Chapter 8
The Seven Seals
“9 And they *sang a new song, saying, ‘Worthy art Thou to take the book, and to break its seals; for Thou wast slain, and didst purchase for God with Thy blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.’ 10 ‘And Thou hast made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth.’” (Re 5:9-10 NAS)
What John saw was probably a scroll, not a bound book as we have today. That scroll had seven seals that would have to be broken before the contents of the scroll could be read. Sealing of a scroll was done to protect its content until the authorized person was able to open it to view its message. This scroll contained knowledge known only to God Himself. There was no one in heaven or on earth worthy to open the scroll, save Jesus Christ who was from heaven and earth.
As Jesus begins to break the seals, one at a time, things are revealed in a way that even stretches the imaginations of our modern tech savvy minds. As Jesus breaks the first seal one of the four living creatures says come and see. What John sees is not just a broken seal or even part of what is written, but what he sees is three or four dimensional. It is described almost as if it were a video in which the viewer perceived the intentions of the horse and rider without any dialogue.
The First Seal
“1 ¶ And I saw when the Lamb broke one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, ‘Come.’ 2 And I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sat on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him; and he went out conquering, and to conquer.” (Re 6:1-2 NAS)
This is the first of four horses that are revealed as the first four seals are broken. Since there is no explanation given in Scripture, speculation has been wide and varied as to what these four horses represent. This first one seems to have the most controversy. Speculation varies from the rider being Christ to the rider being the anti-Christ. The interpretation of these horses often reflects the bias in which a person approaches Revelation with. Many have come to believe that from chapter 4 until almost the end of the book is dealing with a seven year period at the end of time, which is the time of great tribulation.
I have come to believe that these four horsemen represent the forces of evil that have gone forth into the world. I believe that these forces existed in John’s day as they went forth. Unlike many, I do not see these four horses as consecutive time periods, but all of them going forth during this beginning period starting in John’s day and having an effect even until our day. My reasoning comes from my understanding of the outline Jesus presented in Matthew 24.
“6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. 7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Mt 24:6-8 AV)
I see these four horses as a representation of the wars, rumors, famines, pestilences, and earthquakes. If we look back through history all of these things have been prevalent up until our present day. We do not have accurate statistical data from the past as we do today, but there are plenty of historical testimonies of these things throughout history.
The first seal being broken reveals a white horse with a rider who is decked out with a bow. A crown was given to him and he goes out conquering and to conquer. I see the white horse and rider as representing those forces that have attempted to unite the world by creating empires. The horse being white gives the allusion of creating an empire that is good and beneficial for all people. But the inspiration behind it is from Satan, not God. The bow and the crown represent the government and authority that is established through the conquering of tribes and people.
The Second Seal
“3 ¶ And when He broke the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come.” 4 And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sat on it, it was granted to take peace from the earth, and that men should slay one another; and a great sword was given to him.” (Re 6:3-4 NAS)
At the breaking of the second seal, we see a red horse and its rider. This is a war horse and its rider is empowered to take peace from the earth. He wields a great sword, that men would kill one another.
Just as Jesus also prophesied, there will be wars and rumors of wars. Nation will rise against nation and kingdom against kingdom as they go forth conquering and to conquer. These wars are not the end of things, but the sorrow they bring will be with us as we head toward the time of the end.
The Third Seal
“5 And when He broke the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come.” And I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sat on it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard as it were a voice in the center of the four living creatures saying, “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the oil and the wine.” (Re 6:5-6 NAS)
As the third seal is broken we see a black horse go forth with a rider who carries scales in his hands. A pair of scales could refer to crooked scales that inflate the price. Or this could be referencing a time of shortages and inflated prices.
The Fourth Seal
“7 And when He broke the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come.” 8 And I looked, and behold, an ashen horse; and he who sat on it had the name Death; and Hades was following with him. And authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth.” (Re 6:7-8 NAS)
As the fourth seal is broken we see a pale or ashen horse, the rider is death, and hell follows. Death and hell consume one fourth of the earth that are killed by the sword, famine, pestilence, and wild animals.
The effects of all of these four horses feed off of each other. Conquering and war cause shortages of food, crooked dealer, famine, and pestilence. Sometimes these things contribute to the causes of wars. These four horses and what they represent are forces that have run together throughout history. It is possible that the fourth of the earth that are consumed by death and hades represent all that are perishing as a result of the effect of these four horsemen. Again I refer you back to what Jesus said that corresponds to these four seals.
7 For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. 8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.” (Mt 24:6-8 AV)
The Fifth Seal
“9 ¶ And when He broke the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God, and because of the testimony which they had maintained; 10 and they cried out with a loud voice, saying, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, wilt Thou refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth?” 11 And there was given to each of them a white robe; and they were told that they should rest for a little while longer, until the number of their fellow servants and their brethren who were to be killed even as they had been, should be completed also.” (Re 6:9-11 NAS)
As the fifth seal is broken we see under the altar the souls who have been killed because of the Word of God and their testimony. With a loud voice, they are inquiring as to how long it will be until those who had slain them will face judgment. They are given a white robe and told to rest until their fellow servants are killed as they had been.
“9 “Then they will deliver you to tribulation, and will kill you, and you will be hated by all nations on account of My name. 10 “And at that time many will fall away and will deliver up one another and hate one another.” (Mt 24:9-10 NAS)
Again I refer you back to Matthew 24. The scene we see of those under the altar is what Jesus revealed to us as He outlined the events that would lead up to the end. As these souls are comforted being clothed with white robes they are at rest having the promise of God. His assurance and declaration also fit with Jesus’ words in Matthew 24:13 – 14.
“13 “But the one who endures to the end, he shall be saved. 14 ‘And this gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world for a witness to all the nations, and then the end shall come.’” (Mt 24:13-14 NAS)
Others will be killed as they have been killed because the end will not come until the gospel is preached to the whole world. What we are reading here in Revelation is simply expanding our understanding of what Jesus outlined for His disciples.
The Sixth Seal
“12 And I looked when He broke the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth made of hair, and the whole moon became like blood; 13 and the stars of the sky fell to the earth, as a fig tree casts its unripe figs when shaken by a great wind. 14 And the sky was split apart like a scroll when it is rolled up; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of the earth and the great men and the commanders and the rich and the strong and every slave and free man, hid themselves in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains; 16 and they *said to the mountains and to the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the presence of Him who sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb; 17 for the great day of their wrath has come; and who is able to stand?” (Re 6:12-17 NAS)
Wow, this sounds like the end of the world! Actually, it is a description of that great and awesome day of the Lord. This is the time in which the entire world comes to a realization that Jesus has returned and they are in big trouble. If this seems to you like this is a huge jump in time from the breaking of the fifth seal, then you are correct. The corresponding verse from Matthew is 24: 29 – 30.
“29 “But immediately after the tribulation of those days THE SUN WILL BE DARKENED, AND THE MOON WILL NOT GIVE ITS LIGHT, AND THE STARS WILL FALL from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken, 30 and then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in the sky, and then all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the SON OF MAN COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF THE SKY with power and great glory.” (Mt 24:29-30 NAS)
After all of the seals are broken we will be given a lot of information that fills in the gap between the breaking of the fifth and sixth seals. The world is going to pass through a great time of testing. The lines between the kingdom of this world and the kingdom of Heaven are going to become increasingly distinct. The battle lines are being drawn for that final battle. What we see as this seal is broken is that when Christ shows up in power people head for the caves.
The Seventh Seal
“And when He broke the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” (Re 8:1 NAS)
This is the final seal and the revelations that are now to follow are filled with ominous events and insights into the evil intent of Satan and those who are under his influence. The breaking of the Seventh Seal reveals a time of testing that is to come upon the earth. As Satan is consolidating his power and influence in a final attempt to thwart the plan of God, God is sending forth His warnings in preparation for His soon return.
But there are a couple of things that we have become aware of before we go further into these revelations. Between the sixth seal being broken and the seventh seal, John is confronted with two visions.
The first vision shows four angels who are assigned to strike the earth. But before even a breath of wind can touch the earth God seals a remnant of all the tribes of Israel with His Seal of protection. These are the ones who are faithful and true and serve Him.
The second vision John has is of those who have come through this time of tribulation. These are the ones who have had their sins washed away by the blood of the Lamb. They are greatly comforted in every way and reside before the throne with God dwelling among them.
With the breaking of the final seal we are confronted with the revelations of God’s final dealing with this sin inflicted world. As we are given insight into the forces of evil and God’s final warnings and judgment we will be confronted with some awesome events. The ramifications and the finality of these events are so monumental that as that final seal is broken all of heaven pauses.
“… there was silence in heaven for about half an hour.” (Re 8:1 NAS)