The Coronation of the King of Kings

The ceremonies for the burial of Queen Elizabeth of the UK were quite majestic. There was a dignity about the pomp and circumstance of the funeral and burial of a beloved head of state. Leaders of nations, dignitaries from around the world, and massive crowds were in attendance.

The royals were resplendent in their uniforms. The British Lords and ladies gave reverence to their dear queen. The crowds wore their finest clothes. The dignity of the occasion demanded it. An estimated more than 250,000 people stood in line for hours to pay their respects. Crowds lined the streets as her coffin passed. It was an awesome and dignified spectacle.

The coronation of King Charles later this year will also be an impressive and massive ceremony. That regal coronation, for the first time in history, will be the coronation of a king that is watched by millions of people in real time, all around the world.

While a few may have watched on television the coronation of Queen Elizabeth in 1952, most of the world only read about it in newspapers after it happened. But 4.1 billion watched this funeral live and maybe more will watch the king’s impressive coronation as it actually happens – on TV and on the internet.

But all that will be like a neighborhood children’s puppet show in comparison with the coronation of Jesus Christ as King of kings and Lord of lords. Queen Elizabeth’s funeral ceremony was human pageantry; heaven itself will participate in the coronation of Jesus.

The crowning of Jesus is seen in Revelation 19:5: “And a voice came out of the throne, saying, Praise our God, all ye his servants, and ye that fear him, both small and great.” We know this is the coronation because of verses 6-9: “And I heard as it were the voice of a great multitude, and as the voice of many waters, and as the voice of mighty thunderings, saying, Alleluia: for the Lord God omnipotent reigneth. Let us be glad and rejoice, and give honour to him: for the marriage of the Lamb is come, and his wife hath made herself ready. And to her was granted that she should be arrayed in fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints. And he saith unto me, Write, Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.”

The marriage supper will far exceed in glory and majesty any human coronation. In Jewish tradition, a wedding consists of three separate events: (1) the betrothal (2) the wedding, and (3) the marriage supper. Typically, there is a passage of considerable time between the betrothal, when the marriage contract is agreed upon, and the wedding. (Jacob waited 7 years for his bride.)

Then the wedding ceremony takes place. After that, the bridegroom brings the bride to his home - where a group of friends are waiting to receive him and make a merry feast called the marriage supper. Sometimes friends line the route from the wedding to the place of the wedding supper.

This is seen in Matthew 25:1-10, where the 10 virgins were waiting for the bridal party. This marriage supper is also described in the Lord’s parable in Matthew 22:2-14, where the king made a wedding supper for his son, and those bidden were not worthy. But in these parables, the wedding had been performed earlier and elsewhere; the marriage supper is the reception after the ceremony.

The bride of Christ was betrothed when the Lord called the overcomers, saved them, justified them, and began to work a sanctification in their lives. That is why Paul told the Corinthian church, “For I am jealous over you with a godly jealousy: for I have espoused you to one husband, that I may present you as a chaste virgin to Christ.” II Corinthians 11:2. Members of the church today are espoused to Christ, or betrothed. But the marriage ceremony will not take place until some point in the future, when Jesus takes His bride to present her to His Father.

The bride will have a tremendous wedding ceremony in heaven. At this wedding in heaven, Christ will present the overcomers to His Father. Paul wrote that he would “present you holy and unblameable and unreproveable in his sight.” Colossians 1:22.

Then, He will confess their name before His Father. Revelation 3:5 says, “He that overcometh, the same shall be clothed in white raiment; and I will not blot his name out of the book of life, but I will confess his name before my Father, and before his angels.”

The reception afterwards, with many guests, will not occur until they return to earth from heaven. That will be the marriage supper of the Lamb. The remnant of the church will be here on the earth, but looking expectantly for the Lord to return with those He raptured away.

In Luke 12:35-38, Jesus told them, “Let your loins be girded about, and your lights burning; And ye yourselves like unto men that wait for their Lord, when he will return from the wedding; that when he cometh and knocketh, they may open unto him immediately. Blessed are those servants, whom the Lord when he cometh shall find watching: verily I say unto you, that he shall gird himself, and make them to sit down to meat, and will come forth and serve them. And if he shall come in the second watch, or come in the third watch, and find them so, blessed are those servants.”

This happens when the Lord returns to the earth at the Battle of Armageddon, and ascends to the throne of His father, David. The coming of the Lord to establish His Kingdom is an open appearing. “For as the lightning cometh out of the east, and shineth even unto the west; so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.” Matthew 24:27.

It will be a majestic event. Every eye shall see Him. “Behold, he cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see him, and they also which pierced him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of him. Even so, Amen.” Revelation 1:7.

Somehow, everyone who is alive at the end of the Battle of Armageddon will see the Lord when He returns. How will this happen? How will people on the other side of the world see Him? Does this mean that Christ will circumnavigate the globe several times at cloud level, before stepping down on the Mount of Olives? That might allow every eye to see Him.

Or it may be that His return is broadcast live over the remnants of the news media. If broadcast technology survives the great tribulation and the Battle of Armageddon, this would be the most news-worthy event of all history. Every major news network would likely have news teams in place in the Middle East, covering the warfare leading to the Battle of Armageddon.

Those news teams would certainly broadcast the return of the Lord in the clouds. Around the globe people would huddle around television sets and computer screens, watching a live telecast of an invasion from outer space. This invasion is not aliens; it is the Lord returning with ten thousands of His saints. See Jude 14-15.

The Triumphant March

He appears in the midst of this great Battle of Armageddon, but at His rebuke the warfare ceases. “And I will cut off the chariot from Ephraim, and the horse from Jerusalem, and the battle bow shall be cut off: and he shall speak peace unto the heathen: and his dominion shall be from sea even to sea, and from the river even to the ends of the earth.” Zechariah 9:10.

But He does not come immediately to Jerusalem. Instead, the Lord returns first to the region of Mount Sinai, where He had given His law to Moses. From there the glorious coronation procession begins, as a march toward Jerusalem.

This return of the Lord has been the prayer of God’s people for generations — but will be especially desired as the enemies of Israel gather at Armageddon. “Let God arise, let his enemies be scattered: let them also that hate him flee before him. As smoke is driven away, so drive them away: as wax melteth before the fire, so let the wicked perish at the presence of God.” Psalms 68:1-2,

He will march through the wilderness from Sinai to Jerusalem. Psalms 68:7-8 says, “O

God, when thou wentest forth before thy people, when thou didst march through the wilderness; Selah: The earth shook, the heavens also dropped at the presence of God: even Sinai itself was moved at the presence of God, the God of Israel.”

His triumphant march from Mt. Sinai to Jerusalem is recorded in the third chapter of Habakkuk. “I see God moving across the deserts from Mount Sinai. His brilliant splendor fills the earth and sky; his glory fills the heavens, and the earth is full of his praise! What a wonderful God he is!” Habakkuk 3:3 (Living Bible).

From the area near Mount Sinai, He will judge the nations. Habakkuk 3:6: “He stood, and measured the earth: he beheld, and drove asunder the nations; and the everlasting mountains were scattered, the perpetual hills did bow: his ways are everlasting.”

Then He leads the armies of Heaven in a march. He will march through the land in indignation and thresh the heathen in anger. Habakkuk 3:12. “And the armies which were in heaven followed him upon white horses, clothed in fine linen, white and clean.” Revelation 19:14.

But He is not going forward just to judge and punish, He is also going to save His people. “Thou wentest forth for the salvation of thy people, even for salvation with thine anointed; thou woundedst the head out of the house of the wicked, by discovering the foundation unto the neck. Selah.” Habakkuk 3:13. Verse 16: “...when he cometh up unto the people, he will invade them with his troops.”

This is also described in Psalms 68:10-12: “Thy congregation hath dwelt therein: thou, O God, hast prepared of thy goodness for the poor. The Lord gave the word: great was the company of those that published it. Kings of armies did flee apace: and she that tarried at home divided the spoil.” Publishing this great march toward the coronation throne will be on every TV screen; on every computer or tablet or smartphone.

As this great army moves through the wilderness of Mt. Sinai, an amazing and miraculous event occurs. The Sinai desert begins to blossom with verdant foliage. “The wilderness and the solitary place shall be glad for them; and the desert shall rejoice, and blossom as the rose. It shall blossom abundantly, and rejoice even with joy and singing: the glory of Lebanon shall be given unto it, the excellency of Carmel and Sharon, they shall see the glory of the Lord, and the excellency of our God.” Isaiah 35:1-2.

Not only will the land be healed, but the sick, the wounded, the blind, the lame, the deaf, shall all be healed in this tremendous, victory march. “Then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing: for in the wilderness shall waters break out, and streams in the desert. And the parched ground shall become a pool, and the thirsty land springs of water...” Verses 5-7.

As Christ marches from Mount Sinai to Jerusalem, He will cross into Edom, now Jordan. Some portion of the 144,000 sealed Jews will flee the Antichrist and armies of the beast into Bozrah, a city of Edom. When they are about to be destroyed in the Battle of Armageddon, Christ personally intervenes. We read about it in Isaiah 63:1-6: “Who is this that cometh from Edom, with dyed garments from Bozrah…”

This is also in Isaiah 34:6: “The sword of the LORD is filled with blood, it is made fat with fatness, and with the blood of lambs and goats, with the fat of the kidneys of rams: for the LORD hath a sacrifice in Bozrah, and a great slaughter in the land of Idumea.”

God will save His people. “He that is our God is the God of salvation; and unto God the Lord belong the issues from death. But God shall wound the head of his enemies, and the hairy scalp of such an one as goeth on still in his trespasses.” Psalms 68:20-21.

The march will be somewhat unusual. Generals of armies may send scouts, armored divisions, light infantry, or observation drones at the head of an invasion force. Jesus Christ will put singers in the vanguard, closely followed by the marching band. “The singers went before, the players on instruments followed after; among them were the damsels playing with timbrels.” Psalms 68:25.

No army would go to battle with singers and a band out front. We don’t know what songs that marching band will play, but we know we want to be in that number, when the saints go marching in.

Remember, this is a coronation march. There will be much pomp and circumstance. It is like the Jewish bridegroom and his bride going from the place of the wedding to the place of the wedding supper. People cheer and welcome the bridal party. The people will cheer and be excited when Jesus and His bride march to Jerusalem.

Millions saw the display of military precision at Queen Elizabeth’s funeral. The soldiers, even the royal family, marching in unison. It was an awe-inspiring sight. But we cannot begin to imagine Jesus Christ at the head of 144,000 overcomers marching toward Jerusalem. There will be deserts blooming; people shouting; music and rejoicing. It will be the beginning of restoration of paradise.

When Christ comes with His army out of Edom, He will approach Jerusalem from the east side, where now stands the Mount of Olives. He will stand on the Mount of Olives. He will look down upon the city of Jerusalem, as He once looked down on the city and wept. Matthew 23:37. But this time, He is going to claim the city as His own. Jerusalem is “the city of the great king.” Matthew 5:35.

He and His army will begin to descend from the Mount of Olives. “And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east.” Zechariah 14:4. As Jesus approaches Jerusalem from the east, He will come to the Eastern Gate in its wall. That gate was sealed in 1543 A.D. by Suliman the Magnificent, ruler of the Turkish Empire. It was sealed to keep the Jewish Messiah out; but it will open of its own accord for Jesus to pass through. See Ezekiel 44:1-3.

Jesus Christ, the Prince of Peace, will enter into the city through the Eastern Gate and into the Temple to assume the reins of government. Then He will be crowned as

King of kings. “And he hath on his vesture and on his thigh a name written, KING OF KINGS, AND LORD OF LORDS.” Revelation 19:16.

“At that time they shall call Jerusalem the throne of the Lord; and all the nations shall be gathered unto it, to the name of the Lord, to Jerusalem: neither shall they walk any more after the imagination of their evil heart.” Jeremiah 3:17.

This promise is throughout the Scriptures. “And many people shall go and say, Come ye, and let us go up to the mountain of the Lord, to the house of the God of Jacob; and he will teach us of his ways, and we will walk in his paths: for out of Zion shall go forth the law, and the word of the Lord from Jerusalem. And he shall judge among the nations, and shall rebuke many people: and they shall beat their swords into plowshares, and their spears into pruninghooks: nation shall not lift up sword against nation, neither shall they learn war any more.” Isaiah 2:3-4.

For the first time, there shall be a perfect, just, and fair government. “And [His Father] shall make him of quick understanding in the fear of the Lord: and he shall not judge after the sight of his eyes, neither reprove after the hearing of his ears: But with righteousness shall he judge the poor, and reprove with equity for the meek of the earth: and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips shall he slay the wicked. And righteousness shall be the girdle of his loins, and faithfulness the girdle of his reins.” Isaiah 11:3-5.

Jesus will enter Jerusalem in a triumphal march. The temple will already have been built, or at least substantially completed. He will enter into that building. “...and the Lord, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple....” Malachi 3:1.

He shall ascend to His throne. What a tremendous coronation! “Which in his times he shall shew, who is the blessed and only Potentate, the King of kings, and Lord of lords.” I Timothy 6:15. The pageantry of Queen Elizabeth’s funeral, or the effusive ceremonies of King Charles’ coronation, will pale into insignificance in comparison to the coronation of King Jesus.

Christ will begin a process that will change this burned, plague-ridden earth into the Garden of Eden. Isaiah 65:17: “For, behold, I create new heavens and a new earth: and the former shall not be remembered, nor come into mind.” II Peter 3:13: “Nevertheless we, according to his promise, look for new heavens and a new earth, wherein dwelleth righteousness.” Revelation 21:1:“And I saw a new heaven and a new earth: for the first heaven and the first earth were passed away; and there was no more sea.”

The Marriage Supper

This one-thousand-year reign of Christ will be inaugurated with a tremendous feast, called the Marriage Supper of the Lamb. “Blessed are they which are called unto the marriage supper of the Lamb.” Revelation 19:9. Jesus promised that He would sup with the overcomers. “Behold, I stand at the door, and knock: if any man hear my voice, and open the door, I will come in to him, and will sup with him, and he with me.” Revelation 3:20. This could mean many things, but it may refer to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb.

This feast is a tremendous celebration for Christ and His Bride. According to Jewish custom, a feast is held after the bride and bridegroom are married. That marriage supper, called a “seudat mitzvah,” or a “seudat nissuin,” typically lasts a week – called the seven blessing week. It was at one of these days-long wedding festivals that Jesus performed His first miracle: turning water into wine. See John 2:1-11.

The Marriage Supper of the Lamb will be far greater, and far more glorious, than any earthly wedding feast. It will be held shortly after the return of the Lord. It will be the world’s premier gala event. “And in this mountain shall the Lord of hosts make unto all people a feast of fat things, a feast of wines on the lees....” Isaiah 25:6.

The guests invited to this wedding feast include the 144,000 sealed Jews who have escaped the great tribulation, but also the remnant of the church. Recall that she hid in the wilderness during the seven last plagues of the wrath of God. Revelation 12:6, 14-17.

Some of the faithful will hide in the rocks for up to three and one-half years. Isaiah 33:16-17 says, “He shall dwell on high: his place of defence shall be the munitions of rocks: bread shall be given him; his waters shall be sure. Thine eyes shall see the king in his beauty: they shall behold the land that is very far off.”

How will those hiding in the rocks see the King in His beauty? Because angels will transport these guests to the wedding festival. Jesus said in Matthew 24:31: “And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds, from one end of heaven to the other.” Air transportation, by the hand of angels, has already been reserved for the honored guests of the Marriage Supper of the Lamb!

Admittance to the Marriage Supper of the Lamb will be by invitation only. In the parable in Matthew 22:11-13, Jesus said: “And when the king came in to see the guests, he saw there a man which had not on a wedding garment: And he saith unto him, Friend, how camest thou in hither not having a wedding garment? And he was speechless. Then said the king to the servants, Bind him hand and foot, and take him away, and cast him into outer darkness; there shall be weeping and gnashing of teeth.”

Many will seek admittance, but will find out, too late, that they missed out. In another parable, Jesus said, “And while they went to buy, the bridegroom came; and they that were ready went in with him to the marriage: and the door was shut. Afterward came also the other virgins, saying, Lord, Lord, open to us. But he answered and said, Verily I say unto you, I know you not.” Matthew 25:10-12. We need the wedding garment, “fine linen, clean and white: for the fine linen is the righteousness of saints.” Revelation 19:8.

The inauguration of His kingdom, a combination Marriage Supper and coronation, will be the most awesome and prestigious event the world has ever seen. Every other regal pageant that has ever been held will pale into insignificance in comparison to this festive and spectacular ceremony. Every child of God should strive to be counted worthy to attend, either as a member of the Bride, or as an invited guest to the marriage feast.