Revelation 6 With Commentary

The Seals

6 I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. Then I heard one of the four living creatures say in a voice like thunder, “Come!” 2 I looked, and there before me was a white horse! Its rider held a bow, and he was given a crown, and he rode out as a conqueror bent on conquest.

3 When the Lamb opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say, “Come!” 4 Then another horse came out, a fiery red one. Its rider was given power to take peace from the earth and to make people kill each other. To him was given a large sword.

5 When the Lamb opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say, “Come!” I looked, and there before me was a black horse! Its rider was holding a pair of scales in his hand. 6 Then I heard what sounded like a voice among the four living creatures, saying, “Two pounds of wheat for a day’s wages, and six pounds of barley for a day’s wages, and do not damage the oil and the wine!”

7 When the Lamb opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say, “Come!” 8 I looked, and there before me was a pale horse! Its rider was named Death, and Hades was following close behind him. They were given power over a fourth of the earth to kill by sword, famine and plague, and by the wild beasts of the earth.

9 When he opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of those who had been slain because of the word of God and the testimony they had maintained. 10 They called out in a loud voice, “How long, Sovereign Lord, holy and true, until you judge the inhabitants of the earth and avenge our blood?” 11 Then each of them was given a white robe, and they were told to wait a little longer, until the full number of their fellow servants, their brothers and sisters, were killed just as they had been.

12 I watched as he opened the sixth seal. There was a great earthquake. The sun turned black like sackcloth made of goat hair, the whole moon turned blood red, 13 and the stars in the sky fell to earth, as figs drop from a fig tree when shaken by a strong wind. 14 The heavens receded like a scroll being rolled up, and every mountain and island was removed from its place.

15 Then the kings of the earth, the princes, the generals, the rich, the mighty, and everyone else, both slave and free, hid in caves and among the rocks of the mountains. 16 They called to the mountains and the rocks, “Fall on us and hide us from the face of him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb! 17 For the great day of their wrath has come, and who can withstand it?”

Commentary

The Lamb mentioned here is Christ; the seals are God's judgment on sinful humanity.

1st seal most likely represents the antichrist who will be bent on conquest through explicit(military conquest) means.

2nd seal represents implicit warfare or the fourth generation warfare, a war of information. This warfare leads to disagreements, so many people violently slay each other.

3rd seal represents financial warfare in which the poor people are disproportionately affected as they will only receive two pounds of wheat and six pounds of barley for a day's labor, but the Giffin goods (goods which the rich prefer) like wine and oil are not touched.

4th seal represents death and sentence to hell, signified by the word 'hades followed death.' This death of the fourth of people on earth will be due to natural disasters like earthquakes, famine, and volcanic eruptions, among other means.

5th seal represents people who were killed during the great tribulation and the souls of these people requesting God to avenge their deaths. God asks them to wait until other people who believe in Christ are martyred.

6th seal represents a massive earthquake, a solar eclipse signified by the words 'sun turned black like sackcloth.' A total lunar eclipse is symbolized by the words 'moon turned blood red.'

Because of the events mentioned by the opening of the 6th seal, the earth's inhabitants, including Kings of the world, rich and mighty men, are terrified. In their horror, they ask the mountains to fall on them as they fear God's judgment because of their sins.

Subscribe to Bible Analysis

Sign up now to get access to the library of members-only issues.
Jamie Larson
Subscribe