The Revelation of Jesus Christ
CHAPTER SIX
The Opening of The Seven Seals
As we enter this prophetic part of the book, keep in mind the fact that the three different series of judgments . . .
the seven seals,
the seven trumpets,
and the vials of the wrath of God . . . will take place between the gathering of the Church to the Lord, and the time when He comes with the Church.
These judgments will take place during Daniel’s seventieth week of prophecy . . . a period of seven years.
The first half of this period will be mild, but the last half will be known as the Great Tribulation - a time of blood, death, torment and suffering on this earth such as has never been known, nor ever will be known again after the Tribulation.
The church age - this present dispensation - closes with the Lord’s repudiation of all which publicly bears the name Christian. Please notice I said, “which bears the name Christian.” Keep in mind that as it was in the days of Noah (eight souls were saved), as it was in the days of Lot (three souls were saved), so will it be when Jesus comes. The question is asked in the Word of God, “Will He find faith on the earth?” Therefore, the local assembly that advertises the name Christian will be repudiated by the Lord at the end of the church age.
Romans 11:21-22
Revelation 3:16.
The church age ends with the “spewing out” of the visible assembly and the gathering-out of all born again saints. The saints who have died will be raised, and together the raised saints and the living saints will be caught up to meet Jesus in the air
I Thessalonians 4:13-18
II Thessalonians 2:1
The position of the Lord Jesus today is walking in the midst of the churches. He is the chief shepherd, the overseer of the Church. And in this dispensation the chief shepherd guides the sheep, leads the sheep, seals the sheep through the third person of the Godhead, the Holy Ghost. The Rapture takes place near the end of the third chapter of Revelation. Chapter four opens with “AFTER these things.” These words occur twice in verse one of the fourth chapter. The verse opens with “After this, I looked . . .” and closes with “. . . and I will show thee things which must be hereafter.” The words “after these things” form a connecting link between a series of events that are already past, and a series of events that are to follow. Immediately after the Rapture we see the four and twenty elders clothed in white raiment, wearing crowns of gold. These four and twenty elders around the throne signify the redeemed in Heaven. They represent the Church, caught up out of the earth into Heaven to be with the Lord. Later, in chapter nineteen, verses 11-14, John sees the redeemed coming out of Heaven, following Christ who is riding on a beautiful white horse. The saints are also riding white horses. Chapter three closes one series of events, chapter four opens a new series of events. Therefore, we look for the fulfillment of the words in
John 14:3
The Church is not on the earth during the judgments . . . the “time of Jacob’s trouble,” the Great Tribulation. We first see the elders (who represent the redeemed) in Revelation 4:4, and the last mention of them is in Revelation 19:4. They are not mentioned between these two chapters. Heaven is their home. The elders are not mentioned in connection with the series of events here on earth.
THE FIRST SEAL - Revelation 6:1-2:
This is a mighty war horse.
There is much discussion concerning the rider of this horse, but the rider is not the Lord Jesus Christ.
This rider is none other than the counterfeit Christ, known in the Bible as the man of sin, the Antichrist.
For everything The Lord God has that is great and wonderful, the devil has a cheap counterfeit. The prefix “anti” - means “opposite” - and this is the Antichrist (the lie), whereas Jesus was the Truth and the Light of the world. The Antichrist will ride a white horse, and in Revelation 19 The Christ will ride a white horse. So you see, the personality in verse 2 is a counterfeit – he counterfeits everything Jesus has.
This rider of the white horse goes forth in mighty conquest and he is victorious - the white horse is a symbol of victory; but he is victorious without bloodshed or slaughter.
This rider has a BOW . . . but no arrow. In the Bible, when war was fought with a bow and arrow, the arrow was specifically mentioned. This rider has only a bow, denoting bloodless victory. . “A crown was given to him.” Notice here that this crown is presented before victory, and is therefore not a victorious crown. This crown denotes that royal dignity and imperial power is bestowed upon this distinguished rider of the white horse, who offers to the world peace without bloodshed; and during the first three-and-a-half years of the reign of the Antichrist, there will BE no bloodshed. Those years will be a time of peace and prosperity. He will make a covenant with the Jews in their own land, and all will be peace - until three-and-a-half years have gone by, and then all hell will break loose! “He went forth conquering, and to conquer.” That is, victory after victory, conquest after conquest was his without defeat. His reign was marked with victory on every hand, and of course he became the idol of the nations who had rejected the Lord Jesus Christ. Naturally, he was worshipped as the one who had finally brought world peace. Any person who reads the Word of God, listens to the radio and keeps up with current events, knows that the world is looking for a super-human to lead the nations into world peace, and into the Utopia that has been so much talked about in recent times. But Peter tells us that when they say, “Peace and safety,” sudden destruction “cometh upon them.” According to the signs all around us, we surely must be very near the Rapture - the time when Jesus will take out the Bride so that He can turn loose the judgments that are sure to come upon ungodly men.
The judgments under the seals and the judgments under the trumpets do not occur at the same time. One follows the other. The judgments under the seals cover a larger area than the judgments under the trumpets; but the trumpet judgments are much more severe. Also, note that the Lamb is connected with the judgments under the seals, but the angels are connected with the trumpet judgments and Almighty God is connected with the vials (or bowls) of God’s wrath. The first four of the seven seals are characterized by living creatures and living horses; however, the last three of the seven seals do not mention either horses or creatures. The voice that summons John to witness the opening of the first seal was as the voice of thunder - so there is no doubt as to whom the voice belongs: It is none other than Jesus. John immediately responded to the call, “Come and see,” and he saw “a white horse, and him that sat upon it.”
THE SECOND SEAL - Revelation 6:3-4:
The red horse denotes slaughter and rivers of blood
Isaiah 63:2
Again, the rider is not named. However, the pronoun “him” is used, and we know the rider is a man permitted by God to ride the red horse of blood. “TO HIM IT WAS GIVEN,” signifying that the man was appointed by God for that specific purpose. God used Pharaoh, and He has used others in like manner, and in this hour of judgment God will use appointed men to carry out His appointed program. There will be a period of peace and progress here on earth immediately following the Rapture; and it will last approximately three-and-a-half years. It will be a time when there will be little, if any, bloodshed, from the standpoint of war. But the mighty conqueror who will ride the red horse will be a bloody conqueror. He will not go forth with a bow minus the arrow. Power will be granted to him - and also “a great sword.” His conflict against mankind will be unchecked, and blood will run like rivers! This rider of the red horse is commanded to take peace from the earth, and he has the power to cause “that they should kill one another.” He will have the ability to stir up angry passions in men; they will crave blood - and blood will be shed. We are living in a day of hatred, a day of madmen - dictators who do not value human life even as much as most of us value the life of an animal. After the Rapture, the devil will be loose on this earth, and truly nation will rise against nation.
In all seven seals the statement is made, “I saw” (or “I beheld”), except the second seal. Here, John says, “I heard.” The second beast said to John, “Come and see,” and verse 4 simply states, “There went out another horse that was red.” Instead of the word “behold,” the word “another” is used. The reason words: “I saw” and the word “behold” are used in connection with the first seal and omitted in connection with the second seal, is that the seals are opened one after the other, and the white horse and the red horse do not appear at the same moment. The events did not all occur at the same time. The red horse could have appeared months after the white horse. Thus we have “I saw . . . and behold . . . another . . . a red horse.” To dogmatically set a period of time in which the rider of the white horse rode with a bow but no arrow conquering without blood, is impossible. When the white horse had completed his mission, the red horse immediately rode out. The summons from the Speaker was, “Come,” and when John looked, there was a red horse. Why is the second horse red? The white horse denotes peaceful victory.
THE THIRD SEAL - Revelation 6:5-6:
The black horse is a symbol of lamentation and mourning.
Here, as in the book of Zechariah, the black horse follows the red
Zechariah 6:2
The weeping prophet laments, “Our skin was black like an oven, because of the terrible famine” (Lamentations 5:10). The rider of the black horse holds a balance in his hand.
Wheat and barley - the two grains which constitute the staff of life - are to be rationed . . . doled out by careful weight and sold for fabulous prices.
Barley produces black bread, and in Bible days was eaten only by slaves and the very poor.
It was much cheaper than white bread, and slaves and poor people could buy more of it for their meager earnings.
The English word “penny” mentioned here, in that day was one day’s wages for a soldier or for a laboring man.
One Bible commentator tells us that in the day of John, eight measures of wheat could be purchased for a penny. So you see, here the price of wheat will be eight times the normal price. Certainly there will be much hunger, suffering and death during the time of the riding of the black horse.
The statement “See thou hurt not the oil and the wine,” signifies that the rich will be excluded from this famine.
Oil and wine were regarded as luxuries, and were to be found only on the tables of the rich.
Proverbs 21:17
Jeremiah 31:12
The chastisement under the seal that produces the black horse falls on the working classes, the poor people. The rich, governing classes will be exempt from this suffering; but they shall not escape. Under the sixth seal (Revelation 6:12-17) judgment is meted out to all alike - from the king down to the slave. So the rich will not escape, even though they do escape hunger when the black horse rides out.
THE FOURTH SEAL - Revelation 6:7-8:
The name of the horseman is Death.
Hell follows alongside. The Greek word here does not mean that Hell comes along behind - but that Hell follows along with the rider of the pale horse. These two - Death and Hell - are the custodians of the bodies and souls of the men butchered during these terrible days. At the close of the thousand-year reign of Christ, they will give up their prisoners and they themselves will be cast into the lake that burns with fire and brimstone
Revelation 20:14
Death deals with the living; Hell with the souls of the dead. Under the three previous seals, we note one instrument of judgment under each seal; but here there are four instruments of judgment. It is very interesting to note that the four judgments named here are the same four with which the Lord threatened guilty Jerusalem of old: “For thus saith the Lord God; How much more when I send my four sore judgments upon Jerusalem, the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence, to cut off from it man and beast?” (Ezekiel 14:21). The word “Death” in Revelation 6:8 means “pestilence.” The sword named under the second seal, and hunger named under the third seal, are here reproduced, coupled with two others - pestilence and the beasts of the earth. The Bloody sword in the hand of the rider of the second horse will not be withdrawn until the divinely appointed task is finished. Hunger will not be withdrawn until its deadly work and painful death has come to completion. Many times hunger brings a much more painful death than the sword. Pestilence will reap its harvest - and last, but by no -means least, the beasts of the earth will rush in upon the poor victims, to finish the ghastly destruction of the enemies of Jesus Christ! When the Rapture of the Church takes place, it stands to reason that percentage wise, more farmers and working people will be taken than will be those of the rich class. When the farmers who produce food are taken there will be a scarcity of food, and when the red horse rides out with the sword, no doubt the farmers will be using a sword instead of a plowshare. There will be few to till the ground - and the few who are left under the second, third, and fourth seals will be so busy protecting their lives that they will have no time to grow crops and produce food.
There will therefore be a time of terrible famine and starvation.
A little later in Revelation we will study the mark of the beast. No man will be allowed to buy or sell without that mark, and those who receive the mark will have committed the unpardonable sin . . . they cannot be forgiven. To receive the mark of the beast is to be damned.
Another power is summoned. The judgments are increasing in severity. In the three preceding seals, the riders are not named.
THE FIFTH SEAL - Revelation 6:9-11:
The first believers after the Rapture will be severely persecuted.
They will be butchered . . . “slain for the Word of God and for the testimony which they held.” When these first preachers deliver their message, there will be very few on earth who will listen, because those who have been exposed to the Truth as we hear the Truth today, will be sent strong delusions. They will believe the Lie - (the Antichrist) - and they will all be damned because “they believed not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness.”
II Thessalonians 2:1-12
They will be sent “strong delusion,” they will believe the message of the Antichrist - and they will all be damned! The persons saved after the Rapture will be the multitudes who have never heard a message of the Gospel of the grace of God. Naturally there will be bitter, severe persecution, and many will be martyred because of their testimony. This earth will be literally hell on earth after the Rapture. These people will testify to the coming Kingdom. They will preach that Jesus is coming to set up a literal kingdom on earth, and that testimony will cause unheard - of persecution. When Antichrist and his followers hear these fanatical preachers declare that One is coming to set up a kingdom, they will be furious - and persecution will be meted out as never before on the face of this earth.
Matthew 24:12-14
Please notice the sacrificial word slain is used here instead of killed, which appears in verse 11. The first group referred to is composed of Jews, the latter group of “their fellow servants and their brethren,” both Jews and Gentiles. The word “slain” is used in keeping with the special character of these witnesses, probably all Jews. The second company referred to will be killed under the beast
Revelation 13:7
Revelation 13:11
The altar referred to here is no doubt the altar of burnt offering which stood in the court of the tabernacle and the temple. This altar was made of brass, typifying the endurance of divine judgment. John saw the souls under the altar . . . the altar upon which they had been sacrificed by their persecutors. John heard the cry from the souls of these martyrs, crying aloud for vengeance on their enemies. These martyrs who had sealed their testimony with their life’s blood, did not pray as Jesus prayed, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they do” (Luke 23:34). They did not pray as Stephen prayed, “Lord, lay not this sin to their charge” (Acts 7:60). Grace is past. They are crying in keeping with Psalm 94: “O Lord God, to whom vengeance belongeth; O God, to whom vengeance belongeth, shew thyself. Lift up thyself, thou judge of the earth: render a reward to the proud. Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked triumph?” (Psalm 94:1-3). The judgment of sin on the ungodly and the wicked that will be on earth after the Rapture, is imperative. It must be, in order to clear the earth from evil and to make it a fit dwelling place for God’s earthly people. “The earth is the Lord’s and the fullness thereof.” It was created for the meek, and the meek shall inherit the earth in due time. These martyrs are crying out to God to pour out vengeance “upon them that dwell upon the earth.” God does not answer by pouring out vengeance at that moment. Their cry for vengeance is heard, but the answer is delayed. These martyrs are instructed to “rest yet for a little season,” until another company of “fellow servants and brethren” should be killed as they were killed. And when this second company has been martyred, then vengeance from Almighty God will be poured out upon the inhabitants of the earth.
When the fifth seal is removed, the scene changes completely. Each of the first four seals is characterized by a living creature and a horse, neither of which appears under the last three seals. Thus the first four seals are set apart from the last three. Matthew 5:13 tells us that born again believers are the “salt of the earth.” Matthew 5:14 tells us they are also the “light of the world.” The presence of the Church in the world preserves the earth, wards off corruption and holds back the terrible judgment of Almighty God. Regardless of how unworthy and faulty we may be as believers, we are the salt that keeps civilization from rotting on its feet. But when God’s patience runs out and He removes the salt and the light, corruption and moral darkness will then engulf this earth
Isaiah 60:2
The Holy Ghost will also go out with the Church, because the Church is the home of the Spirit on earth
I Corinthians 3:16
“Only He who now letteth will let until He be taken out of the way” (II Thessalonians 2:7). The Spirit will go out with the Church, and will then work from Heaven to earth as He did in the Old Testament era. In those days the Holy Ghost came upon men, and then left them; but since Pentecost He has been in the world to stay. He has not departed for one moment. After the Rapture of the Church, there will be persons converted by no known human agency. The first witnesses on earth after the Rapture will go through the Roman world preaching the Gospel of the Kingdom
Matthew 24:14
The result of their preaching is made known in Matthew 25:31-48. These first preachers of the Gospel of the Kingdom will be chiefly converted Jews. “These my brethren” in Matthew 25:40 refers to the Jewish brethren of our Lord according to the flesh.
THE SIXTH SEAL - Revelation 6:12-17:
When the sixth seal is removed, there is a great earthquake.
Sackcloth was a coarse black cloth made of hair - and as black as soot.
When the sixth seal is removed the earth will go into convulsions . . . it will reel and rock. The sun will turn black, the moon will become as blood. Stars will fall from their sockets down to the earth. And when the stars begin to fall, when the moon becomes as blood, when the sun is as black as soot, when islands are dashing through the ocean and mountains are rolling around like apples and balls on the floor, then there will be a prayer meeting well attended! Kings will be there, great men will be there, millionaires will be there, chief captains will be there. Mighty men will be there - and, of course, bondmen, free men, slaves . . , ALL men will be there. They will hide themselves in dens and rocks, in crevices and mountains, and will beg the mountains and the rocks to fall on them. They want to be hidden. “FROM THE FACE OF HIM THAT SITTETH ON THE THRONE! AND FROM THE WRATH OF THE LAMB!” These people see the face of Jesus, and it is an hour of mortal fear. Revelation 1:7: “Behold He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him.” The prophet Zechariah speaks of the day that shall not be clear or dark, and Zechariah associates this day with an earthquake at the time when the Lord returns to this earth in judgment
Zechariah 14:1-7
In the prophecy of Joel we read, “And I will shew wonders in the heavens and in the earth, blood, and fire, and pillars of smoke. The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the Lord come” (Joel 2:30, 31). Isaiah tells us, “Behold, the day of the Lord cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and He shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine” (Isaiah 13:9,10). “And all the host of heaven (the stars, the moon, the sun) shall be dissolved, and the heavens shall be rolled together as a scroll: and all their host shall fall down, as the leaf falleth off from the vine, and as a falling fig from the fig tree” (Isaiah 34:4). We see here the picture of earth’s pains of travail as mother earth labors just before bringing forth the new creation. Jesus refers to this time: “In those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken” (Matthew 24:29). When the day of the judgment of Almighty God becomes a reality, the peoples of earth in their fear and terror will hide in the dens and rocks, and cry for the rocks and mountains to fall on them and hide them from the face of Jesus, from the Lamb. Instead of repenting and crying for mercy and salvation, they pray for the mountains and rocks to bury them and hide them from the face of the Lamb of God, sitting on the throne.
