Introduction

The incidents mentioned in this chapter cover the first half of the seven years tribulation, which begins immediately after the rapture of the Church. It is then that satan is cast down to the earth and he gives 'his power, and his seat and great authority to the antichrist.( Rev13:2 )

St.Paul in his second epistle to the Thessalonians also speaks of the same period; Who opposeth and exalteht himself above all that is called God. or that is worshipped; so that he as God sitteth in the temple of God, shewing himself that he is God'( II Thess 2:3-4 ) 

Speaking of the Holy spirit Paul says, '..he who leteth will let, until he (the Holy spirit) be taken out of the way' at the rapture), and continues to say,' And then'Satan will be cast into the earth. It is here that this chapter begins.

This chapter begins with the opening of the seals and the appearing of the four horses. Each horse represents a diabolic and sinister power at work. This is the beginning of the great tribulation. no mention is made here, or even earlier, of the rapture of the New Testament Church, because it is expressed, as seen by a Jew who has no vision of the Church.

The Opening of the First Seal :

'And i saw when the Lamb opened of the seals, and I heard ,as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see, And i saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him; and he went forth conquering ,and to conquer' ( Rev 6:1-2 )

THE WHITE HORSE:

This shows the subtle way in which satan or the antichrist will start his work. White speaks of righteousness and peace, but it will not be true righteousness and peace. The antichrist will promise peace and safety to the world, and thus he will conquer the whole world, and become the world ruler ( I Thess 5:3 )

'...He that sat on him had a bow..' (Rev 6:2)He holds a bow with out an arrow. This shows that the conquers the world by subtility.It is now obvious that the whole world is looking for a world ruler, for one world government. This is the cry of many of the present world leaders. but the time has not yet come,because,as has been stated earlier, the Church of God must be caught up to heaven: only then will satan be cast down to the earth, and give 'his power , and his seat, and great authority' to one man( Rev 13:2).So he will not rule by his own power, but by the power of Satan. This discreet ruse on the part of the antichrist will be maintained for an initial period only, and it will be followed by civil war and bloodshed, on a scale of unprecedented magnitude.

The Opening of the Second Seal :

'And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say ,come and see. And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword ( Rev 6:3-4 )

THE RED HORSE: RED signifies war and bloodshed. Red is the color adopted by socialist or the communists. They will show their real nature when they come to power. when this takes place, there will be no peace on the earth .Their rule will be characterized by a tremendous amount of blood-shed the sword). The antichristian government will be on a socialistic or communalistic basis and it will be totalitarian. A totalitarian government cannot be established with out very much bloodshed.

The Opening of the Third Seal :

'And when he had opened the third seal ,I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And i beheld, and lo a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of scales in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beast say, A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine' ( Rev 6:5-6 )

THE BLACK  HORSE: BLACK speaks of famine( Lam5:10 ).There will be a great famine in the world. The famine will follow the period of warfare and bloodshed, and it will be world-wide.

'A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine': This speaks of abundance and plenty. The abundance will be enjoyed only by those who have taken the mark of the beast, and stand on the side of the government.

'A pair of balances in his hand': This shows a general rationing or control of food.

 'Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, behold, I will break the staff of bread in Jerusalem; and they shall eat bread by weight, and with care; and they shall drink water by measure, and with astonishment; That they may want bread and water, and be astonished one with another, and consume away for their iniquity'                       (  Ezek4:16-17 )

The antichrist is turning upon the Christians who have refused to take his mark on their foreheads. This is not, in fact, the judgment of God; It is persecution at the hands of the antichrist. Those who do not confer their allegiance to the antichrist will not be able to buy or sell anywhere during the time of tribulation ( Rev13:17 ). The faithful Christians of the remnant church will prefer to die of starvation than to ' receive a mark in their  right hand or in their foreheads' ( Rev13:16 )

The Opening of the FOURTH Seal :

'And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. And i looked, and behold a pale horse; and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death with the beasts of the earth' ( Rev6:7-8 )

THE PALE HORSE: here we read of four kinds of persecution, which are similar but not related to the judgment of God. They are

(1) Bloodshed (the result of warfare)

(2)Hunger(the result of famine)

(3)Plague and sickness (the result of warfare and famine)

(4)Cruel death (through wild beast) ( Ezek5:17 )

This is the peak of the great tribulation (referred to in Rev7:14),which brings them to the near end of the first three and a half years of the reign of the antichrist. This tribulation does not affect the Israelites, because the Israelites at this time are enjoying peace and safety at the hands of the antichrist. They are engaged in building their temple in Jerusalem, because they have made a covenant with the antichrist(Dan9:27).With the conclusion of the great tribulation, there will be no more faithful Christians in the world, because those who were left would have died as martyrs for Christ and His word.

Then there is a pause before the next event in world history, which is the Jewish tribulation, The Jewish tribulation does not start until the beginning of the second half of the reign of the antichrist, and not before the opening of the seventh seal

The Opening of the Fifth Seal :

'And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held. and they cried with a loud voice saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true,  dost thou not judge an avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow-servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled' ( Rev6:9-11 )

The souls under the altar: The souls of those who have been slain for God are seen under the altar. These are the martyrs from the beginning of the world up to the rapture of the Church. so they are in two groups, those who have died for the word of God, that is, the old testament martyrs, and those who have died for the testimony of Jesus Christ-the  New testament martyrs. But the time for their final redemption (the resurrection of their bodies) has not yet come. They are seen under the altar in their soul bodies waiting for their resurrection bodies.( II Cor 5:4 )

It is said that they are 'Under the altar'. The altar refers to the incense altar which was the holy place (Rev8:3).The holy place signifies the New Heaven which is the place appointed for the martyrs. The altar of incense speaks of prayer and intercession. Martyrs overcome through prayer and intecession.They are told to wait till the period of the martyrs is over, that is till the tribulation martyrs are resurrected.

The opening of the sixth seal:

'And i beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo there was a great earthquake; and the sun became as sack cloth of hair, and the moon became as blood  

;..for the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?' (Rev6:12-17)

The events mentioned in this passage refer to the sevenfold judgments of God executed during the second half of the seven years of tribulation and the battle of Armageddon or the 'battle of that great day of God Almighty' (Rev16:14) which will take place at the end of the seven years of tribulation. when Christ will come with 'The armies which were in heaven' and judge the antichrist and his kingdom and cast him' alive into a lake of fire  burning with brimstone' (Rev 19:14,20)

This brings us to the end of the middle of the seven years when the tribulation martyrs will be resurrected.

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