Revelation 19:16 goes on to say, “He has on His garment and on His thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS.” The King of kings refers to His authority, and the Lord of lords refers to His headship. He is the authority and the head of the whole universe.
In His ascension, Jesus as a man was inaugurated into the new position of King of kings and Lord of lords to be the Head over all things. He has received all the authority, and He has the name which is above every name (Phil. 2:9). He is higher than all the presidents on the earth. There have been many great men throughout the ages, but all of them died, and few are remembered. However, the Lord Jesus Christ is different. The more people oppose Him, the more transcendent He is and the more people believe in Him; the more people oppress Him, the more He multiplies. If we read history carefully, we will see that the clever kings would not persecute the Christians, because they knew that whoever persecutes the Christians would never have a good end. Hitler, who was the worst persecutor of God’s people in modern times, had a very pitiful end, dying without a proper place for burial. History also tells us that governments that persecuted Jesus Christ have fallen quickly. The Manchu dynasty in China was ended because it instigated the Boxers to kill the Christians. This is known as the Boxer Rebellion in modern Chinese history. Christ is the King of kings and the Lord of lords. The Roman Caesars, Napoleon, and Hitler were not the Lord; only Jesus Christ is the Lord.
A day is coming when Christ as the King of kings and the Lord of lords will appear to the universe. The fact that Christ is King of kings and Lord of lords will no longer be hidden or mysterious. This name will be written upon His garment and upon His thigh; hence, it will be openly revealed and known by all. He will fight for His kingdom. The garment signifies Christ’s attributes, especially His righteousness in His humanity, and the thigh signifies Christ’s standing strength, His stability. His title King of kings and Lord of lords is exhibited in His righteousness and stability.
Revelation 19:19 says, “I saw the beast and the kings of the earth and their armies gathered together to make war with Him who sits on the horse and with His army.” According to this verse, Christ’s enemies are the beast, Antichrist (undoubtedly including his associate, the false prophet), and the kings of the earth and their armies. The kings of the earth (16:12-14) especially include the ten kings under Antichrist (17:12-14), and the armies include the two hundred million cavalry troops from “the rising of the sun” (9:16; 16:12).
The war mentioned in Revelation 19:19 is an actual physical war, not a spiritual one; it is a war between God and man. Specifically, Christ—as the Son of Man, the King of kings, and the Lord of lords—with His followers, who are human beings, will fight against Antichrist, also a human being, and the kings of the earth and their armies. Antichrist will fight against Christ directly and personally.
Revelation 19:20 goes on to say, “The beast was seized, and with him the false prophet, who in his presence had done the signs by which he deceived those who received the mark of the beast and those who worshipped his image. These two were cast alive into the lake of fire, which burns with brimstone.” Antichrist and the false prophet will be the first group to go into the lake of fire, the universal “trash can.” These two had already died but were raised again, not by God but by Satan. Now they will be the first to go directly into the lake of fire, without passing through further death or resurrection like all the others who perish.
Revelation 19:21 continues, “The rest were killed with the sword which proceeds out of the mouth of Him who sits on the horse.” As the result of the war at Armageddon, Christ will defeat Antichrist, who, with the false prophet, will be cast alive into the lake of fire. Then the rest of Antichrist’s armies will be killed with the sword that proceeds out of the mouth of Christ, who is the King of kings and Lord of lords (v. 16). This verse again indicates that the Lord will fight simply by His word, which will be a weapon to kill His enemies.