Revelation 6:1-17 - Homiletics

Six seals opened.

The ground thought of this book is "The Lord is coming." Concerning this Professor Godet remarks, "L'histoire du monde dans son essence se resume dans ces trois roots: Il vient; il est venu; il revient. C'est sur cette idee que repose le plan du drame apocalyptique." £ Even the prophecies of the Old Testament, which dealt so largely with the first coming, shot far ahead and reached even to the second, e.g. Joel. Our Lord himself is very clear on this topic ( Matthew 24:1-51 . and 25.). So also are Paul, Peter, and John. Nor should we think of our Lord's second coming as if it were merely a far distant something with which we are as yet unconcerned. We are told that star touches star by means of an ethereal invisible medium which joins them. Even so the first and second comings of our Lord touch each other by means of the events now going on, whose train began from the one and will reach to the other. Not a moment is lost in the interval. During these apparently slow lingering centuries, in which day follows day with unbroken regularity, one day so much like another that comparatively few leave any distinct impression on the mind, not a moment is there but some work is being done to prepare for our Lord's return. He is now on his way, and at the appointed time "he that shall come will come, and will not tarry." The plan of this book gives us

in which we have "l'epopee de la lutte supreme entre Dieu et Satan, pour la possession de l'humanite comme prix du combat." In this chapter we have set before us in marvellous vividness six features by which the way is to be marked which leads to the consummation. These we will take in order, not omitting to press home their teachings for the conscience and the heart.

I. ALREADY OUR LORD HATH GONE FORTH CONQUERING AND TO CONQUER . (Verses 1, 2.) One of the four living ones says, "Come.'' It is a call to the apostle, not a representation of the Church's cry to her Lord. £ The apostle responds. He sees under the first seal emblems which point plainly and distinctly to the Lord Jesus. The white horse (cf. Revelation 19:11-13 ). The bow (cf. Psalms 45:3-5 ). The crown ( Revelation 14:14 ); symbol of conquest and might. The errand on which he goes forth, "conquering and to conquer;" conquering as he goes, as a matter of fact; speeding on, that he may conquer still. Certainly the mission of our Lord is the only one which can be thus described. He is to know nothing but success. His progress may seem to be retarded, as we judge of things, but it never is so according to the Divine conception. We may not be in a position to trace continuous advance. But we know who it is that has gone forth; we believe in his might, his wisdom, his love. He has never yet lost an hour, and never will.

II. MANIFOLD FORCES , INCIDENTS , AND AGENCIES ARE ALSO AT WORK UPON THE EARTH . The first seal certainly indicates triumph; the second, war (verses 3, 4); the third, famine (verses 5, 6); the fourth, death, whether by sword, famine, pestilence, or wild beasts (verses 7, 8); the fifth, martyrdom (verses 9-11); the sixth, convulsions, terrible and appalling, of various kinds. Now, what do these symbols—triumph, war, famine, pestilence, martyrdom, convulsion—mean? Some say, The changing phases of the Church itself; the progress of the Christian power going forth in triumph; then degeneracy, corruption, and controversy creeping in; then darkness, ignorance, and a famine of the Word; then the pestilential mystery of iniquity; then martyrdom; then great upheavings and mighty tribulation, preparing the way of the Lord. Others regard them as indicating a state of things which had occurred before John's exile—the triumph and peace of the Augustan era; war under Caligula; famine under Claudius; pestilence following on famine; martyrdom under Nero; the convulsive breaking up of the Jewish state and polity. Certain it is that before John's exile these six or seven features followed each other, and exactly in this order. Whence some may conclude that that must have been the intent of the symbols. But, singularly enough, if we begin with John's exile, it is the fact that in the Roman empire, hastening to its fall, these varied phases—triumph, war, famine, pestilence, martyrdom, convulsion—also succeeded each other in this very order, so much so that if any one had desired to write from the history of the changing fortunes of that empire an illustrative commentary on this chapter, he could scarcely have used more fitting phraseology than Gibbon has done in is history of its decline and fall. Yet we are sure that he, at any rate, had no intention of being a Scripture expositor. We learn from him that there was an era of great prosperity in the Roman empire from the year 96. This was followed by a long series of strife and civil war, as if to show on what a frail foundation the virtue of the Antonines had reared the felicity of the empire. That period of strife was succeeded by famine, and that again by pestilence; then followed the dreadful era of the Diocletian martyrdom, and the break up of the Roman empire, the subjection of paganism, and the establishment of Christianity in its place. Be it remembered, then, that not once only can the student put his finger on the map of history, and say, these six—triumph, war, famine, pestilence, martyrdom, convulsion—succeeded each other, and in this order, but once and again. And let us not forget that our Saviour named these—just these—in nearly the same order, and said that they would occur " in divers places " £ War, famine, pestilence, martyrdom, convulsion, are to occur repeatedly. Hence we are driven to the conclusion that these symbolic representations of the six seals do indicate the varied features which should mark the progress of the age, ere the Church is brought in, in the fulness of her redemption. All the forces symbolized here have been at work for ages on different parts of the earth; each of them recurs again and again, and will do so through the whole stretch of this dispensation. Here our God seems to say to us, "You see these terrible forces—war, famine, pestilence, martyrdom, convulsion. I see them too. There is nothing but what is in the seven-sealed book. Fear not. All the seals will be opened by the Lamb that was slain. All these terrors are but preparatory agencies clearing the way for the 'day of the Lord'!"

III. THE PRESSURE ACCUMULATES AS THE END DRAWS NEARER . While we cannot pretend to draw a sharp line between one seal and another, it is manifest from the entire chapter that, as the end approaches, the pressure increases. The sixth seal is surely indicative of convulsions so great as to produce a consternation which will shake society to its foundations. One of these later phases will be the upheaving of nations, disorganization of visible Churches, and widespread unsettlement of faiths. "Every mountain and island were moved out of their places." Yet this is but the sixth seal, not the seventh; a preparation for the end, not the end itself, although many may think it so. It is "the great tribulation"—a tribulation so great that many will cry out in agony, "The great day of his wrath is come!" Yet it will not be that, but only a preliminary to it. £ These words, "The great day of his wrath is come!" are not the sacred writer's own, but the cry of the terrified ones. God will yet shake, not earth only, but also heaven (cf. Luke 18:8 ; Haggai 2:6 , Haggai 2:7 ; Hebrews 12:26 ; Matthew 24:29 , Matthew 24:31 ). Let us beware of man's frequent and false alarms. Christ's word in Matthew 24:4-6 should be a perpetual guard against them.

IV. THE ADVANCE OF THE DAY OF THE LORD WILL SEEM TO THE WORLD AS THE APPROACH OF A DAY OF WRATH . ( Matthew 24:16 , Matthew 24:17 .) "The great day of their wrath is come." Their wrath—even that of him that sitteth on the throne, and of the Lamb. Wrath? Why? Should not any signs of the appearing of the Son of God to "judge in righteousness" be hailed with gladness? When our Lord himself actually described such terrors as being the "birth pangs" ( ἀρχὴ ὠδίνων , Matthew 24:8 ) of a new creation, should not his approach be welcomed with song? Why this conception of wrath? Why connect "wrath" with the Lamb of God? It is only on account of the sin in which men have lived; only because, by fighting against the Lord and his anointed, they have treasured up for themselves "wrath against the day of wrath." When their armour in which they trusted is stripped off, and when the playthings with which they toyed are snatched away, and the delusions with which they were spell bound shall be dispersed like the mists of morn, they will cower in terror before the God whom they defied. This "great tribulation" will be a wondrous leveller. They who sported with sin will be no longer in sportive mood. Let us note here the unnaturalness of sin. It is depicted as bringing about five perversions.

1 . The unfoldings of God's plan in the varied workings of his providence, which should be viewed with holy awe and peaceful serenity, do, to a guilty man, bring terror and dread, oft amounting to despair. Let a man be at peace with God, and he can look on to see how Jesus rules the world, with joy and hope; but unbelief and sin prevent all this, and make every new opening full of ominous foreboding.

2 . In their anguish and despair they call to the mountains and hills to help them! They dare not address the God whom at their ease they despised! But "Nature," the god of the atheist, will be found to be a god that cannot save.

3 . They think to find refuge in being hidden from God. As if that were possible! As if, were it possible, it could bring them ease! Oh, how frightful are the perversions effected by sin! The face of him who is the chief among ten thousand, and the altogether lovely, is to the bad a distressing sight, arousing abhorrence and deepening their woe.

4 . The sinner who up to the last rejects the Son of God, sees at last in him only wrath. That Being who is only perfect Love, will seem to the wicked to be full of anger indignation, and avenging power.

5 . The fifth and last perversion which we notice is that, instead of welcoming the perfect adjustments of a righteous Judge as that which should bring the long-wished-for rest to a weary world, they, knowing they are in the wrong, view them with an affrighted horror for which there is no solace, and with an immeasurable distress for which nature has no balm. He who neglects grace in the "day of salvation" must receive equity when the day of grace is over. And when equity has to deal with wrong, what course is open but entire and everlasting condemnation? The bulwark of righteousness is the doom of sin.