The Bible

 

Revelation 6:1

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1 And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, and I heard, as it were the noise of thunder, one of the four beasts saying, Come and see.

Commentary

 

The Meaning of the Book of Revelation: the Four Horsemen

By Jonathan S. Rose, Curtis Childs

Transparency is needed to sort things out. Before big change happens, God first reveals what’s really going on.

In the Book of Revelation - the last book of the Word - the apostle John describes a series of apocalyptic visions that he experienced during his exile on the Isle of Patmos, in the Aegean Sea.

In one of these visions, he saw four horsemen, the first riding a white horse, the second a red horse, the third a black, and the fourth - named Death - riding a pale horse. These "Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse" - oft-pictured - are described in Revelation 6:1-8.

What do these horses, and their riders, represent? What do they have to do with us, today? Watch as Curtis Childs and Jonathan Rose explore the hidden Bible meaning of the Four Horsemen in the Book of Revelation, in this video from the Swedenborg and Life Series, from the Swedenborg Foundation.

Plus, to go straight to the source, follow the links below to the places in "Apocalypse Revealed" where Swedenborg explained the inner meaning of this famous Bible story. A good place to start would be Apocalypse Revealed 298.

(References: Apocalypse Explained 315; Apocalypse Revealed 262-263, 301, 306, 314, 316, 320, 322-323)

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This video is a product of the Swedenborg Foundation. Follow these links for further information and other videos: www.youtube.com/user/offTheLeftEye and www.swedenborg.com

From Swedenborg's Works

 

Apocalypse Revealed #236

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236. And from the throne proceeded lightnings, thunderings, and voices. (4:5) This symbolizes enlightenment, perception, and instruction from the Lord.

Because of the flash of light that strikes the eyes, lightnings symbolize enlightenment, and because of the crash that strikes the ears, thunderings symbolize perception. And since these two together symbolize enlightenment and perception, voices then symbolize instruction.

These phenomena were seen to proceed from the throne because they emanated from the Son of Man or from the Lord in relation to the Word, and all enlightenment, perception and instruction comes from the Lord by means of the Word.

Lightnings, thunderings and voices have similar symbolic meanings elsewhere in the Word, as in the following places:

You have with Your arm redeemed Your people...; the skies sent out a voice... The voice of Your thunder was into the world; the lightnings lit up the world... (Psalms 77:15, 17-18)

(Jehovah's) lightnings light the world... (Psalms 97:4)

In distress you called, and I rescued you; I answered you in the secret place of thunder... (Psalms 81:7)

I heard... the voice of a great multitude..., as the sound of mighty thunderings, saying, "Hallelujah! For the Lord our God the Almighty has taken the kingdom. (Revelation 19:6)

[2] Because lightnings, thunderings and voices symbolize enlightenment, perception and instruction, therefore when Jehovah descended on Mount Sinai and promulgated the Law, "there were thunderings and lightnings" (Exodus 19:16). Moreover, when a voice issued from heaven to the Lord, it sounded like thunder (John 12:28-29). And because James and John represented charity and its works, and from these spring every perception of truth and good, the Lord called them "Boanerges, that is, 'Sons of Thunder'" (Mark 3:17).

It is apparent from this that lightnings, thunderings and voices have similar symbolic meanings in the following places in the book of Revelation:

I heard one of the four living creatures... with a voice like thunder... (Revelation 6:1)

I heard a voice from heaven... like the voice of loud thunder. (Revelation 14:2)

(When) the angel... threw (the censer) to the earth..., there were thunderings, voices, and lightnings... (Revelation 8:5)

When (the angel) cried out, seven thunders uttered their voices. (Revelation 10:3-4)

(When) the temple of God was opened in heaven... there were lightnings, voices, and thunderings... (Revelation 11:19)

So likewise elsewhere.

  
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Many thanks to the General Church of the New Jerusalem, and to Rev. N.B. Rogers, translator, for the permission to use this translation.