The 7 Seals
The 7 seals reveal to us the opening and the closing of the gospel work.
The subject regarding the 7 seals of Revelation is a very interesting revelation from God. It shows us the history of the OPENING fo the GOSPEL till the closing of the GOSPEL even towards the judgment of God against the wicked in the 7 last plagues until He finally appears to rapture His saints. Let us start the journey in discovering this wonderful biblical prophecy.
The first question, when was the first seal broken? Revelation 5:9, 12 And they sung a new song, saying, Thou art worthy to take the book, and to open the seals thereof: for thou wast slain, and hast redeemed us to God by thy blood out of every kindred, and tongue, and people, and nation;Saying with a loud voice, Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power, and riches, and wisdom, and strength, and honour, and glory, and blessing.
The first seal was broken after Jesus died and became the Lamb sacrificed for our sins.
Seal 1 –
Revelation 6:1 And I saw when the (1) Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of (2) thunder, one of the four (3) beasts saying, Come and see. 6:2 And I saw, and behold a (4) white horse: and he that sat on him had a (5) bow; and a (6) crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
(1) Lamb
John 1:29 The next day John seeth Jesus coming unto him, and saith, Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world.
Acts 8:32 The place of the scripture which he read was this, He was led as a sheep to the slaughter; and like a lamb dumb before his shearer, so opened he not his mouth: 8:33 In his humiliation his judgment was taken away: and who shall declare his generation? for his life is taken from the earth.
(2) Thunder – voice of Elohim
Job 40:9 Hast thou an arm like God? or canst thou thunder with a voice like him?
Psalms 104:7 At thy rebuke they fled; at the voice of thy thunder they hasted away.
(3) 1st beast - lion (Rev 4:7) Ezekiel 1:10 As for the likeness of their faces, they four had the face of a man, and the face of a lion, on the right side: and they four had the face of an ox on the left side; they four also had the face of an eagle
Represents Jesus Christ the Lion of the Tribe of Judah.
Revelation 5:5 And one of the elders saith unto me, Weep not: behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book, and to loose the seven seals thereof.
Satan wants to copy the Lion being a roaring lion. 1 Peter 5:8
(4) White Horse:
He that sat upon him: Revelation 19:11 And I saw heaven opened, and behold a white horse; and he that sat upon him [was] called Faithful and True, and in righteousness he doth judge and make war. 19:12 His eyes [were] as a flame of fire, and on his head [were] many crowns; and he had a name written, that no man knew, but he himself. 19:13 And he [was] clothed with a vesture dipped in blood: and his name is called The Word of God.
White color = purity
Psalms 51:7 - Purge me with hyssop, and I shall be clean: wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow.
He that sat – Jesus
Horse:
Revelation 9:7, 9 And the shapes of the locusts [were] like unto horses prepared unto battle; and on their heads [were] as it were crowns like gold, and their faces [were] as the faces of men… the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle.
(5) Bow:
Genesis 49:24, "But his bow abode in strength, and the arms of his hands were made strong by the hands of the mighty God of Jacob; (from thence is the shepherd, the stone of Israel:)"
Arrow: Early rain
Bow (Arrow) – Shoot
3384 yarah yaw-raw'
or (2 Chr. 26:15) yara; {yaw-raw'}; a primitive root; properly, to flow as water (i.e. to rain); transitively, to lay or throw (especially an arrow, i.e. to shoot); figuratively, to point out (as if by aiming the finger), to teach:--(+) archer, cast, direct, inform, instruct, lay, shew, shoot, teach(-er,-ing), through.
2 Chronicles 26:15 And he made in Jerusalem engines, invented by cunning men, to be on the towers and upon the bulwarks, to shoot arrows and great stones withal. And his name spread far abroad; for he was marvellously helped, till he was strong.
Jesus was shooting the arrows of truth of the gospel. He led this work.
(6) Crown:
Victory, Conquer, Righteousness
2 Timothy 4:8 Henceforth there is laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, shall give me at that day: and not to me only, but unto all them also that love his appearing.
Time Clock:
Early morning – Jews
Acts 13:46 Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourselves unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to the Gentiles.
3rd Hour – Christians
Matthew 20:3 And he went out about the third hour, and saw others standing idle in the marketplace, 20:4 And said unto them; Go ye also into the vineyard, and whatsoever is right I will give you. And they went their way.
Seal 2 –
Revelation 6:3-4 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second (1) beastsay, Come and see. And there went out another (2) horse [that was] (3) red: and (4) [power] was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they (5) should kill one another: and there was (6) given unto him a great sword.
(1) 2nd beast - calf - ox (Rev 4:7)
Servant - Deuteronomy 25:4 Thou shalt not muzzle the ox when he treadeth out [the corn].
Sacrifice Offering - Leviticus 9:3 And unto the children of Israel thou shalt speak, saying, Take ye a kid of the goats for a sin offering; and a calf and a lamb, [both] of the first year, without blemish, for a burnt offering;
Mark 10:45 For even the Son of man came not to be ministered unto, but to minister, and to give his life a ransom for many.
Jesus became the servant for us. He sacrificed in our place.
(2) Horse: Battle/WAR
(3) Red – sin
Isaiah 1:18 Come now, and let us reason together, saith the LORD: though your sins be as scarlet, they shall be as white as snow; though they be red like crimson, they shall be as wool.
Red - Blood: Life
Leviticus 17:11 For the life of the flesh [is] in the blood:
Red:
4450 purrhos poor-hros'
from 4442; fire-like, i.e. (specially), flame- colored:--red.
Revelation 12:3 And there appeared another wonder in heaven; and behold a great red dragon, having seven heads and ten horns, and seven crowns upon his heads.
Revelation 17:3 So he carried me away in the spirit into the wilderness: and I saw a woman sit upon a scarlet coloured beast, full of names of blasphemy, having seven heads and ten horns.
(4) Power to take Peace:
Persecuting Power: Rome
(5) Should kill: Bloodshed
Rome persecuting the saints
(6) Great Sword:
Sword:
3162 machaira makh'-ahee-rah
probably feminine of a presumed derivative of 3163; a knife, i.e. dirk; figuratively, war, judicial punishment:--sword.
Seal – 3
Revelation 6:5 And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third (1) beast say, Come and see. And I beheld, and lo a (2) black (3) horse; andhe that sat on him had a (4) pair of balances in his hand. 6:6 And I heard a voice in the midst of the four beasts say, A (5)measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny; and [see] (6) thou hurt not the oil and the wine.
(1) 3rd beast - man
Jesus – Son of man
Matthew 13:37 He answered and said unto them, He that soweth the good seed is the Son of man;
(2) Black Horse:
Black: Darkness/Apostasy – Absence of Light (Jesus)
Errors, False Doctrines, Deception, Iniquity, Wickedness, Fruits of the Flesh
(3) Horse - battle
(5) Pair of Balances:
Job 31:6 Let me be weighed in an even balance that God may know mine integrity.
(5) Measure of wheat for a penny, 3 measures of barley for a penny
Wheat – children of God
Matthew 13:38 - the good seed are the children of the kingdom;
Tares – children of the devil
Penny – reward or wage
Matthew 20 – a penny for all the kinds of labourer
(6) Hurt not the oil & wine:
Oil – anointing, gladness, joy, consecration, fruits of the Spirit
Wine – doctrine, truth, Bible, Word of God
Even amidst apostasy, the truth from the Bible remained untouched and preserved till this day and this is the reason why we are still able to partake of the pure doctrines of the Word of God.
Seal 4 – Pale Horse
Revelation 6:7-8 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth (1) beast say, Come and see. And I looked, and behold a (2) pale (3) horse: and his name that sat on him was (4) Death, and (5) Hell followed with him. And (6) power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, (7) to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth.
(1) 4th beast – Eagle – Rev 4:7
Revelation 12:14 And to the woman were given two wings of a great eagle, that she might fly into the wilderness, into her place, where she is nourished for a time, and times, and half a time, from the face of the serpent. 12:15 And the serpent cast out of his mouth water as a flood after the woman, that he might cause her to be carried away of the flood.
(2) Pale
5515 chloros khlo-ros'
from the same as 5514; greenish, i.e. verdant, dun-colored:--green, pale.
(3) Horse – battle, war
This horse is seen as pale yet in greek translation he is as green. Why?
Green Grass – wicked people able to persecute and kill
Psalms 92:7 When the wicked spring as the grass, and when all the workers of iniquity do flourish;
(4) Him that sat was DEATH
Satan – author of Sin and death
Romans 6:23 – wages of sin is DEATH
(5) Hell followed him
Hell: Grave
86 haides hah'-dace
properly, unseen, i.e. "Hades" or the place (state) of departed souls:--grave, hell.
(6) Power to kill
Revelation 13:2, 5, 7 And the beast which I saw was like unto a leopard, and his feet were as [the feet] of a bear, and his mouth as the mouth of a lion: and the dragon gave him his power, and his seat, and great authority. 13:5 And there was given unto him a mouth speaking great things and blasphemies; and power was given unto him to continue forty [and] two months. 13:7 And it was given unto him to make war with the saints, and to overcome them: and power was given him over all kindreds, and tongues, and nations.
Revelation 12:6 And the woman fled into the wilderness, where she hath a place prepared of God, that they should feed her there a thousand two hundred [and] threescore days.
1 day = 1 year (Numbers 13:34; Ezekiel 4:6)
1260 days = 1260 years
42 months x 30 days = 1260 years
Revelation 17:6 And I saw the woman drunken with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the martyrs of Jesus: and when I saw her, I wondered with great admiration.
Matthew 10:28 And fear not them which kill the body, but are not able to kill the soul: but rather fear him which is able to destroy both soul and body in hell.
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.
Tertullian said: “If the Tiber rises too high, or the Nile too low, the remedy is always feeding Christians to the lions.”
"That the Church of Rome has shed more innocent blood than any other institution that has ever existed among mankind, will be questioned by no Protestant who has a competent knowledge of history . . . It is impossible to form a complete conception of the multitude of her victims, and it is quite certain that no powers of imagination can adequately realize their sufferings."--W. E. H. Lecky, History of the Rise and Influence of the Spirit of Rationalism in Europe, vol. 2, p. 32, 1910 edition. (An excellent though lengthy article describing in detail the right of the Roman Catholic Church to do this, will be found in The Catholic Encyclopedia, vol. 12, p. 266.)
Seal 5
Revelation 6:9-11 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the (1) altar the (2) souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: And (3) they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not (4) judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And (5) white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that (6) they should rest yet for a little season, (7) until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they [were], should be fulfilled.
(1) Altar – a place for sacrifice
Exodus 20:24 An altar of earth thou shalt make unto me, and shalt sacrifice thereon thy burnt offerings, and thy peace offerings, thy sheep, and thine oxen: in all places where I record my name I will come unto thee, and I will bless thee.
Sacrifice – partakers of Christ’s suffering
1 Peter 4:13 But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ's sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy.
(2) Souls of them that were slain for the word of God and for the testimony which they held
Christian martyrs who loved not their life till death.
Revelation 12:11 And they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony; and they loved not their lives unto the death.
"For professing faith contrary to the teachings of the Church of Rome, history records the martyrdom of more then one hundred million people. A million Waldenses and Albigenses [Swiss and French Protestants] perished during a crusade proclaimed by Pope Innocent III in 1208. Beginning from the establishment of the Jesuits in 1540 to 1580, nine hundred thousand were destroyed. One hundred and fifty thousand perished by the Inquisition in thirty years. Within the space of thirty-eight years after the edict of Charles V against the Protestants, fifty thousand persons were hanged, beheaded, or burned alive for heresy. Eighteen thousand more perished during the administration of the Duke of Alva in five and a half years."--Brief Bible Readings, p. 16.
Word of God – Bible (Jesus Christ)
Testimony – Spirit of Prophecy – not the infiltrated compiled books that they label as SOP
(3) Cried with a loud voice – Life testimony speaking, not literal voice of dead crying.
Genesis 4:10 And he said, What hast thou done? the voice of thy brother's blood crieth unto me from the ground.
(4) Judge and avenge our blood
When will God recompense the wicked for killing them?
#1 The Wrath of God will avenge the blood – ten toes
#2 Ultimately all wicked will be forever destroyed after 1000 years – whole kingdom/image of the wicked
See Study on Daniel 2 - how the image was destroyed
Nahum 1:2 God [is] jealous, and the LORD revengeth; the LORD revengeth, and [is] furious; the LORD will take vengeance on his adversaries, and he reserveth [wrath] for his enemies.
Jeremiah 46:10 For this [is] the day of the Lord GOD of hosts, a day of vengeance, that he may avenge him of his adversaries: and the sword shall devour, and it shall be satiate and made drunk with their blood: for the Lord GOD of hosts hath a sacrifice in the north country by the river Euphrates.
2 Thess 1:6-10 Seeing [it is] a righteous thing with God to recompense tribulation to them that trouble you; And to you who are troubled rest with us, when the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with his mighty angels, In flaming fire taking vengeance on them that know not God, and that obey not the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ: Who shall be punished with everlasting destruction from the presence of the Lord, and from the glory of his power; When he shall come to be glorified in his saints, and to be admired in all them that believe (because our testimony among you was believed) in that day.
(5) White robes – Righteousness of Christ
Isaiah 61:10 I will greatly rejoice in the LORD, my soul shall be joyful in my God; for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath covered me with the robe of righteousness, as a bridegroom decketh [himself] with ornaments, and as a bride adorneth [herself] with her jewels.
Righteousness = obedience to the law of God
Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?
White – pure
Robe – righteousness
Literal white robes given when? After resurrection. Spiritual robe can be received today through Christ.
(6) they should rest yet for a little season
Where are they resting?
Job 14:13 O that thou wouldest hide me in the grave, that thou wouldest keep me secret, until thy wrath be past, that thou wouldest appoint me a set time, and remember me!
1 Corinthians 15:52 In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump: for the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised incorruptible, and we shall be changed.
A little season – a short time, no memory how long they have been dead,
Ecclesiastes 9:5 For the living know that they shall die: but the dead know not any thing, neither have they any more a reward; for the memory of them is forgotten.
(7) until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they [were], should be fulfilled.
After all martyrdom is fulfilled then their blood will be avenged.
Revelation 13:15 And he had power to give life unto the image of the beast, that the image of the beast should both speak, and cause that as many as would not worship the image of the beast should be killed.
Revelation 20:4 And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and [I saw] the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received [his] mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.
Seal 6
Revelation 6:12-17 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; 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. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 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; 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: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
Signs in the Heavens:
Sun became black as sackcloth
Moon became as blood
Stars of heaven fell
Heaven departed as a scroll –
3772 ouranos oo-ran-os'
Departed:
673 apochorizo ap-okh-o-rid'-zo
from 575 and 5563; to rend apart; reflexively, to separate:--depart (asunder).
M't:19:6: Wherefore they are no more twain, but one flesh. What therefore God hath joined together, let not man put asunder.
Where else in the Bible is the second witness to the signs of heavens before Jesus appears:
Matthew 24:29-30 Immediately after the tribulation of those days shall the sun be darkened, and the moon shall not give her light, and the stars shall fall from heaven, and the powers of the heavens shall be shaken: And then shall appear the sign of the Son of man in heaven: and then shall all the tribes of the earth mourn, and they shall see the Son of man coming in the clouds of heaven with power and great glory.
Isaiah 13:9 Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, cruel both with wrath and fierce anger, to lay the land desolate: and he shall destroy the sinners thereof out of it. 13:10 For the stars of heaven and the constellations thereof shall not give their light: the sun shall be darkened in his going forth, and the moon shall not cause her light to shine. 13:11 And I will punish the world for [their] evil, and the wicked for their iniquity; and I will cause the arrogancy of the proud to cease, and will lay low the haughtiness of the terrible. 13:12 I will make a man more precious than fine gold; even a man than the golden wedge of Ophir.
13:13 Therefore I will shake the heavens, and the earth shall remove out of her place, in the wrath of the LORD of hosts, and in the day of his fierce anger.
Joel 3:15 The sun and the moon shall be darkened, and the stars shall withdraw their shining. 3:16 The LORD also shall roar out of Zion, and utter his voice from Jerusalem; and the heavens and the earth shall shake: but the LORD [will be] the hope of his people, and the strength of the children of Israel.
EVERY Mountain and island moved out of their places
Earth is shaken and the wicked are afraid.
Every wicked = hid themselves
This tells us that the wicked people are still intact. From kings down to the free, down to the slaves are fleeing for their lives to hide and even wish to die. This cannot be during the 7th plague like what others claim for in the 7th plague most people are already dead by this time.
The wicked will know when the earth is shaken, probation has closed and they are not saved.
Jer 8:20 - The harvest is past, the summer is ended, and we are not saved.
Rev 22:11 - He that is unjust, let him be unjust still: and he which is filthy, let him be filthy still: and he that is righteous, let him be righteous still: and he that is holy, let him be holy still.
Obadiah 1:15 - For the day of the LORD [is] near upon all the heathen: as thou hast done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head.
Hide us from the wrath of the lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come – Jesus has not appeared yet
Wrath of God is coming, He has not appeared yet but the wicked can already sense that He is about to appear and they will be very afraid.
who shall be able to stand? The wicked will look for the word to find out who shall escape from this wrath
Amos 8:12 And they shall wander from sea to sea, and from the north even to the east, they shall run to and fro to seek the word of the LORD, and shall not find [it].
What will they do when they find out that there is no answer for the question and that they are deceived by the mother of harlots?
Revelation 17:16 And the ten horns which thou sawest upon the beast, these shall hate the whore, and shall make her desolate and naked, and shall eat her flesh, and burn her with fire.
Seal 7
Revelation 8:1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was (1) silence in heaven about the space of half an hour. 8:2 And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given (2) seven trumpets. 8:3 And another angel came and stood at the altar, having a golden censer; and there was given unto him much incense, that he should offer [it] with the prayers of all saints upon the golden altar which was before the throne. 8:4 And the smoke of the incense, [which came] with the prayers of the saints, ascended up before God out of the angel's hand. 8:5 And the angel took the censer, and filled it with fire of the altar, and cast [it] into the earth: and there were voices, and thunderings, and lightnings, and an earthquake. 8:6 And the seven angels which had the seven trumpets prepared themselves to sound.
Silence in heaven about the space of half an hour
Silence
4602 sige see-gay'
apparently from sizo (to hiss, i.e. hist or hush); silence:--silence. Compare 4623.
figuratively, to be calm (as quiet water):-- dumb, (hold) peace.
Matthew 24:37 But as the days of Noe [were], so shall also the coming of the Son of man be.
Genesis 7:4, 10 For yet seven days, and I will cause it to rain upon the earth forty days and forty nights; and every living substance that I have made will I destroy from off the face of the earth. And it came to pass after seven days, that the waters of the flood were upon the earth.
Psalms 11:6 Upon the wicked he shall rain snares, fire and brimstone, and an horrible tempest: [this shall be] the portion of their cup.
Ezekiel 38:22 And I will plead against him with pestilence and with blood; and I will rain upon him, and upon his bands, and upon the many people that [are] with him, an overflowing rain, and great hailstones, fire, and brimstone.
As in the days of Noah, so shall also the coming of the Son of Man. It did not rain until 7 days so the rain of God's wrath will not be poured out until the silence in heaven for half an hour is done.
The 7th seal introduces the preparation of the wrath of God which is illustrated in the 7 trumpets. Since Jesus has left the Most Holy place, now the angels are positioning themselves and getting ready to blow the 1st trumpet which is going to be the 1st plague of the 7 plagues. We will be discussing this topic in this page: The 7 Trumpets.