The First Seal: The White Horse
Three sets of seven judgments—the seals, trumpets, and...
Three sets of seven judgments—the seals, trumpets, and bowls—form the core of Revelation. Some suggest that the judgments form a chronological sequence from beginning to end, with each set of judgments flowing from the seventh judgment of the previous set for a total of twenty-one successive judgments. More likely, the relationship is cyclical (as in other Jewish apocalyptic works; cp. Dan 2, 7, 8, 11), with each set conveying increasing intensity and adding new details of God’s judgment on those who rebel against him. In this perspective, all three cycles end at the same chronological point, with the return of Christ.
The Lamb breaks the seven seals to reveal...
The Lamb breaks the seven seals to reveal the significance of history from God’s perspective.
The four horses and their riders (see Zech...
The four horses and their riders (see Zech 1:8–11; 6:1–8) sum up the power structures of the world; their activities primarily lead to war, violence, economic imbalance, and death. It is pointless to put our hope in these power structures.
1Then I watched as the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!”
2So I looked and saw a white horse, and its rider held a bow. And he was given a crown, and he rode out to overcome and conquer.
The Second Seal: War
The red horse represents bloody violence on the...
The red horse represents bloody violence on the earth. Although peace was what the Roman Empire promised (the pax Romana), widespread violence was the horrible reality. This rider represents slaughter, including civil upheavals and ethnic cleansing.
3And when the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!”
4Then another horse went forth. It was bright red, and its rider was granted permission to take away peace from the earth and to make men slay one another. And he was given a great sword.
The Third Seal: Famine
The black horse represents economic and social dysfunction,...
The black horse represents economic and social dysfunction, indicated by scales used in commerce. Rampant inflation is shown by the cost of the staples of life: A loaf of wheat bread or three loaves of barley will cost a day’s pay. Yet the prices of luxuries such as oil and wine would remain unchanged. It is an image of social and economic imbalance.
5And when the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!”
Then I looked and saw a black horse, and its rider held in his hand a pair of scales. 6And I heard what sounded like a voice from among 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 wine.”
The Fourth Seal: Death
With the fourth seal comes a ghastly looking...
- With the fourth seal comes a ghastly looking horse. In the ancient world, pale green was the color for depicting a corpse.
- the Grave: Greek Hades. In Greek thought, Hades was the underworld abode of bodiless beings. The Hebrew idea of Sheol, the place of the dead (1 Sam 28:15), was similar.
- The killing of one-fourth of those on earth indicates that the final judgment has not yet arrived (contrast Rev 6:16–17).
- This fourfold set of woes (sword and famine and disease and wild animals; cp. Ezek 14:21) summarizes the tragedies of earthly existence. The world cannot offer hope to humanity.
7And when the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!”
8Then I looked and saw a pale green horse. Its rider’s name was Death, and Hades followed close behind. And they were given authority over a fourth of the earth, to kill by sword, by famine, by plague, and by the beasts of the earth.
The Fifth Seal: The Martyrs
In counterpoint to the world’s destructive ways (6:1–8),...
In counterpoint to the world’s destructive ways (6:1–8), the fifth seal introduces Christian martyrs who ask how God intends to deal with evil.
9And when the Lamb opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony they had upheld. 10And they cried out in a loud voice, “How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge those who dwell upon the earth and avenge our blood?”
11Then each of them was given a white robe and told to rest a little while longer until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers, were killed, just as they had been killed.
The Sixth Seal: Terror
These cataclysmic signs are associated in Scripture with...
These cataclysmic signs are associated in Scripture with the day of the Lord, when God’s judgment will overturn the whole created order (see Isa 13:4–12; 34:1–4; Joel 2:1–32; Zeph 2:1–3; Mark 13:1–37).
The opening of the sixth seal offers a...
The opening of the sixth seal offers a glimpse into the end of the created order.
12And I watched as the Lamb opened the sixth seal, and there was a great earthquake, and the sun became black like sackcloth of goat hair, and the whole moon turned blood red, 13and the stars of the sky fell to the earth like unripe figs dropping from a tree shaken by a great wind. 14The sky receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved from its place.
hid themselves: In the face of God’s judgment,...
- hid themselves: In the face of God’s judgment, unredeemed people will be terrified and seek a safe hiding place, but in vain (Isa 2:19–21; Ezek 38:20; Hos 10:8; Luke 23:30). The prophets repeatedly warned that the great day would be a day of wrath and judgment (Isa 13:6–11; Joel 1:15; Amos 5:18; Zeph 1:14–15).
- The ultimate question concerning God’s judgment is, who is able to survive? (Mal 3:2). God’s children will rejoice to see him (Rev 5:13–14; 14:3–5) because they understand God’s response to the martyrs’ cry for vengeance (6:9–11), and they themselves have nothing to fear from God’s judgment (Acts 10:34–36; Rom 5:1–2). Those who have persecuted God’s people, however, will quake in fear as they face the wrath of the Lamb.
15Then the kings of the earth, the nobles, the commanders, the rich, the mighty, and every slave and free man hid in the caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16And they said to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us† from the face of the One seated on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb. 17For the great day of Their† wrath has come, and who is able to withstand it?”