The Tribulation curtain-raiser: the seven seals

By the term Tribulation I mean a 7-year period of extreme world-wide affliction ending with the greatest battle of all time: Armageddon. According to the Bible, it will be centred around God’s chosen nation, Israel, with their final week of years (as per Daniel 9:24-27) in ministry for God once more. This 7-year period will culminate with the return of Christ their Messiah whom they rejected 2000 years ago (consequently being replaced by the Gentile Church for that time). The Tribulation will be a time of intense affliction with those of Israel required to repent of their iniquity or be rejected by God from being Israel. As the Tribulation approaches, we would expect to see greatly increased focus by the world upon Israel, especially in terms of civil unrest and warfare. By the end of the 7-year Tribulation, the armies of all the nations of the world will gather at Armageddon from where they will attack Jerusalem and its inhabitants (Israel). This is the gathering by satan’s “spirits of devils” who “go forth unto the kings of the earth and of the whole world, to gather them to the battle of that great day of God Almighty. ….. into a place  called … Armageddon.” (Revelation 16:14, 16)

The opening of the seals in Revelation 5 represents the opening of the Tribulation period, the curtain-raiser events that herald the first act of the end-times Tribulation. Christ is the one who opens them. He is portrayed as the slain Lamb (Revelation 5:6), the only one “worthy to open the book, and to loose the seals thereof” (Revelation 5:2). While there are other passages (such as Matthew 24) that record various signs of the end-times including the lead-up to the Tribulation, this document will focus on the events recorded in Revelation 6 as the curtain-raiser seals are opened one by one. (There are 7 seals in all, with the 7th seal becoming the 7 trumpet judgements.)

Seals ensured that information was only read by those who were eligible to see such. They were usually made with a signet ring or an approved stamp pressed into hot wax; the impression made identified the sender, and ensured that only the recipient could open (by breaking) the seal. Some documents were sealed with many seals to ensure greater security of the information. Christ takes hold of the document, a “book written within and on the backside, sealed with seven seals.” (Revelation 5:1) The opening of the seals is like the orchestral overture to an opera; it was played before the curtain went up, before the main event, using themes that would be heard again during the main event. Once the overture started, people knew the main event would be soon, that the curtain was about to be raised; therefore they prepared by sitting down, stopping conversations with each other etc.

The first 4 seals are known as the horsemen of the Apocalypse. They make their debut here in Revelation 6 but they do not just occur once, like other judgements later on; their effect continues throughout the Tribulation. Once the Tribulation commences, these judgements will become the norm like a ripple effect for this final 7 years.

Seal 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. 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) While some may identify the rider as Christ, it is actually the antichrist pictured here. He has a bow, not the sword of Christ (Revelation 19:15), and Christ only returns visibly at Armageddon, not at the beginning of the Tribulation. The 6th seal depicts the antichrist who will be revealed at the start of the Tribulation, and will play a main role as satan’s servant throughout the Tribulation. Before Israel can take centre stage again, the Church has to bow off the stage in what is called the Rapture (the snatching away) (Romans 11:25-27). The antichrist (that man of perdition) will be revealed after the Rapture (2 Thessalonians 2) when he makes a covenant with Israel at the start of that final 7-year period (Daniel 9:27), in the middle of which he causes sacrifices to cease because he is the abomination who sits in the Temple to be worshipped as God  for the second half of the Tribulation (Daniel 9:26-27; 2 Thessalonians 3-4; Matthew 24:15). The antichrist will be revealed from the beginning of the Tribulation and will continue until Armageddon.

Seal 2: And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given unto him a great sword. (Revelation 6:3-4) The great sword depicts that there will be war as we have never seen it before, war that will involve the whole earth; no-one will remain neutral. Huge numbers will die in wars throughout the Tribulation; this does strongly suggest the destruction by nuclear warheads far greater than those two that ended Japan’s war efforts in 1945 in Hiroshima and Nagasaki. There will not be just one event but multiple events throughout the Tribulation, but they will be particularly focused upon Israel and the middle-east. The 4th seal (Revelation 6:7-8) suggests that more than 2 billion people will die in this 7-year period. The 6th seal (Revelation 6:12-14) strongly suggests a serious nuclear exchange which causes earthquakes, and the sun goes dark and the moon turns to blood. Such an event in itself could cause a colossal number of deaths.

Seal 3: 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. (Revelation 6:5-6) This depicts massive famine worldwide for the Tribulation period, but mainly for the common man. The food shortages will hit ordinary food requirements, leaving the rich man’s fare alone (oil and wine depict that luxuries will not be hurt). Those who have money and authority will live well, while the rest will starve. This is already occurring in places especially those under communist regimes, where the leaders live luxuriously at the expense of their citizens. However, it will be much, much worse in the Tribulation.

Seal 4: 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) (“pale” = chloros = green; pale yellowish or green; it is where we get “chlorine” from)
The first three horsemen depict death  in various ways, but this 4th horseman represents death himself. It appears that at least ¼ of the world’s population will be killed in various ways. With the current population over 8 billion, this could see more than 2 billion people die, an unbelievably high number. During the tribulation death and suffering will abound; the suffering will affect people world-wide, although some groups will be hit harder than others.

While we might things are bad now, once the Tribulation begins, we’ll have to invent a new word for the bad that occurs then, for it will be so extreme it’ll make what we have now to be seen as good! And this will include those who repent and are saved during the Tribulation, most of whom will be of Israel. Israel will be savagely persecuted and there will be many martyrs for the faith. Seal 5 describes this: 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: And they cried with a loud voice, saying, How long, O Lord, holy and true, dost thou not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth? And white robes were given unto every one of them; and it was said unto them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellowservants also and their brethren, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled. (Revelation 6:9-11) In Revelation 7 the judgements are held off until the 144,000 of Israel are sealed. This is generally assumed to mean that they are protected from harm, which may indeed be so because these will be God’s servants during the Tribulation; the seal marks these 144,000 as belonging to God, His workers in the harvest, an army of evangelists who preach the gospel throughout that final 7 years. However, the same protection is not promised to their converts. In this final 7-year end-times period, ¹/₃ of Israel will hear and repent; this could be millions worldwide. And every one of those converts will be declared by the antichrist to be a public enemy of the state with the penalty being execution. Note Revelation 6:9-11 above: they will gather under the altar at God’s throne pleading with God to avenge their deaths. They are told to wait a bit longer until all those who will also be killed for their testimony are gathered with them under the altar, and then will come the vengeance. These may include martyrs of all ages (this is uncertain) but the emphasis is certainly upon those who are martyred of Israel during the Tribulation. Revelation 20:4 says that during the Tribulation they will be beheaded for their faith: “And I saw thrones, and they sat upon them, and judgment was given unto them: and I saw the souls of them that were beheaded for the witness of Jesus, and for the word of God, and which had not worshipped the beast, neither his image, neither had received his mark upon their foreheads, or in their hands; and they lived and reigned with Christ a thousand years.”

Seal 6: 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; And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree casteth her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places. (Revelation 6:12-14) One of the signs of the approaching Tribulation is earthquakes; they will be more severe and deadly than anything before them. And, extreme volcanic eruptions are also likely to occur. Some of the above events of the 6th seal could be caused by these extreme natural occurrences. However, it is more likely that this is a description of extreme atomic warfare. A nuclear exchange of many warheads may cause earthquakes and even cause mountains to be levelled; note how Ezekiel described the effects of the war that God will bring upon Israel at the commencement of the end-times (Ezekiel 38:14-23) where it is most likely that multiple nuclear warheads are deployed: “the mountains shall be thrown down, and the steep places shall fall, and every wall shall fall to the ground.” (Ezekiel 38:20) (Israel’s enemies are listed there as including Iran, Turkey, Russia, Libya, and Ethiopia. Joel also lists attacks from the coasts of Gaza plus Tyre and Sidon in southern Lebanon.) Earthquake bombs are already being deployed in the middle-east, and they aren’t even nuclear – yet!

It is certain that nuclear weapons will be used during these end-times. Note that those who are killed at Armageddon will experience nuclear symptoms: “And this shall be the plague wherewith the LORD will smite all the people that have fought against Jerusalem; Their flesh shall consume away while they stand upon their feet, and their eyes shall consume away in their holes, and their tongue shall consume away in their mouth.” (Zechariah 14:12) The 3rd trumpet judgement of God also appears to describe nuclear radiation fallout far worse than that experienced at Chernobyl in Ukraine in 1986: “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.” (Revelation 8:11) “Wormwood” is a plant commonly found around Chernobyl. Its common name is mugwort, also known as wormwood; “Artemisia vulgaris, commonly known as mugwort, common mugwort, or wormwood” (Wikipedia) Chernobyl was named after this plant that commonly grew around that area; Chernobyl means Wormwood! The star named Wormwood could easily be a nuclear missile exchange using a dirty nuclear bomb such as a cobalt bomb. “A cobalt bomb is a type of salted bomb: a nuclear weapon designed to produce enhanced amounts of radioactive fallout, intended to contaminate a large area with radioactive material, potentially for the purpose of radiological warfare” Such radiation fallout can spread widely, causing water supplies to become highly radioactive. “”bitter water” can metaphorically describe radioactive water supplies”.

The signs of the 6th seal could all depict a multiple nuclear exchange: massive earthquakes, sunlight greatly reduced, the moon turning red, the stars of heaven may refer to satellite warfare or to high altitude ballistic missiles, and a nuclear explosion can cause a massive outward-spreading explosion that could be described as the sky breaking up like a scroll being rolled up, and mountains and islands can literally be moved out of their places. Russia has boasted of having high trajectory hypersonic ballistic missiles that can fall upon the target from high altitude, making it very difficult for any anti-missile system to target them. Such missiles could look like meteors coming down from space. Israel’s anti-missile protection would not be very effective against such missiles; their anti-missile systems would struggle to lock onto such missiles. “High trajectory hypersonic ballistic missiles pose a significant challenge to Israel’s anti-missile systems, as they can travel at speeds that make interception difficult. Israel’s defense systems, while advanced, may struggle to effectively counter such fast-moving threats. … The unique flight characteristics of hypersonic ballistic missiles pose challenges for missile defense systems. Their speed and high trajectory can make them difficult to track and intercept.” Therefore it is possible that Russia (who claims to have such weaponry already available) will come into this middle-east war soon with a barrage of such weapons using nuclear warheads.

The book of Joel pictures for us the end-times when God brings great affliction to His people Israel to bring them to their promised everlasting righteousness. He notes that the sun turning dark and the moon to blood will occur just before the Tribulation (which he calls “the great and the terrible day of the LORD”). “The sun shall be turned into darkness, and the moon into blood, before the great and the terrible day of the LORD come.” (Joel 2:31)

While the effects of the four horsemen of the Apocalypse (Seals 1-4) may continue over much of the Tribulation, and the martyred saints (Seal 5) is not an obvious event for those on earth, it is that 6th seal that will probably be the world’s first clear indication that the curtain is about to be lifted on the greatest event in all history: the 7-year period known as the Great Tribulation. Seal 6 may be that which is described in Ezekiel 38 where God pulls Israel’s enemies (with hooks in their jaws – Ezekiel 38:4) to war against Israel. They will invade Israel, after which this huge invading army will be annihilated (probably by a European army led by the antichrist after making a defence treaty with Israel). They will fall on the mountains of Israel (Ezekiel 39:1-3) and it will take 7 months before Israel is sufficiently cleared of the piles of bodies (Ezekiel 39:12).

Those who lay hands on Israel to harm her will suffer God’s wrath! “For thus saith the LORD of hosts; After the glory hath he sent me unto the nations which spoiled you: for he that toucheth you toucheth the apple of his eye.” (Zechariah 2:8) That is, make no mistake, he who lays their hands on God’s nation Israel (the apple of His eye = the centre of His attention) will be harshly dealt with.
And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: For the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand? (Revelation 6:15-17)

Therefore, when you see the events of the 6^th seal and probably also around that time many Church people just disappear, then you have around 7 years remaining before Armageddon, just 7 years to make peace with God or suffer eternal condemnation in hell! Consider this very carefully. You may not think the end is coming, and that life goes on as it always has. But once the end comes, you will have chosen to live in heaven forever (by repenting before God and asking Him to save you from the hell to which your sin condemns you), or you will exist in hell forever. And if you sit on the fence and refuse to commit yourself, if you refuse to do anything about it, then you will still be tormented in hell forever just as surely as the ones who choose to go there.