Revelation 6:1-8

For two chapters we’ve visualized the scene at God’s heavenly throne room. This majestic, awe-inspiring scene reminds us that no matter who is governing on earth, God the Father reigns from his heavenly throne and deserves our praise (Rev 4).

At some point in the future, God the Son will step forward to carry out divine justice on the world. Just as he carried out the Father’s will by enduring a sacrificial death for us, he will carry out the Father’s will as well by administering judgment on the earth (Rev 5).

In a prophetic vision, John foresaw this future outlook as though Christ were receiving a royal scroll from the Father’s hand. Since Christ had died a bloody, violent death for the sins of the world, he alone is worthy to unleash God’s judgment on the sins of the world.

A Three-Stage Series of Judgments

John foresaw God’s future justice on the world through Christ as a series of judgments. From a zoomed-out view, this series contains three sets of seven judgments (Rev 6-18):

• The first seven appear as Christ breaks seals on a scroll (Rev 6:1-8:1).
• The middle seven appear as angels blow trumpets (Rev 8:2-14:20).
• The final seven appear as angels empty bowls of divine wrath (Rev 15:1-18:24).

As we study these judgments, we should keep in mind the following observations:

• These judgments will occur in order as a chronological sequence, with one happening after the next in the order that John records them.
• The judgments generally increase in magnitude and severity, both within each set and from one set to another, like a mother’s labor leading up to childbirth (Matt 24:8).
• All three sets overlap (like a telescope) because the seventh seal unleashes the trumpet judgments and the seventh trumpet announces the bowl judgments.
• Between each set and even within each set John pauses to describe some additional descriptions of events or visions in heaven. This parenthetic material serves as behind-the-scenes info that helps us better understand the significance of what’s happening while also slowing down the action from a dramatic point of view.
• These judgments will occur during the future period we call the Tribulation. During this time God will carry out his wrath on the world as he completes his plan for Israel and the nations and prepares the way for the millennial kingdom (Dan 9:24-27).
• Christ himself foreshadowed these tribulation events that will precede the millennial kingdom and beyond when he taught his twelve disciples in what we call the Olivet Discourse (Matthew 24-25; Mark 13; Luke 21:5-36). These passages foreshadow much of what we’ll read throughout Revelation 6-22.

Judgment on the Nations not the Church

As we study these judgments, we should rest assured that the church will not experience these events on the earth. Christ will keep us out of this stage of his divine program, which John identifies as “the great day of [God’s] wrath” (Rev 3:10; 6:17; 11:18; cf. Rom 5:9; 1 Thess 1:10; 5:9; 2 Pet 2:9). When these events occur we’ll be with Christ in God’s presence, a fact which should comfort and encourage our hearts in our present suffering (1 Thess 4:17; 5:11).

From an Old Testament prophecy standpoint, it’s helpful to observe that the first “sixty-nine weeks” of Daniel’s prophecy pertained specifically to God’s program for Israel and the nations, so we expect this final seventieth week to do the same. Therefore, to keep this focus and fulfill his promises of safekeeping to the church, Christ will remove us from Earth through the rapture before this series of judgments begin (1 Thess 4:16-18).

The First Four Seal Judgments (Rev 6:1-8)

As Christ begins to administer God’s justice to complete God’s redemptive program for the world, preparing the way for his own earthly reign in the millennial kingdom, he breaks the seven seals on the scroll from the Father one at a time. For all seven seals, John says that Christ himself opened each one, indicating that all of these things will occur with Christ’s personal authorization (Rev 6:1, 3, 5, 7, 9, 12; 8:1).

As John witnessed Christ breaking these seals, some details pertaining to the first four are remarkably similar. The last three seals are noticeably different, so we’ll study those separately in another lesson.

Some Similar Details

For the breaking of each one of these four seals, one of the four angelic creatures hovering nearest God’s throne makes a loud, thunderous announcement for John to pay attention to what is about to happen (Rev 6:1, 3, 5, 7).

Each time Christ breaks one of the seals, a horse appears, each with a different color (Rev 6:2, 4, 5, 8). The first one is white, the second fiery red, the third black, and the fourth pale green. Each color illustrates what the horse represents in each of the judgments.

Each horse also carries a rider. John never gives a personal identity for these riders but describes them generically as “the one who sat” (Rev 6:2, 4, 5) or “he who sat” (Rev 6:8). People have attempted to identify these riders in various ways. Three options stand out:

• Some suggest that they (at least the first one) is Christ himself because it resembles how Christ will emerge from heaven at the end of the Tribulation, also on a white horse (Rev 19:11-16). This interpretation seems unlikely because it requires us to differentiate between the first rider, who is far superior, and the next three, though John speaks of them with equal regard. Furthermore, this rider appears at the start of the Tribulation, whereas Christ appears at the end. What’s more, significant differences appear between this rider and Christ beyond the fact that they sit on a white horse. This rider wears a single victor’s crown (stephanos, Rev 6:2) whereas Christ will wear what appears to be many royal kingly crowns (diadema, Rev 19:12). This rider carries a bow at his side (Rev 6:2), whereas Christ will wield a sword from his mouth (Rev 19:15).
• Some suggest that they are the antichrist, especially since the first one resembles Christ to a limited degree. Still, this interpretation seems unlikely because it would imbue the antichrist with too much power by calling him “Death” and claiming he us able to influence the behavior of animals worldwide (Rev 6:8). It also seems unlikely that all four riders refer to the same person.

Though the antichrist will be a key player in the events these riders and horses portray, the best interpretation of these appearances seems to be that each one personifies (or represents) a key factor or occurrence that will emerge in the earliest parts of the Tribulation, especially the first half. John’s portrayal of Death as one of the horsemen indicates that some kind of personification is at play. It also seems relevant to observe how the dynamics portrayed by these four horsemen resemble the opening events of the Tribulation as Christ taught his disciples (Matt 24:4-8; Mk 13:5-8; Lk 21:8-11).

The First Seal Breaks: Conquest and Peace (Rev 6:1-2)

This seal initiates a period of conquest and peace. John mentions a bow without arrows yet a crown that would have been received through victory. He also describes this rider as engaging in a series of military conquests with the goal of ultimate and complete conquest in mind.

The best way to understand this description seems to be that the Tribulation will begin with a subjugation of nations throughout the world that produces a semblance of widespread unification and peace. This peace will occur primarily through diplomacy and the threat of war rather than outright warfare. This understanding corresponds well with how the antichrist will achieve a short-lived period of peace in the world that will persuade the nation of Israel to coalesce behind him in exchange for peace with other nations.

The Second Seal Breaks: Bloodshed and War (Rev 6:3-4)

This seal initiates a subsequent period of bloodshed and war. Whatever peace the antichrist will have achieved will eventually give way to outbreaks of cruel and violent skirmishes and wars. With the modern advent of chemical and nuclear warfare, it’s possible that such technology will play a key role in these unfortunate developments. The fiery appearance of this horse and the great, fierce dagger given to the rider indicates an especially violent time.

The Third Seal Breaks: Famine and Scarcity (Rev 6:5-6)

This seal initiates a period of famine and scarcity, which naturally follows from the kind of warfare initiated by the previous seal. The black (or dark grey) color of this horse indicates an especially dark time, and the set of balance scales in the rider’s hand indicates the need for rationed supplies and restricted commerce. Though famines have occurred throughout history to various magnitudes, none will have occurred so universally and dramatically as this one when it occurs.

After this sealed opened, John heard a voice speaking from the throne which he seems to distinguish as coming from someone other than the four angelic creatures, so it would most likely be coming from either the Father or the Son. This voice announced the degree of severity this famine would require by using a denarius (the equivalent of one day’s wages), wheat (the primary food of John’s day), and barley (an alternative, lower-grade food in John’s day). Due to severe shortage, people will barely have enough money on average to buy enough food for themselves each day, so to feed more than one person they’ll need to buy lower-grade good to split among their family. The rider is also told, “And do not harm the oil and the wine.” This implies that though most people will face severe hardship, a smaller, wealthy class will continue to enjoy their luxury commodities for a while, accentuating a strong disparity between the wealthy and poor.

The Fourth Seal Breaks: Widespread Death (Rev 6:7-8)

This seal naturally follows the three which have already been broken. The outcome of such flimsy peace, worldwide warfare, and extreme food shortages will be death and the grave (Hades). The pale green color of this horse portrays a pathetic, sickly time and the result of this grim, widespread outlook will be that a 25% of the world’s population will die. If this happened today with the world population hovering around 7.8 million, that would mean nearly 2 billion people would die in a period likely spanning no more than a few months – all this before the halfway point of the Tribulation.

The immediate causes of this widespread death will be fourfold:

• Violent bloodshed (warfare) and famine have already been mentioned, but here they likely refer to more than what has already happened – to even more bloodshed and starvation.
• A third cause will also emerge, which is death by pestilence, which most likely refers to widespread diseases like pandemic outbreaks.
• Then a fourth cause will emerge as well, which is death from wild animals. What this describes is not entirely clear. Perhaps wild animals like tigers and wolves, bears and lions, crocodiles and snakes will move into residential areas and attack higher numbers of people than usual, or perhaps animals like dogs, cats mice, raccoons, squirrels, and so on will spread rabies or other causes of death due to unsanitary conditions and a lack of regular food supply. Then again, maybe all of this will happen and more, we can’t say for sure. Whatever the case, the results will be horrific, death spread rapidly, and the corpses will increase rapidly.

The Final Three Seals

Following these four initial seals, three more seals will be broken by Christ as he opens the scroll from God the Father on the throne:

• The Fifth Seal Breaks: Prayers for Justice
• The Sixth Seal Breaks: Terrestrial and Celestial Disturbance
• The Presentation of Seven Trumpet Judgements

We’ll focus on these three seals in subsequent lessons.

Key Takeaways

As we consider this ominous preview of judgment to come, we should allow these future events to impact the way we live in our present lives today.

Have we placed our faith in Christ as our Redeemer?

This section of Revelation provides a warning to everyone who hears what John has written. The events these seals portray and prophecy will happen and the only thing standing in the way is Christ himself when he returns to retrieve the church through the rapture. Since the rapture may occur very soon, we should prayerfully evaluate whether we have trusted in Christ alone for salvation. Doing so ensures that his death on the cross has removed the guilt of your sins and will also protect you from experiencing the wrath that will come. If you do not trust in Christ for salvation, however, you may end up experiencing God’s wrath for your sins through these coming judgments.

Does this prophecy cause peace and perseverance in our daily lives?

If we’ve followed Christ as our Savior and Lord, then we know that we’re on the right side of history and the future, so we should no longer live in fear and frustration. Learning how Christ will administer God’s justice and wrath on the world in the future should encourage our faith. It should remind us that no matter what happens in this world today or tomorrow, Christ will have the ultimate say. Even when the antichrist emerges onto the scene and establishes what seems to be a widespread peace, this too will be short-lived and will ultimately fail. No matter how greatly we suffer as Christians in this godless world today, we know that what we suffer will never compare to the wrath that is to come. Rather than cower in fear at world events, let’s make it our mission to increase the numbers of the redeemed from all the nations of the world.