THE SEVEN SEALS
Lesson
13
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The four horses
The four horses of
Revelation are not unique to
Revelation. Zechariah saw
four horses having the same
colors. Zechariah was told
the four horses represent the
four spirits of heaven that stand
in the presence of the Lord of
the whole world. Zechariah
6:5 These go out throughout the
earth at God’s command to
accomplish His will. Zechariah
1:10,11
Zechariah saw the
black horse go north, the white
horse went west, the pale horse
went south and the red horse by
inference went west. Zechariah
6:6 These four horses go
throughout the whole world.
These four horses symbolize the
four living creatures that stand
in the presence of
God. These four living
creatures might be thought of as
“senior angels” having
great responsibilities. They are
appointed to carry out special
services throughout the universe
of God. These angels insure
that God’s desires are
carried out.
(For more detailed
study on these four creatures and
their responsibilities read
Ezekiel 1 & 10.)
The seals begin
Each horse and
rider represents the works or
actions of the four living
creatures. As Jesus opens
each seal, He commissions a
specific process that leads to
the conclusion of the plan of
salvation. Very
important point: The
effect and influence of the seals
is both cumulative and
associative. This means
that the conquering begun in the
first seal one is concluded in
seal 6. The process begun
in seal two reaches its climax
during seal five and the
understanding of seal three
prepares some
“teachers” for the
events that transpire during seal
four. (See diagram at the end of
this study.)
In other words, a
seal doesn’t begin and end
so that the next seal can begin
and end. Rather, the first
three seals begin certain
processes that remain in motion
until their counterpart concluded
their work. It was for this very
reason that Jesus was given
sovereign power! He starts
three processes upon earth that
He must personally manage.
Even more, He must
manage the outcome of each
process so that the gospel
accomplishes its task. Just as a
rider of each horse controls the
action of the horse, Jesus sends
the four living creatures to
earth with special assignments.
As each “senior angel”
prepares to do his work, John is
invited to observe. They
each say to John,
“Come.”
First seal
“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!’ 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.” Revelation
6: 1,2
The first horse
and rider (senior angel) goes out
of the heavenly sanctuary to
conquer something on earth.
Nothing is conquered in the first
seal. No special event in heaven
or on earth marks the opening of
this seal. Rather, this
seal marks the beginning conquest
of Jesus. In 1844, Jesus
our High Priest set out to
conclude the sin problem by
revealing more truth about the
everlasting gospel. Time has come
to put the everlasting gospel in
final form, for soon, it must go
to every person on earth.
The great revival
in Protestant America in the
early 19th century
prepared the way for
understanding the arrival of
1844. The work that began under
this seal sets the stage for the
final presentation of the
gospel. The entire world
must hear the full gospel!
John saw the consummating victory
of the gospel. He saw the victory
of the 144,000 and the great
multitude that no man could
number. He says, “And
I saw what looked like a sea of
glass mixed with fire and,
standing beside the sea, those
who had been victorious over the
beast and his image and over the
number of his name…”
Revelation 15:2
Second seal
“When the
Lamb opened the second seal, I
heard the second living creature
say, ‘Come!’ Then
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.” Revelation
6:3,4
The second horse
(senior angel) goes out of the
heavenly sanctuary with a large
sword. This sword
eventually causes men to slay
each other. A number of
Bible students are reluctant to
identify this event as having a
heavenly origin. But Jesus
told his disciples, “Do not
suppose that I have come to bring
peace to the earth. I did
not come to bring peace, but a
sword.” Matthew 10:34
The sword of Jesus is the power
of truth. Hebrews 4:12
says, “The word of God is
living and active. Sharper than
any double-edged
sword…” Paul said,
“Take the helmet of
salvation and the sword of the
Spirit, which is the word of
God.” Ephesians 6:17 In
Revelation 2:12, John describes
Jesus to the church in Pergamum
as, “Him who has the sharp,
double-edged sword.”
Jesus said to this church,
“Repent therefore!
Otherwise, I will soon come to
you and will fight against them
with the sword of my
mouth.” Revelation
2:16
We will study the
war and bloodshed that occurs all
over the earth in lesson 18 and
19 as a result of the work done
by this senior angel. The
coming war will be a contest
between truth and
falsehood. This seal points
forward to a time when people
will kill one another over
truth! Here is a subtle but
very important point. Notice
that the text describing the
second seal does not have to mean
that the slaying occurs at the
time the second seal is opened.
(Neither is the conquering
described in the first seal
accomplished during the time of
the first seal.) Rather,
the consequence of the second
seal is seen when peace is taken
from the earth and men slay each
other on account of the sword!
What is the
sword? Allowing the Bible
to interpret itself, we must
conclude from the texts above
that the sword represents the
“Words of God.”
Can we look back
to the time period following 1844
and find anything to mark the
opening of this seal? Yes!
The formation of the Bible
societies during the mid to late
19th century by
Protestants fulfills the meaning
of this seal! Remember, the
gospel commission belongs to them
after 1798. The translation
and distribution of the Bible
into every nation on earth has
grown immensely since 1844.
In those days a large number of
Protestant churches in Europe and
North America formed Bible and
Missionary Societies to carry the
gospel to the entire world!
The late 19th century
marks a “high-water
mark” for the establishment
and activity of mission service
by Protestant
denominations. People gave
liberally to the printing and
distribution of the Bible.
In fact, no book on earth has
ever been translated and
distributed to the extent the
Bible has. No other book on
earth has ever overcome the
popularity of the Bible and the
Bible will be the book upon which
the great controversy will be
focused!
Third seal
“When the
Lamb opened the third seal, I
heard the third living creature
say, ‘Come!’ I looked,
and there 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 quart of 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! “ Revelation
6:5,6
The third horse
(senior angel) goes out of the
heavenly sanctuary with a pair of
scales and a message. The
scales imply a judgment or
decision-making process. We know
from Daniel that the books of
record were opened in 1844 and
that Jesus began an investigation
of the records of the dead. The
work of the third senior angel is
to see that people on earth
become aware of what Jesus is
doing in the heavenly
sanctuary. During the past
158 years, the understanding and
awareness of the investigative
judgment has grown around the
world. Even though general
knowledge of the ongoing judgment
process is not yet widespread
among the populations of the
earth, several million people
already know about it!
Those who understand this truth
will soon be in a position to
explain the even more important
judgment process that is coming:
the judgment of the living!
The message that
accompanies this seal is
twofold. First, wages are
promised to those who will help
spread this special message and
secondly, a warning is given to
those who should hear it.
Even though many years have
passed since the judgment hour
message first began, and those
who first preached the judgment
hour message are now dead, all
who have helped to carry this
message throughout the earth will
receive their due reward!
The portion of
this message counsels those who
hear the judgment hour message
not to reject the understanding
of 1844. Oil symbolizes the
Holy Spirit (Zechariah 4), and
wine symbolizes doctrine or
teachings (Revelation 17:2). The
admonition “don’t harm
the oil or wine” apparently
means, “Receive the Holy
Spirit and the truth concerning
the ministry of Jesus in the
heavenly sanctuary.”
(For an Old Testament parallel on
the use of wheat, barley, wine
and oil as wages, see II
Chronicles 2:10-15.)
First three seals
set global stage for the next
three seals
These three seals
have been opened. As each
seal is opened, there is a
progressive revelation of Jesus
in heaven and on earth. Who
Jesus is, what He is and how He
intends to conclude the gospel
commission becomes clearer to the
watching angels and to a growing
number of people on earth.
Truth is ever progressive and the
seals demonstrate just
that. The first three seals
were opened over a short time
period beginning in 1844. By
1864, the judgment hour message
was understood well enough to be
proclaimed abroad! And for
more than a century, the
activities described in these
three seals have influenced the
earth, in effect, setting the
stage for what is about to
happen!!!
Fourth seal
“When the
Lamb opened the fourth seal, I
heard the voice of the fourth
living creature say,
‘Come!’ I 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.”
Revelation 6:7,8
The opening of the
fourth seal brings global
devastation. This senior angel is
the angel of death. Perhaps this
is the same angel that flew over
Egypt and killed the firstborn
children and animals of the
Egyptians. Exodus 12-13 Perhaps
he is also the same angel that
killed 185,000 of
Sennacherib’s army. II Kings
19 Regardless of his identity,
his influence upon the earth is
unmistakable.
Jesus sends this
senior angel to earth with four
terrible judgments to arrest the
attention of the world.
These judgments are identified
as: sword, famine, plague and
wild beast. 25% of the earth will
perish in these judgments!
For deeper study on these four
dreadful judgments, you must read
Ezekiel 14:12-23.
The fourth seal is
the next one to open. This
is self-evident. From the
perspective of chronological
timing alone, the devastating
results of this seal have not
been observed upon earth since
the seals began opening in
1844. We will see that the
events during this seal are a
great catalyst marking the
beginning of the judgment of the
living! The death and
destruction attending the 4th
seal is fully explained in
Revelation’s story on the
seven trumpets and the seven last
plagues. These will be studied in
considerable detail in future
lessons.
One last point.
The first four seals are actions
carried out by senior angels (the
four living creatures). The
followers of Jesus on earth carry
out the fifth seal, and Jesus
Himself carries out the sixth
seal!
Fifth seal
“When he
opened the fifth seal, I saw
under the alter the souls of
those who had been slain because
of the word of God and the
testimony they had maintained.
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?’ Then 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.” Revelation
6:9-11
The opening of the
fifth seal ushers in a period of
martyrdom. Why would Jesus allow
martyrdom to come upon His
people? There are two reasons.
First, persecution separates
pretense from substance. When the
price for being a Christian is
great, who will be willing to
bear the cross and follow the
teachings of Jesus? The pure in
heart that love God’s truth
and are willing to give their
life for truth.
In America, the
cost of being a Christian has
been for the most part, easy. We
have religious liberty. We
can worship without intimidation
or fear. We have freedom of
speech. We can teach and
believe whatever we want. We are
truly blessed! But this blessing
has brought a curse. We have
become lazy, weak and in many
instances, corrupt.
Christianity today is comprises
of many fair-weather Christians
filled with external
piety. Protestant America
has become degenerate and looks
more like a hospital for sin-sick
people than an army of soldiers
prepared for the final conflict
with Satan!
The second reason
the 5th seal brings
martyrdom is that when the 5th
seal is opened, Satan is
personally upon the earth
claiming to be God. Those
following Jesus will recognize
the devil for what he is and will
do everything possible to tell
the world of this supreme
deception. Think of
it! With much of the world
receiving the evil impostor as
God, those who fearlessly
identify the impostor as the
devil will not be looked upon
favorably!
How would you feel
if someone called your God
“the devil?” If ever
there was a holy war, this will
be it. Those killing the
followers of Jesus (who remains
in heaven until the sixth seal is
opened) will actually be told the
evil impostor they are doing God
a service!
Sixth seal
“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, {13} and the stars in the
sky fell to earth, as late figs
drop from a fig tree when shaken
by a strong wind. {14} The sky
receded like a scroll, rolling
up, and every mountain and island
was removed from its place. {15}
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.
{16} They 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! {17} For
the great day of their wrath has
come, and who can stand?”
Revelation 6:12-17
The opening of the
sixth seal brings Jesus to the
rescue of His people. The opening
of the sixth seal is the second
coming. John describes King Jesus
as riding on the white horse,
having the title, “King of
kings and Lord of lords”
upon His sash. Revelation
19:11-16
Just as the work
of the first seal began on a
white horse in 1844, so the work
of the sixth seal is concluded on
a white horse. Jesus set out to
conquer in 1844 and at the second
coming, he conquers! John
says, “I saw standing open
and there before me a white
horse, whose rider is called
Faithful and True. With
justice he judges and makes
war… Out of his mouth comes
a sharp sword with which to
strike down the nations. He will
rule them with an iron
scepter…’”
Revelation 19:11,15
Seventh seal
“When he
opened the seventh seal, there
was silence in heaven for about
half an hour.” Revelation
8:1
The opening of the
seventh seal occurs at the end of
the 1,000 years and the story
within the book of life –
now unsealed – is fully
exposed. The importance of this
seal will be seen again in later
lessons.
Summary
The first three
seals prepare the world stage for
the development of the next three
seals. The relationship
within the seals becomes apparent
when compared to their
counterpart. The breaking
open of each seal reveals a new
dimension in the work of Jesus as
our High Priest in the heavenly
sanctuary!
The opening of
each seal moves us
chronologically towards the
second coming and the great day
of reckoning at the end of the
1,000 years. In the next lesson,
we will study the consequences of
the seals in more detail. You
will see how the opening of the 4th
seal marks the beginning of the
judgment of the living!
Review this lesson carefully for
those who study Bible prophecy
study the deep things of God.
Seals open
- White
horse
- Red Horse
- Black
Horse
- Pale Horse
- Martyrs
- Second
Coming
Open 1
Open 2
Open 3
Open 4
Open 5
Open 6
1844 Today
The first three
seals mark the beginning of three
processes that prepare the world
for the next three seals.
As each seal is opened, Jesus and
His everlasting gospel are more
clearly revealed.
The First
Six Seals
Quiz
- Do you
think John and Daniel saw
the same scene that
occurred in 1844?
- When did
Jesus receive the book
sealed with 7 seals?
- What is in
the book sealed with
seven seals?
- What is
proven when the book of
life is finally opened?
- Which
seals have been opened?
Memory
Verse: “None of the
wicked will understand, but those
who are wise will
understand.” Daniel
12:10
Notes:
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