V.1-5 Five verses describing an amazing contrast. We have read of the dreadful fate of those who followed the false lamb; now we see the rejoicing followers of the true Lamb. It is like a view of what we in heaven shall look down on, on earth during the thousand-year reign of Christ. Heaven AND earth shall rejoice and sing. Does that thrill you to know that you will be looking down on this? And we can read about it now! We have seen that the followers of the false Christ had received a mark in their forehead, so these followers of the true Christ have His name and His Father’s written in their forehead!
V.6-7 The preaching of the everlasting gospel is God’s good news from heaven for this poor world. This is God’s final call and goes out to every corner of the globe.
V.8 The corrupt and wicked organization of this world is called “Babylon.” God is going to smash it to pieces.
V.9-11 The awful doom of those who have worshipped the devil and his men. We are here dealing with people and things that are eternal! (1) The eternal existence of God (Rev. 10:6). (2) The eternal glory of the Lamb (Rev. 5:13). (3) The eternal reign of the believer (Rev. 22:5). (4) The eternal doom of the devil (Rev. 20:10). (5) The eternal torment of the lost. “No rest” our verse 11 and Revelation 20:10.
V.12 What a contrast here. The patience of the saints. In that day which is unequaled by any time in the history of the human race, we are reading of believers who are facing immediate death. But it would be better to be killed by the “beast” than to be tormented with “the beast.”