The Last Days
| |||||||
|
| |||||
Lesson 36 | 08/17/25
Revelation 6:3-4- The Second Seal | The Ezekiel 38 WAR
We are continuing our study of Revelation and the first 8 verses of chapter 6 as Jesus is loosing the first 4 seals of the scroll and unleashing what is commonly known as the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse, Revelation 6:1-8.
This is the Day of the Lord. This is His Day, His Scroll, His inheritance to unleash His Judgement on an unbelieving world, and it is His prerogative, His Sovereign right as to how He does this. He is using dishonorable vessels to usher forth His vengeance. We have seen this in the past with Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon, Persia and its kings, Alexander the Great and his four generals, the Romans Empire, the unbelieving Jews. And God will continue to administer wrath through the Ten Kings, the Antichrist and these four horsemen... these are all examples of God using dishonorable vessels to fulfill His purposes.
The first waves of Judgement are coming in the form of these four horsemen. Last week we looked at the first horsemen and answered the question, “Who is the rider on the white horse?” And we discovered it is the Antichrist. The first seal unveils this man of sin when he will confirm a peaceful covenant with Israel for 7 years, Daniel 9:27; 11:21-24. This begins the Day of the Lord and the 7-Year Tribulation in which Jesus is applying immense pressure, θλῖψις, Great Tribulation to the whole world to purge the wicked tenants out of His Kingdom... to the Jew first, then to the nations.
The progression of these Judgement are not random. They are very specific 1) One World Leader (the Antichrist) uniting all the nations, even Israel; 2) War; 3) Famine; 4) Death. This again is not a new concept that first appears in Revelation. These same Judgments have been foretold for thousands of years by the Prophets. We saw last week how the Antichrist will rise to power with his lying, prideful, blasphemous character, Daniel 7:8, 20-21, 25; 8:9, 11-12, 23-24; 9:26; 11:23, 36; Zech 11:17; Isaiah 10:24; Micah 5:5-6; Hosea 11:5; Nahum 1:11. And now today we will see these other three horsemen foretold in Scripture as God’s wrathful Judgment being pouring out,
Ezekiel 14:21– For thus says the Lord God: “How much more it shall be when I send My four severe judgments on Jerusalem—the sword and famine and wild beasts and pestilence, (LXX θάνατος- death) —to cut off man and beast from it?
This is the same list in verse 8 summarizing the effects of these four horsemen, Revelation 6:8-... And power was given to them (these horsemen) over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth.
Jeremiah gives us the same Judgements in the same order, Jeremiah 14:11–12LXX-11 And the Lord said to me, Pray not for this people for their good: 12 for though they fast, I will not hear their supplication; and though they offer whole-burnt-offerings and sacrifices, I will take no pleasure in them: for I will consume them with sword, and with famine, and with death.
The Tribulation begins by God gathering the Jews into Jerusalem from all over the world using this covenant of peace that the Antichrist has made with the Jews. But the Jews are not the only ones being gathering to Jerusalem. He is also gathering the nations from all over the world to pour out His fury on an unbelieving world. Remember, all eyes are on Jerusalem during this time and God is drawing all the nations to Israel. Over the past several lessons I have given examples of God gathering His people to Israel, Isaiah 11:12; 24:22; 27:13; 49:5; 56:8; Jeremiah 6:14; 8:7, 11, 15; 14:13; 31:8-10; 32:37; Ezek 11:17; 20:34; 28:5; 36:24; 37:21; 38:8; Hosea 1:11; 8:10; Joel 3:2; Nahum 1:12; Micah 2:12; 4:6-7; Zeph 3:18-20.
As God is gathering the Jews into Jerusalem to refine them, there are also examples of God gathering the nations to Israel as well...
Ezekiel 16:37- surely, therefore, I will gather all your lovers with whom you took pleasure, all those you loved, and all those you hated; I will gather them from all around against you and will uncover your nakedness to them, that they may see all your nakedness.
Zephaniah 3:8- “Therefore wait for Me,” says the Lord, “Until the day I rise up for plunder; My determination is to gather the nations to My assembly of kingdoms, to pour on them My indignation, all My fierce anger; all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of My jealousy.
Joel 3:1–2-1 “For behold, in those days and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there On account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land.
Zechariah 12:1–3-1 The burden of the word of the Lord against Israel. Thus says the Lord, who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him: 2 “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. 3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
God is gathering the nations into Jerusalem to war against the Jews and by such, He is making them drink the cup of His fury. Jeremiah 25:15–16-15 For thus says the Lord God of Israel to me: “Take this wine cup of fury from My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send you, to drink it. 16 And they will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.” The sword is one of the means by which God is pouring out His fury on the nations so that all will know that He is God.
This brings us to the second seal... the Red Horse... the horse who bring the sword and war...
3-4) 3 When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.” 4 Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.
This second horse is fiery red, πυρρός - symbolizing war and murder. This rider is granted two things, 1) to take peace away from the earth; and 2) a great sword. This rider is probably not a single individual man like the Antichrist who was the rider of the white horse, but a spiritual ruler who stirs men to war. Again, this authority is given by Jesus Christ, Jeremiah 47:6–7-6 “O you sword of the Lord, How long until you are quiet? Put yourself up into your scabbard, Rest and be still! 7 How can it be quiet, seeing the Lord has given it a charge against Ashkelon and against the seashore? There He has appointed it.”
Jesus has appointed this timing, and He is in charge of the authority of this sword. I believe the way Jesus is granting this authority is by giving these wicked men over to their own murderous thoughts and then using them as dishonorable vessels for His purposes. He is not forcing them to kill as much as He is giving them over to their desire to kill and He is using this desire to fulfill His purpose. Jesus tells us there will be wars and rumors of wars the closer we get to the end, Matthew 24:6-8. We see wars happening now, and they will continue to ramp up and get increasingly worse in the Tribulation.
There are several prophetic wars detailed in Scripture, Psalm 2; Psalm 83; The Battle of Armageddon in Revelation 16:16; 19:19; Joel 3; Zech 14. But another well-known end times war is the Ezekiel 38 war. Almost all agree this is an end times war, but exactly “when” is heavily debated. Some think it will happen before the rapture, others at the end of the Tribulation, and others say it will happen at the end of the Millenium. I personally hold to the belief that this war will happen within the first 3-1/2 year period of the Tribulation. After the Antichrist confirms the covenant with Israel for 7 years, the Jews will be living in Jerusalem in peace. But there will be other nations who hate Israel and do not agree with his peace policy. The Ezekiel 38 war seems to be an early war in line with the timing of the second seal being opened. Let’s read chapter 38 and see how this fits into the 7 Year Tribulation time frame...
38:1-6) Many nations gather together to battle against the Jews in Jerusalem.
PREVIOUS LESSON 35 ← GO TO → NEXT LESSON 37
This is the Day of the Lord. This is His Day, His Scroll, His inheritance to unleash His Judgement on an unbelieving world, and it is His prerogative, His Sovereign right as to how He does this. He is using dishonorable vessels to usher forth His vengeance. We have seen this in the past with Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar and Babylon, Persia and its kings, Alexander the Great and his four generals, the Romans Empire, the unbelieving Jews. And God will continue to administer wrath through the Ten Kings, the Antichrist and these four horsemen... these are all examples of God using dishonorable vessels to fulfill His purposes.
The first waves of Judgement are coming in the form of these four horsemen. Last week we looked at the first horsemen and answered the question, “Who is the rider on the white horse?” And we discovered it is the Antichrist. The first seal unveils this man of sin when he will confirm a peaceful covenant with Israel for 7 years, Daniel 9:27; 11:21-24. This begins the Day of the Lord and the 7-Year Tribulation in which Jesus is applying immense pressure, θλῖψις, Great Tribulation to the whole world to purge the wicked tenants out of His Kingdom... to the Jew first, then to the nations.
The progression of these Judgement are not random. They are very specific 1) One World Leader (the Antichrist) uniting all the nations, even Israel; 2) War; 3) Famine; 4) Death. This again is not a new concept that first appears in Revelation. These same Judgments have been foretold for thousands of years by the Prophets. We saw last week how the Antichrist will rise to power with his lying, prideful, blasphemous character, Daniel 7:8, 20-21, 25; 8:9, 11-12, 23-24; 9:26; 11:23, 36; Zech 11:17; Isaiah 10:24; Micah 5:5-6; Hosea 11:5; Nahum 1:11. And now today we will see these other three horsemen foretold in Scripture as God’s wrathful Judgment being pouring out,
Ezekiel 14:21– For thus says the Lord God: “How much more it shall be when I send My four severe judgments on Jerusalem—the sword and famine and wild beasts and pestilence, (LXX θάνατος- death) —to cut off man and beast from it?
This is the same list in verse 8 summarizing the effects of these four horsemen, Revelation 6:8-... And power was given to them (these horsemen) over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword, with hunger, with death, and by the beasts of the earth.
Jeremiah gives us the same Judgements in the same order, Jeremiah 14:11–12LXX-11 And the Lord said to me, Pray not for this people for their good: 12 for though they fast, I will not hear their supplication; and though they offer whole-burnt-offerings and sacrifices, I will take no pleasure in them: for I will consume them with sword, and with famine, and with death.
The Tribulation begins by God gathering the Jews into Jerusalem from all over the world using this covenant of peace that the Antichrist has made with the Jews. But the Jews are not the only ones being gathering to Jerusalem. He is also gathering the nations from all over the world to pour out His fury on an unbelieving world. Remember, all eyes are on Jerusalem during this time and God is drawing all the nations to Israel. Over the past several lessons I have given examples of God gathering His people to Israel, Isaiah 11:12; 24:22; 27:13; 49:5; 56:8; Jeremiah 6:14; 8:7, 11, 15; 14:13; 31:8-10; 32:37; Ezek 11:17; 20:34; 28:5; 36:24; 37:21; 38:8; Hosea 1:11; 8:10; Joel 3:2; Nahum 1:12; Micah 2:12; 4:6-7; Zeph 3:18-20.
As God is gathering the Jews into Jerusalem to refine them, there are also examples of God gathering the nations to Israel as well...
Ezekiel 16:37- surely, therefore, I will gather all your lovers with whom you took pleasure, all those you loved, and all those you hated; I will gather them from all around against you and will uncover your nakedness to them, that they may see all your nakedness.
Zephaniah 3:8- “Therefore wait for Me,” says the Lord, “Until the day I rise up for plunder; My determination is to gather the nations to My assembly of kingdoms, to pour on them My indignation, all My fierce anger; all the earth shall be devoured with the fire of My jealousy.
Joel 3:1–2-1 “For behold, in those days and at that time, When I bring back the captives of Judah and Jerusalem, 2 I will also gather all nations, and bring them down to the Valley of Jehoshaphat; and I will enter into judgment with them there On account of My people, My heritage Israel, whom they have scattered among the nations; they have also divided up My land.
Zechariah 12:1–3-1 The burden of the word of the Lord against Israel. Thus says the Lord, who stretches out the heavens, lays the foundation of the earth, and forms the spirit of man within him: 2 “Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of drunkenness to all the surrounding peoples, when they lay siege against Judah and Jerusalem. 3 And it shall happen in that day that I will make Jerusalem a very heavy stone for all peoples; all who would heave it away will surely be cut in pieces, though all nations of the earth are gathered against it.
God is gathering the nations into Jerusalem to war against the Jews and by such, He is making them drink the cup of His fury. Jeremiah 25:15–16-15 For thus says the Lord God of Israel to me: “Take this wine cup of fury from My hand, and cause all the nations, to whom I send you, to drink it. 16 And they will drink and stagger and go mad because of the sword that I will send among them.” The sword is one of the means by which God is pouring out His fury on the nations so that all will know that He is God.
This brings us to the second seal... the Red Horse... the horse who bring the sword and war...
3-4) 3 When He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come and see.” 4 Another horse, fiery red, went out. And it was granted to the one who sat on it to take peace from the earth, and that people should kill one another; and there was given to him a great sword.
This second horse is fiery red, πυρρός - symbolizing war and murder. This rider is granted two things, 1) to take peace away from the earth; and 2) a great sword. This rider is probably not a single individual man like the Antichrist who was the rider of the white horse, but a spiritual ruler who stirs men to war. Again, this authority is given by Jesus Christ, Jeremiah 47:6–7-6 “O you sword of the Lord, How long until you are quiet? Put yourself up into your scabbard, Rest and be still! 7 How can it be quiet, seeing the Lord has given it a charge against Ashkelon and against the seashore? There He has appointed it.”
Jesus has appointed this timing, and He is in charge of the authority of this sword. I believe the way Jesus is granting this authority is by giving these wicked men over to their own murderous thoughts and then using them as dishonorable vessels for His purposes. He is not forcing them to kill as much as He is giving them over to their desire to kill and He is using this desire to fulfill His purpose. Jesus tells us there will be wars and rumors of wars the closer we get to the end, Matthew 24:6-8. We see wars happening now, and they will continue to ramp up and get increasingly worse in the Tribulation.
There are several prophetic wars detailed in Scripture, Psalm 2; Psalm 83; The Battle of Armageddon in Revelation 16:16; 19:19; Joel 3; Zech 14. But another well-known end times war is the Ezekiel 38 war. Almost all agree this is an end times war, but exactly “when” is heavily debated. Some think it will happen before the rapture, others at the end of the Tribulation, and others say it will happen at the end of the Millenium. I personally hold to the belief that this war will happen within the first 3-1/2 year period of the Tribulation. After the Antichrist confirms the covenant with Israel for 7 years, the Jews will be living in Jerusalem in peace. But there will be other nations who hate Israel and do not agree with his peace policy. The Ezekiel 38 war seems to be an early war in line with the timing of the second seal being opened. Let’s read chapter 38 and see how this fits into the 7 Year Tribulation time frame...
38:1-6) Many nations gather together to battle against the Jews in Jerusalem.
- This army is led by Gog, a title similar to Pharaoh or Caesar
- This is a large army from the North, East and South, Genesis 10 names in the tables of nations
- North, descendants of Japheth = Land of Magog = Russia and Turkey
- East, descendants of Japheth = Persia = Iran
- South descendants of Ham = Cush (Ethiopia) and Put (Libya)
- This is a large army from the North, East and South, Genesis 10 names in the tables of nations
- This is different than Armageddon at the end of the Tribulation
- Armageddon involves different nations and with a different leader, namely the Antichrist, Rev 19:19
- Ezek 38- Jews are in Jerusalem living in peace, Ezek 38:8, 11
- Armageddon- the Jews will be in major conflict with the Antichrist for the last 3-1/2 years after he breaks the covenant.
- In the latter years, ἐπʼ ἐσχάτου ἐτῶν (upon the last of the years)
- specific eschatological term for the 7-Year Tribulation
- Notice the Jews are dwelling safely in Jerusalem, v. 8, 11
- In God’s providence, He has given them safety for 3-1/2 years to draw them into Jerusalem,
- Revelation 12:6- fled into the wilderness for 1,260 days
- Revelation 12:14- fly into the wilderness for time, times, and half a time
- In God’s providence, He has given them safety for 3-1/2 years to draw them into Jerusalem,
- God is drawing this war in Jerusalem to pour out His fury on the nations
- Antichrist just made a peace treaty with Israel, but now Satan is coming against Israel
- Is there a conflict? I don’t think so. The Antichrist drew them into safety like bate into a trap.
- Satan is then using Gog to destroy Israel, but God is still calling all the shots
- God is using this safety as bate for the nations to draw them to Him
- Antichrist just made a peace treaty with Israel, but now Satan is coming against Israel
- All eyes are on Israel and the whole world will know about the covenant of peace with the Antichrist.
- Another eschatological term... in the latter days, ἐπʼ ἐσχάτων τῶν ἡμερῶν (upon the last of the days)
- God says, “I will bring you against My land so that the nations may know Me.”
- God will win the battle for them and the whole world will know this was the Lord
- Not just good military strategy from the Israeli army
- The fire of His wrath is coming on the land in a very similar fashion as the Judgement from the 6 seals
- I will call for a sword against Gog, v.21
- I will bring him to judgement with pestilence (LXX θάνατος- death), v.22
- Rain down great hailstones, fire, and brimstone, v.23
- The mountains will be thrown down, v.20
PREVIOUS LESSON 35 ← GO TO → NEXT LESSON 37