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Four Horsemen of
the Apocalypse
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The Four
Horsemen of the Apocalypse
comes from the Apostle John’s book known as
“Revelation”.
Specifically, John is reporting the horrors
of the Great Tribulation period; The Apocalypse.
(Apocalypse
means the un-veiling or revelation) - It starts like a lamb, but finishes
like a lion.
This is not the end of the world, but is
seven years before the first stages of Armageddon.
The
tribulation period is about Israel with the rest of the nations secondary.
Olivet Discourse
·
I
would be amiss if I didn’t mention the teaching that occurred on the Mount of
Olives with Jesus and his disciples.
Jesus had spoken about the end times and the disciples asked when all
this stuff would cut loose.
·
The
Olivet discourse of Jesus falls into three periods of time in the
FUTURE.
1. Pre-Tribulation – The beginning of the birth pains - The time of the False Christ –
The rise of False Prophets - wars – rumors of wars – earthquakes.
2. The Tribulations - The time of Great Distress - Death - famines - pestilence,
3. Post-Tribulation - The time affecting the Heavens – sun - moon - stars.
·
This
study covers only the first period and half of the second period. - If you desire to know about the third
period, you can read it on NYOBS 07.02 ESCHATOLOGY; about 200 pages
·
All
four horsemen are instruments of judgment on the unbelievers in Israel –Testing
their faith - Separating the chaff from the wheat; the non-believers from the Believers.
Revelation 1:19 – Things which will take place in the FUTURE
19 Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this. (NKJV)
19 Write the things which you have seen, and the things which are, and the things which will take place after this. (NKJV)
Luke 3:17 - Separate the
chaff from the wheat
17 He is ready to separate the chaff from the wheat with his winnowing fork. Then he will clean up the threshing area, gathering the wheat into his barn but burning the chaff with never-ending fire.” (NLT)
17 He is ready to separate the chaff from the wheat with his winnowing fork. Then he will clean up the threshing area, gathering the wheat into his barn but burning the chaff with never-ending fire.” (NLT)
Matthew 24:5 – First Period Discourse - False
Messiah
5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. (NIV2011)
5 For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. (NIV2011)
Matthew 24:21 – Second Period Discourse - Great
Distress
21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. (NIV2011)
21 For then there will be great distress, unequaled from the beginning of the world until now—and never to be equaled again. (NIV2011)
Matthew 24:29 – Third Period Discourse - Sun –
Moon - Stars
29 “Immediately after the distress of those days “‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ (NIV2011)
29 “Immediately after the distress of those days “‘the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light; the stars will fall from the sky, and the heavenly bodies will be shaken.’ (NIV2011)
Background
·
John the Revelator is in prison on the Island
of Patmos and has a vision. - He has
been caught up to Heaven and a book is there that has seven seals on it. (Just
for fun, in scripture then number seven means completeness.) – There is
some discussion in Heaven about who is worthy to open the book and with
sadness, none was found worthy.
·
I need to stop here and explain that the book
has seven seals that are opened one at a time with each one letting loose
plagues and horrors.
·
But
the interesting part is that the Seventh
Seal contains Seven Trumpets
that will sound and the Seventh Trumpet contains Seven Bowls that will be poured out.
·
The Seals are filled with horror; the Trumpets are filled with exactly
the same thing, but with more of it and the
Bowls are also filled with the same thing, but with more intensity.
- Imagine the 7th
seal is like fireworks; like shooting a sky rocket into the air, then
seven more burst out from that rocket (Trumpets), then seven more
burst from each of those (Bowls)
- Everything speeds up
like a trip hammer. Bam, bam, bam, bam,
bam, bam, bam. In other words, the tribulation period starts
off pretty bad, then it get progressively worse.- NYOBS 07.02 ESCHATOLOGY
·
The First Four Seals being opened is where we
get the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. You can think of them as a TEAM of FOUR strong
horses pulling a hearse named HELL
that is swallowing up the SPIRIT SOULS of the dead as it heads toward Hades.
The Book
·
John
sees a scroll or book with seven seals that contains the destiny of mankind,
but there seems to be no one that can open it, but at some point the LION from
the tribe of Judah; Jesus Christ the LAMB of God comes forth to open the book and
that’s where we pick up the story. – The story starts off like a lamb, but
finishes like a lion.
·
Important - Jesus and the plan of salvation had already been
revealed, but no one; neither Angels, Men nor Demons knew what was to be revealed
in the book; only God knew.
Revelation 5:3 – No one had ever looked inside the
book
3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. (NIV2011)
3 But no one in heaven or on earth or under the earth could open the scroll or even look inside it. (NIV2011)
Revelation 5:5 – LION of the Tribe of Judah is
able to open it
5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” (NIV2011)
5 Then one of the elders said to me, “Do not weep! See, the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Root of David, has triumphed. He is able to open the scroll and its seven seals.” (NIV2011)
Revelation 5:6-7 – The LAMB of God took the book
6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.
7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. (NIV2011)
6 Then I saw a Lamb, looking as if it had been slain, standing at the center of the throne, encircled by the four living creatures and the elders. The Lamb had seven horns and seven eyes, which are the seven spirits of God sent out into all the earth.
7 He went and took the scroll from the right hand of him who sat on the throne. (NIV2011)
Prophecy
- NOTE: The first four seals or Four Horsemen of the apocalypse
are in the same order as Jesus predicted concerning the beginning
of the tribulation period.
- The
color
of each horse answers to the mission of its rider.
- Read below what Jesus Himself said about the
earth before His second coming, as well as the Prophet Ezekiel. – War –
Earthquakes – Famines – Pestilence – Great fearful evens and signs in the
heavens.
Matt 24:5-8 Jesus Prophesying in the SAME ORDER
5 For many shall come in my name, saying, I am
Christ; (White Horse) and shall deceive many.
6 And ye shall hear of wars and rumors of war: 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 (Red Horse): and there shall be famines (Black
Horse), and pestilences (Pale Horse), and earthquakes, in divers’
places.
8 All these are the beginning of sorrows.
KJV
Luke 21:10- - War – Nation
against Nation
10 Then he said to them:
"Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. NIV
Luke 21:11 –
Earthquakes - Famines – Pestilences – Fearful Events
11 There will be great
earthquakes, famines and pestilences in various places, and fearful
events and great signs from heaven. NIV
Matt 24:28 –
The vultures will eat the carcasses
28 Wherever there is a
carcass, there the vultures will gather.
NIV
Ezek
39:17-21 – Every Bird & Animal – Eat flesh and drink blood
17 "Son of man, this
is what the Sovereign LORD says: Call out to every kind of bird and all
the wild animals: `Assemble and come together from all around to the
sacrifice I am preparing for you, the great sacrifice on the mountains of
Israel. There you will eat flesh and drink blood.
18 You will eat the
flesh of mighty men and drink the blood of the princes of the earth
as if they were rams and lambs, goats and bulls-all of them fattened animals
from Bashan.
19 At the sacrifice
I am preparing for you, you will eat fat till you are glutted and drink
blood till you are drunk.
20 At my table you will
eat your fill of horses and riders, mighty men and soldiers of every kind,'
declares the Sovereign LORD.
21 "I will display my
glory among the nations, and all the nations will see the punishment I inflict
and the hand I lay on them.
NIV
Ezek 14:21 –
Sword – Famine – Wild Beast - Pestilence
21 For thus saith the Lord
GOD; How much more when I send my FOUR sore JUDGMENTS upon Jerusalem,
the sword, and the famine, and the noisome beast, and the pestilence,
to cut off from it man and beast? KJV
Side Bar
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As
the earthquakes progress, it will become so dark that you can FEEL the darkness.
Joel 3:15 – Sun, moon and stars will be darkened
15 The sun and moon
will be darkened, and the stars no longer shine. NIV
Ex 10:21 – Darkness that can be felt
21 "Stretch out your
hand toward the sky so that darkness will spread over Egypt--darkness that
can be felt." NIV
First Seal – First Horseman -
White
·
For your information – Nowhere in the book of
Revelation is the Church pictured as being involved in the tribulation
struggle. They are obviously missing in
the scenes that describe the end times on earth. - They are gone – Raptured. - NYOBS 01.23 RAPTURE
·
Note –
As of today, nothing else prophesied in scripture has to happen before the
Rapture can occur. - It can be today. – God in His mercy has delayed it
for somebody.
- The First Seal will be opened
immediately after the Rapture when Christ returns to the Father with the
Saints and The Holy Spirit,
thus removing the restraining force on Satan.
·
John
sees the Lamb or Jesus Christ open the first of the Seven Seals and one of the
four living creature’s voice thunders out one word; “COME”. – The first seal has been broken.
·
A White Horse comes forth and its rider
has a bow, but he has no arrows.
He is “given” a conqueror’s crown and rides out bent on conquest.
·
Who is the rider? - I should note that
many commentaries believe that because of the White Horse and the crown,
that the rider is Jesus Christ charging forth with the gospel of truth conquering
the foes of God; BUT IT IS NOT, we have already been
warned in scripture about the coming
of False Christs.
·
Jesus
Christ is the one opening the seals of the book and revealing what’s behind
them. – Since these are things that have not yet been reveled before, it cannot
be Christ, who is already revealed. - Furthermore, the first rider cannot be Christ
because Chronologically, Christ comes “to the earth” at the end of the
Tribulation period. – The Rider pretends
to be Christ; he is an imitation of Christ; an imposter seeking
to be a World Dictator.
·
The Crown “given to him” is Sovereign
Permission to carry out his acts and is symbolic of his rise to power - This
is actually the rise of the false Christ; the Anti-Christ who will head up the Revived Roman Empire
and will ultimately become the World Ruler. – He is the pseudo “Prince of
Peace” who will bring order to a trouble world.
·
The
absence of arrows mentioned in scripture pretty much indicates that
during the tribulation period, he will conquer without bloodshed and without
war.
·
His rise and notability will come through peace
negotiations and through the power of politics as well as through the power of
the operation of Satan.
·
He
will probably be the recipient of the Nobel
Peace Prize. – He will present his wares like we are entering the PEACE
of the “Millennium” when we are actually entering the horrors of the Great
Tribulations. - He is a phony – Peace will not come PERMANENTLY to the earth until
the return of Jesus Christ.
·
He
will provide safety with a TEMPORARY, counterfeit, false Peace, becoming
the world ruler or world dictator; but Deception, Destruction and
Devastation is on the way.
·
He
will prosper and display counterfeit miracles, signs and
wonders and be of fierce countenance, and understanding; his power
will be mighty. - NYOBS 07.032 – ESCHATOLOGY
·
We
will not know the name of this Antichrist rider until 3 ½ years into the
tribulations
·
He will be the catalyst of
what follows with the next three seals or horsemen.
Revelation 6:1 – The Lamb; Jesus Christ opens the
First Seal
1 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!” (NIV2011)
1 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!” (NIV2011)
Revelation 6:2 – The White Horse with a conqueror
riding on it.
2 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. (NIV2011)
2 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. (NIV2011)
Matt 24:4-5 - He will come
claiming he is the Christ
4 Jesus answered: "Watch out that no one
deceives you.
5 For many will come in my name, claiming, `I
am the Christ,' and will deceive many.
NIV
Daniel 9:26 – The Anti-Christ - The prince who is to come
26 "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined. (NKJV)
26 "And after the sixty-two weeks Messiah shall be cut off, but not for Himself; and the people of the prince who is to come Shall destroy the city and the sanctuary. The end of it shall be with a flood, and till the end of the war desolations are determined. (NKJV)
Dan 8:23 – He will be of
fierce countenance and power
23 And in the latter time of their kingdom, when
the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance,
and understanding dark sentences, shall stand up. KJV
Dan 8:24-25 – Deception –
Destruction - Devastation
24 He will become very strong, but not
by his own power. He will cause astounding devastation and will
succeed in whatever he does. He will destroy the mighty men and the
holy people.
25 He will cause deceit to prosper, and he
will consider himself superior. When they feel secure, he will destroy
many and take his stand against the Prince of princes. Yet he will be
destroyed, but not by human power. NIV
Dan 9:27 – He will make a
false peace covenant
27 He will confirm a covenant with many for
one `seven.' In the middle of the `seven' he will put an end to sacrifice and offering.
And on a wing [of the temple] he will set up an abomination that causes
desolation, until the end that is decreed is poured out on him." NIV
1 Thess 5:3 – He will say
peace, but bring destruction
3 While people are saying, "Peace and
safety," destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains
on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape. NIV
Isaiah 57:21 – There is no peace to the wicked
21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. (ASV)
21 There is no peace, saith my God, to the wicked. (ASV)
Dan 11:37-38 – He will
exalt himself and not regard any god
37 He will show no regard for the gods of his
fathers or for the one desired by women, nor will he regard any god, but
will exalt himself above them all.
38 Instead of them, he will honor a god of
fortresses; a god unknown to his fathers he will honor with gold and
silver, with precious stones and costly gifts NIV
2 Thess 2:8-9 – Display
counterfeit miracles, signs and wonders
8 And then the lawless one will be revealed,
whom the Lord Jesus will overthrow with the breath of his mouth and destroy by
the splendor of his coming.
9 The coming of the lawless one will be in
accordance with the work of Satan displayed in all kinds of counterfeit
miracles, signs and wonders, NIV
Welcome to the Knight riding
on the White Horse
- If our nation gets
into unthinkable debt, deep recession and depression, no social security,
or health insurance, joblessness, can’t buy or sell, people stealing just
to eat, war upon war.… In our despair, wouldn’t we welcome a knight riding in on a White Horse who would save us, bring peace and give us a special numbered VISA card (666) so we could buy and sell.
- Did you know that Executive
order #11921 and #11490 gives
the President Emergency Power without
the approval of congress to freeze bank accounts; – control money and
credit - control food supplies – transportation – communication and
utilities? He can confiscate
“excess” or “surplus” personal property – ration the output of industry –
shut down schools and take possession of buildings for government use.
- How about a president, not for a four or eight year term;
but for life. - A “Dictator”, who comes on a white
horse; conquering nations through peace just long enough till his
buddy “WAR” on the Red Horse is
let out of the corral to do his bidding
- The Antichrist will
come from the European Union or a country or confederation that was once
part of the
- The Antichrist will
push for a New World Order, a One World Currency, and a One World Religion, which is
nothing new. This goes back to the time of Nimrod and the Tower of Babel when he tried the
same thing. - NYOBS 18.10 - TOWER OF BABEL
- He will be about 30
years of age; about the same age as Christ when he comes on the scene just
after the Rapture.
Gen 11:1-4 – One World Religion and Language
1 Now the whole world had ONE
language and a common speech NIV
4 Then they said,
"Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the
heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be
scattered over the face of the whole earth."
Show me your way
- With
the exception of the identity of the rider of the white horse who
is actually the antichrist and not Jesus, it is straight from the word of
God. You should be able to hear it
on the internet. - The album is “Show me Your Way”. It WILL touch you. I promise… play it loud
Second Seal – Second Horseman
– Red
- The Second Seal is opened and the
Second Horseman comes forth on a Red horse having a “large” sword which
is symbolic of the large number of people he will kill – It signifies that
he has been given power to take peace from the world. – War is a
dreadful judgment.
- Both
Red and the sword are symbolic of war. - Nation
against Nation - Possibly nuclear warfare. - Note: Red is associated with blood, death, slaughter
and terror: The Red Horse of War in Rev 6:4; The Red Dragon
in Rev 12:3, and The Red Beast in Rev 17:3
- The Rider of this Second horse,
according to some commentaries seems to be the False Prophet who
emerges at the same time as the Anti-Christ.
- Authority is given to the
rider to take Peace from the world
as part of God’s Divine plan for men to violently kill one another - War
is fought in countries that have not seen war on their own soil.
Rev 6:3-4 – Red horse and the rider had the power to take
peace
3 When the Lamb opened the
second seal, I heard the second living creature say, "Come!"
4 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.
NIV
Nah 2:3 – Red - soldiers shields of War
3 The shields of his
soldiers are RED; the warriors are clad in scarlet.
NIV
Josh 10:28 – Sword of Destruction
28 That day Joshua took
Makkedah. He put the city and its king to the SWORD and totally destroyed
everyone in it. He left no survivors. NIV
Matt 24:6-8 - Wars & rumors
of wars - Famines & Earthquakes
6 You will hear of wars
and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things
must happen, but the end is still to come.
7 Nation will rise
against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines
and earthquakes in various places.
8 All these are the
beginning of birth pains. NIV
Third Seal – Third Horseman –
Black
- The Third Seal is opened and the Third
Horseman comes forth on a Black horse having a set of scales
in his hand.
- Black is the symbol of mourning,
suffering, poverty and famine. - There is worldwide
economic collapse; a financial catastrophe. – The rain will be withheld;
the sun will scorch the land and men; the ground will dry up and form
cracks. It will be so dry that your
tongue will stick to the roof of your mouth.
- The scales are symbolic of
measurement during famine. – There
will be inflation with food prices souring to about 12 times higher than
normal. - A denarius would be
about a penny, a day’s wage, and would buy only ONE MEAL of quality Wheat,
or you could get three meals of cheaper Barley for the same wage,
but still no money left over for any other essentials.
- Barley produced a black bread
which was eaten by the slaves and the very poor. You would have to share
whatever you did get with your family.
- Paradox; The Famine of bread
is a terrible judgment, but how much more so is the judgment
of the Famine of the bread of life; God’s word. – SELAH, ponder that.
- The Ephah was a unit of dry
measurement – It was found on medallions and was a symbol of
commerce. The medallion had a two
winged woman holding the Ephah and a balance
scale. It is symbolic of the
satanic world system.
- Restrictions - The rider of the
black horse has some restrictions - The oil and the wine cannot be touched
allowing only the wealthy to still enjoy its luxuries. It can be made into beauty aids, toiletries
and the badly needed skin lotions and ointments for the sun
scorched bodies, but the middle class common man and the poor will just
not be able to afford them.
- NOTE: The third seal is “Limited Judgment” - This is a partial drought, not as bad as it’s going to get. - As we move through the Seals to the Trumpets and Bowls, the drought gets worse and worse. - The olive and grape vines need no cultivation for them to thrive, but I don’t know for how long without water.
Rev 6:5-6 – Black horse – The rider has a set of scales
5 When the Lamb opened the
third seal, I heard the third living creature say, "Come!"
I looked, and there before me was a BLACK horse! Its rider was holding a
pair of scales in his hand.
6 Then I heard 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!"
Jeremiah 4:28 – Black is symbolic of mourning
28 For this shall the earth MOURN, And the heavens above be BLACK, Because I have spoken. I have purposed and will not relent, Nor will I turn back from it. (NKJV)
28 For this shall the earth MOURN, And the heavens above be BLACK, Because I have spoken. I have purposed and will not relent, Nor will I turn back from it. (NKJV)
Lamentations 4:8 – Black; their skin has shriveled on their bones
8 But now they are blacker than soot; they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin has shriveled on their bones; it has become as dry as a stick. (NIV2011)
8 But now they are blacker than soot; they are not recognized in the streets. Their skin has shriveled on their bones; it has become as dry as a stick. (NIV2011)
Matthew 20:2 - A day’s
pay - A denarius – A penny
2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. (NIV2011)
2 He agreed to pay them a denarius for the day and sent them into his vineyard. (NIV2011)
Hos 2:8-9 – There will be
famine – I will take away the grain
8 She has not acknowledged
that I was the one who gave her the grain,
9 "Therefore I
will take away my grain when it ripens, NIV
Lam 5:10 – The heat will scorch the land and man
10 Our skin was black
like an oven because of the terrible famine. KJV
Jer 14:4 – The ground will crack because of lack of rain
4 The ground is cracked
because there is no rain in the land; the farmers are dismayed and cover
their heads. NIV
Lam 5:10 – Bodies will be hot with fever and hunger
10 Our skin is hot as
an oven, feverish from hunger. NIV
Lam 4:4 - Your tongue will stick to the roof of your mouth
4 The tongue of the sucking child cleaves to
the roof of his mouth for thirst: the young children ask for bread, and no
man break it unto them. KJV
Fourth Seal – Fourth Horseman
– Pale greenish yellow
·
The Fourth Seal is opened and the Fourth
Horseman comes forth on a Pale horse (greenish) having power to KILL a
fourth of the earth by Human Violence, by famine, by plague
and by wild breast.
·
The name of the rider is
Death
– This is the king of terrors - Worldwide death comes through famine, hunger,
disease, epidemics, pestilence and civil violence. - Starving animals roam the
streets and attack men.
- The skin, when a pale greenish yellow color is
symbolic of sickness and death and is suggestive of a physically sick person
with a deadly fever. - This Greenish yellow color suggest perhaps an
epidemic of leprosy. - Sickness
of this magnitude is referred to as a plague such as Malaria, Cholera and
AIDS which are deadly.
- With one fourth of
the population sick, there won’t be enough medicine to treat them ALL.
- Some plagues today
are even given COLOR names; Smallpox (The
Red Death), Bubonic Plague (The
Black Death), Tuberculosis (The
White Death).
- The Worst Plague - History verifies
that when you have drought, famine and death, it propagates disease. Fleas from diseased rats seek out warm
human bodies and transmit to them the Bubonic Plague.
- The Second Worst Plague - Diseases become
progressively more and more sophisticated; today we have AIDS, and at this
writing there is no cure; you will die. – When we find the cure for AIDS
there will be a worst more sophisticated disease right behind it. - NYOBS 02.02 – HOMOSEXUALITY – NYOBS 18.05
– SAME SEX MARRIAGE
- The Invisible Plague – Poverty is as much
a natural disaster as any plague.
If you don’t have any money, you can’t buy food – That brings us up
to the MARK OF THE BEAST, if you want to buy or sell, you must have HIS
MARK; or starve.
Rev 6:7-8 – Human Violence
– famine – plagues - pestilence
7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I
heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, "Come!"
8 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.
NIV
Revelation 13:17- NO Mark – NO Food
17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
17 so that they could not buy or sell unless they had the mark, which is the name of the beast or the number of its name.
(NIV2011)
The First Four Seals
- The Four Horsemen - The First horse
marks conquests, the next three mark civil wars, scarcity and mortality. -
War gives birth to a wasting calamity which draws scarcity and famine;
that draws pestilence and sickness; followed by death and sorrow; a
vicious whirlpool. – When we are at our weakest and all seems to be at its
worst; brutish, cruel savage men depopulate the world by the sword in
order to GET what you have and then the beast of the field are
unleashed on the easy prey bringing on more sore judgment. – SELAH
- The Prophet Ezekiel prophesized about the
FOUR Horsemen of the Apocalypse hundreds of years before John the
Revelator had his vision of the end times.
- All this occurs in
the first 3 ½ years of the tribulation period which also includes the 5th
and 6th seal. – The 144,000 witness’ are sealed between the 6th
and 7th seal; this kicks off the second half of the Tribulation
with the opening of the 7th seal.
·
In the last 3 ½ years of the Tribulation period, unprecedented trouble
comes on Israel as they move from being protected from their enemies to
being persecuted by their enemies.
- Eventually, Russia
and its allies will invade the Middle East and finally attack Israel. The battle will escalate until it
involves all the major powers on earth and after the tribulation period it
finally becomes the greatest battle in history; The Battle of Armageddon. –
NYOBS 22.02 ARMAGEDDON
Ezekiel 14:21- Prophecy – war, famine, wild
animals and disease
21 “Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: How terrible it will be when all FOUR of these dreadful punishments fall upon Jerusalem—war, famine, wild animals, and disease—destroying all her people and animals. (NLT)
21 “Now this is what the Sovereign LORD says: How terrible it will be when all FOUR of these dreadful punishments fall upon Jerusalem—war, famine, wild animals, and disease—destroying all her people and animals. (NLT)
Fifth
Horseman - Hades
- I actually feel like there are FIVE horsemen of the Apocalypse
- The
name of the fifth horseman is Hades, the Grim Reaper. -
Since Hades is now also present, you can bet that the majority of those
killed are the unrighteous.
- As the fourth horseman Death was claiming their body; Hades the fifth horseman followed
right behind, swallowing up “Death’s” victims, claiming their
souls; their spirits.- GOOD GRIEF
- As of 2013, there were 7,172,000,000,000 people in the world. -
Using that number and accepting that the saved have already been
“raptured”; a fourth of them, 1,793,000,000 people will be
killed. – That’s 1.8 Billion dead carcasses not including the wildlife.
- Now don’t get too mathematical with me here,
but just run with the concept of the staggering number of dead carcass’s
that God feeds to the birds and wild animals.
- THIS IS NOT EVEN THE FINAL BATTLE OF
ARMAGEDDON.
- The four horsemen ride throughout the entire
tribulation period with escalated activity.
- If the fourth of the population that’s killed
is confined to a specific area instead of being spread over the world,
then the results will be catastrophic, staggering with maybe no survivors
at all.
- World
War III
takes place shortly just after the rapture; if you will just open your
eyes you can see the clouds are already gathering.
- Death
Vacation
- At some point later on, Death takes a five month holiday. The
torment is so intense that men will wish they could die; BUT CAN’T.
Luke 16:23 Hades, a place
for the lost
23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. (NIV2011)
23 In Hades, where he was in torment, he looked up and saw Abraham far away, with Lazarus by his side. (NIV2011)
Rev 9:5 - Men will beg for DEATH but it will elude them 5
months
5 They were not given
power to kill them, but only to torture
them for five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of
the sting of a scorpion when it strikes a man.
6 During those days men
will seek death, but will not find it; they will long to die, but DEATH WILL
ELUDE THEM.
Here’s where we are
·
The rapture has taken
place
– The church and the restraining
force of the Holy Spirit are no longer on earth. - The False Prophet
and Antichrist are already on the scene deceiving the nations.
·
The seven years of the Great Tribulation
period has just begun. - Jesus opens the
first four seals on the apocalyptic book and the Four Horsemen are cut loose to
do wreak havoc on the earth and man.
·
The First Horseman is
the Antichrist and comes on a White
Horse pretending to be the Messiah and will gain his power through politics and
peace negations in order to fool the world.
·
The Second Horseman is War and comes
on a Red Horse and has been given
power to take peace from the world.
·
The Third Horseman is Famine and comes
on a Black Horse bringing suffering,
and famine and worldwide economic collapse. - The rain will be withheld,
the sun will scorch man and the land will dry up and form cracks.
·
The Fourth Horseman is Death and comes
on a Pale greenish horse to KILL a
fourth of the earth. There will be
worldwide death through famines, hunger, disease, epidemics, pestilence and
civil violence. - Starving animals will roam the streets and attack men.
·
The Fifth Horseman is HADES and
follows the fourth horseman DEATH, taking the souls of the dead to HELL.
·
There are three more seals with the 144,000
witnesses being sealed between the 6th and seventh seal, but all
that is another Word study. NYOBS 35.16 – 144,000 THE MARK
·
This brings us up to the
closing thoughts
- Will you go through the period of the Great Tribulation or has God already
marked you as His, and you are slated for the Rapture. - If serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then
choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my
household, we will serve the LORD
Joshua 24:15 – As for me
and my house, we will serve the Lord
15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (NIV2011)
15 But if serving the LORD seems undesirable to you, then choose for yourselves this day whom you will serve…But as for me and my household, we will serve the LORD.” (NIV2011)
In the multitude of counselors,
there is wisdom.
Prov 11:14
I
am grateful to those that went before me providing concepts, ideas, historical
information, and scripture verses.
Because of them I can stand on their shoulders and see further that I
otherwise ever could have.
A Commentary - Eerdmans
A Planned Deception – Constance Cumbey
Another Gospel – Tucker
Baker Commentary on the
Bible – Walter A. Elwell
Bethel Baptist Church – Forrest L. Keener
Bible Commentary – F.B.Meyer
Book of Bible Lists – Meredith’s
Dake’s annotated Reference Bible – Finis Dake
Expositor’s Bible
Commentary; The – Frank El Gaebelein
Great Doctrines of the
Bible – W.A. Criswell
Matthew Henry’s Commentary - Zondervan
Message Bible; The – MSG
New American Standard
Bible - NASB
New International Version
Bible – NIV
New Living Translation
Bible – NLT\
Revelation – Peter Lorie
Revelation Expounded – Finis Dake
Revelation of Jesus
Christ; The - Walvoord
Thru the Bible – J. Vernon McGee
Vincent’s Word Studies of
the NT - MacDonald
Wikipedia
Wycliffe Bible Commentary;
The – Charles F. Pfeiffer
