Lamb is ready. Then, John sees heaven open and observes Jesus—now coming as the glorious and invincible King of kings and Lord of lords—as He descends from heaven to execute judgment. The armies of earth gather to battle the Lord. The battle concludes with the Antichrist and False Prophet being thrown into the lake of fire and the graphic slaughter of their followers.

This chapter describes the victorious second coming of Christ, His victory over the Antichrist and the False Prophet after the fall of Babylon (Revelation 17—18). Christ's first arrival on earth was to redeem (Matthew 2; Luke 2:1–21; John 1:1–14; Galatians 4:1–5). The purpose of His second coming is judgment and the establishment of His reign on earth (Psalm 2). This is separate from the rapture (1 Thessalonians 4:13–17), the event in which Jesus returns in the air to take Christians from earth to be with Him. Jesus' second coming begins the millennial kingdom, leading up to the final judgments and the appearance of the New Jerusalem.

The word ''revelation'' means ''an unveiling or disclosure.'' This writing unveils future events such as the rapture, three series of judgments that will fall on the earth during the tribulation, the emergence of the Antichrist, the persecution of Israel and her amazing revival, as well as Jesus' second coming with His saints to the earth, the judgment of Satan and his followers, and finally, the eternal state. This content, combined with the original Greek term apokalypsis, is why we now refer to an end-of-the-world scenario as ''an apocalypse.''