The Five Horsemen - Part 1

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The Five Horsemen - Part 1

THE FIVE HORSEMEN
By Glenn W. Parrish
Part 1
(taken from a July 11, 1955 Saint’s Herald)

EDITOR’S NOTE: Many Interpretations of the visions and symbols found in the book of Revelation have been published and preached. This article has some new and interesting views of the horsemen, seals, and beasts. The last book of the New Testament in the Greek is called “The Apocalypse of John” – the word “apocalypse” meaning to uncover, unveil. But many of the things recorded in this book were covered so deep that there is room for varied interpretations. Some scholars believe that John chose this method of expression because of the persecution the church was undergoing.

THE FOUR HORSEMEN of the book of Revelation are actors in a divine drama, an allegorical play which John the Revelator saw in a vision.

And the first voice which I heard was as it were of a trumpet talking with me; which said; Come up hither, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter.-Revelation 4:1

The first scene the revelator describes is strange and terrible:
And , behold, a throne was set in heaven, and one sat on the throne. And he that sat there was to look upon like a jasper and sardine-stone; and there was a rainbow round about the throne, in sight like unto an emerald.

Closely studying the portrayal of the stage setting and characters of the pageant as given in the fourth chapter of Revelation, we may be prepared for the action which follows immediately and understand the mystery of its symbolism.
And in the midst of the throne were four and twenty seats’ and upon the seats I saw four and twenty elders sitting, clothed in white raiment, and they had on their heads crowns like gold…. And there were seven lamps of fire burning before the throne. –Revelation 4:4, 5
The twenty-four elders and the seven lamps are part of the background, but the four beasts of Revelation 4:7 actively participate with the four horsemen of Revelation 6- as does also the slain lamb having twelve eyes, and twelve horns, and the events of the opening of the seven-sealed book. The four beasts are described in this verse, “And the first beast was like a lion, and the second beast like a calf, and the third best had a face as a man, and the fourth beast was like a flying eagle.”

A sealed book now enters the scene, “And I saw in the right hand of him that sits on the throne a book written within and on the back side, sealed with seven seals.” A strong angel asks the question, “Who is worthy to open the book, and loose the seals thereof?” And John weeps because no one is found worthy-But one of the elders assures him, “Weep not; behold, the Lion of the tribe of Juda, the Root of David, hath prevailed to open the book.” At this point in the pageant, John introduces “a Lamb as it had been slain, having twelve horns and twelve eyes.” The Inspired Version of the Bible gives the key to this mystery in Revelation 5:6 with the sentence, “having twelve eyes and twelve horns, which are the twelve servants of God, sent forth into all the earth.” The slain lamb is, therefore, a symbol of Christ and his twelve apostles. From this point forward Christ, as symbolized by the slain lamb, becomes the leading character. Christ, the slain lamb, then takes the book from the hand of the Creator who is seated upon the throne.

A SCENE OF indescribable splendor is now before us. The eternal Creator is seated upon a great white throne, surrounded by angels singing in chorus, and “the number of them was ten thousand times ten thousand, and thousands of thousands. ”The twenty-four elders in white robes and golden crowns are immediately below and in the center of the throne, with seats perhaps in tiers. In the foreground there is a sea of glass like crystal; the seven beautiful lamps and the four beasts, the choruses, the thunderings, the lightnings and lastly the combined voices of every living creature in heaven and earth and the sea, saying, “Blessing, and honor, and glory, and power, be unto him that sitteth upon the throne, and unto the lamb for ever and ever.”

The stage is now set; the curtain has risen; the overture of choruses of angels and numberless living creatures in heaven, earth, and sea have finished with a grand finale of the kettledrums of lightning and thunder, and the voices of the four beasts saying “Amen.” The great divine drama of history begins.

In this setting the four horsemen play their part. Attempts to interpret them in terms of history independent of the four beasts, the slain lamb, and the seven seals are futile. This particular phase of the pageant begins with the fourth chapter of Revelation and ends with the close of the sixth chapter. It encompasses in its scope that period of history from the coming of Christ in the flesh until the time of his coming in glory, when the heavens are opened as scroll is opened after it is rolled up. The theme of the book of Revelation is the kingdom of God and its relationships to men and nations, and their development in history. However , the pageant of the four horsemen treats of a particular phase of the coming forth of the kingdom in its relationships to the rise of earthly powers, kingdoms, governments, or ideologies.

THE WHITE HORSE TRIAD

The Horses and horsemen each act in unison with and are part of the series of four triads; namely, (1) a horse and horseman , (2) beast, and (3)
Seal. But... the play is proceeding. Now we hear the voice of John, in great hollow tones, echoing down the dark corridors of time: “And I saw when the Lamb opened one of the seals, one of the four beasts, and I heard, as it were, the noise of thunder, saying, Come and see.”

In chapter four of Revelation, it may be noted that the book in question originated with God. In that scene it was taken from the hand of God by his son, Jesus Christ, who is now about to open one of the seals. God has always worked through dispensations of his gospel, and more particularly through a called and authorized priesthood. Each dispensation has produced a book or record; the book of Enoch in his day, the book of Moses in his dispensation, the New Testament record of Christ’s time, and the Book of Mormon in Nephite history.

However, the seal or book which Christ is about to open could not be the record of Adam or Enoch. It must be the New Testament Scriptures, because the voice that spoke to John at the beginning of this vision said, “Come hither, and I will show thee things which must be hereafter.” The New Testament Scriptures as we know them were not in existence in John’s day, and this statement was to him a prophecy for which he had no doubt prayed and hoped. Now the testimony of Christ is about to be written and published to the world. The first beast speaks, “Come and see.” This beast must of necessity be the beast with the head of a lion, although the Scripture does not so state. In Revelation 6, verses 3, 5, and 7, the second, third, and fourth beasts are named successively. It follows then reasonable that the first beast would have the head of a lion, as they are named in that order in Revelation 4:7.

The coming forth of the New Testament Scriptures then would be in the tongue of the lion. The invitation to come to Christ and see has been a basic message in all dispensations. But in this case it is the voice of the lion of the tribe of Judah. Jesus was a Jew of the house of David. The beast with the head like a lion then represents the tribe or tongue n which the testimony would go forth, the tongue of Judah.

When Jacob was about to die, he gathered his twelve sons and grandchildren about him to bestow a father’s last blessing. A record of the scene and the things Jacob spoke are found in Genesis 49:9 “Judah is a lion’s whelp; from the prey, my son, thou art gone up; he stooped down, he couched as a lion….” In the prophecies of Daniel, the various nations are likened unto beasts. In Daniel 7:6 the Grecian Empire is likened unto a leopard. If the objection is raised that part of the New Testament Scripture was written in and translated from the Greek, it may be noted that the lion and leopard are of the same family. Also Revelation 4:7 states that the first beast was like a lion.

The MYSTERIOUS and romantic four horsemen now enter the picture: “ And I saw, and behold a white horse; and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him ; and he went forth conquering; and to conquer.”
It may be noted at this point that the three succeeding horsemen which follow – namely, the red, the black, and the gray or pale horses- take their cue to enter the stage from the three succeeding beasts, who each in turn speak the words, “come and see.”

Since the opening of the first seal is the revealment of the New Testament Scriptures, the opening of the three succeeding seals with their beasts and horsemen would naturally represent the coming forth of the three succeeding dispensations of the gospel with their records. In the path of this reasoning the mystery begins to clear. But now let us examine the first or white horse whose advent is connected with the first seal and lionheaded beast.

OUR SAVIOR (according to Luke 2:1) was born at the beginning of the reign of Augustus Caesar. Augustus was the first emperor of Rome. Julius Caesar, his famous predecessor, had been offered the crown, but according to historians he refused the title and honor. However, after the assassination of Julius Caesar, it was determined to abolish the old Roman republic and install his successor as emperor. Rome from henceforth entered upon a successful career of world imperialism. North, south, east, and west, the Roman arms marched forth “conquering and to conquer.” The man on horseback has always been a symbol of earthly sovereignty and governing authority. Innumerable medals, statues, bas-reliefs, and paintings have been produced of kings, queens, emperors, and princes on horseback. Kings and emperors often rode a white horse into battle at the head of their cavalry in order that they might be seen easily by their own troops. The first or white horse triad of the opening of the first seal, the speaking of the words “Come and see” by the beast with the head of a lion, and the coming forth of the white horse means that Rome would become an imperial power at the time of the beginning of the advent of Christ.

Christ preached and advocated the kingdom of God, and in his thirtieth year, being baptized and endowed with power of the Holy Ghost, began to build his kingdom, laying first the great foundation stone of his atonement and crucifixion. Then he sent forth his disciples as witnesses to his divinity, crucifixion, resurrection, and divine power, and sent forth a record of testimony in the tongue of the lion (of Judah). That record was the New Testament Scriptures. And the New Testament Scriptures have formed the basis of all Christian teaching and doctrine throughout the millions in the nations of Europe until the time of the Restoration Movement in 1830.

DURING THAT TIME imperialism rode forth throughout all the known world. The Roman Empire rose and fell and split into ten kingdoms or empires. The ecclesiastical Roman empire rose up as the little horn.

Many of the early saints believed that Christ would soon return, perhaps within the first century, and since he had said that his coming would be with power and great glory, they expected that the Roman power would soon be overthrown. This revelation was a warning that centuries would pass, and that four types or ideologies of government would rule before his second coming. The white horse and horseman were not only symbols of the Roman Empire, but imperialism in general. The empire of Genghis Khan extended from Indo-China to the Caspian Sea. Genghis Khan was himself continually in the field, traveling from province to province. And all the earthly possessions of the empire traveled, with him- horses, cattle, sheep, goats, tents, armaments, and soldiers.

In the book, Illustrated World History by John Hammerton , is an illustration of an antique Persian vase with a man on a white horse with a crown on his head and a bow in his hand, molded in relief on its side- a perfect representation of the first or white horseman.
Imperialism was the then prevalent concept of government of all nations, beginning with Rome. The Spanish Empire spread forth to the New World and included areas in what is now the United States, Mexico, Central America, Peru, and even the Philippines.

The French, British, German, and Russian empires also went forth conquering, The British Empire was perhaps the greatest ever known on earth. It included Canada, the American colonies, the West Indies, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, India and Malaya.

REGARDING THE BEAST with the head of a lion who said, “Come and see,” the first book of Nephi in the Book of Mormon is an aid in interpreting the vision. Nephi was carried away in the spirit and saw many of the things which John the Revelator saw. He was also shown John the Revelator himself.

And it came to pass that the angel spake unto me saying, Look ! And I looked and beheld a man, and he was dressed in a white robe…. Behold, he shall see and write the remainder of these things…And, behold, they are written in the book which thou beheld proceeding out of the mouth of the Jew…. And at the time they proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, or, at the time the book proceeded out of the mouth of the Jew, the things which were written were plain and pure.- 1 Nephi 3:238-245

The angel who spoke to Nephi was probably singling out this particular beast. For, as we understand, Nephi also saw the pageant vision of the four horsemen but was forbidden to write it.

The Red Horse Triad

And when he had opened the second seal, I heard the second beast say, Come and see. And there went out another horse that was red; and power was given to him that sat thereon to take peace from the earth, and that they should kill one another; and there was given unto him a great sword. –Revelation 6; 3,4

In the scene that is before us, this second beast that speaks the words, “Come and see” is like unto a calf. (See Revelation 4:7.)
The dispensation of the gospel in the time of Christ brought forth the New Testament combined with the five books of Moses and the prophets. It follows reasonably then that the opening of the second seal would symbolize the coming forth of the Book of Mormon. The Book of Mormon came forth in the tongue of the Egyptians, or reformed Egyptian. The Egyptians worshiped the calf, and also the calf-headed idol goddess Hathor. Hathor was the Egyptian goddess of the dead. Osiris, the greatest god of the Egyptians, was worshiped under the form of Apes, the Sacred Bull. Mnevis, the sacred ox of Heliopolis, was also dedicated to Osiris, chief of all the Egyptian gods; but the calf, the cow, and the bull were the most prominent. Hence it would seem reasonable to assume the calf-headed beast to be a representation of Egypt.

In Isaiah 29:4 is the quotation, “And her speech shall be low out of the dust; and her voice shall be as one that hath a familiar spirit, out of the ground…” The calf-headed beast that welcomes the second or red horse is a representation of the tongue or language in which the Book of Mormon record would come forth. It may be recalled that Moses discovered the children of Israel, who were recently freed from Egyptian servitude, worshiping the golden calf at the time he returned from Mt. Sinai with the tablets of the law. Also, in the dream of Pharaoh which Joseph interpreted, seven lean and seven fat kine, or cattle, signified the seven years of plenty and seven years of famine in Egypt.

THE RED HORSE is now making his entrance on this awe-inspiring setting. The similarities and differences of the white and red horse can now be noticed. The rider of the white horse had a crown and a bow, whereas the rider of the red horse carries a great sword but no crown. And power is given to him to take peace from the earth.

If the interpretation of the opening of the second seal to be the coming forth of the Book of Mormon is correct, then history may be examined to discover if any great changes were taking place in the governments and empires of the world at that time.

The Book of Mormon was first published in 1830. The year 1830, therefore, should herald the coming of the red horse. And it did. What is known as the revolutionary era that began about 1789 in France and 1775 in America, finally swept al empires from the earth. The French empire was first to go down under the great sword of the red horseman, and for many years Europe was bathed in the blood of wars of the contending red and white horsemen. From 1789 until 1870 the revolution raged through France from the assembling of the States-General in Paris until the end of the Franco-Prussian war. Revolutions in the American colonies, Mexico, and the nations of South America were the predecessors of revolutions in Europe in 1917-18 and in China n 1911.

The year 1830 is considered by at least two historians to be the central period of the revolutionary era. And 1830 is also generally agreed upon by most authorities in economic history as the beginning of what is known as the great industrial revolution –the end of the guild system, the rise of stock companies, trusts, banks, syndicates, and holding companies. The era beginning in 1830 is also regarded as epochal in the development of mechanical inventions- the locomotive steampower plant, spinning and weaving machines, cotton gin, the telegraph, and others.

IN THE DAYS of imperialism all sovereignty was vested in a hereditary line of kings, each in turn acquiring office by right of birth, thus creating a dynasty. In the revolutionary movement all sovereign power was, in the hands of the people. “That government of the people, by the people, and for the people should not perish from the earth,” said Lincoln in his famous Gettysburg Address.

The revolutionary movement wiped out the tyranny of the imperial aristocracy, but among all the benefits it has brought to the world, it has not brought peace. On the contrary, it has taken peace from the earth. Since the revolutionary movement began wars have increased in number and intensity. In Revelation 6:3,4 it may be noted that power was given to the red horseman to take peace from the earth. It is also written that the red horseman carried a great sword. The development and increase in quantity and quality of armaments of all kinds during the revolutionary era has been phenomenal- the flintlock musket, the rifle, the Gatling gun, machine guns, artillery pieces, the mortar, the long-range field gun designed for targets of ten and twenty miles distance, and finally the TNT bomb, the atom and hydrogen bomb , atomic artillery, and the guided missile.

THE COST of armaments is slowly bringing the nations to the verge of bankruptcy. At no time in the history of the world has the outlook of the nations been so dark or their financial statue been so precarious. With billions of financial obligations in bonds outstanding, the American people talk and even boast of their prosperity and riches. The interest on the American national debt alone assumes vast proportions, in hundreds of millions of dollars- six and one-half billion to be exact. Truly Isaiah prophesied of this age when he wrote, “Yea, it shall be unto them even as unto a hungry man who dreameth, and behold, he eateth, but he awaketh and his soul is empty” ( Isaiah 29:8) The dreamer finally faces realities and is disillusioned. A popular song of a recent decade was entitled “Did you ever see a dream walking?” The free nations of the world seem to be in that category.

The prophet Nephi wrote,
But behold, in the last days, or in the days of the Gentiles; yea, behold , all the nations of the Gentiles, and also the Jews, both those who shall come upon this land, and those who shall be upon other lands; yea, even upon all the lands of the earth; behold, they will be drunken with iniquity. And all manner of abominations.-II Nephi 11:116

Webster defines the word “iniquity” as unevenness, inequality, injustice. The alcohol in a drunken man’s brain deadens the nerve centers that control balance and cause him to walk upright. As he tries to walk in a straight line, he feels himself falling to the right. Becoming fearful, he reacts violently to the left, and again falling off balance, he plunges forward and to the right again, and thus staggers along a crooked path homeward. This is similar to the political acts of modern nations. One party comes into power which allegedly favors the propertied class, the great corporations, and investment institutions. The employers are favored; the workers are rejected. Slum clearance projects are labeled “socialism.” Strikes are made illegal. Then a reaction takes place. “The government has swung too far to the right,” cry the politicians of the left wing. The voters rise in their wrath and displace the right wing conservatives and install the so-called left wing group. Radical legislation is enacted imposing excessive taxes on large holders of securities, property, and corporation stocks. The businessman and great landlord are almost persecuted for the government.

In a desperate effort to alleviate the economic miseries of the common man, extreme measures are taken to control labor, production, exports and imports, and profits. Too much regulation of business, however discourages industry and private initiative; trade falls off and unemployment grows. Disillusioned, the voters again unseat the left wing advocates, and so the nations of the revolutionary era have gone on staggering drunkenly though the ages under an enormous load of taxation required to pay for old wars fought and new wars feared.

IN THE DAYS OF EMPIRES many men thought that taking the right of sovereignty from kings and giving it to the people would end all the evils that plagued the nations of the world. And the revolutionary era did end the tyranny of kings and the bondage of feudalism. It produced democratic institutions, public schools, and better living conditions for millions with telephones, radios, television sets, and a long list of labor-saving gadgets including the automobile. To produce the things modern nations demand, an abundance of raw materials such as coal, iron, copper, nickel, and petroleum is required. In the New World these elements were found in abundance, but in Europe raw materials necessary for the building of modern electrical equipment, railways, automobiles, steamships, and numerous other items important to commerce and trade were in short supply. So the mad scramble for raw materials began.

The revolutionary era and the industrial revolution have given men the right of suffrage but have not abolished poverty. The poverty of the workers in industrial organizations gave rise to labor unionism. A continual cold war has been fought between capital and labor over the profits of industry. Workingmen fought long and hard to secure the right to bargain collectively. The miseries and sufferings of the people produced the revolutionary movement in France, Russia, and all the great empires of the world. One historian makes the statement that of every twenty dollars worth of agricultural products produced by the French peasants of the days of Louis fourteenth, fifteenth, and sixteenth, sixteen dollars went to the king; three dollars to the Duke, Count, or Lord of the manor whose land the peasant worked, and one dollar went to the peasant. Innocent persons, were arrested, held without trial, and imprisoned in the Bastille in Paris.

The first labor union was organized in England in 1830, and in that year the entire ideological concept in government began to change, until all the great empires were overthrown by the sword of the red horseman, and all governments were forced to give the right of suffrage to their people. (to be continued )