4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse #8 - Part 76 of Riddles, Enigmas & Esoteric Imagery of Revelation

As we continue our study of Revelation chapter 6, we find Jesus revealing to John what would soon come upon Israel for rejecting Him as their Messiah. Under the 6th seal He showed what would happen to the people once they were barricaded behind the wall of Jerusalem when the wrath of the Lamb was executed. People from all over the territory who had come to the celebration, as well as for commercial endeavors, were confined by the Roman army - 6,000 strong - the abomination of desolation. 

And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains...and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb...for the great day of His wrath has come and who is able to stand?...Rev. 6:15-17.

Did Jesus prophesy this moment when He walked the streets of Jerusalem?  Jesus was beaten and bloody, bearing His cross in the streets of Jerusalem - the Via Dolorosa.  Many sorrowful weeping women walked beside Jesus to whom He prophesied...

Daughters of Jerusalem, do not weep for Me, but weep for yourselves and for your children...for indeed the days are coming in which they will say, "Blessed are the barren wombs that never bore, and breasts which never nursed!"...then they will begin to say to the mountains, "Fall on us!" And to the hills, "Cover us!"...for if they do these things in the green wood what will be done in the dry?...Luke 23:28-31.

What did Jesus mean when He said to the weeping women...weep for yourselves and for the children?  Many of these women would be alive to experience the war of retribution in 70 A.D. The people of Israel will be held captive behind the walls of Jerusalem for three and a half years, eventually impoverished, bereft of food and water. So Jesus knew that the severe famine would cause the ugliness and degradation of cannibalism - they will eat their own children. We will go more into detail about this devastation in our next series - Daniel's 70-week vision.

What Jesus showed to John is a confirmation of His own prophecy. When the prophecy says the people cry out for the rocks to fall on them to hide them from His wrath, it is metaphorical language describing the shame and humiliation of a proud and stiff-necked people when they endure the wrath - vengeance - of the One they rejected.

The very last sentence of Jesus' prophecy...for if they do these things in the greenwood, what will be done in the dry...is definitely a riddle. But my blog is all about defining riddles, enigmas, metaphors and the esoteric imagery of Revelation. Historians refer to this statement as a proverb.

By His enigmatic statement, which people of His day would have understood, He was conveying to the women, if His sufferings are so great at the hands of the Jews, the sufferings of the Jews will be more intense, when His wrath comes upon them in the coming war.  Jesus was letting these women know His vengeance for rejecting Him as the Messiah will come - Israel will not go unpunished.

John was shown that the prophecy of Jesus would come to pass very soon, so that John could sound the alarm to the disciples of Christ, giving them time to flee from the city before the abomination of desolation appears in Jerusalem - Roman armies.

John has witnessed under the first six seals the war, famine, death and destruction of Israel - judgment for rejecting Jesus Christ as their Messiah. When He opens the seventh seal, there was silence in Heaven for about half an hour...Rev. 8:1.  What does this mean?  The number 7 means complete - perfection. Vengeance upon Israel is complete - they are no longer a nation. God is not rejoicing over this - there is deep sorrowful contemplation - expressed by silence in Heaven. 

Then John saw seven angels with seven trumpets. They are announcing the judgment that is coming upon the whole world throughout the Christian era.

Can the 4 Horsemen ride again?  Historically, the symbolism of the horses - war, bloodshed, famine, death - represented judgment upon Israel two different times in their history.  With the end of times upon this generation, as the signs of the times reveal, could this same judgment come upon the blood-bought church of Jesus Christ?  Yes - for their sins of immorality and paganism.

What historical documentation proves that the 70th week of Daniel's vision was fulfilled in 70 A.D., which Jesus referred to as the great tribulation?  Stay tuned...

God's sheep question the doctrines of men...sheeple follow without question~~~



4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse #7 - Part 75 of Riddles, Enigmas & Esoteric Imagery of Revelation

When we were last together in our study of the symbolism of Revelation chapter 6, blog #6 began to explain the symbolism under the 6th seal...

I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold. there was a great earthquake, and the sun became as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood...and the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind...then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place...Rev. 6:12-14.

We have already defined the symbolism for stars and earthquake as a warning to Israel of what would come to pass in their very near future - war of 70 A.D.  What is the symbolism for sackcloth of hair?

Sackcloth of Hair symbolism describes an eclipse of the sun...sun becomes as sackcloth of hair.  In the coming war against Israel for rejecting Jesus Christ as their Savior, the leadership - symbolized by the sun - will experience mourning and death for this egregious act. When the ancient prophets grieved over the sins of this nation, they sat with sackcloth over their heads a sign of their grief which warned of judgment to come if they did not repent.  Darkness is in the hearts of the Sanhedrin and their light will be extinguished - eclipse of the sun.

Moon became as Blood symbolizes how war and bloodshed will be experienced by all the proud and disobedient leaders, fomented by the idolatries of the unrepentant and defiant rejecters of the Messiah.

Sky Receded symbolizes God's judgment of Israel since the words are written on a scroll and sealed by God.  When the scroll is rolled up we understand that what is written on it is complete and irreversible.

Mountain/Island moved out of its place symbolizes that no portion of Israel will be left untouched by this devastating judgment.  Mountain symbolizes a proud people.  Island moved out of its place symbolizes a complete sweeping away of the old religious system. This symbolism describes the devastating results of the Wrath of the Lamb upon Israel for rejecting Jesus as their Messiah and His new religious system...Rev. 6:16. 

And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains...and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb...for the great day of His wrath has come and who is able to stand?"...Rev. 6:15-17.

Who rejected Jesus Christ and His new religious system?  The religious leadership - Sanhedrin - rejected Him and influenced the Roman leadership to kill Him.  So upon whom would the wrath of the Lamb be executed?  Only Israel qualified to receive the wrath of the Lamb. But first He gave them 40 years to repent before they would face His wrath. The number 40 in the Bible symbolizes a probationary period of time.

This verse is the only place in the Bible with the term:  wrath of the Lamb.  Once the wrath of the Lamb was exercised in the war of 70 A.D., this prophecy was fulfilled. This is the reason it is not seen again - no other fulfillment is required.  The reason John sees His wrath under the 6th seal is because the number 6 defines the sum total of human achievement. Without God, men's achievements fail.

During the war described under the 6th seal, we see prophesied that the three million people - kings, commanders rich & poor - barricaded behind the wall in Jerusalem will cry out to the mountains and rocks...fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb...for the great day of His wrath has come and who is able to stand?  What does this mean?

Did Jesus prophesy that during the coming war Israel would cry to the mountains, "Fall on us!"   Stay tuned...

God's sheep question the doctrines of men...sheeple follow without question ~~~~



4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse #6 - Part 74 of Riddles, Enigmas & Esoteric Imagery of Revelation

Revelation chapters 5 & 6 reveal Jesus Christ, after He returned to Heaven, removing the seals on a scroll handed to Him by His Father, which will reveal the fate of Israel for rejecting Him as their Messiah. The scroll had writing...inside and on the back, sealed with seven seals...Rev. 5:1.  This symbolizes that nothing can be added to the prophecy - it will come to pass as written.

In the first 5 blogs of this series we studied the symbolism of the message represented by the four horses, confirmed by the four horses seen by the Prophet Zechariah - the message to Israel was the same - even though the prophecies were nearly 500 years apart.

The 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse were seen under the first four seals, revealing what would soon come upon Israel.  Zechariah saw 4 horses, the last of which was the dapple horse which prophesied Israel's future - long after they were released from their Babylonian captivity. The dapple horse symbolized famine, just like the pale horse of Revelation.  What is the prophecy under the 5th seal?

Seal 5 - When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar, the souls of those who had been slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held...and they cried with a loud voice, saying, "How long, O Lord, holy and true, until You judge and avenge our blood on those who dwell on the earth?"...then a white robe was given to each of them; and it was said to them that they should rest a little while longer, until both the number of their fellow servants and their brethren, who would be killed as they were, was completed...Rev. 6:-9-11.

After viewing the destruction of Jerusalem behind the previous seals, John must have felt there was no future for his people.  Under this seal he sees his kinsmen savagely murdered because of their steadfast allegiance to Jesus Christ.  He knows they are already in Heaven, but their pleas to have their deaths avenged must have tugged at his heart.  Could he have remembered what God said to Cain after he murdered his brother Abel...the voice of your brother's blood cries out to Me from the ground...Gen. 4:10?

The religious leaders - Pharisees and Sadducees - who plotted the death of Jesus, saw to it that His followers were also murdered during the bloody reign of terror by the Roman Emperor Nero. It is this specific time that was shown to John, so that the followers of Jesus Christ would be prepared for this unexpected vicious onslaught of injustice.  They can hold steady victoriously if they understand that God has allowed it in order to fulfill His plans and purposes. 

The martyred saints were giving white robes when they arrived in Heaven. White symbolizes purity, holiness and victory.  God gave Israel 40 years - a probationary period of time - to repent for rejecting Jesus as their Messiah - after that the judgment would fall upon them. Their blood was avenged in the war of 70 A.D.

Seal 6 - I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake, and the sun became as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood...and the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind...then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place...Rev. 6:12-14.

There is a lot of symbolism under this seal.  John sees...the stars of heaven fell to the earth.  Stars symbolize prominent people - leaders in Jerusalem - religious leaders who deserted God for the praise of men. During the coming judgment, these false religious leaders will be toppled like...a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by the wind.

Earthquake symbolizes intense social upheaval - unrest.  There will be much chaos in Israel, as the old religious system clashes with the new one ushered into existence by Jesus Christ.  Every prideful religious leader will be blaming the other for the calamity that will befall Jerusalem, because they listened to the false prophets.

What does sackcloth of hair, bloody moon, and sky receded symbolize?  Stay tuned...

God's sheep question the doctrines of men...sheeple follow without question...



4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse #5 - Part 73 of Riddles, Enigmas & Esoteric Imagery of Revelation

It is later than we think! For two years this blog has been dedicated to providing the historical viewpoint for the end-time doctrine, so that people will truly be ready to receive the reward Jesus Christ will give to the saints at His return. Throughout the Christian era the visions of Revelation have been and are being fulfilled, of which I have provided dates, places, and by whom they were fulfilled as recorded by historians. The visions pertaining to the earthly realm are nearly all fulfilled - Jesus is coming soon - ready or not!

 

Today is blog #5 in our series that explains the fulfillment of the 4 Horsemen of the Apocalypse prophecy as it pertains to the judgment of Israel for rejecting Jesus Christ as their Messiah. Last blog we turned to the Old Testament for confirmation when we listened in on a conversation between God and His angel...O Lord of hosts, how long will You not have mercy on Jerusalem and on the cities of Judah, against which You were angry these seventy years?...Zech. 1:12.

 

From their heavenly vantage point, God and the angel were observing the people of Israel at the conclusion of seventy years of exile in Babylon. Zechariah is being shown that seventy years of punishment against his people is at the end - then he was shown more about the horses.

 

Then the strong steeds went out, eager to go, that they might walk to and fro throughout the earth...and he said, "Go, walk to and fro through the earth"...so they walked to and fro throughout the earth...Zech. 6:7.

 

Zechariah was allowed to watch four colors of horses - red, black, white, dapple - walk the earth to observe how Israel faired, after luxuriating with idolaters for seventy years. Was the punishment of exile amidst the pagans sufficient to produce repentance?

 

While Zechariah was viewing the colored horses prance about the earth, he asked the angel, "Who are these, my Lord?" The angel answered...these are the four spirits of heaven, who go out from their station before the Lord of all the earth...Zech. 6:5.

 

Who are the four spirits of heaven?  They are four living creatures in the midst and around the throne of God, each having six wings and are full of eyes around and within, saying non-stop...holy, holy, holy Lord God Almighty, who was and is and is to come!...Rev. 4:8. The Prophet Isaiah called them Seraphim...Is. 6:1-4.  When God sends them on assignment to the earth they manifest in many ways.  Zechariah and John see them manifest as 4 horses - red, black, white, dapple (pale grayish-streaked and water spotted)...Zech. 6:2-3.

 

In the Hebrew language the word spirits in this reference is ruwach meaning:  wind - to blow; breath. These metaphorical horses - four spirits of Heaven - symbolize the Voice of God carried by the wind. The very breath of God is declaring change is coming to Israel.

 

The first two horses seen by the Prophet Zechariah - red & black - represent past judgments on Israel. The red horse symbolizes the war that Israel lost to King Nebuchadnezzar of Babylon with much bloodshed, when he took them captive to his idolatrous nation for seventy years.

 

The black horse symbolizes the death and mourning that Israel experienced during this horrific war. It must have been devastating and humiliating to have an enemy ravish their country - kill, maim, rob - while dragging them kicking and screaming to a foreign land, far away from all they knew and loved to become slaves to a pagan king for 70 years.

 

The white horse that Zechariah saw symbolized purity holiness, and victory. Since this is the third horse in the lineup, it reveals that Israel repented after their punishment. Now it is time to release them from their captivity, and allow them go back to their homeland to rebuild Solomon's destroyed temple.  Judgment and punishment had produced repentance and their allegiance was once again surrendered to God. God's kids had been kidnapped by idolatry, but now have returned to Him.

 

The dapple horse was the last one that Zechariah saw in his vision. It is significant that this horse is positioned last in the lineup, because it symbolizes Israel's future - an omen of things to come - if they don't retain their allegiance to God, and Him alone. As with the pale horse of Revelation, this dappled horse also symbolizes famine. The dapple horse is prophesying that Israel will experience in her future the most consuming and emaciating famine ever experienced by this people.

 

What do the rest of the seals reveal about the war of 70 A.D?  Stay tuned...

 

God's sheep question the doctrines of men...sheeple follow without question...