REVELATION 6
The Five Seals of Tribulation

The seven seals of Revelation 6, 7 and 8 reveal to us the end-times chronology of events beginning with the time of the Great Tribulation, followed by the Rapture of the Church and, last but not least, the outpouring of the Wrath of God. The book with seven seals does not include the Millennial Reign, the final White Throne Judgment of God or any of the events that follow the Wrath of God. Seal 1 is the revealing of the Antichrist. Seals 2-5 reveal to us the nature of the Great Tribulation. Adding to the deception that the Antichrist will be practicing, the second through fifth seals show men killing one another—presumably by war—and death by famine, which could be a result of a world engulfed in war. Seal 6 interrupts the Tribulation and precedes the Wrath of God. It shows the sealing of the 144,000 chosen of God on their foreheads.After they are sealed, the Rapture of the entire Church takes place. The Rapture is the gathering together of all of God’s elect from wherever they may be and bringing them all at one time into heaven and before the Throne of God. Seal 7 shows the saints of God in heaven right after being raptured and just before God begins to pour out His wrath. Chapters 8- 11 display the seven trumpets of judgment, which are all a part of the seventh seal of the heavenly Book of Revelation. Each aspect of the Wrath of God is signaled in heaven by the sounding of one of the seven different trumpets just before it is released on the earth. The seven trumpets are recorded in the order that they will occur.

It is very important that we understand the relationship between the seven seals of revelation, the seven trumpets of judgment and the seven vials of wrath, and the chronological order of each. The seven seals of Revelation, which Jesus received out of the hand of God, reveal future events that make up the entire end-times in the order they will occur.We already mentioned that the trumpets are, in fact, what the seventh seal is revealing. The seals and trumps do not parallel each other, and the trumps do not follow after, per se, but the seven trumpets of wrath are all revealed under, and as a part of, the seventh seal of the Book of Revelation. Later in Revelation we will see the seven vials being poured out, each of which corresponds numerically to a matching trumpet. The sound of the first trumpet signals the pouring out of the first vial, and so on, in order. These trumpets and vials are the wrath of God being poured out on the earth. I effect, that means that the seven vials are also a part of the seventh seal. However, for the sake of providing a much broader understanding of the end-times, Jesus starts over in Revelation 12, repeating the things that were revealed in the first half of Revelation but from a different perspective. The trumpets of judgment and vials of wrath should not be confused with the Tribulation in any way, nor should they be confused with the seals of the book. The only correlation of the trumpets and vials to the seals of the book is that they do not begin to release their wrath until the final seal is opened.

The horses and riders depicted under the first four seals are symbolic of the events that occur during the Tribulation.Much has been said and written about the horses of the apocalypse. Much of it is based on fear, misunderstanding and delusion. Many theorists make too much out of the four horses and their riders. They do not represent four different men or dispensations or anything of that nature, nor are these riders dispatched from God with the purpose of bringing wrath upon sinners. Rather, they are dispatched from Satan with the purpose of bringing tribulation on the earth from Satan. Again, the horses are symbolic or, at best, something that happens literally in the spirit realm that initiates events in the natural realm. At any rate, we will not see these horses—only the turmoil they represent. The first one represents the Antichrist, and the three that follow simply represent three different types of tribulation and turmoil that will occur after the Antichrist’s rise to power during the final seven years before the Rapture. The word “apocalypse” comes from the Greek word apokalupsis which means a revelation or disclosure. In popular culture, Christian and otherwise, it refers to the Book of Revelation and any other writings about the ultimate triumph of good over evil, regardless of the source. The fact that the source has no relevance should cause us to be more cautious about believing everything we hear regarding the end-times and the apocalypse. The Bible is the only reliable source of information we have concerning the end.

THE TRIBULATION

Revelation 6:1-2

1 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.

2 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.

The seven seals of Revelation 6, 7 and 8 reveal to us the end-times chronology of events beginning with the time of the Great Tribulation, followed by the Rapture of the Church and, last but not least, the outpouring of the Wrath of God. The book with seven seals does not include the Millennial Reign, the final White Throne Judgment of God or any of the events that follow the Wrath of God. Seal 1 is the revealing of the Antichrist. Seals 2-5 reveal to us the nature of the Great Tribulation. Adding to the deception that the Antichrist will be practicing, the second through fifth seals show men killing one another—presumably by war—and death by famine, which could be a result of a world engulfed in war. Seal 6 interrupts the Tribulation and precedes the Wrath of God. It shows the sealing of the 144,000 chosen of God on their foreheads.After they are sealed, the Rapture of the entire Church takes place. The Rapture is the gathering together of all of God’s elect from wherever they may be and bringing them all at one time into heaven and before the Throne of God. Seal 7 shows the saints of God in heaven right after being raptured and just before God begins to pour out His wrath. Chapters 8- 11 display the seven trumpets of judgment, which are all a part of the seventh seal of the heavenly Book of Revelation. Each aspect of the Wrath of God is signaled in heaven by the sounding of one of the seven different trumpets just before it is released on the earth. The seven trumpets are recorded in the order that they will occur.

It is very important that we understand the relationship between the seven seals of revelation, the seven trumpets of judgment and the seven vials of wrath, and the chronological order of each. The seven seals of Revelation, which Jesus received out of the hand of God, reveal future events that make up the entire end-times in the order they will occur.We already mentioned that the trumpets are, in fact, what the seventh seal is revealing. The seals and trumps do not parallel each other, and the trumps do not follow after, per se, but the seven trumpets of wrath are all revealed under, and as a part of, the seventh seal of the Book of Revelation. Later in Revelation we will see the seven vials being poured out, each of which corresponds numerically to a matching trumpet. The sound of the first trumpet signals the pouring out of the first vial, and so on, in order. These trumpets and vials are the wrath of God being poured out on the earth. I effect, that means that the seven vials are also a part of the seventh seal. However, for the sake of providing a much broader understanding of the end-times, Jesus starts over in Revelation 12, repeating the things that were revealed in the first half of Revelation but from a different perspective. The trumpets of judgment and vials of wrath should not be confused with the Tribulation in any way, nor should they be confused with the seals of the book. The only correlation of the trumpets and vials to the seals of the book is that they do not begin to release their wrath until the final seal is opened.

The horses and riders depicted under the first four seals are symbolic of the events that occur during the Tribulation.Much has been said and written about the horses of the apocalypse. Much of it is based on fear, misunderstanding and delusion. Many theorists make too much out of the four horses and their riders. They do not represent four different men or dispensations or anything of that nature, nor are these riders dispatched from God with the purpose of bringing wrath upon sinners. Rather, they are dispatched from Satan with the purpose of bringing tribulation on the earth from Satan. Again, the horses are symbolic or, at best, something that happens literally in the spirit realm that initiates events in the natural realm. At any rate, we will not see these horses—only the turmoil they represent. The first one represents the Antichrist, and the three that follow simply represent three different types of tribulation and turmoil that will occur after the Antichrist’s rise to power during the final seven years before the Rapture. The word “apocalypse” comes from the Greek word apokalupsis which means a revelation or disclosure. In popular culture, Christian and otherwise, it refers to the Book of Revelation and any other writings about the ultimate triumph of good over evil, regardless of the source. The fact that the source has no relevance should cause us to be more cautious about believing everything we hear regarding the end-times and the apocalypse. The Bible is the only reliable source of information we have concerning the end.

Daniel 9:27

And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week: and in the midst of the week he shall cause the sacrifice and the oblation to cease, and for the overspreading of abominations he shall make it desolate, even until the consummation, and that determined shall be poured upon the desolate.

The verse above is where the term “Abomination of Desolation” originates. It refers to both the Antichrist and the statue or image built in his honor and placed in the temple of God. The mention of the Abomination of Desolation in the verse above ties the desecration of the temple to the second half of the seven-year covenant when the daily sacrifice is halted by the Antichrist. The Antichrist will stop the Jewish temple worship several weeks before the onset of the Tribulation. He will then enter the temple himself at the midpoint of the seven years, but his image will not actually be placed in the temple until about the very end of the Tribulation. We gain this knowledge from Matthew and through some of the numbers that Daniel gives us in his prophecies, which we will look at later in this book.

Revelation 6:3-4

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.

The red horse symbolizes the blood that will be shed on the earth as this rider makes his journey. This will be the blood of war, terrorism and persecution. More than anything else, the Antichrist will be a warrior king despite the fact that he makes a peace treaty with Israel. He will tighten his control over the ten-nation empire that he rules by making war with—and then defeating—three of the kings of the ten nations. The Scriptures tell us that he will rule over ten nations at the time of the end rather than over all the world through a single world government as has been suggested by many. After the Antichrist gains control of these ten nations and breaks his promise of peace to Israel, it could draw the whole world into one giant world conflict, or it could provide just the right distraction for nations all over the world to embark on their own little wars. For instance, China could attack Taiwan, or Russia could attempt to take back the nations it recently lost. The Balkans and Africa could both explode with wars; Southeast Asia could descend into total chaos, and who knows what else. All these nations need is enough of a disturbance in the Middle East to distract the peacemakers of the world long enough so they can get away with their own hearts’ desires—desires for war and dominance. The Antichrist will not rule the whole world, but he will certainly be on center stage and working harder than anyone else to destroy the peace. If he controlled a one-world government, there would be no one for him to war against other than Christians and Jews, but the Scriptures make it clear that he will war against other nations and face much opposition.

Revelation 6:5-6

5 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.

6 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.

The black horse symbolizes a plague of famine that will take place after the Antichrist rises to power, but it will only be a plague of food staples such as wheat and barley and not the luxury items such as oil and wine. At the time these verses were written, a penny was a lot of money and would have paid for a good quantity of wheat in normal economic times. In Matthew 20:2, one penny was a day’s wages for a laborer. In John 6:5-10, Philip said 200 pennyworth of bread would not be sufficient for five thousand people to have a few bites each. That breaks down to one penny to poorly feed a group of 25 people. A full day’s wages for a laborer in our present time for a measure of wheat would make the cost of the loaves in John 6 about $10,000 or about $50 for a full day at minimum wage times 200. That same $50 will only pay for a scrap of bread during this Tribulation plague. It will basically be a poor man’s famine, perhaps caused by evil rich men hoarding foodstuff to ensure their own survival or possibly by a disruption caused by war and natural disasters.

The rich, on the other hand, will continue to prosper through all kinds of trade. Revelation 18 describes a real city named Babylon located right in the heart of the kingdom of the Antichrist. This city will be a center of world commerce that will rival all other great port cities. The merchandise that flows through the port will include spices and grains, livestock, all sorts of precious stones, metals, ointments and woods, different forms of transportation, and even slaves and the souls of men. It is said that the shipowners of the world will be made rich by the commerce of the city. If the shipowners become rich, then those who ship their merchandise on the ships will no doubt also improve their financial situations. The other ports of the world will be busy places as well because they will be importing and exporting goods to and from Babylon, not to mention the trade that will go on between other nations. All of the trade that goes on in Babylon seems to be focused on sumptuous and decadent living. Those who have wealth will be paying top dollar, even for the basic food items, which may be one of the big reasons the poor are not able to afford to eat. The next seal shows us that many will starve to death, even while such luxuriant living is going on in the kingdom of the beast—and anywhere else where men bless themselves and forget about the poor.

Revelation 6:7-8

7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.

8 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.

The paleness of this horse symbolizes the fear that will grip the hearts of mankind because of the things coming to pass during the Tribulation. Luke 21:26, in speaking of the Tribulation, says it like this: “Men’s hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken.”Death and hell have power over a fourth part of the earth, but does that mean they are confined to only one geographical quadrant of the earth where they are free to dispense different kinds of death, or is it one quarter of the world population that will be wiped out by wars, famines and plagues? If the ravages of death and hell were confined to only one quarter of the earth surface, then it would have to be the area surrounding the beast kingdom where he will be making war against nations that are a part of his own ten-nation alliance, Israel and other surrounding nations. However, it is very unlikely that only the area surrounding Israel will be thrown into Great Tribulation by Satan and his Antichrist while the rest of the earth lives in peace and tranquility. More likely, Satan will be pouring out his own brand of wrath upon the whole face of the earth, and a full one quarter of mankind will be eliminated from the face of the earth.

Those people all over the world who are in the greatest jeopardy at this very moment will likely be the first ones to die in the Tribulation. Those who live on the edge of starvation in Africa will probably lose the aid that sustains them and gets them through to see one more day. Those living on the borders of India, Pakistan and Kashmir may see a nuclear exchange. Those who are political dissidents in China, along with many born-again Christians who violate the laws against Christianity, could very well see their final day. The drug lords of South America could take over and wipe out all opposition. There’s no telling what North Korea might do. And, of course, the Antichrist will be working to eliminate Jews and Christians from the Middle East. Remember Jesus said that all flesh would be destroyed by Satan in the Tribulation if God did not cut it short. Evil will rise up to rule all over the world, and the world will be cast into Great Tribulation as a consequence—all because Satan is finally allowed to try the whole world at the same time after everyone has heard the gospel of peace in Christ Jesus.He wants to see who is really going to stand with God and who he will be able to take down to the pit with him when he is finally brought to an end himself. It has been said that there are no atheists in foxholes. The whole world will be a foxhole as it teeters on the brink of destruction, and many will finally turn to the Lord.

The Antichrist will not be causing all of the chaos during the Tribulation, but he certainly will be a major player in a world full of turmoil. With a full quarter of mankind being destroyed in the Tribulation, he will have to be using weapons of mass destruction if he were responsible for causing all of the destruction, but because he survives through the Tribulation and right up to the end of the Wrath of God several years later, one must assume that there is war, famine and pestilence all over the world coming from many different sources to cause such a high death rate without bringing the Antichrist and his followers to their own graves.

Seal Number 5, which follows below, reveals a number of the saints who are killed in the Great Tribulation for their commitment to Jesus Christ and the covenant of truth. They are shown waiting for the vengeance of God against the wicked by whom their lives were shortened through murderous persecution. The fact that many of them perished in the Tribulation is confirmed by the statement made in Revelation 7:14, which is referring back to these same saints. “These are they which came out of Great Tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.” It is important to notice exactly what these saints are saying at this point. They are asking God how much longer it will be until His promised retribution against the wicked is unleashed. In other words, they are in a place of rest after losing their lives in the Tribulation, but they are still waiting for the Wrath of God to be poured out on sinners. The response is that they need to wait just a little longer until the rest of the martyrs of Jesus Christ will be killed in the Tribulation. After that happens, the Church will be raptured, which is what the sixth seal reveals to us, and then their antagonists will be punished in the judgments of the seventh seal. This shows that there really is a difference between the Tribulation and the Wrath of God.

In verse 10 we see that God has not as yet judged or avenged the blood of His people. If these first five seals were describing the Wrath of God, the following statements would not be accurate. The martyred saints would be asking “How much longer will your vengeance last?” and God’s reply would say nothing about fellow Christians being killed because they would all be gone in the Rapture. But, that is not the case. The Rapture is about to take place under the next seal of the book, and then in the final seal God’s vengeance through wrath will begin to fall.

Revelation 6:9-11

9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the Word of God, and for the testimony which they held:

10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

11 And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

Being murdered for one’s faith may not be an appealing way to die, especially for those who are serving the almighty God of heaven, but if it is a choice between that and giving in to the forces of the Antichrist and suffering the Wrath of God shortly thereafter and eternal damnation after that, martyrdom doesn’t seem so bad. Our life on this earth is brief at best.When we receive Jesus as our Lord and Savior, the eternal kingdom of God should become the most important thing in our lives, not just how long we can prolong our life on this earth or how comfortable God can make it for us with His blessings. Hebrews 11:38, after naming numerous Old Testament saints who excelled in their lives and overcame by faith, or who were simply tortured and killed, declares that the world was not worthy of any of them. Those saints, along with every one of us, have a greater and more glorious future awaiting us, and it begins on the day of the Resurrection. On the day God pops open the coffin lids and the dead in Christ all begin to climb out of their graves with new bodies, and God sends His firstborn from the dead to gather us into heaven, we will literally be thrust into the fulfillment of the plan of redemption where God Himself wipes away our tears, and we become untouchable by sin and death.

Everything we just saw under the first five seals parallels exactly what Jesus said at the beginning of His response to the disciples’ questions in Matthew 24. However, He also made it clear that His opening statements were not a part of the end-times but, rather, events that would come to pass on a recurring basis as we march through time on a direct course with the end of the world. He described the kind of tribulation that we have witnessed over and over again throughout history as a fallen human race struggles to survive on a cursed planet. The Great Tribulation that will be coming up on the planet in the end-times is no different from what the world has experienced on a recurring basis from the beginning of time. The magnitude and scope of it, however, will be sufficient to destroy all of mankind if left unchecked. The intensity of the Great Tribulation is magnified by several factors that have already been mentioned: the wrath of Satan as he is cast down to the earth to plot out his remaining days, the liberty he will have in testing the whole world to see who will serve God by faith in His Word or who will serve Satan in fear and torment, and the fact that those who reject God will be so consumed by wickedness that they are willing to give it their all in opposing anything good.

Not until Matthew 24:15 does Jesus begin to speak of the true end-times. After the gospel has been preached to all the world in verse 14, then the Antichrist is manifested in verse 15. The first five seals not only parallel everything Jesus said about the Antichrist and the Tribulation in Matthew 24:15-29, but they fill in the blanks and reveal exactly what the Tribulation is all about. The Tribulation is not the Wrath of God but, rather, the troubling of Satan, the warring of the Antichrist, man’s rebellion against God and man’s inability to live peacefully with one another. Even nature will feel the effects of the curse and react to it. The earth will not provide any bounty other than disease, pestilence and wild beasts. These will all conspire with the other forces of evil to destroy a full one quarter of mankind before God puts a stop to it, which He will do under the sixth seal.

PRELUDE TO RAPTURE

The opening events of the sixth seal coincide with Matthew 24:29-31 where the heavens are shaken and Jesus appears and sends forth His angels to gather His elect. In Matthew 24:36-41, a comparison is made between the days of Noah and the end of the world. Noah’s ark was salvation, or a catching away, for the family of Noah as they entered into it on the very same day that the judgment of the flood began to destroy the wicked. The same thing is happening here under this seal. The righteous are being gathered out of harm’s way as the judgment is about to begin. Notice the familiar events in the skies as all of the lights become darkened. The Day of the Lord arrives at this point, and even the heathen know it. They are the ones making the observation that the day of His wrath has arrived.

Revelation 6:12-17

12 And I beheld when he had opened the sixth seal, and, lo, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

15 And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;

16 And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of Him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

17 For the great day of His wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?

In verse 17, the wicked of the earth declare that the day of God’s wrath has finally come. They knew it was coming, but they made a choice to live their lives the way they wanted, with total disregard for the commandments of God and His soon-coming judgment. The Rapture is not going to be a big surprise to anyone, only the timing of it. When it comes, sinner and saint alike will know what day it is because the gospel will have been preached to the entire world before the end begins. The gathering of God’s elect before the day of God’s wrath is a part of the gospel that will be preached to the world, so there will not be a whole lot of surprised individuals when it does arrive. The seventh seal, which is opened in Revelation 8:1 and continues up through the end of Revelation 11, is the revelation of God’s wrath being poured out upon the earth after the Rapture. Before the events of the seventh seal can begin, though, we have to make it through Revelation 7, which describes in part the Rapture of all God’s redeemed. This includes the entire Church, both living and dead, Jewish and Gentile, and the 144,000 specially chosen ones of Israel. The gathering of believers in chapter 7 is the primary focus of the sixth seal. However, the sign of the heavens becoming dark—which we just read, before the appearing of Jesus Christ—which we are about to read, is an irrefutable part of the Rapture. This is the sign Jesus told His disciples to watch for and expect before His coming and the end of the world. In the first chapter of Revelation, we are told that every eye will see Jesus when He comes in the clouds. The verses we just read clearly display a lost world witnessing the sign of the skies turning to blackness just before every eye beholds the appearing of the Lord in the clouds.

Revelation 1:7

Behold, He cometh with clouds; and every eye shall see Him, and they also which pierced Him: and all kindreds of the earth shall wail because of Him. Even so, Amen.

Think about it!

­Is the purpose of the seals to initiate events or to reveal them?

­Does the sixth seal reveal the same events as Matthew 24 where Jesus comes for His New Testament elect?

­After the skies go dark in Verses 12-14, what are the people listed under the sixth seal hiding from?

­After the skies go dark, do they remain darkened throughout the remaining events of this book?

~Selah~Howbeit when He, the Spirit of truth, is come, He will guide you into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever He shall hear, that shall He speak: and He will shew you things to come. John 16:13

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