Revelation 6:1-17 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 beasts saying… I. The development of GOOD in human history. 1. The good is embodied in a personal life. "He that sat," etc. "Grace and truth came by Jesus Christ." He was the Right — incarnate, living, acting; and this, not only during His corporeal life here, but in all His disciples through all times. 2. The good embodied in a personal life is aggressive in its action. "He went forth," etc. Wherever the sunbeams break, darkness departs; so with the right, it is always conquering. In its aggressiveness it moves — (1) Righteously. The "horse" is the instrument it employs to bear it on to victory. The good is not only pure in its nature and aims, but pure in its methods. (2) Triumphantly. The "bow" carries the arrow, and the arrow penetrates the foe. (3) Royally. "There was given unto Him a crown." Right is royal, the only royal thing in the universe, and the more perfectly it is embodied the more brilliant the diadem. Hence Christ is crowned with glory and honour, "exalted above all principalities and powers," etc. II. The development of EVIL in human history. 1. War (ver. 4). The spirit of murder burns throughout the race. The "red horse" is ever on the gallop. 2. Indigence (ver. 5). Famine generally follows the sword. 3. Mortality (ver. 8). With every breath we draw some one falls. 4. Martyrdom (vers. 9-11). (1) A martyr is one who dies for the truth. (2) He is one who in heaven remembers the injustice of His persecutors. (3) He is one who in the heavenly world is more than compensated for all the wrongs received on earth. In heaven they have — (a) Purity. (b) Repose. (c) Social hopes. 5. Physical convulsion (vers. 12-17). (1) Our earth is constantly subject to great physical convulsions. (2) These are always terribly alarming to ungodly men. (3) The alarm of ungodly men is heightened by a dread of God. "The wrath of the Lamb." A more terrific idea I cannot get. It is an ocean of oil in flames. ( D. Thomas, D. D.) Parallel Verses KJV: 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 beasts saying, Come and see. |
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