Few subjects in the Bible have been able to pierce pop culture like the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. The term "apocalypse" is Greek for "revelation" and that is what this book is about: the Revelation of Jesus Christ to the world. The apocalypse is not the end of the world. The Bible says that this is a world without end (Eph. 3:21). These horsemen are symbolic of events and individuals that will bring unprecedented global chaos during the 7-year Tribulation period and are mankind's final attempt to rule the planet without God.
Before I begin this lesson, I want to explain that Revelation was written chronologically and concurrently. When Jesus commanded the Apostle John to write about what He saw, He told him to "write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter" (Rev. 1:19).
Revelation chapters 1-3 are both the past and the present. The churches were both seven physical churches as well as seven periods of church history. Though this lesson is not about the seven churches, they make a fantastic example of the writing structure of Revelation.
Revelation chapters 4 and 5 take place in the near-future and show us what we will see once the Rapture takes place (4:1), but before the Tribulation period begins.
Revelation chapters 6-19 cover the entire tribulation period from the rise of the Antichrist (the 7-year peace treaty with Israel of Daniel 9:27) to the return of the Christ at Armageddon.
We will cover when certain events will take place in future lessons, but I want to make sure that you have a solid understanding of the chronological and concurrent writing style of Revelation before we study the Four Horsemen of Revelation because they are not one-time events.
When horses are mentioned in the Bible, they are often associated with warfare and might. Psalm 20:7, Proverbs 21:31, Jeremiah 46:4, and Habakkuk 1:8 demonstrate how horses were viewed in past. The riders represent the individuals that will control the warfare and power represented by the horses.
The Rider on the White Horse
"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 6:2
Satan is the ultimate deceiver (John 8:44, 2 Cor. 11:14). Just as God gave us the Christ to save the world from our sins, Satan will give the world a man that they believe will save them. The rider on the white horse is the man that the Bible calls the Antichrist (see lesson for more details).
Notice that this man rides a white horse. The color white in the Bible is associated with pureness (Mark 9:3; Rev. 1:14, 3:4-5, 4:4, 19:11, 19:14). The world will see this man as a good man that can unite humanity. He holds a bow which symbolizes military power from afar (Gen. 48:22, 49:24; 1 Kings 22:34), but arrows are not mentioned because he does not use his great might to conquer when he comes to power. The Bible says that a crown will be given to him, and then he conquers. He will be the diplomat of diplomats so-to-speak. His first act of diplomatic success will be found in the Middle East Peace Treaty (Dan. 9:27).
But peace under the Antichrist will not last.
This counterfeit savior will imitate Jesus, but will fail. The Antichrist will be an evil dictator that brings warfare and death to the world, Jesus will rule the world and there will be an everlasting peace (Is. 9:6). The Antichrist will call himself God and will sit in the Temple of God in Jerusalem (2 Thess. 2:4), Jesus is God and will reign from Jerusalem and be seated in His Temple (1 Tim. 3:16, Lk. 1:32-33).
The Second Rider
"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 6:4
Shortly after the Antichrist confirms peace in the Middle East, the Ezekiel 38/39 war will take place. This war will be so catastrophic that 5/6 of the Russian, Turkish, Iranian, Sudan, and Libyan militaries will be destroyed. This may be the world's first nuclear war attack since World War II. Please see the Gog & Magog War and the 7 Years of Fuel lessons for further insight, but please understand that nuclear warfare will take place!
This rider is not just one specific event, but rather, a symbolic representation of the constant warfare that will take place throughout the entire 7-Year Tribulation period.
The Greek word for "sword" used here is "machaira". A machaira was a dagger used by laypersons when rebelling or defending themselves. This "sword" ties into the words Jesus spoke in Matthew 24:7 when He said that "nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom". The term "nation" is the Greek word "ethnos" from which we get the word ethnicity. In modern language, Jesus said that there will be civil wars and genocides while governments are at war.
The Third Rider
"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
While all of this warfare is taking place globally, there will be inflation that will completely decimate the lower and middle classes. In Biblical times, a penny was a day's wage. A person will spend all day working just to buy enough bread for himself. As countries are destroyed, there will be a global food shortage which will drive inflation.
There is a two-fold application regarding the phrase "hurt not the oil and the wine". Oil was used for religious anointing (see Parable of the Ten Virgins) and wine for celebration (Esther 7:8, Job 1:13). The False Prophet will set up a religious system that will not suffer during the economic collapse. Today, the Catholic Church has an estimated worth of $15B and has investments in banking, insurance, chemicals, steel, construction, and real estate. It isn't difficult to imagine religious leaders that maintain a lavish lifestyle while the people around them suffer.
While the first application of the phrase is religious, the second speaks of a class system that the average person would call the "1%". Revelation 18 describes the wealth of Babylon as a city that will be the hub of commerce during the Tribulation period. Verses 12 and 13 list "the merchandise of gold, and silver, and precious stones, and of pearls, and fine linen, and purple, and silk, and scarlet, and all thyine wood, and all manner vessels of ivory, and all manner vessels of most precious wood, and of brass, and iron, and marble, and cinnamon, and odours, and ointments, and frankincense, and wine, and oil, and fine flour, and wheat, and beasts, and sheep, and horses, and chariots, and slaves, and souls of men" as luxury items that will be sold to the world until it is destroyed near the end of the Tribulation period. The wealthy will prosper through slave labor.
The Fourth Rider
"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 6:8
This rider is the result of the second and third horsemen. To understand this rider, we will start at the end of the verse. The Greek term for "beasts" here is "thérion". This Greek term refers to a sexual bestial nature or a strong sexual appetite. Sex will be so rampant that STDs will be common place.
Please read this verse from the passage above slowly because it is often misread: "power was given unto them over the fourth part of the earth".
Most people read this verse this to mean that 1/4 of the population will die. That isn't what this verse says. It says that power was given to 1/4 of the population. In the Antichrist lesson, I mentioned that there is Biblical evidence supporting that the Antichrist may be Muslim. Revelation 6:8 continues that notion. In 2017, the Pew Research Center showed that Muslims make up 24.1% of the world's population. Notice that this 1/4 kills with the sword. The term here is not machaira as in 6:4, but rather, "rhomphaia" which is a scimitar.
The method of death for anyone that is unwilling to take the Mark of the Beast is beheading (Rev. 20:4) and that this verse mentions that a scimitar will be used for execution. The Quran states "...I will throw fear into the hearts of those who disbelieve. Then smite the necks and smite of them each finger" (Surah 8:12) and "now when ye meet in battle those who disbelieve, then it is smiting of the necks until, when ye have routed them, then making fast of bonds; and afterward either grace or ransom till the war lay down its burdens. That (is the ordinance). And if Allah willed He could have punished them (without you) but (thus it is ordained) that He may try some of you by means of others. And those who are slain in the way of Allah, He rendereth not their actions vain" (Surah 47:4).
Revelation 18:13 states that profit will be made off of the "souls of men". The Greek phrasing suggests human trafficking and prostitution. Albert Einstein once said that "an empty stomach is not a good political adviser". When famine becomes global, men and women will sell their bodies just to eat and children will be sold into sex trafficking. How can this happen? Because "men loved darkness rather than light" (John 3:19). People will willingly partake in prostitution which will no doubt also include children born during the Tribulation period.
I want to pause and tie this into the Rapture. In that lesson, I showed that God will take away the children prior to the Tribulation. However, children will still be born during this period. The Tribulation period is for seven years. That means that children from infancy to age six will be used in the state-sponsored sex trafficking. I want that horror to sink in as I ask:
Is it any wonder why Death and Hell follow this rider?
The Tribulation period will be unlike any other period of human history. When describing this time period, Jesus said in Matthew 24:21 "for then shall be great tribulation, such as was not since the beginning of the world to this time, no, nor ever shall be".
In my personal opinion, the most terrifying aspect of the Four Horsemen of Revelation is that they are the result of mankind. The horsemen of Revelation 6:2-8 are not the judgments of God (those come later), but rather, what will happen when the world as a whole rejects Jesus.
Right now we are in 2018. There are politicians and activists that are fighting to remove all traces of Christianity under the guise of "freedom from religion". One day they will get their wish... and this will be the result.