Page 115 - Eschatology - Masters revised
P. 115

“You are worthy to take the scroll
               and to open its seals,
               because you were slain,
               and with your blood you purchased for God
               persons from every tribe and language and people and nation…
               Worthy is the Lamb, who was slain,
               to receive power and wealth and wisdom and strength
               and honor and glory and praise!” (verses 9 and 12).
































               Amid the worship due to Him, the Lamb begins to open the seals (Revelation 6:1). With each seal
               opened, the scroll is able to be unrolled a little more, revealing bit by bit the judgments God has in store
               during the tribulation period. The first four of the seven seals release what are known as the Four
               Horsemen of the Apocalypse, because the judgments appear symbolically as a horse and rider bringing
               devastation in their wake.

                The first seal. The first seal introduces the
               Antichrist (Revelation 6:1–2). From the biblical
               description, we gather several details: he rides a
               white horse, which speaks of peace; at the
               beginning of the tribulation, the Antichrist will
               come under the pretense of bringing peace to the
               world (cf. Daniel 9:27). He is given a crown, which
               indicates that the Antichrist will exercise great
               authority (cf. Daniel 7:24–25). He holds a bow,
               which shows his true intentions, and he advances
               “as a conqueror bent on conquest” (Revelation
               6:2).



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