The Amplified version says, “The Marriage of the Lamb has come at last.” Both the Father and Jesus have been waiting for this. It was in the Father’s heart from the beginning of time that Jesus should have a Bride. This Bride is the New Jerusalem come down from heaven, when Jesus will be totally unveiled at the time of His marriage. “The Marriage of the Lamb is come.” It does not say the “wedding” of the Lamb has come. The Holy Spirit always uses the right words. There is a difference between a wedding, and a marriage. The wedding includes the best man, the bridesmaids, the cutting of the wedding cake, and all of the guests, activities, and food. A marriage is a union in which two people are being united, and you are invited to come and be one of these. Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb Restoration of Intimacy with God.
This text promises restored intimacy with God as His purpose develops in His people. In the OT (see Is. 54:1-6; Hos. 2:19; 11:8, 9), Israel is called God’s wife, but in the NT (Eph. 5:23-32), this metaphor is transferred to the Bride. Symbolically /spiritually the Bride has made herself ready through the perfecting/maturing power of the revelation of Christ. (1Jn 3:2) Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not yet been revealed what we shall be. But we know that when He shall be revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is.
There are 2 views here: 1. Dispensational- Christ must transform the Church as the Bride without spot or wrinkle at the Rapture. 2. Symbolic/spiritual- Christ comes spiritually to prepare for Himself a Bride. He has accomplished His will and now the Bride is ready to become the Wife of the Lamb. Rev. 19:8 and to her it was granted to be arrayed in fine linen, clean and bright, for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints. Symbolically/spiritually: Granted . . . fine linen: By God’s grace. The righteous acts: The good works that are the fruit of being justified by faith in Jesus Christ. That means that she had the privilege (granted) to choose to be arrayed in the “wedding garment” which is pure white linen - the righteousness of saints.
There is just one requirement that Jesus lays on us to become His Bride, and that is “righteousness.” We know He was righteous, and we are made the righteousness of God in Christ Jesus. He is working His righteousness in us. It is through a process, which He likens to the process that linen goes through to become the clean and white linen wedding garment of the Bride. Linen is made of flax. The flax grows in a field, and the whole plant is pulled up. It is not cut like wheat.
This is what the Lord does for us. He takes this whole mess that we are, spirit, soul and body, and begins to deal with the whole thing. He pulls us up, and hangs us up to dry, to rid us from our former source of supply. These roots had received their supply from the earth, but not anymore.
The word says that I am crucified to the world. That is a strong statement and we need to know what that means. I am crucified and dead to the world. How many of us can say we are dead to the world, and the world is dead to me?
There are three parts to flax that have to be separated. It has to be pulled through spikes of fine steel that are nailed to rough boards. Do you ever feel Him pulling on you? We have to give Him our permission to pull us through this process. Then these fibers have to be soaked in hot water for ten to fourteen days - soaking ten to fourteen days in prayer and in the precious Holy Spirit. We cannot pray or get soaked in His presence too much. Now it has to be rolled and pressed until it becomes one continuous thread. Then it is put back in hot water in the trough and heated again to 150 degrees to soften it up. It is pulled through the hot water heated at 150 degrees fifteen times.
This is you and I. Now, to get the pure linen dazzling white, it has to be pounded sixty times a minute with fifty-pound blocks for sixty to seventy hours. This is the way that linen is made, and our garments are going to be “pure white linen.” So, we will be pulled and pushed, and in hot water, and in trials and troubles, but remember Paul’s statement, “Nothing is to be compared with the glory to come.”
Paul hungered, was obedient and submitted, totally given to God. Symbolically/spiritually arrayed in fine linen are the glorified bodies which allow one to become part of the final harvest, the marriage supper of the Lamb. The eternal robe of righteousness is a better resurrection because it is the glorified body. It is given to those who died to this world completely. (1Co 15:53-54) For this corruptible must put on incorruption, and this mortal must put on immortality. But when this corruptible shall put on incorruption, and when this mortal shall put on immortality, then will take place the word that is written, "Death is swallowed up in victory.
Symbolically/spiritually: The last trumpet has sounded in our life, we will have stepped over the grave with our eternal robes of righteousness because death is defeated. Once given, it is our weight of Glory for all time. Rev. 19:9 Then he said to me, “Write: ‘Blessed are those who are called to the marriage supper of the Lamb!’ ” And he said to me, “These are the true sayings of God.” Symbolically the Marriage Supper of the Lamb also called the Great Supper is the fellowship of eternal blessedness, foreshadowed by the Lord’s Supper, rather than a literal meal. Also Great Supper symbolically/spiritually is the final time of the gleaning the harvest. Rev. 1:3 says Blessed is he that reads, and they that hear the words of the prophecy, and keep the things that are written therein: for the time is at hand. The time is at hand is now being part of the New Jerusalem, the Bride and the marriage supper of he Lamb.
The Adorning of the Bride an Analysis: Revelation 19:7-8 NAS- 7"Let us rejoice and be glad and give the glory to Him, for the marriage of the Lamb has come and His bride has made herself ready." 8 It was given to her to clothe herself in fine linen, bright and clean; for the fine linen is the righteous acts of the saints.
Exegesis Bible- literal translation Cheer and jump for joy and give Him glory because the marriage of the Lamb is come. And his woman prepares herself. And she has been given to be arrayed in white linen-pure and radiant- for the white linen is the justification of the holy.
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