Rev 19:18-20 | Barnes | STEP | Verse 18. That ye may eat the flesh of kings . Of the kings under the control of the beast and the false prophet, . And the flesh of captains . Of those subordinate to kings in command. The Greek word is χιλιαρχων--- chiliarchs --denoting captains of a thousand, or, as we should say, commanders of a regiment. The word colonel would better convey the idea with us; as he is the commander of a regiment, and a regiment is usually composed of about a thousand men. And the flesh of mighty men . The word here means strong , and the reference is to the robust soldiery--rank and file in the army. And the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them . Cavalry --for most armies are composed in part of horsemen. And the flesh of all men, both free and bond . Freemen and slaves. It is not uncommon that freemen and slaves are mingled in the same army. This was the case in the American Revolution, and is common in the East. Both small and great . Young and old; of small size and of great size; of those of humble, and those of exalted rank. The later armies of Napoleon were composed in great part of conscripts, many of whom were only about eighteen years of age, and to this circumstance many of his later defeats are to be traced. In the army that was raised after the invasion of Russia, no less than one hundred and fifty thousand of the conscripts were between eighteen and nineteen years of age.-- Alison's History of Europe , iv. 27. Indeed, it is common in most armies that a considerable portion of the enlistments are from those in early life; and besides this, it is usual to employ mere boys on various services about a camp.

Revelation of John 19:18-20

Verse 18. That ye may eat the flesh of kings. Of the kings under the control of the beast and the false prophet, Rev 16:14, 17:12-14.

And the flesh of captains. Of those subordinate to kings in command. The Greek word is χιλιαρχων---chiliarchs--denoting captains of a thousand, or, as we should say, commanders of a regiment. The word colonel would better convey the idea with us; as he is the commander of a regiment, and a regiment is usually composed of about a thousand men.

And the flesh of mighty men. The word here means strong, and the reference is to the robust soldiery--rank and file in the army.

And the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them. Cavalry --for most armies are composed in part of horsemen.

And the flesh of all men, both free and bond. Freemen and slaves. It is not uncommon that freemen and slaves are mingled in the same army. This was the case in the American Revolution, and is common in the East.

Both small and great. Young and old; of small size and of great size; of those of humble, and those of exalted rank. The later armies of Napoleon were composed in great part of conscripts, many of whom were only about eighteen years of age, and to this circumstance many of his later defeats are to be traced. In the army that was raised after the invasion of Russia, no less than one hundred and fifty thousand of the conscripts were between eighteen and nineteen years of age.-- Alison's History of Europe, iv. 27. Indeed, it is common in most armies that a considerable portion of the enlistments are from those in early life; and besides this, it is usual to employ mere boys on various services about a camp. Verse 19. And I saw the beast. Rev 13:1, Rev 13:11. Compare Rev 17:13.

And the kings of the earth, and their armies, gathered together. There is allusion here to the same assembling of hostile forces which is described in Rev 16:13-14, for the great decisive battle that is to determine the destiny of the world--the question whether the Messiah or Antichrist shall reign. There can be no doubt that the writer in these passages designed to refer to the same events--the still future scenes that are to occur when the Roman, the Pagan, and the Mohammedan powers shall be aroused to make common cause against the true religion, and shall stake all on the issue of the great conflict. Rev 16:13, Rev 16:14.

Against him that sat on the horse. The Messiah--the Son of God. Rev 19:11.

And against his army. The hosts that are associated with him--his redeemed people. Rev 19:14.

(c) "make war" Rev 16:14,16 Verse 20. And the beast was taken. That is, was taken alive, to be thrown into the lake of fire. The hosts were slain, (Rev 19:21,) but the leaders were made prisoners of war. The general idea is, that these armies were overcome, and that the Messiah was victorious; but there is a propriety in the representation here that the leaders--the authors of the war--should be taken captive, and reserved for severer punishment than death on the battle-field would be--for they had stirred up their hosts, and summoned these armies to make rebellion against the Messiah. The beast here, as all along, refers to the Papal power; and the idea is that of its complete and utter overthrow, as if the leader of an army were taken captive and tormented in burning flames, and all his followers were cut down on the field of battle.

And with him the false prophet. As they had been practically associated together, there was a propriety that they should share the same fate. In regard to the false prophet, and the nature of this alliance, Rev 16:13.

That wrought miracles before him. That is, the false prophet had been united with the beast in deceiving the nations of the earth. Rev 16:14.

With which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast. Rev 13:16-18. By these arts they had been deceived; that is, they had been led into the alliance, and had been sustained in their opposition to the truth. The whole representation is that of an alliance to prevent the spread of the true religion, as if the Papacy and Mohammedanism were combined, and the one was sustained by the pretended miracles of the other. There would be a practical array against the reign of the Son of God, as if these great powers should act in concert, and as if the peculiar claims which each set up in behalf of its own Divine origin became a claim which went to support the whole combined organization.

These both were east alive into a lake of fire. The beast and the false prophet. That is, the overthrow will be as signal, and the destruction as complete, as if the leaders of the combined hosts should be taken alive, and thrown into a pit or lake that burns with an intense heat. There is no necessity for supposing that this is to be literally inflicted--for the whole scene is symbolical--meaning that the destruction of these powers would be as complete as if they were thrown into such a burning lake. Compare Barnes on "Re 14:10-11".

Burning with brimstone. Sulphur--the usual expression to denote intense heat, and especially as referring to the punishment of the wicked. Rev 14:10.

(d) "beast" Rev 16:13,14 (e) "lake of fire" Rev 20:10, Dan 7:11