End Time Insights

The 144,000 males from the tribes of Israel are numbered and assembled for the journey to the city of New Jerusalem  – Revelation 7:4-8.  The “ servants of God ” have been “ sealed ” against the onslaught of the “ four winds of the earth ,” but now they must be “ numbered ” to ensure that no member of the covenant community is lost in the coming “ tribulation .” The full complement of “ witnesses ” must be assembled to witness the “ day of the wrath of the Lamb. ”

The saints must be “sealed” before the onslaught of the “four winds of the earth”  –  Revelation 7:1-3 .  Before the first four seals and their “ riders ” are unleashed, the “ servants of God ” must be prepared to persevere through the coming trials represented by the first six seal openings. And their “ sealing ” will enable them to “ stand ” before the “ Lamb ” and the “ throne ” on the coming “ day of the wrath of the Lamb ” when the “ sixth seal ” is opened.

The fourth seal releases “Death,” and “Hades” follows gathering the dead in its wake  –  Revelation 6:7-8 .  The “victims” harmed by the first three seal openings have not been identified, although details from the tasks assigned to each “ rider ” provide clues. Nothing has been said about the enemies of the “ Lamb ,” or about judgments against the “ inhabitants of the earth .” Moreover, the actions of the “ four riders ” are never labeled “plagues,” “wrath,” or “judgments.”

The third seal releases the rider on the black horse, producing economic hardship  –  Revelation 6:5-6 .  When the “ Lamb ” opens the third “ seal ,” once again, one of the “ four living creatures ” summons its rider, this time on a “ black horse .” Apparently, it represents economic distress and food shortages. As before, his task is declared by one of the four “ living creatures ,” along with limitations on how much damage he may afflict.

The second rider was sent to “remove peace from the earth” and cause men to “slay one another”   –  Revelation 6:3-4 .  As with the first rider, the second horseman is commanded by one of the four “ living creatures ” to “ go forth .” Although each seal is opened by the “ Lamb ,” the involvement of the “ four living creatures ” emphasizes that heaven remains in firm control over the earthly events represented by each “ rider. ”