Revelation 19:12 goes on to say, “His eyes are a flame of fire, and on His head are many diadems, and He has a name written which no one knows but Himself.” Christ’s eyes being “a flame of fire” signifies His judging eyes. He will judge according to what He sees. His flaming eyes will carry out His judgment. As the Warrior, Christ has many diadems on His head. Every kind of glory is a diadem. Christ is crowned and glorified. Because He has been crowned with many kinds of glory (Heb. 2:9), He wears many diadems.
As the One on the white horse, the Lord has “a name written which no one knows but Himself.” This indicates that there are certain aspects of Christ that we have not experienced and that only He Himself knows. These are secrets concerning Christ that He keeps within Himself. Even though we may experience and enjoy Him to the uttermost, there will still be aspects of Christ that will be kept secret from us; they will not be known even by His closest overcomers. This indicates that the Christ whom we experience is inexhaustible.
When we experience Him, we come to know a particular aspect of Him. However, there are certain aspects of Christ that will not be experienced by us. Only He Himself knows what these aspects are. Because we have experienced His redemption, we know Him as the Redeemer. Because we have experienced Him as light, life, manna, power, strength, holiness, and comfort, we know Him in all these aspects. We have experienced so many items of Christ’s riches. But because there are some items that we have not experienced, He still has a name known only to Himself. Therefore, we do not know this name. No matter how much we have experienced Christ, there is still something about Him that remains unknown to us.
Revelation 19:13 continues, “He is clothed with a garment dipped in blood; and His name is called the Word of God.” This indicates that the Lord Himself is the Word of God. The Lord is clothed with a garment dipped in blood because of His fighting at the battle of Armageddon. The garment of Christ is dipped in blood and becomes red by His treading the winepress of the fury of the wrath of God (v. 15; Isa. 63:1-3) at Armageddon (Rev. 16:14, 16), where the blood will rise up to the bridles of the horses (14:20).
That the Lord’s name is called the Word of God means that He is the expression, the testimony, and the speaking of God. The Word of God is the definition, the explanation, and the expression of God. In order to know God, we need to read, study, behold, contemplate, and gaze on Christ as the Word of God.
In Revelation 19, as the Word of God, Christ speaks for God by executing God’s judgment upon the rebellious people. Even as the Lord fights, He speaks for God and expresses God. The fighting of Christ is the speaking of the Word of God. God is righteous and sovereign. He is also a God of order, and as such He cannot tolerate disorder and rebellion. As Christ fights against the enemy, He will speak that God is sovereign, righteous, and orderly. He will declare that God is the God over everyone and that He does not tolerate rebellion against His authority. Hence, the Warrior is the Word. His fighting is the speaking of God’s Word. The Lord’s fighting in the war at Armageddon will be a powerful speaking. It will tell Satan, Antichrist, the false prophet, and the entire universe that God is sovereign and that no one can rebel against Him. God is not a God of confusion; He is the sovereign God, a God of order who does not tolerate rebellion. The God of order will sweep away all rebellion.
The Word of God is mentioned both in the Gospel of John (1:1) and in the Revelation of John. In the Gospel of John the Word of God does not speak of anything related to fighting; rather, He speaks of redemption, light, life, and building. In the Revelation of John the Word of God speaks not only of life and building but also of fighting. Before God can have the building He desires, He must first clean up His universe. In this book Christ’s fighting is also His speaking for God. As the Word of God, His fighting proclaims to the whole universe what kind of God He is. In the Gospel of John, the Word of God is for the impartation of life into us, but in Revelation the Word of God is for fighting against and defeating God’s enemy.
In Revelation 19 the Lord Jesus who comes down out of heaven appears as a General fighting a battle. He is riding on a white horse, and His name is called “the Word of God” (vv. 11, 13). The word of God that we speak today is the Lord Jesus. Eventually, as we continue to speak, our speaking will cause the Lord Jesus to come forth. When the Lord comes, He will come as a Warrior, a General. He will fight for His kingdom. In the warfare for the kingdom of God, Christ is the Word of God, speaking for God’s purpose. In His fighting against God’s enemies for the kingdom, Christ is God’s speaking.