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In my studies, I have found a comparison between Revelation 6 and the
words of Jesus in Matthew 24. Here, I will attempt to connect the two as
best I can. The theme is the end of the world. What happens during this
time that we will recognize it and Jesus' return? Also, another question
I will attempt to answer is, "when is the rapture of the church?" I
believe it is included in this study.
Matthew 24:4 "And Jesus answered and said, 'Take heed that no man
deceive you. For many shall come in my name , saying, I am Christ; and
shall deceive many." Look now to Revelation 6:1-2 " 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. And I saw, and
behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was
given to unto him: and he went forth conquering and to conquer."
It is highly believed throughout the Christian community that the
figure in Revelation 6:2 is the anti-christ. I am not so sure that this
is true. You will notice, as has been pointed out by many biblical
scholars, that the rider has a bow but no arrows. Yet, he sets forth
conquering. How? This rider might not be an actual man at all. It is
possible that he represents a system of government. He conquers through
peace (or without violence). His crown is given to him, he does not win
it. How does this tie in with Matthew 24? Easily. This rider is a false
Christ. One who is to lead and save the world. This arrowless rider
might actually be the United Nations. Some may think that I am jumping
the gun here, but let me remind people that the UN was created to end
war. Also, the UN has representatives in almost every nation on earth.
This is an example of conquering through peace (or without violence). It
should be noted that the United Nations has a statue outside of its
headquarters in New York that closely resembles this first horseman. In
my opinion, this first horseman fails which gives way to the next
horseman.
Matthew 24:6 "And ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see
that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the
end is not yet. (including part of verse 7) For nation shall rise
against nation, and kingdom against kingdom:" Now read Revelation
6:3-4 "And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second
beast say, Come and see. 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 they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a
great sword." We notice the similarities moreso in this comparison.
War, or as Jesus said, "wars and rumours of wars."
Matthew 24:7-8 "...and there shall be famines and pestilences, and
earthquakes, in divers places. All these are the beginning of sorrows."
We go now to Revelation 6:5-8 (3rd and 4th seal) "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 hands. 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 not hurt the oil and the wine."...This
represents a famine. Food is scarce and hard to come by. "And when he
opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come
and see. 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 hunger, and
with death, and with the beasts of the earth." Obviously a result of
the wars that took place in the previous verses. It shows men so hungry,
they fight for food, killing each other. The dead decaying; spreading
disease. The smell of rotting corpses bringing out the animals for the
feast. The animals also find live prey. This is not a pretty
picture...But it must happen. All of this activity makes the world yearn
even more for a saviour...For someone to take control and end the
suffering...They look for a man. Not to God, but a man...The
anti-christ.
Matthew 24:9-10 "Then shall they deliver you up to be afflicted,
and shall kill you for my name's sake. And then shall many be offended,
and shall betray one another, and shall hate one another." Turning
to Revelation 6:9-11 "And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw
under the alter the souls of them that were 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, dost thou not judge and avenge
our blood on them that dwell on the earth? 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."
They are told to be patient. More Christians will be killed such as they
were...As Jesus said in Matthew 24:9. Since the first system failed so
miserably, and war and famine and disease become widespread, the people
of the earth will readily accept someone to save us all. A man. When he
rises to power he makes things so much better for the people that they
love him. They might worship this man. So, when the anti-christ rises to
power, he will claim to be deity at one point (probably the abomination
of desolation) and outlaw Christianity. People argue, even today, that
religion is the cause of many wars. Whatever their crime, Christians
will be outlaws deserving of death. People at this point, in my opinion,
will believe "the lie" which is told about in 2Thessalonians 2:9-12 "Even
him, whose coming is after the work of Satan with all power and signs
and lying wonders, And with all deceivableness of unrighteousness in
them that perish; because they received not the love of truth, that they
might be saved. And for this cause God shall send them strong delusion,
that they should believe a lie: That they all might be damned who
believe not the truth, but had pleasure in unrighteousness."
Oh, some say that we will not be here in that time. That we will have
been raptured up. Make no mistakes, there will be a rapture. Only, it
will not occur at the time most people think. Jesus tells his followers
in Matthew 24:15-16 "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of
desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place,
(whoso readeth, let him understand:) Then let them which be in Judea
flee into the mountains:" They actually SEE the abomination of
desolation when it happens. Which means there are Christians here on
earth at this event. Verse 21, "For then shall be great tribulation,
such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, nor ever
shall be."
There is a tribulation and Christians go through it...at least partly.
I will explain. We are told in 1Thessalonians 1:10 "And to wait for
his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, even Jesus, which
delivered us from the wrath to come." Again 1Thessalonians 5:9 "
For God hath not appointed us to wrath, but to obtain salvation by our
Lord Jesus Christ." REMEMBER THESE VERSES, they are important to
this study. We will not see the wrath!
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."
On to Revelation 6:12-17 "And behold 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?" Here we have a direct similarity in what Jesus told us
was going to happen. The sun and the moon become dark and the people of
the earth are afraid (or mourn, as Jesus said). The interesting thing
here is that we find out why they are afraid. They know that the wrath
has now come. But when was the rapture? You might be asking yourself.
The answer lies in the next couple of verses.
Matthew 24:31 "And he shall send his angels with a great sound of a
trumpet, and they shall gather together his elect from the four winds,
from one end of heaven to the other." Revelation 7 describes this
event. We notice in verse 1 "And after these things I saw four angels
standing on the four corners of the earth, holding the four winds of the
earth, that the wind should not blow on the earth, nor on the sea, nor
on any tree." Verse 2-3 "And I saw another angel ascending from
the east, having the seal of the living God: and he cried with a loud
voice to the four angels, to whom it was given to hurt the earth and the
sea. Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees till we
have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads." At this
point, the 144,000 people of the twelve tribes of Israel are sealed
(verses 4-8). But the next verse (9) is interesting. "After this I
beheld, and, lo, a great multitude, which no man could number, of all
nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues, stood before the throne,
and before the Lamb, clothed with white robes, and palms in their hands;"
There is no doubt that these people are not Jews. So who are they?
Verses 13-14 tell us, "And one of the elders answered, saying unto
me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? And whence come
they? (where did they come from)" And I said unto him, Sir, thou
knowest. And he said to me, These are they which came out of great
tribulation, and have washed their robes, and made them white in the
blood of the Lamb" This is the rapture! These people have been taken
out of the tribulation because the next phase is the wrath. The wrath of
God.
Hebrews 10:31 "It is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of
the living God"...Revelation 8:1 "And when he had opened the
seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an
hour." Remember when you were a kid. Your friend might have been
doing something wrong and got caught so you knew that that person was in
deep trouble...Did you say anything? No. You knew something was about to
happen. Silence. The wrath of God begins with the seventh seal. And
Christians are raptured up between the sixth and the seventh seals
because, as we learned earlier, we are not going to see the wrath.
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