The
Four Horsemen
of the Apocalypse
                                                                                           By Pastor F. M. Riley
                                                                                           May 15, 2017
     "Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth," 2 Timothy 2:15.  
Introduction [Extra lengthy]
    No!  We New Covenant believers are not living two years, or more, into the Tribulation period right now.   
     I am fully aware that the inspired Word is filled with types and shadows, Colossians 2:16-17; Hebrews 8:5; 10:1.  Also look up the meaning of the words, "ensample" and "example," Strong's No. 5179 in your own Concordance or Lexicon as they occur in the New Testament. This Greek word literally means, "type, types, examples, pattern, print, or  figure."  So there is no question that the inspired Word is filled with types and shadows given to God's people for our learning as we seriously study God's Word.  
     However, I am also fully aware that our Savior and Lord warned His people about "false Christs, and false prophets," who would come, and  "if it were possible, they shall deceive the very elect," Matthew 24:24.   Notice that the words, "it were" are in italics, meaning that these word do not occur in the original Greek text from which the New Testament was translated.  So if our readers will just leave out these two added words, when reading this Scripture, the possibility of being deceived is strictly upon the individual who is willing to listen to the false teachings and theories of these "false prophets."  Hello!     
     Dear readers,  it is God's Word that we true believers are to be seriously studying, not some man's theory pieced together by the misuse of types and shadows.  
     I personally learned many years ago in studying God's Word that a true student of the Word cannot take a person clearly stated in God's Word to be an Israelite [a Jew],  and use that person as a type of Gentile.  Neither can one "rightly divide the Word" and use a Gentile as a type of a Jew.  It just won't work!  The Lord God, in His inspired Word, made a clear distinction between the Jew and the Gentile, and no man is ever given the authority, anywhere in the Scriptures, to blur that distinction.  PERIOD!  
     Also, the events recorded in the Scriptures as happening to each of the two distinct peoples, Jew or Gentile, cannot be transferred from one to another, when there is no Scriptural authority for doing so.  
     It is definitely true that Jacob and his family came into the land of Egypt two years into the seven evil years [a legitmate type of the seven year Tribulation], Genesis 45:6.  But it is a far stretch of imagination, and nothing but a wild theory, to then turn Jacob and his entourage into the Gentile church and bride of Christ at the Lord's coming in these "last days."  In misapplying this reference to Jacob and his people,  one is totally missing what the Lord is going to prophetically do with Israel and the Jewish people two years into the Tribulation.  
    Folks, stay strictly with what the inspired Scriptures actually and literally say.  Do not allow yourself to be distracted by what some theorist has to say about the inspired Word.   And never believe for a minute that the Holy Spirit of our living God is going to lead anyone to come up with some theory which contradicts the actual and literal statements of God's Word.  And right here is where I will stop this lengthy introduction, and begin the study I have to share with God's people, and with lost seeking souls; "The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse."   
     The Arrangement of the Book of Revelation
     Any serious student of God's Word can easily see that Revelation 1 is the introduction to the vision given to John.  
     Even so, Revelation 2 - 3 sets forth the inspired prophecies of the Seven Letters to the Lord's Churches, prophetically predicting the Church Age.  
     At the end of the last church letter in chapter three, then in 4:1 the Pre-Tribulation resurrection and rapture of the Lord's Church and Gentile bride, and all New Covenant believers occurs.  
     Then the entire fourth and fifth chapters of Revelation are devoted to a description of Heavenly scenes, which John was shown, and which every raptured believer will see for themselves immediately following the rapture.  The inspired Word does not tell us how much time is required for the raptured saints to see these Heavenly scenes, but it appears to be only a very short time.
     Then at the beginning of chapter Six, John is shown the actual beginning of the seven year Tribulation period; 1,260 days plus 1,260 days, equaling 2,520 days total.  This is seven years of 360 days to a year.  Didn't the Lord say something about shortening the time in Matthew 24:21-22?  You know He did!
     So the inspired record of the events occurring during the actual seven year Tribulation period begin at Revelation 6:1, and continue right on through 19:21.  This is taking the inspired Word at face value for what it actually and literally says, which is, as far as I am concerned,  the  only way to "rightly divide the Word of truth."  
The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse
     In 5:1,  while John is still being shown the scenes in Heaven, what is sometimes referred to as The Book of Earth's Redemption, is introduced into John's vision.  In 5:7 the Lord Jesus takes this book, and then in 6:1, He begins to open the seals on the book.  This is taking place in Heaven.  But each time a seal is opened some event occurs on the earth.  And this is what this study is about; the opening of the first four seals at or just after the beginning of the Tribulation period.  
The First Horseman
     "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 [living creatures, 4:6-7] saying, Come and see.
     And I saw, and behold a white horse:  and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering and to conquer," Revelation 6:1-2.  
     When the first seal is opened in Heaven, a rider on a white horse comes forth on the earth.  From ancient times, kings and rulers rode white horses to indicate their position and power, especially when parading themselves over a conquered people, or when attempting to deceive a people into believing the rider was a "man of peace."  "White" is an ancient symbol of "purity," conveying the idea that the man on the horse could be trusted.  
     The rider is carrying a bow, a weapon which can be used to kill silently and quickly.  A crown is given to this rider, indicating that he quickly becomes a ruler.  Of what country?  We are not told in this text.  But the Scripture does say that he goes forth, "conquering, and to conquer."  So obviously he is not going to remain "a man of peace."  
     The identity of this man is that he is the anti-christ, long predicted to come into the world in opposition to the Lord Jesus Christ.  So the prophesied anti-christ comes on the world scene immediately after the beginning of the Tribulation period.
     I would add that the riders who come forth upon the opening of all four of these first four seals in Revelation 6, are the same person, symbolizing different aspects of the rise and reign of the anti-christ.
The Second Horseman
     "And when He has opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.
     And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword," Revelation 6:3-4.  
     Don't fail to notice that the color of this horse is red.  Red is the color traditionally associated with WAR.  Right now as I write, the nations of the earth are being threatened with another world war.  And it will come!  
     One can only hide behind deception and lies for a matter of time, until those being deceived realize they are being deceived and lied to, then they begin to rebell.  This is bad enough between individuals today, often causing breakups of homes, marriages, and even churches, but when entire nations are involved, as in the Tribulation, it will be horrendous.  There will not be a nation on the earth during the Tribulation period that is not involved, to one extent or another, by WAR.  "Peace" will literally be taken "from the earth."  In essence, there will be no place on earth for people to hide or escape from the terrible wars that will be raging involving every country on the earth.  
     And what will be the consequences of the whole world being in a state of war?   
The Third Horseman
     "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.
     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."  
     This time the horse is black.  This color is highly significant of DEATH by starvation.  
     When war begins to rage among the nations, every able bodied man will be drafted to fight to defend their particular country or nation.
     In times of such war as described, farmers will not be able to plow their fields nor plant and produce the needed food for their people.  The result will be world wide famine.
     In a short time, world wide food rationing will be imposed upon the peoples of the whole world, exactly as set forth in these Scriptures.  Food will become so scarce that approximately one quart of wheat or three quarts of barley will require a full days wages to purchase it.  But the entire world economic system will have collapsed, and millions of people will  have neither jobs nor income.
     It is quite obvious from the prophetic Scriptures that people will resort to murder and cannabalism in an effort to survive.  Read it for yourself in Lamentations 4:4-10.  
     I have personal experience about this subject, in that I once had a church member that literally starved to death.  In the first church I ever pastored, in Stillwater, Oklahoma, we had a beloved preacher brother and his family who moved to our community and united with our church.  There was a daughter in the family in her teens, who played the piano for our church.  A couple of years later the family moved to a town in Texas where the young lady's dad had been called to pastor a church.   There the young lady married a man in the community, expecting to have a home and family.  But it was not to be.  In a short time she developed cancer in her stomach and became critically ill.  The cancer kept her from receiving nutrition, regardless of how much food she ate.  In a matter of months she literally starved to death.  
      Some of our readers may know this, but when a person starves to death, all of the small blood vessels just beneath their skin break down, and the blood normally carried by the blood vessels is released beneath the skin.  This cause the person to turn coal black.  
      We attended that young lady's funeral service, and could hardly believe what our eyes beheld as we looked upon her corpse.  She had been a lovely fair skinned young woman, and now her remains laying in the casket was nothing but coal black skin stretched over protruding bones.  
     This black horse indicates that thousands or millions of people will suffer this fate during the Tribulation when there is no food to feed the starving multitudes.  Oh, that men and women, boys and girls, would give heed to God's Word, and receive Christ Jesus as their Savior, while there is still time for them to be saved, Luke 21:36.  
The Fourth Horseman
     "And when He had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.  
     And I looked, and behold a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him.  And power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth, to kill with sword, and with hunger, and with death, and with the beasts of the earth," Revelation 6:7-8.  
     Any reader who has ever attended a funeral, or been near someone who has died, knows that shortly after death the body of the deceased acquires a pallor or paleness to it as the blood is drained from or coagulates in the body.  
     In direct contrast, as the Lord Jesus Christ is "the way, the truth, and the life, so the anti-christ will become the deceiver, the liar, and DEATH for every one who chooses to follow him.  Notice that one-fourth of all the peoples left behind on the earth following the rapture, will die as the anti-christ rises to power over mankind.  Read  Isaiah 28:15; 28:18-19, and Jeremiah 25:32-33.  
     Death would not be so bad, if, as the "willingly ignorant" atheists claim, death ends it all.  However, don't fail to notice that when this pale horse rider comes forth, "Hell" is following with him.  Now what was it the Lord gave as a warning in Matthew 10:28 and Luke 12:4-5?  
     Dear readers, when the Lord God created mankind [Genesis 1:26-27; 2:7], He created mankind to live forever.  See Ecclesiastes 3:14.  By God's grace, we have a choice of where we spend eternity; in Heaven with the Lord and His people, or in Hell with Satan and all other Christ rejecters.  Make the right choice, while you still have time and opportunity to do so.  I suggest reading Isaiah 66:15-24 and Revelation 20:15.  
The Chronology of the Book of Revelation
     Any serious study of this prophetic vision given to John, will reveal that the events set forth in the vision are in chronological order.  There is a Scripture or two referring back to some event which took place in the distant past, but for the most part the vision is in exact chronological order to the way it will be fulfilled.  
     In other words, the opening of the Seals in Heaven are the first judgments of the Lord God to be poured out upon mankind on the earth,
and they begin right after the beginning of the Tribulation following the rapture.  The opening of these first four seals are judgments of the Lord God, even though He is using the anti-christ to carry them out.  There is then  no question that this places these judgments in the first half of the Tribulation; the first 1,260 days.  
     Notice carefully that the seventh seal is not opened until Revelation 8:1, which introduces the seven Trumpet judgments.  These Trumpet judgments are also fulfilled in the first half of the Tribulation.
     I am emphasizing this point for our readers for a purpose.  The purpose is to refute "false teaching" based on some man's theory, rather than on the "rightly divided Word of God."
      I have demonstrated that the Seal judgments and the Trumpet judgments are both fulfilled in the first half of the Tribulation.  Folks, it is being taught by some today as exact truth that we believers are already living in the Tribulation, which supposedly began nearly two years ago on November 11, 2015.    If this was true [which it obviously is not] then why hasn't the pre-tribulation rapture occurred.   Where are the Seal judgments?  Why hasn't the world economy already collapsed?  Why is there presently plenty of food to feed the world?  Why has the whole world system not yet been plunged into a world wide war?
     And oh yes!  Why are the Trumpet not sounding?  I haven't heard any of them, even though the inspired Word implies that when these Trumpets sound, they will be heard all over the earth, and they bring dire consequences to mankind each time one sounds.  So where are they?  And why aren't they sounding?  
     The inspired Scripture is quite plain, when taken at face value for what it actually and literally says, that these Seal judgments and Trumpet judgments will be fulfilled during the first half of the Tribulation.  And according to this silly theory now being taught by some, we are supposedly now nearly two years into the Tribulation, and not even one of these predicted Seal or Trumpet judgments has occurred.  Obviously, someone simply does not know how to "rightly divide the Word of Truth."  I am going to stand with what the Holy Bible actually and literally says, regardless of what it causes others to think of me, or how it causes them to act towards me.  I made my choice long ago, and I chose to follow the Lord and His Word.  
     Have I made myself clear to my readers?  
Conclusion
     The Lord once rebuked the religious leaders of the Jewish people; the Pharisees and Saducees, for not being able to "discern the signs of the times," Matthew 16:1-4.  
     Folks, the "signs of the times" today, in the light of God's Word, are indicating that the time of the Lord's appearing to resurrect and rapture all true New Covenant believers is right at hand, 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18.  Our Lord's coming for us could now take place at any minute of any hour of any day.  Are you ready?  I mean, do you have the assurance of being truly saved by the grace of God?  Do you KNOW that the Lord Jesus is your Savior?  Are you looking forward to His coming with eagerness of heart and soul?  If not, why not?  
     The way of salvation is clearly stated over and over again in the inspired Word.  See John 3:16-18, 5:24, 14:6, Acts 4:12, 16:30-31, Romans 10:8-13, and Ephesians 2:8-10, plus many other Scriptures too numerous to list in this study.  
     I  pray daily for my readers, for I truly want to meet every one of them in glory when the Lord comes for His people.  Please don't disappoint me!   You have the message the Lord laid on my heart for this study.  Please pray for me.  
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     Permission is granted to any true believer, or Bible believing Christian ministry, to reproduce this study to share with others, or to quote from it in context as written.  
     Thank you again, beloved brothers and sisters in Christ, for your prayers and your gifts.  Thank you so very much.  May the Lord graciously bless each of you, protect you, and guide you daily as you seek to love and serve and live for Him is my prayer.  
     Please address all comments, questions, and correspondence to me at:  Pastor F. M. Riley, 14275 County Road 8120, Rolla, Missouri 65401.  I apologize to all those who have tried to call me and cannot get through.  I have a worn out phone which badly needs replaced, and I hope to have that done before the week is out.  In the meantime you can try again to call me at 573-201-0491.  Sometimes the phone works!
    However, if you have something you really want to discuss with me, send me an email.  Your emails are still coming through real good.  Just send me an email, and I will get back to you ASAP.   
     God bless you all.
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