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6:1-2
6:1 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. 6:2 And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.
The white horse stands for victory in battle. This is also depicted as such in Revelation 19:11 where Jesus Christ appears triumphant upon a white horse. A crown is given to the rider indicating that he represents an emperor. The bow, rather than a sword in his hand, has a special meaning that we will explain later. Then we are told that he went forth conquering and to conquer. We also have another fact regarding the time of the fulfillment of this prophecy. The apostle is told in Revelation 1:1 that these events must shortly come to pass. If this expression is taken at its most obvious natural meaning, it indicates a year or two from the time of the delivery of the prophecy. The most natural setting for the prophecy is the Roman Empire. While it is true that the later events of the prophecy refer to many other nations in remote parts of the world, at this point we may safely infer that it all began with local events that concerned the Christian community of the Roman Empire.
Our research leads us to believe that the Apostle John was exiled to the Island of Patmos around AD 95 and completed the Apocalypse by AD 96. When we take a look at the events of the Roman Empire around that time, we see the emperor Nerva ascending to the throne. The following are direct quotes from the Encyclopedia Britannica under the article titled "Five Good Emperors".
"The Ancient Roman imperial succession of Nerva (reigned AD 96-98), Trajan (98-117), Hadrian (117-138), Antoninus Pius (138-161), and Marcus Aurelius (161-180) presided over the most majestic days of the Roman Empire. It was not a bloodline; Nerva was raised to the principate by the assassins of Domitian, and the others were successively adopted heirs, each only distinctly related to his predecessor if at all."
"The period witnessed considerable expansion of the empire, from northern Britain to Dacia and to Arabia and Mesopotamia. The empire was consolidated, its defenses were perfected, and a tolerably uniform provincial system covered the whole area of the empire."
It appears that most of the conquests were under Trajan, who captured Dacia in two campaigns in 101 and 105, annexed upper Mesopotamia in 115 and also invaded the Parthian capital of Ctesiphon. When he reached the Persian Gulf, he is said to have wept because he was too old to repeat Alexander the Great's achievements in India. Under Trajan the empire is said to have attained its greatest extent.
The bow in the hands of the rider may be referring to the ancestry of Nerva, the first of the five good emperors. Nerva's family came from the Greek Island of Crete where the national weapon was the bow. The sharpshooters employed in almost every Roman campaign came from the Cretans.
This prophecy refers to the conquests and triumphs
of the Roman Empire. We will see in the coming passages that when this
prophecy was fulfilled, the empire began to decline. Although there were
many attempts made by patriotic and wise man to reverse this decline, nothing
worked and eventually the empire was altogether lost in AD 476. We learn
from this that whatever is written in this book cannot be reversed. God's
purposes regarding the prophecy of this book are unalterable. If we have
the correct interpretation of this book, as unbelievable as this may sound,
we possess a true knowledge of the future. This book is, in a way, another
answer to the disciples' question to Jesus regarding the timing of the
restoration of the nation of Israel in Acts 1:6-8. This time around God
tells us his future plans regarding this question and many others. However,
we are still not given the exact duration and the dates of most of these
events. The book becomes more useful and valuable with each passing year.
As more and more of the events take place and open up the meanings of the
symbols, it becomes easier to understand those symbols regarding the future.
6:3-4
6:3 And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. 6:4 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 that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword.
The red horse stands for war and bloodshed. The sword given to the rider of the red horse reminds us of the sword presented to the Praetorian Prefect. This sword gave him the power of life and death in the administration of his duties. The passage makes it clear by the words "men should slay one another" that the purpose of the sword, in the hands of the rider of the red horse, was to create bloody civil disorder in the Roman Empire. The center of the discord is the Praetorian Guard, who discover that they can kill and replace emperors at will. From there it spreads to the Roman army and to the rest of the Empire.
As we have seen in the previous passage that the preceding period was one of domestic tranquility and prosperity. The accession of Commodus to the throne in 180 marks the beginning of a calamitous period in the Empire. Commodus becomes a bloody tyrant soon thereafter. Eventually, his closest companions manage to slip an assassin into his chamber while he is asleep. This man, a wrestler by profession, quietly strangles him. Pertinax becomes emperor only to be assassinated in 86 days. The Praetorian Guard announce the sale of the throne to the highest bidder. The purchaser of the throne, Didius Julianus, is himself beheaded after 66 days by Septimius Severus. Thereafter, Severus begins an especially bloody civil war to consolidate his power and to murder his challengers to the throne. We will not go further to write about the bloodshed and treachery; except to say that this calamitous period lasts until AD 284 when Diocletian accedes to the throne.
It appears that the events foretold by the
black and the ashen horses overlap with the events of the red horse. Therefore
much of what I wrote, for the interpretation of chapter 6 verses 5 through
8, are also applicable to the time of the red horse. Unless otherwise clarified,
we must not see the beginning of one event as the termination of the previous
event. Often God withholds enough details of these events so that they
cannot be predicted ahead of time with accuracy.
6:5-6
6:5 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 hand. 6:6 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 hurt not the oil and the wine.
The imagery employed in this passage, a pair of scales on a black horse, reminds us of the emblem of the Roman Procurator in the office of the tax collector. This emblem was a pair of scales next to a picture of an ear of corn. The black color of the horse, among the ancients, stood for disaster and calamity. This was the color of the sackcloth worn during the periods of mourning due to a famine or other disaster. These two symbols lead us to believe that this prophecy is regarding some sort of calamity associated with the collection of taxes in the Roman Empire. The voice coming from the center of the living creatures completes the picture. A mention is made of the extremely high price of one quart of wheat and three quarts of barley. The price quoted here is equal to a day's wages for a laborer in the Roman Empire. The Prophecy refers to a rise in Roman taxation to extremely burdensome levels. If we consider the other command not to harm the oil and the wine in this context, its meaning also becomes clear. This command is given to those people who attempt to evade high taxes by either hiding large quantities of these staples or by outright destruction of the olive trees and vineyards on their property.
The era of high taxation in the Empire appears
to have begun with the reign of the emperor Septimus Severus. Severus became
emperor in 193 and he is well known for increasing the size and the complexity
of the government and paying for it by imposing greater taxes. The pay
raises he gave to the military would prove burdensome for the future emperors,
who continually had to raise taxes to keep up with the military pay. Antoninus
Caracalla, who became emperor in 211, is remembered for his edict to grant
Roman citizenship on all the free citizens of the empire. This was done,
in order, to exact heavy taxes from the greatest possible number of people.
He also raised the inheritance tax from 5 to 10 percent. The succeeding
emperors appear to have continued the policies of high taxation with heavy-handed
enforcement. This enforcement became so severe and terrifying to the citizens
that in the later centuries we see the small landowners giving up their
property and freedom to become slaves of large landowners in order to avoid
the burdensome taxes. The Emperor Valens, in 386, had to pass a law to
make it illegal to renounce one's liberty in order to avoid paying taxes.
The existence of a Roman law, which made it illegal to destroy olive groves
and vineyards on one's property in order to escape tax assessment, shows
us the extent to which people were driven to escape the tax burden. The
existence of such a law also fulfills the latter portion of this prophecy
regarding not harming the oil and the wine. Lactantius, a historian of
the fourth century, writes about the crushing burden of taxation upon the
citizens of the Empire. In fact, the historians agree that high taxation,
coupled with a very high inflation rate brought about by the debasement
of the currency by the emperors, was a major contributor to the decline
and fall of the empire.
6:7-8
6:7 And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see. 6:8 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 with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth
This passage refers to a very dismal period in the history of the Roman Empire. A fair reading of the passage shows us that it is a time when a very large portion of the population die from sword, famine, pestilence, and wild beasts. Looking through the pages of history, we find that the symbols of this prophecy find their fulfillment in the third century. In fact the historians, by common consent, refer to the events of this time period as "The Crisis of the Third Century".
The Crises of the Third Century:
The period from 235 to 284 is referred to as "The Crises of the Third Century". The Goths and the Persians attack the empire from the north and the east. Many important cities are laid waste and their inhabitants are slaughtered. A severe and long lasting plague also takes its toll on the Roman population. Counting several sons and brothers, more than 40 emperors exercise brief rule over the empire before being assassinated. Lack of political and economic stability brings financial ruin upon the empire. The currency becomes worthless as the Emperors begin to reduce the amount of precious metal in the standard coin. Widespread famine is also a byproduct of the economic destabilization of the era. The Emperors Decius and Valentinian are well known for their organized persecution of the Christians. Valentinian is captured by the Persian king Sapor to be tortured and killed in a most horrendous manner.
One other fact worthy of mention is the reference
in the scriptures to the attacks of the wild beasts. This may be understood
as a byproduct of the depopulation of the cities. A Christian writer, Arnobius,
a century later, mentions this plague as being a grievous calamity to fall
upon the citizens of the empire.
6:9-11
6:9 And when he had opened the fifth seal, I saw under the altar the souls of them that were slain for the word of God, and for the testimony which they held: 6:10 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? 6:11 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 fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.
The martyred souls run to the altar for solace. The altar, here, represents the sacrifice of Christ on the cross. When we face suffering for following Jesus, we must also run to the altar. This is done by retreating to prayer to remind ourselves of his great sacrifice and suffering on the cross. The cry of the martyrs is indicative of their complete trust in God that he will, at some future date, bring about justice upon the world. However, they go further and plead with him to accomplish this justice speedily. Indeed the tone of their prayer suggests that if God were to avenge them immediately upon their persecutors, they would be happy. This, at first, appears somewhat inconsistent with the meek submission to God's will that is taught in the gospel of Christ. However, both ideas are very clearly taught in the gospel. Jesus prayed that God would forgive his very tormentors as they were putting the nails on his limbs. In this case his prayer for them was based on the premise that they were ignorant of the true nature of their actions. Their eyes were blinded by evil spiritual powers. However, he showed no such compassion when dealing with the demons. We read nowhere that he prayed for their deliverance. Rather, he prayed for and was instrumental in overthrowing the domain of these very same spiritual powers. Therefore we can interpret the prayers of these martyrs to mean that the evil spiritual forces, who tempted the people of the world to torment and kill them, be speedily destroyed. History bears witness that many of these Christians were fervently praying for their tormentors as they were being tormented. This amazing fact, indeed, accounts for the rapid spread of Christianity as many of the heathen executors repented in the face of such love and compassion. We cannot imagine the martyrs first praying for the salvation and then the destruction of their executors. As to the impatience of the martyrs for the delayed justice of God, we may state that this kind of impatience and fervent prayer for the destruction of the power of evil appears acceptable to God. In fact, they are given white robes indicating God's approval of their righteous cause and they are informed that the ongoing fiery trial is under God's strict control. It would last only as long as their number, which was fixed by God from eternity, would be completed.
The textual location and the particulars of this prophecy allow us to place it around 303 in the Roman Empire. At that time a decision was made by the Roman Government to put an end to the Christian religion for all time. Diocletian, who had restored and strengthened the empire from its previous decay, made the mistake of taking bad advice from his chosen successor Galerius. Galerius, himself, appears to have been influenced by his devoutly pagan mother. Beginning in 303, Diocletian issued a series of edicts against the Christians. These edicts directed the governors of the provinces to apprehend first the ministers of the Gospel and then all Christians. They were to use every method of torture known to men to force the Christians to renounce their religion and to go back to the worship of the Gods. Also, the churches were to be demolished and the religious books were to be burned. The persecution lasted 10 years. More than one million Christians were martyred.
During the persecution, Galerius succeeded
Diocletian to the throne and oversaw the persecution of the Christians.
By 311 he became ill with a very painful disease. He attributed this illness
to the vengeance of the God of the Christians. History does not tell us
that he repented and converted to the Christian faith, but it does tell
us that this illness made him fear God so much that he issued an edict
declaring an end to the persecution. He died shortly thereafter. There
was, however, still sporadic persecution of the Christians until the Edict
of Milan in 313. This Edict was the outcome of a political agreement between
the emperors Constantine I and Licinius. It effectively ended all persecution
of the Christians by the Government of the Roman Empire.
6:12-17
6:12 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; 6:13 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. 6:14 And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. 6:15 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; 6:16 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: 6:17 For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?
Verse 12, the breaking of the sixth seal, introduces
us to the beginning of those events that brought down the Latin Roman Empire.
This empire is seen as the fourth beast in Daniel's dream (Daniel 7:7).
It is also mentioned in Revelation 13:1-3 as the beast from the sea with
10 horns and 7 heads. There it receives a deadly wound at the fall of Rome.
Nevertheless it revives under the Papacy as the last of its heads (Revelation
17:10-11). This last head is to survive until the outpouring of the seventh
vial. We see that God deals two major blows to the fourth beast. The first
blow is inflicted at the fall of Rome and the second and final blow is
inflicted at the battle of Armageddon. In fact, when one pays close attention,
it can be seen that similar plagues are employed in both blows.
| (1) | Great earthquake |
| "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;" Revelation 6:12. | |
| And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great." Revelation 16:18. | |
| (2) | Displacement of every mountain and island: |
| "And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places." Revelation 6:14 | |
| "And every island fled away, and the mountains were not found." Revelation 16:20. | |
| (3) | Men from all walks of life fall under the judgments: |
| "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;" Revelation 6:15 | |
| "That ye may eat the flesh of kings, and the flesh of captains, and the flesh of mighty men, and the flesh of horses, and of them that sit on them, and the flesh of all men, both free and bond, both small and great." Revelation 19:18 | |
| (4) | The judgment falls on the atmosphere. |
| "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." Revelation 7:1. | |
| "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." Revelation 8:5. | |
| The agents of the fall of Rome are likened to "four winds of the earth" which are held in check until the appropriate time. When the time is up, there is thunder and lightning as in the beginning of a storm. | |
| "And the seventh angel poured out his vial into the air; and there came a great voice out of the temple of heaven, from the throne, saying, It is done." Revelation 16:17. | |
| "And there were voices, and thunders, and lightnings; and there was a great earthquake, such as was not since men were upon the earth, so mighty an earthquake, and so great." Revelation 6:18. | |
| Here the judgment vial is poured into the air and then the seventh plague begins with thunders and lightnings; again reminding us of a horrific storm. |
The Place of Ancient Rome in God's Counsels.
Ancient Rome features prominently in God's eternal plans. Our Lord was born at the peak of this Empire. The message of the Gospel was preached for the first time within its borders. The soldiers of this empire were used to crucify our Lord at the instigation of the Hebrew people. Later on, these very same soldiers were used to bring the most fearsome judgment upon the Hebrew people for not knowing their time. The works of Ancient Rome were mostly evil. Looking back, we can see that Daniel's dream of the fourth beast suited it perfectly. Yet, amidst such evil, God accomplished the greatest work of redemption through His Son. We learn from this that God's works are finely tuned. When He appears to allow unchecked proliferation of evil, He is at the same time also preparing the means to bring an end to it. Although we perceive that the world appears to be turning away from the Gospel in these latter days, (1997) we do not lose hope as we know that this is happening according to prophecy (Revelation 16:14-15) and that God is preparing the Dragon, the Beast, and the False Prophet for the battle of Armageddon where He will defeat them decisively and usher in the blessed millennium.
Timetable of the Detailed Events of the Fall of the Western Roman Empire.
In order to give the reader an overall picture
of the complex events of the fall of the Roman Empire, we have assembled
the following timetable. In the following passages we will try to make
good use of this timetable.
| 200 BC | Germanic peoples begin to migrate south from Scandinavia to Eastern Europe, Black sea area, and also into the area of modern Germany where they displace the Celts. Their first contact with The Romans occurs at the end of the second century BC, when the Cimbri and Teutoni invade southern Gaul and northern Italy and are annihilated by Gaius Marius in 102 and 101. |
| 9 BC | Romans push their frontier eastward from the Rhine to Elbe; thereby incorporating the Germanic Tribes living in these areas. |
| 9 AD | Arminius, a chief of the Cherusci German tribe, and a commander in the Roman army, rebels against the Romans. He manages to unite the various tribes and inflicts a major defeat on the Romans in Teutoburg Forest. Romans lose three legions (approx. 17,000 soldiers) under general Varus who kills himself. |
| 248 – 269 | Barbarian attacks, mostly by Germanic tribes, upon the Roman empire sharply increase in severity and number until the emperor Claudius II soundly defeats them in 269. He is honored with the title "Gothicus" for his victories over the Goths. |
| 284 – 305 | The Roman Emperor Diocletian reforms the Roman administration by introducing a two-tiered system of augusti and caesars over the separate eastern and western districts of the Empire. |
| 306 – 337 | The Roman Emperor Constantine converts to the Christian religion in 312. The persecution of the Christians is ended. The Christian church is given extensive legal rights and large financial donations. |
| 341 | Ulfilas is consecrated as a bishop of the Gothic Christians by the Arian bishop of Constantinople. Thereafter he worked in the conversion of the Goths to Arianism. He invented the first Gothic alphabet and translated portions of Bible into the Gothic language. |
| 365 | The greatest part of the Roman World is shaken by a large scale and powerful earthquake. The earthquake causes the coastal waters of the Mediterranean first to recede and then flood inland as far as two miles away. 50,000 lives are lost only in the city of Alexandria. |
| 370 | The Huns, being pushed by the Chinese Empire in central Asia, migrate west and begin to invade the Germanic tribes in Europe. They invade the Ostrogoths. |
| 376 | Visigoths, fleeing the invading Huns, ask and receive permission from the Eastern Roman Emperor Valens to cross over the Danube and settle in Roman territory. |
| 378 | The Visigoths defeat the Roman army, killing the emperor Valens, at Adrianople. Theodosius I, who succeeded Valens, made peace with the Visigoths and incorporated their army into the Roman forces. |
| 395 – 397 | Alaric was a the leader of Visigothic mercenaries in the Roman army. He rebelled in 395 with his troops and invaded Greece. The Eastern emperor, Arcadius, made him the military ruler of Greece in 397. |
| 401 – 403 | Alaric attempted to invade Italy and was twice forced to withdraw by the Roman general Flavius Stilicho. Emperor Flavius Honorius, threatened by these invasions, moved the imperial residence to Ravenna in 402. Ravenna remained the capital of the Western Roman Empire until its dissolution in 476. |
| 405 – 406 | Ostrogoths led by a pagan called Radagaisus attacked Florence. Stilicho defeated them and had Radagaisus executed in 406. In celebration of this victory a triumphal arch was erected in Rome. |
| 408 – 410 | Stilicho, suspected of treason, was executed on Emperor Honorius’ orders. Upon hearing this Alaric returned to invade Italy once again on 408. He besieged Rome twice on 408 and 409 and finally captured it on 410. His sieges caused severe famine and inflicted much suffering on the people of Rome. The Senate and the prefect are known to have proposed pagan sacrifices to ward off the enemy during these sieges. Alaric’s troops were permitted to plunder Rome for three days. They are known to have treated the inhabitants of Rome humanely and burned only a few buildings. This was the first invasion of Rome by a foreign power since 800 years. Also in 410 the last of the Roman troops had to be withdrawn from the imperial province of Britannia, (The British Isles of today) which were never to be recovered again. |
| 420 | The Huns settle along the Danube, particularly in the great Hungarian Plain. The Eastern Emperor pays them a subsidy. |
| 428 | Gaiseric, the king of the Vandals, who had settled in the area of modern Spain, accepted the invitation of the Roman governor of Africa, the count Bonifacius, who wished to use the military strength of the Vandals against the imperial Roman government. Gaiseric’s troops, thought to have numbered about 80,000, crossed over to Africa and then turned on Bonifacius, defeating his army and invading most of North Africa. With the fall of Africa the Western Empire lost its strategic grain reserves and most of its economic power. |
| 434 | Attila took control of the Huns and began to attack and devastate large parts of the Eastern Roman Empire. He obtained vast sums of tribute from the Eastern Emperor. There is a story that other Barbarian chiefs could not look at the king of the Huns directly in the eyes without flinching. |
| 439 | Gaiseric solidified his reign by capturing Carthage and launching a series of seafaring expeditions from there. The vandal fleet fully dominated the western Mediterranean and dealt severe blows to the maritime ports of the Roman Empire. Sardinia, Corsica, and Sicily were lost to the Vandals. Vandals belonged to the Arian heresy and wherever they invaded, they suppressed the Roman Catholic Church. |
| 450 | Attila attacked Gaul with a pretext provided by Honoria, sister of the emperor Valentinian III. The Roman general Aetius was able to form a coalition with Visigoths. After fierce fighting, Attila’s horde was stopped. |
| 451 | Attila invaded Italy and sacked several cities such as Aquileia, Patavium, Verona, Brixia, Bergomum, and Mediolanum. However, the raging famine and pestilence caused the Huns to withdraw without crossing the Apennines. Attila died during the night following his marriage in 453. |
| 454 | The Ostrogoths and the other Germanic tribes revolted against the Huns. The sons of Attila, who had quarreled among themselves for leadership, could not deal with the rebellion. The Empire of the Huns disintegrated rapidly. Also in this year the Western Emperor Valentinian III murdered the great Roman General Aetius personally with the imperial sword. When asked his opinion of this murder, one of his advisers is supposed to have told him: "You have cut off your right hand with your left." |
| 455 | Gaiseric and his troops captured and plundered Rome for 14 days. This time there was much destruction and mayhem. Many buildings were destroyed and most of the valuables were carried off. These included the holy artifacts which had been carried away by the Romans from Solomon’s temple in 70 AD. The term Vandal, which describes one who maliciously destroys property, is coined off from this famous pillage of Rome. |
| 476 | Odoacer, a commander in the Roman army and the chief of the Sciri German tribe, led a revolt against Rome. He was able to depose and exile the young emperor Romulus Augustus without a major battle. He declared himself king and sent the imperial regalia, the diadem, the orb and the scepter to the Eastern Emperor Zeno in Constantinople. This event marks the end of the Western Roman Empire. |
| 488 | Theodoric, the king of the Ostrogoths, in alliance with the emperor Zeno, invaded Italy and slew Odoacer. He was given the power, though not the title, of the Western Roman Emperor. |
| 534 | Justinian I, the Eastern Emperor, sent his general Belisarius for conquest of the territories lost to the Western Empire. Belisarius defeated the Vandals so completely that they were never able to recover again. |
| 535 | The following year Belisarius was sent to Italy to quell the disturbances arising from the death of Theodoric. After a successful campaign, the Gothic power was broken in 555 and the rule of Italy was given to the Exarchs (Byzantine governors) of Ravenna. The Exarchate of Ravenna lasted until about 726 when it was broken up by revolts and invasions. |
| 568 | The Lombards invaded Italy. During the seventh and much of the eighth century the Lombards strengthened their hold on Italy and fought off the Franks, the Byzantines, and other coalitions raised against them by the popes. |
| 754 | The Frankish king, Pepin the Short, forced the Lombards, who had now become Roman Christians, to give a considerable amount of territory to the Pope Stephen II. Byzantine claim to sovereignty in the area was ignored. This land donation of Pepin provided the basis for the Papal claim to temporal power. |
| 773 | The Lombard king Desiderius was defeated by Charlemagne who became the king of the Lombards as well as of the Franks. The Lombards gave their name to Lombardy in modern Italy. |
The meaning of the symbols used in verses 12 through 17.
Great Earthquake.
This is one of the symbols to indicate the great changes taking place in the political and social realms of the lands in and around the Roman Empire. Earthquake in the scripture often refers to great changes within the nations that are caused by God's judgment. It is also remarkable that one of the greatest recorded earthquakes took place in the year 365 within the Roman Empire. One can see from the timetable that this event also marks the beginning of the calamities symbolized by the four trumpets that brought down the Roman Empire. These are explained in chapter 8.
Great signs in the sky.
The Sun, the Moon, and the stars in this passage stand for the Roman Emperor and the rulers of the empire. Beginning with the dream of Joseph (Genesis 37:9) where he sees the future subjection of his brothers as the Sun, the Moon, and the stars bowing before him; the scripture uses this type of symbolism to refer to the rulers of the nations. Such events as the Sun becoming dark, the Moon taking on the color of blood and the falling stars indicate the impending wars and calamities about to befall the Empire. The sky being split apart like a scroll stands for the removal of the ancient pagan religions supposedly sent from the sky. The islands refer to the kingdoms and the principalities of Europe in close proximity to the Roman Empire. The Mountains refer to the rulers of these kingdoms. The word "Eminence" is derived from the word "mountain" and it is still used to address the Cardinals in the Catholic Church.
Great consternation among the heathen.
The adherents of old paganism are filled with
terror. They see the approach of the vast armies of the barbarians at the
borders of the empire. While they remain pagan, they sense rightly that
God has delivered them into the hands of the barbarians. They are in such
a state of despair that they wish themselves to be instantly annihilated
rather than having to face God's judgment.
7:1
7:1 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
The winds in this passage stand for wars and
conflicts. This is a common usage and may be employed in everyday language.
An expression such as "The dark storm clouds over Europe" reminds us of
the World War II. The paramilitary force of Nazi Germany was called "The
Storm Troopers". One can find many more examples. These winds, that the
angels were holding, are the calamities about to befall the Roman Empire
from the land and the sea. Here we have another interesting example of
the warfare of the angels. Fallen angels appear to have worked within God’s
providence to stir up the Barbarian nations. They would like these nations
to attack the Roman Empire immediately to annihilate it. However, God will
not allow them as yet. The angels of mercy are told to immobilize the Barbarians
until God’s purposes are fully accomplished.
7:2-17
7:2 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, 7:3 Saying, Hurt not the earth, neither the sea, nor the trees, till we have sealed the servants of our God in their foreheads. 7:4 And I heard the number of them which were sealed: and there were sealed an hundred and forty and four thousand of all the tribes of the children of Israel. 7:5 Of the tribe of Juda were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Reuben were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Gad were sealed twelve thousand. 7:6 Of the tribe of Aser were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Nepthalim were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Manasses were sealed twelve thousand. 7:7 Of the tribe of Simeon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Levi were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Issachar were sealed twelve thousand. 7:8 Of the tribe of Zabulon were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Joseph were sealed twelve thousand. Of the tribe of Benjamin were sealed twelve thousand. 7:9 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; 7:10 And cried with a loud voice, saying, Salvation to our God which sitteth upon the throne, and unto the Lamb. 7:11 And all the angels stood round about the throne, and about the elders and the four beasts, and fell before the throne on their faces, and worshipped God, 7:12 Saying, Amen: Blessing, and glory, and wisdom, and thanksgiving, and honour, and power, and might, be unto our God for ever and ever. Amen. 7:13 And one of the elders answered, saying unto me, What are these which are arrayed in white robes? and whence came they? 7:14 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. 7:15 Therefore are they before the throne of God, and serve him day and night in his temple: and he that sitteth on the throne shall dwell among them. 7:16 They shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more; neither shall the sun light on them, nor any heat. 7:17 For the Lamb which is in the midst of the throne shall feed them, and shall lead them unto living fountains of waters: and God shall wipe away all tears from their eyes
The true believers are to be sealed before
the full destruction of the Roman Empire may begin. This seal is not a
visible mark. It is a spiritual seal of protection and apparent only to
the angels. This again shows us that even while the Barbarian armies attack
Rome in full fury, the angelic forces that control them will not allow
them to destroy the true church of God. The following facts come to our
attention from a careful study of this chapter.
| (1) | After the Conversion of the Emperor Constantine, the official policy of the Roman government changed from the persecution of the Christians to the widespread promotion of the Christian religion. This brought about a large influx of people rushing to join the church for worldly gain. Such people, since they never intended to suffer for Christ in the first place, took up very lax and worldly views of religion. As we see in the example of the church at Laodicea (Revelation 3:16), such discipleship is not acceptable to God. Furthermore, these people also developed heretical doctrines such as Arianism and Pelagianism. These heresies threatened to spread even among the true people of God. The danger, especially at that time, must have been very great for the church. Since there were no printed Bibles and very few could read and write, most relied on others for the precious truths of the Gospel. The Arian heresy claimed that Jesus Christ was not divine and the Pelagian heresy urged people to seek salvation through good works. These heresies continue even today under different names. The conditions of that time necessitated that the true people of God be separated from those who only attended the church with no fruits of righteousness (James 2:26). From our study of the Bible, we believe that this process of the sealing of the believers is not confined to the fourth century. Rather it is an ongoing process. There are times when God sees it necessary to seal his people to protect them from harm. We see his ongoing watch over his people in the following passage. "For the eyes of the LORD run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to shew himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is perfect toward him" (II Chronicles 16:9). |
| (2) | The people, thus sealed, are taken out in equal numbers from the 12 tribes of Israel. This shows that they were picked out from the Christian population. The 12 tribes cannot refer to the ancient 12 tribes of Israel. By the fourth century, the 12 tribes of Israel had been scattered throughout the world and the tribal distinctions were no longer applicable. Since they were picked out in equal numbers from each tribe, God shows no favoritism to any one particular group. These groups of Christians are comparable to the various Christian denominations that exist today. I must, however, state that not all of today’s denominations that go by the name Christian worship the true God. They are, in fact, so far gone in the way of sin that they no longer carry on even a pretense of following the Bible or believing the true God. |
| (3) | The tribe of Dan is omitted. This tribe was given to idolatry early on and continued at it until the time of the captivity. "And the children of Dan set up the graven image: and Jonathan, the son of Gershom, the son of Manasseh, he and his sons were priests to the tribe of Dan until the day of the captivity of the land. And they set them up Micah's graven image, which he made, all the time that the house of God was in Shiloh" (Judges 18:30-31). We cannot be certain that this was the actual reason for the omission of the Danites; nor can we rule it out. However, since the passage is symbolic, it is highly probable that the exclusion of the Danites stands for a serious warning to those Christians who mix pure religion with the worship of the saints. |
| (4) | The great multitude, from all the Nations, represents the state of the redeemed in the heavenly city. We learn from this that though many are lost, the gospel will, yet, triumph even in this fallen world and eventually conquer it as Jesus prophesied in Matthew 16:18. |
| (5) | The Great Tribulation, most probably, refers to the time of the extreme persecution of the church under the heathen emperors prior to Constantine. God has so decreed that this fierce persecution of the church be remembered throughout the ages and those saints, who withstood Rome's trials, be greatly honored. Even in our day and even among the heathen people one can scarcely find someone who does not know that there was a time when Christians were thrown to the lions for their faith. |
8:1
8:1 And when he had opened the seventh seal, there was silence in heaven about the space of half an hour.
The half-hour silence represents the calm before
the storm, which is about to destroy the Roman Empire. The silence may
also refer to the short breathing space enjoyed by the Christians and in
fact by the Entire Roman Empire beginning with the conversion of Constantine
to the Christian religion and ending in his death.
8:2-6
8:2 And I saw the seven angels which stood before God; and to them were given 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.
The golden censer is filled with the prayers of the saints. It is offered before God with much incense. We are not told the reason for these prayers; but it is reasonable to infer that they were offered to God for deliverance from the impending calamities. God hears these prayers and delivers the church from destruction by sealing his saints as in chapter 7. However, the censer is filled with fire and thrown to The Earth amidst loud noises, thunder and lightning, and an earthquake. This shows us that God is determined in his purpose of the destruction of the Empire.
Another important lesson from this passage
is that the prayers are directed only to God and not to other saints. The
altar, where the angel stands and the incense, which is given to him, represent
the different aspects of the sacrifice of Christ. God heeds the prayers
of his saints when they are offered to him through the cross of Calvary.
8:7
8:7 The first angel sounded, and there followed hail and fire mingled with blood, and they were cast upon the earth: and the third part of trees was burnt up, and all green grass was burnt up.
This refers to the Invasions of Alaric, (370-410) king of the Visigoths. Alaric was a commander in the Roman Army over Visigothic mercenaries. He rebelled against the Empire in 395 with the troops under his command. He invaded Greece and was made the military ruler of Greece in 397 by the eastern emperor Arcadius. By 401 he launched an expedition to invade Italy. He was twice forced to withdraw by the Roman General Stilicho. Threatened by these attacks, the Emperor Honorius moved the imperial residence to the more secure northern city of Ravenna in 402. By 408 Stilicho was accused of treason and executed on the Emperor's orders. Alaric heard about this and immediately launched another expedition to invade Italy in 408. He laid siege to Rome twice in 408 and 409 and captured it in 410. His troops were permitted to plunder Rome for three days. Alaric, himself, died soon after his victory. While Alaric's sieges caused severe famine and much suffering for the people of Rome, his conduct after the invasion was more humane. He is known to have said that his war was not with Jesus Christ and his apostles but with the Roman government. His troops treated the Romans humanely. They did not destroy the Christian churches and other valuable works of art. This was the first invasion of Rome by a foreign power since 800 years.
The symbols of hail and fire mixed with blood,
the burning of the earth with the trees and the grass bring to mind a general
picture of warfare and destruction applicable to Alaric's invasions.
8:8-9
8:8 And the second angel sounded, and as it were a great mountain burning with fire was cast into the sea: and the third part of the sea became blood; 8:9 And the third part of the creatures which were in the sea, and had life, died; and the third part of the ships were destroyed.
This refers to the invasions of Gaiseric, king of the Vandals in Spain. In 428 Gaiseric was invited to North Africa to help Count Bonifacius in his struggles with imperial Rome. He built a large fleet and transported all his people, purported to be around 80,000, to Africa. This migration is considered to be the greatest sea-borne movement of the barbarians. Once in Africa, the Vandals caused great devastation in their path as they moved eastward. They turned on Count Bonifacius and defeated his forces in 430. They also defeated the joint forces of the Eastern and the Western empires that had been sent to Africa. By 439 Gaiseric had captured Carthage and was the sole ruler of the old Roman province in Africa. North Africa was the breadbasket of Rome, and its loss meant another devastating blow to the very survival of the Western Empire.
By 445 Gaiseric had built a formidable naval
fleet and had begun launching many successful expeditions upon the coastal
cities of the Empire. He dominated most of the Mediterranean through terror
in the seas and thus fulfilled the prophecies of the burning mountain falling
into the sea, a third of the sea becoming blood, the destruction of a third
of the ships, and the death of a third of the living creatures in the sea.
He is remembered mostly by his savage plunder of Rome in 455. He invaded
an undefended Rome and his troops pillaged the city for 14 days. Many buildings
were burned and almost all the treasures of Rome, including the holy artifacts
from the last Jewish Temple, were carried to his ships. Many Roman citizens
were carried away as slaves. The term Vandalism is coined from this famous
pillage of Rome.
8:10-11
8:10 And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; 8:11 And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.
This refers to the invasions of the Huns mainly under the most illustrious of their leaders Attila. The Huns appeared from beyond the Volga River soon after the middle of the fourth century. They quickly defeated the Alani, who had settled in the plains between the Volga and the Don rivers. They, then, overran the Empire of the Ostrogoths between the Don and Dniester rivers. The Visigoths, in what is now Romania, were the next to be conquered in 376. Their advance brought them to the frontiers of the Roman Empire at the Danube River. They settled along the Danube, particularly in the Great Hungarian Plain for about fifty years. The Eastern Roman Emperor had to pay them a subsidy to keep them at bay. By 432, the leadership of the various Hunnic tribes had been centralized under their king Rua. After Rua's death, his two nephews Bleda and Attila became joint rulers in 433. They, immediately, forced another treaty with the Eastern Emperor to double their subsidies to 700 pounds of gold each year. When the emperor failed to pay the stipulated amount, Attila launched an assault from the Danubian frontier and advanced almost to Constantinople. He forced the emperor to triple the annual subsidies to 2100 pounds of gold and also extracted 6000 pounds of gold in arrears. By 445 Attila had murdered his brother Bleda and had become the sole ruler over the Huns. He made his second great attack on the Eastern Empire in 447. He devastated the Balkan provinces and drove south into Greece as far as Thermoplylae.
Attila, so far, had remained on friendly terms with the Western Empire. However, by 451 he decided to invade the kingdom of the Visigoths in Gaul. At first he told the Roman general Aetius that he had no ambitions in the Western Empire. This all changed when he received a letter from Honoria, the Emperor's sister, asking him to save her from an arranged marriage. Whereupon Attila claimed Honoria as his wife and demanded half the Western Empire as her dowry. Aetius joined forces with the Visigothic king Theodoric I to engage Attila's forces at the Battle of Chalons. (Catalaunian Plains) The ensuing battle is considered to be one of the fiercest and costliest battles of the Western world. Historical sources tell us that approximately 300,000 bodies were left on the battlefield. The Visigothic king Theodoric I was among the casualties. In the end the Hunnic army had to withdraw. Attila, however, still commanded a powerful force and had not learned his lesson. The very next year (452) he crossed the Alps and attacked the Western Roman Empire. He devastated Aquileia, Patavium (Padua), Verona, Brixia, Bergomum, and Mediolanum (Milan). By the time he reached Rome, however, the tide had turned against him. He was short on supplies due to a devastating famine in Italy and a plague was sweeping through his forces. Also the Eastern Emperor Marcian had sent an army across the Danube to strike into the heartland of the Huns' territory. Therefore, he was, easily, persuaded by Pope Leo I to withdraw his forces from the destruction of Rome. The tradition tells us that he was terrorized by a heavenly image of the apostle Peter threatening to kill him with a sword in his hand. Whatever he saw in the sky or did not see, Attila was not to live long after this event. In 453 he choked to death in his own nosebleed in a drunken state on a wedding night to one of his many wives. Those, who buried him with his treasures, were subsequently put to death so as to prevent his grave from being discovered. His many sons, immediately, begin to quarrel among themselves. By 455 the Hunnic Empire had, altogether, disappeared.
The symbol of a blazing star falling on the
rivers is used to represent the invasions of the Huns under Attila. The
Huns appeared first on the Volga River, and then settled for a long time
along the Danube River. After crossing it they began to attack the Western
Roman Empire from the north where many of the major rivers of Europe have
their origins. Many of their battles were fought at riverbeds. The historical
record shows us that due to the extremely large numbers of casualties at
these battles, many of these rivers became red with blood. The way of the
Huns, their rapid advances, the sudden and dazzling appearance of Attila,
the accompaniment of great devastation in his path, and finally his unexpected
death at an early age and more remarkably the rapid disappearance of the
Huns upon his death remind us of a large and devastating meteor.
8:12
8:12 And the fourth angel sounded, and the third part of the sun was smitten, and the third part of the moon, and the third part of the stars; so as the third part of them was darkened, and the day shone not for a third part of it, and the night likewise.
This refers to the final overthrow of the empire by Odoacer. Odoacer (434-493) was a German warrior, the son of Edeco from the Sciri tribe. He entered the service of the Roman Army at about the age of thirty and rose quickly through the ranks.
In 475 the Roman General Orestes overthrew the Western Emperor Julius Nepos and made his 14 year-old son Romulus Augustus emperor. His son's name was changed from Augustus to Augustulus meaning "little Augustus". Orestes ruled Italy for about 12 months in his son's name. When Orestes did not fulfill his promise to give land to the German tribal leaders, they revolted under the leadership of Odoacer. Odoacer's troops quickly captured and executed Orestes. His son Romulus Augustulus was deposed and exiled. After declaring himself king, Odoacer sent the Imperial Regalia, the Diadem, the Orb, and the Scepter to the Eastern Emperor Zeno in Constantinople. After some opposition at first, Zeno granted him the rank of the Patrician of Italy. Odoacer had the support of the Senate and was able to distribute land to his followers without much opposition from the Romans. He introduced no major changes to the administration of Italy. Even though he belonged to the Arian heresy, he stayed out of the affairs of the Catholic Church.
In 488 the Eastern Emperor Zeno apppointed Theodoric, the king of the Ostrogoths, king over Italy. Theodoric invaded Italy in 489. Odoacer was no match for Theodoric's forces. He escaped to Ravenna and had to surrender in 493. Theodoric murdered him at a friendly banquet.
The end of the Roman Empire is shown as the
darkening of a third of the Sun, the Moon, and the stars. Since the Sun,
the Moon, and the stars stand for earthly rulers, it is appropriate that
a third of the world is plunged into darkness at the fall of the Western
Roman Empire. This darkening also refers to the rise of the Papacy. According
to II Thessalonians 2:6 there was a well-known power that restrained the
rise of the Antichrist. Early Christian tradition tells us that this power
was the Roman Empire. For obvious reasons Paul could not write the name
of this power in a public letter. The title "Universal Bishop" was given
to the bishop of Rome, Boniface III in the year 606 AD. As far as we know
this title was offered to his predecessor Gregory I, who was appalled by
this offer and wrote that the acceptance of this title would make one the
forerunner of Antichrist. Therefore, we have ample proof that Antichrist
began to grow soon after the end of the Roman Empire in the form of the
Papacy. The historical era, starting from 476 to the beginning of the Renaissance,
is sometimes called the dark ages in history books. (American Heritage
Dictionary 1992 edition)
8:13
8:13 And I beheld, and heard an angel flying through the midst of heaven, saying with a loud voice, Woe, woe, woe, to the inhabiters of the earth by reason of the other voices of the trumpet of the three angels, which are yet to sound!
The eagle's warning is regarding the remaining
three blasts of the trumpets. These warnings are mostly directed at the
enemies of God to repent. They are also directed at the saints to watch
earnestly and not to become despondent.
9:1-11
9:1 And the fifth angel sounded, and I saw a star fall from heaven unto the earth: and to him was given the key of the bottomless pit. 9:2 And he opened the bottomless pit; and there arose a smoke out of the pit, as the smoke of a great furnace; and the sun and the air were darkened by reason of the smoke of the pit. 9:3 And there came out of the smoke locusts upon the earth: and unto them was given power, as the scorpions of the earth have power. 9:4 And it was commanded them that they should not hurt the grass of the earth, neither any green thing, neither any tree; but only those men which have not the seal of God in their foreheads. 9:5 And to them it was given that they should not kill them, but that they should be tormented five months: and their torment was as the torment of a scorpion, when he striketh a man. 9:6 And in those days shall men seek death, and shall not find it; and shall desire to die, and death shall flee from them. 9:7 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. 9:8 And they had hair as the hair of women, and their teeth were as the teeth of lions. 9:9 And they had breastplates, as it were breastplates of iron; and the sound of their wings was as the sound of chariots of many horses running to battle. 9:10 And they had tails like unto scorpions, and there were stings in their tails: and their power was to hurt men five months. 9:11 And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon.
The fourth trumpet referred to the end of the
Western Roman Empire at 476. Therefore the events of the fifth trumpet
must refer to a major event which occurs about that time. The primary symbol
used in the fifth trumpet is that of the insect locust. The locust plague
is one that occurs primarily in the orient. "Because of their mobility
and devastating effects on crops, swarming locusts are greatly feared and
difficult to control. The most famous species the desert locust, Schistocerca
gregaria, which roams over central and North Africa, the Middle East, and
India was mentioned in the Old Testament and even earlier." (Grolier Encyclopedia
- Release 6, Locust). This in itself gives us a hint that the object of
this symbol was something that came out of the orient. In Revelation 9:11
we read that "And they had a king over them, which is the angel of the
bottomless pit, whose name in the Hebrew tongue is Abaddon, but in the
Greek tongue hath his name Apollyon." This passage gives us another hint
that this plague would be of a spiritual nature. The prominent characteristic
of this plague would be a fallen angel who would be permitted to bring
these calamities upon the world. We know from other scriptures that the
Devil and the fallen angels are full of fierce enmity against men. If they
were not restrained by God, they would annihilate mankind instantly. Apparently
God, for the purposes of this plague, relaxes those restraints somewhat
and lets Abaddon loose upon the world. Here we get our third hint regarding
this plague. The Greek word Apollyon and the Hebrew word Abaddon translate
to the English word destruction. Another primary characteristic of this
plague would be one of spiritual and then material destruction of the men
in the areas where it occurs. We now have enough hints to pinpoint this
plague:
| (1) | It occurs about or after 476 AD near the time of the end of the Western Roman Empire. |
| (2) | It starts in the Orient. It could be a religious or national entity in the orient that undergoes some type of transformation to make it into a plague to the world at large. |
| (3) | Its origins are spiritual. This increases the odds that this entity will be held together and energized by a religion hostile to the Gospel. |
| (4) | It is marked by spiritual and material destruction of men. This means that the entity will be a powerful military force seeking to convert or destroy the nations of the world. |
A false prophet, born in the Middle East in
the late sixth century, who organizes the Bedouin tribes as a powerful
military force to attack other nations with the aim of either destroying
them or converting them to a false religion that is extremely hostile to
the Gospel, fulfills the requirements of the symbols of the fifth trumpet.
By now it should be clear to anyone with a rudimentary knowledge of history
that we are referring to the religion of Islam. Indeed to my mind this
passage is one of the most incredible proofs of the divine origin of the
Bible. No Skeptic in their right mind could accuse the followers of the
Prophet Mohammed of having read these passages in order to fulfill them.
There can be no physical force in the world, which could guide the course
Islam so as to make it conform to this prophecy. The idea, in itself, would
sound preposterous. Islam, in its heyday under the Saracen Empire, was
the dominant world power. The following symbols of this prophecy are explained
below, as I understand them:
| (1) | A Star falls from heaven. A star refers to a ruler. In our case this refers to the prophet Mohammed. This man claimed that an angel from heaven appeared to him and brought him the final revelation of God. He was able to convince an unbelievably large portion of the mankind of the divine origin of his message. Therefore this passage refers to the origins of his power, meaning that to his followers it looked as if he had been sent from heaven. "He had been given the keys to the bottomless pit." means that he was endowed with such skills as to bring out the bottomless pit in the hearts and minds of the individuals he controlled. Since the race is fallen, there lies an unspeakable well of evil and hatred in the deeper parts of the flesh. This evil is like a dormant volcano always ready to explode. From time to time God permits such eruptions of evil so as to show us our fallen nature and the necessity of the cross to redeem us from this bottomless pit. The most striking example of such an eruption in our age is the rise and fall of the Nazi Germany under the leadership of Adolph Hitler. One only needs to watch Hitler’s speeches in old film clips to see that he was endowed with such oratory skills as to bring out this evil within his audience. | |
| (2) | Smoke comes out of the pit. The thick smoke, which darkens the air and covers the Sun, represents the spirit of Islam. This is appropriate as in Ephesians 2:1 we are informed that Satan is called the prince of the powers of the air. The Sun represents the human government, which is weakened by the spread of Islam. This is true even in our day. Wherever the spirit of Islam reigns, it defies secular government and seeks to bring about the rule of the Sharia. This was fulfilled when Mohammed united the Arabs, who gave up their tribal form of government to rally under the banner of Islam to form the Saracen Empire. Islam was such a strong characteristic of this empire that in many history books it is sometimes referred to as the Islamic Empire. | |
| (3) | Locusts come out of the Smoke. These refer to the Saracen armies. Their physical description gives us an unmistakable picture of an Arab warrior of that time. Here are the remarkable correspondences: | |
| (1) | The symbolic creature is a locust, but it also looks like a horse prepared for battle. This refers to the Arab warriors on horseback. Further on, it is stated that the sound of their wings was like the sound of the chariots rushing to battle. | |
| (2) | They have crowns of gold on their heads. These refer to the turbans the Arabs wore. John states that these were not actual crowns but what looked like crowns. | |
| (3) | They have hair like a women and faces like a man. This refers to Arab warriors’ custom of wearing their hair long and always having mustaches and beards. | |
| (4) | They have breastplates of iron. Again this reemphasizes that these were warriors prepared for battle. | |
| (5) | Their teeth are like the Lions’ teeth and their tails are like the scorpions’ tails, which sting. This strengthens the argument that these were warriors who were endowed with ferocious energy and destructive powers through a strong faith in Islam. The expression "their power is in their tails" (Revelation 9:10) reminds one of the following verse: "The elder and the honorable man, he is the head; and the prophet that teacheth lies, he is the tail" (Isaiah 9:15). Here we see that a false prophet is likened to the tail. | |
| (4) | They are commanded not to hurt the trees and the grass, but only the men who do not have the seal of God on their foreheads. Here we see that these imaginary locust-like creatures differ from ordinary locusts in a remarkable manner. They do not hurt their environment indiscriminately such as the locusts do. They are told to restrict their destruction to those people who did not have the seal of God. The sealing process of the true Christians is mentioned earlier in Revelation 7:3. The Moslem armies, unlike the Huns and the Mongol hordes, by and large, did not cut down the fruit trees and destroy the orchards nor did they kill the cattle. However, their fiercest anger was turned on those who were known idolaters. The express command of the Koran was to destroy the infidels in the areas they conquered. Those who converted to the Moslem faith or agreed to the payment of a regular tribute were often spared from destruction. They also remarkably left those, whom they considered sincere and deeply devoted Christians, alone. The Koran states that though the Christian religion teaches false doctrines, the Christians themselves are considered the people of the book and those of them, who do not worship idols, will be saved on the last day. One might say that the Moslems killed many true Christians and caused great destruction in the areas where they conquered. We would not deny the truth of this statement. However, we must remember the following facts before discrediting the entire interpretation. This prophecy is symbolic. It is not a literal account of the events. It is similar to our Lord’s parables. The outline of the beginning and the course of Islam and the Saracen Empire are told using remarkable symbols. If the Saracens killed some true Christians or they cut down orchards in some conquered lands, this does not prove that this interpretation is wrong. It is enough to state that, in the main, they followed the course of this prophecy. | |
| (5) | They do not kill but torment men for five months. I believe this passage to be the most amazing part of the prophecy. Here we are given the exact length of time the Saracens would prevail against their enemies and continue enlarging the empire. Using the principle of a day for a year in the interpretation of the prophecy, we conclude that this duration would be 150 years (5 times 30 days for each month). | |
Below is a timetable of the fullfillment of
the Prophecy.
| 570 | Birth of Mohammed. |
| 595 | Mohammed marries Khadijah. Two sons died young. Four daughters were born also. Fatima is prominent. She married Mohammed's cousin Ali. |
| 610 | Mohammed began preaching Islam |
| 619 | Khadijah died. |
| 622 | Mohammed and his followers migrate from Mecca to Medina. This is the beginning of the Moslem calendar and it is called the "Hegira". |
| 623 | Victory over Mecca at Badr. Face turned from Jerusalem to Mecca during Moslem prayers. |
| 627 | Attacks against two Jewish clans. One is totally destroyed the other is put under tribute. |
| 630 | Mohammed takes Mecca. |
| 631 | Mohammed dies at 62 years of age. |
| 641 | The second Caliph Umar conquers all of the Middle East. |
| 661 | Muawiya starts the Umayyad dynasty with Damascus as the capital. |
| 673 | Siege of Constantinople. |
| 685 | The Dome of the Rock, Islam’s second holiest shrine, is built at the location of the ancient Jewish temple. |
| 711 | Tariq Ibn Ziyad conquers Spain. |
| 717 | Second siege of Constantinople. |
| 732 | Defeat of the Saracens by Charles Martel during the invasion of France. |
| 750 | Abbasids defeated the Umayyads and established the Abbasid Dynasty. |
| 755 | Revolt against the Moslems in Spain. |
| 762 | Caliph Mansur founded Bagdad, which became the center of the Saracen Empire. This event marks the end of the expansion of the Islamic Empire. |
| 786 | Harun al-Rashid becomes caliph in Bagdad. This event marks the beginning of the decline of the Saracen Islamic Empire. |
| 870 | Al-Farabi, Moslem scholar, is born. |
| 873 | Al-Kindi, Moslem scholar, is born. |
| 980 | Ibn Sina (Avicenna), the great Islamic philosopher/scientist is born. |
The events and the dates on this timetable
are commonly agreed among most historians and can be verified through many
history books in any library. As we look at this timetable, we see that
the aggressive expansion of Islam starts about the time of the Hegira (622)
and continues until sometime between the founding of Bagdad (762) and the
Caliphate of Harun al-Rashid (786). 150 years from the Hegira takes us
to 772. This marks the end of the Locust Plague or the end of the expansion
of the Saracen Empire. The Arab Moslems did not kill, meaning utterly destroy,
the nations, whom they conquered. However, they inflicted so much punishment
upon the inhabitants of the areas they conquered and caused so much hopelessness
that the captive people wished to die to escape their dire predicament
under Moslem rule. For a Christian, conversion to Islam would be comparable
to death. The passage "And in those days men shall seek death, and shall
in no wise find it; and they shall desire to die, and death fleeth from
them" (Revelation 9:6) may also refer to the efforts of some Christians
to convert to Islam to escape punishment. The Moslems did not always accept
such conversions. Most of them believed that Islam had been made available
only to the Arabs, and that the Christian nations should not convert but
pay tribute and remain in a weak and despicable state at the feet of the
Moslems.
9:12-19
9:12 One woe is past; and, behold, there come two woes more hereafter. 9:13 And the sixth angel sounded, and I heard a voice from the four horns of the golden altar which is before God, 9:14 Saying to the sixth angel which had the trumpet, Loose the four angels which are bound in the great river Euphrates. 9:15 And the four angels were loosed, which were prepared for an hour, and a day, and a month, and a year, for to slay the third part of men. 9:16 And the number of the army of the horsemen were two hundred thousand thousand: and I heard the number of them. 9:17 And thus I saw the horses in the vision, and them that sat on them, having breastplates of fire, and of jacinth, and brimstone: and the heads of the horses were as the heads of lions; and out of their mouths issued fire and smoke and brimstone. 9:18 By these three was the third part of men killed, by the fire, and by the smoke, and by the brimstone, which issued out of their mouths. 9:19 For their power is in their mouth, and in their tails: for their tails were like unto serpents, and had heads, and with them they do hurt.
From the outset the sixth plague appears to
be a revival or continuation of the fifth plague. The following points
are offered in support of this position:
| (1) | The events of the fifth plague were controlled by an angel of destruction. The events of the sixth plague also appear to be controlled by, not just one, but four angels. This resemblance in itself clues us that this plague must also be of a spiritual nature. |
| (2) | There are an innumerable number of locusts that also look and sound like horses in the fifth plague. The sixth plague features an unbelievably large number of horsemen. |
| (3) | The tails of the locusts in the fifth plague are similar to scorpions' tails that sting. The tails of the horses in the sixth plague resemble dangerous snakes. We discovered in the sixth plague that the tail in the scriptures stood for a false prophet. Therefore it is highly likely that a false prophet is involved in the events of the sixth plague. It is also stated that the power of the horses was in their mouths. This strengthens the case for some type of false religion, which is spread by the word of the mouth. |
| (4) | The Locusts of the fifth plague are described as having lions’ teeth. The horses of the sixth plague are described as having the heads of the lions, emphasizing their ferociousness as warriors. |
Since there are so many similarities between
these plagues, it stands to reason that the sixth plague is most likely
a revival of the Moslem armies. Looking through history, we find just such
a revival of Islam through the conversion of the Turcomans beginning in
the tenth century. We compiled the following timetable through our studies
of history books and various encyclopedias. Not all historians agree exactly
on the dates of some of these events, but we believe that in the main they
would agree that these events did take place and that the given dates are
good estimates.
| 900s | Sometime during the century, Turcoman tribes began to migrate west from Central Asia. One of these tribes is led by a chief named Seljuk. The Seljuks settle in the lower reaches of the Syr Darya (Jaxartes) River. Later they convert to Sunnite Islam and began to attack the easternmost borders of the Byzantine Empire and the Armenian principalities in the area. |
| 1055 | Seljuk Sultan Toghrul Beg occupies Bagdad. The declining Abbasid Caliphate accepts the Seljuks as the military protectors of the current and the future caliphates. |
| 1071 | Seljuk army under Alp-Arslan (TheCourageous Lion) defeats a large Byzantine army decisively near Manzikert. This is the modern Day City of Malazgirt and it lies a little to the east of the Euphrates river near lake Van. This battle opens the way for the Turks to accomplish an overwhelming invasion and Islamisation of Anatolia. |
| 1081 | Seljuks establish the Sultanate of Rum with its capital at Konya (Iconium). |
| 1176 | Seljuk sultan Qilich Arslan (TheSword of the Lion) defeats a large Byzantine army at Myriocephalon, (southeast of modern Ankara). |
| 1204 | The fourth crusade is launched. The Latin crusaders invade and sack Constantinople. The Byzantines are driven out of the city. |
| 1243 | Pagan Mongol hordes defeat the Seljuk Turks at the Kosedag battle, ending the Sultanate of Rum. Thereafter they become a dependency of the Ilkhanid dynasty of the Mongols who rule from Iran. |
| 1258 | The Mongols destroy Bagdad. |
| 1261 | Byzantines regain Constantinople but they are further weakened by their conflicts with the Bulgars, Serbs and other enemies to the west. |
| 1280 | Marco Polo encounters Turcomans in Anatolia. He notes that they revere the prophet Mohammed. |
| 1299 | A Turcoman ruler, Osman, who comes from a small town near present day Eskisehir, begins to gain great prominence among all the other tribes through successful raids into Byzantine territories. This is the first ruler of the Ottoman Dynasty that continues until 1922 for 623 years. |
| 1326 | Osman’s son and his successor Orhan takes Bursa, Nicea (Iznik), and Nicomedia (Izmit); strikes his own coinage, thereby declaring his sovereign Ottoman state, free from Mongol control. |
| 1361 | Ottomans begin to move rapidly to the west and the east conquering Edirne in the West and further proceeding into Bulgar and Serb territory. |
| 1389 | Ottomans defeat the Serbs at the battle of Kosovo. |
| 1396 | Ottoman Sultan Beyazid I defeats the last real crusade of the Western Knights organized by the Pope and the King of Hungary at Nicopolis on the Danube. |
| 1402 | Tamerlane, heir to the Mongol realm, moves to Anatolia and defeats the Ottomans at the battle of Ankara. |
| 1422 | Ottomans recover very quickly, forming a strong army of Janissaries and even adopting new weapons from the west such as the cannon and the musketry. They attempt an unsuccessful invasion of Constantinople. |
| 1453 | The Ottoman Sultan, Mehmet II, conquers Constantinople thereby dissolving the last remnant of the Eastern Roman Empire. The great church of Hagia Sofia is turned into a mosque. |
| 1455 | Gutenberg invents the printing press in Germany. The first book printed is the Bible. |
| 1517 | Protestant Reformation begins. Eventually, the Bible is translated, printed, and distributed in the European languages. There is widespread repentance and turning away from the sins of the Papacy in Europe. |
| 1529 | The Ottoman Turks come to Vienna under Suleiman the Magnificent with a vast army to conquer the city. They are turned back decisively at the gates of Vienna. This date marks the end of the rapid westward expansion of the empire. Thereafter the Ottoman Empire slowly declines for 394 years until it is abolished and replaced by the Republic of Turkey in 1923. |
Now we will review the highlights of the sixth plague. While doing so, we will refer to the dates and the events of the foregoing timetable.
The Location of the plague:
The sixth angel blows the trumpet at the appointed time and is told immediately to release the four angels imprisoned at the Euphrates River. In the previous plague the symbol of the locust clued us that this plague had started somewhere in the Orient. Now we are told more directly that the starting location of this plague is near the Euphrates River. From the timetable we see that in 1055 the Seljuks defeated the Byzantines in the battle of Manzikert and that this was the very beginning of their invasion of Anatolia. The modern day town of Malazgirt, where this battle took place, is located nearby to the east of the Euphrates River.
The identities of the Presiding Angels over the plague:
There are four angels. These are again, as in the fifth plague, of the class of the rebel angels. This is obvious from the text as they had been imprisoned earlier and now move immediately to kill a large portion of the mankind. There are four of them instead of one called Abaddon as in the previous plague. This probably means that the people, whom they control, are not united as the Saracens were. They are made up of several nationalities or tribes. We see from the timetable that the people that came from Central Asia and invaded Anatolia were anything but united. They were made up of the Turkic and Mongol races. Through a laborious study of history, it may be possible to separate the invading peoples into four main groups; but this is not necessary. The number four here, as everything else in the prophecy, is symbolic and obviously indicates that there would be several groups of invaders.
The timing and the duration of the plague:
These angels have been prepared for the purposes of this plague. They will drive the nations they control to engage in destructive warfare against those Christians who have offended God by persistently engaging in the sins mentioned on verse 20. We may also infer from that verse that the most egregious of these sins was the worship of idols. They are to continue their attacks for one year, one month, one day, and one hour. By the usual method of calculating prophetic time of taking a day for a year, this time period adds up to a little more than 396 years. However, at the end of the sixth plague, it is stated that the people punished by the fifth and the sixth plagues did not repent, but continued in their sins. Therefore we cannot state for certain that after the passage of 396 years, the nations who brought about the sixth plague would, as happened with the Saracens, cease being a threat to the Christians of that time. It appears that the book of Revelation is written principally to reveal the future events of the Roman Empire and also of those nations who are designated as Roman. Since this plague appears to have fallen upon the Eastern Roman Empire, only those events, leading up to the end of this empire, are described. Thereafter the focus of the Prophecy changes. We are told that these 396 years were appointed to those apostate Christians, who lived to the west of the Euphrates river, as their time of judgment. If we consider the battle of Manzikert at 1055 the beginning of this time period and add 396 years to this date we arrive at 1451. The bulk of the calamities, including the termination of the Eastern Roman Empire at 1453, occur either within or in close proximity to this time period. We know from history that the Ottomans, after the conquest of Constantinople in 1453, grew stronger and went on to new conquests of European Christian Nations until they were twice turned back at the gates of Vienna in 1529 and 1683. Their very long and slow decline most probably started after the failure of their first siege of Vienna in 1529 under Suleiman the Magnificent. "During his later years Suleiman withdrew from active participation in government, and his three sons contested bitterly for the succession. The weakest of these, Selim II (r. 1566-74), succeeded, and the long decline of the Ottoman Empire began." (Grolier Encyclopedia - Release 6, article Suleiman I.) The beginning of this decline, soon after 1529, coincides with the beginning of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. Luther was alive at the time of the first siege of Vienna. We have seen that the forces behind the sixth trumpet were stirred up to punish those people who worshipped idols. Therefore it stands to reason that when there was a large scale turning away from the sins of the Papacy, God checked the might of the Ottoman Empire. Also remarkable is that the Ottoman decline, from 1529 to the termination of the empire in 1923, lasted 394 years. A number nearly equal to the time of the ascendancy of the Turks, from the battle of Manzikert to the conquest of Constantinople.
The symbolic descriptions of the armies of the plague:
The following is an explanation of the symbols
used to describe the Turkish armies. While reading this passage of the
book of Revelation, one must keep in mind that John did not actually see
the Seljuks or the Ottomans riding horses on the plains of Anatolia. Rather
he saw certain images which, when one looks back from our time, strongly
resemble the actual invaders.
| (1) | Two hundred thousand thousand horseman: |
| This expression, in the original Greek, is stated as two myriads of myriads. It may be understood as two hundred million or two battalions of ten thousand troops of an army that was made up of many battalions of ten thousand troops. If we take the number as two hundred million, it must be that John was able to see all of the Turkic armies, which would attack the Eastern Roman Empire during the 396 years the plague was to continue. In actuality no one, except God, can know and even estimate what such a number would be. To my mind two hundred million sounds like a reasonable number for the combined Turkic armies of the entire period. However, if we take the number as two battalions of ten thousand troops, this means that John saw only a portion of a vast cavalry force. Then again we must keep in mind that the entire passage is highly symbolic. There are no horses, which spew fire from their mouths. Therefore it is probable that this number is a symbol somehow reminding us of something regarding the actual numbers of the Turkic armies. While I don’t claim to understand the full significance of the number, I will state that regardless of whichever interpretation one follows, there are two things, which are clearly communicated by the expression. The first is that the Turkic armies, stirred up by the four angels and let loose upon the Eastern Roman Empire, would be composed of tens of thousands of troops. The second is that they would carry out their attacks on horseback. Both of these conclusions are amply borne out in history. | |
| (2) | Breastplates, which have the colors of fire, hyacinth, and brimstone: |
| These are the colors red, blue, and yellow; the well-known colors of the Ottoman armies. The names of these colors are expressed in poetic language and there is allusion here that the actual colors themselves are symbolic of God’s judgment being executed upon the apostate Christians of the Eastern Roman Empire. | |
| (3) | Heads of the horses look like the heads of the lions: |
| This symbol obviously refers to an aspect of the Turkic armies resembling Lions, the noble and the fearless king of the animal world. It is most remarkable that the two of the greatest Seljuk commanders, as seen in the foregoing timetable, are called "The Courageous Lion" and "The Sword of the Lion". | |
| (4) | Fire, smoke, and brimstone issue out of the mouths of the horses: |
| This refers to the Ottomans beginning to use gunpowder and musketry in the early 15th century. They adopted these new weapons from the West and used them skillfully with great success, especially in the conquest of Constantinople. | |
| (5) | Power of the horses lie in their Serpentlike tails and their mouths: |
| The main purpose of this symbol is to relate to us that The Turks derived their spiritual strength from a belief in a false prophet. Normally the tail of an animal is harmless and so is a false prophet among people who follow the commandments of Jesus Christ. But it appears that for the purposes of this plague, God allows a normally harmless entity such as a horsetail to be changed into a dangerous serpent. Meaning that the teachings of the False Prophet of Islam gain sway over the entire race of the Turkic peoples, well known for their military valor. The power of the mouth is also indicative of the false teachings of Islam spread by the word of the mouth, especially before the invention of the printing press. For a proof that the tail in the scriptures represents the false prophet, please see Isaiah 9:15. |
9:20-21
9:20 And the rest of the men which were not killed by these plagues yet repented not of the works of their hands, that they should not worship devils, and idols of gold, and silver, and brass, and stone, and of wood: which neither can see, nor hear, nor walk: 9:21 Neither repented they of their murders, nor of their sorceries, nor of their fornication, nor of their thefts.
Here, we are given the reasons for the plagues.
The people, to whom these plagues were sent, offended God by repeatedly
engaging in the following sins:
| (1) | They worshipped demons. |
| The usage of the word "demon" in this passage does not necessarily mean an evil spiritual being as in the English language. The Greek word refers to a spirit. This could be the spirit of a person who is long dead or a spiritual being such as a demon or an angel. It is well known that in both the Western and the Eastern Roman empires the worship of Jesus Christ was mixed with the worship and adoration of ancient saints. This practice was not backed up by the word of God, but crept in through the ancient Roman and Greek pagan customs. It is most probable that the reference here is to this custom of the apostate Christians of that time. | |
| (2) | They worshipped idols made of gold, silver, brass, stone, and wood. |
| We know that after the conversion of the Roman Empire to the Christian religion, the people gradually gave up the worship of their ancient gods; and the temples and the statues of these gods fell into disfavor. However, the worship of the patron saints in the form of icons and statues became very popular. The icons and the statues of these patron saints, which to this day still exist, were made up of precisely the same materials as in this expression. Therefore this expression also refers to the worship of the Christian saints. | |
| (3) | They did no repent of their murders, sorceries, immorality, and thefts. |
| These sins were also very common among the apostate Christians of that time, as they seem to be today. This is not surprising as one sees from a study of the Old Testament that once people open the floodgates of evil by engaging in idol worship, all these other sins quickly follow. |
We can see in conclusion that the most egregious
of the sins, which offended God, was the worship of the patron saints.
Even though many other things are symbolic, this fact is stated first and
it is laid out in clear, plain language. It appears nearly impossible that
an apostate Christian of reasonable intellect, who studies this passage,
will miss it. Yet even more remarkably verse 21 states that they will miss
it and continue in this sin indefinitely. We have, here, another amazing
proof of the divine inspiration of the Bible. Even today, the Roman Catholic
and the Greek Orthodox churches, which together add up to well over a billion
people, strongly sanction the worship and the adoration of the patron saints
through their icons and the statues.
10:1
10:1 And I saw another mighty angel come down from heaven, clothed with a cloud: and a rainbow was upon his head, and his face was as it were the sun, and his feet as pillars of fire:
A mighty angel appears. His face shines as
the Sun. He is clothed with a cloud. His feet are like pillars of fire.
There is a rainbow upon his head. The clue to the meaning of these symbols
is to be found in the symbol of the rainbow. This had appeared to Noah
after the flood as a symbol of God’s covenant with the earth that He would
never again send another flood to destroy the earth. The appearance of
this angel after the judgment of the sixth trumpet, which had destroyed
the Eastern Roman Empire, shows that God was now ready to send a great
blessing to the earth.
10:2-4
10:2 And he had in his hand a little book open: and he set his right foot upon the sea, and his left foot on the earth, 10:3 And cried with a loud voice, as when a lion roareth: and when he had cried, seven thunders uttered their voices. 10:4 And when the seven thunders had uttered their voices, I was about to write: and I heard a voice from heaven saying unto me, Seal up those things which the seven thunders uttered, and write them not.
This little book refers to the Bible, which was made available to the public through the invention of the printing press. Most historians agree that the final end of the Eastern Roman Empire occurred at the fall of the Byzantine State. The date for this event is the year 1453 when the city of Constantinople fell to the Ottoman Turks. Since the sixth trumpet also referred to this event and the angel with the little book appeared immediately following this event, we must look for the invention of the printing press shortly after this date. Looking through the major events that occurred shortly after 1453, we find that the German goldsmith Johann Gutenberg invented the printing press and printed the Gutenberg Bible as the first book around the year 1455. This remarkable sequence of events shows us that even such seemingly unrelated events as the fall of the Eastern Roman Empire and the invention of the printing press are closely related in the kingdom of God and that they take place precisely at their appointed times. It was God, who destroyed the Eastern Roman Empire and also brought about the invention of the printing press. In fact, since the first book that was printed was a Bible, it appears as if the printing press had been given to men mostly for educating them in the great doctrines of salvation. Gutenberg himself worked under very difficult conditions. It appears that he borrowed heavily in order to finance the first printing press and the very first printing of the Bible. The borrower foreclosed on him and he died in poverty in 1468 at the age of seventy. In his time it must have seemed to his peers that he was not blessed of God with great wealth and success. We must learn from this that often God accomplishes his greatest works through the efforts of his most humble servants. While such people may not live to see the fruits of their works, God sees to it that their names are remembered by the coming generations. And finally their rewards await them in heaven.
The angel, who is commissioned for the delivery
of the great truths of the Bible, places his right foot upon the sea and
his left foot upon the earth and cries with a loud noise such as when a
lion roars. This symbol corresponds to the proclamation of the great truths
of the reformation. These truths were made available to the world beginning
with the posting of Luther’s 95 theses on Oct 31, 1517, the Augsburg Confession
on 1530, and the widespread translation, printing, and distribution of
the Bible into the European languages. They were of great importance to
the whole world hence the angel straddled the land and the sea. The seven
thunders speak after the mighty roar of the angel. The apostle attempts
to write what he heard from the seven thunders; but he is told not to.
If the mighty roar of the angel refers to the proclamation of the great
truths of the reformation, the seven thunders, in all probability, refer
to the response of the Papacy to these proclamations. In the writings of
that time the expressions "Papal Thunder", "Thunders from Rome" have been
used to refer to the condemnatory decrees of the Papacy. Also the number
"seven" in the expression gives a clue to where these voices originated
meaning the city of Rome built upon the seven hills. It is well known that
the Papacy responded to the proclamations of the reformers in great wrath
with
anathemas and excommunications. The apostle, not knowing, the full import
of these symbols, might have misunderstood the utterances of the seven
thunders as coming from God. This explains his attempt to write them and
God’s command to him to cease. These Papal decrees, in themselves, were
uttered as if they were coming from God. The deception of the Papacy was
so strong that most people at the time actually believed these decrees
to be from God.
10:5-7
10:5 And the angel which I saw stand upon the sea and upon the earth lifted up his hand to heaven, 10:6 And sware by him that liveth for ever and ever, who created heaven, and the things that therein are, and the earth, and the things that therein are, and the sea, and the things which are therein, that there should be time no longer: 10:7 But in the days of the voice of the seventh angel, when he shall begin to sound, the mystery of God should be finished, as he hath declared to his servants the prophets.
This solemn affirmation of the angel regarding
the end of the world is very similar to the following passage in Daniel:
"And I heard the man clothed in linen, which was upon the waters of the
river, when he held up his right hand and his left hand unto heaven, and
sware by him that liveth for ever that it shall be for a time, times, and
an half; and when he shall have accomplished to scatter the power of the
holy people, all these things shall be finished." (Daniel: 12:7). It is
most probable that these two passages refer to the time of the resurrection
and the end of the world. The reference is veiled because the timing of
this event is not to be disclosed to anyone not even to the angels. Here
the angel is stating that when the seventh trumpet is blown and the chain
of events assigned to this trumpet begin to unfold there will be no more
delay for the saints. If we take the word delay to mean anxious expectation
on the part of the saints for the fulfillment of God’s promises, the meaning
becomes very clear. At the blowing of the seventh trumpet, God will move
with great speed to execute judgment against his enemies. The seven bowls
of judgment will be poured upon the world and at the seventh bowl God will
destroy the enemies of the church at the battle of Armageddon. The Beast
and the False Prophet will be thrown alive into the lake of fire; the devil
will be bound and thrown into the bottomless pit. This will bring about
the blessed millennium. There will be no more anxious wait for the saints
during the millennium as there will be no active enemies of the church.
The next major event will be the judgment of Gog and Magog and the bodily
resurrection. If this is the correct interpretation and we are living in
the short interval between the sixth and seventh bowls of judgment, then
we must be prepared for the battle of Armageddon, which will take place
most probably very early in the 21st century.
10:8-11
10:8 And the voice which I heard from heaven spake unto me again, and said, Go and take the little book which is open in the hand of the angel which standeth upon the sea and upon the earth. 10:9 And I went unto the angel, and said unto him, Give me the little book. And he said unto me, Take it, and eat it up; and it shall make thy belly bitter, but it shall be in thy mouth sweet as honey. 10:10 And I took the little book out of the angel's hand, and ate it up; and it was in my mouth sweet as honey: and as soon as I had eaten it, my belly was bitter. 10:11 And he said unto me, Thou must prophesy again before many peoples, and nations, and tongues, and kings.
The apostle, now, is told to go to the angel
and pick up the open book in his hand and to eat it. The book here represents
the Bible. This is to be distributed throughout the nations. The actions
of the apostle are symbolic of the events that will take place during and
after the Protestant Reformation. God sends his angel who prepares the
world for the widespread distribution of the Bible. This work is done in
several countries and at multiple fronts. At first, certain men of God
are called and strengthened to challenge the established doctrines of the
Papacy. John Wycliff (1380-84) and John Huss (1372-1415) who thus begin
to devour the truths of the Bible and challenge the traditions of the Papacy.
The Papacy manages to silence these men at first. However, shortly afterwards
the printing press is invented at 1455 and Luther (1483-1546) is raised
up. The Papacy is restrained from silencing Luther. Thus the Bible begins
to be translated into the native languages of the nations and becomes widely
available through the printing press. The symbol of eating the little book
stands for the reformers beginning a serious study of the great truths
of the Bible. This is quickly followed by the command to prophesy again
to many nations. That is the reformers had to spread out the message of
the Gospel again to all the nations of the world. This is to be done again
as it had been done in the early years of Christianity. The pure message
of the Gospel had been stifled by men’s traditions and exaggerated fables
about the saints. The fact that the book makes his belly bitter stands
for the bitterness and sadness that one experiences when the message of
the Gospel is not accepted by the majority of the people, who mock, ridicule,
and ignore it and are left to face the awful consequences of their actions.
The correctness of this interpretation is borne out in the following passages:
"Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the
joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God
of hosts" (Jeremiah 15:16), "Moreover he said unto me, Son of man, eat
that thou findest; eat this roll, and go speak unto the house of Israel."
(Ezekiel 3:1), "Then did I eat it; and it was in my mouth as honey for
sweetness." (Ezekiel 3:3), "So the spirit lifted me up, and took me away,
and I went in bitterness, in the heat of my spirit; but the hand of the
LORD was strong upon me." (Ezekiel 3.14) "Then Jesus said unto them, Verily,
verily, I say unto you, Except ye eat the flesh of the Son of man, and
drink his blood, ye have no life in you." (John 6:53). The last passage
refers to the Christian Communion. However, the meaning of eating the lord’s
body there refers to the same thing as eating the word of God. The reference
is to the diligent study of the teachings of the Lord Jesus Christ that
one may obey them.
11:1-2
11:1 And there was given me a reed like unto a rod: and the angel stood, saying, Rise, and measure the temple of God, and the altar, and them that worship therein. 11:2 But the court which is without the temple leave out, and measure it not; for it is given unto the Gentiles: and the holy city shall they tread under foot forty and two months.
The Apostle is given a measuring rod to measure the temple of God, the altar, and those who worship in it. However, he is to leave out the outer court of the temple, which was also called the Holy City. This was given to the gentiles who would tread it under foot for forty-two months.
The events of this passage pertain to the time
of the Reformation, which followed shortly after the invention of the printing
press. This is clear from the previous chapter where an angel presents
the apostle with a little book, which stands for the printing and distribution
of the Bible at the time of the reformation. The act of measuring refers
to the taking of an estimate of the number of people in the true church
of God. The outer court, which was to be left out, corresponds to Papal
Rome that stood right next to the temple of God but was not of it. Forty-two
months correspond to 1260 years that Papal Rome will continue in the City
of Rome in opposition to the true church of God.
11:3-4
11:3 And I will give power unto my two witnesses, and they shall prophesy a thousand two hundred and threescore days, clothed in sackcloth. 11:4 These are the two olive trees, and the two candlesticks standing before the God of the earth.
During the time of the trampling down of the
outer court by the gentiles, that is while Papal Rome is ascendant, there
would be two witnesses who would continue to preach the word of God for
1260 days. The symbol of the two witnesses corresponds to the scarcity
of the people of God during the times of Papal Rome. Their preaching lasts
just as long as the existence of Papal Rome. This means that the true church
will withstand the onslaught of the Papacy. No matter how strong the Papacy
appears to be, there will always be the two witnesses as a thorn on her
side. The two witnesses are also referred to as the two olive trees and
the two candlesticks that stand before God. The olive trees supply oil
to the candles so that they continue burning. This shows us that the supply
of grace and blessings for the true church will never cease throughout
the ages.
11:5-13
11:5 And if any man will hurt them, fire proceedeth out of their mouth, and devoureth their enemies: and if any man will hurt them, he must in this manner be killed. 11:6 These have power to shut heaven, that it rain not in the days of their prophecy: and have power over waters to turn them to blood, and to smite the earth with all plagues, as often as they will. 11:7 And when they shall have finished their testimony, the beast that ascendeth out of the bottomless pit shall make war against them, and shall overcome them, and kill them. 11:8 And their dead bodies shall lie in the street of the great city, which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also our Lord was crucified. 11:9 And they of the people and kindreds and tongues and nations shall see their dead bodies three days and an half, and shall not suffer their dead bodies to be put in graves. 11:10 And they that dwell upon the earth shall rejoice over them, and make merry, and shall send gifts one to another; because these two prophets tormented them that dwelt on the earth. 11:11 And after three days and an half the Spirit of life from God entered into them, and they stood upon their feet; and great fear fell upon them which saw them. 11:12 And they heard a great voice from heaven saying unto them, Come up hither. And they ascended up to heaven in a cloud; and their enemies beheld them. 11:13 And the same hour was there a great earthquake, and the tenth part of the city fell, and in the earthquake were slain of men seven thousand: and the remnant were affrighted, and gave glory to the God of heaven
These verses describe the attempts of Papal
Rome to silence the true people of God. While reading these verses one
must exercise great care not to forget the symbolic nature of the book.
Let us examine their warfare with the enemies of the Gospel.
| (1) | They are clothed in sackcloth: |
| This shows us that the events of this dispensation would be such that there would not be too many occasions for celebration among the people of God. Though there would be many victories won by the faithful and much cause for rejoicing for their future deliverance, overall the Gospel would not be well received by the majority of mankind. Although we are nearing the end of this dispensation, we must not forget that we are still in it. This precludes us from thinking and acting as if we’re living in the era of the blessed millennium when the Devil and his angels will have been removed from the Earth. The following verse describes the current dispensation: "Be sober, be watchful: your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion, walketh about, seeking whom he may devour, whom withstand steadfast in your faith, knowing that the same sufferings are accomplished in your brethren who are in the world." (1. Peter 5:8-9). | |
| (2) | Fire proceeds out of their mouths and devours their enemies: |
| The fire here represents the word of God as in Jeremiah 5:14 where the words of the prophet are likened to fire which consumes his enemies. Since this is not a literal fire neither in this passage nor in Jeremiah, the symbol of devouring their enemies by fire stands for the many defeats and setbacks their enemies encounter in their attempts to silence them. In the case of Jeremiah whose ministry was, in the most part, very similar to the ministry of the two witnesses, the king Jehoiakim attempted to silence him by threatening his life. However, God protected Jeremiah and indeed the word of God from his mouth devoured his enemies just as if it were literal fire. Within a few years of his ministry all his enemies were either killed or exiled by the Babylonian armies. In the current passage the enemies of the two witnesses face multiple setbacks but they manage to come back with less power each time. Their final destruction does not occur until the battle of Armageddon. | |
| (3) | They have the power to shut up the sky so that rain may not fall: |
| The symbolic rain here stands for divine influences which rain from heaven and cause the correct spiritual doctrines to be propagated among mankind. This process, in turn, is accompanied by many material blessings to the saved and unsaved alike. This passage teaches that the charge of the teaching of the correct spiritual doctrines were committed to these two witnesses in sackcloth. If they were to withhold their ministry for a while, God would withhold this spiritual rain of blessing from the world. | |
| (4) | Power to turn waters into blood and smite the earth with plagues: |
| This expression refers to wars and calamities that turned the rivers of Europe into blood in the dark days of the Papacy. Any careful student of history can trace most of these calamities to the desire of the Papacy to dominate the politics of Europe and to exterminate all opposition to her rule. The people, who are represented by the two witnesses, who refused to submit to the doctrines of Rome, were the seed for most political and spiritual opposition to the Papacy. This time period from the fall of the Roman Empire to the Renaissance in the 14th century is sometimes called the dark ages. (American Heritage Dictionary 1992 edition) | |
| (5) | The Beast makes war against them and kills them: |
| This is the first time the book of Revelation refers to an entity called "the Beast". That this entity refers to the Papacy is made abundantly clear in Revelation chapters 13 and 17. For a proof of this please refer to the interpretation of these chapters. The war against them refers to the many campaigns of bloody persecutions carried out by the Papacy to exterminate them. Their murder by the beast refers to the events of a specific time period when the Papacy manages to suppress all opposition. We believe this to have occurred on May 5 1514. At the ninth session of the Lateran Council the following statement was made: "There is an end of resistance to the Papal rule and religion; opposers there exist no more". | |
| (6) | Their dead bodies lie on the streets of the great city for three and a half days: |
| This time period refers to three and half years and starts counting from the previously mentioned proclamation of the Lateran Council. The time of their resurrection and reception into heaven therefore is on October 31 1517. Remarkably this is the day of Luther’s posting up of his theses at Wittenberg, the beginning of the Reformation. During the three and a half years the two witnesses appear to be silent. The Papacy and her subjects, the nations ruled by it, are jubilant that all rebellion to the Pope is ended and that there will finally be peace in Europe. The city where they lie unburied is called Sodom and Egypt, where also Jesus was crucified. The symbol of the city in this passage primarily refers to Rome and secondarily to all the principal cities of Europe and by extension to all the major cities of the World where people mock, torment, and even kill those of the true Christian faith. God, appropriately, will send upon these cities similar plagues that were brought upon Sodom and Egypt |
