From Behind The Veil (2)

The Second Seal, The Red Horse Rides Forth

Tonight I want to take us “behind the veil” again, this time as the Lamb opens the second seal and the red horse rides forth. I’m not just trying to fill our heads with information; I want us to see the authority of Jesus in the midst of war and shaking, and then ask what that means for how we live right now.

Revelation 6:3–4 KJV 1900

3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. 4 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.

As I read this, I slow down and let every phrase land in my heart.

“When He had opened the second seal” – I remind myself, this is still the Lamb opening the seals; Jesus is the One in charge of the timing and the unfolding.

“Another horse that was red” – this is not the white horse of deceptive peace; this one is blood‑red, speaking of violence and war.

“Power was given” – the rider doesn’t seize power; it is allowed, permitted, granted under the sovereignty of God.

“To take peace from the earth” – this is a global removal of peace, not just one local skirmish.

“They should kill one another” – people turn on each other, neighbor against neighbor, nation against nation.

“There was given unto him a great sword” – he is equipped for war; this is not random chaos, but a specific judgment.

II. Connecting this seal to the first

I am reminded of where we’ve just been in this series. In the first seal, I walked us through the white horse and its rider, and I made the case from Scripture that this is the Antichrist—coming with a bow, a crown, and a conquering, deceptive authority that looks like peace but is not.

Now the second seal naturally follows: The first seal unveils a counterfeit Christ, a false peace, and a conquering political‑religious figure. The second seal shows what happens when that false peace collapses: open conflict, bloodshed, and the removal of peace from the earth.

So, the red horse is the mask coming off. The world that thought it had found its savior in the Antichrist suddenly finds itself plunged into wars and violence it cannot control.

III. “To take peace from the earth”

That phrase grips me: “to take peace from the earth.”

This means two very important things: First, peace on the earth is not automatic; it is something God allows or withholds. If it can be “taken,” it was first given. Second, once God removes that restraining peace, what is already in human hearts—hatred, greed, pride, violence—begins to overflow in deadly ways.

Jesus’ words from Matthew 24, says:

“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. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom…” (Matthew 24:6–7.

Jesus said that before John ever saw this vision. Wars and rumors of wars are not a surprise to heaven; they are part of the birth pains leading up to the end. And many have noticed that what Jesus lists in Matthew 24 lines up with the seals in Revelation 6—false Christs, wars, famines, pestilences, persecution.

So when I read that the red horse is sent “to take peace from the earth,” I see it as the Lord lifting His hand of restraint and allowing the world to feel the full weight of its own rebellion and hatred.

IV. The “great sword” – what kind of sword is this?

Now I slow down on that last phrase: “there was given unto him a great sword.”

In the Greek, the word for “sword” here is machaira, Strong’s number G3162. This is not a big decorative broadsword you hang on a castle wall; this is the common side‑arm of the first‑century world—a short sword or large knife used for close‑up fighting, slaughter, and execution.

Strong’s tells us it can also be used figuratively for war and judicial punishment. That tells me this “great sword” speaks of real, physical violence, but also of God’s judicial hand being revealed in history—war as a form of judgment on a rebellious world.

If you use Logos or a concordance, go home and trace machaira through the New Testament. Look at places like Matthew 10:34, where Jesus says, “I came not to send peace, but a sword,” and Romans 13:4, where the magistrate “beareth not the sword in vain.” You’ll see how God talks about authority, war, and judgment.

V. What the red horse represents

The red horse represents a divinely permitted wave of war, violence, and bloodshed that sweeps the world after the rise of the Antichrist. Peace is removed, and humanity, left to itself, turns its weapons not just on foreign enemies, but on one another.

This is not just “another bad war.” This is a step in a prophetic sequence:

False Christ and false peace (first seal).

Wars and the breakdown of that peace (second seal).

Famine and scarcity (third seal).

Death and Hades claiming a fourth of the earth (fourth seal).

These seals are not random; they are ordered, intentional, and opened by the hand of the Lamb.

VI. The sovereignty of the Lamb in the middle of war

Now I bringing us back to the throne. I refuse to let the horror of the seal pull our eyes off the One who opened it.

Notice again the wording: “When HE had opened the second seal…” – the Lamb is still in charge. “Power was GIVEN to him…” – permission is granted; hell does not have free rein. “There was GIVEN unto him a great sword…” – even the instrument of judgment comes from higher authority.

What that tells me is this: even when nations rage, when wars break out, when headlines talk about conflict and bloodshed, Jesus Christ has not lost control of the story. The same Lamb who was slain to redeem us in Revelation 5 is the Lamb who opens the seals in Revelation 6.

The world might look like it’s coming apart, but from heaven’s perspective, it’s coming together under the authority of the Lamb.

VII. How I must live in light of the second seal

A. I refuse to live in fear of wars

Jesus said, “Ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled.” So when I hear of wars, rumors of wars, conflict between nations, I remind my soul: He told me this would happen. It is not outside His plan, and it is not the moment for panic; it is the moment for trust.

B. I anchor my peace in Christ, not in the world

If peace can be “taken from the earth,” that means earthly peace is fragile. So I cannot build my sense of safety on politics, money, treaties, or human agreements. Those things can vanish overnight.

I tell the church: my peace has to be anchored in a Person, not in circumstances—in Jesus, who gives a peace the world cannot give and cannot take away.

C. I guard my heart from the spirit of war

If a spirit of war is going to sweep the nations, I do not want that same spirit to find a home in me.

So ask yourself some hard questions:

Am I secretly enjoying anger, violence, or vengeance in my entertainment and conversations?

Am I quick to “kill” with my words, to cut people down, to divide and attack?

Am I being discipled more by conflict‑driven news and social media than by the Word of God and the Spirit of God?

The second seal warns me that in the last days, hatred and violence will increase. I am determined, by the grace of God, to walk in a different spirit—a spirit of love, forgiveness, and peacemaking, even in a world that is at war.

D. I Take My assignment seriously

If this is where the world is headed, then my assignment as a pastor, a believer, a witness, is urgent. Now is not the time for a casual Christianity. Now is not the time for watered‑down preaching or entertainment‑driven church. Now is the time to call people to repentance, to anchor them in Scripture, and to help them know the real Christ so they will not be deceived by the false one and shaken by the wars that follow.

Questions:

When you hear about wars and rumors of wars today, what’s your first emotional reaction—fear, anger, numbness, or prayer?

How does it change your perspective to realize that even the red horse rides under the authority of the Lamb?

Where have you been tempted to anchor your peace—in politics, in finances, in human leaders—instead of in Christ?

What practical steps can you take this week to guard your heart from a spirit of hatred and division?