Revelation 6:12-17
The 6th seal
Read text
Pray
Introduction
√ Last week
We followed John’s narration as he records the Lord’s breaking of the 5th Seal.
Revealing the Tribulation Saints under the altar
Each given a white rode – righteousness of Christ & faithful service on earth
Comforted by God – told to wait until the rest of the saints who would be martyred as they were was complete
By way of application I encouraged us all not to forget that we too deserve the wrath of God as described in the Judgments of the…
7 Seals
7 Trumpets
7 Bowls
…but for the grace of God we would find ourselves suffering the same destiny as those we read about.
√ This morning
We finish chapter 6 and the breaking of the 6th Seal. The events described by John seem to indicate that we’re looking at the very end of the Great Tribulation immediately preceding the Lord’s Return to Earth.
The 6th Seal (Vs. 12-14)
Rev 6:12 I looked when He opened the sixth seal, and behold, there was a great earthquake; and the sun became black as sackcloth of hair, and the moon became like blood.
Rev 6:13 And the stars of heaven fell to the earth, as a fig tree drops its late figs when it is shaken by a mighty wind.
Rev 6:14 Then the sky receded as a scroll when it is rolled up, and every mountain and island was moved out of its place.
√ The 6th Seal
First of all, notice the great contrast between Heaven and Earth!
While the martyrs cry out...
"avenge us"
The wicked & unrepentant people on the earth cry out...
"hide us!"
Why? Because the opening of the 6th Seal produces worldwide catastrophe so great that all the people of the earth try to hide themselves under ground!
We’re told that this Judgment of God brings…
Huge earthquake (vs. 12) - 1st of 3 (11:13, 16:18-19)
Sun blackened (vs. 12)
Moon turned red (vs. 12)
Stars fall to earth (vs. 13)
Sky recedes (vs. 14)
Mountains & Islands removed (vs. 14)
While all this may sound too fantastic to believe…
…John's description matches Joel’s’ and Isaiah's predictions of the End Times as well!
(Joel 2:30-31; 3:15 & Isa. 13:9-10; 34:2-4)
Which brings up an interesting question…
“Are the events described by John meant to be understood as literal, or symbolic?”
√ Real or Spiritual?
Some people spiritualize this passage and say that each of the natural catastrophes is symbolic of social and political upheaval rather than physical events.
However, that would not account for the response of the people on earth in vs. 16 who try to hide from the face of God and the Wrath of the Lamb.
Nor does John employ the word “like” to describe the events which would have indicated that he was speaking metaphorically.
Further more, the events described are not without precedent.
That is, as we look at the history of our world we can find similar events (though on a smaller scale) have occurred before.
Ex. New Madrid Quake December 16, 1811
Actually, there were 3 separate earthquakes with thousands of aftershocks. Eyewitness accounts of the devastation tell a story not so different than that described by the apostle John.
Believed to be the largest earthquakes in US history
Damage reported as far away as Washington D.C.
Survivors reported…
“Earthquakes caused cracks to open in the earth’s surface, the ground to roll in visible waves, large areas of land to sink or rise.”
Including…
Dust thrown into the air which blocked the light of the sun/moon for 3 days (blackened sun, red moon)
Lakes disappeared – new lakes formed
Hills flattened – new hills formed
Islands removed – Steamboat “New Orleans” anchored to an island in the Mississippi the night before the 1st quake hit only to discover next morning that the island was gone!
The course of the Mississippi River was changed by shifting terrain!
The point is that as fantastic as the events described by John may seem…
…it is reasonable to conclude that they are literal events based on the fact that we’ve seen very similar destruction in our own young history.
The difference is that the destruction of the 6th Seal is worldwide in its effect.
So, I’d suggest that John's descriptions are of real events so terrible that even the bravest of men and women will faint in the Day of the God's Wrath.
√ What triggers these events?
We're not told what mechanism accounts for all of the natural disasters. Some Bible students have suggested…
Earth struck by a comet - or meteor shower
Polar axis shift
…while we can’t be sure of the mechanism that triggers these events we know for sure that the Lamb of God puts the whole thing into motion with the breaking of the 6th Seal.
No escape (vs. 15-16)
Rev 6:15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains,
Rev 6:16 and said to the mountains and rocks, "Fall on us and hide us from the face of Him who sits on the throne and from the wrath of the Lamb!
√ No escape
Note that there will be no human protection in that terrible day - note vs.15...
Rev 6:15 And the kings of the earth, the great men, the rich men, the commanders, the mighty men, every slave and every free man, hid themselves in the caves and in the rocks of the mountains,
That is, social rank, political standing, and wealth will not deliver anyone on that day.
Won’t matter who you are, or who you think you are - there will be no security separate from Jesus!
In that Day the most valuable real estate on the planet will be a hole in the ground!
√ The World’s response
The really interesting thing is the response of the people on the earth. If I was there I’d cry…
"uncle!"
But instead of surrendering themselves to God - though they acknowledge that it is His Face and the Lamb's Wrath that is producing this judgment - they seek only to hide.
It's a sad reminder that there are many who are beyond repentance.
People who will not respond to the Grace of God - even if it means suffering under the Wrath of God.
Ap. The truth we learn here is that if people will not yield to the Love of God, and be changed by His Grace…
…then neither will they respond to His Wrath!
Ex. Pharaoh
There are people even today, as there will be in the time of the Great Tribulation, who, like Pharaoh harden their hearts toward God.
Blinded by their own pride they have chosen to reject God and His love because to do so would be to acknowledge that they are not self sufficient.
The bottom line is that those who reject God do so for the same reason that Lucifer did…
…they cannot bear the thought that they are not God!
Ap. Beware of a hard heart
Let us never forget that Judas who betrayed Jesus saw and experienced all the miracles just like the other disciples. He…
Was in the boat when Jesus & Peter walked on the water
Handed out the fish & the bread to the multitudes
Went out with the 11, healing the sick and casting out demons
He experienced the love of God in Jesus
Yet, he betrayed Jesus for nothing more than pocket change!
Friends, guard your hearts. You can…
Experience the joy of worship with God’s people
Hear the teaching of His Word
See the changed lives of those His Spirit touches
Even be used in ministry
…and still never have a saving relationship with Jesus because your heart is hard.
What should you do if you have a hard heart? Pray today and ask God to fix it – He’s promised He will.
Eze 36:26 “I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; I will take the heart of stone out of your flesh and give you a heart of flesh.
So, we find that the inhabitants of the earth at the end of the Great Tribulation refuse to repent of their sin and chose instead to try and hide from God.
√ The wrath of the Lamb
Some people have trouble with this image of Jesus - the Lamb of God - executing His wrath upon the world.
Sort of an oxymoron. We understand the…
“Wrath of a bull, or bear, or a lion”
…but the wrath of a lamb! When was the last time you were chased down the street by a lamb!?
They prefer to think of Jesus as meek and mild.
Yet, we must remember that the same Jesus who blessed little children…
…also drove the money changers out of the Temple!
Therefore, what we see here in the Revelation is in character with the Jesus we read about in the Gospels.
The Lord’s wrath is evidence of His holy love for what is right, and His holy hatred of what is evil.
Ex. Rabid dog - the loving & right thing to do is to shot the dog.
Unrepentant Mankind at the end of the Tribulation is like that rabid dog….
…sin has so fully and completely invaded his soul that he is beyond repentance and must be judged.
While many today reject the idea that God will judge the wicked, the Bible clearly proclaims He will!
These verses are a sober warning that inevitable judgement lays ahead for those who reject God's Grace offered in the Person of His Son Jesus Christ.
Standing & falling (vs. 17)
Rev 6:17 "For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?"
√ Standing & falling
Chapter 6 ends with a pointed question...
"For the great day of His wrath has come, and who is able to stand?"
...the answer is obvious - only those have trusted Jesus as their Lord and Savior during the dark days of the rule of Antichrist.
Those who trust in Jesus during the Tribulation, though they may lose their life, they will yet stand before God by His strength.
As Jude writes…
Jude 24 Now to Him who is able to keep you from stumbling, And to present you faultless Before the presence of His glory with exceeding joy,
Jude 25 To God our Savior, Who alone is wise, Be glory and majesty, Dominion and power, Both now and forever. Amen.
Ah, but the Lord has an even better promise to those who trust in Him before the dark days of the Tribulation…
Lu 21:36 “Watch therefore, and pray always that you may be counted worthy to escape all these things that will come to pass, and to stand before the Son of Man.”
The context of the Lord’s comments is a warning to be watchful, that we might not miss the signs that precede the Tribulation…
…that we might “escape” His wrath and stand before Him when the Church is Raptured from the earth.
Ap. All of this is rather sobering and a strong reminder that we don't want to wait to receive God's provision of a Savior!
Close
√ Judgment is coming
Despite what the skeptics of the world might think, Judgment is coming!
Ex. Newsweek’s article on the “Left Behind” series
Calls into question the literal interpretation of the Revelation. The problem is that they do so in spite of the fact that a literal interpretation represents the best hermeneutical exegesis of the text.
The reality is that Modern Man would like to believe that the Judgment described in Revelation (and many other sections of scripture) is nothing more than fairytale, yet, God’s Word declares it to be a reality.
The same Word that has proven itself to be accurate in predicting future judgment(s) over the last 4,000 years!
The point is that since the Bible has accurately foretold how God would work in the future…
…then we can sure that God’s Judgment is real and that it is coming!
√ Keep a soft heart
Protect your heart from becoming hard toward the Lord and His voice.