Revelation 6:4 Komentář

The book of the divine counsels being thus lodged in the hand of Christ, he loses no time, but immediately enters upon the work of opening the seals and publishing the contents; but this is done in such a manner as still leaves the predictions very abstruse and difficult to be understood. Hitherto the waters of the sanctuary have been as those in Ezekiel's vision, only to the ankles, or to the knees, or to the loins at least; but here they begin to be a river that cannot be passed over. The visions which John saw, the epistles to the churches, the songs of praise, in the two foregoing chapters, had some things dark and hard to be understood; and yet they were rather milk for babes than meat for strong men; but now we are to launch into the deep, and our business is not so much to fathom it as to let down our net to take a draught. We shall only hint at what seems most obvious. The prophecies of this book are divided into seven seals opened, seven trumpets sounding, and seven vials poured out. It is supposed that the opening of the seven seals discloses those providences that concerned the church in the first three centuries, from the ascension of our Lord and Saviour to the reign of Constantine; this was represented in a book rolled up, and sealed in several places, so that, when one seal was opened, you might read so far of it, and so on, till the whole was unfolded. Yet we are not here told what was written in the book, but what John saw in figures enigmatical and hieroglyphic; and it is not for us to pretend to know "the times and seasons which the Father has put in his own power." Inf this chapter six of the seven seals are opened, and the visions attending them are related; the first seal in Rev 6:1, Rev 6:2, the second seal in Rev 6:3, Rev 6:4, the third seal in Rev 6:5, Rev 6:6, the fourth seal in Rev 6:7, Rev 6:8, the fifth seal in Rev 6:9-11, the sixth seal in Rev 6:12, Rev 6:13, etc.

INTRODUCTION TO REVELATION 6 This chapter contains the vision of the opening six of the seals of the sealed book, by the Lamb, and of the events following thereupon. The preparation to the vision of the first seal is in Rev 6:1; the Lamb opens it, John hears a noise like thunder, and one of the living creatures bids him come and see; upon which he saw a horse, of a white colour, and a rider on it, who is described by a bow and crown given him, and by the victory he obtained, Rev 6:2; at the opening of the second seal, the second living creature invites him as before; and he sees a horse, of a red colour, with a rider on it, described by his power, to take peace from the earth, and suffer men to kill one another, and by a great sword given him, Rev 6:3; at the opening of the third seal, the third living creature addresses him in like manner as the other; and he sees a horse, of a black colour, and a rider on it, with a pair of balances in his hands; and hears a voice from among the four living creatures, expressing dearness of provisions, and a charge not to hurt the oil and wine, Rev 6:5; at the opening of the fourth seal, the fourth living creature speaks to John, as the rest; and he sees a horse, of a pale colour, and a rider on it, described by his name, Death, by his follower, hell, or the grave, and by his power to destroy a fourth part of the earth with the sword, famine, pestilence, and wild beasts, Rev 6:7; at the opening of the fifth seal, John saw the souls of the martyrs, under the altar; hears their cry for vengeance; observes that white robes were given them, and that they were bid to be quiet until the slaying and suffering time of their brethren was over, Rev 6:9; at the opening of the sixth seal follow an earthquake, strange changes in the heavens, the sun becomes black as sackcloth, the moon becomes as blood, the stars fall, and the heaven itself departs, and every island and mountain are moved out of their places, Rev 6:12, the kings and great men of the earth, and even all sorts, of men, upon this, fly to the rocks and mountains to hide them from the face of God the Father, that sits upon the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb, the opener of the sealed book; giving this as a reason for it, that the time of his great wrath was come, and none could stand before him, Rev 6:15.

And there went out another horse, that was red,.... Which may be an emblem either of the suffering state of the church, being answerable to the Smyrnaean one, as the purity and power of the Gospel, represented in the former seal, may answer to the Ephesine church; or else of those contentions and divisions occasioned among men through the Gospel, which, though of a peaceable nature, yet, through the corruption and depravity of men, brings not peace, but a sword; or rather of those bloody wars within the period of time signified by this seal, which came as punishments on the enemies of the Gospel: and power was given to him that sat thereon; not the Lord Jesus Christ, who is said to ride on a red horse, Zac 1:8; though indeed he presides over his church and people, and takes the care of them when the most desolating judgments are in the earth, and causes all things to work together for good; nor Satan, the red dragon, who was a murderer from the beginning, and delights in effusion of blood, and in stirring up of men to destroy one another, whenever he is permitted; but Trajan the Roman emperor, in whose reign John died; and who came from the west, and was a Spaniard, as was Hadrian his successor, who may be joined with him; which was the side, or quarter, on which the living creature was that spoke to John; and in the times of these emperors were very bloody and civil wars: wherefore power is said to be given him, to take peace from the earth; that is, from the Roman empire, which is sometimes called the whole world; and which could not have been done, if power had not been given from him who makes peace, and creates evil: and that they should kill one another: which refers not to the havoc and slaughter which the Jews made one of another at the destruction of Jerusalem, but to the Jews murdering of the Greeks and Romans, and the Romans the Jews, in the times of the above emperors. In Trajan's time, the Jews who dwelt about Cyrene, under the conduct of one Andrew, fell upon the Romans and Greeks, and killed many, fed on their flesh, ate their bowels, besmeared themselves with their blood, and covered themselves with their skins; many of them they sawed asunder, from the crown of the head down to the middle; many of them they threw to the wild beasts, and many of them they forced to fight among themselves, till they had destroyed above two hundred and twenty thousand men; in Egypt and Cyprus they committed the same kind of outrages, their leader being one Artemion, where two hundred and forty thousand men perished (r); Lybia was almost emptied of men by them; so that Hadrian, the successor of Trajan, was obliged to send colonies to repeople the places they had made desolate. But at length they were overcome by Lupus, governor of Egypt, and by Marcius Turbo, and by Lucius, whom Trajan sent against them (s), and destroyed great numbers of them; and for the space of about fourteen years they were quiet; but in Hadrian's time they rose again, and set one Bar Cochab, a false Messiah, at the head of them, whom they proclaimed king: when Hadrian sent forces against them, and with great difficulty subdued them, took the city Bither, where they were, and destroyed at times five hundred and eighty thousand of them (t); the Jews say, that he put men, women, and children to death in such numbers, that their blood ran down into the main sea, yea, that a horse might go up to his nose in blood (u); they say that he destroyed in Bither double the number of those that came out of Egypt, even twelve hundred thousand men (w); some of their accounts are very extravagant, and exceed all bounds (x); however, the slaughter was very great, that it may well be said, and there was given unto him a great sword; to slay men with; though Hadrian on his death bed, amidst his pains, would fain have had a sword given to him to have dispatched his own life, and could not obtain one (y); the Jews say he destroyed all the land of Judea (z). (r) Dion Cassius in Vita Trajani. (s) Euseb. Eccl. Hist. l. 4. c. 2. (t) Dion Cassius in Vita Hadrian. (u) T. Bab. Gittin, fol. 57. 1. & Hieros. Taanith, fol. 69. 1. Echa Rabbati, fol. 52. 3. (w) Jucaasin, fol. 142. 2. & 143. 1. (x) T. Hieros Taanith, fol. 68. 4. & T. Bab. Gittin, fol. 157. 2. Shirhashirim Rabba, fol. 13. 1. (y) Spartianus in Vita Hadriani, & Aurel. Victor. Epitome. (z) T. Hieros. Peah, fol. 20. 1.

For, in coming to the High Priest of the Father-Christ-all impediments must first be taken away, in the space of a week, that the house which remains, the flesh and the soul, may be clean; and when the Word of God has entered it, and has found "stains of red and green," forthwith must the deadly and sanguinary passions "be extracted" and "cast away" out of doors-for the Apocalypse withal has set "death" upon a "green horse," but a "warrior" upon a "red" -and in their stead must be under-strewn stones polished and apt for conjunction, and firm,-such as are made (by God) into (sons) of Abraham, -that thus the man may be fit for God.

"And when He had opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red, and to him that sate upon him was given a great sword." The red horse, and he that sate upon him, having a sword, signify the coming wars, as we read in the Gospel: "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; and there shall be great earthquakes in divers places." This is the ruddy horse.

This red horse, gory not with its own blood but with the blood of others, is said to fight against the victorious church when it is sent in to take that peace from the earth that passes all understanding. For [the church] is taught both from deed and from the sword.

The red horse comes out against the victorious and conquering church. That is, there comes an evil and wicked people, made bloody from its rider, the devil. This is just as we read in Zechariah concerning the red horse of the Lord, except that there it is red from his own blood, while here it is red from the blood of others. “And to him a great sword was given, to take peace from the earth.” This refers to the peace of the earth, for the church possesses an eternal peace that Christ left behind for himself. As we noted above, the white horse is the church and its rider is Christ or the Holy Spirit in whose hand is a bow that sends forth his commandments, as though they were powerful, sharp arrows, throughout the whole world both to kill sins and to enliven the hearts of the faithful. The crown upon his head is the promise of eternal life. Here, … the red horse is an evil people whose rider is the devil. It is said to be red because it has been made red with the blood of multitudes. And a sharp sword was given to it to take peace from the earth. This means that with the devil’s connivance and influence evil people join together and do not cease to incite among themselves strife and dissension, even unto death.

But secondly, there is the blessing of Christ to us, who opened the second seal of the little scroll, and added to us the release of our shame, restoring to us the divine vision; He was tempted as the Lord and overcame the tempter so that He might show not only victory but also that the adversary was defeated. The adversary did not bite the heel of the rider nor trip up our steps (Ps. 140:4) according to God's commandments, but rather, falling backward and being sent away in servitude, and hearing from the Man whom he wrestled with long ago, even though God was in Him, He said, "Depart, Satan," (Matt. 4:10) and Satan went away in shame. And now, for the first time, the adversary knowing his own weakness, he who boasts of sitting above the clouds on his throne, will be made like the Most High, imagining himself according to what was described by Isaiah. (Isa. 14:13-14) When it happened, a fiery red horse came out, led by one of the holy creatures; and to the one sitting on the horse it was given the power to take peace from the earth so that people would kill one another, and a great sword was given to him. The fiery red horse is a riddle [αἴνιγμα] of blood; therefore, a sword is given to the one seated upon it, by which to destroy and divide the unity of those on earth toward evil. They were united in their idolatry and so that they might kill one another; that is, to destroy each other through hostile contracts. For the Lord "did not come to bring peace upon the earth, but a sword; and to set a son against his father, and a daughter-in-law against her mother-in-law," (Matt. 10:34-35) the new and godly against the ancient and condemned.

We suggest that this second seal is to be interpreted as the succession of the apostles that is fulfilled through martyrs and teachers. During this succession, as the proclamation is extended abroad, the peace of the world is taken away, creation being divided against itself, as was spoken by the Lord: “I have not come to bring peace on earth, but a sword.” And by this [sword] the sacrifices of the martyrs are offered on the heavenly altar. The “red horse” is symbolic either of the shedding of blood or of the red-hot disposition of those who suffer for Christ. The words “it was permitted to its rider to take peace” show the all-wise permission of God that tests his faithful servants through temptations.

And another horse went out, fiery red. Against the victorious and conquering Church went out a fiery red horse, that is, a perverse people, bloodthirsty from their rider, the devil. Although we have read in Zechariah of the red horse of the Lord; but that one is red with His own blood, this one with another’s.

And the one sitting on it was given power to take peace from the earth. Namely, his own peace. But the Church received the eternal peace which Christ left to it.

And a great sword was given to him. Either against those who become apostates of the faith, or against those whom he makes martyrs. About this, it is said to blessed Job: He who made him applied his sword (Job 40), meaning either that he should not tempt the saints as much as the wicked one wishes, or that vengeance for his fury should return upon himself.

And there went out another horse that was red: and to him that sat thereon, it was given that he should take peace from the earth. The red horse is the body of the old enemy, that is all the reprobates, blood-red due to their killing of souls. While the rider of the elect says, My peace I give unto you, [John 14:27] the rider of the reprobates takes peace from the earth, because the former is the author of concord, while the latter is the author of discord. Note also that he takes peace not from heaven, but from the earth, that is from those who seek earthly things. And that they should kill one another. It is not a fleshly but a spiritual killing that should be understood in this sentence. As for how the reprobates are to kill one another, it is disclosed when it is said after that about the prince of the Jews, and a great sword was given to him, that is a spiritual and evil sword with which not the bodies, but the souls of the reprobates are killed. The Devil uses this sword in two ways: he either deceives people by himself on the inside with a spiritual speech or achieves the killing of the soul by assailing them from the outside through the tongues of his fleshly servants. All this is said to have been given him, which means that it was permitted him by the just God who disposes everything.

What followed on the opening of the seven seals. The opening of the first seal; the white horse, Rev 6:1, Rev 6:2. The opening of the second seal; the red horse, Rev 6:3, Rev 6:4. The opening of the third seal; the black horse and the famine, Rev 6:5, Rev 6:6. The opening of the fourth seal; the pale horse, Rev 6:7, Rev 6:8. The opening of the fifth seal; the souls of men under the altar, Rev 6:9-11. The opening of the sixth seal; the earthquake, the darkening of the sun and moon, and falling of the stars, Rev 6:12-14. The terrible consternation of the kings and great men of the earth, Rev 6:15-17.

Another horse - red - The emblem of war; perhaps also of severe persecution, and the martyrdom of the saints. Him that sat thereon - Same say, Christ; others, Vespasian; others, the Roman armies; others, Artabanus, king of the Parthians, etc., etc. Take peace from the earth - To deprive Judea of all tranquillity. They should kill one another - This was literally the case with the Jews, while besieged by the Romans. A great sword - Great influence and success, producing terrible carnage.

THE OPENING OF THE FIRST SIX OF THE SEVEN SEALS. (Rev. 6:1-17) one of the seals--The oldest manuscripts, A, B, C, Vulgate, and Syriac read, "one of the seven seals." noise--The three oldest manuscripts read this in the nominative or dative, not the genitive, as English Version, "I heard one from among the four living creatures saying, as (it were) the voice (or, 'as with the voice') of thunder." The first living creature was like a lion (Rev 4:7): his voice is in consonance. Implying the lion-like boldness with which, in the successive great revivals, the faithful have testified for Christ, and especially a little before His coming shall testify. Or, rather, their earnestness in praying for Christ's coming. Come and see--One oldest manuscript, B, has "And see." But A, C, and Vulgate reject it. ALFORD rightly objects to English Version reading: "Whither was John to come? Separated as he was by the glassy sea from the throne, was he to cross it?" Contrast the form of expression, Rev 10:8. It is much more likely to be the cry of the redeemed to the Redeemer, "Come" and deliver the groaning creature from the bondage of corruption. Thus, Rev 6:2 is an answer to the cry, went (literally, "came") forth corresponding to "Come." "Come," says GROTIUS, is the living creature's address to John, calling his earnest attention. But it seems hard to see how "Come" by itself can mean this. Compare the only other places in Revelation where it is used, Rev 4:1; Rev 22:17. If the four living creatures represent the four Gospels, the "Come" will be their invitation to everyone (for it is not written that they addressed John) to accept Christ's salvation while there is time, as the opening of the seals marks a progressive step towards the end (compare Rev 22:17). Judgments are foretold as accompanying the preaching of the Gospel as a witness to all nations (Rev 14:6-11; Mat 24:6-14). Thus the invitation, "Come," here, is aptly parallel to Mat 24:14. The opening of the first four seals is followed by judgments preparatory for His coming. At the opening of the fifth seal, the martyrs above express the same (Rev 6:9-10; compare Zac 1:10). At the opening of the sixth seal, the Lord's coming is ushered in with terrors to the ungodly. At the seventh, the consummation is fully attained (Rev 11:15).

red--the color of blood. The color of the horse in each case answers to the mission of the rider. Compare Mat 10:24-36, "Think not I am come to send peace on earth; I came not to send peace, but a sword." The white horse of Christ's bloodless victories is soon followed, through man's perversion of the Gospel, by the red horse of bloodshed; but this is overruled to the clearing away of the obstacles to Christ's coming kingdom. The patient ox is the emblem of the second living creature who, at the opening of this seal, saith, "Come." The saints amidst judgments on the earth in patience "endure to the end." that they should kill--The Greek is indicative future, "that they may, as they also shall, kill one another."