Revelation of John 6 · The Lantern

The First Seal: The White Horse

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 living creatures saying, Come and see.

"And when the Lamb had opened one of the seven seals, I saw, and heard one of the four living creatures saying, Come and see. And, lo, a white horse, and He who sate upon him had a bow." The first seal being opened, he says that he saw a white horse, and a crowned horseman having a bow. For this was at first done by Himself.

Indeed, here is indicated the good order of those in heaven, which descends from the first ranks to the second. And therefore from one figure of the four-formed living creatures, namely, from the lion, he heard the first voice that gave the command, "Come!" to the angel who mystically symbolizes the vision.

The lamb opened one of the seven seals—He wants to give this notice about future time.

And I looked, and look, a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given to him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer.

The Second Seal: War

And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see.

"And when He had opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red, and to him that sate upon him was given a great sword." The red horse, and he that sate upon him, having a sword, signify the coming wars, as we read in the Gospel: "For nation shall rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom; an…

I suppose that the second living creature is the bull to depict the sacred sacrifices of the holy martyrs, since the first [creature] signified the apostolic authority.

And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature, saying: Come, and see. What does it mean that a similar command is given in a dissimilar situation, if not that concern for the future struggle is here given in the same way as joy for the achieved victory was above?

And there went out another horse that was red: and power was given to him that sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another: and there was given to him a great sword.

The Third Seal: Famine

And when he had opened the third seal, I heard the third beast say, Come and see. And I saw, and look, a black horse; and he that sat on him had a pair of balances in his hand.

"And when He had opened the third seal. I heard the third living creature saying, Come and see. And, lo, a black horse; and he who sate upon it had a balance in his hand." The black horse signifies famine, for the Lord says, "There shall be famines in divers places; "but the word is specially extended to the times of Antichrist, when there shall be a great famine, and when all…

I believe that the third living creature here is the man and that [this passage] shows the fall of men and for this reason his punishment because of his inclination toward sin by the power of free will.… We think that the "black horse" depicts the sorrow that comes upon those who have fallen away from faith in Christ on account of the abundance of torments.

By the black horse, he indicates the time of suffering that falls upon the earth because of the iniquities and impieties that are multiplied.

And I heard a voice in the midst of the four living creatures say, A measure of wheat for a denarius, and three measures of barley for a denarius; and see you hurt not the oil and the wine.

The Fourth Seal: Death

And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth beast say, Come and see.

"And when He had opened the fourth seal, I heard the fourth living creature saying, Come and see. And, lo, a pale horse; and he who sate upon him was named Death." For the pale horse and he who sate upon him bore the name of Death.

The soaring flight and the swiftness upon its prey of the fourth living creature, namely, the eagle, suggests those plagues that come from above, from the divine wrath for the vindication of the pious and for the punishment of the impious, unless these should turn from their sins through improvement.

And when he had opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature, saying: Come, and see. And behold a pale horse, and he that sat upon him, his name was Death, and hell followed him. The people represented by the pale horse are the same as those represented by the red horse, their spiritual death being now symbolized by the pallor of the horse.

And I looked, and look, a pale horse: and his name that sat on him was Death, and Hell followed with him. And power was given to 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.

There are two parts in the world, that which belongs to God and that of the devil. That which belongs to the devil is further divided into three parts, which are both within and outside [the church]. These are the Gentiles, false brothers and those separated by open error or schism. And these three parts are those that war against the one.

This sequence of events has happened before and reflects also contemporary occurrences. For as Eusebius says in the eighth chapter of the ninth book of his Ecclesiastical History, at the height of the persecution, when Maximinus was Roman emperor, both famine and pestilence along with other things fell upon them, so that such an innumerable multitude perished that they could no…

Green horse indicates death and ruin, which will come in the end of times upon the inhabitants of the earth because of their evil works.

The Fifth Seal: The Martyrs

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, do you not judge and avenge our blood on them that dwell on the earth?

And white robes were given to every one of them; and it was said to them, that they should rest yet for a little season, until their fellow servants also and their brothers, that should be killed as they were, should be fulfilled.

But if anyone with precipitate haste rashly thinks that he can grant remission of sins to all or dares to rescind the precepts of the Lord, not only is this of no advantage to the lapsed but it is even a hindrance.

In this passage the saints are shown praying for the consummation of the world. Therefore, they are told to have patience until the completion of the brothers, so that "apart from them they would not be made perfect," as the apostle says.

And a white garment was given to each of them—the clothing of incorruptibility, with which they are to clothe themselves. Until their companions are also complete—until the fullness of the elect enters. For Paul said: So that they will not be perfected without us.

The Sixth Seal: Terror

And I saw when he had opened the sixth seal, and, look, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became as blood;

"And I saw, when he had opened the sixth seal, there was a great earthquake." In the sixth seal, then, was a great earthquake: this is that very last persecution. "And the sun became black as sackcloth of hair." The sun becomes as sackcloth; that is, the brightness of doctrine will be obscured by unbelievers.

And I saw when He opened the sixth seal, etc. With the opening of the sixth seal, the final persecution is announced, and just as the world was shaken with darkness and fear when the Lord was crucified on the sixth day, it will be so again.

The sun signifies spiritual combat. In this regard, "the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give her light." When the fight will be between Christ and Antichrist, between the teaching of truth and that of falsity, then "the sun" will become "black as sackcloth of hair," and a certain teacher of truth or superior in truth shall be obscured by errors, while others will s…

And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, even as a fig tree casts her untimely figs, when she is shaken of a mighty wind.

"And the stars too shall fall from heaven, even as a fig-tree casteth her green figs when she is shaken of a mighty wind." "The mountains shall melt like wax at the presence of the Lord; " that is, "when He riseth to shake terribly the earth.

The stars of the sky fell to the earth, it is said, happened either by chance and was perceptible; if not, the account suggests that the heavenly light ceased, and everything was darkened (Luke 23:44-45, Matt. 27:45, Mark 15:33).

And the stars of heaven fell upon the earth, as the fig tree casteth its green figs when it is shaken by a great wind. Heaven is the Church of the saints, which, as it contains countless lives of saints, shines in the night of this life as if stars were radiating light on it from above.

And the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every mountain and island were moved out of their places.

Besides, the belief that everything was made from nothing will be impressed upon us by that ultimate dispensation of God which will bring back all things to nothing. For "the very heaven shall be rolled together as a scroll; '" nay, it shall come to nothing along with the earth itself, with which it was made in the beginning.

The sky is described as departed like a scroll being rolled up. Through the sky, the heavenly powers of the angels are mentioned, who themselves were disturbed, unable to bear the insult to their master, both here and there. The sky is said to be torn apart like a scroll being unrolled and shaken. It is also said that every mountain and island moved from their places.

And the heaven departed as a book folded up. Just as the reprobates fall from the Church not physically but through their transgressions, so does the same Church, in its elect, depart from among the wicked not by a physical departure but by faith and work.

And the kings of the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains, and the mighty men, and every slave, and every free man, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains;

This signifies that the whole world, among the good and the saints, is going to find refuge in the church, so that made firm under [the church's] protection it is able to endure unto eternal life, with the help of our Lord Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns forever and ever. Amen.

"The kings of the earth," that is, those who exert power over it and possess nothing in heaven, they too shall pray with all the great and rich and with the servants of the things below and those free of the service of Christ, that they be hidden by the caves and the rocks and the mountains.

And the kings of the earth, and the princes, and tribunes, and the rich, and the strong, and every bondman, and every freeman, hid themselves in the dens and in the rocks of mountains. The kings are those who govern themselves well. Likewise for the princes, who do not resist vices as well as the kings, but still do so as they can.

And said to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of him that sits on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb:

For the great day of his wrath has come; and who shall be able to stand?

For then the divine anger will burn righteously as a furnace, consuming those who built upon the foundation of faith with wood and chaff and stubble, as though food for the fire.

And who will be able to stand? Certainly, the one who now strives to watch, to stand firm in faith, and to act manfully. If you interpret this earthquake literally as referring to the very day of judgment, it is not surprising that earthly kings and princes, fearful of the holy mountains, seek refuge, as we read has already happened in the case of the rich man clothed in purple…

For the great day of his wrath is come, and who shall be able to stand? As if they were saying, "If even a saint is terrified by the wrath of that God, who of us shall hold out?" We may disregard all that has been said about saints, and understand those things as referring to the reprobates: the mountains are the proud; the islands are the greedy (according to this: Be silent,…