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42 The Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse

YEHOVAH, and spoke, saying: ‘I will sing to the LORD, for He has triumphed gloriously! The
horse and its rider He has thrown into the sea!’” (Exodus 15:1). From this we get the distinct idea
that the horse represents the progress of some great enterprise backed by strong military power.
Therefore, anything that is pictured in the Bible as being carried forward by a horse is a movement
that is sustained by mighty power -- one that advances into conflict against the opposing forces with
fearlessness and with prospects of success.

Other passages in the Bible reinforce this concept. Notice Isaiah 31:1 (note the words, “rely
on horses...because they are very strong”); Jeremiah 4:13 (”His horses are swifter than eagles”);
Jeremiah 12:5 (”how can you contend with horses?”); Hosea 14:3 (”We will not ride on horses”)
and Psalm 33:17 (”Neither shall it deliver any by its great strength”).

When we take into consideration the significance of the horse as a Biblical symbol -- as well
as other factors -- it becomes apparent that the four horses of Revelation 6, and their riders, present a
prophetic picture of the MIGHTY SPIRITUAL INFLUENCES, agencies or powers, which were to
arise and go forth into the whole world at the beginning of the “Christian Era” -- and which were to
impart to that era those special characteristics whereby it is set apart from all previous periods in the
world’s history.

That our era is clearly set apart from the eras that preceded it, that it has various
characteristics which are all its own, and that its most distinctive features are due entirely to
influences which came into being at, and immediately after, the death and resurrection of Yeshua
the Messiah, are FACTS that cannot be denied! By common acclamation this age is known as the
“Christian Era” and its civilization is commonly termed “Christian Civilization.” Throughout the
world its system of reckoning time has the date (although incorrect) of the birth of the Messiah for
its starting-point. As a result, all men throughout the civilized world render -- whether Christian or
not -- involuntary recognition to Yeshua the Messiah. They acknowledge (even though it is most
repugnant to them to do so) that YEHOVAH’s doctrine has been the leading factor in shaping the
course of human affairs for the last almost 2,000 years, and that the birth of the Messiah into this
world was the beginning of an entirely new order of things among men.

In retrospect, we cannot fail to observe that the spiritual powers or agencies which have had
the chief part in shaping the course of human affairs from the dawn of this era until now, have been
FOUR in number. Not only that, but a careful examination of these powers or agencies show that
they correspond respectively -- and in the precise order in which they arose -- to the symbolical
representations of the four horses and their riders in the book of Revelation. The resemblance is so
clear in each case that it is readily seen when pointed out -- and no twisting or manipulation of the
meaning of the symbols is needed to produce the true explanation as YEHOVAH God intended.

This unique correspondence between the broad characteristic marks of the Christian Era
and the symbolical scenarios shown under the first four seals of Revelation is, in itself, STRONG
PROOF of the correctness of the interpretation. The agreement is too complete -- and it extends to
too many details -- to be attributed to mere chance.

The Berean Voice September-October 2002