For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places. (Matthew 24:7)
The first seal,[1] the white horse, introduced the Antichrist. The second seal,[2] the red horse, brought global wars. The third seal,[3] the black horse, brings economic collapse. War and economic collapse result in famines and pestilences. Enter the pale horse.
“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, emphasis mine).
The Greek word translated “pale” is chlōros, from which we derive our English word “chlorophyll,” the chemical in plant leaves that gives them their green color. Green is the color of rotting flesh as in gangrene. It stands to reason that this horse brings death. The “Hell” that follows is hadēs, which is sometimes translated as “the grave” or the abode of the dead. This horse is given power over a fourth of the earth. This probably includes both humans and animals. Our current earth’s population is over 8-Billion people. A fourth of that would be a staggering 2-Billion people. With all that death, much of it brought on by the red and black horses, the living will be overwhelmed in efforts to bury all the dead. The rotting human and animal corpses will contribute to the spread of diseases, pestilences, and pandemics.
The pale horse also kills with hunger. With wars devastating farmlands and disrupting supply chains, and the economic collapse brought on by the black horse, food scarcity will kill many who cannot buy “A measure of wheat for a penny, and three measures of barley for a penny” (Revelation 6:6).
Much of the suffering brought on by the pale horse can be seen today. Covid-19, a man-made pathogen unleashed on the world, arguably on purpose, killed many millions. The worldwide shutdowns stymied supply chains around the globe with their effects felt to this very day. Store shelves remain sparse and often empty. Long waiting periods abound for electronic parts (from China mostly) needed for manufacturing electronic devices of all kinds. And even though the pandemic has mostly subsided, the powers that be continue to foment fear of new variants. (They relish the power that such fear gives them over the populous.)
There is more to come. Just this week I learned about a new bat-borne virus discovered in Western Africa (Equatorial Guinea and Cameroon), which is deadly and for which there is no known cure.[4] This is only the beginning.
In his Wednesday night sermon this week,[5] Pastor Jack Hibbs described the wars and rumors of wars that the mainstream media strategically omit from their reports. Most of us know about the Chinese balloon that floated over the entire United States spying on our military installations. Do not be deceived; China is testing our defenses to discover our weaknesses. North Korea also continues to test our resolve. Russia is looking for an excuse to attack the United States. Putin has not been vague in his threats to use nuclear weapons on any who oppose his assault on Ukraine. Russia has brought charges against the US with the UN for blowing up the Nord Stream pipeline. (Yes, we did blow it up.) Another rumor of war about which we hear little is the strife between Pakistan and India – both nuclear powers.
Jesus assured us that “… ye shall hear of wars and rumours of wars: see that ye be not troubled: for all these things must come to pass, but the end is not yet. For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom: and there shall be famines, and pestilences, and earthquakes, in divers places” (Matthew 24:6-7, emphasis mine). Very recently two 7.5 magnitude earthquakes followed by many strong aftershocks (5.0+ magnitude) rocked Eastern Turkey and Northern Syria. Over 42,000 deaths have been recorded to date and many more are expected. We do not hear much about them, but earthquakes of 5.0+ magnitude are happening all over the world. However, Jesus said, “All these are the beginning of sorrows” (Matthew 24:8). We are not experiencing the Tribulation yet. The reason I know that is that the Church is still on Earth and the Antichrist has not been revealed. What we are experiencing are just the early, sporadic birth pangs, but they are increasing in frequency and intensity. The Greek word translated as “sorrows” is ōdin meaning “the pain of childbirth, travail pain, birth pangs.”
The four horses of the apocalypse are saddled. Their riders are ready to mount as they await their order to ride. For those who have placed their faith and trust in Christ, all this is good news. It means that our Lord’s return is closer than ever before. Before the first seal is broken, “… the Lord himself shall descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel, and with the trump of God: and the dead in Christ shall rise first: Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air: and so shall we ever be with the Lord” (1 Thessalonians 4:16-17, emphasis mine).
Reader, are you prepared for what is coming to the world? You do not need to go through the Tribulation, God’s wrath, that is coming upon the world. Read my page on “Securing Eternal Life,” and ask Jesus to save you from the wrath to come.
Notes:
[4] Equatorial Guinea confirms country’s first Marburg virus disease outbreak -WHO | Reuters
[5] (4) Now Arriving – YouTube – Watch/listen to the whole sermon. It is well worth your time.
Ernie's Musings 