Breaking the Seven Seals
Today’s passage: Revelation 6
Focus verse: I watched as the Lamb opened the first of the seven seals. (Revelation 6:1)
Jesus has just been declared worthy to open God’s scroll, that is, to access the words on the sealed document. One by one, Jesus will break each of the seven seals that hold the scroll closed.
With each seal’s removal, we’ll get a hint at the contents inside, as if some of the scroll’s prophecy escapes.
Jesus, the Lamb, breaks the first seal, and one of the four living creatures calls out, “Come!” A rider on a white horse gallops forth. He carries a bow, tasked with conquest.
As the Lamb breaks the second seal, the second living creature beckons, “Come!” A second rider sets out, this one on a fiery red horse. He has the power to take away peace from the whole earth so that people will kill each other.
When the Lamb breaks the third seal, the third living creature also cries out, “Come!” A third rider, mounted on a black horse, emerges. He holds a pair of scales, with the implied task of upsetting the economy and affecting the food supply.
With four remaining seals on the scroll, Jesus breaks another. The fourth living creature likewise calls, “Come!” A fourth horse, a pale steed, heads out ridden by Death. Hades follows close behind.
What has been revealed as Jesus breaks the first four seals doesn’t sound like a message anyone would want to receive. And it’s not for those who don’t follow Jesus.
But for those who have remained true to their Savior, this is indeed a wonderful gift.
At last judgment over evil is coming, and God will soon usher in a new heaven and a new earth. It’s cause for them to celebrate. We get a hint of this as Jesus breaks open the next seal on the scroll.
With the opening of the fifth seal, John sees under the altar. There await the souls of the saints martyred for their faith. They call out to God, “How much longer until you judge the people of the earth?”
They’re told to wait a little longer.
With the tearing of the sixth seal, a worldwide catastrophe unfolds, the beginning of an international apocalypse: the sun goes black, the moon turns red, and the stars fall from the sky.
The heavens recede and the mountains and islands are removed.
The people who don’t know God—from the greatest to the least—try to hide from him. They cower in fear. They call out for the rocks and mountains to fall on them and hide them from God’s face and the wrath of Jesus.
John’s vision lingers on this global catastrophe for a while in Revelation 7 before we see the breaking of the seventh and final seal in Revelation 8. It reveals the full contents and the power of the scroll’s prophecy.
Questions:
- How should we view the actions of the four riders?
- Do we look forward to God’s judgement of the people on earth (the fifth seal)?
- How should we view the apocalypse that the sixth seal ushers in?
- Will we hide from God’s face or look forward to being in his presence?
- Do we fear Jesus’s wrath or accept his gift of eternal life?
[Discover more about desperate people trying to hide from God in Hosea 10:8 and Luke 23:30.]
Tips: Check out our tips to use this online Bible study for your church, small group, Sunday school class, or family discussion. It’s also ideal for personal study. Come back each Monday for a new lesson.
Read the next lesson or start at the beginning of this study.
Read more in Peter’s devotional Bible study, A New Heaven and a New Earth: 40 Practical Insights from John’s Book of Revelation.
Peter DeHaan writes about biblical Christianity to confront status quo religion and live a life that matters. He seeks a fresh approach to following Jesus through the lens of Scripture, without the baggage of made-up traditions and meaningless practices.
Read more in his books, blog, and weekly email updates.