The Four Horsemen

Revelation 6:1–8 KJV (WS)

And I saw when the Lamb opened one 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. 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. 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 balances in his hand. And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts 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. 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, and with the beasts of the earth.

Revelation Ch6 is a shock and awe.  

In the past two chapters, we have been allowed to witness scenes of heavenly worship.  

In this passage, we are going to see images of heavenly wrath, a huge change from the praise and shouting.  

We are about to examine a scene filled with pain and suffering.   In chapters four and five, we have been seated in “heavenly places” observing “scenes of joy”.  In chapter six, we are brought down to “earthly places” to observe “scenes of judgment.”

      Beginning in chapter six all the way through chapter nineteen, we are placed in the middle of “Tribulation Period”, or the time known as the “Great Tribulation”.  

This period of 7 years is broken down into two parts, with each portion lasting 3 ½ years.

This period of time is clearly described in the Word of God.

Daniel 12:1, “And at that time shall Michael stand up, the great prince which standeth for the children of thy people: and there shall be a time of trouble, such as never was since there was a nation even to that same time: and at that time thy people shall be delivered, every one that shall be found written in the book.”

Jeremiah 30:7, “Alas! for that day is great, so that none is like it: it is even the time of Jacob's trouble; but he shall be saved out of it.”

Matthew 24:21-22, “For then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be.  And except those days should be shortened, there should no flesh be saved: ….”

      In this passage, the seven seals on the book in the hand of the Lord Jesus begin to be broken, one by one.  As the seals are opened, a series of divine judgment is poured out upon the earth and those who dwell on the earth.  

The four seals that we will consider in this message describe events that will take place during the first 3 ½ year portion of the Tribulation.      

We are told in verse one that when the Lamb opens the first seal, there was “the noise of thunder” in Heaven.  Just as thunder signals the approach of a storm, this heavenly thunder indicates that a storm is about to be unleashed upon this world …

I. THE WHITE HORSE

There are some similarities between these verses and those in Rev. 19:11-16 describing Jesus.  While there are some similarities, there are many more differences.  

The man on this horse is not the Christ, he is the Antichrist! 

There are several reasons why this man cannot be Jesus.

· It is Jesus Who is breaking the seals, Rev. 6:1.  How can Jesus be in Heaven opening the seals and riding this white horse at the same time?

· This rider wears a “crown”; Jesus wears “many crowns”. 

· This rider wears a “stephanos”, a victor’s crown.  His crown is a prize.  

Jesus wears many “diadems”, the many crowns of the King of Kings.

· His crown “given unto him”.  This man was appointed a king be men.  

Jesus wears His crowns because of Who He is, not what He has done.  He is the King of Kings by birthright. Jesus is not given a crown, He “gives” crowns, Rev. 2:10.

· This rider carries a “bow”.  Jesus carries a “sword”, Rev. 19:15.

· The similarities between this rider and the Lord Jesus indicate that this man is the Antichrist.  We will learn more about him as our study progresses.  For now, it is important to note that he is not Jesus Christ.

Now, we know who this man is not; now let’s see what we can find about who he is.

A.  Notice that he has a “bow” but no arrows.  

This implies that he will conquer the world without bloodshed.  

He will accomplish this by providing the answer to the problems faced by the world today.

            He comes on a white horse, bringing a promise of peace.  When the Antichrist comes, he will come with the solutions for the world’s problems.  He will come with an explanation concerning the disappearance of all the Christians.  He will come with a plan to bring peace to this world.  When he comes, the world will fall at his feet and honor him as their ruler.

            He comes as a Savior to a world desperate.  Our world is in a state of turmoil, and things are only going to get worse.  

When the Antichrist comes, he will have the solution to the problem and he will establish a peace plan that will satisfy the world, Dan. 9:27.)

B.  “he went forth conquering, and to conquer”.  We are also told that “a crown was given to him”.  By whatever means he uses, the Antichrist will be given the key to the world.  The leaders of the nations of earth will bow at this man’s feet and grant him the right to rule over the entire world.  They have denied this right to the King of Kings.  They have denied it to the Savior of men.  They have denied it to the Son of God.  But, they will grant that privilege to this Antichrist .

C.  The Antichrist Isn't As He First Appears. 

He comes riding a white horse. He comes as the good guy.  He comes portraying himself as a man of peace.  He will come promising peace, safety and prosperity; but he will be the most evil, dictatorial ruler the world has ever seen.

Just look at what Hitler did prior to WWII.  Hitler had outlined in detail his plans for conquest in his book Mein(mine) Kampf,(cump-f) or my fight…he told about his plan, exterminate the Jews, and make a new Germany …yet no one believed him until he invaded Polan

II.  THE RED HORSE

Red is the color of fire and of blood.  This seal unleashes a time of war such as the world has never known.)

A.  Broken Peace – The peace instituted by the Antichrist will be short lived.  

War breaks out all over the world.  

Of course, this is what Jesus said would happen during the Tribulation, Matt. 24:6-7.  

Matthew 24:6-7 And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: 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: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.

He also warns men about putting too much stock in the cries of peace 

1 Thessalonians 5:3  For when they shall say, Peace and safety; then sudden destruction cometh upon them, as travail upon a woman with child; and they shall not escape.

      Can you imagine a world that knows no peace at all? In every corner of the globe, violence and war will rage.  That is the world that every lost sinner will face during the Tribulation.

B.  This rider is given a “great sword”.  

The word “great” refers to the extent of the warfare.  It will be worldwide in its scope.  

The word “sword” refers to the short swords carried by Roman soldiers.  

Used in hand to hand combat ….the enemy put to death, it was up close and bloody

When Antichrist first steps onto the world stage, he will be hailed as a man of peace.  But, after he is given the reigns of power, he displays his true colors.  he will demand absolute power.  

When this happens, many countries may rebel and the world will experience war on a scale that it has never before witnessed.

      Ill. During WWII some 50 million people died world wide.  That number will fall far short of the billions who will die during the wars that will rage during this period of time.

      It is during this period that the army from the north maybe Russia and her allies will invade Israel in fulfillment of Eze. 38-39.  

Their army will be defeated by divine intervention, and Israel will burn the weapons of warfare for 7 years, Eze. 39:9-10.  

The conflicts will not end here, however, the wars spawned by Antichrist will rage, one after the other, until Jesus, the Prince of Peace returns in power and glory!

  Imagine a world consumed by war.  Nations will fight against nation.  Race wars, class wars and religious wars will abound.  Peace will be elusive for everyone everywhere!  The world is ripe for war today!

      Add to that the fact that there will be no mothers, no fathers, and no churches praying for the soldiers in the wars.  There will be no preachers taking the Gospel to men dying in fox holes.  This will be a time of war fought without God, without Jesus and without hope.  Every soldier killed in every conflict in that shattered world will leave a world in tribulation to spend eternity in Hell.

III. THE BLACK HORSE

Famine often follows in the aftermath of war.  Thus, worldwide wars will spawn worldwide famines.  Jesus spoke of this in Matthew 24:7.

A.  Famine brings Shortages – The rider has in his hands a set of scales.  

This indicates that the Tribulation Period will be marked by severe shortages.  

Apparently, the famines will be so severe that food and other basic necessities will have to be rationed just like in WW2

      We know nothing about that in our day!  We can go to a grocery store or to a restaurant and buy all the food we can eat.  Our cabinets, our refrigerators and our freezers are filled to capacity.  We know nothing about having to do with out or about having to make do with just a little.  But, that day is coming!

In Word War II.  Ration books were handed out and people used the coupons to obtain the things they needed.  like sugar, coffee, butter, meat, cheese, canned good, shoes and gasoline were all carefully rationed.  During the height of the war, sugar was limited to 12 ounces per week.  Gas was limited to 3 gallons per ration period.  Coffee was rationed at 1 pound for a five-week period.

      Word War II will be nothing like the deprivations suffered by those in the Tribulation.

B.  Famine brings Starvation – v6 tells us something of the problems that will exist during that time.  

A biblical “measure” would feed a grown, working man for one day.  

A “penny” refers to the “denarius”, which was a day’s wages.  

Wheat is the food from which bread is made.  

Barley was used primarily to feed livestock, and at times, it was consumed by the very poor.

      Here’s the image: a man will work all day just to be able to buy enough good food to feed him.  Or, he can work all day just to buy enough food fit for an animal to feed three people.

      Think about what this means!  People will have to make some hard choices!  People who cannot get out and work for themselves will be left to starve to death so that the workers can eat.  It will be a terrible time, marked by terrible starvation.

C.  Famine brings Separation – The phrase “and see thou hurt not the oil and the wine” may indicate that luxury items will not be affected by the famines.  

Oil and wine have always been the items of the wealthy.  

In other words, while most of the world is plunged into poverty and starvation, the rich will continue to get richer and enjoy the extravagant lifestyles they enjoy now.

IV. THE PALE HORSE

The fourth horse is said to be “pale” in color.  The word means, “Green”.  

It refers to the “sickly, yellow-green pallor of a corpse”. 

We are told that the rider of this pale horse is “death”.  And that “hell” follows behind him.  

The word “death” speaks of the death of the body.  

The word “hell” reminds us that there is a horrible place waiting to receive lost souls 

A.  Death To One-Quarter the world’s population.  That is one out of every four people living during those days.  If you take today’s population of 7 billion people, you are talking about the death of 1.7 billion people in a short period of time!

B.  The methods of death:

·        Sword – This refers to warfare.  During this period of time, it is almost certain that wars will be both conventional as well as nuclear in nature.  

Some one will use a nuclear weapon in warfare some day.  There can be little doubt that some countries will use biological and chemical weapons as well.  The numbers that will die in these wars will be astronomical!

·        Famine – We have already talked about the problem of starvation that will become worldwide in its scope during the Tribulation.  Many millions will meet their deaths in that fashion.

·        Death – This refers to deaths apart from warfare and famine.  In Matthew 24:7, Jesus said this, “For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places.”

            The word “pestilences” is what I think this word “death” is referring to.  Pestilence brings to mind diseases that will run rampant through the human race during this time period.  We may think something like that cannot happen.  But, think back to the Spanish Influenza outbreak during World War I.  25 million people died with the flu in a world without overnight, intercontinental air travel.  3 times more people died of the flu during Word War I than actually died in battle!

·        Beasts – Animal attacks will account for many deaths.  

The word “beasts” can refer to “small animals” or to “rodents”. 

      The Bible does not say this specifically, but it could be referring to rats with this phrase.  Consider this information concerning rats.

Ø      With all the warfare, the death and the carnage, the rat population of this world will explode exponentially.

Ø      One breeding pair can produce five litters of between 8 and 9 offspring per year.

Ø      If 95% of the rat population in a given area is destroyed, they can replenish their numbers within one year. 

Ø      Rats are nasty animals.  They carry some 35 known diseases. 

Ø      They were responsible for killing 1/3 of the population of Europe during the Middle Ages as the bubonic plague raged. 

Ø      Rats carry typhus, which has killed nearly 200 million people during one 400 year period.

Ø      Rats destroy some $1 billion in food in the United States every year.

Conc:  When I read these things, I am struck by two thoughts.  

First, I praise the Lord that I am saved by His grace!  

I do not have to worry about these things.  Now, none of us knows how band things will get before the Lord Jesus will come again.  

We are already seeing the beginnings of some of these things in our world.  I praise the Lord that I am leaving here before the bottom falls out!

      Second, I grieve for those who do not know the Lord.  My family, friends and acquaintances; the people who come in and out of these buildings that are lost; lost neighbors and people we meet everyday who do not know Jesus; all of these will be left behind to face these things.  All they have to look forward too is a life of pain and misery here and an eternity in Hell.  That breaks my heart!

      Here is the invitation.  If you are not saved, please come to Jesus and look to Him for your salvation.  If you are out of His will, please come back to Him so that He can use your life as a light for His glory.  If you have people on your heart that need to be saved, bring them to Jesus and pray for their souls.

      If you listen very carefully you can hear the sound of approaching hoof beats.  The time I have tried to describe is coming!  Are you ready?