Revelation 19:11; Behold

Revelation 19:11 (KJV)  And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war.

He rides upon a white horse. This horse tells of royalty, judgment, and war. His white colour tells of righteousness and justice. Light is the robe of divine majesty, and white is the colour that most attaches to Christ in all these judgment scenes. When the first seal broke he rode a white horse ; when the great harvest is reaped He sits upon a white cloud; and at the end of the thousand years He sits upon a white throne; and so here he is seated on the white steed of battle, for “in righteousness doth he make war.” In the day of His humiliation He rode but once – when He came to the Jewish nation as its anointed king. But he then rode upon an ass, a colt, the foal of an ass. Then He was the meek and lowly one; but here the title domestic animal is exchanged for the marital charger; for this is another and mightier coming as the King of the World, “just and having salvation.” In His majesty He rides prosperously, because of truth, and meekness, and righteousness.

He is Faithful and True. This presents Him in sharp contrast with those whom He cometh to judge and destroy. The Dragon is a deceiver; the Beast is the False Christ; his companion is the False Prophet, and the great confederacy is made up of false worshippers. These are to be handled now, and it is the embodiment of all faithfulness and truth that comes to deal with them. There is then no hope for them, for if justice be done them they have no show whatever. The worst thing that can happen to some is to give them what they deserve. But greatly do these attribute exalt this Hero. They lift Him far above the level of humanity. They bespeak of almightiness and essential Godhead.

Revelation 3:7 (KJV)  And to the angel of the church in Philadelphia write; These things saith he that is holy, he that is true, he that hath the key of David, he that openeth, and no man shutteth; and shutteth, and no man openeth;

Revelation 6:10 (KJV)  And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 

Revelation 15:3 (KJV)  And they sing the song of Moses the servant of God, and the song of the Lamb, saying, Great and marvellous are thy works, Lord God Almighty; just and true are thy ways, thou King of saints. 

Revelation 16:7 (KJV)  And I heard another out of the altar say, Even so, Lord God Almighty, true and righteous are thy judgments. 

They cannot be predicated to mere man. “Cursed be the man that trusteth in man.” There is too much deceit and treachery in human nature for it to be always and implicitly trusted.

Psalm 72:9 (KJV)  They that dwell in the wilderness shall bow before him; and his enemies shall lick the dust. 

Psalm 116:11 (KJV)  I said in my haste, All men are liars. 

Psalm 118:8 (KJV)  It is better to trust in the LORD than to put confidence in man. 

Jeremiah 17:5 (KJV)  Thus saith the LORD; Cursed be the man that trusteth in man, and maketh flesh his arm, and whose heart departeth from the LORD. 

But here is one who is absolutely true and faithful. It is not in Him to be or to prove unreliable. Though all men be liars, He is true, and cannot disappoint.

In righteousness He judgeth and warreth.In the letter to the Laodiceans He was “the Faithful and True Witness,” reproving and instructing His friends; here He is the Faithful and True Warrior and Judge, for the punishment of His enemies. Heaven cannot be at peace with iniquity, and justice cannot be at amity with falsehood and rebellion. When sin is incorrigible, and incurable by remedial measures, it must be put down by force of arms. Mercy slighted and abused brings the executioner. The world banded together in arms against its true Sovereign brings against it the sword of insulted majesty. Not as human kings and nations war, – out of covetousness, pride, and an ambition for selfish greatness and dominion – but in absolute justice and right, and in strictest accord with every holy principle and every holy interest He now unsheaths and wields the sword of infinite power. Dreadful is the carnage which follows, but no one can ever say that it is not precisely what was merited and demanded. The powers of judging and making war are often separated in earthly sovereignties, but it is only a conventional separation. They necessarily go together after all. Whenever there is war there is first a judgment made or entertained against those upon whom it is made, or in the behalf of those whom it is to benefit. The general in the field is simply the sheriff and handman of the court. And Christ is both judge and executioner, all powers in one, and all exercised in righteousness. To the Church He is the High Priest, with girdle and ephod, stars and lamps, the minister of righteousness unto salvation. To the world in armed rebellion He is the mounted Warrior, the minister of righteousness unto destruction; but in both and always “Jesus Christ The Righteous”.

[Joseph A. Seiss, The Apocalypse – An Exposition of the Book of Revelation, Kregel, 1987, 435-436]