Those four horses in the book of Revelation.

The September 2010 question posed by the Lexington Herald-Leader to its FAITH BLOG members was:

Lexington has got the World Equestrian Games coming down the stretch and the city is awash in horses. The best-known horses in the Bible: those four horses in the book of Revelation. Revelation even has its own Big Red and Black Beauty, along with a white horse and a mysterious pale horse. Theologians have long debated the meaning of Revelation. What does that oh-so-interesting book in the New Testament mean to you? What in the heck was St. John of Patmos thinking? Is the purpose a warning of end times to come, a message of hope or something else entirely?

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My reply to this question was as follows:

Revelation, by its very nature, was not designed to be interpreted literally, as is readily apparent anyone who sits down to actually read it. John affirms in Rev. 1:1 that it was sent and "signified" - a term which means to speak in signs or symbols (hence not literal, but figurative). Such symbolic language is common to us from the parables and the illustrations in John 10.

The very nature of Revelation then, as John affirms, is not to be literal, but figurative, and hence must be so interpreted (in harmony with other plain statements found elsewhere in the Bible, and also in light of other similar expressions found in the Old Testament which are explained for us).

This helps us to understand why the four horses in chapter 6 as well as the Lamb, the four living creatures, the dead souls speaking, the sun turning black and the moon turning to blood are not literal, but symbolic.

The second major point we need to understand about Revelation is the time for which it was written.  Revelation was written to convey a message to those then living, and efforts to make it refer to specific events centuries later utterly ignores this point. There could be no way anyone then reading it could be blessed (1:3) if it did not convey a message to them as they read it then. Why should they heed its message (22:7) if it had no reference whatsoever to them, but referred to something going to happen yet 2,000 or more years into the future?

The truth of the matter is that John was writing Revelation with them in mind. Again, we turn to the very first verse, where he affirms he is writing about those things "which must shortly take place." to pass, it cannot be talking about over 2,000 years into the future!

This message is carried throughout the book of Revelation. Note that the time is "near" or "at hand" in 1:3 (cf. Matt. 3:2, Mark 9:1); "about to suffer" (2:10); "I am coming to you quickly" (2:16); "I am coming quickly" (3:11); "a little while longer" (6:11); "delay no longer" (10:6); "the third Woe is coming quickly" (11:14); etc. Even in the last chapter we see the same message repeated repeatedly: "the things which must shortly take place" (v. 6); "I am coming quickly" (v. 7); "for the time is near" (v. 10); "I am coming quickly" (v. 12); and "I am coming quickly" again in verse 20. Obviously the "coming" here does not refer to the second and final coming, or the Lord lied in saying it was "quickly," "shortly" and "at hand." Frequently the same term is used with the idea of coming in judgment (cf. Matt. 10:23, Isa. 19:1, but not literal), and this seems to be the message John was giving to the oppressed Christians of that time. This being so, recognizing the time element of the book of Revelation, there is no way Jehovah Witnesses, Premillennialists, Armstrong, Adventists, etc. can claim Revelation is either being fulfilled today or refers to events yet in the future.

As we look at the book of Revelation as a whole, let us consider why it was written, and what its message was.  The book was written as an encouragement to the Christians of that time in the face of discouraging persecution from the Roman government. The tribulation was already on them, and more were yet to die (2:10; 3:10; 6:11).  In view of these continued deaths, the cry was raised, "Is it all in vain?" "How long, O Lord, holy and true, will Thou refrain from judging and avenging our blood on those who dwell on the earth" (6:10), and John's message is the reply to this cry.  The book centers around their cry for vengeance-not for the sake of revenge itself, but as a testimony it had not all been in vain.  But, first, God says, it is all according to a plan: others must first die too (6:11), but "a little while longer," and My purpose will then unfold.  Now, note in 16:6-7 that Christ "didst judge" these things, giving His enemies blood to drink for having poured out the blood of the saints, and the "altar" (cf. 6:9) now sees that "true and righteous are Thy judgments."  Again, in 19:2, in direct reference to 6:10, we find "He has avenged the blood of His bond-servants on her."  And, finally, in triumph, those who had remained faithful to the Lord throughout the persecution are now sharing in the triumph of the cause of Christ in 20:4-6.

But Why Figurative?

At this point, the question is again raised, But why then is the book figurative?  Why didn't John just come out and say that?  Remember Pharaoh’s reaction in Ex. 5:2, 5-9?  The pattern for giving a message to God's people, which they understood and their enemies thought was "the ravings of a lunatic" was then set in Ezekiel 4.  The same was now employed here as the Christians understood the wonderful promise of relief and victory, but the Romans thought it was the writings of one "not worth bothering with."

All that is contained in this book: the events, the beasts, the judgments, etc. must be kept within the concept of the time, nature and purpose of the book, or we no longer have a context, but a pretext.  This does not mean that it does not contain a message for us today, for surely it does, just like the message on church discipline found in 1 Cor. 5.  We must not become discouraged and assume God has lost control, but to recognize He has a purpose and in the end, He will vindicate His cause!

The failure to recognize these important truths, though, has led to many speculations-all the way from the Premillennial position to the Jehovah Witnesses' position to the Historical position (which has to be revised every 100 years to account for "new events."  

Dan. 2:44 and Heb. 12:28 affirmed we have received a kingdom which could not be destroyed.  It was tested by Satan, and confirmed by the Lord.  As before, Satan went down in defeat, even though he threw everything he had against the church in its infancy: the power of the Roman government, the pressure of Caesar worship and the worldliness of the city of Rome as well.  His final defeat has been foretold (Matt. 25:46).

RDB