Tribulation- 5
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The 2 witnesses. A dearth of End Time teaching.
Handouts: Events during Day of the Lord & Last days of History (basis of Tribulation studies)
Continuing using handout from last week.
Tonight we continue a series of studies based on Daniel’s prophesied 70th week (or the (Great?)Tribulation
We believe 69 of the 70 weeks of years have been fulfilled.
AND that we are currently in a pause between the 69th and 70th week.
But we look for events such as the chart on your handout portrays.
Tonight the 6 seals being opened
Events of The Tribulation
We have covered…
The faithful in Christ’s churches will be kept from this time of trial
Lk 21:36; Jn 14:1–3; 2Co 5:2, 4; Php 3:20–21; 1Th 1:10; 4:16–18; 5:8–10; Rev 3:10
Will begin after the restrainer is taken out of the way
2Th 2:6–8
Will begin after the mystery (secret power) of lawlessness intensifies
Will begin after a great rebellion against the faith occurs
Will begin when the Antichrist (the man of lawlessness) appears
TONIGHT…
We continue llooking at the opening of the seven seals
The circumstances surrounding [the opening of the book] occur shortly after the Rapture of the church. John has been caught up into heaven (Rev. 4:1), where he has been writing about the marvelous things he sees and hears.
In Revelation 5 we see…
A. The Proclamation of a Book (scroll) with 7 seals
B. The Investigation of who can open the seals
C. Lamentation
D. The Manifestation
E. The Adoration
The Seals Opened
Revelation 6:1–8 (LSB) Then I looked when the Lamb opened one of the seven seals, and I heard one of the four living creatures saying as with a voice of thunder, “Come.” 2 Then I looked, and behold, a white horse, and he who sits on it had a bow; and a crown was given to him, and he went out overcoming and to overcome. 3 And when He opened the second seal, I heard the second living creature saying, “Come.” 4 And another, a red horse, went out; and to him who sits on it, it was given to him to take peace from the earth, and that men would slay one another; and a great sword was given to him. 5 And when He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come.” Then I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sits on it had a pair of scales in his hand. 6 And I heard something like a voice in the midst of the four living creatures saying, “One choinix of wheat for one denarius, and three choinix of barley for one denarius, and do not harm the oil and the wine.” 7 And when He opened the fourth seal, I heard the voice of the fourth living creature saying, “Come.” 8 Then I looked, and behold, a pale horse; and he who sits on it had the name Death, and Hades was following with him. Authority was given to them over a fourth of the earth, to kill with sword and with famine and with pestilence and by the wild beasts of the earth.
6:1 The first of the seven seals.
Some interpreters understand the opening of the first seal as the beginning of the seven-year tribulation the future time of unprecedented suffering and judgment leading up to Christ’s second coming to destroy the forces of the antichrist and reign on earth (see Da 9:27; cf. Jer 30:7; Da 12:1; Rev 6:17; 7:14; see article on The Great Tribulation).
Others believe that the seals describe the final three and one-half years of the seven-year tribulation, often called the great tribulation.
Still others see the seals as the beginning of the sequence of God’s judgment toward the end of the age.
God’s judgments are revealed in three successive series.
The first series is the seven seals (ch. 6);
the second, the seven trumpet judgments (chs. 8–9; 11:15–19);
and the third, the “seven bowls of God’s wrath” (ch. 16; see 8:1, note).
Note, however, that while the releasing of the various plagues and judgments is described in sequence, these descriptions are not necessarily meant to convey a strict chronological order of events.
That is to say, the visions do not mean that each plague lasts only until the next is released or that each catastrophe follows the completion of the one before it.
Once unleashed, it is likely that the effects of several plagues or disasters are going on at the same time and may linger throughout much of the tribulation period.
Some of the events described with the opening of the seals (e.g., the fifth seal) clearly seem to anticipate or preview things that will be fully revealed or executed in later judgments.
The sixth seal actually appears to give an overview of the entire period of judgment yet to come.
It is quite possible that nothing is actually happening on earth until the seventh seal is broken.
Up to that point, as each of the preceding seals is broken, John simply receives a vision of what will happen after the final seal is broken and the entire scroll can be opened, revealing what is to come.
From that point on (see 8:1, 7, notes), God’s direct judgments will begin to throw the visible universe out of its natural order, eventually leading to the destruction of the present world system and ushering in Christ’s millennial (thousand-year) reign of peace on earth to close out time as we know it (see Da 2:34–35, 44–45). See v. 12, note, for further comments on how the series of judgments fit together.
6:2 A white horse.
Four horsemen appear as the first four seals are opened (the imagery of the horsemen relates back to Zec 1:8–17; 6:1–8), representing God’s judgment on the corrupt and evil world system and the ungodly people who are part of it.
The rider of the white horse is thought by many Bible interpreters to be the antichrist (1Jn 2:18), the future world ruler who is to begin his activity at the beginning of the last seven years of this age (see article on The Age of the Antichrist).
God will permit him to deceive all who oppose Christ.
His initial conquest will be accomplished without open warfare since peace is taken from the earth beginning with the second horseman (v. 4; cf. Da 9:26–27; 1Th 5:3).
Yet, all the other horsemen are personifications (i.e., abstract concepts described with human traits, such as “Death” as the fourth horseman), so the rider on the white horse may simply represent conquest or a strong spirit of antichrist let loose in the end time.
Even so, the strong desire for conquest that has dominated every dictator in the past will certainly characterize the antichrist.
We haven’t covered the rise to power of this conqueror.
How does he “ [go] out conquering and to conquer.” as this verse says?
To begin with, we remember his power base:
The power of satan
Revelation 13:4 “And they (Vs. 3 -And the whole earth marveled and followed after the beast.) worshiped the dragon [satan] because he gave his authority to the beast [antichrist], and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?””
2 Thessalonians 2:3 “Let no one in any way deceive you, for it [Day of the Lord] has not come unless the apostasy comes first, and the man of lawlessness is revealed, the son of destruction,” 2 Thessalonians 2:9–12 “whose coming is in accord with the working of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders, 10 and with all the deception of unrighteousness for those who perish, because they did not receive the love of the truth so as to be saved. 11 And for this reason God sends upon them a deluding influence so that they will believe what is false, 12 in order that they all may be judged who did not believe the truth, but took pleasure in unrighteousness.”
He is allowed to conquer by God through the removal of a “restraining force.”
2 Thessalonians 2:6–7 “And you know what restrains him now, so that in his time he will be revealed. 7 For the mystery of lawlessness is already at work; only he who now restrains will do so until he is taken out of the way.”
God is in control and like in Job 1 and 2 He will give the devil and his antichrist room to accomplish HIS will (already discussed - 6 Purposes of the Tribulation).
His rise to power has been prophesied:
A 10-dictatorship confederation: Daniel 7:7–8 (LSB) “After this I kept looking in the night visions, and behold, a fourth beast, fearsome and terrifying and extraordinarily strong; and it had large iron teeth. It devoured and crushed and trampled down the remainder with its feet; and it was different from all the beasts that were before it, and it had ten horns. 8 “While I was contemplating the horns, behold, another horn, a little one, came up among them, and three of the first horns were pulled out by the roots before it; and behold, this horn possessed eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth speaking great boasts.
Daniel’s revelation explained:
Daniel 7:19–27 (LSB) “Then I desired to know the exact meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others, extraordinarily fearsome, with its teeth of iron and its claws of bronze, and which devoured, crushed, and trampled down the remainder with its feet, 20 and the meaning of the ten horns that were on its head and the other horn which came up and before which three of them fell, namely, that horn which had eyes and a mouth speaking great boasts and which was larger in appearance than its associates. 21 “I kept looking, and that horn was waging war with the saints and overcoming them 22 until the Ancient of Days came and judgment was given in favor of the saints of the Highest One, and the season arrived when the saints took possession of the kingdom. 23 “Thus he said: ‘The fourth beast will be a fourth kingdom on the earth, which will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth and tread it down and crush it. 24 ‘As for the ten horns, out of this kingdom ten kings will arise; and another will arise after them, and he will be different from the previous ones and will make low three kings. 25 ‘He will speak words against the Most High and wear down the saints of the Highest One, and he will intend to make changes in seasons and in law; and they will be given into his hand for a time, times, and half a time. 26 ‘But the court will sit for judgment, and his dominion will be taken away, annihilated and destroyed forever. 27 ‘Then the reign, the dominion, and the greatness of all the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be given to the people of the saints of the Highest One; His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all the dominions will serve and obey Him.’
Fulfillment: Revelation 13:1–8 (LSB) And the dragon stood on the sand of the seashore. Then I saw a beast coming up out of the sea, having ten horns and seven heads, and on his horns were ten diadems, and on his heads were blasphemous names. 2 And the beast which I saw was like a leopard, and his feet were like those of a bear, and his mouth like the mouth of a lion. And the dragon gave him his power and his throne and great authority. 3 And I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain fatally, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth marveled and followed after the beast. 4 And they worshiped the dragon because he gave his authority to the beast, and they worshiped the beast, saying, “Who is like the beast, and who is able to wage war with him?” 5 And there was given to him a mouth speaking great boasts and blasphemies, and authority to act for forty-two months was given to him. 6 And he opened his mouth in blasphemies against God, to blaspheme His name and His tabernacle, that is, those who dwell in heaven. 7 And it was also given to him to make war with the saints and to overcome them, and authority over every tribe and people and tongue and nation was given to him. 8 And all who dwell on the earth will worship him, everyone whose name has not been written from the foundation of the world in the book of life of the Lamb who has been slain.
It is believed that this “Revived Roman Empire” will consist of the last 6 Gentile powers that plagued Israel:
Egypt (that enslaved Israel for 400 years)
Assyria (that captured the northern kingdom of Israel)
Babylon (that captured the southern kingdoms of Judah and Benjamin)
Persia (Haman tied to eradicate the Jews)
Greece
Rome
He conquer ALL nations:
Daniel 11:36 (NLT) “The king [the antichrist] will do as he pleases, exalting himself and claiming to be greater than every god, even blaspheming the God of gods. He will succeed, but only until the time of wrath is completed. For what has been determined will surely take place.
It is believed that he conquerors the whole world after a great battle between a Russian confederation (Gog, Magog, Meshech and Tubal) described in Ezekiel 38 and 39:
We see this confederation’s judgment in:
Ezekiel 39:1–9 (LSB) “Now as for you, son of man, prophesy against Gog and say, ‘Thus says Lord Yahweh, “Behold, I am against you, O Gog, chief prince of Meshech and Tubal; 2 and I will turn you around, drive you on, take you up from the remotest parts of the north, and bring you against the mountains of Israel. 3 “And I will strike your bow from your left hand and cause your arrows from your right hand to fall. 4 “You will fall on the mountains of Israel, you and all your troops and the peoples who are with you; I will give you as food to every kind of predatory bird and beast of the field. 5 “You will fall on the open field; for it is I who have spoken,” declares Lord Yahweh. 6 “And I will send fire upon Magog and those who inhabit the coastlands securely; and they will know that I am Yahweh. 7 “And My holy name I will make known in the midst of My people Israel; and I will not let My holy name be profaned anymore. And the nations will know that I am Yahweh, the Holy One in Israel. 8 “Behold, it is coming, and it shall be done,” declares Lord Yahweh. “That is the day of which I have spoken. 9 “Then those who inhabit the cities of Israel will go out and make fires with the weapons and burn them, both shields and large shields, bows and arrows, war clubs and spears; and for seven years they will make fires of them.
Maybe this happens just before the beginning of the Tribulation?
General Timing
While there is much debate over the specific timing of the Gog-Magog Battle, the student of the Bible can be positive about the general timing. General timing is clearly spelled out in Ezekiel’s account as events that must happen to set the stage for the battle.
1. The first general timing clue is Ezekiel’s use of the terms “latter years” and “last days” (Ezekiel 38:8,16 NKJV). The Gog-Magog Battle must happen in the prophetic scheme of the end times as it relates to the nation of Israel. The key verse which unlocks the understanding as to what these terms mean can be found in Deuteronomy: “When you are in distress, and all these things come upon you in the latter days, when you turn to the Lord your God and obey His voice” (Deuteronomy 4:30 NKJV). “Distress” is also translated as “Tribulation.” It is the Tribulation, also called Daniel’s Seventieth Week prophecy (Daniel 9:20-27), that brings the Jewish people as a nation back to a belief in Yahweh and later to accept Yeshua as their Messiah. The Tribulation leading up to the Millennial reign of Christ is what the Old Testament prophets consistently and repeatedly taught. And so, these key phrases point to the Gog-Magog Battle happening in relation to the Tribulation and the Millennial Kingdom.
2. The second general timing clue rejects the claim that the battle has already happened in history. Never in the history of the Middle East have the nations described in the coalition been united in a concerted attack against Israel. In no time has such a specific group of nations been destroyed by inclement weather. And, in no time in history has Israel named a valley Hamon Gog, nor has the adjoining town called Hamonah, existed where the Jews buried their invaders’ dead bodies (Ezekiel 39:11-12,16). Lack of historical support leaves only a future timing for the battle to occur.
3. The third general timing clue is given in Ezekiel 36 and 37 and involves the regathering of the Jewish people back into their homeland “from out of all countries” of the world (Ezekiel 36:24 NKJV). Like the valley of dry bones reanimated into a living person that Ezekiel envisioned, Israel did indeed become a nation once again. Out of the 14.5 million Jewish people in the world today, 47% reside in Israel, making up 6,841,000 (74%) of the population dwelling in the Holy Land.34 And, the Jews must have control of “the mountains of Israel,” which they gained when they took control of the mountains from the Jordanians during the Six Day War (Ezekiel 38:8 NKJV).35
4. The fourth general timing clue involves the developments nationally that have to occur to make the nations of the coalition unite in an invasion of Israel. Two factors have made this coalition possible today.
The first is the religion of Islam uniting these nations in satanic hatred of the Jewish people.
The second is the economic bounty that Israel now has with its revitalized land and newly discovered gas deposits. The coalition nations now see a viable motivation to unite for the singular purpose of plundering Israel’s wealth.
5. The fifth general timing clue reads, “You will say, ‘I will go up against a land of unwalled villages; I will go to a peaceful people, who dwell safely, all of them dwelling without walls, and having neither bars nor gates'” (Ezekiel 38:11 NKJV).
Israel must be living without walls, peacefully, and unsuspecting of an attack.
Israel today lives in constant fear of attack and is always prepared for an invasion by the 60-plus million hostile Muslims surrounding their borders.
Because of this turbulent climate, this part of the prophecy can be argued to have yet to be fulfilled.
If I remember right, you concluded that most likely the war might occur three-and-a-half years before the Tribulation begins?
Dr. Rhodes: That timing really does open up some convenience, if I might put it that way, because if God destroys the Muslim invaders prior to the Tribulation,
number one, it makes it much easier for the Antichrist to sign a covenant protecting Israel.
Number two, it makes it much easier for Israel to rebuild its Temple. Right now there is too much Muslim resistance, but if the Muslim invaders are taken out beforehand, that would make rebuilding the Temple much easier.
Third, it would make it much easier for the false religion to emerge in the end times because the two primary people groups that would stand against that false religion are now removed — Christians are removed at the Rapture and Muslims are taken out in the Ezekiel 38-39 invasion.
Dr. Reagan: The timing also solves another problem, and that is that Ezekiel says that the Israelis are going to spend seven years cleaning up the battlefield.
The Israelis are not going to be there after the middle of the seven years as they will have fled into the wilderness due to the Antichrist’s abomination of desolation.
Dr. Rhodes: Ezekiel prophesies that the Jews are going to be burning the invaders’ weapons for seven years. Here’s the problem, how is it possible that Israel could burn the weapons for seven years if it starts at the beginning of the Tribulation, because right in the middle of the Tribulation the Antichrist claims to be God, and he sets up his headquarters in Jerusalem, and he even sits in the Temple and demands the world worship him as if he were God.
Jesus says that when that happens, don’t even pack your bags; get out of town. Run for your lives! That warning seems to indicate the Jews are not going to have time to grab all of those weapons on the run. So, that would seem to indicate that Israel will start burning those weapons prior to the Tribulation.
He conquerors the world by virtue of his political charisma in establishing a 7 year truce for Israel:
Daniel 9:27 “27 “And he [the prince to come in the previous verse) will make a firm covenant with the many for one week, but in the middle of the week he will make sacrifice and grain offering cease; and on the wing of abominations will come one who makes desolate, even until a complete destruction, one that is decreed, is poured out on the one who makes desolate.””
But it is: Isaiah 28:14–15 (LSB) Therefore, hear the word of Yahweh, O scoffers, Who rule this people who are in Jerusalem, 15 Because you have said, “We have cut a covenant with death, And with Sheol we have made a pact. The overflowing scourge will not reach us when it passes by, For we have made falsehood our refuge and we have hidden ourselves with lying.”
The antichrist will conquer with the cooperation of a false religious system.
(That he will destroy once it finishes serving his purposes)
Revelation 17:1–18 (LSB) Then one of the seven angels who have the seven bowls came and spoke with me, saying, “Come here, I will show you the judgment of the great harlot who sits on many waters, 2 with whom the kings of the earth committed sexual immorality, and those who dwell on the earth were made drunk with the wine of her sexual immorality.” 3 And he carried me away in the Spirit into a wilderness; then I saw a woman sitting on a scarlet beast, full of blasphemous names, having seven heads and ten horns. 4 And the woman was clothed in purple and scarlet, and adorned with gold and precious stones and pearls, having in her hand a gold cup full of abominations and of the unclean things of her sexual immorality, 5 and on her forehead a name was written, a mystery, “BABYLON THE GREAT, THE MOTHER OF HARLOTS AND OF THE ABOMINATIONS OF THE EARTH.” 6 Then I saw the woman drunk with the blood of the saints, and with the blood of the witnesses of Jesus. When I saw her, I wondered greatly. 7 And the angel said to me, “Why do you wonder? I will tell you the mystery of the woman and of the beast that carries her, which has the seven heads and the ten horns. 8 “The beast that you saw was, and is not, and is about to come up out of the abyss and go to destruction. And those who dwell on the earth, whose name has not been written in the book of life from the foundation of the world, will wonder when they see the beast, that he was and is not and will come. 9 “Here is the mind which has wisdom. The seven heads are seven mountains on which the woman sits, 10 and they are seven kings; five have fallen, one is, the other has not yet come; and when he comes, he must remain a little while. 11 “And the beast which was and is not, is himself also an eighth and is one of the seven, and he goes to destruction. 12 “And the ten horns which you saw are ten kings who have not yet received a kingdom, but they receive authority as kings with the beast for one hour. 13 “These have one purpose, and they give their power and authority to the beast. 14 “These will wage war against the Lamb, and the Lamb will overcome them, because He is Lord of lords and King of kings, and those who are with Him are the called and elect and faithful.” 15 And he said to me, “The waters which you saw where the harlot sits, are peoples and crowds and nations and tongues. 16 “And the ten horns which you saw, and the beast, these will hate the harlot and will lay waste to her and make her naked, and will eat her flesh and will burn her up with fire. 17 “For God gave it in their hearts to do His purpose both by doing their own common purpose and by giving their kingdom to the beast, until the words of God will be finished. 18 “And the woman whom you saw is the great city, which has a kingdom over the kings of the earth.”
Revelation 11:7–8 (LSB) And when they have finished their witness [the 2 witnesses], the beast that comes up out of the abyss will make war with them and overcome them and kill them. 8 And their dead bodies will lie in the street of the great city which spiritually is called Sodom and Egypt, where also their Lord was crucified.
Complete Biblical Library: … , even though she is called a city, the woman remains the entire anti-God religious system that began at the tower of Babel and has dominated the kings and kingdoms of this world through the ages. It will be the Babylonish church or religion of the Antichrist and his false prophet in the first part of the Tribulation.
Revelation 18:2–10 (LSB) And he cried out with a mighty voice, saying, “FALLEN, FALLEN IS BABYLON THE GREAT! And she has become a dwelling place of demons and a prison of every unclean spirit, and a prison of every unclean bird and a prison of every unclean and hateful beast. 3 “For all the nations have drunk of the wine of the wrath of her sexual immorality, and the kings of the earth have committed sexual immorality with her, and the merchants of the earth have become rich by the power of her sensuality.” 4 And I heard another voice from heaven, saying, “Come out of her, my people, so that you will not participate in her sins and receive of her plagues; 5 for her sins have piled up as high as heaven, and God has remembered her iniquities. 6 “Pay her back even as she paid, and give her back double according to her deeds; in the cup which she has mixed, mix double for her. 7 “To the degree that she glorified herself and lived sensuously, to the same degree give her torment and mourning, for she says in her heart, ‘I SIT as A QUEEN AND I AM NOT A WIDOW, and will never see mourning.’ 8 “For this reason in one day her plagues will come, pestilence and mourning and famine, and she will be burned up with fire; for the Lord God who judges her is strong. 9 “And the kings of the earth, who committed sexual immorality and lived sensuously with her, will cry and lament over her when they see the smoke of her burning, 10 standing at a distance because of the fear of her torment, saying, ‘Woe, woe, the great city, Babylon, the strong city! For in one hour your judgment has come.’
This may very well tie into the 3rd horseman of the apocalypse:
Revelation 6:5 (LSB) And when He opened the third seal, I heard the third living creature saying, “Come.” Then I looked, and behold, a black horse; and he who sits on it had a pair of scales in his hand.
Fire Bible: 17:1 Said to me. Chs. 17–18 portray the fall of “Babylon the Great,” which was previously announced in 14:8 and 16:19.
(1) Babylon (v. 5) is the symbol for the whole world system that has been dominated by Satan throughout history, and which acts out his wicked schemes politically, religiously, economically and commercially (see Jer 50:1, note; 51:1–64, note).
(2) This Babylon will be completely destroyed during the last three and a half years of this age (i.e., during the great tribulation) by God’s judgments on the earth.
Religious Babylon (i.e., the prostitute) will be destroyed by the antichrist (vv. 16–17),
who will use religion for his own deceptive purposes before pushing it aside as useless.
At his coming, Christ will destroy political Babylon (19:11–21).
The antichrist will conquer based on:
His “miraculous resurrection”: Revelation 13:3 (LSB) And I saw one of his heads as if it had been slain fatally, and his fatal wound was healed. And the whole earth marveled and followed after the beast.
He conquerors by being a master of deception:
Matthew 24:24 “For false christs and false prophets will arise and will show great signs and wonders, so as to deceive, if possible, even the elect.”
2 Thessalonians 2:9 “whose coming is in accord with the working of Satan, with all power and signs and false wonders,”
Revelation 13:14 “And he [the False Prophet] deceives those who dwell on the earth because of the signs which were given to him to do in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to make an image to the beast who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.”
To say we live in a day of GREAT Deception is an understatement. Therefore…
Ephesians 4:11–14 (LSB) And He Himself gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, 12 for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ, 13 until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the full knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ, 14 so that we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming,
Colossians 2:8 (LSB) See to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception, according to the tradition of men, according to the elementary principles of the world, and not according to Christ.
1 John 4:1 (LSB) Beloved, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world.
6:4 Horse … fiery red one.
The red horse and its rider represent war and violent death, with the “great sword” symbolizing war’s destruction, which God will allow as part of his wrath on the world (cf. Zec 1:8; 6:2).
The word “they” refers to the people of the earth.
The Greek word for “kill” does not carry the straight forward meaning of death in battle, but brutal killing of all kinds.
The tribulation will be a time of violence, murder and war.
6:5 A black horse.
The black horse and its rider symbolize great famine and its disastrous effects of hunger and suffering (cf. Jer 4:26–28; La 4:8–9; 5:10).
Basic necessities of life will be scarce and prices extremely high.
Hunger will spread throughout the world.
The oil and wine refer to the olive tree and grapevine, which are not hurt as much by drought as the grain and field crops.
Though famines have occurred throughout history and the church age (Mt 24:7), this passage is dealing with a specific famine at its maximum destruction during the tribulation period.
6:8 A pale horse.
The pale horse and its rider, named “Death,” symbolize a terrible intensifying of war, famine, death, plagues, disease and evil beasts.
This judgment will be so terrible that one-fourth of the human race will be killed.
The Bible does not specify exactly when this great devastation will take place (see v. 1, note).
The severity of the judgment, however, seems to suggest that it will take place well into the great tribulation.
Some believe that it will be toward the beginning of the last half of the seven years, when the judgments are beginning to wipe out large portions of the world population.
Rev 6:1 - 8:1