Revelation 6:1-8

John was taken in the Spirit into heaven to be shown what must take place in the near future. He is seeing Jesus as who he truly is — the meek and lowly Lamb who was slain, whom he knew on earth — but he is about to see the true power and might of this Lamb, and that Christ truly restrained himself while walking the earth. The ministry of Jesus on earth was, in essence, him coming as the King to bring the way of escape from his own wrath — to tell the people how they can be saved from the coming judgment. Just as Rahab was offered a way of escape before Jericho fell (Joshua 2), as Jonah was sent to warn Nineveh (Jonah 3), as the Jews were offered safety if they surrendered to Babylon (Jeremiah 38) — Jesus came to bring the ultimate way of escape from his own just wrath: his own body, his own blood, his own life. Praise God!¶

A summary of the judgment story¶

Now I watched when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals... And I looked, and behold, a white horse! And its rider had a bow, and a crown was given to him, and he came out conquering, and to conquer.

Revelation 6:1-2 (ESV)¶

This chapter reminds me of how Genesis is written — first the big picture of the six days, then Genesis 2 zooms in on the sixth day in detail. Revelation 6 seems to give a high, big-picture view of the judgment story — almost a summary of events about to take place throughout the rest of Revelation — and then from the seventh seal we begin to see the detail of the day of the Lord's wrath. (Just my take.)¶

As the first four seals are opened, a different colored horse and rider come forth. The white horse is a conqueror with a bow, given a crown — many believe (and I tend to agree) this represents the antichrist, a powerful leader in the last days. This rider intentionally looks like a counterfeit of Christ, who comes on a white horse in Revelation 19:11-15 — but the differences are stark. The first rider's crown is given to him; Christ already has many crowns (the one time Christ was given a crown, it was the soldiers' crown of thorns). The first has a bow; Christ has a sharp sword (and "He breaks the bow," Psalm 46:9). This rider is a false-christ figure. The red horse removes peace from the world — wars, violence, and murder become common, just as Jesus said. The black horse rider has scales: famine and scarcity, but also a scarcity of faithful preaching and teaching of God's word — teachers who fleece the flock and do not practice what they teach (Proverbs 20:10; Jude 1). The pale horse is death: where God created life and commanded it to multiply, in those days death will reproduce death; the world will pursue death at every turn.¶

Some think these riders represent what has gone on since the beginning — there have always been antichrists, conflict, scarcity, and death. That seems true. But there has never been a time when all of this prevails at once, everywhere; in the last days these will be the theme of the world, which we are beginning to see. Jesus essentially explains all of this in Matthew 24:3-14.¶

Never forget who opens the scroll¶

Here is the encouragement. When there is much emphasis on the riders coming out of the scroll, let us never forget the One who is opening it. The horses are mighty and the riders have power — but they only come, are only called, and are only released by the hand of the Lamb. Jesus is in control; Jesus has the authority and power. The enemy loves to make us think he is God's opposite and equal — but Satan and the spiritual forces are not equal to God; they are created beings, beneath him, not even close. Jesus opens the scroll, no one else; the things that come are by his permission only. The horses and their riders are merely tools for God's glory, his wrath and judgment. We can rejoice that we know the One who has the power of life and death in his hands — the One who throws both sin and death into hell, and who says, "Come."¶

"Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest."

Matthew 11:28 (ESV)¶