How Long Sovereign Lord!: The Seven Seals (1)

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Revelation 6:1-17                                                                                                                              Lesson 6

Key verse. 6:10                                                                                                                                  Kevin Jesmer  5-26-10

“They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’”

       In this chapter the Lamb opens 6 of the 7 seals affixed to the scroll in God’s hand. John received revelation concerning the judgments that would take place on earth as the Lamb opened the seals on the scroll (5:1). God gave him this information to help us understand what will take place (1:19). When each of the first 4 seals is broken, a horse and rider come out. They seem to represent in sequence: false conquerors or “saviors”, military conquest, famine and death of multitudes. These things cause great suffering. The focal point is the 5th seal. Under it are the people of God who were slain because of their faithfulness to God and to his word. They await the ultimate victory of the Lamb, when the Lord will come to judge the earth. The 6th seal is then opened. It reveals the wrath of the Lamb. He is to be feared far more than natural disaster or war. However, God will keep his own people safe, while unrepentant people will look for a place to hide. Indeed there are many hard times ahead for God’s people, but through the study of this passage may we determine to be faithful to Jesus and his word to the end, depending on his strength to do so.

Part l: The Four Horsemen Of  The Apocalypse (1-11)

We are first introduced to the four horsemen. Look at verse 1. “I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, ‘Come!’”  The Lamb opens 6 of the 7 seals affixed to the scroll in God’s hand. When each of the first 4 seals is broken, a horse and rider come out. The four horses are a foretaste of the final judgments yet to come They seem to represent in sequence: some sort of conquest, war, famine and death. The order of events here are very similar to the order Jesus predicted in the Olivet Discourse in the beginning of Matthew 24.

Glimpses of the identity these spiritual horses may be found in Zechariah 6:1-7 which reads, “ I looked up again—and there before me were four chariots coming out from between two mountains—mountains of bronze! ² The first chariot had red horses, the second black, ³ the third white, and the fourth dappled—all of them powerful. ⁴ I asked the angel who was speaking to me, “What are these, my lord?”  ⁵ The angel answered me, “These are the four spirits ^[a] of heaven, going out from standing in the presence of the Lord of the whole world. ⁶ The one with the black horses is going toward the north country, the one with the white horses toward the west, ^[b] and the one with the dappled horses toward the south.”  ⁷ When the powerful horses went out, they were straining to go throughout the earth. And he said, “Go throughout the earth!” So they went throughout the earth.” These may not be the same horses we found in chapter 6. But we can discover some characteristics of horses found in the heavenly herd. The horses in Zechariah were sent by God. They were powerful. They came forth from the presence of God. They strain towards their destination, intent on what they are doing. They were riding in unison. They were serving God’s purpose. They went throughout the whole world. Such were the horses in Revelation 6.

Going back to our passage, they affects brought about these horse and riders do not represent specific events that we can clearly identify. What I mean is, you can’t look at the newspaper and say, “This is definitely the event that John must have been witnessing.” They are more like categories, or types of events that will occur as part of God’s judgment. They could represent events that are already taking place and events that will take place in the future. I personally see all of these events occurring in the world right now.

There is a passage called the Olivet discourse in Matthew 24. In this passage we can find some solid evidence as to the identity of these four horses in give all Christians clear life direction in response to the damaging effects of their ride. Jesus was with his disciples on the Mount of Olives. The disciples were curious about what will happen in the future and so they asked Jesus in verse 3b, “’Tell us,’ they said, ‘when will this happen, and what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?’” Listen to what Jesus told his disciples in verses 4-14, “Jesus answered: ‘Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,^[a]‘ and will deceive many. ⁶You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. ⁸All these are the beginning of birth pains.  ⁹Then you will be handed over to be persecuted and put to death, and you will be hated by all nations because of me. ¹⁰At that time many will turn away from the faith and will betray and hate each other, ¹¹and many false prophets will appear and deceive many people. ¹²Because of the increase of wickedness, the love of most will grow cold, ¹³but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. ¹⁴And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”  These verses will be referred to on several occasions throughout the message. I believe they will help bring clarity to this passage.

First, the rider on the white horse. Look at verse 2, “I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.”  Out of all the horses and riders in this passage, I have not seem more confusion as to it’s identity. I interviewed Christians from several denominations and referred to several commentaries and the choices were that the rider represented military conquest, antichrists and false christs, and Christ himself. All Christians are not on the same page as to the rider on the white horse. What a controversial figure!  Who is he? To begin with, let’s make a very simple assessment of the passage. He rides a white horse and wears a crown. He is carrying a bow with no indication of arrows. He heads up the other three horses who are all harbingers of destruction. Is he Jesus, based on John’s vision in Revelation 19:11-16? Revelation 19:11 reads, “I saw heaven standing open and there before me was a white horse, whose rider is called Faithful and True. With justice he judges and makes war.” This rider was on white horse and had many crowns. (19: 12a) He was not carrying a bow, but rather he wielded a sword that came out of his mouth. (19:15)

Why does everyone assume that the white horse is Christ and is even something good? Didn’t Roman generals ride on white stallions. Krishna, the Hindu God, rode on a white stallion. We have a lot of fixed ideas that affect our judgments on things. Let’s be neutral about the passage and approach it with fresh minds and hearts. The rider had one crown. (not many) He held a bow with no arrows, possibly indicating a bloodless victory. (Constable’s notes) There was no sword coming out of his mouth. The terrible world events which accompany the other three riders (3-8) do not imply an earlier conquest by Christ. And why do we assume that the first horse is associated with good when all of the other horses bring destruction? So, what do you think?

Based on Matthew 24: 4-5, we can catch a clue as to the identity of the rider on the white horse. It reads, “⁴Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. ⁵For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Christ,^[a]‘ and will deceive many.” I would say that the rider on the white horse represents false religion, false philosophies, false Christs, or false saviors that capture and conquer peoples’ minds and hearts without the shedding of blood.

America is overrun by the rider in the white horse. Jesus first warned his disciples of all times against false christs. False christs can be people who falsely promise security, or religions or philosophies of life that promise peace of mind and heart in a troubled world. They vie to conquer our hearts painlessly. They could be ideologies and systems that falsely promise utopia. In the last century Communism promised the best possible life, with the motto, “From each according to his abilities, to each according to his needs.” Many died trying to actualize it. But history has proven this system to be false in every way. Some people look to America as a kind of “savior” country because of democracy, freedom, money, military power, and so on. But America is full of unsolvable problems and unhappy people despite of our vast resources and technology. People think that other people can be their savior. Maybe political leaders can be their savior, but even the most “well intentioned” can not solve the problems in this age. Some young people turn to peers for love, recognition and security. Can a fellow teenager be a savior? Some people think the proper marriage partner will be their savior. Some young men will do anything for money, thinking it will give them security and happiness through a hedonistic life. They become easy prey for the devil. We must watch out for false Christs, riding into our hearts on white horses and conquering our minds and spirits. Only Jesus is our Christ. Jesus knows the end from the beginning (Isa 46:10). Jesus guides us with truth for salvation. He alone can lead us to life, victory, fruit bearing and a eternal life. We must turn to and trust in Jesus alone and never allow our hearts to be conquered by any false Messiah.

Next, the rider on the red horse. Look at verses 3-4, “When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, ‘Come!’ ⁴Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make men slay each other. To him was given a large sword.”  We can understand who this rider is by examining Matthew 24:6-7a. In it, Jesus says, “You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. ⁷Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom….”  The red horse symbolizes bloodshed and war. The rider of thishorse removes peace from the earth. There have been terrible wars in our times. World War ll saw over 60 million people killed; 418,000 Americans killed as well as 6 million Jews and 23 million Russians. There about 4,500 American deaths in Iraq and 1,000 in Afghanistan. At any time there about 40 wars and guerilla wars going on in this world. Some young people have grown up knowing only war. There will be wars over religion, terrorism, wars over resources, like oil and water. In the end times there will be a definite increase in war and destruction.

     Next the black horse. Look at verses 5-6, “When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, ‘Come!’ I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, ‘A quartof wheat for a day’s wages and three quarts of barley for a day’s wages; and do not damage the oil and the wine!” This rider symbolizing one of the ravages of war, namely, famine. He carries a pair of balance scales, a symbol of commerce, indicating his control of commodity prices. In the end times there will be great scarcity. Can you imaging paying $60 to $100 for a quart of wheat? This will barely feed your family. It reminds me of Germany in the 1930’s where a wheelbarrow full of Deutche marks bought a loaf of bread. This is indeed suffering. It is pretty obvious that the rider on this horse represents famine. Matthew 24:8 confirms this. “There will be famines and earthquakes in various places.” There have been many famines in our times, mostly because of lack of rain. But there have been famines caused by despotic rulers, like the Ukraine Famine caused by Joseph Stalin. Maybe global warming will cause all kinds of famines, especially in sub Sarah Africa. In the end times, the antichrist may be the cause of a famine.

There will also be an ever widening gap between the rich and the poor. The poor will have to pay almost all of their wages just to provided only one or two meals a day for their families. But there will also be wine and oil present. The rich will have access to wine and oil and they will tightly control the marketing of these commodities. In these end times we are seeing an every widening gap between the haves and the have “not’s”, especially in third and second world nations. The gap will definitely widen.

Next, the pale horse. Look at verses 7-8, “ ⁷When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, ‘Come!’ ⁸I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.”  John next saw an ashen (lit. pale green) horse the color of a human corpse. It was being rode by Death. Death is the first death….heart attack, cancer, car accident, war etc. Hades is parallel to Hebrew sheol (grave or dirt-pit), and refers to the abode of the dead. The New Testament uses the Greek word hades to refer to the temporary abode of the dead (e.g. Acts 2:31; Rev 20:13) In Revelation 20:13-14 hades is itself thrown into the “lake of fire” after being emptied of the dead.(http://www.answers.com/topic/hades) It is not clear whether Hades was on a separate horse than Death or merely rode along with Death.” Perhaps John saw Hades following Death as a man on foot following a mounted warrior, grimly gathering in his victims. God gave these enemies authority to take one-fourth of the world’s population. They would be casualties of war, famine, disease and attacks by wild animals. Presently the world’s population is about six billion people. These calamities would reduce that number by one and one-half billion. Maybe nuclear war or some global pandemic could play some role in this devastation.

      The fact that the four riders are given power over one fourth of the earth indicates that God is still limiting his judgment. Their destructive work is not yet complete. That means that there is still time for unbelievers to turn away from their sin and to Christ. In that case, God’s limiting himself reveals that he is merciful in giving people yet another opportunity to turn to him before he brings final judgment. There is no reason to wait any longer. Turn to Christ today for Today is the day of salvation. (2 Cor 6:2)

What about the fifth seal? Let’s read verse 9, “When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained.” Under the 5th seal are the people of God who were slain because of their faithfulness to God and to his word. The altar in this scene represents the altar of sacrifice in the temple, where the animals were sacrificed to atone for sins. Instead of animals’ blood at the base of the altar, John saw the souls of martyrs.  These martyrs had been faithful and had suffered martyrdom for their faithfulness to Christ (cf. 3:5; 7:9, 14). More people would experience martyrdom before it would be God’s time for Jesus Christ to return to the earth and judge the world. In the midst of a world filled with warfare, famine, persecution, and death, Christians will be called upon the stand firmly for what they believe. I pray for our young people to maintain the testimony of their Christian faith even in the difficult middle school and high school environments, where they ignored and even excluded by their peers because of their faith.

These Christian martyrs call out to God for justice. Let’s read verses 10-11, “They called out in a loud voice, ‘How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?’ ¹¹Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the number of their fellow servants and brothers who were to be killed as they had been was completed.” They must have seen such persecution and suffered so much. They saw their loved ones suffer. And so they longed for justice and cried out to God. Though the martyrs were eager for God to bring justice to the earth, they are told to wait and be patient. They were to wait for the ultimate victory of the Lamb, when the Lord will come to judge the earth. We may wish for justice immediately, as those martyrs did, but we must be patient. God works according to his own timetable, and he promises justice. Each martyr received a long white robe. Those who suffer and die for their faith will not be forgotten. They will be singled out by God for special honor. No suffering for the sake of God’s kingdom, is however, wasted.

      All of this is very interesting, but in light of this passage, how should we apply our faith? Let’s return to Matthew 24:4-14. Especially 24:4 reads, “Watch out that no one deceives you.” And 24:13-14 reads, “but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. ¹⁴And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”  Instead of just satisfying our curiosity we must watch out that we are not deceived. We must stand firm in our Christian faith. The only way to do this is engage our hearts and minds in sincere Bible study and put Jesus’ words into practice. And we also must live for world mission. Lastly we must pray to God for understanding and discernment. Then we will never be deceived.

Part ll: The Sixth Seal: The Great Day Of Their Wrath Has Come (12-17)

Now, about the sixth seal.  Let’s read verses 12-14, “I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, ¹³and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as late figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. ¹⁴The sky receded like a scroll, rolling up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.”This seal reveals the final judgment of the Lamb. God will send a tremendous earthquake that will rock the whole world (cf. Lk 21:11). There will be the darkening of the sun, the reddening of the moon , and the falling of the stars to earth. Could this be a meteor-like shower? Could this be a metaphorical convulsion among the nations? The sky will appear to split and roll back in opposite directions (cf. Isa. 34:4).The universe will seem to be coming apart. The opening of the sky will give people a glimpse at the throne-room of heaven (v. 16). The coming event will be majestic and glorious for those who are in Christ.

It will be a day of terror for those who are not in Jesus. Look at  verses 15-16, “Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and every free man hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. ¹⁶They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!”Though God will keep his own people safe, unrepentant kings and slaves will look for a place to hide. But there would be none. Those, whose hearts are not prepared will not turn to God in repentance but flee and hide from Him in terror. At first they may be confused as to what is happening, but by the end of the sixth seal judgment, they will know that they are experiencing is the outpouring of God’s wrath. They will be terrified. Thank God that will not be in the group trying to hide from God. We will be in the group lifting our heads up and waiting eagerly for our salvation.

Even in the most despairing times, when everything seems negative and hopeless, what must we do? We must react properly. We must fall on our knees and confess our sins and ask God for his grace and mercy. Think about this story of cockroaches. When the lights go on the cockroaches scatter and look for places to hide. And rightly so, if they linger they will get squashed. But what if a cockroach stands in the middle of the room, falls on its six knees and begs for forgiveness and grace for messing up and infesting the owner’s house? Will not the person forgive that cockroach and either set it free or make it a nice condo to live out the rest of its days? That’s what I would do.

What must we do in the midst of all this? We need to be faithful to the word of God and the testimony of the gospel. We must be patient and wait on God to fulfill his will. We must never doubt the love of God even in the midst of the most dire of situations, Matthew 24: 13-14 can give us more direction. It reads, “but he who stands firm to the end will be saved. ¹⁴And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”  Let us preach the gospel through 1:1 Bible study and may our lives be a clear testimony to a world lost in darkness.

Part l: The Four Horsemen Of  The Apocalypse (1-11)

1. Read vs. 1. As Christ opens the first four seals, the world events are dramatized with the horses. What do these horses symbolize? (Zec6:3)  What does it show that God has a plan for all the world events?

1. Read vs. 2-4. What are the outfits of the rider on a white horse? (2)  How does he ride out?  What does he represent? How does the rider on a red horse take peace from the earth? (4)  What does he represent?

1. Read vs. 5-8. What does the rider on a black horse hold in his hand? (5)  How do the living creatures express about the scarcity of staples? (6) What does he represent?  How does the rider on a pale horse kill a fourth of the earth? (8)  What does he represent? How does God reveal his wrath upon this world?

1. Read vs. 9-11. As Christ opens the fifth seal, what does John see under the altar in heaven? (9)  Who do they represent?  What do they plead and how does God answer? (10,11)  What does it indicate that even persecution is in God’s control?  In light of Jesus’ end-time teaching, how will these events occur? (Mt24:4-14)

 Part ll: The Sixth Seal: The Great Day Of Their Wrath Has Come (12-17)

5. Read vs. 12-17. The cosmic calamity of the sixth seal ushers us to the final judgment upon this world.  What happens to the earth and the heavenly bodies? (12-14, Mt 24:29)  What do they symbolize?  How do the people panic in response to the cosmic calamity? (15,16)   How do they view such calamity? (17,Lk23:30)