The time has come to open the Seven Seals of God. What are some of the things we see surrounding this event that gives us clues to the timing of the opening of the seals on the scroll? The first thing is someone had to qualify to become worthy to open up the seven seals on the scroll. Next the Lamb of God had to come near to God’s throne to receive the scroll. The next thing we see is all in heaven are rendering up praise and worship to the true God and to the Lamb.
Revelation 5:1- 10… And I saw in the right hand of the One seated upon the throne a scroll written within and on the reverse side, sealed tight with seven seals. 2 And I saw a strong angel proclaiming with a loud voice: “Who is worthy to open the scroll and loose its seals?” 3 But neither in heaven nor upon earth nor underneath the earth was there a single one able to open the scroll or to look into it. 4 And I gave way to a great deal of weeping because no one was found worthy to open the scroll or to look into it. 5 But one of the elders says to me: “Stop weeping. Look! The Lion that is of the tribe of Judah, the root of David, has conquered so as to open the scroll and its seven seals.” 6 And I saw standing in the midst of the throne and of the four living creatures and in the midst of the elders a lamb as though it had been slaughtered, having seven horns and seven eyes, which [eyes] mean the seven spirits of God that have been sent forth into the whole earth. 7 And he went and at once took [it] out of the right hand of the One seated on the throne. 8 And when he took the scroll, the four living creatures and the twenty-four elders fell-down before the Lamb, having each one a harp and golden bowls that were full of incense, and the [incense] means the prayers of the holy ones. And they sing a new song, saying: “You are worthy to take the scroll and open its seals, because you were slaughtered and with your blood you bought persons for God out of every tribe and tongue and people and nation, 10 and you made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth.”
In verse five it talks about conquering so as to open the seven seals and this makes me think of the prophecy of Isaiah 22:22, where it speaks about giving the key of David to his servant who would be over the house of Jerusalem.
Later on, the apostle John is given the vision and at Revelation 3:7 where it speaks of, “he who is holy, and true, and he who has the key of David.” We know that this is none other than the Lion of Judah the root of David as Jesus Christ, and he is also known as the Lamb of God. When is the Lamb of God given the scroll and when will he begin to open these seven seals of God?
Look back at verse 10, this should clue us in on the timing because Christ did something after he was slaughtered, when he paid the blood sacrifice and presented that before God. Yes, Christ Jesus established a kingdom of priests, and they are to rule as kings, and that ruling will happen in the future.
Think about it, there are some who will serve as under priest in the flesh now and later on will reign as kings with Christ in the spirit. So, Christ receives the scroll after he has purchased the right for a kingdom of priests. We know this happens somewhere around 33 CE because we have proof of the Holy Spirit being poured out at Pentecost of that year.
We also know that all the seals are to be opened before these kings and priests drop the flesh and become spirit sons of God. Because of what we read in the opening of the 5th seal and 7th seal. Revelation 10:7
Picking back up on our reading:
Revelation 5:11- 14… And I saw, and I heard a voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders, and the number of them was myriads of myriads and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice: “The Lamb that was slaughtered is worthy to receive the power and riches and wisdom and strength and honor and glory and blessing.” 13 And every creature that is in heaven and on earth and underneath the earth and on the sea, and all the things in them, I heard saying: “To the One sitting on the throne and to the Lamb be the blessing and the honor and the glory and the might forever and ever.” 14 And the four living creatures went saying: “Amen!” and the elders fell down and worshiped.
Next we noticed that all things that are in the sea, underneath earth, on the earth and in heaven give worship to God and the Lamb, there are no resistors, no mention of a rebellion in heaven to stop the giving of praise to Christ and this is in itself a clue. Where are the resisters of God, where is the rebellion?
The rebellion against God and against the Christ has not been fully manifested as of yet, that still has to happen as the antichrist spirit comes in the last hour. 1 John 2:18
I would like to turn your attention back to what the Lamb of God received for his faithfulness. Seven things are called out that the Lamb of God received, they were Power, Riches, Wisdom, Strength, Honor, Glory, and the Blessing.
Christ Jesus is to be given all authority in heaven and upon earth. So, we might conclude at this time that we know the timing of these events; but let us resist that thought and look further into what happens next. As only the Lamb of God can open the seals.
Seals Opened – Come
Next we read that the four living creatures take turns in calling out for the 4 horsemen to begin their rides.
Revelation 6:1- 8… And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures say with a voice as of thunder: “Come!” 2 And I saw, and look! a white horse; and the one seated upon it had a bow; and a crown was given him, and he went forth conquering and to complete his conquest. 3 And when he opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature say: “Come!” 4 And another came forth, a fiery-colored horse; and to the one seated upon it there was granted to take peace away from the earth so that they should slaughter one another; and a great sword was given him. 5 And when he opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature say: “Come!” And I saw, and look! a black horse; and the one seated upon it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard a voice as if in the midst of the four living creatures say: “A quart of wheat for a denarius, and three quarts of barley for a denarius; and do not harm the olive oil and the wine.” 7 And when he opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature say: “Come!” 8 And I saw, and look! a pale green horse; and the one seated upon it had the name Death. And Hades was closely following him. And authority was given them over the fourth (1/4) part of the earth, to kill with a long sword and with food shortage and with deadly plague and by the wild beasts of the earth.
Each one of these horsemen had been God given authority to accomplish an objective. There was a voice that gave specific instructions about the ride of the three of the horsemen. Notice that the ride of these horsemen only affects ¼ of the earth.
Our we right to assume that the Lamb of God is not the rider of the white horse because he is the one opening the seals. So, who is the rider of this white horse? What can we say about the rider of the white horse?
The scriptures bring out that the horse is white which indicates a pure objective, the rider has a bow in his hand which is the most effective weapon of the day. Next we notice that the rider has been given a crown of authority a right to rule.
Would we be right in saying that the right for righteous warfare had been given? First in 70 CE by Rome to bring about judgment upon God’s people who had disowned God’s son, by bringing about the destruction of the temple in Jerusalem. After that we have the forceful establishment of the Roman Catholic Church with its right to rule over the earth. At this point we really don’t know, and we cannot say with certainty until it is revealed by God.
Picking back up on our reading:
Revelation 6:9- 11… And when he opened the fifth seal, I saw underneath the altar the souls of those slaughtered because of the word of God and because of the witness work that they used to have. 10 And they cried with a loud voice, saying: “Until when, Sovereign Lord holy and true, are you refraining from judging and avenging our blood upon those who dwell on the earth?” 11 And a white robe was given to each of them; and they were told to rest a little while longer, until the number was filled also of their fellow slaves and their brothers who were about to be killed as they also had been.
The fifth seal has to do with a question about the timing of God’s judgment, the wrath of God, by the ones who have suffered the death of being martyred.
We can also see that there is going to be a specific number who are going to be gathered from among mankind. All Christ brothers are going to be martyred from among this number.
Those who have been slaughtered are resting, there is no work that they are doing at this time until the number is made complete. There is no one in heaven from among mankind governing the affairs of the kingdom until the full number is filled, so says the angel of God.
Also, just one more thing about this particular event, it happens in a spiritual realm and you and I being in the physical realm cannot see or know the timing of when this takes place, or can we?
What happens at the opening of the sixth seal?
Revelation 6:12- 17… And I saw when he opened the sixth seal, and a great earthquake occurred; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the entire moon became as blood, 13 and the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as when a fig tree shaken by a high wind casts its unripe fig’s. 14 And the heaven departed as a scroll that is being rolled up, and every mountain and [every] island were removed from their places. 15 And the kings of the earth and the top-ranking ones and the military commanders and the rich and the strong ones and every slave and [every] free person hid themselves in the caves and in the rock-masses of the mountains. 16 And they keep saying to the mountains and to the rock-masses: “Fall over us and hide us from the face of the One seated on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb, 17 because the great day of their wrath has come, and who is able to stand?”
The sixth seal has to do with a shaking and is referred to as an earthquake, but this shaking also causes the things in the heavens to move, so it is a spiritual quaking. No one in their right mind would go into a cave if there was a physical earthquake occurring for fear they might be crushed to death.
This quaking also is to cause a fear among mankind and the exposing of the things that are not in harmony with God.
The sixth seal announces that the day of God’s wrath has come and the time for accountability will be executed upon the leaders both from the earth and in the heavenly places. The hour of judgment, the hour of test that comes upon the whole inhabited earth.
There will be no light from the sun, nor the stars and the red moon signifies a judgment time by God. They will all be brought under judgment and removed from their positions by the King of kings and Lord of lords because the Sovereign Lord Jehovah has written it. This is the time known as the days of darkness.
The Sealing of God
Revelation 7:1-4… After this I saw four angels standing upon the four (#G5064) corners (G1137) of the earth, holding tight the four winds of the earth, that no wind might blow upon the earth or upon the sea or upon any tree. 2 And I saw another angel ascending from the sunrising, having a seal of [the] living God; and he cried with a loud voice to the four angels to whom it was granted to harm the earth and the sea, 3 saying: “Do not harm the earth or the sea or the trees, until after we have sealed the slaves of our God in their foreheads.” 4 And I heard the number of those who were sealed, a hundred and forty-four thousand, sealed out of every tribe of the sons of Israel:
The releasing of the four winds on the earth will not happen until after the sealing of all of the 144,000. This group will be the kings and priests, the administration of Christ kingdom. Remember what we read in Revelation 5:10? That people were made to be a kingdom and priests to our God, and they are to rule as kings over the earth. These are the ones that are sealed, these are the ones for the administration of the kingdom of God.
Did you notice that the earth was not to be harmed until after the sealing? Is this a physical harming of the earth or is it something spiritual? We can definitely say this has to do with some type of timing. Is God going to cause a harm to the earth or is this a restraint by God’s Angels to prevent mankind from harming the earth? What has caused a physical harming to the earth, and can we pinpoint these times? How has man then ruining the earth?
Climatologist have been able to pinpoint to the year 1572 as a time when toxic levels of lead began to be introduced into the environment, this happened when the Spanish began to mine for silver in South America.
The next year that is called out by the scientist is 1750 with the industrial activities releasing greenhouse gases.
In1850, we have the introduction of coal burning locomotives. After that we have 1921 with the introduction of pesticides and crop spraying. Which began to poison all life. After that we have uranium mining in the 1940. Next then came the development of nuclear power in 1945 and the inability to rid ourselves of the radiation it produces.
Back to the reading:
Revelation 7:5- 8… Out of the tribe of Judah twelve thousand sealed; out of the tribe of Reuben twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Gad twelve thousand; 6 out of the tribe of Asher twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Naphtali twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Manasseh twelve thousand; 7 out of the tribe of Simeon twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Levi twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Issachar twelve thousand; 8 out of the tribe of Zebulun twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Joseph twelve thousand; out of the tribe of Benjamin twelve thousand sealed.
While naming out the tribes that receive the sealing, we identify these as being of the 12 founding tribes of Israel. But it appears that Dan has been replaced by Josephs first born son, Manasseh as the tribe with that inheritance making Joseph’s lineage the receiver of the double inheritance. Why was the tribe of Dan replaced?
Revelation 7:9- 13… After these things I saw, and look! a great crowd, which no man was able to number, out of all nations and tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, dressed in white robes (G4749 Upper Class Apparel); and there were palm branches in their hands. 10 And they keep on crying with a loud voice, saying: “Salvation [we owe] to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb.” 11 And all the angels were standing around the throne and the elders and the four living creatures, and they fell upon their faces before the throne and worshiped God, 12 saying: “Amen! The blessing (G2129) and the glory (G1391) and the wisdom (G4678) and the thanksgiving (G2169) and the honor (G5092) and the power (G1411) and the strength (G2479) [be] to our God forever and ever. Amen.” 13 And in response one of the elders said to me: “These who are dressed in the white robes, who are they and where did they come from?”
Notice verse 12 speaks of a blessing and there was a listing out of seven things that would be a part of that blessing, we had something very similar spoken at Revelation 5:12. So, what are the differences between these two verses, what stands out to you?
The difference between these two verses are the words Riches (G4149 ploutos) and Thanksgiving (G2169 eucharistia). In Strong’s Concordance the Greek word rendered up riches can also be used as wealth or abundance as in the possessions of many kinds. As far as the word thankfulness, it could be rendered up as gratitude or literally the giving of thanks, as an action or as an attitude.
So, turning our attention to the next question we ask; who is this great crowd, and what part do they play in God’s kingdom?
Remember that Christ just promised to those who put up with and who had gone through the suffering like him would be spared from the hour of test that is coming upon the whole earth.
Revelation 3:10… Because you kept the word about my endurance, (#G5281) I will also keep you from the hour of test, (#G3986) which is to come upon the whole inhabited earth, to put a test upon those dwelling on the earth.
Revelation 7:14… So right away I said to him: “My lord, you are the one that knows.” And he said to me: “These are the ones that come out of the great tribulation, and they have washed their robes (Revelation 12:10-11) and made them white in the blood of the Lamb.
So, what is this great tribulation and when is it coming upon mankind?
Revelation 12:10-12… And I heard a loud voice in heaven say: “Now have come to pass the salvation and the power and the kingdom of our God and the authority of his Christ, because the accuser of our brothers has been hurled down, who accuses them day and night before our God! 11 And they conquered him because of the blood of the Lamb and because of the word of their witnessing, and they did not love their souls even in the face of death. 12 On this account be glad, YOU heavens and YOU who reside in them! Woe for the earth and for the sea, because the Devil has come down to YOU, having great anger, knowing he has a short period of time.”
The great tribulation starts as soon as all of Christ’s brothers are sealed and martyred.
Also, at Revelation 12:10-17 it speaks of a Woe coming to the earth, this will be a great tribulation as a wave of persecution to those who will need to bear witness about Jesus Christ.
Revelation 7:15- 17… That is why they are before the throne of God; and they are rendering him sacred service day and night in his temple; and the One seated on the throne will spread his tent over them. 16 They will hunger no more nor thirst anymore, neither will the sun beat down upon them nor any scorching heat, (Revelation 21:1-4) 17 because the Lamb, who is in the midst of the throne, will shepherd them, and will guide them to fountains of waters of life. And God will wipe out every tear from their eyes.”
Revelation 21:3-7… With that I heard a loud voice from the throne say: “Look! The tent of God is with mankind, and he will reside with them, and they will be his peoples. And God himself will be with them. 4 And he will wipe out every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.” 5 And the One seated on the throne said: “Look! I am making all things new.” Also, he says: “Write, because these words are faithful and true.” 6 And he said to me: “They have come to pass! I am the Alpha and the Omega, the beginning, and the end. To anyone thirsting I will give from the fountain of the water of life free. 7 Anyone conquering will inherit these things, and I shall be his God and he will be my son.
So, the great crowd that cannot be numbered will need to endure the hour of test, a great tribulation, the 3rd Woe where the devil wages war with them as they witness about Jesus Christ. They too will be found in God’s temple rendering him sacred service not as Kings and not as a Priest but as subjects of God’s kingdom.
Summary
What have we learned so far is this:
The opening of the seven seals only could occur when Christ presented the purchasing value of his blood before God for the kingdom of kings and priests. The pouring out of Holy Spirit on 33 CE at the time of Pentecost, indicated that the right of purchase had taken place.
Next we have the ride of the four-horseman starting in 70 CE with the righteous warfare and that ends with the three riders effecting a fourth of the earth’s population.
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