The Book of Revelation cross references with itself to a remarkable degree. The phrase, ‘His eyes were like a flame of fire’ is taken from chapter 1:14 and 2:18 and links this passage with the opening vision of the book.
There is a mystery for us here. The Saviour comes again bearing the name – it's written down – but no man knows what it means. God knows what it means: God the Father, God the Son, God the Holy Spirit: one God. They know what it means, but no man knows what it means. So the question comes: what is that name? Well, it’s not worth asking the question, if no man knows what it means. We can only say, what kind of thing it means. The only man who knows what it means is the God man, Jesus Christ. The Father knows but he is not incarnate; the Spirit knows but is not incarnate. Only Christ knows the full meaning of that name. A hint is dropped in verse 13: ‘He was clothed with a vesture dipped in blood, and his name is called, The word of God.’ That's a clue; it's a big clue. What is the name? What kind of thing does the name mean? The name of Christ that is given to him on his return is something like this: it is the word – but there is no such word in the English language, or in any language on earth – that describes the immeasurable task and accomplishments of the redemption of all the people of God. It is beyond our comprehension to grasp the scope of redemption. It's a word that describes the full extent and all the detail of every single sin, or moment of sin, for which Christ atoned on Calvary's cross when he bore away the punishment of all his people. Only God knows that, and only God can know that. Christ knows that, for he remembers every pang, every unit of pain and separation from the Father that he willingly took for each one of us. It's a name, surely, which describes all the knowledge in the word of God, and Christ is the Word of God; he is the author of it. The clue is in that verse. It's a name which represents the person and work of Christ in its totality, and we will spend all eternity learning some of it. When we are saved something wonderful happens. We learn some small component of the everlasting secret name of the Son of the living God. We have now got salvation light. We understand the way to God and the cost. When we are made perfect and we go to heaven, we will get a little more, and the rest takes all eternity. It is the name which no man knows or can never fully grasp. The hymn writers have tried this: ‘But the high mysteries of thy name, an angel’s grasp transcend. The Father only, glorious claim, the Son can comprehend.’ Josiah Condor puts it perfectly.